My "tangled" brain never felt so good!

Last night's Zentangle, complete with Celtic Square Knot

In the last few days, I've become infected with a new obsession: Zentangling. Started by the artists Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas, the art of the Zentangle is a meditative way to take your intuitive act of doodling to new heights. Zentangle patterns and textures augment your own visual vocabulary, inspiring and moving your creations into the realm of Art. People talk about the "zone" when describing athletes in the midst of their highest performance. In the world of Zentangling, getting in the zone is about unfettered (no erasers! no mistakes!) doodling that moves the creator into the realm of a calming trance—stimulated and relaxed at the same time.

If you visit my blog from a year ago, you'll see how I had gone on a mandala binge creating lots of black and white images and then filling them in with the help of Illustrator's Live Trace and Live Paint.

Here are my very first Zentangles. Also, when watching so many videos over the weekend to feed my new addiction, I stumbled upon the entertaining YouTube videos of David Nicholls who unlocked the mystery of Celtic knots. I've mixed some of that flavor (in the Zentangle above) in with the Zentangle patterns and took off.

My first Zentangle Mandala

My first Zentangle with a Celtic Knot as the starting point.

My very first Zentangle on Wednesday, October 30

Now I'm seeing potential Zentangle patterns everywhere. This was a pattern on Amy's jersey.

Scenes from the World Series Parade

 So much happiness all through the streets of Boston today as the Red Sox nation—players and fans— celebrated their recent victory. Even I, an ignorant sports fan, had watched the final game! I don't know the names of all the players, which beard belongs to whom. Here are some shots from this morning's parade that conveniently passed right by my front door on Boylston Street. I think I got some shots of actual players or maybe people who looked like them. In any case, the joy and gratitude and admiration were palpable. Boston Strong!