“Nobody can fully understand love unless they are owned by a dog.” ~Unknown
Today marks five months since we adopted our little Victory! You can read more about the previous months’ milestones here.
Below are some things that we learned about Victory this month:
She lets me give her belly rubs on her back. At first, she was not too keen on my placing her on her back, but once her belly was being rubbed, she relaxed and seems to enjoy it like her brother Biscuit!
She is now fully transiting into the dinning room and kitchen since she does not want to be left out.
She is starting to eat her dinner in her feeder on her custom feeder mat located in the kitchen!
She loves to chew and play! We have a basket of toys, a combination of some toys that were previously Biscuit’s toys and some new toys purchased for little Victory! This month, Victory has fancied herself on taking toys from the basket and placing them one by one into her ‘hut!’ It is adorable! In fact, one evening we came home and every last toy from the basket was in her ‘hut!’– there was barely any room for her little body as she surrounded herself by all of her toys! Perhaps Victory is a little hoarder! So, she seems to like the game of taking the toys to her ‘hut!’ Therefore, each night, we put the toys away in the toy basket so that she can then have fun taking them all to her ‘hut’ the next day! She also loves chewing on her toys (among other things!) We think that we are going to try the Kong toy next with her and see how she likes it!
She went to the pet store again to get more chew toys and she was a hit — everyone thought that Victory is so beautiful!
She loves Cheese Please, treats we discovered from her BarkBox made of only cheese! Doug ordered her two boxes to keep on hand in the house!
She still is not fond of getting a bath. In fact, this month, Victory hopped out of the soaker tub during her recent bath! Now, we make sure that one of us is holding her the entire time! She looks and feels so great after an oatmeal bath!
She is getting us up less during the night for a drink(s) of water — she is sleeping more!
She, along with both of us, begin training classes next week with little Victory!
She gives us tons of kisses before bed, and she wakes me up in the morning licking my eye lashes with her head on my pillow! Victory is quite affectionate!
She still loves to cuddle — our little cuddle bug!
There was a time that I thought that my heart would not be able to be filed with as much joy as Biscuit brought us. However, our little Victory has stolen our hearts and she has filled our hearts with just as much joy as our precious Biscuit. We have many more memories to make with Victory! We are so happy Victory has entered our lives.
Recently, I had the pleasure of interviewing Katy Widger, a painter living on a small acreage in north central New Mexico with her husband and four furry family members. A selection of Katy Widger’s work is displayed below. Please visit Katy Widger’s website to view more of her work! Katy also does commissions upon request.
KATHERINE CARVER: What were your beginnings as a painter and when did you realize it would become your chosen form of expression?
KATY WIDGER: Life changing events in 2001-2002 caused me to re-think my path as an artist, and I began a rather abrupt transition from art quilting, in which I hand-dyed, painted and printed my own fabric, to oil painting. I had become increasingly unsatisfied with the medium of art quilting as my personal means of artistic expression, something I had been doing for more than two decades. The events that transpired in my life during a two-year period convinced me that, “if not now, when?” applied to my longing to paint in oil. I divested myself of my hand-dyed fabric business, remodeled my studio to accommodate my needs as an oil painter, and began the journey that will be my life’s work. I am an oil painter whose focus is primarily on animals and dogs in particular. How energizing it is to know that!
KATHERINE CARVER: Did you study art formally?
KATY WIDGER: In my early years, I took art classes throughout high school, attended San Juan College in Northern New Mexico for three years as an art major (no degree) with an emphasis on drawing, color theory and design. From 2003-2006 I studied oil painting at the Albuquerque School of Fine Arts and have taken many workshops in landscape, still life, and portrait throughout the years from notable artists. Regarding painting animals and dogs, I am self-taught.
KATHERINE CARVER: What was the impetus that inspired you to begin painting and, in particular, painting dogs and other animals?
KATY WIDGER: I had been happily painting all the usual stuff that representational artists paint, receiving some early recognition for my work, and pondering what direction my vision would take me, when my beloved Mychal Angelo, a black standard poodle that was the love of my life, began having Grand Mal seizures. We fought a lengthy battle to save him, and in the end, I held him in my arms as we gently gave him back to God. It was a horrific education on the dangers of the rabies vaccine and over-vaccination in general. Mychal’s story is told as a cautionary tale on my animal advocate site, www.zeketheapso.us.
