Scratch House News

Bird Show in Roanoke Opening Thursday!

2008-07-07T13:17:00.003-05:00

Upcoming show at the Roanoke Public Library:
"A Natural History of Imaginary Birds and Real Bats" with Joe Kelley, artist, showing his latest new paintings.

Openinjg reception Thursday, July 10, 6 - 8 p.m. at Roanoke Main Library. Come out and take part in the fun!

Featuring:
Rootstone Jug Band, www.rootstone.net (offspring of New Roanoke Jug Band)

And Alejandro’s Mexican Grill providing the food

***plus*** real live parrots (the birds of the SW Virginia Bird Club and more from Mill Mountain Zoo) will be here too!

Everyone is welcome, all ages, and there's no charge for anyone. Joe Kelley's art is on display from July 10 till about Aug 2. Please call 540-853-1057 for more information or check out http://www.myspace.com/emergingartistsroanoke

The Roanoke Public Library, next to Elmwood Park, 706 South Jefferson Street, Roanoke VA.

See you there!

little brown bat

2008-07-07T13:13:00.003-05:00

Myotis lucifugus

4/7

2008-04-07T12:14:00.001-05:00

Winter Bluebirds

2008-01-28T14:10:00.001-05:00

These guys have been hanging around lately despite snow and single-digit lows at night.

They aren't crazy enough to eat out of the catbowls like the titmice do, though.

Snow in the Valley

2008-01-28T14:08:00.001-05:00

a view of the creek from my window

Kamikaze Titmice

2008-01-28T13:28:00.000-05:00

Ever seen a titmouse eating catfood?

Due to a relentlessly hungry gang of acrobatic racoons that have been pillaging our birdfeeders, I've had to give up on having an open buffet to attract all the beautiful birds in our valley to our house. I sorely miss being able to sit on the porch and watch all the titmice, chickadees, nuthatches, goldfinches, carolina wrens, downy and redbellied woodpeckers, and other odd birds that would come hang out at the feeders every day. I have a new appreciation for the agility and intelligence the racoons would display with their ability to pry open metal suet cages and scale the side of the house to access feeders hanging 12 feet off the ground; I have yet to discover any type of birdfeeder or hanging space that they are not able to eventually find and destroy. If only I could remember to bring the feeders in every night before the racoons came out to prowl, but often I would only remember when the sound of racoon claws climbing the siding would wake us up in the middle of the night and we'd peek out the window to see a masked bandit boldly staring back at us.

After a while we noticed that without the birdfeeders up, the crazy titmice were starting to land on the porch and eat directly out of the cat bowls. There were so many titmice eating out of the catbowls that we had to put out an extra bowl of catfood just for the birds, and fill it every morning and evening as the crazy gang of titmice would swoop down and empty out the bowl within minutes. As far as we know, none of the titmice have ended up feeding the cats, though it is not due to a lack of interest or effort on the cats' behalf.

Here is a happy little titmouse hanging out on his foodbowl.

el Cuervo

2008-01-15T15:28:00.000-05:00

New Birds for the New Year

2008-01-07T15:39:00.000-05:00

2008 Bird Calendars have arrived!

2007-12-14T10:37:00.000-05:00

Just in time for the holidays! The brand new 2008 Joe Kelley Bird Calendars featuring 13 all-new spectacular original birdblock paintings.

To order yours (and a couple for your friends!) see the Scratchhouse Cafe Press site: http://www.cafepress.com/scratchhouse.38912682

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Birdblock #222

2007-09-04T13:24:00.000-05:00

Birdblock #199

2007-09-04T13:23:00.002-05:00

Birdblock #224

2007-09-04T13:23:00.001-05:00

Birdblock #211

2007-09-04T13:22:00.000-05:00

Birdblock #225

2007-09-04T13:21:00.000-05:00

Birdblock #230

2007-09-04T13:19:00.000-05:00

New Bird Blocks

2007-08-08T18:38:00.000-05:00

The Great Flood of '07

2007-08-08T17:07:00.000-05:00

...just one of the many reasons that Mary has been slacking on posting new stuff to the blog for the last 6 months.....

Back in the end of March, the very day after we put the finishing touches on our new awesome porch greenhouse:
we got two inches of rain in three hours, and living down in the valley like we do, all that water came crashing down the mountainside with a ferocious earth-shaking force all around our precarious little shack. There was so much water rushing around us that there was a constant roar as if we were in the middle of an earthquake.

If you look closely you can see Joe, in a yellow raincoat, standing by the raging river that covered our little driveway bridge: And while we were stranded at home, sitting on the porch watching the deluge surrounding us, a new spring popped up on the hillside right behind our vegetable garden (which I had recently cleared in order to plant some spring greens):
All we could do was watch as the fenceposts slowly leaned, then fell over under the weight of all the water. Once the fence was down, the soil washed away and or lttle garden was obliterated.

