Judy – Page 69 – Dear Liza

Garden Journals for Spring

Dear Liza,

We are coming up on spring, and I am making my garden journal for this year. At the end of this month I will be pulling the burlap off my garden plot in the Blair Community Garden, and I want to be ready to write it all down!

Besides the usual encouragement from Ruth Inman and Bridgett Spicer, I am using “Making Books by Hand” by Mary McCarthy and Philip Manna as a guide.

First, I used the heavy backing of sketch pads for my covers, and layered some thinner tagboard with Mod Podge to make the spine. I glued these down to a nice canvas fabric, put a pile of books on them, and went for a walk. The canvas allows the heavy covers to bend properly.

When the spine was dry I covered the cover with some pretty paper, mitering the corners and folding them inside.

While these dried, I cut the paper for the pages. Each signature, or group of pages, takes four sheets of paper, folded in half. I gave them a nice sharp crease with the edge of my metal ruler.

I used a trick from Ruthie to make my measuring device for where to put the stitches in the signatures. A strip of paper as long as my pages are high, folded in half, then each end folded to the center, makes a perfect guide for three holes without nit-picky measuring.

Poking the holes through all the pages with a steel artist’s tack before you sew makes everything easier. Sew the four sheets of each signature together with a strong thread.

I made five signatures because the spine of my book was wide enough to accommodate them. This will be my thickest book yet!

Again, use the steel tack to poke holes for each sewing point. Then sew each signature into the spine with a heavy thread. I used embroidery floss. This is a bit fiddly, but you will get better with practice.

The trickiest bit is making the knot tight. This is easier if you have a friend put their finger on the knot for you while you pull it tight. Trim the ends of the thread short.

Once the signatures are sewn in, apply glue thinly to each of the inside covers and lay the first and last pages against them, pressing the air bubbles out so they are smooth. This will stabilize the book and hold everything together. Put weights on these and wait a few hours.

The last step is to cover the inside covers with pretty paper. Press these flat and let everything dry overnight.

And there it is, my Garden Journal for this year! C’mon, Spring!

Love,

Grandma Judy

GiftyKitty

Dear Liza,

There is a new store here in Portland, and Auntie Bridgett took me to see it!

Clody Cates and her business partner Larry host this visually delightful shop at 3719 North Mississippi Avenue in North Portland. GiftyKitty is a labor of love that was conceptualized and designed by Clody, and their tagline, “Changing the world one cat at a time” cracks me up.

I was impressed, first, by the largest features of the decor. The giant Alice in Wonderland-style house along the back wall gives the whole place a fabulous air of silliness.

The wonderful manzanita shelving, built by Oakland based designer Cameron Kephart, is wonky and perfect. Cameron also worked closely with Clody on the design and creation of the whole space, as well as the up-cycled glass and wood displays that hold more treasures.

Then, I got to focus on the delights of the treasures themselves and was stunned by the variety and quality of them. There were large glass mosaics, aprons, paintings, carvings, and books, mostly made by local artists.

We saw old friends from the SideStreet Arts Gallery. Painted plaques by Amelia Opie…..

…cute stuffed critters by Alicia Justus….

….. and book art by Melody Bush.

New (to me) artists included Nicola Turville and

Jenny Rideout, who upcycles fabric and makes everything more interesting!

Needless to say, we will be going back to GiftyKitty, especially now that they are carrying Auntie Bridgett’s buttons, cards and art!

I will take you when you come to visit!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Bird Drama

Dear Liza,

I’ve told you about all the crows we have here in Portland. While there seem to be more crows than anything else, they do not rule the sky, and this seems to irritate them.

On a bright, near-freezing walk the other day, we got to see some proper bird drama. A tiny dog being walked by her owner disturbed a hawk lurking in a small tree. The hawk and took off and at least 20 crows ( I might even call it a Mass Murder) swooped around the elm tree where the hawk settled.

As we watched, the hawk took off from the limb and circled the neighborhood, menaced by the crows. One by one, the valiant smaller birds would swoop in and peck at the hawk, letting it know, in no uncertain terms, that it was NOT welcome.

After a few minutes the hawk settled again, in the very top of a fir tree. Again it was attacked by the crows but seemed unmoved. By this time our feet had begun to freeze and our ears ached, so we said farewell to the drama and headed toward Zach’s, where yummy hot dogs and french fries awaited us.

Such goings on!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Scenes from the Chilly Sunshine

Dear Liza,

Last week we had weird weather, for Portland. It was near freezing most every night and rarely above 40 during the day, but it was blindingly bright. There was, literally, not a cloud in the sky.

Knowing it couldn’t last, we went for walks everyday, soaking up the vitamin D as well as we could through scarves and fluffy hats.

We saw cats out enjoying the sunshine.

New Tiny Free Libraries appeared, with nice messages as well as books.

Shop windows created fun reflections.

And in our favorite tavern The Belmont Station, wonderful murals celebrate the origins of our local beers.

And that’s only on one walk!!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Making a New Kind of Book Part 2

Dear Liza,

We got to finish the Concertina books! Weeks ago, Ruth Inman’s Tuesday Thursday Art group started painting black and white pages in this weird, accordion shaped book.

Once we had the black and white backgrounds down, Ruthie let us in on the next step. We would be painting a tree on each two-page spread, and each tree would show a different season.

I started with Fall, and I wasn’t happy with it at first. The background I had laid down included some very bumpy cheesecloth, which didn’t allow the ink to go down smoothly. It was a real wrestling match, but I decided to let it ride for the moment.

