Category: Learned List

Happy 2021!

Yeah, yeah, I know about 2020. No complaining here, and no unprecedented overusage of the word “unprecedented”. Just keeping on keeping on. Steady, sort of predictable, finding the good things in life about being a full time artist in Central California, AKA “flyover country” in the Golden State. (We feed the world, and don’t let anyone forget it.) 

1. Have you heard of a “Covid fee”?? I ordered some photographic prints from Shutterfly and there was a “covid fee” added to my order. What in the world for??
2. Drying persimmons the hoshigaki method is so bizarre but the best dried fruit I’ve ever eaten in my life. A friend is trying this method and sent me this photo. She also sent a photo of some finished ones, but they look rather alarming. I want to try this next year!
   
3. Rosemary and Thyme is a lovely thriving gift/clothing/home goods store in downtown Exeter where my studio was for 4 exciting years. The owner is one of the most creative, original and innovative people I’ve ever had the privilege of knowing, and her store is now becoming an online shop. If you like cool stuff, beautiful stuff, good stuff, for yourself or for others, this is the local place to support.
4. Maeve Binchy really is my favorite novelist. I’ve loved her writing since the 1980s, and with the current difficulties of getting library books, I started rereading her books. She is the only author whose books I automatically bought and kept. (I used to buy Sue Grafton’s books but decided I wasn’t going to reread them so sent them on to unknown bookshelves; also used to buy Barbara Kingsolver’s books but hit a few I didn’t like so that was the end of that.)
5. There is so much confusion and conflict in trying to discern truth these days. I heard from several sources that there are 21 cases of The Wuhan in our little town and one person has died of it. The truth is that there have been 21 known cases since the thing started and the person who died (a friend and former drawing student), died from heart failure after a surgery that didn’t turn out well for her.
6. Using “www” before your web address is so last year.
7. People aspire to riches in order to avoid ugliness.
8. Ring picking is something I never have heard of. It is a method of picking citrus to a particular size, using a metal ring to measure each piece as you pick. How could I never have heard of this before??
9. This isn’t anything I’ve learned but maybe something for you to learn about me. I enjoy doing yardwork and occasionally assist a friend with some of her vacation rentals. Sometimes I just can’t resist using the prunings to make a wreath.
   
10. This isn’t new information either, but Pippin is just too cute to not keep taking pictures of him.

11. And final piece of irrelevant jibber-jabber: Persimmons are so beautiful. They taste good when dried the traditional way. (No thanks, I don’t like persimmon cookies.)

Remember, I make art that you can understand of places and things you love at prices that won’t scare you.

Oops. I think I let Pippin into the house.

1. I found a new blog with a superb writer, Marianne Wilburn, called Small Town Gardener.
2. She also has a great book about gardening, written in her conversational style – Big Dreams, Small Garden.  It is one of the more realistic approaches to gardening I’ve read.

   

3. Through Marianne’s writing, I found a fascinating YouTube channel (?) or is it a person to follow; her name is Liziqi, and it is about a young, strong, beautiful Chinese woman who lives with her grandmother and gardens and cooks. What?? Yeppers. Fascinating to watch. (I’ve seen it before but can’t remember when or why.)
4. I learned in November how much shopping does not appeal to me. Or maybe it is stuff that does not appeal. I’ve never liked shopping, but this really drove home the point. A friend told me about Jane.com, an online shopping mall. I looked, and all the stuff almost made me twitch.  (No, I am not a Communist – thank you for your concern.)

   

