Everything's in Bloom....

Even though I have a lot to do to get the big heart ready for its official debut in a few weeks, it's hard to resist the blossoms in the yard right now. This is another quince, which is in full bloom in the garden. This painting is 9" x 12" oil on linen. (I might HAVE to paint the redbud tree tomorrow. It's absolutely glorious.)


The red on the big heart is just an undercoat for the real painting, which I'll start any day now....depending on whether or not I can resist those redbud trees. :)

The Process

Years ago, at the suggestion (prodding) of a few friends, I started this blog as a way to talk about the artistic process. Several years after that, at the suggestion (prodding) of another friend, I started adding everyday stories to mix it up a little as the artistic process gets quite boring at times. This is one of those times.

The big heart that was delivered on Tuesday is commanding a huge amount of studio floor space, air space, and space in my brain. Before it was delivered, I had a really brilliant idea of how and what to paint on it. After seeing it, however, that idea flew out of my head like a butterfly caught in a hurricane. It has taken the better part of the week to sketch and draw idea after idea hoping for another lightbulb moment of inspiration.

Sometimes during this phase of an art project, I'll tone the canvas with a relatively neutral undercoat so that the surface isn't stark white....just to do something. But it just so happens that the big heart was coated with interior paint, so someone came over here yesterday and repainted it with exterior paint....and this being humid Houston and all, the big heart is still not dry. More than 24 hours later it's damply sticky. Which means that one more day goes by without putting color on this big heart....which is both good and bad. It's good because hopefully I can refine the heart design and perhaps fully map out what to do. It's bad because I work in oils. Oil paints take longer to dry than acrylics. On top of that, this big heart will need some sort of finishing coat on it to protect it from the elements, as, when all is said and done, it will most likely live outdoors. All of these steps take time. Time. Time! This project needs to be fully, completely, and in all ways finished and delivered by March 21st. Yikes.

That was the boring art process story.....


This is the fun art story. Since the big heart project is on pseudo hold, I took time to paint the quince blossoms from the back yard. It's such a happy little bush when it blooms. This is an 8" x 8" oil on canvas.

Heart Delivery

Be still my beating heart. As the Amazing Reese always says, it's not nervousness, it's nervous excitement.

Hmm, no surprise here, but I'm a little fuzzy on the particulars of this project. All I remember from the phone conversation is that the painted heart will be donated to some event for the American Heart Association. It's an extreme honor to have been asked to be a guest artist for the event, whatever it is.

The heart (to be painted by yours truly) is six feet tall including the pedestal and rolling base. The painting surface of the heart part is over three feet tall and three feet wide.

Better put on my thinking cap and get busy. It needs to be completed by March 21st. That's only one short month away.

Progress...

Tilly caught her first fish today. I was amazed, proud, and slightly disappointed all at the same time. Poor little fish.

Tilly pulls when we go for walks so this week we've been focusing on leash manners. All of the dog training advice says to keep changing direction when the dog starts pulling. We change direction so often that we end up walking in circles. I get dizzy.

Yesterday, I strategically placed lawn chairs in the back yard so that we could practice her following my lead without the distractions of being on the front sidewalk. We walked in and around the chairs over and over again. We do all right together until she sees a squirrel.

This afternoon Tilly was on her leash tethered to the lawn furniture while Hilary and I worked in the front yard. She chewed clean through her leash....twice. Her actions can't have anything to do with leash manner training....can they?

Tilly is napping at my feet as I type this. When she sleeps she relaxes. When she's relaxed, she toots. Right now it STINKS in here. Guess what just happened.



In addition to all of the Tilly training, I did take time to paint. "Big Trees" is both true to life and filled with imagination, if that makes sense. It was the neighbors trees that I wanted to paint, not the cars, houses, and trash cans around it. So after the tree shape was corrected, I took the painting to the studio. and then had fun with the rest of it. This painting might actually be finished. I'll let it sit for a week and then decide.

There was also time to work on chores. (House repair chore -- replace two tiles in bathroom and re-attach towel bar -- done.)

Something Fishy

If this sounds like a crazy lady fish story....it is. I've trained the little gold fishes in our back yard pond to come when I call. (Here fishy fishy.) They are so friendly and not at all afraid when I put my hand in the water to pet them. Yes, I literally pet my fishes....AND talk to them. They like me.

