The Doodle Monkey

New Blog/Website

2008-11-08T12:32:00.005-05:00

Hi Everyone! I have a brand spank'n new website I can call my own. After years of using other sites online portfolios, and free blogs, I felt I needed to have my own space, and I did it! I went through Utopian.net to set up everything, and they are the nicest, and the most incredibly helpful people I've worked with. The site is based off of wordpress, and am finding it so easy to use as a beginner. It's a work in progress, and am working on creating my own wp theme for the site. So as of today, there will no longer be new posts on this blog, and on my sketch blog.
Please visit; www.michelle-jackson.com :D

(read what this sketch is all about on my new site!)

HandBook Sketchbook: Spead 03

2008-07-14T21:33:00.003-04:00

Part of this spread was done when J.D. and I went to Charlotte's NoDa's art district for a gallery crawl. It was really interesting, and fun to see all the different venues, activities, music, people, etc.. all in one small part of town.
J.D. blurted out 'Gothic Beats', and I drew a pair of Gothic Beets. They look a little more on the punk side, but a little refinement will take care of that.

I want to write more.. but I'm soooo tired from getting over a really bad sunburn, and fighting off a virus.. bleh..

Totoro Forest Project

2008-07-14T20:52:00.004-04:00

Save Sayama Forest, also known as Totoro's Forest. The endangered Totoro's forest lies just on the outskirts of Tokyo, and is what inspired Hayao Miyazaki to create the loving character 'Totoro.'
In an effort to help save this forest, one of Japan's greatest animation directors, Hayao Miyazaki, established the national trust called "Totoro's Forest Foundation." To support the cause a group of Pixar artists organized the Totoro's Forest Project, which is an exhibition/auction event featuring 200 internationally acclaimed artist's in the field of animation, comic books, and illustration. Each artists work is up for auction where all proceeds go toward the fund. The fun part is seeing how they were inspired by the movie 'My Neighbor Totoro.' And let me tell you, the gallery of artwork really grasps the spirit that Hayao Miyazaki works so passionately to expose in all of his great work.

I urge you to take a peek, learn more about the cause these lucky and super talented artists worked so hard to contribute too and maybe participate in the auction.

Enjoy!!

HandBook Sketchbook: Spead 02

2008-07-08T18:26:00.002-04:00

Not too much going on here... but a little princess doodle, and some faces. lerve tiki stuff, and that lamp is awesome. And who doesn't need a $10 pewter cracker to grace their plate.

HandBook Sketchbook: Very First Spread!!!

2008-06-18T20:10:00.003-04:00

I'm doing it.. I'm starting to scan in the pages of my third sketchbook, and have a question for the few that visit my blog. I am on the fence about this, and can't make up my mind. I've been thinking about transferring over all of the sketch spreads from my sketch dump blog over to this one, but am afraid if I do that, they'll get lost amongst the other postings. Should I leave it as it is, or start posting them here? hhmm... While we figure this one out.. Here's spread 01 from the Hand•book sketchbook.

I'm not terribly fond of this spread, since it brings back terrible memories of our short stay in NC. It was a good logo redesign brain-sketching session though!

Art Monday ACEO Swap: What About Cats?

2008-06-18T19:47:00.007-04:00

This is somewhat belated, due to moving and settling in, but here are the ACEO's I recieved from the Swap!!! This was a lot of fun, not only to do for, but to wait for too! Here are the one's I recieved.
Thank you so much to Esmeralda for hosting the swap and for a lovely "Singing by the Moonlight aceo, and thank you to Robin, Katz, and to the artist who created the 'Collage Cat Print!'

Monday Art Day ACEO: Kitty Trade

2008-04-15T21:28:00.002-04:00

My three submissions for the ACEO trio cat trade. They're Kokeshi Kitties!

Monday Art Day ACEO: Green Eyed Girl

2008-03-29T22:13:00.004-04:00

New ACEO up on Monday Art Day! Check the site out, and start creating your own ACEO's to trade with other artists! doooo eeet..

Art Monday

2008-03-16T21:17:00.005-04:00

Here's my very first aceo done for Monday Art Day, where artists can trade aceo's with other artists, among other things. The drawing was done with Prismacolor Premier 005 point fine line marker on bristol. The Prismacolor marker is awesome! I've worked with other brands of fine line pens and markers, and am really pleased with how this handles. There seems to be a little more tip, so you're positioning is not limited, and the ink flow is constant.. even after leaving the cap off for a few hours. I'd recommend trying them out.
Rounded Square Clouds & Flowers

Illustration Friday: Garden

2008-03-12T23:22:00.004-04:00

A simple & quick illo from a sketch for a girl named Tulip, who indeed loves tulips from her tulip garden.

Cheers!

Massive M2 Sketch Dump!

2008-02-15T12:23:00.004-05:00

I've been a busy bee, scanning in the remaining spreads from my M2 sketchbook and uploading them to my sketchblog!

I'll be putting up spreads from my latest sketchbook soon. I changed brands, and went with a Global Arts Hand•Book brand this time around, which definitely has more tooth, but for some reason reminds me of drawing on construction paper. I enjoyed drawing on the smoother surfaces of the Moleskines, and will be going back once I've completed this one.

The sketch above is from M2: spreadFortyTwo. It's a prelim. sketch for a "We've Moved" announcement. That's one of our kitties in the tree enjoying the view!

Happy Chinese New Year!!!

2008-02-07T00:31:00.000-05:00

To bring in the new year, here's an illustration.
May much happiness, health, and prosperity come your way this year!

We're back in VA!!! (Belated Wooot!!!)

2008-01-23T13:20:00.001-05:00

I'm sorry I haven't been keeping up with my blog for sometime. My husband and I have been transitioning back into the DC/NOVA metro area since early December from our unfortunate relocation to NC. Lucky for us, it's been pretty smooth. After we came back to VA, everyone we passed on the street said that "NC is for the retired." Now they tell us! We definitely appreciate the things we took for granted before we left, so in saying that, I'm glad that we took the chances that we did when we decided to move.

So now instead of sitting on my bum all day looking for a job in NC, I'm doing it in VA, with much better results! I honestly can't wait to start working again.. this whole temporary retirement thing has had me bummed out and stagnant... Posting something up on the blog has brightened my day though, so maybe I'll continue to do a little more of that! The sketch above is a snippit from my M2 spread 40 on my sketchdump blog. Cheers!!!

Merry Christmas Everyone!!!

2007-12-21T19:42:00.001-05:00

Wishing everyone a wonderful happy holiday season, and best wishes to the New Year! Hope Santa brings you what you wished for this year!
CHEERS!!!

New ID Concept

2007-11-19T23:32:00.001-05:00

Just got my CS3 Design Premium, and am sooo loving it... and it's soooo fast on my new super fast computer (compared to my old frankenstein), that I actually had the motivation to create some concepts for a new ID!!! Here's what I came up with first...

this didn't quite work out the way I had anticipated, but it helped get the juices flowing...

Here's concept numbah two that I took a bit further. This, I felt, had a simple, sophisticated, yet dark, and playful feel to it that I thought represented me a little more than the all out bubbliness of the first concept. I'm also liking the Raspberry and dark gray combo.

