Saturday, February 13, 2010

New Old/Old New

Here's a couple new gadgets for me.

One is a new item just like the old days. No high-tech material in this pocket magnifying glass, just steel, leather and glass. Retro (and it was hard to find, too). I heard of a nature guide in a National Park that carried one around his neck to show his tour group the fine details of small nature. Then I heard of sketchers carrying one to inspect and sketch all things small. That's enough reason for me!

The other item is an old item from my daughter, that's new to me. I may be the last old kid on the block to get an MP3 player. Been looking at the technology for years but never figured out when I would actually listen to it. Well, I figured I'd listen to it when I exercised (an activity I strive to do regularly but haven't made it there yet). My daughter recently received a nicer one so Dad got her hand-me-down. Boy are they neat! It's old and has no clip to fasten it to your clothes, so I use a potato chip bag clip for that. Goofy but functional in the privacy of my own basement workout.


Here's a picture of my new journal, freshly stamped with a "return if found" stamp I had made, and a touch of calligraphy for a title page. I feel it's all me, from stitch to sketch. Feels good.

13 comments:

winna said...

Now I'm going to have to investigate thoses players and see if I can justify grabbing one at a tag sale or some such low priced area. I always feel good reading your pages and hope you never stop journaling---excellent job of drawing the items---and the new journal looks great!

Patsy Taylor-Craw said...

My hubby has a magnifying glass like this. I am going to have to "borrow" it, if I can find it. Great page and beautiful journal. Good work!

DALowe Artist said...

This is a great post and I absolutely love your handmade journals - they're just incredible! Your journaling on the page is also incredible. What a great way to enjoy retirement. I'm looking forward to visiting your blog more often. Thanks for sharing.

Nora Allsup Gardner said...

i loved my magnifying glass much like this one when I was a kid... seeing the teeny tiny bugs and bits of dirt and moss in our garden was endlessly amazing to me as a kid! Great journal page :)

kazumiwannabe said...

Great page - must be a great pleasure for you to go through your older journals, I imagine, with all these memories in the neat looking pages!
And your book looks awesome. I wish I knew how to do that too (one day!).

Kate (Cathy Johnson) said...

Cool magnifier, John! I have my grandfather's, almost like that. WONDERFUL page...

bubblemunch said...

Love the layout and the colours :-)

Anonymous said...

Wonderful sketch! I really like your composition, too.

Cheryl Gebhart said...

Another great page John. My MP3 player doesn't have a clip either; I just put it in my pocket. You'll enjoy having it. And that magnifier looks like one I remember my parents had - very cool!

Unknown said...

Great post, John. And wow, I'm loving your books! Looks great!

nanke's stuff said...

That's so cool! I'm not sure what an MP3 player is or how it differs from, say a portable CD player, but I'm glad you have one ... and, I love that you use a chip clip. A man after my own heart! I have one of those magnifying thingys',too - they're great. nancy

Barbara said...

Hi Nanke -- MP3 is another version of iPod, so now you know!

Another set of great pages, John and I'm still impressed that you're binding your own books now. - Barbara

Sandy said...

Another great page, I can always relate to your pages too. I NEED one of those magnifing glasses and I have an ipod, They are wonderful new gadgets, music for walks, soothing, books on tape, It is very handy on long trips, plane rides etc.