Dahlia's and Doodling

Doodle Business:
The Doodologist is fast approaching the last stage of business planning, although I am open for business, I still have some hoops to jump through. I visited the bank last week and had a meeting to set up a business account. It was slightly nerve wracking, but mainly exciting and more importantly they said yes! So I now have a shiny business bank account, with a cheque book and card that is emblazoned with 'The Doodologist'. I shall admit to being more than a little excited about seeing that. In regards to the business planning and inner workings, I shall be able to blog more about that sometime in August. I am working with a charity called the Prince's Trust to help me set up the business, from coming up with a sound business idea to then implementing it. Fingers crossed that in August I will have proved that this is a viable business and I will be matched with my own special business mentor. There is also a chance of getting a loan or grant, but really it is the help/advice that is the most appealing thing. More on this in August! (If you would like to join in and cross your fingers, legs, eyes etc, that would be most appreciated).

So at the moment I am working on some cool (very cool) commissions, which I will blog about as and when I can. I am also working on some ideas, so that I have some things to take to 'art and craft fair' type places. I asked the question to the folks that 'like' my The Doodologist facebook page, this question:

If The Doodologist was at an art fair type place, what would YOU like to see me selling?

Any ideas welcome, from doodle character suggestions to products like greeting cards, mugs etc. I am going to art fair type places for a few reasons, those include generating some cash, generating interest in commissions and generating publicity in general. I have never done anything like an Art Fair before, so I am genuinely in need of some help and advice. I have set myself the goal of doing my first one in September, which I am sure will creep up on me very fast!



Photo time:
If you are a regular reader of this blog, then you will have noticed that as well as doodling, I also love photography. So I was wondering if you think that some of the photographs are good enough to do high quality prints of and take them with to the art fair like places too? If so, any type of photographs tickle your fancy in particular? At the moment I am taking advantage of the intermittent lovely weather and the rather nice flowers in my garden. It is nice having photographic muses that don't try and run off.



Blog Tips: If you use Blogger/Blogspot, make sure you log into Blogger in Draft and see the new shiny new interface (place where you write your posts etc). Read all about it here Blogger's update interface now available for draft users. Remember you must be logged into draft mode to see the changes.

Google Plus: I have added another social network to my growing collection, so if you are hanging out over there, be sure to add me +Claire . It is very early days over there at the moment, but I am finding it a refreshing change from facebook and twitter. Not that I will be dropping either FB or Twitter any time soon, it is just different.



Thanks for reading xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Doodle Adventure

For my EPIC four years of blogging post back in November ' I am a Tetradite Blogger' I ran a doodletrific competition, which consisted of just leaving a comment on the post. Then at an allotted time I would pick a winner using a random number generator.... (number was assigned in relevance to number of comments)

Number six was..... Mr Adebond.

In an effort to add more fun (get MOAR comments) I added a second chance to win a doodle, by providing this awesome clue/question:

What is the work of fiction that I have read the most?

Apparently that was far too hard a question, so I added an extra cryptic clue.

Clue = Jaundiced Ed Ripper (first correct comment wins). 

Mr P3dro quickly swooped in and unscrambled the anagram into... Pride and Prejudice, yes I really have read that book a LOT... ummm britches.

Now onto the prizes! I didn't want to doodle any old thing, so I had Mr Adebond and Mr P3dro pick from these:

1. Dragon or Troll?

2. Clothes or Naked?

3. Mermaid or Unicorn?

4. Castle or Boat?

5. Sun or Moon?

After their selections, I stalked looked at their blogs, flickr and twitter streams, to get an idea of what I wanted to draw.

Adebond choices were: Troll, Naked, Unicorn, Boat and Moon

If you look at the 'troll' you will see the first incarnation of my Grumpus character, after I doodled this piece, I loved that character so much, I decided to evolve him into something hairier and grumpier.

P3dro choices were: Dragon, clothed, unicorn, castle, moon.

Bonus time, Mr Adebond took a beautiful photograph of his daughter, when she was a Flower Girl, I loved the picture so much that I decided to draw her as a little Flower Fairy and give it to Mr Adebond as a surprise.

