City Views, Country Dreams

Good evening from New York on the 29th of February.


This is that extra day that is added to our calendar every four years during a leap year.  Leap years have dates that can be evenly divided by four, and here in the States, we have an November presidential election each leap year.


There is also a folkloric tradition that grants unmarried women (like me) to propose marriage to a man on February 29.  


Today dawned very grey with the weather forecasters promising that rain would develop by ten a.m.  This was not very promising to a would-be proposer.  I did some necessary house cleaning, and played around a bit with my new acrylic inks.  My little sketches will eventually be used as gift tags.

They really are just playing around with a new medium, and are based on embroidery stitching.

I think that eventually I will get more comfortable with these inks and will show you the evidence when I see it before me.

Before the rain drops began to seriously take over, I took a brand new bus, with a brand new bus smell, across Central Park to the east side of town.

The buses that travel this 79th Street crosstown route are bendy buses.  I never, never want to ever sit or stand in the part of the bus that has the bendy bit.  You can see this accordion pleated feature in the photo above.

The earlier predecessor bendy bus models' interiors were all on one level.  These new ones require the  passengers to climb up and down while inside the bus.  This can be tricky while the bus is in motion.  I also think that the older buses held more passengers.  (I think the new buses use hybrid fuels and that is why we now have them.)


The elevated four-across seating above reminds me of seating in a shoe shine place.

In the above photo, a brave lady did hoist herself up and on to one of those elevated seats.  She is sitting right next to the bus's rear door, which is recommended by regular announcements as The Correct Door to use for one's exit.  This door way features multiple warning signs about what to touch, what not to touch, where to stand, where to signal a request for a stop.  And...there is danger if a departing passenger thinks that the doors are going to open outwards (as they did on the old buses.)  Mind those blue Danger signs!


Better wait until you are off the bus before putting up your umbrella on a rainy day, too.  I am glad that I did have my camera with me, just to record this evidence of how new is not necessarily better, when it comes to public transport.


I am sure that we New Yorkers will get used to these bendies.


My east side destination was The Metropolitan Museum of Art, where an interesting exhibit opened last week.

The Steins Collect features a superb gathering of many of the works that were purchased by Gertrude, Leo and Michael Stein.  This exhibit does a fine job of showing what a different time it was when the Steins lived in Paris and enjoyed entering into a new world of art.


Matisse and Picasso became Stein family friends, and are featured prominently in this show.  However, there are many other artists included, and even works by Leo Stein and Michael Stein's wife Sarah appear.

I would definitely recommend this exhibit to folks who might be in New York between now and June 3.  It is a large show, but not so large as to be overpowering.  I came to the Met today thinking that I already knew quite a bit about this particular art history sequence, and discovered that there was more to learn.


By the time I left the Met and caught another of the nouveau bendies, the rain was steady and an insistent wind had joined the mix.  My already weakened umbrella may have now had its final outing.


It was wonderful to get home, have a late lunch, talk with some friends on the phone, have some tea, work on some crafts, get caught up with emails.


Nary a proposal was offered by me today.  Although a few hours remain before midnight, I think that New York batchelors might now feel it safe to come out of hiding.

City Views, Country Dreams

Good evening from New York, and a very Happy Valentine's Day to you all.

I am so enjoying my extra day off each week, and expect that eventually I will discover how to take better photos and even how to use the scanner feature of the printer I bought last week.

Meanwhile, let the spirit of this watercolor send my Valentine to you all.

Let's see, what else might I tell you, now that the numbness from this afternoon's dentist visit has worn off.  I would recommend my dentist to anyone.  She repaired two vintage fillings this afternoon, finishing the entire bit before I thought she'd finished with the first.  I must have drifted off to dreamland in that chair.


Before heading into midtown New York City for that repair work, I followed the excellent advice of Gina, and bought a beautiful mini orchid at my neighborhood Trader Joe's store.  If this graceful flower survives my apartment's challenging atmosphere, I might just add another orchid or two this window sill.  On my next day off, I will be drawing this beauty and perhaps even doing a watercolor study.  This little orchid plant also has another graceful stem full of promising buds.


As Stevie Wonder might put it, isn't she lovely?

I've also been using an easy to follow chevron knitting pattern from Jane Brocket's book, The Gentle Art of Knitting.  If any of you have not yet visited Jane's blog, I definitely recommend clicking on over there.

I am using some odds and ends of four ply yarns, the background yarn is from Malabrigo and the stripes are mostly from Koigu.

The pattern is so easy to remember that the rows just fly by.

I still feel as if I am in the very early stages of adapting myself to my new work schedule.  I hope to show you all many more photos in the weeks to come.  I have no idea what those photos might feature.

What fun it is to look forward to solving that mystery!

Lots of love to you Valentines.

City Views, Country Dreams

Good morning from New York.


Later on today a championship football game will be played in the City of Indianapolis.  One of the teams is officially a New York team called the Giants.  I am not much of a football fan and most likely will skip the televised spectacle.


