jbbartram-illu

[jbbartram-illu]

In Journey to Chandara, by James Gurney, inhabitants of Dinotopia's Forbidden Mountains are visited by the Boon Sloth, who bestows on them a gift. One of my favorite twists on Christmas, and another bit of purely fantastic paleoart by the true master. Happy Yuletide, all!

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[jbbartram-illu]

See, our first mistake was trying to have a civilization in northern Europe between October and February. The darkest three months of the year should be for staying home under the blankets, midwinter festivals, and getting blind drunk when the sun goes down at 4 pm like the bog gods intended.

[jbbartram-illu]

[jbbartram-illu]

any monk born after 1436 doesn't know how to truly devote themselves to christ... all they know is be late for matins, copy they manuscripts, contemplative herb garden walk, be bisexual, eat eels and lie

[jbbartram-illu]

Time for a brief break from posting ceramic animals to post some flesh & blood ones (see alt text for species!)!

My partner's mom & stepdad took us to Costa Rica (near Tamarindo) for his 40th birthday & I was in bird/creature heaven! The nearest rainforest was a bit too far from where we were staying, but I got to experience some wonderful dry tropical forest & estuary/river ecosystems, plus got some good hangout time with the Pacific ocean <3

My partner gave me the good DSLR for the nature tours we went on & it was a joy being able to take pretty OK photos instead of sad zoomed-in cheapest-iPhone ones (obviously I still have a lot to learn, but these are exciting as a beginning!!):

Since our two nature tours were boat-based (one on the Palo Verde River, one on an estuary in Las Baulas park), most of my decent bird photos are herons, as they're larger, generally lower-down, & also move more slowly than goddamn passerines/parrots/smaller birds.

I did get an ok-ish shot of a common black hawk, tho!! LOOK at that eagle-y beak!

& finally, the reptiles!! There were green iguanas & black spiny-tailed iguanas absolutely everywhere...

...AND WE SAW AMERICAN CROCODILES!!

On the Palo Verde river tour we saw some BIG guys (smallest maybe 6', biggest must have been 10'-12')!

& on the estuary tour we saw a few young ones. Two were less than 3' long, and this guy was maybe 4' and let us get super close b/c it was tucked away in the mangrove roots!

I had a wonderful time on this trip and am already looking forward to coming back for a rainforest-focused adventure next time!!

Also, Tamarindo has two really good coffee shops run by the loveliest people (Nordico Coffee & Derecho Sagrado) so if you're ever there, pls check them out!

FIN!

[jbbartram-illu]

Ask yourself, would a small woodland mouse wearing an apron and/or jaunty corduroy vest do this activity? If not, stop immediately.

[jbbartram-illu]

Henri Rivière (1864-1951) Les Aspects de la nature (1897-1899)

[jbbartram-illu]

Today's Seal Is: Bird Observation Hour

[jbbartram-illu]

AN EXTREMELY NICHE VERSION OF RUNNING OUT INTO THE STREET AND GRABBING PEOPLE BY THEIR COLLAR AND YELLING

ADOBE GOT RID OF BACKWARDS COMPATIBILITY IN INDESIGN 20.0

IDMLS ARE NO LONGER BACKWARDS COMPATIBLE

DON'T DO IT

DON'T UPDATE

[jbbartram-illu]

Time for ONE MORE THANKYOU!!!

(& a note about shopdrop II, happening just after Xmas)

These Loon Ladies & their many creature & vessel pals were delivered into the hands of the shipping gods yesterday and now that the frantic packing/labelling marathon is over (I'm off on a trip first thing Sunday so I had to get everything done extra-fast this time) I'm back to do a proper thank you for welcoming my ceramics into your homes.

Being able to make all these weird objects and then have people gobble them up with such enthusiasm is still wild to me, and it's hard to put into words how grateful I am <3

And also, as promised above!! I figured out the shipping of small packages, so even if Canada Post isn't back in the early new year (I mean, I very much hope they are & that CPWU gets a good deal in the process because they deserve it!!) I now know how to ship the wee guys to the states! Some of the wee guys who will be up for grabs in January:

So yeah! For once it won't be 3-6 months until my next shop update, which is neat & also unusual. Also despite feeling pretty burnt out by the end of this batch, I have already gotten like six new ideas for critters - one of which is VERY exciting to me - and can't wait to get back to my pottery desk after the holidays!!!! Stay tuned!!!

[jbbartram-illu]

a whole bunch of gazan mutual aid projects and nonprofits. if the decision of which individual fundraiser to give to feels too daunting, or if you just want to help as many people as possible in one go, these are great initiatives to support.

care for gaza - focuses on providing food and essential supplies. donate here or here.

connecting humanity - securing internet access via donations of virtual sim cards (esims). if you can't afford a whole plan yourself, crips for esims is a communal pool that will use your donation to purchase and maintain esims

gaza soup kitchen - provides food, medical care, and classes for children. also has a gofundme

glia gaza medical support initiative - provides medical care through field clinics and tents at hospitals. donations can also be sent through their website.

ele elna elak - provides clean water, food, clothing, and shelter. they also have a gofundme

life for gaza - raising money for the gaza municipality to repair water and waste management infrastructure

taawon - partners with local civil organizations to provide food, water, medical care, shelter, and basic supplies

the sameer project - running various initiatives providing tents, medical care, and necessities. they have their own encampment project focused on sheltering families with children, sick and disabled members, or members in need of perinatal care

islamic relief worldwide's gaza emergency appeal - provides food, water, hygiene kits, medical supplies, and psychological support

baitulmaal - provides a variety of necessities, including food, water, shelter, and medical supplies

gaza mutual aid fund - distributes food, hygiene products, water, and other essential supplies, including financial support. run by @/el-shab-hussein's amazing friend Mona. updates can be found on her instagram.

hygiene kits for gaza - provides hygiene supplies including menstrual products, wipes, and toothbrushes/toothpaste

anera - provides a variety of necessities, including food, water, hygiene supplies, medicine, blankets and mattresses, and psychological care

palestine children's relief fund - provides supplies and support with a focus on children. also has an initiative for lebanon

dahnoun mutual aid - provides water, food, tents, baby supplies, financial support, and other necessities. updates can be found through their instagram

certainly this is not an exhaustive list, so please feel free to add on other projects or organizations that i didn't include. and as always, please take the time to donate if you can and share. it truly makes all the difference.

[jbbartram-illu]

The biggest enemy of meeting deadlines isn't laziness. It's the false belief that badly drawn bits aren't allowed. Wanna draw everything perfectly? Then be a cover artist. Spend days on one image. Wanna tell a story? Then make friends with ERROR. The best comics storytellers aren't best because they always draw perfect, but because they get into a flow, and roll right along, face forward.

—Jesse Hamm, 2015

[jbbartram-illu]

I know what I desperately want to stitch in the new year... but it requires... research

[jbbartram-illu]

Whew, you guys!!! THANK YOU?!

There are officially four things left in the shop, as screenshat below:

I can't even begin to describe how grateful I am & I can't wait for all these ceramics to get on the road to their new homes!

xoxoox

[jbbartram-illu]

Today's the day!!

The shop opens at 4pm EST today (Monday, December 2nd, 2024)!! Hooray!!

[jbbartram-illu]

wheres seasons greasons