Visit to the Finger Surgeon

I told two people about my appointment with the finger surgeon this afternoon: my client and my husband. Their reactions:

Client

E-mail to Client: I'll get you another sketch or 2 by this evening, your time. Running out to the FINGER SURGEON of all things. (Nothing serious).

p.s. Thought I should elaborate on finger. It's left hand; index finger has a golf ball growing out of it. So even if it is a cancerous growth & finger has to be amputated, job won't be affected one bit, as I'm right-handed.)

E-mail from Client: "...even if it is a cancerous growth...." You're taking this very well. I hope you're joking. I've had some cancer scares myself and the uncertainty is more stressful than anything else. I hope everything's okay. Bodies do very odd things every now and then to get attention. Hopefully it's just looking for love. Please let me know how things turn out.
------------------------------
Husband

Me: Do you think we'll be able to go for a walk this evening?

Husband: It depends on when you get back from the finger surgeon.

Me: Oh I'll be back in no time.

Husband: If it's nothing serious, you will.

Me: If he had to amputate my finger, would you still like me?

Husband: If you could still walk I would.

My finger does not have to be amputated. I found out that I have degenerative arthritis. It's not my fault. It's the fault of my grandmother on my mother's side. The one who always made me comb my hair and stand up straight. The finger surgeon can take the golf ball off. There's only one chance in a hundred that it will grow back, because scar tissue usually keeps something like that from returning. The only catch is, I'll have to spend $5,000. (That's my deductible.) The doctor assured me that as well as removing the golf ball, he can also replace my thumb joints as well as all my finger joints with artificial joints, so not to worry. He says there is nothing you can do about degenerative arthritis. I'll google it tomorrow. But I feel fine! It was just that I didn't want to scare people with my finger. As far as pain goes, any pain I've experienced–as far back as 20 years ago–has disappeared. I'm not about to spend $5,000. (A new Vespa?) I'll find a glove to wear instead.

And The Winner Is ...

Neckbone!                                                                                                                        My Wooden Toys

Thank you, everyone who entered the dream contest. I never said how it was to be judged because I wasn't sure. Luckily I received this e-mail message in the nick of time:

From: aggles
Subject: Neckbone
Date: March 30, 2008 5:19:02 PM PDT
To: linda

Anyone who dreams that there are 25 ways of looking at a spaceship wins hands down. Plus the elephants diving gracefully off a cliff -- hands down dream winner.

Thank you, Aggles. And Neckbone, Congratulations. Your official Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day sleeping mask will go out in the mail tomorrow. Neckbone, have you ever considered writing a poem entitled 25 Ways of Looking at a Spaceship?

Thank You, Marilyn

Today I'm in a good mood so I'm going to post a million things. Later I'll announce the winner of the official Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day sleeping mask.

I'm a political numb skull. Any sentence involving politics usually goes in one ear and flies right out the other. If I do make an effort to listen to a political conversation, it's coming from my mom, who has dementia; my smart second cousin Wee; or my internet buddy Marilyn. Marilyn posted 2 links yesterday that may have been responsible for starting up my good mood. From Marilyn's blog:

(If you didn't see it, Marilyn's talking about Obama's speech of March 18 I encourage you to join the more than 3-1/2 million people who've watched "A More Perfect Union" on YouTube here.) Those of us who came of age in the early days of feminism (early 70's) have been seen to be disloyal to our sisterhood by not supporting Hillary Clinton. Today The Root posted an extraordinary letter written by Alice Walker that so beautifully puts that into perspective. I encourage you to read it here.

Anne Lamott always has political things to say. Here's one thing she said the other night that stuck: Poor people usually fare better under a Democratic administration. That sounds fair to me, even though of course I want to be rich rich rich.

Slightly Melted; Still Intact

Sally Cruikshank posted a (somewhat French) cooking horror story yesterday. I thought I would post my own French cooking horror story.

When we first moved to CA we were friends with this couple who traveled a lot and loved good food. We met them at Tommy's Mexican for dinner right before their trip to France. We had all been reading those books by Peter Mayle about Provence. My favorite parts were about drinking Pastis, and I wanted some Pastis so bad.