I had a MAHOOSIVE amount of fun doing these doodles and had the pleasure of meeting the guys yesterday to hand them over. It is great having such cool and creative people that live relatively nearby. It just goes to show how effective a tool Twitter really is, if you use it with an open mind. You can connect to all sorts of cool people, that may live round the corner or thousands of miles away. Alison, Adebond and P3dro are just a few of the very cool people that I have connected with over there.

Now ye gang o bastards, if you like my doodle style and would love to win a doodle of your very own, then get your arse over to my Self Exam Doodles Facebook Page, you have a chance every Friday! Once a week Tahira Lubrano and myself take turns to doodle something for someone who has 'liked' the page, this week it is my turn.

Doodle Do

The mumborg asked me to doodle something for her friends baby shower, so of course I obliged. Whilst we are on the subject of baby showers, when the heck did they become popular in the UK? I know they are the thing to do across the pond, but all of a sudden they have appeared on these fair shores. Not that I am complaining, it was much fun creating this doodle. I have provided a mini slideshow in case you wonder how I go about creating a doodle like you see above. Of course I didn't photograph all the hideous malformed deformed incarnations that where created in the process of finding that perfect final sketch....

From doodle sketch to finished in a frame

Mucho thanks for all the comments on my four years of blogging post, it was greatly appreciated. I hope you enjoyed the post? It's ruddy hard to summarise four years into one post, figuring out what has been useful and what has not, over the years. As I said in the post, there is no magical formula, just time, be yourself etc etc. If you didn't read the post (WTF!!!), then run to it at once! If you did read it and commented, then you will be ecstatic to know that I replied to ALL the comments, even if the shitty blogger/blogspot commenting system will be the death of me.

I will be doing another post about the doodle winners, when their doodles are ready! Which 'will' be before Christmas. I am off to Hamburg, Germany, end of this month for a visit with family. So things will be hectic before, during and after that trip!

Other Doodle projects.
1.Working on some international ladies for the translated posts on my 'Self Exam Doodles' site. Which I hope you have all checked out by now? (Why bloody not?).  So hopefully by this weekend you can have a sneak peek at the ladies, maybe even have a go at guessing what countries they represent. Hopefully I don't offend anyone with cultural stereotypes..Below is a selection of sketches for an idea for one of the ladies.

2. Chasing down a certain author so I can maybe possibly hopefully illustrate their poem, without getting into copyright shenanigans! If I can, that will be awesome! If not, then insert sad face here. I have now been in contact with the literary agent of the author and as the author does not use email, they are sending a carrier pigeon with the request. Fingers crossed!!

Other notes: In regards to the mumborg, still no news on the brain tumour yet, find out more at the end of the month, when she sees the relevant specialists. For now she is well and I appreciate, as always, the well wishes and concerns.

I am a Tetradite blogger

As the clock struck 10 on the evening of the 29th of October this year, I had now been blogging for FOUR whole years! Well actually I was working on another blog, not this one, at that very moment, but oh well. To mark this monumental occasion, I will take you on a doodle journey through the last four years of blogging.

Blogger/Blogspot has been my blog drug of choice these past four years, simply because it was the first thing I found when looking for an online diary/blog. Although I do have a Tumblr blog and a Wordpress one (backup blog), that I occasionally mess with now. I have found that Blogspot is still the most suited to my needs. My niche, before I knew what a niche was, is 'Personal'. The blog was just meant to be a place to dump my thoughts on a daily (ish) basis.

How do you get people to read your waffling and offerings? Who wants to? Do you want them to? How do you add pictures, How this and how that? Basically there were a LOT of 'How do I?' type questions and somehow I found the 'Blogger Help' forums. It really was a miracle that I even found them and how I cringe at the type of questions I asked back then (Noob alert). Some nice folks did take pity and gave me some pretty good advice, mainly stop using so many exclamation marks!!!!!!!! and your layout is HORRID! So I changed the layout and curtailed my use of !!

From the Blogger Help forums, I moved onto other blogging forums, still rather clueless about this whole blogging thing and was now on quest for knowledge (and widgets). Followed by the usual thing of registering your blog with every blog directory known to man (or google).  I also started reading a LOT of other blogs in my niche, which was and still is, a personal blog of sorts.

