Virtual Brush Box

Unless suddenly inspired, I’m taking a break from big camera adventures until January. Capitalize on that new year energy. Here’s one from the vaults.

~~~

Bubbles
June 2024

Appeared between short videos I took of Milton driving. So, either our pasture, or the inside of my pocket. Also, weirdly tall (or wide) at 710 pixels instead the usual 533 pixels. An inadvertent video still?

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. Alabama News Center: Alabama Power’s Lineworker Career Day introduces students to utility linework, career opportunities and more, Taunton, 11.29.24.

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Had two lessons at Stepping Stone Farm in November, both with Diego, a new horse.

Regardless of my mental agita before, I usually feel better after a ride. Not so much. Coach Courtney videoed my ride to cheer me up. Didn’t work. She didn’t think I looked all that bad, functional was the word she used. All I saw was the reemergence of every bad habit I’ve ever had.

Twelve years of saddle seat goes poof. (I can’t remember the photographer, apologies.)

Second lesson was better but still nowhere near what I ought to be doing. Probably won’t get fixed until I get my own riding career back on track. Yes, I’m a drama llama. This is not news. One has to deal with the brain one is given.

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. Stateline: Manufacturing already has made a comeback, After the pandemic, small cities led the first full recession recovery for factory jobs since the ’70s. Henderson, November 12, 2024. Hat tip to A.

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What’s up lately? My step count. So many steps.

Cold snap. Time to carry hot water to the barn. To be honest, they already have daily tea service. But we ramp it up for below-freezing nights.

Since I am a better walker than I am a lifter, I prefer to make two trips carrying a half-full bucket each time rather than lug a full bucket. Lighter. Less splash.

But lots of steps.

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. CNN: How lavender became a symbol of LGBTQ resistance, Hastings 2020. Hat tip, The Lavender Trail. “The Lavender Trail is a counseling service that provides mental health support to individuals and couples in need.” FAQ

~~~

H-O-R-S-E

not

D-E-E-R

Please pause to admire the length of Rodney’s mane. I am considering cosplaying him as a Saddlebred.

Prior Perennial Posts

[Foto Friday: Don’t Shoot] 2012

[R is for Ribbon] 2019

[Seasonal Decoration] 2023

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. “imagine if someone promised human cloning then handed you an animatronic baby, and when you pointed out it was a robot covered in rubber, they told you the technology would improve, while someone from WIRED wrote an article about how they believed it was a baby/ /this is genAI” Tim Dawson‬ ‪@ironicaccount.bsky.social‬, Blue Sky, November 22, 2024. Hat tip to A.

~~~

Nine weeks!

Horses went nine weeks between shoeings.

And not by the skin of a nail either. Rodney’s clenches were juuust starting to come up. (For the non-horsey, loose clenches are a sign that a blacksmith visit is imminent.) I almost thought of putting it off another week. Then, I thought, ‘No, they’re due, let’s get them done.’

Actually, what I said to myself was ‘lets get them done, it’s been 8 weeks.’ Because I miscounted. Then, I looked at previous date. What?! Counted twice. Made husband count. Made blacksmith count. Yup, 9 weeks.

The record was not intentional. First blacksmith suffered schedule shenanigans. Then offered to come on a Saturday to catch up. I said horses could wait, and they did. Then we had scheduling shenanigans. Voilà 9 weeks.

Even when I thought it had been 8 weeks, I was impressed at the condition of Rodney’s feet. A combination of good blacksmithing,

pine tar, [Feet Change]&[Pine Tar Update and New Barn Rule]

good hay, [What Goes In The Mouth Effects The Feet]

& walks. [Circulation Considerations]

Previous record was 8 weeks, twice. [What Goes In The Mouth Effects The Feet] & [Setting a Summer Shoeing Record]

Onwards!
Katherine

Awareness of the outside world. “As Advent progresses, these ornaments unlock to show a short, animated story, or a fun activity or game!” Jackie Lawson Digital Advent Calendar. I did not purchase. I mention it bc I like the idea of something that CANNOT be produced physically. The Internet needs more of this. Movies are not stage plays filmed from the orchestra pit. The internet is not digital paper.

~~~

Fractals were a hoot. Thanks again to Gement for getting me started on this project. Overall post [Fractal Alphabet & Numbers], archives [Fractal Alphabet].

Recap

It started with shapes. [Fractal Triangle] [Fractal Square]

It ran from A to Z. [Fractal Alphabet A] [Fractal Alphabet Z]

Took a break for the holidays. [Fractal Christmas Tree] [Fractal Gift Boxes]

It ended with numbers. [Fractal Numbers Second Sequence]

Process

Beforehand, I did not search on fractal letters. I did not want to see what other folks had done.

No attempt at unity. Each letter taken on its own.

I tried for designs that created a larger pattern rather than just sat there as a a pile of letters.

Shapes first. Then tweak dimensions. Then choose colors.

Kept trying for new.

