V is for Valdivia!

Tags

Lisa Brunetti art, Sarah Dettman Tours, Spanish words that start with V, Tagged V, Valdivia Mujeres, Valdivia Potter, Valdivia Women, Venus Valdivias, Vivir Sin Aire English translation, Watercolors of pottery

Senorita Valdivia – stages of watercolor

Ecuador’s archaeological museums showcase the many cultures that thrived before the European conquest of the Americas.   The Valdivia culture is often described as the oldest urban settlement in the Americas and dates back to 3,500 or 4,000 B.C.    Some suggest that the Valdivia culture came from Japan, and why it vanished is a mystery as well.

Valdivia Museum – Valdivia Women – Mujeres – Merci Waits

When I visit the Ecuadorian museums, I linger at the Valdivia section in search of my favorite Venus ladies.

Valdivia Women – Guayaquil MAAC Museum

There are many great Spanish words that begin with the letter V for Frizztext’s Alphabet Challenge.   Enjoy this random sampler:

Timeout for Art: Through A Child’s Eyes

Tags

art therapy, Botanical drawings in pencil, Pencil drawing, Timeout For Art: Through A Child's Eyes, Warm ups for Art

(Ecuador)

What I do when a page won’t load or an email won’t open! Bienvenidos to Casa Loca!

“When my daughter was about seven years old, she asked me one day what I did at work.  I told her I worked at the college – that my job was to teach people how to draw.  She stared back and me, incredulous, and said, “You mean they forget?”  (Howard Ikemoto)

WordPress folks, YOU ROCK!  You quickly steered the once-a week drawing theme into an amazing community project!  

Bootleg Barbies, an Inauguration, a March Against Monsanto and the Coolest Floor in the World – RTW Week #18

People have often questioned, “Why Ecuador?” Bob shares some of the good, some of the bad, some of the beautiful, but I think you’ll understand why I love the area where I have settled. Perhaps his reports of the not so pretty will reach the eyes of someone who can help make positive changes. Thanks, Bob; you have captured the essence of the area where I live, and I am honored that your road less traveled brought you here! Buen viaje! Z

Timeout for Art: Pencils

Tags

Drawing lessons, Drawing tips, Lisa Brunetti, Pencil drawing, Secrets to drawing well

My friend the pencil! (Drawn with dominant/right hand)

“A pencil is quiet, clean, odorless, inexpensive, and lightweight.  I can slip it in my pocket and take it with me everywhere – my secret friend.”  (Sherry Camby)

Years ago I taught art to elementary school students, and I reminded them that they were ‘safe’ from ridicule from their peers. All that I expected from them was that they try their best, and they were not to laugh at anyone’s attempts. How rewarding it was to witness the improvement from all levels! Awkward with their early drawings, some students worked on mastering their pencils, which were foreign in their hands. Other “naturally-talented” students had many more hours of drawing than the others and had found solace in their pencils and crayons. Aristotle said, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”

The most important ingredient in being a good artist is practice! Practice, practice, practice! I was reminded of this last week, when Ruth, with her dominant hand in a cast, said that she’d try drawing with her left hand! I volunteered to include an additional sketch with my left hand each week in her honor. It was much more difficult than I realized! Although I draw well with my dominant hand, I am again at beginner status with the other!

U is for Urracas!

Tags

Frizztext Story Challenge U, Large blue birds in Costa Rica, Loud birds in Costa Rica, Magpie Jays, Spanish words that start with U, Urracas

“Sunday Picnic” Urracas – 24″ x 48″

Frizztext’s alphabet challenge has reached V, and I”m tardy with U!   Today’s internet was too slow to make progress on the web.  Alas, I need my sleep, so now that it’s working fast enough to load pages, I hurriedly introduce you to the raucous, gregarious urracas that color the landscape in Costa Rica.

Urracas often raid the tables at open-air restaurants!  This acrylic, Sunday Picnic, was painted on site in my backyard, though I relied on photos to capture the essence of these beautiful birds.   The urracas love bananas, and those particular plants provided enough for the urracas and me!

Urraca also means chatterbox!

“Sunday Picnic” – detail

That’s it – short and sweet for this week’s Spanish post!

