Making Art

I've been lacking on the blogging lately.  Since I've been home, I have been slowly unpacking and making art.  Believe it or not, I still have my camping equipment in my car.  Everything in due time, I suppose.  As you may know, I have a hard time relaxing.  I am not one to sit back and relax and read a book.  I've read a few books in the past few months but they have to grab my attention for me to continue reading.  I need to be learning something new each day and doing something with art to fulfill my creative soul.

That being said, I have been spending a lot of time working on some pieces for a few shows coming up.  I will be one of the artists at "ALLOW" this Saturday at the Avia hotel in Long Beach and my work will be included in the Sipology exhibit "Urban Pets"opening this Saturday and continuing through early February.

I've stepped out of my comfort zone of mounting and framing photographs in traditional frames to mounting them on wood boxes.  I spend a lot of time first working with the box by sanding and treating it so it's a nice smooth finish before I mount the photograph and complete the finished piece with a matte coating of acrylic paint over the entire piece to give it texture and durability.  It's been a learning experience for sure.  I've done a lot of 4x4 boxes with photographs I've taken with my iphone (for sale on etsy), but the larger boxes are with photographs I took on my big camera and I spend a lot of time on each one to make it perfect...at least in my eyes.

Even though I am not out traveling the country at the moment, I am still trying new things at home.  I don't think I am one to ever stay still so who knows what will happen next.  I try to enjoy each moment while I can.  If you are still out there looking for gifts for the holidays, perhaps try something new and make art.  If you don't have the time, www.Etsy.com has several hand made goods that would make a great gift.  I hope to see you at one of the shows if you are in the area.

Family Portrait of Mary Ellen, Pancho and Scout

I just realized that I haven't blogged in a while.  Since being home, I have been working on making art boxes and visiting with friends I haven't seen in a while.  Yesterday it was a nice break to go to the beach to photograph Mary Ellen and her pups, Scout and Pancho.  She has her own dog walking business, Pet Waggin' so I am used to seeing her with a pack of dogs at the dog park.  This time, Pancho and Scout had their mom all to themselves.  I had a great time capturing her playing at the beach with her happy dogs. On thing is for sure...she is not afraid to get down and dirty in the mud to play with them.

For more photographs of the day, click HERE.

Outdoor Bingo

You never know what you get when you decide to go to a bingo game.  I had different expectations since all others games have been indoors and I was hoping to get a drag queen caller.  The drag queen called in sick so that will have to wait.

I've really had a unique time at each bingo game I've been to across the country.  I have not sat down to play as of yet which is fine by me.  I prefer to observe and take photographs of the players.  That is what is interesting to me.  Besides, I am such a beginner without any of the necessary "tools" you need to play the game.  I will also need to find some stuffed animals or good luck charms to display.

If you are looking for some excitement in your area, I would encourage you to go to a bingo game.  You can look up the participating places by clicking HERE.

To see more photographs in my Bingo Culture Collection, click HERE.

Caroline and Shawdee - Portrait of a Family

I am thankful to have Caroline, Shawdee and now Alexa in my life.  I've been staying with the three of them while my home is being rented.  They have been wonderful friends to me for several years.  They've always supported me in my decisions in life and more recently, supported my art.  One day while Shawdee was pregnant, I thought it would be fun to photograph them in bed in a John and Yoko style and they both agreed to do it!  Since then, I documented Alexa's birthday at the hospital and yesterday, a family trip to the beach.

Being on the road for so many months of the year, it can be difficult to hold on to close relationships since you can't be there physically to visit but when I saw them, it was like a day didn't go by except that Alexa is so much bigger!

They are both such loving parents and great friends.  I am lucky to have them in my life.

Thanksgiving Week And Black Friday

As you know, I came home only to leave once again.  I needed to get back out of the house on Tuesday so Max and I have been staying with two close friends and their baby, Alexa.

For once in a long time, I have been relaxing and doing nothing, really.  I've taken Max to the dog park every day so he can run around and get a workout and that always makes me smile.

Last year I spent Thanksgiving and Christmas alone so it was a treat to be able to spend it with a friend this year.  Since we are both "non cooks," we found a place that sold turkey take out meals so we bought two to go and sat on the couch and stuffed ourselves.

So, today is the biggest shopping day of the year.  Shopping is the last thing I would like to do.  I couldn't even imagine getting up early like so many do to get a deal on something they really didn't need to begin with.  After living out of my car for the past three years for six months at a time, I don't really get attached to things like I used to.  Don't get me wrong, I love my camera, computer and phone but I don't have a need to jump out and fight the crowds to spend money that I really should save.

