Creepy Crawlies in the Swamp

Today was a big day. I was scared today. Granted...I get scared pretty easily....but take a look at the guy in the picture above and tell me you would not be a bit nervous creeping around on his turf. We went on a 4 mile hike through swamp land, forest and places with names like "Boggy Gut" and other green slimey stuff like that. It seemed to me we were always three feet away from the edge of water that held the potential for death or at the very least dismemberment. Snakes, too were a huge possibility...venomous ones. So...I was a bit jumpy. But it was fun and very exciting. We got a lot of cool pictures and saw stuff neither of us has ever seen before. The movie Creature From the Black Lagoon will mean so much more to me now. Because I think we were walking through his hood today.

Hilton Head gets an A+ from me so far. I dig it. We have seen dolphins, gators, dozens of bird species, lizards, turtles, giant black bumble bees flying in big heavy clouds...tons of amazing old trees and the swampy areas are just too creepy cool.



I am glad we are hanging out here for a full two weeks. There are a lot of great places to eat... we had breakfast at Signes Bakery which was really yummy. Both of us had the blueberry french toast. Lunch was at a Greek place and was also excellent and very authentic, we still have fresh baklava waiting to be devoured yet tonight. No more eating out for the rest of this week though if we can help it, too expensive and too many calories.

Billy listed a new Carmel, CA piece on eBay tonight so check it out. He met another painter today and made a date to go out painting with him later this week. The guy is a local and knows his way around the island so it should be a good opportunity.

Everything is still great with trailer life except we *think* our hot water heater is busted. I say we *think* because we really have yet to exactly figure out our whole water system. It always seems like tanks are filling up that should not be and the pump is loud and what the Hell are we doing, and how the Hell does THAT thing work? Which is why the water heater may not actually be broken...it may just be that we have no idea how to make it work. It is going to force us into an Airtsream dealership for a day to get it checked though. So that will have to happen once we head out of here.

I will leave you with one of the three hundred turtle pictures I took today. Turtles are good people...and there are tons of them around here. I will post a few more pics up on Flickr too.

Billy Paints and Feel Free to Comment

The weather cleared up enough today for Billy to set up shop out on our patio. He is working on a marsh scene from mid island Hilton Head where we walked around yesterday. We nearly killed ourselves and each other getting the trailers awning opened up from the first time. Neither of us could remember how to do it. I finally found "the book" with instructions and we figured it out with out too many more harsh words or injuries.

Last night I baked brownies in the oven which was pretty exciting. It worked. The freezer keeps stuff frozen too. Really. It still blows my mind for some reason. It seems like if you are going to live in an aluminum tube outside somewhere it is just too much to ask to have real working appliances...and pretty much every modern convenience. It's all very exciting and will continue to be so for quite awhile I think.

My only real complaint so far is that we have returned to the land of million dollar groceries. Would you like a red pepper for $4? Or perhaps a 2 by 4 inch piece of cheese for $7? Oh well...we will most likely shed the Winter pounds we both packed on in no time due to forced food rationing and an angry metabolism. We DID have one of the best pizzas I have ever consumed in my entire life the other night at The Mellow Mushroom . When in the South East be sure to indulge. We had a Mega Veggie and it was too good...and I am really a pizza snob.


Oh...and by the way people... Remember those old Bugs Bunny cartoons where they are playing up on a stage to what they think is an attentive, excited audience and then when they finish up and go to take their bow all the actors hear is a distant, chirping, lonely cricket? Well...that is what I am feeling like here on our little blog. Is there anyone out there? Helloooooo? Please...feel free to comment, say HI...anything that strikes your fancy after reading a post. It's what we are here for! I would love to know who is reading and have a bit of communication back and forth. I have set the comments so anyone can get in there. You do not have to be a blogger member to be able to post. Thankee veddy mooosh.

Hilton Head is Good.

This is a quickie post...I have limited internet time tonight. We are set up on Hilton Head and it is beautiful. This place has succeeded in creating an atmosphere of total mystery. Everything is hidden in deep woods or swampy looking, mystical forests...even places like KFC and Walmart are looking like they may house zombies and/or fairies out back. If that makes any sense at all to any of you I would be quite surprised.

We spent the day driving around the island trying to find secret-y places. We did find one super old cemetary and got some really cool shots at sunset. Billy will be painting some of the landscape we shot around the area starting tomorrow too. Here's my fave shot I took in the cemetary...


The sunset light was reflecting perfectly off an old headstone and it created that gold effect.

We are supposed to get rain for the next day or so...which will trap us indoors and force us to get some real work done. I will post painting pics as soon as we have any....

Truth, Justice and The American Way

Well people...we have officially hit the road! We peeled out of Belvidere and headed South yesterday morning. Our first big moment of big fun was an unexpected visit to Metropolis...home of Superman. It was pretty exciting for some dumb reason. I am all for big, giant statues of just about anything and Metropolis was not disappointing in that department. They also had a giant grocery guy...




