During a heavy rain last night, my son Ryan created this balance out of copper wire with pans made of sheets of stainless steel. We were anticipating more snow and rain for at least a week. We've gotten pretty good at creating indoor activities when we aren't in the mood to bundle up and brave the stormy weather. Inspired by Thoreau's "There's no such thing as bad weather, just good clothes," we decided to take a walk today and gather up some small natural objects to weigh on this balance. Lacking a set of standardized weights, we decided to use shiny new coins. We found the weights of pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters, and chose shiny new ones. We'll pile small seeds, bugs, pine needles, or other small objects on one side until they balance a given coin or coins on the other. I also collected a small bag of items for drawing practice - white fir cones and needles, blackberry leaves, rose hips, and seeds of a boxelder tree. I'm also working on a painting of two damselflies mating, hoping to finish it in time for the February show at Main Street Artists. The February show will have a Valentine's Day theme. If you're looking for a unique Valentine's Day card, stop by the gallery and take a look at my Convergent Ladybird Beetles and Oak Treehoppers mating.
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