Diary Comic: C-c-c-c-old!

Year-End Book Wrap-up 2017

Books Read in 2017:
1. Entanglement by Emma Tarlo
2. The Einstein Prophecy by Robert Masello
3. Space Rocks! by Tom O’Donnell
4. Angel by Elizabeth Taylor
5. The Madonna of Las Vegas by Gregory Blake Smith [quit 20 pages before the end]
6. All My Friends are Dead by Avery Monsen and Jory John
7. Battle Bunny by Jon Scieszka and Mac Barnett
8. Founding Brothers by Joseph J. Ellis
9. Breathers by S.G. Browne
10. The Yellow House by Martin Gayford
11. Team Human by Justine Larbalestier and Sarah Rees Brennan
12. Hot Donut Salad by Alison Cowell
13. Taft 2012 by Jason Heller
14. How to Success! by Corinne Caputo
15. His Bloody Project by Graeme Macrae Burnet
16. Lost Science by Kitty Ferguson
17. How My Cat Made Me a Better Man by Jeremy Feig
18. Step Aside, Pops! by Kate Beaton
19. Rifles for Watie by Harold Keith
20. Hexed by Kevin Hearne

Audiobooks Listened to in 2017:
1. A Soldier of the Great War by Mark Helprin
2. What If? by Randall Munroe
3. Zombie Baseball Beatdown by Paolo Bacigalupi
4. Alchemy and Meggy Swann by Karen Cushman
5. Bloody Bones by Laurell K. Hamilton
6. Cockroaches by Jo Nesbo
7. The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp by Rick Yancey
8. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford
9. Invasion of the Body Snatchers by Jack Finney
10. A Kiss before dying by Ira Levin
11. M is For Magic by Neil Gaiman
12. Undeniable by Bill Nye
13. Charlie Chaplin and His Times by Kenneth S. Lynn
14. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
15. Dead Wake by Erik Larson
16. Doc by Mary Doria Russell
17. Dr. Mutter’s Marvels by Cristin O’Keefe Aptowitz
18. Swarm by Scott Westerfeld
19. A World Without Princes by Soman Chainani
20. Ever by Gail Carson Levine
21. Falling Free by Lois McMaster Bujold
22. Foxglove Summer by Ben Aaronovitch
23. The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
24. Igraine the Brave by Cornelia Funke
25. The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher
26. Professor Gargoyle by Charles Gilman
27. Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow
28. America’s Hidden History by Kenneth C. Davis
29. Common Sense by Thomas Paine
30. The Daily Show (The Book) by Chris Smith
31. Dreamers of the Day by Mary Doria Russell
32. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell
33. Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson
34. George Washington’s Secret Six by Brian Kilmeade
35. Hamilton: The Revolution by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jeremy McCarter
36. Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling
37. John Dies at the End by David Wong

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Maryland Lighthouse Challenge

The Maryland Lighthouse Challenge involves visiting nine lighthouses and one lightship over the course of a weekend. I haven’t the foggiest idea why, but I had it in my head that this was something I was going to do. And I did. And I drew a quick sketch of each lighthouse I visited, in person, usually standing. (I hate to draw while standing.) Chesapeake Bay lighthouses aren’t as impressive as the ones in the ocean, but they can be interesting to look at, particularly the screw-pile type. I filled one page each day of the challenge, and I’m really proud of how they turned out.

US Capitol

I tried a different approach to this drawing. I decided the Capitol was way too complicated and I’d get lost and frustrated if I started somewhere and tried to get every detail. Instead, I drew the big shapes and just started filling in details. I drew quickly with a larger pen than I usually use. And I think it came out all right. And the weather that day was simply perfect.

Centreville Townhouses

Hyperlocal Tourism: These drawings are part of my ongoing attempts to fall in love with Centreville, Virginia, where I’ve lived for more than a decade. I’m hoping that by getting up close and personal, I will develop an affection for the place.

I like drawing historic buildings but the truth is that most of Centreville is made up of strip malls and townhouses. It’s the oldest town in the county but we’ve paved over most of the evidence. This was drawn from a photograph I took while taking a walk around the neighborhood.

Centreville Volunteer Fire Department

Hyperlocal Tourism: These drawings are part of my ongoing attempts to fall in love with Centreville, Virginia, where I’ve lived for more than a decade. I’m hoping that by getting up close and personal, I will develop an affection for the place.

These are the guys who come save me if my house is on fire. I stopped to draw this from across the street while walking home from Centreville Day.

Harrison House, Centreville

Hyperlocal Tourism: These drawings are part of my ongoing attempts to fall in love with Centreville, Virginia, where I’ve lived for more than a decade. I’m hoping that by getting up close and personal, I will develop an affection for the place.

The Harrison House has seen better days. I know there are efforts being made to preserve it, but I don’t know the details. I would like to note that one of the former owners was a Confederate soldier named – believe it or not – Spotsylvania County Spindle.

Stuart-Mosby Cavalry Museum, Centreville

Hyperlocal Tourism: These drawings are part of my ongoing attempts to fall in love with Centreville, Virginia, where I’ve lived for more than a decade. I’m hoping that by getting up close and personal, I will develop an affection for the place.

The Stuart-Mosby Civil War Cavalry Museum is a collection of Civil War memorabilia crammed into the tiny front room of an old gas station, if you can believe it.

Spindle Sears House, Centreville

Hyperlocal Tourism: These drawings are part of my ongoing attempts to fall in love with Centreville, Virginia, where I’ve lived for more than a decade. I’m hoping that by getting up close and personal, I will develop an affection for the place.

The Spindle Sears House was what it sounds like: a house ordered from the Sears Catalog. It’s small but surprisingly modern (by 1930s standards).

St. John’s Episcopal, Centreville

Hyperlocal Tourism: These drawings are part of my ongoing attempts to fall in love with Centreville, Virginia, where I’ve lived for more than a decade. I’m hoping that by getting up close and personal, I will develop an affection for the place.

St. John’s Episcopal Church in Centreville was built before the Civil War. It’s very small but pretty inside, and some interesting people are buried in its yard.

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