Bex Hall

Bex Hall > ICAD

ICAD

When the prompt reminds you of something else

A loose connection, but it works

Loch Ness

In and around the lake

Mountains come out of the sky and they stand there…

Along the drifting cloud 

The eagle searching down on the land…

I’ll be the roundabout 

Lead singer Jon Anderson and guitarist Steve Howe of the band Yes wrote this song near the end of a tour when they were traveling in Scotland. They were in the back of a van…when the song came together. Awed by the scenery, lyrics like “mountains come out of the sky…” were written.

Anderson says “Roundabout” is a “happy song” and describes it as a “Scottish jig.”*

Today’s prompt initially had me on track to draw the concrete roadway they call a roundabout but I couldn’t figure how to accurately portray an extremely frightened driver navigating through a morass of vehicles swerving and changing lanes. In a circle.

Too much work. Then I heard a song from the soundtrack of my youth echo through my mind. Yes. Literally. That will do. When I learned the song had been born around Loch Ness in Scotland, I imagined what they may have seen as they drove the countryside, creating their magic.

A watercolor landscape with some Micron pen strokes happened for today’s #roundabout prompt. 44/61

*from the Songfacts website.

I tried again. I still don’t like it.

Creating mandalas are not my thing.

Mandala

For many people, creating a mandala is therapeutic or soothing, so I’ve heard. Every time I make one, my stress level goes up. Every imperfect circle and misshapen whatamacallit only serves to irritate me.

I think it’s because I put too much pressure on the end result being perfect. 

It may have something to do with my approach and mindset. And expectations. You’re probably thinking to yourself, “Ya think?” and you would be right. 😊

For most anything else I create, I don’t have this struggle, so why this subject?

Something to sit with and ponder.

43/61

Hi-Yo Silver, away!

A different take on today’s ICAD prompt

The Lone Ranger’s horse, Silver

For today’s prompt, I thought of the Lone Ranger’s horse.

Hi-Yo Silver, away!

Micron pen sketch. 42/61

Message in a bottle found after 26 years

Two-liter travels 115 river miles

Message in a bottle

On June 25, 1987, two young friends wrote a letter each and placed them in a two liter bottle. They tossed it into a swollen Blackberry Creek near their homes, with the hope to hear from whomever found their messages.

They had no idea it would take 26 years before their wishes were fulfilled.

In 2013, my neighbor and his grandson found the bottle during a trash cleanup on the bank of the Ohio River and were surprised to find the letters still legible.

They posted photos on Facebook and it wasn’t long before the internet worked its magic and a connection was made between sender and finder. 

It’s been speculated the bottle traveled from their stream in McCarr, KY into the Tug River, to the confluence with the Levisa Fork of the Big Sandy River at Louisa, KY where the Big Sandy delivered it into the Ohio River where it was found on the bank in Franklin Furnace, OH for a total of about 115 river miles. 

This is a quick sketch of the photo my neighbor shared.  41/61

I drove a 310 but it wasn’t to Yuma

It was actually 10:30 a.m. in N. Judson, Indiana

Guest Engineer on the 310

At the Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum, I fulfilled a lifelong wish to drive a train in their Guest Engineer program.

My absolute favorite part of the experience was pulling the cord to make the whistle blow. 😊

39/61 Micron pen sketch and Koi watercolors.

For train enthusiasts: The No. 310 was built in 1947 and is powered by a McIntosh & Seymour 539 series engine rated at 660 horsepower. It was built for the Erie and became Erie Lackawanna No. 310 in 1960. The engine was donated by Silcott Railway and arrived at the museum in 1997. It underwent an extensive overhaul and is currently operational.

The Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum is dedicated to preserving the railroad history of North Judson and seeks to keep the town’s railroad heritage alive via display and operation of vintage railroad equipment atop the history rails that bend their way around the museum. You can visit The Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum for details.