Cammie wrote on her facebook updates that she enjoys eating outdoors as one of the best parts of Summer.
This brings up a memory long ago. We often set up the tables on the screened porch in Colorado when my Grandma Nellie and Grandpa BW feed us and the helping hands. They had a "cook house" when the worker population exceeded 10 or so. Some years they would even hire a cook to feed the worker crowd.
Outdoor eating meant that the patio in front with those nasty cottonwood trees had to be swept. They were very tall trees that grew wind blocks very quickly with little water. The cement patio disguised the huge water tank that held the water supply for the house before Orchard Mesa was connected to a water system.
Some evenings we would have the neighbors over and they would barbeque an elk roast and eat watermelon. As the evening progressed we all sat in big round metal pastel chairs and watched as the storm would come up from the West and thunder and lightening would strike the book cliff mountains 20 miles a way.
Grandpa could predict the weather from these strikes and determine which days we would be picking peaches from the 30 acre orchards.
One year the cook had a particularly good recipe that I was able to get her to write down. I was 12 at the time and was totally in love with coconut macaroons. Makes my mouth water just to think about it.
I usually had a birthday back in Colorado. We came every year to help out. I got to choose from the cake mixes which cake was going to be made for me. I usually went for the spice cake. My sister usually went for a little more exotic cake. Penuche. They called it burnt sugar frosting back then.
When the grandparents moved into the city. The outdoor dining continued. There really wasn't room for 7 people to eat at the table unless it was outside.
It was here that dad made the infamous remark. After the mechanical collapse of one of Grandma's horizontal freezers. Don't worry Nellie, some of the chickens we cleaned out the freezer were old enough to go to Kindergarten!
You can imagine that flack he took for that!
Enjoy some al fresco dining soon!
Love
Pat
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Latest Painting
What does graduation day mean to you?
For some people in our family it is a red letter day. One that is full of such mixed emotions that it best avoided. Others, use it as a way to celebrate the person and there academic accomplishments.
My latest painting is working off of a lady stopped in front of me at a light. Here car was bight red. She is alone in the car. Beside her are two balloons. From her side mirror you can tell that she is wearing white tiered earrings. It will be an interesting story for the viewer to piece together. There are plenty of reds in painting so it may become a study in red washes. There are some orange reds and some pink reds, and some value changes in between. I have a 12x24 inch canvas that this should land on.
I also have a couple of squares that will be become a version of the ancient inscriptions on the stones of one of the pyramids in Mexico. These flat depictions are currently displayed at the De Young in San Francisco as part of their Meso Americano exhibit. It will be fun to see what kind of stone like contrast I can generate with the watercolor canvases.
: ) Pat
For some people in our family it is a red letter day. One that is full of such mixed emotions that it best avoided. Others, use it as a way to celebrate the person and there academic accomplishments.
My latest painting is working off of a lady stopped in front of me at a light. Here car was bight red. She is alone in the car. Beside her are two balloons. From her side mirror you can tell that she is wearing white tiered earrings. It will be an interesting story for the viewer to piece together. There are plenty of reds in painting so it may become a study in red washes. There are some orange reds and some pink reds, and some value changes in between. I have a 12x24 inch canvas that this should land on.
I also have a couple of squares that will be become a version of the ancient inscriptions on the stones of one of the pyramids in Mexico. These flat depictions are currently displayed at the De Young in San Francisco as part of their Meso Americano exhibit. It will be fun to see what kind of stone like contrast I can generate with the watercolor canvases.
: ) Pat
Friday, June 3, 2011
Irritating Phrases that Have Crept into our Usage
There are a couple of insidious phrases that have become part of our vernacular. We should blame two people, as far as I can discern for these phrases.
One is the interjection of the word "Look." To my knowledge this interjection did not occur prior to President Obama's run for president. When he is off script, this interjection was used by him to provide some thinking time so that the words that came out would be more elegantly phrased. It is now used by many people when they are stuck explaining something complicated. It is almost mandatory.
