After the Paramedics Left

I had a few days of a head start, but I completed my first painting of 2026! Last Friday, I was planning out a wintery scene to submit to an upcoming show. I had drawn out a composition I liked based on an amalgamation of photos I’d taken on different sledding days over a span of nine years. I even prepped an underpainting. Then it snowed all night long & on Saturday I went to my women’s group and made plans to sled that afternoon at Sturges park in our town of Fairfield, Connecticut.

There, my youngest was too cautious to sled. I didn’t mind. We both had a good time tossing snowballs and observing others. Including my new friend’s son–a recent L.A. transplant–sledding like a maniac for the first (& second, third, twenty-eighth) time(s). I took one trip down the hill and I was pleased with myself for not pressuring anyone–it was fun but horrifying! You have to start out expecting fun for a ride like that, or only suffering would ensue.

Speaking of suffering, during our stay at the hill there was a rough collision between a duo of sledders on a shared sled and someone who was chatting in an area off to the left by the bush in the painting. The girl who was hit dislocated her shoulder–the paramedics came and took her away on a gurney.

The fun times in the snow on the hill continued, but the danger was acknowledged–by me at least!

I felt like it was another one of those magic things that we ended up with a sled day right after I decided I wanted to paint one, and I got started soon thereafter. I finished just in time to have completed my first painting of the year on the first *day* of the year. Then, I was able to make my first show submission of the year–but it won’t be my first show of the year! I’ll be in a show a the Bruce Kershner Gallery opening this month. Find out more on my events page.

I had my first workout of the year, I’m currently writing my first blog post, & one last notable first was a morning drawing. I’m back to my ten minute daily. Now that I got the story about that scam artist interior designer off my chest, I found a new daily drawing partner–and it’s my teen son! We’re using the prompt list from Inktober 2025. The first day was mustache, and I kicked off the year with a longer drawing than I’ll do for the other days.

I’m not a portrait artist–but that won’t stop me from taking the time to practice here and there 🙂 I went ahead and picked the reference photos for the whole month from my camera roll–that had me feeling so nostalgic!