Sam's got skills.

Today, we headed to Limantour Beach. As we drove through Point Reyes Station, Sam noticed a surf shop and asked if he could buy (with his own money) a skimboard. And thus started Sam's skimboarding career. He went from novice to quite skilled in a few hours (way more than I would have learned in one day.) Unfortunately, we forgot the camera at home; however, I am sure we will take many skimboarding trips in the near future. But to tide you over... SKIMBOARD!

Blankets

Mary posted about a book she just recently finished, The Hummingbird's Daughter (unrelated to my last post). It has inspired me to post about an "illustrated novel" I just finished: Blankets by Craig Thompson. Some major themes include: the Midwest winter, growing up in a Fundamentalist Christian home, brotherhood, divorce, becoming your own person, memories ... and especially romantic love (that first 'real one').

I had seen this book many times in reading about "great graphic novels," but always passed because I was mostly reading things of a more action/adventure vein (such as the Emperor Joker {so-so} and Naruto 2 {really fun} books I am also reading. And for those concerned about me reading only comics, I am also reading Teacher Man by Frank McCourt right now. Thanks, Mary.)

Anyway, I finally ordered Blankets as a gift to myself for the teaching thing. I got through the 600 pages in 2 evenings + a 3AM awakening this morning. It knocked me out. This book tells a story that could not be told in any other way. The black & white line art is peerless in its ability to touch the heart. The book has no strong plot, just a memoir of events. My favorite part of reading Blankets was that there were things which I could not relate to at all, but he takes you there perfectly ... and then there are the things that you recognize from your own life, from growing up (fortunately not the brothers peeing on each other) and Thompson brings you back there with such simple lines.

Fabulous, Beautiful, Touching, Important, Human in so many ways.

hummingbirds

hummingbird 1

So these pictures aren't great ... but they were taken with such little effort. As I was installing a graphics card on Sam's computer, I was watching this hummingbird perched in a tree looking around. I grabbed the camera and snapped a few shots through the window while I sat at the desk.

When we first moved here, we loved the hummingbirds ... but we loved everything. It was all so new and different and beautiful. Now that a year+ has passed, we have come to appreciate them even more. First of all, they migrate so they were gone for the past several months. We experienced life without them ... which is not as nice as life with them. Second, we are getting used to the weather as well as the pine trees and Ring Mountain in the backyard. (Still amazed and loving all these things ... just no longer "stunned by them.") Therefore the hummingbirds are more apparent in their singularity, rather than part of the overall environment.

Their songs, chattering, their darting around, their playful fight for territory is so much fun. However, I am most amazed with just watching them perched on our pines. They are such constant bundles of movement that a still hummingbird seems to be some strange treat to the eyes.

I'll probably try to get some truly "good" pics of the hummingbirds for Flickr... but these everyday shots are what I appreciate about our home.

Another #2

(Stop laughing at the post title Eric.)


Young Cameron with Cap and Gown

I noticed that the #2 is playing a role in my posts lately. Well, again I have a #2... I am switching careers to the #2 job in America (according to CNN/Money): a college professor.

Really, I should steal the title from Mary's blog: It's finally happening. She picked that title because she thought she was titling her post about moving to California, something she has wanted to do since second grade. Well, I've been wanting to teach for at least the past 15 years, so this is pretty kick-ass.

I am going to start teaching advertising strategy/account planning at the Academy of Art University in the city. I know right? Me, an art school professor. Very cool.

This thing is a pretty big passion of mine. I am still a bit dumbfounded by the fact that it is coming together and I will be doing something I really, really love.

Anyway, I am pooped (seriously Eric, stop) from a trip to Austin (my last for work) and telling all the really great people at Haggin that I am leaving.

Oh, that's another thing. This teaching thing will free-up the opportunity for me to do some freelancing. I am going to concentrate on doing this teaching thing first... then I will start doing some work with Haggin again, because they really do rock ... then we'll see. The shingle will go out. I'll probably launch my freelancing off Instantly Understandable... make that my mantra.

More later (when I'm feeling better ... I think flying is starting to mess with my sinuses), but I wanted to make the "big announcement."

1 + 1 = 3

Just last night I finished Making Comics and the 1955-56 Collection of Peanuts in preparation for my trip today to the Charles Schultz Museum to hear Scott McCloud speak (as mentioned earlier).

The drive sucked. From to Tiburon to Santa Rosa is supposed to take like 45 minutes ... it took at least 90. Construction, car wrecks, wine country tourists... ugh. This sign to the museum was a great visual representation of the path to the museum.
But how can you stay grumpy walking into this?
My first exposure to Peanuts was of course Sunday comics and the TV shows. I didn't really do the dailies. While the Sundays and TV are incredibly lovely and quite touching ... they don't get to the heart of these characters that "Sparky" Schultz created in the dailies. My first exposure to the dailies was reading "Here Comes Snoopy," an old paperback collection of Snoopy comics from the mid 50's. I read this as a young teenager; I was amazed by how much I really liked these strips. They were SO funny and smart ... and really perceptive on the human condition. It was kind of freaky. However, for some reason I never picked up more Peanuts.

Then recently Mary mentioned that Sam was having a lot of fun reading Peanuts at a bookstore here. I had seen the really fine looking collected works, so I bought a few. WOW. Peanuts is darker and emotionally deeper than generally perceived to be. And Snoopy is freaking hilarious! The read was a perfect set-up to my visit to the museum. Where I could enjoy the kite stuck in the tree gag seen below (with my Charlie Brown stamped hand):
The museum was fun. Taking a peek into the work and life of Charles Schultz. Then there was the juxtaposition with Schultz's work and "the smartest man in comics," Scott McCloud:
I had to grab this pic with the quote. It was a great discussion of like 20 of us in an "education room." He shared his general ideas from Making Comics, the trip, some brilliant remarks about "Story" and how he feels "character desire" drives story more than "conflict," hanging out with Neil Gaiman stories, advice that Alaska is a MUST and that you should drive there, the importance of passion and being singular in subject. Incredibly worthwhile.

