Despite being named after one of the most famous wizards, my dog Merlin doesn't know many magic tricks or spells... although he can make a piece of pizza disappear right before your eyes!

He's got an amazing life for a dog, and really only cares about three things, chasing rabbits, squirrels, tennis balls, sticks...(basically anything that's running or being thrown), eating, and sleeping. I tried to incorporate some of those things into this portrait...except for the eating, but you can imagine that he just finished his biscuits, and now he's sleeping it off... This is the first painting I have done in almost 8 years, so it was challenging to get back into it, but really rewarding. I am stoked on how it turned out, and I'm excited to see where it goes from here...

As you drive west from Boulder into the canyon, there are two turnoffs about halfway up. To the north is Sugarloaf Rd., where I lived for the past two years, and to the south is Magnolia Rd. Us Sugarloafians used to jokingly refer to Magnolia as "The Dark Side". The road is steeper, the turns are sharper, the cliffs are more vertical, and the ice in the winter is beyond treacherous. Overall, Magnolia is just burly, but always worth the voyage when you reached the top. Just as the road levels off, some friends of mine had a house overlooking the Twin Sisters and Forsythe Mountain. They used to host mini festivals with bands, beer, and all-around good times for all. I can remember several nights watching the moon rise from the east with the gentle glow of Boulder far below... always a soothing sight.