Scanner, what's your problem?

After spending the past few days dealing with wet carpet and cleaning and tidying and doing all kinds of things I don't like to do, I spent last night and this morning doing something that I like to do. Yes, I spent some time drawing. Unfortunately I can't share it with you because when I went to use my scanner today, it stuck it's tongue out at me. It said "nah nah nah nah nah, you can't use me!" While I was cleaning, I was wrangling and untangling cords, so maybe something is disconnected? Although I checked the connections and everything seems to be intact. I tried to re-load the software and it is telling me that something IS disconnected. I'm just not seeing it, I guess. There are two cords connected to my copier/printer/scanner and both of these are connected to the back of my computer. And the printer is working, it's just the scanner part that doesn't seem to be communicating with my computer. Communication is difficult, even for scanners, I guess...

Anyway, the drawing I would have posted was a colored pencil rhino and he is very cute. He's just going to have to wait. I got the International Rhino Foundation's 2008 Annual report in the mail this week and my name is in there (because of the small donation I gave last year when I adopted Andalas, the Sumatran rhino) as a Friend of the rhinos. How exciting is that?! And again they are stating in the little article about Andalas that he has reached sexual maturity and is ready to make little rhinos. Unfortunately it seems like he has not done his job yet. "What's up, Andalas? Get to work! Your friend Anne says so..." I heart being a friend of the rhinos and if anyone doubts that I am, I can pull out my little book where my name is listed as a friend and show them. Hopefully I'm a much better friend than D.S. (only my library friends will get that one).

Since I cannot post my rhino drawing, I will post this goofy little photo I took of my nephew. Too bad I took it with my phone camera and it is not the best quality in the world because I think it's kind of artsy in its own strange way... It cracks me up too.

I think I will now go and have some more tea, although not the caffeinated variety because I do have to work tomorrow. Woe...

Kitty's new home?

I'm very tired. Getting one's hair trimmed is hard work, especially if you have to be at the appointment by 1:00. And being at the appointment by 1:00 means that you have to wash your hair by 11:30. Too much work... I fell asleep in my clothes last night which meant waking up during the night and having to do things like brush my teeth and put on pajamas and all the things I should have done before I laid down. This woke me up and then I couldn't go back to sleep. So, what did I do at 4:00 AM? A bit (and when I say a bit, I mean a small bit) of cleaning, of course? Who wouldn't want to get up and clean at 4:00 AM? What an exciting thing to do! Anyway, I did go back to sleep after lying in bed (or, in my case, in couch) thinking about not wanting to go to sleep because I had stuff to do (fun stuff, not cleaning). But I woke up very tired at 10:30 AM. And then had to deal with the hair trimming preparations. Woe is me...

Here is a picture of my new bookshelf (thanks again, jb!). This was from the first day and it has more stuff in it now (including another shelf). The photo was taken with my phone and I didn't doctor it in photoshop, so it is a bit dark. Right now it doesn't have a cat in it, but the cats have been spending quite a bit of time in it. I am thinking I am going to have to leave a space for the spoiled little felines because they like it so much. It reminds me of an article I saw a few weeks ago. The title was: "Study says cats do control humans."

A portrait and severe weather...

Here I am after an exciting evening. Well, not really that exciting--it just could have been exciting. I was just innocently and happily drawing and listening to a podcast when I was interrupted by sirens. From there, I turn on the t.v. and am told that there are tornadoes swirling pretty much right above my apartment. Yes, I'm exaggerating. They weren't really above my apartment--just in my neighborhood. The storm tracker then went on to say that this was the worst looking sky he had ever seen in his years as a storm tracker. I do have a feeling that he has lived a sheltered storm tracking life as nothing happened here. Anyway, my cats and I spent about 5 minutes shut in the bathroom with the stinky litter boxes. None of us liked it. I know most of you dealt with the storms as well and I hope all of you made it through with minimal damage. I'm just very happy to have electricity. Losing that was my main worry. I wanted to use my computer.

