Author Archives: Barry O'Keefe

Cyrus and I made a movie while cat-sitting. Cyrus came up with most of the story (especially the ending!), and improvised the score in one take! The first of many little movies, I hope.

Sorry I am late Daddio!!!

The other day, Cyrus wanted to paint with house paint. So we made some little box houses out of old crayon boxes and macaroni boxes. When the paint dried, he drew windows and doors on the box, and I cut them out, to make a spooky house. Then we made a couple of little paperContinue reading “Ghost House”

We’ve been enjoying listening to a new Ella Jenkins record, called My Street Begins at My House. I love Ella Jenkins, ever since I discovered her through a chance find at Diversity Thrift. She was a good friend of Pete Seeger, and an important folk music educator. At the start of one song, she invitesContinue reading “Let’s Build a Street. Let’s Build a Town.”

Here are a couple samples of Telephone Pictionary from our Summer 2021 Beach Trip, which I preserved and discovered.

Cyrus Drew this today and came up with the title. It’s for a forthcoming book, he says.

I’ve been making picture pancakes lately. Mostly bears, but here is Raffi the Vegetarian Alligator – who lives in the River running through the Gunu Forest.

Cyrus has had some breakthroughs with drawing lately. The attached images are all exceptions from the rule. His preferred mode is abstract expressionism mixed with a constant nearly-nonsense monologue. But he has generated these beings complete with eyes and arms and all. The ears on the last one are my work, but the rest isContinue reading “Cyrus Draws”

Sometimes at about 2 minutes to midnight, I notice that I am reading an article about demographic shifts in China And attempting to predict, using gut-level hunches the impact of those shifts on the world in 2060 when my 3 year old child will be 12 years older than I am now and I noticeContinue reading “Two minutes to Midnight”

For this Sunday I’m sharing the shadow puppets I made of Peter and the Wolf for Cyrus. We’ve been listening to a lot of Peter and the Wolf and I’ve been dreaming of making more shadow puppets, and we’re all cooped up and need things to do and so: this project. It’s been gratifying toContinue reading “Peter and the Wolf Shadow Puppets”

Just thinking about connection between the landscape as I imagine it and driving. Looking through glass at everything. Also here’s a bonus collaborative drawing by Cyrus and me. I’ve been enjoying trying to use crayons lately. It’s hard but exciting!