Thanks for Five Years

so much thanks!

Five years ago I had just arrived in Baton Rouge from New Orleans.  I was eighty miles away and a 31 year year old freshman in college at a big ol'state university.  I missed my friends. I wanted to do well in school, and moreso, I wanted to use all the great stuff at my disposal.  But how would I find time to write to all the people I loved most?

the first moht of keep writing! and still one of my favorites

And so I started Keep Writing.  Maybe you know this story. I sent out a postcard to fifty friends, to see if anyone was interested.  The first months included a few creative ways of making postcards without letterpress or silkscreen--lots of sewing, color copies and handcarved stamps. Luckily I got a key to the letterpress studio soon after the 4th month.

keep writing number 56!

This month marks five years of sending a monthly postcard to friends and strangers who have asked for it.  The past 2 1/2 years have included an interactive portion where you get to send something back to me.  Like the month I gave you a Venn Diagram to fill out and send back.  It's been super fun, a monthly challenge and full of surprises.  So, to thank you, you can renew your subscription (or sign up!) for the month of November for whatever you can afford from $5 to $30 (the regular price is $30 for a year). Email your payment through paypal to gutwrenchhope@gmail.com . Don't forget to include your mailing address!  Thanks y'all!  Now if I can get 800 more subscribers, I can quit my day jobs and spent all my time making mail!

Work and Play

The warmer weather and brighter days are great motivators.  Even these flowers, after a long restful winter have decided to bloom.

I have been printing days at Painted Tongue Press in Oakland, and then coming home to print postcards.  Don't worry, I also have been rewatching Twin Peaks with friends, finding secret garden spots near tourist attractions with Andy and eating very well. 

But spring is a great time for a million ideas.  Like: let's have a print show to share the work of our lovely friends, and make an excuse to play prince songs all night in our backyard.

Can you see the secret?

Because spring ups the idea-maker in my brain, I find its best to take notes.  I have a lot of lists.  And yet, when I need to map out a new postcards, my "plan" is barely decipherable by me.  Here is next month's postcard for you--"revealed".

Old cut becomes polymer plate

Ha!  Even this peek at a plate on the press doesn't give away much.  I will tell you I handset some type in our garage studio while listening to music, courtesy of Ben's giant ipod dock.

our other speakers broke

Do you see why I don't often leave the house.  You better come over. (May 10 6-11 Prince/Prints  show.  buy a print! support an artist and a puppy!)

Making Stuff

Lucky for me, John Fitzgerald of Fitzgerald Letterpress agreed to give a demonstration about how to operate a Heidelberg Windmill, which is motorized press with a mesmerizing arm motion. Also, it is the favored press among small, artisan letterpress shops. It seemed like a good idea that I know how to use it or, at least recognize how it operates. Unfortunately, I have no photos of that or of the fried green tomatoes and poached eggs with grits I ate while talking shop with John and Kathryn. But John is also generous enough to share his shop with me for 2 days so I can print the next Keep Writing before leaving for California. I set type for hours this afternoon and am very excited to see how it looks on paper, or chipboard as it may be. Notice the lack of straight set type...all handset at angles.

I came home from the shop, hungry and anxious about cross-country house hunting. I made a drink with one of these lovelies, vodka infused with lavender and one with elderberries. I drank the lavender infusion with sparking water and packed the kitchen dishes. You'll have to wait to see the postcards and I hear that y'all are just getting the ones I sent from Spain 2 months ago. Soon, soon I will have an address and a workshop.

Five Ways to Fun

on the ferry from Copenhagen to Oslo

In Oslo, in June, the days are long with light. Even the rainy days. I can't get used to it. Instead, I just think of it as a great chance to do things. Like walk around the Botanical Gardens. Or take a ferry to the Viking Ship Museum in the rain. No swimming and I don't have photos yet from Oslo so I will spend today's extra daylight catching up.

