The boys are going a bit Stir Crazy, so in an effort to distract them I've suggested making a couple of Rainbow Trail drawings for the front windows.
This seems to be occupying much of the family – while Wilson and Byron are drawing and colouring, Nërp is on hand to give technical artistic advice, Antony is passing the crayons to whoever needs them and Tiny Toy is filling the vital and indispensable role of Paperweight!
HuffPost described the Rainbow Trail like this:
Whatever the weather, be sure to look out for a rainbow on your government-sanctioned walk, run or cycle today.
Families across the UK have been creating these gloriously technicolour artworks for their windows or driveways to lift the spirits of those passing by.
The trend appears to have been started by a group of mums in Bari, Italy, but Kezia Roberts, 42, from Horsforth, Leeds, was one of the first to bring this cheery idea to the UK which she has called ‘Chase the Rainbow’.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar is another book with which I am very familiar from when my children were young.
The main feature of the original book are the big holes in the pages supposedly eaten by the eponymous caterpillar; the characteristic trait of Wilson's reworking is sticky brownish smears on the pages, representing ants which the Hungry Anteater has (rather messily) eaten.
Wilson was proud to point out that the smudges have the characteristic smell of ants: formaldehyde.
I must check with him whether formaldehyde-infused books are actually safe for young readers to handle…
Wilson's been in the Dressing-Up Box again, recreating old master paintings...
After The Anteater With The Pearl Earring (which someone unkindly said made him look like his big sister Andrea) he confessed he fancied trying something a bit more macho: Frans Hals' The Laughing Anteater.
Hi, we are 🐝 Polly and 🐝 Billi The Bees, and this is our Guest Blog!
After all the cold, wet weather we've been having lately we'd been looking forward to a nice day out with our family – perhaps a picnic in the garden among the dandelions – but Wilson has offered to briefly re-open his Art Gallery and give us a reduced-price group booking to have a quick look round, and we didn't like to refuse.
Generally speaking, we Bees don't know a lot about Art, but we do know what we like.
Also, what we DON'T like.
What we like is: nice paintings of flowers.
What we don't like is: Abstract, Conceptual, Installation, Minimalist, Surreal and 'Difficult' Art in general.
Oh and Dada – we don't like Dada-ist Art at all, so we're really not expecting to like anything in Wilson's Art Gallery.
Although as Bees, we are FAR too polite to say so – and it will be a day out for our children Johnson Major and Johnson Minor – so we're just going to keep our mandibles shut, bite our probosces and keep smiling if we see something we don't like, because that's The Bee Way!
So, we've been The Bees and we'll see you again next month!
Until then, BEEEEEEEEEEEE GOOD, Art Lovers.
Stay indoors and keep washing your Tarsi!
Wilson is getting bored and has raided the Dressing-Up Box...
Jīqìrén this morning presented Wilson with her Architect's Sketch for the renovation of his Asteroid Shelter.
It was very impressive, showing a beautifully furnished area many times larger than the current structure.
There's no doubt that Wilson was impressed, asking many probing questions about various details.
Finally, he asked the crucial question. 'Have you costed this?'
'I think you could bring it in for a couple of hundred K, if you didn't go overboard with the air recycling and wall art,' she replied.
Wilson was aghast! 'A couple of hundred K?' he demanded, 'What, two hundred thousand English pounds?'
'Pounds sterling, obviously. Plus VAT,' the android replied, adding, 'It would sound a lot more in Yen!'
Wilson shuffled his feet awkwardly and cleared his throat a few times before finally asking, 'Do you think we could do anything for about, um… well, £25?
Jīqìrén silently closed her sketchbook and walked away, while Wilson poured himself his first Quarantini of the day…
Having briefly distanced himself from the problem of what to plagiarise next, Wilson's subconscious brain has up with an answer: The Anteater Who Came To Tea.
Although of course, a cute anteater turning up on one's doorstep might not cause quite the same alarm and panic as a hungry carnivore demanding food, it might nevertheless be a little… disconcerting.
I've read the original of this book a thousand times to my own children, and I enjoyed the very sympathetic animated adaptation over Xmas, so I was a little concerned about what Wilson would do with it – but actually he's done a really Bang-On job!
Sophie, her Father (still preoccupied with his beer), the night-time trip to the café, Sophie visiting the shops with her Mum to buy a big tin of Anteater Food in case the anteater ever returns – all have been handled very sympathetically.
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Here is an interesting article about the author of the ORIGINAL book, The TIGER Who Came To Tea:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-25027090
