Balance...

Shorts weather again!

 It was supposed to climb to 54 degrees today.   We headed out to Muscatine to enjoy a river run and discovered that the Ice on the river was almost completely gone!  With the Sun shining bright,  Cheryl decided to run the extra mile.    The main trail is still covered with snow and blocked by the rail road tracks, so we are still limited to the cleared path along the river dike. 

Lone Eagle above the trail.

 

The Eagles which were on the ice guarding their prospective ice clearings have now moved to the shore.   One was right above us in the tree along the path.  I'm sure there were others creeping around on the other side of the river, but this one was the only sign of them we could see. 

The Ice is Gone from the river.

After a store visit and some Pizza, we headed home.  I was excited to have such a nice day to play around with some more chalk designs outside.   Being a weekend,  there were not many people out to bother me either...  Nice!    

Olaf was Easy!

 

 With the warmer weather melting all of the snow so rapidly, I decided I would try to focus on the several designs I have that feature snow in them.   Sort of a "Last Hurrah!" for the winter season. If I wait much until after the snow all melts, they will not make much sense, now will they?   I headed over to the daycare center and kicked out an "Olaf" Snowman in no time.   I positioned it  under the roof and near a window so the kids could see if during "Nap Time."  ( Because, kids never sleep during nap time... only Adults need a nap!) 

Hmm,  Rather scary looking.

Abnormal snowman!

My next project was the "Abdominal  Snowman"  ( Thanks spell check!... Does he do sit-ups in his spare time?) from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.  I quickly realized this was going to present a challenge, as the picture I had was rather funny looking... but my drawing was looking more and more "SCARY!"   Add in that I placed the drawing  right in front of the front entrance door... and I could not erase the outline.   I was stuck!

An Example of an Anime Lovely Item.

Giving young children nightmares was not my goal.  And living in a small town, I did not want the locals getting out their pitchforks and torches because I was terrorizing their children.  I worked on making the Snowman as cute and cuddly as possible, without turning him into a Teddy bear. ( which can also be scary.. if you think about it. )   I could not lose the teeth or claws.... and Abdominal-able snowmen have to have an angry expression after working out so much... in the snow.   The only thing left to do is add..."A Lovely Item." 

A Lovely Item has been added.

I learned this from watching Anime.   If you have a scary looking character that you want to look less menacing,  you have to add a Lovely Item to the scene.   A flower, a puppy, a cute little bird will capture the eye and help remove the "scary exterior" of the central character.   It works!  The Lovely Item for this monster would be... a floppy-eared, Chibi Easter Bunny.   

Lovely Item Success! Perfect balance!

Success!  You now focus on the cute little rabbit and NOT on the scary monster behind the mountains. 

 

 

Unless you are Cheryl. 

Cheryl with her "support."

 

 

 

Cheryl says that "Oh no!  The monster is going to eat the Cute, floppy-eared, Chibi Easter Bunny!"  Thanks hon.   That will help me build my confidence going forward.   Better board up the apartment when the torch-wielding villagers come to visit.  

How many can I add?

 

 

Well, it is too late now.  The sun is sinking fast and I have a sore back.   At least the kids will not be back until Monday.   If I'm lucky, it could rain and wash away the disaster.   I guess I could add an additional lovely item to the mix....  I wonder how many lovely items I can add?  Is there a rule or limit?  I'll have to look into it. 

 

 This page  of inspiration is finished. 

  Hope everyone is having a fun and fine weekend so far.   Stay warm!  And thanks for stopping in.

Melting Ice and Snow.

Well, seems the warmer weather is heading our way!  Yeah!   It has been so warm here the last few days that Cheryl has been able to run in  shorts!   (At least  on Wednesday.)  They are predicting 50's tomorrow and the next day.   I'm impressed that the snow is melting so rapidly with temps creeping up into the 40's.   An additional 10 degrees should hasten the snow removal. 

Find the Eagles in this picture!

There are several more!

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have not had many opportunities to capture eagles this winter.   However,  I did manage to capture a few on the Mississippi the other day.  The river is still frozen, but has pockets of open water.  The Eagles seem to be guarding their "pool territory" for fresh fish... when it appears.  I did not have the telescopic lens attached, but I think you can at least make out the several that are on the ice. 

 I have also been spending my afternoon time doing more chalk drawings on the dry areas by the community center.  Yesterday,  they called the News Paper on me.   It must be a slow news day in Wellman when my Chalk Drawings become a thing of news! 

 

 

But it was fun-ish.   I don't really give very good interviews. (As demonstrated by my lack of stable career...) I probably said something dumb and cliche'...  Like "Art is Fun!"  

Just kidding!  Thankfully I avoided something so cringe worthy as that.  But I'm sure something else of equal embarrassment will make the pages of the paper.  Mostly I'm just shy about the "simple drawings" I have been tackling lately, since I have been starting small because I don't know how the weather will be.   But people are still commenting on them and they seem to be liking them. 