Naturally, since the fish are so tame, if anyone (or anything) comes to say "hi" the fish gather at the surface to pass along greetings as well. Lately, the neighborhood cats have discovered the fish pond. The fish population has dwindled in the last few months from 15 healthy fish to five fish in various states of health. Some of the fish have completely disappeared (been eaten) and others been swatted by fish predators (cats) and now feebly drift along the bottom of the pond. It's so sad.

The Amazing Reese knew how distressed I've been about the poor fishes. For Valentine's Day, gave me a dozen little goldfish. I couldn't have been happier. He looked at me very seriously and said, "Now, please let me know how your new pet fish are getting along in the pond." Bless his heart. He KNOWS.

Poodles were originally bred to be water dogs, and when trained are highly efficient water retrievers. The day before yesterday, Tilly started noticing the goldfish in the pond. She's endlessly fascinated by them, and has spent hours watching them and running around the pond. She sticks the length of her nose in the water and blows bubbles at the fish. It's adorable. Because she's a water dog -- and honestly at this point I'm surprised that she hasn't jumped in the pond -- Tilly started playfully pawing at them. Uh oh. To the newly injured little gold fish limping at the bottom of the pond, I'm guessing that it wasn't so playful. But, at a dollar or so a dozen, we can keep the pond stocked with fish out the wazoo and Tilly can be the water dog she was created to be. Only, I guess these new fish recruits might not become my pets....oh well.


The weather was perfect yesterday for plein air painting. After working on the painting in the studio one day last week it was nice to be outside again. The painting is very incomplete -- not even close to being finished -- but since this was originally designed to be an art blog and not a Tilly blog, I thought that it best to throw in some art references.


Weekly chore update : replace outlet covers in living room and study -- done.

For Reese

Roses are yellow
Carnations are pink
I love a big fellow
who never wears pink

Sunflowers, poppies
iris and daisy
my love for this man
is borderline crazy

By that I mean it
grows and it grows
like flowers in summer
and pinkish primrose

It's Valentine's Day
but it feels like another
Fourth of July
my heart's all a flutter

My heart skips a beat
when he walks in the room
26 years and
our love still in bloom

What will we do
tonight for each other
Loving for ever
sweet nothings to utter

I cannot express
in one silly poem
suffice it to say
my heart is your home.

A daisy is white
a rose sure smells sweet
Let's have a bite
of something to eat.

P.S.

Thanks for the dog
I sure do like Tilly
and thanks for the house
I mean it. Yes, really.

Thanks for the hard work
and loving me still,
thanks for our daughters
thanks for the thrills.

Thanks for the fun times
thanks for the sad
thanks for the life
together we've had.

Winter Weather Wimp

After sitting on the front patio for all of a minute to see if it was pleasant enough to work on the Big Trees painting, it was definitely too cold and windy. I opted to work inside instead. There is plenty to do on the business side of art, but I was in the mood for something more a bit more fun. Naturally enough, (for me anyway) thoughts turned to another creative outlet -- cooking.

Having written about roast chicken before, I searched this blog for a link to the recipe. Is it not a little bit strange that because I'm a winter weather wimp, it was almost exactly a year ago that I cooked my first roast chicken?

Big Trees

Wanting to stay home but still paint, I opted to set up on the front patio and paint the view of our neighbor's enormous live oak trees. Since it was the weekend and the Amazing Reese was home, there was considerable added benefit of being close to loved ones, a warm house, snacks, and a restroom.

At 30" x 30", this is by far the largest painting I've attempted en plein air. That's a lot of surface area to cover and with the unwavering predictability of the earth's rotation and therefore the constant changing shadows of the sun, it was difficult to "complete" the painting in one go. Plus, at about this point in the painting, when Reese decided to take Tilly for a walk, I quickly and without hesitation dropped everything to join them.


My artist cue on this one is influenced by Paul Cézanne. From what I've read of his painting habits, when he painted en plein air, he would go back to the same location and paint the same scene on the same canvas day after day until he got it right. Since the set up for this painting is literally in my front yard, hopefully there will be ample time to work on it this week until it's right.

Weeds

Chores are like weeds. They grow in spite of repeated attempts to get rid of them. The thing with house repair chores is that for every one that gets written on a list and consequently eradicated, more spring up in its place. It IS a wonderful thing the inside of our bathroom cupboard got painted yesterday. What became glaringly obvious afterwards was that all of the bathroom trim needs a once over. Minus one add one....this is progress?

