Virtual Brush Box

Awareness of the outside world. NASA: A Guide to Smartphone Astrophotography. Free, 192-page PDF. Found while preparing this post. Will read report & report back. So far, so good. Your tax dollars at work.

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Night sky
June 2026
Alabama USA

Estimating by the star chart in the Sellarium app (all errors mine), I’m guessing the bright center star is Arcturus. Left or top, regular mode. Right or bottom, night mode.

With my blessing, husband has taken over/inherited/reinherited all of the fancy photo equipment. I’m seeing what can be done with phone camera snapshots. Is it photography? Ehhh. Technically, yes. Am I in control of my tools? No. Is it amusing? Yes.

He wanted to try astrophotography. I went along to enjoy the company and to look at stars.

Onwards!
Katherine

Horse treats of the outside world. Peppermint fix. Saddlebreds run on peppermints. The stores sell two kinds. Round flat discs, which horses like, people like, but get sticky. OR. Orbs, which horses like, don’t melt, but taste weird. However. I have discovered that if you put sticky peppermints in the fridge, they harden up & release easily from their wrapper.

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High-point trophy for 2025 saddle seat season. Repost [Back in the Bling, ASHAA Banquet for 2025]

My current glasses are inexpensive bifocals, ordered online. They work great. Unfortunately, the computer screen is just the wrong distance, not far away, not reading distance. So I ordered a second pair of medium distance glasses. I have to switch between the two pairs to work on my desktop. And then remember to switch back when I’m done.

Stick with me, I’m going somewhere with this.

I ended up here from my previous glasses. They were a fancy, pricey pair with snazzy progressive lenses ordered IRL from a optometrist. Maybe they were okay when I got them. By the end, the correction was so bad that I had to take them off for distance viewing. They were basically very expensive readers.

This is why my current arrangement of two pairs of glasses feels like an improvement.

This is also why I have gotten in the habit of taking my glasses off when I’m not doing closeup work. I’m far-sighted, so it’s not a big deal. The new glasses offer a slight correction, but I do fine without them. Taking them off has become automatic. Heading to barn. Take off glasses.

Of course, if you take off your glasses, you have to remember where you left them. The bling from the banquet, pictured, had not been put away. So, the high-point tray sits on a shelf as a place for my glasses.

There is an inadvertent bonus effect. Every time I put my glasses down, I get a little boost, a little reminder of something I am good at.

Reality dose. My high point awards – yes, plural – did not arise out of my inherent brilliance. The rest of the academy adults compete in one division, riding OR driving, I compete in both, riding AND driving. More classes equals more points.

So, maybe the thing I am good at is showing up.

I’ll take it.

Onwards!
Katherine

World Cup Wednesday. “Brazil has the distinction of being the only team to qualify for all 22 past editions of the World Cup (the country will extend that streak in 2026).” Encyclopaedia Britannica: Which National Teams Have Participated in the FIFA World Cup? Gosner, June 4, 2026.

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Goldy
Rosewood Stables
19 June 2026

Head position. Good. Shoulder position. Good. Wrist position, i.e. straight. Better. At least, I heard about it less. Coach Deana add “tall”, especially in two-point. Seemed to go well. Pleased noises emanated from the coaching corner.

I looked good. The riding was less good. I had been two weeks since my last h/j lesson. I was despondent that my riding had deteriorated so quickly. [The Goldy Touch]

It was my own fault.

All things being equal, Goldy will loiter in grandma mode. This makes him priceless as a school horse. To access Goldy’s inner jumper, the rider has to prove they are worthy.

I know this.

The day was hot. Goldy dialed up the Convince Me knob. Meanwhile, I was coasting on my laurels from how well my last lesson had gone. On this day, we never really got in gear. I figured he’d perk up when the jumping started. He did. But the flat work between the jumps remained mediocre.

I need to ride the horse the way I know the horse wants to be ridden.

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. Local Folks. James Spann has retired from TV (I assume) and has started Alabama Weather Network. Non-local folks, Spann has been the face of Alabama weather for years. New venture appears to be a 24/7 resource covering the entire state.

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{Backstory. Each morning, people & horses go on a unmounted, off-lead team walk in the pasture.}

Rained out of our walk last Tuesday. Interesting how rarely this happens. Even on weeks when the world is wall-to-wall mud, we usually get a break in the rain during the initial daylight hours.

Rain science says I am not imagining it. “Over land, thunderstorms are most likely to occur at the warmest, most humid part of the day, which is usually the afternoon or evening.” NASA, Global Precipitation Measurement: Is there a specific time of day that a thunderstorm is most likely to occur?

North Carolina had – probably still does – gentle, all-day rains. Alabama is prone to boom-sploosh.

