Yes, it’s another Buchwald sketch. I did it a while ago, and I’m still pining to get going on a Big Buchwald Project that’s looking farther and farther off. This drawing also demonstrates some loose, free, quickness that I seem to have lost for now. Yeah, I know that back leg is a little weird, but I still prefer it to what I’ve been up to lately.

I just keep thinking how much I wanna simplify things when I get to that Next Big Project. Time to Speed Things Up and Get Things Done. None of us is making a career out of comics, so why kill ourselves over it? Oy. I should stop now. Jeeeeeeee-zooey, we haven’t had one o’ these posts in a while, have we??

Bleh. I just don’t know where the time goes, folks. How does one achieve work/school/life/love balance?

Oh glory, has it been more than two weeks since I broke my tooth? I’m almost used to it, although I think I’m a bit shyer with strangers. In the meantime, I’ve been to my ancestral home, where my parents are grieving their approaching empty nest life when my baby brother, Jack, goes to college today. What was meant to be a long-weekend visit turned into an extended stay when my significant other’s new-old car got itself stuck at the mechanic with problem appearing after problem. We got back Wednesday night and I’ve been trying to squeeze a week’s worth of work (both paying and personal) into these last couple of days. Waaaah wah wah. Anyhow, I’m back, and tomorrow is my sister’s birthday, and a week from today I’ll go back to school.

Things are happening! If you follow my Twittles diligently enough, you may already know that last week I was going through a bit of despair. I didn’t think I’d ever work on this comic, or maybe any comic ever again. I was lonely and bored and only wanted to drink gin and play video games. I think this was mostly because nothing could live up to the spectacular weekend before it.

There was delicious barbecue with grilled potato salad and grilled tomatillo salsa. There was jumping in the river and taking in the view down the Connecticut River Valley. There was a three-hour walk to the town’s outer limits. There was Rock Band the game and going to Indian food. It was all great. And it was all part of my stalwarts, my rocks, Caitlin and Todd, coming up to visit.

At any rate, now I’m coping. Partially by talking to myself. Today I cheered Lee Marvin when he ended a Western with a really cutting line to a robber baron. Yesterday I got tough with my pens, and with a guy on the radio who wanted to extend the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy.

But, the more crucial part of my recent spat of not hating myself is as I mentioned first; things are happening! Yesterday I finished revising the second chapter of Petrified Girlfriend, “The Forest Primeval.” If you’ll recall, I was working day and night on this back around April. I let it stew and fester a couple months before coming at it with the clinical gaze of an editor, and now that awful deed is done. But, before I can flip you all a third issue of Oak & Linden, (featuring, of course, this very same chapter), I’ll be adding some gray tones to the piece and also making some little shorts. What would Oak & Linden be without shorts?? Anyhow, it should drop in September.

And speaking of Todd, and talking about collaborating with him and Dan, and Colin, did you notice Wilma Whistlepig putting on some weight up there? How do you like this, with the drawing at the top, where you want it? Where you can skip the blab blab blab?

It’s Passover and it’s Easter, and Easter includes my favorite exclamation of all, as seen above. I thought I’d switch things up a bit this week and do more showing and less telling. Maybe you’ll like this drawing some stoner kid did in his notebook in highschool…

OK, actually there was a guy on the L train platform playing the blues b’jesus out of Amazing Grace and had me literally on the verge of tears. I didn’t have any dollars, though! Only change! I emptied my pocket, but he totally deserved better. So I guess maybe I thought I could make it up to him by drawing him on the ride home? Annnnd, (that’s the Obama speaking delay) how about this? I don’t know if Cait’s melancholy is rubbing off on me, or maybe I’m just overwhelmingly frustrated right now. I’ve been fighting customers at work and generally going around moping. Anyhow, He is risen!

Okay bloggers, real talk. I haven’t posted in a while, which makes me sad. I’m continuing to make glacial progress on my website overhaul, which makes me happy in a bittersweet kind of way. I haven’t even posted a celebrity for either of the last two Saturdays. Do I chalk this up as a blog vacation, or do I quit on the whole celebrities thing, and develop more drawings in the nakedness/supernatural/imp vein? I have been doing some more loose-limbed sketchbook doodling lately.

Let me tell you, it’s hard to figure out where one fits in the ever-shrinking editorial illustration world. It’s also hard to figure out the appropriate tone for a public blog. When I launch at PatBarrett.com, I’m going to include the sketchblog as a sub-site. How much of this sort of desperate, searching, I’m so in my mid twenties business should be allowed to continue? How should I link to you, my readers and fellow bloggers? Where do I leave the Live Journal world behind? Ay ay ay.

This drawing is inspired by Dr. Seuss wartime political cartoons. I’ll post some in a follow-up.

When blogs are just a bunch of posts apologizing to imagined readers for not posting frequently enough. So I’m not gonna do it. I swear. ‘Cause I was sick, okay!?

This might not be the most inspiring sketchbook page ever…Anyhow, it’s from the summer. I really haven’t done much doodling lately. I’ve done some big work, but more quick illustration work than fulfilling-as-an-artist work. Feeling a little out of the groove, but also working out some more compelling story stuff for a comic I’m slow and not-steadily making.

The winter time is a sleeping time. Also a time for losing checks! What the funk!

This post has a new drawing. They’ve all been a little bit old so far. Like, from the fall more than from the now. This one’s a little bit new. O-A looked weird to me. But it was right all along! See why we need to start over with speleeq?