It’s been longer than usual since the last newsletter but as you’ll read there’s a good reason. You’ll also find this newsletter a bit longer than usual.

In This AI-Free Issue

• Highlights from a month long vacation to Goodyear, AZ

• A Photo Essay: A Day In The Life

• Things You Shouldn’t Bring to A Baseball game

• Some Invented Holidays

• 29 Ideas for Things You Can Put Into Your Notebook

• Regular features

  • Board games played

  • CD’s and albums listened to

Goodyear, AZ Vacation Overview

It had been quite a long time since we enjoyed an extended vacation so we spent the month of February in a rented house, located in Goodyear, AZ. Goodyear is located about 30 minutes west of Phoenix and was first settled as an area to grow cotton for reinforcing tires. Yup. Same Goodyear.

Here is a link to some highlights from our 28 days away from home. You’ll see lots of golf, reading, drawing, painting, and music.

Sketches and Paintings

You can see the rest of my watercolors and sketches by following the links. The specific tools used are also described.

What About Valentine’s Day?

February 14 was exactly at the halfway point of our vacation. I was inspired to write a poem:

Chocolate kisses, for my missus

Chocolate hearts, just a start

Chocolate by Dove, for my love

Nothing says I love you, like a heart shaped tattoo

I was also inspired to do a word association exercise

I grabbed a piece of paper and tried to think of things that refer to hearts.

• Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

• Piece of My Heart

• Heart of Gold

• Hearts (the card game)

• This Heart of Mine

• Queen of Hearts (from Alice in Wonderland?)

• Lonely Hearts

• Broken Hearts

• My heart is pounding! (either from exercise or anticipation)

• Captain Beefheart (and the Magic Band)

• Cinnamon Candy Hearts

• Heartless

• Black hearts

• Red hearts

This post shares some DNA with an earlier post on the creative process.

Photo Essay: A Day In The Life

I selected March 8 as a day to post 69 photos that I took or otherwise collected during the day. I wasn’t “creating art” but instead merely documenting my day.

Highlights were golfing and going out to dinner.

I also saw a news item that Country Joe McDonald (from Woodstock: Gimme an F!) had died the day before so I had to post that.

Things You Shouldn’t Bring to a Baseball Game

While in AZ we attend a spring training baseball game with several friends. As we were waiting in line to get through security I noticed a long list of prohibited items. I decided to make my own list.

• Telescope

• Trombone

• Surgical tools

• Coat of armor

• An easel, or other large art material

• A book (you are supposed to be watching the game)

• A movie or Youtube video on your phone

• SCUBA gear

• A bad attitude

• Party favors, such as Silly String

Invented Holidays

29 Things You Can Put Into Your Notebook

Here is a link to the blog post. Of course, you could use either a digital or a paper notebook.

Here’s number 20: Your name and contact information, in case you lose it

Board Games Played

• Arracourt

• Fire In The Lake

• Assault 43

• Mr. President

CD’s (and Vinyl) Listened To

Our rental house included a turntable and a well curated collection of albums. While on vacation I doubled down on my music listening! Here’s a combined list of CD’s plus record albums that I listened to, some multiple times.

Frank Zappa/Captain Beefheart Bongo Fury

Tower of Power/Tower of Power and In The Slot

Quicksilver Messenger Service/Shady Grove

Mighty Joe Young/Live from the North Side of Chicago

Miles Davis/Kind of Blue, and an 8 CD Box Set called Live at the Plugged Nickel

John Mayall/Jazz Blues Fusion (this is an all time favorite of mine and I bought a copy from eBay to donate to the house vinyl collection)

Weather Report/Heavy Weather

Little Milton/Movin’ to the Country

Willie Nelson/Stardust

Thanks as always for being here, and if you have a friend that might enjoy this content please share with them.