...when I was being absolutely ridiculous (again).

When I go about ten million weeks without posting anything, it's usually because of one of two reasons--I can't or I don't want to.  This time it was a little of both.  I've started writing a new story, which means I have a difficult time thinking about anything else.  But before that, when I tried to illustrate my trip to California, I wanted to draw absolutely everything that happened.  As you may have noticed, I can't draw very many things.  I've pretty much got the pantry down pat, and my bed and my window, my TV, myself, a handful of other people, a hot air balloon, flowers, a box of chocolates, a fork, a bridge, a fortune from a fortune cookie, and God of course.  And clouds.  And smiley faces.  And even bunnies.  But that's about it. 

As it turns out, California has a lot more things in it than just those.  In fact, I don't think I saw a single bunny or pantry.  Maybe not even a bridge.  Sadly, and probably unsurprisingly, I found my drawing skills unequal to the task of drawing absolutely everything.  I tried an aerial view of mountains.  That was a bust.  I tried a cove.  Nope, can't draw that very well, either.  Just as I started to try my hand at drawing a crab, I lost heart and cowered in a cocoon of denial, pretending I didn't even have a blog to update.

So.  As the days turned to weeks, I really wanted to return to my blog and create something, but my trip to California loomed like a spectre on the horizon of potential posts.  I could do NOTHING until I had gotten past that one.

Then I decided that was stupid, and I could take as long as I wanted to draw California.  Or, more accurately, to figure out how to draw California without drawing aerial views of mountains and coves.

Until I can figure out how to draw California, I hope everyone will be satisfied with this, instead:

The Top Five Things Freaking Me Out Right Now

5)

4)

 3)

2)

1)



And there you have it.  My life since last we spoke.  I'm still watching every episode of Roswell ever made, and it's only because I didn't feel like drawing a long-haired time-traveling head alien or a gang of clones in New York gangster duds that it didn't make this list.  Because I don't know if you guys ever watched Roswell, but there are some really bizarre things that happen in the second season.  And I'm not just talking about the hair.  Though that is a large part of it.

Note: The subject of this entry probably should have been "A funny thing happened WHILE I was being absolutely ridiculous (again)," but I sacrificed grammar for theme.  I've come to terms with that decision.  Mostly.

Another Note: I should probably mention, in case you didn't pick up on it, that in the Number 3 Thing Freaking Me Out Right Now, that's my blog that I'm trying to draw.  In case that wasn't clear.

Yet Another Note: And in the Number 4 Thing Freaking Me Out Right Now, what is happening is that I've been reading so much I'm having a difficult time transitioning between fictional and real life.

And One Last Note: I've probably ruined the humor in this post by explaining it to death, but I told you I was being ridiculous, so I don't feel that badly about it.

...when I declared a Wallow Week.

Ok, so I know I’ve been MIA lately.  But I have a good reason.

I officially declared the week before last “Wallow Week.”

You know when something bad happens?  Well-adjusted people who think practically and look at the big picture generally take the hit and move on.  Slightly obsessive, detail-oriented sensationalists like me deal with things far more dramatically.  And, if we’re being honest, more satisfactorily.

We mope.  A lot.

It’s the essence of the thing, really.  Sure, what actually happened is sad.  But the idea—nay, the very CONCEPT of something sad happening, the metaphysical marker that is erected over this major event in life history—is tragedy.  It’s like more than what actually happened, you mourn the event, the situation itself, the fact that something happened at all.  That is how you elevate temporary misfortune to THE WORST THING EVER.

I do this on a regular basis, obviously.  Try it, it’s fun.  But in all seriousness, after a week or two of determined optimism that borders on martyrdom, you just get tired.  And, damn it, it’s time to wallow.

So I did.  By executive order, I instituted Wallow Week in Katie Land.  I submit to you a graphic summary.



And a magical thing happened.  Around Episode 14 of Roswell, after snickering at 1990’s bedhead and sweater sets, and the fact that teenage angst is evidently a universal phenomenon, I began to feel—dare I say it?  Better.  Happier.  Bouncier.  I got all the mope out of my system and the wallow out of my soul.

And then I decided to go to California.  More on that later.

Note: I decided the post-naming scheme was getting tedious, so from now on I'll name my posts "...name," where "..." is "A funny thing happened when."  So "...when I declared a Wallow Week" is to be read "A funny thing happened when I declared a Wallow Week."  I think that's better!