Get Kraken Octopus Zentangle With Paper Boat Greeting Card

I saw a wonderful old vintage image of the Kraken attacking a ship and thought it would be funny if it were a paper boat. I'm not certain where the Zentangle came from; some days my sketch book is an odd place to be.

Available on Etsy.

Watercolor Painting of a Frog Holding An Umbrella From My Art Journal

I adore frogs and when I saw this cute photograph by Penkdix Palme I was compelled to use it as a reference photo.

I only did a journal sketch since I never do serious paintings from another person's images. I had mixed feelings after I completed it since I tried to find out more about the photographer to give him credit for the shot.

There's a bit of controversy over the series of photographs. I prefer to take the photo in good faith and hope nothing bad happened to the frog. Photographers luck into amazing shots and he did appear in National Geographic. Animals are clever and capable of using tools.

The lesson I learned is stick with my original images and not be swayed by pretty pictures. Life is simpler that way.

Drawing On Rocks with Ink - Small Adventures Week 5

We have a lot of rocks gathered from the shores of Lake Superior. My 2 daughters and I went to McDonalds last week, fortified ourselves with sausage biscuits and started drawing on the rocks with Sharpie markers.

Sharpies get a bit smelly so the picnic tables outside McDonalds was a pleasant place to work.

Book Launch Party

Last night I went to a college friend's book launch party. The soiree was held in a gorgeous old library.

I haven't seen her since 1978 so I was looking forward to reconnecting with her and another college chum.

The encounter was a far cry from our college days, it was classic Minnesota nice. It's hard to believe how close we were before I moved out of the dorm.

Ramen Bento and Gyro Lunchtime Adventures

We went to lunch at Obento-ya because they are one of the few twin city restaurants that serve ramen. It was an attractive restaurant with beautiful presentation; the problem was that we wanted to try the gyros across the street. Obento-ya only serves Ramen on Mondays and we had a reservation so we ate about half and went for our second lunch.
We split an unusual gyro. The meat was the kind you find on kabobs and we didn't expect to find spearmint in the sauce (that's pretty exotic when you're used to mall type gyros). The best part was the floor sagged towards the middle so all tables were at an angle. Crescent Moon is located near the U of M so we got to listen to the self-important man behind us pontificate on everything from third world agricultural practices to the space program. We sat tilted, eating off waxed paper, looking for spearmint chunks while hearing about free trade and the Euro. It was like picnicking in your car on the side of a hill while listening to a very bad NPR guest. Funny!

Bike Path Artist Journal Page

I got a bike rack so I can venture further with my cruiser; it's a one speed so I need to be pretty devoted to go on a major road trip.

The trails in Maple Grove were so pretty that I stopped and did a quick sketch. The mosquitoes that couldn't keep up when I was moving were more than happy to keep me company while I sat trail side.

Art Journal Food Drawing Page

The ink drawing on the upper left is a dragon boat from the dragon boat festival. I'm a fan of any excuse to draw dragons and we had a fun storm; it was a good day.

The menu items include Panda Express take out, sweet potato fries, potato salad, ice cream cone, and scrambled eggs with asparagus.

Art Journal Food Drawing Page

Today's food drawings include: donuts, sugar free fudgesicles, chex mix, tortilla soup, smores, french bread, salad, strawberries and fish sticks.
I sacrificed an external hardrive to a volcano and our dog ran down freshly painted stairs. She sure was easy to track through the house.

I Have A New Favorite, My Noodler Fountain Pen

It's been a long time since I used a fountain pen. The nib cleans easily and it fits comfortably in my hand.

Jellyfish Zentangle

Art Journal Food Drawing Page

The food drawings were done with a micron pen. The pyramidal tea bag makes tea extra special.

Art Journal Food Drawing Page

Art Journal Food Drawing Page

Art Journal Food Drawing Page

Art Journal Food Drawing Page

Fireflies At The Cabin

The night and day view outside the cabin's picture window. Day is nice but the fireflies are insane this year.






















We had a bonfire and became god of the fireflies.

Gophers Munched The Wires Again

Art Journal Food Drawing Page

Art Journal Food Drawing Page

Art Journal Food Drawing Page