BEFORE


No one ever said that these house repair chores would be exciting. Heavens, what could possibly be exciting about painting the inside of a bathroom cupboard EXCEPT our two dogs keeping me company and the satisfaction of a job well done? OK, maybe not well done, but certainly good enough.

AFTER

When Hilary saw the "after" she said, "Everything is organized EXACTLY the same only exactly the opposite....like mirror image." Well, she's mostly right. To be fair, I've never claimed organization as one of my strong suits. It is nice to have a fresh coat of paint on these walls and shelves, though.

This is me teaching Tilly to go into her cage at night.


This is Tilly saing, "Hey! Where did you go? I thought that we were in this thing together?"


We are, sweet Tilly. We're in this for life.

Sunday School Art "Class"

For the last few Sundays, I've "sort of" supervised an art project in a kids Sunday School class at our church. The 4th and 5th graders were encouraged to create a painting that represented one of the names of God.



All I've really done in the "class" is talk to the kids about mixing paint colors and covering the entire canvas with paint. They really didn't need me for this project, but it's been fun helping the students a (very) little bit.

Paint and a Pint, Trick for a Treat

It's slightly overwhelming to think about, but last week I compiled a list of 80 household repair chores that need to eventually get done around here. It's probably idyllic to think that I can get one chore done a week -- but that's the idea -- one house repair chore and (at least) one painting per week. It sounds pseudo doable, right? So last Friday, I scraped and painted the back door.


Because it was glorious weather AND a Friday afternoon, after scraping and before painting, my neighbor, daughter Hilary, and I walked down to the pub for a pint. Besides, Sherwin-Williams was a block from the pub and I still needed to buy the paint for the back door.


The Gingerman serves a cask-conditioned Saint Arnold Elissa IPA that is truly divine. Just looking at this photo makes me thirsty. Yum.


One chore done, and 79 to go.


Our new rescue poodle Tilly gained four pounds just last week alone. Our 13 year old toy poodle Skipper only weighs four pounds in all! Tilly gained a Skipper's worth of weight. OK, the vet weighed him at four and a half pounds, but little Skipper was also wearing his sweater, collar, and leash at the time.


We're working on lots of new tricks and good behaviors with Tilly. One of the behaviors we're teaching her is to go into her kennel at night on her own without whining. To encourage this, we put a handful of dog food at the back of the cage. When she goes in to eat the food, we say, "Go to bed. Good girl Tilly. Good night," and close the cage door. Obviously little Skipper has noticed this ritual, because last night, just as I was getting a handful of food as enticement for Tilly, all four pounds of Skipper walked into Tilly's kennel and sat expectantly waiting for a treat. Of course I laughed. When he didn't get a "treat" right away, he performed another trick. It was adorable. That Skipper's a smart one. Who says that you can't teach an old dog new tricks?

A Good Day

It's not the best phone camera photo, but it was a good day. Tilly fell asleep at the foot of the easel while I painted a still life. So sweet.


These are camellias from our garden. They bloom about this time every year. The painting is a 9" x 12" oil on linen.

Forever More

God bless the previous owners of this magnificent creature for eventually having the common decency to turn her in to a shelter. And thank God Almighty that we were at the right place at the right time so that we could adopt her.


The week long teeny tiny drama surrounding us naming and un-naming her is over, thank you very much. Many of you very kindly passed along wonderful name suggestions while we wallowed in indecisiveness. Forever more, her name is Tilly. It suits her AND we don't personally know anyone (or anything else) named Tilly.

Tilly has continued to wow us with how sweet, gentle, intelligent, well-adjusted, and wonderful she is. She's an incredible dog. Every new situation to which she has been introduced, save one, she has had exemplary manners. Except for her excessive malnourishment, the vet has given her a clean bill of health. She has even gained a few pounds, good girl.


There's nothing like a new addition to "the pack" to bring family and friends together. Everyone wants to meet Tilly! Much to our delight, Saturday turned into a day long impromptu party. It felt like Christmas almost....without all of the cooking. Our oldest daughter Erin and her parti poodle Raleigh even drove in from Austin just to meet her. Reese's sister Sarah and her family came over, Erin's best friend Kristi and her dog Jolene were here, and some of our wonderful neighbors rounded out the celebrating.


