"The Druid"--tree stump sculpture in Baltimore's Druid Hill Park

On March 26, 2017, I posted about the "Green Man" tree stump sculpture in Druid Hill Park. It slipped my mind to post pictures of the other one in the park by Marc Acton, "The Druid," which sits on a hill north of the park's reservoir. I took these in February 2018. The reservoir is being worked on, so I haven't gone through this area recently. I like the feeling of this setting when the leaves are gone but it's not that cold. For more on the tree carvings, you can read this December 20, 2012, article in the Baltimore Sun, "Dead trees in Druid Hill Park are carved into sculptures." 

A little east of this spot is the Latrobe Pavilion, which was a built around 1860, according to a site on engineering in Baltimore. I like the yellow, green, and red colors. 

In March 2017 I got a message that someone replied to one of my comments on another person's blog. The reply was this: "I wish that you'd update more." At first I thought it was from a third person and meant for the one who created that blog. But then I wondered if it was actually from the blog writer and meant for me because the person replied to my comment. 

I very much hope that she'll contact me, maybe by email or a comment to this or another post. I loved getting to know about her by reading her blog and looking at her website before she took them down.  I'm very unhappy with myself for not doing things differently.

Judith Leyster "Self Portrait" at the National Gallery of Art in DC

Whenever I visit the National Gallery of Art, I usually try to look at my favorites. One of them is Judith Leyster's "Self Portrait," from about 1630, because I like her relaxed mood.

I learned from a video about this painting [4 min 34 sec] that underneath the fiddler is probably another self-portrait. The clothing in this is too unsuitable for her to wear while painting, so I think it would have been neat if the painting within the painting was of her wearing what she'd normally have on while painting. Something like the reverse of what Norman Rockwell created with his "Triple Self-Portrait."

Wikipedia entry on Judith Leyster: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judith_Leyster

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Added on November 29, 2018. This is a closer view, taken where the painting is usually hung with the other Dutch paintings on wood wall panneling. I think the colors in this picture are closer to what I see in person.

Labor Day Weekends

This Labor Day weekend, it's been raining a lot. Ever since I was a kid I've associated this weekend in the year with watching the muscular dystrophy telethon hosted by Jerry Lewis while it's raining. I've rarely watched television during this century. The main times were when visiting my grandmother since she often watched it. I liked watching with her some of the telethon because it was similar to the variety shows common on broadcast television before the spread of cable.

Another thing I associate with Labor Day is the Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory movie after I saw it again while I was visiting home during my first semester in college. I especially think of when Gene Wilder sings "Pure Imagination" and the meaning of the lyrics. Writing this has given me the idea to play in my sociology classes a clip of Wilder singing the song and asking my students for their thoughts. The song is maybe too personal for me, so I have to think about whether to try.

Below is "Round Falls"--Dam on Jones Falls river in Baltimore, near the Jones Falls Trail where it follows Falls Road. Location is 2948 Falls Rd, Baltimore, MD 21211. The small trail down to this spot should be improved to make it safer and more accessible. I took this picture in July and include it here because I like the effect of the light rays into this spot.

Sunset over Lake Mendota (Madison, Wisconsin)

This spring I saw these scenes one evening while walking from downtown back to my Madison apartment. A path runs from the Memorial Union on the University of Wisconsin campus to the university medical campus and Eagle Heights graduate student apartments, where I used to live. From there it is about a 45-minute walk to my Madison apartment in the Hilldale area.

The Book Thing in Baltimore--Free Books

One of the more interesting places in Baltimore is this warehouse--The Book Thing--stocked with over 100 thousand donated books in the Abell neighborhood, which can also be considered part of the Charles Village neighborhood, and about a 15-minute walk east of the main Johns Hopkins University campus.

According a Baltimore Sun story, the Book Thing gives away 400,000 to 500,000 books per year. It is open on Saturdays and Sundays, 9 am to 5 pm.

1. The Book Thing website: http://bookthing.org/
2. "Up from the ashes: The Book Thing returns," Baltimore Sun, October 13, 2017: http://www.baltimoresun.com/features/baltimore-insider-blog/bs-fe-the-book-thing-reopens-20171012-story.html
3. "The Book Thing Bounces Back--A Baltimore literary institution gets reborn, thanks to the community," Baltimore Magazine, September 2017: https://www.baltimoremagazine.com/2017/9/19/the-book-thing-bounces-back

Green Room, at front entrance.

The rooms are painted green, red, and blue. The green room in the photo contains sociology, psychology, economics, women's studies, history, etc. (Because I wanted to avoid violating someone's privacy, I rushed before getting this into focus.)



Whenever I go there, I mainly concentrate on getting books that I can use in my teaching or research but can't easily find elsewhere. I suppose that many people would worry that some would abuse this by trying to haul away thousands of books at one time, but I have never seen anyone take more than a reasonable number. As can be seen in this photo, the books are stamped with a Not for Resale, usually on a title page, which I hope that used book stores will see and adhere to. [Varieties of Police Behavior is a classic by the criminologist/political scientist James Q. Wilson. I sometimes teach criminology but have only read parts of it.]

The Book Thing is run by volunteers and donations. I've volunteered a little by stamping, boxing, and sorting books. I think that usually the equivalent of over 100 boxes of books are donated each week.

Map of The Book Thing

Madison Food Carts--Avocado Spring Rolls

The main spots in Madison with food carts are at UW's Library Mall and around the Capitol Square during lunch time. I think food carts rather than food trucks are more common here because they can fit on the wide pedestrian spaces and walks at those two sites.  According to the city's Food Cart & Food Vending Guidelines, "Full service food trucks may operate in Madison only at special events and/or if licensed to vend in City of Madison parks. The maximum size for a Mall / Concourse food cart is 56 square feet. Elsewhere in Madison, the maximum size for a food cart is 10 feet by 12 feet. The maximum height for a food cart is 10 feet."

Some related articles:

"Food cart showdown: More than 60 carts vying for downtown vending spots" Isthmus November  2, 2017

"Cart czar: New street vending coordinator Meghan Blake-Horst sees a 'perfect storm' of opportunity" Isthmus February 9, 2017

"The city of Madison needs to embrace innovation in its food cart scene" Isthmus November 25, 2016.

Because I almost always eat at home or stuff I bring from there, I rarely eat at food carts. One of my favorites when I do try one is the huge avocado spring roll sold for $3 by Luang Prabang on Library Mall. 

Blog post by a reviewer who didn't have as good of an impression of the spring roll.

Yelp reviews

During warm weather, food carts and trucks can also set up at some recreation sites in neighborhoods throughout the city, such as by a soccer field north of Sequoya Library early on Tuesday evenings.