Very exciting. It also afforded us the opportunity to do this...


Nothin' wrong with that. Today we are in Adairsville, GA. It has been pretty easy going so far. We spent our first night in Kentucky where a mucho friendly guy named Kenny helped us get set up because we had no idea what the Hell we were doing. We have decided to spend our first few weeks in South Carolina instead of Georgia. All I know is that this time tomorrow I will be sitting inches away from the shore of the Atlantic. It has been a looong time since we were at the beach. I may sleep right out in the sand. I may eat the sand. I am that excited to get there.

Billy will get started right away painting. It will be fun to see what inspires him in SC. I will post pics as soon as he completes his first painting there.

The SUN! For one day anyway.

We have finally named the trailer....The Peanut. There are a few reasons for this. #1. It is suggestively reminiscent of a peanut-y type shape. #2. Our bank rep who handled the loan on the trailer was named Ms. Pino but we came to (secretly) call her Peanut before the close of the deal. It is a sort of a tribut to Ms. Pino (Peanut) as well as an appropriate feeling term for our little home inside an aluminum shell. In less than a week now we will be rolling that Peanut down the highway headed South.

We spent some time out in the Peanut today and Billy performed a nap simulation...to see how it worked out for him. He seemed quite content with the results even though it was only 35 degrees.



The weather is supposed to go to Hell again as of tomorrow so the party is over for now. I think it is supposed to remain in SUCK (sleet, wind, freezing rain and snow) mode right up until the day we leave. I cannot drive away from Winter soon enough or fast enough.

Chocolate. Snow. California Dreamin'.

Things are lookin' up a bit here in the heart of Winter. Can't really say why...but I feel like we have made the final turn in the curvy road we have been struggling on to a more straight pathway as of today. Of course it could all be an ILLUSION a la Doug Henning, but I am goin' with the vibe for now.

We started the day off with my Mom cheerfully crafting these sweet treats in celebration of V.D.





We have had our share of exercise keeping the driveway passable this week. Hopefully enough to even out the caloric score against the chocolate cupcakes. Billy McLane "Master Shoveler" was able to keep a bright attitude while laboring through the drifts. That's why we love him.





Billy has also been peeling off some pretty fine paintings this past week. He has done a really great series of the farmland and creek out back of my parents house. This new addition to that series is probably one the best he has done. I love the drifting snow done with the palette knife.



And another piece from when we were out in Big Sur, California. It is no small feat to capture this landscape successfully on canvas. If you have ever driven that coast line you know the saying 'larger than life' does not even come close to describing it. I love seeing it in paint...it's really better than a photo for me, much more atmospheric. This piece will be up on eBay as of tonight for auction. The snow piece above will go into the store.







I completed three jewelry pieces today which I have not had a chance to shoot pics of yet. It felt really good to be working with those materials again. I plan to stock my shop on etsy.com with some of my new work starting this week. I will post here once I get it rolling.

Winter Storm Warning. Choke. Cough. Give Up.

I sit here writing to the background noise of snow blowers and plows scraping and huffing out on the frosty streets of the hood. I am constantly reminded of why I have so enjoyed being AWAY from Illinois for the past 7 winters. I have lost the ability to enjoy any aspect of Winter's "beauty" at this point. I am bedraggled and a real sourpuss.

So. Referring to the last post... I gave in and both chicken rugs were purchased. It's like getting kittens, you want them to have company and never feel lonely. Two chicken rugs are definitely better than one. I feel good knowing that I will soon be able to dig my bare toes into the plushy surface of my hen rugs. As soon as we reach Georgia. Georgia. Georgia. Georgia. It has become Shangri La in our minds. I don't care if it is laden with mosquitos and pig roasts in Georgia. For me it will be a heady paradise rife with laughter, tears of joy and hopefully huge slices of homemade peach pie.

I have been tinkering in the kitchen this past week or so out of boredom and deep, lustful feelings toward chocolate. The best result were these...



from a recipe found in Vegetarian Times Magazine.

DARK CHOCOLATE NUGGETS

2 oz. coarsely chopped pistachios or hazelnuts (about 1/2 cup)
12 oz. bittersweet chocolate finely chopped
1 cup puffed whole grain cereal ( I used Kashi Honey Wheat)
1/2 cup dried apricots, cranberries or cherries ( I used apricots)
1 tsp. orange zest, plus julienned zest for garnish

Line a couple of baking sheets with waxed paper.
Toast the nuts in a dry skillet over medium low heat until lightly browned and fragrant. Let them cool.
Melt 9 oz. of chocolate in a double boiler then stir in the remaining 3 oz. Stir in your dry ingredients.
Drop chocolate mixture in tablespoon sized clumps onto your baking sheets and then garnish with the orange zest.
Pop these in the fridge uncovered for 15 minutes to set. They store great in a container, chilled for up to a month. The magazine also suggests putting these in paper candy cups which would indeed be cute and a great way to display them for a party table.

