beautiful day Archives - Dora Sislian Themelis Art

Photos for Friday

Step into my garden..

The week has flown by after an event filled weekend. I’ll tell you about it next week when I have the chance. For now just enjoy a peek into my backyard garden. Last spring I painted a watercolor of the inside of the garden gate looking the other way. Will this be the next, with the view peering in?

Friday Photos

A Day on the North Shore of Long Island

The weather here in New York is hot, hot, hot! It’s only June. I’m not complaining about the heat, no way. I’ll take it hot any day. You know what kind of winter we get here? It’s not fun, for me anyway. I can’t seem to get myself warm enough in the winter. When the summer rolls around and everyone is dragging and complaining about the heat, I’m all smiles. Yes to summer weather, every time.

So I won’t be painting in the heat of mid-day. I’ve been waiting until the sun starts going down in the afternoon. I wish I could get myself out there in the early morning, but there’s too much to do in the morning around here. I like how the light looks very early in the day. Anyway, forget it. I have to get my things done early, get out and be back by lunch time. Then the rest of the day is mine.

The Mr. was home on Sunday, rather than fishing out east. He suggested visiting a custom car show that a friend mentioned, nearby in Glen Cove . That’s the other mania: cars. Drag racing is in the blood. The Mr. and the Sons watch it on TV, talk about it, go to sanctioned events, and had/have cars they’re developing. Car people just want to look at and talk about cars, a very benign bunch. All cars, all the time. Ok, so I don’t mind it either. Unless my guys want to spend money on car parts, then I get crabby.

The car show was at a lovely shore-side park called Morgan Park, on the north shore of Long Island, so the setting was lovely. A band was playing, food and cold drinks were available, some vendors selling car stuff, and cars. Parked all over the private park were all kinds of cars as far as the eye could see. Old cars and new cars of every model, shape, size you could think of. Over the sea of shiny waxed, colorful cars and chrome, was the blue of Long Island Sound. Boats bobbed in the calm water. The sky was clear with puffy clouds and the water sparkled. Great! I love being near water so I could ignore the cars. (Except for the 1963 Buick Riviera I saw, one of my pop’s favorites. Hi Pop!)

The park was very pretty and had walking paths along the shore with this lovely, stone pergola at the end where people were fishing. Another park and museum near this one is Garvie’s Point which houses Native American artifacts and such. The area is a great place to draw or paint. Seeing the signs on the road pointing to Garvie’s Point I thought I’m going to have to visit alone one day this summer and make it an Artist’s Date.

Good idea.

Artist Date at the Farmer’s Market

On Tuesdays in my neighborhood, the farmer’s market comes to town and I love it! If the weather is as beautiful as today it’s the best. I like to get there early, before everyone else shows up and buys the gorgeous vegetables. The market opens at 7 A.M., but I never make it that early. I try to be there by 9:00 for a good choice of different lettuces and spinach, which sell out fast. It’s still early in the growing season for many items, but the greens are a big thing and they’re usually plentiful in the cooler weather.

Today I got myself together early and decided this was going to be my artist date for this week. Just a simple stroll in the comfortable sunny weather to buy my produce and mosey through the stands to sample some cheese here and a slice of artisan bread there. The vendors stay until 1:00P.M. and by that time it’s crowded and depleated. Not for me, I like it early and empty! The birds are still singing, not alot of people or cars whizzing by, a pure pleasure.

I bought the lettuce and the spinach. The veggie vendor had red, ripe strawberries. I could smell the sweetness before I saw them, The fruit guy had fresh picked cherries and blueberries. All great stuff. There’s a cheese guy, a wine stand, a fish monger, a cupcake shop, a bread baker, and a plant stand. Some days there’s a cookie baker and last week I met a woman who made her own spice rubs, marinades and BBQ sauces from Guyana. I think I saw a booth last week with homemade mustards. Most of the vendors come from the east end of Long Island and some from upstate New York.

Visiting the farmer’s market on a beautiful day makes me feel great all day long.