Another "back roads trip" sketch on the Thumbnails page.  Good practice and a good idea to have the paper and pencil ready. If you missed the 1st one, now you can see 'em both. 

Mid May Stairway

   This was done 18 months or more ago, but sat in the truck long enough that it got rained on before being finished. So I whacked off the bottom where it had been the most wet, and finished it up during the winter. This was not only mid May, and a stairway in the middle of the house, but the house also is in the middle of town. I sat in the parking lot to do the sketch that is on the north of Central Junior High. Remember, the former Memorial High School...

I was going to post it before, but could not get the photography decent. Still not too good. 
    Hey, I am sticking some new ones on the Thumbnails page too. 

Gnaw Bone worn

        We had few minutes running down the Interstate south out of Indianapolis. We took the State Hwy west looking for Brown County State Park. We had been there years before with my aunt and uncle. This time on the way we passed these two structures sitting side by side. Returning back the same way some minutes later we stopped for a quick sketch. This drawing is one of the results of that side trip. These places look like they may be from completely different time periods.

        The town near there was Gnaw Bone, IN. One of the strangest names we ran into on our two week trip. Maybe the guy who built the cabin could remember why they came up with this name...maybe the dog that did the gnawing was laying on the porch of this place at the time. I would guess the road was not paved at the time. Probably not even graveled. The bone has long been gone, but the worn buildings are still standing.    

Two the Mills

This is from the back roads of Alabama, from last week. We turned around and went back to this junction where Stephanie had seen a small sign saying “SACO”. We had no idea what that meant until we saw across the road in the trees the Saco Volunteer Fire Department. One ol' fellow (my age?) stopped in his pickup as I was sketching this place, and said this was the corn storage at one time for the grist mill across to the east. Now it is just a hiding place for a load of trees headed to a mill... He also said the corner at one time was home to 13 businesses – such a statement is proof I would think that he had been around for some time. One was the grist mill, one was a cotton gin, one still is apparently the Sorrel Lumber and Pulpwood Company. The only evidence we saw of life besides this informant, was the new brick building across the large lot with a couple pick ups parked beside it in the shade. Well, I guess there was one other fellow there. As I was standing in the middle of the lot sketching, I began to hear some music from under this structure, but could not see anything under there in the darkness. Pretty soon an ol' pick up pulls out from there and around to where I was standing. This ol' boy wanted to know if I would be around long enough for him to see what my drawing looked like when it was done. When he found out I would be just a few minutes, he said, “well I have to be getting home now.” and off he drove.

When I had a couple sketches done, I hopped back in the car with Stephanie, and off we drove to Troy.  

        Who can tell me when the moniker "thumbnail" began to be used? Long before the advent of the computer; but when and why?
        Well, anyway there is another "thumb" on the thumbnails page- that explains where some of the stuff in our yard came from...

Over the Pasture fence

        

       From 2 weeks ago on a short bike ride east of town. Stopped in the shade of some scrub trees along the ditch, and took a few to get this view on paper. Seems like I made a note of the variety of tree here, but cannot seem to see it now. There are 2 or three more along this stretch that are calling me back there. The nice thing about doing it from the Diamondback is that no one hardly knows I am in the neighbor hood, and if they do, an ol' codger on a bike is a whole lot less suspicious looking than if he were in a vehicle.

Spring Gate in Late Summer

         Once upon a time where N 1250 road runs south of Mary's lake and ends at E 1750 there was a cattle chute that was put together or patched with a number of rusty bed springs from before the day when box springs were in-closed with cloth. (You know you are old when you can remember as a kid reaching over the side of the bed and catching your fingers in unprotected springs!) The chute has now disappeared, but there is a sketch of that “Sprung Chute” around here somewhere.

       This old unused corral enclosing the weathered wood feeder is of a similar vintage and style, but has survived 'till today. And about a mile as the crow flies from that old chute... This drawing was done this week, after far too long a sabbatical from pencil and paper.  

On the "Thumbnails" page you can see how it is to use a little different pencil and style for doing quick sketches.