Today I finished my "Winnie the Pooh" drawing.   "Everyone loves Winnie the Pooh,"  I thought. Except Cheryl....   And.... the Communist Dictator of China.   I wonder why....

One of these days I will have to blog about how my Popcorn experiments have been turning out.   I will give a hint that I make about three bowls of the stuff every day!  ( Perfectly Popped!)  And Kettle Corn is my favorite so far.   In the mean time.   I will keep this one short and wish every one a happy upcoming weekend.   Thanks for stopping in.

Sunshine and Some Chalk Art.

Headless Snowman!

 A quick post about the weather.  It is getting warmer!  

Broomless Gnome.

 

 

As a result... My snow people are melting.     The Snow cat is completely missing!

 

Time to find a new artistic outlet!

How about some sidewalk chalk drawing!   With the sun keeping things warm-ish, I was able to do a little sketch near the community center.   There is a LOT  of water on the sidewalks still.   And although  the snow is melting, it still covers most of the concrete drawing areas in the park.   

Still, I found a small dry patch and  had fun for about an hour.   And one lady commented on it.   I will have to do some research on some new ideas, since I think "cats" are becoming a bit too common even for me.   We shall see what I can fine on the web. 

Waiting for Spring!

Not waiting for spring.

In the mean time,   Cheryl got to run an extra mile today.   And the Park service has already broken out the "trail closed" signs in prep for the eventual flooding that will happen in the coming weeks.   Already, most of the trail was covered in very large puddles that covered the entire width of the sidewalk.  As long as it is not too deep, I can handle the water on my bike.... But Cheryl might not want to get those expensive shoes wet just yet.   I can't wait for Spring to arrive.   Time to move on.    If the weather holds up... At least it will feel like Spring..  Which is a start.   Thanks for stopping in.

Bottle Rockets and Snow Gnomes!

Break in the weather means More Snow Sculptures!

  The Cold weather has finally given way to warmer temps and Sunshine!   Yeah!   I was a little worried yesterday, when it dumped an additional 2 inches of snow on us!  The temps had crept up to almost 30, but wind and clouds kept the outside uncomfortable.  But today!   Sunshine and temps above freezing...  I'll take it!

Running outside is fun again!

So what to do on such a pleasant day after having to hole up and hide out in our small 600 sq ft apartment...   Well, obviously something outside!    Originally, I had planned a science experiment  involving plastic bottles, warm water, and air pressure.  With those ingredients, what could go wrong? 

Water provides the "fuel."

Well,  the extreme cold prevented any outside trials.  The theory is to fill a bottle slightly with water and then fill it up with a high level of air pressure.   I recently replaced my tire pump with a new one, and decided to donate my old pump to science... rather than throw it away. (Because blowing things up in the name of science never goes out of fashion.) 

Cork things up!

I had to deal with the problem of the "release valve"  and found that a simple cork top seems to work out nicely.   Mostly because it fit inside the plastic bottles.   Let's fill these bottles up and get to launching!

Snow provides stability!

The snow actually provided a some-what stable launching platform.   I could bury the air hose in the packy snow and it would hold the bottle at the proper angle away from my face.  (Safety first.. and all that stuff.)   Actually,  to  be the MOST safe..  I should try my best NOT to BLOW THINGS UP to begin with...   but humanity will never progress if they don't accept any risks. Am I right? 

Launching and filming, not easy!

The launch was pretty cool.   Not as far as I had hoped, but Further than I had thought.  I couldn't film any of the launches with only myself acting as camera man  AND launch control. But imagine a bottle flying into the air like a Saturn five rocket.. and you will understand the fascination. 

An old idea, in toy form!

How the Professionals do it.

This idea is not a new one.  I had a similar rocket launcher "toy" back when I was 8 years old.   The pump came with a little "trigger" that would launch a toy rocket up into the sky with minimal mess and fuss.   Of course, we kids broke it eventually,  pumping ever more and more pressure into the rocket in the hopes it would fly higher or further.    I can't remember if it was the rocket or the pump that broke first.    I can imagine a plastic rocket hitting the ground one too many times will eventually crack.   But... since when do science toys ever last anyway?  NASA blew up every single Mercury rocket they made.  I'm just following their path. 

"Helpful" munchkin filling the bottles.

Trouble launching the bottles.

Even the side-kick neighbor kid got in on the act.  As usual.. he was mostly useless.   He is too short and weak to manly pump up the bottles to he required  launch pressure.  So the bottles fizzled out about half way into the yard.    I imagine adding fins and  a cone to the top would help with stability, or add too much drag to get any distance.  Either way,   we both got bored and called it for the launch cycle.   

