Vanishing Species WIP Almost Done!!!!!

As a slave to five parrots and staff for two cats, it occurs to me that parrots and cats these days JUST have no respect! Looking back to my childhood days, (Stop ROTFL it was not THAT long ago!!!) we always had a cat and a dog around. Now the cats these days go wherever they please……..on my computer desk………on the counter…….on the kitchen table. They leave hair EVERYWHERE. The parrots throw food around, take one bite of something and throw the rest down, and leave feathers EVERYWHERE. But back in the day, you NEVER saw a cat on the counter or table. There were no parrots in the house then, but I am sure they would not have thrown food away, we were NEVER allowed to waste food (especially vegetables like broccoli, brussel sprouts, and cauliflower). So as I sit here continually fighting cat hair and feathers…..all I can say is…..CATS and PARROTS these days…..no respect.

As you can see the painting is ALMOST done, just a few more leaf details and a few more washes and Candy will be saying “Step Away From the Painting!”

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Vanishing Species……Still Continued……..

Aside

Was last night the bird full moon or something? My house was full of critters last night. AND not just the usual parrots who live here. It all started with a call from Margaret, my friendly local Liberty Wildlife Rescue and Transport volunteer. “Hi Arlene, we have a baby Harris Hawk here, would you mind dropping it off at Liberty Wildlife in the morning when you go in?” Of course, I forget to mention that I had volunteered to be the West side pick up station for the volunteers who cannot make the additional 45 minute trek from here to Liberty Wildlife. So most of the R&T volunteers have driven at least 45 minutes when they get here. HOWEVER, I rarely get more than one or two birds a week to triage and transport. LIKE I was saying, it must have been the BIRD equivalent of a full moon last night. By the time Margaret got here with the baby Harris Hawk, she had two more calls, and the baby was soon joined by a baby Morning Dove and a small Turtle. As she was leaving, she got another call about a Mallard, who soon joined the party! My fellow volunteers were SO happy to see me add to the flood of critters coming in through the check in window this morning,LOL. Needless to say, it was ‘hopping’ all morning. We would just about get one bird checked in and another one would show up. NOW don’t get me wrong, I LOVE baby birds, and Liberty Wildlife is JUST chock full of “Too cute for words”, but I wish the situations which happened to separate the babies from their parents DID NOT happen. But it does, so volunteers spend the spring and summer trying to help the lil cuties grow up into fierce big critters who can go back into the wild.

And with all of the bird madness going on right now, there is still an update on the current WIP! This painting is rapidly……OK, maybe not so rapidly, coming to a close. The leaves are taking a little bit of time, but don’t worry, it will be finished very soon! Then you will be able to hear from my next special guest blogger! Can’t leave you without a little bit of mystery!

Vanishing Species……….continued

Why do cats have to walk on your keyboard just when you are trying to write a blog? Why do cats recognize the person in the room who is deathly allergic to them and then rub allllllll over that person? Why do the parrots love to chew on my brushes when I am trying to paint? Why do they LOVE to scream when I am on the phone? What is up with them chewing all of my jewelry, and any sequins, beads, or shiny stuff on my shirts? REALLY,  I love the critters, but HAVE to contemplate these issues. Sometimes I feel like the only person on the planet asking these types of questions………. then attend a bird event or an art event showing my bird paintings! It is east to spot the bird person! They see a painting, do a double take, then get a certain look on their face. It is a kind of smile, then the eyes roll, then a smile and a look of affection. As one bird person to another, YOU know the look! That starts the conversation. Christina Scherer and I had a booth at the Sunnyslope Art Walk this weekend, and we had quite a few of these conversations, which let us know that we are not the only crazy animal lovers on the planet! We heard stories of funny things birds say and do all evening. They are endlessly fascinating, and a great source of joy, even with all of the mess, destroyed clothing and ruined brushes and pencils!

So the painting of Sirocco is progressing, even with all of the work of putting an art booth together. It is nice to have more time to work this week, and hopefully you will see much more progress at the next session! Don’t forget, you can click on the photo and see a much larger version!!!! Back to the drawing…ooops…….painting board!!!!

 

Vanishing Species WIP……..Moving Forward!

DEJA VU………for those of you who have been following my blogs, this will be a lot like a blog I wrote about “What do people think when I leave the house with parrot poop on my clothing?” Just substitute ‘watercolor’ for ‘parrot poop’ and ‘arm’ for ‘clothing’ and you will have an inkling of what I did today……LOL. Well guess now my family will have to add to the poop inspections before I leave the house, and put watercolor on the growing list. Some days it just doesn’t pay to leave the house. And what did I ever do without a family to keep me on the straight and HUMBLE!?!?!?!? Guess that is what families are for. At least you know if I had watercolor on my arm, I was working on the WIP today… so here is the progress report. Who knows what we will have to add to the family inspection of Mom leaving the house next?!?!?!??!

Vanishing Species WIP Continued…..

Here is the progress from this week, Sirocco is starting to peek out of the non existent foliage, LOL. But being the imaginative audience that you are, just picture it for now. The fun part is just starting – all the negative painting of the feathers. As you can see, the dark area is in now, lots of juicy watercolor. Don’t forget, you can click on the photo to see it a lot larger!
WOW, it has been a busy week for rehabbing. Our area has had a lot of wind, the birds are out there doing their “bird” thing, so there are lots of orphans who have been blown out of the nests, with no sign of parents. Add the usual injuries to this and it keeps a lot of volunteers hopping at Liberty Wildlife. The weather is so confusing this year, it doesn’t seem to be able to decide whether it is going to be warm or cold, dry or rainy, I am soooooo confused, don’t know whether to wear long pants or shorts, sweater or short sleeves. Maybe by next weeks blog the confusion will sort itself out, LOL. Meanwhile back to painting…..