a small town lady that has always loved art, in some form or another...i've not picked up a paint brush since about 2006, but that is mostly by choice, and by financial circumstances..i am currently disabled, helping to raise a 14 yr. old son, with "attitude" "and a colorful mouth". from the time i was quite young, i enjoyed some type of arts and crafts, museums, craft shows, fairs, carnivals...wherever the local artisans had their wares displayed, and for sale...ive never painted with oils...i've tried acryllic, which i happen to like quite a bit, and have dabbled in watercolor, which has not entirely turned out very well. lol. i've enjoyed ceramics, sculpting, collecting others people's garbage (throwaways), and managed to always find another use for them, or paired together to form some kind of flawed manifestation, never knowing from the very beginning to the final seconds, whether "this art" was indeed "displayable"? or just garbage, either way it was the experience, not the completed object that made the event memorable. ive written poetry for many years, beginning in my 7th grade composition class. i always knew i could write, i just never learned when to end it....(long winded lol) i pride myself on my great sense of humor, and ability to appreciate the little things, still am trying to instill these qualities in my son. haha. he too is very gifted in sketching, and for yrs. i could not keep that boy away from drawing everything from dinosaurs, sharks, gators, and crocs, dragons, etc etc. and with his imagination, he soared. however since he's gone into junior high, he's rarely seen drawing, or anything artistic unless it involves an xbox, or a keyboard and mouse. i hope someday he picks it up again, i honestly believe that his talents would be wasted if he never returned to any kind of artistry, and our little corner of the world would have to go without, and that would be a real shame. i've been a single mother for quite a while....there isn't exactly many male counterparts for women my age, and education up here. either they play for the other team, or are married, or are cheats, and honestly i'd rather be single, until i find the one who will treat me as well as i treat him...and i most likely won't meet him up here in the woods. lol. i'm being quite frank, as there is no real need to sugarcoat anything i've stated so far. the truth is just that. "it's awful slim pickins up here, ayuh"!! just foolin. i'm actually a french/canadian, with roots in maine, canada, some little green men in search of their gold, and just a smidgen of native american. i'm not gonna ever be ashamed of my heritage, i'd rather embrace it. it is really such a large part of me afterall. i speak a somewhat slang version of acadian....which is what i like to call "fringlish", half english, half french. my mom was from canada, my dad the us, and our ancestors from france, and god knows where else...there are those up here who refuse to acknowledge the fact that there are many families in maine that are related perhaps even on several different levels. but we are a good people, we work hard, we never back down from a challenge, and we build our lives and our families from the ground up so to speak. it's very quiet up here most of the time. the town i live in is not very large, but most of the land, is used by the local farmers that still work 18 hr. days, 7 days a week, planting their potatoes, broccoli, peas, etc etc. having all their kids, and even spouses get out into the fields, harvesters, various other vehicles, and equipment, laboring endlessly in their fields; for too many long hours, having new blisters form over the old ones, and every so often a new patch of gray hair sprouting up for every yr. they continue to run themselves ragged, for their crops...so they can enjoy the brittle winters, indoors; between trips up the road with their plows to clear the roads, and apply dirt to the patches of pavement, and remaining clumps of frozen slush and gravel. i could'nt do it. but i truly look up to these folks, they are the "warriors" that keep the steady stream of "maine vacationlanders" busy, and well fed...a well-deserved thank you to you all. the only other thing i can think of to write here, is that i am the youngest of 5+siblings, most who live in the southern part of the state....and one in sunny florida. both of my parents are deceased, as are all of my grandparents, a few cousins, and friends alike. i guess that's most likely about it. if anyone has any ?'s....poor souls....made it all the way to here....congrats!!! hope i didnt bore ya. so i close with a grin on my face, and a chuckle in my soul. Salute (pronounced like this....Sah-loo-) as we say up here when its' time to go, say our goodbyes, and wish you all "Bon Nuit" ...good nite. t.l.fournier (maine, usa).