Magazines

I love to read. Books are still my favorite to read, but magazines are catching up. Over the years, I have subscribed to many magazines. I currently subscribe to Better Homes and Gardens, Country Home, Elle Decor, Home Beautiful and HGTV Magazine. Even though I never subscribed to Traditional Home, I always bought the current issue from the grocery store.

As my interests change, so do the magazines. I love all of the magazines listed above, but I canceled all of them. Maybe I will buy them again in the future because I love interior design and decorating. But for now, I need that subscription money for new magazines that caught my interest.

I missed art and needed it back in my life. Photography has been with me for over 15 years and will be for the rest of my life, but I returned to my original love: drawing. Drawing was something I always did growing up. In high school, I earned four art awards for being one of the best in the class. My love of drawing dwindled in college when I realized and saw other people were much better then me. Also, I didn't know what job I could get with a drawing concentration. That is when I turned to photography and the rest is history.

One of my favorite subjects to take photos of is urban decay. Urban decay is what lead me to graffiti. Most structures that are abandoned or not used anymore, have graffiti on it. Just seeing graffiti so much, lead to me liking it more and more. Since I love graffiti, that naturally drew me to street art. Street art is beautiful and there are so many talented artists that share their talents on structures around the world. 

The magazines that I read about graffiti, street art and contemporary art are: Very Nearly Almost, Graffiti Arts, Juxtapoz, Hi-Fructose, Modern Hieroglyphics and beautiful.bizarre.

When I receive these magazines in the mail, it makes me so happy. I'm happy because there are magazines that publish photos and stories about my interests. I would love to read all of these magazines every month, but only Juxtapoz publishes monthly. All of the other magazines are published quarterly or biannually.

If you know of any other graffiti, street art, contemporary or photography magazine that I should be reading, please leave a comment.

Books read in 2015

The Bridge at Chappaquiddick, Jack Olsen  
And Then I Cried: Stories of a Mortuary NCO, Justin Jordan   
Art on the Block, Ann Fensterstock  
The Murder of Marilyn Monroe: Case Closed, Jay Margolis & Richard Buskin  
A Family Business: A Chilling Tale of Greed as One Family Commits Unspeakable Crimes against the Dead, Ken Englade  
Model: The Ugly Business of Beautiful Women, Michael Gross
Curationism: How Curating Took Over the Art World and Everything Else, David Balzer
Dead Center, Shiya Ribowsky
The Monopolists, Mary Pilon
Silent Witnesses: The Often Gruesome but Always Fascinating History of Forensic Science, Nigel McCrery
Lives of the Artists: Portraits of Ten Artists Whose Work and Lifestyles Embody the Future of Contemporary Art, Calvin Tompkins
Sin, Shame & Secrets: A True Story of the Murder of a Nun, the Conviction of a Priest, and the Cover-up in the Catholic Church, David Yonke
Living and Sustaining a Creative Life: Essays by 40 Working Artist, edited by Sharon Louden 
Gracefully Insane: The Rise and Fall of America's Premier Mental Hospital, Alex Beam
Look Who's Back, Timur Vermes 
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, Ransom Riggs
Big Eyes: The Screenplay, Scott Alexander & Larry Karaszewski


Currently Reading: Grace: Her Lives, Her Loves, Robert Lacey

Hooded cat sweatshirt

Finished acrylic painting and drawing of Hooded Cat sweatshirt.

Memorial Day

Thank you to all of the servicemen and women that have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. You are not forgotten.

Flagler College

Books read in 2015

The Bridge at Chappaquiddick, Jack Olsen  
And Then I Cried: Stories of a Mortuary NCO, Justin Jordan   
Art on the Block, Ann Fensterstock  
The Murder of Marilyn Monroe: Case Closed, Jay Margolis & Richard Buskin  
A Family Business: A Chilling Tale of Greed as One Family Commits Unspeakable Crimes against the Dead, Ken Englade  
Model: The Ugly Business of Beautiful Women, Michael Gross
Curationism: How Curating Took Over the Art World and Everything Else, David Balzer
Dead Center, Shiya Ribowsky
The Monopolists, Mary Pilon
Silent Witnesses: The Often Gruesome but Always Fascinating History of Forensic Science, Nigel McCrery
Lives of the Artists: Portraits of Ten Artists Whose Work and Lifestyles Embody the Future of Contemporary Art, Calvin Tompkins
Sin, Shame & Secrets: A True Story of the Murder of a Nun, the Conviction of a Priest, and the Cover-up in the Catholic Church, David Yonke
Living and Sustaining a Creative Life: Essays by 40 Working Artist, edited by Sharon Louden 
Gracefully Insane: The Rise and Fall of America's Premier Mental Hospital, Alex Beam
Look Who's Back, Timur Vermes 
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, Ransom Riggs

