Fun with Mary

I finally got a chance to spend a few days with Mary at her boat this week and had a fantastic time. I was surprised by how large the boat is. There’s a kitchen, a bathroom with shower, a bedroom and a living room/dining room. It was wonderful to fall asleep looking at the stars and full moon with the boat gently rocking.
During the day we were busy boating around the area, and going antiquing and junk shopping. We both picked up some nifty bargains. My favorite find? Three old cigar boxes for assemblage and two rolls of player piano paper. Mary zeroed in on some great stuff as well, including a couple of big bags of brass shell casings in different sizes. She could hardly believe her luck, and when we got back to the boat, she promptly started amputating Barbie hands and feet to add to them (see below). Being in on the action meant I got some of her stash, but fortunately she has enough left over to add to her Etsy store.

In every way it was the ideal get-away for me. Beautiful surroundings, great food and plenty of time spent chatting and making art. Mary worked on her jewelry and I mainly concentrated on assemblage, although I did try Ludgera’s wallpaper technique using black gesso. (Not that it turned out the way hers did, but I live in hopes).

The experience of retreating from the cares of everyday life, and focusing on art and friendship was really rejuvenating for both of us. I’ve come away from it all convinced we can have more fun and find more meaning in our lives if we make a pact with ourselves to live in the now.