Short stories

Picked up a new book to read last night and didn't realise it was an anthology of short stories till I started the second one.

I have a confession to make.

I don't really like short stories very much at all.  I'm not entirely sure exactly why, but....meh.

The ride is too intense and often dreary, maybe sorrow, horror and loathing are easier to evoke?

I'm persevering because I really like the author, but, ultimately, I may bail.  The first story had centered around police brutality and torture.  Not making me feel to motivated for number two.

One-eyed woman?

Getting more excited about the exhibition, I can show 6 pieces, I may bring a few more along, see how it goes.  I also have to devise some way to hang them, though I know more about that now and I have some ideas.  Needs to be cool, eye-catching, but not so it overwhelms the pictures and CHEAP!

This tendon is still bugging me, worse today...and we have a long walk planned for Sunday.  I am a little concerned about that, fingers crossed all around.

I am teaching a course about how to create online courses with the moodle platform, the course runs as both an online and face to face process.

Tied into this is a promotion I have received, for lack of a better word, so I am feeling my way around my new powers as well.

It is fascinating to see the differences in how people approach the work.  Some hit panic right off, some dive in, fearlessly (I have told them that the worst they can do is mess up their own course, I'm not so foolish as to let them rip with the whole darned system), some test the waters and retreat fast, and some are über dependent.  Then there are those who simply ignore the whole thing and hope it'll go away....

I do find it amusing that I am the e-learning/software/administration specialist and I can't lock my own d*mned wifi!

Don't tell them that though, m'kay?

Cheers,

O

Paint and spelling

I was mooching around in my painting area today, working on a bunch of ongoing projects that I am uninspired by today, and a larger painting that I started and I am unsure how to finish...lacks a focus and movement.  That's OK, it'll come.

I seem to roll that way, there is a pause process, I seem to have to put things down for a bit and come back.

Youngest is doing an English course out of NA and I had to correct some of here spelling.

Loved it.

I am not alound to do that.

He past me the ball.

The three there/their/they'res appeared predicatable, and the were/we're/where issue.

Then she had to do a spelling test,
first there was gymnastics then gyrate then next she had hybernate.  Logical, no?

The ones I liked best were the ones that totally made sense, but didn't.  There were more.  Love 'em.

Later I found myself SUPER inspired and went off on a tangent with the grey paintings you see on the side.  There was an element of experimentation going on there so some were more successful that others, and there is....ah....room for development, but I am excited!!!

Love a five day weekend.  Love it to bits.

Manresa and (bad) cops

Ombudsmand's report about G20 police brutality?  DUH!  What took so frickin' long anyway?  Welcome to Canada.   Here's some nice footage to add to the heat.

OH, and the cops who took off their badges and numbers, and got docked a WHOLE DAY'S PAY!

Whooop deeee shiiiaaait.

Sorry boys, this is a democracy, and you ain't in Spain in the 40's, though your bosses might like to send that message.

No name, no shame boys.

They should be canned.  If they KNOW they're going to be doing things they want to hide, they shouldn't be on the force, and nor should their bosses, all the way up.  And one day's pay?  That's just an insult to the people of Toronto.  Sorry, but that's how I'm calling it.



Moving along.

Spent the day in Manresa, a city just inland of Montserrat.  Sadly, kind of run down, indeed, more like never picked up after the civil war.  A baffling number of houses that have never been renovated, and stores that are closed.  There must be a LOT of people living there in decidedly substandard housing.  One dreads to think.

Also, apparently, no one in the city eats.  No one.

The restaurants were closing at one o'clock.  We couldn't FIND a place to eat.  WEIRDNESS.

We went into one mangy looking place, we were getting desperate,  and the guy behind the bar was positively RUDE to me when I had the unmitigated gall to ask for a warm sandwich (which is standard fare).  We walked.  I was very nearly rude back, but in the end couldn't be bothered.

NEVER in Spain has anyone ever been anything less than utterly charming in a bar or restaurant.  Occasionally somewhat distracted, but NEVER rude.

We had a weird, but nice day.

I think ultimately the town is short on cash, there must be something odd going on at the ajuntament  so that it is not worth the effort for the owners of buildings to either sell or renovate, and these places were beautiful, some of them, and some are simply on their last legs.

We also went into a forn that can't have changed since the 40s, and I think the woman's white baker's jacket hadn't either.  Her hands were dirtier.

NEVER is that seen here.  NEVER.

There were also a startlingly large number of men just sort of hannnnngin' around, more than I have seen anywhere else in Catalonia, and a number of people who looked like obvious druggies, then there were the guys smoking really strong weed in the streets.

OH, and packs of nuns.

I'm not going anywhere with those two comments.  Nowhere I want to go with that.

An odd day overall.

Cannot say I would recommend a day there to anyone who wasn't utterly passionate about architecture, some of which was lovely, but really?  Seemed like a city in decline.

I wonder

I really do wonder how long you could scratch a dog's stomach for before they got bored and walked away.

I've never had the patience to try it out, but one of these days I'm gonna have to see.

In the name of science, ya know?

Then we'd have to duplicate it, and do double-blind testing.

I'd have to recruit all the dog owners out there, we'd first have to get raw data , simply rub the dog's belly till he or she leaves, while timing it of course.

