June 25 -- A Rainy Wednesday

 Last night, I intended to walk down to the amphitheater and watch the bats fly out again; but even with my raincoat, I was getting soaked on the walk down there. Seeking dryness and comfort, I returned to my casita. The rain lifted before the bats' takeoff time and I was able to watch them from my patio. The view from up here was just a spectacular as in the amphitheater. In this photo, you'll see them as a linear dusty cloud, flying off to the right.


It rained throughout the night, but around 1 AM. I woke up and looked at my window. Even with the rain, the view was cool. The view from up here is great in the daytime, but at night time you can see lights spreading across the Permian Basin. I don't think those are houses I think those arepump jacks/oil wells.


Here I am wearing my NPS volunteer uniform. I look pretty official. Just walking into the visitor center today. I was asked, "Do you work here?" Throughout the day I had many interactions with visitors.


It rained hard for almost the entire day. It's a good thing. This park's attractions are underground and generally unconcerned with the weather. However, above ground/flooding can be a concern, and lightning is always on the minds of the Rangers here.

I focused on more watercolors today. I'm not very happy with this first piece. I wanted to portray the entrance to the cavern with its pathway, winding downwards. In real life, it's spectacular, but it just doesn't come across here. The colors are too blah. I always have difficulty representing the human form in watercolor, and this piece is no exception. But if nothing else, it's good practice. It makes me think about things like perspective and forshortening. In this image, the human figure is down below, looking up. With foreshortening, it's legs should be proportionately smaller than the upper body. I didn't quite get that right. One thing to consider here this is a 5 x 7" greeting card, which doesn't leave a lot of space for details.


I feel much more comfortable, painting, landscapes. I was generally satisfied with this, except that I tried to put in a windmill and a horse… And that doesn't look quite right.



I want to work on this idea of prairie with big clouds and a big sky. Out here in New Mexico, on the edge of far West Texas, I'm reminded of the movie "Giant." Next I elevated to a larger paper format. I think this is 10 x 14". You'll notice I didn't sign this one yet. That's because I'm not sure if it's done yet. I'm not sure if I want to add anything more to it. I'm a little afraid I'll screw it up if I start monkeying with it. I'll re-evaluate that tomorrow morning. This painting actually looks better in person than this photograph portrays. One observer noted that the blue sky has some sparkle to it – – because I included some metallic blue paint.


Tomorrow, I think I may play with some acrylic paints. The rain is keeping the temperature cool and comfortable. It's almost that flight time, so I'm going to walk down to the amphitheater. There's actually no rain right now and the sun is out and beginning to sit in the west.

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