Things look Better Black and White

Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center Quarterly Art Show

Call to Artists January 2019

“Back to the Basics—Drawings in Black, White and Gray”

The Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center will host a show of artworks created depicting any subject matter using the drawing mediums of graphite, charcoal, pen and ink, brush and ink, or other drawing mediums and implements. Artists may enter 1-3 pieces in all artistic styles: representational, abstract, or futuristic. All works must be able to be hung on the wall. We are looking for work going back to our drawing/mark making roots, primarily in black, white, and gray. Some mixed media but primarily the drawn images are what we are encouraging for the focus of this show.

Please remember that art on the hospital walls is meant to entertain and de-stress the patients, families, staff and general visitors. It is not a venue for nudity, violence, morbidity, or a political soapbox. Thank you for your continued positive approach to art in these shows.

Show Calendar: Show runs January, February, March 2019

Reception: Sunday, January 6, 2019 1:00 – 3:00 p.m.

Delivery of Art: Wednesday, January 2, 2019 2 p.m.

Bring ready-to-hang art plus paperwork to the cafeteria at Southern Coos Hospital on Wednesday, at 2:00 p.m., or make alternative arrangements with show organizers.

Pick Up Date: Saturday, March 30, 2019 2:00 – 5:00 p.m.

Artists must pick up their artwork on this date, during the indicated time period. Show organizers will be on site to coordinate pickup. We ask artists to please sign your work out—don’t just take it off the wall.

If artists are not able to be present to pick up their work during this time, please make arrangements with the show organizers (see contact information below).

Location: Southern Coos Hospital and Health Center

900 11^th Street SE, Bandon, OR 97411

Entry Fee: Fee not required. Donations are welcome to help support continuing shows. Please make checks payable to Southern Coos Hospital Foundation.

Number of Pieces: 1 -3 pieces per artist, each must be wired and ready to hang, or matted and ready to hang.

Artwork Notes: Please deliver your artwork with the following information included:

• A list of your artwork(s) with your name, address, e-mail, title of piece, and price.
• AND, please make sure your name and title of the art is on the back of each piece you submit.
• If work is not for sale, include a value for insurance purposes please.

Sales: The hospital does not charge a commission fee on sold paintings. The Southern Coos Health Foundation will accept a donation of a percentage of any purchased artwork.

Other Notes: We reserve the right to refuse submitted artwork due to subject, presentation or space.

Images may be used for advertising and promotional purposes for this show.

The costs of producing and hanging this show are underwritten by Southern Coos Hospital and Health Center—for the benefit of the Bandon and outlying communities: patients and families, visitors, staff, and the public.

Loss or damage to artwork located in the hospital is at the artist's expense unless deemed covered by hospital insurance policy less deductible.

Questions? Contact the show organizers:

Ava Richey: yarnfarm@frontier.com 541-297-6118

Susan Lehman: studioblue@mycomspan.com 541-347-9888

Submission Form for the “Back to Basics—Drawings in Black, White, and Gray” show

Southern Coos Hospital & Health Center

(Please fill in completely and print clearly)

Name: _________________________________________________________________

Address: _______________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

Daytime Phone: _________________________________________________________

Email: _________________________________________________________________

Website: _______________________________________________________________

1. Title: ________________________________________________________________

Medium: _______________________ Price/Value: __________ Is Painting for Sale?_______

2. Title: ________________________________________________________________

Medium: _______________________ Price/Value: ______ _____ Is Painting for Sale? ________

3. Title: ________________________________________________________________

Medium: _______________________ Price/Value:___________ Is Painting for Sale?_________

Please be sure your artwork has your name, title, and contact number attached to the back.

Sign here to indicate that you have read, understand and agree to the guidelines in the Call to Artists.

