Just Keeps on Getting Better

April 17th, 2019, waiting on getting 2 hips replaced,, but lets back up an talk about the past year and a bit,, seems the last time i was on here,, i was talking about heading to Paris for my 75th Birthday,, well that did become a reality, and what a Time in my life it was,, but before i left , had a new great grand baby born so that make 3 of them now,, with a 4th great grand child on the way,, which kind of overshadows the rest of whats been going on as well as what happened,,, Just Kidding,, lots been going on and lots going on,, Paris,, 7 weeks,, and i have to say,, one of the best times ,, Ever,, in My life,, BVJ,, youth hostels,, Thank You,, the Friends that came to Paris and celebrated my 75th the new friends i met while there,, Thank God for again giving me the gifts of 30 new drawings,, Menta and wife , Billy and Anna,, Douglas and Sarah,, and Again all the folks at the BVJ,, how Great can anyone be treated,, what a Great Party,, and that was just the start of 2018,, West Galt,, had started the drawing for the West Galt book in 2017 and just about got all the drawings finished in 2018, not quite,,but did sit and get another 28 of them finished,, and sat in that space and kept thinking all summer that i was sitting in The Garden of Eden,, What a Life,,

Isn't Life Strange

Years of not seeing so many friends of 30 years,, at 74,, it takes a lot out of you,, sitting in the only coffee shop,, that feels like anything,, that your life is about,, minus the New York /Key West/Paris,, Vibe,, lack of communication,, maybe it's just all about the fact of being,, Old,, did about 35 drawings this year,, maybe its 40,, which is a good thing,,, but not having a buying crowd,, makes it not a really exciting thing,, also have had a few books published,, now have 3, I wrote and nine books of my drawings,, and i need to continue this later' have a bit of company all of a sudden,, and now its Jan.4th, 2018,, had a wonderful trip to Mexico,, to an amazing wedding,, for a friend who is one of the main reasons i was able to survive in Key West for the many years i did,, So i'm turning 75 this year and going to celebrate in Paris France, God Willing, April 15th till middle or end of May,, one of the or i should say 2 of the most wonderful experiences of my life have been the birth of my two Great Grandchildren,, and now expecting the 3rd in March of this year,, not that i don't realize that everything else iv'e had means any less,, just that i'm blessed to have another blessing , just want to express , the love of My Family , brothers and sister,, My children and grandchildren and great grandchildren,, the many cousins 1st 2nd and 3rd,, and the extended Families ,, the oh so many iv'e had,, the Friends who have so shared so much love and loved so deeply, i just have to write this down just so they all know,, i could not have done any of it without You,,,

Where did that Year Go

2017, March 21st, where to start,, turned 73 and now waiting for 74,, six weeks away,, but feels like i,ve just gone through a five year period,, 3 months in Italia,, and Two months in Paris France,  and before and after that trip,, 30 oil paintings in Villa Mesa,, at the home of my Father,, and then 35 drawings in Paris,, started the trip with my Grandson Tyler Grech,, who was with me for a month,, which included a couple days in Paris as well as Rome,, i would like to do a moment by moment account of this year but it would fill a few books,, at least one for Paris One for Italia and 2 for the tie spent with My Family,, not to mention the coming of age and the acceptance of life as a person considered to be of old age ,, or elderly,, because out of this time and trip,, the development of  myself ,,, as a Great Grandfather,, and simply to just still being alive is more than i can express of what has come out of the past Year,, and I give Thanks and Praise to The Father , The Son and The Holy Spirit,, Thank You Thank You Thank Yoe

Its About Time

It really is , all  about time, about time i updated , as well as time flying by us as we .stop and think about the time,, its April 10th 2016, and i've not been to either New York or Key West, for over two years, and now again its the 11th, how fast a day goes by without writing a word, and are there any words that can explain what happened in the last day let alone the past three months?, I think not, two books have been published one of my New York Greenwich Village watercolors, and one of my Europe Ink Drawings, and one of the Europe watercolors that should be published within the next ten  days,, but that's not even a start of three months, with the babysitting, the hockey, the helping a friend survive in his restaurant business,, that didn't, never mind the places the mind goes into and through, while this is all being done,, and then the thoughts of why anyone would even bother to write any of this,, must be. that one doesn.t really have anything to do with their time.
So many deaths, so many wakes that i've been to in the past three months, memories of years gone by, people and experiences, not just with the departed, but the ones like myself paying ou r respects, really does make you more aware of time, and what you have done with it , how valuable it is, and what to do with the time you have left, and again,, does any of it matter,, you do what you do everyday, how long it takes and what you do with it , is what you must and when it happens is when it must, just like i strted to do this yesterday and what happened to have me doing it today had to happen so that i would be now doing it today,, and it could have happened that i would not do it at all,, but ,,, Everything Is in Its Time,, Right on Time

