Fresh Paint

Still Even More Partly All There

2009-09-25T22:00:00.002-05:00

Typing this on the new computer -- a widescreen, which takes getting used to. Screen is stunningly clear, and watching stuff on Hulu (which I did no more than 5 minutes after opening the box and plugging the sucker in) is wonderful.

I suppose I'll discover how fast this new one is after going back to the old one when I get around to setting up a network. Doing things on the internet is hobbled by the speed of my connection.

Next job (when I sleep and get organized a bit) is to install graphics programs, etc. and get the printer set up.

I think I'm going to like it. It's wide and a bit narrower than my old laptop. Still not sure how playing games formatted for the older screen will look on this one.

The older computer (which was at the time more than twice the cost of this one) does indeed feel sturdier and more substantial. Think I'll like this, tho. The keyboard feels very good -- keys a little firmer touch, which I actually like, and a little bigger too. Had got into habit of typing the "A" with my ring finger instead of the pinkie. Maybe will try to retrain it, so it doesn't get all flabby.

Touch pad has all sorts of new functionality I've been tripping over. May just disable it while I'm at my desk, since I definitely prefer a mouse.

One cool thing is that the electric cord has a little blue light along the edge -- like a night light. I didn't get the lighted keyboard option, which maybe I should have (since it looked somewhat useful in the store). At some point will turn off all the lights and see whether I like it.

For now, all is cool. Yes, it's another Dell -- not the XPS, just the cheap Studio 15 model with the XP Pro downgrade -- will upgrade (or not) to Windows 7 after Service Pack 1 or 2 comes along. These are things you can plan on with Microsoft.

That's it for now. Still have a lot of crapware to get rid of.

A Little More Partly Back

2009-09-23T11:45:00.004-05:00

This has been a big educatation for me (reinstalling from backup). I have learned a thing or two that may come in handy for you if you ever have to do this. I hope you won't, but...

1) When you're storing stuff, don't fling it all over the hard drive. Sounds boring, but storing all your data and files and such under the Documents tree is a good thing. A VERY good thing.

2) You should be shot for having major amount of data living on the desktop. For example (like me), I started storing all my scanned and manipulated and game images under a mess of files on the desktop. It's all over the freeking place, and it moves around constantly. When you restore, it DOESN'T DELETE DATA if you happen to have moved it.

3) If you do incremental backups, for GOD'S SAKE, don't let them accumulate for 6 MONTHS! I've had to start with my last complete "normal" backup from APRIL, then BY HAND restore forward my virtuously created daily backups. Many days I didn't store anything to speak of (especially when I was playing a lot of games over the summer).

4) I know it's free, but there has to be a better product than what Windows provides. I don't hold out much hope for Vista's version or Windows 7s version either. I think I'm going to have to find something that's SEARCHABLE and BATCHABLE. For the life of me I can't figure out why Backup doesn't show the creation date of each of the sets stored in the .bkf file. Maybe I'm missing a menu choice someplace, but it makes it STUPIDLY HARD to figure out where you are when you're restoring.

5) I have no idea why I've been backing up the system state all this time, since I couldn't use it.

6) I have no idea why the reinstallation created a funky user name with computer name prepended before the regular user name. I didn't realize it was there and so restored to just the user name file and got a duplicate and nothing over in the "new" user's Document tree. So have had to futz stuff and do weird moves and copies and shortcuts.

7) I love applications that don't write a bunch of stuff to the registry. Just have to point myself to the .exe in the program file directory and it RUNS. I love games that have no problem executing if you bought them and feed them the purchase key again. I especially love them if you can download a fresh copy and forget all this aliasing and lying crap. I HATE apps that have changed how they do stuff between the time you originally installed it and now (eg. "free" stuff from Gamehouse, which used to be relatively ad-less too).

8) Oh, well. Am procrastinating. Should get something to eat and probably sleep before I try the last of the "big" artwork and document messes. Think I'm going to restore to a new temp directory, then once everything is mashed together, try to sort it all out.

I suppose it's now a good thing I did practically nothing all summer long.

If you out there in TV land have never even looked at what's behind the icon you click on your machine, if you ever find yourself in this state, HAND IT OVER TO THE TECH GUYS and GALS to fix. If I had a bit of extra money, this is what I would have done (but NOT the Geeks at Best Buy, dear god, at least not the ones around here). They most likely have better tools to restore stuff with, would probable restore to a "clean" server, then move it all over pristinely. That's how I'd do it.

This is too long, because I haven't had sleep and am just typing at this point. Sorry. Nite nite.

Not looking forward to installing a brand new computer that will arrive at some point. Really not. But if I can get the artwork and image files and docs straightened out, at least I know what NOT to do now.

But then will have 2 completely working computers. Just hope I like the new one as much as this old one, even given the problems that arose only after 5+ yrs of solid use.

Probably won't. At least I'll be able to watch Hulu in widescreen.

Partly Back

2009-09-22T22:23:00.002-05:00

In mid reinstallation of my poor old laptop -- have all the "big" software (windows, office, and photoshop) set up pretty much.

Had to start with XP Service Pack 1 (what was on my OEM distributed installation disks) and am all the way up to Service Pack 2.

One nice thing: the hard drive they sent me (after sending the completely wrong one first) got overnighted and is twice the size of the old one.

Unfortunately, it meant I couldn't just do an in-place install directly from the backup, since all the boot stuff was wrong, etc.

I tried it anyway, so have shreds of a botched installation all over the place.

At this point, am unsure whether I want to continue onward and attempt an upgrade to Service Pack 3. If so, will try to run it overnight, since I remember how long it took to do the first time.

Still have all my images and docs and games etc. on the backup drive. Thinking about moving them after SP3 happens.

In any case, just thought folks who were worried about me might want to know what's up. Will check in with youse guys later. Yes, I can get mail now on other than my phone or at the library.

I even watched something on Hulu tonight.

Hard Drive Hard Times

2009-09-18T13:51:00.002-05:00

Hard crash.

Wasn't sure how to title this. Am at library (here we go again), since hard drive on the 6 yr old computer finally crashed. Am trying not to completely panic, since I have a complete backup as of about an hour before the crash -- and am assuming that the backup on the external drive didn't get fried. Am afraid to take it to an alien computer just to see.

So, have ordered a replacement drive for the old geezer and have ordered a new computer (not the one I wanted, since I'd really wanted to wait for a stable Windows 7, maybe next year after a service pack has been issued). Not to be, unfortunately. So threw caution to the wind and didn't get a boring old business Latitude, but got a widescreen Studio, packed with a ton of stuff and an XP downgrade, so don't have to worry about installing XP stuff into Vista from an XP external drive backup, which apparently you used to not be able to do.

Microsoft has always screwed us up with their backup software. On the one hand you're encouraged to keep making backups. On the other hand they do everything they can to make it impossible to use those backups if you upgrade to a new system. And then they complain that no one wants to migrate. Will they ever get it? Doubtful.

Is unfortunate timing, since I have a lot of stuff I have to get ready for fall shows. Have copies of much of my oldest images on CDs, thank goodness, so will have to dig out jpgs for submission from there else miss a bunch of deadlines.

Need to get the mini resume and links on side updated one of these days.

Now I just have to figure out how to pay for all this. If ANYONE out there is interested in buying ANY OF MY ART, I beg of you, let me know.

While I'm at it, Happy New Year to all! I hope the coming year will be full of kindness and peace.

Speaking of Printmaking...

2009-09-10T23:27:00.002-05:00

Thought I'd embed the new video put out by Deb Maris Lader at the Chicago Printmakers Collaborative. Good intro to them, and to printmakers printing.

That's all.

Nearly Art Fair Ready

2009-09-10T22:51:00.003-05:00

... for the Wilmette Arts Fair, that is, (or whatever it's called).

This is what happens when you wait till the last minute:

1) When you're printing stuff out on the printer, you run out of cyan light, and can't print no more. You must run to Office Depot 15 minutes before closing and get an overpriced, actual Epson brand cartridge instead of the no-name stuff you usually get online.

2) You discover that, although you thought you'd bought 4 sheets of identical Fabriano paper, one of them has the watermark on both ends of the sheet, and it's rougher than the other sheets. This means you have to waste one piece of paper (or rather, set it aside for a different project, where placement of the watermark doesn't land in a weird place). Plus the edition has a paper change in the middle. Bummer.

3) You go to Paper Source to get envelopes and discover they'd discontinued the yellow ones that were a perfect match for 2 of your greeting cards.

4) You realize there are not enough surfaces in your house to put stuff on, especially surfaces that don't have a blob of soy sauce just waiting to getcha. The seat of your bicycle becomes a surface.

So we set up tomorrow night, then we're there all day (like from 10 am to 5 pm) Saturday and Sunday. We're right at the Metra tracks for the Wilmette North line station, in the big parking lot near Bank One.

We even have TWO TENTS -- a dozen printmakers -- fun -- prizes (well....they're hopefully giving the prizes to us) -- Julian Cox will be doing his famous printmaking demo with the tiny etching press on Sunday morning.

Look for the Evanston Art Center banner.

And Yet No Money for Health Care, Schools....

2009-09-10T00:40:00.002-05:00

Ground broken on $3.4 billion Homeland Security complex:

"'It will help us hold meetings,' Secretary Janet Napolitano said."

Oh, OK.

Good construction jobs are being created, so there's stimulus happening, I guess. Still, I'm sure Napolitano wished she hadn't phrased her comment quite like that.

Good evening, friends. Do you feel sick, too? How's your health holding up, after the incredible, breathtakingly rude GOP outburst this evening?

I want to feel hopeful, but am just tired, tired of it all.

Department of Things That No Longer Exist

2009-08-27T16:04:00.002-05:00

Kitchen matches.

Actually, any matches.

Pilot light on stove went out, scrounged around looking for matches. Realized that since I haven't smoked in 15 years, I don't have any. Since you can't smoke in bars and restaurants any more, I apparently haven't restocked by picking them up near the cash register. Last time I recall using a lot of matches was at the start of the Iraq war, with all the candlelight vigils. Last time the power went out, I snagged a light for the candles from the stove, the one with the pilot light.

The clerk at Walgreens looked at me as though I asked where they kept the buggy whips.

They only sell lighters now that come in packs of 3.

In a box somewhere in my back bedroom is probably an old briefcase or purse or jacket from the days when I smoked (I used to smoke at work, too) that may have a squashed book with one or two left.

What I really want are the wooden ones I remember always lived in a box on a shelf in the cabinet above the stove when I was growing up. I think they were called "safety matches" but I never knew why, since the phrase seems a bit oxymoronic to me.

Until I find them, I guess I can coax a flame from the cigarette lighter in the car.

What? You say they don't exist any longer either?

And It's Raining Out, Too

2009-08-26T08:11:00.002-05:00

Just learned we've lost Senator Ted Kennedy. I am so very sad for the family, but also for all of us. He was the last of the unapologetic liberals, whose ideas for health care for all were simple and workable -- Medicare for all, phased in by age group, shrinking from the top, growing from the bottom, a simple check box on your tax form as to whether you wanted to participate.

Will there ever be such as him again? Great wealth, great humanity, great sense of responsibility. An often messy, tabloid personal life -- gravitas on the job.

What can I say that hasn't been said, or will be said shortly?

Flawed as it is, we must pass if not univeral health coverage, a health reform bill with a strong, truly affordable, public option in his honor.

And I hope the next senator from Massachusetts keeps roaring until we do.

A Great Day

2009-08-19T15:33:00.002-05:00

Smashed 3 fingers in my garage door, got stung by a wasp -- but at least I don't have affordable health insurance to worry about not affording! I feel so lucky!

Was going to blog earlier that today was a very good day -- first day in a long time I actually felt healthy, alert, and strong. All the rain of the last few days washed whatever was giving me allergies and keeping me from breathing easily out of the air. My back stoppped hurting. Someone told me I looked like I'd lost some weight (thank you, new-used bike!)

Why is it that the Great Joker in the Sky can always read minds and slap you down?

Thank You, Brits!

2009-08-14T18:43:00.001-05:00

Britons defend their National Health Service

LONDON - Britons love to mock their creaky National Health Service — but they don't want anyone else poking fun at it.

They particularly don't want right-wing Americans to use Britain's universal health care system as a punching bag in their battle against President Barack Obama's proposed reforms.

Conservatives in the United States are using horror stories about Britain's system to warn Americans that Obama is trying to impose a socialized system that would give the government too much power, but Britons are digging in their heels, saying their system should be praised, not demonized.

I had a boyfriend like this once. He complained about his mother constantly, what a psycho she was, how manipulative, etc. etc. wait till you meet her, etc. etc.

Finally I met her. "Boy, I see what you mean," I said.

"How dare you criticize my mother!" he screamed, and that was the end of the boyfriend.

Here in this country we've been rationing health care for so long no one even thinks of it as rationing. Under my old health insurance (back when it was still theoretically good, only 500 buck deductible, etc.) I had to wait 4 months to get an appointment with a doctor who was IN THE NETWORK.

Now, of course, my rations are zero, since I have no health insurance at all, so I don't dare get sick.

