Getting sick was not the way I wished to celebrate the holidays.
I don’t get sick often. I can’t even remember the last time I was sick. But for the past week or so something wild and mischievous invaded my lungs and throat while wrecking all kinds of havoc on my innards. No stomach bug thank goodness but for a day or two I was wondering whether or not I was coming down with pneumonia. I’ve never had a spell quite like it. I coughed and hacked and coughed some more for several days and at times on the verge of strangling myself. On the positive side, it sure gave my ab muscles a workout! As much as I like a good workout and could probably use one, I would still prefer using my ab muscles for more constructive purposes. Like disposing of all the bounty of leftovers in the fridge! I hate seeing good food go to waste so my final act of charity this year will be making sure not a crumb goes unconsumed. I’ve been eating like a king for the past week or so. I will surely have the abs of a pregnant gopher as a result and will be ready to hibernate somewhere. Not a bad way to spend a January if you ask me.
If Santa didn’t get sick this Christmas, I haven’t the foggiest idea how he avoided it. The stuff was laying waste to everyone I knew and loads of people whom I didn’t know. Christmas is usually the highlight of my year but this year’s shebang for my family was smoked due to all the bugs and disease being passes around. There’s been quite a few in my family who came down with something or another which left our usual Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas morning festivities lighter and quieter than usual. I didn’t feel like working and fortunately I didn’t have to. But I can’t stay down and comfy for much longer as I’ve got a few illustration projects that I need to be putting some thought towards. As usual the Christmas season is over and finished much sooner than I wanted. At least I’m feeling loads better so might as well get the year off on the right foot and get back to my creative pursuits.
I had hoped to get more painting done than what I did. Between the holiday hoopla and the blaaaahs, my art output was plum paltry for the month. But I did manage a few pieces worth showing. Before getting waylaid by the great Christmas crud of 2024 I was goofing around with a self-portrait for fun and kicks. I penciled it in, laid down a couple of color washes for the background and then set it aside hoping to get back to it. It usually takes me three or four passes to get most of my watercolor paintings done. But I had to take care of some window jobs and then I got too sick to care about doing anything for a few days. A week or two went by before I felt like working on it again. My unfinished piece laid around and was staring back at me all this time, beckoning me to finish it. I hate leaving anything half done and having my mug looking back at me threatening to hex me if I didn’t finish it. Coming off the heels of being sick I didn’t need something else to mess with my mojo. So finished it I did.
Laying down flesh colors in watercolors is always a tricky business. Or at least it always has been for me. Accurately rendering the light highlights and the darker shadowy areas of a person’s face is key to making the painting look halfway realistic as well as making the vibrancy that is so unique to watercolors work in your favor. Done right and your painting will really “pop” and the personality will be unmistakable. It took a few sessions and quite a bit of messing around with the colors to get my portrait about the way I wanted. Or at least to the point I could live with it. That’s painting for you. It’s so darn temperamental. You can’t tell when you are truly done or not until you are so sick of looking at it that you are ready to stab yourself with a paintbrush rather than continue working on it for another minute. A painter’s version of hari-kari if you will.
This final piece was done on the final day or two of 2024 when we had some weather move in. I was sitting out in one of Dad’s sheds that overlooks some of the surrounding fields of the neighbors below us. It was a rather dark and gloomy day with the wind picking up and the skies foreboding. The view is always postcard worthy no matter what the weather is doing so I decided to get some painting practice in and paint what I saw. Or at least do the best job I could manage. I might have made things a little too dark and dreary which is easy to do when painting. Of all the seasons, the winter landscape is the toughest to paint, especially on a gray day when the colors and lights just aren’t very energetic. Even if the conditions were not ideal, it’s still not too shabby I’d say.
Here’s wishing you and yours a prosperous and fun 2025.
