New paintings and regular art updates.
What is your career plan?
Playing mahjong
I’ve worked long and hard
Given work some welly
Retirement would be fine
I mean resting and learning
New things.
I’m semi retired now
But I’m below retirement age
Which keeps moving on
I would have retired four years ago
Except they changed the rules…
Ah well at least I can.
Out listening to the Boatband at the Beehive in Honeywall, Stoke-on-Trent. Black and white sketch but the lighting was very dim.
Not right yet, eyes too close together, my nose is too long. But it’s getting there slowly. I need to try and make the eyes slightly smaller too. I tend to paint self portraits straight on although I might try and do a three quarter profile one instead as it can be more dynamic. This took about an hour and a half. In acrylic on canvas.
80 years ago, on the 8th of May 1945, Hitler was defeated in the second world war. But that was only in Europe, the war actually ended on 2nd September of the same year when Japan surrendered.
It’s significant that it is the 80th year as it is probably the last time that many veterans from the war will be able to celebrate it because if they were 21 (start of adulthood) when they joined up they would be 101 or older now.
Memories fade but this is a way to remember the joy of the ending of the conflict, although not for everyone. We should remember those that were injured or wounded, either in the military or civilian. Those that were made homeless or those that lost relatives and friends. I’m glad and sad in equal measure.
I have a good friend who has become slightly obsessed with a subject. She is determined to get her point of view across but I fundamentally disagree with her. I said as much on a post today but she wasn’t impressed. I can’t get her to understand you shouldn’t tar everyone with the same brush. Not everyone is the same, not everyone of a certain type of person will act in a specific way.
She started to talk about someone and I pointed out that my examples were not that person and I wasn’t going to describe or identify them. I don’t think that’s the right thing to do in public.
So why talk about communication? Well it’s that thing about nuance. Unless you write exactly the right words it’s hard to get your point across. Typing and texting don’t show emotions so maybe physically talking to that person might get your message across better than in writing. At the moment I’m nervous to respond to her, I don’t want to lose her friendship.
What’s something most people don’t understand?
I’ve been wondering what to write for this prompt, and I realise that apart from basic addition (arithmetic) people struggle with calculations and formulas.
I was dropped down into the CSE group when I did maths at school. In the end that did me a favour. The exam was like a normal lesson and I got an o level pass.
I just about understood quadratic equations but never liked having to go through the stages of the calculations. I could follow logarithms, but never did calculus. My understanding of sine, co-sine and tangents left something to be desired.
But at least I understood numbers. There is something like dyslexia that some people have, it’s called dyscalculia. As people become aware of it, it might explain why they struggle.
I’m currently trying to cook a turkey thigh in my smallish airfryer. To roast it the instructions say cook at 190 degrees in the oven wrapped in foil for 45 minutes, then unwrap and cook for a further 45. So that’s an hour and a half.
I don’t have any foil but I put it on a grease proof paper liner and put the metal grill on top of it to stop it from burning. So far it’s been in for two lots of 20 minutes and I’ve just turned it over again and put it on for a further 20 minutes. after that I will see if the juices are running clear.If not ill put it on for a further 20 ish… .. It smells nice, but it is a big lump! I hope this works as I might try a small chicken next..
Last night I thought I heard movement in the garden, a bit of noise, something rattled. I didn’t know what to do so I opened the back door. I think the noise was coming from a neighbouring property but just to be on the safe side I made a noise to make them aware someone had noticed. Then I did something strange. My phone was on charge but I pretended I was speaking to the police! I had a one sided conversation and left gaps as if I was listening to their response. It went something like this…..
Hello
Police please?
Hello, I’m ringing from…..
I can hear movement and think there is someone in my garden.
Yes it’s been happening for a few minutes.
You’ve got someone in the area?
Thank you
Ten minutes? I’ll lock the door and wait..
It was a bit like improvised acting. I don’t know why I did it. I wasn’t going to go outside, and I wanted to make anyone out there aware they might be caught. I feel a bit daft now. Was I right to do it?
Do you vote in political elections?
Yes I vote, voting is important. If people abstain or spoil their ballots they leave the opportunity for a different party to be elected. In one byelection this week someone won by 6 votes, overcoming the other party’s majority of 15000 votes.
Unfortunately Reform, a right-wing Trump style party won several council seats and a MP position and a few mayoral posts.
Reform is a bit like the republicans in America, they want to set up a Doge department to cut back spending in the UK, make people pay for health insurance (we already pay national insurance to fund the NHS). Our health care is currently free at point of contact, they would take that away.
I’m obviously telling you how I feel, I don’t know how my readers will react. I feel very strongly that people should vote, it lends stability to the country. I also want to honour suffragettes who fought for a woman’s right to vote.
At today’s rehearsal we didn’t go to the end of the play because we ran out of time. We were blocking scenes to get some idea of how to stage it. We think it will take about an hour of running time. We need to agree about staging it and what props and scenery we need. The makers who help design the sets looked at how to create the tree costumes, sorting out a wig for the witch, and have got a broom and papier mache stars, we need a cave with a canvas flap to show a boulder being rolled in front of it. Also whether people will come on and off the stage area or more sensibly to share half of the acting area as the witches cottage and the other half as the wood and cave. We definitely need people. One of the people was good as the witch and another did a good Greta (the witches assistant, I’m not sure if those people will be final characters we still need to look at who is available and happy to do it. I helped by playing a woodsman that was turned into a tree because of trespassing in the witches wood and also a girl who is helping to look for names of the six towns of Stoke-on-Trent. I’ve got my fingers crossed that we can literally get our act together!
Mallaband-Brown