Currently Reading: Big Eyes: The Screenplay, Scott Alexander & Larry Karaszewski

Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships

mgoblue.com

The Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships took place Friday and Saturday at the Ralph Young Track and Field Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan.

On the first day, Michigan sophomore Erin Finn won the 10,000m in 33:54.85. Finn is a back-to-back winner in this event as she won it last year as well.  Teammates Gina Serno finished in seventh place (34:34.75) and Corinne Florie was 12th in 35:57.14

In the men's 10,000m Michigan's Morsi Rayyan finished in eighth place with a time of 29:58.29. Rayyan edged out teammate Mark Beams who placed ninth in 30:09.92.

mgoblue.com

 Mason Ferlic won the 3000m Steeplechase title Saturday in 8:43.30. This is Ferlic's first outdoor Big Ten title. Also scoring for Michigan in the event was Connor Mora, who placed seventh, in 9:07.53.

On Sunday, Michigan ladies went 2-3-7-8 in the 1500m. Shannon Osika finished in second behind with a time of 4:15.24. Michigan State's Leah O'Connor won the race in 4:14.19. Placing third was Brook Handler (4:16.01), Laura Addison (seventh - 4:22.69) and Jaimie Phelan (eighth - 4:23.81).

Cindy Ofili PR'd to defend her 100m title from last year in a time of 12.89. Teammate Sami Michell placed fourth in 13.51. Ofili and Michell scored in other events as well. Ofili was seventh in the 100m in 11.6 and Michell was third in the 400m hurdles, with a new PR, in 58.46.

Erin Finn claimed another medal during the championships. Finn finished third in the 5000m with a time of 16:14.27 and teammate Shannon Osika was sixth in 16:34.33. Leah O'Connor from Michigan State won her third event of the weekend in 16:03.98. O'Connor's teammate Rachele Schulist was second in 16:13.22.

Michigan men's runners in the 5000m went 2-3-7. Winning the event was Matt McClintock from Purdue in 14:16. Mason Ferlic was second in 14:20.33 and Ben Flanagan was third in 14:24.36.

Claiming third place in the shot put was Cody Riffle with a PR of 63-7.25 ft.

The Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships will broadcast on the Big Ten Network on Sunday, May 24 at 11 a.m. ET.

Women's Team Scores
Michigan State: 128
Nebraska: 97
Minnesota: 93
Ohio State: 87
Michigan: 80

Men's Team Scores
Illinois: 145
Nebraska: 108
Iowa: 81
Ohio State: 78
Penn State: 66

Preakness Stakes

USA Today Sports/Goeff Burke

The Preakness Stakes, the second race of the Triple Crown, took place Saturday at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. The race was muddy and sloppy. A huge downpour started before and it continued to rain during the race.

Coming away with a big victory on the muddy track was American Pharoah, the Kentucky Derby champion, in 1:58.46. Finishing behind AP was Tale of Verve in second, Divining Rod (third) and Dortmund (fourth).

Associated Press/Mike Stewart

The jockey for American Pharoah, Victor Espinoza, it will be his second year in a row trying to complete the Triple Crown. Espinoza was the jockey last year for California Chrome who won the first two races before finishing fourth at the Belmont Stakes.

The third race of the Triple Crown, the Belmont Stakes, will be held on Saturday, June 6 in New York.

Race video of the Preakness Stakes.

ITU Yokohama

ITU Media/Delly Carr

American Gwen Jorgensen won the ITU World Triathlon Series Yokohama race for the third-straight time Saturday in a time of 1:57:20. With the win, Jorgensen has won nine consecutive races in the ITU series and is the leading again.

Finishing on the podium for the first time ever was Australia's Ashleigh Gentle. Gentle placed second in 1:58:33 and teammate Emma Moffatt claimed bronze in 1:59:03.

ITU Media/Delly Carr

Jorgensen is back in the series lead with the win with 3200 points. She overtook American teammate Katie Zaferes, who now is in second place, with 2905 points.

