Road Trip to McCall, Part 4: Cattails

Cattails are just the neatest plant.  In addition to being really interesting visually, they had many uses among Native American tribes.  The downy material in the flower was used for tinder for starting fires, lining for moccasins, bedding, diapers (due to its absorbency), and for papoose boards. 

These cattails were located just across the road from the reindeer in the last series post. 

Road Trip to McCall, Part 3: Eight Tiny Reindeer

(Click photo to enlarge)

Actually, there were a lot more than eight... we found these reindeer in a meadow between Donnelly and McCall.  They are being raised on a farm.  The buck was quite concerned with keeping his herd together and under control.  He made these strange sounds (they sounded quite a lot like a very loud belch) to keep everyone where he wanted them.  They were very tiny - I am not sure what breed of reindeer they are... but they were quite adorable. 

Road Trip to McCall, Part 2: Mending Fences

Sometimes the most commonplace objects can make interesting subjects - if you can just find the right angle.  And that's what this photo's all about - angles.  The angle of the horizon, the angle of the barbed wire, the angle of the fence posts.  This barbed wire fence was right next to the old barn in yesterday's photo.  I desaturated the colors since they were washed out, and since I wanted to focus on the contrast of the barbed wire against the background.

Road Trip to McCall, Part 1: Lonely Barn

Back in October, Aunt Sharon and Uncle Darryl were so kind as to invite us to stay at their condo in McCall.  One day we all went out shooting, and I was able to get some great photos of the old barns and the landscape near McCall and Donnelly.  This is part 1 of a 5 part series.

This barn sat in a field all by itself.  I love the abundance of old barns here in Idaho; it's a shame that so many of them are falling down.  It's interesting to think about the people that built them, a hundred years ago, and what the landscape looked like when they were new.  What were their names?  Were they struggling, or prosperous?  How many children played in the hay loft?  Sometimes I wish I could transport myself back in time to take a peek.

Home for the Holiday - Number Hill (Arco, Idaho)

One of my favorite sights on the drive home from Idaho to Montana is Number Hill in Arco, Idaho.  Arco's claim to fame is that it was the first community in the world to get its electricity from nuclear power (on July 17, 1955).  This fact is proudly announced on Recreation Hall on Main Street, on a marquee style sign.  Number Hill is the result of a tradition of Butte County High School painting the year of each graduation class on the hill, since 1920.  It's quite unique and striking, and this is the first time I've stopped to get a photo of it.  I love all of these small towns in Idaho and Montana - they're so proud of their accomplishments and traditions.

Photography: Downtown Portland at Night

After our stay at the Oregon coast, we decided to stay one night in Downtown Portland, Oregon. Portland is quite a city, and from our 15th floor hotel room, I was able to get some interesting shots of the buildings and the streets below. I like the angles of this shot, and the repetition of elements (the cars and the windows) and how they line up. Sometimes I get the best shots when I'm not even looking through the viewfinder!

The Mining City

This is another photo of a gallows frame that is right amongst the neighborhoods of Butte, Montana. I wish I could travel back in time to see the mines in all their glory, when they were operating 24/7. To see the miners walking to work with their lunch pails in hand; to see the men climbing into the hoists to be lowered into the mine. To see Uptown Butte bustling and busy, and all the buildings full... and to experience the splendor of the Columbia Gardens. Yes, I think that if time travel were possible, I'd transport myself back into Butte, Montana, circa 1924. Where's my DeLorean?

I took this photo in June 2009 with my Nikon digital SLR.

A Mile High and A Mile Deep

Butte, Montana started out as a mining camp in the 19th century. The Butte hill is speckled with head frames or "gallows frames" and they are often right in the middle of neighborhoods. This head frame is from the Mountain Consolidated Mine, more often known as the "Mountain Con" or "The Con". Since Butte is in the Summit Valley (on the Continental Divide), it is a mile high in elevation.

The Mountain Con mine frame was erected by the Anaconda Company in the early 1920s. By 1964, the shaft had been sunk to nearly 5,300 feet -- making it a mile high and a mile deep.

This photo was taken with my Nikon digital SLR back in June during my visit to Butte.

