Stage One of “whup Friend at the pool” is complete: I have conquered Bike Butt and can now cycle to work/begin taking longer bike rides. I mean, by the time I actually manage to get fit enough to swim AFTER biking to the gym, Friend is going to be swimming two miles a day and it’ll take me months to catch him, but dammit, at least I’ve gotten started! I’ve also put the front and tail lights on the bike, found the biking gloves and the bike lock, and put…
I have – against all odds, IMHO – reached HOUR TWENTY on this project. One fifth of the way done! Perhaps I have a chance of seeing it through! Or not. 80 hours is still a Very Long Way To Go. I’ve been working my way through more basic shapes and shading, moving slowly into one-point perspective. Because I’m determined to do it the hard way, or…honestly, it’s more that I’m trying to LEARN things that I’ve only half-assedly learned in the past, but anyway. Point is, I’m kind of…
Those of you who follow me on Bluesky may have seen that I recently discovered Russian (which is to say, Crimean but it was a Russian territory at the time) painter Ivan Aivazovsky. I may never recover. I don’t think I’ve ever seen water done like he does it. I don’t think I’ve ever felt an artist loved water as much as I feel he must have. It’s so incredible I could vomit. This particular piece is held privately, which is a shame, but there’s a museum in Feodosiya, Ukraine…
Recent Reads: A HONEYMOON OF GRAVE CONSEQUENCE by Stephanie Burgis – this is absolutely charming. I read an advance copy of this second in a series of novellas about Lord Riven, Vampire, and Lady Riven, Scholar, whose situationship we’re introduced to in A MARRIAGE OF UNDEAD CONVENIENCE and continues on now (and hopefully for quite some time after this!). I liked MARRIAGE very much, and HONEYMOON is better: it’s nearly twice as long, and the length helps the story to feel more complete within itself (my only problem with MARRIAGE…
I know this will come as a surprise to many of you, but I am somewhat competitive by nature. To wit: I’ve been moaning for years about needing to get back to swimming. Parenting made it hard, and as that’s eased up some, I suffered a shoulder injury which has now been largely dealt with, but have still been faced with the fundamental difficulty of getting to the pool. We don’t own a car, which means walking or biking to the gym and it’s an hour+ walk from home which…