Cabin Thoughts

A classic Mineral King cabin. (sold oil painting)

In 1986 I married into a Mineral King cabin. I’d always wanted either a cabin or a beach house. Here in Tulare County, cabins are more available and accessible than beach houses. It has worked out well, even to the point that my art business is called Cabin Art. (Or Cabinart. . . for a Typo-Psycho, I am awfully ambivalent about the spelling of this invented word.)

But what exactly is a cabin? A dear old friend and I began discussing this, and I was surprised that I am unable to define the word. Some cabin neighbors along with Off Trail Guy and I had a discussion about the definition of “cabin”, and the word “woods” came up several times in both discussions.

My hiking buddy suggested I try Webster. I was so caught off guard that I said something truly clueless:  “What is that? Some internet thing?” We all got a big laugh when I realized she meant Noah Webster and the Merriam-Webster dictionary, not some World Wide Web gizmo.

We had an old dictionary at the cabin, so I looked up “cabin”. The 3rd definition said, “A small, rude hut”.

Clearly the word “rude” has changed in meaning since the dictionary was published in 1935. I looked up “rude” and saw “Poorly constructed”.

Alrighty, then. A cabin is a small, poorly constructed hut.

My Very Wise Dad always told us it is better to laugh than to cry. I might even fall down laughing at this definition, especially when folks mention their Shaver Lake or Tahoe cabins.

Let’s talk more about this tomorrow.

How do you define “cabin”? (Don’t spoil things by looking it up first – just speak from your gut or your heart.)

Mineral King on Friday

Shall we conclude the tale of our White Chief hike?

Trail Guy thought it would be fun to go down on the other side of the canyon rather than follow the trail. I will now begin referring to him as Off Trail Guy. It was really hard. My hiking buddy and I got giddy silly, and I fell down laughing. Actually I fell because it is tricky to pick a route and pick footing, especially when there are long grasses covering the rocks. Off Trail Guy and my hiking buddy managed to remain vertical; my buddy’s husband fell once. He probably wasn’t laughing. If my buddy wasn’t with me, I might have been scared. She is very brave. We stopped several times to take cool pictures (and to regroup and perhaps to cuss Off Trail Guy).

Oh no. Not ANOTHER unknown yellow flower!
Pink leaves. A diversion.
Swirly rock. Another diversion.
We came down THAT, the left side of the canyon as one looks up. The real trail is on the right side.
My favorite Explorer’s Gentian is hanging on and looks striking among its frost-damaged yellow leaves.

Holy guacamole, it was a 9+ mile day, much of it off trail. My hiking buddy and I came up with a rating system, 1 being on a flat trail or maybe even a sidewalk, and 10 being not speaking to our husbands for a week. Off Trail Guy GUARANTEED this was a 5; it was 8.5. Hmmm. . .

Only 1/4 mile left to go. I love me some flat trail that pulls me along, and green might be my favorite color while hiking.

We learned that Off Trail Guy rates trails differently than we do. We learned that we can laugh our way through difficulties. We learned another way to not come home from White Chief. And we learned that we have a strong friendship, not bruised by difficult routes.

Mineral King on Thursday?

. . . the saga of a busy Labor Day weekend continues. “Saga” may be an overblown word, but it is fun to use.

There are never enough hiking days, nor is there enough desire to get my hiney moving every time I go up the hill. I feel the calendar shrinking, and decided it was time to fulfill my desire to see the upper part of White Chief this year. There were 4 of us on the hike; one had a bowl of Cheerios, another had a bowl of Crankios, 2 of us had normal food, and we set off.

Within the first mile, we encountered these energetic folks from Ukraine, now Los Angeles. They did Great Big Hikes THREE DAYS IN A ROW! That included climbing Mineral Peak. . . very impressive. They also taught us that our name, Botkin, is famous in Ukraine because jaundice is called “Botkin’s Disease”. Nice, eh?

