"Mishap in the Snow" -- Margie Guyot

Know how the buttered side always lands face down? I'd bundled up and trudged through the 6 1/2" snowfall this afternoon and stood out there painting as ice pellets drizzled onto my palette and canvas. While I painted, a car tried driving up the steep hill by my house and only got halfway. The hill turned out to be a sheet of ice. Then the mailman barely crawled up the hill. The snow underneath my feet turned to ice and I had to watch my step. This scene is right in front of my house in NW Michigan. I'd gone out earlier to shovel out the mailbox so the carrier could drive up. While shoveling, I'd noticed this interesting little scene and decided to paint it. Could not find my boots, so thank goodness for Smart Wool socks! Even though my feet were wet, they stayed warm. And thank goodness for Aleve! I'd woken up this morning with a cold and Aleve did wonders.

What I'd liked about this scene was the dramatic, angled composition and the tiny "Stop Ahead" sign up at the top left.

The painting (and the painter) were covered in ice pellets by the end. Maybe after melting a little in my studio, I thought the painting would look OK. Then whoomp! Down it all fell, face-first! This photo shows my painting covered liberally with fresh snow. At least I didn't fall. Crossing the road was treacherous. It had all changed to glare-ice. I'm sure Monet had days like this.

I set everything back into my heated studio for the night. Maybe the elves will come and fix it!