In the summer of 2007 I attended The Writing Salon in Taos and decided to drive home via the Oklahoma panhandle - a part of the state I had never seen. I didn't expect much and was blown away by the beauty of the country - I love the panhandle. It is far from everywhere and feels incredibly vast. Black Mesa is the highest point in Oklahoma, entering the far NW corner of the state from NM and Colorado. This view of the mesa is looking west along the highway with the mesa in the distance. Not far from where I was standing is the entrance to Black Mesa State Park - canyon and stream, lots of vegetation, even wild turkeys. It also has some beautiful rock formations which you will see one of the days on this blog.

For now, I have painted four small "an-apple-a-day" paintings and was pleased to see progress with each one. Will be doing more small paintings while completing some larger ones I have started - then on to new New Mexico paintings! Today, however, is more chore-driven, having spent the morning with the electrician here and having to clean house before chimney and carpet cleaners come next week - fortunately, in that order! Tomorrow is Saturday and I will get back to the easel early in the day.