I looked forward all during the month of September to
Inktober - a month-long art challenge to draw something everyday in ink. I bought myself a new sketchbook (one specifically for ink), sorted through all my pens, and even bought myself a few new ink cartridges for my fountain pen. But then October came along and I've been busy with other things. Once or twice, though, I've purposefully taken my sketchbook out around the neighborhood to draw. I like using my pens with water-soluble ink, because I can use my water brush to make some nice shading.
Mostly from an art standpoint, I've been participating in Bee Jay Del's
31 Days of October challenge on YouTube. Since I finished my Botley book, my iPad has just been sitting on my desk, so it's nice to have some cartoons to draw again.
We've had glorious weather this month, warm and dry - just perfect for bike riding. I love going out to the Katy Trail during the week, because there aren't as many people on it as the weekends and a big chunk of it runs along the Missouri River. Speaking of which, I read that the #2 activity people picked up during the pandemic was biking (behind walking around your neighborhood). The bike shops around the country have been having a field day with sales and repairs. At least some businesses are making money during from the virus.
Bruce has been busy refinishing his office desk. It used to be my Dad's and I remember when my Dad painted it barn red. Luckily he painted it over old varnish, so it was fairly easy for Bruce to heat-gun the paint off. I think it's going to look beautiful when it's all done.
In between all the outdoor activities, I've been trying to de-clutter the attic. My latest project is tackling the boxes and boxes of old photos that I brought from the Central West End house saying I'd go through them when I had more time. Well it's been over 12 years, so I figure it's now or never.
I rolled up the carpet in the dining room, so I could use the floor to sort and organize the pictures. I've been trying to scan a lot of them into the computer (it's a lot easier to carry around a flash drive than huge cardboard boxes - those pictures are heavy!). Even though I've spent hours scanning them, I'm not sure I'm going to be able to actually throw away the originals. Maybe I can hand them off to Courtney and let her deal with them.
It's also the beginning of robotics season. The actual competitions have been postponed until January and the organizers aren't sure if they're going to be virtual or in-person. But I put together my competition field on the other half of the dining room floor, so I can get familiar with the rules.
One of my favorite challenges this year is the pull-up bar. Just before the end of the match, the robot is supposed to try to pull itself up so it is hanging from this bar and no part of the robot is touching the mat. I remember having to do pull-ups for Lyndon Johnson's
President's Fitness Award. I couldn't do pull-ups then and I still can't, so I give a lot of credit to any robot that can do it.
One of the great things about living in the city are all the trees... that is until October rolls around and you have to rake them up. I think I'm the only person in the neighborhood who still uses a real rake, rather than those noisy gas blowers. As I was raking the leaves this morning, I thought this may be my last season to enjoy this chore, because when we move to our new house, we'll have brand new trees with maybe a leaf or two on them. That's going to be quite a change.
