It was a perfect early fall ( or is it late summer) weekend. There was a plein air competition in Joplin, MO that was close by. A good opportunity for me to hone my oil painting skills. We also had our first VRBO experience rather than staying in a hotel.

We were free to paint within 20 miles of Joplin. There were lots of choices since Route 66 goes through it, there is an area of historical homes people like to paint and then there are the areas around the waterfall called, of course, Grand Falls. Since I have rarely seen a waterfall of any kind , and since I love trees and rocks. Grand Falls it was going to be. It did not disappoint.

It was fun. I loved that people stopped and watched me paint, loved that they engaged in conversation and dearly loved the children who were seeing something different than a computer screen. There were people with dogs of all shapes and sizes and people of all shapes and sizes, too!

The finished 9×10 inch oil landscapes framed and ready for judging this afternoon.

Look at that date! Twenty years ago Ron and I packed up and retired to Sarasota Florida from Illinois. On one Sunday Siesta Key walk, I found these discarded pieces of wicker furniture lost in the sea oats. It was late in the day and the sun was setting behind them. They spoke to me so I quickly snapped a photo as the owner came rushing down to the beach to shoo us away from “her” beach. I painted the scene in acrylic on masonite but I could never quite get the perspective right. The painting has been stored for 19 years and it sustained some damage to the board. It traveled from Florida to Arkansas where we re-retired.

We just repainted the bedroom and needed something different above the dresser. This is the right size and the frame I found also has a little paint damaged area. Soooo, does a painting have to match the sofa or the room color? NO of course not. I told Ron this has so much emotion and is a perfect representation of us at this point in time. We are in the sunset of our years. Like these chairs, we have weathered the storms of life and still stand strong together even if we are a bit battered and worse for wear. It’s a perfect fit and we will enjoy waking up to this every dy.