I am certain that for every "horror" story a right wing politician here digs out about health service in other countries, a far greater outrage story is taking place right in his own legislative district, and he very well knows it but wants money from the "health" lobby to win him the next election.

We need a comprehensive national health plan. We need to stop thinking of health as a profit center. I find it morally repugnant that someone would consider the health of my body fair game to make a buck.

BTW, for the past week the trending topics on Twitter have all been an appreciation of the NHS.

Thanks again, youse guys.

The Knife Grinder Is Here

2009-08-13T15:11:00.002-05:00

This is a guy who on no set schedule that I can figure out shows up and will grind your knives for a small fee. He's not a chatty kind of guy. He has a strong Italian accent and a teasing nature. Coming back from my bike ride I spotted him on the street corner and managed to get this shot. An earlier group of dull-knife-wielding housewives had just departed leaving these remaining.

A set of steak knives was the subject of the current grinding.

I wish I could get more shots of him, but the camera complained that it needed me to change the batteries and refused to attempt more than this shot. Am sorry.

I have no idea how to get in touch with him. He didn't seem to have business cards, and no advertising or whatever on his machine.

If he comes this way shouting, "Bring out your knives!" maybe I can get a computer-powered shot of him.

Take Whole Foods Down

2009-08-12T15:10:00.002-05:00

Being a mindless liberal, I guess I figured that a crunchy granola, earth shoe kind of store like Whole Foods would have at least an official fuzzy sorta progressive outlook about stuff I care a lot about (and what I thought the entire concept of Whole Foods represented), stuff like health care.

NOT!

Did you realize that the head of Whole Foods, John Mackey, just wrote the most screaming, looney ultra-right wing bit of crap under the aegis of rational discussion about health care "reform"?

Basically, he wants high deductibles, remove any consumer protections and coverage requirements, pretty much get rid of Medicare, and throw my precious health and life open to the free and unfettered purity of slash and burn, take no prisoners, free-for-all of market forces seen at their worst. And fuck you, if you're sick or don't make enough money to stay healthy. Just continue shopping for my overpriced veggies so that I can pay for my own health insurance with the high deductible while getting bigger bonuses for self and cronies.

I realize many of you will laugh, remembering other great boycotts from the past -- lettuce, grapes, Domino's pizza. I realize many of us are sick of scrutinizing the political correctness of this and that -- but CHEEZ!

I hope this guy gets a TON of blowback from his customers. Former customers, I hope.

RIP: Patrick Sweeney

2009-08-10T22:49:00.002-05:00

I am so sorry that my old friend Patrick Sweeney has died. I just heard about it. He was a fixture of the Carbondale music/farming/old hippie community for 30 years, and my sister's neighbor. I can't even begin to recount the good Patrick stories. This blog details a few and has some great pix as well.

Local Matters: Patrick Sweeney

I knew he'd been fighting pancreatic cancer for awhile -- just a few months ago the benefit that had been scheduled for him was blown away by the inland hurricane that hit southern Illinois. I'd been planning to go to it -- but couldn't get away for the rescheduled one.

This is such sad news. He'd already fought cancer once -- he was so amazed that chemotherapy gave him wonderful masses of thick, curly hair instead of the thin, stringy hippie hair he'd had for so long. But that was Patrick all over.

Freeking Brilliant

2009-08-06T14:23:00.002-05:00

This should get passed along to anyone who hasn't thought much about how perceptions about what "real people" think get manipulated by the GOP astroturf machine. Maddow calls them out by name, in glorious detail. Riveting.

I would do anything to be able to buy in to even a shitty government health program right now. Just open something up for us. PLEASE! I would like to live long enough to enjoy Medicare, like the previous generations of Americans have done for my entire lifetime.

And you folks who think you're against it? You are against something that is in your own self-interest, and just feeding the self-interest of the rich who just want to get richer so they can take your jobs away faster.

End of rant.

Maybe it should be the start of one.

Yet Another Mediocre Watercolor

2009-07-22T16:19:00.004-05:00

Somewhat overworked. Didn't really scan in all that well -- paper is that warm off-white stuff that never seems to scan correctly, so tried to "fix" the warmth in ps, went too far the other direction, etc. So you'll have to imagine something a little in between white and this not-right yellowish color.

Regardless, once again I have no idea how people paint in watercolor and get any results other than a big brownish mess.

I know part of the trick is organization and clean water and rags, but carrying all that on my bike is tricky.

The color of those trees (a greenish/purplish alizarin crimson with a bit of cad red) has always been difficult to come up with, even in oils.

And of course, as always when painting outdoors, the light changes constantly.

Still trying to get back into all this. Is a good thing to start looking again, and not be in the house all the time.

Maybe I should get a pad of actual white paper. Might make things easier. But that would mean spending money, and we're just not doing that right now.

Messy Gillson Park Drawing

2009-07-16T15:38:00.003-05:00

Back from bike ride to Gillson, brought charcoal and bigger pad of paper this time. Thought I'd draw the boats, but ended up doing the line of cars. Difficult (as always) since they kept moving. Have a few Franken-cars, parts of one plus parts of another that parked in its place.

I'm still very bad at drawing them, but something 11-year-old-boy geeky in me likes to keep trying. I have a 8 or 10 paintings of variants of this scene too. Really should collect all of them and post as a Gillson Park Series 2. And still have to redo the original set of 26, since the link no longer works. Work, work, work, when I'd much rather be out on the new bike getting a sunburn.

Gapers Block: Merge - Kirk Makes It Official

2009-07-15T14:01:00.002-05:00

Gapers Block: Merge - Kirk Makes It Official

Shared via AddThis

OK, Lisa. Time to step up to the plate.

Not stepping up? Anyone else? Anyone?

This is a great opportunity to get a Democrat into the 10th CD. Will Dan Seals run for a third time, now that Kirk (who for some unknown reason is seen as a moderate, tho he isn't) is out? Someone else?

I will not repeat some of the gossip I heard at a picnic recently regarding Kirk's marriage/divorce. I will not, and you can't make me.

So You Think You Can Paint?

2009-07-08T21:26:00.002-05:00

Casting - Bravo TV Official Site

How do you go from struggling, emerging or even semi-established artist to selling a complete show for $198 million? It’s a big art world out there, but maybe this is one place to start!

Magical Elves (Peabody Award-winning Project Runway, Emmy Award-winning Top Chef) and Sarah Jessica Parker (Golden Globe- and Emmy Award-winner) and her production company, Pretty Matches, are teaming up for an hour-long creative competition series among aspiring contemporary artists who will create and compete to conquer the art world!

Good evening friends. Found this casting call in my inbox this evening. It is apparently genuine:

LOS ANGELES
Saturday, July 11 & Sunday, July 12, 10 AM – 2 PM
LAXART
www.laxart.org

MIAMI
Tuesday, July 14, 10 AM – 2 PM
Fredric Snitzer Gallery
www.Snitzer.com

CHICAGO
Thursday, July 16, 10 AM – 2 PM
School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Sullivan Galleries, 33 S. State Street
www.saic.edu

NEW YORK
Saturday, July 18 & Sunday, July 19, 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
White Columns
www.whitecolumns.org

Yes, we artists generally do sell out our shows for $198.

Oh, I forgot the "million" part.

"Oh, Look!" Said Daniel Biss...

2009-07-04T13:53:00.006-05:00

... it's a mayor on a bike!"

And so it was. Arrival shot missing, unfortunately, but Evanston's new mayor, Elizabeth Tisdahl, hung around for quite awhile before heading off to official parade functions. She was amused that she was expected to give a speech in the middle of all of it.

Just back from the annual DPOE picnic/massing of the troops/gossip fest/fantasy politico league meet-up.

Pretty good turnout, considering no one knows who's running for what office at the moment, other than the rock-steady Julie Hamos, who we'll miss terribly when she becomes our next Attorney General, (assuming Lisa Madigan moves on, and 25 other factors fall into place correctly).

Since about 20 people have declared to run for Julie's State Rep seat, I couldn't get pix of them all. Just Jeff Smith, who's been around progressive politics for a long time, and was the only person I could find who could tell me who had taken Tisdahl's seat when she moved up (Jane Grover, apparently), and that she quilts and keeps a very low profile.

Daniel Biss is now working for Pat Quinn, and isn't sure whether he'll try again to unseat Coulson, and also is currently president of the DPOE.

And would probably remind you to give, give until it hurts, since hot dogs don't come cheap.

Update On Cow Chip Parade Painter

2009-06-27T11:05:00.004-05:00

At Wilmette Public Library this am -- asked about the painting by Pat O'Hara I loved so much -- Friends of Library folks groaned and said, "You just missed him." Apparently he's a former advertising guy, who "invented" (their words) the Speedy Alka Seltzer character (can't find a credit for him on the Alka Seltzer site, but no surprise there). One of the members who had taken a class with him said he works very carefully, from many reference photos and drawings spread out all around.

If the library had a People's Choice award, his painting would have won it, according to them. A lesson for everyone: an even better (in their opinion) painting he did was rejected from the show last year.

A little about Speedy here. My original post is here.

Something I Forgot I Had

2009-06-25T12:09:00.002-05:00

A crocheted glass cozy!

The previous owner of my house ran a hand laundry in the basement (I have interesting machines down there -- like centrifuges and mangles) and left other stuff behind too. Obviously this set of 8 cozies was so precious to someone that they contracted with a hand laundry to wash them and then neglected to pick them up.

So very much better than the giveaway beer can cozies you see everywhere. Will try to figure out the pattern (or knitters! crocheters! do you have one?) and post.

A Different Kind of Courthouse Artist

2009-06-24T10:00:00.002-05:00

A Different Kind of Courthouse Artist

Dr. Siffert, 90, a former chairman of the orthopedic surgery department at Mount Sinai Medical Center, is a self-taught artist and printmaker. He carves the woodcuts and, to make the prints, uses watercolor pigments rather than oil-based paints or inks. Some of his prints dance a tango of fiery colors; others are subdued.

“People ask me how come I’m doing woodcuts,” Dr. Siffert said. “I played around with drawings. I did linoleum. I didn’t like the medium. It’s too soft. It didn’t give me any sense of playback. The other thing is, as an orthopedic surgeon, the medium I work in is bone, and wood and bone are really very good for getting the results I want.”

Via Utrecht Twitter feed.

Good morning, friends. I know I've been saying I'm going out to paint any minute now, but truly, it's stifling out there. Also in here, but at least I have a couple of fans blowing on me at all times. In penance, will try to get a few more of the broken links on the side fixed.
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Pat O'Hara: Cow Chip Parade

2009-06-22T10:12:00.003-05:00

This was my favorite painting in the latest Wilmette Public Library show. I've googled Pat O'Hara but can't find anything online. I really loved this painting -- it should have won a prize. Beautifully simple.

Yes, there really is a Cow Chip Parade (I found the site while searching for the artist). Check it out. Tons of loony fun.

Half of my family is from Kennebunkport, Maine and the big event of the summer used to be the Dump Parade -- floats made of junk ending up at the dump (family members lived right next door, so was convenient). Can find little online about it -- hasn't been around for ages, apparently.

Finally getting around to unloading my camera. More postings later.

Happy Father's Day

2009-06-21T11:28:00.003-05:00

This is the one day a year when men are allowed to eat big omelets with cheese and ham with a side of bacon, plus biscuits with gravy, nice strong coffee with a beer chaser, and then take a nap and not be pestered with chores. And no vegetables except maybe jalapeno poppers all day long.

I realize this is the suburban image of Father's Day, since tons of fathers have to work today, aren't married, ignore their kids, beat their wives, etc. etc.

Still, it's the one day even the worst father in the world would like to live the dream.

Next door neighbor is playing catch with his kids and looks really happy running around with them.

I lost my father a long time ago, didn't know him well when I was growing up (he was a single dad, since my mother died when I was very young) -- always working a lot trying to support 2 sets of parents, brothers, and me too. Recall his grim desperation to find a new mother for me -- the possibles occasionally trotted out at a party, where they tried to look impressed when I was made to recite my ABCs.

Cholesterol may rule today, but not tomorrow. We want to keep you guys around a little longer.

Fixing Links Part xiv12a(sub 1a...3xx): Toegristle

2009-06-18T13:48:00.003-05:00

Back in 2005, Corey Eiseman saw some of my works on paper and asked to include them in a massive, and still endless, collage series at what used to be called kollabor8. The stuff is (as if by magic) still there, starting with number 171 and running at least thru 177, at which point finding any trace becomes like one of those hidden object games.

So. A prize goes to anyone who can find a trace later than 177.

Link to the start of my stuff is here.

Gone Over to the Dark Side

2009-06-17T23:53:00.002-05:00

Yes, have joined Facebook, just at the point it's probably peaked and will soon rapidly decline. I apologize to everyone I blasted with email messages begging to be their friend. I wasn't exactly sure what that button I pushed was going to do. Little about the application is simple or straightforward.

This is still my real home, however. Still paying the mortgage, and it smells like comfy slippers and banana bread. And I don't have to worry if no one wants to be my friend.

Twitter is still simplest of all and why I've been using it to comment on the weather or what I'm eating.

Don't know how long I can keep this insane compartmentalization up. At least I never joined Myspace.