I only made it to one museum in Barcelona, the Joan Miro Institute. The audio guide drowned out the tour groups and I spent a while looking at fun colorful abstracted art. And I mailed Keep Writing number 42. I need to post images of the last two postcards and these are the last ones sent from Europe. I'm on real vacation now (with some worrying about the future for good measure)so I am taking next month off. Expect number 43 when I get home in August. Before I move again.

paris

I wish I had photos of the smoke machines at Hellfest watching my friends on stage under strobe lights but we barely slept and suddenly Andy and I were in Paris, 8 floors up looking at the spires of Notre Dame. We walked circles around cafes, ate fancy vegan food, drank expensive drinks and left to meet up with other friends.

Berlin, again was a quiet whirl of leisurely meals, long talks over drinks and bike rides. Our last day, we went to Templehof Park, a former airport. I meant to go last time I visited and never made it. We sat the garden spaces there and watched windsurfers leap into the air.

don't do it lil bird!

North! To Copenhagen, diverse city of fancy old buildings and elaborate squats. Also, I realized there is little I know about Danish history and could not refute a tour guide's claims that Denmark brought fear and terror to the shores of Europe. What do I really know about the Vikings? Nothing like a totally foreign place to remind you of all the things there are to know. Like not to eat boxes labelled "corrosive". Oh little birdy.

Sunday Funday

my new desk 

Why didn't I think of this sooner? Today, I stole the ironing board out of our hallway to make a desk for myself where I don't have to lean over so much. I can use a real chair! We don't have an iron anyway so no one will miss it. You'd think with this exciting new development, I would sit and do my homework. Nope. Too nice outside. I went on a hunt for Milanese public art.

Maurizio Cattelan L.O.V.E. 

 And here it is. In front of the Milan stock exchange for the past 18 months is this 11 foot tall marble middle finger. Notice how the other fingers are broken off. And how the stock exchange is flipping us off. Thanks, free market.

Strawbita, Keep Writing #40 

 I have finally posted Keep Writing number 40 if, for some reason, you want to see a photo of it but are not interested in receiving cards. It is seven pm and still soooo sunny and clear, and not hot. In three weeks, I can travel at my leisure. Until then, a little more book learning.

from the Krewe of Rice and Beans, New Orleans, via Andy G.

With Apologies to Ruggero Maggi

Last night, after spilling a cup of tea, I finally cleaned off my desk so I can use my laptop on it instead of the kitchen table. I also finally sorted through the mail pile and found TWO unopened letters. Oops. Including this map sent to me from Ruggero Maggi, an artist from Milan who was kind enough to send his response a month before my show. I also organized my letter-writing materials so maybe I will sit at this nice window and write you a letter.



For Christmas, my awesome sister sent me and Andy this jigsaw postcard. Of course, she was always better at puzzles than I, and the envelope arrived in pieces, as it was supposed to. Completed, one side is a letter, the other is this image of these creepy mail cats. Thanks Sis!

Game On!

Phew! After a whirl-wind weekend trip to Tennessee to see my 95 year-old grandma, I am back. I sold out of two datebooks in two days before I left but my etsy shop is back up, online and stocked.



Along with getting ready for my show (less than 2 weeks!), and eating meals with Andy, I have been getting things together for my 4 months in Italy. There will be postcards from Italy so if you have a subscription to Keep Writing, you will continue to receive postcards. I am working out exactly how it will all work, but there will be some letterpress, and some other media. As of February 1 I will no longer have a "permanent" address but my sister has so graciously agreed to let me use hers. Stay tuned. I am going to try to focus on the present while eating candy cane oreos. Thanks to Daniel for this photo of his room displaying his collection of Keep Writing postcards!



Also, if you were looking for past postcards because you missed out on the first few years, Ms. Valerie Park Distro has purchased all the remaining cards and is selling them in assorted packs of ten. I assembled them so I know you get ten different cards in each pack!

Anonymous

The New Orleans Bookfair, tenth anniversary edition, was a success! One block of Chartres Street was closed to traffic, open only to pedestrians, and to one dude who didn't read the signs about the street closure. We watched him nearly back into our table, get out of a tight parking space and make a mom move her baby stroller out of the way so he could go uptown. Regardless, it was good to see lots of friends, sell zines and books, and spend the day with Ella, Rebecca and Becca. New Orleans folks got their postcards first this month, but the rest went in the mail yesterday. I will have a close up for you tomorrow. They are the show announcements for my senior show. Mark your calendars: Saturday December 3 from 7-10 pm at the Ephemeral Gallery in Baton Rouge. One night only.