Illustration Friday: Flying

My dog, Milo, has a one-track mind. He loves to play fetch. He would fetch all day long if he could. I drew this picture while sitting on the banks of the South Fork of the Boise River, and while I was drawing the landscape, Milo kept dragging all manner of riverside debris over to me to throw, so he could retrieve it. An osprey flew overhead just as Milo was dragging a large stick (which some people may have considered a log) to my feet. Milo looked intently at the bird, and I could almost read his mind.

This drawing was done in my Moleskine with colored pencil and India ink. Text was added in Photoshop.

Road Trip to the Coast: Newport, Oregon

(Click the photo for a larger view)

Newport, Oregon is a fishing village that was founded in 1882. It sits on Yaquina Bay and is the home of Rogue Ales (a microbrewery), the Yaquina Bay and Yaquina Head Lighthouses, the famous Yaquina Bay Bridge, and the totally awesome Oregon Coast Aquarium.

The Oregon Coast Aquarium was the home of Keiko, the orca used in the filming of the movie Free Willy. His tank has been converted into an exhibit called "Passages of the Deep" which has a clear tunnel that you can walk through, where you are surrounded by all manner of marine life, including sharks. I've visited it twice, and it's awesome.

We started out the day trying our hand at catching crab under the expert tutelage of my brother-in-law. I soon tired of that (mostly because it was quite chilly) and set off to have lunch with some other family at the Rogue Ale Distillery. We had amazing (and expensive) Kobe beef burgers and Dead Guy Ale. Yum.

Finally, we made it over to the famous Newport waterfront, where we visited seals, and perused the delightfully touristy shops, where you can buy anything from salt water taffy to shark teeth. All in all, it was a wonderful day.

Photos were taken with my Nikon digital SLR.

Road Trip to the Coast: Night Photography

Here are a few shots taken at night around our vacation house on the Oregon Coast. The first one is looking down from the patio to the porch below. I really like how the textures show up. The last two photos were taken from the front "yard" (basically the 30 feet between the front of the house and the beach cliff). All shots used a tripod with my timer, since I lost my remote on my trip to Montana earlier in the summer.

We had phenomenal weather for October on the coast. Normally it's rainy and a bit blustery this time of year, but we had sunny days in the 50s and clear nights. Back home in the desert, it rained. Now that's how vacation should go!

Stay tuned for some more shots of the coast, and then some shots of our trip to the South Fork of the Boise River.

Road Trip to the Coast: Playing on the Beach

Who doesn't love the beach? Our family trip to the Oregon Coast was classic... one evening everyone hiked ourselves down to the beach and enjoyed the sun, sand, and sea. I was the goofy one with the camera who had the privilege of capturing it all.

Road Trip to the Coast: Columbia River Windpower

If you love wind power, you will love driving through the Columbia River Gorge. There are hundreds and hundreds of windmills. Wind power is a rather controversial issue. A lot of people feel that the turbines are ugly, and that they interfere with the natural beauty of the areas in which they are placed. Walter Cronkite famously opposed the Cape Wind project in Nantucket Sound, but later reversed his position and supported the wind farm. I happen to love seeing the giant turbines against the backdrop of nature. I think they are rather beautiful. Maybe it's because I'm an engineer... who knows? I just think it's great that we can capture a free resource like the wind and use it to make power. That in itself is quite beautiful.

These wind turbines are part of the White Creek wind farm, and I took this picture while traveling from Zillah, Washington to the Oregon Coast this past weekend. I love the colors (the light was just awesome for photographs this weekend).

Moo...

At my nephew's house in Washington today... this morning provided the most phenomenal lighting for photographs... so I took some pictures of their cows. Last year we bought a 1/2 beef from them. Not sure I can this year, since the cows are so dang cute. Yeah, I'm a "city girl." From Montana. Ha.

Interesting bit of trivia... my nephew is only 1 year younger than me. My husband is the youngest in his family, and his brothers are much older. One of those funny family stories to tell!

Butte, Montana in the Summer: The Continental Divide Trail

The Continental Divide Trail runs 3,100 miles from Canada to Mexico, along - you guessed it - the Continental Divide in the Rocky Mountains. The Continental Divide happens to pass right through Butte, MT; and I have to say, I had never really heard anyone talk much about the trail when I was growing up there. After reading Bill Bryson's A Walk in the Woods (a great book - you should read it) about his adventures hiking the Appalachian Trail, I became more interested in the Continental Divide Trail (which is considered part of the Triple Crown of hiking, along with the Appalachian and Pacific Crest trails). When I was in Butte this summer, we took a drive up into the Highland Mountains, and as we were coming back down, we crossed the trail and I snapped this picture. One day I'd love to hike at least the portion in Southwest Montana.

