Habits, habits

Posted by jupe

I need to form the habits again to be posting every single day.

It’s amazing how when you stop doing something for as little a time as a week, the habit just falls away. I was writing and drawing everyday and posting both and then after the week before Christmas, stopped. I will commit to this again.

On the drawing front, I actually HAVE been drawing on a daily basis, but I just haven’t been posting anything for it. I’m working on the Surge still and I’ve finally finished the concept drawings for Toronto Comix vol 2. I just haven’t been posting them because I’ve actually been ill the last few days.

Even as I type this right now, I have the chills while sweating.

Last night, we took the tree down and I did a good chunk of the work while sitting. Sweeping and bending over took a lot out of me and when it came time for bed, I passed right out.  I had another cramp attack earlier that day, too, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as before, which leads me to believe that it might’ve been a symptom of what I have, considering that Alex had the same cramps a couple days ago.

Or, it was psychosomatic.

Anyway, Alex came home early yesterday to get Nick to Beavers because there was no way in hell I was in any condition to drive.

Today was garbage day and we didn’t get anything out last night. I was in no condition to carry anything up and down stairs and I can’t really blame Alex for not wanting to be alone in taking out all that trash.  Instead, still sick, I took the trash out today. We missed recycling again.

Sunday was a great day. I went to Cindy’s house for a few hours and blended/carded some fibre I’ve been meaning to take care of for a long time, now. I also did some work on a sock that’s been a WIP but put it down after about five rows out of frustration of fucking up. When I got home, I had to cook dinner, and the rest of the evening was spent playing Grey Warden Sparkletwat in DA:O.

That’s that, I suppose. I’m going to get some drawing done, fold some laundry, then stretch out and try to recover until I need to get Nick from school. I have to cook dinner again tonight and I just feel like shit. Still, I have to do it.

Feh.

Merry Christmas!

Posted by jupe

It’s been a very Christmasy past two days.  We went to my cousin’s house for Christmas Eve and had an epic snowball fight in her basement with these soft handmade snowballs brought by Les’ friend. We were all laughing hysterically and nobody was safe. It was awesome.

The kids got to open their gifts and Nick and Rusty were given some pretty neat gifts. We got home late, as always, but it was a great day.

Today was another Christmasy day. My kids got up at 9 and we all came downstairs and opened some gifts. I got a new desk, a new light table for tracing, and a small package of goodies from my mom, including PJs, a gorgeous sheep sweater, and some bits and pieces.  Alex enjoyed the West Germany stein I got him and I think he’s looking forward to the Tesla test drive I arranged for him.

Anyway, it’s been a long day. We ate dinner at Stewart and Joanne’s place and all of us are STUFFED. It was delicious.

Tonight is more unwinding and then bed. I hope the kids let me sleep. Alex is off till Monday and we’ll have a quiet holiday at home.

Whew.

Posted by jupe

I thought I’d never come up with what to draw… but a conversation with an acquaintance with me, local artist Adam Gorham,  He gave me some really good advice about perspective, as my previous couple daily drawings had perspective off. You’re going to start seeing a lot more drawings of the house and of things that are in perspective; it’s the only way I’m going to learn and get good at it. I need to practice, practice, practice.

Yesterday was a really busy day. I spent practically the whole day out with the boys running errands while Alex and the guys did some beer brewing. The boys were actually really good while I was out. Rusty was better than average and Nick was listening. There was a bit of pouting when they were given a lunch at the mall of noodles, chicken, and green beans (Nick wanted burgers and fries, of course) but in the end, both boys ate everything on their plates like ravenous little beasts. I’d say it was a success. We had our grease for dinner because I was far too tired to make anything decent.

Tonight should be okay. I’ll make up for it with a nice oven roasted chicken breast and some potatoes. Or maybe a chicken stir fry. I’ll decide later.

We got a bunch of supplies for Rusty’s charts and the start of Christmas crafts.  I think that I’ll make cookies for the family this year since nobody’s buying for us and we can’t afford to buy for all of them.  Christmas is so damned stressful.

Work on Best Mutt is coming along well. I’ve written out Acts I and II in script format and will work on getting Act III done today. Act III should be pretty easy because it’s mostly in montage form.  Act IV will be a bit more time consuming, as a lot happens, and Act V will be relatively easy. I’m getting all my rough mini thumbs done at this time, too, which will, of course, be revised later to look prettier. It’s all good. When all that’s done, I’ll do the turnarounds. I’ve never had to draw dogs a lot in the past so it’ll be a nice learning activity.

