Board Meeting!

I wish I could say I made up the title "Board Meeting," but I didn’t. It’s absolutely everywhere if you Google search paddleboarding.

Yes, I bought a paddleboard. But why, Elina, when you already own a kayak?

Well, I can't move the kayak by myself. You need two people to move one, two people to load one, and two people to unload it when you get to the water. At the start of summer, one of my very good friends purchased a paddleboard and started going out completely ALONE—even though I advised against it! She fell in love and has been going every other weekend.

She finally asked me, "Are you going to get one? You should, because I know you would like it as much as you love your kayak."

In the end, she was right. I think I may actually love it more, simply because I can store it right in my trunk and go whenever I want by myself. Independence is everything!

Like with anything new, you always worry:

• Did I get the right one?
• Did I get the right gear?
• Do I even know what I’m doing?

The answer to all those self-doubting questions is a resounding NO. I have no clue! You just learn as you go, cross your fingers that your board was made well, and hope it lasts at least the rest of the summer.

It is all about getting a board that fits your body. For the most part, it comes down to weight and height, along with how fit you are and what you want to do with it. I knew that my daughter would want to use it to do yoga eventually, so I made sure to purchase one that fits my size, is stable enough for yoga poses, and can fit at least two people.

Did it take me two weeks to find one? Yes. Was it expensive? No. It certainly can be expensive if you go straight for a high-end, premium board, but I knew I just wanted to try it out first.

I purchased a starter board package that came with minimal items:

• Hand pump
• Leak kit
• Wet bag
• Waterproof phone case
• Paddle and backpack storage bag

Of course, I couldn't stop there. I also purchased additional straps, an electric pump (a lifesaver!), and a cup holder. My cup holder didn't arrive in time for my very first trip out, but that was completely fine. My Owala water bottle worked perfectly. And if you didn't know—yes, Owalas actually float!

My Wishlist

There are still a few things I need to round out my setup:

• A waterproof deck bag cooler
• Board handles or a carry strap to get to the launch dock easier
• A cute new wet bag
• A paddle holder for the side of the board
• A detachable chair

Yes, adding a chair basically turns the entire thing right back into a kayak... YES! But again, the key difference is that I can transport this entire setup completely by myself without any assistance.

The place we went had so many paddle boards groups, was calm for the most part and had the feel of community. We stayed out for more then 5 hours just strolling up river exploring.

Now, I am officially hooked ad looking for different locations to explore. I have absolutely no desire to be in the ocean or around any type of rapid, rushing waters. My ultimate goal is to take this board up to Yosemite next year to paddle down the river with view of the falls at each turn.

Until the next board meeting!

Ducks: Two years in the oil sands

 

Let me start by saying that while graphic novels aren't everyone's cup of tea, they are definitely mine. I usually prefer somewhat relatable, everyday storylines. You know, normal, "could-happen-to-anyone" topics—like a group of girls finding a wormhole and traveling to another dimension to save their world, or a virus turning everyone into the walking dead while a group of strangers becomes a family to fight for survival.

I saw this specific book on a "must-read" list and, since I try to add a graphic novel or two to my yearly reading list, I decided to check it out. It happened to be available through my library. SCORE!

I didn't expect it to be as thick as it was, which is strange because it is only about 430 pages. The most amazing part? It’s actually a biography. YES! I love that concept, and the fact that the author illustrated the entire book herself is incredible. Just look at that cover! The illustration of the surroundings on such a vast scale was absolutely phenomenal. Honestly, the artwork alone convinced me to bump my rating from two stars up to a three.

As for the story itself, it was a heavy read. It could be my own naivety about what some women go through, or simply because I have thankfully never had to endure those situations myself. I have never dealt with such unbelievably rude, crude comments, so parts of it were hard for me to wrap my head around.

I truly feel for Kate and all the women who felt they had no choice but to subject themselves to that environment. I just can't fathom how no one warned anyone else, or why it wasn't spoken about until you were right there in the middle of it. Why would you not warn your own sister, of all people? That lack of warning was one of the major reasons I had a hard time processing that this was a reality for the author.

Memorable Quotes:

• "Everything's ruined. Our lives, our lands are ruined... our water, the air, everything."
• "Their almighty dollar comes first. That's pretty sad. You can't eat money."
• "At the cost of our lives—as long as they get their money. They don't care how many of us they kill off."

Ultimately, I still love the concept of a graphic novel biography, but this particular read left me wondering if the medium always works for such heavy, real-world themes.

Whistler by Ann Path

Daphne finds her previous step father after 30 years of his absent not by choice. Realization of what went wrong 30 years ago and how it shaped her. Coming back into her life brings up the past and the realization "life is long and there had been many moves in the years that intervened." (pg. 15). How lost time can be made up, death can be beautiful and the time we have should be made with the ones we love. 

I read this because it was so talked about being a book that would crush you and for me it did that and more. Mostly because it came at a time when I lost my father unexpectedly and some of us are blessed with multiple parents "the problem with having too many parents is having to watch them all die." (pg. 236). This can be a blessing and a curse of balance.

My highlights/quotes/things that moved me:

Page 31: All of life's mistakes were the fault of the mother, all of the suffering.

Page 41: Eddie Triplett had not killed a child, nor would he ever again in his life love another person as much as he loved her. 

