The Journey Daybook, Inc.

Journey Daybook Adventure at the Harn Museum

July 28, 2014

Our July 20th Alumni Adventure provided a cool, exciting art-making and art-appreciating experience at the Harn Museum in Gainesville. Fifteen of us, including two guests, enjoyed the present exhibition of Japanese prints that were created about a journey between Tokyo and Kyoto, Japan. If you live in this area, we encourage you to see this exhibition before mid August, when it will come down.

After sharing our pages in the museum’s lobby, our group enjoyed a lovely lunch of conversation and catching up in the cafe. Please look at the jdb pages that are posted on the Journey Daybook Pages page.

Gypsy Gold!

June 23, 2014

Last Friday Susan J. hosted our June Alumni Adventure at a unique horse breeding farm south of Ocala. Thirteen alums and two guests arrived eagerly and early. We thoroughly enjoyed a magic tour of Dennis Thompson’s beautiful stables with an introduction to British Gypsy culture and the Gypsy Vanner horses which originally drove the colorful Gypsy wagons as they travelled throughout Britain. You can read all about Dennis and his farm on his website. Dennis is a fabulous storyteller, entertaining us with his history and anecdotes for a two fabulous hours.Anne S., our resident photo artist, brought her beautiful big Canon camera and made many stunning photos, some of which I am posting here. to give you an idea of the flavor of our experience. As always, our journey daybook pages will be posted on the Journey Daybook Pages page.

Part of our group

Nancy and Pamela

Joyce

Lois

Barbara B.

Pam F

A Gypsy Vanner horse and his groom

Journey Daybook Project at the Florida Women’s Reception Center, Lowell FL

June 08, 2014

Since early April twelve of us volunteers have been meeting with twelve inmates on a regular – almost weekly basis. This was the second round of visits to the prison for us, having gotten our feet wet with our first group last fall. Four or five of us go into this maximum security facility each week, carrying our own journey daybook-making supplies, books, our computer, and materials needed for the subject that we are introducing. We finished the last – our 7th – session on Monday of this week. We haven’t been able to make our own photos until this last session. Patty brought her compact camera and made these snapshots that show “our inmates” as they work with us on a typical Monday. This week’s subject, “Design of the Page,” brought out the best of this group’s stunning pages. I am posting here some of the photos. Photos and scans of the work will appear on the Journey Daybook Page.     28 June 2014 – I am editing this post to include some photos that I recently received that show our activities with the 12 inmates at the FWRC on 12 May 2014. Thank you, Kevin, for sending these photos made on the prison’s camera. This was the 5th session of our series. Here, the subject is about painting. After our first session at Lowell in 2013 it was decided to add a second “painting” day because the subject is so broad and of interest to many people. I hope that you can detect the eagerness of our new journey daybook students. 

Small Boat Meet Alumni Adventure in Cedar Key

April 23, 2014

It is that time again for Cedar Keys 30^th Annual Cedar Key Small Boat Meet (http://www.cedarkey.org/events.phpin) and JDB’s Annual Cedar Key Small Boat Adventure on May 3rd in Cedar Key. Lovely small craft of all sorts will be on the water for us to enjoy and draw and feature in our journey daybooks: canoes & kayaks, catboats & catamarans; trimarans, rowboats & sailing dinghies; scows, sharpies & sampans; punts, pirogues, prams—& pirates’ yawlboats.

We will meet at the tiny pocket park at the foot of 4th Street right on the water.  As you come into Cedar Key, you will pass Annie’s café on the right.  That is 6th Street.  Go past Christ Episcopal church ( 5^th Street ), turn right at the next street ( 4th Street), and proceed all the way to where it ends at the bay.  We will be gathered there. Bring journey daybooks, a sack lunch, a wide-brimmed hat, and a suitable chair.  Please be sure to have the review process in your journey daybook.  Official meeting time is 10:30am . There will be cold drinks and some treats.

In the past, some members have chosen to kayak or canoe to a close island and paint from that viewpoint.  The following includes a map and information on Cedar Key. http://cedarkeyattitude.com/where_is_cedar_key.html .

Hostess . . . . .  Lois Benninghoff

Please RSVP directly to Lois: lois.benninghoff@gmail.com  or call her at:

352-543-0254 (home)     352-949-2617 (cell).