ID Concept with black background behind lettering:

ID Concept with 90%Gray background behind lettering: (can you soooo see these as little MOO Stickers!!!)

Business Card Concept:

Would lerve some feedback from you!

painting: Owl Eyes On You

2007-11-10T21:12:00.000-05:00

felt the urge to paint, and a sketch of owl eyes had been haunting me for some time. I really like how it turned out. I made it such a process, which is something I don't normally do, since I like to get things done in one sitting, but it felt good to see what came of my patience!

He's a cutie, and makes me smile when I see him starin back at me.. although it can be a little creepie at times to know you're being watched, no less, by detached owl eyes.. yoiks.. He's been begging me to make some prints of him, and maybe put him on some stationary. What do you think? Should I listen to him?!!! You'll have to suggest some name's for "him" since he doesn't have one yet.

Hoot Hoot Hooray.. :D

Hello, Kitty!!!

2007-10-12T16:56:00.000-04:00

ok.. I'm the biggest kidult EVER.. my friend sent me this link today, and I just about booked a flight to Japan, just so I could use this phone... The phone has been Hello Kittied out.. inside, outside, even sideways, and the graphics are neato.
Check it... :D

gimme.gimme.gimme....

artdc.org Exhibition at U Street Space

2007-10-12T13:07:00.000-04:00

This sounds like it'll be a fun show!!! I can't make it, since I'm quite a few hours away, but hope those in the area will show their support for the arts! Check out the artists at artdc.org
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WASHINGTON, D.C.—artdc.org, a Washington, D.C., artist’s forum, presents “Art in Transition Continued” on Saturday, October 13, 2007, in the future Greater Goods building, 1626 U Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20009. Doors open at noon; an art party is 6 p.m. to midnight.

“Art in Transition Continued” is the continuance of a group art show held in 2005. For the first show, “Art in Transition,” 27 Washington, D.C.-area artists displayed their work in four transitioning commercial spaces in Silver Spring, Md.

This year’s show is in the future home of Greater Goods at 1626 U Street, NW. This “empty” building provides the perfect opportunity for an organization such as artdc to host its own art show. Jesse Cohen, founder of artdc.org, explains, “Transitional space provides an opportunity to develop grassroots art shows, which currently aren’t available through existing spaces.”

The participating artists are: Steve Mead, Antoinette Wysocki, Jodi A. Patterson, John N. Grunwell, Dan Rosenstein, Alexandra Zealand, Alexandra Silverthorne, Kim Reyes, Emily Berl, Christie Ortiz, Rhett Rebold, Raju Singh, Steve Loya, Stephen T. Hanks, Matthew Best, Graham Meyer and Adam Eig.

“A unique feature about this show, aside from the great art,” Cohen says, “is that the artwork was selected by an external jury member who does not have ties to artdc.org artists.”

Mark S. Waskow, art collector and founder of the Waskomium in Burlington, Vt., is the juror for “Art in Transition Continued.” The Waskomium is a collection of contemporary art.
Waskow selected the work of 17 artdc.org members (there are more than 1,500 members of artdc.org). Pieces include 2-D, 3-D and installation art.

“He (Waskow) juried the art from artdc.org’s online gallery,” Cohen says of the selection process, “based on the idea that you can experience the presence of a work of art through its image.”

A fellow artdc.org member recommended that Waskow jury “Art in Transition Continued” because of Waskow’s support for the development of art communities.

Through events like “Art in Transition Continued,” artdc.org initiates artist discovery, encourages art discussion, advances creative development and promotes art collection, with the goal of developing movements in Washington, D.C. artdc.org provides virtual real estate for artists and art organizations. artdc.org aims to bridge the communication between artists of all mediums, galleries and collectors. With this goal in mind, the aim of artdc.org is to develop face-to-face relationships in addition to those in the virtual world.
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Meomi has a new book out!!! The Octonauts and The Sea of Shade!!!

2007-10-10T09:48:00.000-04:00

Meomi, an awesome design team that is all about the cuteness, has come out with book TWO!!! The illustrations and characters grab your heart and won't let go as soon as you first glance at them. It's like a stare down, and they're going to win no matter how hard you try to put on your mean face!

blurb from site:
"THE OCTONAUTS are a crew of cute critters who love to explore the big blue ocean. From their undersea "Octopod" base, the eight talented animals are always ready for fun and excitement. In their second adventure, all the shadows in the world have gone missing! The Octonauts must travel to the mysterious Sea of Shade to learn why. Can the Octonauts convince the great Shade King to return everyone's shadows?"

And here's a sneak peek spread from their new book.

tooooo freakin cute!!! Go check out their sites too!!!

www.meomi.com
www.octonauts.com

Sketch Blog Updates!!

2007-08-19T14:33:00.000-04:00

I haven't shared too many details, but I've been MIA due to a big move to the Charlotte, NC area from the hectic DC metro area. It's been pretty crazy, but things are starting to settle down some since the big move. We have been wanting to move out the DC area for awhile, so when the opportunity came up for my husband, we took it! We did a lot of research, and had the chance to visit before moving. I have a friend who moved from this area up to DC, so he's been super helpful as far as finding good eats, and fun places. There's been ups and downs, not gonna lie, but I think things are starting to settle, yay!
It's been a tough job market for me down here, compared to the DC area. I think I'm doing everything a job hunter can do to find a job, so it's just a matter of time. (i hope) If you've read down this far, and know of anyone in the charlotte area looking for a Graphic/Web Designer, I'd love to chat!Now, the big news!!! I've updated my Sketch Blog with new spreads, so go check it out!!!

IF: Citrus

2007-05-16T20:27:00.000-04:00

I made it this week, Hoooray! I'm really happy that I could make some time this week to participate in IF. It's been a little hard lately, I know I keep saying that. This was designed to be the front of a card. It was sketched out on textured lined cream cardstock, outlined in pen, and colored in with watercolor colored pencils. There's some tweakage to be done, but I love how the banner at the top turned out, overall, and being spot-on with the hand-lettering. (I never can get that right.)

Here's another little sketch of something goofy I like to do when eating oranges. :D

Geisha on a Cliff

2007-05-13T01:30:00.000-04:00

Watercolor (in progress) done from a doodle. The idea was to show a geisha losing her virginity for the first time, by showing flowers flowing from under her dress in the wind. When I had finished up with the sketch, it looked like maybe she had let one go and was bashfully saying 'oops, I tooted'

Even though that's what it looks like.. I really like how the flowers and lines flowed from the dress. I may just carry this over to the watercolor anyway!

yaaarrrgh

2007-05-12T22:05:00.000-04:00

arrr.. matey..

Still trying my hand at digital painting. I finally was able to devote some time to it! yay!
The sketch was scanned in this evening, and digitally painted in Photoshop. The middle piece is a chip from Vegas. A friend had gone recently, and brought me back this token chip.. and who better to guard the chip then a swash-buckling peg-handed pirate.

