Don't let life pass you by
Don't just tag along for the ride
Pick up your pace
Join in the race
And every once in a while
Glide

Don't let opportunity give you the slip
Don't get caught alone and adrift
Look your fans in the face
Run the bases with grace
And every once in a while
Slide

Remember only we determine our fate
So there is no reason to wait
Now is the wine to taste
There is no time to waste
And every once in a while
Collide

Get up and go before your get up is gone
Get things done before too long
We'll run out of tomorrows
And be left only with sorrows
If we never step up and
Decide

Selfie - Oxford word of the year for 2013

"A selfie is a type of self-portrait photograph, typically taken with a hand-held digital camera or camera phone, and is usually taken in a slightly tilted manner. Selfies are often associated with social networking." (Source - Wikipedia)

Back in the late 70's of the last century I was studying art at a small prestigious college in western Ney York. It was required of every art student to produce at least one self portrait. Apparently all the great artists did them; Rembrandt, Picasso, Van Gogh. It has been quite a few years since I have attempted a self portrait. One was due.

I photographed this portrait I painted of my self with my cell phone for publication on the Xanga social network, thus blending the traditional self portrait with the modern selfie. I am so leading edge.

"Selfie" - 12/29/13
Acrylic on canvas

I  made this recording for the few of you who have stuck with me...

My wife and I took a short road trip to Beth and Dave's Home and green houses. I wanted to help with their poinsettia show. We have driven down a few times in the past. It feels like home there, Beth and Dave are truly part of my family. We didn't make it last year due to my expedition to Ecuador.

I made this for the Poinsettia show.

It took me a day, some old scrapes pallets, white and red plastic, a little paint, a million staples and a few strings of Christmas light. Beth and Dave fed us well. There is something magical about sharing a meal with good people.

Dave seems to be doing very well since his heart attack, and Beth keeps getting more beautiful with every hug she gives. Oooo yeah, I love her hugs!

If you haven't checked out the show yet you should. You can see it here;

http://seedsower.xanga.com

If you ever get the chance to see it in person,  i t  i s  a m a z i n g.

Well, now I have to go shovel the car out of the driveway.

I keep trying to visit my Xanga friends but all I get is

Really very annoying

When I'm alone
late in the night
I can see the winged creatures
drift in flight
Their silhouettes
against the golden moonlight
I've got them all in my sights

And all the while
you can hear them
so put on a smile
don't you fear them

Watch them hovering
watch them dive
life is uncovering
aren't you glad that you're alive

And all the while
you can hear them
singing out
in strange voices
ever changing on high

We are creatures of the night
we have no choice but flight
we'd rather run
yes we'd rather run
we'd rather run than fight

As an artist one of my most studied subjects has been the nude. While a student at Alfred I logged over 50 credit hours in figure studies. I even modeled for classes. There is something intrinsically beautiful in the human form. Here, exists a true grace, the naked body.

"The Unwanted"

In nature man searches for duplicity, seeking connections and striving to find analogies. We study ripples in water to better understand earthquakes. We study the behavior of mice to better understand our own psychological make up. We study the human figure to better know how our bodies function in a given space.

Our society suffers from an unusual hypocrisy with regards to nudity. On the one hand nudity is banned in public forums, broadcast television, family friendly entertainment and so on, yet subtle allusions to nudity are acceptable. Sheer tightfitting clothing leaves little to the imagination. Even less imagination is required to find images of less than artistic nudes on the internet.

We are awkward and ashamed of our own nudity and yet yearn to express our true naked selves. There are those who perhaps under the influence of alcohol or in a moment of reckless abandon relinquish the bonds of cloth and fiber and reveal themselves as the naked creatures we all know ourselves to be. But most of us recognize and surrender to the social taboo associated with nakedness.

"Exotic Dancers"

So what is it I see when I study the nude, with brushes in hand? I see masses of color, reflecting light and casting shadows. I see dynamic tension as the skeleton struggles against gravity to maintain posture. I sense the rhythm of the universe in the pulsations of arteries and respirations.

In the face of the model there exists a revelation of the spirit, try as it might to hide behind the material veil of skin and hair. From the eyes and lips, the true spirit pours forth.

