i’m fresh out of anything to yack about, but here’s what i’ve been up to in my regular sketchbooks. 
painting little watercolor studies of gifts from a friend and sidewalk treasure from yesterday’s walk.
the paper mache rabbit hanging on my wall.
lately i don’t want to draw unless it’s with my watercolor brush.
it takes discipline to override the need for instant information that the computer/phone/ipad offer.
maybe i can suffer through not knowing where the hummingbirds migrate from. how fast their wings beat per second. if they eat more insects or drink more nectar in a day.
hmmmmm…
here are more of the guatemalan sketchbook slash travel journal pages.
it’s possible my insatiable curiosity will not allow rewiring. i’m prepared to live with that.
happy halloween. one thing i love about my neighborhood is that halloween is a non-event. no trick-or-treaters. no fireworks. no parades. just the last day of october. wondering when the cooler weather will arrive.
don’t eat too much candycorn. okay?
Beautiful and whimsical sketching and watercolor magic. I am so jealous you still have hummingbirds! The ones here in Maryland only visit from early May- September 21st or thereabouts.
I get what you’re saying about the desire to investigate every little curiosity and it’s possible deleterious effects. I had a shrink who recognized the same trait in me. My homework one time was to experience scuba diving in Bali without looking up the name of anything I saw. Tough stuff. I did it, but I wasn’t that happy about it. She held me accountable and I can say realistically the homework changed me in that I’m aware of my habit (she calls it an addiction and a distraction from “being”) and that from time to time I can be OK without knowing. Right now I’m DYING to know about the history of the Purepecha civilization that existed around Lake Patzcuaro where I just spent the last week. Should I or shouldn’t I? x
susan you have perfectly described how i feel about it. i think some types of knowledge are worth acquiring and don’t pull me out of life, but pull me towards it. it’s the drivel that drifts down my neural pathways i try and stop. i say definitely look up that purepecha civilization! i think i’m destined to follow in your travel footsteps. patzcuaro/morelia have long captivated me and are an upcoming destination (eventual). are you putting your photos on your blog???
Soon, soon. I went with a tour group not expecting to like it but WOW! It was perfect, including a private boat to take us to one of the islands at 10:30 at night for the Night of the Dead ceremonies. Got back to hotel at 3:30am. It was nice to be coddled and spoon fed all the delights for a change instead of making my own way. I can hook you up!
x
I’ve been enamored of your travels, as usual, but remiss in commenting. Mea culpa! But I do so love them. I’ve been traveling along with you in my head for years now. (All the while I’ve been stuck at home all these years!) Traveling with you has helped me keep from getting too antsy about exploring when it hasn’t been possible. But, good news, we (hubby and me) are just about able to do one more big trip. (Waiting for our much loved but v. aged dog to check out.) At this point trying to decide on a destination. This could very possibly be our last trip as we are in our 70s and want to have a great trip while we are both still mobile. So, please know that I really appreciate your blog, love your adventurous spirit, and also your watercolors.
If you happen to have a destination suggestion (European), I’d love to know it. To help you choose the perfect place for us, I am an artist (after 21 years of teaching art in elementary and secondary schools {the budget of $1/child/year caused me to be vvv creative and penurious!}) and my husband is a retired dealer of semi-antique oriental rugs who loves history.
If no place comes to mind, it’s OK. I’ll still read every blog entry and be inspired!
Thanks,
Sandy
I keep trying to subscribe to your blog with no luck.
Not sure what’s up?
I love your work and find your comments about life inspiring and funny!
hi linda,
did you try a different email address? for some reason it rejects some addresses…
Love the sketchbook pages! And yes, I discovered the black hole of the internet is also magnetic. You wander close to the computer and you’re done for – zip, you can disappear. No trick-or-treaters here either. I’m at the end of an unlit lane (and there may be bears), so the little buggers don’t venture in.
Very quiet time for Halloween here in Isla Vista. Almost more police than revelers. No arrests for drunkedness. Amazing!
personally, i love that about you; you are as curious about THINGS as I am…often not the same things, which is even better…so i won’t be disappointed if that leaf doesn’t turn over xo
love the drawing of std and the red painting. glad you had such a good time on vacation.
I am with you and have actually set a timer so I don’t get lost in computer land. I have to check in every day as I have an online business but really have been limiting my time so the lads ( that would be Cooper and Max my two Havanesse pups) and I can go exploring the great outdoors. It gets my aristic juices flowing. I always make time for MAM no matter what.
