Thanksgiving

Just like Halloween, Thanksgiving isn't really celebrated here in Australia. I don't even know what it really is all about. I could look it up, but then my Google search history would look vaguely normal...for a short while, anyway. By the way, it is possible for a skunk to kill a dog. Just in case you were wondering.

Anyway, all that I know about Thanksgiving, I've learned from cartoons. Which means pilgrims and turkeys and pumpkin pie. And I suppose being thankful for things. Which is nice that there's a day specially for you to be thankful for things, but personally I think that if you're really thankful for things, you should remember it always and appreciate them ALL the time.

On that note, here are some things that I am forever thankful for:

• Sports socks. Thank you for keeping my feet comfortable all through the year and not wearing out as often as boring regular socks.

• Google. Thank you for revealing to me the answers to (almost) all of my stupid questions.

• Restaurants that let you split bills. Thank you for making dining out with a large group of friends that much easier.

• Ballpoint pens. Thank you for always being in the bottom of my bag, ready and waiting for whenever I feel like drawing something.

• Regurgitator. Thank you for all the albums, the live shows and being there for me all through my childhood.

• Octopuses. Thank you for not living on land and not being able to climb trees.

• Steam. Thank you for the awesome sales, being mostly reliable and letting me buy games without having to leave the house.

• Badminton. Thank you for being a fun sport that I can actually play even though I am terribly uncoordinated.

• Sunscreen. Thank you for making it possible for me to keep my pale ass outside all day while only getting partially sunburnt.

• Rollercoaster Tycoon. Thank you for allowing me to vicariously live out my dream of being a rollercoaster/waterslide tester.

Of course, there are many more things that I am forever thankful for. Friends and family, mostly, but nobody ever comes to the internet for sentimentality, do they?

Also, thank you to The Oatmeal for making awesome shirts.

What's playing?

Cake - Sick of you

Thank you, Cake, for making awesome film clips

Halloween in Australia

Okay, so Halloween isn't really celebrated that much over here. Not like in America at all.

Some parents like to let their kids dress up and go Trick or Treat-ing. I even saw one family attempting to do so on my walk home from the train station after uni. I'm not convinced they would've had too much luck. I saw ONE house decorated for Halloween today, and it was about a half hour drive away from my house. I'm actually glad I wasn't home around Trick or Treat time. I'm not sure I could handle answering a door to children expecting candy and have to tell them that all I have in my cupboard is brown rice, museli bars and a box of Wheaties.

Some people use it as an excuse for parties and to dress up in costumes, which is fine, if you aren't already of the opinion "hey, who needs an excuse to dress up silly and have some friends over?".

Me? I use Halloween as an excuse to indulge my love for horror movies. The problem lies in deciding which one to watch. I decided that since it was Halloween tonight, I should find something REALLY scary, and roped one of my housemates into it. But what movie to watch? In an attempt to find out what the scariest movie ever made was, I searched online for lists of the ten scariest movies ever made, found nine of them, and charted my results. Here's the top ten I came up with:

Top Ten (apparently) Scariest Movies Ever Made
10. Hellraiser
9. Alien
8. The Omen
7. Poltergeist
6. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
5. Psycho
4. Halloween
3. Rosemary's Baby
2. The Shining
1. The Exorcist

I have seen exactly.....ALL of them before. Here I was hoping that the internet would wow me with a list of movies that I'd not seen before, but no. Thanks, internet. Maybe if I expand my research to more than just top tens, and find some lists that actually have foreign films in them? I think the Japanese are pretty great at horror movies. And horror games too! Did anybody else ever play Project Zero? I think in some places it was called Fatal Frame. And just now, looking it up, apparently there is a Fatal Frame MOVIE in the works! YES!

Anyway, we ended up watching a couple episodes of The Walking Dead, and Saw. And then he went to bed and I sat at my computer and watched Unthinkable. Scary? No. Creepy? A little. Disturbing? Yes.

