Youbetcha Kutcha

Pecha Kucha, Charleston, SC

Yes. I was one of the oldest people at Pecha Kucha. I am so old I happily pronounce and spell it differently each time. Pechu Kicha. Pecha Kecha. Machu Picchu. Youbetcha Kutchie.

This third event was held outside on the lawn in front of Gaillard Auditorium and we were entertained by skateboarders while we waited for dusk so the powerpoint slides would show up. In a recent clean up I got rid of all my lawn chairs so we had to camp on a blanket for the evening. I was clever enough to get a large iced coffee from Saffron's before the program started. The clever poster was designed by the Fuzzco gang, pictured below.

Here is the Pecha Kucha scoop:
Pecha Kucha, Japanese for the sound of conversation, is a mix of show-and-tell, open-mike night and happy hour that has become a forum for ideas on design, architecture and other forms of creativity. Devised in 2003 in Tokyo, Pecha Kucha Night has spread virally to over 135 cities around the world as an informal forum for creative people to meet, network and show their work in public.

For more about Pecha Kucha you can visit the global website.

Each presenter is allowed 20 images, each shown for just 20 seconds, giving 6 minutes 40 seconds of fame before the next presenter is up. This keeps presentations concise, the interest level up, and gives more people the chance to show.

Here are things you need to know about Pecha Kucha Night:

01 - Pecha Kucha Night is for creativity and not for profit.
02 - Pecha Kucha Night presentations are typically 20 images x 20 seconds each.
03 - Pecha Kucha Nights are about exposing the hidden creativity in a city.
04 - Pecha Kucha Nights are held in social spaces.
05 - Pecha Kucha Night is a true social network.
06 - Pecha Kucha Night is about thinking and drinking.
07 - Pecha Kucha Night is about the live event - not a LCD screen in your home.
08 - Pecha Kucha cities sign a simple hand shake agreement to join the network.
09 - Pecha Kucha Nights are held in over 135 cities.
10 - Over 4,000 people have already presented.
11 - Pecha Nights are organized by artists, designers, students, architects, etc.
12 - Everybody who runs a Pecha Kucha Night has a day job.

What's Cookin' in the Churchyard?

Unitarian Churchyard, Charleston, SC

I took a detour through the Unitarian Churchyard on my walk this morning. The wild, overgrown cemetery is one of my favorite places. It is the second oldest church in Charleston and began in 1772.

I was pleased to see that they still appear to offer budget cremation services at the back of the cemetery. I always take a picture of this grill tucked in among the tombstones. I check each time to make sure it is still there and smile knowing everything is in it's place and as it should be.

I'm not ready for my weekend to end. I'm not.

Coffee Stir Stick Madness

Art Gallery at Waterfront Park, Charleston, SC

I like reading Jonathon Brilliant's blog about creating an art sculpture and then going to see it in person. I had visited his giant water bottle at the North Charleston waterfront park and this morning I tracked down the amazing stir stick creation and walked around it grinning and scratching my head.

70,000 wooden coffee stirrers were woven in place and held by tension. The form was created during a ten day site specific building session. The piece became the most lyrical and playful of the stir stick installations to date and gives an indication of the direction the installations will be taking in future versions.

I like his description here:

...in many ways it has become a lot like a torqued basket fed through some sort of photoshop filter. I like to think when i am working that it is a bit like a labor intensive version of the cloning tool inside the photoshop interface.

Trident United Way - Flash Mob

TUW Flash Mob, Marion Square, Charleston, SC

I was finishing my hike about town this morning, heading back with my backpack full of groceries when I spotted Sonya from Trident United Way with her darling little baby and remembered it was the Trident United Way Flash Mob day. They had invited people to wear their Live United shirts and swarm Marion Square during the Farmer's Market.

I dumped my groceries at home and headed back to take a few pictures of them in action. They plan more of these wacky events to bring attention to the good work Trident United Way does in the Lowcountry so join their Facebook page to stay tuned and join the fun.

What's the point? Imagine 50 people wearing Live United shirts walking around the crowded market. Wouldn't you want to ask one of them what's going on? It's our opportunity to educate people about Living United and have some goofy fun while we're at it.
To be part of a Flash Mob, all you have to do is show up! We're going to descend by the dozens on the market wearing our Live United shirts, just walking around like it's nothing.

