Dali and the Ocelot

Dali once took his pet ocelot (yes, he had a pet ocelot!) with him to a restaurant in Manhattan and tied it up to a leg of his table while he ordered coffee. A lady walked past and looked at the animal with a mixture of shock and horror. “What’s that?” she exclaimed. “It’s only a cat,” replied Dali. “I’ve painted it over with an op-art design.” The woman, who was embarrassed by her earlier reaction, took a closer look and let out a small sigh of relief. “I can see now that’s what it is,” she said. “At first I thought it was a real ocelot.”

Gift of the Dali

Dali went into a New York bookstore one day and asked for a copy of his <em>Secret Life of Salvador Dali</em>. The young clerk, instantly recognizing his distinguished customer, fetched the book and began to wrap it up.

“Have you read it?” asked the artist.

“No, I’m afraid not,” replied the young man, handing over the package.

“Take it,” said Dali magnanimously, pushing the book back across the counter. “It’ is my gift to you. Would you like me to autograph it for you?” The clerk eagerly tore open the package and handed the artist a pen.

Only after Dali had left the store did the young man, gazing at the treasured autograph, realize that the artist had omitted one important detail. He had neglected to pay for the book.

The American cover for the third Harry Potter book.

The cover for the fifth Harry Potter book.

Mary’s covers are all produced in a similar style, but each one has its own unique look and feel. My favorite of them all is the cover for the Order of the Phoenix, painted all in cool and mysterious blues. There was also a deluxe version of the cover, which depicted 12 Grimmauld Place, with Hedwig flying in the front cover, and broomstick-riding wizards arriving.

I’m also a beta tester for Pottermore, which is the online version of the series and allows you to explore the world of Harry Potter, taking part in the same adventures that you find in the book. The artwork in the game is also lavish and beautiful and has the same hand-painted look that Mary’s covers provide, although in a more photo-realistic style. If you haven’t checked out Pottermore, it’s still in beta but taking a peek at one of the many Pottermore cheats sites will show you how beautiful the artwork is.

We then spent the entire afternoon cleaning it up and stripping it down and then getting it ready for re-painting. The nice thing about pine is that it’s simple and versatile and painting is easy. We’re going to go with a colorful collage of paint to match the bright scheme of the room. Afterwards, we’ll put a few cheap mattresses on top and it will be ready for sleeping! It will take a few days to complete, and I’ll take some photos and post them here when I’m finished with the project. The extra benefit is that this is something that everyone in the family can be a part of. There’s nothing like putting on some old clothes, breaking out the paint, and going to town.

We’re thinking about setting up a lemonade stand out by the road. Haven’t done that in ages but it sounds like a good idea. The kids and I cut some lavender from the plants out in the herb garden and put together some wonderfully refreshing lavender-infused lemonade. In about 20 minutes, the chocolate chip cookies will be coming out of the oven and we’ll have ourselves some very nice merchandise for the sale. With heat like this, we’re bound to see some heavy traffic to the stand. It will be a good lesson in economics for the kids and it gives us something to do while we try and beat the heat.

Meanwhile, the kids are having fun checking out their favorite Poptropica cheats site and reading up on strategy and tips for that game. They’ve already completed all of the islands in the game. Poptropica uses an island metaphor for its quests and missions. I could go for being on a tropical island right now! The kids are very excited because next weekend a new island called Mystery Train comes out. I took a peek and it looks very cute. The Poptropica folks do a nice job of mixing entertainment and education. This quest takes the kids back to the late 1800s on a train bound for the Chicago World’s Fair. A few well-known people from the time are on board, like Thomas Edison and Mark Twain. They haven’t been this excited about a game since Club Penguin.

Ding! There are the cookies. Time to pack it up and head outside to do some education of our own. And enjoy the nice cool shade!