Now for that sleep session…

ZZZZZZZZZZ

Nature Bites Back; Nature Speaks

Tags

Controlling river water, Destruction of Mangroves, Mangroves, Nature Strikes Back, Preventing erosion on rivers

Before: Mangroves on both sides of the house…

Ecuador

Once upon a time in 2008, magnificent mangroves cocooned the Casa Blanca (aka ‘Riverhouse’ and sometimes ‘Casa Loca”) on the last bend of Rio Jama… The few old photos of that house are not very good, but they show the essence of the area in 2008.   Note the trees on the both sides of the house.

Mangroves before…

Some of you are aware of last year’s loss of those mangroves that stood proud and tall downriver from the house.  An excavator arrived and began shoving the mangroves into the river.  Dump trucks stockpiled huge boulders to replace the trees and strong arm the river into submission, which distressed one artist, and to her dismay, no one else!

After- (After pushing down trees; after extinguishing power!)

Stockpile of boulders – a cluster of three mangroves was left…

Please save those three trees, I pleaded.

After the rainy season and after the excavator…

How delighted I was when nature bit back and said, ‘That’s enough!”

March Against Monsanto in Quito – Notebook and 22 Photos

Although I am on the Pacific coast, part of me was in Quito and wondering how the march went. I wasn’t surprised that Bob did his homework and presented a great report. Follow his prompt and see the Agent Orange Golden Anniversary story, but be prepared for a heart wrenching story. We need more stories and photos like this to help everyone WAKE UP.
Thanks, Bob.

Z

In The Background – A Behind-the-Scenes Second Story

Tags

Images of reflections, moto taxi ride ecuador, museum portoviejo, WordPress Challenge In the Background

Background, middleground and foreground; how can one not smile when everyone is having a great moment?!

This week’s WordPress challenge asks us to:  “Take a picture of yourself or someone else as a shadow, a reflection, or a lesser part of a scene, making the background, or — as in the example above — the foreground, the center of attention.”

Silvana (of Monoaullador), Bob (of Pirancafe) and I traveled this week to the community of La Mocora where time seemed frozen in sweet acceptance of a basic-yet-rewarding long-ago lifestyle.  The camera often captured not only the primary subject but a secondary one as well!

Happy Independence Day, Lovely Ecuador!

Tags

Ecuador Independence Day, GMO Monsanta March 2013, May 24 Ecuador, Photos of Ecuador

Ecuador Flag – Flying High Over Guayaquil!

May 24, 2013 – Quito Ecuador

Today Ecuador celebrated its history of independence (1822) from Spain.   A bonus on this full-moon day, crowds gathered to witness the swearing in of Rafael Correa for his third-term as president.  My friends Silvana of tinasca.wordpress.com and Bob of www.pirancafe.com are both in the city of Quito for an event-filled weekend!

Quito at Night

Tomorrow their attention will wean to a March Against Monsanto.    How great it is that the entire world is collectively standing up against the big M and saying, “Go Home! Your genetically-modified seeds are not welcome here!”   

In honor of Ecuador’s independence, I’ll leave you with images of some of my favorite places in Ecuador.  Enjoy!

Word Turtle Day!

Tags

Bob Ramsak, Galapagos Turtle, Miguelito Galapagos Turtle Bahia Ecuador, Piran Cafe, Things to do in Bahia Ecuador, World Turtle Day

Bob “PiranCafe” and Miguelito/Galapagos Turtle/Ecuador

Russel Ray Photos called my attention to World Turtle Day, and then Bob of www.pirancafe.com posted an image of Miguelito, a Galapagos turtle, in honor of the day, so I am posting a photo of Bob taking a photo of Miguelito!  See Bob’s post about Miguelito HERE!

Z

Timeout for Art: Drawing & Paying Attention

Tags

Drawing, Drawing from Life, Drawing from Nature, Pencil drawing, Quotes about Drawing, Quotes about Observing, Timeout, Tree Drawings

(Palo de Agua) – Detail of pencil drawing

“The very act of drawing an object, however badly, swiftly takes the drawer from a wooly sense of what the object looks like to a precise awareness of its component parts and particularities.”  (Alain de Bottom)

‘Around the World’, at 120 Days

Hey Amigos! This slideshow is pretty amazing, and guess what? I’m about to be honored with a several-day visit with Bob, who will arrive in Jama this afternoon! I’m about to leave for Bahia de Caraquez to be his official Welcome Wagon! We’ll cross Rio Chone via boat taxi! (Boat taxi? I didn’t warn him about the boat taxi!)
It’s going to be fun to see the area through his eyes!

