Just Like The Old Days

Back before the advent of the smart phone and the e-tablet, I spent my time at the coffee shop (or waiting at the DMV, etc.) drawing in my pocket sketchbook. Nowadays, I find myself reading on the Kindle app, or surfing the interwebs for something, instead.

Today, I not only accidentally left my phone at home, but I got to the coffee shop at a time when no one I knew was there. Except for the 15 minutes that Mark Overly sat down with me, I was alone at my table, with no electronic connectivity.

So, out came the sketchbook, complete with the new cover I ordered, a few days ago:

It's a map of Colorado. Well, the southern half, anyway..

And, just like the old days, I sipped my coffee and doodled. My drawing skills are obviously rusty, but I had a good time just putting some ink to paper, anyway.

Page 1 of the new sketchbook.

I might have to "forget" my phone, more often...

x

The Mayonnaise of Art Supplies - Moleskine Cahiers

We've all done it, at the grocery store. "Do I have mayo, at home? I don't remember. Better get some..."

Then, we get home and find three jars of mayo in the fridge, each bought under the same circumstance.

I carry a Moleskine Cahier in my rear pocket, pretty much all the time. The Cahiers are slim, paperbound notebooks (I use the blank sheet version), which are roughly the size of  U.S. passport, with a small pocket in the rear. For me, they serve many purposes: I sketch in them, take notes, write down song ideas or ideas for standup comedy. In the rear pocket, I keep a few blank business cards for whenever I need to leave some info with someone.

But, the paper covers are not the most durable things in the world, and tend to succumb to the rigors of daily carry. So, I came up with a hack to mitigate that problem. I cover the notebook with black duct tape:

It works really well. The notebooks stay together a lot better, and have a more substantial feel than what the thin card cover affords. But, the downside is that it's somewhat time-consuming to do, and I have to do it to each individual notebook. So, I decided to look for a reusable cover for the Moleskine Cahiers,

The leather versions cost way too much money (at least $35.00, including shipping), so I ordered a plastic cover, printed with a map of Colorado, to use until such time as I get the energy to make a leather cover, myself.

What does this have to do with the Mayonnaisse Syndrome? I'm getting to that...

When I was flying to Pennsylvania, for my Christmas visit with family, I picked up a pack of three brown cahiers at the airport newsstand.

I stowed them in my sketchbook bag, and went about the rest of my visit.

Two weeks ago, I went to the art supply store to get some colored pencils as part of a late Christmas gift for Noella Click. As I walked by the Moleskine display, I spied these on the rack:

"Oh," I thought, having forgotten about my airport purchase, "I should pick up a 3-pack of those." And, so I did.

Then, yesterday, as I ordered my reusable cover, I thought again, having forgotten two previous purchases, "I better order a 3-pack of the Cahiers, so I will have a new one for the cover."

Once that pack arrives, I will have enough mayonnaise notebooks to last me for a good long while...

x

Tough Week and a Half

Welp, it's official, I did break a rib. I had x-rays done on Friday, after a week of feeling fairly miserable. The results: "nondisplaced fracture of the right anterolateral sixth rib".

Honestly, I was glad to hear that. I was beginning to feel a bit like a sissy, because I hurt so bad. If I had only knocked the wind out of myself, and then felt this bad for this long, I would be ashamed of myself.

Six weeks, on average, is the recovery time for such a break. I am a week and a half in, so I should be good as new in the middle of February. I just hope that there is some improvement by the time we play Herman's Hideaway, on the 24rd of this month!

I emailed my doc and asked when I can get back on the bicycle. I think that she had already gone home, because I haven't gotten an answer, yet. I hope that it's soon, because I am not really digging on driving the truck back and forth to work, every day.

It's been too icy for the motorbike. Plus, I'm not sure I could ride it, anyway. A sneeze nearly puts me on the floor, and I sure wouldn't want to have that happen as I was motorbiking down the road!

Oh, well. Just taking it easy, for now, and growing fat and lazy.

x

First Ride of 2015, And First Crash

I took the commuter fat bike out for my New Year's Day ride. The snow conditions on the roads were more conducive to riding the fat tires than the thinner studded tires on the fixed gear. I rode over to Cherry Creek, and took the trail north to the mall, then cut off to surface streets. Steele Street got me back across the Interstate, and I decided to ride down Buchtel, and cut through the DU neighborhood in order to get to Kaladi Bros. Everything went swimmingly until...

About a quarter-mile from the coffee shop, I made the turn from High Street to Asbury Ave, and hit a patch of ice, which sent me straight down. I landed with a big "OOF", with my hands still on the grips. The force of the fall drove my elbow into my ribs hard enough that I couldn't breathe for a few seconds. I don't think anything broke, but I sure bruised some ribs up.

Right now, I am having trouble getting up out of a chair, and a cough or sneeze feels like death. I coughed, at Kaladi, after I finally got there, and almost passed out. So, not an auspicious beginning to the new year, bike-wise.

I did check, when I got home, and i am able to play my guitar.

And, I will be okay. I am unbreakable, after all.

Be careful out there!

x