MONSTERS, MYTHS, LORE AND LEGENDS

Many of Mrs. Trowbridge's pages were devoted to the legends and lore of the rain forest. Many of her paintings of monsters and legends are freeze-framed in my memory.

As you can see from the text in Mrs.Trowbridge's journal page, she was very nervous about sketching a Log Ogre's den en plein air, so she very quickly laid out her subject with her fir needle charcoal stick, then returned to her studio cottage to apply the color. She was able to use her expert knowledge of the forest and its hues to apply the colors from memory. The fern on top of the nurse log is a Deer fern (Blechnum splicant). The white plant to the right of the log is an Indian Pipe (Monotropa uniflora), and the yellow flowers growing on the moss are the Western buttercup (Ranuncula occidentalis).

Have you seen my other blog, Bron Smith's Flights of Fantasy?

DANCING WITH THE STARS

Violet Trowbridge always wanted her husband, Woodrow, to take her dancing, but she could never coax him to step onto a dance floor because he felt he had an incurable case of "two left feet". He had tried dancing once, but instead of swaying on the dance floor he would bounce around clumsily. But after a few dance lessons, Woodrow was ready for Dancing with the Stars.

Mrs. T's painting illustrates the night that she and Woodrow went dancing to celebrate his birthday. She made reservations at the Mushroom Inn, one of the ritziest and most popular restaurants in the village. The rooftop dance floor is always a hot spot on warm summer nights. Woodrow ordered his favorite dish:  Wormini ala Slug Slime in a light pond scum sauce.

After dinner they danced the night away by the light of the silvery summer moon to the tunes of the Queets Cricket Quintet. The scene that Mrs.T depicted above takes place after midnight when most of the guests had gone home. They make a lovely couple, don't you think?

Have you seen my other blog, The Trowbridge Chronicles?