This month's postcard is s request for a self-portrait, so that I can include your smiling facing in my show and give you, as contributors, credit. I have received my first response and it is...anonymous. But charming. I should be able to figure it out, right?



In case I didn't have enough to do, I will also be sitting in front of the LSU student union next week as part of the print club's Print Sale! Held in conjunction with the more organized and highly anticipated CASA Ceramics Sale, we printmakers will have blank books, handmade paper, cards, t-shirts and of course, prints, all made by LSU students for sale. Stop by! Half the proceeds help us bring visiting artists and maybe will help us go stay in New Orleans during the Southern Graphics Convention in the spring. The Print Sale will be November 14-17th, 9 am-5pm.

P.S. No cookie photos though I made lavender shortbread last week and I just took sweet potato blondies out of the oven for tomorrow. Both of these smell better than they look. Yum.

Busy Busy

I was starting to feel like I have been in the studio for twelve hours a day daily and not getting anything done. Sort of like running in waist-high water. But no! Here are things to share. First, I made these bookmarks for my friends in Circle Takes the Square, who are about to head out on tour. I made the paper with high-quality paper scraps, some abaca fiber, and embedded with bits from the magnetic tape with which they recorded their new album, Decompositions I.



Hopefully everyone has received Keep Writing number 34 because here it is. On handmade paper. The letterpress looks so good on it too, if I don't say so myself.
This postcard is a recipe card. Hopefully folks send some good recipes because I want to use some of them as refreshments at my Senior Show, Saturday November 5 at the Ephemeral Gallery in Baton Rouge. And Why Are We Building Such A Big Ship will be playing. Thanks, friends. See you there.

In the Mail

Yahoo! October postcards are in the mail. Keep Writing number 34 is printed in two colors on handmade recycled paper. But you'll have to wait a few days before I show them to you so the recipients can see them first. Now I can watch Twin Peaks.

Yet Another Saturday Night

How can you make everything hinge on a moment? My brain and body are working against logic right now so it's no coffee and no complex sentences. Which is going to make essay writing difficult. Meanwhile, there is this lovely pile of postcards on my coffee table awaiting addresses. I somehow forgot to mention on them that they are printed on handmade paper recycled from fancy paper scraps. It is soft pink and lovely to letterpress onto, once I was sure they were consistent enough and not harming the type. Also in the photo are three rolls of washi tape, because I have not decided on which to use.



Earlier this week I made these chai spice shortbread cookies with chocolate chips. We moved our outdoor table around the corner of the house and suddenly it is more inviting. Also, thanks to "autumn" it is now possible to comfortably breathe while sitting in the sun. Things are pretty good around here.

Not Ahead At All

Ha ha. Sometime in this past week I thought, maybe I am not behind in my work. Tonight I stayed home out of tired- and cranky- ness and realized while posting this that this first photo is of coffee cake I made last week. Persimmons on top because it is fake fall here, but yes, I've been busy.




I finally printed and mailed all 143 Keep Writing postcard number 33. I think most people have received theirs so I will post the photo of the whole card soon. The handmade paper is ready and I have a plan for number 34. No typesetting. Maybe, just maybe it will be on time.




Also last week I received the Current Even Print Exchange prints and they look lovely. I had intentions of posting some of my favorites and instead this is the note that came with my package. My print is shown below. It depicts the first African-American LSU undergrad who was harassed until he dropped out. He recently received an honorary degree from LSU.





I will try and keep up. I am about to make paper for a Circle Takes The Square bookmark. I am sewing up prints for my final show, making things to sell at the New Orleans Bookfair, talking to someone about building a website for me because apparently, you can't make it our of paper,and I sort of quit one of my jobs so maybe, maybe I can get all this done before December.

