Sunny.

Boy, the weather has been amazing the last couple of days. For quite a while now we've had rain (much needed but often inconvenient) and unseasonably cool temps. Gov. Schwartzenegger recently passed a law that raised the freezing level to 55˚ so we've actually seen icicles. Ha ha. I'm kidding, but Southern Cali folk get out the scarves and hats when it dips below 60˚. (I just heard a guffaw from my bro who lives in Minnesota.)

But the weather is now in the upper 70s and I'm living with the windows wide open. And I'm getting ready to actually venture outside, so here I go. Take care, all! Peace & love in 2008. Go get 'em!

Looking forward to...

The Punch Brothers. This is the new project of Nickel Creek mandolin guy Chris Thile. Their new CD came out yesterday and I'll catch their show at the Troubadour tomorrow eve. It's always fun to see what this guy comes up with – traditional bluegrass mashed up with classical composition and storytelling, musicians at the top of their game creating new sounds. Can't wait!

Boo!

Taxes suck. My tax guy is great. But taxes suck.

On a happier note, I saw Be Kind, Rewind today. Michel Gondry's imagination is just plain amazing – some crazy brilliant visuals and storytelling. It's most likely not everyone's cup o' tea, but I had a good time.

A fun photo...

As I mentioned in the last post, I drew caricatures at a party hosted by the wonderful Leeza Gibbons. Here's a photo (by Brian Putnam).

As I arrived at the party, Leeza was the first person I saw. She introduced herself, "Hello! I'm Leeza." And I said "Nice to meet you! I'm Juztin." (With a "Z".) Horrified at my tiny slip, I actually bit my tongue. I don't think she noticed. If she did, I hope she had a laugh. She really was great and everybody seemed to like the caricatures. Yay!

Oscars and other stuff.

I thought the Oscars were spiffy this evening. A few things particularly made me happy – Jon Stewart's hosting, the Once gang winning for best song, and Diablo Cody winning for her fantastic Juno script. Yay movies!

I drew caricatures for Leeza Gibbons' son's birthday party last night. It was a fun evening and I drew a LOT. Leeza was lovely and gracious, and the kids were as wild and crazy as you'd expect a bunch of 16ish folk to be. Upon asking how they wanted to be drawn, I had such varied requests as "skiing", "skateboarding", "playing the piano", "swimming", "finger (skate)boarding", "on the toilet", "as a falcon". Ah, the life of a party caricaturist!

Life, continued...

Hi all! I'm happy to say that whatever had me illin' since Saturday is on its way out. Just the phlegm remains. TMI? Anyhoo... It's amazing how working on a show, especially one with such a concentrated schedule, can alter the normal routine. Li'l Abner was so much fun, but now I have to dive into all the stuff that's been waiting for me whilst I was away...

I'm deep into work on various illustration jobs – a family portrait for some lovely folks who earned my ink in a charity auction, a comic/coloring book follow up to my previous Green Riverside project, and a coloring book design for a bus company. I also have a party caricature gig coming up on Saturday which will be fun. The Squigs is busy and that's a good thing.

It's also time for catching up on things that aren't as much fun. I went to the dentist yesterday. Ugh. I had to get a little work done so I ended up numb then sore. So, going with the flow I set up my tax appointment. It's time to pile all the unpleasant routine stuff into a giant bandaid and rip it off at once. "Ouch" now. "Ah" later.

But to counteract the "ouch", I gots plans. In the near future, I'm going to catch a few shows with friends – Watkins Family Hour at Largo tonight, Punch Brothers at The Troubadour next week, and the Elvis-y musical All Shook Up at MTW soon thereafter. And in a few weeks I'm happy to say that I'll be visiting the Bro and his family in Minnesota. The niece and nephew are growing up so fast, and I've got to drop in for a play date.

Well, that's a heck of an update for now. Take care, all. Peace and love.

Sniffly post-show recap.

Yes, Li'l Abner is a memory, a series of really fun memories. Check out my illustrated impressions of the show here. It's a bit of a departure from my usual work, inspired by the comic strip roots of the show. I really like how it turned out, and my peeps seemed to think so too.

I'll miss the gang and the shenanigans. While I had a great time, the last couple days were spent at the mercy of a bout with the flu, and I'm still recovering. This flu thing is a super bummer – the worst I've felt in years. I've been sniffly, cough-y, ache-y, and moody. Ugh. But I'd like to think things are looking up from here. Still, I think I'm going back to bed.