I’ll be posting the black and white comic online for free and if anyone wants a coloured version, they can throw me a few bucks for the PDF. I’ll set up a store for it and stuff and when I go to a convention of sorts for artists alley, I’ll print some copies of it in case anyone there wants a hard copy. (And, of course, I’ll make hard copies available for purchase online.)

Today’s plan is to write more and to play video games with my six year old. He didn’t get to play any yesterday and was pretty upset so I promised him that when his dad gets up, we’ll play some today.

Enjoy your Sunday!

What could be better than Rasta Pasta?

Posted by jupe

Well, as far as jerk is concerned, not much. Rasta Pasta is a hole in the wall in Kensington Market but is well worth the visit. It’s a tiny, well kept space, and your meat is grilled on the barbecue. I was happy with the fresh side of cabbage, carrot, and peppers, as it’s really good winter food. Packed full of vitamins. I came across it when I was walking the area with EK and Brett Weaver back during TCAF and finally went back with Greg before class.

We got downtown fairly early, so after eating we actually had time to sit somewhere and hang out.  We opted for a small tea shop around the corner and sat in warmth and comfort while we did homework and notekeeping from the previous classes. I was hesitant before writing the Rom Com because they can be, well, boring and predictable… but it was the assignment and I didn’t want to go to class emptyhanded. The previous night, I played around with the idea of a person becoming friends with a dog and ran with it yesterday.

It turned out surprisingly well.

It turned out so well that I decided that I’ll make it into a comic. I need to do the writing and scripting still, plus the story bible, and I’ve never drawn dogs before. It’ll be a fun exercise and a good way to keep up the daily drawings. Expect a lot of pictures coming up of dogs and a lesbian teen.

I spent the entire morning working on the picture for today’s daily drawing, but I’m okay with that. I do, however, think that I’ll work on more pictures by hand, as I find digital drawing takes a lot longer than pencil sketching. Plus, I do enjoy using the new scanner. Might be the easier way to go.

I got all my chores and to do list done yesterday, which is nice. I also came downstairs this morning to see that Alex had emptied the dishwasher last night for me. It was a good way to start the day. I immediately filled it up and ran it again; I’m almost caught up with the kitchen chores!

As for today, I think that I’ll spend some more time doing some writing. I do have to go out and get Nick from school, but that shouldn’t be much of a distraction.  It’s barely 1pm and Rusty is napping on the couch. I’m cool with this because it allows me some quiet time to do some writing, browsing, and even chores. I may not be able to watch tv during his nap, but I think that’s okay. I may even bring up some laundry to fold. We’ll see, yes?

Today’s tea was David’s Tea Ceylon Star. It’s a somewhat earthy and yummy black tea with a hint of sweetness. I had a bit of milk in it and some sugar to curb the bitterness that I find black tea gives.  I steeped it at boiling for 3 minutes this time.

Dinner tonight will be something with chicken breast. Maybe a nice noodle and red pepper stir fry. Or, maybe some homemade chicken fingers. I don’t know, yet. We’ll see what happens. In any case, I’ll photograph it later and post the recipe.

Chicken Jumbalaya

Posted by jupe

jumbalayaI picked up this original recipe from AllRecipes and modified it to fit my family’s tastes.  The picture to the right is how it looks before the rice starts to cook.

Ingredients

2 teaspoons olive oil
6 boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces, and 3 sausages, diced
1 onion, diced
1/2 cup diced celery
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 large garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 tsp parsley
1/2 teaspoon oregano
salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 cups uncooked white rice
4 cups chicken stock
3 bay leaves
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

 How to prepare

 

  1. Heat oil in a dutch oven, large pot, or very large saucepan over medium heat.
  2. Add onion and sautee until it begins to soften
  3. Add the celery and continue to sautee until the celery is soft and the onion is clear.
  4. Remove from the pot and add the garlic. Cook until aromatic.
  5. Add chicken and kielbasa and add your oregano, thyme, salt, and pepper. Cook on medium-high heat until lightly browned
  6. Stir in onion and celery, and add the red pepper.
  7. Season with cayenne pepper and onion powder.
  8. Add rice and bay leaves, then turn to maximum. When you start to hear sizzling, stir in chicken stock
  9. When everything comes to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and simmer 20 minutes, or until the rice is tender.
  10. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the Worcestershire sauce and hot pepper sauce.
  11. Serve and enjoy!