Artist signature: ______________________________________________ Date: ___________

*******************

____# of pieces checked in. BY: __________________________________ Date:______

How did you hear about this show? E-mail, Poster, Friend, Newspaper, Website, Facebook, Coffee Break, Other______________

Plans for the New Year

T'was the Friday 'fore Christmas and all through the house every creature was stirring including the mouse, the Internet was buzzing, Amazon was swamped and the USPS was really getting thumped, the stockings were wrapped with diligent care in hopes that the recipient wouldn't be scared and I in my big chair and Ma in her cups had just fizzled out not caring was'up, when then like a light bulb an idea appeared and all of my doubts suddenly cleared, there's gold on the way cause the kids just got paid and the after Christmas, (Hanukkah or Kwanzaa), sales are not far away, so shake like jelly and turn off the telly, put on your Nikes and drag out the bikes and find a real camera...

I know it doesn't rhyme but I got tired and this isn't about seasonal poetry, but about getting you fixed for the New Year.

I know you thought I forgot all about my annual nag, but no I was just waiting cause you do not want to buy a camera before the holiday.

And the news is good, really, really good.

When I started bitching about getting you a real camera the best I could offer was a twelve megapixel camera for around two hundred, but time has not stood still and for that same two hundred you can get a sixteen megapixel camera!

So for all of you size queens there is a bright new day coming. But for the rest who just want the best for the least and could care less about wall-sized prints Let's talk

I am still a big believer in the Pentax K-x. It was my first and I liked it so much I got another one for The Long Sufferin'. (Darn kid, she now takes better pictures than I do...sometimes.)

The Pentax K-x is a twelve megapixel DSLR, digital single lens reflex, camera. It has all the bells and whistles of the High-priced spread at a price you can pay without taking out a second mortgage!

And it uses AA batteries for power! Now if you have ever been ready to shoot a once in a lifetime photo and discovered to your horror you forgot to recharge the camera battery, you know why double A's are such a big deal. Yes, I know new batteries are much more user friendly, they can be topped up without destroying the full capacity and they charge fairly fast, but of you need it NOW fast won't do. Or you get to that vacation spot where you have waited decades to go to and the camera won't fire. But you can find Double A's anywhere. And then you won't miss out on The Thing on the Couch falling off the paddle board when the shark is right behind him. (Naw sharks like healthy food and you know the Thing has been parked so long eating chips and salsa and watching football no self-respecting shark will bite him.)

And if you use the Energizer Lithium you'll have to change only once a year. (I click a lot more frames than you do and I haven't had to change the batteries in over a year.)

The Pentax K-x is also rugged. It is made for REAL people to use so it will “Take a lickin and keep on ticking.” I had the pleasure of missing a step on the front porch and taking a header. Unfortunately I had the Pentax in my hot little hands and it was caught between my big, fat body and the unforgiving porch! Oops! Scraped DSLR. No, the camera was fine and that was two years ago and it is still firing away. (MY body did not get off as light, I had bruised ribs for four weeks.)

Pretty sharp for a camera which was part of a prat fall sandwich!

The K-x will do more than you can for a bunch of years and will still have secrets to revel when you develop a burning desire for a newer camera and the best part is you paid under two hundred!

In fact Amazon has one for one hundred and forty nine dollars and it is on Prime so there's two day, no coast shipping for Prime members. (And why are you not a Prime member? Are you an anarchist or Luddite or a technophobe? Get with the program and be a Prime member and save the Post Office all that backbreaking labor. UPS pays a living wage and they need us to keep their workers slaving away.)

Twelve megapixels, Double A batteries and thousands of legacy lenses and all for a C and a half, com-on that is a deal what you can't refuse!

And if you really want that sixteen megapixel camera there's a Pentax k-30 for $222 at KEH so you can make wall-sized prints if you just have to.

Art Reception 5-7 pm SATURDAY JANUARY 5th at GALLERY BY THE BAY, North Bend

“The Emerging Goddess within” and other works (plays) by Victoria Tierney.

Surprise guests, painting raffle, treats. 

What will the new year bring? Let’s stART with ART!

Last Dance

From: South Coast Folk Society

Subject: English Country Dancing in Coos Bay!

