Year of Days - Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all of you! I hope yours is cozy and delightful. More soon!

A Year of Days - Christmas Tree

These are half-real and half-imagined. The buildings are (sort of) like a streetscape near here, and that tree (if it really existed) could have come from the grocery store or from Market Square. The snow is fictional...at least, for the moment! I'm sending warm holiday wishes to all of you, and hope you are cozy and happy.

The Olympic Torch

It's one of those events where you wait (and sketch) for a long time and then zip-zoom, in a few minutes it's all over!


On the left is Market Square. (Those black blobs in the front are rows of stage lights waiting to be put up.) On the right is City Hall, lit up with a spotlight. Below is my street, lined with support vehicles and TV cameras.



Just as the torch arrived, a misty rain started to fall. But everything was moving too fast for sketching, anyway. I shoved my sketchbook inside my jacket to keep it dry, and grabbed the camera instead.



There's the dome of City Hall with the convoy of support vehicles and flashing lights--very exciting. And there's the torch, being carried past my building! It continued for a few more blocks and then looped back along King Street, carried by marathon swimmer Vicki Keith. Here's a blurry photo of her in front of St. George's Cathedral, just a block from the finish.



When she got to the stage, she touched the torch to a cauldron. That's the white thing in my scribbled sketch. I stayed for a few minutes of cheering, and to sing the national anthem. Then I scurried home to get warm and to drink some hot tea!

Skating Rink

I was hurrying home to get warm, but there was so much great stuff going on in Market Square that I had to stop and sketch for a minute.



My fingers stayed pretty warm, even without gloves. But oooo-eeeee, my rear end was freezing to the bench! I worked as quickly as I could.


It felt great to be sketching outdoors, even for a few minutes. The weather hasn't been co-operating lately, and I've been missing those long summertime walks. It's nice to know that a spontaneous sketching session can happen even in the winter!

Canada Geese

These guys are new to Breakwater Park. They showed up a couple of weeks ago, and they don't seem to be in a hurry to move on. Some people think of them as pests, and if they stick around they might become a problem. But in the meantime, I've enjoyed sketching their big round bodies and graceful necks.

Rain, Rain, Go Away

Today we should be chanting "Snow, Snow, Go Away," but I've been
painting a rainy scene instead. I hope you are cozy, wherever you are.
It's hot-chocolate and reading-by-the-fire weather.

Little Miss Muffet

I sat on my tuffet last night and did some watercolour painting. I've
been working on other projects for a few weeks, so it felt extra-good
to pick up a brush again!

Christmas Cactus

I was halfway between the laundromat and the cafe when the first snow of the year began to blow. By the time I sat down, you could hardly see across the street. I tried to write myself some sensible reminders about coats and boots, but the Christmas cactus on my table was just begging to be sketched. As you can see, I succumbed!