Page 106: I didn't disappear. That makes it sound like I abandoned you. I was exiled

Page16: Oh duck- I'll die, and so will you. I promise to go first and check it all out, make sure things look good up ahead.

Page 138: You've got your whole life to be dead.

Page 162 It's an awful, business loving another person.

Page 166: she would say it was because childhood never leaves us. We seal the room up and cover it in sheetrock. We dry and sand and paint, but the pocket of history remains, and sooner or later someone always winds up tapping on the wall, commenting on the way it sounds strangely hollow in there and then the whole thing comes tumbling down.

Page 175: I have found that when you start to wonder about who you've hurt in this life, you can easily lost your mind.

Page223: All my life I'd thought of my father as an obligation that I wasn't attending to. I felt guilty about not seeing him more, come to find out my father was doing fine.

Page 229: In my next life, I'm going to be a Californian.

Page 230: Put the trauma in the trauma box and the grief in the grief box

Page236: Not to much love, more like too much crimpling dependency on the part of the parent, which masquerades as love.

Page 237: Our parents did not depend on us for their sense of identity. They had their lives and we had ours

Page 244: We write each other notes, back and fourth, back and fourth. It's like texting for people with large collection of stationery.

Page 244: All these years later, you can still pry something loose. There's no sense carrying shame and regret into the next life. 

This book was one of the fast reads I've ever done in my life, total of 7 days. I know that may not seem like a short period of time for most but for someone who has a very overbearing job and a 3 year old who only wants her grandparents time is limited. I read the first half of the book in three days it had be reflecting on my own personal life of multiple sets of parents, a distance father who recently passed and the mental thought of death. By the time I got to the last 50 pages I was so emotional in denial that it was ending I slowed my reading to a crawl just to make it last long. Then I got to the end and I was torn: I loved it and hated the ending. How can you have hate for a five star book, I will be glad to share.  I wanted more and there was not much, she left it up to the read to put the dots together on how it ended. Emotional I could not imagine the ending I needed in my head I needed it on paper. Then there the part of it ended exactly how it needed to, some stories that are so good don't need to end on paper.

 

Creature of Habits

We have Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, Substack, Blogger, Reddit, WordPress, Medium, and I even heard MySpace was trying to make a comeback. Depending on your generation, that determines which outlet you tend to go back to; I was the MySpace generation turned Facebook, turned Instagram, turned TikTok and now back to Facebook. Why because we are creatures of habit and life was simple at one time or another.

The issue I have is I want things separate. My friends and family don't need to view all the things I'm into—not that any of it is weird, but I just don't want to be judged, as family and friends judge.

So, I made different accounts for different things, but ultimately it turned into exhaustion. My life is more analog than before, which has been lovely, but sometimes I do not want to write out 10 quotes from a book—I would rather type. I have yet to find a place to put it all other than this old, trusty blog. So, here I am after two years of not posting, back to an old habit.

Some habits I have stopped and have not gone back to are soda, smoking, and hoarding. The first two I feel are normal habits people have, but the last is not a TV-series-worthy hoarding; it's just about being more mindful of what I purchase. I collect mugs, books, hair products, candles, and everything to do with craft, journal, and snail-mail. This year, I decided to downsize my craft supplies. If I bring a mug in, one goes out. No more candles until I melt the current ones I have. If I don't like a book, I gift it to a tiny library or pass it to another reader. I do not purchase anything unless I have an immediate use for it. I also have been downsizing clothing that I haven't worn in the last year.

Side quest: anyone else having an ANT problem? I've squished five right here on my desk as I've written this, just lonely ants either lost or looking for their next meal. 

Spending less time on devices has provided more time to do things I love, but trying to find a place to put my thoughts besides my journal-planner-art journal-memory keeper that I carry around with me every day has been exhausting and taken too much time. Which is why I'm here. I'm not sure if I plan to keep things separate or just post with labels.

I'm back... for a little while, I think all because of Whistler.

Art Journal April thru July 2024

 July - I got Notions:

stamps, alcohol inks, pattern, faux stamps and material

June - You Make Me Happy:

Gesso, stamps, green paint, washi, paper, book stickers (read) and USPS stamps.

May - Poems:

April - Geometric Forms

Makers and paint

Year of Creativity - Art Journal - June 2024

 For my Year of Creativity- June: 

My color wheel picks:

My journal:

Opposites Attract - June 2024

I had painted this page with this pink some time ago because I had to much fresh paint. Everything seems to work out in the end, doesn't it? I then had a watercolor page I had done in March for four leaf clovers but never used it. So I took a stamp roller and rolled pick flowers a crossed it in differed deepness of color. Cut those in strips, then went hunting for my color pallet in my stash. I found the green colors newspaper from a mini brand kit and then need to think about the what the heck was I going to add... since this was about opposites I figure perfect. We as humans tend to find opposite partners in life whether that's in your best friend or your spouse. 

Live Life in Full Color

Easter weekend I took my daughter and granddaughter to our beach. Something we needed to help us get through this week of uncertainty.  My daughter tumor is back and we are waiting for her results and at times the worry can crimple us. The unknown. I recently post the picture below of her and her baby with the quote " May you find the strength to endure the unknown from the love that surrounds you." 

I hope she can live her life in full colour.