When: Saturday Evening, DECEMBER 29, 2018

Time: 7:00PM to 9:30PM

Where: Coos Bay Senior Center Dance Hall, 4^th and Ingersoll, Coos Bay, OR

Featuring: Music: Outstanding Open Band, and Dance Calling by Alixe Dancer

Folk Society to Host English Country Dance December 29, Public Welcome

The South Coast Folk Society will host an evening of English Country Dancing on Saturday, December 29, from 7:00 to 9:30PM.  This public event will feature live music by the Outstanding Open Band, and dance lessons and calling by Alixe Dance of Roseburg.  Singles, couples and families can all enjoy English Country Dancing.  It’s fun.  New dancers are always welcome.  English Country Dancing is a lovely, graceful form of casual social dancing appropriate for all ages.  Experience is not required.

The Outstanding Open Band consists of over twenty talented local musicians dedicated to playing great dance music.  Alixe Dancer, the caller for the evening, is a highly experienced and very personable instructor and caller.  Her English Country Dance repertoire is ideal for all skill levels.  This is an informal dance; however, period dress is welcome. 

This event is alcohol and fragrance free.  It will take place at the Coos Bay Senior Center Dance Hall, located at 886 S. 4^th, corner of 4^th and Ingersoll in Coos Bay.  Refreshments, scones and tea will be served.  Doors open at 6:45PM.  General admission: $7;  Seniors over 60: $6;   Members: $5; Students: free;  and Supervised Children under 12 are also free.  For more information call 541-404-8267, or go to their web site at www.southcoastfolksociety.com.

   

PRESS RELEASE   English Country Dance  PRESS RELEASE

The South Coast Folk Society is an all-volunteer, non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation, study, teaching, enjoyment, and continuing evolution of traditional and historical dance, music, and song.

-- 

http://www.southcoastfolksociety.com

Buying the Cow

So now you've had a sleep and a yawn and coffee and you are ready to actually think, so think about buying a good camera.

First let's talk about why you should buy a used camera.

 
 

Well, first they are cheaper. Camera equipment has a terrifically short product cycle. Major producers like Nikon, Sony, Pentax and Canon bring out new models before the old model's packing has been completely sealed. Canon produced seven models between 2006 and 2012 and all of them are now obsolete.

Which is very good news for you. Cause obsolete gear has a low resale value. But that doesn't make it bad or useless or even unreliable. In fact with modern electronics, they either work or they don't. So a camera two years old may be four or five hundred less than a new one and just as reliable and capable. Remember manufacturers build for extreme conditions. They don't expect every user to subject their equipment to extreme use but they have to build for it because some user will. And you get the advantage of all that superior construction.

Camera life spans are measured by shutter activations. A moderately priced camera should be good for at least fifty thousand activations: a superior build might do more than a hundred thousand. But no matter what unless you are a working professional, you'll never reach even the fifty thousand mark. That's 1700 pictures a year for thirty years for those who have to have specifics.

So a camera two or three years old will be just as reliable as a new camera, if you buy from a reliable source. Now I know the merchants want you to shop small and buy local and with Craigslist just a click away on every phone the temptation to buy from a local is pretty strong...until you think about the guarantee.

Craigslist may be local but if you buy a turkey it is yours. Besides most Craigslist sellers have a very dear idea of what their items are worth. Now I don't want to cheat anyone out of a dime they deserve but I don't want to make their Mercedes payment either.

A Canon 7D on Craigslist sells for $750 but from Adorama it is $170 body only, B&H has one for $399.95 with a two year no questions guarantee and KEH has one for $349.80 and it has the sterling reputation of KEH cameras to back it up. So for less than half of Craigslist you get the same thing and a money-back guarantee. Just a thought.

