Just hanging around and 'aving a Bud

you have to see this... dogs 'ave all the fun!

http://videos.sapo.pt/g1JqurfVmvjgVGwUcz4T

JackDaddy - you will love this!

That's life!

life is the art of drawing
without an eraser

Cats (and dogs) could be dangerous to your health

A little warning to all us pet owners out there. I once owned a cat that nearly cost me my life!
Retiring to bed late one evening, just as I was climbing my stairs, I was curious about a 'CRACK' sound that startled me somewhat. So what did I do? Decided to investigate of course. I walked into my lounge only to see my sofa begin to burn. There, on the sofa was my cat... also startled. What had happened? Guess what... my very playful cat had found a box of matches that I had carelessly left on the arm of the sofa. He decided it was a good thing to play with! Of course, the matches spilt out and he bit one - igniting it with his teeth... that was the 'crack' sound. What are the odds on a cat igniting a match with his teeth? Must be quite rare I am sure. Fortunately I was there, in ear-shot, close enough to respond. What would have happened if I had left for bed an hour earlier? God only knows. The moral here is obvious - don't leave live matches where our pets might get a hold of them. Even a TV remote control can be a hazard... our pets chewing them or us leaving the remote tucked behind a sofa cushion can cause a short and possibly a fire! So be aware. Whilst our pets can pose a danger to our health, they can also save our lives... but that's another story for later!

Walkies waits for no man

How does Robin let me know when he is ready to go walkies in the mornings? Answer: he sits on my desk just to remind me and blocks my view of the PC whilst I try to use it! Even before I, a mere mortal am dressed and still drinking my morning coffee! He just sits there - looking me in the eyes and cries, like they do when they need to attract our attention. He generally wins every time. Lucy on the other hand sits patiently by the front door without a sound... sometimes I really get to Robin when I casually decide to take Lucy out first... he hates that!

Old beats new EVERY TIME!

Robin is pictured here (which is nothing unusual), however, this composite tells a story that stretches 50 years.
You see, the ball inset is one of Robin's new toys (his most-liked design) ... within moments he almost totally destroys them (as shown above)... BUT the ball in his mouth is one that my wife had, and was given when she was a baby. I found it recently in a box, packed away with old things in our spare room. Nothing unusual about that you may say, however, this little pinkish-red ball has laid untouched for 50 years. That was until 'the BOY' found it! he only mark it had on it was a Small 'bite' created by Cristina's baby teeth! One small mark, she told me, from her 'bay tooth'. Otherwise it was as she left it. But Robin took a liking to it and now, it is his favourite. I wonder why. The good news is that Robin, no matter how hard he tries CANNOT destroy it. It is made of rubber and is hollow. But it is still intact and he cannot make any bite into it. They sure knew how to make balls 50 years ago - 'ROBIN-PROOF' but not Cristina-proof! Her teeth are as sharp today as they were then. I wish I was so well preserved!

A very happy reunion

Who says big cats don't keep memories? Watch this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVNTdWbVBgc&feature=player_embedded

Rex and Dexter

I found this site and thought his cartoons were very humorous, created by Denis R. Poitras.
http://toonut.com/index.html

Time and tide

Entangled in this maze of time,

As seconds and minutes tick away,

To keep up in this rat race,

We have to struggle each day....

No one can stop time,

And no one can bring it back,

Only the present is yours,

So learn to fight, to attack!

What is gone will never come,

Present will become past, soon,

So what if things didn't go as planned,

Each new day is a boon...

Don't regret yesterday, and wait for tomorrow,

Live today as much as you can,

Put in your best, put yourself to the test,

Because time and tide wait for no man!

Daddy, will you draw me as I sleep?

So I did - my daughter when she was about 5-years-old, 11 years ago (she is a 'grown-up' now). (Click on my pics for an expanded view). It was just a quick and very hasty pastel sketch taking only 1o minutes or in poor light whilst she slept like an angel. I read her a story and when she fell asleep I did this on whatever paper I could find at the time... some discarded grey cartridge paper, but I was pleased with the result and so was she. It is probably the most spontaneous work I have ever done in pastels and, of course, my most loved for obvious reasons; further more, I find it extremely difficult to draw the human form. I need more practice! Yes I did 'life' classes at art school etc, but we humans are so difficult to paint and draw - must be some kind of 'mental' block I have... hands and feet are a no-go area for my art! People expect a portrait to look like them - whereas dogs and cats don't... you can hide your mistakes easier with animal art but not so with people. Camille (one of my Blog followers) commented on my self study earlier... about the execution on my own hand shown; It is probably the first time I have painted a hand that looks half human... and really, the painting was never completely finished... it expressed enough of me at the time so I moved on.

