Reading and Painting

I watched a news report today about gaming, and it had this man talking about his 'sport' of gaming. He was some kind of world champion. I appreciated it being a skill, and causing him stress, but I can't accept that it is a sport. It is a game, clue in the title, but sport to me involves at least being on your feet and some kind of movement. And I was trying to remember what the other word is for that kind of thing-it is a hobby. I couldn't remember the word for a while. The man could also claim that it was his job, but it must have started as a hobby. Definition of sport: 'an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment.'

Or 'play in a lively, energetic way.'

Anyway, this digression is to do with the fact that reading and painting are hobbies too, alhough I am not sure that people use that word very much anymore.

This is one of my book piles, and is the one containing books I intend to read soon. But first I need to finish the book below which is extremely long. It is covered in tracing paper to protect the cover as I am not good at looking after books I am reading and it will get battered in my bag. I had to change handbags to accommodate it. It is about diseases, epidemics, pandemics, and the people who research them and solve the puzzles they throw up. I read about it last year when covid was becoming a thing, but I couldn't get hold of it for ages. It was written in 1994 and is just fascinating. The people who go to far flung places to find out what is causing outbreaks of new and scary diseases are amazing and often foolhardy and encounter many dangers. So far I have read about Ebola, Lassa Fever, Swine Flu, Legionnaire's Disease, (so called because it was first discovered after a number of American Legionnaires died after attending a conference in Philadelphia in 1976.) and I am really enjoying it, and it is just making it so obvious how the current situation was only a matter of time. There are parts of it I have read that wouldn't have meant much to me a year ago but certainly do now. I heard a thing on the radio the other day that if you are a person who likes apocalyptic fiction and films, ( I am) then you would have been better prepared for the pandemic as you would have mentally rehearsed similar situations. I am not sure if that is true or not but it is interesting. And I suppose zombies would be worse. 

Below are a few doodly painrtings I did over the last couple of weeks when I cound not find the enthusiasm for continuing the doll painting I started before Christmas. I still don't feel like doing that so I will wait until I do. But little doodly faces are fun so here they are. 

I did some of them whilst on the phone as everything was handy and I can talk and doodle. And I did some with my left hand. I used to enjoy reading the blog of  Lynne Hoppe and she advocated drawing with your non-dominant hand sometimes, and I thought of her. The writing is also left handed. I used Derwent Inktense pencils which I love. 

This is not left handed. It is pen and charcoal.

Just pen with water and a paper sample I found in old stuff from somewhere. 

Inktense but with no water added. A 1920s swimmer is what comes to mind. 

Acrylic ink just two colours.

Inktense with no water.

Inktense above and below. Above is right hand and below left. I think I like the left handed ones more. I could really feel what I was doing-in that it was harder to do so it made me more aware of the process than the automatic right hand.