LAST LIGHT 30" X 30" OIL

December 31, 2009 -- LAST LIGHT. Every day a new picture is painted and framed, held up for half an hour, in such lights as the Great Artist chooses, and then withdrawn, and the curtain falls. And then the sun goes down, and long the afterglow gives light, and then the damask curtains glow along the western window, and now the first star is lit, and I go home...Henry David Thoreau

BREAKING THROUGH THE FOG 14" x 11" OIL

December 31, 2009 - 8 am -- BREAKING THROUGH THE FOG. Fog rises above the water only along the river as if it is nestled under its own blanket and won't share with the rest of the city. Sometimes the river creates its own weather due to the differences in water and air temperature. Now the sun is starting to break through and reflects off the water in a blinding light. Clear skies are already appearing to the north, hopefully a good sign for the New Year.

GREAT EGRET 12" x 8" Watercolor

December 17, 2009 -- GREAT EGRET. In the early morning a group of egrets were sleeping along the shore north of Red Bud Isle, heads tucked inside their wings. They looked so cozy and warm, perched on the low limbs. One woke up, then another and soon all were in different stages of alertness. They must like this spot as I have seen them here often. Suddenly one lifts off into the air in the most graceful of movements and soars in a circle around the cove. The silhouette against the reds and golds of the fall colors is stunning. Then another joins him and they head off around the bend in search of breakfast.

AUTUMN GLOW Oil 40" X 32"

December 8, 2009 -- AUTUMN GLOW. A chill in the air. The warm glow of an autumn evening. The scent of fallen leaves and cypress needles along the shore. The lake provides the pefect stage for December's fall display of color. Trees along the bank had a plentiful supply of water during the summer drought. When the season changed they still had leaves to turn. Now they celebrate the end of the year with their display of red, purple and orange, just before the cold wind of January carries it all away.