Warning arrives
Snow flies
Blizzards may be
As Arwen, a storm
Comes in from the sea.
Strengthening winds
Blustery showers
Branches may fall
Throughout the day.
Ice and snow flutters
Into the gutters
When will it go?
who knows!
Cold snap
Category: Uncategorized
A short walk at last
Today, for the first time in about three months I walked around the top of our hill (I drove up as I’m still nervous of putting pressure on my calf muscles).
It still had a little uphill section at the end (we walked downhill at the start). But I managed OK. I’d decided to go out early, before the sun set, and the sky still had some colour in it when we got down to the area of school playing fields that spread down into the Trent Valley.
On the walk we saw two dog walkers, one with a French bulldog and a Staffordshire bull terrier, the other with two beautiful golden retrievers. Both pairs of dogs wanted a fuss so that delayed us getting to see the sunset. It was only a couple of thousand steps but as I had already walked into town and back I at least got my 5000 steps in. On a cold breezy day it was good to blow the cobwebs away at last.
Second hand curry
Well not second hand, but with left-over ingredients. I made this using curry powder and turmeric. I diced up some courgette, onion, broccoli, and aubergine. I then added a tin of tomatoes. I added water to it to stop it burning on and to add moisture. I also added a few lentils. The fish was bought today. It doesn’t really matter what sort, but a white fish isn’t too strongly flavoured. I’d added it later as you don’t need to overcook fish. It flaked nicely as I cooked and turned a nice golden brown. Much nicer than using a jar of curry sauce.
Can you see a dragon?
Messing about with plastic dots glued down, then worked on it in layout app (a mirroring app) and then photodirector to change the texture and twist the perspective. Back to layout to mirror the result. Different colours and patterns seemed to create a horned dragon at the centre. I can see his nose and eyes, although part of his face appears hidden…. Having fun…
Contour doodle
Ink runs
Ink penetrates
It seeps
Through pages
Leaves marks
Makes islands
On the page…
Trap them
Surround them.
Engulf them
Isolate them.
Add contours
Describing their existence.
Then I’m happy.
World tree
A tree I drew for someone a few years ago that she wanted for her business cards. I wish this wasn’t so blurred but I only got a chance to take a quick photo of the finished printed card and I can’t find the computer file it was saved on.
It was a commission for her and she was really pleased with the result. Its funny how you find images that suddenly spark memories. The rainbow type colouration in the background was hard to get right. I think I used a digital spray can to get the softness…
Birthday balloon
Helium is the second element in the periodic table, atomic number two. It was first discovered when they measured the spectrum of the Sun. It was found as a line in the spectrum that did not appear to be on Earth.
Balloons like this are filled with this dwindling resource, if I remember correctly it’s from a place in America. I think there is a world shortage.
Helium is the second lightest element, but unlike Hydrogen which is the lightest, it doesn’t react with anything. So Helium stays on its own, it escapes out of our atmosphere. Hydrogen on the other hand reacts with many elements and this results in H2O, water, as two hydrogen atoms link with one oxygen.
Coventry University had a whole series of videos on YouTube that was about the elements if I remember. It was very interesting and they discussed all the elements in the periodic table. It was presented by a professor with mad grey curly hair….
The Colour Room
I’m excited, a film about the life of Clarice Cliff, the Art Deco pottery painter and designer has just come out on film. I’ve also found out some of my friends are extras in the film! I want to find out if I can go and see it at a local screening.
Clarice Cliff is famous for designs such as “bizzare” and other geometric shaped pots painted in colourful and stylish patterns. She was working in the 1930’s at the same time as other paintresses such as Suzy Cooper. Apologies for my lack of information. If you look her up on Wikipedia or perhaps the museum services at Stoke-on-Trent City Council. She is very famous here. X
Spinning Top
Not feeling on top of the world today so just did a sketch from memory. Today’s #bandofsketchers prompt was Top. I tried to remember what a toy top looks like. I did a sketch with a black ink fine line pen. This is from memory. I can see a bright top spinning in my mind. The top had some holes in so as it span it had a rising and then descending musical tone. Edited in Photodirector to give a slightly abstract effect.
dragon stone
A few weeks ago I got a stone painting kit. I used to paint them a lot. I’ve painted little mice, and hedgehogs and other creatures on stones, so I know what I’m doing.
This dragon stone didn’t turn out as well. It’s a bit too blobby, it lacks definition. you can just about work out what it is but I think I have overworked it. It is meant to be a curled up dragon which has fallen asleep on a red cushion. I think it must be a tiny species of dragon, only about four inches long. You can have small lizards so why not small dragons? I think they live in the cracks in stone walls. They eat lichen and set fire to tiny sticks and grasses if they want to get warm. I wonder if I could turn this into a story? Pixies using them as transport, or for flying after honeybees to raid their hives? Imagination is a mad thing….
Mallaband-Brown 