Then the double-blind, which in this case I guess would mean that both you and the dog have to wear a blindfold and see how it goes.

If we got enough data from a wide enough sample base, we could then break it down by species and find a statistics type to do the analysis for us, cause that stats 101 I took 20+ years ago ain't going to be helping me too much at this late date.

What do ya think?

Anyone in on this with me?

8 hours a week

I heard the other day, not sure where, that an art teacher required his students to draw for 8 hours a week,  just like language students have to log that kind of time studying verb tenses, which reminds me of something I should be doing, and literature students have to log that kind of time reading the required books, along side their own.

I have been debating committing myself to something like this, and waffle about not having time.....the eternal excuse.  I don't know if I could realistically swing 8 hours a week.  I am married, have kids, work and have already promised to myself to blog every day, do a canvas a day, study Spanish and Catalan and (when my butt feels better) run.  Wonder if I can magically produce another chunk in the day without knowing where it is from.

Hmmmmm.

20 min a day I could find for sure, every one can find 20 min a day.  An hour is a touch more intimidating, though....if I make it really convenient and have sketch books with me everywhere and I am dedicated, maybe I could pull it off.

Nomad, the other day, when I talked to her about this, suggested rolls of paper, that would hide previous work, I like the idea, especially if you draw a little invitational line to yourself onto the next part of the scroll, so the work would, over time, come to resemble an ever passing stream.

A great idea.  Not too portable.  I am also thinking that I would take some of the eternal mountains of scrap paper, punch holes in the corners, and stick 'encuadernadors' those little brass bend-over thingies in them to make my own fast and dirty sketch books.  I could make some half size ones as well that would fit better in a pocket.  

Might make it do-able, for instance I spent an hour and 15 min on the bus today going in and out of BCN, that could have been more profitably used in drawing, no?

I could also shake it up and sometimes do extended work, others continuous line, others 4 five-minute works, others 20 one-minute drawings.  

Keep it from getting dull.....

I gave it a go today, see how it lasts.

Cheaper than university!

Cheers, 

O

Got talking with Nomad today...

Nomad and I had a lovely conversation about art and painting and painting styles....

and one thing that came up was about fallow periods, times when you hibernate, times when production is low.

These times, and I agree that they are inevitable for most artists...the obvious Picasso exception comes up, he doesn't seem to have passed a moment without working on art, but maybe if you look closely there were a few fallow minutes here and there, maybe a quarter hour or so.....

By the same token, there is a work ethic associated with the entire process of creating, the admonition to show up every day, to blast in the hours.

Then there is the comment that to achieve real mastery you need to log 10,000 hours of practice.  I dread to think how many days/weeks/years that is...actually, if you go here, it isn't that bad.  Indeed, almost seems manageable.

So where is the balance in this?  Respecting fallow periods, but also showing up every day?

I think the balance lies in acknowledging that not everything is going to be good, some will be downright bad.  Sometimes there will be periods when not much good is happening at all.  There will be times of great advance, and times when you continue where you are.

There can be great joy in the times when you continue, and tremendous joy, and challenge, in the times of growth....

ooh la la!

Paris!

Here we come!

Got the tickets today, we'll be doing a little travelling over Xmas!

Weeeee again!

Invitiation, and a few nerves

My big news of the day is that I got invited to hang some of my paintings in a show!

That sounds better than it is.  It is a show done at Xmas for painters from the village, whatever their skill level, and the man who invited me has never seen any of my work, and indeed admitted that he was having trouble finding painters.

A bit of a bottom dragging technique of creating a show, but what the heck.

I am

a:  excited

b: nervous

c: compelled to create LOTS of art between now and then

d:  continuously debating what to submit.

e: going to have to get some framing done!

Weeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!

I don't want to rant

I really really don't want to rant, but sometimes I find myself a little...disappointed... in Spain.

Don't get me wrong, I love it here in many ways and I am very happy, but sometimes.....like now, when I am freezing my butt off because of bureaucracy that is stalling the gas hook-up, and with Youngest's nationality chaos, and well, the Spanish economy....

Then today, I decided to go and see a doc about my sore hamstring and get a reference for physio. In all honestly,  I have to say that the health system here is not all bad, they managed to cure Eldest's mystery stomach ailment after 22 doctors in three countries including Canada.  Day to day primary care is, however, another story.

I went in yesterday for an apt, they gave me one for a week and a half from now.  Ahh, no.  The nice guy behind the desk agreed that was ridiculous and advised me to come in today as an emergency.

OK.

I did.

Two hours later I got to leave.  The doctor had recommended an X-ray.  I pointed out it was a muscular issue and declined.  He did not consider ultra-sound, I suspect because there aren't a lot of machines, and then sent me to a 'traumatolog' a designation I have not heard duplicated in English.  I think the reference was cause he had no idea what was going on and wouldn't send me to physio, not sure why.  After two hours in the medical center I got an apt for the 'traumatolog'.

For February.

You know, by Feb, I'll either be a cripple or fine and the opportunity for repairing this easily will be lost.

I declined the appointment.  I have other routes I can follow, including simply going into the hospital emerg, a very expensive option for the health care system but one which people routinely use as the regular system is so slow.  We've done it several times already.

Anyone know a good physiotherapist out there who'd give a little advice online?

Honestly. 2 months?  What's the point.