vanaltman

Storytelling: Chicken Soup to Gun Porn

“This is the secret of good storytelling: to lie, but to keep the arithmetic straight.” Kurt Vonnegut A dear friend of mine has Alzheimer’s Disease. He has lost the capacity to tell stories, so I tell stories for him. Here is a Map of the Journey we took today. Chicken Soup to Gun Porn ColdContinue reading “Storytelling: Chicken Soup to Gun Porn”

Crochet ~ Cat and Friend

I will not be the center of anyone’s universe. It’s the time of year when I give away the fruits of my labors. The hand puppets are going to the kids at church, and the crochet animals are going to the local toy drive for Christmas. All of them will go to new homes, exceptContinue reading “Crochet ~ Cat and Friend”

Crochet ~ “Curiosity Cat”

I am not too keen on being noble. “Hero” “Survivor” “GOAT” “All-Around-Great-Person” Nah…not me. I would rather be known as The Person Who Made Curiosity Cat. I look at Curiosity, and I am reminded of my friend Claudia. Claudia gave me a book of patterns for crochet animals, so it was only fitting that IContinue reading “Crochet ~ “Curiosity Cat””

Drawing ~ “Running Away From Home”

Euclid had a point. Go figure. I gave my trigonometry students an assignment in programming: animate a geometric figure. They started off by drawing a cartoon panel. This is the one that I drew. (Note to self: You have got to practice drawing!) Anyway, as I looked more closely at the panel, I began toContinue reading “Drawing ~ “Running Away From Home””

Vaccine Mandates

Why I support them. I do not like to comment on political issues; they are way too controversial and divisive. However, seeing the current brouhaha over the COVID-19 vaccine, I am going to express my opinion about the vaccine mandates for public school students and teachers. NOTE: This is only my opinion based on personalContinue reading “Vaccine Mandates”

Needlepoint ~ “Waves Down Under”

Mistakes need love, too. This style of needlepoint is Bargello or Florentine, so called after the city in which it was popular in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. I love this type of needlework. Unfortunately, this piece is upside down. When I made the tote bag, I placed the needlepoint panel the wrong way. IContinue reading “Needlepoint ~ “Waves Down Under””

Painting ~ Armado M. Pena Jr.

I have always loved this painting by Armado Pena, but I never knew the title. When I reproduced it for myself, I wanted to find out what the title was, so I could give proper recognition to the artist. THE ELUSIVE TITLE To my disappointment, no title was forthcoming, despite the many Internet nooks andContinue reading “Painting ~ Armado M. Pena Jr.”

Mobile Picnics

My husband and I were at Reedley Beech today and met a young woman setting up a display. She and her daughter host “Mobile Picnics” for birthdays, weddings, and other special occasions. With her permission, I am sharing her Plush Picnic Halloween Theme. Just shows you what lovely things one can see when one isContinue reading “Mobile Picnics”

Painting ~ “Wawona Road”

“I admire anyone who finishes a work of art, no matter how awful it may be.” Kurt Vonnegut I painted “Wawona Road” from leftover paint; it has been hanging on my wall for over a year. Every once in a while, ponder what I to do with it. The painting seemed content to just hangContinue reading “Painting ~ “Wawona Road””

Knowing Your Why

I got this from The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman: A witch was tootling around in the air one day when she encountered a group of angels. The witch knew that they were older, wiser, and more powerful than she was, and she was not too keen on that. So she commanded the angels toContinue reading “Knowing Your Why”