What Happens Next

Studio Sunday

The studio is very quiet today. Half of us (ahem) are in California, and my half has taken the weekend off from work... enjoying a visit from a friend and some truly spectacular weather in Dallas. 

Both were lovely and welcomed.

It looks like the dog was enjoying the day off, too. Although even during his day of leisure he is always willing to pose for a photo, with his usual "Regal yet Aloof" attitude.

He definitely benefits from the room's color story, don't you think?

 

This lack of physical activity and production in the space for these past few days has given me the urge to change a few things up. Rethink and refresh for Spring. Finish up some things that were always planned, but never quite completed.

 

There is definitely a need to "spiff up" this 24 foot run of white pegboard that we used to anchor our three 8' worktables together. It certainly does a great job of concealing tools and equipment, but falls a tad short of looking, well... finished. And it has many possibilities for added storage and display. 

Luckily, the projects that I have in mind are fairly minor, and of the quick and almost painless variety. But I think sometimes it is helpful to the creative process to freshen up your surroundings. Shake things up.

I'll keep you posted. 

The Beasty Boys

Introducing the objects of my canine love.
Please don't hate them cause they're beautiful.

There just never were more lovable doggy mugs. So, so sweet...gentle and affectionate.

Almost five years ago, my family thought long and hard about what kind of dog would be best suited to our household. For all of the characterisitics that we were looking for, the English Mastiff kept popping up in searches. We had never had a mastiff as part of our herd, never even thought about one really. But there they were, all over our search criteria, and we fell for their obvious charms. Who could resist?

So after much more research by my daughter, and a thorough screening of the breeder, and she of us, Lucca joined our family. He is the handsome devil in the front.

Now the breeder, Heather, warned us that Lucca would not be our only mastiff. She told us that we would fall so madly in love that we would feel compelled to adopt another. And two years later that's exactly what happened. By that time Heather had relocated to Tennessee, and Giovanni came to us via Continental Airlines. That's how much we wanted him.

The very best part of this twosome is that they are related to one another. (Surely you noticed the resemblance?) Giovanni is the son of Lucca's favorite sister, Tilly. I cannot emphasize enough how much Lucca loves Tilly. It borders on the obsessive, and I'm just gonna say that it's probably a good thing Tilly moved to Tennessee. So now as a tribute to her, Lucca is raising her son. Awww.

Mastiffs are pretty lazy by nature. Hmmm, I wonder if that's why this breed kept popping up for us?

They are often called Gentle Giants, and for us that has certainly been true. We are so grateful to have found a breeder who is actively working to better the mastiff breed. She is obviously producing puppies with fantastic temperaments. Thanks, Heather!

English Mastiffs can also be playful. And with Lucca weighing close to 200 pounds, and Giovanni tipping the scales at 220 (and still growing!), you have to be sure not to get in the way when they decide to "horse" around!

And then there are the tender moments, and really the reason that we chose English Mastiffs. With good training and socialization, they are fantastic with children.

Mastiffs make the best sidekicks, beacause they really never want to leave you, even for a moment. In fact, their favorite place to sit is right ON your feet. And everywhere you take them, your personal security is a given.

And contrary to popular belief (on the street, anyway), this is not the breed of dog from the movie Beethoven. It is not the breed of dog from Turner and Hooch. It is, however, the breed of dog from The Sandlot.

We are hopelessly devoted.