Suddenly you are flooded with talk of SEO, Page Rank, Flickr, Twitter, Google reader, Facebook, technorati, memes, tags, awards and much much more. It is so overwhelming at first and it becomes very easy to forget the reasons why you are blogging. You see other blogs getting lots of comments and wonder how they attract so many, when not even ten people a week are reading yours (Insert sad face here).

It seemed a good idea at first to get involved with paid posting, internet memes and silly blog like things. I am sure for some people that is enough. For me though, it was horrid. I was posting so frequently, numerous times a day and felt burnt out quickly. The lesson was learnt, but I think it took about two years, before I really started developing a blog voice of my own. I think the worry was that just me on my own would be bloody boring.

It would be remiss to not point out the darker side of blogging, especially when it's something that can really upset people. There are some very very strange people on the internet, don't try to analyse them too much, just accept that and move on. People will be horrid to you, some will think they are giving you 'helpful' advice, some are just being twats. It takes a while to develop a internet strength thick skin, but you will.

Is it worth all that? YES it is. The Pros far outweigh the Cons in my opinion. The inspiration and friendship that I have gotten from the blogs that I read, and the people that read/comment on here, has changed so many things in my life. From my interest in photography and doodling, to just inspiring me to actually share my thoughts on difficult situations. I could mention a lot more great things about blogging, but I have so much more to fit into this post.

Advice:
You should really read my One, Two and Three year blogging anniversary posts to gain a better insight into how this blog has developed. There is no magic formula, just lots of mistakes, lots of learning and lots of time. I try to put a lot of time and effort into writing these blog anniversary posts, as it's a great way to look back at all I have learnt over the years. I think a lot of people want to know more about how to start blogging, how to get people to read it and so on. Those questions are hard to answer, mainly because everyone is blogging for different reasons. So I just try to show what I have done over the years, with the hopes that that may answer some questions.

Thoughts on blogging:
I thought there would come a point that I would get bored of this blogging malarkey, surely boring myself and others. Although I have been frustrated, stressed out etc, at times, I still haven't reached the boredom point. I guess I like (maybe love) sharing some aspects of my life and personality with the strange folks that wander the interwebs. It opens up a dialogue, that then translates to real life interactions and guess what? It's good to talk.

What next?
I have some rather exciting doodle projects on the go at the moment, you already know about 'Self Exam Doodles', but that is just the start. I hope you will stick around for a few more years and follow me on the next adventure.


Thanks to everyone new and old for reading!

3 years and counting

Twas a cold October evening in the year 2006, the wind was howling and the body lay there cold on the floor.... Shit wrong story! Ah hem, forget the body bit. A young (ish) woman was stumbling around the internet looking for an online journal of sorts, something to record her thoughts for a personal development project. It was for her new counselling course, as the old pen to paper of recording thoughts thing wasn't working for her. Somehow she stumbles upon 'blogger' and Bob's your mothers aunt. She ponders for a while on what to call this blog thing (for about 2 minutes), nobody is going to read it anyway, so what does a name matter? Then the poor gal falls down a rabbit hole and awakes three years later.......

Lessons Learnt in Blogging

If you are a newbie blogger or just clueless like I was (well still am), then I think that you will enjoy reading the posts that I wrote for my first and second blogging anniversaries. I have learnt a lot and it really can't all fit into this one post. I will still highlight some of the information from those previous posts, in this post, as I try and sum up three years of blogging fun. This is blogging 'Personal' stylee, not making money, not professional writing, blogging tips or anything like that. This is just my little journey through HTML hell, troll dung and template tiffs.

Year One

My first blogging anniversary was a tad late,who knew you had to write an anniveresary post for every year you don't quit.

The blog looked like this

You can also see it in action here, thanks to the Way Back Machine (records all your old horrors). I have no idea how it works, but maybe you should check to see if your blog is there? Wayback Machine

The first actual incarnation was a horrid green spotty classic template (no offence to those that have the horrid green spotty one, although you could change it). There are No screen shots of that, because I had no clue what a screen shot was.
Main lessons learnt after year one: Posted like crazy, several times a day, twas a bad idea. Tried paid posting, it got boring,fast. Horrid template at first, messed the HTML, did a million memes, got bored.