However, the money I spend will be on handmade goods.  A good place to shop is etsy.  All items on this site are either handmade or vintage.  If you didn't know already, I have a little shop where I am currently selling my photograph art boxes.  Speaking of my art boxes...through Sunday, everything in my shop is 25% off when you enter code FACEBOOK25 at checkout.  So, that's handmade art for about $20 bucks each!  I have a few upcoming shows I will tell you about soon.  I hope you enjoy the weekend and spend it with loved ones.  That's all that really matters.

Dog Art Weekend

My weekend was filled with viewing and appreciating art. More specifically, art including our canine best friend.

Friday and Saturday was "Art goes to the dogs" hosted by Paige Bauer at the 2nd city council art gallery in Long Beach, CA.  There was an array of beautiful photographs, paintings, sculpture and instillations everywhere you looked in the space.  I was fortunate to display my photograph of a corgie and an Airstream titled,"Dixie." Being camera shy, I took this photograph of another person being interviewed in front of "Dixie."

On Saturday evening, I went to the closing reception of "Dogs Dogs Dogs" at the 1650 Gallery in Echo Park.  I brought Max along to this reception since they had Santa there to take photographs with and I knew he was ready to tell Santa what he wanted for Christmas.  I saw him whispering in his ear but he wanted to keep it a secret from me.  I wonder what Max wished for...

Here are some snapshots I took with my point and shoot camera.  I look forward to seeing the photograph of Max with Santa that the professional took on hand.  Along with the Santa photo shoots, they actioned photographs to benefit "Dogs without Borders" to help homeless pets in the Los Angeles area.

Home (For Now)

As I was wandering around the streets of El Paso, it hit me.  It was time to go home.  I felt a little like the Forrest Gump in the scene where he stops running and says, "I'm pretty tired.  I think I'll go home now."

So that was it.  I decided that home is where I wanted to be at that moment.  I drove from El Paso back to Southern California in one shot.  I knew I was getting close when the Waffle House disappeared and Starbucks appeared more and more.  Also, people drove faster and everyone seemed to have blinker light problems since I didn't see any on merges right in front of me.  Ahhh...close to home.

As you might know, this is my third year traveling the country in a car with my dog.  I put together a little map with arrows to the places I've been in those three years.  Arrows in Red are from this year, purple is 2009 and Blue represents 2008.

It's been quite the journey.  As much as I would say that I am staying put, that is not necessarily the case.  I tend to get bored easy and need to keep moving and doing things so that is what I plan to do.  In fact, the homecoming will be short lived since I need to pack up again in a few days to make way for renters to come to my home.

I have a few things planned in the upcoming months so there won't be a dull moment.  I look forward to sharing more with you as they happen.

Thank you for following me on my journey and for all of the supportive comments.  I appreciate you and hope some of it has inspired you to get out on the road to explore this great country of ours.

El Paso, Texas

On my way out of Austin, I stopped at a hole in the wall restaurant for breakfast.  I told the server that I didn't want meat with my meal.  Before he left, he confirmed, "no meat?" I nodded.  When my meal came, I looked at it then looked at the waiter and said, "there's meat on my plate."  He looked at my plate and back to me and said, "That's not meat, that's bacon."  At that moment I was reminded that yes, I was in Texas.

There wasn't much I knew about El Paso except for the Pace salsa commercials from long ago.  For some reason, I was drawn to the area.  I didn't stay long but long enough to tour around the city for a while, which was empty for the most part.  There were a few locals browsing around at shops, feeding the birds in the park and waiting for the bus.  It seems to be a sleepy town.

I walked around the downtown streets and after a while, I drove around to nearby areas to see if I could find some locals sitting outside of their home.  I noticed a tree decorated with beer cans so I thought I would stop to take a look.  I approached the house taking photographs as the owner walked out.  I asked him about his hand made creation and he said that he's been working on it for years and that the local paper has done a story on it.  He said he's been adding to it "every now and then" and mentioned that he is pretty proud of his creation. Who wouldn't be proud of their beer can tree?

I asked him what to see while I was in the area and he pointed me to the downtown plaza.  I mentioned that I just came from there.  He asked if I saw the workers putting up the Christmas lights in the downtown square trees.  I said, "yes" while he replied, "Look at my beer tree...I beat them to it."

El Paso is as close to the Mexican border as you can get while still being in Texas.  Because of that, you will see a Mexican restaurant at nearly every corner and mixed culture throughout the area.  I love traveling to Mexico but haven't been in a while.  This was a nice reminder that I need to go back soon.