Perle Champion's Blog

I realized I've been absent from this Blog since May. It's been a strange six months with the death of friends, a highly contested election. But, Wow! Although I haven't been blogging on the blog, I've been on social media, but mostly on my Iphone.  That said, I have been micro blogging via Instagram. Although I still write (yes by hand) in my journal, I 've somehow grown accustomed to typing quickly with a finger or two or a thumb in my phone's Notes pad. 
I then cut and paste into Instagram with a photo and voila, I've posted there along with Facebook, Twitter and Tumbler with one press of the share button.  Color me lazy. Haven't figured out how to get it to post to either of my Blogs yet.  
I've also been in my studio painting.  But with that too, it's easier to take a quick Iphone pic and then upload on Instagram with a mini Bloggy post. The painting on the right sold almost as soon as I posted it. Loved it so much I'm going to do a series on the theme of Windows to other worlds.
I've also been cooking and sharing pictures and recipes of the result, but and again instead of Blogging it as I used to do, it goes straight to Instagram. And as always, Jazzmine expects a bite of whatever I'm eating.

Now with a new year before me, and this most contested election behind me, I've decided to actually sit at my actual PC or alternately my Surface Tablet and post here at least once a week for starters. 
Pretty much everywhere on social media I am Perle Champion.  But on Instagram I went with Perlesrose if anyone wants to follow me there. There's an inside story to that handle. It is shortening of Perle alias Rose. Maybe I'll tell it someday. ( https://www.instagram.com/perlesrose/ )  

I'm trying to do a painting a day for a while, until I get in the habit.  The below book help put me on the track. 

Continuitymiles and miles i’ve
come
some walked
many run
alone and not too
and with you i’d walked
but just a few
but there was something
familiar in the pace
my mind recalls that
gentle face
somewhere, somewhen
my friend
we’d walked in step
before
and somewhere, somewhen
we’ll fall in step again
and share a few
miles more© Perle Champion

This is from an old journal entry as valid today as on that other sad day.
Sad commentary that I have occasion to ask the same question time and again,  year after every year. ”We always ask why. There is no answer good enough. There is no reasonable, rational reason for the events of this day."  
Why?I want to know what madness is,and where its edges and beginnings are.what path does a twisted mind travelthat can explain taking pridein the slaying of innocentswhat slight was so great thatit warrants wanton murder...

“Why are there trees I never walk under but large and melodious thoughts descend upon me?” - WhitmanMost of my friends know I try to go Walkabout every morning at or a little before sunrise. It’s an unplugged walk of 3-5 miles.  The above quote by Whitman is as true for me as it was for him, but I don’t think anyone would hear those ‘melodious thoughts’ with the interference of earphones.  There's enough noise in the world.My personal fringe benefit list.Nature is all around. As I live in an old neighborhood, there are trees everywhere inhabited by all manner of creature. There are old houses (the once gated Glen Iris Park’s homes date from the late 1800’s to the early 1900’s); old and new apartments (my 4-plex dates to 1938); various chain and local stores (I love the old Wilson’s now run by a lovely Indian family and Western Market is open 24-7) and then there’s the University.The University campus if it can be called that begins just 2 blocks from my home.  Actually it encompasses a large part of the city. There are a myriad of sculptures gracing the front of their many buildings, so another fringe benefit is the art. I love photographing them in all kinds of weather and all times of day.  My right pocket carries my IPhone for pictures.  And then there’s the Muse.The Muse walks with me often, whispering in my ear lest I miss some of the tree’s melodious thoughts.  My left pocket carries a small spiral pad with a pen clipped to it.  If you think walking while texting is dicey, try writing.  It’s a good thing I walk early and the foot traffic is minimal (a few joggers, dog walkers).  I do stop here and there and sit on a porch stoop, wall or the occasional bench when necessary. Health is the final and I’d say most important benefit of my morning Walkabout.  There’s no doubt that walking daily keeps me sounder of body, mind and spirit than I would otherwise be.  If I miss a day or two I feel the loss on many levels.Tomorrow, I turn 67 and thinking I’ll actually park by Golden Temple and begin my
Walkabout there and head for the string of parks along Highland (haven’t been there in a while).  Might stop in at Starbucks on the corner before driving back home.Later y’all.

Happy National Hat Day.

I have many hats. Some are plain functional; some are fashion statements. But whether functional or fashionable, all hats serve a woman living in the South. The southern sun will bake you to leather if you don’t take care.

