Island of Knowledge, Shoreline of Wonder

by Marty Coleman | Mar 2, 2011 | Series | 0 comments

I love this quote. Contrary to some religious cliches spoken by uneducated people living in fear, you are NOT doing something wrong by becoming educated and then relying on that education to help you make good judgments in life.

The best example of this for me is my eldest daughter, Rebekah. She is the most curious, knowledge seeking person I know. She has enthusiasm and energy for anyone and anything that comes alongside her on her journey.

After high school she decided to go to a unique school, St. John’s College, in Annapolis, Maryland. The curriculum is inspired by the Great Books collection that was published back in the 30s out of the University of Chicago. They study the major disciplines from the original source material dating back to the ancient Greeks and moving forward historically. They do the science experiments, the math problems, and discuss the philosophical issues that the great minds throughout history have taken on. All the students study the same curriculum and get the same degree, basically a degree in Philosophy and Math.

Her time there led her to find an area of further study that one doesn’t usually associate with an esoteric curriculum of Philosophy. She decided to go into Neuroscience. She is now a Ph.D. candidate in Neuroscience at George Mason University in Virginia. She is what I consider to be a budding superstar in her field.

But here is the funny thing. She is still the most enthusiastic little girl when it comes to her life. She loves going into creeks and finding frogs and turtles. She loves video games and can whoop most anyone’s rear in Halo and any other hard-ass ‘boys’ games. She loves martial arts and singing in her Unitarian Choir. She will call me up and be talking about cellular biology with the same enthusiasm and joy that she had as a little girl talking about American Girl dolls or our garden in the backyard.

I love her for that and this quote is all about that love for her.

Quote author unknown

wonder knowledge education curiosity exploration daughter father love enthusiasm

The Girl with the Wonderful Eyebrows

by Marty Coleman | Mar 2, 2011 | Texas, Travel Napkins | 0 comments

Part 1

Today I am in Waco, Texas visiting my daughter. I am hanging out at Common Grounds, a coffee spot right off the Baylor campus. I am watching the parade of students come in, order their drinks and go back out to their next class. The woman serving, Hilary, has beautiful eyebrows. I did a drawing of her at the coffee bar and showed it to her. I like them, and told her so. She is not sure she likes her eyebrows Sometimes she does, sometimes she doesn’t.

Part 2

The next morning I came down to the dining area at the hotel in Waco. I saw a young woman with great, fun, spikey hair sitting down with someone who looked like her mother and a friend. I went and found a guest napkin & drew them. The mother had copper eyeshadow, and I love copper eyeshadow on almost anyone. Haven’t ever really figured out why, but I do. I know, the color of her eye shadow in the drawing isn’t copper, so sue me. This story has nothing to do with this drawing.

As I was drawing a woman asked if she could borrow one of the chairs at my table. They sat at the table next to me and I overheard them talking about the big Baylor Sing competition of the night before. My daughter was in the same event so I asked them what they thought of it.

We got into a friendly discussion about the various acts, which were good, bad, ugly, etc. It turns out their daughters were also in the competition (they were in acts that we ranked very high, so that was good). I mentioned that I was an artist and I didn’t think enough attention was paid to the visuals of set design, costumes, etc. in the judging. They said they noticed I had been drawing and I explained about ‘The Napkin Dad’, and told them about this website/blog. I gave them my card.

My wife showed up so I went to help fix a plate of food for our daughter, still upstairs getting ready. When I came back my new friends were laughing and cracking up about something. They had just gone to my site on their iPhone and said, ‘You won’t believe it, but Hilary, the girl with the wonderful eyebrows? We have known her since she was 6 months old, she is one of my daughter’s best friends.’

I brought out the drawing I did of Hilary and they took a photo to immediately send to Hilary’s mother back in Phoenix. I like this story. Life is good sometimes and it makes me happy.

Yellow – Silence isn't Always Golden

by Marty Coleman | Mar 2, 2011 | Colors - 2011 | 0 comments

Day #5 of the Color series. Check out white, green, blue and red in days past.

The cool thing is to always talk about being silent. Listen with two ears, talk with one mouth in that ratio. Sayings like that are all around us. Religion says silence is good. Meditation is good, it’s silent.

What isn’t good is silence that is rooted in cowardice and fear. Silence when you see abuse and violence. Silence when you see corruption and hate. Silence when you see manipulation and deceit. Then it is good to speak.

But just like anything else, if you aren’t going to speak up in the small things you see, if you aren’t going to practice speaking, then when it comes to something big, something that really matters, you might not be able to speak very well.

Don’t be a coward. Don’t be yellow. Speak up.

Quote author unknown

Red – Beauty, Comfort and Kick-ass Red Lipstick

by Marty Coleman | Mar 2, 2011 | Colors - 2011, Gwyneth Paltrow | 2 comments

Have you noticed yet that I am doing a series and I haven’t even told you? It’s on color. So far we have white, green, blue and today, red.

Do you like GREEN eyeshadow? THEN why aren’t you wearing it?

Do you like PURPLE bras? then why aren’t YOU wearing one?

