Massage messages

The naked man who I have spent most of the last couple of days with is almost ready to leave me. I've spent a few hours getting him how I want him, tweaking and adjusting where necessary and viewing him upside down to make sure he's fully there. As you do! :)

An odd thing to do, I'm sure you think, but that's the best way to check when you've painted someone, particularly a nude, that the shades, colours, tones and lines are all correct. When you look at an image to paint, the brain overrides what is actually there to read "what should be" so you have to bypass that bit by putting the image upside down, which doesn't read as any recognisable shape as far as the brain is concerned, and then you can see the ever so slight tiny nuances of changes of colour and tone, and adjust it accordingly. I never paint the whole image upside down, because strangely enough that wouldn't work as a finished picture. No, its just for checking when the image is nine tenths finished, and sharpens up the bits that aren't quite right. And its mainly for when I paint a face or a naked figure, as the adjustments can be so slight that you hardly see that they've been made, and I use my smallest paint brushes to do it with. But if I showed you the nine tenths finished painting, and the totally finished painting you'd notice that the totally finished one just looks better overall, more complete somehow.

So, he's almost ready to go, and I am thinking about my next commission. Or at least I hope very much that it is my next commission, because it's something that is fascinating me as a subject matter. I have had three or four long chats on the phone with the guy who is interested in me doing this painting for him (and I mean long chats - a few hours worth), and we haven't even got to the point of discussing whether its going to be in oils or acrylics or watercolours, on canvas or board, the size of it, the use of colours, the painting style, the price, or even the subject matter fully. But he and I know that we have to have the discussions we have had first, for me to fully understand the subject matter he wants me to paint for him. Its a new subject for me, but one that is certainly erotic, and sensual, two things that I love to put together, although they should always be together as far as I am concerned - erotic and sensual - although it is possible to paint something sensual that is not erotic - enjoying eating a delicious meal by candlelight, or bathing in the sea on a bright sunlit day, are both sensual experiences.

But, his idea as we've discussed so far is certainly very much of the erotic and sensual, but more than that as well. And its something that he knows a lot about, because of his job. And I know a lot about art, because that is my job. So the long conversations so far have been the pair of us brain storming ideas to put together for his special painting. Because I know that the various ideas in his head can be painted, and depicted as the fabulous concepts they are. And I know that there are very few other artists who could do what he is asking for. But I know that I can.

We haven't even met yet, so I don't even know what he looks like, I have no clues other than his age. I will have more ideas I'm sure when we eventually do meet, but so far we've got on really well on the phone, and both find each other really easy to chat to and open up to. But then, its part of my job and character to make people feel easy, and its part of his job to make people feel relaxed and at ease within themselves too.

And the subject matter? Well, lets just say that it involves the work he does, but more so, far more so.......

And the work?

It's massage..................

Twiddling our thumbs and other bits

We dragged ourselves from our sick beds out into the cold winters night, drove through the dark on fog bound roads, around road blocks and detours, to arrive, a little frosted, at our destination. A warm and welcome greeting for all who had braved the winter chills to turn up at the meeting as we compared winter ailments, coughs and colds. The first one of the year for this artists group, and it turned out to be all women for once. It was good to see my arty friends again, and I knew the meeting wasn't going to be an overly long one as there wasn't a lot on the agenda. We settled ourselves in the meeting room, as we waited for our punctilious Chairman to arrive. He's usually the first there, with his cheery smile and easy manner. The waiting lengthened, as we wondered where he was, perhaps delayed with the road blocks on country lanes, or perhaps with the fog on high ground, either way, he'd be here soon.

He wasn't.

So, the ever efficient secretary decided that it might be prudent to start the meeting without him, and he could take over when he arrived. Which was bound to be shortly.We went down the points on the agenda, as fully as we were able, but after the great length of time of........ooooh............ twenty minutes, we'd done it all! Mmm.... so where's the Chairman then? Is he stuck in a ditch? Has there been an accident? Is he lost in the fog? Perhaps someone has been rushed to hospital? A quiet unease spread slowly through the room ...........

Then, someone said that it might be a good idea to ring his mobile, great idea, but no one had the number.  I suggested we rang his home phone, as I had that to hand, and perhaps his wife would know where he was and what was happening. The secretary used her mobile to ring, as the rest of us watched with slightly concerned eyes, mouths closed tight, in deathly silence.
Ring. Ring. Hello?

He answered!

Slight relief from the room as we realised he was ok, but what was wrong, why was he still at home? It turned out that he was still at home becuase as far as HE was concerned, the meeting was on Thursday! AH! ER.. no, it isn't! :) Amusement from the assembled group as relief set in that he was ok and had only got the wrong date for the meeting. What business that could be was conducted over the phone, whilst our illustrious Chairman got an ear bashing from his wife in the room with him, and also the piss taken out of him from the secretary on the phone at the same time for getting the date wrong! :)

So, that was the meeting, not a lot to discuss, but as we left the meeting room, we had to walk through a bar room, semi-full of men with warm pints of the local bitter in their hands. They're a jolly group, mostly ex-miners, and I knew a couple of them, and stopped as they obviously wanted to chat - the first to comment on the fact that he'd been tempted to come in and pose as he knew I draw naked men and "their twiddly bits"!!! Guffaws of laughter from me regarding his description!! And the second commented that I ought to draw a retired miner mate of his since he had more that I might be interested in - I realised he was referring to them all being in the showers after a shift down t'pit and obviously comparing sizes (of  twiddles) whilst rinsing the black coal dust off themselves. All very jolly, and amusing, mostly because I hadn't been drawing in the meeting room at all , but having a meeting in the meeting room, now with added visions of naked ex-miners rampaging into the room in the mistaken belief that we women in there wanted to draw them and their "twiddly bits"!!!!! Now, THAT would have lightened the proceedings more !!!!!! LOL (even more so that I'm the only one there who draws naked people, the rest draw landscapes, cats, flowers, and still life!!!!!!!!). Tee Hee