speaking of Dusty

These are a few pics that JJ took last week when I was there. Dusty's an 11 year old (right?) Tennessee Walking Horse. His color is called Champagne. It looks a lot like Buckskin, which is what most people think he is.

I did some groundwork before I hopped on:

Worked on gaiting some, just going up and down the fenceline. It doesn't come easily to him. He naturally tends to trot rather than gait, so it's a matter of keeping contact with the reins and urging him forward at the same time. Feels strange to me. He's got a lousy trot though. Great canter! Unfortunately the pic caught him with his nose in the air looking like I'm really hauling back on him... I'm not!

horsey things

Anyone have any experience with horse "boots" (like EasyBoots and whatnot). Shylah has hard feet but she's ouchy on rocky terrain, and she's going to be in very rocky terrain for a week or so this fall. Get her shod? Try boots? Any ideas?

She actually loped last night in the round pen. It was amazing. Her canter, in addition to being rough, has always seemed a bit frantic. I'm not sure where she found a lope, but there it was. Still a little bouncy, but it is improving for sure. I suppose it's conformation that gives her an odd gait but she's a lot more level than she used to be, and I think perhaps that's making the difference. I wish I had a big open space to go run her around in. *envies those with open fields to ride in*

I've been thinking more about the mounted shooting that I saw at Horse Expo. They have practices here and there around the area. There are numerous reasons I can't participate at this point (no trailer or truck, no gun, crappy aim, slow horse) but it does sound fun. I'm toying with the idea of going to watch and photograph an event this weekend (anyone want to go to Dunnigan with me? Why do my horsey friends all live so darn far away!?) I'd need a fast smooth horse if I was ever going to do this, and then it dawned on me... Dusty! He's quick, he's all go go go, he might be decent at it.

I forgot to say this but when I rode Dusty last week I was struck by how the way he walks felt just like the way that a mule walks, with that forward and back motion. Very different than a normal horse.

Any Sacto area people members of any local horse clubs? I need to meet horse people (yes, you know what I'm getting at).

August 6 work in progress

I had to do a secret project today, so no time for scrim. I also started sketches for a new poultry illustration project (Standard-like, but just two of them for now). Can't show any of that til they get approved, but of course I have to finish the sketches before I can do that.

I'm totally not happy with this drawing but I keep telling myself when I get more color on there and it actually gets some saturation it'll be sooo much better. Cross your fingers. I do have a reference photo but I am not following it exactly (there's no need to). I've been there, but didn't take the picture. :-)

Listening to my ipod on shuffle mode can be very interesting, there are some jarring transitions. Nothing like soaring along with the cast of Cats singing "Memory" and then suddenly the Charlie Daniels Band cranking out "Uneasy Rider '88" Whoa. My tastes are eclectic.

August 5 work in progress

Remember, this is one dot at a time... *egads*



I'm not super thrilled with the drawing I'm working on, which is why I haven't been working on it much. I still think at some point it'll just click but it's sort of a rebellion until that happens. There are still, um, oh heck I don't know, at least 4 more color layers to go in that top portion... I can see why some artists do their Work In Progress blogs after the fact, but wouldn't you rather suffer through the angst along with me rather than be presented with some tidy pre-packaged thing when I'm done. ;-)

(photographed in daylight):

(photographed at night, with more stuff done obviously):

9x20 inches
colored pencil

chickening

If anyone wants pet quality Rosecomb Bantams, let me know. I have an abundance. I hatched around 75ish birds this year I think. I will probably be taking about half to auction in a couple weeks. How nice! There are some decent birds out there. Always a sucker for the underdog, my favorite is of course "It." It is turning into a gorgeous, um, chicken. I'll take more pics when she (I think?) is fully feathered.

Been thinking a lot about shows. I am fairly certain at this point I'll go to the National down in Ventura. I need to figure that out for sure in the next couple days though because if I am going to go I need to run an ad in the booklet. I'd have to take art to offset some of the travel expense. It's a pain, but with people confirmed coming from 20 states (so says the club prez) that would put my work in front of some new faces, always a good thing. I could stay with relatives but that changes the socialization factor, a particularly big deal at a show like this one. So.... I am seeking a travel buddy to split gas and hotel. I likely will only have room for one person, so.... JJ, arm twist... ;-) ?

Assuming I go, it'll be the only show I attend this fall (other than State Fair next month, not sure if that counts). Chickening is not as big a part of my life as it used to be, and at this point I think if I'm going to be spending moolah traveling it needs to be for art shows. I kinda hate to see this happen to me, but it's been inevitable for the last few years I think. As for the 2009 winter shows, we'll see. Maybe one or two of them.

random crap

I am taking an eyeball break from drawing and scrim (so I'm looking at the computer instead? Yeah, that's brilliant.)

Local friends (as in, you know me, stalker-types need not apply): Anyone want peaches or nectarines? There's a bunch and they are OMG good. You pick! I gotta make jam.

