Art & Words & Stuff
in which Sarah listens to songs, learns some gaming jargon, gets in some shows, and meets a big shot author.
Hello friends,
It’s raining today and has been for about a week. Rare weather in this part of the world. Our neighborhood avoided the recent fire scourge, so mudslides are not on my list of things to worry about right now. Rainy days give me permission to spend the whole day inside, so I took this opportunity to paint, write and listen to music.
Watching the rain, drinking TJs spiced chai, and reading headlines, I was thinking our country has really grabbed the devil by the tail, for sure, so of course I googled that phrase.
This song came up, “Pulling the Devil by the Tail” written and performed by Peter Rowan which, for a song written in 2005, was surprisingly relevant to how I’m feeling today:
Grab another coffee, grab another tea
A fistful of dollars and a jar of the leaves
Way to make a living, weeping and a-wailing
Pulling the devil by the tail
Pulling the devil by the tail
Into the bar and up to the bottle
Into the jalopy and open up the throttle
For the ground is wet and the sky is pale
Pulling the devil by the tail
Pulling the devil by the tail
[…]
Yeah, men in doubt jump to the sound of authority
Snap to attention at the voice of superiority
Ignore all alien orders, I say, without fail
Or you'll be pulling the devil by the tail
Or you'll be pulling the devil by the tail
The phrase “Pulling the Devil by the Tail” comes from the French, “Tirer le Diable Par la Queue” - an expression meaning, when people feel they have run out of options they will grab at the Devil for help (pull his tail to get his attention.) And so it appears we have, and are finding out.
(…Pulling Devils tail, idea for new painting, scribbles note into sketchbook ✍️…)
In the last newsletter I showed you a condor painting (now finished, see below) and asked if any of you had title ideas. Some very good suggestions came in, I went with “Rise,” but have added “To Claim their Bones.”
That phrase came from a thread I was reading on Reddit between gamers who were discussing the meaning of a Japanese phrase 肉斬骨断 / Yuk-cham-gol-dan / “Yield my flesh to claim their bones” which was used in a game called, I think, Blazing Strike? I’m not a gaming nerd, I’m more of a semantics nerd, so correct me if my specific gaming reference is wrong here. The phrase, which means, essentially, sacrifice now to achieve victory later, seemed kind of magical, so I used it.
Today, I want to claim their bones.
I’m also re-listening (again and again) to this great song, The Joke, by Brandi Carlisle which reminds us that cruelty is never the last word.
Yesterday, spouse and I went to Burbank for a book signing at Dark Delicacies (which is closing its brick and mortar soon, so get there for great last minute inventory deals while you can.)
The author of the night was (personal fave) Cory Doctorow who popularized the expression “Enshittification.” As well as very insightful social commentary he also writes science fiction novels. The idea of enshittification is that eventually all internet platforms, and also all corporate businesses, start by creating something people want to use. Then these once welcoming platforms start finding more and more ways to vampirically suck money out of the users until the platform becomes a morass of monetizing junk, driving the original users away.
As Corey, and the audio voice of his novels, Will Wheaton, said last night, the only way to halt the enshittification process is to keep supporting small businesses: independent artists, writers, musicians, bakeries, bookstores, vinyl shops, local coffee joints, small live music venues, independent clothing and jewelry makers, you get the idea. You can find a lot of these on Reddit (ie: Local indie ___/my town/reddit.) Maybe we can revive independent venues and makers again, turning our backs (as much as possible) on big box, crappy content, corporate newspeak futurism. I hope so.
Are there indie shops in your area you want to support? Let me know and I’ll make a list here for the next newsletter.
New Art Notes:
This weekend I am wrapping up my participation in the show “Art In Bloom” where floral artists were invited to be inspired by visual artists. Ikebana artist, Ildiko Choy, created this arrangement (left) as a counterpart to my 60” x 40” painting, “Volcano.” What do you think? “Volcano” is available through Creative Arts Group.
Upcoming Art Notes:
If you are in the San Diego/Escondido area, this Spring, date to be announced, I will be in the opening exhibit of the new Circle Center Gallery. Singular signed limited edition (1 of 1) prints on metal of these artworks will be on view and sale in the exhibit. The original artworks they were derived from can also be purchased through the gallery.
As soon as I have show dates I’ll let you know. If you are interested in any of these metal prints or original artworks, contact me and I’ll put you in touch with the gallery.
Listening:
🐰 Bad Bunny “DeBi TirAR MáS FOToS” (I should have taken more pictures) 2025 release. I have listened to this album about 10 times so far. It’s just great.
Watching:
🐈⬛ Flow was gorgeous. An animated film about a cat, a flood, and a bunch of animals who cooperate to survive. Its Oscar was well-deserved.
Reading:
🧧 Life and Death are Wearing Me Out, author, Mo Yan. This novel is a sprawling tale of the Chinese Cultural Revolution as seen and experienced by a man who is killed for being a landlord, then is reincarnated as a donkey, ox, pig, dog, monkey and eventually a human again. Humorous, sometimes grim, historical, Pulitzer Prize winning. I have gotten into Chinese magical realist fiction lately.
Well, once again it’s time to run! Stay warm and dry, drink plenty of tea and I’ll catch you up with more art news next time!