I’m not entirely certain where some of these Bell Pepper seeds are going to land in next year’s garden, but I insist that we make room for some of them. Peppers of all varieties are an excellent source of vitamins A and C, potassium, folic acid and fiber. The seeds from one pepper, if germinated successfully, could yield us a peck if only we had enough acreage to accommodate them.
I tasted two plums that are ripening in the Art Garden, and savored the flavor of pure sweetness.
“Fleeting Summer” 3 x 6″ Pastel and Watercolor on paper. © 2015 TheresaMaeFunk. All rights reserved.
I typically take passing shots with my mobile device from the passenger seat of a car, trying to catch a fleeting glimpse of the day’s destination. Today, I am sharing the view of yesterday’s artwork from a stationary chair in my make-shift studio.
“Nearing the Vista”5 x 7” Watercolor and Pastel on paper. ©2015, Theresa Mae Funk. All rights reserved
There are not many days that I don’t catch myself thinking about Vermont, the Green Mountain State, my former home of twenty-three years. My friends are enduring another long winter of sub-zero temperatures that ruin their cheerful dispositions. They too, have got the blues for the greens.
Hand painted Satsuma Moriagi elephant ashtray, circa 1942.
A four-inch tall elephant occupies space in my studio. She serves as a visual reminder for me to be more courageous about speaking up and out against behavior that is detrimental to the physical and emotional well being of others.
“Never believe that a few caring people can’t change the world. For, indeed, that’s all who ever have.”
~Margaret Mead
© 2015 Theresa Mae Funk. All rights reserved.
January 6th marks the first day of Epiphanytide for some Western Christian denominations. My twelfth day of Christmas was spent wassailing through aisles of a Portland Oregon antique Center with my niece. I snap a passing shot of Santa in a clock frame next to a salt-shakered pine tree and sled:
Christmas bric-a-brac, circa 1972.
My attempts at reviving certain Christmastide traditions each year are received with varying degrees of enthusiasm, and not everyone appreciates my unique sense of humor:
Three Christmas carolers, circa 1959.
© 2015 Theresa Mae Funk. All rights reserved.
The morning sky reflected on the surface of Lake Jankyville was one of the first images that gave me a spark of inspiration today. (Lake Jankyville isn’t really a lake; it is the name we’ve given to the puddle that forms on the backyard patio after a heavy rainstorm.) As thankful as we are to be receiving days of consistent rainfall, it was nice to catch a glimpse of blue sky and clouds with silver lining.
Today’s second spark of creative inspiration is captured in this passing shot taken just outside my studio door.
Brilliant red and rain soaked petals of a Shasta Daisy glistening in mid-morning sunlight makes me realize how often I have missed the opportunity to appreciate its unique beauty. We would be wise to remind ourselves to make time to acknowledge our own unique gifts and the beauty that we are capable of sharing with the world if we will only allow ourselves to do so.
© 2014 Theresa Mae Funk. All rights reserved.
I put aside my grief today to have lunch with friends and made time for a visit to Ocean Beach and the Sutro Baths.
My love came home with me, but I left this heart in San Francisco:
© 2014, Theresa Mae Funk. All rights reserved.
This month’s Farm Fresh delivery to our door from Capay Organic. (Dog not included.)
Our monthly Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) delivery from Capay Organic’s Farm Fresh to You produce arrived on Friday. We initially signed up for the service with a short-term commitment in mind; bridge the deficit that our back yard farming efforts do not provide us so that our nutritional needs could be better met. Shopping at local grocery store chains for vegetables trucked from the Central Valley is one thing but to buy produce from Canada or Mexico? I prefer not to be a part of that economy because it isn’t necessary for us to do so. We have access to fertile land in a garden I call Eden, otherwise known as California. What might our world be like if more people were granted access to land to grow their own food and help sustain their communities?
Stella sneaks a lick of the King Richard Leek when she thought I wasn’t looking.
Please support your local farmers. Plant seeds of your own. The rewards are worth the effort.
~T.
© 2014, Theresa Mae Funk. All rights reserved.
© 2014, Theresa Mae Funk, all rights reserved.
We first noticed the hell fire cloud on Sunday, September 14th during our final round of the Gold Pan Open Disc Golf Tournament at Pioneer Park in Somerset, located approximately 15 miles to the south of Pollock Pines, California. The Sierra Nevada foothills are a tinder box of heavy timber and steep terrain, something that the jack-ass arsonist who deliberately set this fire knew would make containment nearly impossible. The latest update indicates that the 73, 184 acre fire is 10% contained.
As we made the 57 mile drive home to Sacramento County, I kept looking back at the huge plume of smoke, silently praying for a miracle deluge of rain that still, has not arrived.
Twenty minutes and 30 miles later, the hell fire cloud ominously looms over the landscape that inspires much of my original works on paper,
and I take one last passing shot of this day’s fiery grief.
© 2014, Theresa Mae Funk, all rights reserved.
THERESA MAE FUNK 