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Today - on Allison's "BackyardArt" outing I biked to the "new" part of Oviedo, FL. I'm totally blown away by the huge amount of new retail, restaurants, multi-family apartments and single family homes going up here! So, exciting to see brand new franchise (and one-off) restaurants coming to the area! Oviedo has a gorgeous park here, complete with a beautiful lake, nice amphitheater, and this really cool chess game. Yep! These chess pieces are all free-standing - so you can really play a game of "lawn" chess! What's really nice about this area, is you have ALL of these really nice amenities within walking (or riding) distance of each other! Everybody is out today walking their dogs, roller-blading and like me, out on their bicycles! It's a truly a " beautiful day in the neighborhood!"

At the beginning of the 23 mile - Cross Seminole Trail in Oviedo, FL, I could stop and go through a complete fitness routine on the "Vita Course." It's designed with a minimum of equipment for a maximum workout! The course offers all type of stretching and endurance tips, including how many times you need to do repetitions on each piece of equipment and what your maximum heart rate should be. It's basically a complete workout - on the trail- before you start your walk, bicycle ride, roller blade outing, or whatever. In the background, you can see a beautiful gazebo where you can take a breath and a sip of water. I've mentioned before how many of Seminole county's tax dollars go into parks and recreation and this beautiful, amazing fitness course is one of them!

Today - on my bike at sunrise - I really see why I dedicate this time of day to being out in nature! Nature puts on an amazing display of color and light for it's sunrise presentation! It was a real stunner today! It looked like the sky was on fire! Absolutely amazing morning! I think the wonderful thing about being an artist is the level of appreciation I have of what so many take for granted! A sunrise - representing a brand new day - is one of those "givens." Central Winds Park in Winter Springs, FL is host to many, many activities, including the Scottish Games which bring all lovers of anything Scottish to the park. Seminole County is a huge advocate of parks and recreation and living in the county you see where they invest their tax dollars - beautiful parks and trails that are well-maintained and beautiful. I hope YOUR day has just an amazing start to it as mine has!

I'm heading out again today with my "Partner in Crime," for another "BackyardArt" adventure. I'm thinking we might head out to the new construction area of Oviedo, FL. The downtown area is pretty much like it's always been, but there's a major road expansion going on right now, so let's see what happens after the completion of that project. "New" Oviedo (outside the downtown area) is undergoing explosive growth. Everywhere you look there's construction going on! New homes, new apartments, new retail - it's completely crazy! So, I think we'll head over in that direction and see if there are any "BackyardArt" sketching opportunities. That's the funny thing about an artist. I'm riding along, and suddenly the sun hits the trees a certain way and it completely arrests me! I mean I stop in my tracks! It's not usually the BIG things that capture my attention, it's the small things - like after a rainy morning - the sun peeks out of the clouds and illuminates a spider web filled with dew - or the sun hitting the top of a tree - or a beautiful flower blooming. Maybe art imitates life itself, it's NEVER about the BIG things - it's ALWAYS the little things that count!
#backyardart #Florida #Oviedo #biking #bikelife #floridaartist #backyard

As part of my "BackyardArt" series I rode my bicycle to the sleepy downtown area of Oviedo, Florida. In the downtown area, you'll see antique shops, the post office and of course, the local ACE Hardware store. Perched on top of one of the stacks of bags in front of the store is a rooster! Yep! Oviedo is known for their famous roosters who happily inhabit the downtown area. They pretty much have the run of the place and on this morning, some kind soul had even put down clean water in a dish and lots of food! So, the roosters - well - pretty much rule the roost! There is one stop light in the downtown area where two major roads intersect. One of those roads is going through a major expansion, so it will be interesting to see how the downtown area changes as the road expands! I created this image on paper using oil pastels, watercolors, ink and acrylics.
#backyardart #Florida #Oviedo #backyard #biking #bikelife #art #acehardware