If you have difficulties finding the group once you are in Cedar Key you can also try Barbara Beynon’s cell phone : 352-514-2058.

Check out the journey daybook pages made at Boulware Springs last Saturday!

There were 5 of us alums and one dog who met at Gainesville’s historical waterworks that was created in the 19th century from a pristine artesian spring. We enjoyed a wonderful reunion with Mary Anna who was spending Easter weekend in Gainesville. Be sure to check out the newest pages posted this week on the Journey Daybook Pages page.

Alumni Adventure at Boulware Springs

April 13, 2014

We’ll gather at the Boulware Springs, located at the head of the Gainesville/Hawthorne State Trail at 10:00am on Saturday, April 19^th.   At the springs we will meet at the covered picnic area before the adventure and return there for lunch and our review of pages—please be sure to have the review process in your journey daybook. Bring a sack lunch and drinks and we will eat at 12 noon. Bathroom facilities are available at Boulware Springs.

Several drawing sites are near Boulware Springs, including the springs and its building.  A short walk down the trail leads to the Sweetwater Branch Payne’s Prairie overlook, a possible drawing site.

One can also either walk or drive to the LaChua trailhead, which has several sites along the way from which drawing is possible. There is an entrance fee of $2.00 per person to go into the LaChua trail area. A portapotti is available at the beginning of this trail.  It’s a bit of a walk from Boulware Springs so those wanting to spend more time on their page may prefer to drive to the LaChua trail – just be sure to check in with Patty first at the Boulware picnic tables.   Along the LaChua trail are good places to draw, including a stable and an overlook pavilion.

Here is a link to a map of the Boulware Springs site and the trail and from that map you can see that is a short walk to Sweetwater Branch overlook.

http://www.floridastateparks.org/gainesville-hawthorne/doc/additionalinformation/gah-ght_mapbw.pdf

Remember: Please RSVP to Patty Jett if you are planning on joining us for this adventure. Her email address is: jett32625@yahoo.com and she can also be reached at 352-543-5722 or 352-562-6472.

Wilmot Gardens

March 30, 2014

A few if our Journey Daybook Alums braved bad weather Saturday to visit Wilmot Gardens, a new garden area behind Shands Hospital in Gainesville. Susan reports:

Alumni Adventure: Saturday, March 29 in Gainesville

March 26, 2014

Next JDB Adventure will be Saturday March 29th at Wilmot Gardens behind the Medical Plaza at UF Health and Shands off Archer Road. We will meet at 10AM at the greenhouse. Park at the Medical Plaza, west of the big Shands Hospital in the lot on the right after you turn onto Gale Lemorand Drive from Archer Road. The garden is behind the Medical Plaza. Go to http://wilmot.med.ufl.edu/ for more information about the garden and a map.

There is also a Lawn and Garden Fest on Saturday at the Soil Testing lab (corner of Hull and Mowry Rds.) It is free  from 10-2 so if we finish early some may want to go there. You can get a free soil test!

Please RSVP directly to Pam Feaster at :  phfeast@aol.com

Tin Can Trailers Adventure

February 24, 2014

On Saturday, January 10th a group of alumni made pages at a gathering of small vintage trailers that assembled at a Gainesville Park. Susan made these pictures that give an idea of the joyful, quirky decor that makes each of these “caravans’ so special. The pages made by our Journey Daybook alumni can be seen on the Journey Daybook Pages page.

Alumni Adventure at Haile Village

On Washington’s Birthday, February 22nd, 9 of us alums gathered at the fountain in the center of this charmed village in Gainesville to draw and write.

After 2 hours of work, we walked a few blocks to Lilliam’s beautiful Cuban-inspired home to enjoy our lunches and engage in the review that helps each of us to clarify our artistic intentions and monitor our individual progress. I’d say that each of us challenged ourself in some new and interesting way. Patty is becoming expert in her ability to catch likenesses “on the fly.” Lois is drawing more shapes while retaining her special whimsy. And, Susan J. made a beautiful line drawing without the benefit of glasses! These pages are in progress: about 60% finished. Look for the finished work under Journey Daybook pages later.