Hope ye like me bootie.. aarrr.. :)

IF: Remember

2007-05-02T23:09:00.000-04:00

This is an old old drawing I did for an art class. It must have been right when I started high school from the look of my signature. I grew up as a foreign service brat, and had lived in Zaire for a little more than a few years before moving back to the U.S. I really had a hard time adjusting, and really missed many things about Zaire. We had moved months before the country went to crap, so we were lucky to have left when we did.
I still remember a lot of beautiful things about the country. This drawing shows Zongo Falls. We had driven four hours from the city out into the country where some parts of the roads had been washed away. Sometimes when we past little mud hut villages, the children would come out running after our cars to just smile and wave at us as we went by. My experience at Zongo Falls was exhiliarating. Everything was so natural and as it was. Even the restaurant that was located upstream seemed in its place. They served authentic Zairian food, and it was delicious. I ordered Chicken Mwambwe, a kind of spicy tomato stew, and Fu-Fu, a leafy green local favorite. Afterwards a guide took us on a hike towards the falls. He lead us to about the middle portion of the falls so we could see the water coming over the ledge and into the crevice. My brother, friend and I dared to walk on the slippery rocks to look over the ledge a little more and to be in the mist of the falls. So that was some of what I remember of Zaire. A beautiful country and lots of memories!

slowly makin my way back!

2007-04-30T21:52:00.000-04:00

I have a little more time on my hands (finally!)
I've started uploading a few moleskine spreads on my Doodle Monkey Dump blog, if you want to check those out.
I hope to keep uploading a spread/day until I can catch up with the current spreads.

I also hope to share with you some concepts I have for my portfolio site, portfolio booklet, and card, if anything it'll help me see my progress, and hopefully some feedback from you! I've been taking some time to do some research and getting some resources together to do this! I'm kinda excited about the design, and think it will reflect me as a designer, and on a personal level as well. :D (i'm screaming like a school girl inside! ieeee!!!)

Ok.. i can't contain myself.. here's a sneak peak! This is a concept for the portfolio booklet.

The 'M' and the banner are common theme elements I plan on using on all media. I'm not sure if the booklet will be square or more rectangular, since it depends on how I lay out the inside.

MiSo Sowwy

2007-04-19T12:58:00.000-04:00

Hey guys, this message is long overdue. I haven't abandoned my blogs, and it kills me to not update them on a more daily basis, but I've just been so crazy busy lately that I haven't been able to make the time.
I hope that within the next month or two I can get back into the groove of updating and participating in IF, and Three Thumbs Up again. I really miss taking part in them, since they are such a positive influence.

Hope to be back soon!

Cheers

IF: Communication

2007-02-28T19:48:00.000-05:00

This is the original sketch I wanted to use for this week's IF theme, Communication. The sketch just kind of 'screamed' out! :D

This is my first real attempt at digital painting. The tablet makes it so much easier to do this. I first established where my lighting was going to be coming from and drew an arrow to remind me. I also started roughing in tonal values of her face. This is my first time doing a step-by-step, and it's kinda of a sad one.. I'm a little further in the detailing in this example btw.
I placed a colored background in the back to help me see the outline of her face, mouth and teeth. I worked on her facial structure and attempted to highlight and shadow. It's pretty sad, I know. I also added her hair, but didn't focus on the details, since I'm beginning, I figured her face would be a good start.
I kind of cheated with adding color. I painted a flat brown tone over the entire facial area, and under the layer blend mode options, I chose 'color' which gave me the depth and color I was looking for. I took the eraser and cleaned up my edges some. Using a darker and lighter tone of brown, I shaded and highlighted some of the areas.

I have a ways to go, but had a lot of fun doing this! Must.. do.. mooore... :)
oy... why does she have an adams apple.. blargh..

New Header! Yay!

2007-02-19T20:38:00.000-05:00

Was futzin around with some site designs this evening, and thought I'd create a header image for my blog. Hope ya like!

(I'm stuck, as far as trying to center the image though.. argh... If you feel like sharing any pointers, I would really appreciate it!)

Pocoyo!!!

2007-02-19T15:27:00.000-05:00

I've fallen for this little guy, his friends and his adventures.
Amazing how far and how successfully ZINKIA Entertainment, S.L., have come with the making of this animated show. It has hit many international markets already. I hope they start showing the show in U.S. soon!

You must check out their site and blog:
Zinkia Entertainment, S.L.,
Official Pocoyo Site
Pocoyo Blog

IF:Gravity

2007-02-18T21:13:00.000-05:00

once the burden had been lifted, she felt as light as a feather and ran passionately without a care, spreading her new found joy!

jus' workin on my 'mad' illo skills.. gawwsh..

'more to come!!!

Happy 30th Birthday To Meeeeeeee!

2007-02-14T00:00:00.000-05:00

Wow... I'm 30... I don't feel... 30... I hope I don't think I have to feel 30 from this point on.. although I have been noticing a few extra wrinkles around my face I could do without.. hhhmm..
I guess since I'm 30 know I can pass on some wise old wisdom to them yung'uns out there.. Age is just a number. Mind the simple pleasures. Life is about living out your passions.

As my wise aunt says.. "Live Passionately."

Happy Valentine's Day too! ♥

New sketch spreads from M2

2007-02-13T12:45:00.000-05:00

Took some time this weekend to scan in some pages from my second moleskine, (if yer intuh-rested!)

So go grab some hot cocoa and sit yer butt down for some more fun sketchie randomness! That's one thing I've noticed with my sketch books is the amount of randomness there are in them. It's with me 24/7 and open so if a thought occurs I can quickly scribble it out!
I have to apologize for all the writing in them too.. I'm in planning and brainstorming mode, so you'll see a lot of notes-to-self.

The Doodle Monkey Dump

IF: Sprout

2007-02-07T22:05:00.000-05:00

A second rendition has been done, per the critique of Bearuh on the ThreeThumbsUpGallery Blog. "Thats really great! I like tablet Pcs too! I recommend using your space more.. And maybe have the faces bigger for more of a focus point. AWESOME!"
Thanks Bearuh!
.....................................................................................................................................
Their feelings for each other sprouted out and was placed not only into each others hearts, but into everything they've ever loved in life.

*playin around with the new tablet.. i luuuuuv eeet! It really makes things so much easier for me, and can't see how I went so looong without having one.. well.. this size! :)

Here's the original sketch!

Hooray!!!

2007-02-04T18:31:00.000-05:00

My parents came by today, bearing gifts '0' plenty! They gave J.D. his belated birthday gift, a beautiful pool cue rack and cocktail stirrers, and for me, something I've been hopping from foot to foot for since christmas (since they had to send in what they originally got for an exchange.) *eeeeee* I'm soooo excited!!! I finally have, and hooked up already, the WACOM 6x8 Intuos3 Pen Tablet... *sigh! I am in love with this thing! (I'm such a nerd!!!)
So as promised, I sent my parents the first thing I made with it!

Thanks Mom and Dad!!!

Hoo-Hoo

2007-02-03T19:20:00.000-05:00

Had this little guy prepped on canvas for awhile, so while my husband hogged my computer to do taxes, I thought I'd finish him up.
He originated from an attempted sketch of a skull. I have this habit of putting random jibberish next the sketches that happen to be there when I think of the non-word.

