Lost 8 pounds without really trying

OK when i got on the scales this week i noticed i was around 8 pounds lighter.. got to be what i have been doing or not doing..
I have cut down on food intake and started moving more. not really giving it any thought, and got a nice surprise. SO for breakfast i will have 2 eggs scrambled with a bit of butter, sometimes with oinons and green peppers minced in to cook with them.
lunch has been light. today was a taco salad romane, lettace some leftover hamburger,taco flavoring,with tomatoes and about 1/4 cup of cheddar cheese with tomatoes and fresh cucumber .
snack will be strawberries i got at farmers market today, ( i highly stress buying from the local markets) prices are better, and its w whole lot fresher, support small business.
and your tomatoes don't taste like cardboard.
Supper tonight will be a stir fry with oinons, peppers and boiled pork, over some rice with a bit of sweet sour sauce, (want a little bit of sweet) also broccoli .
We go out on photo trips which is walking a bit, I do wildlife photography   @almajoartist on face book  .
By taking back my ab lounge from the dog sleeping on it, it has really helped me, (dog don't like it he loves sleeping on it) but he can use it when i am not on it.
I do not eat a lot of sugar some now and then, but have found when i eat it i want more so knowing this i limit my use.
I will post some more soon but maybe by posting it will keep me on track, no the diets in the books don't work i cant afford them, some items are good for you but way out of my price range,
almajo artist

Empty Nest Artist

OK kids are out, living their happy lives, now its just the 2 of us and the dog. Yes now we can focus on things we want to do Me i want to continue as a artist and make a living at that. So I am now with a gallery and have a facebook page for my art. almajo-artist
Why art well i have always painted or been in some form of art so it was only natural, I say pick something you love to do and figure out a way to make money at it. Today its hard to find work im too old for a job and to young for social  sec. so Let me make  art. do what i love and love what i do....cant beat that .
If you are just about there start thinking about something you would like to do what fires you up? painting, jewelry, pottery, stained glass? Think what is inside waiting to emerge ?
now is your time so think about it then just do it get started take a class or watch u tube all will work.
I love the beach so that is a subject i love to paint, with the sun dancing across the clouds gently kissing the waves and soft  as it rolls over your feet in the surf yes you are there the perfect day at the beach, and my art will take you there again and again, you close your eyes and say (yes I am there)
www.almajofinearts.com
Something we want to do also is kayaking so soon as we find some we will take on that journey with our cameras taking photos of wildlife and the Florida scenery.

So just remember its not the end of the book its just another chapter opening up enjoy almajo-artist

Downsizing your meals

Well the last kid is now with his wife so its getting used to making less food. Used to cooking for 3 to 4 now its just us 2 and the dog.  Cooking less has been a challenge because you get in the habits of certain amounts and go on auto pilot  how you cook. I will buy a tray of thighs debone them and get 3 meals out of a 5 dollar tray. freeze the rest of what i don't use in baggies. The only exception i make is when i bbq then i will cook enough for about 3 days food, (that's 3 days of no cooking)
I shop stores with no name brands its a lot cheaper we spend about 35 to 40 a week on food and looking to cut that down, usually by making one meal last for 2 days...I remember my mom doing that Aggghhhh left overs again,,I would always say but guess what now i am doing this it works,,,,yep mom was right as usual.
Would love to have wrote down her recipes so if your mom is still alive do this you will be glad you did later on.
So as i think about what to blog about keep in touch maybe I will show you how to make a solar heater using stuff around the house and yes they do work,
almajo

feel the music jazz paintings

In my latest painting i painted saxophones with a jazz theme. This is something new in my painting journey and it turned out that i liked painting these music themes so i plan on doing more, maybe with some extras in there something different.
Most everyone likes music so maybe this will touch someone I am in a new art gallery where these are on display L'oveMarvelous art gallery on fb so check out the work by almajo
Looking for more jazz ideas to paint almajo

Finding a natural scene to paint off of highway 192

    We were trying out a new trail in Osceola county Fl, It is now a national park with trails, and a wood walkway built over the swamp just my kind of place. Nice and shady but do bring mosquito spray the little boogers are quite hungry. As we went deeper into this park you did not hear the sounds of the highway just a plane pass over now and then. The trees grew tall woodpeckers were all over along with other wild birds. Most of the trail is shady so on the 96 degree afternoon it felt quite nice. Taking a lot of pictures for future paintings and just enjoying the old Florida they way it was many years ago.Yes i will take my canvas out there and do some on the scene paintings. This charged my battery in art just being out there with what i love to paint was inspiring. So go off the beaten path find a world that is old yet new see where it leads you. and at the end of one trail there is a fantastic log cabin my next work of art. almajo artist   www.almajofinearts.com

fish scale roses

I saw this lady at a art show she had little roses in pots but when you got closer they were made out of fish scales, she was around a fish market and figured out a use for  the piles of scales. Who says you cant make a fish  smell like a rose well maybe look like one.
We talked and she said it takes days to make one did not have time to say too much but was selling them right and left as we talked, good thing we can multi-task.
so we look around us and see what there is we can make into art oh and as artists we can do something with anything, Take rocks you can polish them string them and sell them if its pretty they will sell. I have lots of gemstones to prove that.
I have also seen (paintings) lack of a better work made from dyed wood chips from the husbands saw he woodworks and she makes beautiful birds with wood chips for feathers, So who would have thought of using wood shavings that way and artist would.
artists dont see the world as others may we look at something and say of that is neat what could i do with this?  so now  the question is what will you do will you look for something  that  can be reused and make something special ?    www.almajofineart.com

how to make your art sell?

Today i read a newsletter and it made sense to sell art it has to be different. So now the question is what can I do to mine to achieve that? whatever you do u have to be unique . Yes i have noticed that  the person at the shows with something new will sell like mad, one lady had roses made out of fish scales now i know that took a log time to do but she sold everything she had brought. I could handle that, so now what can i do that no one else is doing well at least not in my area? So now the thought process is on to kick it up a notch to get the attention of people .
I paint in oils and acrylics so its got to be something that really jumps out whatever i come up with.
So think about what you make where can you take it to what level?
look around at what is selling get with other artists throw ideas around we all want to be able to sell our art at least most of us, some dont and that is ok too.
now i will go into my studio and see what i can come up with,  alma jo  
www.almajofineart.com