Which came first? The tennies or the pink poppy flamingo suit?

“Love is an act of endless forgiveness, a tender look which becomes a habit.”
– Peter Ustinov

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Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

Pink Poppy Flamingo in Pink Tennies

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This flamingo absolutely lives in Bethville, where no wardrobe choice is a surprise.  When people look at you and laugh, it’s because your pink poppy outfit makes them happy.  I believe that to our very core, that’s what we all want… to be happy. 

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By the way, changing themes did not correct my wordpress issues.  **sigh**

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About Peter Ustinov

British actor Peter Ustinov is best known for his Oscar-winning roles in Topkapi and Spartacus. He was born in London in 1921 to parents of blended pan-European extraction. He wrote several plays as well as a well-received autobiography, Dear Me. From 1969 until his death in 2004, he took on the role of goodwill ambassador for UNICEF, visiting disadvantaged children all over the world. He said his multicultural background gave him automatic loyalty to the UN.

Pink Flamingo in Stripey Boots

“We have to fight them daily, like fleas, those many small worries about the morrow, for they sap our energies.”
– Etty Hillesum

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

Stripey Boots on a Pink Flamingo

I sketched this little bird in an airport a couple years ago.  Goofy… maybe.  Bethville…  oh yeah!

I just finished putting graphics all over a box van for a construction company.  It feels so good to be inside where the air is cool. 

About Etty Hillesum

Etty Hillesum, less famous than her contemporary, Anne Frank, lived a short life of great courage. She was born in 1914 in the Netherlands to a Dutch father and a Russian mother. She studied law, Slavic languages, and psychology. Hungry for knowledge, she cut down on food in order to buy books. She went voluntarily to the Westerbork camp to help fellow Jews interned by the Nazis. Her letters detail her experiences; her more meditative diary focuses on issues of faith. She died at Auschwitz in 1943.

Flamingo in Green High Heels

“Victory is won not in miles but in inches. Win a little now, hold your ground, and later, win a little more.”
– Louis L’Amour

Flamingo in Green Shoes – Watercolor

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If I was a girl who still wore heels…. I would SO wear those shoes.  My hubby would be mortified!  He’s picky about shoes. 

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About Louis L’Amour

Louis L’Amour, the author known for his pulp westerns, wrote more than 100 novels in his lifetime. Born in North Dakota in 1908 as Louis LaMoore, he worked across the southwestern U.S. on a string of backbreaking jobs including longshoreman, elephant handler, and cattle skinner. He saw his writing as akin to telling tales by a campfire and wanted to be remembered simply as a good storyteller. He won the Medal of Freedom in 1984 and died in 1988.

A Wild Pink Flamingo Painting

“Do not be too timid and squeamish about your actions. All life is an experiment.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

Whoooop!  A  Wild Flamingo Painting

This is an acrylic painting, painted over a failed effort.   The whole thing is pretty weird, if you ask me, but as I share these archives, I am sharing the odd ones, too. 

About Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

Ralph Waldo Emerson helped spark the transcendentalist movement with the essay Nature, which described his belief in the spiritual essence of humanity and the natural world. He was born in Boston in 1803. He was a Unitarian minister until he resigned in 1832 to become a philosopher and writer. He suffered the untimely deaths of many of his loved ones: three brothers, his first wife at age 20, and his eldest son at age five. Emerson died in 1882.

Finish Line is In Sight! – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor and Sharpie

“A day of worry is more exhausting than a week of work.”
– John Lubbock

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Finish Line is In Sight! – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor and Sharpie

Once the girls had the finish line in sight, there was no stopping them!  Flying is clearly against the rules, so they were hoofing it around the track as fast as they could.  The instant replay tapes are still being viewed, to see who actually won by a beak.  I did this for http://www.illustrationfriday.com/ where the word is “sight”.

The photo I painted this from was by Mike Beckett at WetCanvas.

My WordPress blog is still not operating correctly.  The visual editor seems to be missing.  I can’t add tags or categories.  What a pain.

