In the mountains just north of the Mediterranean and south of Granada lives a small village called Pampaneira. It is one of a trifecta of villages in the Alpujarras.  The other two towns are Bubión and Capileira.  You can tour Pampaneira on foot from end to end in about 10 - 15 minutes.  It's very laid-back.  Just the kind of place I love. 

We walked to Pampaneira from Bubión for coffee and cake one afternoon.  Every day, stores put their colorful wares out on display.  It steeps the whole place with a sense of calm and activity all at the same time. 

This store caught my eye and I just had to draw it. 

If you visit Pampaneira's wikipedia page you will see just how small the town is.  According to the 2005 census the population there is 355 souls, some feral cats, a pack of stray dogs, a few goats, a handful of sheep and a host of touristy shoppy thingies.  I think the entire population was out the day we breezed into town.  The center square was buzzing.  

You will see lots of hikers along the trail there.  The town is along the GR7 route which is  nearly 9,000 km long.  It is the longest trail in Europe and we saw a steady stream of people hiking sun up to sun down.  

This drawing brings back very nice memories of relaxing with a cup of coffee and watching the world go by.  

I hope you enjoy my little Spanish Memory. 

There are some things I miss now that I don't live in Dayton anymore. At the top of my list is seeing good friends I've made over the years. 

Every time I make it back to Dayton, during football season, I get to meet up with long time and new friends for beer, wings and Monday Night Football.  The group's been gathering on Monday night since the beginning of time. It's not really about football, its about sitting around with good friends in a friendly atmosphere and putting the world to rights. The composition of the group and the place changes a bit over time but, usually, once people start coming they stick around. 

I also love the Summer Festivals like the Strawberry Festival in Troy, the Blues Festival in Lebanon, the Greek Festival in Dayton, the Italian Festival in Kettering, the Renaissance Festival in Waynesville and the Octoberfest at the Dayton Art Museum .  There's always something to celebrate during the summer. 

If you'd like to see a list of festivals in the Dayton area you can visit Culture Works cultureworks.org/festivals/.  There are festivals to celebrate everything from the strawberries to sauerkraut to, of course, BACON.  If you exist and draw breath you can probably find something to celebrate in Dayton, Ohio.  

This year we made it just in time for Octoberfest; good beer - good music - fun festival food. They have a continuous roster of bands playing throughout the festival.  Spungewurthy was playing the day we went.  They are a very cool three man cover band that say they play mostly "dancey rock music".  I like that description.  They are fun and - yes - people do get up and get "dancey". We listened to the  music, ate some very unhealthy food, and wandered the arts and crafts booths. Overall it was a relaxing and fun afternoon.

While I was watching the band - no my knees won't let me get "dancey" any more - I notice that the Dayton skyline was beautiful in the background against a clear blue sky contrasting with what I know of the last 20 years when the whole area had been under construction. You used to see enough orange barrels, construction equipment, hard hats and yellow tape to canvas the entire city. I remember it all being an eye-sore and it lasted over half a generation. I was so impressed with the new and improved view, I wanted to capture the image.  So I did a drawing.  It's what I do.  Now I get to share it with you. 

I'll miss it when I leave here but there are new adventures to be had, places to go, people to see and more stuff to draw.  And ... like Arnold Schwarzenegger said, "I'll Be Back".

Have a very artsy day. 

Art is a product that is completely different than most products or services. 

If you buy a painting, photograph, or sculpture it's probably because that work made an unconscious emotional connection. 

There is the odd person who goes into a store and want to buy a light green drawing/painting because it goes with the wall color.  

I guess environmental esthetics matter.  But for me it is not the biggest concern. 

There are lots of people who say they don't know anything about art but they know what they like.  I guess it's kind of like that.  

When I paint or draw - aside from the usual practice that I do it because I feel a connection with the subject matter or I just think - gosh it would be cool if.  

I haven't been able to draw or paint as much as I would like of the last couple of weeks. I am working on something right now which is taking a bit longer than I would have expected.  I have drawn a sketch and am trying to work it up in color. 

I like drawing in pen and ink - one of my favorite things to do.  

The drawing attached today is a sketch I did a few days ago of the Dayton skyline.  I was at Octoberfest at the Dayton Art Museum and thought the skyline was stunning.  It made an emotional connection with me. 

I hope you enjoy.