Friday, April 27, 2018

Celebrate The Small Things - April 27, 2018


This week I finished inking my webcomic up until the point where the ending can go two ways. I'm going to print them out and give copies to some people who read that genre and ask them which ending they like better. It's so exciting and satisfying to have them all inked and cleaned up! I finally feel like this is what I'm supposed to be doing in life! I'm just angry that I didn't figure this out decades ago.

I scanned the drawings into the computer and realized that I still have to add the text balloons to the panels! I forgot how to do a lot of things in Clip Studio Paint, so I spent a couple of days watching tutorials and taking notes. Of course, it never goes as smoothly as the person in the video so I had to figure out a lot of stuff on my own. Frustrating, but so exciting to learn how to do new things in the program!

There are things in daily life that seem to give you clues as to which path you should be taking. I've been planning on posting my webcomic on Line Webtoon which is the number one webcomics site right now. It's very big in the Asian community since it is an Asian based company. It was my belief that mainly young women read comics on that site because their comics are heavily romance/comedy driven. This week a guy in his 20s told me that he reads comics on that site every day. I guess in college they are not allowed to listen to music or watch videos on the school computer, so he reads comics instead. Wow, there must be hundreds of college kids doing the same thing. That's promising! It reinforces my idea of posting my webcomic there.

Oprah has a podcast called Super Soul. I listened to a couple of episodes which were inspirational. It made me excited to keep doing comics. I have so many stories I want to get on paper!


The problem I have is that I tend to go off on a tangent. Instead of working on stories I already have ideas for, I tend to work on new stories and ideas I have no endings for. I must subconsciously be listening to that "angel" on my shoulder that's saying, "Give yourself a challenge! Make your life harder!"


I took my dogs out for a "10 minute" walk which turned out to be 45 minutes because I was training my dog, Bumi, not to pull on the leash and go after anything that moves. I was happy that we actually made some progress! I fell and skinned my knees like a school child, but hey, we spent some quality time together and the dogs loved me more afterward.


I read a Moomin comic this week that my husband and I can relate to as we are trying to eat more vegetarian. Maybe you can relate to it, too. Have a good weekend!




What are you celebrating?


This is a blog hop hosted by Lexa Cain and co-hosted by L.G. Keltner and Tonja Drecker. Please be so kind as to visit their blogs and participating blogs listed below. Thank you!



Lexa Cain @ http://lexacain.blogspot.com/

L.G. Keltner @ Writing Off The Edge Tonja Drecker @ Kidbits Blog
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, April 20, 2018

Celebrate the Small Things - April 20, 2018



We started off the week by watching Ready Player One. Boy, was that good! It's almost completely different from the book, yet highly entertaining! I'm reading the book to the kids and they love it. My older son said, "I wish the Oasis was real." I don't doubt that such a thing may come into existence in the future. I just hope reality won't be as bleak as in the book. Spielberg did a good job directing it. Since the movie is so different from the book, it doesn't ruin the book for the kids. They are too old for me to be reading to them, but I like to do it and they like me reading to them, too. It's quality time.



I renewed my driver's license online this week. Wow, they want everyone to get a Real ID by Oct. 1, 2020 or we won't be able to board an airplane or enter a federal building. A simple driver's license won't cut it. What happens if we get a summons for jury duty and can't enter the courthouse without a Real ID? lol I opted to get the Real ID later because it requires you to physically go to a DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) to get it. Those places are depicted as Hell in some movies/shows. There's a reason. No one wants to be there. I was so pissed off there once that by the time it was my turn to take a picture, I couldn't bring myself to smile for the camera. That picture actually came out pretty good. My current picture came out horrible. I look like a shiny faced pig in it. *sigh* I'll get the Real ID eventually.



I printed out 27 pages of story ideas that I had saved on my computer for over ten years. I made the font as small as I could read it so I could save ink. I don't have enough years in my life to complete all of the stories, so I'm going to see if I can incorporate some of them into my comic series. It's much easier than staring at a blank sheet of paper trying to come up with new ideas for my characters.


It's a shame that Art Bell died this week, but it made me re-listen to some of his shows which I enjoyed immensely. He knew how to handle all kinds of callers like a true pro. His reactions to incredible stories were so funny. What a loss. I'm glad my dad told me about him years ago. His shows opened my mind and I'm not a part of the "sheeple" as much as I used to be. We all are pretty much sheeple. I'm more aware now that the media tells us what and how to think, but in this technological age it's hard to get away from that.

Anyway, I don't want to talk about politics because that's depressing. Maybe we should be more like Spongebob, positive and happy! Let's go jellyfishing!

What are you celebrating?


This is a blog hop hosted by Lexa Cain and co-hosted by L.G. Keltner and Tonja Drecker. Please be so kind as to visit their blogs and participating blogs listed below. Thank you!

Lexa Cain @ http://lexacain.blogspot.com/
L.G. Keltner @ Writing Off The Edge Tonja Drecker @ Kidbits Blog
 
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, April 13, 2018

Celebrate the Small Things - Friday the 13th, 2018



We celebrated my aunt's 88th birthday on Sunday and got to spend time with our extended family. I told my librarian cousin, Jill, that was reading Finnish comics called Moomin. Moomin is very popular in Japan. Jill lived in Japan for two years and was familiar with it. I told her about the Moomin theme park that opened up in Japan last year. She looked it up and was excited that it was in Saitama, Japan. She told her husband that they had to go there. He just touched his forehead and closed his eyes. lol There is a mascot convention there that she also wants to go to where they celebrate mascots from all over the world. Strange, but it sounds amusing.