On one of my "BackyardArt" adventures, I rode by this sleepy little cemetery in the downtown Oviedo, FL area. Obviously, it's a very old cemetery with so many interesting headstones. I had never seen a headstone like this with the cross on top! I thought it was beautiful. My timing was perfect, because the sun started shining through the trees creating shards of light - illuminating all the gravestones. It was truly amazing and I wanted to capture the moment and share it with you. I created this mixed media painting using oil pastels, acrylics and water colors.
#backyardart #biking #backyardbiking #art #bikelife

Yesterday morning for my "BackyardArt" bike ride, I rode to the downtown area of this sleepy little community. The downtown area has maintained this wonderful quaint feeling, complete with roosters wandering around in front of the antique stores, post office and local ACE Hardware store. I took this photo yesterday at 6:51 am while out on my bike ride. The sun was just coming up and illuminated everything - like it was on fire! The Town House Restaurant is a family-owned and operated restaurant open since the 1950's. It used to be on the corner of the downtown's two major streets. Unfortunately, the 18 wheeler trucks trying to turn the corner actually took part of the roof with them as they turned the corner, so the restaurant ultimately took off part of the roof so the 18 wheelers could turn the corner. Then, a major road expansion was announced and the restaurant was forced to move to their present location - just down the street. I love coming here for breakfast and shortly after the tragic Pulse nightclub terrorist shooting in Orlando, I stopped by the restaurant and was greeted by a woman painting the sidewalk in front of the restaurant. I, of course, asked her what she was doing and she said she wanted to do something to honor those who had been killed in the shooting and that was why she was painting the sidewalk. I told her I loved the sidewalk and we continued talking for about 5 minutes. It wasn't until the end of the conversation that she told me she was the owner of the restaurant! The Town House Restaurant is the 4 times winner of the Foodie Award Critics Choice for Best Breakfast. Trust me, I know why! If you're in the neighborhood, stop by because it's, "where Oviedo meets to eat!"

A friend of mine gave me this tree and I thought it was really cool because of its shape. It has a amazing canopy - which is perfect for Florida - because, just like the palm tree - this tree has learned to bend, not break in hurricanes. I watched the newly planted tree bend in the 65+ mile an hour winds from Matthew. It survived just fine! This morning I walk out and see this beautiful delicate blossom on the tree. I didn't even know it was a flowering tree! The blossom reminded me of fireworks exploding in the sky. It is amazing! The most wonderful thing about this is - you don't even have to leave your own backyard - or go any further - than just-around-the-corner to see and be amazed by beauty!
#artblogger #travel #backyardart #biking #bikelife #backyardbiking

I thought I'd share a "sneak-a-peek" of my next piece. I've been working on it - it seems like absolutely forever!!! Anyway - this is what my "studio" looks like in the heat of the moment. I have several ideas I'm working on - and some pieces I've already started - including a beautiful flower for my "backyardart" series - where I travel around "in my own backyard" - or "just-around-the-corner" on my bike with my easel slung over my shoulder! Anyway - stay tuned for this finished piece, "Dream a Little Dream of Me," (based on the song) and my backyardart flower image!

#backyardart #art #bikelife #backyard #backyardbiking

Right around the corner from me is this wonderful walking/biking trail. It's a "Rails to Trails" trail - a former railroad that was converted to a trail. You can still see some of the old railroad markers from the days of the railroad's former glory and of course, this really cool train trestle spanning the creek below. The Howell Creek Trestle goes over a quick moving creek that weaves and cuts through sleepy residential neighborhoods. The trestle is a great vantage point to look down at the creek below - or sit down and take a quick breather - or like me - get off my bike for a few minutes - set up my easel, and make a quick sketch. Today, the sky is Easter egg blue. Not a cloud in the sky. This is late summer, so the trees are that really deep green color, but the sun is illuminating them so brightly - that some appear to be lime green or bright yellow! Everyone is out-and-about today - lots of walkers, joggers, bicyclists and someone riding what appears to be a combination of a bicycle and a Nordic Trac. It definitely looked like fun! Today is a perfect day for "Backyard Biking," so stay tuned for my next adventure....
#backyardart #backyard #biking #backyardbiking #bikelife #art