I can't explain the feelings plain to me

I started this today with the mindset that the finished product could possibly be a birthday gift for someone (that doesn't read this blog). But I wasn't feeling too confident that it would be good enough to do so. I have gifting standards! I wouldn't want to give someone something that was sub par. At dinner I asked my family who they thought it was, that's how unsure of myself I was, but they all guessed correctly! So I forged ahead...And I've got to say I'm pretty stoked with the finished product! Of course, it's not a perfect likeness, but it's so much better than I thought it was going to be! I don't know if I'm excited that I did it well or that I did it well of a face that I adore so much. So, maybe my excitement is somewhat bias. haha Oh well! I don't care! I'm happy with it! Might be a little hard to part with this one, but I did part with a fantastic portrait I did of Shakira years ago so I think I can do it! I think!!! hahaha

ps. Is it weird that I want to kiss it? haha

I want to be a filthy punk too

I started this on Friday night and finally finished it tonight. It doesn't look very complicated, but the leaves took a lot of time to do. But yeah, this is the sort of things that come out of my own imagination rather than some Disney animator's. I can't seem to get myself away from drawing robots all the time. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but I don't want pigeon hole myself! I have more inside of me than just a bunch of robots! ...Probably not much else, though.

And if you're wondering why I didn't post anything yesterday, I was actually working (Aero floorset last night). I have the cuts, bruises, and sore shoulders to prove it!

Killed my feet, but warmed my heart

Just in case you were wondering...




Lily Allen is still awesome.




And her fans drink their milk.

I insisted

Two shows. One night. Busy night. Not such a busy day, but a good one. I chilled on the back porch and finally finished up the last few pages of 1984. It was my second read through of the book so when I got towards the end, I sort of stopped reading it. I love the book, but the end is not a happy one. I don't know if the book would have made such an impact if it had a happy ending, but still, I am reluctant to read that part. It's a little bit of a bummer. But, I finished it! But did I do any art? Nope! I started something when I got home last night and in the middle of it, I got attacked by a migraine so that put it on hold. So, I'll have something soon!

If she had called I could have hung up on her

I had to laugh that while I was drawing this, I was watching Kalifornia with Brad Pitt, David Duchovny, and Juliette Lewis. Mind you, they're in the movie. I didn't physically sit and watch it with them. Anyway, I think if Pinocchio was watching that movie, he'd be covering more than his mouth. More like his eyes. Today was crazy. Not Brad Pitt in Kalifornia crazy, but pretty crazy. Be that as it may, the to-do list I wrote out last night is nearly completed. I rocked it. Man, what am I going to do tomorrow now?

He's also my baby's daddy

The other day my mom gave me this little blank card and asked me to draw something on it; birthday card for my Aunt. I was clueless what I should put on it so I just went with what I liked rather than trying to make it perfectly suited to her taste. And so I put an old fashion Donald on there. I like how it came out. So I did another one that I'm going to send to a friend of mine who loves Tinkerbell. The card stock is nice thick water color paper. I like it. They're pre-textured! I might have to pick up a tablet of water color paper to sketch on. But I may have to steal it. I are broke.

Keep movin, keep movin

Jamie and I played a gig at our old haunt, The Bus Stop Cafe. Apparently, it went well. Not to say that I think it didn't. I was a little sloppy. I felt the bass was a little too loud and my guitar was at times far too quiet. It wasn't really ringing out the way I like it to. But that's neither here nor there. We got through it without anything too terrible happening. I only nearly fell down rather than the alternative. We got some good feedback. Just trying to get my shit together and get excited about music again. There's some things on the horizon that are good, but at the same time there's things that are hindering my excitement. Alas, I'm just going to try to roll with it.

He is Arisen!

Today is Easter. The day of resurrection. The birthday of the Holy Ghost. I don't know if that's correct to say that or not, but you get the idea. Today, a long, long time ago, Jesus decided to come back and hang for a lil' bit. That's probably not true either. Considering how inaccurate records are and how f-ed up our calendar is. So, scratch all that. Let's just go back to square one. Today is Easter. As if I haven't spent enough time with my extended family, I spent a little bit more time with them today. But this time at my cousin's house rather than my own. My cupcakes were big talk since when one of my uncles was over yesterday, he ate one pre-frosted. I didn't care, but the story of how it came to be was big news. It was told a few times. I'm not going to relay it here since it's not really that funny, but my cupcakes were quite a conversation piece. Despite the icing snafu, I was proud of them! I had to laugh when my aunt said, "I didn't know you were domestic"; this is probably the extent of it. But all in all I had a nice holiday. And for whatever reason, I'm totally beat. I didn't really do much, but I'm just beat. But here's a little doodle I did after dinner in John Lennon style. I think this would make a nice design for a business card or something. Probably put something on the back like, "This certifies that you had a personal encounter with me and that you found me warm, polite, intelligent, and funny." with my personal signature. Yeah, that sounds about right. ;)

