Not one of those days.

So I was going to do some stuff with my daughter and wife pretty early... so I woke up super early (for going to bed at midnight) and walked my hour walk. Yesterday I whistled while I walked. Today I was too tired. I saw this gravestone celebrating the planting of this great pecan tree. 1927 is my favorite year. Lindbergh flew the Atlantic, Babe hit 60 home runs, Nellie Fox was born. And the list goes on and on. Even Erma Bombeck was born. And to come back to the tree, Max Ernst painted "The Wood" during that same year.

At 5pm we went to my daughter's house to pick her up for dinner. I thought it was strange that she asked to have dinner with us on Friday and Saturday night. She never wants to have dinner with us two nights in a row. When we got there, she wheeled out a suitcase onto her front porch... and voila, our grandson appeared from inside the suitcase. Not only had my son and his family come from Phili, but my sister and her husband from Los Angeles came, all to celebrate our 40th anniversary (actually it is 8/4). This is a very special day.

Let one not be submerged....

"Let one not be submerged by the things of the world.... Let one not take upon oneself the burden of riches; let one not desire great possessions even for one's family." –Metta Sutta

123 Calories: Two Roads

It was starting to get hot, and humid, especially after the rare occasion of a rain, however brief. I came to this fork in the road. To the left was the hot longer path, the one I had originally intended to follow. On the right, the shady shorter path... which also meant I'd be able to eat lunch sooner. What flashed in front of my eyes was that I had a choice... and I could probably lie about which road I took... and no one would know the difference. How many times have I been at a fork in the road and not realized the luxury of being able to make a choice (undetected).

For where your treasure is...

"For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." –Luke 12:34

123 Calories: Breakfast

What was supposed to be 174 calories is actually 123 because of my snail's pace. Found a new route that has almost no traffic so I can go a little faster. Anyway, I first photographed a couple of guys at my favorite breakfast taco place... but it wasn't very decisive. Then as I was putting my iphone down I saw my empty plate as an Edward Weston (for you photo people) seashell.

When I was a child...

"When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became an [adult], I put an end to childish things." –Cor 13:11

174 Calories: Two Decisive Moments

Today I helped cook a zen meal for a 5 day sit (I wasn't doing the sit). Sweet potato and miso soup, short grain brown rice ((with a mixture of sesame seeds and salt (1:16) that people put on it)), and a salad with romaine lettuce, cucumbers and tomato. I was under suspicion of mis-measuring the rice and water, but it turned out fine. Seeing the fine lunch ready for the sitters was a good moment, though maybe not decisive.


Stupidly the second half of my walk today was when it was 101 degrees. Shade and a breeze were my best friends. And then I saw this sign. As confused and tired as I was, it seemed to define the moment.

...a son obeys the father....

"A minister serves the lord, a son obeys the father; not obeying is not filial, and not serving is no help." –Song of the Jewel Mirror
See Animation (takes a few minutes to load)

174 Calories: The Strange Marking

500+ feet above sea level, 30.3100 N, 97.7447 W (I got an app. called Distance for my iphone) total distance= 2.92

Anyway, found this painted on the sidewalk and thought it related to yesterday's painting. After finding the first one, I saw that there were many others... but it was the first one that was that "love and kisses (XO)" moment.

It was the best of times...

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way...." Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities
See Animation (takes a minute or so to load, depending on your connection)

174 Calories: The Decisive Moment

So I decided today, instead of going to a $15 hatha yoga class, to walk for one hour, which expends the same number of calories. And further more, in my true obscessive compulsive behavior, I would take one picture (iphone) depicting the "decisive moment" of my walk (I actually made two exposures...I can not tell a lie). Oh yes I can... tell a lie, that is.

Anyway, I found this great trail blocks from my house that goes along a creek. A major discovery.

Also saw a squished dead frog on the street... but the decisive moment had passed so I could not take a picture.

Here's from Wikopedia (don't laugh) on Bresson's Decisive Moment:

In 1952, Cartier-Bresson published his book Images à la sauvette, whose English edition was titled The Decisive Moment. It included a portfolio of 126 of his photos from the East and the West. The book's cover was drawn by Henri Matisse. For his 4,500-word philosophical preface, Cartier-Bresson took his keynote text from the 17th century Cardinal de Retz: "Il n'y a rien dans ce monde qui n'ait un moment decisif" ("There is nothing in this world that does not have a decisive moment"). Cartier-Bresson applied this to his photographic style. He said: " "Photographier: c'est dans un même instant et en une fraction de seconde reconnaître un fait et l'organisation rigoureuse de formes perçues visuellement qui expriment et signifient ce fait."[citation needed]

Here's a translation from WebMonkey: Photography: it is in the same moment and in a split second to recognize a fact and the rigorous organization of visually perceived forms that express and signify this fact.

We want the world....

We want the world and we want it now!
–Jim Morrison, The Doors

It could be ours.

Hearing the words....

Hearing the words you should understand the source.
–Merging of Difference and Unity

mine marriage reality self love it cosmos

me

I Love You

I don't know if this is going to
work but maybe t-
his will
do. Or maybe this is
better. I don't know w

I love you

Two Faces w/Dots

So we are a couple of crack addicts with our new iphones. The dishes pile up in the sink as we compulsively instantly do everything. No longer is there a separation between us and our computers. This afternoon we finally both fell asleep after becoming sleep deprived wanting one more moment (lasting late into the night) with the nasty thing.

We did manage to buy a new ball bearing and installed a lock in a different door. This time I dropped the ball bearing... and then found out that the lock would be fine without it... and then inadvertently saw it gleaming at me from the dirt.

So life goes on. Here's the animation as I made the drawing. Please let me know if you like seeing the animations.



