McCormick

 

Before January comes to an end, here is a pen and wash drawing of a tractor plowing through the water during the fall flooding in British Columbia's Fraser Valley.   Approximately 660,000 farm animals died during those floods; 650,000 died during the earlier "heat dome".  I haven't seen a damage tally for plant based agriculture but I'm sure the numbers are equally astounding.  Our farmers need our support and prayers. 

Spring Will Come Again

 The westcoast of Canada was slammed with unpleasant (OK, scary) weather events last year.  I'm not naive enough to think that winter is over, but I took this picture yesterday on my walk and it gave me hope.  

And where would we be without hope?

Learning from Each Other

 

I'm sharing a sketch today from one of my "workbooks", a sketchbook that doesn't see much Internet presence.

The Vancouver Urban Sketchers group has been running an online Meetup called "Learning from Each Other", and learning is my very favorite thing in the whole world so I jumped on board eagerly.  Here's what I've learned so far:

1. This book, "The Sketch in Color" by Robert S. Oliver, is a great resource
2. I'm going to play with using markers in my sketches a little more
3. I need to practice more before spring comes and I'm out sketching again.

I also learned from Roz Stendahl about the journal as workbook.

There are so many opportunities to learn from each other even during these difficult times of relative self isolation.  Some of the lessons might be hard ones and some are more fun.  Whatever the hobby or subject, the local library has free resources available both on line and off.

What have you learned today?  What have you helped someone else learn?  I'd love to learn about them!

Dreaming of Spring

Sketching Dr. Henry

 I did a lot of sketches of Dr. Henry, our BC Chief Public Health Officer, during the final weeks of 2021, as her press conferences increased again due to the Omicron variant of COVID-19.  

Let's hope 2022 ends this pandemic or at least turns into an endemic, as Dr. Henry believes.  This means that enough people will get immune protection from either vaccination or infection such that there will be less infection and hospitalization and death, even as the virus continues to circulate.

Happy New Year, everyone!