So here's Hoo--Hoo. He likes the water, especially when bubbles float past him. His favorite food is fried calamari, and of course, loves long walks on the beach. He loves to talk about his adventures, so hope you're a good listener!

IF: Red

2007-02-02T00:04:00.000-05:00

As she laid in the field of paper poppies, her worries and cares drifted away with the clouds that passed her by.

DC Art Org Show: FLUX: TONIGHT!!!

2007-01-27T11:19:00.001-05:00

A one night art show happening in good 'ol VA, in the town of Clarendon. The show is taking place within an old body shop, with tons of DC area artists showcasing their work with the accompaniment of live performances.

I have a previous engagement, so won't be able to make it (believe me, I'm crying inside.)

It's a little last minute, but if you're in the DC metro area and want something fun to do, go to this show!

FLUX show info

Pan's Labyrinth

2007-01-27T11:19:00.000-05:00

WOW! An incredibly fascinating story, that is a must-see. A friend and I went to see it yesterday afternoon, and I just fell in love with the story. It really blends the lines between fantasy and reality for this little girl, Ivana Baquero, who is a wonderful young actress. The imagination, creativity and amount of detail that went into the production of this film is magic in and of itself. The film is in spanish, but is subtitled.

Pan's Labyrinth site

IF: Super Hero

2007-01-24T23:19:00.000-05:00

I don't have a particular super hero in tightie whities that I'm drawn too. Isabelle's super heroes are the everyday people and animals that are in her life. They've always been there to catch her when she fell. She's about to now; see her legs are kind of in a 'I need to go pee-pee stance!'
Needs a bit of work, but I really do like the overall idea. Thanks for lookin!

Home Project

2007-01-21T19:07:00.000-05:00

We've repainted our upstairs guest bathroom all white, and it looks sooooo much better than it used too. There was a country blue floral border along the top, and the wall color was an off-white, brown, cream grossness. I wanted to puke every time I passed it. Well, since we were expecting guests to stay with us for awhile, we decided that now was the time to give it a bit of a face-lift. We took out the shiny brass sliding doors to the bathtub that had crackly glass and a delightful stenciling of flowers. blech.. Than we took out the 80's studio vanity lights, and the country bumpkin vanity mirror off the wall, and replaced it with what you see now. And we couldn't feel more refreshed with it.

In all the excitement, I painted a simple painting to put above the toilet. I'm still working on the small shelf that will be put below the painting to hold some small baskets of stuff.
Thought I'd share, since J.D. worked so hard to put it all together!

IF: 80's

2007-01-18T21:57:00.000-05:00

Nana, who was in her 80's, didn't live in an area where a lot of people lived. Alfred, having the memory he has, baked a lovely cake for Nana for her Birthday.

IF: Buzz

2007-01-11T22:11:00.000-05:00

Phew! I made it. I had this sketched out in my book all week, but only had time tonight to carry it out. I thought I'd try something different. Wanted to use colored paper and play with the negative space... obviously need a little more work.
I took a stencil tool and pushed the outline through velum onto the cardstock. Took a blue and green colored pencil to highlight the lines and shade the areas. After scanning it in, I did a little digital cleanup.

And for those of you who must know... if this were me, I would have pushed the clock over onto the floor by now!!! (I'm soooo not a morning person) :)

Nando: Clocky

anticipation is killin me...

2007-01-07T22:29:00.000-05:00

well, first, my thoughtful parents got me a wacom intuos tablet for xmas this year.. unfortunately they had to return it to exchange it for a smaller one. So I've been waiting oh so patiently for that to arrive, so I can start playing around with it!!! Come on Mister Postman!!!

Secondly, I went out to Plaza Artist, and bought a new moleskine sketchbook. I've almost completed my first moleskine, (a large graph lined notebook), which has been a wonderful starter. It's also the first sketchbook I'll ever be completing, front to back, so this is a very exciting accomplishment for me! (it doesn't take much!)
This time I got the large sketchbook moleskine with plain thicker pages, so ink (hopefully) won't bleed thru. I'm dying to take it out of it's plastic sheeting, and open it.. feel the pages, take out all of my pens, pencil and markers and start experimenting with what works on its surface and what doesn't. oooh.. I'm sooo anxious to open it..

By the way.. I've updated my sketch dump blog if you were interested!

Cheers!

IF: Phoenix

2007-01-04T21:18:00.000-05:00

there's always one in the bunch that wants to live on, so it found the Fountain 'O' Youth!

2006-12-29T23:11:00.000-05:00

Yip-Yip, Hooray!!! One full year of blogging has past, and I'm still blogging! I have Illustration Friday to thank for keeping challenged. I also have you to thank for viewing my posts, leaving messages behind, that draw inspiration and motivation to keep sharing. Thanks for celebrating with me!!! Happy One Year Blog-iversary!!! Woot, Woot!

IF: Peace

2006-12-28T22:07:00.000-05:00

IF: Help

2006-12-19T21:03:00.000-05:00

This started out, last friday, as a few simple notes, then a head inspired by the cartoon Avatar. For the next four days I kind of let my mind go wherever it wanted. This is incredibly mindless, but it really helped me out, creatively, to just let my mind and hands do whatever without too much thought. It was a fun exercise. (By the way, this is a two page spread from my sketchbook, which is why there's the split down the middle.)

Here's another view of it sideways, so you can see the other face. Thought it looked kinda neat this way too.

Holiday Season Quotes

2006-12-16T15:56:00.000-05:00

Christmas cards, or any personal mail, is fun to recieve, especially from friends and family. I've been sitting here for hours, trying to personalize each and every holiday card that I'm going to be sending out, because it'll make it that much more special for the recipient when they get our card, (plus I won't feel like I wasted so much paper by simply writing our names on it.) When I got stuck with trying to personalize something, I remembered a colleague of mine had looked up quotes to use in a card. I didn't use all these, but thought I'd share some I liked with you, and inspire personalizing those holiday cards!

One kind word can warm three winter months. ~Japanese proverb
A little smile, a word of cheer, A bit of love from someone near, A little gift from one held dear, Best wishes for the coming year… These make a Merry Christmas! ~John Greenleaf Whittier
One of the most glorious messes in the world is the mess created in the living room on Christmas day. Don't clean it up too quickly. ~Andy Rooney
Nothing's as mean as giving a little child something useful for Christmas. ~Kin Hubbard
Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night! ~ Santa Claus

eeeg... I've been tagged!!!

2006-12-08T14:34:00.000-05:00

I've been tagged by a very talented artist, and old friend, Michelle Lana! Yay!

Okay. Rules of the game: List 5 favorite Christmas Songs that you can think of and then tag 5 other people and see what they come up with.

Let's see.. 5 favorite Christmas Songs;

Old Toy Trains - my favorite song that I've only heard a few times growing up, but sing it to myself every year, the forester sisters version!
Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire
Driedel, driedel, driedel - The South Park version :)
Jingle Bells - Bare Naked Lady's version
Winter Wonderland

Belgian Waffleness

2006-12-07T17:16:00.000-05:00

I wanted to show my friend how excited and grateful I was to receive this package in the mail the other day! I begged him not to get me anything, but he was a persistent little bastard. See, he's working on his major, and for one of his class projects, he asked for my constructive criticism on a kids guide to the D.C. Cherry Blossom Festival, which I tore up (thanks for still being my friend!) Thank you, thank you, thank you, I do not deserve such cute waffle-ness. *drool* Can't wait to see his Kids Guide. If I can get more information about the organization he's helping, I'll post that up too!

