This Feels Like Constipation!!!!

My brother died May 24th, just before our four Northwest workshops.  Teaching the four outstanding workshops was a delightful relief from all the financial and legal mess. Between workshops, and probably through July 30th, we’ve camped in his condo because much of the mess involves accounts in Portland. When I say ’camped’, I mean it. There is one pan and one water kettle in the kitchen. (The condo is on the market.) We carry a camp box on the road. It has 2 glasses, 2 cups, 2 sets of table service, paper plates…you get it. Because there’s nothing to cook with, we’re ‘forced ‘ to go out to dinner: very nice. My day begins before 6:00 AM with paperwork and goes to about 5:00. This is not my forte!!!!

An amusing note: my brother never referred to anyone by name, only description, as in “the woman who lives on the 30th floor” who was a very good friend. Letting his friends know he passed is difficult. No lists with names: only phone numbers. (He knew the names). We have found and met a few of his friends and I wish I had known them earlier: great people. DO GET ALL YOUR PAPERWORK TOGETHER SO YOU DON’T LEAVE A MESS LIKE THIS!
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You all spend periods where you can’t sketch. Hopefully at some point frustration brings you back to being creative. Looking back over this time, I have very little to show (or maybe can’t find the sketch books in the loaded car). We’ve been to beautiful places. We’ve had fantastic people as students and they have done marvelously. Terrific way to spend the last over-the-road workshops. 

When we leave here, I get to sketch on the way back to Tucson, ignore the computer and the stress. It’s hard to keep working on my brother’s stuff when a break is coming. This is like looking forward to a vacation…for the mind!!!  Keep sketching. ENJOY!!!!
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Kath 

PS: Here are two sketches from the trip. Coupeville is typical of the place. The Portland house was a demonstration in Oswego from a difficult setting: parts are moved around to make it work.
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Coupeville

​Oswego