Our first full week back in The Pearl has been a quiet one, thanks to our colds, jet-lag, and just getting back to our routine. Thankfully our colds are on the mend, so that is good. In spite of the virus we have been walking most every day, we got in that habit while in France so are endeavoring to keep it up.
I am back to driving Lyft three mornings a week, and we are cooking some of our favorite meals. Tomorrow we are going to Newberg to see Alexis and Joe, it will be good to see them.
My art has come to a screeching slow down. Last Sunday I was thinking of the time when we lived in Avignon and the neighbor cat that adopted us so I did a sketch. She would hop in through the window and hang out most of the day and some nights. We named her cacahuète, peanut. Doing a sketch from a past photo is a good way to revisit the experience.
Other than this one, I only did a couple of other little things – not much.
Friday I did some maintenance cleaning on three fountain pens, one being my Pilot in hopes of getting it back to working order. Sadly no. It appears the only solution will be to order a new ink and nib mechanism. I considered repair but that would cost as much as replacement so now the question will be fine or medium.
Tricia will be posting today on our time in Perast in Montenegro, just a few weeks ago. It is such a charming town, and the Lady of the Rock is quite a place, thankfully we got there early and beat some of the crowd.
Shirley is encouraging me to start doing my “Yes! You can travelsketch!” workshops again, that is how we met her and Jim, who now are two of our best friends. So we shall see, Portland would be a good place for it.
Here are links to a couple of posts I did about past workshops. This is one I did in Normandie.
https://peninkandpaint.com/2023/08/11/a-workshop-le-saint-julians-and-texture-a-good-week/
This is the workshop where I met Shirley.
https://peninkandpaint.com/2019/04/14/nice-work-at-yes-you-can-travelsketch/
We were already starting to plan our next trips before we even left Helsinki – we are either remembering, traveling, or planning some grand adventure, or even small ones. I hope you have some adventures in your future and of course that you will put some ink and paint down to capture the moments.
Thank you as always for being a part of our journey.
theTravelsketcher 
I hope you and Tricia have recovered from your sickness since returning home! “Cacahuète” is such a cute name for a cute cat 🙂 Awesome you have more travel lined up, and I can’t wait to see where you go next!
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You are too kind. We are better. We have a few small teips, but are already planning Europe spring.
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We used to have a black cat, and that picture is just so perfect. Love it. Good to hear you are feeling better and are already making new travel plans.
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Thanks, some people dont like black cats but i think they are great.
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Hey–buy a brand new pen! I’m always one for shopping and getting mew “stuff”, but it’s super important to maintain equipment for The Travelsketcher. Go for it! Yes, you’ve taken a sketching break but you can’t maintain that–it’s part of who you are and how you capture old and new memories. I’ll watch to see when you post your new Portland workshops. What fun! For now, glad you and Trish are over your colds and are seeing family soon. Enjoy every moment, and then–sketch them!
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Well not a new pen, just repair, this one is my all-time favorite and comes with a lot of the best memories. If i could only have one pen this would be it.
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Advise from person who has no problem buying new things–get the new pen, put the other one to rest after thanking it for its service–then get back to work sketching because we ALL love to see what you capture with your pen and brush! And then…GO FOR IT and set up a whole new series of “Yes! You can travelsketch!” Oregon is waiting for it! You’ll make lots of new memories and friends—and the people lucky enough to sign up will make a good friend (and with luck, meet clever and creative Tricia as well) AND learn how to capture their own memories. So glad you are both feeling better….and that you’re looking ahead to The Next Time….and all the new places to sketch just around the corner! Shirley
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Well, this pen cannot be put to rest, it is my all time favorite with a lot of memories of the time and place where i got it, bordeaux, with Tricia.
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