I’m taking a hike…

First stop El Paso, then on to Marfa.  I’ll see you when I get back!

Coincidence…

Recently a couple of friends called to tell me that there was a book reviewed on NPR I that I need to read. It’s about a boy who draws maps of his world. Of course, I ran out and bought  The Selected Works of T. S. Spivet right away. I love it. There are so many coincidences in the book, things that remind me of my childhood, ideas that I’ve had for map making, etc.  I find T. S. Spivet’s mother, Dr. Clair,  to be a very intriguing character. She is a coleopterist (entomologist who specializes in beetles) and has spent 20 years searching for the allusive tiger monk beetle. The other day I was thinking about her  as I was scanning a few  maps that I had made and wondering if I should even continue with this sketchbook. After all, T.S. Spivet had pretty much scooped me and published many of my ideas already….

Just then a huge, gargantuan, buzzing  beetle came in from my screened porch and was frantically richoceting off the walls, my monitor, my HEAD, the window…. Needless to say I beat a very hasty retreat out of my studio, slammed the door and ran down the stairs. I am no Dr. Clair. I did not re-enter my studio until the next day. I found the beetle, belly up on the floor. I scooped him up with a page from my circus calendar and proceeded to photograph him. The above photo shows the perceived size of said beetle (compare to tightrope walker) as well as the actual size (compare to key). Below is a map of the beetle’s crazy shaky journey around my head and my subsequent escape. Whew.

I am about a third of the way through The Selected Works of T. S. Spivet. I can’t wait to find out what will happen next….. it is fast becoming my Jumanji.

ps. To see the belly of the beetle beast, go to my flickr photos.  And while you are there check out the work of my friend GunnerGirl. She makes the most fabulous beetle drawings ever.

a broken heart

I broke a wine glass yesterday. My daughter and I were marveling at the perfect broken heart in the glass. I turned to chuck it into the trashcan but she stopped me saying, “No mom, you HAVE to take a picture of it!” Afterall “a broken heart can make great art”.  Silly, huh?

Summertime

A cooler full of water balloons.

Icy cukes.

Thunder cake.

A fairie camp fire.

Graduations

This week my older daughter graduated from middle school and will be going on to high school. My younger daughter graduated from elementary school and will be going on to middle school. Big changes. Here is a map of my day on Friday:

Yes, I lost it and started crying when Sylvia’s kindergarten teacher got up and spoke. Embarrassing to admit, but true. How did the time fly so fast? Wasn’t I just volunteering in that kindergarten class, tying shoes? Passing out cookies?  But, no I don’t want to go back. I am very proud of both girls’ progress.

I’d like to share this with everyone. I have watched this video so many times. And showed it to every graduate I know,  and  some parents too. It’s the best advice I can imagine giving any of us.

According to wikipedia this video is  “based on Mary Schmich’s “Advice, like youth, probably just wasted on the young” was published in the Chicago Tribune as a column on June 1, 1997. In her introduction to the column, she described it as the commencement address she would give if she were asked to give one.”

Thanks to Krishni for bringing it to my attention. xoxox

Paul Klee – Twittering Machine – 1922

A blog-flickr-twitter friend recently mentioned that she saw the influence of Paul Klee in one of my maps. He is indeed a favortite of mine.  It’s been a while since I’ve visited with his work so I did a bit of research and found this marvelous image!  The original is at MOMA .  I can’t wait to visit it in person. I also found a wonderful except about him from one of my favorite books, The Shock of the New by Robert Hughes. I need to re-read that book. It’s been too long.

And then I found that he was also a poet! The book Paul Klee, Poet/Painter by K. Porter Aichele went directly onto my “to-read” list.

A book, a poem and a painting….. A google trifecta!

Elevation

It is so much easier to see what is ahead if you climb up and look down at your world. Even so,  I prefer living at sea level.

I subscribe to Poem-A-Day from the Academy of American Poets. I posted this map last night. This morning I was sent If the Delta was the Sea by Dick Lourie. I love it. It is the perfect illustration of how a mind wanders.

Sometimes it just feels like the poetry gods are watching over me.

and speaking of maps…

Open Green Map officially launches internationally on June 5, World Environment Day! There are many events planned in Green Mapped cities. Check out the websites of your local Green Map for details.

Baltimore Green Map will be celebrating their first year’s accomplishments  and the launch of Open Green Map worldwide on Friday evening at the Howard P. Rawlings Conservatory in Druid Hill Park from 5:30 to 8:30. There will be map displays and interactive demonstrations, music and light refreshments. I’ll be helping out and I am really looking forward to it. If you are in the area  stop by and say hi and, of course,  add some of your favorite sites to Baltimore’s Green Map!

Map making

I started a new sketchbook as part of my daily sketch exercise.  I am devoting this one exclusively to maps. Some of the maps will be of real places and some will be entirely fictional. Most will not really resemble the places that they represent, but some will be extremely accurate.

For example, this is a map of the errands I did the other day and how I felt about them.  It is very accurate. Do you follow me?

I have always loved making maps. I recently made this map in Jim’s sketchbook. It’s what got me thinking about doing a whole book of them.  Look for more anatomy maps in the future.

Some of my maps are simply a record of letting my mind wander. This one started with a splatter map of tea bags as my jumping off point. Then I added the dregs of the previous night’s bottle of wine. I did a bit of research about tea, and had some lettering practice. I plan to explore many different kinds of media. Wish me luck.  I’ll let you know where my travels take me.

ps. The dregs of a nice Malbec are a deep, gorgeous, sparkly purple. Pour some onto a piece of water color paper and let it dry overnight.  (a very good excuse to open a bottle of wine).

Seeds, shells…

I like to toss both seeds and shells around the garden. If your soil is very acidic, as mine tends to be, the calcium in the shells will help neutralize it.  Also the shells remind me where I scattered the seeds. Sometimes, if I am feeling quite contrary, I line them all in a row; sometimes I decorate the bean poles with them.