Happy Winter Solstice!
Around this time every year—time for summing up the past year and making resolutions for the next—I am reminded of John Lee Hooker, who has become a reference around our house and the occasion for a lot of laughs between Mike and me for saying in one of his songs, “It’s 1952, babe, I’m gon’ turn over a brand new leaf.” Does anybody ever turn over a brand new leaf? I wonder. It’s our experience that we have to take what we’ve got and use it creatively to muddle through. And, given the cards that the bankers and politicians have dealt us in recent years, just to muddle through feels like a victory.
- For us, on the muddle-through scale, the past year has been extraordinary. I’ve had a lot of work making and editing my own prints and some for other artists, along with conducting one-on-one printmaking workshops for artists in my studio. Along the way I’ve made some wonderful new friends—most of them from Australia– and renewed friendships with those who have returned.
- Mike had a health scare but came out of it feeling frisky and thankful to be alive. And he continues to edit his online magazine, ¡Alegria! The Joy of Spanish Living.
- Our children are well and prospering and our nine grandchildren—including two wonderful great grandkids—ranging in age from 29 to two months, are sources of tremendous pride and satisfaction, and we’ll be seeing most of them over the holidays. The one missing will be Elisa, our five-foot-one Spanish/Viking granddaughter, and her family who have moved to Nottingham in the U.K., though we hope to see them in the coming year.
We’ve scaled down our animals both in size and number. For years we had Great Danes, mastiffs and large lurchers. Then some 20 years ago a friend gave us a delightful little mongrel bitch pup—Cacolina–who became the foundation dam for our own charming strain of short-legged, wire-haired Cacolinos. At one point we had five of them, along with a half a dozen cats. Now we’re down to a single Shih-Tzu-cross bitch, Cuca, who makes us laugh a lot.
And two cats: Mica, the grey grandmother who still tries to hunt with no teeth, and Rosie, the newborn kitten who turned up virtually dessicated in our pantry, responded to skim milk from a syringe and soon became fat and sassy.
- That is not to say everything was fine in the past year, nor does the world situation inspire optimism for the future. On the negative side of the ledger we’ve got enough corrupt Spanish politicians to derail a train, record unemployment, and honest people’s homes being repossessed by banks we’ve just bailed out. Not to mention weekly drone assassinations, school shootings and black ops on the international scene. At times like this I feel lucky to be an artist who can take refuge in my work.
Regarding next year, we hope you have a happy and prosperous one. As for us, It’s 2014, babe, we’re gon’ turn over a brand new leaf!
Big Spanish-style hugs from Maureen and Mike
(John Lee Hooker’s Brand New Leaf: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aerY_iNF-BY)
Printmaking Courses in Spain 
Dear Maureen and Mike, I was just talking last evening with friends about the grand experience of staying with and learning from you, and now I wake to see you in my mailbox. So great to step inside your lives!
I am still planning to come in March for a few days, and will send the reservation money in a couple of weeks. If you have to give away the dates to someone with ready cash before then, please feel free.
We are enjoying an unusually beautiful fall-winter in Milan. What a difference to have regular doses of sunshine! We are staying here for the holidays and my parents are coming. We’ll sorely miss seeing our kids and grand kids but have decided that it’s better to stay in Europe. How fortunate we are to have Skype to bring them right inside our home, but touching and squeezing them is what we will miss! Here are a couple of the little monkeys who make us smile! [image: Inline image 2][image: Inline image 1]
Working full time surely gets in the way of making…but this year I have managed to carve out time to work in my piccolo studio again. Lots of drawing and painting. I have had my eye on buying a press and have done some initial inquiries. There is an Italian company called Fome, and I have communicated some with them via email, but have yet to go see their factory north of Venice. Do you know anything about their presses? http://www.fome.it/prodotti.php?lid=2&fam=6&cat=52&lang=it Do you have recommendations for what I might purchase? I’d like something that’s versatile for various kinds of printmaking, medium-sized, and not going to cost me my arms and legs! Realistically, for now I will be using it largely on weekends, but eventually that will change, so I want to invest in quality but not go overboard!
Bundles of winter cheer to both of you. Tanti abbracci! Mary
Hi Mary,
Your date in the Gallinero for March is still free, so don’t worry about that. I’m looking forward to seeing you and doing some work together.
I understand your concern about having kids far away. Our granddaughter, Elisa, lives in Nottingham, U.K. with her husband and her two children–our two great grandchildren, the youngest one not two months old yet. (Sorry, I couldn’t see the images of your little monkeys.)
As for Italian etching presses, I have no idea. I will suggest, however, that you buy a good quality press, as a bad one can be a plague on your life. I have had some experience with friends of mine in that respect.
Lovely weather here, but it’s also a drought. Mike has to water the garden.
See you soon!
Un abrazo,
Maureen