Just have to say that this landscape painter has had enough election coverage, emails, robo-calls, mailers, and well, all of it! It's time to go vote now. I'd vote early but the local news people say there are long lines and it's a bit warm out to be standing around in the sun for a couple of hours. Not to mention my knee not liking standing around!

Meanwhile I'm painting as usual. Have nothing to show you yet. Was working on an 11 by 14 from the equestrian area at Mission Trails Park. I say "was" because I'm stumped. In the middle of the scene there is a nice growth of cactus. I liked the cactus well enough when I started to paint the composition but as it went along I came to understand that this painting was all about the crunch underfoot of fall's dry grasses and plants... and not about a really green-as-spring cactus growth. So I had to paint it out and start thinking about Plan B... or what to put in place of that cactus.

Seriously, can we just go vote now?!