Stubborn as I am, I refused to let one extraordinary flood keep me from having fresh vegetables outside my kitchen door; so with Joe's help, over the next several months we rebuilt - re-setting the fence, adding new boxed raised beds to divert water and retain soil in case of future floods, and, with the help of my folks who we put to work on their vacation, re-planting the new and improved garden with tomatoes, peppers, squash, kale, chard, sunflowers, zinnias, nasturtiums, and marygolds. Back, and better then ever! The garden is now flourishing and beautifully holding out through our severe summer drought. (after pictures to follow soon)

The old piano soundboard (left over from Joe's piano sculptures), which had been propped up on a clearing next to the creek driveway bridge, was completely washed away in the flood. Without a trace, the three-hundred pound 4'x4' board disappeared. Several weeks later, while hiking down the creek, I found the remains of the pianoboard - just broken wood and protruding wires...
...two hundred yards and several creek falls down from where it had been.

And, while re-digging the trench to fix the garden fence, I found the most amazingly beautiful white quartz arrowhead that had been buried in the sediment of the dirt that had washed down the hill in the flood. Perfecty whole, and unimaginably ancient, and unearthed from who knows what long-buried hiding place. Saved as a reminder, that for every misfortune that befalls us there are also some buried treasures to be found...

Happy Year of the Pig!

2007-02-26T10:05:00.000-05:00

The Lost City, scene #14

2007-01-30T11:37:00.000-05:00

Bossa Nova Mix

2007-01-26T10:52:00.000-05:00

Here's a cover illustration I did for a Bossa Nova mix CD from a friend

Tinker Cliffs

2007-01-17T11:46:00.000-05:00

I painted Tinker Cliffs around St. Patrick's Day in March of 1993. There had been a very heavy snowfall a few days before and I was curious to see the view from atop McAfee's Knob after a snow. I also thought the hike would be an interesting challenge since there was about two feet of snow on the valley floor. The hike was exhausting because the ridge up to the knob had between three and four foot snow drifts and I had to break trail most of the way. My gear was very funky; thrift store hiking boots, overalls, a sweater, and my dad's old 1976 down jacket that made me look like the Michelin Man. I had all of my painting gear in a huge yellow dry bag. When I got to the knob just at sunset I painted Tinker Cliffs. The view was spectacular with this amazing glowing pink, yellow, orange, and purple light. I felt so lucky to see such a sight. My little camp chair sank completely into the snow and was useless, so I crouched down in the snow and started painting with tube watercolors onto a watercolor block. I finished the painting in about an hour because as the sun went down the paint began to freeze. I had never seen paint freeze on a painting, and it left beautiful frost patterns in the picture. The hike back was nice but harder because the sun was down and I was tired, but the picture made it worth all the work.

2007 Bird Calendars Are Here!!

2006-12-19T14:54:00.000-05:00

The new 2007 Bird Calendar is now available at the Scratch House Cafe Press site. For only $16.99 you can have a whole year of Joe Kelley birds hanging on your wall! You can check out the calendar and place your order at: http://www.cafepress.com/scratchhouse.38912682

Happy Holidays!

Bird Block #188

2006-11-29T09:47:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #133

2006-11-29T09:44:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #137

2006-11-29T09:43:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #120

2006-11-29T09:41:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #117

2006-11-29T09:40:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #115

2006-10-17T11:21:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #149

2006-10-17T11:20:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #186

2006-10-17T11:17:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #181

2006-10-17T11:16:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #168

2006-10-17T11:13:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #12

2006-10-02T08:20:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #178

2006-09-21T09:11:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #144

2006-09-14T09:18:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #192

2006-09-11T09:01:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #189

2006-09-07T07:38:00.000-05:00

Bird Block #190

2006-09-05T12:47:00.000-05:00

Ssssnake Hollow

2006-08-31T10:52:00.000-05:00

A less common yet accurately descriptive name for the little valley we live in is Snake Hollow. This is a photo of a blacksnake that my cat Owen caught and brought home. When Owen was an indoor kitty I knitted him a cute little snake toy to play with, which he absolutely loved. It has been coming back to haunt me now that O ventures outdoors and has discovered that there are LOTS of these little things hiding out in the woods and they move all on their own! Owen just adores snakes and will gently carry them home in his mouth, trying not to trip on their dangling tails as he runs. Occasionally he will manage to sneak one into the kitchen. Fortunately he has only found harmless garter snakes and blacksnakes. Owen is very persistent in his attempts to keep his snakes as housepets and the regular broom-aided snake re-release program I manage has almost completely desensitized me of my discomfort around snakes. (photo by Mary P)

Starting this Friday, September 1st, the Snake Hollow Stringband (Mary Predny on fiddle, Skip Slocum on banjo, Bob Browder on guitar, and Rusty May on bass) will be raising the roof the first friday of every month at the Floyd Country Store at 9:30pm. Come on out and ssssssshake yer tail!