When they came back from France, they brought us some Pastis, and also a giant rubbery-plastic pastry scraper with "E. Dehillerin, 18 rue Coquilliere 75001 PARIS" inscribed on it. They didn't want to go to Tommy's anymore. But they offered to cook us a French dinner. I was very intimidated by our friends, but in a desperate move I offered to make dessert. At the time the only dessert I knew how to make was pecan pie. I've since learned cherry pie (from cans) and a flourless chocolate cake with easter eggs and worms on top.

But this pecan pie is out-of-this-world good. A couple things that make it so good: It uses good rum, and it uses not only dark brown sugar, but Lyle's Golden Syrup instead of corn syrup. And of course I make the crust using King Arthur's flour.

I had a time getting the dough off the counter and into the glass pie dish, but managed to do it with the help of my new pastry scraper and assorted other spatulas. The pie went in the oven. After 50 minutes the buzzer went off. That's when you're supposed to insert a skewer into the center of the pie. If the skewer comes out clean, the pie is done. Well, the skewer would not come out clean, even after returning the pie to the oven 5 or 6 times.

I called Aggles. She told me to forget about the skewer. She said to hold the pie up so that you can see the bottom of the pie crust through the bottom of the glass dish. If the crust looked a little brown, it was done. I managed to hold the pie up and imagine my horror when I saw the giant "E. Dehillerin, 18 rue Coquilliere 75001 PARIS" pastry scraper staring at me from the bottom of the glass dish. It had adhered itself to the bottom of the pastry and cooked along with the pie. There was no time to make another pie, so I took that one and decided to act surprised.

Do you have any French cooking horror stories to tell?

Aggles' Other-Worldly Pecan Pie

Ingredients:
1 well-packed cup full-flavored brown sugar
Scant 2/3 cup Lyle's Golden Syrup (this is the secret)
2 tablespoons premium dark rum
4 tablespoons butter
3 eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups broken pecan meats
16 unbroken pecan halves
9-inch pie pan with home made crust (use King Arthur's Flour; and equal portions each of butter and Crisco)

Preheat oven to 350. In large saucepan, heat the brown sugar, Lyle's Golden Syrup, rum, and butter to the boiling point, stirring constantly and scraping back any foam that clings to side of pan. Let this mixture boil for about 1 minute. Remove from the heat and let cool while, in a separate bowl, you beat the eggs until creamy.

When the boiled syrup has cooled, beat in the eggs, salt, and broken pecan meats. Pour the mixture into the unbaked pie shell.

Take some of the unbroken pecan halves and arrange into a French starburst on top. Bake for about 50 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center of the pie comes out clean. (This is the hard part.) Cool the pie on rack. Serve at room temperature with plenty of unsweetened whipped cream.

Dog

Tell Me Your Dreams ...

and win an official Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day sleeping mask.

Here are some of my latest dream themes: Elevators. Endless sleepovers with high school pals, living in dorms, camping out, living in motel rooms, buying a house and realizing after the fact that one whole side is open to the outdoors.

Tell me your dream themes, or better yet tell a specific dream you've had recently. The winning dreamer will be chosen after naptime on Sunday, and the mask will be in the mail Monday morning.

Wee & Me & oh yeah, Anne Lamott

That's Wee on the left, my magnificent 2nd cousin. She lives in Portland where she's a freshman at Louis & Clark. It's spring break and she's in town. It turns out Wee and me are both crazy about Anne Lamott, who just happened to be giving a reading this evening.

When we first walked in I stopped to buy a book. Wee whispered in my ear: Who's your very favorite writer of all time?

Me: My very favorite?

Wee: Yes. If you could only choose one. Who would it be?

Me: Oh Gosh. Names lit up and swirled around in my head: Raymond Carver, Nikolai Gogol, Alice Munro–but none outshone the others. I'll have to think about that. What about you? Who's your very favorite writer of all time?

Wee: I'd have to say it's Anne Lamott.

If Wee had asked you, what would you have said?

Panoramic Egg

You won't believe what I found on the beach today. A panoramic egg! I picked it up and peered into the little hole.

















I saw something! I decided to take a closer look.

















An idyllic scene if there ever was one. Happy Easter!

Children of Other Lands

This is the poster that hung on my bedroom wall when I was a kid. That's me, pointing to an Indian girl. (A clue as to why I'm still searching for the elusive Indian bead belt?)

I think it's weirdly wonderful how the painting that hung on Namowal's wall as a child seems to have influenced her work. And after seeing her animations, you can certainly imagine Sally Cruikshank having this poster on her wall as a child.

