on the way to the dentist

I dropped my car at the mechanic and walked to the dentist. On the way, I noticed these two people sitting back to back outside a coffee shop — I wonder if their morning would have gone differently if they’d sat face to face? I sketched them for ten minutes or so, until they went their separate ways.

Arriving at the dentist waiting room, I had just enough time to sketch the ubiquitous fake plant before I was called in.

I am not loving this new sketchbook. The cold pressed paper is much more textured than I’m used to. But rather than putting it back on the shelf, unused, I plan to fill it up quickly so I can move on to a preferred sketchbook sooner. It might be time to bring out little-used art tools and indulge in more experimentation and play.

Pleurotus eryngii

While in town yesterday, I made a special stop at the Japanese market to get mirin, but they wouldn’t sell it to me without photo ID, which I’d accidentally left at home. However, the visit wasn’t wasted … king oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus eryngii) were on sale.

Above the lagoon

The horseshoe-shaped mansion on the hill above Malibu lagoon and pier was previously owned by Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, now vice-president of Equatorial Guinea. “Known for his lavish lifestyle, he has been the subject of a number of international criminal charges and sanctions for alleged embezzlement and corruption.” (source) The US Justice Department forced him to sell this property in 2016, and the sale itself is the subject of an ongoing lawsuit … but that’s another story.

tropical terrace

Tucked up in the box end of Solstice Canyon are the ruins of the Roberts Ranch House, “Tropical Terrace”, designed by renowned architect Paul R. Williams in the 1950s. Although it was specifically designed to survive a wildfire, the pumps, pipes and pools were not maintained after the owners’ deaths, and the home burned down in 1982. Extensive paving, brickwork and chimneys remain, along with many non-native plants and trees. It’s now National Park Service property.