But the 7D while a fine camera is a bit of a hill for our purposes. You want to stay away from pro-level or even advanced consumer cameras. Why not go for the best? Because pros and advanced amateurs beat the hell out of their cameras taking thousands of frames a year and dragging them through all sorts of conditions I wouldn't even drag myself through. Sure that perfect image of a snowy owl is great except for the sitting in a freezing blind for twelve hours waiting for the little plucker to show up. And all of that cold and wet in addition to getting into your bones, gets into your camera. Or what about the dunes? All those wild buggies tearing through the sand with spinning tires and boiling exhausts spewing out stuff which will seek out your camera and invade any crack or cranny. No those pro cameras lead exciting lives but when they are done they are done. Think taxi cabs, you wouldn't want your daughter driving one to school in Roseburg, right?

So what you are looking for is that nice entry level camera owned by a little ole lady who only took it to church socials and teas. That puppy has a lot of life and you want some of it.

And giant sensors with a bazillion megapixels just take up space you need for all of those cat videos you downloaded from YouTube.

So how much is enough?

You are in luck, I used to say twelve megapixels but this year the sixteen and eighteen megapixel jobs are cheap enough to consider. All of which makes the twelve megapixel cameras a real steal!

Why just twelve? Because it is enough to make beautiful 11x14 prints with no image degradation. Need even more definition? Shoot in RAW and edit in post production. But that is for the advanced class so I'll just say twelve will do the job and if aunt Behapsabub keels over suddenly and names you heir to the vast hair net fortune she has been hoarding all of these years treat yourself to a sixteen megapixel baby.

Okay so now you know what you want and why you want it what makes it so much better than the cigarette package point and shoot or the camera in your phone? I already mentioned all those big fat megapixels just waiting for you to use them and the faster CMOS sensor instead of the CCD sensor in your phone, and best of all you can change the lens!

Why in the world would you want to change a lens and how would you do it even if you wanted to? First changing lenses offers a whole range of new views. The McCollough Bridge needs a wide angle lens if you want to get it all. Sure you can do that with your phone but what will it look like when it is blown up to 11x14? Maybe you want a perfect image of your daughter before she goes off to school and dyes her hair blue and red and gets a piercing through her nose and eyebrows and tongue and maybe I'll just stop there, You want her to look like you dreamed of her, grown, fresh and oh so beautiful, you can do that with an 85mm lens. And it will stay that way even when she starts dating that thirty-five year old grunge guitarist named Barf with the bleeding heart tattoo on his forehead.

Oh yes, if you can operate a flush toilet or a light switch you can change a lens.

So what does all of this mean? It means you now have to decide, Pentax Kx, Canon Xsi or Nikon D90. (You could also do a Sony A700 but you;d be losing out on a lot of accessory choices)

How to chose? Isn't there a Match.com for DSLRs? No but before you rake in all that Holiday cash I will help you make a decision which will warm your heart, save your 401K and fill your New Year with glorious images.

Can You Hear Me Now

The time has come the walrus said, to talk of many things...

Like why you are still using your phone to take pictures.

Yes, it is convenient, but you are crippling your ability to make great images. Do you really want to see tiny little pictures on that three inch screen? Or how bout downloading them. You can do that right? You can't? So all the fantastic images you take are stuck in that brick in your back pocket.

Okay, I'll admit carrying around a DSLR is like the Ancient Mariner with the albatross around his neck, but Coleridge's boy couldn't make pictures with his bird. And why would he , he had other more serious problems but you don't have an albatross around your neck and you aren't stuck at sea for the next three years so why don't you have a decent camera?

Yes, I do know that your pocket picture machine has a forty megapixel sensor. All those teeninesy little pixels jammed up together trying hard to be individuals. And they do a pretty good job. Like when the Jordan Cove Export Terminal blows sky high and you want to get a picture before the blast wave pounds you and your phone into jelly or when tsunami from the earthquake caused by all the fracking sends a forty foot wall of water rushing across the bay or when the cat does something so cute you have to take a picture even though there are a hundred and fifty million cat pictures on the Internet already, (See I wasn't all gloom and doom), so far on the spot snapshots the brick in your back pocket will do just fine.

