Birthday Bucks

I spent quite a bit of time this past weekend spending my birthday money.  It is not usual for my friends and family to give cash, and yet, they did this year!  Well, I am not going to complain, I think my tastes are so eclectic that everyone has given up one!  And yet, I think I am quite easy to shop for!

My sister sent me money to buy new art brushes with, well my brushes are fine but there is a thing called a shader used in pastels that I use and managed to lose somehow!  The stinking little brush handled nibs of soft rubber are expensive and I have been using Q-Tips and toothpicks dipped in maskit to keep areas of my watercolor paintings white.  So, I picked up a set with that money.

My last remaining step-mother's gift I used for buying some cotton water color paper.  I sure wish I had stocked up three years ago when I read about the Egyptian cotton failure!  Seems everyone now is having crop failures and the price of cotton has tripled - and paper being a secondary market has become almost untouchable!  But, now I have 36 sheets, so that will last me quite a while!

Dutchman gave me what turned into two instructions books.  One is how to evaluate something you have painted in order to make it a better painting on your next attempt.  At first I snorted when I saw the title but then as I leafed through the book I realized that their advice was quite valid.  The other is something which is nothing but examples on how to do more realistic painting.

My mother's gift was spent at a woodworking store.  I am very pleased with some cheap wood I managed to scarf up as it was on sale!  Sweet!  I love sales!

And even Gaelic Girl gave some money with which I picked up the Art of the West from the Cody Museum, in Cody, Wyoming.  I had gone to this museum back in 1992, taking my American "nephew" to see Yellowstone and the museum was next door to the hotel.  The heck with the park!  I fell in love with the museum!  So everyday we did the free movie showing, wandered the incredible exhibits and somehow still fit all of Yellowstone in!  Very happy to find the book!

I even bought myself a book as well, since the birthday money ran dry, an exercise book.  Yuck!  But, when I leafed through it I saw all of my old back exercises in there as well as knee exercises.  Plus it had a section of what to set you goals on.  Sure someone, somewhere can do 10 minutes of jumping jacks but I think I will start with 30 seconds and work my way up from there!  Gotta do something if I am to survive the Bigfoot Hunt this August with my cousins and friends!  (Though I am betting I will be the only one to actually do it and be forced to work out of a campground.  But, I will be in better shape and still have fun all on my lonesome.)