I did, in fact, drink and paint on Saturday night, after my evening out at the West Point concert and fireworks was postponed to Sunday. At around 22:30, I decided it would be a good time to drink two Mike's Lemonades, one after the other, with a little food in my stomach from the dinner at L.B.'s house, eaten at 18:00. Anyone who knows me well knows I can't stand the taste of alcohol, and thus have a low tolerance. I had been painting since I had the house to myself, what with the 'rents in CT and Emblem in MA. I finished the stone angel and most of the skull displayed on the wall of a local Mexican restaurant, then was compelled to paint a scene of flowers underwater, wrapped up in seaweed. H.'s cousin is going through a rough time, and his situation made me think of this scene. So, for your amusement, or maybe just mine, here is a timeline of my utterly pathetic tolerance:
22:50 - Part of the way through my first drink: I decide painting something I care about is probably not a good idea, so I put aside the skull scene and start in on the flowers.
11:20 - Done with my first drink: still watching the Twilight Zone marathon. I've messed up the colors on the flowers, but I'm soldiering on. I need to be very careful pouring colors into Dixie cups. I get up to change the water and forget to bring back a paper towel. Oh, well.
11:45 - Halfway through the second drink: Maybe I should eat something to help absorb this...I think I ate my third Snickers bar of the day. I think. I don't remember. Curse you, singing Snickers reclames! You have re-awakened my love of caramel, peanuts, and chocolate. Hey, I'm REALLY good at painting seaweed. Too bad the flowers look ridiculous. I can always re-paint it on real paper. Why do I like newsprint so much?
12:10 - Three-quarters done with my second drink: Okay, I'm not following the plots on TV. I need to use the restroom, so I do. I'm a little loopy and dizzy. I'd better put the ink away NOW. I need to add some algae, though. Eh, I'll do it tomorrow or Monday.
12:12 - Wait, what was I going to add? I think I need to put in a merlusa. Tomorrow.
12:20 - After a few swallows, I'm done: Uck, I'm going to feel out of sorts tomorrow. And I have to be the Lay Reader at church. And the pastor is going to make me sing into the microphone. I lurch against the sink, gently, and rinse out the second bottle. The ink is all put away; I've left the painting out to dry, and I can't remember what color the jellyfish should be painted tomorrow. The skull looks good. It has water spots, though.
1:00 - I go to bed.
Sunday/Monday - finish the skull, decide I hate the stone table painting, and add a bright blue-spotted jellyfish and green algae. I hate the flowers. I will start over on this one.
Your touch it always sets me free
I can't get quite enough
Too much of you is what I need" from "Touch", also by Jonny Lang.
P.S.: Buck up, Mr. 3AM. La vida es buena, as a Peruvian skateboarder I spent seven hours with in the Bogota airport en route from Brazil once told me. Buena y rara.
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