On the first anniversary of Mychal’s death in 2007, my grief barely abated, I stood at my easel and drew his portrait in charcoal. Soon thereafter, I painted a small portrait of the dog we had since adopted, an amazing Lhasa Apso named Zeke. I had found my Muse! Dog portraits poured from my studio, like balm on a wounded heart! My lifelong love of dogs and all animals had found its voice through my art. Soon, requests for commissions began arriving, and my joy and satisfaction grew along with the experience I acquired in painting dozens of dogs. There’s nothing quite like seeing the tears of joy on someone’s face when you present them with a portrait of their own beloved dog or cat, especially those who have passed over that Rainbow Bridge. I can’t imagine any artist finding more satisfaction in their work than what I experience in this venue!
KATHERINE CARVER: Where do you show/exhibit your work?
KATY WIDGER: Watermelon Gallery of Fine Art in Cedar Crest, New Mexico is my primary gallery, showcasing bird, wolf and other paintings. Right now I have a show of dog paintings at the Animal Neurological Imaging Center, a large MRI and surgery clinic serving a multi-state area in the Southwest near Santa Fe. And I regularly show (and receive awards) in juried exhibits of fine art in the Albuquerque area. Plus my blog at www.katywidger.blogspot.com is always the first place a new painting appears, with appropriate commentary. In fact, I love posting to my blog because I can tell each dog’s personal story.
KATHERINE CARVER: What artists inspire your work?
KATY WIDGER: Bonnie Marris is just a superb animal artist. She has a remarkable education and is amazingly hard-working and thereby extremely talented. I am always amazed at her work, and her obvious understanding and love of animals, both anatomy and psyche.
KATHERINE CARVER: What advice do you have for aspiring artists?
KATY WIDGER: Learn how to draw, paint what you love, share what you know. I have been a volunteer art teacher since 2006 at Shepherd Lutheran School in Albuquerque, teaching sixth through eighth graders the “FUNdamentals of Drawing.” Good drawing technique is foundational to any good art, whether representational or abstract. Outside of representational art, (which is in no danger of “dying out”, contrary to predictions made decades ago), there is not much emphasis on drawing, which is a shame. Being able to draw well enables an artist to pursue any type of art they desire with confidence. I hope to continue learning how to draw for the rest of my life.
KATHERINE CARVER: How can people view your work?
KATY WIDGER: My website is at www.katywidger.com, where all of my oil paintings are eventually posted. My art blog, Katy Widger’s Raindance Journal at www.katywidger.blogspot.com is usually the most up to date with new postings as each painting is finished, and the stories behind each painting. I also post invitations to upcoming shows there, also.
Thank you, Katherine, for the opportunity to share my love of dogs and other critters through my paintings with your readers!
*All images contained in this blog post are courtesy of Katy Widger.
It is a happy day on the blog today! Today is a Giveaway for one lucky doggie and/or kitty! Please read below for further information.
PetBox is a subscription service based in San Deigo, California, which offers a mixture of high-quality and healthy greats, toys, grooming products, supplements, and more all sized appropriately for your doggie (and/or kitty), with plans as low as $29.00 per month.
What is really neat about PetBox, is that you get to choose and personalize what goes into your PetBox — how neat is that! You have some control over what you receive, unlike some other subscription services. Additionally, for those who opt for longer subscriptions, by allowing you to choose what comes in your PetBox, you avoid getting the same types of items over and over. Also, PetBox is not only for our doggie friends, but also for kitty friends too!
For those who savor the surprise, you can also opt for a “surprise me” option if that better meets your needs. However, it is nice to know that you have the option to select what comes in your PetBox.
For those of you who have doggie and kitty friends in the same household, you can sign up for a PetBox that includes items for both doggie and kitty friends!
Furthermore and very importantly, a PetBox subscription also gives back — for every box that ships, PetBox feeds a rescue animal. PetBox has partnered with shelters, rescue organizations, and volunteers to deliver shipments of food every Friday. In fact, you can follow along every week on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook with the hashtag #PetBoxFridays. If you are a rescue, shelter or volunteer group that needs aid, please click here.
What is inside of Victory’s “surprise me” PetBox (as pictured below)?
Overall, I was pleased with what we received from PetBox — a nice array of doggie goods that would have cost much more if purchased individually! Most importantly, Victory really enjoyed the yummy treats from her PetBox! You can see Victory licking her chops below! Finally, PedBox would make a wonderful gift as well! So, if you are interested in trying PetBox for yourself, checkout getpetbox.com!
[Disclosure: PetBox sent me a sample box for review. All views and opinions are my own.]
*PetBox Giveaway Details and Rules:
*Just leave a comment saying hello!