At the moment, I'm working on a picture that includes 60 or 70 kids from all kinds of different backgrounds.

Do you remember any pictures that were on your bedroom wall when you were a kid?

Find the Hidden Hearts

I'm working on a picture. The viewer is supposed to find the hidden hearts. After a couple hours of hiding hearts in flying saucers, cat food and hairdos, I try to escape by going to the beach. It's hopeless! Everywhere I look I find those damn hidden hearts.

Earthbound

Sally Cruikshank is the keynote speaker at the Conference on Comics at the University of Florida this weekend. The topic is ImageSexT: Intersections of Sex, Gender, and Sexuality.

Today the other Sally–Sally G.–had an idea:

From: sally g.
Subject: conference
Date: March 19, 2008 7:20:53 AM PDT
To: linda
That conference program (Sally's in Gainesville) is something, isn't it?
wonder what they're REALLY talking about.....

Subject: Re: conference
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 8:45:43 AM PDT
To: sally g.
I wish we could go!!

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: conference
Date: March 19, 2008 8:58:14 AM PDT
To: linda
oh yes
that would be fab

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: conference
Date: March 19, 2008 8:58:31 AM PDT
To: linda
could we?

Subject: Re: conference
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 9:07:17 AM PDT
To: sally g.
I'm going to check on rates at lunch. We could stay for just one night--Sat. ...fly in Sat morning and leave Sunday. She speaks in the afternoon, i think....hmmm...I might not make it unless I spent 2 nights.

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: conference
Date: March 19, 2008 9:10:52 AM PDT
To: linda
I could spend two nights whatever you say we're both broke but let's face it, wrung out

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: conference
Date: March 19, 2008 8:58:45 AM PDT
To: linda
wouldn't she just die?

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: conference
Date: March 19, 2008 9:07:35 AM PDT
To: linda
I could fly southwest for $350 including taxes or I could drive
pal, i know you probably can't but I would meet you if you want to go

From: sally g.
Subject: sally C
Date: March 19, 2008 8:13:21 AM PDT
To: linda
wasn't it interesting when she said R. Crumb was the greatest living artist?

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: conference
Date: March 19, 2008 9:08:41 AM PDT
To: linda
if you flew to your mom's again i could pick you in in chatta and drive down

Subject: Re: conference
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 9:15:22 AM PDT
To: sally g.
Pal, I'm going to check rates to Gainesville...don't think I would have time to drive...tho it would be fun!! Also, I'm too worn out to see my mom again so soon.

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: conference
Date: March 19, 2008 9:20:04 AM PDT
To: linda
The caregiver must take care of herself, first and foremost!!!!
OK, and I checked map SW goes to Jacksonville (I guess that would mean car rental tho)

Subject: Re: conference
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 9:20:59 AM PDT
To: sally g.
Pal, it doesn't work for me. $800 - $1600 lowest and no flights available if i leave on Fri. Even if I leave Sat morning I wouldn't get there til after her talk is over. RATS! That was a good idea you had.

Subject: hmmm
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 9:29:52 AM PDT
To: sally g.
how far is jacksonville from Gainesville

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: hmmm
Date: March 19, 2008 9:36:57 AM PDT
To: linda
looks like 1.5 hours
I've emailed a shuttle service to inquire
i know I'm reaching here
just fun to think about

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: conference
Date: March 19, 2008 9:26:33 AM PDT
To: linda
damn
but SW has flights for $339 each way oakland to jacksonville
20, 21, 22, and 23rd
wish she'd told us sooner

Subject: southwest
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 9:35:17 AM PDT
To: sally g.
Aw, Pal, it's actually $726 ....

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: southwest
Date: March 19, 2008 9:40:59 AM PDT
To: linda
I didn't add on the taxes

From: sally g,.
Subject: shuttle
Date: March 19, 2008 9:32:10 AM PDT
To: linda
i think we could get a shuttle from jacksonville to gainesville

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: southwest
Date: March 19, 2008 10:04:38 AM PDT
To: linda
Pal
shuttle from Jack. to Gaines. $90-110 depending on what time and what vehicle they have available–each way for both of us together
are you on hotwire.com? $544 oakland to jacksonville but might not be good times
shuttle guy said what about frontier out of denver

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: southwest
Date: March 19, 2008 10:10:06 AM PDT
To: linda
sorry that 544 i found mighta been one way

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: hmmm
Date: March 19, 2008 12:15:11 PM PDT
To: linda
oakland to orlando $674 or something

Subject: Re: hmmm
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 12:20:02 PM PDT
To: sally g.
Sal, you are cracking me up!! If I only had $674.
I could sell my house. But probably not in this market, even for $674.
But maybe I could get $650 for it.
You could loan me the extra $24, couldn't you?