I Want One

2009-06-11T16:00:00.002-05:00

Can't get it at Pet Smart, tho:

The "snake" appeared to be about 6 feet long. Covered by fabric in military camouflage colors, it slithered along the ground and climbed rocks, its segments connected with joints that flexed in several different directions. Channel 2 said military researchers studied real snakes to copy their movements.

Good afternoon, friends. Haven't written in awhile since it's taken me a week to recover from last weekend, plus I've got caught up in the game Everlong again, making the mistake of starting again from the beginning since I couldn't remember what I'd been doing when I played last time. One of the best (if not THE best) old-school RPG free games out there -- and a superlative way to waste frustrating DAYS and DAYS of time.

As to my own "everlong" game (alas, no robotic snake in mine), I will work on it again, I really really will -- and I'm not waiting for the full body animation software/hardware to solve my problems, either. Am at a point in the story line where I have to do a whole bunch to just reach a pausing point so I can release it. Please be patient. I know the one-year anniversary of the last release is rapidly approaching, but Everlong doesn't play itself, you know.

Peter Jones Gallery Final Show Party

2009-06-06T17:29:00.002-05:00

And yes, forgot about this:

Final Exhibition at Peter Jones Gallery.

I have a good painter/model friend who kept bugging me to come there and paint or show my work, but never got around to it.

Will wander down there before the Spudnik Party this evening and find out more, perhaps.

Art Reminders

2009-06-06T12:09:00.002-05:00

A whole bunch of them for this weekend (sorry to be so tardy about it all):

Spudnik Press benefit ("Silent Auction, Loud Event") on June 6th at Happy Dog Gallery. Yes, you will have the opportunity to bid on 3 of my robot prints.

Spudnik Press Fundraiser Party!
Celebrate & Support 2 years of printmaking
Saturday, June 6, 2009
6 pm - 1 am

6 - 10 pm: Silent Auction
10 - 1 am: Party (with DJ)
Door: Free!

Happy Dog Gallery
1542 N Milwaukee Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622
------------------------------------------------------------

Simply Chicago (oddly enough, not in Chicago, tho close) has work from the Evanston Art Center Print Shop -- a lot of it, a lot of really good stuff. I saw some of it when I dropped off my pieces, and if you come by, you will be shocked at how good it is.

A lot of framed and unframed work, plus jewelry, cards, etc. Sorry to be so very late with this (the opening starts in 45 minutes, but it's up for a month).

Simply Chicago Art
1318 Oakton
Evanston IL 60202

1:00-5:00 Artist reception

Julian Cox
Mark Hudson
Diane Kast
Ausrine Kerr
Cynthia King
Grace Kroll
Jessica Q Lucas
Beth McKenna
Margaret Roche
Yvi Russell
Ann C Schmidt
Tery Veras
Joe Taylor

---------------------------------------
Finally, the Evanston Art Center Noyes Print Shop has its Spring Print show in the basement at the shop (I just found out about this, oddly enough, even though I'm apparently in it). It's this Sunday afternoon (I think) -- will update with actual hours. The show will be up for at least a month. Since I'm there every Friday morning, you can always drop by then to see the work. All unframed, pinned to the wall. I'll try to get more info to you soon.

Now I suppose I must get dressed.

The Ultimate Woodcut

2009-05-26T14:47:00.004-05:00

HT to Becca Case.

Am trying to find all you printmakers out there, but still fumbling around. ~~Have posted a link to Inkteraction on the side~~**, and it's always worth doing a search on "printmaking" in Twitter. Am sure everyone is gathering somewhere I'm not, like Facebook or something. Maybe they're just doing actual work.

**Because of too much spam and weird stuff, Inkteraction is now by invitation only. If you don't know a printmaker who's a member, I don't know how you can join. Chicken/egg stuff.

A Couple of Drawings

2009-05-24T11:50:00.003-05:00

This is a little pencil drawing of the plants at the edge of a path in Gillson Park. You'll note the messy background -- I started putting in trees etc., but then erased them all out, just concentrating on the border. Not wonderful, but the first drawing I've done outdoors in quite some time.

And here's, oddly enough, a little watercolor. Clearly I'm not good at this kind of thing, though I like the red trees in the background and the spring-ey yellow-greens. The stalks in the foreground were supposed to be trees, but the lines got too wobbly.

For me, watercolor is incredibly difficult, since you need restraint and have only one shot to get it right (yes, I realize there are those who scrape out mistakes or mend with gouache, etc.). I am always fascinated that for some reason it's mostly done by amateurs these days. Clearly they know something I don't.

Invasive Species -- Spring

2009-05-21T10:47:00.002-05:00

Click on it for a bigger image. This is my submission for the PrintZero exchange. It's stone litho, intaglio, and stencil all on a relief background. If I'd had time, I might have thrown in silkscreen for the full monte. The background is really a little more yellowy-greenish than it may appear -- is done on cream BFK.

Am dying to see the submissions. The Iowa exchange postcards I got back were really great this time around, tho only one or two actually stuck to the theme -- feel ashamed of my hideous aquatint, so ashamed I may end up redoing it.

So, folks. When/where is the next exchange? I may be forced to work on Darkdevil County or paint if I can't find one.

Or go outside and groove on the amazing weather.

PrintZero Studios Print Exchange Deadline Extended

2009-05-19T17:45:00.001-05:00

... a little bit to May 23. So you may still have time.

More at the PrintZero Studios site.

Good afternoon, friends. Is 80 degrees, perfect, green, dry. Supposed to be 90 tomorrow. I may actually go and paint outdoors, tho would be gilding the lily. Is so perfectly beautiful -- tulips still crisp, lilacs bouncy, light still pouring through the canopy of trees near my house -- and uncut lawns everywhere. Think the grass suddenly grew so fast (and it was in the 40s over the weekend) that no one has cut yet. Or maybe they're conserving cash -- do I detect fewer lawn service trucks around?

If so, bad news for the lawn guys. Never a silver lining for some of us.

Art Reminders

2009-05-14T16:33:00.003-05:00

Trying to get back into stuff after being away is tough. Am glad I pushed and got the PrintZero stuff out the door before I left -- so unusual for me to get stuff done ahead of time.

So. Wilmette Public Library (I have a print in it) Friends of the Library juried show opens tomorrow, Friday, May 15 with a reception from 6 to 8 (I think). Directions are here. It runs through June 26. Don't know who the jurors were this year -- show depends on having good ones, obviously.

Evanston Art Center benefit is this Saturday, May 16. The center needs your help -- and you can buy one of the few left in my first edition of the Gnomish Hills print. All of the artwork from the show is online. Don't know if you can put in phone bids or not, but I imagine you can. Things generally move briskly at the live event, however. Mine has always sold for well above the minimum.

Finally, advance warning for the Spudnik Press benefit ("Silent Auction, Loud Event") on June 6th at Happy Dog Gallery. I will likely contribute a robot unless Angee tells me not to. Will post more as the info becomes available. It is going to be a huge, funnest event.

Spudnik Press Fundraiser Party!
Celebrate & Support 2 years of printmaking
Saturday, June 6, 2009
6 pm - 1 am

6 - 10 pm: Silent Auction
10 - 1 am: Party (with DJ)
Door: Free!

Happy Dog Gallery
1542 N Milwaukee Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622

2009-05-13T16:19:00.001-05:00

This is a test. No squirrels were harmed performing this test.

Devastation in Carbondale

2009-05-13T14:36:00.005-05:00

Back from Carbondale -- thought I had more pix than I did -- most of them repetitive of branches strewn everywhere or hard to figure out since I suck at this kind of photo stuff. Here are a few, however:

This was part of the SIU farm complex, once:

We spent hours clearing enough limbs and brush to get this close to the shed:

One of the reasons why there's no power (or water or phone lines) out where my sister lives. All of them were down and in the road.

Sheet metal was everywhere. I've tried to crop out the reflections from my car.

I spent hours washing dishes at the outdoor sink. Day one we used pond water and bleach. Next day a neighbor (who has a tree speared down through his house making it like a popsicle) brought 5 big tanks of city water for us to use. Thank you, neighbor!

The storm hit on Friday while everyone in the family was trying to get to my niece's graduation from nursing school at Edwardsville. Her mom made it, and her dad, and I did too. Coming down from Chicago was nonstop rain and weird sky to the south.

The odd thing was that there was little on the news about any of this, possibly because all the power to all the TV stations was knocked out. The Southern Illinoisan newspaper kept publishing -- a 2 page spread rushed in from Paducah, I think. One of the radio stations managed to get 6 phone lines set up and enough power to broadcast disaster related news only. As of this morning, my sister still doesn't have running water or power, though it's obvious that repair crews from nearly everywhere -- hundreds of crews -- are out there working on it. The cleanup is going to take a long time, but that doesn't mean my sister can get off work to do it. Her boss lives outside the area and doesn't seem to get it.

We used candles and flashlights indoors, but after it got dark there just didn't seem much point in staying awake. Odd to go to sleep at 9 pm, then get up again when the rooster crowed at abou 4. I am completely turned around.

You have no idea how dark it is in the country during a power blackout on a moonless night. Am very glad I didn't hear the coyotes howling, as they often do in summer. Just a lot of crickets and frogs, who sounded incredibly happy, tho a bit disturbed.

UPDATE: Here's a link to a mess of other links.

Just saw that they're under a tornado watch until 10pm right now. My sister can't get cell phone coverage (and the land lines and power are still down) in the country, so will try to get her at work. My mother lives with her, and has difficulty getting around. I just hope it all goes away soon.

UPDATE2: Here's an amazing collection of pix. Mesmerizing.

Drained

2009-05-03T17:52:00.002-05:00

Working on the edition of 15 for the PrintZero exchange -- doing a fairly complex print -- relief background with stencil overprinted with stone litho and a little plastic drypoint plate.

Knew, of course, I should have printed more backgrounds while I had the color already mixed. On the whole, the litho printing went well -- only one upside down image, one odd one where I must have stopped the press before the entire image was printed, two with odd smudges of the wrong color, and one with clumpy ink filled with fibers so that the ink stuck to the paper and then pulled the paper away.

Realize now I probably should have done the intaglio first, but I knew the litho would be faster, and I hoped I could get all done with it today.

Wrong.

Would still be in the print studio except on Sundays they kick you out early.

So will drink some wine, and start again tomorrow.

Tear paper. Match ink. Make background. Let it dry. Open stone. Print stone. Ink plate. Print plate.

Rinse and repeat...

God, hope not.

Poor Planning

2009-04-22T11:39:00.002-05:00

... has left me with one pair of oversized plaid pants and a t-shirt with "Paradise Island -- Nassau" and someone saying "oh shit" on it in tiny white letters as a shark gobbles him up. All else is in dryer, queued for washer, or in washer, so am sitting here sockless as well in ratty robe staring out at the lovely, non-snowing weather, biding my time.

All in the neighborhood have chosen today, Earth Day, to mow and chew and saw outdoors, so is deafening, even with windows still hermetically sealed against the winter winds (you can never be too careful in April).

Am anxious to sit outside and draw or paint, however. Possibly cows. Went last week to the Wagner Farm, first time in ever so long, and found the sights and smells calming.

The henhouse seemed so very familiar from visits to my great-aunt's farm in Massachusetts, where it was the duty of children to gather their own breakfast else go without. They didn't have running hot and cold water either, or a bathroom, just a kitchen pump and a gas stove with a "boiler". I remember being small enough to sit in the sink as the old woman scrubbed at me with a washcloth.

When visiting I slept in a bedroom with tiny pink roses on the wallpaper that always smelled like tiny pink roses that had died a long time ago, but never of the chamberpot that lived under the dressing table, since it was my duty to bring it downstairs every morning. In a drawer in this dressing table was an old diary that I remember trying to interpret, but never could. Too local, too adult, too cryptic, too much underlining, too many secret abbreviations.

At some point the pantry was converted to a bathroom, central heating was put in, and the chickens departed, leaving coops behind that disappeared by the visit the following year, my last. The great-aunt (and uncle) were gone.

By Popular Demand

2009-04-15T13:54:00.004-05:00

I give you Monster Imposter, the postcard. Click on it for a somewhat larger size. It's a jpg of an aquatint, so it's somewhat grainy, and the aquatint was shitty to start. This is not my best work, trust me. I may try the image again from scratch on a clean piece of zinc or copper. Even a drypoint on plastic would probably be better. And this is one of the proofs that didn't make it into the exchange edition (you'll note the bad wipe of the right hand edge).

Excuses, excuses...

Monster Imposter

2009-04-11T15:28:00.006-05:00

Finished it, with 20 minutes to spare before they kicked me out of the building: The evidence:

A good thing I always have my handy camera with me.

Here they are:

Infreekingcredible, if I do say so myself, tho maybe my color choices weren't the best. May use same image for another small edition. Had printed it with a double drop and in 2 colors, with different text as a sample, and really liked it, but for this exchange, was too difficult to do consistently in time I had available.

Of course, if I'd started work on it earlier...

