Before the dawn...

I was still wide awake at 3.24am, anticipating the first little bird cheep that would serve as the alarm call to the rest of the bird kingdom, alerting them to the fact that morning was about to break, swiftly followed by the second little cheep, the conductor raising his baton bringing his feathered orchestra to attention, and the final cheep heralding dawn's arrival as the baton came down and the dawn chorus began in earnest.  Loud and beautiful.  What a privilege to be a member of their aural audience. 

I have stopped fighting my insomnia and started enjoying it.  To be awake when the rest of the world is asleep has somehow slipped into being a special time.  There's books to be read, tutorials to be watched, nostalgia to be indulged (reading old diaries and watching old stuff on You Tube :-) and plans to be made...so many wonderful plans from the sublime (getting together with family and friends, a return to Harris & Lewis, getting my finger out and getting a photographic panel together for an LRPS ) to the ridiculous (maybe I will get a tattoo, just a small one..but what would it be and where would I put it?)  So many things to consider.

Of course I appreciate I only have the luxury of embracing my insomnia like this because the bulk of my time is my own and lockdown has only enhanced this.    I have no tight deadlines to meet or places to be, and on the whole can power nap when the need arises; so taking that into consideration, it's a pleasure to lie in the stillness and listen to the birds singing their hearts out.  It has a lullaby effect as within minutes of them starting, I drift off into a deep slumber and wake up around 9am feeling perfectly refreshed.  

Today it was the Tesco delivery man ringing the doorbell at 9am that woke me.  Fortunately David (definitely not an insomniac.  He could sleep for Scotland!) had been up as usual, from just after 7am.

He's now on the golf course.  Alan and Ashleigh have headed out for a stroll in the sunshine, and I finally stepped away from the paintings / pastels I have been creating based on a lovely photograph I spotted on a fellow blipper's journal just over a week ago.  

Thank you so much Crispin25 for allowing me to use your photo as inspiration for not one, but three pieces of work that came out of it in the end; a watercolour, ink and pastel piece, which is my main blip (faffed version in extras) and two water colour and ink versions, also in extras along with Crispin25's original photograph.

You will note I have only included the bumble bee in the first version I did.  This has nothing to do with thinking the bee was an unnecessary extra (it's anything but) and all to do with the fact I've not yet been able to recreate these lovely creatures to my satisfaction so as a cop out using artistic license, I chose to leave it out in the other versions.

You will be pleased to hear I learned from yesterday's messy lesson with the chalk, and wore gloves today to finish blending the colours.  These were   handily removed at the end without ever touching my face so no unexplained "bruises" today.  And no, for those asking, there are no photos of my chalk dusted face.  Thank goodness!

And now that my blip is uploaded ridiculously early for me, I am going to take advantage of the empty house, get comfy in my sun chair, turn the volume UP and power nap lose myself in Kate.

Blissssssszzzzzzzzzzz