Toonland ho!

New paint! We're just getting started, too. At this rate, our house will soon look like the inside of a box of crayons. Sweet!

Susurrousness

Today's image is brought to you by the letter S! S is for sex. And ...something else, I'm sure, but I can't remember anything else right now.

That kind

Part of a photo-'essay' we're putting together for Phil's students. They're under the impression (granted, facetiously) that he hikes 30 miles every day before school, so we're giving them 'proof.' Yeah, we're that kind of adults.

Vacationing work/working vacation

We're finally getting down to redecorating the front room. Here you can see the pasty not-quite-yellow color we're replacing. We primed the walls yesterday. Today, the plan is to apply some color. We might go so far as to get fabric for new curtains, but while I have some ideas, I'm not sure how I want to do that yet. The most important thing is to make good use of Phil while he's on vacation.

Phil's vacation time kinda dictates my work schedule, for that reason (you don't really get a vacation when you work for yourself- in a sense, it's all vacation, but in another sense, it's all work). When he's off work, we can get things done around the house that I can't on my own, like painting, installing bookshelves, organizing the space in the cellar, or cleaning the gutters (hey, Hello Kitty won't help with the gutters anymore, and somebody has to hold the ladder when you're 25' off the ground!).

The Road to Sheep Canyon

One of the goals I've set for myself this year, is to hike to Sheep Canyon, on the shoulders of Mt. St. Helens. Trail guides I've read say it's a really beautiful (or interesting) place, so I wanted to check it out. I tried last year, but was thwarted by several challenges, starting with this mess in the picture.

What you're seeing is the sign (which normally stands about 7.5' tall or so) at the parking lot of the trailhead to Blue Lake (see the map at the bottom of this page). And I had to walk to get there, because so much road is washed out that you can't get any closer than Forest Road 81.

I tried twice last year: the first time, I couldn't even find a trail from here forward. The second time, it seemed that someone else had been there since I was last there, because I found preliminary trail markings (plastic markers tied to trees, or rocks marked with chalk or paint, indicating the direction to the next marker). I was able to follow these for a mile or so, until the 'path' crossed a creek that was too wide to jump (and me without my jet pack!).

So unless the park service has done a LOT of work over the winter (ha ha), I expect to find the area in about the same condition as last year. It's going to be a challenging hike, not only because of the trail-following problem, but also because it's long and probably hasn't been maintained in a few years. Should be beautiful, though, and very remote. I'm excited! Who's with me?

What a difference a day makes

Filters.
Focus.

I've spent the last year or so in the process of slimming down my life. Left to my own devices, and with no significant externally-imposed restraints, I will be interested in everything -architecture to zoology. And why not? It's a big, beautiful, fascinating universe we inhabit: why shouldn't I want to know everything?

Well, because the pursuit of Knowledge of Everything isn't really practical if you have Other Things To Do. One ends up wasting food coloring by putting drops in the toilet after you've filled it with milk, or filling one's yard with holes in order to see what's under the lumps that were there originally, or getting involved in politics. You know, that kind of thing. If I had a few billion dollars sitting around waiting to be spent (like Mitt Romney), I wouldn't worry about focus, but I don't, so I do. Er, did. I'm trying out some new filters, to help me screen out things that might enthrall me but which are not particularly relevant or helpful.

So here I sit in my new, streamlined life. It's not that I'm interested in fewer things, or that I'm less interested in anything; rather, I'm just resolved to not chase every metaphorical rabbit that runs by, because chasing every rabbit means that you catch none. No, I'm just going to do what every other rational, normal-ish person does normally, and that's focus. Just like my friend Mike Dickson told me to, in no uncertain terms, some fifteen years ago. He read me like a book. RIP, Mike. You're missed.

Focus.

I realized, a few days ago, that I have not set any goals for myself in ...years. I've had visions, ideals, dreams, ...but no real goals, and certainly no achievable ones. The last real goal I set for myself was to graduate from KU (bam! cum laude, thankyouverymuch). I had plans beyond that, but not firm or well-defined, and that lack of definition tripped me up on the road to grad school. Instead, I got a mediocre job to stem the tide of bills, and got sorely sidetracked for the next six years, until we moved.

What a difference a year-and-a-half of meditation makes, though. I finally feel like I'm back on my own track. My vision is clearing up again (not that kind of vision- my eyes are fine). My sense of metaphysical direction is returning. I'm setting new goals. I have a plan.