The other phrase is "How good is that?" This is wickedly obtuse grammatical construction that really has no business in your parlance. In my own observation this one was started by the food channel host and now talk show host, Rachel Ray. It has become pervasive in all categories of discourse. I heard it from announcers in baseball and have heard it from commentators of news broadcasts. I have heard it modified and used in conversation. Its tell tale grammatical construction is its give away.
These phrases will become emblematic of this era. They will join the likes of the common phrase heard at least one time a reality show, " I am not here to make friends.. I am here to win.
Something to think about
: ) Pat
One is the interjection of the word "Look." To my knowledge this interjection did not occur prior to President Obama's run for president. When he is off script, this interjection was used by him to provide some thinking time so that the words that came out would be more elegantly phrased. It is now used by many people when they are stuck explaining something complicated. It is almost mandatory.
The other phrase is "How good is that?" This is wickedly obtuse grammatical construction that really has no business in your parlance. In my own observation this one was started by the food channel host and now talk show host, Rachel Ray. It has become pervasive in all categories of discourse. I heard it from announcers in baseball and have heard it from commentators of news broadcasts. I have heard it modified and used in conversation. Its tell tale grammatical construction is its give away.
These phrases will become emblematic of this era. They will join the likes of the common phrase heard at least one time a reality show, " I am not here to make friends.. I am here to win.
Something to think about
: ) Pat
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Watercolor Working from a Concept, Incentive Retirement
I think that one of the reasons I am enjoying watercolor art so much is that it is very conceptual.
There is the beginning concept that involves that idea of a finished painting. It can be the motivating factor in your thinking as you start to put this painting together.
After this concept is finalized, I enjoy the sketching aspect. This brings down to reality what the painting subject matter could be.
The next conceptual piece is picking up shapes and seeing that there is something that unifies the concept. This is level of painting that I am currently engaged. Shadows tie with objects. Consistent color that moves through the painting. The challenge is to move this into values and contrasts. They can then be unified and the painting can move the viewer's eyes from one part of the painting to another. This is a very sophisticated concept and is a challenge for me in the painting arena.
As washes go on the painting, in watercolor they almost always go from light to mid to dark. There is plenty of negative space painting that occurs as the painting gets to completion.
By any measure, this can really become a passion.
Happy Thursday out there. Its graduation night for many of the high school students in the district.
The high school district (my previous employer) has seen fit to offer nearly the same retirement incentive to the teachers. It looks like many who had regrets that they had not signed on for last year's incentive, are taking the leap and signing on to retire this year. This is the ultimate game changer for school budgets. Their is definitely more harmony among the staff then what most districts are going through with their layoffs and rehires as August approaches.
Last year's incentive retirees saved the district over 2 million. I wonder what this year's will yeild.
: ) Pat
There is the beginning concept that involves that idea of a finished painting. It can be the motivating factor in your thinking as you start to put this painting together.
After this concept is finalized, I enjoy the sketching aspect. This brings down to reality what the painting subject matter could be.
The next conceptual piece is picking up shapes and seeing that there is something that unifies the concept. This is level of painting that I am currently engaged. Shadows tie with objects. Consistent color that moves through the painting. The challenge is to move this into values and contrasts. They can then be unified and the painting can move the viewer's eyes from one part of the painting to another. This is a very sophisticated concept and is a challenge for me in the painting arena.
As washes go on the painting, in watercolor they almost always go from light to mid to dark. There is plenty of negative space painting that occurs as the painting gets to completion.
By any measure, this can really become a passion.
Happy Thursday out there. Its graduation night for many of the high school students in the district.
The high school district (my previous employer) has seen fit to offer nearly the same retirement incentive to the teachers. It looks like many who had regrets that they had not signed on for last year's incentive, are taking the leap and signing on to retire this year. This is the ultimate game changer for school budgets. Their is definitely more harmony among the staff then what most districts are going through with their layoffs and rehires as August approaches.
