Survival of the kindest and the plague of positive thinking

I am so happy to know that a cuddle hormone exists.

mmmm...serotonin
On the other hand...

Happy New Year

God Jul and Happy 2010 from the whole crew!

Keep your prefrontal cortext well-fed.

Thanksgiving table centerpieces

We got this Turban squash from the Pumpkin Patch on Sauvie Island.

This branch came from a walk on the logging road.

Bothell and family didn't come this year, but they were here in spirit.

Clementine made these candles, she brought a whole box of them last year.

I filled all my pockets with Alder catkins and cones one day.

I love the variation of color and the shapes.

Nine of us fit nicely. And we were nice.

Tales, family portrait

Here is Bothell's family. Everyone was jealous that Cobalt had a formal portrait in his profile instead of the usual rough sketch. I got sick of all the caterwauling and bickering, so I caved and had a little photo shoot for the whole gang.
Here is Clementine ( the mom), Bothell (the dad), Veronica (daughter, soon to be introduced), Cobalt (son), and Ravenna (Cobalt's S.O.)

Tales, introducing Cobalt

Cobalt T. Narwhal

Cobalt spent his younger years with his nose stuck in a book and as a consequence has the biggest vocabulary (in English) of anyone in North America. Like all narwhals, Cobalt looks like an innocent doofus, yet he carries himself with a strange and unexpected glamour. His musical tastes are catholic, but he particularly favors Drone at present. This is, perhaps, a reflection of his passion for the bagpipe. Cobalt is nothing if not taciturn. His wit is so dry that a light breeze could set it aloft. He is a fiercely competitive game player (insisting on being score-keeper) and a talented computer nerd. Trained in law, he throws words around like: “egregious”, “fiduciary”, and “null and void”. He also says things like: “egads”, “gadzooks”, and “forsooth”, which are funnier.

Ravenna is his girlfriend and Bothell and Clementine are his parents.

In the studio, work in progress

I have been working on a new tile series combining text and image. Above are initial pencil sketches on the bisque tile. I work out the lettering on the computer first to control my chaotic handwriting.
Here they are, slip trailed and ready to glaze. I have some orders for customized table tops for children, just putting the name of a child in place of my character's name.
I haven't really figured out marketing for the 6" tiles yet. I think they need to be in a retail setting. I doubt that anyone would actually install them in a bathroom or kitchen. Gah, I really hate marketing...

Tales, introducing Ravenna T. Robot

There, doesn't she look nice? She splashed water on her face, adjusted her antennae and came out ready to greet you this afternoon. Meet Ravenna:

With her verbal abilities, political passion, and leadership skills, Ravenna is a very effective community organizer. She is a fantastic and witty writer who communicates with unruly enthusiasm. Chronically unemployed, Ravenna gets flustered when her circuits overload (once or twice a day) and she ends up baking cupcakes, creating paper crafts or blogging instead of looking for meaningful employment. However, when her book is finally published, she will be rich and famous and the talk show circuit will provide her with a platform to implement her lifetime goal of creating world peace. She loves unicorns, rainbows, and believes that bacon* is the cure for the ills of the world.
And, by the way, I never called her a Drama Queen. Someone else (cough-Bothell-cough) said that.

*this belief might compromise her achieving her goal of world peace ...

Tales, what they do to feel better

Bothell thinks 'pretend fly' when he zooms around with his arms outstretched, that's why it doesn't say pretend to fly.

Just wait until you see what Malone does to cheer himself up...

Tales, Bothell and Yeti

Everyone has something they do when they need to cheer up and feel better. Yeti and Bothell like to zoom around and pretend to fly.

Tales, Annabel T. Bunny

Just in time for the celebrations of Spring, fertility, and rebirth, it's time to meet Annabel T. Bunny. She is represented here, as per usual, with sketch unearthed from the bottom of my bag that was quickly drawn on the back of a grocery list.


Annabel loves surfing the internet, mahjong, and crafting. She was a gymnast in her younger days and spent her high school years perfecting her stag leap. Skilled at pantomime, she performs a hilarious rendition of a dying fish. Her siblings, Bothell and Lucy, enjoy playing pranks on her. For instance, they will hide her trifocals (she is practically blind without them) and then yell "snake" when there isn't really any snake*. Annabel is a people-pleaser who finds it easy to merge with the wishes of others, so much so that she sometimes finds it difficult to identify her own needs. She has the capacity to give to the point of exhaustion coupled with a surprising rebellious streak. She is helpful and humble and believes that chocolate is the solution to everything.

*Ha, ha, ha...that's soooo funny!

Tales, introducing Clementine T. Raccoon

Clementine is imperturbable. She takes care of everyone around her in her calm and reassuring way. She never gets mad. Clem is always the designated driver, because her husband, Bothell, tends to get lost a lot. A loyal and supportive daughter, she calls her mother everyday. She is the anchor of her family, unfazed by anything. An avid reader, she generally carries an enormous book with her. She just likes really thick books. She is tolerant, skeptical, and has a droll sense of humor. A lover of board games and cards, she excels at scrabble (seriously, she will beat you every time). She has a talent for cutting hair and making candles, but does not cook. Clementine is such a comfortable presence, it is relaxing just to be around her.

Tales, introducing Bothell T. Mole

original Bothell scrap-of-paper sketch

Bothell has a kind and gentle nature, even sappy movies make him cry. Possessed with a sly and understated sense of humor, he may or may not be joking, it's sometimes hard to tell. He believes that he can run faster than those high altitude jets, because when he looks up it seems like they are barely moving. He also thinks the moon is following him. He loves Clementine more than the whole world. He's impatient and will start flapping his hands wildly and blurt out whatever is on his mind if you ignore him for too long. Bothell is deathly allergic to nuts and plasters anything remotely suspect with Mr. Yuk stickers. He hates getting lost, which happens frequently because he gets bored and starts thinking about other things instead of where he's going. He applies salt evenly and methodically to his food before he even tastes it. He is Lucy's brother.

*I can't decide about the glasses, they're kind of cute but he looks a bit stupefied and confused without them. Which is also cute. Lucy thinks she should be the only one who gets glasses. What do you think?