A really great book on the Continental Divide Trail as it passes through Idaho and Montana is Montana & Idaho's Continental Divide Trail: The Official Guide by Leland and Lynna Howard, who are brother and sister. Leland is a really great photographer and Lynna is a writer. At my previous job, I actually worked with their other brother, Gerry, and he is actually pictured on the cover of the book.

Ironic?

Took a trip back to my hometown of Butte, Montana in July and took this picture. I find it - oh, I don't know - ironic? That this building burned down right next to a fire and safety company? It was sad and funny all at the same time.

Fundamentals: Creativity

Creativity is a mysterious phenomenon. It is ethereal; it is fleeting. Since creativity is such an important part of my work as an artist, I thought it prudent to research the principles behind creativity so I could have more breakthroughs and less creative blocks. As I dove into my research in the past few weeks, I started to realize that the process of becoming intensely creative was analogous to the process athletes use to prepare for their game. Sure, football players scrimmage in order to prepare for their games, but they do so much more. They run drills, lift weights, practice the fundamentals of football. I realized that in order to create some really great stuff, I needed to practice the fundamentals of creativity - namely, I needed to make stuff for the sole purpose of, well, making stuff.

The creative fundamentals are outlined in great detail on The Accidental Creative, a website and blog founded by Todd Henry, who describes himself as "the arms dealer for the creative revolution." Henry preaches "unnecessary creating" in order to have enough resources to "create on demand," that is, to create for a living. Henry's podcasts and blog entries are incredibly articulate and insightful. I had always had a hunch about some of this stuff, and he was able to verbalize it and provide an in-depth analysis of it. One topic that I found to be a great relief was that you need be intentional about what you allow your mind to take in. "You create what you take in," Henry says in one of his podcasts, a reference to the old adage, "You are what you eat." He describes the importance of becoming very intentional about observing the world around you and drawing from everyday things and events for ideas.


In the last few weeks, I have been incredibly intentional as to what I have allowed in my mind... and have found not only that I have become much more creative in my "art life," but I've become a much happier person. For example:

I have both spiritual and creative devotional time.
Devotional time is critical for both a healthy spiritual life, and a healthy creative life. My church provides a daily devotional sheet that tracks along with each week's message, and I find that making time for these small spiritual nuggets to be incredibly satisfying to my soul. Along the same line, I recently purchased a book called Crafter's Devotional: 365 Days of Tips, Tricks, and Techniques for Unlocking Your Creative Spirit by Barbara R. Call. This book has a small "devotional" to complete each day, and I have found that it has really stretched my creativity by encouraging me to try projects I never would have thought to try otherwise.

I have banished TV news from my home.
I don't watch the news on television because it makes me angry and depressed. I allow myself a cursory look at Google News in the afternoon so I can still be informed, but not overcome. Also, my husband keeps up on the news pretty regularly, so I can count on him to fill in the gaps in my knowledge. If there is something I want to know about, I am trained in research, so I research it, intentionally, on my own.

I watch my favorite movies.
When I watch these movies, I not only absorb the plot, but I also intentionally observe things like the cinematography and artistry of the film as well. Sometimes I even take notes while I'm watching so I can figure out exactly why this movie is a favorite. This has helped me to identify my own style and what inspires my artwork.

I watch cartoons.
Cartoons rock, and how can you not be in touch with (1) your inner child and (2) your creativity whilst watching cartoons, especially the old classics like Rocky & Bullwinkle, Wacky Races, and Looney Tunes? Boomerang is fast becoming my favorite channel.

I act silly.
Luckily I come from a long line of silly people. All I have to do is hang out with my extended family to tap into my inner silliness, but when I am not able to be around them (most of them live far away), I have taken to participating in childlike activities, like going up to the nearby elementary school and swinging on the swings, or playing a good old fashioned game of HORSE with my husband. I am thinking of buying some Lincoln Logs.