And, just in case anything I've said makes you think I have a personal vendetta against Halloween (I don't, by the way), I painted my nails with some ghosts.

And now I leave you with one of my most favourite cheesy Halloween songs!

Gig etiquette #1: Don't have stupid hair.

I am, by no means, a short person. I've had to stoop to get through a doorway before (it was in a castle in Japan, even the shortest person I was with at the time nearly hit her head), but there's a few good perks that come with being tall. Being able to see over things is a pretty good one.

Usually I have no problems being able to see the stage when I go to see a band play. I'm never the tallest person there, but tall enough that I can see past most people. But the other night I went to a gig where I had immense difficulty seeing the band moving about up on stage. My friend and I (he's similar height to me, which is about average dude height, I suppose) were situated behind what seemed to be a group convention of the tallest guys in town. That's never easy to see past, but one guy even more so. Not only was he tall, but he was wide as well, but that wasn't all. His hair was the part of him that was most difficult to see past.

Now, I've had hair mishaps at gigs before. Consistent dread-whipping at a Frenzal Rhomb show, a tall girl with a bun on the very top of her head, I've even been poked in the eye by some pretty impressive Liberty Spikes. But this guy...well, let me show you what his hair looked like:

Yes, the guy in the middle. Those are his super tall friends next to him, and those are his dreads pulled into a spiky ponytail on the very top of his head. Trying to see the stage while standing behind this guy was, I felt, akin to being seated directly behind Marge Simpson in a movie theater.


Anyway, apart from the obstructed view, it was a pretty darn good gig. Regurgitator always put on a great show.

How I came to go to a party as a banana hooker

So I was invited to a 21st, the theme of which was "fancy dress". I know, right? No specifications. Do you want me to dress all fancy, like with a monocle and everything, or do you want me to wear a costume of some sort? 

Originally, I thought I'd just dress as fancy as I could; the fanciest person at the party! That'd show 'em! But then I thought, no, that's boring. I know! I've ALWAYS wanted to wear a banana costume! EVERYTHING is funnier in a banana costume! And then I decided that I would combine the two, and go as a fancy banana. With a tux jacket and a top hat and everything!

So, I ordered myself an inexpensive banana costume online. I had some fancy-ish pants and shoes I could wear. My brother has a top hat and monocle I could borrow, and I'm quite good at drawing false mustaches on myself, if I do say so myself. All I needed was a tuxedo jacket. But therein lies the difficulty. Have you ever tried to find a tuxedo jacket with no size specifications other than 'it needs to fit around a banana costume'? Well, neither have I, because I was very busy in the weeks leading up to the party and ran out of time to find a jacket. 

The day of the party, and frantic for a plan B, I rushed out after work to buy some fishnet tights, threw on my heels and some false eyelashes, and rocked up to the party as a banana hooker.

Yes.

A banana hooker.

In hindsight, I proooooooooobably could've just worn the banana costume. It would make explanations a LOT easier, and I wouldn't have had to spend the night in uncomfortable shoes. Oh well, next time!

Actually, next time, I'm going to cut a bite mark out of the banana costume, cover myself in fake blood and go as a zombie banana. Maybe for Zombiewalk. 

Oh, and when I sat down, the costume puffed out considerably, as if I was now a pregnant banana hooker. My friend snapped a photo, which I (humbly) present to you for your amusement.

This photo is as good a reason as any to NOT invite me to your party

As I told my internet wife, "I'm having a WHOLE BUNCH, and they're YOURS!".

YAY!

BORDERLANDS 2!

...that is all.

Pet update

My dog died today. Rest in peace, Justin. May Doggie Heaven be full of things for you to chase and neighbours dams to swim in!

Bonus shot of 'ikkle me and 'ikkle brother with a younger Justin:

But on a (much) lighter note, Chupa is doing well! I took him out of his tank to clean it:

And added in a big ol' bit of dried grapevine for him to climb around and bask on:

Which he stared at, bemused, for a short while, and then promptly fell asleep under. He seems to like sleeping under it, which is probably a good thing, because he's getting a bit big for his favourite sleep spot, atop the rock wall:

Would you like to play a game?

