Giants in Ireland! Jet-lag in USA!!

"Sleeping Giant"

8"x10" oil on linen mounted on archival panel

For more information, or to purchase, click here.  

I'm finally back home...and nearly recovered from jet-lag.  So the stories are long overdue! 

I always find the sight of this land formation remarkable...irresistible to paint.  So I knew it would be the first thing I'd want to demo when talking about shapes and masses.  I couldn't resist giving the 'old man' a page in my sketchbook, as soon as we arrived!

  It's been almost a week now, and this jet-lag really HAS caught me by surprise. I found myself wide awake at 4am most mornings, ready to start the day, and dropping off to sleep at my computer desk mid-afternoon.  I think I've even discovered sending out an 'erroneous' blog-post...that I 'thought' was a draft....which I did later delete due to a poor photo and incomplete text. Oddly enough it turned up in my email inbox as having been sent out. Ugh! could I really have fallen asleep at the laptop and hit 'send' before I knew what I was doing?  Was that really my head bonking the key-board? 

Here are the ladies...

and the gents along on our expedition.

When I think of ALL the incredible things this group did on our trip...well, maybe it's more than jet lag, we packed in a lot of activity; powerful plein air painting, puffin photography, bike riding, skellig climbing, pub singing at all hours of the night, long hikes along skinny roads, free Irish facials (from the mist), castle climbing, bog walking, beach strolling, Irish golf, garden gawking, sheep whispering, cow calling, swimming in North Atlantic Irish waters, rock collecting, rainbow following, ship-shape shopping,  and of course....."food, glorious food!".  Some did all, and all did some! What good company to share all this fun with!! 

I have been rolling all these memories around in my head, savoring each one! It's been especially fun for me to see this place anew...through their eyes- those who hadn't been there yet! It reminded me of the first time I ever saw it!....and I was over-whelmed! I knew I'd return many times, just to take it all in! I'm so glad Barbara and Tom share this wonderful place with us, and welcome us into their home. Between the Mastaglios, and Mary and Jim Lane (of Shealane Country House B&B)....they make us feel 'like locals' and that we actually live there.  So grateful to return and be able to share the week with you all!