The ones you see here belonged to my wife’s grandfather. He recently passed, and these Lietz books were found in his possessions. He was as surveyor for most of his career.  The open book chronicles (in the form of a spending log) some of him many journey’s to the orphanage his daughter helps run in Mexico.

With smart phones residing in the pockets of most of us, such archaic methods of notation have fallen by the wayside for most of the general public. For those of us that still carry notebooks, they are indispensable. Most artistic people I know carry a of notebook or sketch book of some sort. Among my friends and I, our favorites are the time honored Moleskine of Hemmingway fame, and Field Notes. Field Notes also maintains a great blog about, well . . . notebooks (and a whole lot of Americana).

Check them both out. What is your favorite way to notate you life?

I haven’t really heard much about the banning of books lately, maybe I just don’t like to think about it, so I kind of assumed it didn’t really happen anymore. I’ve been wrong before. I understand the desire to protect your kids from certain things. I do. I do not, however, see what gives someone the right to decide what another’s children can and can not read. If he doesn’t want his children reading Slaughter House Five, arguably one of the best novels of the twenty-first century, then he can forbid them from reading it. If Mr. Scroggins feels that his children shouldn’t cuss, then read the book and discuss the subject with them. To remove the book from schools is an attempt to impress his personal beliefs on the children of others, and worse yet, spits in the face of the 1st Amendment.

Read the article, see what you think.

I know, I shut down for a while, but I have been working my but off. The big news this week; according to NANO, I am a winner. I managed to write a short novel of over 50,000 words during the month of November. 50,000 words in one month. I’m impressed with myself. Now if I can ever find the time to do some revisions, I may actually have a book to share.

In other news: my shoe book is coming along and I have found and illustrator for my comic book. Combine that with a couple classes at the local college and I have a lot of irons in the fire. Look for more info on these things soon.

I also found out that I am going to miss the APE again. Not the giant flea eating simian, but the Alternative Press Expo. I have been trying to keep this on my calendar for a couple years now, but something always seems to get in the way. This year, I some how scheduled the principle photography for my student film that weekend. Yes, I am actually making a student film.

While I am slaving away that weekend, stuck behind a camera,  pretending that I know what I am doing, you can make your way out to the APE, and let me know what you think. For those who have never been, it’s a small press gathering where you can find lot’s of indie comics, workshops, and all kinds of independent publications. It’s produced by the same guys that do Comic-con, but with a low brow, DIY feel to it. Check it out. Let me know what you think.

If anyone wants to blog from it, I’ll pick up your ticket.  You can get your opinion out there in front of my tens of followers.

I love this pair of shoes. They raise so many questions. They raised a lot of challenges as well. I have long known just how difficult it is to shoot shiny objects, but putting a mirror below them really ups the difficulty. What stories do you think this pair tells? Let me know in the comments. I’m sure they have a few.

In other news, they Kickstarter fund raising campaign for the American Photo Project is off to a crawl. Two backers and $30 so far. Only 1%. I need to pick up the pace if I am ever going to make it. Just click on the widget to the right to learn more.

There is also only two days left in the typo contest. Send in the photos of those typos to claim your prize.

I think shoes are incredible. They are horribly taken for granted. Every pair of shoes have a story to them. With this book, I want to tease the story out of a few of them. What story do you think these boots have to tell?

I think I’m about a quarter of the way through it right now. Still a lot of work to do before my deadline, which is the Artwalk on October 9th. You are coming, right? Wish me luck. It’s starting to look like it may be a bit of a lofty goal. Regardless, you should come by and say hi.

Don’t forget about the contest this month. Send me a picture of the best typo you can find in a public space. My favorite is the winner.