But what do you do when the shot you want isn't six feet away or the light is fading fast or the critter is moving at the speed of light, (Which all critters seem to do when you want to take a picture), or the whale which has just broken the surface isn't right beside your boat or he sun set is breath-taking in an array of colors so brilliant that it couldn't be reproduced by any artist?

That's when you need a real camera.

You see the phone is really a device designed to carry voice messages, in spite of the fact that they have become the Swiss Army Knife of modern culture, they connect, they Facebook, they fax, they chat, they Instagram, they walk, they talk, they wiggle and squirm, the living, breathing cell phone! And for the most part they do all of those things pretty well, but just pretty well.

A once in a lifetime image is by definition a once in a lifetime deal and do you really want to trust your fate to something you sue to order pizza?

So for real work, you need a real camera. Now in the olden days when the Ole Trawler started taking pictures cameras were heavy, complex, cumbersome things which at film like a Suburban drinks gas and were just ever so slightly smaller. Now that bestest, neatest, most wonderfulness thing you can buy weighs less than three pounds. And don't try to kid me, I've seen you hauling fruit cakes weighing more than that to the post office to send to smelly uncle Fogbound because you don't really know him but if your mother found out that you hadn't sent anything in fifteen years you be on garbage can duty for the rest of your life. So stop whining about the size and weight and admit that what you are really afraid of are all the bells and whistles.

And yes, there are an awful lot of bells and whistles, that's what makes a real camera so useful. But you don't have to use them all at once. Every camera even the baddest Nikon “I am a pro photographer because I have a Nikon see my dust”, has an Auto setting or better still a P setting which stands for Program which gives you a lot more options than Auto but no more heartaches.

And you get all those big fat pixels.

Yes, I have heard Canon has a fifty megapixel camera. That's 5-0 of big fat real, useful sized pixels. They just don't offer to buy a new computer with a two terabyte drive to store all those fifty megapixel shots of the cat.

Sure more pixels better images, but there's a point where better and reasonable meet. Even Canon still offers a first line camera with a twelve megapixel sensor. Why do they do that? Because boys and girls twelve megapixels is just about perfect for us not pro photographers. And the good news is twelve megapixel cameras are obsolete for the most part. Obsolete! Why would I want an obsolete camera?

Because the photfiends and the pros want the newest, latest, brightest thing to come down the pike and they toss their old cameras out when there is mucho life left in them. And that is very good news for the rest of us, cause the price of a twelve megapixel camera is now so low it is shocking. You can put your hands on a nifty, neat and cool Pentax K-r for $119 dollars! That's one step up from my beloved Kx and still a great deal. A Canon XSi can be had for $129 and the high priced spread Nikon for $159. That's cheaper than most point and shoots and you get a better machine for less money.

But the news gets even better because the new cameras have dropped the bottom out of even the best cameras and now you can get a sixteen megapixel camera for what a twelve would cost you just a year ago. So a Canon 2Ti, or a Nikon 5100, or a Pentax K30 are all below two hundred dollars. Just think sixteen fat juicy megapixels and they are all yours.

So start thinking right now. What do you need and what do you want? A twelve megapixel camera with save you a coupla hundred bucks and do almost every job you can ask of it and if you keep it for the next twenty years it is unlikely to break or reveal all of it's secrets.

Or do you want to do poster sized prints and the extra megapixels are a must. It will only cost you about fifty bucks to move up but is it worth it?

Oh yes, I hear know-it-all brother Cecile tch-tching. He is dying to tell you buying a used camera is like throwing money down the drain. It will break in two weeks and you'll be out money you could have spent backing his canned air factory. After all he only needs another two or three million to get it of the ground and then once the IPO comes you will get all of your money back in quadruplicate!

