Journal

A collection of 42 posts

Event

My Birthday Week

If you haven't read my late-night, pre-Birthday rant, please take a look - it would mean SO much to me! I did have a party and it was a lot of fun. It was interesting to note that none of the people that would consider themselves to be my closest

Comic

Happy Birthday! Happy Survivor Day?

"I'm not DEAD YET!" to quote Monty Python... This Sunday is my 50th Birthday and I'm making a really big deal about it. A few people have thought it was weird in general that I even still celebrate birthdays. Or that it's strange to celebrate a birthday since we don't

Art

Fun things I'm working on! (And you can Buy!)

It's NOT all about GOrillas you know! I've been working on a whole bunch of things this fall and I'd like to show you some of them now. The Demons from We Will Never Leave You have been up to all kinds of things besides my Christmas Card. I've started

Comic

Hi. I'm Sandy. And I'm a Pessimist.

I don't actually think that's true. I think a Pessimist is someone who always assumes everything will go wrong. I assume things will be fine... and then... they always go wrong. At the very least, that's an Optimistic-Pessimist, right? The Optimist says: "Hey, I finally drew a comic! Yeah!" The

Family

A Quick Visit to the Graveyard

I promised her I'd come back to visit with my daughter... We have always celebrated my Grandmother's Birthday in the graveyard, with chocolate cake, but this year I went alone. I brought cake. But it didn't taste as good. I felt so sad. For the first time. I always feel

Comic

Mauled by Pugs

My plan was to write a post that caught you all up with everything I've been working on and my recent adventures... but I've been whining a lot lately about how I really want to start drawing comics again... something like "Oh! That would make a great comic!? I really

Comic

The Middlebury Diary, Part 2

I updated the first blog post with the photos, so take a look at that one HERE. Saturday was the BIG event! The Non-fiction Comics Mini-Fest at the Vermont Folklife Center in Middlebury, VT. I was surrounded by amazing cartoonists! Marek Bennett (in the hat) was responsible for telling me

Journal

The Middlebury Diary

The drive up to Middlebury has been a literal roller coaster of emotions and hills and hairpin turns and combine harvesters and overpacked bicycles on steep roads with NO shoulder. Exhausting. Plus I got lost. Twice. I start to fall asleep at the wheel after about 35 minutes... so I

Art

It's Not Like I Just Sit Around Coloring All Day!

Coping Skill #165 - It Is Better to Color Than to Curl Up in Bed and Cry Shocking, but true. The last few weeks have been really difficult for me. Because Depression. Sure, there have actually been Things that have been giving me trouble (see recent posts) and I am

Art

Quo Vadis Journal (Comic!) Review

The pages are reproduced much larger below and I'll transcribe the comic's text too in case you are visually challenged. ;-) In July, I had this Genius Idea (i.e.: "what was I thinking?!"). I would force myself to draw a Cartoon-A-Day. By using a planner/journal - if I

Art

Getting Toned (on Paper!)

If you follow Zentangle trends, you have been seeing a lot of posts about tangling on toned papers. Tan or gray are the most common. Sea shells, flowers... very nice. But I like to be a bit different - or weird, maybe? So I am going to share some behind

Art

December Journal Pages

Yeah! And Oh Wow! I did it - a whole year of journal pages!! Whoohoo! Maybe you know this from your own experiences, but keeping with a program for a whole year is really hard. So here are my last four pages from Journal52. I made 52 new pieces of

Art

November Journal Pages

Feels like we jumped right from Halloween to Christmas - but when I think hard about it - there was a lot that happened in November. Makes my head spin thinking about it all. December is moving just as fast. I'm getting those weird fantasies again about a week spent

Art

October Journal Pages

Week 39 - In the City This prompt was so much fun! Since I don't live in a city, I was free to imagine whatever kind of buildings I liked. I started with my tangle CUdad and built the buildings UP from there... bigger and bigger! I used a Sharpie

Art

September Journal Pages

Moving right along! Here are my pages for September for the Journal52 challenge. Week 35 - Making Time Sometimes the timing of the prompts seems kind of creepy ... I am struggling with a particular issue and - BAM - THAT is the very topic of the week's prompt. I have

Art

Birthday Wrap-Up

Sigh. I admit I really enjoyed being, mostly, tech-free for a few days. I've been re-integrating into the real world... the mainland... for a few days now and the island retreat already feels like a dream. Maybe doing this catch-up post will help to make sure it stays fresh in

Art

August Journal Pages

August went very quickly, probably because so much happened this month. I worked on most of these Journal52 assignments outside of my studio, often while sitting on a hotel bed, so I kept the materials really simple and pushed myself to concentrate on other aspects. Week 31 - Friends Sometimes.

Art

July Journal Pages

Hey - why didn't anyone say anything? Looks like in all the excitement of the trip out west, I forgot to post my Journal52 pages for July! Sorry about that - and I'll get August's up here too. I am still quite pleased that I have been keeping up with

Journal

Train Day

An entire day spent in a moving metal box with the people you love the most. Priceless. Actually, it's both a blessing and a curse. Especially when the introverted traits start clashing. But then there are heartwarming moments - like Alex playing Minecraft with Lilah for two hours.  Ahhhh... Touching.

Art

June Journal Pages

Here are my pages for Journal52 - I'm trying to keep up with July's and forgot to post June's! Week 22 - Traveling This is my favorite way to travel... by book. But that might just be because I have never gone first class. Next time I go to Egypt,

Art

May Journal Pages

May went really quickly - and yet - I couldn't remember the earlier journal pages. Here's what I have been working on for Journal52... Week 17 - Refresh I was actually ON my runaway-and-recover-and-recharge trip to Maine at this time, so it wasn't too hard to create a "Refresh" page.

Journal

Saying Goodbye

When I wrote about Death in my last post, I had no idea that I was actually being prepped for an ordeal ahead. We'd only had the honor of Emmet LeChat's company for a little over a year, but he was very firmly ensconced in our family and our hearts.

Art

Journal - Death and Nature

This is my journal page from Sunday. I found a new church to go to and I have continued my habit of drawing and tangling during the service. This minister has really interesting sermons that apply nicely to modern life and give me a lot to think about. This week,

Art

April Journals

I just got back to my studio a few days ago, so my April journal pages, for Journal52, are a bit late in posting. But I am still proud of myself for continuing to do them! I fell WAY behind with Danny Gregory's Sketchbook Skool, and then Lilla Roger's MATS

Art

Springy

It is such a strange feeling to arrive somewhere when everything is still dried up and wintery and then watch as the green bits start pushing their way out of the brown branches and ground. I was inspired to draw these flower remnants in watercolor and Micron pen... As I