The idea for this painting came to me while standing at this particular bus stop in the summer of 2001. I was waiting for the bus when I noticed a procession of ants on the sidewalk a few inches from my feet. I found it sad that they could never experience anything on a higher level, but on the other hand, I realized how lucky they were that they did not have to go through the trials and tribulations that humans have to go through. You see, this was around the time that my father was waiting for the hospital to call him to set a date for his eye operation. This is where I got the idea of doing a painting from an ant's point of view.

Just as I was about to ask my father to pose for me, he came down with a severe case of shingles. He thinks the shingles was caused by stress brought on by the state of his deteriorating vision and anticipation of the hospital calling him. Luckily, the hospital called and his eye operation was a success. It took about a month for the painful effects of the shingles on his body to subside before I could ask him to pose for me again. I thought it would be clear sailing from that point on. I was wrong. This time, it was the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center towers that postponed the start of the painting. I was so shocked for the next couple of days that it took away my desire to paint. It took at least a couple of weeks for me to get back on the horse and into the groove again.

I intended to paint three people from the onset. My father, mother, and good friend, Fiorella. Fiorella is one tough cookie. Watch out! She says what comes into her mind. She kept pulling my leg for several years asking me when I was going to put her in a painting. Not to be outdone, I kept telling her I envisioned her in a particularly uncomplimentary painting. We had fun with that for a couple of years. I think she was truly surprised when I finally asked her to be in a painting. Of course she came dressed in this fancy top just to complicate my life! Love those sunglasses though. Very Audrey Hepburn/Jackie Kennedy like. Really fits her well. Her presence on the right side of the painting is a perfect complementary bookend to the electrical pole on the left.