Reflections, Projections and Thoughts

Being,, Alive,, who would have thought,, and then having what it is we have , Doing,, what we have done in these 72 years we have had the pleasure of enjoying so much,, the air we breathe, the food we receive, the friends in our lives,, the loves, the parents , brothers .sisters , children and Grand and Great, the work we have been blessed with being able to do, and then There is More at 72, ,, The Gifts, of health, art, understanding and if your Fortunate enough ,, Compassion,,
And the there's the Art,, The Drawings and The Paintings, The Words,, The Books,, The People that make that all possible, Its difficult to understand even within your self, what it is that moves me as an artist,, to not only do the drawings and the paintings or to sit and write a thought,, so you just accept it,, and do it,, and then there's the desire to want to reproduce them and work with that,, and then there's the realization of the fact that its all One and All a Gift,, so you look for what it is that Gives you these gifts and how to Thank Them,,
Two Hands Ten Fingers, Eyes, New York, Key West, Paris , Amsterdam, Praha, Italy,, Cambridge,so many Friends, So Many Gifts,
Seven Books, Four of my drawings, three of my thoughts, hundreds of drawings, hundreds of watercolours and hundreds of oil paintings, sounds like a couple thousand, couple hundred in books and and a thousand or more to go,, two New York books finished Two more to go,, Key west,, one finished seven more to go,, Europe two to do and one almost finished,, God Willing, by my Birthday,, New York Colour Maybe by Valentines day, would be nice,, six or seven Key West books by the end of 2017, Book of drawings of musicians,, would be nice need to fit it in ,, Somewhere,,
But,, would really be nice to be able to ,, even in my thoughts,, fit in a few Books of My Oil Paintings,,,, and in between all this,, is a book ive been trying to get 30 or 40 of my boyhood friends to write with me,, a Book called, "The Preston Boys",, a book about the friendship of these hoodlums that ive had the pleasure to hang around with for 65 years of my life,
Which takes me to the part of all this rambling, Thoughts about what life is really all about,, and thats the people that we encounter, in the 72 years, those New York People, The Key West People , Them European ones, in Paris, Amsterdam,, in Villa Mesa, Home of my Father,,and of course The Canadian ones, New York ,, They Just Love everything i do, and the Key West ones,, have made me part of the Family,, The Love,,, The Love,, The Love,, those wild Italians,, and those Children,, Again,, and the loves,, and the Family,,The Love,,,,

That Time of Life

Its funny how we think of life, as we go through the stages of what age we are at, and then relate to it so personally. We hardly ever think that maybe whats happening In our life is just that,, that what happens when your that age, and if we stop and look around at others in our lives, the same age we may just discover that it really is the norm. But ,No,, we always tend to think is just us,, that is having this experience, and then try to work through whatever it is that is of a concern, rather then having the feeling of,, Well,, Lets see where this is going to take us on our lifes journey and embrace whatever it is at whatever time of our lives. So what are the ages and stages of life that creates these turning points that we seem to have to work through,, I think from birth till age 7 we are at our most protected, and then from 8 to 12 there is a growing up of the baby within us, and I must add at this point my prospective of this process is no doubt outdated in this day and age of man, compared to when I was growing up, anyway,, 13  to nineteen,, the expectations of teen hood is a great time of wonderment, and expectation, and at 20,, we really start with the when, why and the hows of the future,and that lasts till about 31,, and as Pink Floyd expressed it,, Ten Years have got behind no one told me when to run I missed the starting gun,, and then sure enough before we know it were 40. The Big 40,,and we really stop to reflect  on where we have been and what we have don,, and try to replay our life in our mind,, and why were doing that,, wouldn,t you know it were 60,, and you know 60 is the new 40 they say,, Ya Right,, Sixty to 66,,is a real eye opener,, and then the years start,, not 5 or ten but one at a time and you really start to realize its just ,, That Time of Life

