Friday, June 23, 2017

Celebrate The Small Things - June 23, 2017

 

This week I read the news more than usual which put me in a depressive state all week. Especially after reading about Otto Warmbier's passing. I need to stop reading the news for a while and listen to motivational speakers or something to bring more positive energy into my home. After getting upset about the news, the air feels thick with negative energy. It makes it harder to celebrate the small things.

But, I am able to find something positive out of the week. I cleaned out and moved a chest of drawers that was tucked away in a cluttered room. In it I found a $25 iTunes card that still had money on it! Hahaha! It must be years old! Never been used.

I also received my Johnny Jump Up seeds in the mail. I planted them and am hoping they grow well because I don't have much of a green thumb.

It took me an hour to clean the blinds in the bathroom today. I wiped every single slat with a wet rag. We've made advances in technology, but not a better way to clean blinds. I have a brush attachment for blinds on my vacuum, but it doesn't remove all the dust. The good thing is, the blinds look great now. 
 
I'm sick and tired of this cleaning. I just want to work on my graphic novel! I have one more week before our guests arrive. The place is looking pretty good if I do say so myself. My family hasn't said a thing about how good the place looks, though, which is irksome. I can't wait for Vietnam Vets to come next week to take away more of our junk.

I'm halfway through the graphic novel Kill My Mother by Jules Feiffer. I came across this book by dumb luck. After lunch one weekend, the whole family had to use the restroom so we stopped off at a library to use their restroom. (lol!) It was at a library far from our home, but in the same county. It's embarrassing to just stop in to use their restroom, so I wanted to check out a book. 
 
I saw the Jules Feiffer book and recognized the name and art style. I discovered his artwork a few months ago even though he has been doing comics for decades. Even before I was born. The artwork wasn't as charming as I was expecting so I put it back on the shelf, but picked it back up at the last minute. I checked out other books which I can easily return near our home since the libraries are connected to the same network. 
 
When I brought it home, I looked at the drawings again and wasn't going to read the book at all because they weren't impressive to me. It got a good review from Neil Gaiman, so I decided to give it a go. After reading the first few pages, I was hooked. It's a mystery that starts off with an incredibly ungrateful daughter who wants to kill her mother. The girl's father died, so her mother had to get a job. She got a job working for her husband's best friend who is an alcoholic detective. She basically does all the work. He hits on her, puts her in unnecessary danger, and makes her work late even though she has to get home to her daughter. The daughter is selfish and only sees that her mother is never there for her. At the same time, the mother is trying to find her husband's killer. 
 
It's more complicated than this, but that's how it starts off. The writing is great! 
 
Upon closer inspection of the drawings and the layout of the pages, I'm finding that this guy is a pretty brilliant artist. At first glance, the drawings look scribbly and naive, but the scribbles give the drawings energy and movement. It looks as if he doesn't know much about human anatomy, but as I studied some of the drawings, it appears that he does have a good knowledge of the figure. I'm finding the drawings very charming after all.

He studied under Will Eisner which is impressive in itself, but the way he writes dialogue is exceptional. It just draws you in. No pun intended. I think I found a gem.

I hope you have found life's gems this week as well! Have a great weekend!

Welcome to our blog hop!
Check out the blogs below for your reading pleasure and please visit our hosts' blogs:
Lexa Cain: http://lexacain.blogspot.com/
L.G. Keltner http://lgkeltner.blogspot.co.uk/
Tonja Drecker http://tonjadrecker.blogspot.com/
If you would like to join our blog hop, visit Lexa Cain's blog for info.

1.Lexa Cain2.Fiction and Film
3.Writing Off the Edge4.Kidbits
5.TheCyborgMom6.Thoughts and Ideas from Deanie Humphrys-Dunne
7.Intentional Insights with S. Kelley Harrell8.Constantine
9.My Miracle Life10.Writing, Reading, and the Pursuit of Dreams
11.Lara Lacombe12.TF Walsh
13.Life, Yoga and Other Adventures14.Suzanne Furness
15.Elizabeth Seckman16.Avalon
17.My Baffling Brain18.Planet Kimberly
19.Shah Wharton20.Victorian Scribbles
21.Tanya Miranda22.Ann - A Friend of Jesus 2013
23.Special Teaching At Pempi's Palace24.Square Pegs
25.Patricia's Place26.Anne Higa
27.My Antimatter Life28.Bouquet of Books
29.Lightravellerkate30.Curious As A Cathy
31.Glennie's Random Ramblings32.In My Own Words
33.Tamara Narayan, Author34.My Creatively Random Life
35.Yvonne Ventresca36.On Becoming a Writer
37.Decadent Kane38.Stacy Uncorked
39.Sharon Himsl--Shells, Tales & Sails40.Cloud Nine Girl
41.Our Simple Life42.Our Prime Years
43.Allison Bruning

Friday, June 16, 2017

Celebrate The Small Things - June 16, 2017

 
This week I did a couple of drawings on post-its for a group sketch challenge on Instagram. Below are my entries for "pansy" and "shoe."


