August 09 madness

well hello dears… it’s been a while since I checked in,  so I thought I’d wish you all happy August and give you the latest news from the personal side of an artists life.

At the moment I am homeless.

The studio where I do all that painting stuff has become my whole world…  for now anyway.

I had a big plan.  It involved moving to the seaside, which I’ve always wanted to do, so I  sold the roof from over our heads and then the purchase of our new house fell through.            Mr Szikora isn’t very amused and the cats are simply disgusted.

So temporarily we are on the mercy of our friends and family.   I am mostly staying with my mammy and her partner.  I’m very grateful for their kind hospitality, however, they are both into their seventies and have very fixed ways of doing things.   Let me give you an example…. They like to be environmentally friendly and save water.  ‘Great’  I thought, I’m all for that, until I realised the full implications on such tasks as the laundry.  It’s an interesting system, clothes are thrown into their used bathwater and trampled.  The ‘clean’ garments are then hung on the washing line and hose-piped down to ‘rinse’, and this process significantly cuts down the ironing – apparently.

Somehow, I have never visited a laundrette but can feel a new experience looming.

And then there is the wine habit.  These two septugenarians can drink anyone under the table but normally it’s me.  Every evening, they install themselves in the greenhouse (yes, the greenhouse) and have conversations only they can understand – while quaffing their pensions at a rate George Best couldn’t have managed.

I love them dearly but I must find us a new home before I need to join AA or start thinking that having a shower using rainwater heated by candles is a good idea.

All of this must be added to my ongoing court case with the Halcyon gallery and  frantic attempts to finish all the artwork for my September exhibition – you simply would not believe how much trouble sugar mice can be.

Anyway, I will let you go now and promise to keep you updated on any exciting developements in my odd, hobo-esque exsistence.

by the way, you are all welcome at the gallery in September (Smartypants)  it will be lovely to catch up again, since my last show, some of you have got married…I know there are new babies due…it’s all very exciting!  but in case we haven’t met yet…. I will be the one with a sleeping bag in the corner.

love,

SJ