By cherry | Published:
December 23, 2009
There are many tea houses in Vancouver, but I’m yet to discover one that’s as grand as Samovar in San Francisco. You could say that tea is the same wherever you drink it but atmosphere really does a lot for of the enjoyment of good teas. It’s the same for coffee, but each deserves its own enjoyment. One of the small failings of the tea houses in Vancouver is to try to make them similar to the numerous coffee houses in town. Don’t get me wrong, I still think they’re a great place to get a good cuppa and spend time with a friend or working away, but Samovar is a whole different world.
At the core it’s a shrine that can comfortably house a good crowd of people; a quiet and serene place with character and conversation in every corner. When we descended on the unsuspecting owners we certainly made it a little more rowdy but what can you do with a group of 10-15 happy people? We were well accommodated thanks to good connections and so we took over half of the room for a couple of hours.
Even when surrounded by great friends and endless entertainment and action I still can’t help but find my mind [and eye] wondering to the rest of the room and everyone in it. Sometimes it’s the small moments between humans that touch me the most; the little stolen glances and the bubbles everyone blows around themselves.
By cherry | Published:
December 22, 2009
I’ve been spending the last few days in Dawson City, YT and while it’s been so cold [-37 or so] that I’ve been reluctant to head out and take “proper” photos I’ve been snapping away on the ole iPhone every time I’ve left the safety and warmth of the indoors.
Today we took a brief trip over to West Dawson which is across the huge Yukon River and is “off the grid” [no grid electricity, water, sewage etc.]. It’s a beautiful place and a touch more wild than the little town of Dawson City. I’ll be heading back on Boxing Day so I can get some photos with the real camera then, but for now take your fill with these wee iPhone snaps.
Just a note – this time of year the Yukon River is frozen and so there’s an ice bridge which technically isn’t open just yet [meaning it's not been smoothed over and certified safe], but experienced locals will still go for it anyway, and so do we. At any one time you could catch a glimpse of trucks, dog sleds or snowmobiles heading across. While the river is freezing over the West Dawsoners are completely cut off from the main town [and supplies] so it’s a period of time when they make sure they’re well stocked for the few weeks it takes to freeze. It definitely takes something special over on that side of the river but for many the beauty and space is more than worth it.
[The iPhone tends to over-expose everything even when dark, so the true twilight quality of the "daylight" at this time of year is a little lost. Also, there are a few photos in the mix here that are from downtown Dawson, and the order isn't chronological but I'm sure you get the essence of the country up here. It's what I think of as the most Canadian.]
By cherry | Published:
December 21, 2009
Before I get into this post I just want to point out that Penny Arcade’s charity, Child’s Play, is so close to last year’s raised total that it’s obscene if it doesn’t beat it! I donated today and if you can donate even a little please take a look at the wishlist’s available or click on the PayPal link. It would make my Christmas if you could! http://www.childsplaycharity.com/
I was lucky enough to take the train from LA to San Francisco a few weeks ago [more on the train ride later] and I spent the whole time there with my head pointed to the sky and marvelling at the variety of everything in the city, not just the architecture. I feel I’m pretty spoiled living in Vancouver; we have pretty much all of the things you could imagine in a city, so whenever I go away places I never feel as at home as I do there. SF was the first exception I’ve found to my rule. Granted, I was only there for two and a half days and I got to spend it with a great friend I was lucky enough to make at SD Comic Con last year, but, there’s something about SF I can’t get out of my mind.
It very much reminded me of Vancouver, but of course you’d have to swap the Canadian-nous with the American-nous and you’d be all set to thinking they were the same part of the world. SF is on a much bigger scale than Vancouver and there’s slightly more variety in the downtown architecture (since Vancouver is so very young for the most part), but the essence of the two places is pretty much the same. I have so many more things I could say about the museum’s I was taken to and the culture in general, but I may well have waffled on enough and since all of these photos are of the streets of SF it wouldn’t necessarily be the right place to gush about some things.
So, as always lets let the photos speak for themselves.
By cherry | Published:
December 15, 2009
I took this photo in Vancouver airport on December 3rd when I was LAX bound. My obsession with artist’s trading cards has grown beyond any of my obsessions before. You might wonder what it is I like about them since drawing in such a small area can be a challenge, but that’s part of the charm for me. There’s also the fact that I can complete even the most detailed/complex card in a couple of hours and simple inked drawings can just take me an hour at that size. It’s also incredibly satisfying to see just how detailed I can get inside of 2.5×3.5″.
As you can see I was even soaking up my airport time with drawing another little card; and yes another wee squidlette. I won’t try to hide my fetishes! Oh and in case you’re the curious kind like me that flash of orange is the inside of my very fetching but large camera gear carry-on. The weird patterned background is nothing more than the horrid carpet in YVR’s USA terminal. What’s that? You’re not here to find out about airport décor?
Well, alright, I have some other cards to show you, a couple are even framed! Another thing I like about these wee cards is that they give me reign to try new permanent drawing subjects and I find them much more suitable to my general frame of mind than spending hours on something in my sketchbook. I’m travelling again on Thursday [to the cold and dark Yukon] and these are also my favourite new travelling companion. But, upon my return to some kind of normal life and routine I plan to try and draw a card a day as a little brain and finger exercise. Hopefully this will last longer than any other once-a-day habit I’ve tried to pick up. If so you’ll be seeing the fruits and I may even offer some for purchase.
Here’s just a few of those I’ve finished. All of these are done on Bristol board cards, but there are so many surfaces available cut to this size I might have to start experimenting…
If you’re a fellow artist and want to trade trading cards leave me a comment below [or email if you'd prefer] and we’ll work something out!
![windup bird mini 01 [framed 1]](/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/CRV_4564.jpg "windup bird mini 01 [framed 1]")
![windup bird mini 01 [framed 2]](/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/CRV_4567.jpg "windup bird mini 01 [framed 2]")
![android [framed] 01](/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/CRV_4574.jpg "android [framed] 01")
![android [framed] 01](/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/CRV_4579.jpg "android [framed] 01")