Before Erin left for Austin again, we tried to get the pets to pose for a photo. It didn't quite turn out like we envisioned. It was cute to see the three poodles together, Skipper the toy, Raleigh the miniature, and Tilly the standard. It's now glaringly obvious why Skipper is called a toy poodle. He looks like a wind up toy compared to Tilly.

Buttercup, Pippin, Maisy....????

Because we rescued our dog from the Humane Society, one of the provisions was that she be spayed before we brought her home. That means that we can't bathe her for another week. To say that she smelled bad is an understatement. She stank. So our daughter Joy agreed to come over and shave our little lamb. When Joy was finished, there was a pound and a half of dog hair not on the dog anymore, and she smells MUCH better. Thank you so much, Joy!


Skipper is tolerating the new pet. Here they are both sleeping at my feet while I type at the computer. So cute.


In this photo, I wanted to show the difference in their size. It's funny to notice that Skipper and I are wearing matching sweaters. Our hair is dishevelled, white, and frizzy, too. Must have something to with people and their pets looking alike. Even though our new girl is skinny, she still has a regal presence about her. She's a quick learner and is making great strides in her training.


There's a possibility that the new dog's name might not be Molly, as previously stated, which is why she remains unnamed in this entry. There's precedent for our indecisiveness. It took the Amazing Reese and me three days to name our oldest daughter Erin. We had a boy name picked out but for the life of us, couldn't agree on a girl name. Why is it that girls are never named Beauregard?

Meet Molly

Meet Molly, our new pet, a standard poodle. We found her last weekend at the Houston Humane Society. She's a little over one year old and is a mess of matted hair and bones -- not much meat on her. It breaks all of our hearts to feel her bony skeleton underneath all of that fluffy matted hair.

Our 13 year old toy poodle Skipper mostly ignores her. To be fair, he is a little anxious around Molly, but that's his nature anyway. We expected nothing more from him. Rest assured, he's getting plenty of attention. All in all, we're enjoying the relatively easy transition of adding a new family member to the Hazel house.

In every way, Molly seems to be Skipper's opposite. There's the obvious -- she's black and he's white. She's huge and Skipper's tiny. She's hairy and he's bald. She's young. He's old. But also, she's relaxed and Skipper is perky and nervous. She's peacefully quiet and Skipper demands to be heard and seen. She stands patiently to be brushed and Skipper endures being brushed, snapping generously if we displease him. She gobbles her food and drink while Skipper plays with his food, throwing it around and picking at his food one piece at a time. Molly is sweetly submissive. Skipper is the classic alpha dog, very dominant. She can go up and down stairs with ease. Poor Skipper can't.

We're all glad she's home.

Studies in Yellow

The reason I paint so many still lifes is because I never have to check the fruits' schedules to see if they are available for me to paint. As long as the Hazel household can avoid eating the set up, I can paint. The ridiculously cold weather last week made painting indoors preferable, so I set up my willing models and began.


The new excessively happy yellow dining room was the backdrop for the latest still life, Studies in Yellow. The lemons came from a neighbor's yard, and the grapefruit and tangerines came from the farmer's market. The yellow bowl came from the Blue Bird Circle Shop as did the dresser on which it sits. The painting is a 16" x 20" oil on linen.

Rooster's

On a tip from a long time friend, the Texas Bar-B-Q trail lured me to Rooster's in Baytown, Texas for lunch.

Just looking at this sign makes me happy.


At first taste, the sauce was too vinegary, but before I knew what was happening, I was (practically) spooning that sauce in my mouth like a soup. It grows on ya'.

What you can't see in the photo is how good those ribs taste. The rub is sweet and spicy -- a perfect crunch on the outside and juicy melt-in-your-mouth meat on the inside. The chicken? In a word -- yum.


Yes, it was worth the drive.

Where next on the Bar-B-Q Trail? Suggestions?

Lettuce Be Friends

Is there ever an instance where a leak is a good thing? A leak in the ozone, a leaky faucet, a security leak, a leaky boat, a leaky diaper (ew)....all not good. Also not good, there has been a leak in our living room ceiling for years. It had previously been repaired on a number of occasions, lasting anywhere from three months to three years. Every time it rained, we ran to get buckets to catch the leaks. As one might imagine, this leaking wrecked havoc with our living room walls.

