Within Ten Miles

Well Hello!
 

You may have been wondering where I've been...I guess it just didn't seem possible to spend time indoors this summer, and without a laptop, I fell behind on my blogging. And I missed you!
I last signed in to tell you that I was going on vacation to Colorado and New Mexico. I did and it was great to see my old favorite places and my old friends. I lived in Colorado between 1974 and 1994, and I just have to go there every few years to get a fix! I will have pictures for you all soon, but....

Right now, my favorite season is popping into New England, and I must drive and take pictures. Even after my travels, I find sooo much beauty here in Western Massachusetts! Today, I tried to work indoors, but the leaves kept blowing crisply back and forth in the driveway-seducing me outdoors. When the sun started slanting in from the west I took off. But I only drove around in a 10 mile radius.  My camera knows where to go and how I like the light to look through the leaves a certain way. Sometimes, breaking the rules about lighting and photography makes for some pretty good pictures. Others, not so good. But with digital, it's no problem to just trash the bad ones. You don't waste any film!

Every year at least once, I stop by this adorable little shop, Posies by Piper, on a local back road. She has something like 35 crafters contributing to her little pink shop named after her daughter. The quilts stopped me, but visiting with this sweet lady who is sitting outside knitting under an arbor of red vines is always a pleasant experience. She's so happy and doing what she loves!

From there I looped around and around the back roads looking for "that certain quality of light" that I remember so well from childhood at my cousin's farm. They had an old federal style home with meadows and huge maples. We'd go help them with the haying then have a picnic under the maples in the late afternoon sun. Those yellow and red leaves still leave dappled shadows in my heart.

Like most New Englanders, I can't resist a beautiful barn. Their structures are often Shaker-like in their simplicity. Some have been reworked to become homes or studios, others are regally standing, still--keeping the hay dry and the livestock warm.

 The cathedral-like buildings stand as a testament to the builders of days long gone.

My neighbors are enterprising people.  If they own property, even a truck, they may be able to make an income from it.  Not necessarily a living, but an income. Many work multiple jobs, most are two-income families. They still find time to make maple syrup, raise and butcher a couple of hogs, make furniture or do haying or short hauling for their neighbors.

So, as you can see, I don't have to go anywhere for some fantastic scenery. Driving around on a short leash keeps my restless heart happy. The local color can still titillate me...

and keep me goin' till I can head WEST again.  Where do you roam when you aren't going anywhere?

Happy Trails!
Sherry

At home with Ralph

I'm home at last. Over the last 3 weeks, my kitchen became shipping and receiving, so I may take a few days to clear out the place and get back into collaging. My cats now have velcro paws and keep sticking all over me. They missed me! Last night I fell asleep on my giant recliner with fat Snuggles beside me and Fluffy stuck on my front. I had to peel them off to go to bed.

Saturday, I stopped at my favorite local junktique shop and found Vic, the owner, thumbing through an album. From the parking lot, I shouted, "postcards?"  He answered, "no, old photos." We looked it over for a while and I bought it.  I don't know about you, but I love old albums. They have so much to tell--about a time and a place and the people who lived there.

This album belonged to Ralph. Ralph took most of the pictures. He loved cars and there are many pre-1960 cars shown in all their finned and chromed glory. He also loved Dorothy, also called Dot. There are so many pictures of Dot, that there would be no album without her. I don't know if he married her or if she was his sister or a neighbor...there are no wedding pictures. Some of the last names are familiar to me as are some of the locales. They were of my parent's generation, and I didn't recognize anyone myself. Ralph must have ended his days in a rest home in my home town, as there are a lot of pictures of the place. Dear Ralph, what stories will we tell?

Whenever I make a collage, I start with a picture. I look for clues or I just start from scratch and make up my own story.  I picture Ralph as a bachelor who loved a good time and "the gals" and maybe drank and played cards often. He took some road trips in his beloved cars. Dot loved a good time too, and often accompanied him. Hmmm. Maybe a travel theme.

Vic threw this sweet vacation pamphlet in for free along with the album. Dated 1951, it should be right on the mark for a background piece.  Now for more travel themed pieces. Old postcards? Road maps?  But wait, this pamphlet has maps, pictures and advertising. This will be fun. I can't wait to begin!

I love traveling! Last year at this time I was deep into my plans for the Dream Vacation. Now, my 15-year-old niece thinks the world is boring and messed up. She has never really been anywhere but here, where she was born and grew up. This summer she and her Dad (my brother Jim) and I are going to Colorado and New Mexico to visit our cousins. I've been telling her about my favorite places since she was little. She is excited, but afraid it won't happen, so she doesn't have much to say about the whole thing. I can't wait to see her reactions to all the new sights, the beauty of the mountains and the desert--the country, the cultures and the city life. I hope she will be my future traveling partner and learn to love it as much as I do.

Where does your art take you? Though we're not all artists, we can imagine anything we want. Art, as well as travel, opens the doors to our minds and our imaginations. With an open mind, we continue to grow and keep a youthful excitement in life. The more I age, the more I feel that youthful spirit. And how wonderful to see it through the eyes of a 15-year-old!

I hope to have a new collage about this for you by next week. I'm pretty busy this week, but I have to create something soon. My brain is itching and my fingers twitching to get into another art project. Thanks for all of your encouraging words about my art and my often-daft ramblings!

As Ralph probably sang along with Roy Rogers and Dale Evans, "Happy Trails to You!"