He's the worst

Didn't have time to do any sketching today. If you can believe it, we had even more family over again today. Before they came over, I had to bake cupcakes for Easter dinner tomorrow. Unfortunately, we ran out of cupcake foils so I had to run out to get them. It was annoyingly busy out. And rainy. After I got back and finished up, I skipped town once again to escape family inflicted insanity. Came home to frost said cupcakes, though. I'm super annoyed, though. I read that if you want to make dark red frosting to use chocolate frosting instead of vanilla. So, I did. I used a lot of red food coloring. Is it red? No, not really. It's far from the actual chocolate color it originally was, but it doesn't look red. I don't know how much you actually have to use, but it must be a lot. I think they should have mentioned that. Maybe said, "Buy a whole lot of red food coloring and be prepared to kill your arm with the amount of stirring you're going to be doing."

I never, never, never want a place to hide

Today could have been pretty crappy, but it turned out being pretty good. After enduring as much of my little cousin, Alex, as I could muster, I escaped to Adventureland! I'll admit that it wasn't quite what I expected it to be, but that's not always a bad thing. Not hilarious, but alright. I enjoyed myself. I don't know if the dude in the coma did, though. He must have died sometime during because at some point I couldn't hear his heart monitor anymore. That's the kind of day I had. One that could potentially kill a coma patient. In other news, this is yet again from Sword in the Stone. I apologize. I hate to be redundant, but it so pretty.

Your 'I need you to' is my command.

Got up. Got dressed. Got stood up. Called Jamie. Went to the zoo. Saw animals sleep. Went on safari, motherfuckers. Ran for my life. Witnessed assault on a bear. Got nostalgic thinking about getting kicked in the face. Saw a squirrel climb in a trash can. Saw squirrels in love. Had a face off with a squirrel. Lots of squirrels. squirrels squirrels squirrels. Went home. Saw my brother, Wilder. Changed my shoes. Put Gizmo in the brig. Wilder created fire. Aunt, Uncle, cousin, & cousin's pregnant wife came over. Got deemed official photographer. Took photos. Dropped my chicken on the stove. Dropped my chicken in my belly. Took more photos. Brought Gizmo downstairs. Sat. Sat more. Took more photos. Changed into a warmer hoodie. Changed it again. Went to Philly. Drove back from Philly. Watched the Office. No time to draw. Why did today kind of suck? Happy Passover.

That love business is a powerful thing.

I want to work on something that will take me more than a few hours to complete so I whipped this up real quick. You definitely have to look at this big since the detail is so small. Looks pretty pathetic all shrunk down. haha In case you're wondering, this is from Sword in the Stone as well. The squirrel scene again. The end of it. When the little girl squirrel is sadly watching them go and sniffling. Not that anyone has left me or broke my heart, but the somber tone of this shot definitely resonates with me this week. Yeah, I'm emo, so sue me. Actually, don't sue me, I'm broke.

Hey, you laugh like a donkey.

Today flew by for me. According to my grandmother, I got up early today. That's utter bull, but you know, whatever. So, considering all that, I don't know how I went from playing guitar to it being 6 in the evening. Other than that, I didn't do much else. Obviously, I also did the above. It seems like every night that I begin something, I hate it. The getting started part is always the worst. I don't really begin to enjoy it til things are taking shape and look how I want them to. I colored this in via photoshop in an attempt to make the water bowl a little more watery. I admit I got a little lazy with it. Ah well. It'll do. I'm tired. I've watched too many movies with people getting shot in it tonight. Oh great, and I just saw Kevin Costner get stabbed in the neck with some scissors! I COULD HAVE LIVED WITHOUT THAT!

Look at this stuff, isn't it neat?

