...and move, but I thought I'd share a few pics of my new studio before I start working in it. Actually, it's additional studio space and where I'll be doing the majority of work. It's a cloudy day here and the pics were taken in late afternoon, so this is what it looks like in low light.
This is where I'll be painting with acrylics. I'll continue to do oils in the old space.
And this is where I'll work on watercolours. I normally work standing.
I only sit on the stool when I'm frustrated.
And this is where I'll be reading, writing and watching hockey.
I'll be in the chair by the window.
UPDATE: Today, as you can see, there are a few clouds, but it's mostly sunny, which is typical here. I thought I'd post a few more pics to give you a better idea of the usual light I enjoy in the space.
And H took this pic this morning. The shaft of light is coming from the sun room.
I imagine that's where the cat plans to sit while I'm working, giving me that stern look. She's my biggest critic.
...by John Metcalf should be in bookstores next week, so keep an eye out for it! The cover photo is by yours truly. I'm so excited! It's been quite the year for me, and having my work on the cover of this particular book is, indeed, one of the great highlights. I just about jumped off my chair last night when I read this post by the publisher. How cool! I can't wait to have that signed copy in my hands. If the books arrive in time, I'll be bringing a copy to the SWG Fall Conference to show around, so be sure to take a peek. And next time you're in a bookstore, look for Shut Up He Explained and make sure it's facing out!
UPDATE: Have a look at the article on John Metcalf and Shut Up He Explained that appeared in the The Ottawa Citizen. And John W. MacDonald just posted a great photo of Metcalf from the launch. MacDonald's photographs are all great. Anyhow, I just about jumped off my chair when I saw the photo because lo and behold, there's the book! I'm tickled!
...as one of the country’s leading art cities says Carol Perehudoff in enRoute magazine. While I agree wholeheartedly, I'd go one step further and say Saskatchewan has emerged as one of the country's leading art provinces. But I guess that's old news.
The brief article mentions a number of artists, including Charley Farrero whose work just happens to be hanging in my office. We have a few of his pieces in our collection.
As a resident of one of the country's leading art provinces, I am proud to say I'm going to listen to SoundXchange today, a review of Saskatchewan arts, entertainment and culture. It's a brand new program on CBC Saskatchewan, hosted by Kelley Jo Burke. I missed the first show last weekend because we were away, so I'm not sure how it differs from Gallery, the show that it replaced.
Kelley Jo Burke will be speaking at the SWG Fall Conference about writing for CBC and what we can expect from it as a market. I registered for Judith Krause's workshop on ekphrastic poetry, which runs at the same time, so H will attend the CBC talk and fill me in.
We're still working on the studio. We hope to be finished before the conference. Actually, we hope to be finished by next weekend. A while back I'd mentioned the hardwood floor that we discovered under old well-glued tile. Well, I'm happy to say the last coat of finish was applied this morning. Removing the tile and glue was an incredible amount of work, but that never frightens us. And wow is all I can say. The floor is beautiful.
...when we walked into the Java Shack in La Ronge for the reading last night and it's no small place. They brought out extra chairs. Then more people came. It was great. And they had live music! Rick Bell, Gareth Cook and Felicia Daunt of The Deadbeats were warming up the crowd with songs I didn't know, but boy did I like them. And the readings were great, too. The readers were Robert Calder, Dave Glaze, Harold Johnson, Greg Marchildon, Ken Mitchell, Sid Robinson, and me. It was a fantastic event. Hats off to the La Ronge Wild Rice Writers' Group and the Saskatchewan Writers Guild and everyone involved.
There was a photographer there already, so H only took pics of me chatting after the readings were over. Oddly enough, my mouth is open in every one of them.
(Left to right: Amy Nelson-Mile, me)
But that's not surprising after the trip we had. My jaws were pretty limber by the time we got to La Ronge. Initially things looked pretty good.
And for the first 40 km of gravel, things were pretty good. But I think this sign sums up the rest of the trip pretty well.
Mind you, the sign should have one more line: ROOTS AND HOLES.
And then H took a turn for the worse.