The men's race in Yokohama, Japan had a very close finish. Spain's Javier Gomez was able to sprint away from Great Britian's Alistar Brownlee close to the finish line to win ITU Yokohama in 1:47:02. Brownlee crossed the line in 1:47:02 to take the silver medal. Gomez's teammate from Spain, Mario Mola finished with the bronze medal in 1:47:20.

Gomez is the leader of the men's series with 3507 points, Mola is in second with 2958 and Brownlee moved up to ninth place with 1540 points.

The next ITU World Triathlon race will take place in London, England on  May 31.

Books read in 2015

The Bridge at Chappaquiddick, Jack Olsen  
And Then I Cried: Stories of a Mortuary NCO, Justin Jordan   
Art on the Block, Ann Fensterstock  
The Murder of Marilyn Monroe: Case Closed, Jay Margolis & Richard Buskin  
A Family Business: A Chilling Tale of Greed as One Family Commits Unspeakable Crimes against the Dead, Ken Englade  
Model: The Ugly Business of Beautiful Women, Michael Gross
Curationism: How Curating Took Over the Art World and Everything Else, David Balzer
Dead Center, Shiya Ribowsky
The Monopolists, Mary Pilon
Silent Witnesses: The Often Gruesome but Always Fascinating History of Forensic Science, Nigel McCrery
Lives of the Artists: Portraits of Ten Artists Whose Work and Lifestyles Embody the Future of Contemporary Art, Calvin Tompkins
Sin, Shame & Secrets: A True Story of the Murder of a Nun, the Conviction of a Priest, and the Cover-up in the Catholic Church, David Yonke
Living and Sustaining a Creative Life: Essays by 40 Working Artist, edited by Sharon Louden 
Gracefully Insane: The Rise and Fall of America's Premier Mental Hospital, Alex Beam
Look Who's Back, Timur Vermes 

Currently Reading: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, Ransom Riggs

Killer Rabbit

I found a picture of a rabbit, chainsaw and carrot on the internet. I thought it was cute, especially the hockey mask. I drew my own Killer Rabbit with pencil and then made that into an acrylic painting. I think both turned out well. I love them.

Invisible College

A new art exhibition will open on July 11 at the Fort Wayne Museum of Art. The exhibition is titled Invisible College. It is a show that the artists are not continuing on with the standard art education that says graduate school is a must. The artists involved are self taught and seek their own inspiration stemming from social media, pop culture, street art and graffiti. The FWMoA press release says that "by creating a distinct community in support of the diversity of its visions and styles, the movement has mortared and upheld its own invisible school."

The group exhibition is co-curated by Andrew and Shawn Hosner of Thinkspace Gallery in Los Angeles and FWMoA's Josef Zimmerman. The exhibition will feature work by 46 artists.

Invisible College runs from July 11 - September 27, 2015.

Fort Wayne Museum of Art is located at 311 Main Street; Fort Wayne, IN  46802.  Gallery hours are Tuesday-Saturday 10am-6 pm; Thursday 10am-8pm and Sunday 12-5pm.

Acres of Fun 5K

I ran the Acres of Fun 5K Saturday.

It was a warm and humid morning. It rained about 15-20 minutes before the start of the race. When the race started it was still very humid.

I started the race mid-pack and was behind a bunch of people. I was able to work my way around people and found a clear spot to run. I noticed that a girl stopped to tie her shoes just ahead of me. I knew that when I got right behind her she would stand up and start running. When I did get behind her, that is exactly was she did. I put my hands out to stop myself from running her over.

I was able to clear more people and found myself running next to an older lady. We were step for step for a while, then she started to pull away. When she pulled away, she didn't get too far. My goal for the race was to catch her. I ran a nice pace and thought it was even. I passed a few more runners during this time.

At the second mile, I was getting closer to the lady. I kept thinking to myself that I had less then 10 minutes to run, why not give it all? I ended up catching two guys and passed them. A man who I passed a while ago, passed me back for good. All the while this was taking place, I was gaining on the lady who pulled away from me the first mile.