The alert reader may note that the body of the monster (or the imposter) seems to be that of Kyle, a character from my Darkdevil County game -- and they would be correct. The head is that of another character you haven't seen yet named Galahad, who is indeed a monster, if you call a clone of bits and pieces of animals and people (plus some pinot noir) thrown in a monster.

One more project (plus taxes) to do, then will get back to the game. I mean it this time.

Not the Best Printing Day Ever

2009-04-07T18:39:00.003-05:00

Just saying...

Tried to rush thru a print for the Iowa State U. Postcard Print Exchange but it didn't work so hot TWICE.

First time, I put the ground on too thinly and it fell off halfway thru the line etch. This was bad, since I had polished the surface and cleaned it to a mirror shine. It was perfect. Did I mention that the line disappeared too? It did. Hideous. Not worth reworking.

Ok, so transferred the image again to the other side of the plate (we're talking copper) which had (I thought) a faint aquatint, nothing awful.

Wrong. Image ended up looking murky and ugly, but the line etch was ok (30 minutes -- should have gone longer, I think).

Ok, so now everyone in the shop said I should just burnish out stuff here and there. Once again, I rushed. Should have done the organized thing like I usually do (with the mockup, the timings marked on the mockup, etc. etc. -- all very anal).

Didn't, so burnished out the wrong parts. My monster's face looks more like a clown's face.

May have one more go at it tomorrow, see if I can do something to the background.

Or not. Don't have any images to post at the moment, but will fess up later.

SGC Exchange Prints: Gnomish Hills

2009-04-02T10:39:00.009-05:00

"Gnomish Hills," by Cynthia King

Finally getting around to documenting the edition of 12 plus about 5 proofs and a few paper tests. One of the proofs is going to the Evanston Art Center benefit, so if you want one and didn't get it in your pack, that's the first place to look. (I'll do a second series of this plate at some point, as long as the aquatint holds up -- it's a zinc plate after all).

Here's the original mockup:

I reversed and rescaled the original drawing, printed it out, and worked out the tones with charcoal (yes, actual dirty-finger charcoal, not the computer stuff). For you non-printmakers, I had to reverse it, since you have to work with a reversed image on the etching plate itself.

It went in and out of the acid bath probably 6 times, stopping out at intervals from about 5 seconds to the final one (the doorways) about 4 minutes total.

For comparison, here's the original drawing as sucked into my Darkdevil County demo. (I'll probably go back into it with color at some point):

And here's the line etch. For some reason I added an extra mountain:

I copied the drawing at Kinkos and transfered it to the plate using a gum transfer, supplemented with graphite where the image was too light. All this manipulation skewed the image this way and that way a bit. Luckily, I'm not being graded on it.

Here it is at the show, top right on the 2nd display wall from the left (click to enlarge):

Here's the whole edition:

And what I looked like after finishing it. Oops, forgot the apron.

Darkdevil County News

2009-03-31T09:34:00.006-05:00

More here. My own cloning experiments don't produce such waspish results, however. (You must click on the link for the full experience). HT blogads at Daily Kos, where the ad has already cycled away.

Now that the SGC is over, will be devoting my time to game development again (with time out for 2 more print exchanges plus a show or 2 and and and...). Have cut off development on this part of the Darkdevil County demo and will try to get it cleaned up before the first anniversary passes (sometime around now, actually).

I know, you guys have been so patient, but it's just me doing stuff and I'm not very good at it either. And once again, sorry you Mac folks. It's for the PC only.

Still have pix to upload from the SGC. Later.

SGC Exhaustion

2009-03-30T10:14:00.004-05:00

Conference done, am trying to sort stuff out and get back to "normal".

So many images, so many people talked to. Volunteering was great, but meant I didn't actually see a lot of the conference, if by conference you mean panels and keynotes and demos, since I spent much of time checking in everyone's exchange portfolios and acting as bouncer outside the rooms where demos were being held.

And drinking a lot of reception wine. Thank god for reception wine. And food, of course.

Still unloading the swag bag (good and useful itself). Don't want to see my official volunteer red sweatshirt (and by sweat, I really mean it -- P.U.) again for a long long time.

I should have taken a picture when I had the chance (speaking of reception wine), but congrats to our very own Tom Warchol for having a piece selected by Warrington Colescott himself for the Southern Graphics Council 2009 Traveling Exhibit. I will try to provide links at some point.

One of the high points for me was seeing the "History of Printmaking" tableau vivant, performed by a group of Columbia College alums. It was less a tableau, and not at all stills from Colescott's History of Printmaking series (on view at Perimeter Gallery, BTW, along with his more recent work) than the personal history of Colescott himself, with images, actions, and fabulous music.

It was a complete theater experience, close to the short playlets presented by the "Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind" group. Will see if I can get better credits for this work. I spoke to the director who said the group is a fan of silent theater and miming and all those things and collaborates from time to time on theater pieces. I was the volunteer for the first showing of this event, and Colescott himself was in the audience. I can't imagine what it might be like to see your life laid out like that.

UPDATE: Printeresting had been blogging from the conference and has a really good rundown on the panels and keynotes, and other stuff, plus lots of pix. I'll get mine up Real Soon.

Print Zero Studios (Seattle) Print Exchange

2009-03-25T07:42:00.002-05:00

An email from Brian Lane this morning urges me to tell you about the Print Zero exchange that usually gets upwards of 300 entries:

Print Zero Studios in Seattle is pleased to announce PRINTEXCHANGE #6.
>
> Participants must create an edition of 15 prints, on 5 x 7 inch paper, using
> any printmaking technique (no strictly digital prints). Deadline for receiving
> editions is May 15, 2009
>
> In turn participants will receive 13 prints from other artists and the exchange
> will be exhibited in Seattle, as well as a few other venues which are in the
> works... stay tuned.
>
> Our last exchange had 291 participants from 17 countries and was exhibited
> at 7 venues across the United States and Denmark!
>
> Please visit www.PrintZeroStudios.com to download the exchange prospectus
> for complete details, see past print exchanges as well as what we have been
> up to. (New studio space in Seattle, a catalog, etc)
>
> Please forward this to your fellow printmakers, print studios, students,
> online art groups etc.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Brian Lane - printzero2@gmail.com
> Jeremy Cody - printzero@gmail.com
>
> visit the site: www.PrintZeroStudios.com

Sounds good. I love these things. Will post the info about my SGC print soon, I promise.

Southern Graphics Council Meeting Set to Begin

2009-03-24T15:50:00.002-05:00

As a prelim, download the Bad at Sports preview and interview with various people here.

Have been basically offline this past week as a volunteer for the SGC or preparing the exchange portfolio for it (DONE DONE DONE!!! Signed and freshly glassined this afternoon).

Will be spending a hefty amount of time at this thing, so if you see me (real name is Cynthia King, if you hadn't figured it out by now), say hi.

Will try to twitter a bit from the conference, but am sure that with 1,500 people registered, others will do a better job on their 3G iPhones etc. Yes, City of Chicago -- this is the pre-registration count -- art packs them in. Venues run from Evanston (where we have a big show called "Handmade" covering 2 floors at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center -- 30 something artists, 60 something prints -- show is up and is gorgeous) all the way to Pilsen and out to DeKalb, plus everywhere in the middle.

Am so excited to see all this stuff -- almost all of the exhibits are free to outsiders, and many are up now and will be for at least a few weeks more.

If you don't know what contemporary printmaking is all about, you must must must check out some of these shows.

Good place to start is at the Columbia College/Southern Graphics Council website.

The Best Part of Being Unemployed

2009-03-17T15:28:00.002-05:00

... is being able to sit on your front stoop drinking a Marguerita and eating slices of American cheese in the afternoon sun on a day it's 75 degrees.

Life is sweet.

Audrey Niffenegger Receives $5 Million Advance for Second Novel

2009-03-11T00:00:00.001-05:00

GO AUDREY!!

BTW, it's still possible to buy one of her prints for under 500 bucks. I loved the Time Traveler's Wife. The last time I saw her she was calling the new book the "doppelganger" book -- I, for one, will be standing in line to get it. I may even fork over bucks and see the movie (which is apparently supposed to be out in February -- I can't imagine it'll be good, so maybe I won't).

I guess this may explain why she hasn't been teaching the Wednesday night printmaking class up at the North Shore Art League this past semester or so....

9th Iowa State University Postcard Print Exchange

2009-03-07T12:53:00.003-06:00

It's that time of year again:

Two of Five: 9th Annual University Print Society Postcard Print Exchange

The Iowa State University Print Society will host the 9th Annual Postcard Print Exchange in 2009. The theme for this year's exchange is "Two of Five," and artists are to select any two of the following five words as the basis for your 4x6 prints:

star
imposter
hallucinogenic
monster
fast

You may use any form of these words, such as monster, monstrous, monstrously, monstrosity, etc. You are encouraged to consider all possible variations and meanings of these words.

Requirements

Any editionable printmaking technique (woodcut, litho, intaglio, photography, silkscreen, digital printmaking, etc.) may be used. Please do not send monoprints/monotypes. Each of the prints sent must be identical to the others.

The prints must be 4"x6".

Thirteen identical prints should be sent individually as postcards to the address provided below. (Each card must be stamped and will bear the markings of travel and the postal service. Do not send the cards together in one envelope.)

Include the following information on the back of each card:

Your return address
April Katz's address (see below)
A list of the process(es) used
Optional: your e-mail address

Deadline
Entries are due Friday, April 10, 2009.

The Exchange

After receiving everyone's postcard prints, the University Print Society will randomly divide up the cards and you will be sent 12 new and different prints from other participants (hence the "exchange"). The University Print Society will keep one of the 13 for its collection.

Postage for returning the 12 new prints to each participating artist will be paid by the University Print Society; donations are requested to help cover the cost of return postage. Send cash or checks payable to the University Print Society. Suggested donations: $2 students, $3 others, $4 international. Send more if you can, less if you can't.

Send postcard prints and postage donations to:

April Katz
University Print Society
158 College of Design
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011-3092

Please send questions and comments to the University Print Society president, Kris Engle, redninj4@gmail.com.

Gnomish Hills

2009-03-05T15:26:00.002-06:00

This is the village (black & white version) of Gnomish Hills from my game, Darkdevil County. It was actually one of the first sections I programmed (about 8 months ago now, YIKES), but was never satisfied with it. I compressed the mountain and foreground areas substantially (since there wasn't a whole lot going on, and moved the house with the bush in closer as well. Still probably too wide, since when my character appears against this background she's quite small (tho still too tall to actually fit thru the doors -- we just have to pretend that there's a shrink pad on each sidewalk).

Just thought I'd show you I haven't been a complete slacker this past week while I watch my savings and retirement funds disappear. The good thing is that the expenses for last month on the credit card were 3.72 -- only because I really really needed a Starbucks and a scone and left the house with no money. We'll have to remedy that.

Go, Robots!

2009-02-28T16:52:00.003-06:00

Thanks to all who bought prints of Security Robot #13 at various sales this winter (just picked up my check from sale at Chicago Printmakers Collaborative). And the card-buyers too.

Please come back here if you need more robots, cards, or anything else. Will perhaps set up a store at Etsy, or not.

Later.

Happy 5th Anniversary

2009-02-27T17:27:00.002-06:00

to me.

Well, missed it by a few days, which is odd, in its way, to miss such a milestone.

Maybe with Obama firmly in charge, one of my original impulses to blog has lessened (but we must never ever drop the ball again. Not ever, else they will creep back in with their evil ways.)

The blogosphere has changed, consolidating around Facebook and/or My Space, so that individual blogs seem almost beside the point.

I'm not doing as much artwork as I was 5 years ago -- or it seems different -- or it's not painting -- or something.

I haven't been knitting in awhile -- 2 sweaters I started still need to be sewn together.

Mostly have been cooking and watching the market and my savings collapse, sometimes at the same time.

For example, am making my famous chicken leg 'n' thigh soup (roast 2 or 3 of 'em for about an hour at 375, then strip the good meat, dump bones and skin and weird meat, add rosemary, salt, pepper, a couple of carrots, celery, a half bay leaf into your favorite microwave bowl, cover with water and pan fat, nuke at 60 percent for about 45 minutes. There you have it -- strain and separate out the stock so you can refrigerate and skim the fat off -- but save it for sauteing).

And, of course, still scripting and doing artwork for my never-ending game, Darkdevil County. Next installment is nearly ready. I mean it this time.

Monday Is National Banana Bread Day

2009-02-21T21:49:00.003-06:00

So says Laura here. I didn't know of such a thing.

Baked the banana/pumpkin bread again today, using the standard recipe, slightly revised.

Here it is again, how I made it today. I even have a name:

PUMPKIN PIE BREAD

DO NOT PREHEAT OVEN!

1/2 can of pumpkin pulp
2 mashed bananas
2 eggs

Beat all these together until smooth. Add:

1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 (or less) tsp ground cloves
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda

Mix it in good. Add:

2 cups of whole wheat flour.

Beat until smooth, but don't over beat it.

Turn on the oven NOW, set to 350 degrees. Stir in:

1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup of the mulberries you picked last summer and froze

(Obviously, the last ingredient is dependent on your wise planning. If you had instead lazed around in the sun, you can leave it out or substitute raisins.)

