Winter finally says "Farewell, till I return"

While there are many indicators of the return of spring, the first flower means it's truly time to say good bye to Old Man Winter. Usually, it's our brave little buttercup poking it's head out to say hi. Even if it means pushing aside a pine cone! Soon our meadows will be bloomimg with Indian Paintbrush, Lupine, etc.

The Training Continues...

We went for a nice ride on Sunday. Jenn & Tiika were all excited and chose the road less traveled. That bridge actually held for us in spite of its rickety appearance and we rode till we found a nice place by the river. We stopped and rested our weary bones.















There are several ways to "rest". Some choose a swim and a good stick while others are content with a cold one. We had a big hill to climb on the way back so calories don't count! We read, ate some jerky and nuts, lounged around and generally just enjoyed being there. Finally, the sun was fading into the western sky and it was time to go home. We mounted up and hit the trail and, yes, the bridge held again!

My Kind Of Traffic Jam

I had a little bit of a delay when I came home today.This herd of bighorn sheep was hanging out in our driveway and yard. I sat at the entrance to our yard for about 20 minutes watching them graze, not wanting to disturb them. I stayed perfectly still so that they forgot my presence and milled about the car munching contentedly on some new spring grass. When they moved enough so I could get out of the car without disturbing them, I went into the house to get the camera. By that time, they had crossed the street to the neighbor's.

I tried to get this one to come over and play with Tiika, but nothing doing. Good thing, as not all dogs are as friendly as our Tiika-girl. We left them to their grazing and headed into the hills, grateful to have shared a moment with the bighorns. Jenn will be sorry she missed them.

Friday Night Out

It was Friday and we had a classic Missoula afternoon/evening planned. After taking care of Tiika, we would head to Bayern Brewing, our favorite local watering hole, for a few German microbrews. Dinner would be across town at Sean Kelly's, a great Irish establishment, where they serve a mean Bangers and Mash to be washed down with Harp's on tap. Entertainment that evening would have a tropical flavor with the University Percussion Ensemble and Islanders Steel Drum band.

So what does all this have to do with the picture? Well, we have a grand trip planned to New Zealand where we will be sea-kayaking, hiking (or tramping as the Kiwi's say), biking, whale watching, glacier-trekking, etc. We're leaving in five weeks and that means we are in TRAINING. The only way to justify a couple of brewskis is to earn them with sweat (I mean perspiration, if my Mom is reading this :-) ). Spring is here so we broke out the bikes, drove to the edge of town, and did it all on two wheels. We had a great time. Unfortunately, we ate and drank more than we biked, so Tiika and I went off on a long hike today. Jenn, whose return from ArtFest has left her enthusiastic about more projects, spent the day rearranging her studio (easily equal to a long hike). Maybe if we work out hard for the next three weeks, we can justify going out again!

I'm baaack!

I'm back from ArtFest and nearly caught up on life at home. Rob reminded me tonight that I should post something soon. (Guess who's caught the blogging bug?)

ArtFest at Port Townsend was another great experience. This was the third year for my group to attend. We added a couple of newbies to the crowd, a few of whom I knew and had a super time catching up with in the evenings over glasses of wine and whiskey. I also got to spend extra time in North Bend on either end of the trip which was an added bonus.

How about some pictures of the art I created? I'm only going to post a few of them, the ones I like best, of course!

This one was created in two phases, day 1 - environmentally friendly paint making with Karen Michel*, and day 2 - an encaustic class with Judy Wise **. My friend, Elisabeth, had taken a similar encaustic class on day 1 and when she saw this piece, she highly recommended that I take it with me on day 2 for the beeswax treatment. I think it really finishes the piece. Now, where to hang it...

* I bought a couple of prints from her, too, at the vendor night. Delicious.
** You can see more pictures from her classes on her blog that I've linked to.

This collage was created in the day 1 class. I loved the rich red background and the flower seemed like a good compliment to it. I had then glued down the squares along the edge. From there I knew I wanted to attach the charm in the middle and asked Karen for her advice. She made a suggestion and I went with it. Nice, eh?

