Going to the Beauty Pah-lah!

Let me start by saying, I absolutely LUVVVVV this guy. He's funny, smart, and easy to talk to. Why, if he wasn't already involved with someone, I'd probably be tempted to stalk him. Just kidding, of course.

As far as appointments go, there are few (maybe less than that) appointments, no matter what they are for, that I ever look forward to. I hate having my time structured with "must-do" meetings. However, when it comes to the oh-so-revered trip to the stylist, I can hardly wait. If you enjoy having someone run their fingers through your hair, I feel in fairness, I ought to tell you that people line up for this man. He's just that great a stylist and that nice of a guy! Then there's his assistant, she's as fun as he is and she glows from the inside out. Honest, it's the truth! She doesn't even wear makeup. Isn't she pretty?

I have never had awesome hair. Never. But this man has definitely given it a fighting chance. And even better? While I'm captive in his chair, I laugh MORE than I have since the last time I was sitting before him with foil attenae sprouting from my head. My hair and I walk in withered from the world and all its complexities and he and "his PEEPS" go to work restoring spirits. I am not making this up either. You leave a happier person than you walked in and... with a better looking mane! Maybe he should hang a shingle but don't tell him that because I kinda like that it comes naturally and without an added cost. Levity is good for the soul and, apparently, it's been great for my tresses too. I mean, talk about fringe benefits (I honestly couldn't NOT throw in that pun).

Seems I've been talking to them for awhile about taking some pictures but we've never quite gotten around to it. Yesterday, I took the party to them! They weren't expecting it and they were way too busy to spend any time dealing with a photographer so I shot a few of them but, mostly, I got the details that make them and their place special. He loves religious medals (And he knows I do too). Since it had just been his birthday, he had a gift to show me (2 pics down). The rest are simple detail shots I caught while my hair was "curing." I tell you I just love this place and I love them!

Parting is such sweet sorrow!

Thankfully, I'll be back!

Old MacDonald Had A Cow...

In this exercise, I painted the same subject from the previous week (but from a different perspective). The deal this time was to use lots of colors--even some I would never pick myself. This week everyone in the class (25 people) picked a color that I had to include in my painting. It didn't matter if it was just a dot, the main thing was I had to use each color somewhere. Remember, it still needed to be done in 5 minutes! The second painting (Just Us Chickens) wasw also done quickly and is now the 4th painting in the farm series I have somehow, unintentinally, started. Ee-Ii-Ee-Ii-Oooo!

The Cow Who Jumped Over The Moon

I painted my little bovine friend last week. I intended to paint a friendly cow and most likely a girl but I think she's just going to have to be a "he" because somehow "Bessie" isn't feeling like a good fit, namewise, for my hefty range rover.

Occasionally, the woman who conducts the art class I take gives us an assignment to paint with some kind of restriction-- whatever she can think of to mix things up-- it can be to use our fingers as brushes or to paint with your left hand if you're right-handed and vice versa OR to paint without a model, picture, or under drawing. Basically, using only the image as we have it in our heads. Last week, the challenge she gave me was to paint an image from my head using only three colors in, get this, less than five minutes. I was counting my lucky stars (no celestial pun intended) because I figured this challenge would get done, one way or another, without breaking too much of a sweat. So... that was last week. My boy cow was painted fast--in fact, I did make the less than five minute time requirement (with only seconds to spare)-- and then left to dry til the next class.

So fast forward a week... When I checked on him yesterday, he looked a little different than I remembered him and some of the colors had changed slightly after drying. I thought he resembled the moon's surface, texture and hue wise. My brain totally went with it. Before long I was mumbling childhood nursery rhymes and thinking about dishes running away with spoons. So whether it's his countenance that looks like the swiss cheese face on the moon, the colors that look sort of moon surfacey (is that even a word?) or simply his oh-so-implied lunar leap, this guy has earned his title... The Cow Who Jumped Over the Moon!