Same drawing as yesterday, different mood. Continue reading ‘Proper drawing 4’

Near Stonehaven in the East of Scotland. Continue reading ‘Proper drawing 3’

This is in the Orkneys on the way to the Old Man of Hoy. A version that is unfinished, as if any drawing is finished! Continue reading ‘Proper drawings 2’

I heard my dear Aunty Anne tell someone this when I was making a decent living as a cartoonist. She meant well, but considered cartoons less seriously than ‘proper drawings’, which is just as well as they were not to be taken seriously. In fact they were meant to be laughable. It also ignored that fact that there was no way on earth that I could have made a living from what might be termed ‘proper drawings’. I suspect also that she might have thought that cartoons were not terribly respectable, which she was. I doubt that she would have … Continue reading “He can do ‘proper drawings’ too you know”

I take a pen and paper on holiday with me, but that’s just in case the muse strikes stronger than the need to photograph stuff. Photography got the upper hand recently and I’ve left the pens and paper in Los Angeles so that at least I don’t have to take it with me again. I’ve also been blogging most days, probably because it was a way for me to remember rather than for you to know about. When back from hols it gives me a chance to reflect on what to do next. Tidying up some old paperwork is an … Continue reading Time to reflect, perhaps.

It’s more than ok. There are a lot of excellent things about it. It’s difficult to choose the highlights. We are back now and the memory lingers on! Traffic moving like a road of metal, some excellent architecture, blue skies, friendly people, multi cultural uber drivers, signs, baseball, big food ( onions as big as small footballs ), big appetites, poor people, rich people, flowers, gardens, polite driving, Norman Rockwell ladies  We came back with Virgin, I’m not sure what to expect really but could have guessed that it would be similar to the trip out. It was, so uneventful, apart … Continue reading OK California and the “Homelanders”

They say everything is bigger over here, and so it seems. The cars are bigger and the roads are huge. The driving is civilised, at a stop sign you have to stop for 3 seconds and then wait your turn. It’s remarkably  successful! On to gardening. In smart areas, and we are staying in one, not luxurious by LA standards but pretty smart, there is little gardening activity at the weekend. No sound of lawnmowers and machinery, no one pottering much in the manicured front areas. Very smart gardens in some with a wealth of healthy planting, and almost all … Continue reading Californian gardening…

A night out at the Dodger’s Stadium was an education in many ways. The Dodgers were playing the Chicago Cubs. Unlike a football match in England the fans were mixed together and there was no bad language or screaming at the ref. It was an altogether civilised affair. We got there by Uber taxi , which has been a favoured mode of transport. Son in law took me and we armed ourselves with a supper of a hot dog and chips plus what looked like a pint and a half of beer, that we could take to our seats and … Continue reading LA Dodgers, what a night!

We were at the Museum of Contemporary Art, not modern art as in a previous post. I suppose contemporary adds something to the name. It’s like we were told by our guide in the Broad that “we don’t say graffiti we say street art”, she at least said it with a twinkle in her eye. Why use just one word when two or more will do. Over here if you go riding a horse it’s called “horse back riding”, as if you could ride any other part of the horse. I digress. Whilst at the Museum we took in a … Continue reading Brassai, Arbus and Another

The Board is a private museum of art featuring the collection of works owned by one couple: The Broads He made his fortune in housing and insurance, and they choose to spend this fortune on modern art. He has a net worth of 7.4 billion dollars! Good for them, and good for us. Though how someone can amass a fortune like that is beyond me. Across the road from the Broad is the Museum of Modern Art. Worth a visit, only 10 dollars each and it’s all on one level with the ‘works’ displayed in huge white rooms. Charming staff … Continue reading Major work of art or pretentious cr*p?

This is the State flag and nothing more than that really. I thought at first that it might be a gesture of independence, but it’s not. It was raised on a couple of houses in the district we are staying. It’s described as follows: “Historic Bear Flag raised at Sonoma on June 14, 1846, by a group of American settlers in revolt against Mexican rule. The flag was designed by William Todd on a piece of new unbleached cotton. The star imitated the lone star of Texas. … The word, “California Republic” was placed beneath the star and bear.” Still … Continue reading Californian Republic