Fishy

2006-08-18T12:19:00.000-05:00

Mystery Bug

2006-08-14T09:06:00.000-05:00

The Ant

2006-08-07T09:26:00.000-05:00

Blacksburg's Steppin Out - This Weekend!

2006-08-03T09:39:00.000-05:00

This Saturday, August 5th, we'll be selling prints, postcards, buttons and magnets of Joe Kelley's hearts, birds, and various sketches at Blacksburg's Steppin Out. We'll be set up on Draper Road close to Roanoke Street near the Blacksburg Farmer's Market folks from 8am on.

Steppin’ Out, Blacksburg’s summer festival, takes over downtown on Friday August 4th and Saturday, August 5th (though we'll only be there on Saturday!). From 10 am to 10 pm on both days, streets in the core downtown Blacksburg area are lined with crafts, sidewalk sales, food, and entertainment. Steppin’ Out hosts three stages of free entertainment and over 170 craft vendors. More than twenty downtown merchants move outdoors with great deals on summer merchandise. Downtown restaurants take to the streets with festival foods. It's a great time - so don't miss it!

We'll also be selling some cards, postcards, and prints of artwork by Laura Predny.

Laura does great black and white photorealistic oil portraits - here are Woody Guthrie and Robert Johnson.

Check out more of her pictures at: http://www.laurapredny.com/.

Red Suns

2006-07-30T18:15:00.000-05:00

Tiger Swallowtail

2006-07-21T10:26:00.000-05:00

Scratch House Garden Pics

2006-07-17T08:45:00.000-05:00

the Scientist

2006-07-14T10:23:00.000-05:00

Daisies

2006-07-11T12:49:00.000-05:00

Bird Puzzle

2006-07-07T08:37:00.000-05:00

All of Us

2006-07-03T09:39:00.000-05:00

Untitled Bird Block #35

2006-06-16T08:10:00.000-05:00

Untitled Bird Block #7

2006-06-12T09:19:00.000-05:00

Untitled Bird Block #159

2006-06-06T08:50:00.000-05:00

Untitled Bird Block #40

2006-06-02T07:44:00.000-05:00

Untitled Bird Block #156

2006-05-29T09:36:00.000-05:00

Bird Sketchbook, page 1

2006-05-23T07:24:00.000-05:00

Bird Sketchbook, page 8

2006-05-19T09:00:00.000-05:00

Bird Sketchbook, page 3

2006-05-15T09:48:00.000-05:00

O/O\O/O\O/O\O

2006-05-10T15:45:00.000-05:00

>-<->-<->-<

2006-05-02T08:49:00.000-05:00

<@><@><@><@>

2006-04-25T08:21:00.000-05:00

XYZ Gallery Spring Semester Retrospective

2006-04-21T08:28:00.000-05:00

Opening tonight, Friday April 21st, from 7 to 9pm, the XYZ Gallery in downtown Blacksburg will have a Spring Semester Retrospective. The show includes a variety of work by local artists, including the ever-popular "Boob Tree" by Joe Kelley. If you don't have a chance to make it to the opening, the show will be up until May 20th.

Snake Hollow Stringband

2006-04-14T09:03:00.000-05:00

Come on out and shake a foot with the Snake Hollow Stringband! Fine oldtime music with Mary Predny on fiddle, Skip Slocum on banjo, Bob Browder on guitar, and Rusty May on bass when we can get him.

Upcoming gigs:
TONIGHT! Friday April 14th: Floyd Country Store, Floyd, VA. 7:30-8:30pm
Saturday April 22nd: Earth Day Celebration, Jacksonville Center, Floyd, Va. 4-5pm
Wednesday, April 26: Oddfellas Cantina, Floyd, VA. 6-9pm
Saturday, May 13th: Mt. Tabor Ruritan Fish Fry, Blacksburg, VA. 5-7pm

oOoOoOoOo

2006-04-12T07:16:00.000-05:00

xXxXxXxXx

2006-04-10T09:51:00.000-05:00

We Walked All Day

2006-04-04T09:17:00.000-05:00

Anahinga

2006-03-31T09:04:00.000-05:00

Talisman

2006-03-29T09:22:00.000-05:00

Eyeball

2006-03-27T10:11:00.000-05:00

<---------------->

2006-03-22T12:50:00.000-05:00

-<-------------->-

2006-03-20T10:30:00.000-05:00

--<------------>--

2006-03-17T14:13:00.000-05:00

---<---------->---

2006-03-15T15:17:00.000-05:00

----<-------->----

2006-03-12T11:36:00.000-05:00

-----<------>-----

2006-03-10T14:32:00.000-05:00

------<---->------

2006-03-08T10:22:00.000-05:00

-------<-->-------

2006-03-06T13:29:00.000-05:00

--------<>--------

2006-03-03T10:40:00.000-05:00

Laissez Le Bon Temps Roulez!

