el Sol

Rise N' Shine                                                  watercolor on 140lb. cold press / eakf

"How glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountains" - John Muir
This weekend we "sprang ahead" to accomplish DST 2011 (daylight saving time). So what is it about sunlight that has us wanting to "save" it ? The origin of DST stems from a suggestion made by our very own Benjamin Franklin in one of his essays
(An Economical Project -1734 ) ..... and would you believe that energy conservation was the objective !!
 In reality what happens is that we transfer, in effect, an hour's worth of daylight from early morning when only milkmen and roosters are awake to appreciate it, shifting it to then push back sunset (at least as far as our timepieces are concerned), giving the masses more usable daylight.
    Admittedly, loosing an hour of sleep the night we advance our clocks, isn't fun ~ but the benefits of seemingly longer days, especially now that Spring is bringing milder weather and the beauty of all her awakenings, far outshines a few lost 
Z-Z-Z-'s. Personally I embrace the warmth of the sun and the extended time to savor it.


Carpe diem !!!

Shadow play ...

Well, we all now know that the news out of Pennsylvania yesterday had"Phil" seeing his shadow. Folklore dictates six more weeks of winter. Today, here in Texas, seems to echo that prediction, as it is a gray and drippy day. Thought some flowers might brighten my outlook, and also liked the great cast shadows on the wall. Now for a cup of Earl Grey...

Catching Shadows ~

Nature's long shadows ... Deep in the afternoon  ...The night not far. ~ Haiku

Anticipating Groundhog Day - tomorrow - has me "musing" about  Shadows, those shapes (sometimes very realistic; sometimes very odd) cast by any solid object obstructing light. Remember that childhood summer fun of playing shadow tag? Rules were, you could ONLY tag a shadow - no contact with shadow-maker or you were out! Life now still has me chasing shadows in my art. Very important to render a cast shadow well both in space and tone. Often shadows ( placement of the darks and lights) can make or break a drawing or painting. Final fun fact for tomorrow is the actual origin of the groundhog folklore. It originated with the German immigrants in Pennsylvania. Back in Germany, the farmers had relied on the common badger "to see or not see" his shadow as a forecaster of springs arrival ( and therefore best crop planting times). Once here in America, the German farmers found no badgers - but found an abundance of groundhogs - hence the switch.
So, along with much of the country, I eagerly await Punxsutawney Phil's prediction.