IF: Might

2006-12-05T23:07:00.000-05:00

... and with the mighty wind, he sang with all his might, wishing the one he loved that they might hear him wishing her a goodnight...

See the original sketch from my sketchbook pages!

Post-It Art

2006-12-03T21:53:00.000-05:00

This is my one line guy! i put the pen on the paper and didn't lift it from the paper until I was done.

Another Post-It drawing, this time on the plain yellow square stickie. This was the view from my office window of a hotel.

IF: Smoke

2006-11-08T22:23:00.000-05:00

Can you find the word?!

IF: Wind & Ghost

2006-11-02T23:45:00.000-05:00

i've gotta make time to do this stuff in illustrator or something.. I haven't quite gained control over colored pencils or pens yet, and it's driving me nuts! I think I'll try to go digital for this friday's challenge.. I owe it to myself...

IF: Smitten

2006-10-19T22:55:00.000-04:00

What a hard theme for this week. I kept wanting to do something a little different, but I couldn't think of anything. I stopped thinking about it for a few days, thinking I'd have to sit this one out until today at lunch a few ideas started to come out.

The Prison Break (in)

2006-10-15T21:02:00.000-04:00

no, not the show... we made our own little break to the Lorton prison! It's been closed down for some time, and is being prepped to become a huge art center, and condos. Before they start all that, J.D. and I drove out there to hopefully get some great photographs for his parents who will be moving near the prison. We had a lot of fun exploring the spooky halls, and climbing the spiral stairs to the clock tower.
We wanted to "break in" to the prison to take photos of the actual prison cells, but they had it pretty well fenced off. boohoo. We came out alive, there weren't any convicts left behind in any of the abandoned rooms or holes in the walls.
We even came upon a footpath that lead to a bridge and creek. It was incredibly peaceful to be in a place where there wasn't anyone else around, and listen to the water run through the rocks, and listen to the wind through the trees... *sigh

I put the photos up on flickr if you'd like to take a peek!

Muh New Toaster!

2006-10-15T20:13:00.000-04:00

It gets me from point a to point b, it's great on fuel, and it heats up a mean toast! I drive a toaster!The Scion XB; you can't get anymore toastier than that! I actually enjoy this car.. I guess I would have had too, or I wouldn't have bought it! It's unbelievably roomie inside and has a lot of neat features, and if I get bored, I can customize it to look a bit like this...

haha!!!.. I joke with J.D. all the time about Hello Kittying my car out!
but for now, I guess I'll have to drive it like this!

2006-10-11T22:55:00.000-04:00

Strange things hide in trees. I've been watching too much Discovery Channel nature shows during my down time! I love trees with interesting bark, and I've been feeling evil lately, so watch out or you'll be in trouble! muwahahaha... It's so time for Halloween!

IF: Quiet

2006-10-05T22:36:00.000-04:00

It's been awhile! I think I was burnt out from the pressure of sketching, creating and finishing up home projects, and was soooo relieved that we actually had a few weekends to relax. I'm starting back up again! I'm also in my interior decorating mood, and have started planning, laying out, measuring, etc... all the upstairs bedrooms, halls and bathrooms!! I'm a little slow on the uptake, so this weeks effort was a little weak, but I wanted to contribute to help get me motivated again.

She's enjoying a nice cup of cocoa in a big comfy chair in a quiet coffee shop, after a brisk walk in the bitter cold. yum.

Not-so-booples

2006-09-14T17:31:00.000-04:00

:::UPDATE::: I've been told that Booples already exist :( so sad.. mine are cuter!! So they can no longer be called Booples... Any name ideas???

I'm couldn't think of anything else to call them, so Booples seemed fitting. I'm thinking of painting these guys on three pretty decent sized panels. Most likely will use acrylics, since I'm ok with them. Any thoughts and ideas?

moleskine sketch page

Vandals in a Quiet Neighborhood

2006-09-14T17:01:00.000-04:00

While driving home from a day of shopping, we took this shortcut through a quiet neighborhood. It's a long, long road, so they've placed 'Hump' signs all along it. The last one we went over, something caught my eye, and I noticed a little guy in front of the big guy. Someone made a little dude out of duck tape, and stuck him up there. I made J.D. turn the car around and drive back through the hump, just so I could get a photo, it was so funny!

Stickerific MooDude

2006-09-14T16:59:00.000-04:00

MooDude sent me a wonderful package of his stickers this past weekend! I had had a long day at the office, and recieving this colorful pieces of stickiness really made my day!

Illustration Friday: Farm

2006-09-13T22:39:00.000-04:00

ok.. so... uh... yes, so, this relates to the theme 'farm' because it has a cock and bulls.. haha.. i didn't intend for it to come out that way. He is a little mad, probably because he's made out of metal, and it's hard to move around, and he cuts himself all the time, and well.. let's face it, what lady wants to be around a cock like that. hehheh.

Moleskine sketch

Illustration Friday: Safe

2006-09-06T22:27:00.000-04:00

We had an eventful Labor Day weekend. Our poor little Jado potato suddenly became sick, and wouldn't eat or drink, so we took her to the emergency pet hospital, where she stayed for two nights. She was abso-toot-ly awesome when we took her there and back. She stayed in J.D.'s arms the entire time, and would tuck her little nose into the elbow crack whenever she was uncomfortable.

She's feeling alot better than she had, but we're keeping a good eye on her. She had a bunch of wierd things happening. Something looked like it was stuck in her small intestine, she was constipated, had a urinary tract infection, and had high toxin levels in her kidney and liver. On top of that she scraped her mouth and has what looks like a blackhead on her lip. Poor Jado :( We have to give her medication twice a day, which a pure pain because it requires both J.D. and I, one to hold her body, and one to open her mouth and squirt the medication down her throat.. ugh..

Moleskine sketchbook page

Anyway, thought I'd post photos of our kitties. They look alike because their sisters.

Say Hi to Jade! She's posing with her favorite toy, a fuzzy little hedgehog stuffed with catnip, yum!
And Hi to Maya! Our little princess.

Charmed Gel Pens

2006-09-06T00:59:00.000-04:00

A friend suprised me with these today at work! They're so cute! I've already tried each one out, scribbling hello's and squigglies on my stickies. They work incredibly great, the ink runs smooth and the colors are really vibrant. I threw the box away, so all I have to tell you is that they're gel pens, and I'm going to have fun with them.

aaaarrggh

2006-09-05T13:49:00.000-04:00

I've switched over to the beta-blogger, which has super cool features, except for the fact that I can't post comments on non-beta blogs, which google's trying to fix. I know it's a beta and it's going to have bugs.. This is actually more of an apology to those who I'd like to leave comments too on their blogspot blog, but can't rather than a full rant. So, SOWWY... :(

:::::UPDATE:::::
Google has fixed all these bugs and then some! Yay Google!

random illustration

2006-09-04T20:26:00.000-04:00

Thought I'd share few old sketches. This was sketched out years, and I mean yee-ears ago. I have always thought of doing more with it, like an life-size painting with this style. I've done a bird using this illustration style, but stopped there. sigh.. one of these days!

