Too Complicated

I have dozens of sketchbooks.  And, since our current sense of time and scheduling has been seriously challenged, I have found myself meandering through these small journals that have taken me on many journeys throughout the years.  They are diaries to me.  And....I have found that my freshest and most appealing observations have been found on these small pages.  They have seen me through vacations with family and friends, through the births of grandchildren and to emergency and waiting rooms at various hospitals. The sketches are often unfinished and imperfect, yet somehow hit the mark.

This is one of my favorites:  an 87 year old woman in the waiting room of a knee surgeon who kept saying to her companion (over and over again):  ..."and that's another example of how things are too complicated these days".
The year:  2012.

She had no idea.

Ruvati sinks, Mungo Park, Ben Stiller and Naomi Watts

  

While traveling, I have pretty much given up hauling any paint set along, even the smaller travel sets.  Instead, I try to use the small bits of otherwise-unscheduled time to sketch.  These sketches can be aborted at any time.  Some of the unfinished ones are among my favorites!  Over the years, these sketches have become like small journals, little bites of time, where notes remind me of activities and conversations.  Just before Thanksgiving of this year, we were fortunate to rent a "little house" (a charming A-frame) on the Outer Banks, for a few days of quiet and oneness with nature. 

The top sketch is my loving partner engaged in reading, one of his favorite pastimes.  His book is Travels in the Interior of Africa by Mungo Park, a treasure on loan from one of his friends.

The second sketch is our son while we are watching the movie "While We're Young", starring Ben Stiller and Naomi Watts, a light-hearted movie with some bits of wisdom tucked in.....aren't they all?It was a fun way to spend an evening.

The third sketch is of my husband again, keeping warm with his sweatshirt hood surrounding, laying back in the limited amount of lighting available while we discussed the unusually modern and lovely appliances that made this small rental such a pleasure.  We (maybe just I ) have been considering a kitchen update sometime in the future, so we gather ideas when we can.  Although the sketch is a bit unflattering, the spotty play of light made this sketch exciting to do....It conveys a great mood, I think.

When I look back at these some time in the future, I am sure I will be smiling as I recall these sweet and rare hours spent with my dear ones.