Reflections and Decisions

April 2015, love April, its when I start celebrating my Birthday, never could understand only doing that one day a year,, so years ago I started doing that on the 1st of April and keep it going till mid May. Well another winter has passed us by,, 1st time in 30 years that ive spent 2 complete winters back to back in Canada, last year being one of the snowiest of my life and this one being one of the coldest in my life and I must say I enjoyed both of them, other than I dearly missed my friends in Key West as well as really not having anything to do as far as my Art is concerned, on the other hand, im more than I could ever imagine overjoyed that ive been able to spend this much time with my Children and Grandchildren as well as sharing in the thrill of the Birth of my Great grand child,, Delaney Rose. As I get older and it seems every year,, my appreciation for what I have in Family and Lifetime Friendships becomes a priority in my life. I'm also happy to be able to write that a book I,ve had finished since 1992, has been put into print, "Friends of Eagles"a book about my observations of myself as a friend as well as those around me, its not that I ever get caught up in regret of any of my life for so long ago I realized that what is done is done and yes many times you wish you hadn't done or should have done, but what was can never be undone, But,, with this writing thing that I seem to not stop,, 25 years later, I still question so many reasons  about why and why not. Then again, as my good friend Bob Dylan , says,, its life and life only,, its alright Ma ,, I'm only bleeding. As I sit and spend yet another day at Monigram Coffee Roasters,, and try to decide on what it is I want to do or should do with the next 6 months of my life,, Europe,, Paris and Italia,, Niagara on the Lake,, or just hang out in Cambridge and I know  if I were 20 years younger it would be Europe,,and at this time of my life like I said it is nice seeing my Children every week,, Living situation is another aspect of my life that for most people my age,, is really not in their lives,, but when you havn't had a place to live the past 30 years and still don't it is something that makes you think a bit more about what it is you do and are doing,, anyway enough of all this,, seems I,ve had enough of wanting to jot down a few words and lines

Seems Like the First Time

Then again it could be ,, at 72 years old ,,it is the first time,, the first time becoming a Great Grandfather,, That is,,and again im in awe and thanks,, that im alive,, so many never reach this age,, and even more do not become witness to their Grandaughters become mothers which allows an old man to see his first Grand Child. Its 2015, and I swear,, its feels like 1999,where did those 16 years go,, that granddaughter who was 14 all of a sudden is 30,,and somehow,, ive become an old man,, what,, you say,, 72 is not old,, well excuse me,, it is,, and im like I said happy to be old and be able to claim the title of Great Grampa., Now,, what else is going on in this old mans life,, not much,, having spent the past 30 years putting a portfolio together of my drawing,, and like ive expressed in previous posts,, being banned from the united states for 5 years,, the past year has been a little more than difficult trying to fiqure out what to do with what ive been doing. Five years will make me 77 if I have that many,,and then what will I still be able to complete this project,, that has left me homeless and broke,, or  do I stop with this project and resign my self to the fact it was a noble effort,,choices and decisions,, and acceptance in Life and what it has for you, and gives you, I have quite a few places that have my work in the usa,, and at this point really feel like I will not be permitted into the usa to complete this project,, so the only option is ,, is for me to have everything collected and returned to Canada, it breaks my heart,, to do that,, but it is the most logical decision,,the sadest part of this situation,, is not about the project or what to do with it,, or the fact that it may never be completed ,, but the friends that I have had the privilege to have had in these years, and the separation from them,, at this time of my life,, beyond words to try to describe what has been taken away from me,, by the loss of these friends

