Making lists

Mother and Child
Stage three of the painting
acrylic on canvas
30 x 30 inches
Barbara Muir © 2010
(At this stage I'm altering the design,
thinking about the design, and
starting to work on the skin, with
the baby first.)

Mother and Child
Stage two
acrylic on canvas
Barbara Muir © 2010
(Blocking in big areas,
and the underpainting for the
mother's hair, and baby's hair.)

So it's my Reading Week eh? (I thought I'd give you
some down home Canadian talk.) So I am not teaching
for a whole week eh? Heaven right? Almost. I teach
the use of lists to keep students organized, and I've been
making little lists all week and crossing things off.
I've had some major triumphs -- like getting the switch
fixed on my husband's bedside lamp, so he wouldn't
have to turn it on and off by unscrewing a hot light bulb.

But there have been the tasks that just don't go as
quickly as I think they will when I write them down
on the tidy little list. What are you supposed to put on
the list? Six things -- just six major things per day. I
always go over, putting on as many as ten tasks,
and a few years of trying this have proven that six
is probably exactly the right number.

Dealing with the telephone company is an anomaly.
In my mind I think, "a quick call to clear up an obvious
mistake," and in reality I'm stuck on the end of the
line while the company pumps out irritating jazz,
and works overtime on frustrating consumers.

Painting is the solace on these days. I have a couple
of stages to show you on my painting. The design will
change, has changed as I move through the work,
but I am going slowly. For the most part I'm
blocking in areas, and thinking it through. I started
work on the baby's face, hand and foot today. Mom will
have to wait until tomorrow. I'll keep you posted.
Painting a large work takes longer obviously, uses more
paint, and seems to require more thought. I need to get away
from the work to be able to come back and see new
things, decide what to change.

Thanks for coming with me on this process. And
thanks to my wonderful printer people for helping
me with the reference photos, and being kind and
understanding.

Steven and I had a "date" dinner at Ikea tonight.
If you haven't tried their super dinners, and you
don't mind eating with many other families, you
should. The food is good, and ridiculously
inexpensive. You've got to love that. At the end
of the meal both of us were in great spirits, walked
through the store and bought toys for the cats
and headed home to work again.

Have an it's-okay-I-am-so-cool-with-everybody day.