*Please leave a valid email address (which is kept private), as this is my only point of contact. (The winner will be contacted via e-mail in order for the winner to select his/her PetBox (i.e., dog only PetBox, kitty only PetBox, or a combination of doggie and kitty PetBox) and to obtain the winner’s mailing address to enable the PetBox Company to mail the PetBox directly to the winner!)
*Deadline to submit a comment is this Monday, March 17, 2014 at 11:00 p.m. EST… and the winner will be announced later in the week next week!
“I have found that when you are deeply troubled, there are things you get from the silent devoted companionship of a dog that you can get from no other source.” ~Doris Day
Today marks eight months since our precious Biscuit passed away. One thing that Biscuit loved to do was take a spin in his Hound About! Soon after we rescued Biscuit, we knew that he had issues with his legs — they were extremely fragile and he suffered from arthritis. It was suspected per the Sheltie Haven Sheltie Rescue, Inc., the dog rescue organization where we adopted Biscuit, that he suffered from living in a puppy mill, as his rear legs were slightly deformed. We made sure Biscuit took his daily arthritis supplements to help his condition. As a result, Biscuit could not walk too far of a distance at a time, although he did enjoy his daily walks around the neighborhood!
I did not want Biscuit’s arthritis to stop him from going on longer walks, traveling, and sight-seeing. As such, I looked into finding something that we could use to push Biscuit around in! I came across the Hound About via Google searches. When I showed Doug the Hound About, Doug, at first, told me that it was “over the top,” but he indulged me in my quest. Since we ordered his Hound About from California (not local), Doug and I cut out newspapers to the appropriate dimensions to discern which size to get Biscuit. So, we settled on the larger size, the blue Hound About.
Biscuit immediately fell in love with his Hound About! Doug and I have so many wonderful memories of Biscuit in his Hound About. Since our old house, unlike our new house, did not have a garage as it was located in the city, we kept Biscuit’s Hound About in our guest room! We are so thankful to now have a garage for the cars and storage! Some evenings, during the warmer months, we skipped the gym and took Biscuit for a ride around the Harbor, which he loved! Biscuit was very smart. Since the Hound About was too wide to fit through the front door, Doug had to take the three wheels off the carriage portion of the Hound About to enable us to get the Hound About in and out of the house! As soon as Biscuit saw us taking out his wheels to his Hound About, he got so excited! He barked and smiled, ear to ear, and ran out the front door, just waiting for Doug and I to quickly assemble his Hound About so he could get going on his ride!
The Hound About went everywhere with us when we traveled, and we have many wonderful memories from our two trips to Nova Scotia with Biscuit! Biscuit proudly went all around Halifax in his Hound About and loved every minute! Biscuit loved all of his local Hound About rides as well! We have many memories of taking our beloved Biscuit to dinner in his Hound About as well as stores where furry friends were permitted! He was such a hit with the ladies strutting around in his Hound About! We are so glad that the Hound About brought Biscuit so much joy, and most of all, the Hound About allowed us to do so much more together!
Now, the Hound About has been passed down to little Victory, who seems to love the Hound About as much as Biscuit did! We are sure that Biscuit is smiling down and is happy that another sheltie friend in need, his sissy, is enjoying it as much as he did! We are so thankful that Biscuit entered our lives and brought us so much joy.
Biscuit is pictured below in his Hound About in downtown Halifax after he went shopping with us at Lululemon and Roots among other stores (Biscuit went inside the stores with us)!
In the spirit of the recent Oscars, the Daily Dog Tag recently featured the ‘Dogscar’ nominees, which you can view here and here. Biscuit was featured in the “In Loving Memory” category, #77, shown below. We sure miss our precious Biscuit and think of him everyday. We know that Biscuit is always with us in our hearts.
Can you locate little Victory in the menagerie of cheetah and panda friends?
For those of you who have been following the blog for a while, know that cheetahs and pandas are near and dear to our hearts. The cheetah and panda have become a metaphor in our relationship. As an anniversary gift, I had a custom Cheetah and Panda Totem made for Doug!
Anyone who has been to our home knows that we have a menagerie of “friends” (stuffed cheetahs and pandas) who have taken over our guest room! We have more “friends” than we know what to do with, and they are all not pictured in the photo below — there are even more friends! Our entire guest room has so many “friends” all of whom have names (although we forget their names at times)! Buddy, not pictured, is our most recent “friend” addition! (The pandas out number the cheetahs!)
Victory is not allowed in the guest room unsupervised as she loves to chew — her favorite passage of time! She chews on and through her own “friends” that she keeps in her little ‘hut!’