I did a little research for "pansy" and discovered that there are many kinds.

When my son was in daycare over a decade ago, there were pretty little flowers growing along the driveway at the daycare provider's house. I asked the daycare provider what type of flowers they were. She didn't remember what they were called. She is from Yugoslavia, so English is not her first language. It wasn't something she could easily remember. She thought they were called "jumping jacks" or something like that. I looked it up, but was never able to find out what type of flower they were.

As I did my research on the pansies for this challenge, I noticed that the flowers looked similar to the "jumping jack" flower I was looking for over ten years ago. Lo and behold, I found the flower! It is called "Johnny Jump Up" otherwise known as Viola Tricolor. I also found out that you can eat it and it's good for asthma. I ordered the seeds from Amazon for $2.49. Nice!

I'm still cleaning up my house and still making progress, but apparently not fast enough.

I managed to get a few more drawings done for my graphic novel. The winners for the Scholastic Graphix contest were selected on June 1, but they won't be announced until the end of July. I'm getting so nervous! I'm afraid I didn't get selected, but I'm trying to stay positive. On some days, I think I've won, but on others I think the opposite. I just have to keep working and not think about it.

I started reading The Lunch Witch graphic novel because I like the drawings, but it's turning out to be a very charming book so far!

Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there!
Have a great weekend! 
This is a blog hop!
Check out the blogs below for your reading pleasure and please visit our hosts' blogs:
Lexa Cain: http://lexacain.blogspot.com/
L.G. Keltner http://lgkeltner.blogspot.co.uk/
Tonja Drecker http://tonjadrecker.blogspot.com/
If you would like to join our blog hop, visit Lexa Cain's blog for info.



1.Lexa Cain2.Fiction and Film
3.Writing Off the Edge4.Kidbits
5.TheCyborgMom6.Thoughts and Ideas from Deanie Humphrys-Dunne
7.Intentional Insights with S. Kelley Harrell8.Constantine
9.My Miracle Life10.Writing, Reading, and the Pursuit of Dreams
11.Lara Lacombe12.TF Walsh
13.Life, Yoga and Other Adventures14.Suzanne Furness
15.Elizabeth Seckman16.Avalon
17.My Baffling Brain18.Planet Kimberly
19.Shah Wharton20.Victorian Scribbles
21.Tanya Miranda22.Ann - A Friend of Jesus 2013
23.Special Teaching At Pempi's Palace24.Square Pegs
25.Patricia's Place26.Anne Higa
27.My Antimatter Life28.Bouquet of Books
29.Lightravellerkate30.Curious As A Cathy
31.Glennie's Random Ramblings32.In My Own Words
33.Tamara Narayan, Author34.My Creatively Random Life
35.Yvonne Ventresca36.On Becoming a Writer
37.Decadent Kane38.Stacy Uncorked
39.Sharon Himsl--Shells, Tales & Sails40.Cloud Nine Girl
41.Our Simple Life42.Our Prime Years
43.Allison Bruning

Friday, June 9, 2017

Celebrate The Small Things - June 9, 2017

 

This week I celebrated my birthday on the weekend and on the day of, so I got to go to dinner twice. My family got me a chocolate, gluten-free cake which was delicious and sang to me when I got up in the morning. I was so preoccupied with blowing out all those candles that I forgot to make a wish! So, my husband lit the candles again and they sang the birthday song to me again even though I told them they didn't have to. Hahaha!

When we went to dinner, the staff at the restaurant sang to me and I forgot to make a wish before blowing the candle out again! I really am getting old! 

I happened upon a podcast on YouTube called Horrifying Search and Rescue Stories. I must say, those were the most interesting things I've heard all week. I've never heard of people seeing stairs in the middle of the woods before. I was thinking they were from an old dwelling, but that doesn't seem the case in these stories. They had no leaves and no dirt on them. People were told not to go near them, but when one person did, his hand got chopped off. WTH? And the stairs are not always in the same spot they were before. Wow, there are more creepy things in the woods than I thought. I'm glad I came across this podcast, though. I love creepy stories like that.

My husband asked me if I wanted jewelry for my birthday, but I'm not into jewelry. I prefer books, art supplies, and makeup. 
 
I'm trying to reduce clutter by not buying books, but I really wanted Guy Delisle's books A User's Guide To Neglectful Parenting and Even More Bad Parenting Advice. My husband bought them for me and I finished them right away. They are so funny! My kids even read them and thought they were funny. I have some story ideas like these thumbnailed out that I really need to re-draw and color.

Have a great weekend! 
This is a blog hop!
Check out the blogs below for your reading pleasure and please visit our hosts' blogs:
Lexa Cain: http://lexacain.blogspot.com/
L.G. Keltner http://lgkeltner.blogspot.co.uk/
Tonja Drecker http://tonjadrecker.blogspot.com/
If you would like to join our blog hop, visit Lexa Cain's blog for info.
 