Year Two

The blog looked like this

The wonderful Design Bug designed this for me and I loved it, still do.

Main lessons learnt after year two: Started doodling again, twas a joy, found more of a 'style', posted a lot less. Made some great friends, not all people on the internet are scary. Rediscovered twitter, found it vastly appealing. Twitter also led me to connect to people closer to where I live.

Keep Reading for more wonderful insights........

Read more »

Change of Address

An elegant window display on 20th Street.

Maryam would love the albino peacock.

My main blog is now here

New Blog Address

Antique Shop on 22nd Street

My main blog has moved here

Random: or the Interconnectedness of Things

Every morning I look to see what's on my camera from the day before,

 since I try to post really current things - however dull.

 It is better to have a theme for a post  -like "A Day at the Beach"

but life tends to be a bit random -- one makes the connections later.

Yesterday morning lots of fire trucks rushed to a hotel

 on the other side of the road

 but it must have been a false alarm.

In the evening, I tidied my desk so I could close it.

 All sorts of interesting bits and pieces in there:

 the  business card

from the shop where Buster's collar came from

 and matches from India.

In the afternoon a cat slyly observed us on 22nd Street.

This morning, at six o'clock, the moon was still up.

Robert Frost suggested that 'way leads on to way.'

So here is the path:

men in uniform lead to mailman

black cat leads to black cat behind bars

bars lead to bars on the roof of the building

over which we see the moon 

Running Out of Puff : or a Slow Day in Blogland

Terrifically hot and muggy. Yesterday afternoon I said, 

"Let's take the dog for a walk."

Immediate torrential downpour, enlivened by the approach of a woman clad

 entirely in scarlet. By the time I got my camera out, she had passed by.

The rain made plants in planters sparkle.

Tomorrow, one of the best writers in blogland, Weaver of Grass, 

is encouraging fellow bloggers to write about what inspires them.

I love the idea of inspiration, of having a lovely muse breathe

 exciting things into my ear. Please join in if you feel like it.

Sunday in the Park with Bloggers

A sunny Sunday in Bryant Park

The Bank of America Building all sheeny and modernismo.

Luckily, wherever you are, leaves and plants soothe.

Judy brings hummus and tomatoes. Margaret brings

  cucumber sandwiches. Cherries and walnut cookies

complete the feast. Judy says after lunch that  something

 is going to be happening in Times Square.

We walk there and discover all manner of people: those who insist that

 God speaks directly to them and that He requires them to shout it at us.

Those who find clothing semi-optional......

We discover the Naked Cowboy's cowgirl

 and all sorts of tourists.

Then, to our delight, there is dancing in the street. 

Planned impromptu, but fun anyway. The sun is very bright.

The cops check the paperwork of the event's planners.

Everything in order.

Thinking About Blogging and Real Life

I began blogging about two years ago when we lived in Morocco

and I wanted to keep my family posted on what we were up to.

 My first blog didn't even have pictures. Then I got a digital camera

 and met Maryam whose My Marrakech

remains a joy and delight.

It was Maryam who introduced me to wonderful bloggers like

 Constance of Rochambeau and 

Stephanie of Rodrigvitzstyle

In New York last summer we had a lovely real world lunch party for

 Constance's birthday--which is today!

I became friends in real life with a group of very talented people. 

The photograph above was taken by Susanna Gordon

 one of the most gifted photographers I've ever met.

It is part of a photo shoot Susanna did with her niece A. 

and will almost certainly be the cover of Jane and the Essex Serpent

a book for children that I'm currently editing.

Child, water, woods. Magic.

Blogging has enriched my life in so many ways.

I recommend it highly.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CONSTANCE

Plates

Like Charles Lamb, I like old china.

I like new china too.

Below is the cereal bowl I use every day.