Oldie

This is an ink drawing from a long time ago. One of those scenes you just can't resist puttin' on paper.

Ok, we have been under the weather for a couple weeks...
Hope you all are doing better!  Here is a quick view of the latest trip across Iowa-  a little unusual view!

Cat Door

         How about another old garage? It is not hard to find a vintage garage in old Lawrence when you need something to draw! The ol' 2 car garage is a classic for sure. The note on the drawing says 12:30 PM. I was half listening to a football game at the time... The drawing was an effort to drown out the Jayhawks- who were getting beaten again!

        The title is sorta a guess of the least you might expect to be living in this one. You might expect a cat to come out from under the door, or to poke it's head in to catch a mouse off guard. Might even expect a 'black and white kitty' if you were real lucky! I am not sure anyone has been using the big doors, though “skunks” of the 2 legged variety could probably not be kept out if they were looking for mischief.

        This place like many is not too small but certainly is too rough to be used for your Smart Car. This garage was erected before town folk drove “boats” like the '59 Ford Fairlane. or monster SUV's for getting kids to soccer, or pick-ups for the weekend warriors!

        So who goes in and out these days? Maybe just the landlord on foot with his junk. Or maybe this is not much more these days than just a cat door...

The nice thing about cats is they help keep out some of the riff raff.

Check out the "mill" on Thumbnails.

Imaginary Chimney

        There is a chimney in the background, a more distant one, but the original chimney is missing. All we can see is the opening in the roof that the masonry used to occupy. The newer “stack” along with the newer buildings in the background are taking the place of the old. There are two chimneys- two distant chimneys. One distant in space, one distant in thought. One visible on the farther building; one visible only in the imagination. It has dropped from sight; it has not totally dropped from memory.

        Actually, the fallen chimney is still laying in a heap on the floor. I suppose the entire building will someday follow.

Sparta Missouri

   

    This drawing was done last summer on a trip to southern Missouri for a weekend with friends. You could find the place just north of the Post Office as you drive into town from the west. 

  If you have a few minutes, or can scratch some together, you cannot pass up a chance for a little sketching- unless of course you are out of state, playing with grandkids and doing projects for one of the kids....

thumbnail post

Well, here is a thumbnail that gives new meaning to the concept of a posted thumbnail...

"Double Snake Eyes"

        These places are interesting. Twin houses with twin numbers. The street numbers are 202 and 204 west 9th St. A friend of ours painted these places back in the 70's for a part time income. They also appear in a 1921 photo of the original Lawrence High School. How long they were there before that I do not know. The High School was at the time across the intersection to the south west; the stone foundation of which was used for the new construction that now stands on the site. Looking carefully at the old photograph, it is possible to see the entryway on the west house, and what appears to be an identically trimmed entryway on the east house. Twins often have a way of aging differently, and it seems these 2 are no different in that respect.     

How about another Thumbnail...

End Shed

       We passed this place again yesterday coming in from Minnesota, so thought it about time to post this November drawing. Too bad there is no snow to cool us down a little. The pocked yard extends all the way into the shed... You may be able to see the rolled corner of the tin covering the end post where the cattle crowd as they make the round into the cover. A nice clean white paint job shows someone considers this a going concern. 
       A pencil will not do everything for me, although there are some who seem to be able to make it so. There has to be a shorthand for the approximation of information in a drawing. Pencil will only go so dark, and the white of paper can never be as bright as the sunlight; But a good drawing can take you past all the shortcomings.

East of Mary's Lake

    

        This drawing was done just before my surgery in January. Standing in the trail heading back into the woods from the concrete trail on the east side of Mary's Lake you can “eave's drop” on the neighbors; or do a quick sketch of the view to the east. Some views are just the right combination of line, direction and shade that it makes it difficult to resist doing a sketch, and not too difficult to finish it! Although it does get more difficult to concentrate as the weather improves and the hedge woods green up, this drawing was done before the winter weather even arrived.

       On the thumbnails page I reference a sketch posted early on that is in Colorado Springs- just over the hill south of the Black Forest.
       Also there is a quickie done at the Melvern KS Quarry.