Key West

I was first introduced to Key West in 1986, and fell in Love as are just about everyone that gets there. I started doing drawings on mat board with felt pens, in the years that followed I had a few hundred drawings a few hundred hand watercoloured prints and a few hundred watercolours and oil paintings . The 29 years that I spent in Key West, and I say 29 years but really was a lot less,, for in those years I was usually there anywhere from 3 to 6 months,, but in that time,,became welcomed as though I was family by not only the people that were seasonal but by the permanent residents of the city, treated like one of them. respected as an artist and Human being,, One Human Family, is the mantra of most of the folks I grew to know and Love. Writers , Musicians , Artist, Business owners as well as all who spent time there,,working hard through difficult times , with a love and a passion, that without could not produce ,the love and respect ,that you encounter everyday and night,, giving people,, One Human Family,, and why do I write this,, Loss,, How often we lose a beloved one of this, Family,, and the pain of loss that we feel,, from the loss is so felt by even One like Me who feels so blessed that I was accepted by this Family even that my time there was so limited,,I cannot imagine the pain of Loss of those who have been there full time in their lives, and who have loved and had the backs of the likes of me coming there year after year, for the few months we do,, I want to reach out and let you all know how loved and apprieciated you have all been in my life and that I do feel that pain everytime we loss one of this One Human Family

2015,,Who Would Have Thought

Jan. 20th,2015,another winter in Canada,,could be bummed out but have to stop and think about what it is im learning from this situation in my life. Missing so many good friends ,,not being able to complete so many projects I would like to have had completed,,72 this year,, you would think a person this old would know that none of the projects even matter in the big picture,,Great Grand child being born to my eldest Granddaughter,, now that is something,,the joy Ashleigh has brought into my life,, as well as my other grandchildren,,to think im having one of them bless me with my 1st Great Granddaughter,,why would you want to be doing anything other than being in presence of that occasion in your life?? so my good friends ,,yes I miss all of you and just maybe I won,t get any of those projects completed,, but I have been blessed by the energy that is everything,, that has directed my life to be were it is I must be at all times,, and doing exactly what it is I must be doing,, and I say,, Thank You God,, Thank you Son of God,, and thank you Holy Spirit,, for you are with me ,, the trinity at all times.

Life is a Very Short Experience

Between the Ego and the confusions of our minds,, life goes by us pretty quickly.Just when we start to really understand and accept that we have it right, we also realize that were 71 years old,,and yes ive heard it all,,your only as old as you feel,,ok,,and then theres that one,,at 60 or whatever,,60 not old,,ya ok,,keep telling yourself that,,the point is,,life is very short and quick,,Pink Floyds line,,ten years have got behind,,no one told me when to run,,i missed the starting gun,,well40 years gets behind that quick as well,,So,,all that said,,don,t. Get caught up by the ego,,that confuses you into thinking your the one,you can win thats never been won,,Dylan,,stop in your life everyday,,seven times and say a prayer in thanks,,for the ,,Gift,, of Life,,you have been given,,make sure your kind to all that you get to meet,,make people smile and laugh,,and when your ego gets you into any kind of negative situation,,Stop,,Reflect,,and then make it Right,,don,t carry anger and negativity,,on your mind,,that tires you and makes live much more difficult. We have all been blessed,,with life,,yes i know also we have our trials,,but,,thats the ego saying,,you should have ,or why not me,,take a breath,,your alive,,just go do or say something nice to someone,,make them have a great day,,do it time and time again,,everyday,,soon,,your everyday will be filled with. Nothing but happiness

Another Reminder

Another year slides by, as i sit in a restaurant that ive sat in for 55 years, looking out at the view,, of the golf course at the galt view,,and run through my mind of what has been,a coffee with Peter Graham, this morning, and a reminder from Bill Kimmel, that lunch with the Preston Boys is on thursday,, the preston boys are 30 or 40 boys that have been hanging out for 60 or more years,, some of what life is,,as well the intimate things we know of each other and have shared. Through are lives,break away from that and magnify this into another couple dozen situations,,key west,, new york,, the family the kids grandkids ,brothers and sister,,the loves, the heart breaks, and the growing that come from each,, when ithink of each and everyone of these and more of what life gives me,, i sit today as usual in awe and wonder,, and thank God,, for all ive been given,to be able at 70 to be in a position to think that i need to make some decisions to what and where life is going to take me,, torn,, can,t  or don,t want to be separated from any aspects of any of it,, then italy,, really need to make a trip back ,, but,, lfe,, it really is very short,, and we really do have so much,, and take such a tiny bit of time to smell the roses,, and speaking of roses,, mother Rose And father Joseph ,,that it another Reminder