5. When customers are in a hurry and my schedule is full, I learned to tell them that there is a rush charge. This is the first time I’ve done this, and I had three opportunities in November. This takes the sting out of having to work on Saturdays and Sundays to meet their deadlines. Two of three customers agreed to pay the charge.  The third customer made an adjustment in his hurried plans and said he could wait the normal 2 weeks that we discussed last summer; even two weeks feels like a squeeze right now, but I got the job finished.
6. There is something new, an alternative to FaceBook, called Parler. I wonder. . . but, no. I have enough to do.
7. There is something else new, an alternative to YouTube, called Rumble. 
8. A friend told me 2 really dumb jokes that he was surprised I hadn’t heard before: A. Why does a cowboy want to die with his boots on? So it won’t hurt when he kicks the bucket. B. Why does a man want to be buried in his truck? Because it hasn’t ever failed to get him out of a hole.
9. I ran across the term “EDM” in a couple of different places and got curious. It is Electronic Digital Music, and in my opinion, it qualifies as an audio assault rather than music. (In an elderly voice coming from inside my head: “My goodness, these young folks today!”)
10. In-N-Out has good hamburgers. This is a weird admission from someone who didn’t eat red meat for 17 years, and still feels a bit squeamish about burger. My conclusion is that it is the sauce that makes it so good. Wait – didn’t Micky-Ds used to advertise “special sauce”? This was so out of my realm of normal that I felt compelled to share the information. (Thank you for lunch, Jon!)

And here are a few more photos from November that didn’t fit into the list. (Nope, not going to photograph my food – this is NOT Facebook and no one who reads my blog comes here to see my lunch, thank goodness.)

P.S. Can you spot Pippin?

For a couple of years I have been posting lists of things I learn at the end of each month. This year it feels particularly important to encourage you, Blog Readers, that 2020 isn’t entirely filled with difficulties and mayhem. 

1. Kayaking! It was so fun, and easier than stand-up paddle boarding (well, duh).
2. White pelicans are huge and don’t dive like brown pelicans do.
3. Harbor seals and elephant seals are different. Did you know that? Elephant seals are playful and curious, sometimes trying to climb onto kayaks. Harbor seals are much more shy.
4. A friend sent a Youtube link to a song called Rayburn Crane by someone named Tom Russell – it is about a guy in Mineral King!
5. “8 million people have left California” – I heard this on a podcast, but the speaker didn’t say in what time frame. I think he must have been speaking of the past 10 years (since the last census). I looked it up, and the main states attracting California refugees are Texas, Arizona and Washington. I know people who have moved to Arizona, Idaho, Wyoming, and Colorado.
6. A little mosquito has been a real nuisance this summer (I didn’t save the newspaper article with the name of the bug.) The mosquito is smaller, it is out in the daytime, you can’t feel it bite, and it itches and sometimes swells up way more than regular mosquitoes. To add insult to injury, it carries West Nile virus. Good grief, what next??
7. Retail therapy late at night can be expensive. I ordered some clothes from a site, knowing it was probably a mistake. The sizing was wonky, the fabric was cheap, the clothing differed from the photos. In order to return things, the customer has to email and get an authorization code. The company didn’t reply in a timely manner, the 15 day return window started narrowing, and finally the company said they would offer a 15% refund so “you can buy cloth to repair clothing”. Or, if you prefer, they will give you the address in China where the order can be returned. WHAT?? Our local thrift shop just scored some brand new items. Sigh.
8. Vanilla water – I invented this because my giant bottle of vanilla extract ran out but had some residue in the bottom that I didn’t want to waste. I filled it with water, put it in the fridge, and it was SO GOOD!
9. Rock stacking – There are cairns or “ducks” along routes where trails aren’t visible, and this differs from rock stacking or balancing. This article goes into depth on the topic. Like almost everything, a little is interesting, copycats turn it into a problem, and then finger-waggers come along and turn it all sour.
10. This isn’t new, but it has been several years since I showed you – this is the link to the website of an artist whose work amazes me in its brilliance, precision and subtle humor. Her name is Sandra Busby.
11. This is new information to my blog readers: one of my drawing students had a Cooks Illustrated magazine with beautiful art on the cover. We looked up the artist, Robert Papp, and just swooned over his fruits and vegetables. Later that day, I reached for my favorite stamps to put one on an envelope, and was gobsmacked to see that they were Robert Papp’s work!
12. I can draw from my computer screen instead of ordering prints. This is a new experience for me. Using both print and on-screen provides the best information, but sometimes there isn’t enough time to wait for professionally made prints; my tired Epson printer is a poor option because it uses too much ink, has incorrect colors, and prints with stripes in the photos.

The summary lists continue as I keep working on some private commissions, a fancy Art Speak word for custom artwork.