'Hare raising' inspiration

Albrecht Durer
A Young Hare, 1502
Watercolour and gouache on paper
Graphische Sammlung Albertina, Vienna.

At the top, a self portrait of himself at 26 years old.

This young Hare painting by Durer was the one painting that, in my childhood, probably inspired my love of painting animals more than any other painting. I was astounded by the incredible detail.
I still am today.

Some local scenery

A photograph I took yesterday whilst out and about.
Looks like Jack Daddy and Twix like the view - looking down from my nearest town here - Santarem - towards an old Roman Church (just off-centre of the pic). Look up SANTAREM, PORTUGAL on the internet. A beautiful town. If you look carefully enough - to the horizon - that town in the distance - you may see me... I am sitting there as I write this!

Dogs eat dog food - right?

I cook for four! Cooking is a wonderful diversion for me - all that creativity and presentation etc... I love it. I often say I love to cook, but not eat. 'How can that be' I hear you say. Well it is true - I eat to live and not live to eat. Robin and Lucy - well, they live to eat. I plan for the four of us when I cook... and quite often feed them at the same time as my wife and I. They love my food, but no matter what, whilst Cristina and I sit down - there they both are; Robin and Lucy sitting by our side waiting to eat our meals as well. Any tips anyone as to how we/I can encourage Robin and Lucy NOT to 'beg' for extra food whilst we eat? They even expect a dessert! I suppose I/we have made rods for our own backs. They both go at their food like it was the last meal on earth and then sit by us expecting MORE! Lucy is now a FAT pig... we will take her to see the VET later, just to check her out whilst we purchase their special dried food from him - she is doing just great now - no medication - unlike the rest of us! So what is dog food? I suppose anything they can eat - Lucy just loves to hunt for anything outside that IS AND IS NOT edible... she even now insists on stopping by the store down below, on her way back from 'walkies'... because the store owner always gives her some chourico... and I have to 'drag' / slide her out of his store... I should take a photo she is incredible AND STUBBURN!

'Time and tide'

Times when things got a little too much for me... a self study to express my inner-most feelings. I am sure every artist and indeed, every person has those moments at some time in their life. This was a reflection of mine, my darkest hour. To find 'self' in art is a life-long journey; I am still looking. But what drives me on this journey? My wife tells me that 'I have a gift for painting animals'... maybe I do, who is to really say? Yes, capturing the spirit of an animal is satisfying, and clients always show joy when seeing the final painting - many even break down in tears when I show them the portrait of their long lost dog; so I bring happiness to many, and bring their beloved pets back to life as they remembered them. That is a good thing, however, my life-long journey as an artist still continues and only 'time and tide' will reveal my true self. 'Time and tide' was an expression a total stranger said to me once, whilst I was waiting at a bus stop... an old man waiting there with me in the rain and he just came up to me and said, with a very large smile those words... then my bus came along and I left him behind... his words still haunt me to this day - such a strange thing for a total stranger to say to another and nothing else. He did not even get on the bus, but maybe he was waiting for another. Maybe he was an angel in disguise? Maybe those three words were words of wisdom, purely for me, to be remembered as my journey in life continues. Time and tide.

Memory Lane

A very young me! When my hair was not grey - and when I still had all of it... painting, probably my second ever dog portrait in gouache. Before we had mobile phones and personal computers... the days when all my design work was done using cow-gum, scalpels, felt-tip markers and CS-10 art board. Times before the digital camera and CDs! I had never tried a cappuccino then, and never tasted chourico... when watercolours were something I just read about and oil paints were out of my reach. When the only time I ever touched canvas was in a tent - camping out in the woods. Times when the only pets I owned were three cats, Kato, Tigger and Rumpleteaser. If someone had told me then that I would end up marrying a beautiful Portuguese lady and living in Portugal, I would have said... 'where's Portugal'! Oh - the good old days when I dreamed of making my fortune... things don't really change, do they? Still the same old me... still painting and designing - still dreaming. Still happy with my 'lot in life'... but I must not forget to play the Loto this week... being an angel all my life must have some payback.