Many States of Mind

It started VERY early this morning... but I'd been so nervous I had trouble sleeping... and that crazy giant cat (cats?) upstairs was running a derby or something. At one point, the wall next to my bed shook when... IT... jumped, or hit the wall... who knows?

I was so sick yesterday, my mom drove up with a pharmacy and a citrus fruit stand. She insisted that she'd drive me to court this morning since I wouldn't be safe (on Sudafed) to drive myself. It was actually nice to have her company since it was raining buckets and really gloomy.

An interesting aside concerning the Universe. I believe that you get what you expect and you get what you ask the Universe for (unfortunately, we aren't always aware what we are asking for!) and yet, I don't think I trust this belief enough to ask for the big stuff. What happened? As I walked by the microwave last night, I noticed it read "11:11" - a magic wishing number!!! I made an automagic wish, without even giving it a second thought.

You're thinking that I wished for something like a successful outcome in court today? World peace? Family peace? No, I was more practical and immediate - I wished to be done with this cold before I went to court. Nuts, right?

Yes, I felt ridiculously better this morning! If I'd known I'd get it, I'd have wished for the court miracle instead!! Idiot. I think the whole secret to the Universe thing is that our instinctual wishes or goals are pure - we really believe that they can happen without us overthinking the outcomes, etc. So they do happen. The other stuff... even as we think we want it, we are already negating the possibility of it happening. Deep thinking. Or maybe it's the Sudafed. (Which strangely enough, the computer spell check keeps wanting to change to "sedated").

So this court thing... it is now a 2-day trial thing to occur in January. When I drove down to Hillsboro this morning, I was vaguely thinking there would be some answers, some help from the court... maybe? When I drove back to school, I felt like I was in the Twilight Zone! I honestly have no idea what is going on any more. A trial? What for? Witnesses? Evidence? Two days for testimonies? Excuse me, but WTF!? I just wanted the Parenting Plan adjusted! And that was a year ago. Nope, no answers. And I have no idea what exactly I would even be asking a judge for, never mind the Universe!

Back at the apartment, it's pouring outside, I'm confused and exhausted from everything... including the long drive... and I am seriously considering crawling into bed with the laptop, Netflix, and a box of Munchkins (I'd have to venture out for those little guys) - I kind of had a "free pass" to miss school today, right? But - the Universe - or maybe it's the Gods (they not only enjoy laughing at me, they occasionally look out for me too) - anyway - the POWER was out in the building!!! Agh. No Netflix. So I took off the "nice" court clothes, threw on jeans and a sweatshirt, and trudged (through the rain and puddles) to the school.

Which turned out to be JUST the THING to cheer me up.

They had already done all the critiques of the comic strips, which I was bummed to have missed, but they had left me a silkscreened Tintin t-shirt and were in the middle of a lecture about Herge. Who I adore. I even have Tintin on my keychain.

I had missed quite a bit, but heard enough to understand what the point of next week's assignment is. The whole point of Tintin comics is "movement" - to get from point A to point B. Tintin is always on a Journey somewhere and the stories feature every kind of transportation possible.

So our assignment is called "The Odyssey" - we have to make a 12 page mini-comic with a theme of  "Journey" - any kind of Journey. The catch, this time - there's always a catch - is we have to tell the story using only images from  Ed Emberley's Drawing Book: Make a World

. (that's an Amazon link) This link will show some pics and there are tons to be found with a google search.

This is a well timed project as I am going home this weekend - my little Art Director will be very helpful!!

The second half of the day was even more therapeutic as we learned how to ink using a brush...

... and then got to spend the rest of the time... inking over Jack Kirby blue lines!

The is a "blue line" (in this case, it is a rough sketch copied onto cardstock paper).

And THIS is my masterpiece of inked art!

Awesome, right?! And MAGNETO! Love him. A much better end to a sucky day than donuts and Netflix.

I haven't given indepth info about the dip pens or the brush work because I am planning to do that for the first Open Studio (which got pushed back a bit due to... let's just say that the Open Studio filed for a continuance). I am hoping to do that next week.

Kind of random, but as I'm writing this I had that stupid perfume advertisement/song from the... 70's?... pop into my head:

"I can bring home the bacon, (ba bum bum bum)
fry it up in a pan, (more bum bum bums)
(twirl some item of clothing seductively)
and never, never let you forGET you're a man!
'Cause I'm a woman, Enjoli!"

Except my version was:

"I can make it to court,
in a red mini-van.
Ink up Magneto, the Super-Vill-AN!
Cause melo-drama - yeah for me!"