Let me instead show you some evidence that our strangely mild weather has continued into February.  Yesterday was an overcast Saturday, and I took a walk across Central Park to see what flowers might have courageously bloomed.


I saw these clusters of daffodils in a sheltered area that gets lots of midday and early afternoon sunshine.  The trees around them are fruit trees that so far seem to be observing a proper winter rest.

My curiosity then took me towards the Shakespeare Garden, and I saw quite a few hellebores that seemed to have no fear of frost.

It was just after 12 noon when I passed by the sundial.  I thought that the clouds overhead were keeping the dial's timekeeping very discrete.

There were very few signs of blossoming in the Garden, just a few isolated snowdrops and a smattering of blossoming quince buds.  I thought that these branches were very beautiful, but can now see that my camera work did not capture their subtle colors, that were sort of iridescent rosy and purple.

Along the Shakespeare Garden's pathways are numerous little plaques quoting plant-related lines from the Bard.  Currently, the park's gardeners have arranged greenery and pine cones around these plaques to help draw the attention of passersby.

I wandered away from the Garden, and soon was walking along the western side of the Lake.   There were some icy patches, but not enough thicker ice to safely encourage skaters.  However, some mallard ducks were definitely enjoying the swimming and fishing potential of the lake.

New York views like this seem so peacefully tranquil.


Not long after taking this picture, I was quickly doing some grocery shopping, gathering ingredients that I will use later on today to make a hearty split pea soup.  The weather cannot possible stay so mild much longer, and it will be great to have homemade soup available.


Since it won't be long before the Academy Awards are given out, I thought that I might do well to actually see some of the films that have gained nominations in varying categories.  I very much enjoyed the remake of Tinker Tailor and plan to see The Artist before long.  Hugo also interests me, but I am not sure I could endure the 3 D effects.


My reduced work week continues to give me fresh opportunities.  I am looking forward to sharing some more of my wing-spreading happiness.

City Views, Country Dreams

Good afternoon from New York, on the last day of January.


That is what the calendar tells us, but today's weather seems more like what we find in late March.  This winter grows curiouser and curiouser.


On another mild day last week, I met a friend over at The Metropolitan Museum of Art to take a peek at the newly re-installed American Wing.  We concentrated on looking at the paintings, but I was rather charmed by this very large curlew, which I believe was once part of a weather vane, and now makes a dramatic addition to a open wall space.  The curlew is not yet part of the Met's collection, but is on loan.  I noticed that there were other beautiful loaned items on display.  I think that Met curators might hope to eventually win these gems for the collection.

After looking at art, and having a quick lunch and lots of talking, my friend and I took a leisurely stroll in Central Park, where I saw these beautiful little snowdrops.  I always love to see them peeking up through leaves, or sometimes even through a light coating of actual snow.

This week I began a new phase of my life, since I have now officially reduced my work week from five to four days.  The plan is to give me more time for my various art and craft interests, and more time to see friends, cook, bake, read, take long walks...all such pursuits have consistently been curtailed in recent years.


Here's one of my current projects.  I am making myself a pair of socks using yarn that is very similar to some I used for a gift for a brother of mine.  I do enjoy the self-patterning yarn.

On a recent visit to the city's large farmers market in Union Square, I treated myself to a big pot of pink hyacinths, that were just raring to burst into flower.  As you can see from this close up view, the show as begun, and the unique scent is being released.  Spring is arriving early indoors, too.

I've also begun painting some cards for the next major holiday that is just around the corner.  I will eventually post some pictures of those little paintings.


This morning I took care of something that has been on my errand list for months, and replaced my late copier/printer with a new copier/printer/scanner.  I think that I am going to enjoy learning how to use the scanner function.  Right now I am just proud of having been able to set up the machine and have it working.  Once upon a time I would have doubted my ability to do so!


Perhaps you all can tell that I am already quite enjoying my extra bit of freedom  It's my intention to post more frequently.  We shall see how that works out!

City Views, Country Dreams

Good evening from New York.

Winter has finally claimed our city.  I am so glad to have had this Sunday off, and to have been able to spend most of the blue skied day in hibernation, only venturing out between 2 and 3 this afternoon, hoping that the strong winds will have brought the official effective temperature closer to freezing.

This was not the case.  The wind was still strong, and everyone I encountered along the sidewalks on my quick walk to the grocery market seemed very intent on their own individual destinations.  These folks were not always mindful of their fellow pedestrians, sort of like what happens when umbrellas give us an excuse for bad walking manners on a rainy day.

It was wonderful to get back home and make that inevitable pot of tea.  PG Tips it was.

My apartment is usually very overheated, but today I am grateful for all the heat that the continually hissing radiators are emitting.  Yesss, I am.

Enough of this weather report.

I'd like to show you some of the projects I've been working on in my hours away from my job.  The following photos show a two-toned, popcorn-stitch-accented crocheted hat that I can report has been keeping my head warm this past week.

