Take Me Away

       (Music, by Jimmy Page, to play as you read today's post. Black Mountain Side guitar solo)

Art is many things to many people.

Some love music, some painting, some acting or writing--the list goes on and on. Some like a combination.

But there seems to be something in common with any art avenue you travel down--the experience takes you somewhere else. 

Time stands still and we are able to feel something beautiful. Our senses become heightened and dulled at the same time--and we lose ourselves.

Yogis and god-seekers look inward. They meditate to find a very quite place to find peace, or love, or the infinite.

The envelope of the art experience is the opposite. We step into the world and time of another and make it our own. When drawing we become part of the picture, music can take us to another country or bring us back to an experience we loved, writing involves creating another dimension and developing a universe for a brand new being. We are no longer aware of our pains, or losses, or needs, or even time. 

For a while we are in heaven.

Of course we have to come back to earth, back to our realities--but so what. We have our art, and we can recreate the nirvana at will. 

It is the closest thing to magic that I can imagine.

Fun Easter Book and a Page to Color

Spring is in the air, and Easter is right around the corner. Time to wonder, is the Easter bunny a robot? 

You can color your way to the truth and find out in the book Francine and the Super Spy Bunny.

CLICK HERE to BUY

 You will find many surprises in the book, including a six foot tall chocolate bunny!

 

Kindle version on Amazon available for $.99, but order the coloring book if you if you have crayons and are ready to use them.

When you (or your kids ;) )have a beautiful picture colored, send it to me! I will post it on the Amazon page along with some previous pix from last year.

Have fun--and watch out for bunnies with glowing red eyes.

Kid Coddling--Even in BOOKS--Just STOP IT!

Most of us think our children are wonderful, and most of them are. When we become parents for the first time we are transported and transformed--a new dimension is added to our lives and we will never be the same.

But some of us go off the deep end. 

We get postpartum depression, anxiety, and we are simply tired from an endless lack of sleep.
Sometimes these states lead us to worry for our kids, too. Are they cold, hot, hungry, tired, sick, or scared? Not all of our worries are excessive, but some are.

Some parents want to protect their children from TOO much--they don't want them to experience sadness or fear because they are afraid that it will be too much for their delicate son or daughter. They are not allowed to play outside because they might get hurt, they can't sign up for swimming because chlorine is bad for them, and no cooking classes because they might cut off a finger. 

Sure, you can hover around them and make sure they don't hit their heads when they are young, or not let them go outside when it is raining so they don't catch a cold, but at what cost?

Kids are ferocious--they can be mean and savvy and are born with instincts just like any other wild animal. Of course we teach them to be polite and to have manners, but I think we may also "nice" a lot of their natural urges away. We teach them to share to a point where they give up their own wants and needs because some other kid wants the same thing they do. They are not bad little people because they have opinions and desires, but for some reason our society has made it seem so. 

Books like Where the Wild Things Are speak to that in a child. They are told they are allowed to be fierce and to speak out, and someone will still love them if they do.

Maurice Sendak "refuses to lie to children", and says he will not "cater to the bullshit of innocence". He feels we all, to some extent, lead desperate lives, and no one escapes completely unscathed. 

More and more is expected from our children and at increasingly younger ages. Hiding them from what the real world is and what it will expect from them does not do them any good. 

I am not saying we need to inform them of the atrocities of war or include them in our money woes, but allowing them to experience a full rainbow of feelings, and letting them know that all these feelings are valid, expected, and OK can only help them.

Here is a list of books that lets kids be fierce, sad, angry, curious, and bad, and show them they are not alone.

Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak--http://www.amazon.com/Where-Wild-Things-Maurice-Sendak/dp/0064431789/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top  

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling--http://www.amazon.com/Harry-Potter-Sorcerers-Stone-Book-ebook/dp/B00728DYRO/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1425751626&sr=1-1&keywords=harry+potter+and+the+sorcerer%27s+stone

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney--http://www.amazon.com/Diary-Wimpy-Kid-Book-ebook/dp/B005CRQ4OW/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1425751772&sr=1-2&keywords=diary+of+a+wimpy+kid

Coraline by Neil Gaiman--http://www.amazon.com/Coraline-Neil-Gaiman/dp/0380977788/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=&qid=

The Curse of 1000 Directions

We are given free reign in this country to be whatever we want. We are told from the time we are born that our choices are endless, and we can do it all

We are so lucky in so many ways!

We have freedom of religion and speech, our choice of career, spouse, and where to live, and the luxury of having spare time and the ability to choose what to do with it.

But there is a bit of a dark side to all this freedom. 

If we think we don't like one of our choices, we easily hop to something else. For example, I used to be a makeup artist. I not only did weddings and events, but I eventually worked for Sony Studios and several very well-known photographers in NYC. The money was great and I could choose the jobs I wanted--or did not want. 

The I got bored--or I thought I did.

I decided I wanted to try something else. To be honest--I can't remember what I hopped to that time--but for a few minutes I'm sure it was just as exciting as it was the first time I walked into a glamorous photo shoot in Manhattan. And I'm also pretty sure that I thought I got bored with that too.

Although I was unaware of it at the time, I had a bit of an addiction. The Next New Thing was my version of cigarettes and heroin. No one was there to stop me, and I took full advantage. I also like money--and the idea that the next thing might make me even MORE money than the thing I was already doing was very seductive. 

But in reality it was not about the money--it was about my own inability to take things to the next level. To get through the inevitable doldrums that happen as you become proficient at something, and your natural talent develops beyond what you are born with.

I was not trying to avoid work, but I was unconsciously trying to avoid becoming an expert at anything. Being an eternal novice has its advantages.

Keeping my "new guy" status gave me the ability to shirk true responsibility--in the field and to myself. How could I be expected to know what to do when I just started? Of course I can't help you...I don't know what I'm doing yet!

Yeah--ew. 

Not easy to admit, but when I realized what I was doing, (with the help of a friend and endless conversations), I thought long and hard and put the breaks on.

I thought about the things I wanted to accomplish, and what I really had to be doing to get them done. 

I could no longer twitch my nose and start over. I had to work my tail off at ONE THING--whether it was fun, or I was tired, or I had a headache, or (one of my favorite personal excuses), someone was knocking on the door. There were no longer 1000 directions to choose from. In fact, the path became incredibly narrow. I suddenly had to use laser focus and not allow distractions.

Funny--this was always my worst fear. To be "stuck" doing one thing--no choices, no freedom, no fun. I would be missing everything going on in the world around me. What I failed to admit was that I was missing out on plenty. Missing out on developing something and seeing it through to fruition, becoming very successful at something I loved, and having the satisfaction of becoming an expert at something.

I have been writing and illustrating exclusively for five years now. I have a routine--GASP--I never thought I would utter that sentence. I am "stuck" every day going into my studio and getting down to work. I do the same thing day in and day out--and I have never felt more liberated.

I do not have to wonder what I will do next or what I am missing. I realize there is an interesting freedom to sticking to something and becoming truly good at it. I am allowed a different view--the experiences of the next level. The deeper insights and conversations that come with knowing more than entry level information, and the satisfaction of finishing work that is MINE.

Maybe I am a late bloomer, but there is something to be said for the experience of life too--better late than never. But maybe this is just my time.

Kids, Pets, and Books

If you ask any kid in the world what he wants for his or her birthday there is probably a 90% chance they will say A PUPPY!

Or a kitten, bird, fish, hamster, gerbil, ferret, mouse, or pot bellied pig. 

Even if there are pets in the house--they will want more pets. Especially the young version of any animal they may choose. It seems kids just know they are on the same level. (CLICK HERE to see a few pix that drive that point home just a bit ;) ).

Kids and puppies just go together. If you have one or the other you are already stuck feeding them and keeping them clean--so why not just get the other?

They also like being around each other. They both have endless energy to play and can help with your already greatly diminished energy level. 