Bout time, right? It was only due time til I did something from The Little Mermaid. I'll always hold a special place in my heart for this movie. In the 4th grade, our school did a Disney Spring Concert and there was a solo part up for grabs during the Little Mermaid sequence. I adored the movie (I think everyone born in 1984 did) and I toat wanted to "be" Ariel, but I was painfully shy. I was one of those kids that sang quieter in choir when the teacher walked by. One day during music class, there was some auditions held for the part; pre-picked girls that he thought would be good. After, there was extra time at the end of class and the teacher asked if anyone else wanted to try out. Shocking to even myself, I raised my hand. And even more shocking, I wound up getting the part. That little solo must have given me some kind of incredible rush because after that I was all about singing. And I have been ever since. So, thanks Ariel. Thanks for being awesome. I still want to sing in a Disney movie, though. That would be siiiiccckkkkkkkkkk!!!!

I'm not a squirrel, I'm a boy.

Too much photoshop yesterday so I went a bit more minimal today. Just a little texture, basically. Like yesterdays, this is from Sword in the Stone. This scene was always one of my favorites (hoping to do a sketch of my very favorite one day) despite my love/hate relationship with squirrels. I always thought it was so sad when Arthur becomes human again and the little girl squirrel cries. She makes the saddest, but cutest whimpers. It kind of gets me choked up! Well, more so now that I'm grown than when I was young. I try not to become my mother, who is notorious for crying at just about anything, but I suppose where hormones are concerned, I don't have much control. I'm not as bad as she is, but my ability to hold it in has been severely decreased! It's such crap! Speaking of my mother, I feel this piece was appropriate (kind of love themed) since it was my parent's wedding anniversary today. Thirty-four years, baby! She may cry easy, but she's tough as nails to be married to my father for that many years. I can't imagine it in general so I definitely can't imagine it with a guy like him! haha Congrats Mom&D! Way ta be!

Love will catch us everytime

Too much photoshop? Hm. Probably. Oh well. I have more to update about, but I'm tired so I'll do that later. Laundry takes all of my will to live out of me. Floor set at Aero, which I was originally told was tomorrow, isn't until the 19th. Bonus for my leisure time; bogus for my bank account! Sweet dreams, blogmites!

I threw up all by myself

Jamie and I had another gig at the Auburn Road Winery tonight. I feel like it was a do-over. And the do-over was much, much better for me than the first go around. I wasn't sick, my voice held out like I'm used to, we sold a few CDs, met some lovely people, and brought in a bit more dough. Not to mention when Jamie was up on the stage rocking an incredible, incredible bass solo, she broke a string. Yeah, she broke a bass string. I know, it seems impossible, but when you're THAT on fire metal just goes back to birth, my friends!

After the show, we dropped by another show going on tonight. Likely where the rest of our audience was; the show at the Bus Stop featuring that incomparable Brownies. We caught the tail end of their set and hung out to watch the last band and to see Steve Locastro cut a rug. or a board. Luckily, I caught some of it on film and I am able to share it here tonight! Too bad I couldn't directly twitter this shizz!



And I got home and started my next piece! I'm pretty stoked about it!

Mercy street, guys

I was happy with this til I scanned it. This just did not scan well. It looks so much better in person. I fiddled and fucked with it for hours on photoshop trying to increase or at least capture the picture on the page, but this is the best I could do. I'm not thrilled, but at least it fulfills my daily requirement!
When I was younger, I used to sign my name with these symbols. But instead of a robot, a happy face. Which was supposed to stand for Peace, Love, Happiness, and Stars. I know the star doesn't really fit the vernacular flow, but it was necessary because the symbolism went further. Those symbols stood for John, Paul, George & Ringo; each symbol representing each Beatle. Yeah, that's right, I was incredibly lame in school. I'm sure no one is surprised! But, in my defense, it was the 6th grade. Who wasn't lame in the 6th grade? Except Jesus. and John Lennon. and Dakota Fanning. Anyway, I'm glad my childish symbols now include a robot! I'm getting SO less lame in my maturing years!

You broke me, I thought I knew you well

I tried my hand at a little water color tonight; amped up with a little digital mastery. The original was nothing to write home about so I had to spruce it up a bit. About the piece itself, if you know me personally, you may know that I love Batman. I have a pretty sweet collection of vintage-esque Batman shirts that I'm pretty proud of. Honestly, it's not even the comics or the movies that I love. It's a symbol of something else for me; someone else. So, here I am putting the bat signal out there. Wishing for a response that I know will never come.