About John Lubbock

John Lubbock, the multifaceted British banker, statesman, and scientist, was responsible for the institution of England’s monthly Bank Holidays, sometimes referred to as St. Lubbock Days. He was born in 1834 in England. Growing up, he learned science from his father’s friend Charles Darwin. He coined the terms Paleolithic and Neolithic to denote the different Stone Ages, and he wrote the well-regarded books Prehistoric Times and Ants, Bees, and Wasps. He died in 1913.

Fancy Flamingo Shoes

“Could we change our attitude, we should not only see life differently, but life itself would come to be different.”
– Katherine Mansfield

I LOVE that quote and really believe it to be true!

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

This is a crop from a larger painting.  I think these flamingo shoes are adorable!  Did I miss my calling?  Maybe I should have been a footwear designer. 

About Katherine Mansfield

Katherine Mansfield was the pen name of short story writer Katherine Beauchamp, who is best known for her collection The Garden Party. Born in New Zealand in 1888, she moved to England as a young woman and became friends with writers such as Virginia Woolf and D.H. Lawrence. Her writing style was influenced by Anton Chekhov; like him, she focused on intimate moments that revealed character. She in turn influenced a generation of short story writers. She died in 1923 of tuberculosis.

Pink Flamingos Everywhere

“Don’t assume a door is closed; push on it.  Do not assume if it was closed yesterday, that it is closed today.”
– Marian Wright Edelman

 

Pink Flamingo Watercolor

Yesterday, I was flamingoed!  Yes, it’s true!  Kana Tyler over at Kana’s Notebook  flamingoed me!   Here is her flamingo.



When Kana started blogging, she thought her audience would be only her husband, mom and dad.  When she discovered the joy of community that comes with blogging, she wanted to thank some of us by flamingoing us.   Read her post here and all of this will make more sense.    I have been enjoying Kana’s blog very much, as I do all of you in my blog roll.  I don’t get around to comment as often as I like lately, but I very much appreciate my blog community.

So, consider yourselves flamingoed, too!



Don’t forget that Friday is the day to post your Halloween Challenge post, be it a painting, a drawing, a poem, or whatever makes you happy.   Post on your blog and come back here and give us a link, so we can go see your post.  I can’t wait to see what you do!

My Pink Poppy Flamingo looks like it’s already in costume.  he he  I painted that one in a hotel room,  during a terrible snow storm last February.  Remember? 

Marian Wright Edelman (born June 6, 1939) is an American activist for the rights of children. She is president and founder of the Children’s Defense Fund.
In 1953, her father died when she was 14, urging in his last words, “Don’t let anything get in the way of your education.”

She attended Marlboro Training High School there, and went on to Spelman College and traveled the world on a Merrill scholarship and studied in the Soviet Union as a Lisle fellow. She became involved in the Civil Rights Movement, and after being arrested for her activism, she decided to study law and enrolled at Yale Law School J.D. 1963.    More…

Frisky Flamingo – 2.5″ x 3.5″ Watercolor ATC

“Hope is the feeling you have that the feeling you have isn’t permanent.”
– Jean Kerr



Frisky Flamingo – 2.5″ x 3.5″ Watercolor ATC

“My name is Miss Fancy.  I am a frisky flamingo and the thing I like best about spring is me.  Don’t you just love my pink feathers?  I also love tulips.  Tulips are pretty!”

We are holding our city elections in Eufaula, today.  I can’t vote, since I don’t live in the city limits, but I have been enjoying the race.  All three mayoral candidates are graduates of Eufaula High School and each one brings unique qualities to the table.  I have a secret favorite, but I’ll keep it to myself and give my complete support to whoever wins.  As a business person in a town where I can’t vote for the mayor or city councilpersons, I sincerely hope for the best and look toward a bright future.

Good luck to all of the mayoral and city council candidates today.