Pour into buttered pan, bake for about an hour, maybe a bit more depending on the size of pan, temperature of ingredients, etc. The last time I baked this I turned the oven up to 375 for the last 10 minutes, and I wish I had this time too.

This makes a very very moist batter. The first time I made it, everything was room temperature, and it still took a bit more than an hour at 350. This last time, I think there was more batter (bananas were bigger), and the pumpkin was the other half of the can that had been stored in the fridge. And the mulberries were still frozen.

Since it smelled heavenly and I made it early this am and I was hungry, I took it out a little too soon -- was very moist, though it has since firmed up -- the first slice (I couldn't wait) was a bit like a firm pumpkin pie pudding, wonderful, but hard to slice.

Needless to say, this is an extremely healthy bread, with an enormous amount of Vitamin A, one of those vitamins you probably shouldn't overdo, so be aware.

If you don't have cloves, nutmeg will do fine. My little jar of ground cloves has to be 20 years old and probably came from my mother's house, but it was still potent. I thought I had a tin of something called "pumpkin pie spice," but I may have been mistaken, or my old boyfriend stole it (along with my Led Zeppelin record).

Instead of a half can of pumpkin, the next time I bake I may use 1/3 can and see what happens. Maybe add a half of an apple too.

It is relaxing on the shelf right now, ready to be eaten tomorrow. Banana bread is always better the next day, assuming it makes it that far.

So maybe Tuesday should be declared National Banana Bread Leftover Day, and become a national (rather than industry-sponsored) holiday.

Robot With Sneakers

2009-02-19T16:10:00.003-06:00

This is Duo, the robot I talked about below. He (or she) is no longer barefoot and has been reassembled.

He (or she) is one of the robots in my computer game Darkdevil County. If you go to the Ox-Bow benefit tonight, you'll have the opportunity to buy a different robot -- but a really good one, framed and everything.

Is so cold, but I really should get myself going if I want to get down there (I don't, not really, even with the full cash bar and fabulous food). Have been programming like mad all today and yesterday. Want to FINISH this latest version, because there's tons of GOOD STUFF in it -- not just more rooms to explore, but a the story line has gone a bit deeper and the animations are gradually getting better.

Also, am definitely looking to pick up a contract programming/part time/ maintenance/Excel/Access/lite development gig, if anyone knows of something. I can program any of the Visual Studio languages, tho the C family and Visual Basic are my key strengths -- and gaming languages, of course. I've done SQL Server work, but not using a recent implementation (does anyone remember pre-7.0??).

And yes, this is because my savings have been all but wiped out. Thank you, 8 years of failed GOP policies. Thank you very much.

Microwave Beef Stew

2009-02-17T11:30:00.004-06:00

It's cooling now so I can refrigerate part, freeze part of it, so thought I'd jot down the recipe before I forgot.

Put about a tablespoon of chicken fat (ah ha! another reason to make your own chicken soup) skimmed from the top of the latest batch of chicken leg soup into a big frying pan. If I didn't have the chicken fat I probably would have used regular oil.

Dredged about a half pound of cut up stew beef (whatever is cheapest and leanest at the store) in about a cup or so of flour to which I'd added salt and pepper. Threw the meat and all the remaining flour from the bowl into the pan and started browning it.

When brown but not burned (had to open the window so my stupidly placed smoke detector wouldn't go off), covered it with water and started it simmering.

Forgot to add an onion when I browned the meat, so quickly sliced an onion into the bubbling pan.

Realized I better get the rest of the vegetables chopped up and into my favorite microwave bowl:

One mutantly large carrot from the sale rack, sliced
About 1 1/2 cups chopped celery and tops
1/4 big red pepper, chopped

Transfered the stuff in the pan to the bowl, added a big pinch of rosemary (my favorite spice), more salt and pepper, water up to nearly the edge of the bowl. Microwaved at 60 percent power for 45 minutes.

At this point, the beef was still a bit tough and it tasted weak, needing something.

Added 1 chopped Roma tomato (the cheap ones)
1 peeled and sliced turnip.
About 1/2 small bay leaf.

Reduced power to 40 percent, cooked for another 30 minutes.

As I said on Twitter, it is so good I thought I'd faint.

Will freeze half, refrigerate half, mostly so I don't eat it all in one sitting. Someone told me that turnips don't freeze well, so may fish them out for the refrigerated, dinner tonight part.

It's not too cold today, but will mash up some potatoes (from the 10 pounds for 1.79 bag I just bought) nice and fluffy, make a pit in the middle, and deposit the stew.

You will notice there is no high fructose corn syrup or MSG or "gravy master" anywhere in sight. If I can do this anyone can.

I Am a Good Cook

2009-02-15T12:56:00.004-06:00

I have no idea how it happened. Poverty has asked me to step up to the plate (the dinner plate, that is) and I have accepted the challenge.

Latest creation is a meatless stew with tomatoes, lentils, eggplant, peppers, and macaroni. You laugh at the last ingredient, and you may. You may prefer to substitute brown rice, or something equally healthy.

This is how the stew happened:

Since my goal is to survive this recession without succumbing to malnutrition, have been buying stuff from the "seen better days" rack at the grocery store. I say "grocery store" since it's not a supermarket -- the tiny rack of junk food is never on sale. No one in their right mind buys a 12 oz bag of potato chips for 4.69 US. But you can get several pounds of mixed red and green peppers for 69 cents, bananas just aching to be made into banana bread for 29 cents, etc.

I'm really not fond of peppers, but for the right price I'll become fond. An eggplant was mixed into the pack this time. The store often assembles quite interesting mixtures of stuff that you ordinarily wouldn't buy at the going price (e.g., 2.69/pound for peppers).

So, chopped the mushiest of the peppers and half an eggplant (in case it didn't work out I had a backup) and an onion up and threw it in the frying pan with a little oil (regular, cheap oil. Who can afford olive oil? My mother's trick was to use regular oil then just a few drops of the lush stuff to fake us out if she was cooking something vaguely Italian. This was before we were aware that olive oil is supposedly better for you so you should spend several bucks a day consuming it.)

But I digress.

While it was sauteing, threw a half a cup of lentils and the nearly half can of tomatoes (left over from the last batch of chili) into my favorite big microwave bowl, added a cup of the chicken stock and enough water to bring it up to a 4 or 5 to one ratio. I nuked it for about 10 minutes on high, then realized I should probably throw in some salt and pepper and spice (rosemary -- about a half tsp).

By this point the stuff in the pan was looking good -- not completely cooked, but the onions were transparent. Needed something, so tossed some oregano and red pepper flakes in the pan and stirred it around. Contemplated putting in some garlic (it's been very cheap at market lately), but since I'm really not too big a fan, decided against.

Transferred it all to the big microwave bowl, and started nuking it again for about 10 minutes.

Once again, decided it needed something, so threw in what remained in the bag (maybe a half cup, a little more?) of dry macaroni and cut up into chunks a Roma tomato (which was on sale this week for 49 cents a pound).

I'd never just put dried macaroni into something before -- always boiled it separately. But why, after all? Why?

Reduced the microwaving to 60 percent and set for 15 minutes (judging it from how long the lentils would take to be edible). Added more salt and pepper too.

When done, was perfect. Made several quarts -- nice and thick. The macaroni overcooked a bit, but contributed to the thick stewyness.

Served it up in my favorite soup bowl and added a few spoons of freshly grated Parmesan cheese. This sounds like a luxury, but is cheaper than the horrible Kraft stuff -- and has no fake-out fillers and rodent fur either.

Nearly became hysterical when the horrible Kraft stuff rose in price to 4.99 for an 8 oz. shaker but knew of no reasonable alternative, since the supermarket only sold Kraft or else imported Parmesan for $13.99 US a pound.

The refrigerated section of the grocery store I go to has parm (and Romano too) already grated for 5.99 a pound, sold in convenient half-pound containers. Yummy, sharp, buttery, melt-in-your-mouth. Can't believe I've lived my whole life not knowing what actual Parmesan cheese -- even cheap stuff -- tastes like. You will never ever go back. You will never ever leave a neighborhood that doesn't contain a store that sells it.

Trying to add up how much I spent on the whole thing -- 15 cents for the lentils. Another 15 for the macaroni. 50 cents for the canned tomatoes -- my big splurge. 10 cents for the fresh tomato. Chicken stock -- had been made with cheap chicken legs, so maybe 20 cents worth. 30 cents for the vegetables. Cheese is optional, but tasty.

OK, maybe $1.50 in ingredients (spices do, after all, cost something). Made a good 2 quarts of dense stew that can be watered down more and morph into all kinds of good stuff. Would be excellent with Italian sausage and a cup of cooked beans.

Has been a successful weekend -- the banana/pumpkin bread with sunflower seeds and mulberries is about the best I've made so far -- a good thing, since I'd bought the cans of pumpkin several years ago when they were 3/a buck and forgot about.

It basically follows my general banana bread recipe: a couple of mashed bananas, a cup or so of mashed up other stuff (apple, carrot, etc.) 2 cups flour, 2 eggs, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 cup sugar). Added 1/4 tsp cloves and 1/4 cinnamon, and reduced the whole wheat flour to 1 3/4 cups, keeping in mind the sweet potato experiment of several weeks ago. Will try to remember exactly what I did and post it some other day.

That's all for now. I should go put the leftovers in the fridge.

How About Appointing a Freeking Democrat

2009-02-12T18:02:00.001-06:00

...for a change?

Gregg withdraws as nominee for Commerce

He cited "irresolvable conflicts" with Obama's handling of the economic stimulus and 2010 census.

Yeah, like he's a freeking REPUBLICAN!! Who hates to spend a nickel on the little guy!!

Good afternoon, friends. Have been programming the new scenario busily all afternoon, led astray by an uninitialized variable that was causing (as they tend to) weird effects, but this in the color I was trying to tint a room. Was about to report it as a bug in the new version of AGS until I dumped a bunch of stuff and discovered, what do you know, it was my problem.

Kind of like Gregg. He's one of the bugs in the Obama code. We fix it, and move on.

Another Gift Day

2009-02-10T16:07:00.001-06:00

This one, if possible, even nicer.

Had to drop a robot off for the upcoming School of the Art Institute, Ox-Bow benefit:

A plug:

Winter Benefit Art Auction
Thursday, February 19, 2009
5:30-9:30 p.m. (Central time)
Sullivan Center Galleries, SAIC
33 South State Street, 7th Floor
Chicago, IL

You should go if you can. Maybe this year will be different, but they always throw just about the best part available, with incredible full open bar, appetizer buffet AND entree buffet AND dessert buffet.

Oh, and art. Cheaper than you can believe possible, too. My prints generally end up selling in the 275-325 US dollar range. Sure wish someone would give ME the money occasionally, instead of donating it to Ox-Bow so more starving artists can be produced, who will then give their art away at benefits, so that more starving artists can be created....

The location is the old Carson Pirie Scott building. Entry on State Street, then walk thru to the Wabash side (is what my instructions were).

Coming back had a weird episode. Was walking west toward the Metra station along Randolph, not really paying attention, just walking the route I've taken many, many, many times over the years.

Suddenly I looked up and saw the Metropolitan Correctional Center in front of me, and the restaurant Boni Vino, where I used to eat many many many times when I worked at the CBOE and CBT.

At some point I must have turned south, but I can't imagine how or why, unless my feet were thinking I was going back to the office after shopping/dentist over on Wabash. Randolph to Van Buren is quite a few city blocks to wander down oblivious to the world.

Is this the start of Alzheimers? Or simple inattention because of the weather?

A Gift Day

2009-02-07T16:50:00.002-06:00

How often do you get a February thaw day (was above 60 degrees in the sun) that lands on a Saturday? Ran around doing errands, including fixing a broken pane of glass. I did a shitty job of it, but is far, far better than it had been (duct tape over torn cardboard and a piece of bubble wrap to keep out the arctic chill). I can now see out and others can see in (gulp...).

Out to Gillson Park, where I always feel serene and not insane. A lot of people there staring into nothingness, letting the sun bake down on their faces, saying nothing. People not even greeting each other, too busy absorbing sun and creating Vitamin D. Those who'd had enough, standing on the dunes and icy tundra and the edge of Lake Michigan, looking stunned and sluggish, staring outward, rather than winter-inward.

Broken Robot

2009-02-05T23:39:00.003-06:00

This is Duo, a robot experiment with human feet. He (or perhaps she) was dumped in an animal burrow as medical waste. Our Darkdevil County heroine (as always seems to be the case) finds him or her and is charged with a good deed.

Good evening, friends. Have been working rather hard on the game again, and the new burrow room and quest is nearly complete, with dripping water and distant river sounds and everything.

Does anyone know when Soundsnap.com started charging for sounds? It was a shock going back to my favorite sound site and discovering you can only download 5 a month with a free subscription now. I can easily download 5 a minute then decide I don't want to use any of them after all, and go back for more. Luckily freesound.org is still free, with Creative Commons sampling licensing. And they handily remember all your downloads which makes it easy to add the sound artist names to credits.

No! NO! Freshpaint Isn't Ending!