“If you don’t have a dog, at least one, there is not necessarily anything wrong with you. But there may be something wrong with your life.” ~Vincent Van Gogh
I have recently begun a weekly photography project with my muse, Victory! I will continue to share this project on the blog! I have also been documenting Victory’s milestones so to speak each month — you can read these here! I think that it is fun to document all of Victory’s changes, while preserving fleeting moments and memories.
Recently, we had a few really nice days, almost like it was spring and then we received snow the following day! During the nice weather, we were able to open our windows and enjoy being outside after having some really brutal winter days! Doug and I decided to take Victory out in the Hound About! We originally purchased the Hound About to help our beloved Biscuit motor around since he had severe arthritis. This enabled Biscuit to go on long walks and see places that he would not otherwise have seen. Doug originally thought the idea to purchase the Hound About was “over the top,” but soon learned how much Biscuit loved his Hound About! We have many fond memories with Biscuit in his Hound About!
We decided to let Victory have a test drive in her Hound About! At first, she was a little nervous, but soon after she too was smiling (like her brother Biscuit did) as she rode around the neighborhood in her Hound About — the only difference being that she liked the screen in the front zipped, whereas Biscuit loved poking his head out the front of the Hound About! Perhaps, in time, Victory too will be riding around in her Hound About with her beautiful face poking through! We hope to have many adventures with little Victory in her Hound About and perhaps this will be a way to get Victory out and about while having a “safe zone” similar to her ‘hut‘ at home! Hopefully our dog training, which starts in about two weeks, will help build her confidence even more! Victory is doing great and her fur coat is literally sprouting!
P.S. If you are interested in getting a Hound About, you can learn more here!
Doug and I have been going and going for quite some time. This year, we have vowed to schedule and make more down time to do nothing and to just be. What I am learning is that since we have prioritized rejuvenation, the more effective we are when we are working. The other thing that I have noticed is the more easily creative ideas come, which is a really good!
So, we have carved out down time, and it has been really helpful. The deliberate pauses are so refreshing as we have more energy. So, I am still working hard, but having and creating breaks has proved very helpful! We also have more white space in the calendar, more unplanned days. There are times when your nose needs to be right on that grindstone. And there are times when you need to lean back!
“Invent your world. Surround yourself with people, color, sounds, and work that nourishes you.” ~SARK (Susan Ariel Rainbow Kennedy)
A while back, my friend recommended the book, Make Your Creative Dreams Real, by SARK. I really enjoyed this book! SARK provides a step-by-step guide that gives you micro-movements to work towards your goals over the course of a year. These are very tiny steps that get you moving in the right direction, which does not require a lot of time or energy but they help you keep moving, the operative word! Once you have completed several steps, big changes can happen. Getting started and continuing to move is often the most difficult part. This is a book that helps you not only with specific goals but in your whole overall approach and outlook to life. I found this book to be very helpful!
Interview with Moira McLaughlin, Art Entrepreneur and Blogger
Photo Credit: Sheila Cameron.
Recently, I had the great pleasure of interviewing Moira McLaughlin, an artist and blogger living in California. A selection of Moira McLaughlin’s work is displayed below. Please visit Moira McLaughlin’s website and Etsy shop to view more of her work!
KATHERINE CARVER: What were your beginnings as an artist and when did you realize it would become your chosen form of expression?
MOIRA MCLAUGHLIN: Before she became a wife and mother, my mom was an art teacher. She encouraged my three sisters and me to be artistic right from the start. We were raised in Cleveland, Ohio with frequent visits to the world-renowned Cleveland Institute of Art. And our extended family lived in New York, so yearly visits to the Met, MoMA,and the Guggenheim were common. At Christmas, we always got fresh boxes of crayons, sketchbooks, and magic markers. I never chose to be an artist. I just was always surrounded by art. I thought that was normal.
KATHERINE CARVER: Did you study art formally?
MOIRA MCLAUGHLIN: I don’t have a fine art degree. I have a BA in history with a film studies minor from Boston College. But, since the age of five I’ve taken art classes. And during college, I spent year in Italy studying art history, photography, and Italian cinema. While abroad, I visited many museums in Europe and viewed many of the masterpieces of the western world first hand. It’s been unconventional and awesome.
KATHERINE CARVER: How do you describe your style?
MOIRA MCLAUGHLIN: Evolving.
KATHERINE CARVER: Can you describe the time when you first realized that making art was absolutely something that you had to do?
MOIRA MCLAUGHLIN: I don’t think I ever felt that way. In fact, I’ve always wanted to invent something more than I’ve wanted to be an artist. I consider myself more of an “art entrepreneur” than an artist.
