HAIR

Who would have thought about the insulating properties of hair! I didn't notice it so much in the summer when the days and nights were warm, in fact it was nice to have a cool head. However, once winter set in and the nights became warm and the furnace kept it at barely the temperature on the thermostat, I quickly noticed that bald head plus cool air equals very cold human. Hats became my constant companion. Once Chemotherapy was completed my hair began to slowly grow back. When I returned to the doctor for my three month followup he mentioned that my hair was growing back very slowly. Well, that didn't discourage me one bit, because I had noted that even though my hair was pretty short, I was beginning to feel the insulating properties of hair again. Hair is like a sweater for your head, even if it is only 3/4 inches long. I still wear hats outdoors, but I am once again a little warmer. Thanks be to HAIR!

Thanks be to Chemo and to God, as my tumors have all disappeared!

I've been doing abstract acrylic paintings lately. The first set of canvases that I did were an excercise in minimalism: I used only one color and white or matte medium and one brush. It was amazing how this stretched my abilities as I am a color-holic. It made me really reach inside to find my own emotions to put onto the surface. By the time I had done four paintings I was really sick of that color, but really awed by the variety it provided. I think that perhaps future paintings with color will be more expressive than before. Now I'm working on what I call the "Rock Series". I found some really neat rocks at the beach that have possessed me and I want to paint the feeling that they have created within me.

I have said for a long time that my goal in painting or calligraphy is to evoke emotion within the indivicual. Perhaps the emotion will be of a long forgotten event, or of something that is a twinkling of a remembrance, but I want to be able to bring out the deep emotion within human beings. I think we are all made of and react to emotion in our lives and to tap that inner resource is my goal.

Who would have ever thought that my writing life would come to a point where I have three books cooking on the fire. I have been writing on a regularly scheduled basis and I continue to add pages every day. This is a new first for me.

As an aside, our friend Harry was visiting town on business and called to say hello. We ended up going out to dinner with him. A spontaneous and spirited dinner discussion ensued and we enjoyed it so much.