IT HAS BEEN TOO LONG!

Hello to all my readers and subscribers wondering what has happened to Kathy Miller Time!  Well I’ve been wondering about all of you and how you are handling this troubling time.

Fortunately for me staying home has not been anything out of the ordinary in the sense that I have my art studio at home.  And writing and cooking for kathymillertime blog is also best accomplished from home.

What I miss though is the socialization part of this shut down…I miss getting together with friends.  I miss going out to eat at our fabulous restaurants and club.  I miss strolling down Centre Street in Fernandina Beach, shopping at my favorite local stores.  Online shopping from Amazon has its benefits for sure, but seeing and touching a beautiful silk dress and trying it on before purchasing has many more upsides for me.   I miss my hairdresser (yes we need them!  I bet lots of us look like someone else without a little color!)  This is not only about how we feel when we look good, it is about the services our hairdressers and nail techs provide.  They are all hard workers and their jobs and livlihoods are in jeopardy now.

And as many of you know my son James was to marry his beautiful, sweet Carrie on April 4.  We had planned and looked forward to the wedding for months.  It was to be a time of joy with family and friends coming in from all over the country and a few from as far away as Australia and Germany.

With the shut down of course plans had to be changed.  They had plan A, plan B and so forth until they finally decided the most important thing was to be married on that date.  They did just that in a ceremony outside overlooking the ocean (not on the beach) and with just immediate family and a few friends…safely and abiding by the guidelines.  It was beautiful and special.  Thank all of you for thinking of them.

You might be wondering what all this has to do with where has KathyMillerTime been?

I have been immersed in painting 86 petite (4″x4″) flowers on canvas board meant to be placed on small easels on the tables at James and Carrie’s wedding reception along with candles and greenery in lieu of flowers.   Each one is original, each one is different and I loved painting all of them until we realized the reception would not be as planned.  Guess what I have on my art table? 73 completed,  13 partially painted ones and 7 blank ones…waiting for me to finish, but I just can’t seem to go back to them.

Instead….I’ve resumed an online drawing course that I began in the fall last year and had put on hold while I was consumed with painting minature flowers!  This is a University of Washington course, taught by Professor David Brody, offered by The Great Courses.  I am half way through the quarter long course and am enjoying learning drawing skills, but am so happy I don’t have to turn any of my drawings in for a grade.  I am afraid I would not have a very good GPA if this was the case.  See info below on The Great Courses.

I also decided to join a group of artists taking an online painting class with an oil painting instructor, although I am painting in acrylics.  She also has classes on water color and I am exploring that medium also.

My daily routine is to get up (yes) and stay on my regular schedule.  I drink my coffee, reading my favorite blog sites and emails.  Then I work 2 crossword puzzles, and a sudoko one.  A walk is next then I’m ready for the day.

Afternoons find me in my studio painting or watching an online class.

I try to find an hour later in the afternoon to stretch out my back and read a favorite book.

Then we worry about what to have for dinner!  I don’t know about you, but I have never cooked as much in my life, and look forward to being able to go out to dinner again.  We have ordered to go from some of our favorite restaurants to show them support and to help keep them in business until this is over.

Columbia Restaurant’s 1905 Salad recipe coming in next post.

Over the next few posts I will be sharing some recipes I’ve tried and I’ll share some of the drawings and paintings I have been working on in my classes. I’ll also have a shout out to some of my favorite local businesses and remind all to shop local when you can.  Many of these are now offering carry out service and on line shopping through their websites!

Let me know how you are faring during this staying at home period!  And share some of your favorite local businesses in the comment section below.  Know my readers in Tennessee, North Carolina and Georgia as well as here in Florida have their favs! and I’ll include some of them in my next post.

Here are a few stores to get you started. Click on the link to see their online store

Lori+Lulu    3 stores located 1) 213 Centre Street,Fernandina Beach, FL  2)231 King St., Charleston, SC and 3) Cameron Village, Raleigh, NC

Pearl Boutique  503-B Centre Street, Fernandina Beach, FL

JJ Cooper  men’s store  513 Centre Street, Fernandina Beach, FL

Isola Home is a fabulous home store that will soon have an online store as well as the phyiscal one in Fernandina Beach.  I called the store and had a private shopping time to buy some wedding and birthday gifts for a few friends.

And that information about The Great Courses.

“Great Courses are for Great Learners Like You.  Never stop learning.  Pursue your passion.  Quench your curiosity…Watch thosands of streaming videos on hundreds of subjects.”

Look forward to hearing from you.  Come celebrate with me.  I’ll save you a seat at the virtual table! Yikes!