2009-02-04T10:05:00.002-06:00

Several people saw the title of my last blogging and worried that it was a Freshpaint signoff. NOT! I may be twittering and livejournalling and facebooking and AGS foruming and whatnot a lot these days, but I'm still here, and will continue to be.

Will be celebrating the 5th anniversary at the end of the month, after all. And I want to see if spring will ever come this year, and post the first sign of it.

Have been working feverishly (for a change) on a new room for Darkdevil County, this one a burrow with another damaged robot in it. The plot is evolving in new directions, and I'm just flowing with it.

I know I said last August or September that I'd be posting a new version of the game "soon," and I apologize. Hideously cold weather and nothing to watch on TV have been good for game development, however, as has a computer that actually works.

So, once again, I predict I'll be posting more "soon."

Endings

2009-01-31T15:02:00.002-06:00

Left the house for a pleasure walk (and to pay up at the library) along the business district near me -- temperatures soaring above freezing and sunny skies the culprit. Also brought out the largest crowds I've seen out on a Saturday in awhile -- drawn, in part, by desperate price slashing by the local merchants.

Even Foodstuffs, whose stuff beyond the occasional brownie I've never been able to afford, even BB (Before Bush), has huge sign screaming about lower prices.

This is the last 3 weeks of Mindscape, however -- it's been around for more than 30 years. It always had high-end jewelry and art-clothes and glass stuff. They're selling everything, displays and anything they can kick out the door. I always enjoyed going in and talking to the owner. "No more money left to lose," was what he told me. Catch the incredible sales at the store on Central Street in Evanston.

This is the last weekend at the Figurative Art League in the Noyes Cultural Arts Center (the website is already gone) -- they're also selling everything -- easels, drawing boards, anonymous paintings and drawings that had been stuffed in corners and drawers, art materials and magazines, tons of fabrics and carpets and still-life items that had been collected over the past 30 years. 11-4 today, and tomorrow (Sunday), with a final farewell party on Sunday. Where else can you get a chair for 3 bucks?

Finally, noticed that the Tucker Gallery is now shuttered, with a notice that it's being replaced by the Gavin Boutique. Is sad to see an art gallery close, even if I didn't really care for the stuff they showed. The space was beautiful, however, and I'm sure closing down means a lot of heartache for the artists concerned. Is so hard to get yourself into a gallery to begin with, so having it fold underneath you must be awful.

This is not good. This is sad, even though it's sunny out.

Aldo Crommelynck, Master Printer, 1931-2008

2009-01-29T00:26:00.001-06:00

And how a master. His was the hand and guidance behind many of the iconic works on paper of the past 50 years:

Aldo Crommelynck, a Printmaker for Artists Including Picasso, Dies at 77

He was also game. For Chuck Close’s “Spitbite” etchings, Mr. Crommelynck, a chain smoker, contributed his own saliva to the acid mixture used to incise the image on the plate.

“I think it was all those Gauloise cigarettes Aldo smoked,” Mr. Close told the curator Terry Sultan in 1988. “My spit never seemed to work as well.”

The slideshow that goes with this obit is brief but gives you non-printmakers an idea of what a fabulous print looks like. And for the printmakers, one more reason to resign yourself to how talentless you are.

So What Was the Point

2009-01-28T17:39:00.002-06:00

... of dumping the Family Planning aid from the stimulus package that just passed when we all knew the Republicans weren't going to support the package anyway, even if it guaranteed an outright ban on all homosexual behavior, all abortions, all sex in general outside of marriage plus funding for more wars and payment for CEO aircraft? The vote was party line, and everyone knew it would be, because they said so.

Let that be a lesson to you, Mr. President. You might want to do the kumbaya bipartisan thing, but two unis doesn't nessesarily make one bi.

A confused thought for you to unravel, if figuring out Heroes and Lost doesn't cut it for you.

Isn't He Gone Yet?

2009-01-27T22:53:00.002-06:00

Not worth taking a poll about who wants Blago to stay in office. The answer is zero. I don't care if it's a political circus. I don't care if Blago feels like he's being railroaded. I don't care how many talk shows he goes on with his bad hair. Something is definitely wrong with this guy.

Or as Mayor Daley says, "Cuckoo!"

Flour Tortillas

2009-01-20T20:08:00.004-06:00

No, this isn't a metaphor for anything Presidential or otherwise. Decided to make from scratch, since I have a whole pot of chili and nothing in the house to sop it up with. Used the excellent recipe I found here, but here are my lazy-person notes.

Basic ingredients are:

2 cups all-purpose flour (I used unbleached instead)
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
3/4 cup lukewarm milk (2% is fine)

Online recipe has you combine flour and baking powder and sift into bowl (which I forgot to do), then combine the salt, oil and lukewarm milk (which I translated into zapped in microwave for about 20 seconds) and add it to flour. Think I'd rather add the flour to the wet ingredients -- think I may have added too much flour, or it's too dry or cold or whatever makes stuff not absorb.

Recipe has you knead the dough for a few minutes then let it rest for 15, then divide into 8 little balls and let it rest for another 20. This sounds like a whole lot of resting, but is probably wise, since it in theory makes it easier to roll it out into 7 or 8 inch rounds. Plus you can check email and find the big frying pan that might be in the basement while you wait.

I think you can maybe squeeze out another dough ball or 2 from this recipe in exchange for slightly smaller tortillas that may possibly be easier to roll.

The biggest problem I had was trying to figure out how hot the pan should be. Once you roll each ball out as thin as you can (I didn't use a Mexican style rolling stick, just the usual rolling pin), you throw it in a good heavy unoiled, ungreased, dry frying pan (or griddle, or other fancy cooking surface) and let it cook for about a half minute (NO MORE, honestly!) till you see blisters and puffs on the surface facing you. Then you peek underneath and see that, yes, it DOES look exactly like a store-bought flour tortilla! You flip it to the other side with your fingers.

This is where I had problems with my pan -- by this point it had got too hot, so even tho it was unoiled, the smoke detector kept wanting to go off.

Solved the problem by turning the gas flame off as soon as the first side was cooked prettily, then letting the other side get brown as pan was cooling down. Good compromise, and kept me from throwing smoke detector out into the snow.

Finally, it would be great to have one of those plastic tortilla cozies like they give you at a restaurant. If you don't keep them moist and warm as they come off the grill, they will be closer to matzohs than tortillas. So you keep them piled up and cover them, then wrap them in foil or plastic when all are done. In theory you can freeze or refrigerate them.

If, instead of chili, you put cucumbers and yogurt and onions and gyros meat on one, there is no way anyone could tell you it's not pita bread.

So is it worth the work? Sure -- why not? I can't imagine doing it everyday, like many families do. The rolling out is the time consuming part and the need to stand there cooking until it's all done instead of sitting down with friends and/or family, assuming you have some available. Pancakes and waffles have this problem as well.

I suggest beer or wine to wash away the solitude. And the only witness who knows that you consumed half an entire batch in one sitting and now you feel a little sick is you.

Things We Need to Remember, Part II

2009-01-20T09:59:00.002-06:00

...what it's like to eat the sweetest, juiciest pear I've ever eaten while the snow drifts across a sunny sky and people are cheering on my computer screen.

Things We Need to Remember, Part I

2009-01-19T13:06:00.003-06:00

After 8 years of the Bush crowd, this song says it all. So very happy Pete Seeger is still around to play it. He must be 400 years old. I remember the March on Washington of (I think) 71 or 72 protesting the Vietnam War -- I got thrown in jail trying to block off the Chain Bridge. He was there, in just about the same location.

How quickly time passes -- just yesterday, it seems, I was glued to the internet, awaiting the depressing news about the recount that took away the life and livelihood of so many.

So, watch this, sing along, and let the tears run down your face. This is the way Americans do revolution.

Ya Wimps

2009-01-16T12:32:00.003-06:00

Where was everybody this morning? Dragged myself out in literally sub-zero weather to open the frigid print studio, sat there all by myself for hours, depressed, nothing to do but tear paper and weep from lonliness.

I guess many consider this a ~~4-day~~ 5-day weekend -- snow day, MLK day on Monday, Inauguation Day on Tuesday. Ok. Fine. Be that way.

But since I did leave the house I could stop off at Walgreens for breakfast:

Thank goodness for cellphone cameras.

Somewhat Fresh

2009-01-13T16:55:00.004-06:00

Not sure whether this animates for you, or whether you can refresh to see it again -- it's an animated gif. The program I have creates gifs and avis -- and does something funky with the avis. And blogger doesn't let you upload an animated gif to video.

Anyway, am sure there's a widget for doing all this. Is just so tiring not having good software to do the stuff you want to do. Want to add sound effects (the apple drop, chirping birds, the roll, etc.), but have to transfer the animation into a 3rd program to add sounds. And the default windows movie maker doesn't support .ogg files, which most of my sound effects are.

This started out as a simple Pencil animation (I really like Pencil's simplicity). Think Pencil will add sound, so may throw it back in and see what happens.

Anyway, it's the beginning of a possible Darkdevil County game opening splash screen. Not sure I like the color of the final position of the apple at the end -- looks too much like a tomato. Will perhaps fix and reupload.

But thought you'd like to see what I've been up to when I haven't been shovelling or slacking off.

Earning My Donuts

2009-01-13T09:06:00.003-06:00

Before:

After:

Let's see that again.

Before:

After:

Good post-blizzard morning, my friends. Have already burned thru a couple of donuts and a piece of banana bread with cream cheese bringing these pix to you.

Only a slight amount of trickery. What you're not seeing is my neighbor helping me get the last of the canyon walls battered down. I attacked the ice floe with my trusty pitchfork to soften it up and he hacked and blew the chunks away with the blower. I don't know what I'd have done without him -- most likely would still be out there.

I heard the plows scraping last night around 3 or 4, so knew I'd have to get at it asap before it all froze completely solid -- temps supposed to start dropping to subzero later, and then another round of snow for tomorrow.

Right now it's sunny and not too bad out there if you stay out of the wind. Plenty of healthy oxygen, unless you're standing behind a snow blower.

Bigger question: now that the car is dug out, what shall I do? Where shall I go?

Places to Go

2009-01-10T11:24:00.004-06:00

...but will I get there?

I believed the last weather forecast yesterday pm, that we were only in for another 1 or 2 inches of snow, so cleared driveway and put car in garage.

Man, I can't even see across the street right now. Weather channel shows a band of heavy (the bluest) snow right over my house.

Joe Taylor, I will try to get out to your opening reception today, if the snowplows let me. If not, everyone else should try to get there. This guy's stuff is good.

Yes, There Will be Studio

2009-01-08T21:57:00.002-06:00

...tomorrow, Friday, Jan. 9th. I can see no reason not to -- we're supposed to get a lot of snow tomorrow, but I've just moved the car so I won't get plowed in so badly I can't get out of the driveway, like last time. The big chunk of ice on one side of the driveway that trapped me before is still there and hasn't melted yet, even through the 60 degree day we had a week or so ago. It's not going to get better any time soon.

So, printmakers, hope I'll see you there. As always, the default should be Yes, Studio. I'll call the Evanston Art Center if for some reason I have to cancel, so if you're unsure, check here first or call them. Newbies, Julian should have told you all this. However...

Another Dream

2009-01-08T10:34:00.003-06:00

Had stuff in a two-person show in a large gallery, but the gallery called me "Cindy" instead of "Cynthia" on all their signs, postcards, etc. Spent some time trying to find the gallery owner to correct it, then wondered whether it was a better, hipper name to use (Cindy Sherman, etc. -- who also went to SUNYAB, I understand, and who I may have met in the good old days at Ashford Hollow).

Thinking perhaps of all this, I end up in one of those political campaign offices, with stuff and schedules and jokes on the wall, lots of tables set up with piles of canvassing sheets, crappy laptops, boxes of Dunkin Donuts coffee and the donuts themselves, t-shirts, broken cellphones, etc. etc. A woman who looks a lot like Sarah Silverman is trying to set up something to track items sold, day sold, customer name, etc. (probably now thinking about all the Obama merchandise that is being plugged from every angle imaginable), so I go over and declare myself an expert in Excel and let me help you.

Woman setting this thing up looks dubious, I keep trying to reach for her computer, saying, trust me, I really am an expert at this, I used to do this for a living (all true, I'm afraid), but I couldn't convince anyone. (this probably coming from job anxiety, the thought of temping again, etc.)

Suddenly (as happens) I'm in someone's dorm room. It's filled with cute 18 year old guys, kind of nerdy ones, with black hair and lots of computers and games. A really cool game called "Hollywood ----" is playing on the screen -- can't remember the whole title, but I know instinctively that it's the sequel to "-----". In the scene I'm watching, the character pulls up to a big building in a cab. The cab is called "----- Cab Company." Anyone recognize this game?

Anyway, some smart girls show up, and I try to straighten them out vis a vis Excel. They're a little more receptive. For some reason they all have Ghiradelli chocolate squares in their hands, but they've melted, but the girls just laugh about it. Suddenly there's a big cake and art opening receptions stuff and campaign office stuff (goldfish crackers, twizzlers, etc.) so I decide to order 3 big pizzas.

