HEART HEART HEART

I am geeking out over here. First of all, the Moravian Book Shop in Bethlehem, PA is carrying my books. They have been wonderful, supportive, and fantastic from my first book signing event and beyond. Second, they are now selling my Little L dolls/pillows. Third, OMG my books are on the same display table as a Neil Gaiman book!!!!! I mean, I know Neil Gaiman didn’t select my book to go there or anything, but the fact that a book I wrote is anywhere near one of his books physically in an actual store has made my day/week/year/life. I am so excited. It may be silly, but too bad, because here I am, drinking too much coffee, typing about this display table, and texting this same photo to all my friends. WOWEE!  WOOHOO!  XOXOXOXOXOXOXXOXOXOXO

Pictured: OMG.

My Boss’s Dogs

I went to my boss’s house last night to “help” with some kitchen renovations and mostly to eat some tasty food and play with her cats and dogs. The food was delicious, my contribution to the kitchen’s renovation was spectacularly professional, and the pets were awesome. My boss is super nice and I like her. Five stars on Yelp.

Here are Nutty (dog) and Yuki (cat):

Yuki is very affectionate and mischievous and I extra like her. Nutty is sweet, shy and flirty, and I have a crush on her. I do not have a photo of Loopies, but she is a cool cat who lets me pet her and seems to not hate me. She is stripy and looks a tiny bit like my KITTY whom I lost a few months ago, so she warms my heart.

Here is Keechi:

This photo pretty much sums up Keechi. She’s cool and she wants you to know that you are here for her amusement. She’s like “PLAY WITH THIS TOY OR I’LL KEEP PUSHING IT INTO YOUR BUTT!” You’re like “oh hey sweetie, you’re so cute, can you sit?” and she’s all “SHUT UP AND THROW MY TOY! THROW IT! THROWITTHROWITTHROWITTHROWIT!” And then you do throw the toy and this goes on for half an hour and she is so happy and dance-y around-y and fuzzy and dirty because she loves to roll in dirt and I want to have a slumber party with her.

Overall, I rate this visit as a success, and if my boss’s house were on Yelp, I would give it a very good review. I am going to send a link for this post to my boss now so she knows I said nice things about her.

Go pet a cat or dog, it’s fun!

 

 

Book Sales and other Problems

Book sales have fallen off for both of my books in the last six weeks or so, so I currently look like this:

That’s an upgrade from this:

But still not ideal. I am happy and excited about my current job, (which is working with a house call veterinarian as a tech in training). It’s pretty awesome, and I actually could not be happier. Now that I am not a full-time artist, however, I have been having trouble organizing my time so that I can work on marketing, and even creating. I know I will find the right balance soon, but in the meantime, my face is making faces of self-doubt. Ah, the sensitive demeanor of the artist. What a bunch of jerks.

Let me tell you about my new job though. I’ve been at it for about two months now, and it is fantastic. I work with wonderful people, and I get to see cats and dogs all day. Can you imagine?? It’s great. So great. Oh man, I hug so many cats and dogs every day. And then I come home and hug MY cats and dogs all night!  Yessssssssssssssssssssssss.

Buy my books:

This one

And this one

 

 

 

 

 

 

Super Models

This morning, I was brainstorming new ways to promote my first two books, Little L and Little L and the Monster Under the Bed. I didn’t have any ideas, but I sure did have fun taking pictures of my cats underneath the pillows I made to accompany the books.

 

More Old Art

Hi there. I have some more old paintings to show you. Some of them are clever, and some are just lovely if I do say so myself. Some of them may even be stupid. Next week, I’ll show you some more of my favorite favoritest favorites.

My husband as the Devil.

One of my cats as the Devil.

Creepy bunny.

The ghost of a chicken.

Space Cat! 

I think I called this one “Lilith.” My friend Larry owns it now.

PSA

This one belongs to a very interesting person whom we should all worship.

Another PSA.

Don’t be afraid.

Kitty-Cat Dinner Time

I have to go feed my cats. I am a half hour late getting their dinner to them. They like to eat at 4:30 in the afternoon, because they seem to be 98 year old humans in cat bodies when it comes to food. I am afraid to go feed them because they become angry ravenous beasts when I’m even a minute late with their blood sacrifices. I hope they enjoy the dead animals I am serving them for dinner this evening. Please wish me luck, and if you do not hear from me again, you know what happened.

Based on true events.

Organization

I try to be organized, but sometimes I fail spectacularly. Take today, for instance. I am sitting down to write and draw, and this is what I am surrounded by:

Why is there a smoke detector with no batteries sitting on top of a pile of books?

 

Why is there a computer mouse sitting there within reaching distance, yet I am sitting here, not using it, and instead complaining that the mouse pad on my laptop is the worst? Why is there a measuring cup? Was I baking in here? (I actually have a reason for that one – I use it to pour water into my iron.) BUT STILL.

What an embarrassment. I am not even sure how this happened. I will most likely spend more time straightening and tidying than doing anything creative today. Or I will just sit here being disappointed in myself. Either option is fitting for a rainy day, I suppose.