Last year's incentive retirees saved the district over 2 million. I wonder what this year's will yeild.
: ) Pat
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Working from Shadow In.. Mazatlan Window
The latest watercolor is kind of unique one in that the foreground actually frames a couple of people in the buffet restaurant on the Norwegian cruise ship Star as it made port in Mazatlan, Mexico. The vision through the window is of a jungle oriented big city. You can peer through the window just as the people are doing, and see the big buildings on the ridge as they look out across the ocean. One person is contemplating the port, while the other is cleaning the tables.
A peak into the progress of this painting is available through Flickr posted on the left side of this blog.
The two main thoughts that my watercolor teacher had on the previous painting, the pv photographer is that the painting did not have enough contrast in it. She said that she would have like to see the images overlap to draw in some unity. This painting (the Mazatlan port) certainly is not lacking in visual contrast.
There is a touch or two of what I have been learning from the Don Andrews DVD set. A major idea of his is that the artist does not have to tell the whole story in the painting if it is not the major focus. He also is a major supporter of "granulation" which is mixing of colors wet on wet on the paper.. moving from light values to mid values to just a few dark values to set off the whites in the paper. He dose not use masking but rather the wet/dry content of the paper will allow the colors to run together when they are wet and stop abruptly when the washes hit the dry paper.
He is a painter from Mobile Alabama. He uses nothing but big wash brushes and big round brushes. He draws in the whites first and the other parts of the paintings he brushes "though the lines to get he right value for a glaze that further defines the subject matter. Pretty cool stuff.
: ) Pat
A peak into the progress of this painting is available through Flickr posted on the left side of this blog.
The two main thoughts that my watercolor teacher had on the previous painting, the pv photographer is that the painting did not have enough contrast in it. She said that she would have like to see the images overlap to draw in some unity. This painting (the Mazatlan port) certainly is not lacking in visual contrast.
There is a touch or two of what I have been learning from the Don Andrews DVD set. A major idea of his is that the artist does not have to tell the whole story in the painting if it is not the major focus. He also is a major supporter of "granulation" which is mixing of colors wet on wet on the paper.. moving from light values to mid values to just a few dark values to set off the whites in the paper. He dose not use masking but rather the wet/dry content of the paper will allow the colors to run together when they are wet and stop abruptly when the washes hit the dry paper.
He is a painter from Mobile Alabama. He uses nothing but big wash brushes and big round brushes. He draws in the whites first and the other parts of the paintings he brushes "though the lines to get he right value for a glaze that further defines the subject matter. Pretty cool stuff.
: ) Pat
Friday, May 27, 2011
Making a Facebook Page
Recently I made a Facebook page for our high school class.
We may have another reunion in the offing. Our class was El Camino High School, South San Francisco,1968. When most people get a little info kernal like that, they immediately find in their head where they fit with that class.
Sadly I do this even while waiting for my prescription at the pharmacy. One of their validity measures is to ask you what the birth date is of the person getting the medication. So you add or subtract from yours and you can tell how much older or younger this person is.
After watching the Lynda.com movie on Facebook, it became clear that I needed a"Page" for the class not a "Group." A "Group is non identified gathering of face book members. A page is used for a company or an organization that has structure outside of facebook.
We need to get 150 contacts or the page name could be pirated by someone else.
I think that the way to get that kind of support is through content.
My first content addition is a list of songs that people in my class were aware of as freshmen, in 1964.
1) I Want to Hold your Hand
2) She Loves You
3) Hello Dolly
4) Oh Pretty Woman
5) I Get Around
6) Everybody Loves Somebody
7) My Guy
8) We'll Sing in the Sunshine
9) Last Kiss
10) Where did our Love Go?
It will be interesting to see if anyone responds to the music list. In that era, most of songs were played on AM as FM was for "Good" music. This was the time that FM started broadcasting in stereo. My were were impressed! You could here a different channel in each ear. Consumers paid extra for stereo rather than "Hi Fidelity... or Hi Fi for short.