Its About Time

It Is about time, about time i wrote something and about the time in my life, months again that i expressed my thought and where i,ve been, how fast did the time go from April and what was it i,ve done in that time,, life times in months,, again, time with my Children and Grand kids, another trip to NYNY, and what a time that was, 31 new drawings, and the deepening of friends and the attaining of so many new friends, the age thing has got me re -evaluating how i see all that i did and do in my life time, from eating to talking about what it is we talk about, the way i draw why i draw what i do,, and how i see my family and friends so much clearer for the value they are in my Life," God is Perfect" words from my good friend Ariel, so True, Life without them would be no life at all,Family and Friends ,, theres never enough you do for them or express the love for them, the gifts were given,, each and everyday,, is a gift and all you receive in the day another lesson and gift, i just want to stop here and express from the bottom of my heart and with every essence of my being ,, a Thank You to everyone Ive ever been in contact with that have made my world and my life the wonderful journey its been,, Nomaste'

Time Keeps on Flowing

April 9th,, Easter in Canada, Missing the Keys and the friends who make my winters sunny, have been in the north all winter and though its been quite a remarkable winter as far as mild goes it was still way to cold for me,, not to mention, even though it was great to be near the kids and watch Laura play her 1st year of university hockey,, i can,t imagine spending another winter in Canada. some for the reason given but i,m really not allowed to live my life as i know it within me,, what do i mean by that,, well,, theres this person that i know when i,m not Dad, Poppa and that Joe that "everyone ",, KNOWs that i,m really not,, and theres this other guy,, who a whole lot of you DO Know that ,, I am,, and i love being,, as they say,, its complicated,, but not really,, cause i know that when i,m that guy,, i,m the happiest,, anyway,, i,m blessed that i,m alive and that i do have these two lives,, and that i was allowed to be a part of my Childrens Life,, for another winter of my Life

CrossRoads

Jan. 1st, 2012, sitting in Cambridge, had departed for the USA on thursday of last week but was turned around at the border,, 25 years of work and hardly any of it completed and maybe will never be,worked all over the place and needs to be collected and brought home, work paid for and not done, waiting,, in a constant state of waiting , printers that are totally not on my page, or seems my side, hitting a brick wall,, by being turned down at the border,, time to call it quits,, just too demanding for ,,, nothing,,sick to my stomach,, hurting inside,, time to make a decision,, 69 years old maybe its time to get a nice little space to live a nice TV and retire,, yep,, made that decision,, thats what i,m going to do,, then a phone call comes in,, you can get an artist visa ,, work in the states,, no problem,, then all those retirment thought go out the window,,, BUT,,, maybe not,, wweeellll see,, is it what i want to do,, yes,, if it doesn,t continue to make me crazy and whatever else it has been doing to me to have to do what i need to do,, wwweeeellll see

In a Nutshell

October 14th,, where did 4 months go, 30 some drawings finished, and so many new friends, and so much help from old friends, Leni at Smudge,, doing his magic again, kept the work flowing, the Barbaras from Perry street making sure i was okay, Ariel My main man, and Michael and Harry from the gym,, giving me all thats needed to stay clean,, the people at the rec centre,, making sure i,m ok as well, Roberto, Alex, Alessio, Mark, Lauras, Tania, and all the kitchen staff at Aria on Perry street Keeping my dinners and wine together,, Then there has been the hudson diner , Sondra, Ray and the boss man who get my mornings started with those great breakfeasts,,Can,t not thank the folks at Splended Cleaner, the Nail Spot, Sushi West and WXOU Radio,, who let me set up in front of their space and use their washrooms., Bob from the Whitehorse, as well as the staff, and again I really don,t have enough space to keep going with all the Folks That make it all work for Me, suffice to say,, 4 months in New York,," The Home of Allowing Me to Do And Be the most of what i am and do more than anywhere in my life", I,m Sure that as many summers and Years ive had that have been so great,, This has been the Best Summer Of My Life