Work, home, self. These are my priorities this year, very broadly. Work: to include leather and printing work, sales, production, design, wwweb marketing, shmoozing, photography (for documentation and marketing). Home: to include repairs, improvements, non-ordinary cleaning, gardening, landscaping, general chores and errands. Self-stuff is more difficult to nail down, but I intend to balance my work/home life with plenty of time hiking, playing, and exercising.

And if you can't believe it really took me this long to figure all of this out, you're not alone. I can't believe it, either. I just hope I don't lose it again.

Hello, world!

pwned

We started the election process too soon. No one is going to remain interested; hell, even I'm not particularly interested. Why isn't Bill Richardson getting any press? He is the single most qualified candidate out there. When was the last time a sitting senator got elected President? Over 40 years ago. How many have tried, since last time? Probably dozens. We just don't like Senators-as-Presidents, apparently (and who can blame us? hello? After Warren G. Harding?).

The political process has been pwned. Results from locally-organized polls (around the country, not just here) seem to show Kucinich or Edwards leading the Democratic hopefuls, while nationally-organized polls all seem -anomalously- to show Clinton or Obama in the lead. Golly, how might that happen? Possibly because publishers are telling their editors to make it so. I don't know, obviously, but here's a hypothesis we can use as a test: now that Obama has sworn off corporate donations, he too will fall away from the lead, leaving Clinton in the lead. If this happens, it would certainly (strongly?) suggest that I'm right. Let's face it: it's a corporate game, and if you don't play in their arena, you don't play.

Please, don't take anyone's word for gospel in this election year. Think for yourself, and don't be shy about it, talk to your friends/co-workers/neighbors about it. Take the selection process back from the mainstream media: we don't need them to have a conversation.

the road to the beach

Use your imagination.

St. Hello Kitty and her Racket of Doom

Hello Kitty, patron saint of eccentric goats. She called to me from the gutter over the door to my shop, which she was guarding with her mighty Tennis Racket of Doom. She guards the shop from the inside, now, so watch your step, mister!

It's the new '60s.

Pakistan: Benazir Bhutto, President Musharraf's wildly popular political opponent, has been assassinated. She had just returned a few months ago to Pakistan from years of exile, after being ousted from power in a coup orchestrated by then-General Musharraf, who promised free and fair elections again and again and again, but never seemed able to allow them to happen. Pakistan is now falling apart, and it's not likely to go alone. Don't worry so much about war with Iran now- US engagement in Pakistan is now almost a foregone conclusion. And that mess is going to make the mess in Afghanistan look like a game of Scrabble. Mark my words.

This makes for a very sticky situation. Pakistan is still very sensitive about outside involvement in their activities, ever since the British left and the UN split the subcontinent into Muslim and Hindu nations (Pakistan and India, respectively). Even before Bhutto's assassination, US troops were expressly forbidden to enter Pakistan, even in pursuit of known Taleban soldiers (even Bin Laden). The government of Pakistan may be on good terms with ours, but the people of Pakistan -including their soldiers-- don't like us much, and certainly don't want us in their neighborhoods. They will fight us as though we are invaders.

A couple of additional things to consider: Musharraf is Georgie's kind of guy (or maybe I should say Dick's kind of guy, depending on who you think does the thinking in the White House). They let their power do the talking, they don't compromise unless there's absolutely no way around it, and worse: they play religious zealots on TV.

Even worse still: this military dictatorship, already facing popular revolt in urban areas and uncontrollable tribal elements on the frontiers, has nukes. An active, fully tested and armed, nuclear arsenal. Which they have already demonstrated a willingness to use.

I don't have a clear idea about how this is all going to play out, but I'm thinking that it's not going to be pretty. Pakistan is a Rogue State. If Musharraf doesn't step down in January as he said he would, then Big Trouble might well come to pass. India might try to intervene (probably the worst case scenario, because it would almost inevitably lead to -if not begin with- a nuclear confrontation). China seems to be courting India, so they might have a hard time staying out of it. Separately, we might try to intervene (it might be seen by some as a way to ensure a Republican victory in November, if we were fully engaged in a real war), but in that case I would expect India and China to try to stay clear of the fray while trying to talk us out of it. Bottom line: No country currently involved in Afghanistan will be safe until Musharraf is out of power. And even that may not be the end of the trouble.

