Recovering

What I mean to say by this is: thank god Christmas is over and we are headed into a new year. And I mean this in the most kindly-yet-glazed-over-still-recovering-from-Christmas sort of way.

Before this year closes, I want to thank my friends and family for their support and patience--very important since I've been a complete dingbat since I started the comic some three hundred and fifty something days ago. Special thanks to Celao for his particular close-to-home patience; Carl who offered me a monthly gig for extra practice; Alicia for technical advice and a life preserver in the sequential doldrums; Eliaz for helping me handle the multiple personality disorder known as Photoshop; and the lovely Harmonydawn for being my best friend and dispensing kick ass, sage spiritual advice and the best hugs ever.

Family photo time

Hey, it's December, aka: family photo time. Takes some organizational skills. Good thing Marcelo wants that job...

Oh, no. Wait, wait, wait. We can't use this for the Christmas card. One more time, guys, and smile this time, dang it!

Aw! That's better. Thanks guys!

Reporting From the Not-So-Rainy Northwest...

Side Effects of Therapy

My imagination has been taking some interesting turns this last year and it's been fun.

Sophie's Mural

I almost did document it, but I was on the warpath and couldn't stop for the camera. Sophie contributed actual art for this comic, however. Not wall art, but some well supervised, old fashioned crayon and paper art that she then allowed me to scan.

Only Sigourney Weaver gets to say that...

Estevan has difficulty pronouncing this but the other line he's memoriezed from 'Avatar' is: "Where are my g*dd*mn cigarettes? Guys, what's wrong with this picture?" Dad, between laugh attacks, asked if I'm thinking about censoring the movies Estevan watches...to which my inner smart ass replied that at least I don't let him watch Cheech and Chong.

Help me to accept the things that I cannot change...

Fuzzy Dice

I was completely surprised by the gift of fuzzy dice...man.

New Schedule

Harmony let me know of the philosophy of there being two kinds of people in life: those who have a zombie-plan and those who do not. I don't but Harmony says her zombie-plan includes me and my family, and I feel really safe knowing she's looking out for us. She didn't specify further.

Spilt Rice

Everyone, this is Brandy, my sister-in-law. I've been wanting to cartoon this for a year and a half. I'm not sure if she'll like this or not--but I've dressed her up in greens, her favorite color, and hope she doesn't mind much.

Note: my family sometimes calls me "9" and it has to do with how my name is pronounced. People get funny about the pronunciation and spend ridiculous amounts of time correcting each other. I've given up caring and answer to both "Ni-nah" and "Nee-nah".

Fence Climbing...

You bring up my childhood, or any subject relative within five degrees and my dad will trot out his collection of horror stories. I was apparently a hellion and the cause of the premature aging of at least five relatives. When I comment on my own children's falls, bruises or random acts of chaos, he rolls his eyes and says something about karma. I asked him recently what he'd done to karmicly deserve to raise a wild child like me and the subject got changed suddenly.

Intercultural Miscommunication

Celao Napoleon

News Report: Boxes

Moth

Carl J. Judson Sr. and Eleanor Meredith's wedding anniversary

My paternal grandparents were married 69 years ago. Today's date felt especially significant when my aunt mentioned this anniversary this morning. Not sure what either of them would think of being "chibied" but this is my favored way to honor dates these days...So, blessings to Carl and Eleanor, their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren!

8/9/10

Thinking about Jim Reidhead who once upon a time on 8/8/88 brought the significance of numerically aligned dates to my attention.

Amanda

Um...Alicia's nicer than Lucy, though.

Guerrilla Painter Girl!

"Africa" Song

Not a comic, really--just an acknowledgment of a passing event. We often find ourselves listening to Shakira when Celao checks out the noticias on TV...and we find ourselves humming along...and then dancing. Tevan has even started requesting the "Africa" song.

Lost in Denver with Becky...

Harmonydawn says stuff sometimes that strikes me as hilarious--especially the stuff that wasn't at all intended to be funny, just everyday comments.

*happy dance* Made an official title image for FRSA!

Playin' dress up...

Liz and Amsbry Chibis

I got a comission for chibis! Yay! These are of my cousins, Amsbry and Liz. They are nearly inseperable sisters and best friends (figuratively "inseperable"--currently, Liz is studying in Boston and Amsbry is teaching english in Korea). My aunt Becky asked me to draw them up for the girls--I enjoyed this very much. I chose outfits of fictional/mythical characters who reminded me of some of the things I love best about my cousins. Clockwise: Alice and Bella, Dorothy and the Scarecrow, Artemis and Athene.

House and Holmes...alrighty then.