I listen to great music.
Which is pretty subjective, right? What am I listening to right now? Intergalactic by the Beastie Boys. Regardless of your taste, make a favorites playlist on your iPod and jam out. You'll feel more creative, I promise.

I am making my house pretty.
And really, really organized. My former life as a process engineer has been incredibly helpful here. The same principles I learned about Lean Manufacturing have translated directly to my home and the processes I perform around the house, like cleaning, cooking, etc. I spend less time looking for things, and more time doing fun things. My home is becoming a place of inspiration and a reflection of our personalities, which makes it a fun place to be.

I laugh. Hard.
Need I say more? Laughter really is the best medicine - and one of the best creativity performance enhancers around.

I make time for my friends.
I have a few really close friends who are just like my family. Spending time with them is good for my soul. Last week, I was fortunate enough to spend two days shopping, dining, laughing, and crafting with my best friend. We had a blast, and I spend the next two days pouring creative ideas out on paper. Coincidence? I think not.

I limit my exposure to negative people.
We all have those people in our life who take the wind out of our sails just by being around them. They might even be friends and otherwise great people, but they are constantly emitting negative energy. Maybe they complain, or even attempt to engage you in negative conversation about other people. Granted, sometimes these people truly need a friend to listen, or they are going though hard times, and I definitely make time to be a positive person in their life to help them out. However, I only do this when I am feeling emotionally strong. When I am feeling emotionally and creatively vulnerable, I make sure to take care of my own mind and spirit first - since spreading my own negative emotions does nothing to help the other person.

I write.
Journaling is not only incredibly therapeutic, it can also help to spark creative ideas. Each morning immediately upon rising, I write three pages of whatever is on my mind. Morning is the time of day when I feel most creative. I often wake up with a great idea for a project, or an interesting thought. If I don't write this down, these gems will evaporate quickly. Sometimes when I go back and read what I wrote, it makes no sense at all, which at least makes me laugh (see above), reminding me of that one episode of Seinfeld.

I work out.
Engaging in some form of physical activity each day not only fills my brain with endorphins, but increases my ability to focus for longer periods of time. I am much happier and more productive when I go for a run or lift weights. So the next time you don't feel like working out, remember the benefits of this activity span far beyond a great bod.

I eat right.
I have recently made the commitment to stay away from excessive amounts of sugar, because abrupt increases and decrease in blood sugar are not only dangerous to your health, but those spikes also pretty much annihilate the ability to think and solve problems. Eating with keeping a constant blood sugar level in mind will make you healthier and more productive, too.

I get some fresh air each day.
The photos from this post are from a few days ago, when I decided to go for a drive in the country and "document" it from the driver's seat. I randomly snapped photos without looking through the lens, and got some pretty interesting ones. I had fun, got some fresh fall air, and came home smiling.

Whether you are trying to be more creative for work, or you just want to feel better, the principles outlined above are sure to put you on the path to either. I would love to hear other peoples' ideas for embracing the fundamentals of creative growth, so be sure to leave a comment with your thoughts. And have a great week!

Back roads to Idaho City

Back roads... gotta love them. I love going for drives, especially ones that include back roads. I love it even more when the route winds through territory previously untraveled by yours truly... and there are lots of those here in Idaho, mostly because I haven't lived here that long. So, a few days ago, my husband and I decided to go fishing and decided to head over the foothills into the Emmett valley and through Black Canyon into the Montour WMA. When we got to Montour, we were greeted with stinky, nearly empty ponds and an overflowing Payette River... not especially friendly to the angler. So we continued on to Horseshoe Bend and decided to take a drive from there to Idaho City along Harris Creek Road. It was a gorgeous drive; the wildflowers were out and in full bloom. When we got closer to Idaho City, we saw all of the dredge tailings from the mining operation along Granite Creek that was active as early as 140 years ago. We pulled off the road and Greg decided to try fishing the creek. I sat on one of the big dredge tailing mounds and sketched him fishing while Milo sat patiently at my side. Milo is my German Shepherd dog (and my running partner/bestest buddy/bodyguard). It was such a gorgeous day and the sun was going lower in the sky, producing excellent light that flooded the drainage in brilliant colors. The dredging tailings made me want to learn more about the mining history in Idaho, so I think I will be heading over to the Idaho Historical Society this week to check it out.

P.S. Greg didn't catch anything... better luck next time!