Sunday, June 17, 2018

Thanks Dad

Happy Sunday everyone. Happy father's Day to all you men who stop by or to the father's in people's lives. Today my post is full of things inspired by my dad, although none of them are exactly relate to my dad.
If that makes no sense I hope can explain in this post.
My art today is a page from my Japan Travel Journal. My journal is not necessarily a fancy art book but  place to create some memory pages and hold all the bits I brought back from the trip. 
 Our sister city, Nichinan, is where the Hiroshima Carps play their spring training/pre-season games, and while there we visited the stadium. I found it interesting how  baseball crazy Japan is. I knew they liked baseball, but didn't know they liked it that much.
I made my background simply with paper tape, and then I added this postcard and a few other little bits to complete the page- a coin I brought home (for 1 yen which isn't worth more than a US penny) and also this cool postage marking. (And I m linking up to Gill's super challenge Inspired By over at Art Journal Journey I am also linking up to Try It on Tuesday and their For The Boys challenge.)
I am posting this page today because my Dad loved baseball.  It was the only team sport he enjoyed. As I grew up in Massachusetts, it was all about the Boston Red Sox. When we were younger he took my brother and I to a few games and taught us all the rules.
The thing is I don't know how my Dad would have felt about me visiting Japan since he was in World War II in the Japanese theater.  When I first bought a Toyota car back in my 20's he wouldn't even ride in it or look at it. He did come around after a bit and decided it was a really good car, but he had memories that I didn't have and came from a different time and place.
And my Dad  taught me to fish. He loved fishing. But he was a freshwater and fly fisherman. My husband is the saltwater fisherman. And since it is Father's Day yesterday the hubby, my daughter and I went out fishing, first for mackerel and then for Striped Bass. Of course, the fish weren't really biting yesterday, and my husband didn't get anything, but I caught  2 mackerel. I'm sure that annoyed the hubby down deep, not that he would ever admit that, but I will say it made me happy deep down to skunk him. Not that I would ever say anything either. :)
Thanks Dad for all the skills.
And lastly, I need to credit my Dad with my artsiness. My dad was an architect and the artsy member in the family. When he was younger he was also a photographer and I grew up with lots of camera equipment in the house.  So today I will show you some architecture photographs I took while we cruised out to the fishing grounds in the hubby's boat. Dad taught me about using a camera, he taught me the ins and outs of designing homes (one of my childhood  hobbies was drawing home plans) , and inspired me to use color in my life.



Sorry I don't have a photo of my dad. I lost him in 2004 and none of my photos are digital. I still miss him and his advice and his inspiration. Of course, he was my dad.
I hope everyone has a great rest of your weekend and a great day.




19 comments:

Marjut said...

Wonderful Project. Thank you for joining us at TioT.

Gibby Frogett said...

Hi Erika - firstly thank you for the lovely comments you left on my blog I really appreciated that. And now, reading your post I could almost copy and paste what you said back again as it's exactly what I am thinking and would want to say to you... hope that made sense :)
Funny we both learnt to fish with our dads - although I haven't been fishing for many years - but didn't you do well catching those fish - yeay!
Love this post and your wonderful page - thank you for sharing your memories about your dad and joining in again at AJJ.
Enjoy the rest of the weekend and wishing you a wonderful new week.
Gill xxx

Joan said...

Great card and I was interested in your words about your Dad too, I worked with a man who had been a Japanese prisoner and like your Dad he wouldn't touch anything made in Japan.

Thanks for joining us at Try It On Tuesday challenge

Joan

Valerie-Jael said...

Wonderful memories of your dad, and a great journal page.Great idea to put all your travel memories into an album. Lovely photos, too. Enjoy your Sunday, hugs, Valerie

froebelsternchen said...

