Spring!

I can hardly believe that Spring is around the corner. It has been a long winter. In February we had the snowiest month on record. Around the house this week I have come into contact with a 'possum, a skunk and a young rabbit. That might not seem unusual, except that I live on a city block and there are houses on every street corner. One would think that wildlife like this would not find these conditions agreeable but they seem to be healthy and active. One day I let my dog out on our back deck, he was out there for awhile so I went to check on him. Curled up inthe corner of the deck was a 'possum acting as if he were dead. I knew that they can play dead so I let him be. Sure enough, the next morning he was gone. I was surprised that he had climbed up the stairs to our second-floor deck looking for something and then curled up in the corner. What he was looking for I have no idea.

I am still figuring out how to use my new camera. I tried the macro feature and took this photo. I was painting the buds that are beginning to turn green on our lilac bush. It is so good to see the green appearing so early. I used Winsor & Newton paints, a #6 sable brush, and Arches paper to do this sketch.