Red Dye 40

"All foods containing artificial colors (such as red dye 40) or artificial flavorings should be avoided. Artificial additives can cause various adverse reactions, including mood swings, depression, fatigue, headache, rash, aggression, irritability, and attention difficulties, among others."

I have been drinking and eating a lot of products that have red dye 40 in them, and have noticed it affects me quite a bit. Not fun. I've been moody, crabby, depressed, etc. I've stopped eating/drinking anything with this dye. Hopefully my mood will change soon...

I still intend on seeking help to balance my moods, though.

By the camp fire...

A little sketchy-sketch while sittin' by the campfire. We encountered raccoons, woodpeckers and field mice. We had a great, relaxing time...

...and down the Path

A little contrast from the last pic. From one of our camping trips...

Up the path...

Another shot from our trek in Chinatown. What a fantastic part of San Francisco...

We're goin campin'...

Heading to Mirror Lake, just outside of Wisconsin Dells.

The background is from one of our camping trips last year. I’ve had this image stewing in my sketchbook for some time now. Don’t really know what it means, but I like the look of it. Not sure if the dotted lines make it look like the branch snapped. They’re supposed to indicate the removal of the log saw-free…what?

Have a great weekend!

Post it?

This is how I feel sometimes when I’m at work. I have post-it notes all over the place. Half the time, make that most of the time, I can’t even read what I wrote.

And, I tend to throw out the most important ones…

Health Hazard

I’ve been trying to simplify my work, but as you can see from this piece, I’m not quite there yet. I try to make things simple, but as I ink my drawings, the pen just keeps making marks, even as I try to stop it. Damn pen!

I’m going to start experimenting with cut paper soon. Hopefully, that will force me to really simplify my images. I intend on posting them as I go along, so please bear with me for they may not look the best. It’s just something I’ve always wanted to try.

Thanks again for visiting and your support!

Life Support

Ahhh....oil. Fun stuff!

It's always one extreme to the next. It's up, down, sideways. Ever turbulent...

Jottin' down ideas...

A few pages from my sketchbook. I need to decide if I want to pull a portfolio piece out of these weekly drawings, or just let things flow. I've always been one to have to have a finished "something" if I'm putting out this much effort. *sigh* It's a never ending battle...

Downtown to Chinatown...

(Taken during our little jaunt in Chinatown)

I've decided to show some of my photos for the weekend posts. I have a ton of pics, some old, some new, some good, some weird...I hope you enjoy!

An Alcatraz Sunset

It was quite windy that evening...

Imbalance

Kind of a cliche piece today, but, it fits the way my brain has been acting this week. The chemicals are sloshing around, and not behaving well together. I may need to see a doctor...

The incredible, edible...

(click for larger view)

What am I doing?

Some doodles from last night.

I’ve always had this tendency to want to have the “perfect” sketchbook. I see other artist sketchbooks, and I can’t help but compare mine to theirs. I want to have these perfect drawings, observations, etc., like the little sketchbook in Indiana Jones, or Da Vinci’s sketchbook. Fortunately, I’ve come to the realization that it doesn’t have to be perfect, that it is for experimenting and such.

I also realized that I’m a BIG fan of minimalist illustrations and drawings, like the work of Christoph Niemann, Luba Lukova, Craig Frazier, Noma Bar, and the line drawings of Picasso. I guess I have more work to do…

Round 2

“Get up, you sonofabitch!”

Not sure if that was actually spoken in any Rocky movies, but, I’m up, and ready for another round. I’ve had enough rest, and am ready to challenge myself again.

I’ve decided to post something everyday, be it a finished piece, a sketch, a doodle, a mistake, a study, etc. As long as my pen keeps flowing, I’ll post something.

This may sound a little weird, but, I’m going to be 34 soon (I know, it’s still kinda young), and I haven’t accomplished what I’ve wanted to accomplish. I was watching a 9/11 special Sunday night on the History channel, and it brought back a lot of emotions I felt at that time. I was deeply affected by those events, and watching that show made me realize that life is finite, and I need to live in the moment. Sounds corny, right? Well, it may, but it’s what I’ve come to realize.

Thanks for listening, and again, thank you for your support!

Cluttered thoughts