Thinking Out Loud

Do you ever wonder, or assume, that artists, authors or musicians have access to an enhanced spectrum of awareness? Like insects following  psychedelic pathways to the sensuality of a  blossom. Do they perceive the world differently or do they use their tools, education and innate gifts to communicate their visions more precisely.

Do we view the same sunrise, feel our heartaches as intensely, hear the same musical inspiration. What does it feel like to have a brilliant mind or have an extraordinary sense of perception.

When thinking out loud garners a response, it becomes a conversation. I prefer to think out loud in print. It gives me a chance to formulate my thoughts more thoroughly. I don’t feel as articulate when I speak. To be heard requires listening.

I would like to identify as a writer, but I don’t read enough. I am envious of readers who can escape into a wonderful book and actually remember the details. So often I read something engaging but forget the gist of it.

I am fascinated by the history of art pigments, beginning with a book called “Colour, Travels through the Paintbox” by Victoria Findlay. I started taking notes because I needed a more condensed version.

Graphite

In the 16th century it was called plumbago and used in ammunition to make cannonballs “pop”. It wasn’t until the end of the 18th century that graphite pencils appeared. HB pencils refer to the hardness and blackness of the pencil and depends on the amount of clay used.

What I Learned Today

That’s the ticket. I keep a journal, but it is far more than the days events.

I try to make note of something I learn each day. I started on a camping trip in 2024. My list is accumulating and sometimes I think I could just review things I’ve made note of for the rest of my life without needing more.

June 7, 2024

The Pacific-Slope Flycatcher and Cordilleran Flycatcher are now considered one species…the Western Flycatcher.

June 10th, 2024

Dross: in metallurgy, it is the scum or unwanted material that forms on the surface of molten metal.

August 28th, 2024

The  Canadian Shield includes the largest mass of Precambrian rock on the planet and was formed over three billion years ago. It makes up 50% of Canada’s land mass and extends like a horseshoe to Labrador in the east, most of Quebec and Ontario and Manitoba. Northern portions of Saskatchewan, the northeast corner of Alberta, most of the NWT and Nunavut.

July 24, 2025

Can birds see colour? You would certainly think so, otherwise their fantastic feathers would go to waste. Yes, in fact birds see a greater range of colour than we do. They are tetrachromatic having four types of cones allowing them to see colours in the ultraviolet spectrum as well as the red, green and blue that we see.

fantastic feathers

more than meets the eye

life of birds

July 17th, 2025

I’m reading a book by Leonora Carrington called “The Hearing Trumpet”.

She was a Surrealist Artist/Author. Then I  saw something else on Facebook that said “grab the nearest book, page eighteen, line four”.

The line said “In case they lock you up in a tenth storey room,” said Carmella lighting a cigar, “you could take a lot of those ropes you weave and escape….”

Does anyone think I’m crazy? Where is this Red Herring taking me? A bit like my Ironman tattoo. I’ve joked that some day, when I’m old and appear confused, the nursing staff might have some respect for my accomplishments. Probably not, and it’s more important to acknowledge them myself right now.

comestible, means edible, a comestible gift

lorgnette, eyeglasses, opera glasses with a handle

antimacassar, a cover to protect the backs and arms of chairs

catalepsy, a trancelike state marked by loss of voluntary motion

ague, a fever such as malaria marked by chills, fever and sweating at regular intervals

Perhaps I’ll tuck those away on my priority of recall.

Composition

Composition is extremely important in photography. There are lots of suggested rules but an intuitive eye is the most important. Artists can take more time composing a piece, including symbolic imagery.

Our mobile devices allow photography to be much more spontaneous, capturing moments that would soon disappear. Sometimes you just need to seize the moment.

Rainbows in a morning pink sky through the traffic lights on Northwest Bay Road. A Full Blood Moon combined with a partial lunar eclipse, beyond a Shell Gas station and street light foreground. I guess that’s what AI offers to block out.

Passenger photography, of course, to avoid distracted driving. Videos of passing landscapes. Cloudscapes from an airplane, imagining white sky bears.

I prefer sunrises over sunsets. They seem like a more personal gift to early risers. A date at Brickyard Bay. A Good Morning Hug.

penny youngash