About Jean Kerr

Comedic American author Jean Kerr is known for her wry take on married life in the suburbs in such books as How I Got to Be Perfect and Please Don’t Eat the Daisies, which was turned into both a movie and a TV series. She was born in Pennsylvania in 1922. She often collaborated on plays with her husband, drama critic Walter Kerr. She also wrote a number of plays by herself, including the extremely successful Mary, Mary, which ran for nearly 1,600 performances. She died in 2003.

Pink Poppy Flamingo

“The individual is capable of both great compassion and great indifference. He has it within his means to nourish the former and outgrow the latter.”
– Norman Cousins



Pink Poppy Flamingo
Watercolor & Ink

This is what happens to a mind that is trapped in a hotel room during a snow storm.  ha ha ha  With our steep driveway (out in the country) we decided to stay in a hotel in town.  It turns out that it was a good decision.  Our neighborhood is still too icy to venture in, so our neighbors are taking care of the house, while we stay in town a couple days.   We got a lot of snow and it’s a mess!

I hope that wherever you are reading this from, that you are safe and warm.

About Norman Cousins

American writer and editor Norman Cousins is best known for his book, Anatomy of an Illness, an account of how he used nutrition and positive visualizations, including laughter, to heal from an illness diagnosed as fatal. He was born in New Jersey in 1915. He served many years as editor-in-chief of the Saturday Review, a job he loved. Under his guidance, circulation increased from 20,000 to 650,000. He received the UN Peace Medal for his world activism. He died in 1990.

My Chilly Flamingo

“Once the ‘what’ is decided, the ‘how’ always follows. We must not make the ‘how’ an excuse for not facing and accepting the ‘what.’”
– Pearl S. Buck

Boy, isn’t that the truth!



My Chilly Flamingo
Watercolor & Ink

This little flamingo is modeling the new winter line.  I did put palm trees on her scarf, to make her feel at home. 

We are enjoying some amazing weather here in Oklahoma.  It is supposed to be in the 70′s today and tomorrow!   But…. Tuesday, the high is supposed to be 27.  **shiver**  I’m going to take advantage of this beautiful day and do graphics on store windows in Quinton.  Saturday, I hope to do my long cross country flight with my instructor.  YAY!!

About Pearl S. Buck

Prolific American author Pearl S. Buck is best known for her 1931 novel, The Good Earth, which depicted peasant life in China; the book, published by the John Day Company, won the Pulitzer Prize. She was born in West Virginia in 1892, but her missionary parents raised her in China. She and her first husband lived in China until 1934, when they had to flee the political strife. She later divorced and married John Day’s publisher, Richard Walsh, in 1935. In 1938, she became the first woman to win the Nobel Prize in literature. By the time of her death in 1973, she had published over 70 books, including collections of stories, poetry, and children’s literature.

Flamingo Flair

“He who cannot change the very fabric of his thought will never be able to change reality.”
– Anwar al-Sadat



Flamingo Flair
Watercolor & Ink

I don’t know a single respectable flamingo who wouldn’t love these shoes!  I have painted a ton of animals with shoes on over the years, but flamingos seem to wear them with flair! 

On the news this morning, they were talking about a new line of makeup WalMart is introducing for 8-13 year old girls!  I can hear my mother now… “You’re going to be old a very long time.  Stay young as long as you can!”  Back then, it was agonizing, but now I see her point.  Young is good!  I wore my innocent face until I was 16, and even then, she denied the blue eye shadow.  he he

About Anwar al-Sadat

Egyptian president Anwar al-Sadat won the 1978 Nobel Peace Prize in conjunction with Israeli prime minister Menachim Begin for the Camp David Accords. He was born in Egypt in 1918. He participated in the 1952 coup to oust the corrupt King Farouk and became president in 1970. He led Egypt into the Yom Kippur War to reclaim part of the Sinai Peninsula. When that failed, he took the risky diplomatic path, opening the door to détente. He was assassinated in 1981 by Muslim extremists.