Hope all of you have a great Memorial Day weekend!
Love
Pat
We may have another reunion in the offing. Our class was El Camino High School, South San Francisco,1968. When most people get a little info kernal like that, they immediately find in their head where they fit with that class.
Sadly I do this even while waiting for my prescription at the pharmacy. One of their validity measures is to ask you what the birth date is of the person getting the medication. So you add or subtract from yours and you can tell how much older or younger this person is.
After watching the Lynda.com movie on Facebook, it became clear that I needed a"Page" for the class not a "Group." A "Group is non identified gathering of face book members. A page is used for a company or an organization that has structure outside of facebook.
We need to get 150 contacts or the page name could be pirated by someone else.
I think that the way to get that kind of support is through content.
My first content addition is a list of songs that people in my class were aware of as freshmen, in 1964.
2) She Loves You
3) Hello Dolly
4) Oh Pretty Woman
5) I Get Around
6) Everybody Loves Somebody
7) My Guy
8) We'll Sing in the Sunshine
9) Last Kiss
10) Where did our Love Go?
It will be interesting to see if anyone responds to the music list. In that era, most of songs were played on AM as FM was for "Good" music. This was the time that FM started broadcasting in stereo. My were were impressed! You could here a different channel in each ear. Consumers paid extra for stereo rather than "Hi Fidelity... or Hi Fi for short.
Hope all of you have a great Memorial Day weekend!
Love
Pat
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Scammed! Two Friends
I am concerned with people that have been hit by a mal ware scam.
Two of my friends were hit very recently with the MacDefender scam.
Here is what I know:
It usually comes in from a google search, although Google has nothing to do with this bute.
It seems to be be most often in the two cases that I have worked with, Safari, the Mac based browser.
Apple has planned to release a new version of its operating system to stop this kind of malicious programming.
WHAT YOU CAN DO NOW TO KEEP FROM GETTING THIS AND ITS VARIANTS:
If you use Safari: Go to the preferences and its General tag.. and make sure that the "open safe programs when downloaded" is Not checked!
This is a scam to get your credit card number. If you happen to succum.. cancel the transaction immediately.
: ( Pat
How to avoid or remove Mac Defender malware
Last Modified: May 24, 2011
Article: HT4650
A recent phishing scam has targeted Mac users by redirecting them from legitimate websites to fake websites which tell them that their computer is infected with a virus. The user is then offered Mac Defender "anti-virus" software to solve the issue.
This “anti-virus” software is malware (i.e. malicious software). Its ultimate goal is to get the user's credit card information which may be used for fraudulent purposes.
The most common names for this malware are MacDefender, MacProtector and MacSecurity.
In the coming days, Apple will deliver a Mac OS X software update that will automatically find and remove Mac Defender malware and its known variants. The update will also help protect users by providing an explicit warning if they download this malware.
In the meantime, the Resolution section below provides step-by-step instructions on how to avoid or manually remove this malware.
Products Affected
Mac OS X 10.4, Mac OS X 10.6, Mac OS X 10.5
Resolution
How to avoid installing this malware
If any notifications about viruses or security software appear, quit Safari or any other browser that you are using. If a normal attempt at quitting the browser doesn’t work, then Force Quit the browser.
In some cases, your browser may automatically download and launch the installer for this malicious software. If this happens, cancel the installation process; do not enter your administrator password. Delete the installer immediately using the steps below.
Go into the Downloads folder or your preferred download location.
Drag the installer to the Trash.
Empty the Trash.
How to remove this malware
If the malware has been installed, we recommend the following actions:
Do not provide your credit card information under any circumstances.
Use the Removal Steps below.
