No pinching this gal.
The Candler Oak
A live oak is a species of oak that keeps it’s leaves during the winter months. The live oak pictured is the famous Candler Oak in Savannah, Georgia which was planted in the 1700s.
Raccoon in a Canoe
Art from Recycled Materials
I applaud the many artists who are making amazing creations from recycled materials. I am delighted by the quirky statues from artist Gary Olson. I have included photos of one of his art pieces entitled Self-Educated Rabbit. If you want to know more about his art go to http://www.olsonlarsen.com/index.cfm/65942/19087/studio_visit_gary_olson
Helen Terry Marshall, A Christmas Connection
My mother-in-law was de-cluttering her house some years ago and gave me this painting which I thought was fun. More recently, I tried to read the signature and find out more about the artist. I knew the artist was from Little Rock, Arkansas. I found out that the painter was Helen Terry Marshall who died at age 98 in 2007. I could not find other examples of her art on the internet, but one interesting fact (here comes the Christmas connection): her son, Fred Calvin Marshall was a jazz musician in the Vince Guaraldi trio and played the bass in the original soundtrack of A Charlie Brown Christmas which aired on PBS a few nights ago.
Me and Santa
Merry Christmas!
Bottle Feeding Calves
I was “down on the farm” last week and got to bottle-feed two orphan calves, Lightning and Thunder. Lightning’s mother was hit by lightning out in the field. Thunder was his mom’s first calf and she refused to feed him.
Ekphrasis for Yayoi Kusama
An ekphrasis is a poem describing a piece of art such as a painting or a statue. Yayoi Kusama is a Japanese contemporary artist. I loved her sculpture of a flower and wrote an ekphrasis about it.
Yayoi’s Flower in the Woods at Crystal Bridges
lime-green serpent stem
red/white polk-a-dot petals
Please Feed Me, Seymour
Wonderland, Wonka, Whoville
A Technicolor Triffid
Fungus Schmungus #3
This mushroom was growing on a dead tree in my daughter’s yard. The scientific name is Sarcodontia crocea. Sarco means “flesh.” dontia means “teeth.” crocea means “yellow.” 
Fungus Schmungus #2
I found this mushroom while walking the dog. It was growing where there had previously been a tree stump and looked like a pepperoni pizza. The scientific name of this mushroom is Ganoderma sessile. Ganoderma means “shining skin.” The Ganoderma family are edible. Other Ganoderma species called “reishi” mushrooms are said to have healing properties and have been used in traditional Eastern medicine for many years.
Shelley Jones Clark
