Every day for the last fourteen years, I’ve made a drawing about my day. With each drawing, I try to capture a simple moment from my day. Some drawings are funny. Some are sad. Some are filled with awe and wonder, while others are filled with ambivalence and grief. However, it’s only when the drawings are taken as a whole that larger shapes begin to emerge — shapes that speak to the imperceptible growth and change that unfolds while I’m focused on the day-to-day. I call this project, “Daily Geology.” The following essay is comprised of drawings from this collection.

A person with hand tremors walks a dog on a leash through a forest. A caption explains that they first noticed the tremors in 2016, but they worsened significantly by 2019.
A person lying in bed with restless leg movements, highlighting symptoms such as stress, irritability, and insomnia. Text below explains observations regarding the symptoms.
A person wakes up startled in bed shouting "Huh!" The caption reads: "Throughout the night, I'd jolt myself awake every two hours. It felt like there was an energy trapped under my skin trying to escape."
A person sitting at a desk with a computer says, "Uh-oh! Do you smell that?" Caption reads: "Then in 2021, I began to notice a connection between my symptoms and a sulfurous smell in the air."
A person crouching on the floor, appearing dizzy with motion lines around their head, and the caption mentioning the onset of vertigo due to a strong smell.
A person experiences sharp eye pain and a headache while kneeling on ground and reaching out to a small rabbit.
A sketch of a person lying curled up on a couch, appearing unwell. The caption reads "Nausea and fatigue."
Illustration showing a person clenching their jaw and grinding their teeth at night, with "Rasp" sound effect and text describing the action.
A person depicted in a sketch is scratching their face and nose. The text below reads: "Itchiness of the skin, especially on my face and nose."
A cartoon shows a person walking a dog on a leash. Both the person and the dog are visibly shaking with tremors, and an expression of unease is evident on their faces. Text below reads, "Agitation and body tremors."
A person stands with head bowed, surrounded by lines and arrows, depicting a tremor sensation. Text below reads: "The tremor sensation is very strange and unsettling. It feels like there's a vibration under my skin."
A black and white abstract line drawing with concentric, wavy lines. Text below reads, "It's both a kind of shakiness and tension."
Illustration of a knife slicing between the bones in an arm, accompanied by the text: "At its very worst, it feels like there's a knife slowly sliding between my muscle and my bones."
A person standing in a shower with lines indicating pain on their arms and chest. The text below reads, "When it's more mild, it feels like my skin is coated in glass, and every so often it will crack and send slivers into my skin."
A person lies in bed with a thought bubble saying "Oh man." Text below reads: "By far the worst symptom is insomnia. I can easily wake up every hour throughout the night while vibrating with nervous energy."
A person sitting on a toilet, head in hands, with a thought bubble showing a scribbled black mass. Caption reads: "If you've ever been sleep deprived, you know how this affects the mind and body."
A person holding a smartphone displaying the Smell PGH app, showing a map of Pittsburgh with options to report and categorize neighborhood smells. Text below describes discovering the app in 2021.
Black and white illustration showing smell report data near Pittsburgh, focusing on Wilkinsburg with high smell reports, and textual explanation below.
A person lies down while dreaming about the smell of "rotten eggs," "sulfur," and "US Steel."
A person hidden under a large rock is sniffing hydrogen sulfide gas, a byproduct of coke production at the Clairton Coke Works.

Editor’s note: PublicSource asked U.S. Steel for its response to the concerns expressed in this essay.
“U. S. Steel values our shared environment and the communities where we operate and live,” the company responded. “In the Mon Valley, there are more than 3,000 men and women working daily to make essential steel in a way that has produced a 99% environmental and permit regulation compliance rate. U. S. Steel has invested roughly $750 million in its Mon Valley operations in the past five years and invests more than $100 million into environmental compliance there annually.
“It is important to note that the state standard for hydrogen sulfide is not health-based, and was developed to protect paint on homes. Pennsylvania is one of very few states that has a hydrogen sulfide standard, and there are no federal standards for it. Furthermore, based upon meteorology, any elevated hydrogen sulfide levels in Wilkinsburg are not reasonably related to coke making at Clairton.
“Our commitment to the environmental improvement of Allegheny County– which has been in attainment with federal national ambient air quality standards for the last four calendar years – remains unwavering.”

A notice from Allegheny County Health Department outlines the hydrogen sulfide (H2S) emissions violations by U.S. Steel's Clairton Coke Plant, which exceeded permitted H2S ambient air concentration levels.
A document outlining symptoms and exposure routes for hydrogen sulfide (H₂S), a flammable gas, including dizziness, headache, and impaired vision.
A person is typing at a desk, with text below explaining relief at finding an explanation for symptoms, confirmed by a doctor to be consistent with hydrogen sulfide exposure.
A grayscale image of an outstretched hand with text below expressing a wish for a treatment or medication to make all symptoms disappear.
A hand holding a smartphone shows an app, with text below: "I also continue logging smells in the Smell PGH app as well as submitting complaints to the Allegheny County Health Department."

John Peña is a Pittsburgh-based multidisciplinary artist who make comics, sculpture and public art. He can be reached at johnpena@johnpena.net.

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