Lots of people are arriving now, so I go down the narrow hallway banging on doors, telling people there's a party. More sleepy-looking 18 yr old dark-haired nerds show up.

I'm feeling pretty pleased with myself right about now, so I wake up. I am older than all these people, but I'm still pretty hip.

Darkdevil County Back in Production

2009-01-07T12:02:00.004-06:00

Here's a preview of new artwork for Darkdevil County:

One variation, at least. Is so easy to add layers and layers, tweak colors forever, never know where or when to stop, or whether it's what I want anyway.

This is one (possible) frame from the opening sequence I'm planning -- a little more comic book-y than draw-y. I don't have very good tools for image manipulation (or animation) and can't afford better. This is where our heroine, Magwyn Urban-dweller, lives, and it's still night. Soon the sky will lighten as I tell some of the background of the story (rather than have you read it in a readme.txt file). We may see a few robots on their way to work, maybe some distant cannon fire.

Or not.

Since it seems as though most of the serious issues with the latest version of AGS have been resolved (we're now up to 3.1.2), it seems safe to continue onwards.

It's taking me a long time to get back into the program/game and pick up from where I'd been. Computer is working extremely well, so am tempted to go into debt and get a Wacom tablet and more memory.

We'll see.

Have told myself that before I even turn the computer on in the morning will do at least one drawing. This is the first.

A Final Robot

2008-12-31T13:26:00.003-06:00

Yes, 2008 will soon be over, so let's all wave goodbye to it.

This is a zinc plate that was a little scratchy before I used it. Used a light hard ground and drew the linework with just a pencil, not a needle, and did a deep bite. Then commenced with the aquatint. The quality (and quantity) of rosin in our rosin box is not that hot, and I may not have fused it long enough (using a hotplate). Second try was better, but, of course, with a little of the blotchiness you always get with doing a second aquatint on top of the first.

Used a blowtorch instead of the hotplate this time, something I've never done before. A little scary (since I have depth perception problems and am in general a klutz), but fast and accurate. Is a skill worth developing.

Will play a bit more with this at some point, then on to the next. Such is the artist's life.

Somewhat Proud of Self

2008-12-31T12:49:00.002-06:00

Disassembled the mouse -- dropped everything on the floor a few times, and kept losing the case on my desk (don't ask me how -- kept thinking it was a different color or something, I guess).

Cleaned out 5 years of crap, dust, cheetos, etc. Discovered that the right mouse button clicker lays against the cord to the mouse, which may interfere if the cord gets pulled too much (and it does -- it's always falling on the floor and dangles.).

Managed to get it to kinda work though, which is better than it not working at all. I just have to be deliberate about clicking. And I may have replaced a spring on the scroll wheel backwards or upside down, or maybe the wheel really liked all that juicy junk food grease. It scrolls one way just fine, but the other way is a little jerky.

Hope all of you have been having fun with the new Google Toolbar which for your convenience installed itself today and blocked off the screen so I couldn't access IE. For some reason I couldn't get out of whatever mode it put me in, not even with clicking, escapes, etc. etc. Reinstalled, and the message went away. Now it just chops off the first 5 chars of the notebook. Ah well, I never used it anyway, so maybe will continue to not use it.

Have scanned the robot in and will present it shortly. Nothing like spending hours fixing stuff rather than doing other stuff.

Yes, There Will Be Studio

2008-12-29T19:05:00.003-06:00

... this Friday, January 2, 2009.

Called Noyes Cultural Arts Center today and found out that the building is open. So, assuming we don't have another ice storm, I'll be there at 9:30 to open up for EAC printmaking students. And a a reminder: if you haven't signed up for the new semester (which starts next week), you still have time. We don't want any to get cancelled because people forgot to enroll.

In robot news: I managed to fix the aquatint on the new robot print (thanks, Peg) and am fairly pleased with it. It's a pretty straightforward etching (which I left on the drying rack the other day. Might rescue it tomorrow, since I know you're all breathlessly anticipating seeing it).

Icy Out There

2008-12-26T11:25:00.002-06:00

Felt like a 90 year old with a bad hip replacement going down the steps to move my car this morning, did the Frankenstein's monster walk down sidewalk all the way to the street, which had been moderately salted. All is moderation this year, despite the actual winter weather. The city just doesn't have the cash.

Am hoping it will rain buckets so I can clear the ice and slush from my actual driveway. Had to chip off a half inch of ice before I could even open the car door.

So pleasant having the laptop back again. Had completely forgotten what a nice machine it is, how crisp and clear and no-glare the screen is. Whatever they did to make it all better, they really did make it all better, faster, and virtually silent -- no roaring fan, no weird slow-downs.

My mouse, on the other hand, has finally consumed its last Cheetos -- the right button barely works at all, and frustrates so badly I've had to turn on the touch pad, which I've never got the hang of. So the typos in this blogging are not my fault.

Off to library soon, however, to return some movies (Dreamgirls -- pretty good, better than I'd expected, and Jennifer Hudson is incredible, Beyonce gorgeous, silky slick.) Later.

Computer is Home

2008-12-24T14:58:00.002-06:00

... and appears to work completely for the first time in a long time. What a nice Xmas present for myself. Got the Visa bill for it just yesterday.

So, folks, will be answering your emails etc. again, and blogging will now commence. I hope to start back with game development and all the usual activities real soon.

Am going to pour myself a glass of champagne now, and hope I don't spill it in the keyboard and short out everything.

Nice People

2008-12-22T13:40:00.002-06:00

Yes, there are nice people in this world. Today is first day out of the house (and, as usual, at library) since the big storm, the deep freeze, etc., that created giant chunks of ice in my driveway, the driveway I'd just managed to clear of 3 feet of slush.

With my handy pitchfork, I managed to clear a lot of the ice away, but apparently not enough. As I gunned my car directly backwards, trying to time the trajectory to slice between batches of traffic at the two stoplights on my street, the car slipped sideways and wedged itself halfway up a snow bank -- or, rather, an iceberg. I would have taken a picture of myself balanced there except my phone was in my pocket and the camera was in the house and I couldn't get out of the car, because one of the ice cliffs was firmly wedged against the door.

As I was uselessly spinning wheels, trying to go forward, then backward, then trying to figure out how to get out of car so I could Call Someone, two vans of guys stopped, one on either side of the driveway, got my pitchforks and shovels out of my garage and their trucks and dug me out, chipping the ice floe away to practically nothing, then standing in the 4-lane highway to stop traffic as I shot the car out of the driveway (with the usual asshole big black SUVs and Hummers honking and speeding up when they saw what we were trying to do).

They took off before I had a chance to thoroughly thank them -- possibly with a plate of the oatmeal raisin/chocolate chunk cookies I baked yesterday.

So, guys, if you're out there, and you're reading this -- THANKS!

Ya Wusses

2008-12-19T13:37:00.002-06:00

Even though I had to get up at dawn to shovel out the driveway, I showed up at studio today. So where were you all? Sleeping soundly, probably, looking out the window with your cups of coffee and bagels and cream cheese, saying, "Brrr... I bet it's cold out there."

Shouldn't have opened up, since I managed to screw up an aquatint on my new robot plate -- well, maybe didn't screw it up, but it doesn't look all that good. Definitely a chine colle candidate with a lot of a la poupee. And no, I'm not going to add the accent marks, because I'm at the computer in the library and everything is different here.

Sent off the faulty computer (again) the other day, due to get delivered to the repair place (per FedEx) today, in time for them to not repair it over the weekend, and then not ship it back next week because of Christmas. But it had to be done.

So, will do what I have to do on the internet, check out a few movies, buy a bottle of bourbon and some eggnog, and go home.

EAC students, if you're desperate to print something, like for a present, call me on my land line or cell, send me a tweet, or send me an email. If you want to figure out what's happening, this blog has my Twitter feed, which is easier for me to keep up to date from the tiny browser in my phone. If I want to update the blog, I have to send an email to it, something I haven't tried yet. Perhaps I will. Or not.

Sobbing into the Box

2008-12-17T16:01:00.003-06:00

Backup done, packing up the computer to send it out for repair again. Hope the tears dropping onto the packaging don't ruin anything.

As before, will be checking stuff at the library, and from the phone, so all is not lost. Will probably get quite a lot done this coming week -- last time got through all of The Return of the Native (Thomas Hardy), I book I have a feeling I was supposed to have read in high school but possibly never did, since it seemed completely unfamiliar. Next up: The Mayor of Casterbridge, and KNITTING!

See ya, at some point. Good news -- sold some stuff at the Evanston Art Center sale -- there are still 2 more opportunities to see my work (at Morpho and at Chicago Printmakers Collaborative), so please indulge and give yourself (and myself) a treat.

If you saw something at the EAC sale you liked, and only just now realized the sale was over and you really wanted to get it, just let me know.

Breaking News

2008-12-17T10:44:00.003-06:00

Ah, CNN... What would we do without you? And people complain about Caroline Kennedy wanting to get appointed to fill Hillary Clinton's senate seat. Harvard B.A., Columbia J.D. not good enough? A lifetime spent in politics, education issues, arts administration, motherhood? A Democrat from the Democratic wing of the party who will not dither on these issues, who will take direction from "Red" Kennedy, her uncle?

Let them draw the monarchy line after this appointment, and enforce it only for the Bush family. Her father was king for only a very brief moment, after all, and her brother only barely a prince.

There are probably many more deserving on merit, but this wouldn't be bad. The press would go gaga, spend all their time divided between her and Hillary, and let the new administration get some work done in peace and quiet for a change.

Tragedy

2008-12-15T17:52:00.003-06:00

If you've been following me on Twitter, you'll know that I spilled much of the wonderful beef stew I made yesterday -- saved the expensive meat, but my kitchen floor is not clean enough to lick the gravy off of. Let this be a lesson to me.

And you'll note that another day has passed and I still haven't boxed up the laptop and returned it for repair. It's 8 freeking degrees out there and slippery. Yeah, I know, not a really good excuse, but it's my latest excuse.

Think I have to take it over during the day. Have to do more xeroxes for xerox transfers anyway. Here's one I'm still working on:

And another:

This last one was done from a very bad xerox -- very light -- as part of an ink test, but I kind of like the result. A little Conte crayon-ish. Will probably work with it more.

These are all from notebook scribble drawings -- something I do if I can't think of anything else to do. They're vaguely Darkdevil-ish. I think I know where I might be able to use some of the scribbles in the game.

Now that they're scanned into the computer, can do stuff to them without going outside into the cold.

Oh, wait. I won't have a computer soon, and the library doesn't have a decent graphics program on their hard drive -- just MS paint (I think) -- and I'm not allowed to install anything.

Guess I'll have to work on this stuff Old School -- like with a pencil or something.

Really Good Beef Stew

2008-12-14T16:34:00.002-06:00

After the beef and barley fiasco of last week, decided not to put barley in the stew this time. The cheapest cut of beef at Dominicks today was London broil -- basically a huge undifferentiated chunk of flesh. Cut half of it up into chunks -- maybe a little more than a pound. It was really lean.

Put a little oil in a frying pan and browned a whole medium size onion, sliced up. Dredged the meat chunks in a mix of flour, salt and pepper, and browned it with the onion. Some of the bits of onion got a little, uh, over brown, but since nothing set off the smoke detector, I wasn't worried.

With it all in the pan, I put in the remains of the box of beef stock I bought for the barley fiasco -- maybe a cup, or a little more, was left. Boiled and scraped the good stuff from the pan, threw in the rest of the dredging mix, and stirred until it started to thicken.

Transferred the whole mess at this point to my favorite pyrex bowl so I could put it in the microwave. Added a half a big can of tomatoes, including most of the juice from the can, realized I was out of carrots, so started it cooking at 50 percent power, and ran off to the store.

When I got back (about a half hour later) sliced up 2 and a half carrots (ate a half, since I was hungry) and about a cup of celery (mostly the ugly parts near the bottom), added some more salt and a little more pepper, and put it on 40 percent power for 50 minutes. I may have added a little more water, stirred it a few times, etc.

That's it. Really really good. Microwaved a few red potatos, smashed them up, and ate the stew on top of them. I am now completely stuffed, and have at least 3 more meals left. And I know it'll be better tomorrow.

A note: I've never liked to put potatos in the stew directly because they tend to absorb all the smells in the refrigerator, which in the case of my refrigerator are always grim, so I cook them separately. Turnips can usually stand up for themselves, but sometimes are a little watery. With a microwave is easy enough to zap some of these and add them as needed.

Will try it with paprika next time and call it goulash.

Here endeth today's cooking lesson.

Selling All the Time

2008-12-12T15:54:00.001-06:00

Always a silver lining for some people:

Blago Should Have Used The Comsec C3i II Downline Tap Detector

If you have been under a rock this week, you read about the stupid actions of the Governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojevich. While he is presumed innocent, he was caught using a FBI wiretap trying to find the highest bidder to take over President elect Obama’s Illinois Senate Seat.

Stupid Blago, phone taps are for pros! If only he had invested a couple hundred bucks, he could have picked up a Comsec C3i II, the worlds only downline tap detector; the ones that the FBI sets up at the local telephone service.