Mineral Peak
These cabin ruins at the beginning of White Chief canyon had something to do with John Crabtree. I know a man by that name, but he’s not related. That’s okay, because I’m not related to jaundice either.
White Chief as it appears from my position of semi-collapse among the Crabtree cabin ruins.
This Lodgepole pine is leaning from an avalanche, and its branches look like little trees (with a little red fir showing 2nd from the left on the other side.)
Trail Guy went to the falls to refill our water bottles near where the trail crosses the creek. (We live dangerously and are probably overconfident about what water we drink while out on the trails.)
Looking back down over the lower canyon from the trail among the mines, caves and tunnels.
See? mines and tunnels and caves!
Yep, this is the trail. It isn’t scary to me, but I am better at up than down.
See? caves! Be careful. . . Yes, I know, duh.
Trail Guy shared a laugh with some Bay Area cavers who thought they knew secrets that Trail Guy didn’t about White Chief.
This is at the top of the canyon, a peaceful place I love when the mosquitoes aren’t around. They weren’t around on September 2.
I put my feet in the water and then looked down the line of my hiking buddies, as we ate our lunches together in this lovely hard-earned spot.
HEY! This is a miniature Grass of Parnassus!

To be continued tomorrow. . .

Tough Decision, Part Two

There are many seasoned artists who freely share their experience with other artists. One of the nuggets I’ve gleaned through the years is “Get rid of your junk”. There is no reason to keep things around that do not sell or do not represent your best work.

The Cabins of Mineral King represented my best work in 1998. I draw better now, which is good; I would better have improved over the last 20 years or that would be a sorry situation. (That was an awkward sentence – anyone know a good editor?)

Still, the unsold drawings haunt me, take up space and just need to go away, either through a sale or through a shredder.

Before they go into the shredder, here is a chance for you to own an original pencil drawing for a peanut butter sandwich, as my dad used to say. I will consider offers, as long as they are not insulting.

One month from today, October 7, is the deadline on this batch of drawings.

4-1/2 x 5″, $20, SOLD
6-1/2 x 4″, $25, SOLD
7 x 10″, $90
4-1/2 x 5″, $25, SOLD
4-1/2 x 6-1/2″, $35, SOLD
5 x 7″, $40. SOLD

Various Things in Mineral King

Happy Birthday, Judy-o!!

This month I am spending a large chunk of time just goofing off instead of working. This means I don’t have much to post about in terms of my art business. But, does anyone care? And is it necessary to post five days a week, as is my habit?  It isn’t Friday, and yet I’m going on and on about Mineral King. Again, I ask “does anyone care”?

I do. I care. Been doing this blog for over ten years, five days a week, and not gonna stop now. Nope. Not.

So there.

This is similar to the view I drew in pencil earlier this summer, but 30 years later.
Horses seem to be all about dust, flies, and manure.
Because of this guy, I began teaching drawing lessons in 1994. Thank you, Steven!!
Cabins require maintenance.
Standard scene. Yawn. Just another day in Paradise.
A juniper tree along the trail.
Ever heard of Western Eupatorium? Glad to be of service in enhancing your wildflower knowledge.
Weird horse (but at least it isn’t sticking out its tongue).
Who are these guys?? Some people work at their cabins; others just hang around waiting for Happy Hour. We love and appreciate our cabin neighbors.
That weirdness on the Red Fir branch is a type of mistletoe that grows on conifers.
We admired our neighbor’s radio because it worked beautifully, unlike the THREE that are in our cabin and HE GAVE IT TO US!!! See? Great neighbors all around. I’ve never heard of this brand, but wow, I am impressed! Talk radio, Giants baseball, and music all come in clearly.

Busy Times in Mineral King

There’s that annoying word, “busy”. Full calendar, perhaps, might be a better thing to say. No, that isn’t really true, because I scheduled three days of doing just about nothing. Mineral King has been busy because with the closure of Yosemite, visitors are coming hard and fast into Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. It has taken them a bit longer to discover Mineral King, but the back country trails have been filling up.

The Mineral King Preservation Society has an annual event that used to be called “The Hoedown”. Someone finally pointed out that no one knows what that word actually means, and the MKPS had the good sense to change it to the classier “Music in the Mountains”.

Trail Guy was the organizer, and he did a great job! Excellent evening together in Mineral King for anyone who had the good fortune to be there.

