Night in Caye Caulker

I've been working for a while on a digital painting for an art book that my friend has been putting together. It features the coordinated efforts of a group of us that all work here on the same project. I feel honored to be in the company of such talented people on a daily basis and do my best to learn from them. :)

The book will go to print in the next week or two and will be available at the Alternative Press Expo (APE) being held October 12th and 13th this year in San Francisco. If all goes well, I will also be bringing some Kokedama with me and helping out with the booth. Here is the painting, inspired by my trip to Belize earlier this summer.

Monster #11

I've only been stung by a wasp twice in my life. Both happened this year. The first time was when I put my foot in my old comfy pair of Toms to walk out for a snack right after getting back from our Belize vacation. Little did I know the little f*cker was hanging out in my shoe!

The second time was when we drove out to the Animal Ark out near Reno. While one of the Jaguar feeders was talking to me, one crawled up my shirt and stung me next to my belly button. She kept right on talking through my look of horror and subsequent frantic arm flailing/foot stomping.

Monster #10

Whistles while he works, which would drive his coworkers up the wall if they had any. Oh well, whatever it takes to get by on a Tuesday.

Monster #9

My friend and coworker went fishing this weekend and caught an extra bass that he is bringing to work for me. I am excited for a fresh fish dinner tomorrow. :)

Monster #8

Might just be a smug looking cat with swirly chest fur and a flaming tail.

Monster #7

This grounded and heavy species feeds on fruit high up in the trees. A height and keen sense of smell allow them to seek out ripe morsels beyond the reach of other creatures. Their characteristically fearsome, sharp fangs are in actuality hollow and remarkably unbreakable, which allows them to pierce through thick rinds to suck the juices out of their favorite fruits.

Despite the comical look of their splendid whiskers and useless, showy plumage, these creatures are devoted, fearless parents and have been known to stand watch over any egg from their flock with unwavering determination.

Monster #6

Monster #6 listens to Rihanna while waiting to train home from work. She's lucky to live near good public transportation.

Monster #5

This guy enjoys slithering around, eating fish and listening to classical music. Being drunk makes him a bit timid. He worries too much about deadlines.

Monster #4

A quick little guy before bed. He's mostly chicken feet and Elmo fur.

Settling in with the new Cintiq 13HD

It's here!!! Today marks the first day that I've been able to get my new Cintiq 13HD up and running. It came earlier this week, but I didn't realize a mini-display to HDMI converter would be needed to get it functional on my macbook.

I just spent 2 hours getting everything all hooked up and installed. So folks, this is what it looks like to spend your hard earned savings on some pretty swank new equipment, only to balance it on the tv tray that passes for a desk in the livingroom/diningroom/office space that my boyfriend and I share in our overpriced tiny apartment in SF. Behold!

The cintiq itself is thin, beautiful and only about 2.5lbs, so it seems wondrously portable. But after including the separate power and cables, my macbook, and the USB keyboard hooked up to give it at least some semblance of being ergonomic? Not so much. My setup is super janky - but it is also surprisingly comfortable.

Monster #3

Jeez, I've been so busy all summer with weddings, trips and crunchiness at work. But it's August now, a brand new month. Let's do this!

This guy was inspired by a couple of weird looking African spurred tortoises we saw at the Austin Zoo over the weekend. They can grow up to 200 lbs and are embarrassingly messy eaters.

Coming soon: more post-it note monsters, plus I'm hoping to finish a couple of pieces that have been laying around half done.