I think this is also the reason kids love books with animals. They have a natural love for the outdoors and nature, and animals in books, whether anthropomorphic or real capture their attention. Even the Cat in the Hat, who bears only the most faint resemblance to a feline, (I think he kind of looks like Jack Benny), grabs their attention. 

It's a mutual admiration society, kids love animals and animals love kids.

They truly love animals, and love the books they are in. From Clifford the Big Red Puppy to Peter Rabbit, kids feel warm, safe, and familiar when they read about animals.

Even my favorite book as a child, Where the Wild Things Are, has animals in it--kind of...

Some scientists warn that kids could get confused if reading about animals that have human traits. I think

(I'm not a doctor) that we do not give kids enough credit. I do not think Winnie the Pooh, Dory the fish, or Snoopy did me or any other kid any harm.

Has it been done already? Yep. But kids love it, and it will be done again. I'll do it in my next book in fact. And I'm pretty certain all the kids will be fine even after they see the main character in the book is a mouse, and he wears a vest.

I think they will be just fine. :)

KIDS! Make a 3D Hand!

3D art is so cool.

Just a quick post to show you how to do a really cool and quick drawing of your hand--in 3D~!!

You'll need:

~ Paper

~ A ruler

~ Several markers (thicker is better for colors, and one thin black) Colored pencils will work fine too.

Watch the vid and have fun!!

It really does look like a hand is under the paper. Feel free to send me pix of your artwork.

Another version:

Scary Books and KIDS!

When I was in grammar school I loved Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. Middle school had me interested in a book called The Active Enzyme, Lemon-Freshened, Junior High School Witch, and high school found me sleeping at the foot of my parent's bed after reading The Exorcist and The Amityville Horror.

My son had a fascination with the Bone series, and my friend's daughter insisted on reading more Neil Gaiman even after Coraline rendered her an insomniac for months.

What is it in horror and the paranormal that intrigues us, even as children?

I am not implying that everyone loves to be scared, but there is surely an attraction.

Another friend's son, at six, filled up her queue at Blockbuster Video with enough Frankenstein and Dracula films to keep them viewing for months. This kid couldn't figure out how to unlock the front door, but he could figure out the computer AND the DVR when he wanted to watch a scary film.

My son read Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark when he was in middle school. He told me it was silly, until he read The Wendigo, then it was nightlights on for a few weeks. 

We were terrified reading shivery, scary stuff as kids, and our kids want those same delightful chills now.

Of course they will read the same things we did like The Witches by Roald  Dahl, all the Goosebumps books, The House With a Clock in its Walls, and Bunnicula, but I've also heard of a few new thrillers. 

For there youngest set there is The Monster at the End of this Book, featuring a Sesame Street favorite, Grover. There is nothing there that will really scare even the smallest of kids, but the idea is exciting to them. 

Middle-grade kids will like The Last Apprentice, a creepy tale of  ghost and witch hunting. Monstrumologist, a Gothic, Dickens-like book about a scientist and his apprentice who find and identify, (and kill if necessary) a variety of monsters, will appeal to the slightly older horror reading aficionados. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is also very popular with high school kids. In fact that book was popular with everyone last year. 

We know kids love horror, and I think I might know why. Kids are relatively powerless. They are told what to do and when to do it, and are afraid of many things--the dark, their closets, mean kids, and even school.

When they read a horror book they meet monsters, crazy teachers, witches, ghosts, and goblins. They get involved in tales about getting lost, eaten, and haunted. Sure they get scared--but they all survive. Every time a kid finishes a scary book they come out the other end, maybe a bit frazzled and scared, but basically unscathed. AND they have slayed a dragon, faced the monster in the closet, and come face to face with their fears, and WON.

Of course we want to protect our kids and keep them safe, but these dark books help our kids meet their own personal monsters--and be the victor! 

So turn down the lights, open your books, and get ready for a night of shivery and spooky fun. There is more to horror than meets the eye!

Quick How To lesson for the kids who love Where the Wild Things Are!