New York 2011

Came into the Village thinking I would watercolour 50 or 60 pieces, got into my space on Thompson Street, and couldn't find the groove to get busy with anything. Next thing i know they are digging up the street and taking my space that i stay in the past 15 years, what to do,, head out of town , can't get into anything anyway, but thought i would check out the West Village, Perry Street no sooner got there and the energy level went up , found a nice little spot,, and soon had the pens out doing a drawing,, drew a crowd as well.I,m Energized, I,m on Fire,, the drawings are dropping out of the pens like magic,, watercolour paper comes along at Debbie and Daves party through Lynda, the new space is a groove, Ariel is fab, aria is Fab,, business is rockin,, BUT,, Head space is not right, woman trouble in my mind, shakin it, but got me out of sorts,, i,m doing ok but , and thats the trouble to many buts in my head, must be the age,, maybe its the hot can,t take the heat, New York Key West, Canada,, Friends all over the place , even doing this writing just can, t get the groove man,, just can,t get the groove,, have to sign out cause i need to fix the groove

Feeling Great at Sixty Eight

Yep,, turned 68 this Year,, and feeling pretty good,, not that theres not a whole lot of situations that need looking into and after,, but its all pretty good,, painting , drawing and most of all the health is ok,, having to behave myself a little more about what i,m eating and drinking,, but thats ok as well ,, having had the company of a woman in my life has made it all excellent,, and the kids and grandkids all seem to be enjoying their lives and doing good also which makes me very happy. Working on putting 7 new books together of a bit of my work,, 4 Key West books, 2 New York books,, a book of musicians,, as well need to have a couple books of my paintings done,,really need to get over to Europe as well,, so all that and all i want to do is hang out with that woman,, cause thats really what life is about,, that and the kids,, so left Canada in Jan. 2011, and had a couple good visits on my way to key west,, with Dave and Debbie,, Larry and Maryann and Ron and Suzi,, got down to key West and Quickly Found out that things down there had changed greatly again,, but adjusted to those changes and thought that maybe i should retire for the year,, and i did,, not to think that i wouldn,t do anything just that i didn,t have to do anything if i don,t want to,, hanging out in Key West,, was the best its ever been,, maybe it was the company of that beautiful woman but maybe it was the fact that the weather was the best ever,, anyway its been pertty darn good, life at 68.

Life At Full Speed

April 5th, 2011,, Key West,, the past 3 months,, 16 new oil paintings,, one of them 5 feet x 15 feet,, 3 of them 40 inches x6 feet,,, feeling good after not having oil painted for 3 years,, also a new series of drawings of musicians,, well under way with about 25 pieces done,, ny as well as key west musicians,, also have done 7 or 8 watercolours and maybe the same amount of new drawings.., now about my real life,, The Celestine Prophecy,,, The Tenth Insight,, and ,, The Secret of Shambhala,, and hopefully soon ,, The Twelve Insight,,, where it seems my path is heading ,, as well where its been the past forty years,, and then some,, for You See,, i have been on this path since i can remember at the age of six. Now again,, for what is even More Important in My Life Than even all of This,, The People,, Ive had in this life of mine,,as always I,m always at a loss for words that can even come close to express this "Value of Life", and am awed at the fact that no matter how You Try,, Or as many Times that You express,, What the People in your Life Have Meant and mean to You,,, it can not be to the slightest degree of what That "Real Value Is". At 68,, I,m Totally Blown Away,,that i,m alive,,, That what I have had,, and have,,and what i still am given Every day.

Departures

Leaving New York,, Again,, after two months, of drawing and watercolouring, hanging with the ones i know ,, and love,, hospitality again in New York was wonderful,, and the lifestyle,, that again changes,, eating habits,, Mustaffa,, the fruit merchant on the corner of Laquardia and Bleecker,, this is where i eat the most fruit everyday,,all because of what he has,, Bob and Vishal,, at the wine store,, Val and Matt, Liz ,, Boyd,, Chris, Ivan,, Junior,, Sarah,, The girls with the baking Project that spoils me,, Peter,,, Leni ,, and on and on,, again Leaving a part of my life till who knows when,,, Storing the work,, what to do with it,, take it to Debbie and Daves,, visit with Lynda and Will, and then the drive to Cambridge,,,spend a couple months with the Family and be able to enjoy the Grandkids again for a short time of my life,, before again, will head to Key West,,, Departures,,, I,m Really not sure i,m wanting to have to deal with Them anymore in my Life