daily post – Mindflight

Feline Inscrutability

It is I, Nezumi!

The Moms are off shopping, it’s the weekend after all. Littledog out back is making all the noise he can, scratching at his door, and I’m glad there’s a fence between him and me. Out front, there is Bigdog. He’s as big as some two leggeds. Sometimes he comes up to the window in front and we look at each other. Good thing I can’t smell him through the glass. He hardly ever barks or makes noise.

Newcat, I mean Shinji, is pretty fast moving for an old man. There’s something else about him, though. He’s inscrutable. I can’t tell if he’s going to hiss at me or run or just go lie down somewhere, because with those stripes on his face it’s confusing.

I think maybe it’s because his ancestors came from Thailand. They guarded both temples and palaces. Now, he’s got a fair dash of tabby mixed in, but he also has the long body and blue eyes. I’m still getting used to those. Before that, the only one who had blue eyes was Mom. But Shinji’s are even bluer than hers!

Shinji seems happier than he was. He’s even gained weight. I guess that’s okay, since I still get the same amount of pettings and nobody makes me share my Gooshy food, or my beds. He’s so quiet. Except at mealtime. Then he’s loud! His feelings are very obvious then. But the rest of the time he’s inscrutable.

Here he is, meditating. Or possibly, just avoiding a photo.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/inscrutable/

The unexpected safety features of Standard Transmissions

Classic Skills

Life is art. Time to talk a bit about the art of using a clutch. When I first learned to drive, I was having such a hard time that I said frequently “I’ll always drive an automatic.”

It would have been possible to do that – however, I knew deep down that I needed to learn. I admired the people who could work a clutch. My own mother had, for most of her cars, and everybody I liked knew how.

I dreaded learning. There was so much to do! It seemed like I’d never get the rhythm right, especially starting up a hill.

Then came my pretty Dodge Dakota pickup. It was perfect for my needs, but it was a standard. I practiced and practiced – stalled out quite a few times – and eventually learned. Then, when I was looking for a sedan, I found myself searching eagerly for a standard. I found it – my battered Elantra has served me for over a decade.

Now, after quite a few years driving standards, I’m irritated if I have to drive an automatic. There’s nothing to do! I have so little control! I can’t stand automatics anymore. There are some very good reasons why standards are not only safer, but better cars to own.

Advantages of a Standard Transmission

Better speed control – when you stay in one particular gear, it naturally keeps you in a range of speeds. This helps prevent you from driving too fast for the road. It’s a bit like a cruise control only more flexible.

Safer braking – When you slow down while driving a standard, you use the brake as well as your engine to do it. So if your brakes completely fail you have another option to get back under control. You also tend brake more smoothly and safely.

Ticket avoidance – when you drive a standard, you can slow down without using the brake at all – just let off the gas and quietly shift into a lower gear. That can help you avoid the notice of traffic cops who are looking for brake lights.

A back-up to your starter – with most standards, you can push start them without using your ignition at all. So if it, your battery, or your alternator fail, you aren’t out of luck. You can start up again with the help of either some strong friends or a gentle hill.

Cheaper to work on – a clutch replacement is usually less than a thousand dollars. Mine are around six hundred. With good driving you can get a clutch to last a long time. An automatic transmission replacement will cost you a LOT more than that.

Cheaper to buy – with standards being less popular, many times you can get a better deal on them. That’s a great advantage!

Better knowledge of your car – with a standard, you are more aware of what your engine is doing. That helps you be easier on the car, and also be alert of any problems before they get bad.

Better gas mileage – some of the modern automatics claim to have better gas mileage than standards, but in general, you do get better gas mileage with a standard and good driving than older automatics can deliver.

If more of us learn to love and drive standards, they will continue to be available in new models of trucks and cars. I’d hate to see the standard die out – they are just too useful! Not only that, but they are a lot of fun to drive.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/clutch/

Contrasting Black

Tips for Artists

If you talk to some painters, they will tell you that black is an unnatural color and it shouldn’t be used. I’m not one of them, I use black even in paintings with color. Personally, I think black is essential, and a dash of it will really help everything else be more visible. Black is really great if you want some drama, as in the photo above that I took yesterday.

Here is another example. Between the two drawings, I think it looks much better once the darks are truly darkened. That will happen with steady, even pressure, and a pencil that’s on the soft side.

You can also see this principle with pen and ink. Drawings with fields of black just pop out a little better and draw the eye. I was trying for this effect when I did this lioness. I think you will see she stands out a lot better than her stretching sister.

Black also looks better in drawings when you use smooth fields of it, and let it truly be dark. Here, by the way, is an example of a painting where I used black in a color setting. It’s a book cover that had some pretty specific requirements.

\https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/black/

What’s up with calling people Ginger?

Thoughts About Life, Tips for Writers

I clearly remember a time when people with reddish hair called themselves “redheads.” If others were being a bit rude to that redhead they might call them “carrot top.” If I saw a cat of a generally marmalade shade, I’d say “that’s a cute orange cat!” Or “will that darn red tabby stay out of my bushes?”

