I Support the ACLU with My Wallet

"ACLU Card and Bookmark" Cedar Park, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/90 sec, ISO6400
“ACLU Card and Bookmark” Cedar Park, 2019

I’ve supported the ACLU sporadically for many years now, but starting in November of 2017, I donate monthly. It’s one of six organizations that I contribute to regularly.

Clicking “like” in Twitter posts is good to raise awareness of issues, but donating money to causes you care about makes a bigger difference.

Drawing on the iPad with Procreate

"Digital Drawing in iPad" Cedar Park, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/125 sec, ISO5000
“Digital Drawing in iPad” Cedar Park, 2019

こんばんは。How’s it going?

I couple days ago I bought an Apple iPad 9.7″. The reason I bought it is because I wanted a good drawing tablet with a screen, and to me, the 9.7″ iPad was the best combination of quality and price. I’m not a fan of Apple products (mainly their ecosystem and the awful iTunes application) but the lure of Apple pencil and Procreate was too much to resist.

I’ve had the iPad for a couple days, and I love drawing with it! Procreate is such a fun program to use. I ended up drawing late into the wee hours of the morning the first day I had it.

Compared to a traditional drawing tablet like my Wacom Art tablet, it’s so much more intuitive and fun. The pinch to zoom and rotate on the iPad is awesome! It makes sketching so easy and convenient. I’d say it’s a game-changer.

I’m still a newbie, but I wanted to share one of the “watercolors” I created. I imported a photo from my China vacation, then traced it by hand and colored it in. I’m pleased with how it turned out, especially for a first attempt.

Shibaozhai Pagoda
Shibaozhai Pagoda

One really cool feature of Procreate is the timelapse feature. It’s pretty neat how it’s always recording your brushstrokes. So fun to go back and watch! Check out the video below to see how I drew this little watercolor:

I’m so happy with Procreate and the Apple pencil. I find iOS to be decent, but the file system baffles me, and iTunes is still maddening. But if I use iPad for the intention I bought it for (sketching), I am more than satisfied. 😀

I hope you had a nice day!

またね~

Sweet, Deep-fried Chicken Dinner

"Chicken DInner" Cedar Park, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/90 sec, ISO6400
“Chicken DInner” Cedar Park, 2019

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Just a photo tonight of our dinner: deep fried chicken in a sweet sauce, with homemade tartar sauce, shredded cabbage, and potato salad. As you can imagine, it was very, very good! ☺

I hope you had a nice day!

またね〜

Chili-Gohan (Chili Over Rice)

"Chili Gohan" Cedar Park, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.5, 1/125 sec, ISO2000
“Chili Gohan” Cedar Park, 2019

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Today was a great day because I got to make a big batch of chili. 🌶 We’ve tried a few chili recipes over the years, but the ones we like always have dried Guajillo peppers in it. These give the chili a deep red color and a wonderful flavor. Just be careful because the red color will easily stain clothes!

"Peppers" Cedar Park, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/125 sec, ISO2500
“Peppers” Cedar Park, 2019

Anyways, I usually buy a dozen Guajillo peppers at our local market, then boil them for about 15 minutes to rehydrate them. Next, I put them in our Cuisinart food processor with maybe half a cup of the water, then process until almost smooth. Adding this chili paste to the pot makes it “real” to me. Chili just isn’t the same without it! And I love to make chili because it means I get to pull out our largest Le Creuset pot. Yay!

"Processed Peppers" Cedar Park, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/125 sec, ISO2000
“Processed Peppers” Cedar Park, 2019

With each pot of chili I make, I will adjust with different ingredients, sometimes out of necessity. For instance, this time I didn’t have the can of tomato paste I normally add, so I used some pasta sauce we had in the fridge. And I didn’t have the usual dark beer that the recipe calls for, and I didn’t want to use the IPA we had), so I just used more of the water I boiled the chiles in. I also added a bit of white vinegar and shoyu (soy sauce) to the mix, which is new.

I have to say, it turned out really good! And we have enough to last us a few days. 😄


Bay and I had the chili over steamed rice, with cheese, raw jalapeño, raw habañero (for me), sour cream, and a bit of hot sauce. And a runny egg, of course! Because we put it over rice, we call it “Chili-Gohan”, with the word Gohan being Japanese for rice or meal. Makes sense, doesn’t it?

I hope you had a delicious day!

またね~

TMEA Concert Night in Cedar Park

“TMEA Concert” Cedar Park, 2019
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/60 sec, ISO5000
“TMEA Concert” Cedar Park, 2019

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Tonight we went to listen to the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) concert that Koa was participating in. Last month, the high school band kids auditioned for a spot in one of the three bands, and Koa did great and earned a place in the top band, the Wind Ensemble. They played four pieces, and Koa mentioned to me that he was gonna go crazy on the bass drum in one of them. Sure enough, in the finale of the evening, Redacted, Koa was on bass drum and he was loud and banging away. It was pretty great!

TMEA happens every year, and this was Koa’s second time performing. It’s amazing that the kids rehearse for only a few hours the night before, then a few more before the actual concert, and can perform at such a high level. It’s incredible!

I’m so happy that Koa is so interested in band. It really has shaped his early life for the better and we could not be more pleased!

またね~