This week, I discovered a lettering guide that is used for drafting and making comics. I found out about it after spending a good hour or more drawing three different types of fences in my comic. The art store near me was closed on the day I wanted to get it, so I called my mom to ask if my late father had it in his cabinet since he was an engineer and would use such a tool. She was on her way out and told me that she doesn't remember seeing one. I didn't want to go out, but I had to draw more darn fences, so I drove to the next city over to get one from the art store there.

I love that tool! It's small, and cute, and cheap. I realized that my fence was crooked, so I redrew it with that tool. It was amazing! The next day, my mom called me up to tell me she found the tool. My dad had one after all. Aargh! But she gave it to me anyway. The wheel turns better than mine, so I love them both! It doesn't take up much space either. Sometimes the small things in life make you happier.

It's an ancient tool, too, but I don't remember learning about it in high school drafting class or art school.

Last weekend we squeezed in two birthday celebrations, a dinner with friends, and grocery shopping. We were tired for three days after that. My husband never wants to book our weekend like that again. Yep.





What are you celebrating?


This is a blog hop hosted by Lexa Cain and co-hosted by L.G. Keltner and Tonja Drecker. Please be so kind as to visit their blogs and participating blogs listed below. Thank you!

Lexa Cain @ http://lexacain.blogspot.com/
L.G. Keltner @ Writing Off The Edge Tonja Drecker @ Kidbits Blog
 
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, April 6, 2018

Celebrate The Small Things - April 6, 2018



I updated the last posting regarding Skillshare. I would not recommend signing up. According to the reviews, they are scamming people. It's a shame. It sounds like a great program. Masterclass sounds like a much better program. I would like to take the classes by Judy Blume, James Patterson, R.L. Stine, Steve Martin, Aaron Sorkin, and the screenwriting classes. Currently, it's $180/year for unlimited access to all of the classes. They are adding a lot more classes every year. My husband and one of my best friends both texted me the intro by R.L. Stine almost at the same time the other day. Within two minutes of each other. Weird! Maybe that means I should take that class. Hahaha!

I have been listening to and watching so many tutorials and interviews by cartoonists this week. YouTube is fantastic! I heard talks by Art Spiegelman (Maus) and Marjane Satrapi (Persepolis) and interviews with a group of New Yorker cartoonists. I'm inspired! Roz Chast was in that interview so I got to see her speak. I really liked her graphic novel called Can't We Talk About Something More Pleasant? a memoir about her aging parents. It's funny and a bit sad at the same time. Of course, Maus and Persepolis are amazing graphic novels as well.

Although my kids are a bit too old for me to read books to them at bedtime, I started reading Ready Player One to them because I want them to read the book before we see the movie. During Spring Break last week, I made them watch an 80s movie with me, one per day, so they would get some of the references in the book. Hopefully, they will look back at that week with fond memories.

My older son usually falls asleep within ten minutes, but apparently he liked this book so much that he stayed awake for several chapters. He wants to be a videogame developer when he grows up and he's always inventing games and the worlds within them in his mind. This book has a lot of great concepts for him to think about.

The City worked on the sidewalk in front of our house and removed a big tree root that was pushing it up. This was around December of last year. They damaged our sprinklers which gushed water from empty holes in the ground. I've called them every month since then, but they never came out to fix it. I was stressing out about having a hard time selling our house in the future with the sprinklers like that. I filled out an online form of complaint this week and lo-and-behold, they came out to fix it the next day! Wow! I guess if you call to complain, there's no evidence that you made the complaint so they don't bother to help you. Get your complaints and requests in writing! I'm so happy it's fixed!

I went to a birthday party at a pizza parlor last Thursday. They got me a salad since I can't eat gluten, but there must've been gluten in the dressing because I had a stomach ache for five days. It must've been in my system on the sixth day as well, because I had "brain fog" again while I was at the gym. This comes with gluten intolerance. I had my mental faculties, but I couldn't remember the combinations to both my locks. I've been using one of the locks regularly for over eight years, so I didn't want to have it cut off. This happened to me once before so I knew that I would remember it again in a few days once this "fog" clears.

For some reason, I remembered the combination to my very first lock that I got about 30-40 years ago. I hope it's not early dementia.

Luckily, I was able to call my husband from the gym. He has my combos in his phone. Since the second lock is a replacement to a broken one, he didn't have it, but I was able to get my purse from one locker. I drove home where I found the combo then drove back to the gym to get my gym bag. Whew! Celebrating small miracles!

I was tempted to take a shower at the gym, but I was afraid I would forget the combo again, so I went home. The fog sort of feels like waking up from a deep sleep. Ugh! I hope it doesn't happen again. I have to bring my own dressing next time I'm at a party like that...or just starve.

Have a great weekend!








I am part of a blog hop hosted by Lexa Cain and co-hosted by L.G. Keltner and Tonja Drecker. Please be so kind as to visit their blogs and participating blogs listed below.

Lexa Cain @ http://lexacain.blogspot.com/
L.G. Keltner @ Writing Off The Edge Tonja Drecker @ Kidbits Blog
 
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