Little Vincent's Pizza

 This was painted in the sketchbook I bought in Venice which lets the paint and the ink bleed through the page. I tried seeing what would happen if I treated the paper with watercolor ground, which is supposed to make any surface suitable for watercolor. I only did 1 coat of the watercolor ground. Although it didn't bleed as badly as before the edges of the paint don't hold a crisp edge. I may try putting a second layer on the next few pages to see if that helps.

Anyway I stopped at Little Vincent's Pizza Restaurant in Lake Ronkonkoma. It was raining so I sat in my mobile studio to capture the view before I went in for a slice.

Lake Ronkonkoma View

 We had a few days of very cold weather. The bare trees give this scene by Lake Ronkonkoma a very frosty feel.

Usk Sketchmas Day 5

The prompt for day 5 of Usk's Sketchmas was "statue." This wooden statue was sculpted by Todd Arnett and it overlooks Lake Ronkonkoma. Local legend says the Indian Princess of Lake Ronkonkoma fell in love with an Englishman who lived across the lake. Her father would not permit her to have a relationship with the Englishman. The heartbroken princess killed herself because she could not be with her true love. Folklore goes on to say that every year in a desperate search for her true love, the princess takes a young man's life by drowning in the lake. I sketched the statue on location in the town of Lake Ronkonkoma. 

Along the Lake

I drove around the other day looking for some color and found this spot along Lake Ronkonkoma. I liked that you could see a few houses nestled in the orange trees. Since I painted this the colorful leaves are getting harder to find. The last few days haven't been sunny so there is this dull gray pallor over most of the area. They keep saying a chance of rain but the closest I've seen is a bit of spritzing or a hail shower.

 

Juicy Autumn Colors

I drove over to Ronkonkoma Beach which is on a lake and there were a few trees with juicy, rich colors.

 

Out With the Old - In With the New

 Happy New Year!

Wishing everyone a joyful, healthy, safe, and loving 2021!

Even if we haven't had the greatest year, I think most of us have learned to be more appreciative of what we have and not take our loved ones for granted. Celebrate what you can and when you can.

Here is my last sketch of 2020 done at Lake Ronkonkoma of the view across the lake.

Here is my first sketch of 2021. If I am not visiting family or friends somewhere for the holiday I try to get down to the ocean on New Year's Day. I went to Robert Moses State Park where the Fire Island Lighthouse stands. There are always so many people who have the same idea as me. I enjoy seeing so many families out enjoying the day together. 

There are also always people who come down to the beach and celebrate the new year with food and drinks, often tailgating from their cars. This group looked like they were enjoying each other's company. They visited for quite a while (of course not quite long enough for me to finish the entire sketch, but luckily I took a photo just in case). I hope they were safe being with each other. Although they were outdoors and probably far enough apart, they weren't wearing face coverings. Of course I was safe in my "mobile studio" away from them.

Inktober Day 4 - Lake Ronkonkoma View

 I am enjoying using the brown ink, which in my opinion looks like sepia. When I bought it and first tried it I was disappointed that it wasn't a true brown, but I like the look. 

My Day 4 Inktober was sketched from the parking lot at Lake Ronkonkoma County Park. I believe this is the same park my parents would take us to once or twice a summer. It was a good hour drive from our home and it seemed like we were going on a big trip when we went there.  It had this huge slide in the water. I was always afraid to climb to the top so I never got to experience that thrill. I think it is funny that now I live so close to it. The slide is no longer there so I don't have to worry about it.

Then there is the story about the bees. My mother would always pack lunch when we went out for the day. There were my two parents and 5 of us kids, so buying food at a snack bar was out of the question. So Mom brought a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter, and a jar of jelly. As soon as the jelly jar was opened a swarm of bees headed into the jar and never left. lol We had dry peanut butter sandwiches for lunch that day!