Keith Hamm and Esther Zurcher call themselves “Mankin Creek” and are a folk-type music husband/wife duo from Three Rivers. It is always a treat to hear them.
Music in the Mountains took place on this old cement slab above the parking lot at the end of the road.
Free picnic-style dinner was provided to all 93 folks who attended (except one who wouldn’t even eat the veggie sandwiches because they have mayo – hunh?)
This is one of our favorite grandpas, enjoying seeing his granddaughter dance.
And this is the granddaughter with her mom.
Others danced too – this one was for Louise Jackson, the originator of the event who could not attend this year. Her favorite song is “Don’t Fence Me In”, so Keith and Esther played it for her. I had to go do something busy so I wouldn’t cry during this one.
These really aren’t grumpy old men (and no, Jake, I’m not calling you “old”). They are quite genial fellows who are listening intently and enjoying the music. Maybe they are trying not to cry here.
Trail Guy is ‘splaining how things work.
Jim Ingram provided the sound system and a few cowboy favorites.
Rich and Nikki came from Three Rivers for the evening and showed us all how to dance.
Nikki’s cousin Stefni was a surprise singing guest with a truly beautiful voice.

A good time was definitely had by all!

Lingering Wildflowers in Mineral King

I’ve spent more time in Mineral King than home working in August so the subject needs Friday as well as Monday next week.

Mineral King’s wildflowers peak in July, but there are still beautiful sights in August.

This dude is too busy to notice the stellar jay feather. He is a Lodgepole chipmunk.
Trail Guy on the Franklin/Farewell trail.
Yo, Bucky.
The flowers at the Franklin/Farewell trail junction are fading, but Bigelow Sneezeweed is still going strong.
We accompanied our good friend on the first four miles of her week-long backpack trip.

This girl can step out, even wearing a backpack that probably tops 45 lbs. I had to focus to stay on her 6, carrying my 4 lb. day pack. How embarrassing. When we got to the Trail Junction (affectionately known as the “Wildflower Cafe”), we had a snack, and then I announced that I had gone as far as I wanted to go.

I came to see some Explorer’s Gentian, and they did not disappoint.

They make the Sierra Gentian look boring by contrast. (Or perhaps my photos do that.)

Crystal Creek is slow and low.

Eight was enough miles for the day. We got back to the cabin before the sky opened up, and I got more knitting done. (Our friend probably was at her destination, hunkered down in her tent.)

It’s getting wet out there.

Mineral King Wildflowers

Because I went coastal last week, I don’t have any new stories to tell about my crazy life in Mineral King. (not truly crazy, just me exaggerating. . .)

Instead, here are 10 photos of Mineral King wildflowers for you to enjoy.

Swamp onion
Penstemon
Crimson columbine
Indian paintbrush
Giant blazing star
Kelley’s leopard lily
Coneflower
Swamp onion again
Mountain Pride (or Pride of the Mountains, depending on which book you read.)
Pennyroyal

Do you have a favorite? Do you know any of these by different names?

Saw/Saw 3

Saw/Saw, a mini mural of Sawtooth Peak on a round saw blade, was almost finished.

I fixed the camera setting, stood on the ladder to photograph it, and then realized that the trees on the bottom were crooked. Of course I only noticed this after putting the photo in an email to the customers, but immediately after sending it, I straightened them up. This is tricky business on a circle – how do I know vertical is vertical without straight edges of the canvas or wall to guide me?

That’s why I get paid the Big Bucks. (Fall down laughing.)

Saw/Saw 2

Welcome back! I knew you would be interested to know how Saw/Saw turned out. Not sure if this qualifies as a real mural or not; I think it might just be an Odd Job.

Time to start on the ridges in front of Sawtooth, and meanwhile I am still wondering why things look darker on the camera screen. I also realized that if I would put a circular mask over the rectangular photo that I’d get things more proportionally correct.
Sawtooth didn’t have quite the right angle, so here I corrected my shapes.
Better, as each step and layer ought to be.
First coating on the rest of the blade.
Correcting the colors and shapes on the lower parts.

Finally, I figured out what was wonky with my camera. I had been experimenting with the settings, still not quite understanding what they all meant. When I changed “Poster Effect” to “Program” (who chooses these words??), It photographed more accurately.

But now the computer is not behaving properly, and when I export the photo of the finished Saw/Saw, it says it goes somewhere, and then it isn’t there.

My Mac is lying to me and cheating you out of seeing the finished saw blade!

Boy am I mad.

Maybe it will fix itself and work tomorrow. Besides, a job is never finished until these 2 things happen: A. The customer is happy and B. I have signed it.