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meanwhileplaces
Superstition : Fishing.
One of the strangest sea fishing superstitions says that if a fisherman and his wife have a quarrel and fight just before he goes to sea then he can expect a good catch. The argument though, must develop naturally, and not be staged deliberately, and if a man actually draws blood from his wife then he can expect an especially large haul.
From "A DICTIONARY OF OMENS AND SUPERSTITIONS" by Philippa Waring
Doodling has become an essential part of new beginnings in my life. The blank page is encouraging unplanned art that surprises me and pushes me in new directions. This piece speaks to me of fresh starts and flowing into the future full of change and magical possibilities.
4 year old Henry engaged fully with thick applications of watercolor and oil pastels. He said it was a stormy sea with a small boat. This was at the onset of the pandemic, when we were all a bit uncertain and confined to our homes. I was reminded of an insight by Kierkegaard written in the early 1800s: “When the sailor is out on the sea and everything is changing around him, as the waves are continually being born and dying, he does not stare into the depths of these, since they vary. He looks up at the stars. And why? Because they are faithful – as they stand now, they stood for the patriarchs, and will stand for coming generations. By what means then does he conquer changing conditions? Through the eternal: By means of the eternal, one can conquer the future, because the eternal is the foundation of the future.”
One of my favorite times of the year is Autumn. It’s a time that reminds me how blessed I am for the rich friendships I have in my life. It’s also a time I enjoy making new memories with relatives I have a deep emotional bond.
And for some reason, pumpkins symbolizes this wealth of love I have for these loved ones. Maybe because orange is a passionate color for me. Or maybe because the color orange is abundant during this season when warm a fuzzy feelings show up when I’m with my loved ones. This hue is in pumpkins, persimmons, hot apple cider beverages, cinnamon spice on pies or lattes, and the obvious autumn leaves.
But my focus for this illustration were big, fat pumpkins. I love hugging and squeezing them and feeling it’s cold flesh on my skin. I look forward to my next bite of pumpkin pie from our very good friend, Terry, who makes them very excellently!
I do browse some weird things on places like Youtube, without a doubt! Definitely in the search of inspiration 9 out of 10 times though (as you can see)...
I had a rock tumbler as a child and really enjoyed it. When my youngest was a child we bought her one. She was eager to enjoy it too, but somewhere after starting on that path, we lost track and it everything inside turned into a solid mass. We tossed it and forgot about it. On a recent beach trip, I collected handfuls of rocks, as I am always likely to do, and, upon return, remembered how I loved my childhood rock tumbler. I immediately researched, ordered and eagerly anticipated its delivery. Of course, with Amazon Prime, that was only a couple day’s wait. As soon as I unboxed it I thought “what am I doing?” I have neither time, nor space for yet another hobby. I thought “what will I DO with a pile of polished, pretty rocks?” I would gather them in my hands and feel their silky smoothness. I would likely gather them in some beautiful glass bowl and…then what? I have toddler grand kids frequently at my home. They put small colorful things in their mouths and up their noses and feed them to the dogs regularly. And I don’t even have a single space to display a bog bowl of pretty rocks. So I quickly decided “I’m Returning the Rock Tumbler” and will, for NOW, stick to painting them when the mood strikes.
