My Inspiration

I've always loved cities on the water.
There is something about the smell of the sea air and the sounds of the ropes hitting the metal masts of the boats, foghorns, and the sight of seagulls soaring. 

Houseboats have always intrigued me. 
I grew up in Chicago and remember as a child reading about Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn rafting on the Mississippi River. One of my childhood dreams was to take a houseboat down the Mississippi, that is, until as an adult I actually saw the fast moving, mile wide, brown swirling, murky waters of the great river and, well, it wasn't quite what I had imagined. So much for that childhood dream. 

I have lived in Olympia for many years now, and I enjoy taking walks on the waterfront boardwalk with my dear husband and just looking at the different boats and enjoying the other marina sights here on Puget Sound. These dockside walks are where I got my inspiration for the above painting and my little seagull icon.