Frangipani Inflo!

After 4 years and one tragic fall, my Frangipani (better known as a stick with a few leaves) has an inflo, which means it's going to bloom!

I think dedicated gardeners are able to successfully grow Frangipani in Virginia, but I'm a lazy gardener at best. So I depend on a hope and a prayer. And it seems that my prayer might be answered.

To smell those flowers again would be heaven. I've read that it will be six weeks before bloom. So I'll be back around July 7.

Rockwell Compact Circular Saw

I'm excited to start using my Rockwell compact circular saw. Since I live in a condo and have very little room, I have never bought a circular saw. As is, I have tools stored in every nook and cranny in my condo. My router, jigsaw, drill, and Rotozip are all in various closets and under beds. I forgot I had a jigsaw for a while until I found it stuffed in the back of a closet.

This weekend I redid my old patio table. The pressure treated wood was 17 years old and in need of replacing. But I didn't want to waste the old wood, so I decided to paint some art pieces on it. But first I needed to cut the wood to size. Certainly the jigsaw or Rotozip would do it, but I'm not good a doing straight lines with those tools. And I knew a circular saw would do it in half the time (at least).

I went to the store to look at getting a small one as was excited to find the Rockwell compact circular saw.

Look at how small it is! Easy to store, easy to use. And I finally can make straight cuts on wood. It's perfect for a hobbyist.

I have 6 boards at 48 inches. I can do at least 6 pieces of art with that. I can't wait to get started.

My Favorite Painting

Prince Charles by Bryan Organ, ©National Portrait Gallery, London

I saw this portrait in 1988. It amazed me then and it still resides in my head to this very day. I'm not a huge art fan nor a Prince Charles fan, but this painting of Prince Charles moved me on that day and stays with me still. You can see it at the National Portrait Gallery in London. It's the only image I remember from the entire place and they have quite a collection.

I wonder why it moved me so. If I had to hazard a guess, I would say that it's remarkably simple in it's approach. It has no pretense and suggests no grandeur. In this picture Prince Charles could be any man, but he so obviously is not. It's accessible and I guess that's what I want art to be, be it art that I view or art that I create.

If you get a chance to see it, do. See if it speaks to you.

NPG Link