Good info to tuck away for all of you contemplating the purchase of Senate seat. At studio today we discussed the possibility of buying our own senator, one who will be friendly to the arts and printmaking. I think we might be able to swing it if we hold a bake sale, especially if I sell my custom banana bread and someone brings plenty of kugel.

Good afternoon, friends. Am still here with the computer, not wanting to give it up for day two.

The virus scanner found an "unwanted program" for the very first time today -- hope my entire identity hasn't been stolen yet. Have changed passwords for everything, just in case. Is possible it's a remnant of the Dell remote control thing, when they were looking at my system and doing stuff to it. Is gone now.

Yes, There Will Be Open Studio

2008-12-11T12:32:00.002-06:00

... this Friday (Dec 12) and next Friday (Dec 19). NOT the following week, tho, since is day after Christmas. Will have to check the Noyes schedule for whether the building is open for assessment on the New Year's weekend. I mean, 2 weeks in a row for me to be off is a bit excessive, right?

I suppose the new semester starts again soon, too, but don't quite know when.

Hope everyone shows up. Otherwise I just might have to do some of my own artwork, and we wouldn't want that, would we?

Just Freeking Do It

2008-12-11T11:05:00.003-06:00

Resign, already!

Nothing new today in the Blagojevich atrocity, at least at the Trib, other than columnist reactions, etc., and the predictable troll trash-talking in comments here and there.

What is it with governors and corruption? I would have said it's the 'nads (thinking Spitzer in NY), but then there's Palin too.

My favorite Illinois blogger, Archpundit, is so very much all over this mess, I'll leave it in his very assured hands while my PC goes out for repair again. Graze away at his site -- tons and tons of facts and speculation, all you can eat.

While taking down last year's Christmas cards the other day (or maybe 2, maybe 3 years-worth -- they look so cheerful, why bother?), found this:

Check out the back:

Guess that committee has been disbanded. One hopes.

Don't want to send the computer back in the middle of all this. Really don't want to. Can't think when I've enjoyed a scandal as tasty -- have to think way way back to another Obama-related situation, the Jack Ryan/Alan Keyes thing.

It's been hard to find another politician who's been less popular than George Bush and Dick Cheney, but Blago has managed to do it for years now. He even makes Mike Madigan look good (insert picture of their embrace over the summer here). Mike should have bit off his ear when he had the chance.

The Latest

2008-12-10T18:30:00.003-06:00

Finally got up the nerve to talk to Dell again -- this time via the online chat feature, which is fabulous, if you're the kind of person who does better in type than on the phone, which is me. Only took 2 rounds, this time, and the first was probably not necessary. The tech had me reinstall the latest bios for my system, providing me a download link as part of the chat -- nifty, possibly in case something had zapped it during transport, or just because he figured he had to do something.

Of course it didn't do anything, since I think the new system board that had been installed already had the latest revision. Anyway, got on and chatted to another person who finally told me the problem is indeed with the LCD unit they installed and they would send me another box, and I should ship it back to them again.

So will be without the computer again soon, and will be briefing you on my adventures as before from the library and the phone. With luck this will be the end of it.

And on top of everything, Chris at AGS has released the latest version of the adventure game software I've been using that fixes the problem that had held up me releasing my latest version of Darkdevil County.

Just in time for me to be without my system again. Ugh. It's a conspiracy, I tell you. First the election, then the stock market plunging, eating all my savings, then all the hardware stuff, then me being snippy and bitchy to people, and now I'll be forced to read a book, or watch TV, or maybe paint something or go to studio and print. Why do they keep doing this to me?

But not today. Time to get off the pity-pot and bake more banana bread.

Should I Apologize Now?

2008-12-09T10:36:00.001-06:00

For voting for this fool? Twice?

Blago Taken Into Federal Custody For Abusing His Authority To Appoint Obama Successor

A 76-page FBI affidavit alleges that Blagojevich was intercepted on court-authorized wiretaps during the last month conspiring to sell or trade Illinois’ U.S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama for financial and other personal benefits for himself and his wife. At various times, in exchange for the Senate appointment, Blagojevich discussed obtaining:

– a substantial salary for himself at a either a non-profit foundation or an organization affiliated with labor unions;

– placing his wife on paid corporate boards where he speculated she might garner as much as $150,000 a year;

– promises of campaign funds – including cash up front; and

– a cabinet post or ambassadorship for himself.

I knew he'd f*cked up various health programs, tho talked the good talk in newsletters etc., but if true this is incredible!

I know everyone else out there liked Claypool for governor last time, but I didn't think he'd be effective, since he seemed too nice. And we have a fine tradition in Illinois electing effective, corrupt officials.

Blago, please resign right now. Pat Quinn is an ok guy (I think... who knows what to think any more). Maybe after this he won't try to sell Obama's senate seat, at the very least.

Chicago Printmakers at Morpho Gallery

2008-12-04T23:17:00.003-06:00

It's one of those irritating flash sites, but here's the link to the Chicago Printmakers show at Morpho Gallery, a massive group show of 3 print shops -- One Horse Press (us at EAC), Spudnik Press, and Screwball Press. Most of the pix rotating thru the slideshow are from our shop (I have stuff in the show, but didn't get my jpgs to them in time). Good stuff! I have no idea where they're going to put everything, since all of the shops are massively prolific. You'll just have to come by and see.

The opening is tomorrow, Friday, December 5, 2008, 6-11, Morpho Gallery
5216 N. Damen Ave, Chicago, IL 60625.

AT HOME!!

2008-12-04T18:31:00.002-06:00

Well, got fed up, after spending a lot of time trolling support sites and all said that if defrag takes longer than a couple of hours it's not going to complete at all, and besides, you need at least 10 percent free on the hard drive and it also helps to have ample memory. The suggestion was that, because of all the things that can interrupt defragging, it's best to do it while booted in safe mode, which perhaps I'll do one of these days.

So, with heart holding its breath, I powered down the computer, then confessed all my sins to the computer gods before powering it up again. It detected new hardware, then went back into defrag mode. So I powered it down again, and this time it came back up.

And this time I IMMEDIATELY did a full system backup before going online or anything. Had been unsure whether the previous backup was any good, since (why I didn't sleep for 8 days) the system had crashed while it was backing up last time -- oh, I guess I forgot to tell you that part of the story.

Anyway, will send this thing back when I'm good and ready -- have so much to do over the next few weeks, and absolutely MUST get back to a post-election world. Have no desire to do another mano a mano session with Dell support. I can't imagine how someone who is clueless about computers can get through something like this. The first thing they always want to do is reformat your hard drive and reinstall the operating system and all your software. Yeah. Like that's going to happen. My voice is hoarse from shrieking that this is not an option, and I KNEW it was not the software and drivers that was causing the screen to go scotch plaid and I knew it wasn't a virus, since I'd done a full scan the morning of the incident, and the thing has not once in five years had virus protection and firewall turned off or left unupdated. So there.

One nice thing -- they replaced the keyboard without me even asking them to -- the type had been worn off the e, t, s, and the arrow keys. This new keyboard is actually a whole lot nicer -- really good touch and snap. The keys are separated a little more, tho maybe each one is a tiny bit smaller. I had been not typing the "a" with my pinkie on the old keyboard because it had started sticking a little and poor old pinkie wasn't strong enough or patient enough for that shit. Maybe will train it back again now -- maybe not. If I have to go get a temp Kelly Girl job, they probably don't care whether I type funny or not.

At Library (Where Else)

2008-12-04T12:55:00.002-06:00

Laptop is still hosed. Apparently they sent it back with a defective screen -- shows up ok if you boot in safe mode or without the hard disk, but if you use the actual drivers, you can only access it via the monitor. Or in 4 bit 640 px mode, if you enjoy torture. Spent at least 4 hours talking with tech guys in India and software guys in Manilla, each of whom passed the buck to the other. The last guru I talked to said he's verified 100 percent that it's a hardware problem, and they should send me the box again and I should ship it back to them.

Am exhausted from all this -- the worry, etc. And now system is apparently defragging after logout. I seem to recall it does this periodically, but what a bad time to do it now!

If anyone out there knows whether you can safely interrupt (or power off) a "logging out" defrag, please, please let me know. Have heard that if it takes forever (it's still going -- 17 hours now?) it's likely to fail because if it gets an interrupt via (for example) mouse, screen power mgmt, wifi signal, etc. it has to start the job all over again. Is this so?

Or is the log off thing something else, something DIRE?

Will blog about something more pleasant soon, I hope.

At Library (Rinse, Repeat)

2008-12-01T10:49:00.003-06:00

Yes, am at library since can only blog to the blog via an email or message that then has to be fixed up in a weird way at a real computer.

Sent the system off last week after Dell sent me the box to pack it up in, am now waiting for delivery. They don't seem to have an online status check site, or maybe I'm supposed to give it my service tag somewhere. Am curious when it will come back, and whether they'll send me an email telling me when it's due to arrive so I can stand at the door waiting, for 8, 12 hours, if that's what it takes.

At least there was a sit-down system available this time.

Have been playing A LOT with the new phone, getting stuff set up etc. It can only show mobile web pages, or pages that are so modestly formatted that the cheesy little browser can interpret -- usually can't. Have heard that I can use Opera with Razr phones, but my service probably does stuff to make it impossible to use something that I didn't pay for. Have noticed that just about anything to do with mobile phones COSTS or else tries to sell you stuff deceptively. I don't think this industry is regulated at all to protect we the people (of any country, not just this one). Perhaps someday it will change.

So, until this is resolved, if your really want to see what I'm up to, you'll just have to check the twitter.com panel on the side. I don't have a whole bunch to say, but it's not too painful to say it with my thumbs.

I can get my e m a i 1 too, if you need to get in touch.

I have satisfactorily sent a picture of my feet from my phone to ee m a ! l. Perhaps I'll try to transfer it to the blog. Difficult, since can't store personal files except in something they call a "thawspace". Sounds terrifying.

Partly Back

2008-11-24T12:07:00.002-06:00

Psrtly back to normal again -- perhaps more later, but library session will expire in 4 minutes. New cellphone has arrived and is working, so peeps, you can call me now. Later.

Here We Go Again (part ixxxII(b)sub4.1)

2008-11-23T13:09:00.003-06:00

Had wonderful day -- got interviewed for the Chicago Printmakers Collaborative show -- went to the opening for Diana Kast and Margaret Roche (see below) -- came home -- and my computer had died. Doesn't recognize the power supply, so the battery can't recharge.

On top of that, can't connect to my friend who's in town from Florida, since I cancelled long distance from my landline when I got sick of paying the extra outrageous fees to use something I get for free on the cell -- so have been trying to find a pay phone to call him. They used to be everywhere -- haven't been able to find one yet.

If anyone sees RD, please let him know what the problem is, and that I'm not ignoring him. I'm very very stressed about it.

So called the Dell guys (while hyperventilating last night) and they tell me I'll have to send the unit back for repair, probably the motherboard got fried -- but I can't talk to anyone about it until Monday.

So am at the library, with 10 minutes left on my allotted time at the stand-up computer (no reservation required). Will post this now, since I still have shit to do.

When will it end???

Another Brutal Day

2008-11-20T16:52:00.002-06:00

...not just on Wall Street. If you've been following my Twitter feed you'll know that I dropped my cellphone in my morning cup of coffee, ruining two things in one fell swoop. Phone has been drying out much of the day, but on those occasions I've tried to see if it's still working I get weird fizzles and flashes, so I think it's genuinely gone.

Since this phone was circa 1953, not quite a big as a shoe box, but close, figured I should upgrade to the next level of "free" phone.

Some "free" -- part of it is a rebate (that likely will have expired by the time the phone arrives) plus a service fee and tax, ending up with me paying 50 bucks in free-ness.

So am bummed, and since I spent all day comparing and contrasting features -- why doesn't one phone have all the stuff I want and none that I don't much care about -- I didn't get anything I'd planned to do done -- like wrapping up artwork for sales, etc.

If you're trying to get in touch with me via the mobile number, forget it. I still have a land line, and you probably have the number, else get me via email, please. Still waiting patiently for my check order and new credit card from when purse was stolen last week.

Am thinking of this as a "meant to be" thing -- it was only dumb luck that the phone wasn't in the purse anyway, so I got a week more out of it, a lunch with someone who only has the cellphone number, and a call from a friend in Florida who's coming to visit.

Trying to remember how we used to do things pre-cellphone. I am aging so fast these days I honestly can't. Don't get many calls, or make many, but just knowing it's there is almost worth the pretty outrageous monthly bill.

Margaret Roche and Diana Kast at EAC/One Horse Press

2008-11-18T10:31:00.002-06:00

From back of card:

The Evanston Art Center and One Horse Press present
Mythic Impressions
a two-person show
Margaret Roche and Diana Kast
November 22 through December 30, 2008

Opening Reception Saturday, November 22, 2008
3:00 - 6:00 pm

Printshop/Gallery hours 9:30 - 12:30
Mon, Tue, Wed, Fri or by appointment 774-490-3907

EAC Auxiliary Campus, Noyes Cultural Arts Center
927 Noyes Street, Evanston, IL 60201

--------------------
This is going to be good. These are two of the strongest printmakers currently with us at the shop.