Illustration Friday: Run

2006-08-31T22:50:00.000-04:00

Not much to say 'bout this one, except that my husband will now have nightmares after seeing this.. der... I thought it was cute and creepy... Not a final product, just a sketch. I like the upper half of mr. green creepy guy, but the lower half needs a little bit more tweakage. Funny bunny doesn't have any paws... I think he kind of skootches across the floor to get around.. no wonder the creepy dude's running.. he's creeped out.. (sorry, it's late, and I'm tired, and I really need to not be talking... :)

Our Home

2006-08-28T08:12:00.000-04:00

Kind of a brag spread! Friends and Family have been asking for photos of our home. We've done a lot to this place since we've moved in, from painting every room on the main floor, and landscaping the back yard!

Instead of having a formal living room, we put in a theatre. The seats were bought off of ebay from a real theatre, I think from Maine.

The kitchen has gone through a major transformation! We sanded and painted the oak cabinets white and create a glass panel effect on a few of the doors! New slate tile floors and corian countertop. We added the moulding after we painted the walls.

The "Pub" area is the eat-in kitchen section. J.D. found these booth seats from a restaurant in D.C. They were a little dingy, tore off the fabric and foam, customized them a bit to fit in the space, and I refoamed and reappolstered them. The table was a $20 find from an estate sale! love that! He stripped it, sanded and applied a rich dark stain, that turned out really well! One corner that leads to the garage has been painted with chalkboard paint. I think that has to be the most interactive corner of our home! (And lots of fun at party's!)

In the dining room, I was trying to go for an outdoor seating area somewhere in France. It's still trying to get there! Maybe this fall/winter I'll be motivated to finish it up.

It's nice when our plans come together and look good for two people that don't have a clue about what they're doing! A lot of the things we do have very minimal planning. Which leads to a lot of trying and being displeased and trying again. We're pretty pleased and excited about our latest installment, the Great Wall! It keeps the upper yard looking level and finished off, and we have a decent pathway from the deck to the side. It was J.D.'s last minute thinking to add the firepit to the end. Seriously cannot wait for cooler weather to roast some marshmallows now.

The pool is awesome! J.D. works so hard to keep it looking as refreshing as it does! We're lucky to have neighbors with pools, who have been more than helpful, in understanding how to keep it maintained. Of course there have been days where we would love to just fill it in with dirt, but when it gets hot, or when we just want to relax and do nothing one weekend, it nice to just for a dip in the pool!

So that's all! This fall/winter, we'll hopefully get the upper floor done, so we can have more pics to show!

Salut!

Bai Ngoai

2006-08-27T18:20:00.000-04:00

My grandmother was in town in June, and was so happy when my Dad brought her over to see our home! We don't see each other but once a year, so it's nice when we can spend some quality time with each other! She's a ball of energy for her age! She thinks she's still 20 years old! (both my grandmother's are like that!) And loves to go to the casino's! Love them both!

Great Falls; Virginia Side

2006-08-27T17:38:00.000-04:00

August 19, Saturday (last week) J.D. and I thought it'd be fun to take a break from being cooped up in our house all the time. I had never gone to Great Falls, and it was close by, so we packed up our camera and a few snacks and we were on our way! yay! I wanted to try and document the day, so I took photos of everything, even silly things like the highway signs we exited onto. Of course I missed the most important one, so I didn't post that part!!! der. We had a lot of! We ended up veering off the path and made our own path through all the rocks! We haven't hiked in awhile and the mid-day sun was out, so by the end of our hike I felt like poop. But I'd do it again, just with more water next time! So tempted to jump into the water and let the current take us away! If you've never been, it's a nice place to go! Lots of picnic and bbq areas.

Crayola Magic Clay Sculptures

2006-08-23T21:24:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to share some spur of the moment, I had a second to spare at work to put together a few office friends. My boss brought in a huge HUGE box of these magic clay packages, and I felt like a kid at a candy store... so awesome!!! They're just kinda hangin out in my cube hole. gotta make friends some how... :P

Illustration Friday: Match

2006-08-23T21:10:00.000-04:00

aargh... I know I'm not going to have time to do anything detailed, so I'm offering a mere sketch of what I wanted to submit... sowwy...

Even though they had a few differences, they were quite a match for each other. aawww... yay for love!

My other ideas were to have a guy farting on a match which caught his friend on fire... oops.. the other was of a matching dc tourist couple (since I see them all the time... with matching t-shirts... so cute & funny!)

Illustration Friday: Play

2006-08-15T23:53:00.000-04:00

It's been awhile since I've played with watercolors. This didn't exactly turn out the way I wanted it too, but I can't expect much when I've only begun experimenting. The subject matter was probably influenced by Mark Ryden mixed with a little bit of Japanese animation. I've been on an animation kick lately, which is sparking all kinds of ideas, and motivations. You can view the original sketch on my sketchbook blog.

Our Backyard!

2006-08-13T13:52:00.000-04:00

It's amazing when something I plant actually blooms, and continues to live. I think I love the idea of planting things, and anticipating them growing, being beautiful and providing plenty. The thought of actually caring for them seems to slip my mind when I have other projects or things going on in my life, and so some of the plants I've grown have a short life span!

J.D. and I take pride in the home that we are so lucky to have. A lot of thought goes into the landscape, and I won't even go into the interior yet! We moved in a little over a year ago, so any accomplishment we make is a happy moment!

So here are a few happy moments!

Purdy Dahlias

We watched a hornet (that thing is huge) wrestle a dead cicada. I wonder if it was trying to fly away with it. It eventually gave up and flew off. (and later tried to carry my husband off to its nest!)

And our Pool!

More of a funny/wierd moment than a happy one. In early spring our dryer decided to call it quits, so we were going to put it out with the trash. But before that could happen, J.D. wanted to see the inner workings of a dryer, and tore it apart. When he got to the dryer drum, he thought it'd be cool to use that as a fire pit, and kept it. So the fins came off and hundreds of different sized balls fell out and rolled like marbles every which way across the garage floor. It was the most bizarre thing.

All these years of tumbling clothes, when we could have been in the business of manufacturing lint balls...

Illustration Friday: Capture

2006-08-08T23:08:00.000-04:00

Hooray! I'm always excited when I get an illo in before thursday! You may want to click on the image to make it bigger too see all the details... 'specially to see what the baker's up too!
This weeks inspiration came from the ever growing popularity of cute cuddly plushie animal-ie food products I'm seeing everywhere. I don't own one yet, but I can't wait to get my hands on one! mmmm... Yum-Yum Bun!!! btw. My husband thinks I'm nuts, because I can't stop saying that. It's catchie :)

Illustration Friday is a Friend Finder

2006-08-04T19:38:00.000-04:00

I used to go to high school with a very talented artist, in fact sat next to her on the bus to and from school for awhile, hung out at lunch sometimes... and as time passed we grew apart. We maybe saw each other once or twice at GMU, passing to get to different classes. I always remembered how in demand she was with classmates to have their caricature done by her.
Well, after all these years, who'd a thunk-it, that IF would bring two long lost friends back together!!! I'm really happy that we're back in touch! Joy!