Personally, not professionally, this happened in the last weird year:

• Tried and thoroughly enjoyed kayaking
• Tried and thoroughly enjoyed stand-up paddle boarding (even thought it made my feet hurt – a weird result)
• Missed church on Easter Sunday for the first time in my life
• Realized that I like not having social obligations
• The lock-down reinforced how much I like being at home.
• We managed to keep 3 cats alive by locking them inside the garage each night (although sometimes they still go rogue)
• Learned what possessions matter when facing evacuation from both our main home and our cabin
• Realized how much I depend on the library
• Learned how thin the veneer of civilization is in our country and how easily people are controlled by fear
• Learned how people share food with one another as a gesture of love especially in hard times – we got more food brought to us and shared more food with friends than I ever remember in the past.

What’s on your list? (Does anyone besides me do this sort of evaluating and list making?)

In September I learned nine things, many of which I wish hadn’t been necessary.

1. Did you know that shower mixing valves come from the factory preset at a low temperature? Did you know that you can adjust the temperature by asking The Duck? (You might use The Google; I use The Duck, as in DuckDuckGo).
2. AQI – Air Quality Index – Suddenly everyone is discussing the number of the air. There is a website called Airnow.gov  where you can obsessively type in your zip code all day long and then compare your number to that of your sisters in other zip codes who are obsessively typing in their zip codes.
3. “Meat bees” are not bees, but wasps, actually Yellow Jackets. They don’t live on pollen and nectar, but on meat, usually from dead animals or picnickers. They can sting repeatedly, unlike a bee that dies after it stings. I have made baking soda paste to take out the pain for 3 different cabin neighbors this year. Those dudes HURT, but baking soda mixed with water fixes the pain immediately (and stops working when it gets dry).
4. When ash falls outside, you can easily locate all the spider webs.
5. It is difficult to decide if a cough is due to The Virus or if it is due to very bad air. Very Bad Air. Very Bad Air. VERY BAD AIR!!
6. Tea made from boiled leaves of the Wooly Mullein plant is supposed to be good for respiratory troubles; it tastes like boiled weeds.
7. When there is a possibility of evacuating one’s home, one quickly decides what stuff matters and what is meh. But the longer the wait to know if one must evacuate, the longer the list grows of what to take.

   

8. We have a tremendous number of helpful, kind, concerned, generous friends, more than anyone deserves. So many offers to haul our stuff, store our stuff, host us if we were evacuated. Really took some of the edge off of wondering what to do. 
9. Finding truth seems harder than ever, and the topics seem more weighty than ever. You can find evidence, science, experience, and convincing facts for any side to an argument. Do masks help or don’t they? If they work, why do we have to distance ourselves? And if distancing helps, why do we have to wear masks? And if both of those things are the answer, why is so much still shut down? Has global warming caused the fires or not? Will managing forests harm the environment? Don’t fires harm the environment??

Makes me tired. Anyone want to recommend a good book to read as an escape? Never mind. The library is closed again. I don’t want to buy any books. I don’t want to buy anything. If I own it, I’ll have to decide whether to add it to the pile of other things to grab and go, if that becomes necessary.

