It is hot here in Texas. Blistering, mind-numbing hot with a wind that is leeching any drop of moisture from the soil and driving dust through any crevice in the house.
And we haven't had any rain in forever.
Every morning, I go out in the mornings to give my animals fresh water and hay - forget about the summer pasture for my horse. It has burned up and is literally blowing away. Then I water a few flowers in pots that have managed to survive.
Last week, I watched my vegetable garden burn up - some of the tomatoes actually started cooking on the vines - and I thought about how much harder it was for the early settlers of Texas to deal with drought that would wipe out their livelihood for an entire year.
We will survive without the garden. Sure it's nice to have the fresh produce, and when I fix a meal that is comprised primarily of items I have grown, there is a great sense of satisfaction. But even if I can't pick a fresh tomato, we will still eat. We have a grocery store and some money. The early settlers had no such recourse. When they lost their crops, they lost everything.
When sweat is pouring off me after working outside in the heat, I can go inside where there is air-conditioning. And a shower with two speeds. Just a few generations ago there was no air-conditioning and people bathed in a wooden tub.
The only good thing about the heat and drought is that there are no mosquitoes and I haven't had to mow or clear brush in weeks, but I would gladly take the mosquitoes and work a little harder for a good, hard, rain that lasts for a week or so. We call those a gully-washer.
Bring it on....
Showing posts with label Killeeen Texas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Killeeen Texas. Show all posts
Monday, June 20, 2011
Friday, March 05, 2010
Catching Up
First of all, since I was out of town when the Blog Carnival ended on Feb 28th, I want to announce the winner of a copy of my book, Play It Again, Sam. The Carnival was held by Classic Romance Revival and each of the participating authors chose a winner from the visitors to her blog. I am happy to announce that the winner from my blog is Sara J. Her name was drawn in a random selection process. Congrats, Sara.
The Take 190 West Art Festival in Killeen was a wonderful experience. The facilities at the Killeen Civic and Conference Center are beautiful, well-managed, and very comfortable. The staff at the Center, as well as Killeen library staff were all gracious hosts and hostesses, and I truly felt pampered.
Friday evening there was a reception for the artists and authors with delicious food -- we're not talking chips and dips here - and stimulating company.
Half of the exhibit area was filled with artists' booths, and the other half held displays from art students in the Killeen schools. The work was really impressive and covered a variety of mediums from sculpture to weaving to painting and drawing. It was fun to watch the students point out their work to their parents and share in the excitement of seeing their creation on display.
The professional artists also had quite a variety of work displayed for sale, predominately paintings. Burl Washington had a wonderful assortment of paintings and prints that depict the history of the Buffalo Soldiers, black Cowboys, and Blacks in Aviation. What a wonderful way to get a history lesson.
Another interesting artist I met was Todd Alan, who is known as The Crayon Man. He does all his work with crayons -- regular old Crayola Crayons -- and the results are stunning. I do some sketching with colored pencils, mostly just for fun or to share pictures in letters to my mother, but I have never thought of using crayons. And I'm not sure that I could match his abilities even if I stopped writing right this minute and concentrated on art.
I think one of the reasons I enjoyed talking to Todd was the enthusiasm he had for his work, and it delighted him when people stopped to admire it. Not in an egotistical way, but much like those children sharing their art with their parents. Pure delight.
Todd told me that he really enjoys visiting schools and talking to young people about art, and I'm sure those classes are a lot of fun. Children love it when you engage them on a creative level.
The other authors at the Festival represented a number of genres and age groups, predominately children's books and young adult. I was quite impressed with Jazmine Swanson, who wrote and published a young adult novel, Avalon, during her sophomore year in high school. What a wonderful accomplishment for this Killeen teenager. For a story about how the book came to be click HERE
After I have participated in an event like this, people invariably ask me if it was successful, and in the next breath they ask if I sold a lot of books. For me, the success is not measured by how many books I sold. It is measured by the interesting people I meet and the fun I have. Not to mention how many books I can buy. So this was very successful.
How about you? If you are an author or artist, how do you measure the success of an event?
The Take 190 West Art Festival in Killeen was a wonderful experience. The facilities at the Killeen Civic and Conference Center are beautiful, well-managed, and very comfortable. The staff at the Center, as well as Killeen library staff were all gracious hosts and hostesses, and I truly felt pampered.
Friday evening there was a reception for the artists and authors with delicious food -- we're not talking chips and dips here - and stimulating company.
Half of the exhibit area was filled with artists' booths, and the other half held displays from art students in the Killeen schools. The work was really impressive and covered a variety of mediums from sculpture to weaving to painting and drawing. It was fun to watch the students point out their work to their parents and share in the excitement of seeing their creation on display.
The professional artists also had quite a variety of work displayed for sale, predominately paintings. Burl Washington had a wonderful assortment of paintings and prints that depict the history of the Buffalo Soldiers, black Cowboys, and Blacks in Aviation. What a wonderful way to get a history lesson.
Another interesting artist I met was Todd Alan, who is known as The Crayon Man. He does all his work with crayons -- regular old Crayola Crayons -- and the results are stunning. I do some sketching with colored pencils, mostly just for fun or to share pictures in letters to my mother, but I have never thought of using crayons. And I'm not sure that I could match his abilities even if I stopped writing right this minute and concentrated on art.
I think one of the reasons I enjoyed talking to Todd was the enthusiasm he had for his work, and it delighted him when people stopped to admire it. Not in an egotistical way, but much like those children sharing their art with their parents. Pure delight.
Todd told me that he really enjoys visiting schools and talking to young people about art, and I'm sure those classes are a lot of fun. Children love it when you engage them on a creative level.
The other authors at the Festival represented a number of genres and age groups, predominately children's books and young adult. I was quite impressed with Jazmine Swanson, who wrote and published a young adult novel, Avalon, during her sophomore year in high school. What a wonderful accomplishment for this Killeen teenager. For a story about how the book came to be click HERE
After I have participated in an event like this, people invariably ask me if it was successful, and in the next breath they ask if I sold a lot of books. For me, the success is not measured by how many books I sold. It is measured by the interesting people I meet and the fun I have. Not to mention how many books I can buy. So this was very successful.
How about you? If you are an author or artist, how do you measure the success of an event?
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