Last summer, a friend and I bartered services. The practical thing we Hazels got out of the deal was a repaired living room leak. Fingers crossed, this latest fix appears to be holding -- (four months -- woohoo!) Earlier in the week I couldn't think of a single thing to do right or wrong. Might as well do something, right? So I set out to re-paint the living room.

From our living room, one can look through the excessively happy yellow dining room to the wood paneled den beyond, which is a natural yellow orange-y color. On a color wheel, the complementary and split complementary colors of orange and yellow run from blue to red-violet. As much as it seemed like the right thing to do, I just couldn't picture us living in a violet toned living room. And all of the blues were actually giving me the blues. So, instead of selecting complementary colors, I chose three colors side by side on the color wheel : the yellow orange-y of the den, the excessively happy yellow dining room, and now a yellow-green for the living room.


The new living room color by Pittsburgh Paints is called "lettuce alone." Why would anyone in their right mind name a paint color "lettuce alone?" So sad. Any day of my life, I would much rather be bothered than be let alone. Please don't lettuce alone! SO, I've been having fun re-naming the color.....lettuce DO something even if it's wrong, lettuce be friends, lettuce laugh, lettuce sing, lettuce believe, lettuce dance, lettuce go for a walk, lettuce pray....the possibilities are endless.

True story -- the short version. When the Amazing Reese and I met for the very first time, I said to him, "Lettuce be friends." We've been married now for 26 years two months and 18 days, but who's counting?

Resolute

She couldn't decide quite how to begin, so she just sat there, staring at the computer screen. Maybe another cup of coffee would get the creative juices flowing. Nope. Well, at least she felt perkier. Sarah Hazel was experiencing one of those oft described creative blocks, both as a writer and a painter.

Her grandmother used to say, "I'm gonna do somethin', even if it's wrong." But Sarah couldn't even think of something wrong to do. "How is it," she thought, "that some days are creatively magical, and today is a non-creative dud?"

If her husband were here, he would gently, with a twinkle in his eye remind her that she was doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. (Isn't that the definition of insanity?) And yet, she really thought that if she sat in front of the computer screen long enough, something, anything would happen.

Nope. Nothing.

Thelma's

On the Bar-B-Que trail once again, this time taking out of town friends to one of my favorite Houston bar-b-que joints, Thelma's in the Third Ward.


Thelma's is friendly and unpretentious. All are welcome, unless your underwear is showing. (Thelma's reserves the right to refuse service to anyone whose britches don't properly cover their hiney. Loud, annoying, rude cell phone usage is discouraged as well. Makes for a very pleasant dining experience.)


The food, as usual, was in abundance. The stuffed baked potato could have easily fed a family of six. The bar-b-que sauce was sweet and spicy to the point of perfection -- absolute perfection. Of the meats, I personally prefer the chicken, but the beef would rival any bar-b-que grill for true aficionados. Next time, I'll forgo Thelma's potato salad, and instead opt for the cole slaw and beans -- so yummy.

We have leftovers out the wazoo.

See No Evil

Someone gave us some See's Candies for Christmas. As soon as my daughter opened the box, she told our house guest, "We take a little bite of each candy and put it back in the box, just for a little taste. That's how we do it. Do you want a bite?"

I Believe

At a party on Christmas eve, I overheard a 10 year old friend and a grown up discussing when to tell one's child that Santa isn't real. I was horrified. Doesn't anyone older than 10 (besides me) believe in Santa anymore?



There's no other way to explain it. For the second year in a row, Santa has left a signed envelope of money in our mailbox. On his behalf, we used the money to buy "Christmas" for our family. Now, I know that Christmas isn't about a room full of presents, but times are tight in the Hazel household. And even with grown ups for offspring, a parent still wants to make magic happen on Christmas morning. Thanks to Santa (or his helper), we were able to do just that.

Excessively Happy Yellow

Four days before Christmas, as if there wasn't enough to do already, I decided to paint our dining room yellow. (Our dining room has been Ming Red forever.) It just so happens that Lowe's has been running an ad on TV about their paint brand with built in primer. They also have been running a commercial about matching paint colors.