Close eyes, draw cat. Simple as that.

Okay, go!

I DREW A HAPPY LITTLE TOASTER!

See? Here he is!

And an obligatory Chupa picture:

Come at me!

And another, because it's up to me what I post on here:

How do YOU sleep at night?

What's playing right now?

Gwar - Rag Na Rok

Did you miss Stompy?

Well, did you?
(That's okay, I know you did, even if you won't say it)
But that's okay, because I got my hands on some Polymer Clay and crafted up a 3D Stompy!

Not tooooooooooo horrible for a first attempt, no? That was pre-glaze, and this next one is with one layer of glaze:

He's currently drying, after a second coat of glaze. And that pin sticking out of him? No, I didn't skewer him. Well, I kind of did, but only so the pin could be twisted in to a hook so that he can be hung from things. I'm sorry, Stompy, but it's for a greater good!

And here's some more Chupa, just because!

I'm making a resolution (ha, it isn't even New Years!) to not go a whole month without posting again. WISH ME LUCK!

What's playing right now?

Kraak & Smaak - Fairy Falling

So....

It's been juuuuuuust over a month since my last post. Whoops.

I haven't really got any new comics or pictures or anything to show. I've been working on a couple of big ones, but they're not finished yet. However, I DID draw this:

And that's why you should all come and play badminton with Brett and I. SAVE ME WHILE YOU STILL CAN!

What I HAVE got, however, is this AWESOME stuffed bearded dragon made specially for me by the super wonderful and ultra talented Stephanie of Fleece Menagerie:

Isn't it AMAZING? I love it! His name is Cesar, after my favourite Joker.
Here's a shot for size comparison:

And as for Cesar's real life counterpart, El Chupanibre, I've now had him for just over a month. He's grown a little bit, shed a little bit and entertained us all more than a little bit.

Dude, that CAN'T be comfortable!

No, it's a towel on my knees. I'm not half-human, half-bear....I think >.>

Awwh, he thinks he's a tooth!

Can't.....resist......too.....cute...

New pet!

So today I came home with this little dude:

His name is El Chupa Nibre. He's pretty badass. 

Meaningful post

I must apologise for the misleading post title. I wanted to post this picture of a deer that I did ages ago, but I thought I should probably try and write something meaningful to go with it.
As it turns out, I can't do meaningful, so without further ado, here is a picture of a deer.

Unexplained absences

I haven't posted much in a while, so to make up for it, here's some pictures.

Also, remember THIS picture of Stompy? Well, my dear friend Brett has it as his phone background, so every time he goes to use his phone, THERE'S STOMPY!
You have NO idea how happy this makes me!

Okay, now some pictures to make up for the recent lack of content:

Drawn for the VS 'Pineapple Spaceship' contest

A lemur......just because :3

If I had to have a thinking hat, I would probably want it to look like this.

Part of a piece I'm doing for uni. No stealie!

The merry, merry king of the bush!

A few months ago, my Mum told me ALL about how Rowan Atkinson crashed his F1 and it was all over the news. This is all I could picture in my head...

Guest blog #1

Hi, I’m Katie, from over at My Ridiculous Life. You’ve probably seen me in NoComedy’s comment section. But today, we’ve swapped blogs. I’m going to tell you a story about public transport, and NoComedy is doing the same over at my blog.


When I was 15, I had to catch the bus everywhere. It usually wasn’t a problem. But one day, a few weeks before Christmas, I decided to go present shopping. I arranged with a friend to meet me at the local shops so we could get a coffee and catch up.

I got everything together and was at the bus stop with 30 minutes before I had to meet my friend. I saw a bus coming and flagged it down. The bus drove straight past me. “That’s odd,” I thought, “But maybe he didn’t see me”. Another bus came about 15 minutes later and I tried harder to get this drivers attention. I stood on the curb, waving my arms over my head. The driver sped straight past me.