Fractal in the sense of repetition and reduction. Not mathematically fractal. [Fractal Alphabet A, discussion]

Results – Things I Discovered

905, 80%, 70% is different than 90% of 90% all the way down, because math.

Filling the letters visually preserved the form of the letter, otherwise letters such as T or X became simply a mass of crosshatching.

Some letters generated multiple viable alternates. Some were one & done.

Letters that are a mix of straight & curve lines always give me the hardest time.

Reasonably successful at come up with new ideas. Sometimes the repetition was deliberate, below. Sometimes the repetition happen became the first one was many letters in the past, A & M. I was pretty good about not simply flipping letters that are reflections of each other C -> U or M -> W.

Watch out for inadvertent shapes. Anything triangular can quickly become a Jewish star. Similarly, I had to be careful working with L & T. I kept getting crosses or swastikas. There are only so many shapes in the world.

Noted From Individual Letters

A. This was the original A. The one above is an alternate. When I was designing the A, all I saw was the curve. Once it was posted, the upper negative space looked like cleavage. Once seen, could not unsee.

D. A Mayan aesthetic, to me.

H. 4 iterations in color was too much. 3 iterations in color is okay. 3 monochrome iterations is boring.

I. I liked how it looked as H. I did not like how it looked as I. Weird.

Repeating the same idea with a differently shaped letter led to completely different vibe, e.g. D&E, U&V.[Fractal Alphabet]

Onwards!
Katherine

Santa and his sleigh have made their appearance at the end of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, The Christmas Season is upon us.

Now is the time that I must stop complaining that it! is! too! early! Christmas comes after Thanksgiving. Even us grumblers must admit this. But it was so! early! this! year! My first sighting of the green-red monster was in September, photo above. Below is screenshot of the message I sent to my husband upon witnessing Christmas-in-September.

Now is the time that I admit that this is what we, as a society, want. Stores would not be carrying the stock if customers weren’t buying. And, I guess, grumble grumble, early planning is required for a holiday parade or holiday party. Or if one needs to get ones gifts mailed. I still don’t have to like it. Grumble.

Now is the time for my annual repost of Scalzi’s nod to what is left of the month. A Bitter November. [Non-Illustrated] 2022 & [Helmet Watch 2023]

Now is the time for my annual rant about the Start of Advent. Wait. Not this year. In 2024, Advent does in fact start on December 1st. I will save my traditionalist tsking for next year, when December 1st is a Monday and Advent starts the day before, Sunday, November 30th. Yes, November. Advent starts the fourth Sunday before Christmas. But I digress. [Advent, A Prose Poem, Afterword]

Now is the time for me to decide how I will approach Christmas. I don’t mean the holiday itself. For me, traditional observation of Christmas-the-occasion is Christmas Eve Candlelit service, opening gifts with family, and travel. The fact that I don’t do any of it these days is due to logistics rather than philosophical opposition. More recently, we celebrated Jewish Christmas, i.e. going out for Chinese food. This year, we are considering an Icelandic Christmas, i.e. books and hot chocolate. They even have a word for it, Jólabókaflóðið (Jolabokaflod). Sign me up.

Now is the time for me to decide how I will approach Christmas-the-season. One year I was over it. “I am declaring it to be December. That’s it, just December.” [A Brief Check-In, intro]. The next year, I went the other way, “I’ve been leaning into Christmas this year.” [Fractal Christmas Tree] This year will probably fall somewhere in the middle.

Now is the time to think about the parts I enjoy. Music. December is the only time I play music. I might even sing. Occasionally. Where no one can hear me. I’m really bad. But I do enjoy belting out Adestes Fideles. Blog material, particularly photography. So many options. Television. I’ll watch the Grinch, the original cartoon with Boris Karloff. [Advent, A Prose Poem in 22 Memories]

Remember, at this point, I am talking about Christmas-the-month, not Christmas-the-2000-year-old religious-celebration.

Now is the time to think about the parts I would like to see. More variety. Same colors. Same songs. Same plots. Even Santa is the same. At least in the US, the man in the red suit always looks as if he just stepped off a can of Coca Cola. More about other Christmas traditions. Learn about Christmas around the world. More about other holiday celebrations. Learn about December around the world.

Now is the time to admit that I have one holiday tradition.
update. Attended, no post. 2024
[Up, Down, & In-Between, A Saddle Seat Miscellany] 2023
[A Grinch Attends A Christmas Party] 2022
Attended, I think? 2021
Don’t remember if we were doing outside stuff by then. I stayed home, from everything. 2020
[Tree Topper, Christmas Party 2019]
[Let The Festivities Begin, SSF Christmas Party 2018]
Attended, no post. 2017
[Foto Friday: Stall Decorating] 2016
[SSF Christmas Party 2015]
[Barn Christmas Party] 2014
[Barn Party] 2013
Probably attended. My first year at SSF. 2012

What do you do for December?

Onwards!
Katherine