Dad

My father passed away this weekend. None of us expected this.
I had an amazing dream Friday night... In the dream my dad and I were having a casual conversation but a really nice one. It was adult to adult, calm, enjoyable, enlightening. We were both just comfortable, sharing. This was a milestone. When I awoke I decided I would write to my dad and tell him about this dream. I thought he would appreciate it. Why didn't I just phone him to tell him? Because his hearing was shot and he couldn't hear me. We communicated in letters.
I received a phone call Sunday morning from my brother telling me my father had died. It appears from all indications he died Friday night.
Was it a dream or was it a real conversation? I believe it was real - I believe he and I openly communicated, finally, as he was moving to the next level. Thank you dad for all your love and effort. You are a good man.
This photo was taken circa 1990 when my dad visited me in Santa Cruz. He liked this area a lot. And I like this photo, a lot.

Hat #2

Ok, so this one is VERY different than the last. I like it more. It has way more personality. I drew it in ink on the bus on the way to school. Then, at home, I scanned it, enlarged it and transferred it to watercolor paper. Then I played with the paint - watercolor. Fun.

What do college students do at this time of year?

...STRESS! or in my case - stress and draw hats. But rather than go into the mundane stresses of finals and upcoming semester project due dates I will share a drawing, the first of several to come, of hats. Yes, hats. This is the motif I chose for my final Art project. They will be very different from one another, well, I think they will be. I am still creating them and really, who knows what will come of the whole concept. I am working on the 2nd one and 6 are due on the 13th.
This particular hat was done with prismacolor pencils. It is 8"x10".

Checking In

This is just a quickie to say I am still here. Life feels so good right now - I am busy with school and friends and cats and the approaching holidays. I will post more soon -

New kid

I decided right after Bean died to get a new kitten so A.J. would have some company when nobody else was home. It can take cats some time to warm up to one another, if they do at all, which is one reason I chose a kitten. Kittens, like young children, are less judgemental and more open to meeting others. I figured there would be a better chance of a connection if at least one of the parties started out open and willing.
It was a rough start. I kept the kitten in her own bedroom for a couple of days and for the first four nights so A.J. would have some time to sniff her out through the door. And so A.J. would not feel too threatened by the new kid on the block. When I let the kitten check out the rest of the house, A.J. took off to her safe place - under my bed. She was afraid of her for a few days. It has been a week now. The kitten has free roam and A.J. has already learned to trust and even play chase with her new sister. I am so happy they already worked things out. After just a few hisses and one swat, that I saw, they are friends. Our new girl's name is Emmy. Note the 'M' on her forehead.

Amen

I came across this great Taylor Mali clip when perusing this great artist's blog - Everything is Contextual.
Oh and yea, things look a little different. I decided to play with my blog colors instead of writing an Art History paper.

Sad

This is the drawing I came up with this morning - No plans, no goal - just from within - my pen, pencils and me.
My cat "Bean" - aka "Señor Guapo", "Mean Bean Green Machine", "Man of the house", "Beanie", and a few more endearing names we came up with during our 2 1/2 years together, was killed Tuesday night by a car.
His sister A.J. and I miss him terribly. He was a class act - always doing something to make me laugh.