Blasted, Coming Up 12x12's

One of my Coturnix quail got out today.  They are pretty good flyers and I chalked it up to the nature of the business...'cept for one thing; I have a retriever! Both dogs accompanied  me as I walked towards the woods, gun in hand, lamenting the thought that I might just have to make an early harvest of one of my premium egg layers. As I approached the landing zone I saw a bird fly off and down the wash.  Turns out it was a Gambel's quail. I walked toward the shop berrating myself for leaving the pen door unattended for the split second it took for the flighty friend to make his escape good when  suddenly Billie (the Bernese Mountain dog) went on point. The bird was roused and flew again, Sunny the wonder Lab marked it and as it was not used to flying such distances, tired easily. Sunny retrieved it to hand with nary a scratch. Moral of the story? A well trained dog is worth a bird in the bush.
New paintings on auction available here.

Wolf, Swan, Buffalo

More critters that inhabit my perfect world. If I could paint these guys everyday I would.  My only problem is that I don't have much for small brushes, gonna have to get some.  These are available here on auction. If they get some good feedback I'll make more. Bears are coming, so stay tuned.

Out Of Africa

In a perfect world elephants and buffaloes would roam the desert where I live and, oh yeah, there'd be streams chalk-full of trout and bass (peacock bass) and also a few gazelles prancing around cavorting and frolicking with elk ...and moose too. The chickens would peck and scratch around the yard with no fear of hawks and my kids would still be cute little 6 year olds (but be able to drive and work in the shop to help dad)  Yes, in a perfect world I would wish for all this and more.
All my bio-children will be legal adults this month. Eddie and Eli turn 20 & 18 respectively. Marissa will be 24 this year and Ellie the grafted-in daughter turns 18 too.  I'm convinced that painting keeps you young but looking at old photos doesn't help the aging process at all.  I tried to find a picture of me holding a peacock bass fished out of the Amazon from a few years back,  the folder was empty. I think I'll just paint one. As I recall it weighed about 300 lbs...and I have no gray hair and weighed about 20 lbs less than what people think I weigh now.  Thank God for the perfect world I (almost) live in.
The African elephant in this painting will hang on my living room wall to remind me of that world.