Now it’s all gone to “ginger.” I know there are some places in the world where this term has always been common. It seems to be spreading though. “Ginger” is simple and a lazy way to describe something, giving almost no real information. I’d rather be more descriptive. I’d rather say “redhead,” “copper haired,” “strawberry blonde,” “russet,” “red,” “orange,” “ocher,” “auburn,” “fiery,” or any number of other descriptors than simply “ginger.”

Here’s a bonus tip for authors. If you use more precise descriptions, not just going to the most commonly used but non-informative word, your writing will have more life in it and engage your audience better. Dare I say, your writing will have more color?

How long will it be until I stop hearing about blood bay, strawberry roan, and red chestnut horses and start hearing about ginger horses?

Besides, though ginger is one of my favorite spices, and is really, really tasty, it’s not red in any way. So why not “cinnamon?” It’s reddish, at least!

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/gingerly/

Pronoun’s shutting down and I’m feeling Faint

Tips for Self Publishing

Pronoun was a great self publishing resource that was run by McMillan, the publishing company. It offered great terms for authors, a top notch interface, and awesome distribution. I’m sad to see it closing because it worked so well.

It came as something of a shock. The other day I logged into my email, and there it was – the notification. I definitely had a sinking feeling when seeing that. On the bright side, though, I know a lot more about eBooks than I used to.

Now I’ll have to migrate my books over to Amazon or some other service, and also do the same for my father’s stuff that we published together. I’ll now be dealing with multiple editions as well, since there will be a Pronoun edition as well as an Amazon edition. I’m sure I’ll find a way with deal with it but it’s still a big pain in the neck.

If anyone out there wants the scoop on what’s happening, here’s a link to the FAQ. Pronoun is staying open till after the holidays so authors can finish up any sales they might have going.

http://support.pronoun.com/knowledge_base/topics/pronoun-shutdown-faq

It’s too bad, really, and I’ll miss the service.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/faint/

Peeking Feline

Photography

Nezumi Prepper 1000

Do I peek through the supplies and canned goods at Nezumi-chan?

Prepper Nezui 1200

Or does Nezumi-chan peek back at me?

olive base 3 1000

Here’s a hole in my backyard I like to peek through… lizards often live there.

pines-and-mountains-1000

Speaking of backyards, here’s a peek at the mountains through pine trees…

quail-4-1100

I peeked through my zoom lens to capture this avian kerfluffle from across the parking lot.

quail-1-1000

Here they are again as I peek under this truck.

quail-1000

This is what they look like when I’m not peeking quite so much.

It seems that for me, at least, peeking leads to lower quality pictures but still I find them interesting to look at.

(Guitar Update: Guitar Sensei has me working on some basic finger patterns on the fretboard. I’m still at the getting-to-know-you stage. I have the self assigned task of learn to get from C to G chord and back again. My fingers are a lot tougher than they were. I can do scales pretty well too. I’m still settling down to my favorite kind of pick, and I find practicing standing up easier than practicing sitting down.)

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/photo-challenges/peek/

Ghoulish Painting

Featured Artists, Uncategorized

Okay, here’s my idea of a ghoul – done in MyPaint. He looks like he’s about to go after a grave or two. Just a simple sketch but sometimes simple is best. To any readers, have a happy Halloween!

As usual, here is a roundup of everything I drew for InkTober. This year I didn’t get nearly as much done as last year, but then again last year I wasn’t being trained as a claims analyst! That takes quite a bit of skull sweat.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/ghoulish/

Did somebody say fluffy?

Jokes and Humor

Ohai. I, Nezumi, have taken over the blog again. You see, this is one of my favorite words. Fluff. Fluffy. Or better yet, FLOOFY.

Mom, you see, keeps building up her Guitar Fingers and isn’t typing as much. She keeps playing with the Twangy Thing. I help by occupying her chair so she has more practice standing up while playing, and sometimes by sitting on her book so it can stay open to the right page. She says she can’t read through my butt. I wonder what she means? She also keeps making these odd noises with the Twangy Thing and naming them with letters. C, G, E, F, D, things like that. I don’t care about letters unless G stands for Gooshy Food. It helps me stay nice and fluffy!

Today I’ll share with you all my favorite pictures of my own fluffy self.

See? Even my paws are fluffy.

Here is my amazingly fluffy belly. I’m being Unicorn Cat.

Now I’m in Super Extra Fluffy Mode.

Now I’m guarding the house against bugs. This is my favorite sunbeam. Still fluffy.

And now I’ll go back to “helping” Mom with her blog, once her fingers recover.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/fluff/

Wild Orange

Photography

On my recent zoo trip and photo spree, I saw all kinds of orange things. Flowers, birds, a butterfly, a rather orange camel, the list goes on. Here’s a break from Inktober, and some of the things I saw.

The zoo had several bushes of these – I’m unsure what type of flower they are.

Let’s play Find The Butterfly…

A Malaysian tiger. “Are you sure you got my good side?” I have clearer pictures but I love this pose.

The giraffes were very, very relaxed. There was a Giraffe Encounter where you could pay a little money to feed them a carrot stick and some lettuce. I did that and discovered giraffe tongues, aside from being very long and dexterous, are also blue!

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/orange/