What's the point? Imagine 50 people wearing Live United shirts walking around the crowded market. Wouldn't you want to ask one of them what's going on? It's our opportunity to educate people about Living United and have some goofy fun while we're at it.

More photos here.

Letting My Hair Down

Charleston, SC

On the days I toss up a picture with a joke or quote it isn't because nothing is happening but rather too much is. I've been feeling like a ball someone hurled through the year. It's June for haven't sake. How did that happen?

I'll tell you this now because I may not later. Tuesday after work I was in a photo shoot for women with white hair. Hey?! Who turned me in? I guess it's pretty obvious, huh?

This will be for Charlie online magazine which hit the road running earlier this year. I wasn't sure what I was getting into when I stopped at Tumbleston Studios after work to meet publisher Caroline Nuttall, photographer Matthew Morse and their team. The article is titled White Haired Warriors and the other model was a teeny, tiny dainty bundle of muscle with gorgeous pure white short styled hair. Hmmmmm. Not the most flattering match up for me I'm thinking. I am going to look like a giant wild haired thing in comparison. Why do you all let me cut my own bangs?

They let my hair down and had me pose and whip it around a bit. I enjoyed mentioning that the last time my hair had been featured on film it had been for a Zombie movie. This is why I am telling you now. If the pictures aren't flattering it will never be mentioned again. Meanwhile go check out the magazine and see what they have going on.

Footprints in Cement

Footprints, Charleston, SC

It's not just Hollywood stars who leave their footprints in cement.

Thursday Funny

Charleston, SC

I love swings.

Here is your Thursday funny:

Two young men from up in Minnesota were looking at a Sears catalog and admiring the models.

Ole says to the Sven "Have you seen the beautiful girls in this catalog?"

Sven replies, "Yes, they are very beautiful. And look at the price!"

Ole says, with wide eyes, "Wow, they aren't very expensive. At this price, I'm buying one."

Sven smiles and pats him on the back, "Good idea! Order one and if she's as beautiful as she is in the catalog, I will get one too."

Three weeks later, Sven asks his friend Ole, "Did you ever receive the girl you ordered from the Sears catalog?"

Ole replies, "No, but it shouldn't be long now. I got her clothes yesterday!"

Geoff's Big US Road Trip

The Outdoor Shoppe, Meeting St., Charleston, SC

I was in the bicycle shop on Meeting St. picking up brake pads for my brother in India who had been given a mountain bike by a Belgian gentleman when I heard a British accent and spotted lowcountry blogger Geoff. Geoff is preparing for a nationwide adventure and invites us all to tag along....online.

Geoff's plan is to visit places in the US that share a name with a place on the London subway system map. I know, I know, who hasn't done that? Well, no one I reckon. I have a soft spot in my heart for wacky adventurers.

So....the plan:
Is to leave Charleston on June 15th 2009 and head up to the state of Maine. There is a tiny town there called Epping, which matches up with the tube station in London with the same name. I quite like the fact that Epping, Maine is located in the top right of the USA and that Epping, London is located in the top right of the tube map. A perfect way to start.

I’ve then found the name of a place in all of the mainland/contiguous 48 states of USA that shares a name with a place on the tube map (using the fantastic placenames.com) - and I’ll be driving to all of them to see what’s there. I’ll also obviously take in some of the more traditional ‘things to see’ in the USA on my way round, as well as some offbeat quirky things to.

I’m not going to announce in advance the names of the towns I’m traveling too - you’ll have to follow along and see which ones they are as I make my journey. I’ll also be having various companions coming along with me for different legs of the trip, and similarly you’ll find out who they are and what part of the trip they’re joining me for as and when they do.

Follow along on the blog or Geoff's Facebook discussion page. Offer him a place to sleep. Buy him dinner. Geoff is not bicycling across the country. I happened to run into him in the bike shop. Safe travels Geoff. I'd recommend a paypal button for beer donations. That worked when my son's friends rode their motorcycles around the world.

Why did the Dingo cross the Country?

Why did the Dingo cross the country?

To get away from me, I expect.

