No where else to run but to the canvas

The day we live in now is darker than ever before.

Our climate is the hottest it has been since before written history was ever invented. Out nations are ruled by narcissistic tyrants who are afraid of everything that exists outside of their self-absorbed bubbles. Mental illness is left untreated to reek havoc, because insurance carriers can’t figure out how to tax such a volatile issue to their benifit. Drug use is rampant, wiping out thousands in a heart beat, and destroying families, communities, even entire cities. Homeless populations are climbing, housing is declining. Desperate, vulnerable children are manipulated by evil, powerful forces and taken advantage of, sometimes made into slaves. We are at brink of war on all sides, even with ourselves. There is nowhere left to run, nowhere to hide but to the canvas. Now is the time for an artisans’ renaissance. We need to stop exploding on each other and throw that energy into art. We need to create, we need to vent, we need to express ourselves. Whether it be through writing, music, painting, drawing, or poetry it’s time to pick ourselves up and start a revolution of creativity. Get out the poison, get out the dark, or make a remedy of compassion, and love. Art is how we mend these broken wings and fly again. Whether it is only to vent, or to promote optimism, we have to do it. The canvas is only empty and forlorn before a great calamity of pent up energy and emotion erupts onto it. The canvas is our new frontier, our great escape, our sanctuary, our refuge, our unchartered waters, our unwritten future... our fertile earth waiting to be seeded by imagination. Go there and be rescued. Take a vacation from the fallout of a savage era and rebuild, and dream, and be free again. The canvas longs for your artful hand. We can find peace there. Or at the least we can find a punching bag there to get out the rage.  Whatever medicine you need, the canvas will provide. Keep arting! And be healthy. Share, and reshape the world. 

GOT season 8 review

I absolutely love it, and can’t wait for the final episode! When the Dothraki were wiped out in ten seconds, after building up their fierceness for 8 seasons, I was literally pulled in with horror like “dear god, what are they gonna do?” 

It was great.

And ARYA is a goddamn legend now. And so is the Lady of Bear Island.

When Khaleesi decided to burn up King’s Landing, I laughed sinisterly. That, to me, was a great turn for the better for this character. I always liked Khaleesi, but I never trusted her motives. Turning bad makes sense. Now she can finally be interesting again.

I also want to point out (though I am not entirely convinced that it was intentional) that Jamie and Cersei came into this world that they would soon destroy from the same womb together. And now they left it under a crumbling body; the fruits of their labor crushing them inside the womb of their keep, and the place where the game kind of began. 

Now on the critical response to the season. 

I knew everyone was going to hate this last season of GOT before it even started. Wouldn’t matter the outcome. There were too many possibilities, and too many stories to wrap up. Somebody was not going to be happy either way. Plus with a fan base of this magnitude you are destined to have critics who think they would have done something better, and activists who want more out of a fiction than can be delivered without sacrificing entertainment, or the shock value, which we all loved about the show in the first place. In the real world I want the hero to prevail, but in pretend world I just want the good guy to turn dark. We get so emotionally invested in these characters and their plights that sometimes we forget that in the end it’s just a fantasy that is known for breaking the rules. And as the great J.R.R Tolkien once said: “There is no allegory here! Now stop camping in my yard, hippies!”

Otherworld Caricatures Stories!

True customer encounter today.

She kept asking "what character are you gonna make me?"

So I explained that it is a "caricature" like a cartoon depiction of you."

She says "I think I'll get head and shoulders so you can get more of me."

I draw it. I show her.

"I thought you were gonna make me a character, that's not a character."

I say, "no, ma'am, it's a CARICATURE of you."

She points at the theme examples.

"But all those there are characters, there's a princess"

I tell her, "those are theme drawings. You read the sign and said you'd rather have head and shoulders in color."

She says, "the sign says characters."

"It says caricatures, ma'am."

“Well, what’s a caricarter?”

“Caricature, ma’am. It’s what I do.” ;-)

She gives me a drawing and says, "well I wanted a character."

Moving on

It’s been a full year now, since the journey began, still I’ve only just found my path. 

Easter Sunday, 2018

I was slow to get up off my ass that morning. The night before I decided to stop by at my moms and just be lazy. I started my business, ordered all the tools I needed, they were on their way. Bought show insurance, had the truck, had the supplies, and my first official show on my own was only a week away. Life was good and promising, though, I hardly knew what I was doing or how things would ultimately pan out. Still, through Hell Fire and on I go. But for the moment, it was time to be lazy. Haven’t been home in months. Was just 40 min away from home for a few weeks but I felt like lounging out at my moms house. After a time scanning my Facebook wall for something interesting to laugh at besides Easter, and jesus memes, I finally decided to head home. First I accidentally bumped into the basketball net that was lost in my blind spot and I ripped out my turn signal light. That sucked, but Gorilla Tape and Me is the name of my Life Time movie. So I fixed it the best way a scrub possibly could. Then I was on my way. I was feeling good so I decided to swing by my landlord’s place and drop off my rent. But upon making my grandpa-slow move to park... SURPRISE! Here comes speed racer fresh out on a bright sunshine ride to throw his crochet rocket into my axel. He lost control, doing what best I could tell was a speed not recommended for a residential back country road. He jumped off and went tumbling. He was fine, thank god, and refused an ambulance. But I broke his toy, and it in turn broke my work horse. I was back to ground zero.