After reading what I wrote I went and put the dishes in the dishwasher.

First iphone drawing/another palm iteration.

Another Palm Iteration:
I don't want to ma-
ke art. I want to
UPS some books to W-
isconsin. I want 2
find a little ball be-
aring my wife dropp-
ed.

First Iphone Drawing:

Last Palm Drawing?

So this may be my
last Palm drawing, w-
ith the idea that
I will get an i-
phone (it made the photo
below of my Palm)
& make paintings with
a program called "brush."
Later: I did get the i-
phone but no time to
figure it all out. Glad
I still have my Palm.

Moved 2 the Lone Star State

Lots of people he-
lped by giving, by
taking, by lifting, &
some by watching or
listening.

Thanks u all.

Moved
2
Lone Star State.

No Thanks, but Thanks

One should be tha-
nkful to have a wife
that pushes him to the
point of exhaustion.
But when you are re-
ally tired, sleep is
the most desirable
activity, not saying
"thanks."

(Note: so the job
tonight was to hang my
art all over our house.
It had been leaning on the walls
for a few days now.
Glad it is done...
now that it is.)

Sprint vs. ATT: Meditation vs. Hari-Kari

So I tried to switch
from Sprint to ATT, get
an iphone & save mo-
ney. Instead after
much shopping on & of-
f line I'm ready for
many hrs. of medit-
ation 2 morrow or hari-
kari 2 night.

Dentisted

Well, I'm @ the dentist try-
ing to think about thanks
when this evil thought c-
ame to me that I'm than-
kful that it isn't me
that is being dentisted 2day,
but rather my wife. Where
is that generous gallant
self who'd go to the dent-
ist for someone they'd lov-
ed?

Note: So I asked her, when
it was all over, if she would
have let me endure her
pain for her. No, she said,
you are too much of a woose.

Then at dinner (I made her
a nice dinner) I asked if
she would sit in for me next
time I needed to go to be
dentisted for 3 1/2 hours.
She said that was too difficult
to think about...where is some
Advul?...my mouth hurts.

So in 20 days we'll be
married for 40 years...
assuming these conversations
come to an abrupt end.

Suppose we had no words for "thank you"...

Saying is so much e-
asier than doing. S-
uppose we had no
words for "thank you."
What could we do 2
express our appreciat-
ion?

Lots Better

My mom said to say
"thank you," or maybe she
didn't, but some do. In
any case, words are c-
heap. So how do u really say
it as you mean it?

She said, "lots better"... maybe
some day you'll get it.

More tanks...

So I wondered if
everyone on earth
had reasons to say
thank you, and if
so, does anyone ha-
ve more or less
reasons to feel th-
anks than I do.

U-all tankS

So critic #1 liked
this one...a little.
She said I'd have
to work all week on
this series. We'll
see what today
brings after a
morning at Acme
Dentistry and
Plumbing.

3's a Charm?

Thank You #3
Thanks for helping us move.
(Note: critic #1 said it's better, meaning "try once more."

Thank You #2

Everytime he turned aro-
und he thanked the sta-
rs & the air & his fri-
ends & the water for
making this all possible.

Well, critic #1 said this
was nice but had nothing
to do with moving.
So tomorrow I'll try again.

Thank You #1

So a real artist wou-
ld have a hallmark
concept for a thank
you card, but I'm so sp-
eechless because you gav
-e so we could move 2
the heart of Tex. Thanks.
so so much.

So my critic #1 said this
isn't good enough... so
tomorrow...

As blind as he was, ...

As blind as he was, he
could see light...very
far away.

Blind as a Bat

He looked both ways, but he couldn't see.

(If he sees himself seeing then he is not looking.
If he is looking then he does not see himself.)

I never feel anything.

3 Discoveries

Here's what I learned looking through 50 years of my "art."

1. Everything I've done is not good, or art, or me.
2. Most of what I did is just practice.
3. It is a privilege that I can decide what stays and what goes.
4. (added later) I don't recognize or identify with he who created some of the work.
   

Big Whopper

Sometimes when we
think we have enou-
gh challenges a new
whopper comes
to dwarf the others.

24' and Growing

So we returned the
24 foot uhaul only to
discover that it grew
into a 26 footer.
We sure had that baby
packed.

4th of July Paintings

At the neighborhood fourth of July celebration I hung out at the painting booth. I first painted this concrete stepping stone. The woman running the booth called it the butterfly man.


Then, since my wife was not ready to leave, I was encouraged to try another one... this time on an old piece of wood. A couple of kids came up to me to show me what they had done. They said they had copied my painting, and that they like mine better than theirs. I said I liked what they had done better than mine.

Broken Beer Bottle Picture

I gave her the flash-
light & dropped her
beer import-
ed from MO.

Austin Disaster

Almost an eventless but tiring trip back to Austin until we got out of the truck and I handed my wife a flashlight and let go of two beers that we had brought from StL. Needless to say, they are now drinks for critters.

Thought all day today about the endless list of things that I had, and compared that list with those things I'd like, and realized that attachment to what I have and don't have is going to have to be resolved.

Tulsa

It is 216 am... just arrived in Tulsa. We were supposed to leave at 10 am (best laid plans) and instead left at 6 something. But the remains of the house are in the 24 ft.UHaul...

We are trying to figure out what we should do with it all. I thought we should take it to the dump and then fly to Austin. Linda said that we worked too hard on the packing to do that. So our cluttered life continues for now.

So Bertrand Russell wrote the the future is more important than the present, seemingly opposing Buddhist thought. I suspect that the problem with the future is that we can't and don't know it.

TIme for bed, or else I'll miss the free breakfast.