xmas with uncle earl

and my brother when he was a baby.

my uncle earl was always very laid back. he was a carpenter, just like jesus!
so i felt it appropriate that he should be in a place of honor at xmas time.
i guess he was babysitting my brother the day the snapshot was taken (ultimately translated into this painting).

anyway this time of year, i think beyond xmas and on to new years. what habit of mine do i wish to change? i have a couple of weeks to worry about that further.
but it makes me think of lists. lists and lists. almost every magazine has a list of some sort on their cover, or at least one or more articles offered that have lists in them. like, 10 ways to intensify your libido, or 12 ways to diet that includes eating ice cream and hot dogs, or 8 of the most wonderful weekend getaways on a zero budget. (that one includes lots of imagination and imagery...)

so i thought i would create a couple of lists between now and new years day!

here is my list number one:
10 things i hate to see in paintings:

1. i hate to read words in paintings like: "create" "art" "inspire" "imagine" - they come across as very preachy to me and makes me wonder why someone would write "art" while doing it...
2. I hate to see cute and cuddly things in paintings- like doe-eyed kittens in a basket, puppies and kittens together on a blanket, soft bunnies in the grass, babies with big eyes and rosy cheeks blowing dandelions, etc. these cute things again feel preachy to me, as if i need to agree with the artist that these images are what i need to hang on my wall to feel good.
3. clowns - for the most part. BIG EXCEPTION: "Clown Paintings" a collection by diane keaton (check it out on amazon).
4. Tired old joke paintings: paintings of poodles sitting in an outdoor cafe with the Eiffel tower in the background. birdcage door open, feather drifting down and a cat with a smile and a feather stuck to its lips. wait, hold on, these were cartoons i saw as a kid.....
5. shock paintings: poo paintings, female parts exposed and up close, male parts only in a painting.
6. flowers in a vase.
7. sunset over a beach, where you can see the suns orangey reflection in the wet sand. footprint in the wet sand and extra E. U. from me.
8. paintings where the artist uses ALL her favorite colors in one painting. or mixed media paintings where the artist uses ALL her favorite techniques in the same painting. even worse, ALL the colors, plus ALL the possible mediums.
9. textured paintings, where the artist fills the entire paintings with heavy concrete like texture because she just discovered textures from a book she read produced by some paint company and just can't stop.........
10. paintings where the artist decides to glue organic stuff on like leaves and sand and seashells.

uhm, i may have been guilty of half these things some time in my career - maybe that is why i hate them so much now.
i don't think this nearly covers my painting hate list.....do you have any to add to this list?
AND, i have never KNOWINGLY have paintings large private parts in my paintings, however sometimes it has been pointed out in my abstracts ...............................