Bad news for brother C, most DSLRs are engineered to stand up to fifty thousand shutter activation's, that's a lot of clicks and Nikons are said to be able to do a hundred thousand although like the second sentence in Moby Dick nobody has ever gone there. My own Kx came with forty-five thousand activations and I have been using it for four years without a single hitch. That includes a clumsy fall which pinned the camera between me and the very hard deck. I am happy to say the Kx never missed a beat and after three weeks of Aspercream and heating pad applications I regained the ability to flag waiters with my right arm.

So sleep on it and we'll talk further later in the season.

Socks

Yes, the most feared, dreaded, horrifying present of all...socks!

And you don't want to see the strained smiles, the forced grins, the false gratitude on the faces of your closest friends and relatives, well, okay so on your relatives it would be okay, but for the rest you do want them to still be speaking to you in the bold, bright New Year?

So save your self from socks and go to the Coos History Museum's 2nd Annual Artisan Sale this Saturday from 10am to 4pm and find something that your friends would really, actually like, like...

Catherine Walworth's beautifully conceived and executed pottery.

No, not the dish your Aunt Bethembla gave you six Christmases ago which you use for an ash tray when the people from your spouse's work who are really disgusting and nasty people and who smoke like a chimney and expect you to have an ash tray even though you have made it clear to everyone and their dog your house is a smoke free zone, a dish you'd be proud to have sitting on the coffee table you snatched from the Hospice Thrift shop and refinished with your very own two hands and now tell all your snotty relatives who only buy from Marc Jacobs that it is a Charles Eames original.

This is a fish you won't have to throw out in three days or wonder why you thought it was a good idea to fix dill encrusted salmon at home when it can be had in twenty humpty-hump places here in town and if you get it there instead of home the is no clean up and why did you think it was such a good idea in the first place? No silly not the beautiful dish but cooking fish.

Or instead of dumping your keys in the cracked bowl which you have to hide every time you invite guests or have kin stop by why not have a gracefully designed bowl like, ahemmmm...

Which after seeing how good it looks on the hall table you'll be too embarrassed to put keys or candy in it and cover up the cute bird so you get the old cracked bowl back out to put beside it because you still have to have a place to put your keys...

Just go to the Coos History Museum's 2nd Annual Artisan Sale and stop by Catherine Walworth's table and buy something you will like so much that you won't want to give it up at all and will wind up at Walmart on December 24th buying those old socks anyway.

Last, Best chance

Tomorrow at the Coos History Museum, you have a chance to shop local, shop small, see the important, historical, local, stupendous stuff and goodies, (Technical insider-name for artifacts and gifts) all for free, FREE, and still be home in time for dinner!

You know there is nothing on television except another football game and how many football games can you watch before you grow roots into the couch and become a complete, mindless slug and waste all of the gifts you have been given watching the same endless run and catch and punt that come every year at this time and the you will be just like The Thing on the Couch with a beer in one hand and the remote control in the other and fuzzy slippers and a newspaper and open mouth sleeping and that's just too horrible to contemplate. so...

Come to the Coos History Museum and have your mind expanded, your senses stimulated and see all of the unique gifts not available anywhere else and all without guilt of sin and how can you beat that?

Or you could wake up New Years and find you have become the Grinch!

Plumber's Block

Tis the season for madness, panic, despair and depression.

And those are the good parts. It's less than a month until Christmas and you still have six months worth of work to do. The kids are screaming about the things they want which will cost more than Trump's wall, the relatives keep calling and threatening to come and stay (forever), the school/church/PTA has a bazaar/ cake sale/ spaghetti dinner which you have to provide enough stuff to feed the sixth division of the Chinese army, the fridge just made an odd sound and belched out an odor that there is no polite description for and The Thing on the Couch hasn't moved since the Wednesday before thanksgiving and the only sign of life is his death grip on the remote control. Thank God the holidays only come once a year!

So what is the Ole Trawler going to say about all of this to lift your mood, lighten your load and bring light into the darkness which has settled over the entire world like fungus or Global Warming?

You are lazy.

That's right, I'm talking about lazy creative people who use the season to avoid working on their art.

