paintings, family and dogs

family has been staying, and I’ve been busy with a writing course run by Dr Jonathan Ward, Writing Outside; these are my excuses for not being very diligent with posts.

Bimba is gradually settling in. she had her first run off the lead on a beach on Sunday, carefully organised on an almost empty Burnham Overy beach, early-ish morning, with a steady dog she knows well, and she had an amazing time, zooming hither and thither, coming back all the time. eventually she got a little frustrated with dear Louie’s quiet behaviour and started trying to play pretend (ish) biting, so we put them back on the lead. my main fear that she would startle and just run, totally unfounded.

here is Sal on a Northumberland beach about twenty years ago. I was completely unworried about having him off the lead.

and as for this one, she was off the lead far too much. oh well. she had an amazing time.

Miss B expressed a desire to learn how to eat knitting – we dissuaded her

she continues to be very cuddly and loving, to try to chew books, knitting, cushions, not so much the furniture, so that’s a definite improvement.

the person being cuddled (above) blew through my house and possessions and persuaded me into various rearrangements which involved four binbags of clothes to the charity shop, the discarding of everything to do with videotape, and various items of furniture changing places up and down the stairs, so now I feel unburdened, and the house looks bigger. we found quite a few nice old photos.

meanwhile I have managed to continue painting once a week

a further attempt at weeds, held in a pot made by Sabine Nemet

then I decided the pot should feature more – this is one by Nic Collins – and I started to deal more with the light coming in from the window.

next week it was a jar by Svend Bayer, with horsetails and valerian, and a lot more light.

which led by natural progression to today’s painting, featuring five of my pots and even more light.