Eufaula from 3500 Feet

“Can anything be sadder than work unfinished? Yes, work never begun.”
– Christina Rossetti



Eufaula from 3500 Feet – 6″ x 12″  Watercolor

At last I finished this little painting.  It may not be completely accurate, but it’s as close as I could muster from so far away.  It is the city of Eufaula, from a solo trip I took from McAlester to Oklahoma.

About Christina Rossetti

Christina Rossetti, the Victorian era English poet, is known for the melancholy themes in such poems as “Goblin Market” and “When I Am Dead.” She was born in 1830 in London to Italian-born parents. Her father was poet Gabriele Rossetti and her brother was the painter/poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti. She rejected two marriage proposals because, although she loved both men, neither shared her religious devotion. According to her brother, she wrote effortlessly and rapidly. She died in 1894.

From 3500 Feet – Painting In Progress

“When you get into a tight place and it seems that you can’t go on, hold on — for that’s just the place and the time that the tide will turn.”
– Harriet Beecher Stowe



From 3500 Feet – Painting In Progress
6″ x 12″ Watercolor

If you live in Eufaula, don’t look for your house.  It might not be where you expect it to be. 

I am doing the best I can to give this painting some acuracy, but I took the photo from 3500′ in the air, when I was doing a solo flight from McAlester to Muskogee.   ( I still had one hand on the controls, while just holding the camera up to snap this with the other hand.)  It is a much larger photo, area wise, but I am cropping to this view for the painting.  That is Eufaula Cove Marina in the center.  This is a practice sketch, so to speak, for the 2′ x 4′ acrylic painting that I want to do.   I am really enjoying the process!

About Harriet Beecher Stowe

American author Harriet Beecher Stowe is known for her novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, a rallying cry for the abolitionist movement. When she met Abe Lincoln in 1862, he said, “So you’re the little woman who wrote the book that started this great war!” She was born in Connecticut in 1811. Her brother, Henry Ward Beecher, became a renowned minister. After an unusually thorough education for a woman of the time, she began her career when she won a magazine prize contest. She died in 1896.

The Birds and the Llama

“If you must begin then go all the way, because if you begin and quit, the unfinished business you have left behind begins to haunt you all the time.”
– Chögyam Trungpa

Wow!  Isn’t that a great quote?  It’ll carry me all the way to my pilot’s license, no matter how hard it is.



The Birds and the Llama -  Watercolor

While we’re on weird animal paintings, I thought I’d share this one.   This will remind us that play is a GOOD thing.  (Well, I think so anyway.)  I love to play with color and create paintings that don’t remind you of anything you have seen before.  Just play! 

Last night, I started working on my flight plan for my long cross country solo.  There are so many computations and serious critical considerations.  Did you know that you figure a weight and balance for every flight, taking in the weight of your passengers, baggage, fuel, etc. to be certain that the center of gravity is in the proper place for maximum performance.

The wind is a huge factor, because if you don’t correct your heading for wind, you’ll be off course.  You also have to consider the temperature, air density,  pressure and  the magnetic variation, among other things.   It’s daunting!

First, you look at your personal minimums.  Do you feel okay?  Are you stressed?  Have you eaten properly?  Have you taken any medicine that will affect your thinking?  Are the winds within your capabilities?  There’s more, but I don’t want to bore you.   I’ll finish the flight plan tonight, with the exception of the weather parameters, which I will calculate tomorrow morning.  That will also allow me to also calculate ground speed and fuel consumption.  Is your head spinning yet?  Maybe that’s why I paint pink llamas.  he he

About Chögyam Trungpa

Tibetan Buddhist leader Chögyam Trungpa was instrumental in bringing Buddhism to the West. He was born in 1939 in Tibet and was recognized as the reincarnation of a Rinpoche (enlightened teacher) at 13 months old. After moving to England, he abandoned his monk garb: He wanted his Western students to perceive the Buddhist teachings without becoming distracted by exotic trappings. He founded Naropa University in Colorado and wrote several books. He died in 1987.