Hello Friends,

Here is a very different looking kind of tortoise!  This was really a challenge to draw in graphite pencil.  I have been working on it for about a week a little each day. They live in Madagascar, are endangered, and can live as long as 188 years! You can read more about the Radiated Tortoise here:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiated_tortoise. They are beautiful!

I was working from a children’s picture book called “Turtles” A TRUE BOOK by Trudi Strain Trueit.  I found it at the library.  It was published in 2003.  The photograph I drew this from was taken by Paul J. Fusco.  There are many other different types of turtles and tortoises in this book, so I may draw a few more.  There is one I plan to try and paint when I am feeling better.  It is a spotted pond turtle.

I have been fighting a sore throat since last night so my energy level is pretty low right now.  I usually get one this time of year when the weather changes suddenly.  We have had really hot weather all summer, then this past week, the temperatures plunged about 40 degrees!  It is crazy weather here this time of year.  However, the cooler weather is kinder to the arthritis in my feet so that’s good!  I just pray I never get it in my hands.

I have spent most of the last couple of weeks working on a story for my third assignment in my writing correspondence class.  And of course I have been reading a lot.  I finished Stephen King’s book “On Writing.”  I really love his sense of humor and style of writing about his life and craft. I am going to be finishing his novel “Misery” soon which has been quite entertaining.  I have seen the movie several times which I think is different in some ways, but I still am hearing Kathy Bates’ and James Caan’s voices in my head which has been fun.

I hope all of my blogging friends are doing well.

Have a wonderful day, and give someone you love a big hug!  🙂