Patting Your Head and Rubbing Your Stomach- why I need to thank everyone for their Wacom donations....

I'm starting to feel like a Public Radio station with all my posts about this Artist Without a Wacom fundraiser I have been doing, but as I said when I started the thing- while it's REAAALLLY hard for me to ask for help - sometimes you gotta check your pride in at the door when the chips are down.   My friends have more than come through. In just a few days, I've nearly reached the goal I set up.

Just in case you all don't know how important this is to me, how much it means for me in terms of my business, and the quality of art I will be able to produce (not to mention increase the speed in which I can do it) using an Intuos tablet has always been a lot like patting my head and rubbing my stomach.  Like driving a standard trasmission the first time.  Or like playing drums (for me)  There is a disconnect, because you are drawing over here<---  and then looking up there ---> at the monitor.  Now, I'm sure that youngsters who have one of these from day one have no difficulty in this endeavor, but the thing is, I'm older. Set in my ways.  I have been drawing daily since I was able to hold a crayon.  And that was a LONNNNG time ago.  So trying to adapt to the Intuos was always a challenge, and it has never felt natural to me. I did adapt, but I have never been pleased with the expressiveness of my work, nor have I EVER been able to sketch with one.  So from a creative standpoint, it's been limiting.

But I could never justify the expense of a Cintiq.  They are insanely expensive new, but for two years now, I have been trying to figure out how I could scrape the funds to get a refurbished used one.  But $900.00 was the cheapest I could find, and I just have never had that kind of extra funds available to me.  And this year really smacked me (and a LOT of people I know) hard with some difficult times.  So, I have made do with this little Intuos tablet, because it worked, and that's what mattered. Someday...

But then right at Christmas while I was besieged with the normal expenses of the holidays, continued medical bills, and slow down of work, the Intuos (which was so graciously gifted to me by my friends Dan and Monica) started misbehaving.  I tried everything to get it functioning properly : loading and reloading drivers,  poring over Wacom forums, asking friends, but to no avail.  The little guy is just old, and isn't working 100% anymore;  it only services the left hand portion of my monitor now.  Basically,  I will try to draw a line, and it will stop midway, so I will have to zoom out, and move the canvas area higher up so I can draw.  I have never been fast drawing with the Intuos, but now I'm positively tortoisean.

So I had a decision to make: do I just get a newer Intuos, at a lower cost, or do I use this time to get what I really need to work effectively? But how do I do that?

And so, I reached out to all y'all.  And you did NOT let me down.

So, getting a Cintiq (or if I decide to go with the Yiynova, still doing the research) is going to be like really drawing again for me.  I'm getting so excited about how this will improve my work, my production time, and ultimately my business!

So to all of you who have helped me out, I just really need to say 'Thank You' again and let you all know what a difference you are making in my little world. <3 B

Hijacked by Silly

Hooray, we are well on our way into a new year!  Weather has been good, the country is still not going over that fiscal cliff (well... that's what They SAY...)

Anyhoo... In Barbland, still trying to get my brain organized to a full speed ahead approach. I think I need to get back to scheduling everything I do. Or something.  There are so many things I want to accomplish this year, and I can if I just stay on task and not let my brain wander arou-... whoa- look at that shiny... what was I saying?  Oh yes, aren't kitties cute?  Good grief, I got derailed last night where I came to a local (no-kill) shelter's page and found this beautiful long-haired Russian blue mix named Dexter... who I am NOT going to adopt...but I want to.... but no!  Can't!  See...two cats- you're okay.  Three, you start down that slope of becoming a Cat Collector, which then - add a few more cats (o'-cause they small!) you  devolve into earning the title of Crazy Cat Lady.  Since I already have the 'Crazy' part down, and for all intents and purposes, the 'Lady' part- (I am SO a lady!!!)  all it would take is a couple more cats and then I'm That Weirdo Woman With a Whole Bunch of Cats.

Hold on- wasn't I talking about something else?

And there it is- ADD in full bloom which proves my point that yes, scheduling is in order here. 100%.  For those of you younglings considering a self-employed career in the arts (writing, arting, musicking)  please note that discipline is one of those things you're gonna need to foster in yourself.  What makes it particularly imperative that you actively seek to learn the skill of organization, is that the creative gene and the discipline gene are not typically present in the same human.   (Those fortunate enough to be endowed with both are usually famous and often millionaires.)

I took a right/left brain test one time and determined that I do not POSESS a left hemisphere. Well, I do, but it's simply a storage facility for old phone numbers and Beatles trivia. And yes, the inside of my brain is a bunch of swirlies and pretty colors, but - it's also a big-ass mess; if you go walking around in there with reckless abandon, you can slip on the wet 'paint' of crazy ideas.  Which I often do, and then end up listening to System of a Down and looking up tab for that one Joni Michell song, or at super slo mo videos of running cheetahs, or pics of Tom Hiddleston.  Oh, boy, I sense another tangent coming on if I'm not careful here...

Actually, it's already too late- this whole blog has been hijacked by my silly.  Ah, well- tomorrow is another day.  I will be an organized, lefty brain tomorrow!  (yeeeah right.)  One final thing- thank you again to all who are helping me out with the Wacom Fund!  I can't believe how close I am to the goal!  Remember, Jan. 10 I will draw 2 names at random of everyone who donated - and those folks will each get a groovy digital illustration (done with my new tablet of course) of whatever they want!  Good luck to everyone!


Have a groovy, swirly, colorful, kitty filled day y'all!
~B