It’s Only A Paper Moon or Globe

Posted on August 22, 2026 by Brian D. Butler

I have always been fascinated by globes. When I was a wee lad I had a globe/lamp combo on my nightstand and I would spin the globe and dream of breaking out. I even made my own paper mache globe for a school project in elementary school. So, of course, I love a website that lets you make nifty globes from paper.

 Free Paper Globes lets you print out designs for foldable 3d globes. To be honest, I have not tried it out yet. I’m waiting for one of my 8 year-old nephews to come by and give it a spin.

 

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Rotterdam Rocks

Posted on August 21, 2026 by Brian D. Butler

Rotterdam Rocks (image above & below) is the winning proposal for a landmark on the banks of the river Maas. Designed by MVRDV for The Shift Embassy whose aim is to raise public awareness of the climate crisis. It is a 30,000 square meter mega structure made of seven huge, stacked, porous boulders. The space will house immersive art, architecture, community building, storytelling, a hotel and real-world examples of sustainable living and business practices.

 

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A writer’s needs

Posted on August 20, 2026 by Brian D. Butler

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“Name the most horrible thing you know!”

Posted on August 19, 2026 by Brian D. Butler

This ukiyo-e woodblock print, by the late Edo period artist Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1798-1861), illustrates a story involving the “Sea Monk” or Umibōzu, a spirit in Japanese folklore. The ocean dwelling spirit — so called because of his smooth monk-like round head — is said to capsize the ship of anyone who dares speak to it. The specific tale illustrated in Kuniyoshi’s woodblock tells of a sailor Kawanaya Tokuzo who, despite it being considered unlucky in the world of seafaring, decides to go to sea on the last day of the year. A terrible storm breaks out, and the giant figure of the Umibōzu appears. Against the roar of the waves the apparition asks, “Name the most horrible thing you know!” Tokuzo yells in reply, “My profession is the most horrible thing I know!” The answer apparently satisfies the monster as he then disappears along with the storm.

via Public Domain

 

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Everybody Loves A Good Archive

Posted on August 18, 2026 by Brian D. Butler

David Sizemore created an archive of archives; who doesn’t love a comprehensive archive.  Per David, this is “an online archive of other archives I’ve run across online. I love when folks feel passionately enough about something to document it meticulously.” This is an open source project that anyone can submit to. Users will need minimal tech skills. David built this with the help of AI, but the frontend work is his own. Check it out and maybe add your fav archive.

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Plein Air

Posted on August 17, 2026 by Brian D. Butler

You may recall that I previously share a post about the website  “Current Rothko”, a clever little web app by Joonas Virtenan that analyzed your local weather and picked a Rothko painting to match it. Now Virtenan is back with a new app: “Plein Air”, which matches your local weather with a plein-air-style artwork.

As he describes it …

Plein Air — A painting for right now, wherever you are

Plein air — French for in the open air — was the discipline of painting outdoors, in front of the weather, the way Constable studied clouds in Suffolk meadows and Monet painted the same haystacks at every hour of every season. The painters took the canvas outside because the light couldn’t be remembered later, only stood inside as you painted.

Plein Air stands you next to one of those paintings. The sky over your head and the sky in the painting share the same kind of hour — the same long afternoon, the same threatening storm, the same fog clinging to the river. One painting, chosen for right now. Tap the title to see why it was picked.

Try it, you’ll like it.

 

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Books are natural wonders

Posted on August 16, 2026 by Brian D. Butler

“It had been startling and disappointing to me to find out that story books had been written by people, that books were not natural wonders, coming up of themselves like grass. Yet regardless of where they come from, I cannot remember a time when I was not in love with them — with the books themselves, cover and binding and the paper they were printed on, with their smell and their weight and with their possession in my arms, captured and carried off to myself. Still illiterate, I was ready for them, committed to all the reading I could give them.” ― Eudora Welty/“One Writer’s Beginnings”

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Time is not a straight line but rather a labyrinth

Posted on August 15, 2026 by Brian D. Butler

“Time is not a straight line but rather a labyrinth, and if you press yourself against the wall in the right place you can hear the hurried steps and the voices, you can hear yourself walk past on the other side.”

— Tomas Tranströmer

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Elements of a masterpiece

Posted on August 14, 2026 by Brian D. Butler

Almost word for word what my first book editor told me .

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Coffee Makes The World Go Round

Posted on August 13, 2026 by Brian D. Butler

I would like to think of myself as a semi-pro coffee roaster, but I know that’s just the beans talking. My roasting is limited to small batches for  family and friends. And my roaster only has the capacity to do 300 grams per roast. Still, it keeps me off the streets and out of trouble.

If you, or someone that you love, is a coffee drinker, check-out this story at the always educational site Visual Capitalist : 

Ranked: The Countries That Grow the World’s Coffee ☕
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