Virtual Brush Box

I hereby institute the position of Thanksgiving Grinch.

The holiday forces us to ….

… enact certain behaviors. Eat a big meal with family.

… eat certain foods. A turkey.

… feel a certain way. Thankful.

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What if you live far from your family and do not have the time &/or money to go home?

What if you live near your family but don’t get along?

What if you don’t like turkey?

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What if you’ve had a terrible year and are not feeling grateful, thank you very much?

What if you’ve had a terrific year but object to being told how to feel by a greeting card?

What if being told to feel grateful immediately triggers feelings of guilt? Are you grateful? Are you grateful enough? Why aren’t you grateful? Be grateful d*mm*t.

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Maybe you have bad memories of Thanksgiving.

Maybe you have memories of bad things that happened around Thanksgiving.

Maybe you are from a country that does not have the tradition of everything coming to a halt on Thursday and you’d really rather just get on with your week.

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Bah, humbird!

Update. Additions

Maybe you are not of a mind to celebrate the arrival of Europeans in the Americas. (A more socially conscious person would have thought of this earlier.)

Per comments

What if you have good memories but you miss those times?

Thanksgiving ushers in the Christmas monster. What if you are one of over 30% of Americans who are not Christian?

What if your family is gone?

Bah, humbird!

Onwards!
Katherine

Photography of the outside world. “Although he spent only a few weeks of his life in the state, his Alabama photos represent Evans’s most famous and perhaps finest work.” Encyclopedia of Alabama: Walker Evans, Journey, 2008.

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Patriot Pride
Statue by Shawn Fitzwater
Patriot Park
Vulcans on Parade
October 2023

Technical Details

Head. f/13.0, 1/100 sec., 38.0 mm, ISO 100. Manual mode & auto-focus.

Post production. Cropped, resized, border, & watermark.

Linkfest

“Two @vulcansonparade statues I’ve painted are out on public display. “Forged in Fire” at @redmont_vodka and “Patriot Pride” at Patriot Park in West Homewood. Which team are you choosing?” Video clips, Instagram: @fitssignsmurals

Fitz Sign & Murals

Visit Vulcan: The Vulcans Community Awards Spotlight: Shawn Fitzwater, 2020.

Alabama News Center: Homewood mural delivers a masterpiece message. Crenshaw. 2020

Bham Wiki: Vulcans On Parade

Vulcan Park & Museum

Patriot Park in a previous post [Step By Step, State of the Fitness]

Previous Art by Fitzwater [Murals at the Birmingham Zoo]

Other Vulcans on Parade statues [Gallery, Views of Vulcan]

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. Covid booster. Monday, 13 November, UAB.

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On a regular basis, we look at our two senior dogs and ask.

Are you free of pain, physically & mentally?

Are you enjoying your activities of daily living, such as they are?

Are you eating with gusto?

If yes, all other questions are irrelevant. You do you.

Which is to say the ladies continue to get through their days. Jasmine can’t change locations without help. Rose can, but mostly doesn’t, other than coming into the kitchen to supervise at mealtimes.

Seems to work for them.

We worry. We question.

They continue to be fit, happy, and definitely enjoying their eats.

Rock on with your dog selves.

Jasmine & Rose posts [archive]

Onwards!
Katherine

I got nothing. Have a cat.

Blue shows off his expressive dance moves next to where I am sitting on the mounting block.

[Cat Pictures Please, Observer Effect]

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. the bmj: Covid-19: Metformin reduces the risk of developing long term symptoms by 40%, study finds, Wise. Hat tip to Jon Singer. (Patreon: Jon Singer, join for free.)

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Milton hitched for morning work, hence the funky lighting. He is pulling both of us! I am in the role of a sack of potatoes, helping Milton with his weight training.

The second time, during the weekend, I drove! Granted I was six inches from my co-driver, but I was holding the lines. We are pretty sure Milton knew who was driving.

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. “However, a remarkable shift in public opinion occurred in the months after the memorial’s dedication. Veterans and families of the dead walked the black reflective wall, seeking the names of their loved ones killed in the conflict. Once the name was located, visitors often made an etching or left a private offering, from notes and flowers to dog tags and cans of beer.” History.com, This Day In History: 1982, Vietnam Veterans Memorial dedicated.

~~~

Paid for Optimus to have a chiropractic adjustment.

Of the 12 classes I showed in this season, Optimus was my partner in 11, ride & drive. That merits a bit of pampering. I don’t plan to make a regular thing of it for him. Splashed out on one as a thank you for this year.

Stepping Stone Farm is a fan of chiro. The doc visits on a regular schedule. I may see about getting our two done next time.

Many years ago, had a chiro out for Mathilda & Previous Horse.

A few years ago, had a different doc out for these two. [Chiro, Dunno] & [Chiro Update, Still Dunno] 2019

In the past, I have not been wildly impressed. Maybe this one will change my mind.

Opt enjoyed the session & looked better after. So, short-term gain, at least.

Onwards!
Katherine

Art of the outside world. Artist recommendation. “Ruth Hunter is a painter in oils and cold wax.” Imperfect Patience: Best.

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Rainbow

RainBlue

RainRed

Four of the colors are the same. Only two of the colors are different. Amazing how much effect that has.

Process Notes

A project to understand the numeric progression of colors. The interesting geometrics were a happy accident.

These were made on a grid, yet they have lines that do not appear straight. Also the colors lead the eye into seeing diagonals that are not there.

Color Charts. For my future reference, hex numbers listed here are for Inkscape. The numbers changed slightly when converted into Gnumeric.

Onwards!
Katherine