Not yesterday

Don't try this with your real arms. Use your fake ones.

This wasn't yesterday- those are Gabe's hands, as he was working on my shop last summer. He was in town yesterday though- I took him and a friend of ours (old friend of his, new friend of mine) to Oregon Leather Company for their first mind-blowing visit. For all of you non-leatherworking folk, Oregon Leather Company is The Best place in the Pacific Northwest to go for all things leather-related: tools, findings, thread, tack, and yeah, lots of leather. In fact, it's the best leather-related store I've ever seen. It's the place at which I am most tempted to throw all of my money onto the countertop at once and gesture vaguely and widely at the rest of the store and say, "Give me this much worth!"

It rocks.

Boxing day

I was setting up Raoul's new habitat yesterday, and this guy was banging his head outside the window, so I shot him.

Melly Kalikamaka!

I used to hate Andy Warhol. As a kid, I always thought he was just making fun of art-patrons, sort of turning them into the punch line for his own private jokes. I still don't like him, personally, and frankly think most of his well-known work is overrated and overpriced, but you're not likely to hear me disparaging his ideas.

But before I knew who Andy Warhol was, or what he was about, I had a fascination with Pop Art and Op Art. As I came to figure out what the point of Pop Art was, I tried to grow out of it. Maybe I thought I was "above" it, or that it wasn't "serious art," I don't know. I idolized the masters, though, people like John Tenniel, Rembrandt van Rijn, Albrecht Durer, even painters like Greg and Tim Hildebrant or Ken Harris (Ken Harris!), not jokers like Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein. But as I grew older and continued to make art of my own, I found that I just couldn't get away from pop art, as much as I'd have liked to, and now I find that I can't make a print without getting playful with colors like Warhol did.

Time makes fools of us all. Now I'm the joker ...but at least you're not the butt!

p.s. I have to give my respect to the rest of the great Looney Tunes artists, Robert Gribbroek, Philip DeGuard (background artist for Rabbit Fire and Rabbit of Seville), Peter Alvarado, and yeah of course Chuck Jones, because I never got the chance to tell them myself. Their work -with color, shape, texture, dimension, perspective, -hell, everything-- affected me so deeply that it took me years to realize where the influence had come from. They shaped the way I see the world. I would not be the same person, without them.

Foothills of the Cascades.

Ceci n'est pas une Magritte.

I looked out the window and was reminded of a painting by Rene Magritte, the surrealist painter, called The Empire of Lights. I love his work, but never really got that painting. Still don't, I guess. Hats off to him, though.

Vino!

I had creme brulee last night, for the first time ever. I didn't even know what it was until I saw Amelie (which, if you haven't seen, you really should). Last fall, at the annual choir benefit auction, a group of parents sold their services as cooks (they sold a seven-course italian dinner with entertainment by Phil), and last night was the dinner. Turns out, the cooking was probably as much fun as the eating: a bunch of parents crowded in to the Roper's big kitchen and gabbed and cooked and baked and laughed and talked -and drank a lot of wine.

ITMFA (with a nod to Dan Savage)

Rep. Robert Wexler wants impeachment hearings for Dick Cheney, now, and so do I! Sign his petition to put pressure on Rep. Conyers to bring impeachment to the Judiciary committee.

Why is this so important? If you really need the reminder, it's because we live in a constitutional republic, and not a monarchy. As citizens, we reject the notion that one person should be able to rule on a whim on matters of who or what is legal. Instead, we accept that our constitution, as written and amended by committee, will be the basis of decisions on the law, which will in turn be made -in some sense- by committee. No one person ever gets to say what is legal and what is not. That's democracy (lower case "d").

No one -at all, ever-- should be allowed to break the law without fear of consequence. Especially people in positions of power, simply because they set the example for the rest of us. If they flaunt the law and get away with it, that tells us proles that it's OK to break the law. If you doubt me on this, take a look at the rising rates of violent crime among children, following the president's decision to use force instead of diplomacy in Iraq.

Happy Solstice

I noticed yesterday that the lilac bushes behind our house are budding. A nice Solstice gift. The apple trees are also budding, and that's not such a nice gift, because it reminds me that I need to prune them before they get out of hand. "Getting out of hand" with these trees might mean their end: they're probably as old as the house (which is closing in on 100 yrs), and the old limbs might not be strong enough to support all the new growth PLUS this year's new apples. All of which means that I need to learn about pruning.