Functional hats: Most people call them baseball hats. When I lived in Texas, we called them gimme hats, because most of them were free handouts with various company logos – gimme one of those please. I’ve never bought a one and I own many.

Not my favorite hat, but they are useful in my life. They shield me on my morning 5-mile walkabout from the sun’s summer rays, falling acorns and pinecones, and from the errant bird relieving itself from a tree branch or on the fly. I’ve worn them on the tennis court, playing water volleyball, Frisbee golf, gardening and more. They not only shield me from the sun, but just as important, they keep my wild naturally curly hair in check.

Fashion and function: My battered Fedora gets the most compliments, but it serves me well in winter. It keeps my head warm, protects me from the winter sun. And, as I hate umbrellas, it and my London Fog take the brunt of rainy days. Berets and Boggans are for the coldest winter days when the sun rises late and walkabout is over while it’s a hint on the horizon, and when the sun sets early and I have places to go.

So much of life in the south takes place outside: barbeques, weddings, receptions, fairs, Doo-Dah Days, Art in the Park, Parades, and on and on. So, I have a selection of straw hats for summer wear; my outback vented canvass hat; and I have fancy hats for weddings and dressy parties.

I am grateful to a lady I met when I was very young. I’ve long ago forgotten her name, but not her words, “Take good care of that pretty face. Clean it well, moisturize and above all else, wear a hat to protect it from the sun.” 

Yes ma'am. I've been hatted ever since.

"Cats are kindly masters, just so long as you remember your place."- Paul Gray.Jazzmine knows I'm leaving for the day. Don't know how, but cats seem to have that sixth sense.  I can pass the front door a dozen times a day to place things in my outgoing stack and she does nothing.But today is Wednesday – Mom’s day out.  We go out all day: we shop, talk, lunch, shop, talk, happy hour, shop.Jazzmine seems to know, so today my many trips to the front door are watched with considerable interest.  The little cupboard by the door is my staging area for things to take with me when I leave the apt. The top shelf holds keys, change, hats, outgoing mail (there’s less every year in this digital age); the closed second shelf holds 3 purses, business cards, kitty treats; the open third shelf holds books for the library; large jar for mom to decant some canned peppers, umbrella and the bottom shelf is shoes (I usually take them off when I get home).This morning, each time I pass the front door, she nearly trips me then jumps up on the coffee table and speaks to remind me that I'm not allowed to leave until she is handed at least 4 treats.  I made the mistake of giving them to her early once, but 30 minutes later when I was actually ready to walk out the door, she demanded more.Treats doled out, and I’m out the door.  One stop to make on the way - Sneaky Pete's.  One of Mom’s favorite breakfasts (and mine) is a Sneaky Pete's hotdog and a beer for breakfast before heading out for our Wednesday adventure.  Sort of kicks the day off the day as a celebration.Today, we’ll head straight to the Summit and work our way back to Hoover from there.Later y’all and cheers.

End of era – for me at least.  I will not be renewing my P.O. Box, and I feel as if I’m losing a  friend.  Actually, In a way I am.  The people who work there are a friendly helpful crew.  I’ll probably still take them my annual gift of 3-4 tins of cookies as I have for the past 25 years, but alas, it will be the last.The post office has always been open 24-7 for those of us who have office hours of our own and need access in the wee hours of morning or night.  Now, because of the unwashed who use it as a nighttime squat, leaving their trash and on occasion vomit, the Post Office has announced office hours of its own and the rest of the day the doors will be locked.  I’m not sure how those who have jobs outside the home will make it work.  Fortunately I work from home and it doesn’t affect me except in principle.  I loved stopping by and picking up my mail after an evening out or on my early morning walkabout (rain, shine, or snow), but they won’t unlock the doors now til 7:30, and I’m home from my walk way before that. Worse still they'll close early on Saturday and totally close on Sunday.I’ve had a post office box on Southside since 1990.  It’s always been staffed by a terrific bunch of people that I’ve enjoyed doing business with.  It’s up for renewal and at $33 for six months, it’s a bargain for the security they’ve given me over the years.  My first 2 apartments on Southside, the one on 15th Avenue (10 years) and then the one on 14th Avenue that burned in 2011 (also10 years), had exposed and unsecure mail boxes easily accessible from the street.  The day I moved in on 14th  in 1990, my neighbor came home to find his mail and an empty box of CD’s rifled and strewn across his front steps. I immediately went to the Southside Post Office right next to the Golden Temple and got a box, and I’ve used it for 25 years.  My neighbor did, too.  I considered it a business address, but now I wonder if it’s necessary. I live in a more secure 4-plex now; the boxes are inside; the mailman climbs the stairs to deliver packages to my door; I only have one magazine subscription that’s print; all my bills, bank and credit card statements, etc., are digital; payments from Amazon and other places that owe me money go thru PayPal or digitally credit my a special credit union account set up for such payments - separate from my house account at another bank.Sad to say, but my PO Box is no longer necessary. I might of kept it just because it's been part of my routine for so long.  I picked up change of address forms, but opted to do the deed online instead. Later I’ll order new business cards from VistaPrint and probably omit a physical address and opt just for email, as that's pretty much how people contact me these days.I waited until the last possible pay by moment, November 10, to let the box go.  I stopped by to say goodbye to the crew. Up there with the certainty of death and taxes there is change.  Death comes and you're no longer here to know it on this plane; taxes are a constant and expected, but change, oh change. Of the three, I think change is the more difficult.

