Painting on canvas is intimidating.

I really wanted to name this post "Crafting and other fuckery," but that would make for some inappropriate newsfeed fodder.

I went to Iowa last week to visit a few folks over my vacation. One stop was in Ames to see the lovely and talented Katie who kicked non-AGD Greek ass at the GW Quiz Bowl (there also should have been a question about the meaning of life; the answer is, of course, 42). Another stop was in Iowa City to visit my lovely and talented sister who spends her days staring deeply into people's eyes. Or something. I actually don't know what a typical ophthalmology resident's day is like.

The point is that Iowa occasionally cracks me up. This was in an antique store in IC; the use of the term "head gear" to describe a headdress tickles me:

I also accompanied my sister to the post office, where we spent ten or fifteen minutes in line because some guy wanted to double check that the package that was put in his doorway was his fruit. From the fruit-of-the-month club. Seriously. The postmistress (postermaster? I have no idea what the PC term is) ended up calling the mail delivery guy. Direct quote: "Did you put Mr. Baird's fruit in his doorway?" AND HE KNEW.

As you may have guessed from previous posts, I have a bit of time on my hands. This is even with time devoted to vet school decision making. So, to keep myself from going utterly batshit occupied, I've been doing and planning to do crafty things beyond cutting up t-shirts.

My current project: some wall art. It was inspired by this post on Who's Watching the Baby, which makes my project a knock off to the (counts quickly on fingers) fourth power.

These pictures blow. You have been warned.

First, I got a couple canvases. They are probably too big, but as the philosopher Funny once said, "Think big." (One little voice is calling me, calling me...)

Next, I picked out some colors I liked. My family has accumulated quite a collection of acrylic paints from various projects over the years, so I didn't have to buy anything. I like free.

Also, plastic lids make the best palettes. And bowls are pretty good makeshift iPhone speakers.

I decided to paint the canvases "Custard." On a sort of unrelated note, I really dislike that word. I imagine that this is the way that some people feel about "moist," which is a word that I hold no quarrel with. Then I painted the "branches" on.

I am not good at painting on canvas. Damn texture. I finally decided that clean lines are for losers; I'm more of a smudgy line person anyway.

After that dried, I started adding the circles. I can't draw a good circle to save my life, so free handing one with paint was right out; I traced. With a soy milk bottle cap and an old wooden nickel from the orthodontist. On to the paint!

This is it midconstruction. There are a crap ton more circles drawn on there, and I haven't mixed up the red I wanted to use yet. Thus far, I'm liking it, but not quite sure about the blue.

Other crafts that I would like to attempt:

• a paint chip mosaic
• cloth pumpkins*
• a woven map basket
• quilted cloth coasters
• TP roll wall art (sounds weird, but trust me)

I also looked at these, but as the first three words that came to my mind were "cook," "swear," and "beer," I don't think that that would be such a good idea.

Future craft posts to come.

*I've actually attempted to make one of these. It turned out to be pretty tiny and sort of special. I call him Bob. I didn't want Bob to feel bad about himself, so I stuck all of my craft needles into him to give him some purpose in life. Which actually makes this picture sort of creepy looking.