It wasn’t a premonition to draw more this year. But this is what i am doing. The past two days in the garden i did make drawings. With pencil, charcoal, conte carré. It is not really about the drawing itself. Not about making something beautiful. It is about looking intensely around me. Basically, i can draw anything.
It does remind me of a time a long while ago, before i went to art school. I would like to get that back. That feeling of discovery. Of looking around. Intensely. Measuring with my eyes. All the distances which are elements of what i am looking at. Being quiet within myself.
I also walked about the garden. I saw these roots with tiny green leaves popping out. Supposedly chicory. Also some tiny apples still on the trees. Four or five centimeters wide. Wonderful.
This Monday morning the sun was shining. It was cold. I got dressed, put on my shoes and coat, a warm scarf and went outside.
First i walked to the garden. Yesterday i took two empty bottles with me to fill with water. Today i brought them back and put them in the shed. I watched the birds. A great tit. Yes, a koolmeesje. The pallet was back! Yesterday i couldn’t find it.
I walked past the central station. Standing at the Christmas tree for a short time, talking to the men who were getting the lights out. Wondering where the tree was headed to. Walking through the Gouvernestraat. Looking in the shop Das Brot. Still closed. Walking through the Marqt. Two months ago it closed and moved to the Nieuwe Binnenweg. Where the old Centrum Beeldende Kunst was. Nothing remains. I talked with the man behind the cheese counter for a short while.
Walking past the shops, the Westerpaviljoen, Museum Boymans. Into the Zeeman. Just curious. Buying myself a sandwich chicken curry. Sitting on the Lijnbaan and eating it slowly. Watching the faces of the people walking by. The people eating something. The children. Walking to Amac. Hmm. I don’t want to buy my new things there. No no no. I’d rather go the an Apple store.
Walking over the Meent. It is still cold. The sun is hiding behind the clouds.
Laughing gas capsules left on the square in front of the garden. Sad to see the mess some people leave behind.
It was cold. Two degrees Celsius. Drinking warm coffee to get a bit warmer. And eating cake. The chocolate beetroot cake, the orange cake. All baked by the volunteers working in the garden.
Yesterday i made fat balls for the birds. One part seeds and raisins, one part warmed up lard mixed together. I used old plastic pots to pour the mixture in and let it get cold.
Another shape of fat ball.
A bright blue sky, the sun really low. Beautiful weather. Cold, yes.
I made a drawing. Looking out on the garden and tracing what i saw. I will try and draw more in the garden. The date is wrong by the way. Today, Sunday is the seventh of January.
I never was a huge Fleetwood Mac fan. I have one single in my collection. Go Your Own Way. A few weeks ago i saw Nerdwriter‘s video on how Fleetwood Mac creates this song, Dreams. I know this song. Of course. But this video made me realize how beautiful this song is. Haunting. So i am choosing this song to sing. Now. I hope you enjoy it.
Dreams Fleetwood Mac
Now here you go again
You say you want your freedom
Well, who am I to keep you down?
It’s only right that you should
Play the way you feel it
But listen carefully to the sound
Of your loneliness
Like a heartbeat.. drives you mad
In the stillness of remembering what you had
And what you lost…
And what you had…
And what you lost
Thunder only happens when it’s raining
Players only love you when they’re playing
Say… Women… they will come and they will go
When the rain washes you clean… you’ll know, you’ll know
Now here I go again, I see the crystal visions
I keep my visions to myself
It’s only me
Who wants to wrap around your dreams and…
Have you any dreams you’d like to sell?
Dreams of loneliness…
Like a heartbeat… drives you mad…
In the stillness of remembering what you had…
And what you lost…
And what you had…
And what you lost
Thunder only happens when it’s raining
Players only love you when they’re playing
Say… Women… they will come and they will go
When the rain washes you clean… you’ll know
Thunder only happens when it’s raining
Players only love you when they’re playing
Say… Women… they will come and they will go
When the rain washes you clean… you’ll know
When the rain washes you clean… you’ll know
You’ll know
You’ll know
You’ll know
A few days ago i cleaned up the lower bit of the big closet behind my desk. I plan to do more drawing. With pencil, crayon, watercolour. Up to A3 size format. I set my old skechbooks there. I went through them. In this one there are a few important drawings. The drawing for the printed cards i still have loads of. The drawing i used for my old site as the preview page. A drawing from me standing on the world, used in homebase.
Very different drawings from now. A bit more anime style. I like em, but i don’t do drawings like these anymore. Right now, i’m happy i’m back to drawing. And photography. And video 🙂
A tumultuous year. The greenhouse in the garden burned down. My money was disappearing fast. I decided to sell my house. My computer broke down. For a moment i thought about to stop working on this website.
Friends helped out. In January 2018 i will sell my house. I will keep on living here for two years for a low rent. I have given myself more time to think. More time to work.
I will upgrade my computers. My iPad first generation with iOS 5 will lie peacefully in its box. I will buy a iPad Pro 12.9″ with a pen. Looking forward to making drawings with that. Most likely i will also buy a new desktop, at the moment i’m thinking a 21″. Not sure yet though. I will sell my MacBook Pro 17″ for sure. My 27″ i don’t know yet, the hard drive is broke right now. I might just give it away as it is right now.
And i will buy a watercolour set and a small watercolour book. It’s been years ago since i last drew with watercolour. I hope i can find a good way to use it. Drawing in the garden of course!
And some new clothes. Tank tops, leggings, underpants, bra’s. A new dress!
So yes, forward it is.
Next week i’m having a break. My next post will be on Monday the first of January 2018.
Time to set out my progress in the zero waste department. I still buy most my foods in the market and the supermarket. In my bag i have a set of paper bags and plastic bags for use on the market. I confess though, it is hard to completely avoid having my groceries wrapped in plastic. Especially walnuts and dates i buy at a Turkish stand are always wrapped in plastic. At one point i will take glass jars with me, but i’m not there yet. I do try to use the wrappings i have until they are entirely finished. I took some to the garden and put them there in a bag, for people who don’t have anything with them to put in the harvest. So it is getting better the whole time. But still many space for improvements.
Two weeks ago i visited my mother. One thing i took home with me are the handkerchiefs my stepfather used to use. They were lying in a drawer unused. I’m happy with these. Earlier i did check some shops to see if there were handkerchiefs for sale. I remember seeing them in the HEMA a few years ago. I didn’t see them in the shop. But online i just checked and you can still buy them there. I am happy to get them for free secondhand though. I still have some paper handkerchiefs – will keep those to see what the best use for those is.
A major turnaround is the toilet paper. A few weeks ago that i watched some youtube clips about this subject. I then went through my cupboards and found this large hand towel, which i hadn’t used for over five, maybe even ten years. I simply cut it up into smaller bits and put it into a basket in my toilet.
Now i’m still getting used to doing this. A few times i threw the towel in the toilet. Oops! But i admit, it is a nice feeling wiping your bottom with a hand towel after a pee. I still use paper after a number two (as you seem to call the poop action in English 😀 ). Since i only poop once a day and pee two or three times a day, it is still a good saving. And better for the environment. I hope!
Going along steadily. Still have areas in which i need to make improvements. I wish for a no packaging shop in Rotterdam. I know there are a couple of shops in the Netherlands. The closest shop is the Gimsel close by which does have a section of large containers from which you can fill a bag, your own or one of the Gimsel.
My progress is going in a slow pace. Still, every step counts. Yay!