Removal steps
Move or close the Scan Window
Go to the Utilities folder in the Applications folder and launch Activity Monitor
Choose All Processes from the pop up menu in the upper right corner of the window
Under the Process Name column, look for the name of the app and click to select it; common app names include: MacDefender, MacSecurity or MacProtector
Click the Quit Process button in the upper left corner of the window and select Quit
Quit Activity Monitor application
Open the Applications folder
Locate the app ex. MacDefender, MacSecurity, MacProtector or other name
Drag to Trash, and empty Trash
Malware also installs a login item in your account in System Preferences. Removal of the login item is not necessary, but you can remove it by following the steps below.
Open System Preferences, select Accounts, then Login Items
Select the name of the app you removed in the steps above ex. MacDefender, MacSecurity, MacProtector
Click the minus button
Use the steps in the “How to avoid installing this malware” section above to remove the installer from the download location.
Note: Apple provides security updates for the Mac exclusively through Software Update and the Apple Support Downloads site. User should exercise caution any time they are asked to enter sensitive personal information online.
Two of my friends were hit very recently with the MacDefender scam.
Here is what I know:
It usually comes in from a google search, although Google has nothing to do with this bute.
It seems to be be most often in the two cases that I have worked with, Safari, the Mac based browser.
Apple has planned to release a new version of its operating system to stop this kind of malicious programming.
WHAT YOU CAN DO NOW TO KEEP FROM GETTING THIS AND ITS VARIANTS:
If you use Safari: Go to the preferences and its General tag.. and make sure that the "open safe programs when downloaded" is Not checked!
This is a scam to get your credit card number. If you happen to succum.. cancel the transaction immediately.
: ( Pat
How to avoid or remove Mac Defender malware
Last Modified: May 24, 2011
Article: HT4650
A recent phishing scam has targeted Mac users by redirecting them from legitimate websites to fake websites which tell them that their computer is infected with a virus. The user is then offered Mac Defender "anti-virus" software to solve the issue.
This “anti-virus” software is malware (i.e. malicious software). Its ultimate goal is to get the user's credit card information which may be used for fraudulent purposes.
The most common names for this malware are MacDefender, MacProtector and MacSecurity.
In the coming days, Apple will deliver a Mac OS X software update that will automatically find and remove Mac Defender malware and its known variants. The update will also help protect users by providing an explicit warning if they download this malware.
In the meantime, the Resolution section below provides step-by-step instructions on how to avoid or manually remove this malware.
Products Affected
Mac OS X 10.4, Mac OS X 10.6, Mac OS X 10.5
Resolution
How to avoid installing this malware
If any notifications about viruses or security software appear, quit Safari or any other browser that you are using. If a normal attempt at quitting the browser doesn’t work, then Force Quit the browser.
In some cases, your browser may automatically download and launch the installer for this malicious software. If this happens, cancel the installation process; do not enter your administrator password. Delete the installer immediately using the steps below.
Go into the Downloads folder or your preferred download location.
Drag the installer to the Trash.
Empty the Trash.
How to remove this malware
If the malware has been installed, we recommend the following actions:
Do not provide your credit card information under any circumstances.
Use the Removal Steps below.
Removal steps
Move or close the Scan Window
Go to the Utilities folder in the Applications folder and launch Activity Monitor
Choose All Processes from the pop up menu in the upper right corner of the window
Under the Process Name column, look for the name of the app and click to select it; common app names include: MacDefender, MacSecurity or MacProtector
Click the Quit Process button in the upper left corner of the window and select Quit
Quit Activity Monitor application
Open the Applications folder
Locate the app ex. MacDefender, MacSecurity, MacProtector or other name
Drag to Trash, and empty Trash
Malware also installs a login item in your account in System Preferences. Removal of the login item is not necessary, but you can remove it by following the steps below.
Open System Preferences, select Accounts, then Login Items
Select the name of the app you removed in the steps above ex. MacDefender, MacSecurity, MacProtector
Click the minus button
Use the steps in the “How to avoid installing this malware” section above to remove the installer from the download location.
Note: Apple provides security updates for the Mac exclusively through Software Update and the Apple Support Downloads site. User should exercise caution any time they are asked to enter sensitive personal information online.
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