dog-sitting

Andrew and I have his parents' dog Holly staying with us for the weekend. 

We took her for a walk at dusk this evening with our friend Clayton and tossed a stick around in a nearby field.

It sure is nice having a dog around. 

January and beyond

January is turning out to be a very busy month. Full time hours at my 'job' plus weekends painting. I'm hoping to finish off my brother's album art by the end of the month so I can get back to my own stuff. Luckily after January I'll be spending a little less time on 'job' work and more time on painting work, because I have to be VERY productive for the next seven months. In September I will be having my first solo exhibition at Narwhal Art Projects!  I've known for a while, but wasn't sure if I should announce it yet. It seems too good to be true. I've finished three and half paintings for the show so far, so I have a LOT more work to do before the Autumn. I'll try to show some bits and pieces here along the way, but I will try to save most of it for September. Maybe this can count as a New Years resolution: maintaining a rigorous painting schedule and being more disciplined about how I spend my time in general. I don't usually do the resolution thing, but this year will definitely require more focus and discipline than I normally feel capable of. I hope I'm up to the challenge.

Thunder Oak Cheese Farm

I finally made it out to the Thunder Oak Cheese Farm this Christmas holiday, while in Thunder Bay. They make fantastic gouda of all kinds. It is a really charming place which also sells various imported Dutch foods and sweet Delft pottery. We couldn't get a tour that day, but I did buy a whole bunch of cheese, including a huge chunk of extra old gouda, which is definitely one of my favourite types of cheese. I also ate my weight in cheese curds. Apparently Thunder Oak gouda is available in Toronto at Whole Foods or several specialty cheese shops. You can also order it online directly from the farm and they can ship within Canada.

a few moments at Ian & Julie's

While in Thunder Bay, I had the pleasure of catching up with a bunch of old dear friends at Ian & Julie's place (aka paradise). 

Olive (Ian & Julie's little one) and Kate.

Reuben the morning after.

Adam the morning after.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everybody! 

This photo was taken from the driveway of my friends Ian and Julie's beautiful new home in the woods near Thunder Bay. It was the morning after a great party, and every twig and pine needle was coated in white frost. So peaceful and absolutely gorgeous. It's hard not to dream about living in the country one day, after being in a place like that. More Thunder Bay holiday photos to come.