It will all be worth it IF...

Artist's note: Yay! Go get your own. I'm not sharing. *nom nom nom*. . . *nom nom*. . .

Movie Mesh: Amelie and Neo

That's right, folks. Break out the dictionaries. Your second year of High School French wasn't that long ago...

When Celao and I watch movies, we frequently insert lines from other movies into what we are watching. The less related the better. We could be watching The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and one of us will be triggered by some line or some prop in the movie, and out comes "This conversation...is over!" or "I know what it is you saw." Or we get creative with "I am Ben's uncontrollable reverse-aging gene." I have no clue if this sort of stuff is only funny to me...I don't get out much, you see.

New Shoe Smell...?

*phew* I'm not the only on who gets distracted...

Celao and Nina chibis

In honor of my 9th wedding anniversary, I made chibi magnetic paper dolls (what else could you expect of me these days, seriously?). The first two are of me and Celao from 1994 when we first met. We are represented in our super cool school uniforms and our even more super cool street clothes. We had a wedding that was kick-butt-put-together in less than 24 hours, and given that, we didn't look too shaby. And last, obviously, we are in our present, parenting costumes, which we wear all the time now.

Celao, te amo! Gracias para la familia que tenemos ahora. Espero muchos anos mas contigo y nuestros cueridos hijos!--9

Goerrilla Painter--Don't Look at Me Like That.

Thank God For Dictionaries...

Dysfunctional...

Hmm. Greek mythology. I love it. But I used to love it more before it sunk in how dysfunctional they were. And I mean that in the best way: *ahem* I'll never call my own family dysfunctional again with out really reflecting on the Olympians first.

Also, before I knew it, Ares was lookin' like Marvin the Martian, but that's actually totally fitting, really.

12,960,000 Seconds of Waiting

So, yeah...we're Twilight fans around here. And it's sad. But the upside is that we like the parodies even better--that's definitely a plus, huh?

Tired.

'nuff said.

Awkward Conversation

Politically Incorrect Moment . . .

Artist's disclaimer (see how it came first? *nervous glance around*): Marcelo and I were sitting down to watch 'Run Lola Run' the other night . . . and my inner-Loki came out. If I enjoy politically incorrect humor it's against my will (and living with Marcelo for nine years would push almost anyone's tolerance for politically incorrect humor beyond even the most staunchly set boundries). So, my inner-Loki took over my speech facilities and blurted out "Hah! Celao! Run Chola Run!" and we both were incapacitated by laughter for five minutes. And then my inner-Loki collaborated with my inner-Artist and . . .


. . . and here's the result: a parallel universe version of 'Run Lola Run' set in Cochabamba, Bolivia, with a cholita heroine and a thrilling climax in La Cancha. Oh, and a techno-cumbia score to back it up *smile*.

My Long Lost Friend Amanda

Amanda is a friend of mine who I haven't seen since High School. Though I don't have a clear visual memory of what she looked like, I have some strong and lasting impressions of her. She was sweet and graceful and was one of the first people I remember thinking of as lady-like. She seemed delicate but she had a inner core of strength and marched to her own tune in the face of peer pressure and peer snubbery. Thinking of her motivates me to honor my own nature; I'm grateful for the strength Amanda has given me, even through the distance of seventeen years and several states.

FRSA: Say Hello to My Little Friend!

David asked for a chibi of himself for his facebook profile...but he didn't necesarily opt to be in the comic...but Ernst had no problem so we figured we'd act first and ask questions later. Thanks, Ernst. Say hi to your momma for me.

FRSA: Whip It meets Juno?

There's a part of me that takes things very literally at times. It can be comical and it can be down right sad.

Special thanks to Marcelo for letting himself be a subject in Free Range Sequential Art. You rule, Celao!!!

FRSA: "Yes" & "No"

Welcome to sequential art self therapy 101 (or 303 or 909, I get confused by the room numbers). Disclaimer: I'm not really a fan of Marianne Dashwood but Carmen (aka: my doppleganger) would seem to be. I think she likes the way Marianne can pull attitude and get away with it...okay, now having put that into words, I've changed my mind and I like Marianne very much. My inner Giberson-girl is very much pleased *smile*.

FRSA: Skin Tone...

Artist's Disclaimer: Although Young Alicia and I have had conversations about chibi skin tone (anglosaxon, caulcasian chibis, not Marcelo chibis (*smile*), this conversation is one I've had in my own head and in no way reflects the attitude Alicia takes with me in general. Alicia is a sweet individual and if she pulls attitide, I think we both take it in humorous spirit...um, okay, that's all.

Free Range Chibi Experimentation I