 

Hangin’ out

Right now, I am procrastinating because I have to walk my dogs and it is cold out. I like the cold, but today I am using it as an excuse to procrastinate. I am also avoiding writing and drawing. I finished the first draft of the next book in the Little L series, but it doesn’t wow me. I have to stay away from it for a day or two and go back. As for drawing- I am working on another project that is very dear to me and the drawings, in my mind, must be magnificent. Therefore, I have put so much pressure on myself to make these magical drawings that I have scared myself away from my desk and paper and pencils. I will get there eventually, but in the meantime, I will do lots of laundry and cleaning and other things that are good to do while hiding from my creative work for a bit. I will walk my dogs, too, but only after dressing them up in sweaters and taking lots of pictures of them, then petting all my cats so they don’t feel left out.

Dramatic Reenactment.

My Pets are Trying to Kill Me

Hi there!

I have a lot to say about my pets today. As you know, I love them dearly. As you know, I have a lot of them. My husband and I are crazy, and we accept this. But lately, I fear that my pets are trying to kill me. They are not trying to trip me down the stairs or throw me into traffic, but rather, they are slowly chipping away at my sanity by making themselves sick. They make themselves sick and then sit back and watch as I lose my mind.

In the last year, we have dealt with:

1. a new kitten bringing home a virus that made all the cats sick, including one that ended up having an extended stay at the hospital because he literally almost died from the illness
2. my sweetly grumpy 17 year old cat’s chronic bladder condition worsening and making her extremely miserable and causing several panicked rushes to the vet
3. two cats with urinary tract infections at the same time
4. stitches in one dog’s ear
5. bandages on one dog’s feet
6. allergies with one dog that were causing him…we’ll just say “butt problems”
7. two cats with ear infections at the same time
8. right now, one cat’s ears are wonky again, so I’ve been treating him with meds from the last freaking time. He’s almost all better
9. and today I rushed a cat to the vet, thinking she had an intestinal obstruction, but really, she’s just extra constipated
10. This list is not complete, but I don’t want you to feel crazy along with me.

I am not lying when I say that I am at the vet’s office once a week, minimum. I have prescription food for three of my cats that I must constantly replenish. Add to that the weekly visit for something weird happening to my pet’s face/ears/butt, and I might as well just have a sleeping bag stashed at the doc’s office. I don’t cry very often in normal human situations. But when I do cry , it’s always at the vet. I cry there twice a month. Big ugly cries. Cries that looks like this:

 

I am a very emotional person, and when I break, it’s gross. This is how I know my pets are trying to kill me. They watch my stress build up bit by bit and then relax and watch the show. Or they are just very comfortable letting it all hang out because they know I have their backs. They just keep finding new and creative ways to make me worry.  Would I change anything? No, not really, though I’d really love to go just one whole week without having to make the staff at the animal hospital console me because my cat’s pee smells funny or something.

At least the need to vent made me write on my blog, which has been sitting dormant! Thanks, pets! I LOVE YOU! I think it’s safe to say they love me too.

 

The Creativity Conundrum

I have been struggling lately with the question of my career future. Here’s my problem: when I had a vintage clothing store, that was my “thing.” It was lucrative (until it wasn’t), and it was tangible. It was easy to see that I was doing and accomplishing things on a daily basis. Then I closed my shop, and went back to my other love: art and writing. A full-time job in itself, but with uncertain monetary reward and no real schedule. I fill the monetary gap with part-time work. And the truth is, I work just as hard and as many hours as I did when I had a shop. But the money isn’t there. No one is pressuring me to make more money, mind you. When you work independently and create for your job, you tend to have a full 24 hour day jam-packed with things that need to get done. You need to complete that drawing, submit that image, deliver that fabric, redesign that layout, figure out how the hell to promote yourself in the world to sell more/get recognized/make money. And the problem comes in when I start to question my priorities. I feel guilty when someone says “hey, can you do XYZ with me” and I have to decline because I am damn busy…but I can’t put into words what I’m busy with on the spot. I know that I can’t possibly fit another thing onto my schedule or my head will explode…but I can’t properly express it. And it’s not like I’m getting rich here, so how important can my job be?  But intellectually, I know it’s important. I know that outside my work, I also have family, a million animals that need caring for every day, a house, my own life and well-being to worry about, and so on and so forth.  So my head is spinning. I am a ball of stress and I almost feel as though I am starting out all over again, right out of school. It’s a tough position to be in. I’m doing what I love, but questioning myself every step of the way. I am so lucky to be in a position to do this right now, yet I feel guilty and unsure of my path. The Creativity Conundrum. I think it comes from growing up in a society where your accomplishments should equal wealth/children/status. I don’t go for any of those things in my life. And I sometimes fall into a pattern of worrying that outsiders looking in might think I’m lazy/unambitious/a dreamer. I’ve said the following to my friends before and I don’t mean to brag, but: I have over 23 followers on this blog 😉 If any of you have similar issues, please weigh in and tell me about it! In the meantime, here’s some good news… the first copies of my new book arrived today, and they look great. What a relief!