From October (yes, I have several months of posts to catch up on!) -- Seabright State Beach in Santa Cruz.

We drove down to LA over MLK Jr. weekend to escape the deluge here in the Bay Area.

To pass time before a dinner reservation, I decided to get my hair cut and ended up sketching Oyuna, the owner/master stylist at New Look Salon as she worked on another customer. I like what she did with my hair.



The next day, we had breakfast overlooking the ocean in Rancho Palos Verdes. I was hoping to see tidepools at Abalone Cove Shoreline Park, but we didn't find any.



On the way home on Monday, we stopped in Santa Monica. I set up my Strada easel and painted the thick clouds above the ubiquitous beach volleyball nets.

Once again we found ourselves in balmy southern California for Thanksgiving. We left for LA very early in the morning, driving through thick fog. It soon gave way to the green and gold hills of Pacheco Pass.



I put away my sketchbook and settled in to listen to Mindy Kaling's audiobook. It made the monotony of the I-5 somewhat tolerable.

After a quick stop in Van Nuys to see M.'s cousin, we headed to Venice where we wandered along the canals and stole glimpses of fancy turkey day feasts taking shape in the waterfront homes.



Then we made our way to the beach, because what's Thanksgiving in LA without sandy toes and a balmy breeze?



Dinner was Korean BBQ at Genwa with an old friend, followed by drinks at the Culver Hotel. The next morning, we headed to Wi Spa for a soak and sauna before heading to downtown LA to meet USk friends Virginia Heim and Shiho Nakaza. We wandered around The Last Bookstore while we waited for them, and then had lunch at Bar Ama.



After lunch, Shiho and I sketched at Grand Central Market's G&B Coffee before we hit the road to Joshua Tree.

(8x8, ink and watercolor on Fluid 100 block)

The wind was fierce yesterday at Rockaway Beach in Pacifica. I was glad to have my Helly Hansen jacket -- stood up well to the gale! M. took this picture of me while I was painting.

Before I lived in Connecticut I wasn't really a beach person. Now that I'm living inland, I crave a glimpse of water from time to time. It's a good thing we don't live too far from the ocean.

M. surprised me on my birthday with an impromptu trip to Santa Cruz, the original California surfer town. Our lovely B&B, West Cliff Inn, overlooked the boardwalk and the beach.

Just a few minutes' drive away is Natural Bridges State Beach.




Both of these sketches were done on a Fluid 100 hot press watercolor 8x8 block. I'm really enjoying the way paint behaves on this smooth surface.

You can walk the length of the main street in this little coastal town in a few minutes. The stiff breeze didn't stop us from enjoying a hearty lunch at Duarte's Tavern. And of course we stopped in at the little boutiques, visited the goat farm and watched tiny crabs in the tide pools at the beach. Later we feasted on Arcangeli Grocery artichoke bread and fresh Harley Farms goat cheese and tomato sauce.

Yes, I paint lifeguards often, I know -- but then again, I do live near the beach, and I am fascinated by the graphic quality of their perch against the sky. This painting was larger before, but I wasn't happy with the other figure in it so I cropped and reframed it to include only the one.

Walked off to the beach the other day for some inspiration and found it. Dashed off this quick sketch with a pencil, a small box of watercolors, and a waterbrush. As usual I like my sketch -- done in about 10 minutes -- better than the painting I did later over several hours! While I was working, two little girls, about 9 and 7, came up to see what I was doing. They asked if I liked to draw people. I said yes, but also noted that I have a hard time getting the faces to look right. I told them that's why I like drawing people from the side or back. The older girl promptly replied, "Well, let us know if you'd like to draw US from the back, and we'll freeze for you!"