Staying home, staying safe…that’s become a household phrase for the ages. The US now has over 100,000 cases of Covid19, in most parts of the country. The rest of the world is no better off. So many have died. With fewer people driving, gathering, eating out, traveling in any form, our air pollution has actually decreased considerably. It’s as if our earth has said, “if you idiots won’t take care of me then I will take matters into my own hands.”
Social distancing (staying 6 feet away from other folks) is the order of the day. I’m lucky in that kids are grown, so it’s just Mark, me and the dog. Our dog is the restless one, and still needs to be walked. I don’t mind. I can social distance just as easily outside as in, especially since hardly anyone ventures out these days.
At home, I spend lots of time in my studio, painting, painting, painting. Waiting for the day when this is over, life gets back to normal, and people are willing to buy art again.
My main source of income, since 2003, has been a dream job as one of the artists with McMenamins, a company that has built a hospitality “kingdom” of hotels, movie theaters, pubs and restaurants. It has been around since the 80s, growing to more than 60 venues. Art is one of the big parts of the company. Those of us lucky enough to be part of the art department are kept busy by painting murals, history panels, decorative work, and art maintenance.
Within the past year, I cut my hours as an employee to start my own art practice. It has been wonderful to grow and learn with the help of art intensives and an artist community of the best sort.
My job ended mid-March, with McMenamins having to shutter all of their locales in response to the Covid19 pandemic, on St. Patrick’s Day, normally the biggest celebration of the year for the McMenamin family with Celtic roots. Today, I learned that their temporary shutdown will last until at least the end of April. Whew! Could be longer, no one knows.
In the meantime, I will be at home, in my studio, painting, painting, painting!