I was digging through four boxes of old photos the other day in search of reference material and stumbled across pics from Draft Horse Classic 1997, where I photographed the horses that I drew in "Chains and Leather." Everyone always asks me if the team was really three-abreast. Yes. I wouldn't make something like that up. Here is that team:

SWF seeks intelligent cowboy-ish dude. Yeah, that's pretty much what it comes down to. I have debated whether or not to mention this, but for the sake of those of you living vicariously through me (ME? Really, you gotta pick someone more exciting) I know you want to know that I have jumped in with the other fish in the sea of online dating. Oh golly. I know a lot of success stories but I'm still feeling skeptical. It is at least providing me with some entertainment. (sarcasm, rolls eyes). It's not something I'm going to be blogging about. But hey, if you know someone perfect, send him my way... ;-)

Back to it!

August 3 work in progress

Work in progress pics from the last few days. Do y'all want me to really go into detail explaining what I'm doing? I've been presenting this as a tutorial on the Engraving Forum and it's kinda fun to go into depth with the explanation. Let me know if you'd want to read more about what I do here on the blog. I don't write just to listen to the sound of my fingers on the keyboard. ;-)

ketchup

*yawn* I've actually been gone since Friday, I got home this afternoon and am really tired, but I have to go back to Wednesday to catch up on blogging.

I went to JJ's that evening to work with her horse Dusty (remember him? He's a Tennessee Walker I worked with for a few months and on our graduation ride he had a big time spook at a boulder and dumped me on my head?) I think he's only been ridden once since then (not by me) and he's been giving JJ's young neighbor some trouble when she comes over to ride the other horse. So I decided I needed to refresh Dusty's memory. We had to have a few little talks, so to speak, but he was pretty good and I rode him some around the pasture. I love to canter that horse but his feet are in need of a trim and he was stumbly so I didn't ride much, and won't ride him again til he gets trimmed. It would be fun to take him up to JC's ranch this fall with Shylah for some fun with mountains and rocks and hopefully not too many bears. ;-)

Olin's doing very well. I wrote that previous post while out of town. Yes, I felt terrible leaving my kitty but I felt confident that Mom could handle giving him pills. So Olin has a shaved leg, which looks funny:

These are pics of the king of relaxation from last week, pre-abscess:

Want a closeup of that smile?:

Okay, so Friday late afternoon I drove up to JC and DC's place, 200 miles north. I am pleased to report my car made it there and back without incident. I always go visit there during the summer to see the foals, and we also went to see the new X-Files movie on Saturday. I enjoyed it, but then again my enthusiasm for Mulder is no secret. ;-) It was pretty hot up there this weekend. I rode JC's new Gypsy mare this morning. She's very green broke (and very lazy) so it was a mild ride, but she's about as wide as a barrel and quite mellow, and I can now add another breed to the list of horse breeds I've ridden. And of course I had to take a zillion foal pics! It was hard to narrow it down so here's a bunch:

Abby, a buckskin Azteca (Andalusian X Quarter Horse) filly (she's adorable, and for sale):



Doc, a dun overo Azteca (Andalusian X Paint) colt. This guy is going to be FLASHY!:


BK, this one's for you, lol. ;-)
(the colt is shaking his head, if anyone's wondering)

Doc and Abby playing:




Anyway, now it's time to make some art.

Olin update

He'll be fine. :-) Had an abscess, so he's now sporting a nifty shaved hairdo and some holes in his leg. Poor guy was a like a little drunken kitty when I brought him home yesterday.

Saw Mulder today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ;-) ;-)

jam!

Well, you're probably tired of me pestering to see if anyone wants to buy jam, so this is it. The apricot is sold out. I am doing pre-order ONLY for the following:

Plum: ripe now! MUST order by Monday 8/4, very very limited quantities
Nectarine and/or Peach (ready in a week or so, please order asap)

Nectarine and Peach will probably be almost identical in taste. If you have a strong preference for one over the other let me know, or if you want both let me know. If you don't have a preference you could get either one. Remember, it'll be a few weeks til I can ship either of those.

Cost: $5 per half pint jar. Shipping $12 for up to 6 jars. If you're local you can pick it up. Payment okay in the following forms: check/MO to Katherine Plumer, PO Box 703, Wilton, CA 95693 or paypal to kplumer1@earthlink.net.

In other news...

I am sooooo tired. Between going to bed late, getting up early, and having a sick cat on my bed all night (more on that in a minute), and mosquitoes in the middle of the night, it would not take a lot of fingers to count up how many hours of sleep I got. Olin is at the vet hospital today, I dropped him off this morning. One leg is very swollen, he's hot and lethargic. The lady at the front desk says it sounds like an abscess. Hope it's nothing more serious. I worry worry worry worry when one of the animals is unwell, especially when it's that particular animal! I won't know what's going on with him til this afternoon. Worry worry....