Enjoy this amazing slideshow and wish him ‘Buen viaje! – Happy trails!”
Signing off until tonight,
Z

Timeout for Art – YOU CAN DO THIS!

Tags

About Art, ART, Finding Faith in Oneself, I Can Do This, Inspiration to Create Art, Lisa Brunetti art, Paintings, Pencil drawing, You Can Do This

“My life has been a tapestry of rich and royal hue.” (Carole King)

Recently we’ve joked about the magic carpet on the bodega floor, though our lives are all intricately woven like tapestries.  With each move – and I’ve made many, I’ve met new people that have enriched my life.  Sometimes we exchange ideas and move on, grateful that Life presented us a special gift.  Other times a chance meeting opens the door to a lasting friendship.   Some friendships from long ago remain strong through long-distance communications.  Many of my artist friends fit into that latter category.

“An everlasting vision of the ever changing view – A wondrous woven magic in bits of blue and gold -A tapestry to feel and see, impossible to hold”  Carole King – Tapestry

This past month several artists have written touching and soul-bearing letters.  

Helping Hands

Tags

Acrylic Painting, Creative Group Projects, Daily Post, Daily Prompt: Helping Hands, i can do this painting workshops, Images of Hands, Lisa Brunetti art

Today’s Daily Prompt states:  
Tell us about the most surprising helping hand you’ve ever received.
Photographers, show us HANDS.

Hands?  Do I ever have an assortment of images of hands!

Enjoy!

T is for Tramite!

Tags

Frizztext Story Challenge T, Spanish words with T, what is a tramite?, Words in Spanish that start with T

paperwork paperwork, tramites, tramites!

Tramite? (Tra-me-tee)

I had never heard the word tramite until I began the process for a ‘company’ visa here in Ecuador. Tramite means steps with paperwork and often refers to legal paperwork. My particular visa has taken years of tramites, tramites, and more tramites! Gallivanta called my attention to a great video which captures the frustrations of dealing with the formal process of tramites:

My most recent hurdle was to get four sets of black and white copies of a 30-page color catalog of my work that had been presented to the Superintendent of Companies over six months ago!  Each page had to be notarized!

Manners Matter

Yes, manners matter! May this brighten your day and be a reminder to be polite!
Z

Implicado

I remember my mother once told me… be polite and nice to others.

Well this is an example of why manners matter:

At a Coffe shop:

“Being educated, makes the difference”

One coffe: $40

One coffe please: $30

Good Morning, one coffe please: $20

What’s your pick?

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Escape to the Beach!

Tags

Beautiful Beaches, Playa San Miguel Costa Rica, Wild Weekly Photo Challenge - The Beach, WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge Escape

Leaving the house before sunrise often rewards me with an amazing show of color!  Rarely am I disappointed;  instead all of my senses awaken as I rejoice in total immersion in nature.

Pre Sunrise – Playa San Miguel, Costa Rica

Do you agree that Playa San Miguel is surely one of the loveliest beaches in Costa Rica?   I escaped from my slumber and trekked down the beach in anticipation of dawn.

This post is for  two challenges:  Let’s Be Wild’s The Beach as well as WordPress’s Escape.

Timeout: Leonardo

Tags

Art Quotes, Bamboo Art, Drawing, Drawing Quotes, PENCIL DRAWINGS

Lapiz – Pencil Punta- Point

Sharpening my Ebony pencil, I present the first of a series of drawings paired with quotes pertaining to  the importance of drawing and art.   This will discipline me to take a timeout each week for the joy of drawing and share those drawings with you!    Here’s the first quote of the series:

Sandy Beaches of Latin America

Tags

Cruzita Ecuador, manta ecuador beaches, Playa Rosada Nicaragua, Playa San Miguel Costa Rica

Playa San Miguel, Costa Rica

Playa San Miguel in Guanacaste Province/Costa Rica is often described as one of Costa Rica’s most beautiful beaches. Very little new construction has been allowed there, so the essence of its spirit remains intact.  You’ll find no intrusive towering condos or gated communities,  though the property owners and the municipality continue with years of dysfunction.  The rules continue to change, and recently most of the (few) restaurants, hostals and hospitality-related businesses have been closed and/or ordered to be torn down because they were too close to the line or were not given permission for construction or did not have the correct concession.  Unless one visits during the holiday season, they will experience the beauty of solitude.

