Logo with Symbol “Forever”

It’s rather common knowledge that past age 90 or even before, one is in the realm of “patch up.” This includes eating and drinking more carefully, and dealing with various infirmities that seem to clock in regularly with age. I’m in that category at 96+ but besting it in many ways, like any good Boy Scout was taught to do when I was young and frisky.

I’ve been frisky most of my life. This has included graduating from college, being a musician and entertainer, and day-jobbing as a commercial and fine artist. Musically, I’ve retired to just jamming at home with my talented keyboardist wife. Still, my artwork goes on fast-paced, much as usual.

But back to the infirmities of age and coping, I’m using a cane. So what! I get where I’m going. I’ve the usual aches and pains yet they are accommodated one way or another. Bottom line, I’m much the same as I’ve always been – no better perhaps, but not changed enough to stop my being a productive artist. I’m still even winning occasional awards. Perhaps that caps the critical basics. I’m also proud of having a lovely wife, children, grandchildren and their children that helps me get along.

Now comes thankfulness for a prize that I’ve gotten out of one of my old man type problems. Nervous bladder gets me up every hour and a half at night. I manage that by sleeping a bit later to get enough rest. But here’s the good side of it: getting up so often at night allows me to remember my dreams. Sigmund Freud would be satisfied with some of them that re-live old work patterns, tricky relationships and crisis situations. Happily, these are becoming more rare. Now most of my intermittent dreams during my restless sleep are very interesting. I’m dreaming of adventures in all manner of environments with story-like situations. Some are about playing music and doing artwork. These often inspire my next daytime projects. Best of all is meeting and greeting friends and relatives long gone in all kinds of meanderings that often never actually happened.

SHE SLEEPS SHE DREAMS – 4th place pastel – Ventura County Fair in Professional Arts 2023

I’m choosing not to medicate this nighttime problem, even with all my other pill taking. As I become a little less mobile during the day, at least I’m having active adventures at night! Otherwise, my current sunup adventures are mostly art oriented.

Now, as in the past, my activity level certainly has influenced my artwork. As a commercial artist in earlier days, I was usually sedentary and office bound. However, I sought relief from this at every opportunity by hitting the nature trails to draw and paint plein air, meaning to paint ‘in the open’ of the outdoors.

As soon as finances and age qualifications allowed, I retired from what had eventually become my career as a civilian Visual Information Officer. I’d managed a division for the Department of Defense that produced publications, audio-visuals, films and exhibits. When I retired, I was still very active with all the added skills provided by my own experience and that gained from those I’d supervised. I was soon back to my first love – fine art.

OCEAN DRAMA – 2nd place oil/acrylics – Ventura County Fair in Professional Arts 2023

For subject matter, this included forests, mountains, streams, waterfalls, boats, seacoast, and celebrating nature in general. During this period of my life, my art activities and teaching venues (including Sequoia, Yosemite, demonstrations for various organizations and a short tenure at a local college), were all based on my being a plein air artist.

Now at my rather ancient age, there are changes that strangely enough, I welcome graciously. My doctor in my recent annual wellness examination asked, “You’re still very productive as an artist, but what about exercise?” When I explained there are 16 steps in the two flights up to my studio above the garage that I negotiate at least six times each day, he was quite satisfied. I can no longer manage plein air artwork. Still, with my active dreams and by only having to close my eyes to visualize all of the previous sights where I’ve painted, I never have a shortage of ideas for subject matter.

TEACHING HIS PIG TO FLY – Best in Show and 1st Place Drawings – Ventura County Fair in Professional Arts 2023

I have noticed that my recent art has become more and more quirky. It now includes odd things like people riding lions, and dragons in amusing situations. The human predicament is another subject that shows up these days. It is said that philosophy is a disease of old age. Perhaps these more thoughtful paintings I do now come as a result. In any case, I’ll just keep doing what I’m doing. I must admit that some of the old bucolic images occasionally sneak in.

My new art submissions to exhibits and clients still seem to garnish favor. Now looking back on my starts, stops, losses and gains, I see that it all adds up to what I seem to be now. As to what my future as an aging artist might also bring, I’ll quote my dear old father, who used to quip as a farewell: “See you in the funny papers.” This is appropriate because the funny papers might have actually been where I saw the first artwork that formed my earliest inspirations and artistic directions.

I’ll leave you all to enjoy a few examples of my other love — writing senryu poems, which are Japanese poems structurally similar to haiku. It is unrhymed and based on human affairs, often satirical or ironic. Line 1: 5 syllables. Line 2: 7 syllables. Line 3: 5 syllables.

Don in his Hippie Coat

NICE PEN
I found a nice pen.
So now, I write poetry.
It needed the work.

PASS/FAIL
Perhaps there’s no grades
Just live it start to finish.
Don’t give up –– you pass.

EXCESS
Let’s clean out the trash.
We’ll rid ourselves of excess.
That could mean me, too.