It's been over a year since my daughter moved away with Lola, aka the Dingo. The Dingo is the spitting image of a Carolina dog. She showed up on my daughter's doorstep when she lived in Columbia and clearly said, "take me home and let your mother use me to test new photoshop techniques." And I did.

I spotted this article today about Carolina dogs and whether they should be bred as purebreds.

Dingoes don't need no stinkin' papers.

The Dingo even had a brief fling as a real dog model before she left Charleston. A girl can always use a little extra cash.




Celebrity is hard to deal with. She tried to stay low key but couldn't help getting involved in national scandals. Perhaps it just seemed wiser to get away from it all and move to Portland.

Theme Day - Feet

Magnolia Cemetery, Charleston, SC

The first of each month is Theme Day for City Daily bloggers and today's theme is Feet. I happened to have this shot of the feet left on a pedestal from a broken tomb.

Is it really June? How did that happen? It is supposed to be 91 degrees in Charleston tomorrow.

Click here to see other entries from around the world:
Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Lenin Wall - for Julia

Lenin Wall, Photograph

Julia, a lowcountry gal who lives and blogs from Prague, Czechoslovakia, recently posted an entry on the Lenin Wall. I thought I would surprise her with this shot taken right here in Charleston.

I cheated of course.

The Lenin Wall, according to Wikipedia: The Lennon Wall is a wall in Prague, Czech Republic. Once a normal wall, since the 1980s it has been filled it with John Lennon-inspired graffiti and pieces of lyrics from Beatles songs.

In 1988, the wall was a source of irritation for the then communist regime of Gustav Husak. Young Czechs would write grievances on the wall and in a report of the time this led to a clash between hundreds of students and security police on the nearby Charles Bridge.

This morning I ended my walk by strolling through the Spoleto Art show in Marion Square and treated myself as I do each year by stopping by the Ron Rocz photography tent. Ron is based in Charleston and has the most beautiful pictures not only of the lowcounty but the Mississippi Delta Blues, Russia and Peru. According to his web site the Lenin Wall has been his top selling photograph.

I got up the nerve to ask if he would mind me taking a photograph of his photograph and he was kind enough to let me do it for this very purpose. Apparently the wall is continuously painted over so each time it looks completely different.

The John Lennon Wall, located near the Certovka Canal in Prague, The Czech Republic, is a colorful, graffiti-filled, active and on-going memorial to this cultural icon. It originated in 1980, at the time of John Lennon's assassination, when an unknown person drew the shape of a tombstone on this side-street wall, inscribing John's name and dates of birth and death. Through the years, with the wall surviving political repression, river floods, and more than one re-stuccoing, visitors have and continue to add their own artwork and heart-felt messages to John.

I noticed that Ron had a book called Seeing Charleston that might be of interest if you photograph Charleston. It is a handy pocket guide with sections on locations in historic Charleston and the Lowcountry. It is filled with location and technical tips as well as inspiring quotes by famous photographers.

Thanks Ron! I've been snooping at your work for years. It was an honor to meet you.

Spoleto Craft Show Fun

Isn't this amazing? I enlarged just the inside feature. The artist was Nicario Jimenez, Artist of the Andes.




Shao Lin Xia CanDoPlanes. These tickled me to no end. The artist was an aerospace engineer who was laid off and started making airplanes out of soda cans. I bought a little coca cola plane to hang in my kitchen window. They looked delightful spinning in the breeze.


Meghan Runkle of Rare Earth Studio had these fun handbag teapots for sale and I had to take a picture for our local Tea Blogger.




Alan Daigre Handcrafted Chairs is the official featured artist of Charleston Daily Photo. It's only fair since he is renting my upstairs room. I had the apartment empty after my tenant skipped and happened to notice a "Spoleto Artist needs room..." ad on Craiglist. I slapped some paint up last weekend and dusted it down in time for him to have a handy place to stay within walking distance of the show.

Wow. His handcrafted rocking chairs are amazing. Since the individual pieces of wood are roped together they gently give when you settle in. Every person who sat in them "oooohed" and "aaaaahed". Go ahead. If you get to the show at Wragg Square tomorrow, sit and rock a spell and say "hey" to Alan from Tennessee.

Saturday Funny

Meeting St., Charleston, SC

Today's joke is snitched as so many are lately from Miss Celliana.

