Summer Lists

Haribo sur La Loire

 The end of summer is coming and it puts me in a vaguely melancholy mood.  The things that loom in my imagination are the unaccomplished tasks that I put off during the school year and are still putting off.

Things to keep putting off
Put more art on the walls.
Write some comics.
Do some mail art.
Clean the closets
Write lesson plans (Not that I really thought this one would ever happen)

Now that I have been able to vent those lanudry items, I can turn my attention to more positive things.

Things I accomplished
Lost 10 lbs of San Francisco Fat
Bought a new bike and rode it every day (including today)
Learned how to bake bread that requires kneading
Returned safely from Europe (I am scanning my travel journal right now)
Slept in
Went on walks with friends.
Spent time with family
Camped
Picnicked
Read a lot of cookbooks


Things I learned
How to survive any sort of strange European toilet arrangement, including what that "shelf" is for.  According to J, a German civil engineer, it is to prevent splashing, so your patootie stays dry--tho' the Eleven's theory is more interesting (see below).
How fabulous wet wipes are (see above).
Dutch and a sleeping bag are a magic combination.
The Berlin bus drivers don't check the bus tickets very closely but the ones in Amsterdam do.
German food and American food are nearly the same thing.  (meat potatoes meat potatoes potato salad)
Don't depend on hairy hippy men to help you out in the airplane.
Get to the airport on time.
You CAN travel with a passport that only has your maiden name on it.


Transitions
Looking at these lists I realize that my artistic practice has changed profoundly in the last few years.  At first, when my output of comic books and drawings completely dried up, I thought that I should just hang up the beret and call it quits and at the same time I beat myself up for not doing anything (which wasn't true at all, I worked full-time at my creative job, started a family, moved to a new city...).

I'll be posting my travel journal soon.