Blue Mouse Monkey Blog

This isn’t a vegan household, but we don’t eat a whole lot of cheese or eggs, so many of our meals end up bumper-to-bumper plant-based.

Here’s Creamy and Tangy Vegan Pasta Sauce.

In a little olive oil, fry up chopped zucchini, red bell pepper until somewhat softened, then add a large chopped tomato (the one in the photo was a  yellow variety, big and sweet). Add in a couple cloves of crushed garlic, salt to taste, and simmer in the vegetables’ juices till the zucchini is soft but not losing its shape.  Right at the end add in a few bunches of chopped basil and heat it through, but don’t let it cook – basil loses flavor with too much heat.  Then get a big ol’ dollop of Vegenaise (made by Follow Your Heart) and stir it into the dish.  Serve with pasta.  Here it’s organic whole wheat fettucini.  Yum!

One thing I hear from clients over and over is how much they appreciate that their plan, aspiration, project, creative vision — whatever it is they bring to the Blue Mouse Monkey table — is understood in a fundamental way. This feedback is from a new client who is proposing an amazing niche consultancy service:

“I did not think of it until later that day, but you were the first person that I shared the idea with who did not already know me quite well. I was little worried I was falling into the “American Idol” bad-singer syndrome… If you just ask family and friends “I’m a good singer right?” you may never hear the truth. You “getting it” and your enthusiasm was uplifting. Thank you.”

Colleen Sibelman Photography

Colleen Sibelman is a photographer living on the Olympic Peninsula. She’s traveled all over the country taking vibrant colorful photographs which are showcased on this site. AND she’s my mom! Proud to know you, mom! And happy birthday ;-)

The debate tonight. Obama. McCain. Talking, talking, talking. Like they’ve been doing for months. Points, promises, speculation, assurances. Meanwhile needs are urgent, people a dying, species are dying. It’s time for action. I wish the election was tomorrow. Not because I think the next president will save us, but because we are mired and we simply have to start moving.

I wish the next scene was like in the police dramas where the chief hears the (seemingly unsolvable) problem scenario then goes right into, “Lieutenant X, get the harbor dredged, Lieutenant Y, check all surveillance cameras on that garage for the past month, Lieutenant Z, check all body shops in a 10 mile radius for a silver Ford with a crushed passenger door…”  And they go do it.  And so begins the solving of the seemingly unsolvable problem.  Not that the world’s problems are going to be solved within the ‘episode’, but at least get started, please!  We’re being indulgent, playing along with all this posturing, all these rehearsed phrases chosen for their rhetorical impact.  We’re acting like there’s time to spare.

XKCD is “A webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language” by Randall Munroe and I love it. I don’t care that he can’t (or won’t) draw people, his imagination soars and his wit neatly slices.  Sometimes the math stuff goes over my head, but that just makes me feel smarter when I do get what he’s talking about.  Which is most of the time.  At least in principle, if not the details.  Here’s one of his recent strips (click on it to view larger). Check out more at xkcd.com/

One Sided, by Randall Monroe

Microsoft is buying one of my paintings.  They apparently went into the Mark Woolley gallery and picked it out.  My first reaction was…hmmm. I really don’t like what they’re doing to One Laptop per Child.  And they deliberately build their browsers non standards compliant, making them a bane of every web developer’s existence.  And everyone hates Vista.   PLUS the way the sales contract is worded, they not only get the artwork, they get ownership of the copyright, too, which is pretty unusual in the world of fine art.  

Then I thought, wait, I’m not so pure: I own a copy of Office.  (For the Mac, sure, but who the heck wants to grapple with exchanging text documents in other formats?)

And I thought, well, better chosen and loved than left to mildew in my basement, which is the unfortunate destination for pieces that don’t sell.

And I thought, it is called Providence, after all. So, don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.

So I said yes.

Providence, 2007; 4 x 4; Ink, acrylic, digital prints on panel