I you are an artist you have to work at your art all of the time. There is no time out, pause button or reset, you have to keep going in spite of all of the things which get in the way and the holiday season is sure to bring on that dreaded curse of all creative people, Writers Block.

You know all about Writer's Block, or if you don't I'm gonna tell you cause it is a pet peeve of mine and I whine about it every chance I get cause there is nothing that burns me more than to hear some writer moaning about being blocked when the truth is they are just too lazy to get up off the couch and start working.

Let's be clear, if this were any other profession you laugh at the notion of being blocked. You wouldn't put up with a plumber who has Plumber's Block. Bad tooth and need a Dentist? Sorry I have Dentist's Block you just have to wait for me to get the right inspiration to work on that bad tooth. You understand I am a creative person and can't just produce on demand like a trained seal.

Horse radish! Let's step back to the glorious days of radio. You remember, like television or the Internet without pictures. Why go so far back? Because it is one of the best examples of why creative people can't be blocked.

In the days of radio, the shows went on twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. The demand for scripts was ravenous, rapacious, voracious and there was no alternative. The show was going on the air at the scheduled time with or without a script. So the writers were in a constant cold sweat working to beat the clock.

And guess what? They did it.

That's right, those creative people came up with scripts on demand. There just wasn't any time for Writer's Block.

And the strange thing is this applies to all areas of creative effort, if you have to do it, you can.

The notion that you have to wait for inspiration is like waiting for a politician to do the right thing. It might happen but more often than not they just feather their own nest.

So when the ideas just won't come what do you do?

Do something. Albert Einstein said, “Life is like riding a bicycle, in order to keep your balance you have to keep moving.” So is inspiration, to get it, you have to get going.

I write so I know all about Writer's Block, usually that means I am just too lazy to sit down and write. When it isn't laziness, it is because I am bored with what I am writing. Fix Writer's Block, switch what you are writing. I try to keep at least three stories going at once.

Sure that takes a bit of concentration but I have a trick memory so I can always remember just where I left off and can pick it up right away.

But what do you do when you aren't Rain Man.

Take notes, use a tape recorder, join a writer's group, have a coffee klatch with other writers and above all do something.

A

And every other artistic discipline is the same, stuck, keep going.

When I can't work on a photographic project I want to work on, I work on what is available. I'm trying to locate veterans and get their pictures for a project I want to do in the new year. But guess what they have lives and opinions and they don't always want to help me with my little project and why should they. They've already given their pound of flesh whether is was overseas or at home and they should get to do whatever they damn well want. So when there are no veterans to shoot I shoot what I can find.

My cats are always willing to pose. They think the camera is fascinating and they are little drama queens so they love preforming for me. And that is a good thing cause I would do nothing if I could.

The holidays are a great time for doing creative projects. There are lights and ornaments and packages and people, festive decorations and food, food and lots of food.

So when the inspiration needle hits empty look around. There's a whole world of interesting things to fire your creative rockets. Don't be that guy, the guy with Roofer's Block.

In Darkest Night

"Not for the feint of heart."

"A light dip into darkness." 

 

So It Goes Coffeehouse will host a release of Nothus Rex's new poetry book with a reading from the author. Copies available at So It Goes Coffeehouse. Champagne, free admission. Friday Dec 7th at 7pm. 190 Central Avenue, Coos Bay, OR 97420

-- 

John Beane

Dance the Night Away

From: South Coast Folk Society

Subject: South Coast Community Contra Dance!

When: Saturday Evening, December 1, 2018

Time: 7:00PM to 10:00PM

Where: Coos Bay Senior Center, 4^th and Ingersoll, Coos Bay, OR

Featuring: Music by THE CULTURAL ECOLOGY BAND

Dance Calling by SILAS MINYARD from Portland

Folk Society Contra Dance December 1, New Dancers Welcome

This Saturday evening, December 1, the South Coast Folk Society will host a public Contra Dance in Coos Bay.  All are welcome to this special event which features live music by the popular Cultural Ecology Band, and dance calling by guest caller Silas Minyard of Portland.  The Contra Dance will be held at the Coos Bay Senior Center Dance Hall, located at 4^th and Ingersoll, from 7-10PM.  Contra dancing is a light-hearted form of social dancing that is easy to learn and fun for all ages.  Singles, couples and families can all enjoy this exciting new form of dance.  New dancers are always welcome.  No experience or partner is necessary.  Wear comfortable clothing as contra dancing is quite aerobic and great exercise.

