CARPORT CHALKING: THE REACH

Detail of "The Reach" by Troy's Work Table. Carport Chalking 7:26. Friday 26 September 2014.

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A study of color. A study of form. Another chance to explore the octopus.

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A dream of Lovecraftian horrors. A memory of the first hardcover book I bought with my own earnings—New Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos, edited by Ramsey Campbell and published by Arkham House.

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The rain was torrential. I opted to chalk in the relative dry of the carport.

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View more pictures of "The Reach" HERE.

STRETCHED

Today's lunchbox surprise for The Child is "Stretched."

DON'T LET OCTOPUS...

"Don't let Octopus steal your lunch."

Each Friday, I include a drawing with The Child's lunch. These are today's "words of advice."

ASK QUESTIONS

To them
The good children
Are those
Who ask no questions,
Who accept everything
Like the tomb
Which does not reject
Even a dead leper!
Who accept everything
Like the rubbish pit,
Like the pit-latrine
Which does not reject
Even dysentery!

—page 137, Song of Lawino: An African Lament by Okot p'Bitek (as found in section 9, "From the Mouth of Which River?").

MURDERED RHYTHM and RHYME

"Translated from the Acoli by the author who has clipped a bit of the eagle's wings and rendered the sharp edges of the warrior's sword rusty and blunt, and has also murdered rhythm and rhyme." 

—Okot p'Bitek on translating his own epic poem Song of Lawino into English.

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p'Bitek originally wrote the poem in his native language of Acoli. It was written in rhyming couplets and had a regular meter, both of which were sacrificed when he translated it into free verse for publication in English, hence his apology and/or lament.

FROST PARK: OCTOBLOX

"Octoblox" by Troy's Work Table . Frost Park Chalk Off 7:24. Friday 12 September 2014.

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I was the only one at Frost Park for the Chalk Off (again), so I didn't plan on hanging around too long.

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I wasn't quite sure what I was going to draw, but then I was inspired by the notion of connective-block toys, such as those of Lego. And octopuses sure have the means of connecting to one another via their suckers. Plus, with their ability to change color...

Octoblox were born.

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View more pictures of "Octoblox" HERE.

CARPORT CHALKING: COSMIC

"Cosmic" by Troy's Work Table. Carport Chalking 7:23. Friday 03 September 2014.

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TWT wasn't going to make it to Frost Park this week, so an early chalking in the carport helped get rid of some of the creative energy that needed to be released.

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"Cosmic" was created by laying down the chalk around an empty space on the sidewalk. A wet sponge helped form the tentacles.

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View more pictures of "Cosmic" HERE.