Battling Basketball Brackets

Some NCAA tournament so far, huh? It's great that these smaller colleges can come in here and compete with the big boys.... BUT.... MY BRACKET..... [whimper]. I console myself with the knowledge that I am beating my dad. Not that it really matters.

I find myself amazed that we as a country are so involved in such a temporal thing. I know, I know, I know. Tradition, competition. Healthy stuff. However, why do we become so obsessed with a certain team, or with the whole event, that we drop what we are doing for a couple weeks and focus solely on a (silly) bracket? It's fun, for sure, but we must realize that it really doesn't affect the world, and us having a lucky guess doesn't help the people I drive past twice a week. Throughout the winter, they sit on the sidewalk. Abject to the cold. Helpless. When I administered water to people like this in NYC a couple summers ago, they could barely believe what we were doing. Is our society so twisted that a free bottle of water is so rare? These people aren't checking scores on their iPhones twice an hour (or more..... achem...). They are trying to live. They might as well be trapped on an iceberg, the amount of help we as individuals provide. I'm saying this because I fall in with everybody else. Thinking myself too busy, but really just too prideful. We would rather throw money at the problem than even turn our faces to it. Because we donate funds to charities, we make ourselves feel justified in our disinterestedness. We create excuses for ourselves. "They must have done something wrong," or "they brought it upon themselves." They might have. But how would you know? You haven't been there. Nor have I. But they still are.

I recently watched the Lizzie Bennet Diaries (on youtube, I highly recommend them!) at the advice of a friend. Based on "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen, it showcases the attitudes held by the story's characters in video, a much more emotional media than words. (No, I'm not going to make a video). Setting aside the love story for a second, the story really hit me. It reminded me to watch how I judge others. Whether it is the bratty kids and the helpless young mother at the grocery store, or the large man with a supersize meal at a fast food restaurant, I need to beware of a judgemental mind. I'm blessed. The road might be broken (see what I did there, haha), but I'm eternally blessed. Lets pass it on.

 ART: ........ Christmas Cards
I used the next three images for christmas cards a couple years ago. Each one was about 4x5.

1: Christmas Cardinal
Simple, non-wash. First bird. Fun getting texture of feathers.

 2: Swan at Takeoff
On of my best, this is another bird picture, loose wash and blue grey lines for background. A bit of turbulence under the wing, shows power in the bird.

3: Lake Superior Storm
I once again used the rubber "stuff" to create the white-ness of lightning. Subdued color scheme to show heavy clouds.

Art...............

 Art Day Whatever......

As you can tell, I'm not very good at regular posting. I decided to put more pics up at a time. Here are many of my watercolors. Above is a really washed over misting scene. Supposedly with a building on the horizon. Two people struggle through the rain.

 The purpose of the next work was for testing various depths of blue. I also used a rubber based material to create that white beach line. The rubber guards the original paper color, and is then rubbed off when dry.

 My first watercolor ever.... "Exploding Rainbow" was a abstract flop when I was twelve.

 This work was to highlight detail, and to attempt a 3D branch system.

 "Prickly Pears," a bit disjointed with the mountains is of a family picture from a vacation.
Tried to get distance and 3D-ness. (Like tree-branch above)

 "Reflection" is probably my best watercolor to date. It's purpose can be seen in its name.

"The Light" is not accenting the lighthouse, as can be assumed from the centerpiece, but instead the sunset in the back. hence the lighthouses plain black silhouette.

Good songs..... :)