He signed my book, which rocks. Like many of my cool discoveries, I first heard about this tour on Boing Boing. Like my last post, I was intrigued on the angle of sharing the experience with his family, especially his two young daughters. Winter talked about being Neil Gaiman's snow princess and provided wonderful non sequitur outbursts. I appreciated how the down to earth feel fit the persona from the books. Good stuff!

It's almost over...

Sam and Mary start school next week. Our first full summer in California is nearly complete. Of course the really warm weather is just starting for us. (My trip to Austin next week will remind me that the previous statement is strictly relative.)

Videos like this one are why the internet is a fabulous, fabulous thing... I think I might spend the next hour watching great old Jazz clips. Later.

We're #2! We're #2!

Both the Coaches' Poll and Sport's Illustrated see LSU as the #2 team in the country in preseason rankings...

Their DEFENSE looks terrifying...

Oh and Eric ... I'm thinking I could come visit the twins somewhere around October 6th??

Flickr Fan

Sharing.

I recently got my first manga book: Naruto. I read the first chapter and really enjoyed it. Reading a book from right to left is a unique experience; breaking trained inclinations- renavigating. I had left the book on the table, and Sam picked it up this evening (having already gotten the "This is an acceptable Sam comic" approval.) He is currently enjoying it as I type this. I was trying to remember where the recommendation came from, and figured it must be Boing Boing ... I was right.

However, I had forgotten that the post was about sharing between a child and parent. Sam and I have enjoyed using comics to have a shared experience & language. We have especially connected on Bone, Mouse Guard and Astonishing X-Men. And then there's Get Fuzzy. (None of this competes with Sam and Mary's shared Harry Potter experience, of course). This is no surprise. When I first met Sam almost 4 years ago, he asked if I wanted to play a Lord of the Rings board game. I knew we would hit it off. Today, he also showed me how he can fight with 2 wolves in Titan Quest ... and he even challenged me to chess, checkers and HORSE (which he won!) Good fun. Some times I really wish Sam had a sibling to play with (NOT HAPPENING, btw), but days like today make me glad that I don't have to share his company so much.

(As you can see, Sam's school field is getting some renovations ... don't think he will get much field time this year.)

Another blog

So, I have been wanting to separate the blog some. I've been thinking about this for a while now.

Sharing about life and such will live here on cameronmaddux.com

Sharing about communications, culture and those interesting "work" and "account planning" things will live on a new blog. I needed a place for this stuff.

www.instantlyunderstandable.com

Anyway, still figuring this out. But, it is starting.

Swimming Allowed

sweethearts in Bass Lake

One of the few complaints about the bay area is, "where do you swim?" The ocean requires a wetsuit and everything else is PROTECTED. We have had some luck at Tomales Bay. This time we decided to hit the Palomarin part of the Coastal Trail again and check out Bass Lake, one of the few swimming lakes in the area.

Bass Lake is interesting. You can have the lake to yourself, or it can be crowded, and given the limited shoreline and bowl acoustics ... crowded is seriously crowded. If the water is warm ... chances are the hike will be hot ... if the hike is cool, then the lake will follow suit. Will it be covered in fog? maybe. Is it a good destination for everyone ... not really. Ask poor Sam who hiked the full 3 miles out to the lake to discover it was just too cold to spend longer than about 10 minutes swimming for him.

Personally, I loved it. We had a nice hike and a good swim around; definitely a great way to get some family exercise (and we left just as the crowd started showing.) Flickr Set.

Robots and Monsters

Sneaky Pete

I was lucky enough to be one of the many people who found Joe Alterio's incredible Robots and Monsters project in May. Since it had been Boing Boing'ed, I knew we would need to jump fast before it got slammed with too many requests. It was an easy enough family activity:

First, do we want a monster or robot? Put to a vote ... Monster won.

Second, what are our three words? We each picked one:
1. Dog
2. Thorny
3. Puzzled

Then we dropped an extra $5 into Joe's paypal account for his supplies/postage. And now we wait.

I have been having a blast waiting. Why? Because I enjoy looking at all the other creations on his Flickr. (Above: Sneaky Pete - Robot: "Deceptive, earth-toned, molten").

Artists, fun, charity, incremental donations, support ... these are good things.

I'll be sure to share our creation when we get it, but I recommend perusing Joe's other creations, in the meantime. Good stuff.

What's going on.

So, what is going on? I haven't been blogging much.

Kinda busy, kinda preoccupied, kinda thinking about stuff, but not ready to express it. Just stewing.

I have kept my Flickr going. And my Shelfari. I have been enjoying reading the Scott McCloud books lately. I will definitely visit him on tour at the Charles Schultz Museum. I am reading some of that great mid-50s Peanuts to further excite me about the visit.

I need to write about my attendance at the Tufte seminar. It was incredible. I need time to gather thoughts. I decided to do that event, rather than make a push for the planning conference (although I really would have enjoyed hearing Ken Robinson's speech (and here)... such a fan of his).

It is so much fun hearing passionate people talk about what they are passionate about. Seriously, wouldn't you rather see a passionate speaker talk about their passion in a subject you don't care about, than a disinterested speaker talking about one of your passions?

Well, not if like the person was some freak who was passionate about running over kittens ... and the boring person was like Carlos Zambrano talk about baseball. But you know what I mean.

Creating passionate speakers. We need more of this.