File this under, things you notice when you do an activity at the same time each day.

Onwards!
Katherine

Everyone’s fine. I don’t feel like yapping on about feed scheduling or bucket dynamics. Have a cat.

Nugget
Stepping Stone Farm
December 2025

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. Science on Screen: The Rules of Cartoon Physics, speech by Linda Simensky, vice president of children’s programming at PBS.

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Purple – Places I lived.

Green – Places I lived long enough to get mail. Camps & school.

Orange – Places I visited often enough to feel familiar. Family.

Limitation. In most cases, only a small part of state was involved.

Process Notes

Secondary colors because primary colors are too horse show.

Map? Eh. Unoriginal. Also might have copyright issues, plus leaving much blank space. Stylized map, using proportionate rectangles? No. Lack the chops. Reduce to an abstraction? Ding. Ding. Ding. I did it this way because it was what I could do. Don’t hate it.

Premise

I love graphic novels. Unfortunately, it is an admiration that is not returned. This project is to see what I can do for a graphic memoir without being able to draw.

As with previous segment, doesn’t stand alone. Would work as chapter opener. [Jobs]

Previous Posts

[I-Wish-I-Could-Draw Graphic Memoir, School Segment]

[I-Wish-I-Could-Draw Graphic Memoir, People & Pets Segment]

[I-Wish-I-Could-Draw Graphic Memoir, Jobs Segment]

Residences in text form [Life in Seven States]

Onwards!
Katherine

A changing number of people sit around a conference table. They all bear the same face.

Moderator: The goal is to write fiction posts. What is holding us up?

Word Count: Don’t look at me. You know I can hit a keyboard. Give me an idea and fingers go flying.

Scheduling: Don’t look at me. I make plenty of time for non-fiction posts, for art posts, for lesson posts.

Inner child: Don’t look at me. I wrote tons of stories. Remember, I aced Language Arts assignments. Not my fault if you lot aren’t listening anymore.

Inner Editor: Don’t look at me. I know the difference between a blog post and a professional submission. Post whatever you floats your boat. I won’t stop it. Call me when you get a magazine sale and they want rewrites.

Moderator: Okay. We have the ability and the time. What is the roadblock?

All heads turn to look at a figure sitting in a corner looking at the wall. The figure is wearing a beret.

Moderator, clears throat.

Fiction, turns, flings cape dramatically over a shoulder: What!

Moderator: Do you have anything to say about the subject at hand?

Fiction, closes faceplate of space helmet, goes back to regarding wall: Hmmph.

Moderator: Are you doing a Murderbot impression?

Fiction, turns back, throws a handful of confetti that disappears before reaching the table: Okay, so you have a modicum of imagination.

Moderator: So what is the hold up?

Fiction, adjusting trench coat: You wanna know? You really wanna know?

Moderator: Yes, please.

Fiction, stand to see over tabletop lectern: You. All of you. You are the roadblock. (Points finger at Journalism.) Oh no. I can’t possible change this quote one tiny fraction of an iota.

Journalism: Of course not. If I’m quoting someone it is my job to represent what they said as closely as possible. I have a duty to the truth.

Fiction, twirls Snidley Whiplash mustache: Truth! News flash! Stories are make up! Remember the first graduate school English assignment? You made your argument by citing sources that reflected your points and then the professor busted you for not having any of your own ideas in the paper. Thirty seven years of telling other people’s stories. Do you even know how to tell your own?

Journalism: I think you’re being overly dramatic.

Fiction, tilts head so tiara catches the light: Dramatic? DRAMATIC? Moi? Do you even know what fiction is? (Settles down.) You take notes all the time. Do you ever take notes for me?

Journalism, closes notebook.

Fiction, replaces deerstalker with derby, points finger at Scheduling: And you! With your insistence on deadlines. How many times have you said, The thing about being good with deadlines is not being good without one. You think you are so clever. Do you know what that does to my creativity? You think you can say, It’s Saturday, make with the stories? (Waves hand.) Yes, yes. I assure you I can be professional. I can produce on demand …

Pauses for dramatic effect.

… once I get some respect around here.

Scheduling, looks down, shuffles papers on table.

Fiction, blows soap bubbles from wand, points finger at Photography: Don’t look so smug over there. How many times have you taken a photo for the beauty of it? For the inherent challenge of capturing a fleeting moment of light? Oh no, it’s all work and classes and blog posts. I’ve seen the camera folder on the phone. Every photo was taken on assignment. You are no more spontaneous than those other two.

Moderator: You feel quite passionate about this. Maybe you can turn this attitude into something.

Fiction, picks up ornate fountain pen: Hmmmm.

Scheduling, crosses ‘Write Saturday post’ off to do list.

Onwards!
Katherine