HEIRLOOM TOMATOES...and A CELEBRITY DOG

Sunday mornings, I like to check out the farmer's market here in malibu before starting my day of sculpting. Today I needed some heirloom tomatoes and flowers. Luig & I were browsing the produce when we found this cute dog roaming off leash from stall to stall. There didn't seem to be anyone watching him and the vendors we spoke to said he'd been walking around free for an hour or so. I finally got close to the sweet dog and looked at his collar to get his owner's info. I was making goo-goo noises to calm him and, when I looked up, I saw Owen Wilson watching me, looking cute as usual. He didn't say anything and we were concerned for the dog, so Luigi and I spoke to one of the people running the market. The young man took us aside and discretely told us
that it was Owen's service dog and he has a permit to have him by his side. Even so, the dog should be leashed and wearing a jacket identifying him as a service animal. I felt like an idiot, making a fuss when there was no need to be concerned but at least the story has a happy ending, I guess. I am going outside to go carve now and plan on not leaving the house for a couple days.

SCULPTURE...and ZUCCHINI PANCAKES

This little angel sculpture I'm finishing is so much work...small pieces are definitely harder for me to carve than large ones! Finally I'm at the sanding part. How I look forward to carving something new soon.

For fun (and fuel) I'm on a zucchini pancake kick-3 days in a row now. They're a snap to whip up, and delicious. If you'd like to give them a try, take 3-4 zucchini and grate them into a bowl, add 1-2 eggs, 2 T flour, S & P, Italian parsley, and a bit of chopped or grated shallots. Mix it all up and cook on a skillet coated with light olive oil. Serve with tomato salsa or lingonberry
preserves...anything that sounds good. Very taste-y.

NEW WORK & ARTIST DREAMS

It's been so long since my last post, mainly because I've been carving like a mad woman. Usually Summer is too hot to be suited up head to toe in my bee-keeper gear. But this has been the coolest one in over 30 years so I've been very productive, carving 4 new sculptures. Lately, I find myself concentrating on 2 of the 4 which always happens when I work on multiple sculptures at the same time. I'm at the filing/sanding stage on both of them so I should be 'finished' pretty soon.

I also swapped out the bases on 2 earlier sculptures I'd like to feature in my December show. They look perfect now. The idea to change the stone bases for lucite ones came to me in a dream - and I always listen to my artist dreams. I am looking forward to checking out the space soon, and figuring out which of my stone babies will be seen there.