"...gross of speech, intolerant, stubborn, angry, full of fits and furies"

For today, a poem by Wendell Berry;

A Warning to My Readers

Do not think me gentle
because I speak in praise
of gentleness, or elegant
because I honor the grace
that keeps this world. I am
a man crude as any,
gross of speech, intolerant,
stubborn, angry, full
of fits and furies. That I
may have spoken well
at times, is not natural.
A wonder is what it is.

Fitting, here, is Mozart - Requiem - Confutatis:

Surviving With Bone and Antler

Back in civilization, absorbing warmth, eating and drinking at will, and back at work on "Wilderness Survival for Dummies", due out in July 2009. I'm doing a lot of illustrations for this book, as well as half the text, and the workload is staggering...but that's alright. I've wanted to draw these things, and write these words, for as long as I can remember. Above, a panel of illustrations on how to make tools from bone and antler. Although some explanatory text is needed, what I want to do in a future project is a manual that's about 99% pictures and only 1% text. Though I value words, I think a lot can be communicated--and learned--by simple and informative illustrations.

New Title and More Lights

On the tundra, at night, you see lights; strange sparks that wink out slowly as though a distant lid has lowered, or flashes that seem to spin; you see domes of light that float up from the snow, and you imagine lances of light stabbing down into the ice underfoot. Some of these lights are real, some are illusions and mirages...and some, according to the native Inupiat people, are 'immanyarok', 'little people'--wights, sprits, sprites and all manner of ghouls that flash at you, trying to lure you into danger...what a deliciously diabolical thought!

Below, a sketch of the aurora; just an experiment.



Processing photos and video soon.

Cheers
Cameron

Success!

In the photo I'm flying past Mark Hoffman's camera; one of many short flights today, with unexpectedly good conditions. A fine way to start another loop around the Sun!

I'll report again tomorrow; right now I want to post this before my internet connection goes down again.

Happiest New Year Greetings to All!

Cheers
Cameron