I enjoyed reading all the memories about your late Dad- must have been a kind of superhero and I can imagine that he had those bad memories about the Japanese.
Just comprehensible -
A beautiful page for AJJ again !I didn't know that they are such big baseball nation. Thanks a lot dear ERIKA for joining AA and for bringing so many interesting facts of Japan - I really enjoy this! Seems you had a great weekend! Sounds super with the fishing - they look fab! Poor hubby!

I had a super weekend as well- but way too short again and no time for Art Journaling.
Happy start into the last work week-
nearly done for you! Happy Erika!

Hugs, Susi

froebelsternchen said...

And a big big THANK you for joining us at Try It On Tuesday again! You know how much appreciated that is!
Hugs, Susi

Meggymay said...

This is a wonderful post Erika and a lovely tribute to your Dad, you must have many fond memories. Today is a special day to remember the good times.
Your journal page is fantastic and thank you so much for sharing it with us at Try it on Tuesdays.
Yvonne xx

CJ Kennedy said...

A loving tribute to your dad. Fabulous baseball page. I suppose since Japan was occupied by the US after the war and we still have bases there, it stands to reason that baseball would creep into the culture. We're in the sun room watching the Boston Red Sox play Seattle on this glorious day. Looks like you had a great weekend on the boat. Hope the week goes by quickly and you can begin your Summer break.

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

I enjoyed the tribute to your father. I'm sure he's proud that he taught you well. You certainly took all his skills, mastered them, and put them to work for you. Your colorful photos from the boat show that.

Your lovely journal page touched me. Seeing the Japanese baseball card was fun, and the background of tape pulled it all together. A great design element. SO glad you shared this with us today at Art Journal Journey. It's a wonderful tribute to your father AND a great journal page. It's so good that attitudes toward the Japanese have changed over time, too.

Rike said...

You have good memories about your dad, and he learnt you how to fish! And he learnt you how to make good photos!
I can understand that you still miss him! I am so glad my dad is still living - 92 years old now.
Hugs-Rike

Astrid Maclean said...

A wonderful tribute to your dad and what a fun page for your Japan journal!! So creative! I was very struck when we were in Japan how super friendly, warm and helpful the Japanese were, so different from the accounts one hears and reads about of the cruelty they displayed in W W 2, - it is still something that puzzles me....

Congrats on your fishing success :o) Hope they tasted good!
Have a good last week of term!

Mrs.B said...

A lovely post Erika and I was surprised to read about baseball in Japan being so popular. This is a lovely tribute to your Dad and you shared many happy memories, and I'm sure he would have been so proud of your 'catch'
Thanks for sharing this at TioT
Avril xx

David M. Gascoigne, said...

Sports is great for kids and I played a lot when I was a kid. As an adult, however, I have never really been interested in watching it. Great tribute to your dad.

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

I too enjoyed reading about your father, Erika, and the things he taught you that you are enjoying now and sharing. The photos of the things you saw on the fishing trip were great to see and I wondered where you went in the boat. Did the mackerel end on as dinner this week?

Jeanie said...

I love this, how your past and your dad are part of your present -- the passions, the fun, the fish! Very clever and very nice!

craftytrog said...

A great page Erika, and happy memories of all the skills your dear dad passed on to you.
Alison xx

pearshapedcrafting said...

This is a great tribute to your Dad and I am so pleased you joined us at Try It On Tuesday! Hugs,Chrisx

Eileen The Artful Crafter said...

What a lovely tribute to your dad, Erika. I've scanned/digitized favorite photos of my parents and our son because the originals deteriorate. But there are so many! It's overwhelming. So, little by little ...

I came here to see your AJJ page. It's very cute and quite in keeping with the team name, Hiroshima Carps.

Let's Art Journal said...

Such a wonderful post! You really captured my heart with the beautiful memories that you shared about your dear dad and he would be so proud of you for using the fishing and artistic skills that you learnt/inherited from him 😀. You really bought those memories to life using your photography too - perfect! Thanks so much for sharing and wishing you a great day! J 😊 x