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: hmmm
Date: March 19, 2008 12:22:35 PM PDT
To: linda
of course! of course!
it's a sign i'm wrung out
i figured I could drive to Marietta GA and stay with friend Beth Fri. night and then drive 5 hours to Gainesville Sat. early to have lunch and hear Sally

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: hmmm
Date: March 19, 2008 12:14:35 PM PDT
To: linda
oh god i know i have to drop this
but you could fly to orlando, stay with joinal, and get him and Barbara to drive you two hours to gainesville

Subject: Re: hmmm
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 12:33:19 PM PDT
To: sally g.
They would! It's just, how would I scrape together the dough to get to Joinal's and I would have to call David back for the 7th time about the pro bono job which I've accepted and rejected 6 time now. I actually have some billable work, too...

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: hmmm
Date: March 19, 2008 12:23:41 PM PDT
To: linda
it's probably a weird academic scholarly conference -- at the University of Florida!
maybe like my men's studies publisher i used to work for

Subject: Re: hmmm
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 12:30:41 PM PDT
To: sally g.
Yeah.
A weird academic scholarly sex comics conference.
Perfect for us!

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: hmmm
Date: March 19, 2008 12:25:23 PM PDT
To: linda
joinal could just lend you his car for the day!

Subject: Re: hmmm
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 12:25:40 PM PDT
To: sally g.
He would! It's just getting to joinal's. That pro bono job. That's the last one for 6 more years. I'll never have $674.
Plus I want an Indian bead belt and that takes cash.

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: hmmm
Date: March 19, 2008 12:42:20 PM PDT
To: linda
what caused this urge? just wrung out?

Subject: Re: hmmm
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 12:54:36 PM PDT
To: sally g.
I saw one in the airport in Dallas a few months ago...it was really pretty. Glass beads. But they only had small and med.–there were no larges.

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: hmmm
Date: March 19, 2008 12:28:46 PM PDT
To: linda
no money at all for the pro bono?
why do you want an indian bead belt? have you picked one out? online?

Subject: Re: hmmm
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 12:34:11 PM PDT
To: sally g.
No dough for pro bono.
I just WANT one, that's all. And I can't really find one online They're all too thick. I want a thinner one. I saw some thinner ones at the airport, but too small.

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: hmmm
Date: March 19, 2008 12:36:25 PM PDT
To: linda
like a gatlinburg / cherokee kind of thing we had as kids? don't you already have one?
or am i thinking of someone else maybe doreen austria used to have one....

Subject: Re: hmmm
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 12:40:49 PM PDT
To: sally g.
Yes, like one of those! Maybe with glass beads? I don't know ... plastic is good too. I will do some situps if I find one.

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: hmmm
Date: March 19, 2008 12:31:04 PM PDT
To: linda
i couldn't figure out if there was a registration fee for the conference
maybe they'd just let us in to hear sally

Subject: Re: hmmm
From: linda
Date: March 19, 2008 12:35:25 PM PDT
To: sally g.
It's no fair. Sally was mean not to tell us. She probably thinks we would sit out in the audience and heckle her. But we wouldn't! And I wouldn't bring my thermos of wine!

From: sally g.
Subject: Re: hmmm
Date: March 19, 2008 12:36:50 PM PDT
To: linda
I would roll a can of beer down the aisle, though

a message from Cruikshank's hotel room in Florida

Wrung Out? 5 Early Warning Signs

1. You're driving in your rental car and Mr. Bojangles comes on the radio. That part comes on: His dog up and died, he up and died. After 20 years he still grieves. Tears start spurting out of your eyes.