I see proportions, some classical and some distorted, not conforming to the classical model. I see strength and weakness combating over the same mass of muscles as the model struggles to maintain a pose. I see purpose and beauty. I see truth unrivaled by ostentatious fashions. I see sensuality and desire, a yearning to be caressed and to belong and to also be free. I see our humanity.

"The Minotaur in Contemplation"

The nude is not a perverse thing, but we, the society of mankind has errantly tried to make it so. We are tolerant of nearly every behavior and belief, but are ashamed of our own naked selves.

"Eve in Contemplation"

I should like to focus more of my energy painting the nude, if but for no other reason, than to fly in the face of conformity. There must be some value in breaking away from our traditional view of nudity and embracing the naked self.

I will however for the time being confine this artistic expression to the canvas and refrain from wandering the streets in such a manner.

There is one final note I am inclined to share, my brushes relinquish intimacy to the canvas. Every surface, every curve, every shadow, exposes not just the flesh that can be seen but also the nerve that is felt.

Saturday is opening day of deer season (shotgun) where I hunt. I have been in the woods at sunrise on opening day religiously every year since 1979. I love to be afield in the autumn. I let the stress and worries of the previous summer's work load fall off my shoulders, like the shower of yellow maple leaves on the autumn breeze.

I will wake up long before dawn, eat a big breakfast, dress warm and head out into the breaking daylight. Walking slowly and as silently as possible to my prized hunting blind, a cozy spot with a nice view. I will settle in and wait, counting the shots fired before legal shooting time, usually they start a half hour early, mostly hunters who spook deer while walking into the woods, mostly shots fired wildly in overwrought excitement.

I will count the shots fired off in the distance echoing up the valley. There will very likely be birds and squirrels investigating me, chirping and squawking at me. I will smile and wave at them. they will flitter and scurry away. I might see an owl or a porcupine. They are pretty common in these woods.

Last year I had a very handsome buck come within 30 feet of me, 7 minutes after sunrise, the legal shooting time. I watched him for a few minutes as he sauntered off to the west. Sometimes I just enjoy sitting and relaxing. If I had shot him I would have had to dress him and drag him back to camp. It was too early for that. Unfortunately for me it was the only buck I saw all season. Still I do not regret my decision.

I prefer to shoot a small deer, one least likely to survive a harsh winter. I try not to shoot healthy does, unless I am seeing too many of them. Then as a matter of conservation it must be done. I rarely shoot big bucks. Not that I don't want to but there aren't that many in our area, and the few I have taken, the meat isn't really the finest.

I hunt with a Hawkins side lock muzzle loading rifle. I only get one shot. I make it count. One shot, One kill. That is the rule.

Saturday morning at sunrise I will be sitting quietly in the woods, waiting for something to entice me, but mostly I will be resting my mind, my spirit and my soul. It is the way of the hunter. It is as it has been since the dawn of man.

Tea.

I never much liked tea.

That is until I got older.

Now I drink a cup of tea nearly every day.

The canned and bottled iced teas that you pick up in the QuickyMarts don't really count as tea, they have added sweeteners and flavorings that mask the taste of the tea.

I am talking about fresh brewed loose leaf tea.

There is something soothing and pleasurable about a properly brewed cup of tea.

The key of course is "properly brewed".

There are quite a few web sources that describe how to properly brew tea. I know this because I did a pile of research. The most common mistakes can be avoided, and more importantly the proper procedures can be mastered rather easily.

First select good quality tea. Yes it may seem a bit more expensive but actually the cost value is exceptionally high. So, you can spend a little less on crappy tea or a little more on excellent tea. A good quality tea is most often a loose leaf tea, not the crumbs and dust they pack into tea bags. I still keep tea bags for the convenience but use them rarely. You can research the types of teas, by trial and error, buy small quantities at a time and see which ones you like and which ones you don't. I like simple green tea the best.

Next, select good water. You can't make good tea with awful tasting water. If your tap water tastes fine then so will your tea, if not try getting water from another source or using bottled water.  I like our tap water. I also like using an old fashioned tea kettle.