A spectator was yelling to the runners, "one more corner, then it's all downhill." I loved hearing that. I knew that I needed to pick up the pace if I wanted to have a shot at that lady. After turning the corner, the lady was just head of me and the race was almost over. When I saw the time clock and finishing line, I picked up my pace. I was able to pull myself right beside the woman and then finally pass her. In the process of passing the woman, I was able to pull away from a guy that was right behind me. I saw the clock read 26:xx and I so wanted to finish with that time. I just fell short. I finished the race in 27:05 and placed second in my age group.

Once the race was over, I was thinking of places on the course where I could have gone faster and improved my time. That is the best thing about races, there are so many around where I live. Take what you learned in one race and apply it to the next one.

Books read in 2015

The Bridge at Chappaquiddick, Jack Olsen  
And Then I Cried: Stories of a Mortuary NCO, Justin Jordan  
Art on the Block, Ann Fensterstock  
The Murder of Marilyn Monroe: Case Closed, Jay Margolis & Richard Buskin  
A Family Business: A Chilling Tale of Greed as One Family Commits Unspeakable Crimes against the Dead, Ken Englade  
Model: The Ugly Business of Beautiful Women, Michael Gross
Curationism: How Curating Took Over the Art World and Everything Else, David Balzer
Dead Center, Shiya Ribowsky
The Monopolists, Mary Pilon
Silent Witnesses: The Often Gruesome but Always Fascinating History of Forensic Science, Nigel McCrery
Lives of the Artists: Portraits of Ten Artists Whose Work and Lifestyles Embody the Future of Contemporary Art, Calvin Tompkins
Sin, Shame & Secrets: A True Story of the Murder of a Nun, the Conviction of a Priest, and the Cover-up in the Catholic Church, David Yonke
Living and Sustaining a Creative Life: Essays by 40 Working Artist, edited by Sharon Louden 
Gracefully Insane: The Rise and Fall of America's Premier Mental Hospital, Alex Beam
 
Currently Reading: Look Who's Back, Timur Vermes

RAW

The Bachelor of Arts students at University of Michigan Stamps School of Art organized a show. It is called RAW_A BA Show well done. Nine students have work included in the show. The work is located at 1115 South University Street in Ann Arbor.

The show opened on April 30 and ends on May 10. Can't wait to see the work this week.

Kentucky Derby

New York Times/Andrew Hancock

The 141st Kentucky Derby took place Saturday evening in Louisville, Kentucky.

I was a fan of California Chrome last year. After last year's Kentucky Derby, I started following Chrome's jockey Victor Espinoza. This year, Espinoza has been the jockey for American Pharoah. Espinoza has posted photos of American Pharoah racing and in the barn. Just before the Kentucky Derby started Saturday, I tweeted that I wanted American Pharoah to win.

Getty Images/Andy Lyons

And he did. American Pharoah won the race in 2:03:02. American Pharoah finished a length ahead of second place Firing Line. Dortmund finished in third.

The next race for the Triple Crown is at The Preakness Stakes in Baltimore, Maryland on May 16.

Watch video of the 141st running of the Kentucky Derby.

Earthquake

I was sitting on my couch Saturday afternoon at 12:23 p.m.and my house started shaking. I thought it was a semi driving past the house, but then I wondered what was taking it so long to go by.

I checked Twitter and saw that other people in Michigan and Ohio felt shaking too. It was confirmed about 10 minutes later that Michigan experienced a 4.2 magnitude earthquake. The epicenter of the earthquake was 9 miles southeast of Kalamazoo in central Michigan. The earthquake was felt in the lower half of Michigan, northern Indiana, northwestern Ohio, eastern Illinois, southeastern Wisconsin and western Ontario, Canada.

It is so weird to have an earthquake in Michigan. That is not typical for the Midwest and it shouldn't be.

Addison Athletic Boosters 5K

I ran the Addison Athletic Boosters 5K Saturday morning.

It was a sunny and just a little bit of wind at the start of the race. Not too many people lined up to run the race. That is the best thing about a small town race.

When the horn sounded, I was near the front of the pack. Two guys, a teen boy and girl and two younger girls were part of the pack I ran with. One of the guys was leading the race, followed by the teen boy and girl. I was running next to another guy, but not for long. We made a right hand turn and he charged up the short incline. He got away from me. But I did stay with the teen boy and girl and the two younger girls. Not long after, I caught the youngest of the girls as she needed to stop and walk. Running down a nice hill, I caught up with the other young girl. She needed to tie her shoes. I kept going and thought if I stay where I am, it would be a good day.