Part of this resistance stems from not liking to have a lot of things. I’m a minimalist. I like paring down. So making things, even making art, stresses me out.
And, this resistance to things coupled with an anti-consumerism bent has intensified since 2009 when I moved from Los Angeles, where I worked in the film business for 15 years, to the rural Northern California town of Grass Valley. Now, I’m submerged in nature in a way I’ve never been before. There’s a part of me that asks “Why bother making something, when nature is so brilliant?”
That’s sparked my interest in looking at art not as something artificial, separate from nature, but something organic, created in collaboration with nature. I’ve become interested in environmental art and biodegradable houses. I find the beauty of a perfectly stacked woodpile really exciting, and I’ve become obsessed with collecting sticks and building teepees. And, to be totally honest, when I watch documentaries of artists working in sterile, white studios, with store-bought paints and canvases, it looks depressing to me, not something to aspire to. I feel very conflicted about much of the “art world” today and my relationship to it. The industry is not sustainable.
KATHERINE CARVER: What was the impetus that inspired you to begin painting and making art of dogs?
MOIRA MCLAUGHLIN: In 1999, I became very sick after working in a building that I later found out was built on a toxic landfill. I was diagnosed (and still struggle) with chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, multiple-chemical sensitivity, low thyroid, and an autoimmune disorder that affects my eyes. By 2005, I had no job and very little money, so I decided to make handmade gifts for Christmas. Everyone in my family owned a dog, so I made custom collages of each pet and framed them with $5 Ikea frames. They were a big hit. I made some more and posted them on ebay. They sold. And I became a dog artist.
KATHERINE CARVER: What was the inspiration to begin your blog, Dog Art Today?
MOIRA MCLAUGHLIN: By 2007, I spent most of my time in bed, very sick and in chronic pain. It was very isolating. I started Dog Art Today as a way to connect to other people when I rarely left my house.
KATHERINE CARVER: How have your own dogs influenced your work?
MOIRA MCLAUGHLIN: Darby, my Longhaired Dachshund who died at age 17, was a beautiful, soulful, and clever creature who constantly outwitted me. Tyler Foote, my mixed-breed Terrier, is a graphic, macho, survivalist. They both inspire my work. But even more so, their companionship allows me to enjoy solitude, which for me is necessary for creativity (and my health). Most important are the walks; my best ideas happen when I’m walking my dog.
Darby pictured above on the left; and Tyler Foote pictured above on the right.
KATHERINE CARVER: Can you talk about your new work entitled, “dox-ZENs”? How did this body of work come about?
MOIRA MCLAUGHLIN: After Darby died I was devastated by grief and creatively blocked. I made a few artworks, but soon got frustrated, angry that they weren’t good, like I wasn’t doing him justice. And I would just sob. So I shut my studio door a quit trying.
A few months later, I discovered erasure poems on a wonderful blog that I think your readers would love called Gwarlingo. The poems are created by erasing texts of a book. I became fascinated with this subtractive, messy, experimental art form and started exploring my grief on the pages of an early 20th century spelling primer.
Years ago, I had created a “dox-ZEN” collage, a generic image not related to Darby. So, later, when I spotted a book on my shelf entitled Buddhism and Zen, it sparked the idea of combining my new interest in erasure poems with a tribute to my own beloved dox-ZEN.
One of the first concepts discussed in the Buddhism and Zen book, which I read as I deconstructed it, is that the mind is an endless process of three series: craving, acting and discontentment. It was the discontentment that was paralyzing me. So I decided to paint Darby in the exact same manner on every page. The art was the discipline, the meditation, not the outcome. I also looked to one of my favorite works, painted in 16th century Korea, for inspiration, Mother Dog and Puppiesby Lee Am, 1507-1566.
Around the same time, Jane O’Hara, a fellow dog artist whom I greatly admire, was putting together a group art exhibition entitled “Beasts of Burden.” She asked if I had something in addition to my “Dogs in Art” video (which was already included) to contribute. When I explained the “dox-ZENs” series she said yes. Having a deadline forced me to actually do it. It’s been extremely cathartic.
KATHERINE CARVER: Where do you show/exhibit your work?
MOIRA MCLAUGHLIN: My “Twelve dox-ZENs” and my video “Dogs in Art,” a three minute tribute to 5,000 years of canine art, will be in the upcoming exhibition, “Beasts of Burden” at the Harvard Allston Educational Portal in Allston, Massachusetts. March 13 – May 4, 2014.
biscuit's space | The blog of photographer Katherine Carver 