The Narwhal part 16

Every day of the year I have a long list of things to get done.  It's a miracle that most of them get done somehow.  This morning I had to stop at the office of our apartment and pay the monthly rent, so I had my check ready.  Also let the landlord know that I had an air conditioner problem.  The wall unit in my apartment has a dial control that goes from off through various settings, and can be turned back to off again.  Or at least that had been the case these past few years, but over the weekend (during a heat wave of course), the dial started spinning freely, not doing anything. With a lot of fiddling, I eventually got it to a High AC setting,  and have been using the plug to turn it on and off.  That is not a good system, so I was working on getting the unit repaired or replaced.  Looks like that will happen on Tuesday.  With that done I headed up to my Studio, my backpack containing my sketchbook, pencils, etc.  My wristwatch was in my pants pocket because this morning the strap fell apart.  My belt was a really old one because the one I had been using broke in the supermarket yesterday morning, but it kept my pants up.

Drove up to Ocean Grove. Saw Nichole's car in the lot and her tag on the hook, but her door was closed so I figured she was busy and I'd find her later, and got down to my space to work.  My first plan was to finish coloring of the 3rd narwhal proof.  Put on Giant Songs, a compilation disc collecting the best of the band Giant Sand, an 80's/90's southwestern band with Howe Gelb and whoever else he found when he as ready to do another album.  A mix of rock, folk, country, medicine show- we'll just call it alt-country.  What I had left was mostly all that ocean water.  Had to mix a new batch of the color I've been using, a combination of indigo, ultramarine, and white, this one even more intense than the one I used for the 2nd proof.  Glad I had brought a bottle of ice water, as things were starting to get a little oppressive in the basement.  Unfortunately the one thing I didn't have today was my camera.  Thought I had packed it in my backpack, but after a thorough search I realized it just wasn't there.  Have to get a shot of it the next time I am there.

Another task for today was working on the paper sketch for the next block, a supermarket print.  Did two of them, neither a final version but collecting some of the ideas that will go into the final version. Also worked on product names for things that will be in the image.  Even if I had my camera I wouldn't have taken photos of this for the blog- that will go up when it's ready to start, maybe in a few days.  Went upstairs and spoke to Nichole.   Some good news- the drawing class enrollment has increased a little, and that was already going to run.  Still no one signed up for woodcut, which has us mystified. But not giving up yet- the first meeting is still more than a week away, and there are multiple promotions planned over the next few days.  We are confident that some people will decide to give it a try.

Before I even left there, I got a call from my brother, who was going to pick up some more mulch and wanted my help to unload it at my parents' house.  But first I stopped at the supermarket on the way home and picked up a few perishables, and had to drive them home.  Picked up a load of laundry to do while down in Manasquan, helped haul mulch to the back yard, etc.  When the laundry was done I left and went back shopping (the wrist watch and belt issues from before).  Finally got home around 5 pm.  More work followed, but that need not be part of this blog.  Tomorrow's list is already filling up, but we'll save that until tomorrow.