The course made another right and the course went from paved road to dirt. The leading guy was getting away. The guy who I started next to, passed the teen boy and girl. As of then I was in fifth place overall. The dirt road has rolling country hills. I decided just to look ahead on the dirt about 10 feet in front of me. I wanted to make sure I didn't twist my ankles on any holes in the road or big stones. I would look up at the teens in front of me and I thought I was getting closer to them. I was behind them just a couple of seconds. Then the teens stop. The girl needed to walk. I passed them and kept going. After passing them, I could hear that they starting running again as they were kicking stones.

I passed the halfway point and the water stop in 13:XX. I kept telling myself keep going and I could finish third overall. The course just went around the country block near the middle school. When passing the halfway mark, we turned right and back on paved roads. As I was running alone, I could hear birds chirping and cows mooing. I could also tell that I passed a hog farm, as they all smell the same. As I would know, I lived on a hog farm for 19 years.

We made another right hand turn onto the road that would lead us back to the middle school. I kept listening for noises behind me. I couldn't hear anything. Then out of nowhere, the teen boy came flying by me. I told him 'good job', but he didn't hear me as he had headphones on. I didn't know if the teen girl was right behind me, so I kept going and didn't look behind me.

Before turning into the middle school parking lot, the road inclines. When I started running up the incline, I just looked about 10 feet in front of me on the road. I didn't want to see how much longer I had to run up the hill. A few spectators and the race winner were standing on the side of the road giving encouragement. I finally made it up the long incline and turned right into the parking lot. I was then able to see the clock and knew I had to run faster. I crossed the line in 27:43. I was fourth overall and the first woman. I looked up last year's time when I got home and saw it was exactly the same as this year's, 27:43. Weird.

My goal since the Glass City Half Marathon is to lose weight. I have lost 3 pounds since then. I need to keep on this path and I know my times will keep dropping.

Books read in 2015

The Bridge at Chappaquiddick, Jack Olsen  
And Then I Cried: Stories of a Mortuary NCO, Justin Jordan  
Art on the Block, Ann Fensterstock  
The Murder of Marilyn Monroe: Case Closed, Jay Margolis & Richard Buskin  
A Family Business: A Chilling Tale of Greed as One Family Commits Unspeakable Crimes against the Dead, Ken Englade  
Model: The Ugly Business of Beautiful Women, Michael Gross
Curationism: How Curating Took Over the Art World and Everything Else, David Balzer
Dead Center, Shiya Ribowsky
The Monopolists, Mary Pilon
Silent Witnesses: The Often Gruesome but Always Fascinating History of Forensic Science, Nigel McCrery
Lives of the Artists: Portraits of Ten Artists Whose Work and Lifestyles Embody the Future of Contemporary Art, Calvin Tompkins
Sin, Shame & Secrets: A True Story of the Murder of a Nun, the Conviction of a Priest, and the Cover-up in the Catholic Church, David Yonke
Living and Sustaining a Creative Life: Essays by 40 Working Artist, edited by Sharon Louden

Currently Reading: Gracefully Insane: The Rise and Fall of America's Premier Mental Hospital, Alex Beam

Stamps School of Art & Design

I drove up to Ann Arbor last Friday to view Medium Rare exhibition on the campus of the University of Michigan. I viewed works of art by the Stamps School of Art Design graduation Bachelor of Fine Arts students. The exhibition was scattered in three different locations: Slusser Gallery, Works Gallery and Argus II building. I only made it to two locations: Slusser and Works Galleries.

Painting by Marco Lorenzetti

The student work I did view was fantastic! I loved several pieces. My favorite out of both galleries was a giant painting by Marco Lorenzetti. I loved the paint colors and the figures. It was so beautiful in person. 

 Other pieces I loved were by Nancy Huynh. The drawing was about her dog Beau. Such a sad story. The drawing was stunning. The graphic novel about a fairy tale by Lonny Marino was wonderful. The book of film photographs by Katelyn Wollet was stunning. I wanted to buy a book and the large three photos on the wall.

I'm glad I drove to Ann Arbor to view the BFA work. I worked as a photographer for 14 years at a local newspaper and rarely went to a gallery show. Now that I am no longer a professional photographer, I have taken the time to view so many gallery shows this year. Seeing what others have done, makes me want to draw and paint everything.

The Medium Rare exhibition ends May 2.