The Folk Society welcomes back the talented Cultural Ecology Band to play music for Saturday’s Contra Dance.  Cultural Ecology is a six-member folk dance band based on Oregon's south coast. With Sharon Rogers on accordion and vocals, Stacy Rose on hammered dulcimer, flute, and pennywhistle, Gail Elber on bazouki and mandolin, Alayne Olmsted on fiddle, Tom Purvis on flute, and Marty Giles on percussion, Cultural Ecology employs a variety of textures and arrangements. The band incorporates their experience with international folk music into the lively genre of American contra dance music, to create a unique and beautiful dance experience.

The Folk Society has arranged for a skilled guest caller from Portland, Silas Minyard, to guide dancers throughout the evening.  He will teach all the steps and patterns you need to know.  Silas is a very personable caller with an exciting repertoire of dances.  His dances are appropriate for all ages and skill levels.  He will give a lesson at 7PM, and first timers who show up for this lesson will receive a ticket for free admission to their next dance.  Wear your dancing shoes, casual clothes, and a big smile.

This event is alcohol and fragrance free.  Refreshments are available.  Doors open at 6:45PM.  Admission: General=$7; Seniors 60+=$6; Members=$5; Students are always free, and Supervised Children under 6 are also free. For more information call 541-404-8267 or visit www.southcoastfolksociety.com.

   

Artisan Sale

Not in the seasonal spirit, need gifts that don't suck, want to escape football for a few hours? Come to the Artisan Sale at the Coos History Museum next Saturday.

You'll find unique gifts, intelligent conversation and freedom from football and the News. Now how can you beat that?

Oh the nifty, neat and extremely cool Madonna is the work of Master Potter Catherine Walworth. If you hurry you might get there before she is completely sold out!

Happy Thanksgiving

and of course

DA BEARS!

Let the Dance Floor Feel Your Leather

From: South Coast Folk Society

Subject: Free Traditional Dance Class

When: Every Monday Evening

Time: 7:00PM to 9:00PM

Where: North Bend Housing Authority, 1700 Monroe, North Bend, OR

Featuring: Live Music and Free Dance Instruction

Free Dance Class Offered in North Bend – Traditional Dance Lessons

    The South Coast Folk Society is offering a free traditional dance class every Monday evening in North Bend.  All are welcome to experience the joy of dancing to traditional music from around the world.  This is a new class for all levels, and it’s free.  Volunteers from the Folk Society Orchestra will be there playing live music every week.  Traditional dances are appropriate for beginners and experienced dancers alike. 

    This free public class meets every Monday for two hours at the North Bend Housing Authority community activity room.  It starts at 7:00PM.  Singles, couples and families can all enjoy this casual friendly social gathering.  Drop-ins are also encouraged to attend.  Every session is new, a fresh start, and all the dances are taught.  Registration is not required.  Walk-ins are always welcome.  The Housing Authority is located at 1700 Monroe Street in North Bend, just three blocks west of the library on Connecticut Avenue.

    All ages can have fun dancing to live music played by the many talented local musicians. The emphasis will be on traditional dances from America, Europe, and around the world.  These include circles, line dances, set dances, folk, and ballroom dances.  New musicians are invited to join the band.  For more information email  southcoastfolksociety@gmail.com or call Paul at 541-404-8267.  Monday, November 12, is a good time to join this lighthearted evening of social dance.

   

The South Coast Folk Society is an all-volunteer, non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation, study, teaching, enjoyment, and continuing evolution of traditional and historical dance, music, and song.