2006-02-28T08:57:00.000-05:00

Happy Mardi Gras

White Breasted Nuthatch

2006-02-24T13:24:00.000-05:00

This guy likes to hang out upside down.

photos by Mary P

Downy Woodpecker

2006-02-23T14:00:00.000-05:00

The female (above) is all black and white, while the male (below) has a small red patch on the back of his head.

Tufted Titmouse

2006-02-22T13:37:00.000-05:00

My Little Chickadee

2006-02-21T13:02:00.000-05:00

photos of our winter feeders by Mary P

er, cheek-a-dee.

The Day After...

2006-02-15T13:02:00.000-05:00

Happy Valentines Day!

2006-02-14T15:19:00.000-05:00

For All You Lovers Out There

2006-02-08T15:28:00.000-05:00

Joe & Mary will be selling hand-painted valentines outside of Gillies in downtown Blacksburg (on the corner of Draper Rd and College Ave) this Saturday 11th and/or Sunday 12th (weather permitting) and Tuesday 14th (rain, snow, or shine) from about 8am to 5pm.

O Heart

2006-02-06T16:01:00.000-05:00

Heart of Gold

2006-01-31T11:59:00.000-05:00

V-Day is only two weeks away!

The Scratch House site at CafePress has been updated with new heart-wares to treat your sweet this Valentine's Day: cards, magnets, buttons, postage, postcards, hats, T-shirts, pillows, mugs, and more!

Cafe Press is offering free super saver shipping on orders of $50 or more until February 3rd. Coupon code: VDAYSHIP

Blue/Gold Heart

2006-01-30T11:04:00.000-05:00

Owen's Dream

2006-01-24T09:21:00.000-05:00

We found Owen! The prodigal son has returned and the house is full of rejoicing. Tonight we feast on fatted scallops and fancy expensive cheeses.

During the long 10 days that Owen was missing I did a lot of research into lost cat behavior. Here are links to some good information on finding a lost cat (or dog): great essays by Sharon Talbert and Kat Albrecht; detailed profiles of feline temperaments and how they influence where your cat may be at LostAPet.org; tips for successful search techniques by PetRescue.com; and general resources on feline behavior and health from the SPCANOVA.org. For local folks, the New River Valley has a great Animal Shelters Online site with links to Animal Control and Humane Societies on Floyd, Giles, Pulaski, and Montgomery counties - including a listing of lost and found pets. There are numerous national missing pet databases, such as MissingPets.com, where you can post a lost or found pet for free.

We don't know for sure, but suspect that Owen was chased from his home territory by an aggressive feral cat that hangs around our house looking for scraps. We found him hiding out in the ruins of an old abandoned house about 200 yards from home. We hadn't seen him on a search of the same place a week earlier because he was probably still in survival hiding mode, only venturing out days later when his belly started grumbling. He's skinny and worn out from his adventure but happy to be back home, safe and sound.

The Creeping Fish Thing

2006-01-23T09:14:00.000-05:00

Bugs

2006-01-19T10:34:00.000-05:00

This is Owen (aka "O-Bug") enjoying some of Joe's insect and fish paintings.

Owen has been missing since Friday, January 13th. We hope that he is enjoying his walkabout but pray that he comes home to us soon.

The Crane

2006-01-07T13:49:00.000-05:00

A Little Sunshine

2005-12-21T11:44:00.000-05:00

Here's a little sun for your Winter Solstice.

photo by Mary Predny

Waiting for the Bus

2005-12-16T11:54:00.000-05:00

Lovely

2005-12-16T11:52:00.000-05:00

Back From The Mines

2005-12-14T13:45:00.000-05:00

Seed Clusters

2005-12-14T13:43:00.000-05:00

Forest Floor

2005-12-12T11:34:00.000-05:00

Old Hearts

2005-12-07T14:43:00.000-05:00

The 'Old Hearts' are one of the valentines featured on the Scratch House CafePress shop this winter. Other valentine hearts featured on the site include the Red Scratch Heart, Angel Heart, Devil Heart, Black & Blue Heart, and Red Rose Heart.

Cafe Press is having a 25%-off sale on christmas gifts purchased on Wednesday December 7th and Thursday December 8th!