The Last Fried Banana

Arrived safely at Nana's house this afternoon. Went out for Chinese for supper. The place was deserted at the height of the dinner hour. Thought that was quite odd. There were a few tables with soccer moms and tots, but the large dining room was mostly empty.

I was too hungry to draw all the food. I was busy scarfing down anything that wasn't running away from me at that point. When the three of us finally sat back and sighed in contentment, there was one lone fried banana left on the table. So that's what I drew. Then Poppy ate it.

On the way home the streets were oddly deserted too. When we turned into a neighborhood it looked like every other house was having a party. Nana realized it was Superbowl Sunday. Poppy and I didn't have a clue, nor did we care. Nana knew because she had read the morning paper. She remembered one of the teams was New Orleans, but couldn't come up with the other one. I was impressed.

Off-line

Actually I'm off for a visit with my sister to help her with some projects.

Didn't want anyone to think I was dead.

Speck

Polygamy in America

Dude on the cover of the latest National Geographic. He had an ancient face. Had to draw.

He was looking eerily similar to George W. Bush for a while. Kinda creeped me out. Squiggled on more lines to get rid of the likeness.

Eye Exam

(Click to embiggen)It will be sooooo nice to be able to see well again.

Dream Clouds & Chelsea

Decided to take a break from drawing and computer and just flomp on the couch watching TV all day. Dozed in and out. Had a weird half-waking dream of an image of clouds with lines. Thought about it all day and drew it this evening.


The part I dreamed was really just the upper left corner of this. I filled in the rest to fill the page.

I try to pay attention to my dreams. It could be valuable information the universe is trying to send me. Or I could just be a lunatic. Either way, I pay attention.

Also drew Chelsea sleeping in the middle of the living room rug. That's an odd place for her. Had to draw since she was still for once. Any other time I've tried to draw her she could feel me lookin' at her and would move.

What's In My Food?

Journaling:

An off-hand comment by Raena got me to reading all the labels in my pantry. Discovered almost everything in there has MSG in it, even things I wouldn't have suspected. I use a lot of flavor packet thingies and they are the worst culprits.

MSG doesn't seem to affect me but it makes Hubby's bedtime miserable - sleeplessness, bad dreams, restless legs. After eating Chinese his night is shot. I didn't realize I was feeding him so much of it at home.

All the foods we eat are just basic ingredients with a few spices. Need to figure out what the combination of spices are in those packets so I can make my own mixes sans MSG.

I have no knowledge of spices much beyond salt, pepper, onion and garlic. Need to find out how to use stuff like turmeric, cumin, marjoram, thyme and celery seed. And paprika. Everything lists paprika as an ingredient.

But mainly I need to rid the pantry of MSG. It causes obesity in mice. Squeak!

Old Man

Journaling:

I was studying on how to draw people's noses today and found this photo of an old man with an amazing face. Every craggy line told a story. He had the most amazing nose too. It had a personality all its own. Had to draw.

I liked the ink drawing just as it was. Debated on whether or not to paint it. Decided to scan it in case I tanked with the paintbrush. At least I would have something postable for my efforts.

I think I took a couple of decades off his age with the paint. He looks older and craggier in the ink drawing. Couldn't quite figure out how to fix that. Oh well, I think it turned out pretty well as long as it isn't compared too closely to the actual photo.

Process Notes:
One of these days I'll learn to draw a square to frame the subject *before* I start the sketch, and maybe I'll figure out how to draw it *straight*. Sheesh! Drew this guy right into the valley. But hey, it's a sketchbook, not fine art. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

That red thing below his moustache is not his lower lip, it's his tongue sticking out.

(Click either image to embiggen)

Hunger Strike

Journaling:

The cats have gone on a hunger strike. They refuse to eat their formerly favorite stinky flavor "Rotting Fish Heads in Garbage Can (Classic Pate')." My philosophy with finicky cats is to wait 'em out. Eventually they will eat it and be happy.

But Chelsea was very vocal about her displeasure with the menu. She would sit at my feet and YOWL all day and night. "Momma GET UP! and put something else in the food bowl! DO IT NOW! YOWL! YOWL! YOWL!" She worked herself up into a lather about it yesterday and that's not good for an antique cat.

OK! OK! I caved and went to Wally World today. Got the nasty cheap stuff, different flavors of the usual stuff, and some really expensive stuff.

So far this evening they have eaten the "Dead Shrimp in Fetid Backwater" and "Putrid Cow in Hot August Sun with Barley and Garden Greens." I'm guessing the Garden Greens are added to keep their breath smelling nice. Um, righhhttt....

Cheezburger the Porch Cat will get the remaining cans of "Rotting Fish Heads" as a treat. He normally only gets dry kibble.

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Process notes: Drawn with a Pigma Brush Pen. Couldn't seem to control it and everything turned out wonky.