Doesn’t seem like that’s how it goes sometimes? You take two steps forward and one step backwards. That seems the way it was today.

I just came off of a great local plein air event in Montrose, my hometown, last week. On Tuesday I had a great class with 11 students.

They were brave, painting all day in the heat. It was a pretty nice shaded area around the Ute Museum in Montrose but it was still hot. In the afternoon, we fought the rain. My last demo was a watercolor that got punctuated with rain drops…I was forced to paint fast which got the idea across to focus on the big shapes, using a big brush and minimal detail. By the time I finished, the sprinkles had let up enough that I didn’t loose any of them to the shelter, lol.

Then, to my great surprise, I was awarded first place on Friday night for a painting I had done the day before, for the event. I had just finished a piece to the right of this view and as I was packing up I saw the tipis lit up with the light and I had to try it.

I felt pretty good about it and was very happy to receive the award.

I also sold the painting and an oil painting earlier in the evening. I was feeling pretty high.

BUT, the good Lord has a way of humbling me when I get too far out there.

Today I left for a plein air event in Driggs, Idaho. I don’t have to be there until Sunday. It’s fortunate that I left today. I thought I had everything under control but when I went out to start my Explorer, the battery was dead. So I had to jump it to get going and then I thought I ought to check the air in the tires, on it and on my pop-up. The pop-up had developed a leak in the water filler up tube so I had patched it but the tires needed air too. I finally got out of town about a half hour later than I had planned. No worries. I was only going to Boulder, Wyoming, about 300 miles. I should get there early afternoon.

I stopped in Grand Junction to get a Yeti coffee mug. Picked up a little table while there. Stopped by Barnes and Noble to get an art magazine and a Starbucks…to try out my Yeti. Came out and saw the leak under my pop-up had opened up again. No problem. I’d address it when I got into camp that evening. I stopped and got gas and finally left Grand Junction, headed for Wyoming. About 20 miles out of town I suddenly wondered why the radio was so loud and checked my hearing aides. That’s when I realized I didn’t have them.

That wasn’t good. I can’t hear much at all without them and even with them I struggle. Too many loud noises like gunfire and explosions from Vietnam. I slowed down trying to figure out if I could go all week without them. Naw. That wasn’t an option. Maybe I could have my wife Kathy, Next Day them to where I was going in Idaho. I called her.

She brilliantly suggested that she bring them to me. I said I’d turn around and meet her half way back. I said that I thought they were on the dresser in our bedroom. She was at the gallery and closed to go get them. Shortly she called to say they weren’t there.

I had to think. I was driving and couldn’t concentrate so I told her I’d call back in a bit when I could pull over and give this some thought. A couple of days ago I misplaced my sun glasses…now my hearing aides…this wasn’t good. Then in a flash of memory, I remembered I had taken them out at the gallery the evening before when I was running the chop saw to cut up some frames to join for her before I left. Unfortunately Kathy had to go all the way back to the gallery. She found the hearing aides and met me in Delta, only 20 miles away. No sign of the sunglass however.

We had lunch and I grumbled over the fact that 150 miles since I had left this morning and I was only 20 miles away from where I had started. Oh well. Sometimes you take two steps forward and one step backwards. I made it to Vernal, Utah this evening a 150 short of my intended destination for the night but I’ve got all day tomorrow to do 300 miles so all is good.

I think I even got the leak patched up again. I’ll see in the morning.

Thanks for following along. I appreciate it.