Art Therapy

Had fun at art class last night. Had fun drawing trees. For the first time, after a fruitless attempt to draw a tree from my phone, I stopped trying and started playing about, drawing trees from my mind instead. Particularly proud of this one. It reminds me of EH Shephard's 100 acre wood illustrations (though not as complex - he was a brilliant artist ☺️)

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Looking at the jittery, giggly thread on the page,
I doubt my future. "But it's easy", Dave says.
Pen gripped lightly-but-firmly halfway down
I trace the contours beside. The trick is
Keeping an eye on the line and the tip.

Strafford said "nothing you do can stop time's
Unfolding. You don't ever let go of the thread."

Noting my pleasure at seeing the beautiful
Copy appear, I bicycle my way
Down the page. I love looking up
To see my surroundings refreshed: less sharp
And symbolic; richer if more superficial.

I fear to reach the sharp, cut-off end
Of my own thread. But when I look back,
I love the line I have made, even if
The thread and the unfading ink are a lie.

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Here is the last photo, for now. It is also of the old Studebaker. One of the doors is missing it's exterior panel and this is the window gear inside. I like the industrial, rusted shapes and patterns.
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Here is photo 5. There is an old, rusted Studebaker that used to be just on the side of the road. Now it is mounted on concrete pillars with no wheels as a Route 66 marker.
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Here is photo 4. It is 3 petroglyphs from Martha's Butte, the spiral looking one is called a solar marker and during the summer solstice at sunrise the marker is half in shadow. The one on the left I don't know what it is. The bottom one looks like an old cell flip phone lol!
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Here is the 3rd photo. It is a close-up/macro shots of one of the crystalized centers of a log. It looks pearl-like.
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Here is the 2nd photo. It is the patterns of the tree rings of one of the logs. It kind of looks like a bullseye.
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I did the Petrified Forest trip on Sunday. It was a quick, 1 day trip. I did over 500 miles in that 24 hours. I left Friday night and returned Sunday night. I was pressed for time and constrained by money. I packed just about every snack and non-refrigerated food item I had plus an ice chest full of water and a few sodas. I left the night before so I could get some sleep and rest before exploring. I slept in a rest area about 70 miles from the park, which was hard in my sub-compact car in a well lit noisy rest area. I only got about 2-3 hours sleep. In the end, I spent $50 on gas, $25 entrance fee and whatever I already spent on the food I brought. Not too bad.

I did a lot of research, printed out maps, made an itinerary and planned out the shots I wanted to take. I didn't remember there were petroglyphs there and they have a lot. The most were at Newspaper Rock, which I ended up not doing because a lot of the area was closed for preservation and from the photos I have seen the petroglyphs are jumbled and crowded together. I found a better place off the beaten path with nicer ones at Martha's Butte. Martha's Butte was not on the map but I was able to find maps and directions. It was a little over 2 mile round trip easy walk through a dry wash that is not marked. It was worth it. The petroglyphs were in nice shape. I like the solar marker or spiral one. The one on the bottom looks like an old cell flip phone lol! Another area I was looking forward to but was also closed for preservation was at Blue Mesa. Last time I was there I was able to hike down and see logs on the Mesa that were exposed and able to photograph them. Darn! I was able to get most of the shots I had in mind. Like I said before, the park is small and you can do it in less than a day. I was in the park from 8am to 2:30pm and that included my off the beaten path Martha's Butte hike. I ended up with over 100 unedited photos and I am posting my favorite 6 edited photos. All of them are B&W infrared.

This trip was a challenge for me, even if a were 20-30 years younger! I am out of shape lol! I also had a little bit of anxiety and a lot of gastrointestinal issues that made the trip very uncomfortable. I really started feeling very fatigued around noon. The last 2 hours in the park were tough. I ended up leaving out a couple of areas because I was just too tired to continue. I made it back to the rest area and got a little sleep, then back on the road home. Oh, by the way, the temps for 5000 ft elevation were near record temps at 88 degrees! Still, better that the near high 108 at home. I did it! And, I have to give myself credit for completing this goal.

Here is the 1st photo. It is a profile shot of one of the larger logs that I could get close to. You can see the bark and the grain of the wood that has now been turned to stone and crystal. I have color photos of all of these but I like the B&W infrared better. I hope you like it too.

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I just wanted to post a couple more of my favorite abstract paintings. I was so proud when I made the top one. I call it Ice Cream Sprinkles. The darker one is called Shattered.