Giving back (and getting more in return).

First off, happy birthday to my sister, Deanna!

I just got back from a little trip down south to see the Big City Broadway kids' production of Seussical. I worked with the kids last week for a lovely day of talking about character, emphasizing storytelling, and basically attempting to convey my passion for the show. That day in itself was rewarding. It was really wonderful seeing those light bulbs come on. And last night it was again a happy thing to see the show and see some of the things we had worked on make their way to the stage. I really think may think seriously about doing more consulting/teaching in the future.

So after this lovely experience – and some time with friends and a sunny caricature gig – I'm back home and catching up on e-mails. Tomorrow, I've got to do a little homework for a reading I'm taking part in on Monday and Tuesday and also an audition I have on Monday morning. The week to come should start off with a bang and then allow me some time to cultivate some ideas that I have banging around in my head. Here we go! Take care, all! Peace and love.

Little voices.

Yesterday as I was toiling away at my desk, I got a call from my brother. My niece Maddie and nephew Jack had been wanting to say "hello" so I had the pleasure of chatting with them for a bit and learning about what they had been up to lately. Maddie was chatty and wonderful. Jack was too – talking much more than when I had seen him last. It really did the soul good to have a little phone visit.

A big "hello" goes out to them and Jordan and Aimee. Now I'm off to work more on some sketches. Take care, all! Peace and love.

Cut me open and count my rings.

Hey all... I said I'd drop a line when I had a minute. Well, here I am taking a procrastination break from a couple projects that don't really have a deadline but could be done and out of the way soon. Yes. Procrastination. I said it. Ugh. Anyway...

My birthday was Thursday and it was such a lovely day. The online messages started a couple days previously and it made me feel so wonderful to receive over 100 little messages when all was said and done. I also enjoyed getting voicemail messages and chatting with some of the families. Mom and Dad spoiled me with a GPS navigation system which I need to learn how to use. My Vista family, Aaron and Nancy Brener, took me to breakfast, and I got to hang out with Sammy and the Beav after they wrapped Moonlight's Les Miz rehearsal for the day. The rest of the day I spent hitting my favorite spots on the north San Diego coastline – Pannikin Coffee, Lou's Records, Pizza Port, Stone Brewing. I loved the lazy day and really enjoyed returning e-mails and getting some work done on my own current projects. Such a beautiful day.

So now, I have to get back to work on a couple drawings. I'll try to post later this week with some other fun recent stuff. Take care, all! Peace and love.

[tos]sers have been dropping by.

This morning I woke to a lovely surprise. A little while back, my Wichita Forum cohort Ed Watts commissioned a sketch for his girlfriend Heidi Blickenstaff and her colleagues on the Broadway opening night of [title of show]. Well, the amazing Heidi posted the sketch on the [tos] blog today. It was such an amazing gesture and I'm so thankful to her. This has resulted in SO many first time visitors to my website. Exciting! Check it out here (and check out the August 8 entry).

I'll have more to blog about once I have a minute. The last few days have been packed – working with a theatre academy, my birthday, catching a bunch of live music today. But I've got to get some sleep. Until later, take care all! Peace and love.

Some observations and thoughts...

Just a quick post as I come to the end of a full day:

1. I wonder how and why mint has become such a part of morning. I have minty toothpaste and minty shampoo and soap. I like it. But when was that moment when someone said let's make this plant part of cleanliness... and of gum and candy canes too.

2. I wouldn't want to be a meteorologist in Wichita. The day's outlook changed minute by minute while I was there. I think if I did have that job I would just have a big dart board with different sections labeled "deluge", "humidity", "tornado warning", etc. The anchorperson would say, "And now, Squigs with the weather." And I would throw a dart and shrug my shoulders.

3. I don't know why my moustache is more blonde than the rest of my hair. I honestly didn't wake up one day and say, "Hey! I'm going to add some breezy highlights to my hair today... but only to my moustache." That would have been weird.

4. I'm a teensie bit frustrated that the Blogger spell-checker disses my fancy schmancy spellings of "moustache" and "blonde." It also dissed "teensie" which I would have predicted, but it didn't diss "disses" or "dissed"... but now that I type it, it did dis "diss", but not after I removed one "s." Is it just me? No? Yes? Ah... fiddlesticks!

Okay, I've got to get to bed before my brain explodes. Take care, all! Be curious. Peace and love, y'all!

My spiffy day...

The day sort of started with my car at the dealership getting routine maintenance and me at McDonald's enjoying an Egg McMuffin and working on the computer, but then things took off. I meandered my way over the hill and wound my way out to the ocean via Sunset Boulevard to meet up with the composer of the show I'll be reading later this month. Since I got to Berton's neighborhood (a cliff overlooking the ocean in Pacific Palisades) early , I killed some time at a lovely place. While I don't identify myself as a member of the Self Realization Fellowship, they sure have created some lovely and peaceful places that are open to the public. When in Encinitas (North San Diego coast), I sometimes find my way to their gardens overlooking the sea. In the Palisades, they have what they call the Lake Shrine which is an oasis of a spot – waterfalls and pathways and benches (and a chapel that looks like a windmill) surrounding a spring-fed lake. I wandered for about 20 minutes before I had to get to rehearsal. Berton Averre was/is part of the band The Knack ("My Sharona", "Good Girls Don't") and he now keeps busy writing really fun stuff for the stage. It was really cool that he conducted part of the rehearsal on guitar.

After the session, I headed north to my little seafood dive, The Reel Inn (get it?), and enjoyed some seared ahi, a salad, and home fries as I did some more work on the computer (a wild, flailing attempt at a poster design). I then found myself enjoying a beautiful drive through Topanga Canyon as the daylight began to wane. And as it did, I experienced something I've wanted to experience for a while – a play at Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum. The offering this eve was Eugene O'Neill's A Long Day's Journey Into Night. Cheery. While depressing as all heck, it was well done. I look forward to returning later this summer for a Shakespearean comedy.

And now, I'm home watching Letterman and getting set for tomorrow's adventures. Oh. My. Gosh! Is it really August? Time flies. And next Thursday is my birthday. Take care, all. Be curious. Peace and love!

Another musing on creativity...

My mind is racing, but my hands feel like stumps. Okay, I'm being dramatic. But sometimes getting new ideas out of one's head and onto the paper is a challenge. While I've been working on developing the stuff I've been doing for a while, I've also been brainstorming on how to use what I've built and go new places with it. At the ComicCon, I saw some new possibilities that looked really exciting. Actually, it was just a reminder that I've been thinking about some new directions for a while, including designing rock posters – independent stuff, folk, jazz, stuff I really like. It's a field that allows some broader creativity on an artists' part and may actually really inform my theatrical work. The trick is finding a way to dig into all that I want to do and not spread myself too thin. Right now seems to be a good time to dive in with only a couple immediate jobs on the horizon. It's time to fortify my need to be more creative and more commercial. Wish me luck!

I've written before about my strange pseudo-creative impulse... In the past, when I've had that need to do something creative but have felt blocked or otherwise stumped, I've gone to the art store to buy some new supplies whether I've needed them or not. This has resulted in a crazy collection of unused supplies. I've gotten a handle on that (and have had a good time working through the collection). But I've also found that once I finish a huge project (i.e. my recent website redesign) I've felt a bit stopped up soon afterwards as if my brain is resting on its laurels. I'm trying to fight this. I have too much that I want to do. Anyway... just thought I'd put it down in a blog. Take care, all. Peace and love.