1. Dang, a card game – when a certain friend comes to our cabin, she forces us to play games. She taught it well, but without practice, I’ve already forgotten how. It might have been fun. Being with her is the fun part.
2. Yahtzee research – while she was there, I got curious. How many times does one need to roll to get a Yahtzee? We did it with 3 rolls per attempt, like in the game. Several times it happened in just the first three attempts; one time it took 63 turns. The average was about 17-20 tries, and the game of Yahtzee only provides 13 turns (maybe it is 15). We also tried it with rolling as many times as necessary. This was entirely random, and I have forgotten the results, although the number 94 seems relevant.
3. Borgi – a neighbor had a weird little dog. I said, “What is that? A cross between a Border Collie and Corgi?” She said, “Yes, it is a Borgi.” WHAT? In spite of my cat preference, I guessed this. (Gold Star for me.)
4. Transplanting grass – Our one remaining lawn is sparse and spotty. I have been transplanting clumps of grass from the back side of the house where the lawn was wrecked 21 years ago in the remodel of this place. I have requested that Trail Guy not mow in case these clumps will produce seeds, or perhaps spread by root growth. The cats are loving the tall grass. Will Miracle-Gro help? More will be revealed.
5. I need a reason to paint – When work ceased to come in, I lost interest in producing. This is mostly due to an aversion to excess stuff, whether paintings, drawings, or one-function kitchen items. I like painting, but not when it just builds up my inventory without hope of showing or selling.
6. “My choices are not a commentary on yours.” I read this somewhere, and it seemed appropriate after I talked about all the things I like to make from scratch. It might have made some of my readers feel inadequate. No reason for this, because my choices are NOT a commentary on your choices. Really. Just be you, and I’ll be me. It will work out just fine.
7. “Prone” means face down; “supine” means flat on one’s back. I didn’t know this until a lengthy conversation with a doctor friend who went into way more detail than I could comprehend – hence, I came away with 2 new vocabulary words instead of whatever else he was saying.
8. 1996 Honda Accords are no longer the most stolen year and model of car – Fernando is safe! (Safer. Besides, can the bad guys drive a stick shift??)
9. Stand up paddle boarding is FUN! There is nothing athletic about me, and I have zero interest in sports of any kind. Stand up paddle boarding is a way to motate on a lake in a quiet manner. I probably won’t pursue this in any large way (as in buy the equipment), but it was quite thrilling to realize that this is a sport that I can do.

   

1. We are having a garlic shortage. Why? Was there a “blight” in Gilroy? Does our garlic come from China? Do people cooking at home use more garlic than restaurants? I’m glad that 4 bulbs I planted survived and are ready to harvest. This is tricky stuff to grow, because the gophers like it and nearby weeds keep it from getting very large.
2. When someone commissions me to make custom art, even if I show every single step of the process and the customer approves, sometimes there is disappointment. So, I learned to be more involved in the process, offer design opinions and not assume that the customer knows his mind. (Why has it taken me 33 years to learn this? Is it a lesson that I knew, but put on hold for some customers? What’s wrong with me? Can this artist be saved??)
3. I can live without the library. I don’t like it, but I can do it anyway.
4. Frederick Russell Burnham was a big deal explorer, adventurer, soldier, miner, and friends with Teddy Roosevelt. Born in 1861, died in 1947, and buried in Three Rivers! I am reading his biography, A Splendid Savage by Steve Kemper. SINCE THE LIBRARY IS CLOSED, I guess you’ll have to buy a copy if you want to read it. (Mine is borrowed from the friend who told me about the guy). Here. Use this link and I might earn a quarter from Amazon. (It opens in a new tab so you won’t lose your place here.)
5.  I don’t exercise enough. Thought I was in decent shape until we hiked to Timber Gap, when I was sure that someone had both stretched and tilted the trail. Will I exercise more and harder now? I DON’T FEEEEL LIKE IT. (Oh yeah? Do you FEEEEL like hiking without pain?) I think the ongoing battle with the inner lazy fat girl will never cease.
6. It is vital to print out on paper any book that I am designing. I almost took a shortcut and skipped that step on my current project (a private book that will only be available to the person who hired me.) The better version of myself printed it anyway, and I was appalled by the formatting errors, and 5 typos. FIVE – appalled, I tell you! Big lesson learned – ALWAYS print it to proofread on paper; I will find things that I missed on the screen.
7. Cars get dirty just parked in garages. Weird.
8. My nephew can write music and sing! Want to hear him? The link here is to his latest song “Slow”.  Austin Harms (tap or click on his name)
9. The painting above was included in the last email newsletter I sent out, and several people referred to it as a mural BECAUSE I DIDN’T IDENTIFY IT AS AN OIL PAINTING FOR SALE! This reluctance to appear “sellsy” is NOT helpful to my newsletter subscribers (and you can also become a newsletter subscriber by using the SUBSCRIBE TO ENEWSLETTER thing on the blog, but it doesn’t show up on a “smart” phone so you’ll need to be on a desktop or a laptop). A friend whose business it is to help people with their social media helped me learn this. #Hashtag Hostess Angele Black is BRILLIANT at her business!

What did you learn in May?