Before the Tourists

“You have to take it as it happens, but you should make it happen the way you want to take it.”
– Old German Proverb

  

Before the Tourists
9″ x 12″ Watercolor on Strathmore 140 lb. coldpress

As you know,  this is a huge painting for me!  The references had a bizzilion beach chairs and a fence.  I decided to see what it looked like before the tourists came.  He he he

Speaking of tourists… this weekend is our annual Bucket Run on Lake Eufaula.  The sailboats come to play!  I hope to be out there somewhere with my camera.  There is just something about sailboats!  I’m sure it’s a lot more work than they make it seem.  It’s so calming to watch them floating on the lake, like they don’t have a care in the world.

The festivities begin Friday night May 21st with registration starting at 8 pm and continuing until? They’ll have live music by Bluefish, a wine tasting hosted by Sailing Horse Winery and lots of sailboats. The race for the bucket kicks off at 10 am on Saturday the 22nd. Saturday night they’ll feed pizza and wings to all the crews at Evergreen Marina .On Sunday the 23rd the line opens once again at 10 am for the run back to Eufaula Cove. Awards will be handed out at 4 pm at Gators!  For more info click here.

German proverbs represent one of the finest cultures in Europe. They have a very practical approach and the humor present in some of them gives them a bit of a sweeter taste so to speak. However the sharp realism in some of them is pretty blunt and will not pet anyone, embodying somehow the German direct way of speaking. Nonetheless the German proverbs will pitch your thinking and make you consider some new views.

As an old German proverb says “A country can be judged by the quality of its proverbs”; when it comes to Germany there is plenty to say. Given to the fact that over 40 million Americans are of German ancestry, it is obvious how due to their emigration in the United States of America their words of wisdom inheritance was translated into English, therefore, some of these proverbs may seem familiar.

Spoken directly or with humor, the German proverbs are a great source of thought provoking ideas; see more in the article here.

How About a Swim?

“The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather in a lack of will.”
– Vincent Lombardi

 

How About a Swim?
4″ x 6″ on Watercolor Greeting Card


I painted this little watercolor yesterday for my granddaughter’s birthday card.  It was fun trying to get as much color as I could into it, while staying pretty true to the great reference photo from Li.
I’m ready to take a dip.  Are you coming? 

About Vincent Lombardi

American football coach Vincent Lombardi is famed for turning the Green Bay Packers from a losing team to two-time Super Bowl champions. He was born in 1913 in Brooklyn. He initially wanted to be a priest, but changed his mind after he became the star fullback on his high school team. When he began coaching the Packers, he set up intensive training camps and demanded absolute dedication but promised them the championship. The NFL named him “Man of the Decade” in the 1960′s. He died in 1970.