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It’s OCTOBER!!!
Do you know what that means? Inktober time! I love Inktober. I should draw all year but it’s too big of a commitment for me. The thing is, drawing every day really works. I can see that I’m better than I was last year. I remember when my Aunt Keren told me that when I was a teenager. I took it to heart and that’s probably why I’m still drawing to this day. It’s my one thing that I love doing all the time. I can be in a good mood or a bad mood. I can be busy or bored. Give me a journal and a coffee shop and I don’t care about much else. Sometimes I wish I had a sketching club, like a bunch of buddies who took their journals out and drew things… that sounds fun, right? But the reality is, when I’m drawing I’m pretty oblivious of what’s going on around me.
In the spirit of Autumn (don’t jinx it and say anything) let’s talk about this cute little mug that Bug made me. She’s getting really good at glazing. She’s making plans to be a ceramicist someday. I’m all for it. Maybe I can come over and use her kiln when she lives in that mansion with a studio in the backyard.
More sketches! It’s beginning to feel like Halloween around here!
Bug went to Homecoming. Her dress is a slip/nightgown she bought at a thrift store for $15. It used to have a mesh backing that looked kinda dated so we ripped it out and used the seam edges to create criss-cross straps. I’m so happy that she likes to re-purpose clothing. It saves me so much money.
We also went to see Hamilton. So good!
The Great Job Hunt of 2022 is going slowly. I was really spinning my wheels on job boards, getting more and more depressed as I realize I am aging out of most jobs these days. So I decided to take a minimum wage job as a bagger at a nearby grocery store. I just had to do something that I knew I wouldn’t get rejected at. I know it sounds like a mistake because I could stay home and make more money doing freelance but hear me out.
Way back in the 90’s I used to love that job. I’m serious. I loved running all over the store doing price checks and fetching carts in the parking lot. I was in the best shape of my life! Putting objects in a bag in an orderly manner uses one of my super skills: organization. I love it. I’m such a weirdo but if I could be a competitive organizer in the Olympics I think I might have a chance at being an athlete. It’s like playing physical Tetris and I’m pretty good at it. Five items in a bag, put like items together, keep your soaps and non-food items separate… Simple stuff! You get to chat with people while you work without doing any math! Sounds like a perfect job to me. I met some of the coolest people working at the checkout line.
There was this one older lady in her 80s who gave me the best advice that I still live by to this day. She said, Walk every day and you’ll stay healthy. She’s right. She was healthy and she walked to the grocery store every day. I looked forward to chatting with her and missed her when she didn’t come. Now I walk three miles every morning and I feel great. I’ve lost 20 pounds since I moved into this place and it’s been easy. I also stopped drinking (outside of maybe once a week socially) but other than those two changes that’s all I’ve really done.
Another perk of taking the bagger aka “courtesy clerk” job is that I can transfer up to cake decorator in three months! You know I’ve always wanted to be a cake decorator. Of course t I’ll still be looking for The Big Job that will enable me to continue living in my apartment which costs too much but at least I’m doing something. I was going crazy getting rejected over and over.
I hope your Autumn is going well. I think we are all having hard times right now. It’s just part of life.
Next time: back to the books!
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More About Books, Part 2
I hope you’re not sick of books because I am BACK with more behind-the-scenes tidbits. Gotta get more reviews! I went through and tallied which books really need reviews and which ones don’t (For some reason Who’s Coming to Dinner, Little Hoo has 122!! Weird.) so I’ll let you know when I get to the ones that REALLY need reviews and are blowing around in the desert with the tumbleweeds.
Secret Agent Josephine’s Numbers This one is an oldie but a goodie. I actually still love this book. A lot of my books I hate after a time. Almost all the spyware in this book has stood the test of time except maybe the solar-powered super phone with a 500 gig hard drive! LOL. Note to self: do not include techno gadgets in books that will last longer than your imagination could foresee into the future. If you have a kid into spy gadgets, this one might be a good one for you!
Good Night, Kitty Kitty! If you are a cat lover, this is the book for you. You know I am. It’s all about the shenanigans cats play when you are trying to sleep. Knocking things off your dresser, getting the zoomies, meowing for food… If you have a cat you know how it is.
Snackle the Snake Likes to SnackI wrote this one for my friend Bethany, the snake lover. Bethany is one of my very best friends and she looooooves reptiles. She loves all animals but snakes and lizards are her preferred pets because she’s terribly allergic to the furry ones. Because of her, I’ve met many reptiles in my life and I’ve grown fond of them too. This book is about a fictional snake who likes to snack. (As opposed to real snakes who don’t eat things like tortillas or jelly beans…) Bug gave me the idea for the title but she wanted me to write a book about a snake who eats funny-shaped items and then you can see the rectangles and octagons and whatever other shapes showing up in the snake’s body. Instead, I chose to write this book about how a snake who likes to snack all day and then not eat his dinner. Kinda like someone else I know. I may have been a bit peeved at my kids who snacked on chips at 4 pm and then didn’t want broccoli and zucchini in their dinner at six. Now I’m a little more open-minded to kids grazing but that’s beside the point. Anyway, it’s a cute book about snakes. Snakes can be cute! You just have to look at their little snake faces!
My Good Dog is the first in a series of easy readers by Katrina Streza. I forgot how fun this book is. The dog fishes in the fishtank, eats spaghetti while pulled up to the table and even goes into outer space. Space dog anyone? It’s a very simple read about crazy things a dog IS NOT doing but I think kids will like it.
My Cat is Sad is the next book in the Cat and Dog series by Katrina Streza. I think this book should be titled My Cat is Angry but I guess “angry” is not one of the level one reading words. Basically, in this book, the well-intentioned little boy tries to love his cat but pretty much pisses her off by playing too rough and dumping water on her head. Don’t worry, no animals were harmed while making this book. I think most kids will have common sense to know that cats don’t like being chased under the bed etc…
My Cat, My Dog You can guess what this ones about. A good cat and a bad dog sometimes getting along and sometimes NOT.
My Cat is Fat isn’t actually about a fat cat. It’s more of a guessing book. Is my cat a stinky skunk? No! Is my cat a flat fish? No! And so forth… It’s a beginning book for young readers to start learning about adjectives. Fat cat, stinky skunk, pink pig etc..
My Cat Sits This one kinda cracks me up. Have I mentioned that the thing I like best about writing children’s books is making little jokes and illustrating circumstances literally that couldn’t actually happen in real life. Yes, I enjoy that. This book is about all the places cats like to sit and then what would happen if the little boy sat there. In the sink, in a tree, on a computer. Hilarity ensues. Learning to read as a first grader or kindergardner is hard enough, we might as well get a laugh out of it.
Cody Eats Oh the Cody books! How I miss my dog, Cody. Yes, I go see him from time to time. Payam and I are broken up but are friends and I’m allowed to visit Cody and Whiskey whenever I want. They miss me terribly. I try to make up for it by bringing them my empty peanut butter containers. So yes, this book is about Cody eating all the things. He eats rocks, soap, flowers… typical Golden Retriever behavior in an easy reader!
Cody Eats Everything If Cody Eats wasn’t enough for you we have Cody Eats Everything! Because Cody literally does eat everything. Remember that time he ate our house? In this book he eats butter, cat food, people food… yep, that’s Cody!And that’s all I have time for today! See you soon with another passel of book tidbits!