S is for Sonrisa! (Smile!)

Tags

costa rica, Ecuador, happy people, madres, mothers day, Panama, Smiles, sonrisas

Break time from kitchen duty! Doesn’t she have a genuine smile?

There are many great words that start with S in Spanish.  After I typed an assortment of words in the “New Post” page, I pondered the many photo options for those words.

Most people don’t particularly care for images of snakes; the word for a poisonous snake is serpiente. (Otherwise it’s culebra – correct me, Spanish speakers, if I’m wrong!)

I usually sign my emails and notes with the word siempre, which means always.

Sandia – watermelon would make a fun pictorial, as would sapo – toad.  (A frog is called a rana.)

Other helpful words are Sabor-Taste,   Sed-Thirsty, Salud-Health, Salud-Cheers, and Salud-Bless You! Last year I was walking down a quiet sidewalk in Cruzita, and two men were walking on the other side of the street.  One sneezed, and I automatically stated, “Salud!” and kept walking.  They looked over at me, were shocked to see an ‘outsider,’  and they chuckled – as did I!

Shunning all of the above, I present to you an assortment of sonrisas in honor of Mother’s Day! (The photos were taken in Ecuador unless otherwise noted.)  Enjoy!

Cherishing Our Beaches & Marine Life

Tags

Declining Sea Turtles, Marine Conservation. Pretoma, Olive Ridley Sea Turtle, Playa San Miguel Costa Rica, Where's My Backpack Beaches, Why are sea turtles dying

Dawn – Playa San Miguel Costa Rica

Ailsa’s theme for this week is beaches, and I am blessed to have spent a large part of the past dozen years along the beaches of Central and South America.   This post reflects the rewards of visiting the beach in the magical hours at the beginning and end of each day.

Dawn reveals the history of the night; many locals still raid turtle nests along the Pacific Coast.  (Playa San Miguel Costa Rica)

Playa Rosada Nicaragua – Thieves raided this turtle nest as well.

The ocean often tosses more than driftwood on the beaches.

“Pelagic Sea Snake”

Turtles die from boats trawling too close to shore with illegal shrimp nets. This is wrong.

During one rainy season at Playa San Miguel Costa Rica, the resident marine biologist flagged me down about an hour before sunset, “Lisa! There’s a turtle nesting!”  

New Friends, New Memories – Part 02

Tags

Boat Taxis in Ecuador, Crash Course Ecuador Tours, Creative Ways to Learning Spanish, Ecuador Tours, Jonathan Hall, Sarah Dettman, What to do in Bahia de Caraquez

Life presents us with unique people if we slow down long enough to notice!

Bahia de Caraquez – A picturesque little green city!

Manabi Province – Ecuador  (May 2013)

(This post follows New Friends, New Memories – Part 01 posted yesterday)

After the Ecuador Crash Course group left Canoa Beach Hotel,  Susana stepped into her job as Spanish teacher and prompted us to count heads in Spanish as the bus took us the half-hour ride to San Vicente!    Learning a new language is often difficult for many, but Susana’s infectious spirit reminded us to embrace the new words and cherish the adventure!

New Friends, New Memories – Part 01

Tags

Canoa Beach Hotel, Ecuador Expat Journeys, Hand=Painted Concrete Floors, jama ecuador, Jonathan Hall, Sarah Dettman, The Magic Carpet Bodega Floor, What to do in Manabi Ecuador, Where to stay in Canoa Ecuador

“What’s cooking, Ramon?”

May 2013 – Manabi Ecuador

Last Friday I traveled up the coast and met Sarah Dettman and her Ecuador Expat Journeys group in the coastal town of Pedernales.   Driving south, we crossed the line of the equator and kept rolling until we reached the petite beach community of La Division, about a mile from where I live.  In addition to having a picnic, we learned why almendros are so expensive!  A lot of work goes into retrieving the nuts!

