Apologies to T.S.Eliot. This month has been full of health issues, first an abscess on my leg and now my u.colitis has been acting up for the last week. So I haven't been able to go out much. It's been tricky trying to get groceries & meds or even the stuff in from the car(the garage is outside past the parking lot and I live on the second floor). Naturally, my elderly mother has to be more crabby and demanding than usual when I'm not feeling well enough to do much.
That's why I haven't posted lately, no exciting activities to report on. Hopefully, I'll start feeling better soon and will be able to get out of the house more often and enjoy spring before it's over.

Hope everyone who celebrates has a lovely holiday!

This is my first painting of the year. I actually had 3 in various states of completion, but this is the one which got done first at the end of February. It was expressly done for an online art show called "Awakenings" at ebsqart.com, with the them of spring being nature's awakening after winter. The bird is a Philadelphia Vireo, which is related to the more common red-eyed vireo and lives in woods, where wild crab apple trees are often found on the edges. It's done in Graphitint pencils with some of the base colors in a thin acrylic wash. The whole picture, even the preliminary drawing, went very fast and I was pleased at how it turned out. It's titled "Brandywine Blossoms".
The two other paintings are a small one of coyotes in a rocky landscape and a Cooper's Hawk in winter. I was having trouble with the coyotes, so I've been concentrating on the hawk for the last week or so. I've never painted that particular species, so I've been being careful. There's also a preliminary of a European brown bear that I've been struggling with, but hopefully will get resolved soon.

Though I'm part Irish, I don't get drunk and party on this day, but I do listen to Irish music, watch an Irish movie(or at least one with Irishman Pierce Brosnan in) and have a scone or some sort of Irish type food, usually a potato. lol

My sister & I went to the winter antique show on Saturday. It's held in the cafeteria of a local high school and always something we look forward to.This year they had some new vendors and a lot more to look at, which meant we soon found some items to take home. The photo is of my purchases. Yes, that's another giant pine cone, but a bit smaller and more colorful than the one I got last year. I was thrilled to find a copy of "Wind in the Willows" with Arthur Rackham illustrations, I really like his artwork. There's also several vintage Cleveland postcards and a small print of red deer in the snow, which was part of a pair, but the other image featured a hunter, so I didn't want it. There's also a tall green jar, with a home canning type lid, not sure what I'll end up putting in it, but it was so pretty, I couldn't resist.
My sister bought a story book and an antique pin and we both had an enjoyable afternoon, even with the sharp wind and snow pellets swirling around our walk to the car. We stopped for Chinese food on the way home, capping a fun day.

Though my cold is still lingering, I had improved enough to attend the library's annual book sale on Thursday. They have 3 rooms of books, divided by category and I always focus on the big nonfiction room. It took me longer than usual to start finding things, but I ended up with 9 books, all of them animal/nature and history, except for a lovely thick book(Literary Britain) about the locations portrayed in English literature, which I started reading that very evening. It has a small font, which I usually reject due to difficulty seeing, but the passages that I skimmed were so interesting that I had to have it.
A slim volume pairing flower quotes from Shakespeare and beautiful illustrations of them is one of my favorite purchases. It's a terrific idea and the watercolors are so richly done, it's very inspiring. I'm looking forward to reading the Medieval and Victorian history books, the latter has intriguing drawings and vintage photos that I want to study in depth.
As always, there were a number of books that were in the wrong categories at the sale, so my mild OCD had me moving some of them around to the proper tables.For instance, they had Stephen Colbert's book in biographies, not humor. Does someone NOT know who Stephen Colbert is? There was a castle book in home decor, which I found amusing and a Henry VIII book somewhere very strange, until I put it in history. There were also quite a few books which ought to have been in the childrens/young adult room, and I'm sorry I didn't correct those. A fellow shopper came over at one point and asked if I was a volunteer or a customer, but walked off when I was explaining(in the middle of my sentence!), maybe she needed help?
Anyways, though it was sharply cold with a biting wind, I was glad that I was able to go to the sale.I spent less than usual, but wasn't for lack of trying. lol It was a nice day.

