I picked up a paint brush for the first time in my early 40s. I don’t consider myself a painter or an artist—just someone who appreciates the opportunity to exercise a different kind of creative muscle.I don’t have much time for painting these days, but when I find the time, I revel in every minute in front of that easel. I work primarily in oils and acrylics. My subject matter tends toward landscapes and natural phenomena, but I have been known to produce the occasional abstract painting. Painting, for me, is pure joy.