Do you like PINK? Then why isn’t your ROOM painted it?

Do you like RED lipstick? ThenWHY aren’t you wearing it?

Finally, are you a cyclops? No, of course you aren’t. BUT, you are unique somehow. Why aren’t you admitting, allowing and celebrating that uniqueness?

You aren’t EVER going to be comfortable in someone else’s skin, only, if you are lucky, in your own. So, why are you living your life to please those who don’t like green eyeshadow, purple bras, pink rooms and RED lipstick?

I mentioned yesterday that my cousin’s son, Gavin Powell, died in a terrible tragedy this week. Reading about him in his friend’s memorial tributes online you get the picture of a very unique and fun young man. One who wanted to grow a beard at age 16 and did. Who liked Rastafarian style hats and wore them. He was seen as a bit eccentric. My response? Three cheers for it! The world needs more uniqueness, more eccentricity, not less.

My grandfather, who spent many summers in Colorado, got into the habit of collecting and wearing western style bolo ties as he got older. My father inherited some of those and would wear them as well. I, in turn, have inherited them, and have some of my own. I love bolo ties. Not only do I think they look kick-ass cool, they connect me to my father and grandfather just the same as a ring might for a woman. In the meanwhile, my wife isn’t so hot on them. But guess what? I love my wife, and I don’t want to embarrass her (that’s why I shower once in a while) but I am going to wear bolo ties when I want to wear bolo ties. And I hope she wears what she wants, even if I don’t think it’s the greatest thing.

Being comfortable in your own skin means be who you WANT to be, in style and substance.

Quote by Gwyneth Paltrow, 1972- not dead yet, American actress

Blue – RIP Gavin Powell

by Marty Coleman | Feb 22, 2011 | Anonymous, Colors - 2011, Death - 2001-2011 | 0 comments

My family is blue today. I have a cousin, Jim Powell. His only son Gavin died along with his best friend Matt in a rafting accident this week in Walnut Creek, California. He was 17, Matt was 16. There had been heavy rains in the area and after Gavin found an old inflatable raft in his garage they made plans to raft down a local creek. They wore helmets but no life vests and were unable to navigate in the fast rushing waters. Both of them died during their trip. Links to the story are below.

As any parent knows and will tell you, nothing in the complete realm of human existence can be more completely and utterly destructive to one’s soul than losing a child. I have not had that happen and I am very grateful. But I know the fear, as do all parents I have ever known. I may not be as controlling of my kids as my wives have been, I may say ‘you have to let them go do this or that’. I am that father who said that is how it has to be to my wives. But make no mistake, for every time I have said that, and I bet for every other spouse who played the role of the one saying it’s ok to let them go, we knew we were gambling a bit. All of life is a bit of a gamble, sometimes greater odds, sometimes lesser. It’s a sad, sad moment when the odds go bad and something like this happens. The essay below says it better than I can, I encourage parents to read it.

So, why did I illustrate a quote about a dog? I didn’t draw this to say I hope he has a dog. I drew it because ‘blue’ can’t always be explained, even when it is so obvious, as in this case. The pain, the suffering, the what ifs, the if onlys, the guilt, the loss, the anger, the hopelessness, the fear, the emptiness. They can’t be listed out like that in a broken heart. They can’t be categorized and compartmentalized and logically explained one by one. I can imagine that is what one feels they must do when asked ‘why do you feel blue’.

Maybe it’s best to be like a dog, not ask why, even if we know what we think the answer will be, but just comfort and be.

Drawing by Marty Coleman

Quote author unknown

The Grass is Greener

by Marty Coleman | Feb 21, 2011 | Anonymous, Colors - 2011 | 0 comments

Whose world do you water? There is nothing wrong with watering someone else’s garden, but there is something wrong with neglecting your own. Whether it’s a wife, husband, home, children, community, family, friends, profession, team or actual garden, if you only pay attention to other ones AT the expense of your own, you will end up with neither.

A shout out to the Napkin Kin from these countries in the Middle East; Syria, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Israel, who have been coming to visit the blog over the last month. Thank you!

Quote author unknown

Green color jealousy envy desire lust wishes hopes neglect 2011 grass greener

Sketchbook History Tour, 2005

by Marty Coleman | Feb 21, 2011 | Sketchbook History Tour | 0 comments

Windy Woman, 2005

I like this drawing a lot, with the woman and quotes, they make sense together I think.

Painting Man, 2005

This is me as the famous Parisian artiste toiling away in my garret with just my beret to keep me company.

Tattooed Bust, 2005

I saw her in church, briefly, and I liked her boniness. I drew from memory as I listened and wrote these random words from the sermon on her chest

Pastor Preaching, 2005

Funny enough, this turned out not to be true. We were sure it was, but she looked at us really funny when we mentioned it to her.

Here are a few more I did that year.

Woman Left Too Soon, 2005

The Frog, 2005

Crescent Moon, 2005

The Beer Drinker, 2005

Drawings by Marty Coleman of The Napkin Dad Daily

Whiteness Attracts Blemishes

by Marty Coleman | Feb 18, 2011 | Bert Hellinger, Colors - 2011, Winter - 2009, 2011 | 0 comments

In snow and in life, purity is fleeting. It’s there and it’s good, but it doesn’t last. Those who try to remain and appear pure to others in all things, in spite of the truth being different, will start to draw attention to their blemishes.

