My ordinary camera has been dying a slow death, so I’ve been leaving it at home and enjoying the Polarize app on my iPhone…it adds a little fun to the process of taking low-res pictures.

A little color (and amazing brunch) on this rainy day…Starliner Diner, Hilliard, OH.

Outside Starliner, Hilliard, OH.

Jeni’s Ice Cream, Short North, Columbus, OH.

Always something new to try…

My fortune: Fame, riches and romance are yours for the asking.  (I don’t crave fame and I’ve got my romance…so I’ll go ahead and ask…”riches, please?”)

Such a pretty day…I took a walk on lunch break and ended up buying a necklace (“L”) at a local paper store (that happens to also sell jewelry).  Dyed my hair red a deep auburn over the weekend.  Opened the sun roof and blasted some Bon Iver on the way home from work today.  Lovely.

Marchness

I put off taking down the Christmas tree as long as possible this year.  It’s simple really…the soft, warm glow of twinkle lights in the next room made the winter months more bearable.  Also, there was nothing else to put in the corner by the window.  My B and I found an affordable chair last weekend at Value City Furniture and replaced that tree and twinkle lights with a hanging light from Ikea.  Sweet.  Now come on, spring…I wanna take off my coat and frolic.  More color in the world, please.

I also want an excuse to dress up, so someone…please have a wedding and invite me.

I started painting again in February and my mood has brightened as a result of it.  My body has reacted badly to alcohol over the past year and I’ve lowered my weekly intake by 75% this month.  Throwing away that crutch happened naturally and I’m glad it did…I haven’t felt this good in a long time.

Hey there, Sugartits.

Cupcakes for Zoe.

Chicken Scratch or My Thoughts on Today

Sketch

Lower Your Expectations

Happy February.  It’s a groaner, it’s only the beginning of that last damn leg of the winter race.  Its defining, shining moment is a Hallmark Holiday…which, if Wikipedia is correct…originated due to two (or three) early Christian martyrs named Valentine, whose respective histories eventually became indistinguishable from one another.  One of them was buried on February 14th, and a rich length of ridiculous societal history unfolds from there.  I am most definitely cynical about this holiday, but in a “let’s make the most of it” kind of way.  Because otherwise, you stand to be sorely disappointed (this philosophy can also be applied to all major holidays, vacations and weddings).  February is a month so bleak, you have to be a little more creative to get through it…laugh a little harder at the dumb stuff…bring a flask into the movie theater…bury St. Valentine in the back yard (perhaps along with that doily-decorated shoe box from grade school) and lower your expectations…hang out with friends, do what makes you happy…whatever.

Sweet, sweet frosted cookie from Pattycake Vegan Bakery in Columbus, OH.

Feeling Small

I was groaning to my mom over the phone last night about the same things that always get me down and she dropped an excerpt of this quote on me.

“In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love.”  ~Mother Theresa

And in the end, it doesn’t matter whether or not the person who said this at one time questioned their faith…whether or not she was true to her public persona internally and at all times.  It’s a small thing, and those words helped me get through the night.

Doodle Gallery: 1/6/10

When I see a female silhouette, the first name that comes to mind is “Nancy”.  It’s really nothing more than a kind of muscle memory (if you think in terms of the brain as a muscle)…because I saw a brass charm once in an antique store in Indiana that sealed the mental deal for me.  It was shaped like the profile of a girl’s face.  That charm was engraved with the name “Nancy” and there you have it.

Side notes:  I believe in wishes, casting pennies into a fountain…daydreaming.  Also thinking of Atreyu wading through the Swamps of Sadness…geezus that was sad.

Doodle Gallery: 12/28/09

There’s this big book about Abraham Lincoln at my parents’ house with a lot of pictures…in fact…I think it’s called “Lincoln in Pictures” or something like that.  I used to look at this one photo of his granddaughter when I was a kid and was struck with an incredible urge to draw her.  So i sat down at mom and dad’s kitchen counter and copied the image.  Tonight while visiting the fam for the holidays, I found myself with a similar urge after watching a biography of Louisa May Alcott on TV.  And sheeeeeit, if that sketch I did of Jessie Lincoln at age six wasn’t better than this.  It’s amazing how similar drawing is to any other physical skill!  Practice makes perfect and when it comes to sitting down with the patience and confidence to capture the essence of a face on paper, there is no exception!  My drawing ain’t bad, and perhaps I was TOO overcome by that hairdo, but it’s just not quite Louisa.  Me thinks this should become a regular exercise, lest I lose my ability to capture a simple likeness!!!