 (Yes, I know it is a "rimmed soup bowl". )

I Meditate on Plates

they reap the corn two centuries ago

in  some hot european field

where two men stand bent slightly over sythes

and women stoop to gather what's been cut

it was ever thus

this rustic idyll

congealing under weetabix

in tasteful monochrome

villeroy and bosch

dishwasher safe

to grace a polished table

the sweat! the smell!

long hours under scalding sun

I'd hate to be a peasant then

broad-fingered ignorant

and numb to everything 

save aching back and shoulders' burn

I'd long to loll

in shade beside the cows

beneath the heavy trees

I wouldn't think that I looked charmant

wouldn't care to decorate a dish

my labor turned to prettiness.

Second string cereal bowl.

Below a partial list of bloggers who said they were posting about plates.

Please leave a comment or e-mail me if your name isn't here and it should be.

List:

Barrie Summy

Brenda Bryant 

Christina of Soul Aperture

Constance of Rochambeau

Lala of My Castle in Spain*

Paz of Paz's New York Minute

Willow of WillowManor

Cait O'Connor

Merisi*

Deb of BonBon Oiseau

Dale from Australia

Margaret Gosden

Weaver of Grass

Leslie

Poetikat

Karen of Artsortments

Lori of Jarvis House

The Kitchen Logic

Terry Rafferty

Frances City Views Countrydreams

Viv from Whitby

Juliet the Crafty Green Poet

Derrick at Melrose Musings

Caroline at Coastguard

Sue of The Armchair Traveller

Susannassketchebook

Back Valley Seasons

Bluecreekhome

* coming later

Sunday in the Park with Bloggers

Deb of Bonbonoiseau had a brilliant idea: a chicknic in the park.

The rain had stopped at last.

So we all agreed and offered to bring food.

McCarren Park in Brooklyn.

There was an excellent balance of things that are good for you

and morally pure like tomatoes, melon, fruit salad

and stuff that is wonderful like

vanilla pudding and stuffed peppers wrapped in bacon

and stuffed eggs and cake.

So we ate and ate, and then ate more and talked about weddings

and blogging and various other topics of burning interest to all.

Bloggers are pretty good at words, food and connecting.

We talked of farflung bloggers like Maryam and Janelle

and wished they were with us but wondered if we were too dull.

On the way home, an old lady thanked the young man who helped

her off the bus. A VERY GOOD DAY.

Sunset and Blogging

Looking out of the window provides hours of harmless entertainment.

On Sunday evening we had an unusually spectacular sunset.

My new camera picks up bright colors, unlike the last one where I had to crank up the colors every time. 

Tangobaby has a nice sunset today.

Willow of Willow Manor mentioned Tangobaby.

You see how we run in circles and cross-pollinate.

This is looking west down 23rd Street. The two alien spaceships, lower left, are the (one) light over the dining table.

This picture was taken between the other two looking slightly northwest, and the sinking sun is reflected in the windows of the buildings.

Reflections on the Blogosphere

I was having a conversation with a fellow New York blogger the other day and she said she might have to stop blogging for a while out of sheer exhaustion.
Unlike me, she is a very polite person who feels she has to go to all the other participants on a blogging event.....
Some now have several hundred.



Anyway, for people who come here to see New York stuff, this is the newly returned Intrepid.
Pretty amazing, seen from the bike path, and, I'm sure anywhere else.
Back to my theme.
I'm spending way too much time in the blogosphere.
Do I have a life? Sort of.
Lucky I don't have a day job...........



These are typical tall buildings at Columbus Circle when you come out of Central Park.
To revert, I read my e-mail and daily blogs in the morning.
I like blogs that entertain me and are upbeat. I like blogs that are quirky.
I read the comments too and am driven wild with fury sometimes.
No point in this whatsoever.



Nice fall rose hips in a garden way down town.
Having a blog and looking for things to share is sort of fun.
Then you have to look at the blog stats and wonder why a zillion people haven't commented today.
Did I offend someone?
Should I care if I did?
So and so hates me.
I am back in middle school.........Hm......



The shadow of a tree on the wall of FIT (Fashion Institute of Technology) on 8th Avenue.
What should I say to my fellow blogger?
That blogging should be fun.........but it's sadly addictive.