I’m a hopeless Google looker upper! My curiosity gets the best of me. I can’t stand not knowing something about any subject that piques my curiosity. I’ve been curious all my life (now 76) so I don’t think I’m going to change at this point. Being hooked to the devices is the sad thing tho, I see families out for dinner, not interacting with one another, but each with a cell phone, totally unaware of the people they’re with. Now that’s sad.
Love all the paintings, sketches, writings in your journals of all your adventures. That you share so many aspects of your life with us is a constant joy for me, please keep this up for many years to come.
,
Thanks for all of the wonderful shares of your art, MAM! Delightful! Is it wrong that I LOVE looking things up? I love knowledge, and can’t get enough of it. I have actually looked up the hummingbird facts before! I figure, you never know if you will be on Jeopardy or just the most knowledgeable person in a home trivia game. I didn’t pay attention to learning until I was later in life so I am making up for lost time. I do understand what you are saying, though. My son had a hard time in school, and I used to tell him “You have to learn to love to learn”. I did and I do. I do get out a lot too, though and observe the world of NOW. Just hanging around, soaking up as much as I can, both inside and out. Maybe it is my age? Once you reach “over the hill” you really concentrate on not missing ANYTHING! Especially my favorite art teachers and muses, like YOU! Time is short.
The quest for knowledge is never wrong
susan i agree, but the kind of curiosity that keeps one hooked up to technology feels like an addiction to instant gratification. it’s the instant gratification that feels like it pulls one away from life instead of INTO it. does that make sense? i read an excellent article about how GOOGLE is making us dumber not smarter in the last year and it really stuck with me. i’ll try and find it. it’s really worth reading.
What you say does indeed make sense and I’d be interested in reading the article if you are “allowed” to look it up on the Internet LOL. However, I think like any addictive substance, it depends on the individual and how you “use” it. For example, I have lived in Vancouver (a rain forest) all of my life and was ashamed up until this summer, that I didn’t know the native trees of my fair city. I embarked on a project with my sketchbook and the Internet, and now know the trees. I can tell a pine from a fir from a spruce now. I never could have done this without looking up stuff on the Internet after each expedition I went on. (If you’re interested in learning more about the project, you can read my short posts on my blog http://passionforpaper-passionforpaper.blogspot.ca/ by selecting the “Native Trees” label on the right side.)
I have to agree; thankful i only had one ring of the doorbell last night (which I didn’t answer); this whole handing out candy at the door thing is way too extroverted for me. I’m reading “Big Magic” at the moment (isn’t everybody though), and Elizabeth Gilbert says when somebody says to you that they don’t have an artistic bone in their body, ask them “How about substituting ‘curious’ for artistic? I like this thought very much. Curiosity drives artistry. You are unlikely to unwire this fundamental part of your wiring!
This post made my day and made me smile Mary Ann! Thank you for that giggle about the computer. I have to tell myself not to look things up too- All. The. Time. Loving following along with you on your so so awesome journey! xx
gorgeous-ness, as usual.
i dressed as frida kahlo yesterday and wore a huipil from my visit to guatemala 30 years ago. who am i kidding? i wear it all the time! yesterday was just an excuse to wear a flower crown and a ton of necklaces and chunky bangle bracelets (frida kahlo as interpreted by iris apfel!). i hope you wear your treasures on non-dress-up days too!
Thanks for more pictures from Guatamala. I feel like I am sort of “coming down” from your trip…………..
I too have problems when I have to do without my instant research tool….. But perhaps some down time would be GOOD. But my DH would go crazy. He doesn’t do much on the computer except for the occasional eBay so relies on me as his “research assistant.”
I LOVE Candy Corn…. but thankful it is generally only easily obtained this time of year. Check my blog next Friday and you will see the Mug Rug I made in its honor….
Beautiful….. nothin’ wrong with looking up stuff on the Internet…. IMHO. Curiosity makes one interesting and you’ll never be boring (or bored). I believe curiosity is a great attribute to have. I shall call you “The Curious Adventure Sketcher”…. which I think sums you up quite well…. except maybe sharing… gotta add that in there somewhere too! BTW… never ate candy corn until Sister turned me onto mixing it with peanuts… now I’m hopelessly hooked on the stuff!
MaryAnn, I love your “painted posies” more than ever! I’m always afraid you will stop – and lo and behold, she appears again!!! Thank you for giving us your wonderful paintings!
What kind of a colored pen/brush do you use to to write with? I love the different colors!
And – I love your painting of the papermache rabbit! I need to learn to shade like that!