It felt so good to land on my first painting site in ages! Good, but also weird! I've not been mingling in the public since March really, when the whole world shut down. As we waited turns in the street to go into Gallery Zeke for our registration packets, we visited with masks on, conscious of our 6 feet. It was so unnatural to greet old friends without hugging, awkward even, a little sad reminder of the new world. All was perfectly fine in the field, but as we gathered, masks were donned, to be removed as we returned to our easels. En plein air, we're naturally distanced very far apart as we all paint our preferred compositions. Rushing our paintings back for judging to Wildwood Springs Inn, we again gathered at a distance, and masked up inside. No yummy dinners for this event, everything had to be prepackaged for safety. I did feel a little off, so strange to be out in the world after staying in my tiny bubble of family and a few gym friends at a distance. After this first day, I regained my footing, and was a new woman by the end of the week. So good to feel whole again! Painting number 2777 in 2777 days.