This was the first piece I started in the day 2 class. I ended up working on 3-4 pieces simultaneously in this class. In part this happened to allow the wax to harden a bit. I was also facing a bit of a creative block and switching among various layouts helps me get past them. I ended up liking this one quite a bit.

And this lovely item is from my day 3 class. I was a bit stressed about this day. Thankfully, I had two art buddies, Joanne and Sue, by my side. Their support got me through and I had a better day than I thought I would.

You may not be able to tell but this is an altered cigar box. Not just any cigar box but one procured for me by my delightful Gretchen. =) Thank you dear, it was just perfect. Can't wait to show you in person.

And this is the inside of the above box. The guts aren't quite complete. Come to think of it, neither is the outside. There's my project to putter on during the summer. In spite of my fears of this class, I am pleased with the outcome.

I've posted some other photos I took during the weekend if you're interested in seeing them, click here.

That about wraps it up for ArtFest 2009. It was certainly an event to remember. Can't wait to see what unfolds for next year...

Making Canine Snow Angels

Today we decided to spend the day at Lubrecht Forest. We arose early and the day promised to be sunny.



Just minutes on the trail and Tiika spots a deer! After an unsuccessful attempt to get the deer to play, it was time for the first of many snow angels.

Tiika thinks it's amazing how many sticks you can find in a forest!


And all the dens to visit, but still, no one wanted to play. Except me, who is always willing to throw some sticks.

Our favorite trail sign, it usually means you won't see too many people. Today, however, we had the entire forest to ourselves. After a long, hard climb, it was time for a lunch of sausage and goat cheese. The cheese is only for me despite Tiika's drooling. She does make an awesome living napkin!



Then it was time for more snow angels and games!


Even after a 9 hour hike, somebody was still sad that we had to return. No it wasn't Tiika, it was me. Tiika is a Qi Gong Master and is happy and content whatever her environment. She just looked me with her kind, wise eyes and I could feel her thoughts "Oh, Robhopper (I know, doesn't quite roll off the tongue like Grasshopper), someday you will learn."




Jenn returns tomorrow and this blog will go back to what you are used to. I'm sure she'll have many stories to share from ArtFest and maybe a picture or two of her projects.

ArtFest and the Rites of Spring

While some rites of Spring are Universal, others are definitely personal. Last weekend we witnessed the spring migration of the snow geese and the trumpeter swans. As one of my favorite ecologists once observed,

"One swallow does not make a summer, but one skein of geese, cleaving the murk of March thaw, is the Spring."
Aldo Leopold
Definitely Universal!

This week, Jenn joined her friends to participate in ArtFest . Definitely personal, but no less important. It is talked about, called about, emailed and prepared for as soon as the packets arrive for next year's festival. She left Tuesday and will return Monday night.

Tiika and I do our own spring ritual. Her idea of spring is to run through the woods and discover all the wonderful goodies that the melting snow reveals. I follow along and try to keep her from rolling in the worst of it. If not, there's a stop at the river on the way home and she swims with the ice floes. However, this is Springtime in the Rockies, which brings up another quote:

"The first day of spring is one thing, and the first spring day is another. The difference between them is sometimes as great as a month."
- Henry Van Dyke, Fisherman's Luck, 1899

One day we went out and the weather looked like this . It was nice hiking in shorts and a t-shirt.


Tiika always likes to stay in front, but I'm not sure if she ever notices the sky.




I do and thought we might have a different hike today. Sure enough,
this is what it looked like when we opened the door this morning.













I hiked in fleece pants and a pair of gaiters. It will be like this through April and I've been snowed on in July, which brings up the last quote:


"The sun was warm but the wind was chill.
You know how it is with an April day.
When the sun is out and the wind is still,
You're one month on in the middle of May.
But if you so much as dare to speak,
a cloud come over the sunlit arch,
And wind comes off a frozen peak,
And you're two months back in the middle of March."
- Robert Frost

This is why you'll find both fleece pants and a pair of shorts in my pack. Oh, to be Tiika, who seems to be perfectly dressed all year long and can swim any time she likes! This is fun, but we both really miss Jenn. The last picture is of, in my humble opinion, the two best hiking partners on the planet!