That trail wasn't bad compared to the last 55 km of road. H managed to dodge the rocks and roots and holes, but the road was so rough at one point that the passenger air bag light came on, saying it had turned itself off. By the time we hit the highway, the car was screeching at us. What horrible noise. I'm sure people could hear us coming a mile away. Poor car.
I spent most of today in a board meeting at the Harbour Inn. We had our lunch outside, the dock just steps away.
I'm happy to say the grader was out and the road was in really good condition for our trip home. Only rocks and roots to dodge this time.
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By the way, for those of you who don't know the region, there is a beautiful smooth highway to La Ronge and we could've chosen to stay on nice highways for the entire trip. However, that would make the trip over 300 km longer than it was (over 600 km extra on the round trip). I can't remember how far we traveled as it was. Anyhow, my post describes the shortcut we took. Like I said in the previous post, we'd had lots of precipitation in the north in the days prior, so we knew what we were in for. Hats off to the people who keep that road in good shape. They do a remarkable job.
...today. Tonight I'll be reading along with a number of others. It will be fun. See the sidebar for details. I copied and pasted the info from the SWG ebriefs, so some of you will recognize the wording. La Ronge is in the center of northern Saskatchewan, but nowhere near here. Creighton, also a northern community, is on the very eastern edge of the province. That means we have to head down the Hanson Lake road and then take the shortcut across to the highway to La Ronge. Of the two routes there, it's by far the shortest and the most beautiful, but it means we're in for 95 km of gravel. No big deal except that we've had a lot of precipitation over the last few days. Hopefully our little car doesn't get swallowed up by some big muddy hole. Wish us luck!
Before we go, we plan to get another coat of paint on the walls in the studio. I missed a few spots yesterday, proving I can't talk and paint at the same time.
...was a lovely invitation to the launch of Frontier Farewell: The 1870s and the End of the Old West by Garrett Wilson, a book I'll definitely buy. While the invitation I received is to the launch at the University of Regina on September 20, I had to link to the McNally Robinson event just because I could link to it. The publisher of the book is the Canadian Plains Research Center, a fine publisher. They have a lovely website, and the book has a very nice page in the online catalogue. Unfortunately, I can't find a way to link to it.
While I won't be able to make it to the launch, I do plan to be at the SWG 2007 Fall Conference and AGM. Looks like it will be a dandy. I'm thinking about contributing to the cross-genre display and to the display of members' work spaces. Mind you, we're renovating and my work space is a bit of a disaster right now. All the books from the former living room are currently piled on the floor behind me. I'm constantly tripping over them.
...fell last night. I could hear the branches breaking. I imagine more branches broke this morning while I listened to "I am". Then I thought about how to get lost. And the meaning of life. I'm still thinking. I can almost hear the branches breaking in my head.
This afternoon, after we got back from coffee at The Orange Toad, we walked around the yard and surveyed the damage. The big old willows took a beating.
It continues to rain and snow as I write this. I guess it's time to dig out the snow brush.
...asks Tracy Hamon in her latest post. Good question. For a while after I read "Post-Prairie Poetics: A Dialogue," Jon Paul Fiorentino and Robert Kroetsch's introduction to Post-Prairie in which they refer to Cooley's essay "The Vernacular Muse in Prairie Poetry," I felt like the leftover shepherd's pie of prairie poetry. I haven't read Cooley's “Placing the Vernacular: The Eye and the Ear in Saskatchewan Poetry” to which Tracy refers in her post, but it sounds like I write "eye" poems. Ah, me and my rural eye. Whatever. Call me a prairie poet. Call me whatever you like. I'm just happy I'm past the shepherd's pie feeling.
I'm happy to say the cat is doing much better. She's getting around, but still needs to be carried to the litter box.
H and I are still renovating the studio. We've uncovered a hardwood floor and hope to give it new life. It's in remarkably good condition considering all that was glued on top of it. So far so good anyhow. Touch wood.
...over the injured cat, I've been reading Sheri Benning's Thin Moon Psalm, recently released by Brick Books. The perfect choice for this evening. It was in the package of Brick books that we picked up at the post office once we got back to town after hours on the road to get to a vet and the hours spent there. So here I am. Dim lamp. A groggy cat trying to find her balance after the anesthetic. Beautiful poems.
