Splinter Hill, Spring 2007
oil, 18″ x 24″

Every year, I plan to design and send a “Christmas” card. It won’t happen this year, so I’ve cropped a bit of a painting destined to go to my massage therapist, Rudy Smith. We barter for a bi-monthly massage; the paintings due at Christmas. It has a bit of red, so hey? The landscape is part of a Nature Conservancy site north of Mobile called Splinter Hill. I toured it last spring and took pictures of its pitcher plants in bloom. We’ve had an ongoing drought, but the place is still beautiful, especially when the sun begins to set and glows through the long-leaf pines.

The curved brick walkway at my house is still a chalk drawing on my blackboard-painted kitchen door. It rained shortly after the site was prepared and it’s clear that something must be done about a raging little stream that cuts across the path. A friend suggested a french drain at the spot the water turns a sharp corner, the site of some erosion. I’ve heard about french drains, dimly remember seeing a diagram somewhere. So the brick pavers are waiting while I research the issue…