First step was to find the perfect yellow, Sherwin Williams' Daffodil - a lovely, stately, happy yellow. Not wanting to be stuck painting two or even three coats of paint, I took the tiny paint color sample to Lowe's to ask if they could match the paint in their brand that includes the primer. Lowe's assured me, with great confidence, that they were paint wizards. Of course, they could match "daffodil" in the primer paint. One coat would be all it would take.


So, armed with the confidence of Lowe's advertising, I started painting, wanting a fresh, clean, bright look by Christmas. The first noticeable thing that happened when applying the paint was that the color was bright, even for me. (I've named it "excessively happy yellow.") The second noticeable thing was that the Lowe's claim that their paint would cover existing paint in one coat was not true at all.

Eight hours and two coats of paint later, that Ming Red still shows through in places. What I need to do is put the house in order before Christmas. But the house is out of sorts anyway, so do I use the 1/2 inch of leftover paint in the bottom of the existing can and touch up see-through spots on the wall? (Will it be enough?) Do I go buy the original daffodil color from Sherwin Williams and paint the entire room a third time? Or do I just leave it be and say it's good enough?


Worth noting, once upon a time, my dad said that one could use toothpaste instead of caulk or sheetrock mud to fill in small holes before painting. I took his advice. Thanks to dad, the walls smell minty fresh.

Christmas Week

This is the result from last week's en plein air painting. It's already hanging in the living room.


I may or may not take the time to paint this week....what with it being Christmas and all.

Several years ago, the church asked us to read scripture one Sunday morning. (Our church has two services.) Reese and I did well enough reading in the first service. But when it came time for us to read during the second service, we "sort of" forgot the order of the service, and realized almost too late that it was time for us to be up front. Not only that, but while walking to the front of the sanctuary, Reese realized that he had left his enlarged print scripture in the hymnal in the back of the church. (We are over 40 -- eyesight not so great.) Reese started running back to get it. By the time he got to the front, he was out of breath, but I read first so that was OK. But because the whole incident had flustered Reese so, when we were finished reading, instead of going to the seats on stage to wait for the next order of worship, after which we were to calmly and quietly walk off stage, Reese walked off....which I didn't notice because my back was to the audience (congregation.) As soon as I saw that Reese was leaving me on stage I panicked. I took a flying leap off stage -- three steps worth -- in my skirt and boots and almost fell into the congregants on the front row. It was both stressful and exhilarating at the same time. Because of that, Reese and I were certain that the church would never ask us to do anything during the service again.

They must be desperate, because they asked Reese and me to light the advent candles at the 10pm service on Christmas eve. If y'all want to see the fire trucks respond to a call at our church on Christmas eve, come join us.

En Plein View

Funny how things happen sometimes. Lisa and I were traipsing through the woods behind her house, looking for a place to paint en plein air together. There was no path; we were gingerly making our way through the briars, over dead branches, past scraggly bushes and general forest debris. In what happened to be the first pseudo clearing we chanced upon, there was a tree, waiting to have its portrait painted. We both saw it. Either that, or the thought of venturing farther into the woods was losing its appeal.



So we set up shop; Lisa on the forest floor, and my easel just behind her. That's Lisa's faithful cat in the far background on the right. Domino the cat followed us out into the woods and kept watch over us the entire time we painted. Lisa said that no snakes would come near us as long as Domino was close. (Here kitty kitty!) Lisa also said that she didn't notice any poison ivy in our patch of forest.

Lisa was among the first people I met when I moved to Houston as a young newlywed. We fell into the easy conversation of long time friends.

Typical in plein air painting, the sun was fickle, sometimes shining brightly, and sometimes hiding behind the clouds like a shy child hides behind his mother's skirt. While painting, we heard falling leaves, squirrels fussing, birds rustling and whistling, and the wings of an enormous white heron flapping. It was most tranquil.

The time passed all too quickly. I was rushing at the end, trying to get as much color in the right places on the canvas as possible. Lisa had a previous commitment she needed to attend, so we both knew that our time was limited. Nevertheless, when we hit our agreed upon deadline, my painting wasn't quite in a completed state. Lisa suggested that I stay and paint, but not being entirely sure of the way back to her house, I was all to eager to pack my things.

I'll work on this a little more in the studio this afternoon, not too much, just to fill in some spots I missed. It's an 18" x 24" oil on linen.

Thanks, Lisa. It was a fun day.