2. You think it's fine to to turn left on red as long as you stop first.

3. You get back to your extended-stay room at HomeAway around midnight. Your sister, who left 15 minutes ahead of you, is waiting outside the door. Is she having a smoke? No. They've simply forgotten to put 2 more days on our key cards. The office closes at 11:00; no local emergency number; the operator says there is no 800 national number; and the person who answers the security number just laughs. Unless you break in, they can't be bothered. You try to break in. The only door you can manage to break into looking for an employee is the pool chemical storage door, so you get back in your rental car and drive til you find a Days Inn and check in there. You walk up the stairs to your room after going back out to the car to grab your computer, and your sister is already inside the room laughing hysterically. You join in.

4. You check your e-mail. A new job! An illustration for Art With Heart’s newest book for siblings of seriously ill children. A pro-bono project: they already have yes’s from Seymour Chwast, Molly Z, Julie Paschkis, Jim Paillot, Lisa Perrett, and others. And they already know which page they will assign you! But you know you can't even begin to deal with it, so you e-mail your rep back and say no.

The next day you feel terrible about saying no. I mean, there's the fact that they already know which page they would assign you! They must really have a feel for your work. It must be a wildly colorful page of kids having fun and getting into trouble. Plus, it's obvious by now that Seymour Chwast must have a huge thing for you. You e-mail your rep back and say you'll do it if they can send you the assignment now, so you can work it out on the plane. You check e-mail right before getting on the plane in Chattanooga. Nothing. You check e-mail during your layover in Cincinnati. Nothing.

When you get home, you check your e-mail again. The assignment has arrived. You open it. It's black and white page, called Kindness Counts. The copy reads: Are you a kind kid? How do you show kindness to yourself and to others? Draw it here. Find all the hidden hearts. There are___ in all! (Show kids being kind to the earth, to themselves and to others. In the drawing, add hidden hearts.)

You're the one who tortured your little sister: tried to pull her finger off and cut all her hair off on one side. The very word "sibling" has always given you the creeps. If you possess any self-knowledge at all, you know that a black & white drawing of siblings being kind to one another is something that would never occur to you in your wildest dreams. You e-mail your rep back.

5. You open the dryer door and squeeze all your dirty clothes in. Then you remember you have to put them in the washer first, so you take them all back out.

How You Can Tell When You're Back to Normal

You get home, unlock the door, and march straight to the refrigerator. You open an ice cold bottle of Hanna Sauvignon Blanc (Russian River Valley). You get out the crackers and peanut butter. You set your computer on your placemat and start typing.

p.s. It was a hard trip. Mom isn't able to take care of herself, even in assisted living, even with Kesha's help. According to the folks at her joint, the wonderful Kesha will have to go anyway, because she isn't licensed and bonded. It was only a year ago that Mom moved to assisted living and the thought of helping her move again–to the "memory ward" or to a nursing home–is hard to bear and hard to fathom. She can't remember a thing that happened 5 seconds ago. However, her depth of feeling remains. And by afternoon, her quick laugh re-surfaces. The mornings are another story altogether and very depressing, although she's never been a morning person. Evenings are a thousand percent better, as evidenced below at City Cafe Diner.

Goodbye, Lovely Sky

I'm off to Tennessee to visit Mom. Be back Tuesday!

Why I Love Wayne Thiebaud*

Wayne Thiebaud

*or: This Is Not a Bathrobe

Wayne Thiebaud was born in 1920. The following is from Leah Garchik's column today in the San Francisco Chronicle:

Wayne Thiebaud, who spoke at the San Jose Museum of Art's annual Council of 100 dinner last week, drew the biggest crowd ever at the event. Senior Curator JoAnne Northrup asked Thiebaud about a painting he made of a bathrobe, her favorite. This event was not taped, so the quotes that follow are approximate ...

"Why did you choose that?" asked Northrup. "What does it mean to you?"

"Heroes are really important in our society," said Thiebaud, "but really the things that matter most are family and home, whether it's your daily cup of coffee or a warm bathrobe. ... The simple pleasures are really important in life. Wouldn't it be great to have a society where you didn't need heroes?"

Inspiration

Jennifer Sy of Creativity Explored
Today I got an e-mail from Creativity Explored. And did it ever come at the right time. I needed some inspiration and I got it!
The piece above is by Jennifer Sy.

















When I saw it, something about it reminded me of this photo I had taken last week of a shoe print in the sand. I found the photo and painted on top of it. My piece below is no match for Jennifer's, but it sure was fun.