Things Leibster

Tags

David Tripp Art, Defeat Despair, Hugh Curtler, Leibster Award, Painting and Writing, Pastels by Mary, Ruth Bailey Art, XRay Art

There’s a good thing/bad thing about being a serious artist who also blogs;  it’s that of being a serious blogger who also paints!  Juggling the two is often difficult for me, as when I am painting, I don’t want to stop until I reach a true finishing point, and when I am blogging, I don’t want to stop until that ‘publish’ button has been selected, or until I schedule it to publish later!  A queue of awards patiently awaits my attention, and now that the first phase of the floor project is finished,  I’ll start with the one that was waiting in the pending approval file!

McCurry – Steve the star at Nordic Light

Returning home from a short road trip, I found this page still on my computer screen. I was surprised that no one reblogged Bente’s post – how often does one see Steve McCurry on the other end of the lens? Bente, this black and white portrait captures an amazing exchange between the two of you, and all the while those bewitching eyes watch from afar! That portrait is your finest!
Z

Bente Haarstad Photography

I guess a lot of you fellow bloggers are well known with the work of Steve McCurry, not the least his very beautiful blog. The American photojournalist is one of the most iconic voices in contemporary photography, having done a lot of magazine covers, over a dozen books, and countless exhibitions around the world. Last weekend he was in Norway, participating at the Nordic Light International Festival of Photography. I was there, both at the exhibition and his lecture in the evening. And it was very interesting to listen to the famous photographer.

One of the most interesting things McCurry told was that he is usually travelling light. Only one camera on the street, one lense, no flash, carrying a tripod but rarely using it. Having an extra camera of course, but not carrying two of them around. McCurry is famous for how he uses light and colours…

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R is for Rio, Ramada, Rancho and More!

Tags

Frizztext Story Challenge R, ramada, rancho, Spanish worlds that start with R, Tagged R, vampire bats, what is a ramada

From The Deck

Having grown up along the Mississippi River, I find comfort in streams, lakes and rivers. The alphabet challenge brings us to the letter R, which allows me to showcase my special view of Rio Jama.

Holy Piso, Batman, The Bodega Floor is Finished!

Tags

Hand-painted concrete floors, hangar doors, Lisa Brunetti, magic carpet, the magic carpet floor, what to do with an ugly room

Holy Piso, Batman, The Bodega Floor is Finished!

Yes, ‘Stage One” of the bodega floor is finished! The first coat of a non-yellowing “laca poliuretano para pisos” is now drying, and the floor will be ready for its first inspection tomorrow! My friend Sarah Dettman and her tour group of 20 will stop by the house to for a sample of my life here on the river.

It’s not fair to let them see this floor before all of you in the cheering section!     The only problem is that Barb is not here for a celebratory test drive on the magic carpet!

Flower Fairies

Tags

flower fairies, Happy Flowers, how to pull out of a low mood, INSPIRATION, inspirational stories, neighbors, remembering the elderly, spreading sunshine, token gifts of flowers

Lynda, my Alabama WordPress neighbor, told a sweet story today about a basket of daisies. Her tale triggered a memory that transported me back to a fall afternoon in Natchez, Mississippi.  The memory had floated downstream in my memory bank, but I found it nestled comfortably in the placid waters of my reflections.

And I was looking for a studio!

Almost twenty years ago, the town and people of Natchez Mississippi captured my heart.  Time and neglect altered one eyesore of an old home that anchored a corner of that historic area of town.  With the zoning board’s blessings, my former husband and I had the honor of restoring that ugly duckling back into the swan that she once was!   A bonus to that project was meeting the dear sweet neighbors, some who became very good friends.

Rabbit Rabbit & May Day!

Tags

concrete floors, good luck traditions, hand-painted floors, may day, rabbit rabbit, rabbits, the magic carpet, the morris dance

Rabbit Rabbit! Happy May Day!

Painting late into the night and into the wee hours of the morning, I realized that a new month sneaked up on me! The good luck first words of the day, Rabbit Rabbit, ran through my head!   How many of you practice that tradition on the first day of each month?

This cute black and white rabbit roams the grounds of Hacienda Guachala in Cayambe Ecuador.  It hip hops along the GPS point of latitude zero – how magical is that?!

Rabbit rabbit, have you ever heard of the Morris dance?

Today is also May Day, and many schools will hold activities in celebration of the outdoors.  I will never forget when I worked in a design studio for a UK company, and one of our very-reserved supervisors broke out in an impromptu Morris dance!  I will forever treasure that memory!