It seems so unlikely in this day and age

I finished this at 5am this morning. Subtracting some time for eating, bathroom breaks, and chatting, I think this took me about 5 hrs to do. I had started it earlier in the afternoon, but I trashed that one and began fresh when I got home from the Hamilton Mall (which now closes at 9; just like the Cumberland Mall, FYI). My hand, neck, and back were killing me by the time I finally was done. There was a lot of detail and then I had to go over it again with darker pencil so that it would show up on the scanner at all so that added to the length. But I think I'm happy with the way it turned out. Can't always do Disney stuff.

Work in progress

Despite going to Philly to see this sweet bosa nova group, Papillons et Ouragans, tonight, I was able to complete this when I got home; after two beers and everything. ;) I had some troubles getting this one started. Somehow it came together. Definitely turned out a lot better than I expected considering I started it on the other side and turned the sheet over to start again in desperation! I can't remember the last time I saw Alice in Wonderland. It's been a long, long time for sure. I feel like this is the most acceptably enjoyed Disney movie for adults. I consistently hear my peers calling this their favorite. I guess the drug undertones and quirky nature appeals to an older audience. Eh, it's alright, but it's no Jungle Book! WHA WHA?!

Look how wrinkled everything is

Missed another day art wise, but without breaking any of my rules. I was busy! There was grannies to take to Rosenhayn and groceries to be shopped for! After that, I went to have some one-on-one time with my pal, Ched, who also had some tickets and a guitar to lend to me. When we left to grab some dinner, he asked where I wanted to go to which I replied, "Somewhere I've never been before!" Well, mission accomplished, my friends! For the first time ever, I went to a Hooters restaurant! Unfortunately, I'm too poor to have a shirt to commemorate my first time, but I'm sure there's many firsts in my life that will not warrant a souvenir t-shirt so I'm not going to be too down about it. I have to admit that it wasn't exactly what I imagined it to be. There was a lot of kids and old people in there. I thought there would be more men watching sports. The walls were wood paneled, there was stools instead of chairs, the food was pretty cheap and there was a spool of paper towels for napkins. You know, all the classiness you'd expect! So classy that a big, famous rapper decided to pop in and offer our waitress, Jen, a career! Unfortunately, she wasn't too interested, and none of us were entirely sure he was as famous as he claimed. I think if you have to tell someone you're famous, you're probably not that famous. Has anyone heard of a rapper called April? That doesn't even sound like a rapper name to me. That's what we were told his name was. Oh what do I know? Anyway, I'm glad a famous rapper showed up for my first ever visit to Hooters. Made it all that more special!

That's a good job for me; crash dummy

Last night I went out to get some art supplies, have some mushrooms, see a little Gargoyle rock, and worry that everyone at the table had brain damage. Then today I ran a bunch of errands with my mother, ate dinner, and went to the Silver Dollar Diner with Jamie to have a treat. That being said, I didn't have time to do anything artistic or creative. But that's okay because I didn't break any of my predisposed rules. Tomorrow I'm going to get started on something so maybe I can keep it going. Not that anyone cares really. But it's my blog and I'll blab if I want to, blab if I want to, blab if I want to... In mostly unrelated news, that's a huge cookie. And also, I love the movie Parenthood. Why don't I have it?

I'm gone, man. Solid gone.

Now here is a Disney movie close to my heart. I don't know what it is about The Jungle Book that so endears me to it, but I just love it. I love the voices and the sounds and everything. Even just to watch Bagheera walk brings joy to my heart. Even the fact that Pete Wentz and Ashlee Simpson named their spawn Bronx Mowgli doesn't deter me from loving Mowgli. I think that says a lot! And though this turned out a lot better than I expected, I'm still not happy with it. His face is just not right. I'm not pleased with it. Eh, it's the best I could do. Gets the general point across.

Dolly Parton wants to have my baby

I wouldn't consider a visit the to the vet as being too busy to post a new one! This is a little something inspired by a shirt from Aeropostale of all places. I'm really enjoying taking my work and giving them some color with Photoshop. A little color. A little texture. And for this one, a little light for my lamp post!

i has a hot dog

On Monday, I took Zoee to the vet. Today I took Gizmo. And these two visits couldn't be anymore different. Monday it was sunny and bright. Today it was rainy and gray. Monday I went alone without any problems. Today I went with my mother and there seemed to be no end to troubles. Monday Zoee and I chilled quietly in the waiting room. Today we sat with Gizmo in his new muzzle that didn't do much at all to quiet the constant motor of his growl. Monday Zoee climbed on me in the examine room nervously. Today Gizmo barked, whined, jumped and was overall loony as fuck. Monday Zoee got her shots with one attendant holding her steady and never made a sound. Today Gizmo was so unruly they took him into the back room to take his blood and give him shots and screamed the whole time. Which caused me to cry. And I'm not even talking about the sound. The moment they started out the door, I started tearing up uncontrollably. Which is just another testament to how different these trips are. And it's the exact reason I make my mother go with me when I take him. Anyway, the differences continue, but you get the idea. Which is my dog is a nutcase. I love him, but sometimes I really don't like him. On a completely different note, Zoee weighs 13.8 pounds. Gizmo weighs 14. Need I say more?!