I made this up as I went along, using a black worsted weight black wool yarn, accented by a dual strand of vintage Rowan 4-ply Botany yarn and Rowan ivory-ish tweed 4-ply.  The overall shape is like a Russian turnip dome building, meeting up with a classic beret shape.

I was also inspired by the pop-up Japanese tie-dye technique called shibori.  I have several scarves made by this intricate method, and loved the idea of making my own modest tribute.


Another of my New Year's projects has been an initial experiment with a medium new to me, acrylic ink.  Perhaps many of you are also fans of Milly's beautiful Drawings from Nature posts?  If you have not visited there, may I encourage you to do so?  She is one of the folks who initially encouraged me to start this blog.


She's a fine artist, who definitely has mastered the use of acrylic inks.  Last week, I made a quick visit to my favorite NYC discount artists' materials shop, and bought three bottles of acrylic ink, in black, white and sepia.  This afternoon, I opened up a page in one of my mostly empty sketch books and played a bit with the sepia and white ink.  I'm being brave in showing you all the results, and hope that in the weeks to come, I'll have much better examples to share.  I did like using the inks, finding them somewhere between watercolor and gouache, featuring some aspects of each of those two media that I have liked.

Now, let me return to another yarn fueled project.  I am knitting a long, fringed scarf as a surprise farewell gift for a work colleague who will be leaving at the end of the month.  I'm using all four-ply yarns, most of which I bought many, many years ago at Liberty's then excellent yarn department.  I do hope that department still exists!

The colors in this scarf are a bone  Botany (same as in the hat) and three different grey tweedy yarns.  All are Rowan yarns, though I think most might no longer be available.

Let's see, what else have I been doing when not at the shop, trying to keep up with certain 2012 resolves?  I'm reading two books.  One is a recent Alexander McCall Smith novel, The Forgotten Affairs of Youth, featuring his philosopher heroine, Isabel Dalhousie.  


The other novel is Heat Lightning, by Helen Hull, published in 1932, by Coward, McCann, Inc.  I was not yet born in 1932, and Coward, McCann, Inc. no longer exist.  However, Persephone Books are going to reissue this book.  I am finding its plot rather like the story line to a classic film of that era.  I see the scenes in black and white, though Ms Hull's excellent writing also exposes all sort of grey.


Perhaps you readers will now sense that this post has featured a certain colorway?


As we all take our additional steps into this new year, le'ts hope for lots of color, more as each day dawns.


Thank you all for your comments.  I continue to be amazed to have visitors from all over the world.

City Views, Country Dreams

Good evening from New York.

This New Year is so different from 2011.  Truly, it is.  In early January 2011, New York was still trying to recover from a massive snowstorm.  I clearly remember the depth of the snow, and the energy required to shovel that heavy, icy snow from the sidewalks in front of the shop.  How my muscles did ache for the first few days of that shoveling.  How surprising it was to realize that even though the shoveling continued, the aching did not.

Today's weather was much more spring like, with the temperature almost reaching 60 degrees F.  How odd it was to walk past the skating rink at Rockefeller Center this afternoon, and see skaters in light sweaters and sweat shirts trying to execute their favorite moves on slushy ice.  You can also see the large orange crane that allowed some workers to remove all those glittering lights.  Pretty soon the Tree will be removed from its place of honor.

I was on my way to meet some friends for a long-postponed Christmas lunch.  


Since my last visit to this part of Rockefeller Center, a large Lego shop has opened.  I did not have time to go inside for a proper browse, but loved the sculptures in place over one of the entrances.

Eventually, I reached my lunch destination and met up with my friends, an artist couple I have know for many decades.  We always have much to discuss, and laughing plays a big part of our conversations.

We also brought along the Christmas gifts that we wanted to exchange with each other, and elected to wait to open these festively wrapped packages after we'd returned home.  Too much drama might have ensued if we'd done the unwrapping at the restaurant.

So, after lunch we took a bit of a walk, enjoying the blue sky and mild January afternoon, and then parted with the knowledge that we'd be seeing each again very soon.

I am going to try to be more frequent with these posts, even if this might mean a shorter post.  I'm going to try to change a lot of my routines this year and see if this shake up gives me more relaxation and even fun.  I hope to be able to find some new city views to share with you, as I also explore making some of my country dreams more of a reality.

Best wishes to you all for a New Year that will amaze with its positive possibilities.

City Views, Country Dreams

Good evening from New York.


It's been a very busy bunch of days since my last post, and I do not want more time to speed past before I show you all a rather poor photo of one of my watercolor cards...to wish each of you a Very Happy Christmas!

Work at the shop continues to be very demanding, and it's up to all of us to keep our energy levels high as we help many folks to make their various seasonal shopping decisions.  We are all beginning to truly look forward to December 25, when the shop will be closed.


I've also been doing lots of cookie baking and baked cookie giving, and enjoying getting together with various friends, opening beautiful cards from folks all over the world, and generally enjoying the spirit of this season.  Today the daylight began to increase!


May I again wish all of you a very Happy Christmas, and thank you again for all your visits to this space.