October Update

I'm still pretty busy with Massage Therapy school but I thought I would post just a couple of things.

First of all, Steve's got a new blog! It's called Hot Wheels Down Under. If that title doesn't make sense to you, let me explain that he is taking off next weekend for an extended bike tour through and around the Australian Outback. In summer, yikes!! Check it out.

Above is a photo from one of the trails in the Dale Ball trail system above Santa Fe. There are some wonderful places to go hiking, mt. biking, and running. This trail went up Mt. Picacho.

I started this drawing the last day of my break last week (why does it take me the whole week to get inspired?). It might be awhile before I can get around to finish it -- unless I neglect my homework! :)

We are now getting cold nights & frosty mornings here in town, but the days have been relatively warm here at 7000'. Hope everyone is enjoying the last week of Daylight Savings Time!

Better Late than Never!

Wow, it's fall already! In some ways, I feel like I'm so far behind that I think I'm first. I must apologize for being away so long & explain why...

This summer was spent guiding -- bike tours in KY & NC, then a hiking tour out in Yosemite, another hike back in southwestern Colorado, then out to Oregon for a few more bike tours.

My mom fell very ill in the early to middle part of the summer then sadly, passed away -- I was on tour then back "home" a few times. Had to spend a little time grounding as well.

The Good News (and there *is* Good News) is that I'm in Santa Fe, NM, for six months of massage therapy training. I've only been here for less than a month and still in the getting-used-to-it/shock-of-having-to-be-in-school again, but it's going well so far. And, I'm learning Lots, with a capital L! Not sure how much I'll be able to post from here, but hopefully at least periodically. So far the workload has been plenty, but old high school habits are returning (like, I keep my head in the books full-time! Haha!). Not sure if that is a "good thing" but am trying to adapt to be focused but not "too" focused... and not "too" perfect. I like to think of myself as a "recovering" perfectionist. Hmmmm! :-) Our class is a great group of people, too! Yay!

This is the time of year for comfort food, like apple pie and chili! So I hope everyone is doing well out there & enjoying whatever fall weather / colors you have in your neck of the woods!

Images of Summer -- Colorado

Here are some pictures from late July in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. We saw the most amazing field of blue columbines in the Ice Lake Basin near Silverton!!! Cool!

Images of Summer -- Yosemite

Sorry it has taken me so long to get back online! It's been a very busy summer. Here are a few shots from the 2008 July Yosemite hike. From the top: group shot at Mariposa Grove; Half Dome from Clouds Rest; Gull at Mono Lake; view east from Mono Pass; view of Tuolomne Meadows from Glen Aulin trail.

Hope all of you have been enjoying your summer! :-)

Kentucky Bluegrass Bike Tour

Here's a quick couple of pics from a recent bike tour in Kentucky around the Lexington area. (From top: Horses training at Keeneland Racetrack; Terry & Kim at Keeneland; Kay & Gunter and friends posing for a picture out in horse country)

Kentucky was a really fun tour this year, especially with the people that were on the tour. I was too busy visiting all week to take many pictures! :-)

Moving Along!

Sorry for the long absence. Time flies -- or is consumed -- when you are moving. And I've been Moving (with a capital "M")! Moving as in moving out of the place we rented for six months over the winter. Moving most of that stuff into storage in Colorado for the summer. Then, literally moving myself & my truck up to Canada, where I am now, to get my stuff out of my storage here so I can move it to the storage area in Colorado! Although I don't have that much on a relative scale, I do seem to have too much stuff!! Yikes. I've been going through items that I've been carrying around with me the last 25 years. I'm like a cat with nine lives, in Life 5, looking back at Lives 2, 3, & 4. :-)

Inspiration: The photos above are artwork from June's Originals, here in Windermere, B.C. June is an amazing artist, as you can see! She is a fantastic painter as well as a master woodcut artist. She is also one of my very best friends! If you ever get up to Eastern B.C., stop by her studio. It rocks! She is just getting her blog set up and pretty soon there will be lots of really cool artwork online, so check back. (I put a link to it on the side of this page.)

New Painting

18" x 24"

Untitled

Acrylic on Canvas

**********

I've just spent the last couple of days painting in a painting whirlwind. Realizing that it was less than a week until our 6-month condo lease was up, I thought I had better paint something on the last blank canvas!

This painting came together much easier compared to the last two since I have been playing with the design for awhile. I like the bright colors. Can you tell from the photo that I was working on blending colors in each section? Still experimenting with acrylics, though. You have to work pretty fast since they dry so quickly. This design was originally used in my CorelDraw program on my computer. I am hoping to eventually design a bike jersey based on my artwork, so I was playing with the "blending" tool! Too fun! :-)