We Tried.

Well...we made an attempt at hanging out in the trailer today and had big plans to move some stuff into it and see how everything will fit and all that. Yah. For the record, 9 degrees is still not quite where it needs to be for leisurely trailer set up. We were in there just long enough to slop the new quilt on the bed and snap a pic or two before we peeled out. The inside of an aluminum tube is very cold in 9 degree weather. It has now officially been confirmed in case there was ever any question there.
It is looking more and more like set up will have to wait until we can reach greener, warmer pastures...or until we stop being big pussies about the cold. I think the green and warm will come much sooner than the cessation of pussy-ness.

I am off to purchase a much needed chicken rug for the wee bit of kitchen floor area we have from fabulous wrapables.com. I still have not decided between the black chicken or the orange one. I really, truly feel I need BOTH chickens...but I must control and resist the urge to go down that road. There are not enough funds in the poultry rug kitty to maintain such a rich style of living.

I swear on my mittens and chapstick... the first day we hit 30 degrees I am in there for some serious set up. Until then, we remain somewhat defeated in the brutal grip of February 2007.

We Got It!

Greetings from the coldest place on Planet Earth, Illinois. I say that with little or no enthusiasm...it's hard to be cheerful when it has been below zero for over a week unless you are an Eskimo born and bred for the frozen tundra lifestyle. Perhaps people living in this area of the country should consider cross breeding with penguins to ensure a more comfortable future. Anyway (drumroll please....) We bought our trailer! On the coldest day of the year (a wind chill factor of more than 30 below was kicking through the Mid West) we drove up into Wisconsin and picked it up. It is now firmly planted in a giant snow bank here in Illinois awaiting our departure. We had more snow today so I am quite sure the Airstream is probably more like an iceberg at this point than anything else. Al Gore has a lot of 'splainin' to do here man.

The trailer is killer and we can't wait to head to Georgia at the the end of the month. We have been holed up here painting and letting the boob tube suck on on brains for almost two months now...so we are ready to hit the trail. I will post some pics once we hit temps in the teens and it is fit for humans to venture outside again.

Billy has been rocking his paintings since we arrived here...who knew he would be so inspired by barren, frozen corn fields and tree skeletons? He's amazing. I am trying to peddle the last of my vintage and get organized for our upcoming journey.

I'll be back soon with pictures and more of our upcoming plans. Until then be sure to check out Billy's new listings via the link to our store on the right here >>>>>>>>>>>

The End is NEAR.

The title of this post has multiple meanings. Meaning #1. We are indeed leaving Santa Fe in three short weeks. #2. The whole world seems to have been turned upside down and everyone in America is about to consume enough food tomorrow to feed half of Africa for a week. So...the way I see it, the humble turkey has been elected mascot for the end of the world, or at least the end to what was left of human sanity. I am sure it is a job in which he would rather not be employed. I mean...the local grocery stores have manned their parking lots with police officers just to get past the onslaught of shoppers hellbent on purchasing cranberries in a can and other sage-y extras. It's just plain weird people. Why do we feel that the date tomorow somehow empowers us to consume three times the amount we would on any other day? Or that the date tomorrow somehow creates a mystical circle of warmth and happiness around our families, relatives and friends that we do not acknowledge on barely any other day of the year? I find these things puzzling..do you? It IS nice to get together and break bread with folks we care about...but it is weird to ONLY do it because you have been told it is the date to do so and then to stuff yourself blind in the process. We will be consuming our polyester tofu turkey tomorrow. Don't get me wrong...I have nostalgic Thanksgiving Day memories from childhood and I enjoy the concept of peeps stopping for a moment to dwell on the good things in their life. But still, there is something there that smacks of bizarre overindulgent brainwashing. This blog seems to be turning into my soap box for holiday bashing. As Popeye so eloquently said..."I yam what I yam." Yes Popeye...me too.


SO! Now that I have spewed forth with my Thanksgiving Day bashing... the other topic at hand is our impending move from Santa Fe. The yard sale went off without a hitch. Well... a slight hitch does exsist in that we did not sell every single item we had to offer. But these things are being dealt with in a somewhat inefficient and last minute manner. "Everythig must go" is still our standing motto. Included in that everythig is Dolly...our VW camper. Asking someone to buy Dolly is like asking someone to give you money to watch your sick dog that will pee on their carpet and steal their money in the night. So...any takers on that proposition? Yah...I didn't think so.

We are still painting...right up until the end. I am working on a 30 x 90 commission piece and Billy is currently obsessed with mastering "values." He wanders around the house and yard with a little view finder type gadget peeping through at things to see what their values are. Not to be confused with their morals or ideals...just where they fall on the color charts...thats all. I'll post pictures of the results of both occupations once they have come to a fruitful end. Until then...