See some of Michelle Lana's stuff on her blog!

Silly Monkee Sketch Blog

2006-08-04T19:18:00.000-04:00

Yay! I've been meaning to get this started forever, and I finally had the time to scan, and upload all the pages from my MoleSkine sketchbook. This book now goes everywhere I go. I'm getting braver and am actually opening it up in public to make a few sketches! I'm still a little shy about drawing in public. *grin* I hope you get a chance to look at it, and that you can draw some inspiration or motivation from it!

Check it out! SillyMonkee Sketchblog

Illustration Friday: Clean

2006-08-02T00:02:00.000-04:00

Washed out? Cleaned Out?
I felt a little morbid at the time. I also was feeling a little overwhelmed with thoughts in my head, and probably thought about what would happen if I powerwashed my head... probably exactly what happened to this poor guy! berr--aaaaaaiiinnnzzzz...

I first sketched it out in my sketchbook, then copied it onto velum paper, which is great to color, and my scans are cleaner.

Illustration Friday: Opposite

2006-07-26T23:45:00.000-04:00

Opposites attract, and that's true with J.D. and I. We share a lot in common, but in general we're definetly opposite of each other. He's an extrovert, who is very outgoing, enjoys being around and talking to people. I on the other hand, am totally content with being alone to work on an art project. I enjoy company from time to time, if I overdose, I go into a veggie like state.. drool... the whole bit.. it's not pretty.
I love J.D.!!! He brings sooo much into our lives.

Didn't think I was going to make it this week with an illustration, but I had last minute inspiration last night, and was able to color it in tonight! YAY! I need to work on making my illo's a little bigger so I can use bigger markers and bring more detail... Not to mention some of the compositioning of objects to each other.. yikes... the more I look the more I want to do this one over. Can I blame the shaky camera?? I'm open to suggestions! oh.. I also drew this on velum, which is really really nice to work on.

What a Saturday!

2006-07-23T10:59:00.000-04:00

J.D. and I had a lot of things going on today! Had to drop my car off at the dealer for maintenance. Come home and clean the crap out of our place so our dinner company don't think we live in a heap of dust bunnies... (by the way, I found a third cat we didn't know we had while sweeping the house. yikes.) The car got done in the mid afternoon, so J.D. and I started finishing up around the house, and headed back to the dealership. All went well, and was following J.D. back. We came up on this intersection and noticed a car pulling towards the middle to make a left hand turn. J.D. was a good ways in front of my car, and since we had the green light, we kept going at the same speed, which was around 35-45mph. The car had slowed down, as if to wait, but then proceeded to drive and practically stopped (I'm thinking in fear,) right in our lane, which was the far right lane of two lanes. J.D. laid on the horn, swerved to the left to try and avoid them, but than I heard a crunch sound, at which point, I screamed, and laid on my breaks. I couldn't believe what just happened. I looked at J.D. to see if he was alright; he was already getting out of his car, looked quickly at his front driver side bumper where the turn signal light had popped out, and quickly walked over to the other car and asked if they were alright. They were an older couple. A man who was in the passenger seat, seemed to be shaken up. His door was pretty well damaged, and had a hard time opening it. J.D. helped him get out. After which he walked over to the passenger side of his car to inspect the damage. Not even a minute after the incident, a cop had stopped, and than another... and than 5 others. Apparently they were on their way to the station for a shift change, (stations two seconds down the road.) when they came upon us. The whole exchange of information lasted about 30-45 minutes. The whole time, the lady at fault never once asked my husband if he was ok, or apologized. Which seemed kind of wierd. This is what his car looks like...

Illustration Friday: Sacrifice

2006-07-18T22:52:00.000-04:00

I don't normally do patriotic drawings, but this was one of the first things that came to mind when I thought of sacrifice. All the men and women sacrificing their lives for our freedom.

This is super messy, and definitely has more potential of being so much better as far as detail and accuracy goes. But ya'll get the idea! *wink

Here's the original sketch.
Thanks for looking!

Illustration Friday: Sticky and Skyline

2006-07-08T14:36:00.000-04:00

I missed last weeks deadline, but had a great sketch, so though I'd incorporate it into this weeks theme.
Last week in Starbucks, I had a sticky situation where a napkin had fallen on this floor, and I had unknowingly stepped on it. Well luckily I noticed this before stepping out into public. I stepped on a piece to try and discreetly unstick it from my shoe with the other one, but it was now stuck to the right shoe. So I repeated the procedure by stepping on the napkin with my other shoe... and it happened again. I felt like I was going to have to do a song and dance, because I could only imagined what I looked like trying to get this thing off my shoe. Finally, I grabbed a clean napkin from the dispensor, and peeled the sticky napkin from both shoes, and threw it away. Looked around quickly and escaped as quickly as I could back to the office. *whimper

Sea Monkies: Week Three & Four

2006-07-08T13:20:00.000-04:00

It's amazing how much they grow. And they're still growing. A few have feathery fangs that they use to grab hold of other seamonkies. Either to fight or to give big hugs! They're fascinating to watch, when I've stared at the computer monitor long enough. They've created little dust bunnies everywhere after fluffing through all their mess for food.

Here's a monkey from week three;

And week four;

Illustration Friday: Rain

2006-06-29T22:18:00.000-04:00

What a perfect topic of the week. The past weekend through the beginning of the week, we have had nothing but rain and thunderstorms... crazy thunderstorms... So I have two different posts for the amount of rainy days I had this week!

(1) After seeing larger than life rain drops from the 17th floor of my building. I wanted to go on a break so bad at the time, I said that we could make it safe and dry just be dodging them, since they were so big. That was a no-go... (sorry for the graph lines.)

(2) Waiting out the rain, and what better place to seek shelter than under a mushroom!

Illustration Friday: Dance

2006-06-21T22:40:00.000-04:00

Stick figuring to the extreme! Wasn't planning on choosing this one, but because I was so desperate to make it on time this week for illustration friday, she came to life! I'm hoping, at a later date to make this more of a watercolor, since the colored pencil I used were watercolor one's! I'll make sure to post it if I do! Yay! I made it before friday!

I did a second figure, which was initially my first choice because of the strong poise, and not-all-there head. I hope I can create a neat story from this one soon! Here's a sketch of a sketch!

Sea Monkies: Week Two

2006-06-20T23:23:00.000-04:00

They're growing super fast. You can see their multiple fins, and little tiny black eyeballs on some. So cute... I'm not sure how this little city is going to hold 75+ Sea Monkies, especially if they start reproducing in a few weeks... craziness...

You can kind of see them in the tank, although my camera couldn't focus in on them yet. ggrrr.

Illustration Friday: Jungle

2006-06-20T23:20:00.000-04:00

"You're a jungle theme!"- Night at the Roxbury - This was the only phrase that went through my head each time I thought about this week's theme... I didn't have time but to sketch out a lame rendition of the world 'Jungle.'

