upcoming stuff!

Today, my topic suggestion from the Ultimate Blogging Challenge is to write about upcoming goals for my website. Which would be goals for my art and writing projects. I was also asked to mention what I plan on doing in 90 days. Well, I will get to that in this blog post. But first, I’ll start with what I’ve done today and, then, I will share some plans and goals.

Today was one of those days that was a reminder of how necessary it is to be flexible. Sometimes, plans have to be changed abruptly. A few months ago, I had signed up to go on an eco hike in Beaver Island State Park with the Buffalo Botanical Society. This was to be part of the seventeenth annual Paddles Up Niagara event. It involves kayaking and hiking and, in general, celebrating the Niagara River. In addition, River Lea, the home of the Grand Island Historical Society, was open for tours.

Unfortunately, the weather had other plans. It rained hard and there was thunder and even a bit of lightning. So, for the first time in the history of Paddles Up Niagara, the event was canceled. The notice of the cancelation came early this morning via text message and email. In other words, that was the end of the eco hike.

Although the main parts of Paddles Up Niagara were canceled, River Lea was still open for tours because it was an indoor event. Only a few people came for a tour, but the people who did were very interested in learning more about Grand Island history and they were happy to get personal tours of the building. The portion of the building that is the Historical Society’s museum has been updated and changed in the past few years. During the COVID-19 lockdown, when River Lea was closed to the public, the inside walls were repainted. After people could enter the building again, Historical Society members rearranged all of the displays so that each area of the building had a different theme. Even the mannequins were reclothed. It was very interesting to hear about the changes, as the tour guides (president Curt Nestark and corresponding secretary Mary Cooke) explained them.

I really enjoyed my time at River Lea. It was nice to be in an historic site, listening to the rainfall, drawing in my visual journal, and just enjoying the experience.

When I returned home, I got caught up on my 61-day Daisy Yellow Index Card a Day challenge.

The prompt for day 58 was “illustration.” This was yesterday’s prompt. I tried to create something yesterday, but it was a bit of a disaster so I let it go with hopes that I could come up with a concept today. Today, I thought of a rabbit trying to get into a building with a big ornate door. The rabbit isn’t getting in without some assistance because he can’t reach the doorknob. And, even if he suddenly grew tall enough to reach the doorknob, he doesn’t have an opposable thumb so he can’t open the door. That’s some quandry. But the rabbit is very optimistic and simply waits at the doorway, probably for someone to let him in.

Day 59’s theme is peaceful. I found a photograph that I had taken several years ago of a scene that says “peaceful” to me and I added this poem by Sara Teasdale. It feels peaceful.

And now… what’s coming next? The Ultimate Blogging Challenge and the 61-day Daisy Yellow Indes Card a Day challenge is coming to an end in two days. But, today, I read at the Daisy Yellow website that some people continue the challenge until day 100. So I thought that I would continue, without any more prompts, until I fill the photo album where I am storing my index cards. The last set, after day 61 will be collages and illustrations, mostly, I think, and I will share stories about them. I intend on posting here in this website two to three days a week. That will include Wordless Wednesday and an update on the index cards, as well as stories about various events that may happen before the next Ultimate Blogging Challenge, which usually occurs in October.

And speaking about October, it has another name… Inktober! And that’s my next art challenge with prompts. You can look for my Inktober pictures to begin on October 1st! Oh, and that 90 day thing? I will be close to finishing the Inktober challenge! I hope that, by then, I will have had a lot of practice in drawing in pen and ink and that I’ve developed some skills in that area!!! Wish me luck!

That’s about it!!! As for my blog post tomorrow, this time I actually know what it will be about! Look for pictures from the Buffalo Garden Walk. The weather is supposed to be lovely, and I will be headed to Buffalo to look at the beautiful gardens! I hope that you have some fun plans for tomorrow. Feel free to share if you like!