Observation # 2
 
    Thanks for the feedback. When it was suggested that I should have a name or a title for this blog
I was 'stumped'- so much rests on a name...In order to co-operate and get the set-up done I didn't think about it very long and said : how about Observations...seemed general enough to get away with.
      I wonder if anyone has ever regretted going to the Dictionary. When I thought about my usual habit of trying to explain things- things like why I thought "Observations" might work, I reached for the dictionary.
       Now I can boast that I knew there was 'something about that word'.I hope the following is of some interest. For me, perhaps ever since my high school Latin classes, the etymological study of words-their origins, has been interesting.

Here's what one dictionary has
for the Noun:Observation        1   a-the action or process of observing someone or something                                                                             carefully in order to gain information
                                                       b-an observed truth or fact; a thing learned  by observing.
                                                 2    -perception: the faculty of taking notice.
                                                 3    -a remark or statement,esp.one that is of the nature of a comment
                                                 4    a-the accurate watching and noting  phenomenon etc.for the purpose of                                                         scientific investigation
                                                       b-a measurement or other result so obtained
                                                       c-the noting of  symptoms of a patient, the behaviour of a suspect, etc.                                                    5   -the taking of the sun's or another celestial body's altitude to find a                                                                  latitude or longitude.
                                                 6   -Military the watching of an enemy's position or movements.
That is just the noun
Here is a little more-
about the Verb:Observe  that further enhances my claim that it is a good and useful word
                                                   1.  perceive, note; take notice of; become conscious of..
                                                   2.  watch carefully.
                                                   3.  a-follow or adhere to a law, method. principle, command
                                                        b-maintain (silence).
                                                        c- keep or adhere to (an appointed time)
                                                        d- duly perform (a rite).
                                                        e- celebrate (an anniversary)
                                                    4. examine and note (without the aid of experiment)
                                                    5. say,esp. by way of comment.

      As someone who has never felt that the depth of my vocabulary is adequate to express even the meagre ideas I do have, I enjoy realizing the scope of what I used to think was just another word. It seems like there is a lot of potential in that word 'observe' to keep one going for a while.
       One might say there is more to the word  Observe than meets the eye !

             Today's entry is being written 'free-hand' (an expression that make artists yawn)-no longer from that fantasy realm of a Turkish Prison .I had to do some errands yesterday, but I checked the email and found 3 responses to Observation #1. Hurrah-somebody read it! Three somebodies. I read the replies hastily thinking I'll read them later more carefully. Each were thoughtful and I was really looking forward to really reading them
           So I did my errands and upon returning home discovered that my nice big monitor had died-Kaput-
It occurred to me to wonder: is this an omen?.To top it off, I then had no vehicle to go and get a new  monitor-.....such is life....
           Now that I have a new $79.00 refurbished monitor (whatever that means), I was told mine couldn't be 'refurbished- not cost effective'. I suspect it just means someone wiped the dust off of  the used one I purchased.
            My first three replies comment were from 3 'old' pals and they had the wit and insights that I came to expect from those three. I always suspected there was more to you three than meets the eye.(thank god for that!).   I wondered if, as in my pen pal letters, one is expected to reply to every response? I did send notes off to those three who managed to slog their way through my writing- seemed like they earned it...Now the thought crosses my mind what have I got myself into?
            To those three respondents I have to say many thanks-I don't need much encouragement to experiment with things, but your replies, whether you intended it or not, did give me some incentive to explore this blog business a bit more.
          Those 3 also made me think that while a lot of  interesting things in our culture are happening on line lots of interesting and involved people, with things to say, are not being heard from... and maybe they are ok with that. I just discovered this method of communicating and as of now beyond my sort of thinking out loud about my book project and hoping others would give me some ideas (which has already happened) ,I cannot
see myself doing a lot with this. although....
      I recently  read a comment by Kenneth Lerer of the Huffington Post. he said :"I think working online is a little like painting in oil(he obviously hasn't tried acrylic)-you  try out a shade of green, and if you don't like it, you just paint over it and make it blue. Or orange, Or whatever".
           It was his reference to painting that caught my eye, but most of all I heard that voice of the old student reminding me(a warning) to write one day and send it off the next(that was you Gregory). Once something is put out there there is no taking it back.  Be sure the painting is finished the way you want it before you varnish it.. Of course all you Bloggers know this stuff but for me it's new .
         Did you know that the word Blog was coined by Adaptive Path founder Peter Merholz in 1999? -old news to me. There is a lot of neat stuff in The Huntington Post's Complete Guide to Blogging.
         OF course one of the questions I found in the Complete Guide, to beginners is, as Bob asked :  what is your goal? hmmmmm.... I guess to be honest it is to experiment. My goal isn't listed under the book's : to make a living, to share your passion, (well, maybe a little bit), to establish yourself as an expert, to share information etc .
    When advice offered was to be specific about 'your goals', I didn't hesitate-my immediate goal in # one was to hear from others about how they deal with 'blocks' or inertia  in an project that which one knows the block is not is not just procrastination. I suppose I also wanted to have some fun...maybe get a chuckle or two.
      This number two Observance is to thank those who replied and just to get my preliminary thoughts out of the way- I suppose that could read like: sharing an enthusiasm  for something. That seems like something which I used to try to do as a teacher -so my students would see that whatever creative activity I was putting before them was fun and had some merit.  Maybe it is also to see if there is anyone out there who can offer me anything relevant to ...to anything. A final thought about it all. When I was a 'younger' Art student I tried out all the media I could -they just all seemed interesting.. For a while I'm sure some probably thought I'd find a niche maybe as a print-maker, or a stained glass maker or a silk-screener, or for a short time as a medical illustrator or a painter even. Alas, even though what I do now is mostly Drawing and Painting, I don't think I'm a niche kind of guy -maybe it would be easier but it seems there are things yet I'd like to try...one of them being an illustrated book.
            Back in 1972 under Grant money, I did a few dozen drawings for a text Book on the anatomy of  the dog. Then in October of 2011 I did the thing that really got me to where I am now. That was the Graphic Novel- more correctly it should have been called a ' Graphic Booklet'. That  for the R.O.M and it's big  Maya exhibition. It did have about 50 drawings and was one of the most engaging projects I'd done for years. It was really fun to do-(receiving emails from the Curator almost every morning for 34 days straight-then designing the pages to suit the text and  drawing all day).  I'm eternally grateful to Sheila for setting it up for me. It is that kind of engagement involvement I'm looking forward to in my Uncle Mike project and with most of what has felt like stumbling blocks out of the way I am optimistic .
      I think I should end this any time now- introspection and public self analysis can be pretty tiresome and boring so until next time....B.