So, add that to my plate of Things I Need To Do.

It's a big plate.

Life, for me, this year, has been all business. Businessy business, house busyness, self-analytical busyness, all kinds of business. Having got the financial and legal end of the leather business established, now I'm finally closing in on another goal: getting my web site set up. I've got the skeleton in place, but I need pictures to fill it out. For those pictures, I needed new merchandise, so last winter I started designing and making new stuff. In the fall I started finding some guys who want to model for me, and now it's just a matter of finding time to work with them.

It just happens

One of those things I do.

Vancouver December

Rare cat captured on film

Socrates is very shy. Few of our friends have ever seen him, because he hides whenever he hears a strange voice, or -god forbid-- the doorbell. His mom was a Maine Coon, and based on his markings, we think his dad was a Bengal. So, he's probably got some growing to do yet. Last time we measured (about a year ago; it's not easy), he was 36" nose to tail. That's a big housecat.

Life is a work in progress

Yeah, I drove up to Seattle yesterday (Renton, to be specific) and saw Gabe and Tawnya and some friends. It was overcast most of the drive up, but the clouds were really high, so the mountains were in clear view. I'm kicking myself now for not stopping to shoot Rainier, or even the mysterious snowcapped peak I could see over it's shoulder to the north. Traffic was heavy, though, and drivers on I-5 mean business! As an added bonus, Gabe showed me the first couple of episodes of a great new BBC crime/mystery/sci-fi kinda show called Torchwood. It's like the bastard offspring of "X-files" and "Kolchak the Night Stalker," in the best possible way. Good stuff! I'm hooked. This is not the BBC I remember from those old Dr. Who shows!

Holy canoli, I haven't written that much about a TV show ...ever?

I love Benjamin Britten, what can I say

Phil conducted the Salmon Creek Singers last night at the Grotto, a Catholic chapel in Portland, for their annual Festival of Lights. They were spectacular! Palestrina and Britten, baby!

Say a little prayer

I'm trying something new, starting yesterday: a photo of the day. This one is from Skyview High School Choir's Winter Concert, and for the record, has absolutely nothing to do with the comments below.

Now, let's talk baseball.

Yes, as you might imagine, I have a few problems with the Mitchell report, and its raison d'etre.

Years ago in the SCA, I was witness to a conflict similar to this one. Some fighters were said to be using 'magic' before a tourney, in order to increase their chances of winning. In reaction to this, some other fighters started using herbal performance enhancers. As a result, a LOT of people got pretty bent out of shape over it. It got me thinking, and now here we are again in the same kind of bind.

First, I wonder: Why baseball? Are we supposed to believe that those cows playing football are not doped-up? Gimme a break. And basketball? Oh yeah, even though the average height of Americans is going down, basketball players just 'naturally' keep getting taller. Suuuure, that makes sense. Whatever.

Secondly: Is there a problem with performance enhancement, in general? Clearly not. Players practice in order to perform better, and even try to practice more than the competition. Should their practice-time and routines be standardized? Of course not. Players eat well; some even try to eat more nutritious meals than the competition, making them able to perform better. Should their diets be standardized, then? Of course not. Genetic diversity is something we celebrate everywhere else; why not baseball?

This term we're throwing around -"drugs"- is not very well defined. Any substance which you introduce into your body will have an effect on your body. Heroin will slow you down. Sugar will speed you up. Alcohol will depress you; potatoes and chocolate will cheer you up. Some herbal compounds will help you think more clearly, others will help you stay awake; some will help you gain muscle mass, others will increase your stamina. Marijuana will help you focus on certain kinds of tasks, while steroids will help your body focus on others. How do we draw the line between acceptable and unacceptable?

And if it's wrong to use physical/pharmaceutical performance enhancing substances, why is it OK to pray before a game? I think that's a pretty telling distinction, and what it has to say would not please the faithful.

Now with that out of the way, I'll say this: The rules were public, and the players accepted them implicitly when they signed their contracts. Therefore, I don't think that any players who are convicted should get into the Hall of Fame. Sorry, guys: you cheated, and that's way worse than anything Pete Rose did, if ya ask me. Leave 'em out of the record books? Nah, I just think the books should indicate that sports -all sports-- changed significantly with the introduction of steroids. It's as if robots were allowed to play: there is no way to compete fairly anymore.

A new day

Looking out the upstairs window.