Just got back from a trip in to town (Kahului), and I have a bunch of new art supplies. We went to the Golden Palette, about the saddest, most decrepit little art store I’ve ever seen: the only shop left in a little ghost strip mall that was evacuated because of the fire that destroyed the Salvation Army. They don’t have much of a selection and I can’t think how they do enough business to stay open (Cousin says they’ve been there forever), and I bought a canvas because I felt guilty about leaving without buying something, it’s the sort of underdog business you feel sorry for. Then to Ben Franklin’s in the Queen Kaahumanu Center where I got another canvas and some paint and mineral spirits, then Cousin drove me to meet this guy who put an ad on Craigslist, offering 14 tubes of oil paint (including three of the really big sized ones) plus a bottle of linseed oil for $25, a killer deal, so that was a score. Then we went to Denny’s for lunch. Cousin said, “This is the good Denny’s,” meaning not the Bad Denny’s in Kihei where he broke his arm a few years ago. Two of the dishes on the Specials list came with – no kidding – SPAM. (Cousin said the food the natives eat here is really bad, and I’m afraid it looks that way. There are also these really gross red hot dogs that are sold everywhere and are made with meat possibly as gross or grosser than Spam.) I’m already finding it hard to stay motivated here, and the job hunt has yielded no success. It’s also proving hard not to eat bad (fattening, greasy) food, since it’s everywhere. But I haven’t fallen down on the exercise program yet, and the pants that used to be uncomfortably tight around the waist are falling off if I don’t wear a belt.
So, about that art. I have nearly completed a large portrait of Ben W. over a background of the Union Jack; oil over acrylic, and the oil is drying right now before I go in for the finishing touches. Cousin showed me how to print the photo I was working from on a transparency and then project it onto the canvas so it came out better than I can draw free hand. This is a revelation for me and will lead to all sorts of new and improved ideas, because the thing is I need to paint humans (or animals), figures motivate me, they’re the subject matter I’m drawn to; when I try to do landscapes or abstracts or still lifes I invariably get bored and don’t finish them. If there isn’t a relatable human or living figure in it, I lose interest. Then I’ve started another of an Egyptian style cat, gold/yellow color with lapis lazuli (really pretty blue) bangles and adornments. And with the two canvases I bought today I’m going to do two more: another of Ben over a background of candy hearts (the ones that say BE MINE and DO TELL and SO DREAMY, etc) and one of a tiger-striped hippo. So I’m back in full creative flux. Right now I’m doing a drawing of a box of Boo Berry cereal, because we started talking about things that symbolize our childhood at lunch, in the context of Cousin’s book, and I came up with the idea of illustrating the book not only with photographs of all the old times we’re talking over (which Cousin has a lot of ), but also with drawings and paintings of some of the products and toys and foods that we remember from growing up – hence the Boo Berry cereal drawing. (My sister sent me a box of it last Halloween, I ate the whole box, and remain of the opinion that it is certainly the best-tasting of the monster sugar cereals.)
Did a little more yard work for Cousin yesterday and I’m going to mow the lawn (with the kind of mower you drive) later today or tomorrow. The Victor/Victoria party is this Saturday and I don’t know what to do about shoes. Cousin has a big pair of white thigh-high leather platform heels that fit me in the feet, but they don’t fit around my legs, so they won’t work very well, and there aren’t really any other options. We were going to go to the beach today but it isn’t nice enough; it’s been cloudy and rainy and relatively cool (K. says it’s “freezing”) the last few days. And I just started getting my nice island tan!
I saw Michael J. Fox on Jon Stewart the other night. My Mom told me he was on Oprah recently and Oprah's new doctor (I gather Dr. Phil has been replaced?) told him that with the new stem cell research bill that Obama signed (to use stem cells from ADULTS and not just dead babies or whatever) he will be CURED of Parkinson's within the next decade. Mom hopes they'll be able to cure her of her stroke damage within that same amount of time. And I started thinking about how strange it would be if she suddenly, at age 65 or so, regained the ability to walk and the left side of her body was un-paralyzed, meaning she no longer qualified for disability checks, and had to find a job and start her life over again - at the very age when most people retire.
Script idea, there.
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