We continued on into winter, which went much smoother because the page itself was smoother. The ink was able to run freely and make some nice bare branches.

While I was waiting for the paint to dry, I covered the covers with some of the nifty Paris map fabric I bought to make Auntie Bridgett’s Christmas present.

For the third page, I watered down some acrylic paint for the bare branches. Using a small brush and a straw and tipping the paper, I got it to move the way I wanted.

Then yellow, blue and some white got dabbed on to make the summer fullness of the tree.

When it was time for the class to all put our books together, my Spring page still wasn’t done, but that’s okay. I can paint it later. We all got the covers, glue media and scrapers, and went at it.

The fold-y bend-y parts kept folding and bending, but I managed to not make a mess of it. Now that it is all flat and dried, I feel pretty proud of it. My adventures in book making continue!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Inspiration from Everywhere

Dear Liza,

When I was teaching, we talked a lot about creating ”life-long learners. In talking with the students I have kept in touch with, I see that I was mostly successful. And I was very successful in becoming one myself.

Since I have been retired, I have had lots of time to learn new things.

I have studied the histories of Paris and Portland, The Monarchs of France and England, How to write mysteries, and The history and structure of Broadway Musicals..

The inspiration to learn something new can come from anywhere. A random “Why on Earth…?” can lead me down a internet and library rabbit hole for a week or more.

And sometimes the inspiration comes from you, Liza. Our Sunday Evening Art Zooms give me reason to draw something I normally wouldn’t, and stretch me a bit.

I have drawn Anime characters while you told me their stories and then drawn a robot and then made up a story about him. And everytime, I learn something new about faces, or color, or composition.

Keep learning!

Love,

Grandma Judy

Early Bloomers

Dear Liza,

It is still cold here in Portland. Some nights get down close to freezing, and the days aren’t much about 40 degrees. But the sun is out some afternoons, and the rain seems to be waking up the early bloomers.

Snowdrops are usually first, of course. They will even come up through a good layer of snow (hence their name) . This year, they just need to deal with very wet feet.

My favorites, though, are some we have right on our own patio. Daphnes are evergreen bushes that bloom from January to May and smell wonderful. They are planted all around our building and make stepping outside a treat.

They are pretty year-round, but really earn their keep in late winter. I’m sure the bees, who will start being active soon, appreciate these sweet nibbles.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Squirrel Appreciation Day

Dear Liza,

Last Friday was Squirrel Appreciation Day! I know, I hadn’t heard of it, either. But any reason to have a special day in chilly January is good enough for me.

We took some peanuts on our walk to the market and left them along the fences. And for the most special part, we stopped at these small squirrel statues in front of some apartments, and we left more nuts there.

I know some people don’t like squirrels, and with reason. They chew on wires, nest in attics, and have no understanding of personal boundaries. But I’ve never had a problem with them. I’ve even re-written one of my favorite songs from Mary Poppins to honor our nutsy friends.

FEED THE SQUIRRELS

We feed the squirrels, a peanut or two

Though some folks don’t always like what they do.

Yes, we feed the squirrels,

Those fluffy- tailed squires

While overhead they run on the wires

BRIDGE:

All around our great city

They hop and they scamper

They hide behind ev-ry tree

They mate in your attic and nibble your drywall

But they always seem cheerful to me…..

So, feed the squirrels, that’s what I say

Their antics will always brighten my day

Yes, feed the squirrels, that’s what you should do,

Walnuts, or acorns, or a peanut or two.

I hope you enjoy whatever the day brings you.

Love,

Grandma Judy

Burgers at Sunset

Dear Liza,

Thursday was a slow day for me. I didn’t have much energy and felt a little sad most of the day.

I had my art class with Ruth Inman, and we worked on our concertina books.
We laid down some more black and white collage, and then added a tree, dabbing on color for the fall leaves.

I am not very happy with my tree at the moment. It looks clunky and wrong, but Auntie Bridgett says I should let it sit for a few days. Sometimes a piece that turns out differently than you expected looks ‘bad’ because it doesn’t match what was in your mind. So I will let it be and figure it out later.

I did language practice in the afternoon and then Bridgett suggested that we all go for a walk to Monster Smash, our favorite burger place. It was just about 5:00 and warm (and dry) for January, so we headed off. The sky was so pretty and the neighborhood so pleasant, it made me forget about not liking the tree for a while.

Maybe I’ll have another look at it tomorrow.

Love,

Grandma Judy

It’s a Rainy Day

Dear Liza,

I watched a lot of Sesame Street when I was younger. Not as a child, I’m too old for that! But when I was working in Day Care Centers and doing Day Care myself, the day usually started and ended with Big Bird, Bob, Susan, and the rest of the neighborhood.

Besides keeping kids occupied and educated, it got me started learning sign language. But it was really the music that sticks with me.

In Portland, the song I sing to myself most often is ”It’s a Rainy Day.” It goes like this.

“It’s a rainy day, it’s rainy day

It’s raining outside so I can’t go out to play.

Why do we need the rain, any way?”

The verses go on to explain exactly why we need the rain.

“Rain falls everywhere, fills the rivers and streams, flows into the reservoir, it’s purified and cleaned….”

“Water for the forest, millions of thirsty roots,

Water for the flower gardens, vegetables and fruits.”

I sing this when I want to go for a walk but would rather not get soaked. I sing it when I miss the sunshine. And it helps.

I’ll bet thousands of grown ups still know this song from their childhood, but I can’t find out who wrote it! On all the lyric sites, it is listed as ”by Sesame Street”. Maybe it was a group effort, like most good things.

Love,

Grandma Judy