But with a surplus of sunshine left in the day,   I wanted to make another snowman.  The last one has lasted almost a MONTH!    BU I have a feeling the current heat wave will shorten the life of my next creative sculpture.    So why not keep the short  theme and make a gnome...

Snow gnome... ready to sweep winter away!

Mostly, the snow dictated the terms of my artistry.  The snow is like a heavy sugar.   It is packy, but heavy and fragile when I pick it up.   As it is, I see one of the gnomes eyes have fallen out all ready.   Even with the temps hovering just below 30, it appears the sun is doing a fine job melting the model.    But hey!  At least I got a few pics for the blog!    And having something blog-worthy is always a good thing.  

Remember the Cold Snap in Florida?

Hope everyone else is enjoying this "heat wave".   Really?  Since when is 33 degrees a heat wave?   Well,  Only if you have been dealing with negatives up to this point. And you DON"T live in Texas.  

(Poor Texas....  It never snows there... so what the heck are they supposed to do when it actually does?   Just like Florida back in the day... Remember the 80's Florida Orange Industry disaster?) Well,  Keep calm and keep warm.   Spring is coming soon.. It always does.   And then we will complain about the rains and flooding.   Because what are humans if they are not constantly complaining about something.   Am I right?   

Thanks for stopping in.

Popcorn!

Don't be fooled!  Mostly it just burns!

 A few days ago,  Cheryl had the hankerin' for some Popcorn.   But wouldn't you know it,  her favorite brand was "out"  in the Microwave version.  However,  there was a "normal" bag from the same producer...  we just needed a popper!

Who wouldn't trust Martha?

I had watched videos on how to make your own microwave popcorn from a brown paper lunch bag.   I even read books that suggest microwaving in the best way to pop popcorn!  (Wisdom suggests to not believe everything you read... Even from trusted sources...)  I figured this was the perfect opportunity to test a few theories and have some tasty fun in the process. 

OR... Doesn't pop at ALL!

Well,   The brown paper microwave popcorn method "worked."   I got a few kernels to pop at least.   I should also mention I burned almost as much popcorn as I successfully popped!  Cheryl wanted nothing to do with it.   I developed a technique to pop once, pull out the "popped" kernels, then send the remaining HALF for a second round in the microwave.   If you tried to pop the entire 1/2 cup all at the same time.. it would burn. 

How can I MAX the POP?

 

Eww!  What is this?

So that was not a very good method... in my opinion.   I am frugal!  And  a MAXIMIZER!  (Yes!  It is a real word:  One who "Maximizes.")  I can't see paying for popcorn if you end up throwing away half of it because it refuses to pop fully.   

I should not have been surprised, though.   My past  experience tells me that MOST microwave popcorn bags don't fully pop. Even when they are fully slathered with salt and butter substances.   Time to discover a new method!

So which method is Best?

 
More research...  more methods!  More suggestions...  But one method I had never tried was .... The WhirlyPop method!   One of the advantages was the lack of unpopped kernels.   I would have thought the "Air pop" method would have solved that, but apparently not. But no one wants another applier in the house if it is not going to work... right? 

New Popcorn Kettle.

Cheryl couldn't wait to buy a WhirlyPop pot. She chose one that was supposed to change color as it popped the corn.   Because....  Color!   I would have chosen one on it's durability, success rating, and customer satisfaction.... but what do I know?  That is why I don't make the Major Purchases around here.   

 

 

It's changing color!

But will it pop the corn?

Well,  it did turn color.  Which was fun.   And it actually worked at making the popcorn fully pop.  as I'm writing this..( shoveling down the last handful of buttery coated saltiness...)  there are only 13 kernels that didn't fully pop.   And that is actually not the whole story!  Only three kernels did not pop at all...  the other ten will be the crunchy leftovers that I snack on without breaking my teeth.  Successful?   Yeah,   I think so. 

Who knew turning a handle could be so fun?

This opens up a whole world of possibilities!   There is kettle corn, garlic herb, caramel corn,  peanut butter and toffee...  I will  have to see what other possibilities are possible.. assuming you can trust anything on the internet these days.  But what fun it will be to explore!

Fully Popped!

The kettle actually came with "instruction."   But who ever reads those?   ( Cheryl does!  That's who.)   Apparently,  you are not supposed to add seasonings or sugar or caramel to the corn until AFTER it is fully popped and leaves the kettle.  Well....  I was supposed to wash and  "season" the kettle with vegetable oil before even popping any corn to begin with, but I almost didn't... Because Cheryl would not let me do things MY way.  

Otherwise,   I changed the oil in the Subie.   We ran and biked 2 miles around the Lake in Iowa City. And now,  we are being bums on the floor.   I still may do another round of popcorn, since this is all I will be eating today.   Is it possible to go on a Popcorn diet?  I can only imagine it will eventually work because you would lose all desire to eat anything if you could only eat Popcorn three times a day.   I guess we will find out.   Thanks for stopping in.