Drawn the Road Again

Category: City Mouse

  • I see dead people

    I see dead people

    Okay, you’re going to think I’m a total weirdo for getting so excited over bunch of headstones (and I have many, many more sketches than these…), but since it’s Halloween this week, I figured I could get away with it. I have to tell you, I have a serious, major thing for colonial graveyards. My…

  • Tea for two

    Tea for two

    Speaking of Canadian fall color, almost exactly two years ago I had the chance to stay at Victoria’s Empress Hotel, and see its climbing ivy in all its autumn glory. Both then and just recently, when the Tailor and I visited Victoria together, a major highlight of the visit was the Empress’s world-famous High Tea.…

  • Memory lane

    Memory lane

    There’s only one drawback (no pun intended!) to the sketching trip I’m currently on—and that’s that I’m missing my ten-year reunion at RISD this weekend. So to all my friends from college who are whoopin’ it up this weekend: I’m raising a glass to you from afar!

  • Ghost palace

    Ghost palace

    Even on sunny days, the Claremont always seems to appear from nowhere as you turn a corner or follow the curving roads uphill. But in the chilly morning fog, it seemed to emerge from some other world.

  • Brownout

    Brownout

    At the time of this posting, I’ll be away on a new sketching adventure (for clues as to where, check out the Facebook page—or you can wait until I post a few sketches here in two weeks!). At this time of year, my destination is known for unpredictable weather that can be all over the…

  • Bottled up

    Bottled up

    You know how much I love kitschy restaurants and giant statues of random objects—so you can imagine how happy I am whenever the two are combined into one. And when said eatery serves up a mean huckleberry shake to boot—you can bet I’ll be a fan for life.

  • Heart of the city

    Heart of the city

    I’m almost hesitant to include this sketch in my week of kitschy food posts, because I’m in the camp of folks who firmly believe that Twinkies aren’t food. Yet I love this building so much that I just couldn’t leave it out. The old Hostess Cake factory in Seattle has seen quite a few changes…

  • Portland pig-out

    Portland pig-out

    Portland is absolutely chock-a-block with edible kitsch. This is the city that’s home to the neon pink doughnut shop filled with naughty puns, coffin-shaped party boxes and velvet Kenny Rogers paintings. The artisanal salumeria that made a tongue-in-cheek cameo on Portlandia. The coronary-inducing but oh-so-delicious pork-sandwich lunch counter, appropriately (or prophetically) named Lardo. The trouble…

  • T-time

    T-time

    Twice in my life (about 15 years apart) I’ve lived within an hour of Boston; and a couple of years ago I got to show the Tailor around my old stomping grounds. The city’s undergone a lot of transformations in recent years (Big Dig, I’m looking at you), but I love that the trip in…

  • Raise a glass

    Raise a glass

    Whenever I feel like I’m going stir-crazy in my solitary studio, I go and have a pint of cider with my friends Barry & Renée, who own a gorgeous taproom called Pint Defiance. Next week is the first anniversary of their opening day, so I thought I’d help them celebrate by posting a couple of…