Well NanoWrimo (National Novel Writing Month) is here and I rose early to get my wordcount done (1773 done).  I could write more and will probably do so later in the day, but I've been sidetracked.  What is it about me, that I've barely touched a paintbrush, pencil or pen to draw or paint all summer long. I blame my ennui on the sweltering summer heat.  But now on this cool rainy Sunday with the Nano challenge of writing 50,000 words before me I'm working on unfinished paintings.Madness to dilute my time in one of the socially busiest months of my year. What can I say. Here are 4 that are finally ready to post to Etsy unless they disappear via Blog. Acryllic, pencil and/or pen on rescued (I gather wood from construction sites and upcycle it and lessen the burden on our burgeoning waste) Psykhe (9x11-1/2) Meowling at the Moon 1 Sundrenched Village (3"X9-1/2)" Meow Amour (3-1/2"x16")

Forget walkabout, today was all runabout. 


PepperPlace Farmers market (goat cheese and Kale); Western Market (last 2marked down pkgs of drumsticks); corner of 11th n 19th on Southside/ checked PO Box (bills, party invites -  no checks - sigh), scored a cozy mystery i series I'm reading, Rachel Rays new cookbook and 2 mini snickers from trick or treat bowl, returned one overdue book and paid  fine across street at library, picked up mint at Golden Temple on other corner to go w parsley n mint from my potted garden for tonight's tabouli salad to go w leftover kibbee dinner(courtesy of mom); Kangaroo and CVS for weekend's cheap beer n wine. 
Whe Then home to cozy corner of couch with balcony door open behind me and new fleece throw and Jazzmine  across my lap against the chill. I will sip and read and pat cat until time to put dinner in oven w side of tabouli. 
Tonight @ midnight 01  I'll begin my 2015 nanowrimo novel. Later y'all. 

It’s that time again – National Novel Writing Month. Every year thousands of the aspiring sign up for the challenge - write a novel of at least 50,000 words in the 30 days of November.Begun in 1999:

“The very first NaNoWriMo took place in July 1999, in the San Francisco Bay Area. That first year there were 21 of us, and our July noveling binge had little to do with any ambitions we might have harbored on the literary front. Nor did it reflect any hopes we had about tapping more fully into our creative selves. No, we wanted to write novels for the same dumb reasons twenty-somethings start bands. Because we wanted to make noise. Because we didn’t have anything better to do. And because we thought that, as novelists, we would have an easier time getting dates than we did as non-novelists.” -Chris Baty - NanoWriMo.org

In 2014, over 350,000 signed up for NanoWriMo.  I’ve been doing it since 2004, and although I’ve written the requisite words, I’ve never pursued the arduous task of editing a final marketable draft.  I had the excuse of a full-time job and life, but as I retired from Dilbertville early in 2013 I could not use that excuse that year or last. Now, it’s 2015 and I’ve signed up yet again.  I’m still painting, but I’m determined to get my daily word count in before I pick up a brush.  I may have to do what I did the first time – leave the house and write at a coffee shop, the corner bar and anywhere that’s not my studio.  The library is far too quiet for me.  I need noise.  Noise makes me focus harder on what I’m doing. The hardest part is all the parties and family functions that are strewn throughout the month of November.  I’ll be trying to exceed the daily 1667 words per day so I can bank enough to make up for those days, that just don’t make the mark. We had our kick-off for the Birmingham Region last night.  Big shout out and thanks to The Homewood Public Library for hosting us along with weekly write-ins and our Municipal Liaison, Jared “Tycho Brahe" Millet.  Anyone looking for me on Nano, my handle is perlesrose – my close friends will know it’s shorthand for perle(alias)rose.