Talking Turkey

The President didn't pardon these two turkeys. But he did decide to hide them in a top secret location at Fort Snelling. As the official White House turkey photographer I was granted clearance to take these photos. It's a fairly new position. And I'm usually assigned in the midwest because of the large turkey population here. But like every American I do dare to dream. I've been told by a big wig mucky muck in Washington that if I do a really good job with the turkeys, I might be assigned to bald eagles. So by next Thanksgiving some other clown might be taking turkey photos. Keep your fingers crossed. My fingers are crossed right now. But I'm telling the truth...Honest!

Surprise!

I was going to post some great deer photos I've taken over the Summer and Fall. Then I realized I actually have photos of all the creatures I painted in Dean's Wildlife from last weekend. And as most of you probably know I always relate my art and photos in some way. The first photo is of my cat Baby. She is bossing God around as we speak. The Blue jeans frog was taken on a night hike at Tirimbina, Costa Rica. Do you see his blue jeans? The pheasant photo was taken near Hixton, Wisconsin. The elegant fawn was captured in someone's front yard in Hatfield, Wisconsin. The Owl moth was discovered at Pasado Andrea Cristina in Costa Rica. And lastly the baby bunny was found bouncing around our backyard. For more Cats On Tuesdays visit http://www.gattinamycats.blogspot.com/ Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

The Original Akua Nani at Inn Paradise

When we found our new cats at the Humane Society almost 2 years ago we had Hawaiian names already picked out. Hana, a beautiful town on the island of Maui was our first pick. And our 2nd pick was Acua. Acua was a sweet and friendly cat that belonged to Major and Connie, the owners of Inn Paradise on the island of Kauai. http://www.innparadisekauai.com/ We loved our stay at Inn Paradise. My favorite memory was simply making breakfast and eating it on the lanai. A good breakfast would always include Papaya and soaking up the peaceful scenery of Major's backyard. If you look closely at the photo you'll see wild pigs at play. But years later when we named our cat Acua, we weren't sure if we were spelling it right. And we always wondered what Acua meant in Hawaiian. So we emailed Major this week and he got back to us right away. It turns out we've been spelling it wrong. Here is what Major said. "Akua Nani (Beautiful Spirit) is her name. Akua means God, Goddess, Spirit, image, supernatural. So it is how it is used in a sentence that the meaning is determined. Nani means beauty, beautiful. Ho'Nani means to beautify" Thanks Major! But Goddess? I think I might owe my Tomcat an apology. But I'm certainly not changing such a beautiful name! For more Cats On Tuesday visit http://www.gattinamycats.blogspot.com/

Not My Mug!

This is my new facebook profile picture. Do you see the resemblence? You said NO right? I had alot of fun painting this mug shot cat last week. I looked at some mug shots online for reference. Carlos Gambino was one of only a few that had the police numbers hanging from his neck. And Anna Nicole Smith was holding a similar device. Most of the current mug shot victims were simply standing in front of a cement block wall. Some looked like they were standing in front of a blue screen. I added the web address on the top as a joke. Now if I can just get paid to have so much fun with a paint brush! If there really was a Bad Cat Police Department, my cats would have been hauled off a long time ago. They would be living off the classic farm diet of cheap dog food and milk. Their nip would be confiscated. And free petting would be a thing of the past. They might get paroled early for looking darn cute. Actually now that I think about it they already got paroled from kitty jail...the Humane Society!

What are you doing in there?

This is what I deal with everyday. After being in my studio for awhile the crying begins. Feed me...play with me...take a nap with me...FEED ME! And if you look under the door you're really in trouble. Two cute as a button faces giving you a guilt trip. Did I mention the bathroom door has a big gap underneath as well? Don't be surprised to discover a pink nose peaking in the shadows and asking, "What are you doing in there?" It's Cats On Tuesdays at http://www.gattinamycats.blogspot.com/

Cat on a Curved Staircase

I've done several of these staircase paintings. And they were my most successful as far as the $$$$ is concerned. They've all had the same stucco texture. And the blue and orange color scheme. Be sure to click to enlarge for more detail. But this one is a little more whimsical. Instead of the cow skull that found it's way into around 4 of them. Surprise...I added cats! My next one will be cat free. I mean I think I might be getting a reputation as a cat woman. I need to be very, very serious with the next one. And go back to my cow skulls. Bad cats. But wait...what did you say? You say you want to pay me lots of money to paint another one with 3 cats. I'll get started right away!

The Stone Barn in Nelson Wisconsin

Can you believe that this farm is the location of one of my favorite restaurants? It's called the Stone Barn. http://www.nelsonstonebarn.com/ The actual restaurant is built inside the remains of a barn dating back to 1896. And it's on a farm resting in the beautiful Mississippi River valley. An absolute favorite area of mine. The brochere for the restaurant states that the area is known as, "Norwegian Valley" I guess because of all the Norwegian settlers. I'm part Norwegian. Unfortunately my ancestors did not settle here. If they did I could eat this yummy pizza all Summer! It's closed for the season now. But I'll be back!

God Blesses All Creatures

This illustration is featured in the October issue of http://www.mylightmagazine.com/ It depicts the poem, "God Blesses all Creatures" Every animal I painted was in the poem. Except for the cow and the worm. I couldn't believe the writer did not put a worm into the poem. I mean no farm is complete without worms, right? That may be true but I'm joking of course. In other news I did not make the finals in the Holiday card contest. But my last minute entry received 48 votes in less than 2 days. Thanks to my friends and fellow CBIG and SCBWI members. You can still see my card if you go to http://blog.psprint.com/humor/ Then go to view all humor entries. Thanks again to everyone who voted!