Photography Part 2

Just to get you Drift Away folk caught up with my photography.  Some you've seen before on this blog, others are new.

Photography!

Like I wrote about often in this blog, I wrote this blog not only for you, but for Pam and me.  Now that we're no longer cruising and living aboard, my writing and photography have taken a new turn.

I'm still writing.  Believe it or not... about Sasquatch.  We bought land in the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York and we soon learned we had Sasquatch all about.  I wrote my first book last year.

This was followed by two novels, Living Among Little People: A Guide for Sasquatch and Weak in Body, Strong in Mind and Spirit.  I am currently working on my fourth book, another non-fiction describing Sasquatch behavior.

Regarding photography, since I no longer have the benefit of friggin' pelicans or driftwood beaches, I've had to step up my game a bit and expand into areas I never thought I'd venture such as portrait photography.  Here are some examples.

Tomorrow will be more photos.

Amazon's Author's Page

If you've enjoyed this old blog over the years... or even if you're new to it... I am now a published author.  I just set up my author's page on Amazon.  It can be found at

https://www.amazon.com/author/davegibson 

It is still a work in process. but it has the links to my books, both paperback and Kindle.

If you read and enjoy the books, I'd appreciate a four or five star review.  If you didn't like the books, it is not possible to leave a review.

What is art?

What is art?  Is it writing?  Is it taking photographs?  Or is it painting and sculpture?

I belong to a local art group.  I quickly learned that they were focused on painting and little else.  Well, after attentding several meetings, I lost interest.  A few days ago, I received an email wondering where I was.  This was my response this morning...

Hi Jud,

Thank you for the note. Yep, in the hospital again in August. It seems to be one health issue after another. I am facing yet more challenges now.

I am also helping two buddies out with building horse fences, working from 7 to noon most days. We call our company "the Old Goat Fence and Deck Company". Our motto is "If we ain't in the hospital, we show up!". Since I don't finish working until noon (getting much needed exercise), it precludes me from attending meetings.

But besides that, and although I enjoy the presentations, I get a feeling that OAG doesn't take photography seriously as an art form. It is focused on painting, mainly, and although I certainly enjoy and appreciate painting as an art, artistry goes beyond that. I left an Ocala photography club because they were too focused on only photography. Which I guess they should, being a photography club. But to me, art can be found in many mediums.

I will return on an off day from building horse fences. OAG should consider stepping beyond the confines of painting, though. Let me tell you a story why.

When I was young, I loved to read. I lived in our town library. Every week, I'd take out the maximum of three books, and I would devour them, returning week after week to get three more. Loving reading, I also loved to write. In 10th grade, we were given a book report assignment to read a book and report on it. I read my book, and worked very hard on my report. I wrote an outline, and then draft after draft. I submitted the final report. A week later, it came back with an F. I shot my hand up and asked my teacher why. My English teacher said because it was good. Too good. I was incapable of writing like that and I must have copied it. I was a lousy writer.

I went through life thinking I was incapable of writing. But about 25 years ago, I posted on a sailing magazine's online message board about what I learned from chartering a sailboat and sailing in the Caribbean. The magazine's editor emailed me and asked if he could publish it. Me? A guy who can't write? Sure, I answered, figuring it would be heavily edited. It was not. It was published word for word. And I got a nice check! I went on to write many magazine articles over the years, and then a wildly popular blog about cruising down the eastern seaboard on our 46 foot trawler, which has over a half a million hits (http://trawlerdriftaway.blogspot.com/). And finally, I wrote three books just last year, one of which is on Amazon's best seller list.

So my advice to the OAG, whether I am able to return or not, is to accept and nurture all art forms. OAG should not be focused on painting. It should include all art, from photography to the performing arts. Consider presentations by members, and what they do and why they do it. Why do you paint? Why do you photograph? Why do you write? Why do you do whatever it is you do? Why did you join OAG and what did you expect it to be?

Also, by having weekday meetings, you are limiting OAG to retirees. Consider also having weekend meetings, so those of us who work can attend.

Whether I can attend again or not depends upon the Old Goat Fence and Deck Company, but regardless, you have a good thing going there. From my decades in business though, I think you can expand and do better.

Best Regards,

Dave Gibson

Over Half a Million Hits now?

I've been reliving our cruise on Drift Away by rereading this old blog, and I have to say that it was an incredible adventure.  Plus Pam and I met some amazing people.  This post from a few years ago was about reaching 100,000 hits.   It has now surpasses a half a million.  Cool beans.

I guess some things are timeless, and someone googling small ice makers or electronic chart plotters still stumble on it.   And that is definitely cool.

But what I think I also miss are the commenters who took the time to read my ramblings each day and to insert their own pithy comments.  Thank you all.  You are part of the reason I wrote, and why I am now an author.  The next book "The Voyage of Drift Away: A Toilet Companion" is upcoming, thanks to you all.

http://trawlerdriftaway.blogspot.com/2012/08/wow-100000-hits.html

Visiting an Old Friend. Drift Away.

Friday was our buddy Gibb's birthday, so we treated him to a trip to St. Augustine.  That is where Drift Away now lives, now named Happy Ours.

Pamela was very apprehensive about seeing our old boat, but I wanted to see the progress the new owners have made, and Gibb (once a boater too) wanted to see it.  

Our friend Gibb is a big guy, 6'2".  So I let him sit in the front and I sat in the back behind Pamela in the car.

We were met in the parking lot by Vern.  He and his wife Ruth are the new owners.  The more observant of you will notice the new blue Sunbrella replaced the green we installed.  Also the windshield was installed, and the bowsprit has been removed to facilitate the repair of the foredeck.

Notice the brightwork, Ruth's handiwork.

Dust-catching blinds were removed, and curtains installed.

As Vern and I toured the boat, he mentioned that he uses the blog periodically as a resource when undertaking boat projects.  Yet another reason ya'all should write blogs.

The work left to be done was considerable, for sure, and they even ran into a few mechanical issues, which surprised me because when we had Drift Away hauled at Green Cove Springs it was running perfectly.  But such is boats.

Vern and Ruth are nice people and doing a great job with the boat, but Pamela didn't handle it well.  We had too many fond memories aboard that boat and it pained her to know those days are behind us, but she did say that the new owners seem to love that boat as much as we did.  To me, it is comforting to know that the boat is being lovingly cared for, and not sitting in a bone pile in some dingey marina.