This month has been quite a bumpy beginning to 2017. Some of my health problems have flared up and I'm just now starting to get over one of the worst colds that I've had in years. Ugh, colds are messy and miserable and I can't wait for this one to leave.
Turns out that water from my bathtub has been leaking into the apartment downstairs, so now that has to be fixed. One of the condo board members told me of a place where they can fit a cover over one's existing tub and shower wall, which is less expensive than ripping everything out. I'm hoping our homeowner's insurance covers it.
Having trouble getting any of my art projects underway. There's even one that's been transferred to it's final paper & of course, the colors are coming out wrong. Another of a brown bear does not look like an adult and a third of a bird in apple branches is overwhelming me with placement of twigs and blossoms.
The weather is milder than usual, with a few snow days followed by either rain or spring temperatures.In the fall, there was a polar vortex was predicted for February, but I'm not sure if that's still forecast.
I'm hoping to feel decent enough to go to the big book sale at the library starting next Thursday. I always find such great deals there. And goodness knows, if there's anything I need more of, it's books. lol

This is a vintage Russian postcard celebrating New Year's. I've always wanted to see one of those squirrels with the tufted ears, they are even cuter than regular ones.
Here's hoping that 2017 is a better year than we're anticipating!

Another year over, a new one begun... Many people are saying they are glad to see the back of 2016 and in some ways I agree. There were a lot of big tragedies, an appalling presidential election and losing so many celebrity icons of my youth.
But on a personal level it wasn't as bad as 2015, thankfully. Though the most troubling event was learning that my mom is in the early stages of dementia and all that entails. She's suffered from depression and Borderline Personality Disorder most of her life, so in some ways, this is just an exaggeration of some of those symptoms, but the delusions are something very different and difficult to handle. I'll probably write more about this at a future date, since there's much that I've learned and am continuing to learn, in various meanings.
Because of that, I haven't been able to have as many outings as in years past, but there were some afternoons where I attended the book group or went on some sketching trips to parks and nature centers. My sister & I went to both local antique shows and to a neighborhood farmer's market.
Artistically, it was a good year; winning 2 ribbons in a community art show, learning the basics of Zentangle, being in 2 new craft shows, trying to paint en plein air(on location). That last one had mixed results, but is one of the things, along with Zentangle, that I hope to do more of in the coming year. These are in addition to my "official" artworks, so I must be feeling ambitious.
Aside from regular flare-ups of my usual chronic diseases, there was no big health issues this year with myself or my sister, unlike last year. Rollo stayed pretty healthy all year, too, except for that brief bladder infection last winter. I've been giving him some tablets that a friend recommended with cranberries, etc. in that is supposed to help keep rodent plumbing in good working order. He really likes them and I call them his "special treat". He remains outgoing and playful and my sister is completely charmed with him and they have several games they play together.
A number of Tv shows that I liked ended or were cancelled this year. "Downton Abbey" and "Mr. Selfridge" on PBS after long runs and "Indian Summers" after 2 brief years, due to falling ratings & expensive on-location filming. Larry Wilomore's political comedy show ended abruptly, even before the election was over. Since I don't watch a lot of Tv, it was disappointing to have these favorites gone. I've found a couple new shows and am looking forward to some of the PBS dramas coming this year, but new shows don't always meet the standards set by old favorites. I have enjoyed hearing a lot of new music courtesy of Trevor Noah and Stephen Colbert, especially since I never liked radio and MTV has morphed into a reality channel. *sigh*
As we go into a new year, I'm feeling somewhat optimistic, despite horrid election results and my mother's illness. I'm going to try to do better at handling each, as well as meeting some personal and artistic goals. Hope springs eternal.

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah! May your holidays be filled with love and joy as you create wonderful memories.