Labor Indeed

Tropical Storm Lee has moms all over the midwest worrying, but here in Baton Rouge, we are lucky. The rain wasn't too heavy for too long and mostly what we are getting is a lovely and cool Labor Day weekend. No camping or beach this week, but a good chance to post all the things I have been meaning to, like these postcards I printed almost 2 years ago with Ella's help.



Also, to motivate myself a little, I made these chocolate-almond cinnamon rolls (vegan of course) to share with friend at our pre-studio brunch. We both made it to the studio and I made two batches of pulp, including this lovely blue made from scraps.



At 8 pm I was back in the print shop, drinking coffee and preparing for a few hours of drawing and sewing when I was invited over for dinner. So much for the drawing but 8 hours is still a good day of work, I mean, it is what Labor Day is all about. So I left to meet up with other studio art friends and a pile a eggplant parmesan for a full night of fun. Now back to the studio today to sheet that pulp!

Lady vs. Machine

So the postcards are "late" every month because I set deadlines for myself that no one else notices. Some times I have excuses. Like how when I went to expose a screen for the first layer of this month's postcard, the exposure unit would not turn on. A bummer for me but something to cause my professor a whole lotta cursing as it was the first day of classes. The situation is temporarily resolved for the shop and Blackbird Letterpress, my employer and print-guardian angel, added my image to their order for a polymer plate. I should be able to pick it up soon as I finish this post.



However, in the dark room mess, my professor found my coated screen after he turned on the lights, with the transparency taped to it so we exposed it on my studio desk. I think it is a little over exposed but we'll see if we need/want another layer when I go to print this weekend. So, no later than usual and Ms. Ella D. has offered her assistance in addressing cards. Which may be more helpful than the hours of Glee I watched in June while writing addresses.



The sun is hesitant today but yesterday it shone through my new bottle of blueberry kombucha and made it the most beautiful thing in the world. I experimented, adding mashed organic blueberries to the tea and it came out lovely. A little tart, a little sweet, a little somethin'. Now I must go show my appreciation for the letterpress shop and show up for work.

Million Dollar Books

Somehow it is noon on a day in mid-August in South Louisiana and we have all the windows open and the air conditioner is off. I might even leave the house this afternoon. I think it rained yesterday, clearing the air, but I am not sure where the smothering humidity went. And I am not complaining. It is lovely outside and school starts in a week.



Here is Keep Writing no.32 as promised. Two shots. This month it is actually three postcards, one for you with my new address, one with a love letter to the USPS stamped and addressed to the Postmaster General, and a postcard for you to send back to me with your description of your favorite form of communication, real or a plan for the post-internet world.



August has been slow all around which has given me and Blackbird Letterpress a chance to get a bunch of printing done for our letterpress datebooks. If only I hadn't miscounted somewhere along the way by 1/3. Good job. Anyway, the back pages were done while waiting for the new shipment of paper to correct my mistake. We also had a chance to bind a few practice ones and they are cuter than we could've known. Worth the wait, I hope.

The Baton Rouge We Wish For

A few months ago I came home and this was on my desk--Andy's dream Baton Rouge. As football season heaves its way through the summer heat and I try to prepare for school and its crowds, at least I have a vision for something else. I finally posted more responses to Keep Writing # 28 I've been hesitant due to some technical issues but I think this is still the best format I have to share these, unless you will be here in December. I will try and post more soon before school starts.
Until then, here is another of my favorites, Alec's map of Marigny Street, the same block I made my screen print of. Same street, different view.

Sneak Peak

Lots of good things going in the mail lately. This is corner of one side of my print for the Current Event Print Exchange hosted by Walker Mettling and Emmy Bright in Providence. I am excited to show them off but it is no fair to show you before the other exchangees get theirs. Also, I realized after they were all packaged up that I think mine is crooked, maybe the paper isn't cut straight.


Today 120 postcards went in the mail, Keep Writing Number 32. Again, you only get to see a little to the patient folks get theirs the old fashioned way. Meanwhile, school starts in two weeks. I thought I was ready until I realized all the things I still want to do.