Painting away

I know I have been lax on posting for the last great while but I have been doing more projects. One of the projects I have been working on is getting set up to do my landscape paintings. 
I have not painted for 40 years! Yes that is a long time to be away from one of the most gratifying things I have ever done! I minored in art and industrial arts in college but only pursued my major graphic arts for my bread and butter.
Industrial arts brought me to buying woodworking machines of which I used extensively for my hobby all this time. Painting was a hobby I had years ago but over time I could only spend so much time at one or the other so painting lost out.
Well now that I am retired and do not travel as much I have returned to painting as a way to travel in my mind.
It has worked out well for me and I have been many places...only in my minds eye but I have captured these places on canvas. Now I can return there with only a glance and I am whisked away to far off places at little cost.
I would like to share a few of the places I have been to...

Somewhere in Time 

Please excuse the quality of the photos. I have lost the cord to down load photos from my camera and I have had to use my computer as my camera.

Home Sweet Home

I know it has been a while since my last post and I had several family members ask me what is wrong.
Actually there is nothing wrong I just have been filling my days with a new hobby. I started back painting landscapes. This is something I use to do years ago and really enjoyed it. Now that I have more time at home and fewer projects coming up I can spend my time traveling by painting some of the scenes we have witnessed over the years.
I started out working in oils and now I have purchased some acrylic paints to see how I do with them. Much of my techniques that I acquired in the past have long left me and I am having to start over. With a few on line lessons I should be back in the swing of things as soon as I complete a few more landscapes. 
Painting is something that you have to work at all the time to improve your eye. Yes you do lose the touch as they say but I feel it coming back with ever painting I complete.
Other than this I have been mostly just hanging out and working in my shop. I hope to do something worth writing about...

Somewhere in Time  

Return home

All the muck...can you believe it?

We were up at our regular early time Thursday. This is our travel day back home. We have had a wonderful time here minus the seaweed on the beach. As things would have it...it is time to head home and say good-bye to family.
We enjoyed our last morning on the patio. Dellanera park is normally a great place to stay if you like being right on the beach...but with the rotting seaweed maybe it would have been better to be more inland this time.
We finished our coffee and then it was time to start packing. I had done much of it last night so this morning was not going to be that hard to do.
I drove down to the station and topped off our tank and then returned to hook up. Had a little trouble locking down the ball to the trailer but that got done after much sweat filled my eyes. Have to love this humidity down here!

We made it out about 10:00 am and drove all the way home with only one stop along the way. We got the trailer unloaded at the house and then drove it out to the lake. By this time temps were in the low 100's! We got everything stowed away and ready for the next trip...

Somewhere in Time

Great time in Galveston

W

Jim is my BIL that lives in Galveston. Actually he and my sister live in Bayou Vista which is located just across the bay from Galveston. 
I had learned that they had some issues with their house that they were wanting fixed so I called them to let them know that Sherri Kris and I were coming down to help them out. We could only stay for four days but I figured it would be enough time for me to knock off a couple of projects that they had lined up.
The first project was the back patio cover that had been leaking for several years. I determined that the leak was coming from the patio door upstairs so we set out to flash the door track and replace the damaged plywood ceiling down stairs.
It took us two long days to finish this but when all was said and done it looked good.
In the evening when we put up the tools it was time to have some beverages and visit until dinner time. We decided to head to Kelley's up I-45 towards Houston. They have to best food in that part of the county and the prices are not bad at all.
Jim picked up the ticket...thanks Jim you should not have done that! We had lunch the next day and dinner the next night on the left overs. Yes!!! that much food was on our plates! 
We had a good day and look forward to tomorrow...

Somewhere in Time

Not a good time to be here

About every six years the gulf gives up all its sea weed and sends it to the beaches. They say this re-builds the beaches but I have my doubts.

There is mountains of dead seaweed on the beaches and it is rotting away which in tern smells like a West Texas cow lot!
Sherri has always loved the coast and in the morning loves to walk down the beach and smell the salt air. This is not what happen this trip. We could not walk down the beach nor was there any sea breeze to be smelled.
I'll have to say the main reason we go to Galveston is to visit with my sister and my brother-in-law. We have been close to Jim and June ever since they met and enjoy hanging out with them.
Jim had some projects for me so I took some tools and he and I replaces a ceiling on his back porch.
The humidity down there was unbearable and I went through 3 T-shirts a day.
Being that I was up early each morning to get over to their house I did not get to post on my journal. I will be posting a little info on the trip each day until I have covered it all.
While we were there Sherri took the kids down to the community pool located in June and Jim's neighborhood. This entertained them while I was working and I think they enjoyed it. We did take them to the beach the first day but the smell and the constant balls of seaweed rolling in made it very uncomfortable to swim. They could not play in the sand because it was covered in muck!
Jim took us all out for a boat ride on the bay. We really had fun out there. We met two large barges in the narrow channel. One was passing the other which left us very little room to get by! Sherri like to have freaked out when we passed by the larger of the two. We only had 20 feet between us and the passing barge! Now that was an experience we had never had...

