Monthly Archives: August 2026

Basic Geography

thinking out loud

Earlier this week at the AIDS 2026 conference in Rio de Janeiro, the State Department showed a map of Africa with six countries highlighted. Each country was identified incorrectly along with the funding amounts. Reuters suggested it was created with OpenAI tools; the State Department took “full responsibility” and blamed a “team member.” At least, in this day and age of alternative facts, they didn’t insist they were correct.

As someone who has been trying to learn geography in general and the countries of Africa specifically, I can attest to the fact that it is challenging. There are a lot of countries, many with similar names, some located within the boundaries of others, and some offshore. I have been using an app recommended by a former student who taught history and geography: Seterra.

Seterra is part of GeoGuessr, which used to be a very entertaining and free geography game based on Google Maps. Now it appears to require a subscription, but Seterra is free! You can use it to learn countries, flags, and capitals of the world either online or via the app. Since geography would be my weakest Jeopardy category, I have always wanted to get better at it. (No, I am not applying for Jeopardy. I might know the answers, but my response time is probably too slow. Plus, and here’s the important point, I have no interest in being on Jeopardy.)

Fortunately, there is a free, unlimited version of a GeoGuessr game called OpenGuessr, developed by PaulPlay. You get dropped somewhere in the world and use the clues to guess your location. The closer you get, the higher your score.

I can recommend both games as entertaining and educational and wholesome alternatives to doom scrolling where we are reminded yet again of the kakistocracy in which we live.

Is It Art?

art, thinking out loud,
paint by number scene of western image with a hot spring

My husband gifted me a set of six paint-by-numbers with a National Park theme. I have completed three of them and plan to finish the set sooner rather than later. I find painting relaxing and generally easy. It occurred to me they are a bit like jigsaw puzzles: someone else created the picture and my job is to recreate it.

I went to my monthly arts and crafts group today. We do a variety of projects from watercoloring to gel printing to book making, the latter being the hobby that brought us together. A new member joined today. She shared her beautiful handmade books and paper along with her drawing practice. She is, in my book, an artist just like the rest of the women in the group. We create using a variety of materials, sometimes by following a pattern or other times by following our own ideas.

I mentioned working on the paint by numbers and that, after completing three of them on my own, I went online to find out if anyone had tips for creating better paintings. And, boy, did they! Turns out this is a hobby for many people. Canadian artist Athena Cooper shared ways to make the paintings look more professional and less like that puzzle where the pieces don’t quite fit together. I picked up a couple ideas for getting better paint flow and cleaner edges that I will put into practice on my next painting.

When I commented on how seriously some people took this hobby, the newcomer piped up, “It isn’t even art!” I suggested that there was some art involved as you didn’t always have to follow the suggested colors, but we left it at that. I was not prepared to dive into a deep conversation about the definition of art. But, her comment has stuck with me, reminding me of my earlier post about the craft police.

Who gets to define what is art? A google search or ChatGPT conversation reveal there are widely divergent opinions about the status of paint by numbers being art. Feel free to explore on your own. For me, it was ChatGPT that offered the most interesting analogy: “A paint-by-number is to painting what performing a classical piano piece is to composing music. Both require skill and practice, but one follows a predetermined design while the other creates something new.” There is, however, within that predetermined design, opportunities for personal interpretation. Is that enough to rise to the level of art? I don’t have the answer. I think, to paraphrase the United State Supreme Court Justice who famously declared he couldn’t define hard-core pornography but would know it when he saw it, it is in the eye of the beholder.

Have I piqued your interest in paint by numbers? Cornell Lab of Ornithology is offering free designs of new world warblers, suitable for any sort of media from paint to crayons.