Beyond Wonderful

© 2008 Soylent Communications

I zoomed up to the Legion of Honor early this morning so I could do a ten minute run-through of the Annie Leibovitz show. God! The parking lot was full! I turned down the narrow road on the left and had to sit and wait on cars waiting on other cars to pull out. Disgusted, I almost drove straight back home, only I couldn't back up and turn around because now there was a line of cars behind me.

Then! When I finally parked and hiked back up the hill to the museum (why hadn't I just walked to begin with?) there was a line to get in the door. I was in the members only line, and had to stand and wait. Absurd.

When I got downstairs where the exhibit was, there were mobs of people. I was still asking myself, "Should I stay or should I go?"

I stayed. It was the best show I've ever seen in a museum. A ten minute run-through was not an option. At first I was surprised that I loved the exhibit so much, because the photo used for the announcement–the one of Mikhail Baryshnikov and Rob Besserer–makes me break out in giggles.

The exhibition ... bears witness to something the artist realized as she was preparing the material. "I don't have two lives," she said. "This is one life, and the personal pictures and the assignment work are all part of it." I liked that; it was part of an intro paragraph printed on the wall. And it was true. The show seemed like an open journal of an incredibly interesting and likable person.

The photos ranged from Johnny Depp and Kate Moss in bed at the Royalton Hotel to Eudora Welty at her home in Mississippi to one called Sarajevo, Fallen Bicycle of Teenage Boy Just Killed by a Sniper, 1994. By this photo there's a note by Annie that says: The picture of the bicycle and the smeared blood was taken just after the boy on the bike had been hit by mortar that came down in front of our car. I was on my way to a housing project to photograph Miss Sarajevo. We put him in the car and sent him to the hospital, but he died on the way.

There are lots of family shots; and she documents her friend Susan Sontag's illness and death.

There are HUGE 9' x 12' (?) landscapes. There are tiny photos of Susan's seashell collection.

There are two solid walls of little prints of things she had considered showing but didn't; I couldn't get close enough to see any of them. I'll have to go back at 9:30 am–I'll try a Tuesday next time.

I loved the fact that Annie had her first child when she was 51, and twins three and a half years later.

Walking and Talking at the Same Time

We were both feeling depressed as we stumbled out the door for a walk this evening. Tom's dad is just out of intensive care; and my mom has injured a hip and can't remember how. It was too windy on the beach, so we hit the Coastal Trail.

After three miles, I can feel a definite shift in spirit. I even have a suggestion:

My suggestion: Hey, Tom! Would you like to go see the Annie Leibovitz show at the Legion of Honor tomorrow morning?

Tom: I'd like to, but I have a ton of work to do.

Me: I do too! But we could take just ten minutes and run through it.

Tom: Remember the last time we were going to take just ten minutes and run through the De Young? We ended up running through for three hours.

Me: I know! But the Legion is minutes away, and–aside from these photographs–there's never anything there to look at! I mean, there's never anything in the gift shop.

Contest

I'm glad I escaped this evening, because look who I ran into on the beach!

Be the first to correctly identify this famous film character, and win the Ducks Unlimited Collectors Box shown below. (Candy included.)

Hello I Must Be Going

This is my new shirt. Anne passed it down to me because it didn't fit her any more. I like it. I took this photo for her.

I haven't been out of my studio since Monday, so I began thinking of the shirt as my prison uniform. As I've mentioned before, I sometimes daydream about going to jail.

Things I like about being imprisoned in my studio:

1. I can't go outside and exercise because I don't have time. You might get the impression that I like to go outside and jog. But I'd much rather sit in front of my computer and never budge. Maybe have a glass of wine. Eat a giant falafel sandwich, skip the eggplant, extra potatoes. If the potatoes are rolled up in the sandwich they don't count as fries. And then you're allowed to dip the sandwich in ketchup.

2. I don't have to think about anything disturbing because I don't have time.

3. I don't have to pay bills, because I don't have time.

4. I don't have to do laundry because I don't have time.

5. I don't have to pull weeds because I don't have time.

Sadly, I have to draw this post to a close because I've been released and it's low tide.

Beach Find of the Day

Show and Tell

Tom reveals magnificent farmers' market purchase to Eric and Deb in Boston.

Skype is fascinating (as well as terrifying). You can download it for free and speak "in person" to other Skypers around the world. If you're calling from computer to computer, it's free.