As for the drawing, it was again done for the weekend drawing event. It is difficult to do a portrait in the two hours that are allotted for the event. I think I cheated a bit (probably 2 1/2 to 3 hours).

That's really all I have to say tonight. I'm not feeling particularly chatty...

Thunder! Lightning!

What more could one ask for?

Writing as I wait...

I am writing this while I wait for my PC to load whatever it is that it is loading as it loads itself. I am waiting to scan the sketch that I have been working on as I listened to one of the commentaries from the Mad Men disc. I like to listen to commentaries on dvds if I think the show is art of some sort. Creative processes are always of great interest to me. The Mad Men discs are unique in that each episode seems to have two commentaries done with different people involved in the show. The one I just listened to was done by two of the actresses and I think they had a unique perspective because they are women. The show takes place in 1960 in an incredibly sexist era. I see this as someone who came of age after the women's movement. Yes, I know that we still have a long way to go, but we have definitely come a long way, baby. I look at the character, Betty, who is the wife of the main character on the show and I see how she is basically treated like a child. When I watch her, I think "do something Betty, stop being so passive. Quit acting like a child." But she is a product of her times. I should not blame her. I didn't live through those times, so how can I be judging her as I am... I really do love this show. I was just discussing this with someone lately. It is often great when one is telling a story if they keep the story timeless, but sometimes the times are as much of a character as any of the people on the show. I think that is the case here. The time that this story takes place is absolutely essential and it is what makes the story unique. OK, enough said...

Now my drawing is all scanned. It was done from a photo of women from a different era (I'm thinking the 40's, but I could be wrong). Actually, in all fairness it is a photo of comtemperary women in costume, so they are doing alright, I think. I am thinking, if is the 40's, that that is 20 years before the story of Mad Men takes place. What was the role of these women in a society that I'm sure was way more sexist than the very sexist times of the early 60's?

And speaking of the 60's, here is what I could have looked like in 1966. You've gotta love those flips.

Is it dark in here or is it just my hat (or hair) getting in the way?

I have enjoyed my morning very much. I just finished my coffee and put down my book. I am reading two books at the moment: Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner and The Fountainhead (this one is a re-read) by Ayn Rand. I haven't been reading much since my class ended and am enjoying getting back into it. My friend Amy and I are having a sort of book club of two. Only literature allowed--none of that Oprah stuff. Yes, we are two former English majors acting all snobby about books;) The book we are reading is the Wallace Stegner book. I just had an urge to re-read the Ayn Rand. I think watching Mad Men brought this about as the show reminds me of her books. The Fountainhead was even brought up in a couple of episodes. One of the characters, in reference to the book, tells another character that by the time one is 30, one has met all the "types" of people that exist and that he is a "producer." Ayn Rand is big on writing about types of people. Sometimes I just cannnot commit to one book--I have to have two or more going and switch back and forth between them. Anyway, this is not my book blog, so I will stop here.

I have a drawing to post that I did for this week's weekend drawing event. This time I did post it at wetcanvas and now will have to comment on peoples' work. I love looking at other peoples' work, but not so much the commenting. Of course, I do like getting the comments, so I must comment. The woman in the drawing has a very large hat, doesn't she? I messed up her left eye, but I stopped trying to fix it before I totally ruined the drawing. We'll just say her mascara has smudged.

I am not going to do much cleaning today. I have the space for the book shelf cleared, so I'll wait until I can put the books away to really get back into it. Instead, once I finish blogging, I am going to get dressed and take a trip to Trader Joe's. No farmer's market today as it is over in 15 minutes. I can't get dressed and get there that fast, I'm afraid.

Last night I was up until 3:00 AM playing with this yearbook yourself thing. This is what I could have looked like had I been around and in high school in 1964. Quite a lovely hairstyle, I must say. I do like how the bit of blond is peaking out on one side.