La Belle au Bois dormant

Since my days are pretty uneventful, unfruitful, and generally pointless, I'm going to give myself a personal challenge to put up a new piece of work everyday. Not for the rest of my days or when I've actually got things going on such as shows, work, or a social life, but as much as I can. Just to keep myself motivated. This was drawn on paper with pencil and then colored in with colored pencil and then digitally remastered for some extra pop. I think this will probably conclude my Sleeping Beauty series now. I have no special affinity for Sleeping Beauty. I think I've only seen this particular Disney movie a small amount of times. Though I did always enjoy the scene where she dances with the prince's clothing with her woodland friends. Be that as it may, I just liked these two shots. Perhaps I'm drawn to the title of the movie in some unconscious way....(oh puns!)

I have the bravest heart that you've ever seen

As it usually is with my music, the last thing I did is always the best thing (which is also a topic Vince touched upon at the Chameleon Club). I just finished this up and digitally messed around with it and really liked the final product. Since I'm not doing anything else and everyday I consider folding in on myself like a dying star, I figured I might as well share something worthwhile. Sometimes I want to leave music and go back to art. I've thought that a lot lately. I love music so much. I love making it. I love it. But I don't know if it loves me back. Maybe I've peaked.

Can't arm wrestle yourself into heaven

Drove two hours to see this guy sing a few songs, tell a bunch of people I don't know how much the Jealousy Curve CD's cost, smell a hat, experience the unfairness of the workforce, and hang out in a "basement". Yeah, I think that about sums it up.

Be chill, don't kill

Jamie and I played a gig at Auburn Road Winery; it was a disaster. Well, for me personally it was a disaster. I couldn't hear, I could barely sing, I broke my guitar, and I felt like shit. And, really, that's all I have to say about that. Not a very warm and welcoming return from my hiatus. Though, we did make some money, which we don't tend to do very often. So, I guess there is some silver lining.

Oh, my aching bones

Last night while I was waiting for my sleeping pill to kick in, I made this. I'm surprised how well it turned out considering how loopy I tend to get. Turns out that the sleeping pill didn't help me sleep anyway. I've been plagued with nightmares nightly for the past week or more so I thought taking something would get me some decent rest, but unfortunately I slept terribly. Why? Cause I'm sick. I drug myself out of bed feeling absolutely miserable. Perfect time to be sick. Got a show on Friday and going to Lancaster on Saturday. I better make a miracle recovery, dammit!

ps. I etched this for you, Eavvon!

Oo, that's a new one

Despite a few factors that brought the awesomeness level of this day down, I had an alright day. Spent most of it running errands with my mother. Yet again I went to the Super Wal-mart. It's so hot right now. But when I got home, I decided to hang up these nifty star lights that I've had sitting around just waiting for their time to shine! I've had the one set since Christmas. That's how lazy I am. But they look sweet. And I felt that awesome sense of accomplishment after I did it so I was in a real good mood. Unfortunately those kind of feelings do not last.

It's Britney, bitch

So, it happened. I didn't think that it would or that it could, but it did. Yep, you got it, Jamie actually succeeded in thinking of and pulling off a surprise. Well, sort of. Her own surprise of being able to do it caused her to give shit away along the way. My powers of deduction are strong, though. But I'd have to say that even though the thought of Britney Spears passed through my mind, I put it away! Who would ever guess that Jamie would randomly surprise me with tickets to see Britney Spears? Not I! But I'm glad that she did! Despite the fact that my car suffered a bit of a travesty at her hand, this was a seriously awesome way to make up for it. I don't know if I deserved quite that big of a gift, but it certainly did make up for the seriously terrible weekend I suffered last month. By a mile! And, one more thing, if anyone is questioning whether or not Britney is really back, I have some good news to report; SHE IS!

ps. THANKS SO MUCH JAMIE! I FORGIVE YOU NOW!