How do you be who you really are, admitting to yourself your impurities, admitting them to others when appropriate, and still work to attain the good in yourself and in others. Maybe the act of confession is the freeing act that allows you to move towards the good. What do you think?

A shout out to the Napkin Kin in the Massachusetts (USA) towns of Chatham, Brewster, Hyannis, Foxboro, Newton and Allton who visited the blog this week. Thanks for the visit!

Quote by Bert Hellinger, 1925 – not dead yet, German Catholic priest (formerly) and psychotherapist.

Genius and Judgment – A Fish Tale

by Marty Coleman | Feb 17, 2011 | Albert Einstein, Judgment - 2013 | 0 comments

I am not a fan of the Tiger Mom (from the recent book ‘Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother’) and her ways. I know American moms and dads are wondering if they are too lenient, and maybe they are at times. But coercing your child into becoming an exact duplicate of you, with no understanding or care about why they are and what ‘genius’ they have is akin to kidnapping.

You kidnap your kid to fulfill your purposes, your needs. After a while, the kid goes along with it and becomes the hostage influenced by his or her captors to have sympathy and regard for the kidnapper. The Stockholm syndrome for families. The child believes the parent (kidnapper) did the right thing because now he or she is good at violin or very interested in science.

I am not dissing helping to direct your child, you can’t help but do that, and you are abrogating your duty if you do not do it to some degree. BUT, if you aren’t paying attention or you don’t care who the child is and is becoming, or you are so insecure you need a little mini-me around to validate yourself, then YOU are the problem, not the child.

Quote by Albert Einstein, 1879-1955, Austrian born Physicist

A thankful shout out to my Napkin Kin in Perth and Adelaide, Australia; Charlie, Margg, Amber, Ebony and others. They are faithful readers and I REALLY appreciate them!

Sketchbook History Tour, 2004 – Drawings with Writing All Over Them

by Marty Coleman | Feb 13, 2011 | Series | 0 comments

I wrote on top of drawings often in 2004. I was paying a lot of attention to colors and details, listening and absorbing, that I wasn’t going to get in the drawing so I thought writing about those things right on the drawing was an interesting way to do it. I wrote stream of consciousness, not trying to be grammatically correct. Transcript follows each drawing.

The Reading Woman

The reading woman with the nice forehead and small glasses and the wonderful ear and the revolutionary looking boyfriend and the blue t-shirt and the thin hands and fingers contemplating an article on common language while a silly girl laughs in the distance and her purse just sits there looking smart at Barnes & Noble on Prom Night for Chelsea and Carolina at Union High on a cool April night after a week of wicked weather including tornadoes and gardening in Tulsa, OK.

The Classy Student

The classy student studying with grey eye shadow and glimmery lips while her boyfriend, who looks young and too young for her reads a magazine with 3 bug bites on his left ankle in a row looking like a constellation and she uses a blue and red pen and huge earrings, the biggest I have ever seen with her left hand and very small delicate fingers with no polish in Norman, Oklahoma on a summer’s night that threatens to rain while the girls behind her wear red sooner shirts and read and talk about the young star who is too thin and I draw instead of read the manual of the class I am here for while I catch a bright pink purse pass by a tall guy sitting in yellow.

The Chunky Haired Woman

The woman with 10 colored markers and some paper she is highlighting with chunky hair with lots of highlights in it and sun coming through the window highlighting her cheek and shirt that has pink highlights in it among white and big lips with frosted lipstick that is sparkly and has highlights of the same color pink while I wait for the agent to be done so she can give me my new ticket and voucher to take a later flight and still make it into Seattle for the conference that I am going to in July after my Uncle’s funeral yesterday in Ft. Worth that I drove to with Linda the night before and visited with long-lost cousins and Aunt Jean.

The Ugly Woman

The ugly woman with the ugly words coming out of her dark mouth while she stared at nothing with her glaring eyes and heart while all around her love lingered and waited until she finished but she never did on that September night.

The Two Women

The woman with more hair who could do flamenco curls on her jaw if she wanted talking hesitantly to the friend with the thin eyes and arched eyebrows and lower lip that jutted out who was judging her friend’s mascara as too thick and dark (but I liked it) about why her boyfriend won’t commit and not knowing what to do and how she wakes up at night sure that someone is b
reaking in and she wonders if she should get a boob job to be more sexy for him and if that would help and her friend says maybe.

Island of Knowledge, Shoreline of Wonder

Like this:

The Girl with the Wonderful Eyebrows

Part 1

Part 2

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Yellow – Silence isn't Always Golden

Like this:

Red – Beauty, Comfort and Kick-ass Red Lipstick

Like this:

Blue – RIP Gavin Powell

Like this:

The Grass is Greener

Like this:

Sketchbook History Tour, 2005

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Whiteness Attracts Blemishes

Like this:

Genius and Judgment – A Fish Tale

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