I scrambled. Had to find a new car fast, but now I was broke having put all in on my new business. Funny how I was out of funds trying to get funds, and now I was out of a truck to get me to the place where I needed to make my money. I got lucky and found a place to get me a loan on this old crummy cargo van. Fast forward to a full year later, I have a very successful caricature art company, a paid off van, and a brand new truck. And all my debt that has plagued me for years is flattened. I am very grateful for my strange luck and fortune. But the road has only just begun. Soon I’ll be publishing some writing here on my blog, perhaps even get some legitimate novels done, and I’ll be expanding my business within the next few weeks. Busy times, and great sacrifice, but it’s all worth it. 

Wish it all could have come a different way, but accidents happen, and some times the worst accidents are the beginning workins of something good for you. Maybe that guy won’t go flying down a back road like Tom Cruise in a mission impossible movie anymore. And I will certainly take even longer than I had before to park my truck and switch lanes. 

News (April 2019)

Happy April!
I am working on a lengthy follow up to my short story #bassysbasilica 

Season 1 will be presented with a wicked noire themed title that is just the longest title ever. I was inspired by Rob Zombie to make these ridiculously long titles to break up part 1,2, and 3. They all have meaning, and they are all like twisted riddles that I hope will engage the quriosity of my audience before the stories are posted.  Kinda like a puzzle for everyone to try and decipher before show time. The universe I am building is called ParaVice, which is the nickname of my fictional city where these events will come into play. My ultimate goal is to have a chapter ready every Thursday starting in the month of October. I want the segments to be short enough to enjoy by reading from digital tablets and phones, leaving every installment with a cliffhanger that will hopefully inspire my friends and followers to continue coming back to see what happens next. I am really having fun creating this world and these characters. But it is a challenge. This is the first time I am trying out world building, and I'm moving through the project as quickly as I can with my free time. So this is my Toy Box. These are my kickass action figures. And come Fall it’s time to play. 

Movie Review: Green Book

Well, Green Book was an enjoyable movie. But Best Movie of the year is a lot of a bit much. There were too many scenes with really bad acting in it that bothered the hell out of me. And the movie moves through them a bit fast too. Also the movie was produced and co written by the son of a very successful “bull-shit artist” (his words, not mine) making it hard to trust. Also again, that same writer stresses that Don Shirley wanted him to wait until he was passed away before sharing this story, which seems suspicious to me. Plus that guy put himself in the movie, so it’s all shades kind of shady. Still, the movie is fun to watch. It reminds me of a few things. I stayed at very bad hotels for one. It reminds you how rough that time was. And it makes me realize how goddamn lonely I am in my career. So does it remind us that there is a big gap between poor, and the idealism of class. But it also shows us how we still have a lot of work to do as a nation, as there are still parts and people that are like that. I’ve been all over the country as a carnival patron, I’ve seen many different walks of life. The fact that some of this movie seems familiar to me still in 2019 is concerning. I get the time period, and the racism was thick in it, yet sadly, some of that is still around. A lot of it is so ubiquitous in some areas that folks don’t even bat an eye when such a slur or statement is uttered. I’ve been guilty of ignoring it in my early years as I was too dumb to know better. Took traveling to get it clear in my head. And still I’m learning. I recommend this film as a must see, but still a rental. Not a buy, but a rental is good enough. Don’t shit on this one completely. Maybe just a poof and a squirt, but not a full shit. This message brought to you tonight by Redbox and Crown Royal, the Rye kind... it’s on sale for Saint Patricks Day... it’s a damn deal. I should stop this review now... right! Sorry! Till next time!

News (March 9)

March has been good for me. Was struggling to find a some gigs out here in this cold season. We stumbled upon this company that brought us to a lot in Florida that appeared frighteningly penurious. But the weekend came and it was a blessing. We are making lots of money drawing caricatures which will help me to invest in my business, and my love: writing fiction. The new story is a possession. I plan to share it on my blog as soon as possible. A nice, sexy, scary, cool, and just plain fun horror series. I’m building a world strictly for my blog, and to explore strange demensions in my morbid fantasy. My goal is to break all of the rules. The project is inspired by all the things I loved about 90’s action, suspense, horror growing up. If you are a movie goer, you will enjoy what I’m making here. The project is a direct sequel to my short, Bassy’s Basilica, so be sure to check out that piece when you can, though you won’t need to in the long run. More details coming soon.