Heating the water is simple enough, you can use the stove top, a coffee maker or a coal fire if you prefer. The heat source doesn't matter one bit. What does matter is how hot the water is. Teas are sensitive to variations in heat. Green teas should steep at lower temperatures for shorter times. Black teas for longer times at higher temperatures. For my green tea I pour the water into my mug as soon as it starts to boil, wait 1 minute for the water to cool, and then add the tea. It was a trial and error process.

Black teas take longer to brew, up to 6 minutes. I drink English breakfast tea, a black tea, in the morning to wake up. It is gentler on the stomach than coffee, and the stimulants in tea are more subtle and longer lasting than in coffee.

I have a tea strainer, a simple tightly woven small basket with a handle on it, that I place the tea in and let steep in the water. There are in fact more products for brewing tea than are words on this page.

Each time you use the tea leaves is called an infusion. The first infusion is usually the strongest and should be done in the lowest temperature of the range for the shortest time.  Green tea is good for 5-6 infusions before you discard the leaves. I find the 3rd and 4th infusions to have the best flavor, full and rich without the bitterness that is familiar to tea. I never add anything to my tea if it is brewed properly. When necessary I will add honey and lemon.

Tea.

It is the second most consumed beverage in the world.
It is readily available and easy to make.
It has many known health benefits. Perhaps this is why tea is for old people. People who don't drink tea rarely make it into old age.

If you have developed a taste for tea I suggest that you don't give up on it just yet. If you like tea, take some time to research how to make your tea drinking experience even more pleasant.

Would you care to join me for tea?

I figured after reading some of the top tens posted by some of my readers that I should really do the survey myself.

1. Your top ten foods; Lobster in melted butter, Artichokes in melted butter, Rare beef in melted butter, Peanut butter and cheese tortilla wraps with purple onions, cilantro and lime fried in butter, Welches concord grape juice, Marco Polo bread with real butter, Linguini and brie with olive oil, My wife’s home made macaroni and cheese, Fresh garden vine ripened tomatoes, Good old fashioned bacon and eggs over easy fried in butter.

2. Your top ten people in history living or dead to invite to a dinner party; Leonardo Da Vinci, Neil Armstrong, Confucius, Peter Gabriel,  Marilyn Monroe, Cleopatra, Dean Martin, Robin Williams, and Jesus.

3. Your top ten favorite songs; Over the Rainbow, White Christmas, Cinema Show, While my Guitar Gently Weeps, Mercy Street, Creatures of the Night, The Chain, Comptine d'un autre été, Rolling in the Deep, Stairway to Heaven

4. The top ten ways you’d like to spend your Saturday; Sleeping in, Watching Bugs Bunny cartoons, Drawing and painting, Planting in the garden, Walking in the woods, Getting naked with my wife, Playing the piano, Swimming in the ocean, Making something delicious to eat.

5. Your opinion, the top ten inventions / discoveries of mankind; Fire, Music, Writing, Mechanical advantage, Electricity, Aerodynamics and jet propulsion, The fishing hook, The hat, Indoor plumbing, Animation.

6. The top ten ways you would spend money if money was no object; Go into space, Donate to the medical sciences, Buy huge tracts of land to preserve nature, Buy multiple homes in various places around the world. Hire lots of people to take care of my homes, Build several art studios and galleries around the globe, Offer opportunities for young and gifted artists to learn and practice, Travel between my houses and galleries and huge tracts of land, Produce a record album, Eat all my favorite foods.

7. Your ten best qualities or talents; Organizational skills, Leadership ability, Patience, Teaching ability, Artistic ability, Generally good working with my hands, Fixing things, Taking things apart, Giving hugs, Sitting.

8. Your ten best friends; Lori, Nick, Bill, Barbara, Mike, Bishop, Gary, Nick, Mario, Art.

9. Your top ten best memories; Sleeping in the car when dad drove home, Sledding in deep powdery snow, Camping with the boy scouts, Hunting with the gang, Waking up next to my beautiful wife, Christmas mornings, Hugs from family members, Swimming in the water, Mom, Playing pick up ball games in the street.

10. The top ten things you wouldn’t want anyone to know about you; Which people I've slept with,  Who I was rooting for last Sunday, What I am thinking much of the time, Whether or not I have done drugs, My weaknesses and physical limitations, Whom I idolize on the world stage, My passwords, My savings accounts information, Where I hide my chocolate, Where I hid the body.