Pay Attention!!

It's 5 in the AM here in Oregon. My BIL's, Jim, memorial service is today. My sister Becky has asked me a share a few words. So that's on my mind. I'm sitting in a motel lobby at the moment because the WiFi doesn't seem to reach our room. Grrrr!!!!

I really appreciate all the kind comments many of you gave on the previous post. This blog is suppose to be about crazy doodles, but every now and then life creeps in and one can't help but share. I appreciate your prayers from all my digital friends out there.

Still, there are a few doodle matters that I would like to go over. So, pay attention. Okay?

Leigh was was a winner of one of my doodles from my giveaway. She requested a copy of "Fat Music," which is a bit of airplane art that I doodled back in Oct. of '07 during one of my trips back to Oklahoma.

That choice presented a bit of a challenge for me since the original was drawn on a piece of paper meant for water color work. The texture of the paper made it difficult to create a clean copy. I ended up coloring the piece for Leigh because that covered up all the "gray extra areas" that the copier left—hoping that the alterations to the piece were acceptable for her.

Leigh wrote: Rick, I have to sincerely thank you from the bottom of my heart! I received my "doodle" (which is so much more than a "doodle") of "Fatman Blues."

(She changed the name, but I'm ok with that. Going on...)

I LOVE it. Adore it. And I love that you added even more character by coloring it in. It rocks! I am going to have it framed before I post it on my blog. I want it in it's state of glory. I think framing it will just set it off more. Rick, I truly love it. It has a good home, I can assure you. I will treasure it always. Thank you so much for the opportunity and for hosting the giveaway. Leigh

Thanks Leigh. I'm so glad that you liked it. A doodler like me lives for comments like that. I'll look forward to seeing the post on your blog. Especially since I didn't get a copy of it in it's colored form.

Also...

Carolyn was the first to request a copy of Doodlenormous, my bit of cartoon crazory that I create for public consumption. After getting her copy she dropped me a note and said...

Hi Rick! Wanted to let you know the Doodlenormous got here today. I am so pleased with it and have been staring at it since I opened it. Only found 12 eggy's so far ... I will keep looking. You said on your blog that there's one doodle unique to every one. I think my unique doodle might be the super worm. Am I right? I totally loved your 'self portrait' on the back of the envelope. That will be framed too, by the way. :) Thanks again for making this available to us 'doodle freaks', love that I was #1! You rock, dude! Carolyn xxoo

Thanks Carolyn. Yes, you are correct, Super Worm is your bit of originality on your copy. He's slimy, but he's strong. And thanks for the xxoo's. I'm blushing at the moment. P.S. Hide the self portrait. You'll thank me later for that bit of advice.

If any of the rest of you crazy bloggers would like to purchase a personally signed, and numbered copy of Doodlenormous you can contact me at... green_rick@juno.com. For a mere $10 (Plus $3 S&H - 5$ outside the U.S.) I will be happy to send you an 11x14 copy of one. It's a small price to pay for the hours you will spend mindlessly staring at the thing. Hey! We all need a break sometime. Just do it!!

Also, I've heard back from Chuck the grand prize winner of my giveaway, and also two of the other prizes winners should be getting their prizes in the mail soon. One more is in the processing of deciding. Look for updates on that front.

And now!!! One more doodle for the road. Here's another bit of doodlery that is the product of a brain that was made to sit still in an airplane headed to Oklahoma for hours upon end...

Copy & Share If You Dare. Maybe you have an upcoming "medical event" that you're not looking forward to and you're looking for a bit of art to commemorate the story. Please free free to post this baby. If you do copy, just drop me a note to let me know. I like to know what dark places my doodles have been hanging out.

P.S. It's now 6:30 AM! Wow!! That took a while. I need a nap.

Family Practice - Make Me Look Fat?

It's been a while since I uploaded one of my Family Practice strips. For those new to my blog... this was my one attempt at trying to get a cartoon strips into syndication. But, alas, that was not to be.

In order to submit a concept for publication an artist is suppose to come up with a month's worth of strips for the cartoon syndicate to look at - to see if you're actually funny... or not. I got a nice rejection letter from each syndicate - a form letter, but they were nice. I'm sure that part of my problem was that there are a ton of family based cartoon strips already out there. My idea wasn't original enough.

The twist I tried to put on the concept was a sort of battle of the sexes idea. But, as is true of my life, the lone male in this family is far out numbered by the females.

Yes, the concept was very autobiographical, but I added live in mother-in-law to this family. My MIL lives nearby, and so there is plenty of interaction between us, but she's married and maintains her own household. Part of my idea for the strip included an on going battle of whits between the husband, Roy, and his MIL. This particular sample is another example of that battle...

(Click on the illustration to zoom in.)

This piece introduces a larger, very important, question...

That is: When should a wife ask her husband if a particular piece of clothing makes her "look fat?"

The answer is: Only when she wants an honest answer.

The next question is: When should a husband answer that question honestly?

The answer to that question is... NEVER!!!

That's one of those, "They never taught me this in marriage school" kind of things that a guy learns in the heat of the battle... as it were. Meaning, the battle that ensues after he answers the question honestly.

Young men out there! Hear me! When asked, if the dress makes your wife look too fat?, the answer always is... I repeat!!! Always is... "NO!" I'm not saying that you should lie. I'm just say what Roy was thinking in the above cartoon strip. It's not the dress, or shirt, or pants, that makes ANYBODY (male or female) look fat. It's fat that makes a person look fat. (This I know first hand.)

Remember that, young groom. When asked that question, look your beloved in the eyes and say "NO!" Then smile and keep your mouth shut!

Generally one has to pay a lot of money to get good advice like this, but here I am dolling it out for free. Boy, that's just the kind of guy that I am, and just one of the many benefits you can enjoy by visiting this blog.

(And I pray to God that my wife never reads it.)

BTW: My friend The Bean is having a contest over at her blog. I don't normally like to post links to bloggers contest, but I like Bean. She's a sweet lady, and it's for a good cause. (Plus, I have a better chance at winning if I link to her blog.) So, go drop in and tell her that I sent you.

Airplane Art - Fat Music

Of the four sketches that I brought home from my trip to Oklahoma/Texas this is the one that my wife likes the best. That surprised me. I thought my previous post was the best one - but who can account for taste? She said that one of the reasons she liked it was because she thought it was something a little different than what I normally draw. That response surprised me too. It's not like I've never drawn an obese person before - though I will say that I've not drawn many horns and my representation of music is altogether different than I've ever drawn before - so - maybe - she's right (boy, do I hope that she doesn't read this entry). Maybe it IS different.

Still, I think that she's wrong about which drawing is the best. But, this is not the first time that we've had different opinions about something. And, I dare say that it won't be the last.

There are two more to come. (I have a long story to tell with one of them) You tell me which one of the four illustrations you think is best.

Fat Hog

I finsihed this drawing last night. I tried to post a black and white version yesterday, but for some reason Blogger wouldn't let that particular file show up on my page. I have some "issues" with Blogger and it's reliability.

You may notice a motorcycle theme amongst my drawings. Yes, I do own a bike - a Harley, and that just since May. So, I have a growing interest in motorcycles and so I having fun depicting them in my cartoons. Maybe I'll try posting the B&W version later.

This is another drawing that, at first, I didn't think that I was going to like, but in time it grew on me. What do you think?

UPDATE: This cartoon has been sold to a company creating a website in ENGLAND! The web is amazing. When I get a link I'll try and post it so you can see my work in use. Thanks for the business John.