August 2024

Latest News:

There were a couple of new digital paintings completed in August, Feels Like Summer and Let Me Support You. Feels like Summer has the feeling of a beautiful balmy summer afternoon. Just lay back on a blanket in the shade and relax. The dogs will chill beside you, listen to the birds and cicadas, and maybe do a little squirrel hunting.

Let Me Support You is all about those tender moments we spend caring for our dogs when they are under the weather. It’s about wanting them to feel loved and supported, because we can’t make life perfect for them, but we want to make it as easy as possible for them.

In The Studio:

I’ve been really enjoying making digital paintings lately, so I’m sure there will be more in the month ahead.

I’ve also been making lots of notes for future projects that I would like to work on. One is another year-end infinite zoom video. The one from last year took quite a while to make, so I should get started soon. It wasn’t really a big hit for other people, but I had gotten a real sense of accomplishment from making it and it was a nice way to summarize and showcase a years worth of artwork.

At Home:

The dogs are doing mostly good. A couple of weeks ago my poor little boy was sniffing around his own backyard, minding his own business, when he was stung on his paw by a hornet. He was understandably very distressed about it. Caring for him and trying to comfort him after this sting is where the idea for Let Me Support You came from. I just wanted to be able to make everything better for him.

I also got the routine test results back from his bloodwork and he has some “mildly elevated“ liver enzymes. Nothing too alarming just yet, but we are monitoring and will do a recheck next month. He seems to feel good, which is reassuring for the moment.

We have had quite a few thunderstorms this month, one of which left us without power for two days. Thankfully we never lost power at work, so I was able to charge devices while I was there. The only real pain was that all the food in the refrigerator/freezer had to be replaced.

The spunky Chihuahua is doing well, despite the above mentioned storms, which she is fearful of. For the ones that hit when I’m at home, she gets medication (Sileo). It has been really helping her a lot, she doesn’t pace, pant, tremble, or hide when she gets the medication. She’s alert, and if there’s thunder, she will give me a concerned look, but she can rest calmly, and even start to doze off… By the time I realize the storm is completely gone, she’s usually asleep.

I’m very grateful for this because it’s heartbreaking to see them so frightened and not be able to help.

I hope August was a wonderful month for you, filled with happiness, and only very minimal challenges. As we head into September, it’s time to squeeze as much fun and dog play as we can get into each shortening day before the cold weather comes for us!

Thank you for being here, and for all your kindness and support!

Jennifer