 1.

Lexa Cain2.Fiction and Film
3.Writing Off the Edge4.Kidbits
5.TheCyborgMom6.Thoughts and Ideas from Deanie Humphrys-Dunne
7.Intentional Insights with S. Kelley Harrell8.Constantine
9.My Miracle Life10.Writing, Reading, and the Pursuit of Dreams
11.Lara Lacombe12.TF Walsh
13.Life, Yoga and Other Adventures14.Suzanne Furness
15.Elizabeth Seckman16.Avalon
17.My Baffling Brain18.Planet Kimberly
19.Shah Wharton20.Victorian Scribbles
21.Tanya Miranda22.Ann - A Friend of Jesus 2013
23.Special Teaching At Pempi's Palace24.Square Pegs
25.Patricia's Place26.Anne Higa
27.My Antimatter Life28.Bouquet of Books
29.Lightravellerkate30.Curious As A Cathy
31.Glennie's Random Ramblings32.In My Own Words
33.Tamara Narayan, Author34.My Creatively Random Life
35.Yvonne Ventresca36.On Becoming a Writer
37.Decadent Kane38.Stacy Uncorked
39.Sharon Himsl--Shells, Tales & Sails40.Cloud Nine Girl
41.Our Simple Life42.Our Prime Years

Friday, June 2, 2017

Celebrate The Small Things - June 2, 2017





 

This week I did some major house cleaning with my sons. We worked on their room and now it looks like a newer, bigger room.  We gave away and threw out a lot of toys that they outgrew or broke. I removed the baby mats from their bedroom floor. The mats were there to protect them from getting hurt if they fell on the hardwood floor. I think my husband is sad to see the mats go because it reminds him that the kids are not babies anymore. He didn't say it outright, but he said, "Their room is going to be colder in the winter now. The mats were keeping the heat in." Uh huh. 

I put a few of the mats outside for my other babies, my dogs. It's softer for them to lie on and they're less dirty when they come in the house. It will save money on dog wipes. In theory. If they continue to lie down in the dirt then that will defeat the purpose. There used to be a small patch of grass next to the wall, but one of my dogs dug it up and likes to sleep on the pile of dirt during the day. I thought a raccoon was digging up my yard, but nope. It was my dog. Not that we don't have grass. We have a good sized yard with lots of grass, but she prefers to lie in the dirt. Lucky me.

My youngest son marked up the walls with crayon when he was a toddler. I saved them for him to clean up when he was old enough. Today was the day! Sweet revenge! Haha! I also saved a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser for years for him to use on the walls. He did a great job!

He's better at cleaning than tidying up anyway. If I tell him to put his toys away, he'll put them all in a bag and shove them in the closet. They get bent, broken, and thrown in in random order. I found clothes I ironed for him shoved and balled up in the closet as well. I told him to hang up his clothes. Later, I found FOUR shirts on ONE hanger for PANTS. Two shirts on each clip. Of course, they were wrinkled. I spend an hour or more every Sunday ironing school uniforms for the kids. I am not going to re-iron these clothes. I hung them back up and he is going to school with wrinkled clothes. 

After a week of cleaning, their room is not done, but we made good progress. Now they have clutter-free, clean, vacuumed floors!

I managed to get a some things done on my graphic novel so I guess it wasn't a complete loss.
 

Welcome to our blog hop!
Check out the blogs below for your reading pleasure and please visit our hosts' blogs:
Lexa Cain: http://lexacain.blogspot.com/
L.G. Keltner http://lgkeltner.blogspot.co.uk/
Tonja Drecker http://tonjadrecker.blogspot.com/
If you would like to join our blog hop, visit Lexa Cain's blog for info.


 1.

Lexa Cain2.Fiction and Film
3.Writing Off the Edge4.Kidbits
5.TheCyborgMom6.Thoughts and Ideas from Deanie Humphrys-Dunne
7.Intentional Insights with S. Kelley Harrell8.Constantine
9.My Miracle Life10.Writing, Reading, and the Pursuit of Dreams
11.Lara Lacombe12.TF Walsh
13.Life, Yoga and Other Adventures14.Suzanne Furness
15.Elizabeth Seckman16.Avalon
17.My Baffling Brain18.Planet Kimberly
19.Shah Wharton20.Victorian Scribbles
21.Tanya Miranda22.Ann - A Friend of Jesus 2013
23.Special Teaching At Pempi's Palace24.Square Pegs
25.Patricia's Place26.Anne Higa
27.My Antimatter Life28.Bouquet of Books
29.Lightravellerkate30.Curious As A Cathy
31.Glennie's Random Ramblings32.In My Own Words
33.Tamara Narayan, Author34.My Creatively Random Life
35.Yvonne Ventresca36.On Becoming a Writer
37.Decadent Kane38.Stacy Uncorked
39.Sharon Himsl--Shells, Tales & Sails40.Cloud Nine Girl
41.Our Simple Life42.Our Prime Years