Fire Dancer

From an expedition to Limontour beach at Pt. Reyes. The best fire ever! The above has no religious or anthropological significance.

Wordsworths at Point Reyes

In the film Pandaemonium, the EEEvil William Wordsworth (John Hannah) -yes, he's painted as a complete villain and mediocrity- takes a walk along the cliff's edge, complaining to his sister Dorothy (Emily Woof) of Coleridge's "velocity". The walk also contains a passage of composition. Wordsworth took a number of images from his sister's journals; In cinematic shorthand, this plays as his proclaiming "I wandered lonely as a cow", with Dorothy suggesting that "cloud" might be a better word.

Photo taken at sky Camp, Point Reyes.

Three Wise Guys

These partial little figures were rescued from the ruins of my parents' house which burned in the Berkeley Hills Fire of 1991. Burn marks are visible as dirty knees on the middle figure. They belonged to a set of figures from my mother's childhood she used to get out Christmas, along with with paper houses and some lead reindeer with broken antlers, and a funny old Santa. These were rescued and repaired by me - here comes the instant philosophy - the way some of us graft stuff on in life because what we have to begin with can seem like it needs ...additions. My parents rebuilt, by the way.

Cranky Holiday post

I don't do well with authority. In addition to ambiguous demand for unspecified faith (perhaps we are being told to believe that that almighty dollar will rise again?) from this window, I had an email from a prominent computer manufacturer instructing me to "Make the joy of the Holidays last all year". This is not my experience of how joy* works - although maybe with certain pharmaceuticals...

My friend Ariella is visible reflected at the right.

*It's more like this

Chuckie - is that you?

Illustration challenge #4

"Confetti?" scoffed Grandpa. "Why, when I was a boy, we celebrated The New Year properly, with the time-honored tradition of _____________________________".

Yes, I know it would be pleasant to spend the week between Christmas and New Year's dozing by the fire...but here's an opportunity hone your visual and verbal skills, so I hope you'll right click to fill in Grandpa's recollection (drawing, photo, collage or embroidery..whatever) the words left missing in the quote. I will have the links in my post on New Year's Day.

Paisley Lion

I was watching Pandaemonium, about Coleridge and Wordsworth, which has a wonderful visual dramatization of "Frost at Midnight", I started with frost, then proceeded to the fractals of this ancestral paisley shawl which turned into the paisley lion below. It's a t-shirt, but redbubble doesn't have this exact shade of green
Would be nice to have all terrors turn into flowers and feathers...

That melody haunts me still...

This is one I like from Snow Cake. What is yours?

No time for tea, woman!

...I'm brooding.

HEEEAAAATHCLIFF!

Where's Heathcliff? Answer tomorrow.

Went on a sketchwalk at San Francisco's Land's End, where I claimed to know the way to the ruined house on the beach. I didn't. Sliding, skidding and muddiness ensued. But the treats at the cafe afterwards tasted all the better for it. Right, fellow sketchwalkers? Right?

Edit: I should mention I didn't draw her in forced perspective, she fell in the water and got a bit bendy.

Relativity

This was a favorite joke of my brother's friend High School best friend Dave .

Outside of the States, a Yankee is someone from the United States

Inside the U.S., a Yankee is someone born North of the Mason-Dixon Line*

If you were born North of the Mason-Dixon Line, a Yankee is someone from New England

If you're a New Englander, a Yankee is someone from Maine

If you were born in Maine, a Yankee is someone who eats pie for breakfast.

To my Maine reader: Jess, if you read this, perhaps you can address its accuracy.

* For my foreign readers, The Mason-Dixon Line divides the North from the South, pretty much reflecting the divisions in the Civil War.