Somewhere in Time

 

We made it to Galveston

We left Hickory Creek a little later than what we had planned on. We just could not pass up the sunrise with our coffee. I had packed up all the outside things the night before but it still took much longer to get everyone up and going.
We did make it over to the dump about 10:00 and left out the gate about 10:30. We had to wind our way through downtown Dallas and finally made it to I 45. 
The trip from there was uneventful until we reach Houston. Just the other side of Conroe the traffic began to pile up. The closer we got to the downtown area it let up some and we made good time until we ran into some rain. I mean it rained for a good 10 minutes and then it cleared. 
The rest of the drive was without traffic. We arrived about 5:30 and got checked in and parked. It was not the site we really wanted but I guess it will do. We have a short walk to the beach and that is where we will spend much of our time.
Tomorrow will be a beach day and time to relax in the surf...

Somwhere in Time 

We are without Internet

We are without Internet for the time being but we will be back on line next week. I just found this hot spot to let the family know that we will be back reporting as soon as we arrive at our next destination which does have Wifi.
Until then enjoy this cool weather and always stay safe...


Somewhere in  Time 

Made a discovery this morning

Sherri and I assumed our daily positions on the patio around 5:00 am this morning. The sun was no where in site but it would not be long before it would make it's appearance from behind the trees.
I made coffee in our outdoor kitchen...which by the way is so cool! I love being able to fix coffee and breakfast on the patio and not have to go in and out of the RV to get all I need.
We sat there in silence for some time and when the sun finally made his showing we both commented at the same time. "New day is here".
The breeze off of the lake was so cool and the sounds of the birds waking up drew me out of my chair and into the boat for some drift fishing off the point. 
The lake was smooth and my boat silently skimmed over the water to my favorite starting point for my drift to begin. I cut the trolling motor off and began my drift...which was slow this morning. I had bated up with my favorite catfish bate...shrimp...and felt the weight bounce along the bottom of the lake. It was not long and I had slipped the first catfish into the basket. 
I ended up the morning with 4 nice size cats. It did not take long to fillet them and I was back on the patio fixing breakfast. It does not get any better than this.
The rest of this day was spent keeping cool. We bought the kids some water guns so they could keep each other cooled off until we could take them back to the beach. 
While sitting on the patio waiting for everyone to get their swim suits on I looked over at my tires and noticed a round shinny object in the tread. Oh me it is a screw in the tire. On the way to the lake we had pulled off the road at a construction site and and I think at that time I must have picked up this screw! Not to worry I called Good Sam's and they sent out a man to change my tire. He was delayed some due to the fact that he had a blow out on the way to the park! It did not take him long to get it changed. He offered to take the tire to Jefferson...where his garage was located. I let him take it with plans on picking it up the next day when we went to town to pick up some things.
Thank heavens for road service. I did not have to break a sweat. It was not long we were at the lake back up to my chin in cool water...

Somewhere in Time  

Parks full for the weekend

Can't beat this view and the shade of the awning kept us cool

Sherri had a menu everyday 

I would ready the grill for whatever the menu called for

It was Friday morning when we noticed more activity going on over at the boat dock. One after another boats were being launched and people climbing aboard and heading out into the lake. By Saturday the park was teaming with RV's and folks coming and going. Boats with tubers and skiers behind them. Those wave runners, as they call them were everywhere churning up the water.
No way I was going to get my boat out on the water with all these wild folks running a muck out there. Sherri and I just sat out the weekend on the patio and watched everyone.
It is Tuesday now and we are back enjoying the park. We are among 4 campers that are in our loop and it is quite for the most part.
I will have to say being the 4th of July weekend it was not as crazy as one would think. Being a COE park with the Sheriff and the Rangers patrolling on a regular basis kept things in check.
Time is growing short for us here and we are making the most out of our stay.
I plan on being out on the lake as soon as the sun comes up and hope to hook me some more catfish for our fish fry...

Somewhere in Time
  

Days are warmer so we spend more time in the water

This morning the sun was painting colors all over the eastern sky. One beautiful color would slowly bleed into another more dazzling than the first! This is why we are up every morning to witness this gorgeous play of nature.
We were fortunate the first week here to have had cool temps most of the day. It is now feeling more like summer here. The plan is to head to the beach when it gets hot during the day. 
About 1:00 we packed up and drove down to the lake. I sat up the umbrella and the chairs on the beach and then Sherri and I followed the kids into the cool water. 
How nice is this? I sunk up to my chin in the water and the hot weather was gone. The water on this lake is so cool and refreshing. It is clear and clean looking...unlike so many lakes we have gone to. 
We spent close to 2 hours just enjoying the cool water. What a great escape from the hot weather. 
We left the beach and returned to the RV. By this time the shade had covered the trailer and the inside had cooled off. Actually it was almost too cool to go in. Being wet and walking into the cold RV made me shiver! 
We had a great day and now it is time to sit on the porch with a cold beverage...

Somewhere in Time  

Kris caught his share of fish

Another morning and Sherri and I are having our coffee. We have talked about going into Jefferson to buy some groceries but have not really made a plan to do so.

The days are getting a little warmer now that the rains have petered out. I so wanted the cool weather to continue but as they say all good things must come to an end.

It was later in the morning and Kris came out to eat some breakfast. He asked me if he could fish some and I told him that he had his own rod and he could fish anytime that he wanted to.

Soon he was on the bank and was catching fish. I still have to bait the hook for him. I don't want to spend the day at the doctors office having a hook removed from a finger!

He did well in the short time that he was fishing. He caught several brim. I don't think he will be the sportsman I am but he does get a kick out of catching these little fighters. He has learned how to throw out the bait and when to snag the fish. He can reel them in but Dad has to take them off the hook.

One thing about Kris he can tell some good stories about that one that got away...

Somewhere in Time