Dire Ism

Its cloudy today. I have not left the caretaker's cottage in two days. I have only stepped outside to BBQ on Tuesday evening. I am in the slide toward leaving Weir Farm, 10 days until Brooklyn bound. Tuesday I spent all day on the internet, the blog. Yesterday the whole day painting, which is good because I gave up art altogether the night before. I've explored 90 percent of the trails on the preserve. This evening I'll get back outside, walk the farm. Primarily, now, I need to get some work done. I've done more things in this three weeks than I could come near doing in NYC, where the day job is (thank you day job for letting me leave). I hope, after I return, that I have a better understanding of the direction for my work. In every way I believe my time here will help forge that understanding. Praise to ol' J.A.W. for leading the way:

"The temper of youth has been remarkably prolonged in him and he has never been able to settle down to the production of something the success of which was assured by previous practice."

                        -Kenyon Cox on Weir

"Really, I know not what I am best at and if I lived to 102 I might become an artist."

                     -Weir himself

The essence of this preservation effort, the historic site, is not that of the American Impressionist painter, but to the spirit of seeking new things, change, and living that life -come what may.