Illustration Friday: Portrait

2006-06-20T23:16:00.000-04:00

Another rough sketch of no one in particular.

Illustration Friday: Devils n' Angels

2006-06-20T23:13:00.000-04:00

A little late, but wanted to post this up anyway.
Shows how some want to be percieved as perfect angels, but deep inside the rot, the devil lies.

Anguish Languish

2006-06-13T15:34:00.000-04:00

Painfully uncomprehensible to read the first, even the second time. You're reading random words that make no sense being next to each other, not only making your eyes swell, but you can feel your brain become mush... and that's when it clicks!
For mind boggling, head splitting fun, sit back, relax, and read a few stories by Howard L. Chace. You can read my comment on how I finally made sense of it all!

Sea-Monkey In the City!

2006-06-13T15:24:00.000-04:00

Today, at 2:22pm, I birthed roughly 75 little sea-monkey hatchlings!!! I just poured in the contents of the packet, and voila!!! Instant sea-monkeys! Actually, not that exciting yet... bunch of white stuff and black things that look like pepper flakes are kind of floating around the water, making it look a little cloudy. Which is normal, according to the instruction booklet. I suppose it teaches patience, and good things come to those who wait! Come on *tap*tap*tap... grow sea-monkies... GROW!
I think they'll like their world! It has tall shiney buildings, an intersection, a park, a fire hydrant, and cars! I thought it would be appropriate to have in my cube, since I do work in a semi-city.

3:32pm: I saw one little white speck floating around! He looked like he was having muscle spasms!! So cute! I see a bunch of them hatching (they double up and start to float!) Here's a photo of the one sea monkey speck... can you see him?!!!

mah Turtle done poo

2006-06-01T10:31:00.000-04:00

A friend took a pic from his camera phone.. it's a little blurry, but I had to post it anyway.
I noticed the note when I first walked in my cube, and was confused for awhile, since I didn't know what boo-boo the turtle couldn't have done... well later on in the day, a colleague walks in, and in the middle of our conversation, I notice what the boo-boo was, and just could not control myself from laughing. It's still up on my file cabinet!

Illustration Friday: Cake

2006-05-31T22:05:00.000-04:00

Wedding Cake Monkeys

Our wedding cake topper was a little unique, although the idea isn't new. J.D. and I nicknamed each other 'Monkey' which sounds wierd when we call each other from across the grocery store! I decided to use that in part of the wedding details, and created this monkey sculpture of 'us' for the top of our wedding cake. We'll be married four years in July! Yay, we made it!

I had to add a little decor around them, to make it feel more festive. I liked how it turned out!

Cheers!

Not So Good

2006-05-17T06:44:00.000-04:00

Bad news came last night around 9:30pm that J.D.'s Grandmother wasn't doing very well, and the Dr.'s didn't know if she was going to make it through the night. J.D. and I decided that it would be a good idea to drive down to see her. We did good on the drive down, only an hour and 45 minutes. We arrived there around 11:45pm.
J.D. and I walked into the room where she was staying. We were silent at first, taking in the sights, and sounds. There were cards and photos along the window sill, that were very heartwarming. The monitors were bleeping, something was creating steam behind her, and she lay there frail looking, and bandaged, yet was peacefully snoring away. Uncle Joe came up after saying goodnight to Roxanne, to give us an update on Grandma's condition, and a brief history.

It sounds like the coronary arteries in her legs had hardened over the years from 25 years of smoking. Although she had quit some time ago, the side-effects still lingered. Now, her poor 88 year-old heart isn't strong enough to pump blood down and through her legs. This is due to blockages, which is also causing these extremely painful sores on her legs, and making her feet purple. Her blood pressure is high, and is being constantly monitored. It sounds like the hospital is doing everything they can to make her as comfortable as possible, all the while doing their routine checks, and tests.

She was asleep for most of our visit, so we couldn't talk with her. Leave it to me to try and give her a soft kiss goodbye on the forehead, only to have my hair fall directly on her eyelid, causing her to wake up in confusion for a few minutes. She was unable to see or hear us, since she didn't have her glasses or her hearing aids. Which I can imagine was more stressful on her than it was for us. We all fear that she's not going to make it through this. I hope she's at peace with herself, and that she doesn't have a doubt that we all love her dearly.

We got back in town this morning around 2:30am and tried to get enough sleep in before getting up at 5:30am. J.D. and I are going to try and drive back down this afternoon, if all's well, so we can see her again, hopefully this time we can see her awake.

It's about 7:30am now, and still haven't heard anything, so no news is good news!!!

Happy Mother's Day!

2006-05-15T19:06:00.000-04:00

J.D. and I hosted Mother's Day Brunch at our home this year, and although we passed out after the last guest left, we really had a good time, (at least from my perspective.) Sometimes our family gatherings can be a wee bit hectic.

The menu consisted of Eggs Benedict *yummy, just right asparagus, the most requested potato salad, succulent shrimp, and the sweetest reddest strawberries. The most colorfully paletted menu I've had yet!

Our niece and nephew seemed to have a great time running around outside, and la piece de resistance... watching Scooby-Doo in the 'theatre!' We turned the popcorn machine on, and watched thier faces and their eyes glazed over watching the popcorn pop out of the kettle! So much fun!

I was especially excited to have my brother and his fiance over, since this was the first time they've been to our new home... it's only been a year! It's funny, but him and my Dad are perfectionist when it comes to, well anything... but they immediantely started critiquing, and pointing out flaws, and asked at one point if he's ever considerred being a professional home inspector, because he'd be great at it... just not at my house!! I don't take it to heart, because I know that's their thing, and I know the flaws that are there, we just haven't gotten around to taking care of it yet.. so just pretend it looks good.. smile... nod... anything positive... show me some love, for goodness sakes... ok.. I'm done venting... I didn't let it ruin my day, even though this vent session kind of goes on like that!

Overall it was a fun, meaningful day, that I hope everyone enjoyed to some extent.

Ronda's Graduation

2006-05-15T18:50:00.000-04:00

Saturday, May 13th. A friend that I went to grade school with at TASOK, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, formerly known as Kinshasa, Zaire, graduated from the University of Maryland University College, UMUC, with a Masters in Public Relations. Between that time and now, we had kept in touch here and there, but we're living and working so close now, it makes it easier to keep in touch. I'm so proud of her and her accomplishments! I also saw her younger sister, Lynette, who was in the same grade as my brother, she has grown to be a beautiful woman. It's funny though, that the interaction between Lynette and Ronda hasn't changed a bit over time. I was so pleased and excited to see her Mom and Dad again, who didn't recognize me at all, I think they were expecting a smaller version of me! ! It was so much fun meeting her friends, and seeing her family.

Random Poem Generator

2006-05-11T15:50:00.000-04:00

Mendel Quoth:
The pink peaches were rotten with delight
it sounds like a crowd but nothing seems magic
how deathly afraid was I of the nightlight
my circuits are overloaded, but I'll try to do better next time

I fed it the first line and it generated the next three, randomly. I wonder how it knew I was deathly afraid of nightlights... peculiar? no?!
Check it out!

Illustration Friday: Under the Sea

2006-05-04T22:29:00.000-04:00