In 2021 we headed out on what was to be a 3 week long road trip. The first part was up the Eastern Sierra along Hwy. 395, stopping and staying in Independence, CA. One of the most notable places to see along this route was Manzanar National Historic Site – a not very nice part of US history. It is a Japanese internment camp which was built for imprisoning Japanese Americans, natives of this country, and therefore citizens, as well as immigrants.
I took along a digital camera, and a folding camera, the Zeiss Ikon Ikonta 521/16. Only now am I scanning the film – it took quite some time to finishing up the roll! I used Kodak TriX 400 and got twelve 6×6 images out of the roll, which is 120 film. To process the film, I took it to a local lab and then scanned it myself using the Epson V600 and Negative Lab Pro in Lightroom.
However, the trip ended when we got breakthrough Covid. We headed back home, sadly, but better safe than sorry, eh?
I have been taking an oil painting / acrylic painting class through the local adult school, and the current teacher is pretty good. I am only doing oils this go around – I did acrylics last class – and I am finding them far more to my liking than acrylics. Much more to offer in terms of – what? – pleasure in using. With acrylics I feel like I am in a mad dash to paint and that really is not a fun experience. With oils, you can play and take your time, and that for this impatient person is actually a pleasure after the pressures I felt with acrylics!
This is what my backyard looks like – hell. There is no grass and there are too many big trees. Once we get rid of 10 more 35 foot tall trees and have the back yard plowed up to be rid of tree roots, then I might be able to make it far more habitable. Nonetheless, looking for something to paint, I decided to take a photo of some of the trees against the back wall and push it in color to an extreme. By pushing the colors in LR I thought I might find new colors to use in the painting. And, it worked – I found purples and turquoises and rather icky orangish yellows.
So, I am trying to do this alla prima, but it’s not going to happen. It is happening so far in two alla prima sessions, and probably will need three or more. I am not trying to create a masterpiece. I am trying to learn how to use oils. So, this is play, and here it is, after my second alla prima session.
Next class is in a couple of days, so let’s see where it goes from here . . .
I have no idea how many parts this little saga will contain. At least two based on the title.
Last year we started what was supposed to be a three week road trip, or maybe a two week road trip, through California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona, before returning to California. However, post-vaccination Covid caught up with us, and we were grounded until declared “safe.” I felt like a naughty child!
Somewhere on Hwy 395
So, we are back on the road, and it is an odd experience. Travel actually requires a certain mindset, a patience with developing new routines while daily ones at home vanish. A road trip means sitting in a car for hours at a time. Josh the Esposo loves to drive, so I sit casually by, and observe the world flying by me. My camera is at hand, set to a fast exposure to catch things as they fly by on the roadside. Sometimes I get good ones. Sometimes I don’t get good ones. In between I am knitting mindlessly on a circular sweater that will be steeked upon my return.
What I do get are memories of places that are beautiful or unreal in my current reality. The big one is water on the ground! As our water vanishes in the Southwest, it just hangs out in places like Oregon and Wisconsin and Montana. Rivers, creeks, lakes, ponds. The luxury of a 10 minute shower as opposed to the Navy shower.
The Goodman House B&B in Chico, CA
This trip is one to Wisconsin to visit my younger brother, Kevin, and his wife Suzi. We have driven about 2500 miles (4025 km) to go half way across the country along a northern route. We started in the Los Angeles area, where we live, and drove 8.5 hours toChico in Northern California. Perhaps a last stay in our beloved Goodman House B&B as the owners plan to sell – time to retire from the business. Dinner at the Sierra Nevada Brewery.
Local Beer is Good!
You can look up all these places if you want, but suffice it to say that Chico is a beautiful town, with new sections and old, trees and such that make it a charming place to visit and a pleasant place to walk around.
Street Scene in Chico – Trees and Shade
I did walk around the morning we were to leave for Bend, Oregon, where one of my oldest friends lives.
We can all agree that homegrown tomatoes are the best! I also have some lettuces.
Even with water restrictions in place, we are able to do some gardening. The drip system is working well in the front yard. This weekend we will install the emitters on the patio plants. Not all will get water as some are at the end of their lives. We also need to decide how much water to give each pot.
I asked for some criticism on this painting I did a few weeks ago. Below is the original scan.
Posted April 2022
Some opinions were that it was lacking in depth, and that the right and left sides needed to match better. So, today, finally got around to doing some modifications. Here is the new painting.
Round 2 – 5/2022
Let me know what you think. The newest scan is a bit more vibrant than the other, so keep that in mind. My class is tomorrow afternoon, so I will talk to my teacher, too.
Ink, Yarn & Beer 