Scenes around town (Woods Hole) Drawbridge

Foot of Little Harbor 

The drawbridge, before coloring

The drawbridge (a good scene but ugly rendering)

Cowboy Resting

 

Abstract of Green Herons

Can't find the previously posted pictures of green herons. Here was what was in mind a few days after drawing that picture:

Another post picture abstraction:

Un Poco de Gracia continues

 Mushrooms with young friends:

Picture of a bong:

Too bad the colors don't duplicate well through the camera and screen.

Waves at Stoney Beach

 

This did not turn out too well but my waves are getting better. An interesting trick is to have the waves backed by something like the jetty, to show their rise and fall, in cross-section.

I tried again a few days later, during a nor'easter:

I am getting better, slowly.

Vineyard Sound - View from Nobska Beach

 

Waterfront Views

Attempts at rendering ripples. Embarrassing really. But I am getting a bit better. 

Here a break in the clouds over the hole, from the yacht club:

Here a break in the clouds over the hole, from the MBL dock, There was a bit of chop and I hoped to have the larger waves visible, limned by the smaller ripples. Guess not.

And

Crispy Oatmeal Cookies

This is from Mel's kitchen, except I have no light brown sugar and use a bit of clear corn syrup instead. Also I make 1/2 a batch, so ingredients are 1/2 original recipe

Ingredients:

•  1/2 cup all-purpose flour
•  3/8 teaspoon baking powder
•  1/4 teaspoon baking soda
•  1/4 teaspoon salt
•  7 tablespoons butter , softened but still slightly cool
•  1/2 cup granulated sugar
•  1/8 cup packed light brown sugar
•  1/2 large egg
•  1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
•  1 1/4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line large, rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. In a large bowl (of a stand mixer or with a handheld electric mixer), beat the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar together until just combined, about 20 seconds. Increase the mixer speed to medium and continue to beat until light and fluffy, about 1 minute longer. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the egg and vanilla and beat on medium-low until well mixed, about 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl again. Add the flour mixture and mix until barely incorporated, 10-20 seconds. It's ok if there are a few dry spots. Gradually add the oats and mix until well-combined, about 30 seconds to 1 minutes. If needed, give the dough a final stir with a wooden spoon to ensure that no flour pockets remain and that the ingredients are evenly distributed.
4. Scoop out about 2 tablespoon-sized mounds of dough and roll them to form balls. Place the cookies about 2 1/2-inches apart on the baking sheet(s) - about 8 cookies per sheet. They will spread quite a bit. Lightly press each cookie to about 3/4-inch thickness (I found after baking one sheet of these that I didn't need to press them at all so use your best cookie judgment).
5. Bake 1 sheet of cookies at a time until the cookies are golden brown, edges are crisp, and centers are still very slightly soft, 13 to 16 minutes. Cooling the cookies completely on the baking sheet will yield crispier, more perfect cookies.

See Thin and Crispy Oatmeal Cookies | Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Modifications:

I made a couple of mistakes adding too much sugar and the cookies melted into each other. After several batches like that, with friends and family constantly sampling one version or another, the conclusion is that my "oatmeal brittle" is better than the original cookie - although not really a cookie.

So: 3/4 cups sugar, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup clear Caro syrup. And reduce the flour, somewhere around 1/4 cup or a bit more.

I find that cooktime of 10 minutes, move bake pans, 5 minutes is enough. Before cooling the cookies, cut them apart.