A young woman out grocery shopping wheels her cart up to the checkout line, only to realize that she's forgotten one item tampons. An attentive bagboy notices the woman's bemused expression and asks if there's a problem.

"Oh, I just forgot to get something important," the woman replies.

The bagboy, eager to assist a pretty customer, politely offers to go and get for her whatever item she's forgotten.

Quite embarrassed but in a hurry to leave, the young woman whispers to the bagboy that she needs a box of Tampax. "No problem, he says, I’ll be right back!".

The young woman is relieved and appreciates the help, as she waits at the register with a line forming behind her.

Meanwhile, the bagboy has misunderstood the woman's shyly whispered request, and is now searching for a box of thumbtacks.

Eventually he finds the thumbtacks, but is confused by the different choices available.

Imagine the young woman's reaction when the bagboy comes trotting back up to the register calling to her "Miss, do you want the kind that you push in, or the kind that you hammer in?"

Charleston Renovation Project

Vanderhorst St., Charleston, SC

It's going to be a beauty when it is finished but doesn't it seem like it has taken years? I can hardly remember a time when they weren't working on it.

I know I am, but what are you?

Sidewalk profiles.
I know I am, but what are you?
Charleston, SC

Bach at Ya!

So very, very cool. Snitched from Boing, Boing.

These two amazingly talented women run up and down the keys on the giant floor-piano at FAO Schwarz, belting out an astounding rendition of Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor. Bach never sounded so good.

Somebody kiss me! I just had my teeth cleaned

Atesha & Dr. Maria Cordova, 159 Wentworth St., Charleston, SC

I scrambled from work to Roper Hospital to take (be in!) a group photo and then ran down Rutledge Ave. to make it to my dentist's office for my six month removal of tea stains. They have their work cut out for them to get my teeth shiny and white. Tea drinkers probably keep dental hygienists in business.

Dr. Maria Cordova poked her head in and politely lifted my backpack for me, not realizing it was weighed down with my camera and flash. When I told her what was so heavy it made sense to take their picture. If you live on the peninsula it is awfully nice to be able to walk to a good dentist.

Some of you know my history. When I was a kid I went to a dentist with a foot pedal operated drill. Yikes. You have to be good and gentle to keep me coming back. I hid from dentists for many years. I insist they make my follow up appointment before I leave or I won't show up for another ten years.

Thanks ladies!

A Book by any Other Name

Let's go for a bike ride and exercise our owner!
Warren St., Charleston, SC

Photo unrelated to entry. Get used to it.

My sister Barbara In Kingston, Ontario sent me a book that I set aside and didn't read. When my brother Bob from Dunnville, Ontario sent the same book to me for my birthday I figured I'd better read it.

It was a terrific book, the story of a bright young girl who was kidnapped in Africa during the slave trade. Her mother had been a midwife and she had some skills that helped her along her journey. I soon figured out why my siblings had sent it to me from Canada. The heroine of the book begins her life in America where most slaves did, on Sullivan's Island. She was sold to an owner who operated an Indigo Plantation and then to a Jewish man who lived in Charleston. Many of the names in the book are common lowcountry names today.

I'd never heard of the book before.

Here is why. The name of this book which has won numerous awards in Canada is The Book of Negroes.

I used The Book of Negroes as the title for my novel, in Canada, because it derives from a historical document of the same name kept by British naval officers at the tail end of the American Revolutionary War. It documents the 3,000 blacks who had served the King in the war and were fleeing Manhattan for Canada in 1783. Unless you were in The Book of Negroes, you couldn't escape to Canada. My character, an African woman named Aminata Diallo whose story is based on this history, has to get into the book before she gets out.

I was completely unaware that over 3,000 freed slaves had been shipped to Nova Scotia.

Author Lawrence Hill was told that his book would not sell under it's original name in the US and the title was changed to Someone Knows My Name.

I've got two copies if anyone local wants a good read or order here. Thanks Barb! Thanks Bob.

Reserved Parking

Bike Parking. Reserved!, Calhoun St., Charleston, SC

It's good to have reserved parking.

Always fun. Make your own kaleidoscope.

Wow. I didn't know how to spell kaleidoscope. Not even close.