Another Banner

I spent the last 45 minutes working on this banner (you'll have to click on it as it posted quite tiny here) and I don't particularly like it, but thought I'd post it anyway. Just experimenting... Experimenting is fun. It's easy to experiment with Photoshop because you can delete and add layers like there's no tomorrow. If you don't like a piece of the puzzle, just throw it in the trash.

So, it's Monday again. Why does it have to come around every week? But at least, I do have to say, my work day doesn't start until 12:45, so that makes things a tiny bit easier. I don't know if I could handle 8:30 Mondays. I worked yesterday, so some may say that was really my Monday, but it's not. Weekends are so much more relaxed as we, the workers, run the asylum ourselves, without the awkward hands of a manager getting in the way.

Oh, and one more thing... My mom thought my elephants were humping. Come on, mom. They're obviously babies playing. Get your mind out of the gutter.

And yet one more thing, I just did a quick colorized version. I will not be using this particular banner (neither the original nor the colorized version), but it's still fun to play with it.

My elephants photoshopped

As I mentioned in my last post, I spent a lot of time playing around with Photoshop yesterday. In keeping with that trend, I thought I'd apply some Photoshop effects to this drawing. I did work on the drawing a bit more and the values are more pronounced than they were yesterday, but it may look a bit lighter (or maybe not as I did lower the brightness and increased the contrast) than it did in the last scan. The reason for that is that I took away some of its opacity and put it over a layer of brush worked purple and green star shapes. I do really like the effect. It gives the elephants a bit of texture as well as a bit of color without me laying a finger on a colored pencil. Oh, Photoshop is so much fun!

I hope everyone is having a good day. jb, I hope you're making some good progress on the road. I'll be back soon as my creative juices appear to have returned.

Two Juveniles...

I just thought I'd pop in and say "hi". My eyes are exhausted and I should just shut this computer down before I go blind. Earlier today I spent many hours staring at the computer screen, messing around with Photoshop and I have been on and off the Internet all day. And to top everything off, I did this elephant drawing this evening. The images I was working on with Photoshop were pretty small, so by the time I was done, I was seeing spots and dots and all kinds of colors everywhere. I think I'm suffering from eyestrain. Why don't you just go to bed, Anne? Well, maybe because I'm not tired.

I didn't make it to the grocery store today (yes, I was too busy hanging out with Photoshop to even think about eating), so I didn't get fruit. Right now, I'm craving lemons. I can live without most food for significant periods, but not fruit. I really do like fruit more than just about anything else. I think it's now time for me to step away from the computer. I will just take my tired eyes and rest them while I think about lemons.

Does anyone have any fur to spare?

Hello again. It's me. As I have been thinking about naked mole rats again, I was compelled to draw one. The one in my last drawing that is barely visible to the naked eye doesn't count because it is barely even a naked mole rat, but more like a speck on a piece of paper. So, here is a proper one.

I woke up sleepy. What is the deal with that? It must be the weather. As much as I like overcast days, they do tend to send one thoughts of going back to bed. It never takes much to talk me into feeling like going back to bed, but I will resist. I plan on having a play day today, so I need to say no to sleeping. Before I get started with the playing, I need to go out and buy some cat food before my two little critters starve to death. You should see the drama going on here that includes standing by the food dish looking forlorn, sighing and meowing me to death. I must attend to the creatures' needs... After I get them fed, I plan on making some soup to feed me and then I will just do whatever...

Edited to add that my soup is on the stove now and after cutting the onion, I don't think my eyes will ever be the same. I have the worst time with onions. They hurt me!

The Elephant and the Naked Molerat

Just thought I would pop in and say "hi" before going to work on this dreary (yay rainy dreariness!)Monday. I wanted to do a little drawing as I didn't do any this weekend, so I did this itty bitty drawing of an elephant. I felt it needed something, so I added the naked mole rat. Really, what drawing can't be improved by the addition of a naked mole rat? As you can see, the naked mole rat is so tiny that you can barely see him with the naked eye, but he is there. I have a feeling that he should be even tinier, considering the mammoth size of elephants, but had I made him tinier, you wouldn't be able to see him at all. He is screaming "squeak squeak" as any naked mole rat would, with an elephant hovering over his fragile, wrinkly body. As the elephant is not interested in eating creatures, especially those that look like a wieners (with teeth) that have been cooked in the microwave too long, he will pass. Hopefully, he will not step on the little guy as he passes.

A sketch

Hi all. I have been trying to clean for the greater part of today, but I seem to have lost my inspiration. My problem is that I have decided that the only way I can get this place halfway decent looking is by bringing another bookcase into the mix. I have this ancient chest of drawers that was ancient back in the day when it was in my grandma's house. The drawers will not open. It is full of junk. It is useless. I want it out of here, pronto. In its place, a bookshelf would be very useful. I want the book shelf today, but alas, I cannot afford the bookshelf, so I am stuck, just like the damn drawers.

Anyway, I just took a bit of a break from the cleaning and did this sketch. Nothing special--just a sketch of a man sitting on a bench, intently reading the newspaper. I don't know if I can get back into the cleaning. I am sick of just piling things on my bed. But then again, the bed might as well be used for something. Why not a storage space? I hope everyone is having a good day.

An open letter to things on the floor that hurt my foot in the middle of the night...

Dear Household Items (that are randomly scattered on the floor),

I would appreciate it if you would stop being so sharp, mobile and prevalent. Yes, I suppose you could argue that I (the human occupant of the house) am the one that scattered your contents on the floor, but give me a break. You move and multiply when I am not looking. I know you do. You pretend to be all inanimate, but then make your malicious plans when I'm away from home or not paying attention. And when I'm asleep, if you haven't already taken action, you make your move. When I get up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, I am groggy and wobbly. Therefore, I cannot deal with the obstacle course that you create. Yes, I know that when I step on a plastic stemmed "glass" and break it in two, the "glass" will never be the same again, but what about my foot! It still hurts, several hours after the incident. Please, I beg of you, to stick to the periphery of the room. Don't roll out into the middle of the floor or one of these days someone is going to suffer from something much more serious than a sore foot. In fact, I may even have to sue myself, which is not a good idea at all, since I don't even have any money. One last time, I'm begging you to just stay in one place. Don't make malicious plans. Don't roll and especially don't multiply. If we all want to live in harmony, there are certain rules that we all need to follow. Let's make this apartment a happy place where nobody needs to scream "ouch" and tend to their foot in the middle of the night. Thank you!

Sincerely,

Anne (the human occupant that would like to be able to use the bathroom in the middle of the night without risking her foot, or even her life)

It's June again...

I thought I'd post these fellas to bring in the month of June. I still remember drawing this cartoon a few years ago. One of my co-workers' kids rounded up a dead June Bug for me and I sat on the couch with the sketch pad on my lap and posed the June Bug on the paper. Several times he fell onto my lap, which made me jump every time, even though I don't have a problem with live June bugs. There's just something about dead creatures of any sort...