I must admit that I don’t spend much time outside in my garden in August as I quickly become a sweaty mess and the heat sucks out all my energy. So, I turn to other pursuits to occupy my time. Only one week into this month and I’ve Painted Trees, had a chance encounter with a roadrunner and welcomed a new princess.

While I usually indulge my creativity out in the garden with design, I had an opportunity to channel it onto canvas during a team-building event for my husband’s work.

The event was held at an art studio that hosts group art painting sessions and as I approached the blank canvas, paint brushes and paint, I felt a combination of excitement and apprehension. I’ve never painted on canvas before and the last time I painted anything on an easel was in kindergarten.

The instructor stood in front of the class, and we were to replicate a particular painting, and there was an example of the finished piece of art, and the instructor guided us step by step as she began painting her blank canvas.

It was enjoyable, and I’m living proof that you don’t have to be an artist to enjoy the experience. However, as a certified arborist, I did feel a little bit of pressure when painting in my trees but, reminded myself that this was more impressionistic art.

A couple of days later, I was visiting my niece at our local hospital when I spotted a roadrunner walking toward the front door. Roadrunners aren’t often seen where I live in suburbia, so I stood and watched what it was doing.

I just recently taught a class on gardening for birds at the Desert Botanical Garden, so I was full of facts about this type of bird, which is a member of the Cuckoo family and I started reciting them to my husband who was watching the roadrunner with me.

For those of us who grew up watching the cartoon feature Wiley Coyote and the Roadrunner,  the coyote never seemed to catch the roadrunner. However, in reality, coyotes can reach a top speed of over 30 mph while roadrunners can only run up to 15 mph.

Roadrunners are found throughout the entire Southwest and are spreading as far to Louisiana.

Here is a photo of another roadrunner that I spotted several years in front of a hospice facility, coincidentally across the street from the same hospital. You’ll notice the red and blue coloring on the side of its head, which is visible during mating season.

I’ve watched these large birds run and catch lizards and snakes in the desert, and it’s always a treat when I get to see them up close.

Hospital visits aren’t typically fun outings, but the exception is when you are visiting new parents. My nephew and his wife just welcomed a precious little girl into the world, and I am now a great aunt. We have had an abundance of boys born into the family, yet only one girl in the past 25 years, so we are so excited to have another “princess” to love and dote on. Bring on the pink!

In a few short weeks, my focus will once again be in the garden, but for now, I’m enjoying the cool indoors. 

How about you? Have you ever gone to an art studio for a painting class or seen a roadrunner up close?

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