I was fuming. I started walking up to the next stop, because I didn’t have the time to wait the half hour for the next bus. Every time I stopped for a bus (at the stops) they just drove straight past. About half way through the walk, I decided give up trying to flag down the buses and just walk the rest of the way.

By the time I reached the shops, my friend’s mother had called and told her she had to go home. I didn’t care that much (I was too tired). I managed to survive the entire shopping trip without dying.

When I’d finished shopping, I was eager to get home. There are two buses that go past these shops that both go to the same place and have route numbers that start with the same numbers. I was waiting at the bus stop and saw both buses come round the corner.

I got the bus and started listening to my iPod. I looked around about 10 minutes later when I should have been close to my stop, but I had no idea where I was. I had gotten on the wrong bus. I got off at the very next stop, walked to a nearby park and sat down to cry.

When I was finished sobbing quietly to myself, I wandered up to the bus stop on the main road to see if I could figure out if there was a bus I could catch home. Then I saw the little map attached to the sign. I figure out that I was right near a park that my mother and I used to take our dogs to.

Once I found my way to the park, I knew how to get home, but it was still an hour walk. When I finally got home, I explained my tiring day to my mum (who had beaten me home) and went to take a well deserved nap.

Drawing by NoComedy

EDIT: I have a post up on Katie's blog too! Lookie here!!
       

More Stompys!

I'm working on a new Stompy pic, but it isn't finished just yet. So here's some old Stompy pics I had tucked away in a folder somewhere!

Stompy goes to school

Would YOU trust Stompy?

Stompy in Candyland
I may add more candy. For now, pretend that the grass is green Jellybeans!

Guest posts

So, I've been super busy lately, and as such, have a couple of guest posts and blog swaps lined up. However, I haven't yet finished any posts for the blog swappee (it is SO a word!). I'M SORRY KATIE!

But anyway, I felt bad for not posting anything for a while, so here's a picture of one of the best vampires of all time!

One Per Day: February

I call this one "Brett"

I still can't believe I actually thought that >.<

You can see the progression here:
Sun => Sunglasses => Elton John

Some Stompy love <3

Narwhaaaaaaaaaaals :D

EVERY......DAMN......TIME!

Dream Job #82

I want to be paid to be a 'Spelling Inspector'. It's like a Parking Inspector, except I'd walk around finding signs with incorrect spellings on them instead of illegally parked cars. Then I'd write out a little ticket and leave it with the owner of the sign.
THIS COULD TOTALLY HAPPEN!

Also, still wanting more moosey pictures! Please? Email or link to them in comments. Come on, people! I wanna see some mooses! And I don't want to hear any excuses, like "oh, I'm no good at drawing". It really doesn't matter, the 'good' part is all relative anyway!

Well, maybe you're all shy. Here, let me start you off with one that I drew last year:

I guess I do requests now?

So, my friend Brett wanted me to do a post about him.

Everybody, say HI BRETT!

HI!











And everybody say GOODBYE BRETT!









BYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!


















But no, really. What I wanted to show you guys was this picture of him that I did:

And also this .gif of him that I made that only kind of worked due to mediocre picture quality:

















.......It's kind of hypnotic.
Anyway, in a nutshell, that's Brett. He rocks an awesome bass and pulls THE BEST faces. And also, he likes mooses.

EVERYBODY! DRAW BRETT A MOOSE! DO IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT!

One Per Day: January

So one of my resolutions for this year is to draw something every day. This is mostly to give myself at least some sense of a daily routine, but also because....you know....I like drawing. I've got a bunch of blank sketchbooks lying around for just this reason. Not all of the pictures are good, but here's a couple of my favourites from January.

From my brief obsession with Fire Salamanders

Guess what day it was when I drew this one!

Can-Opener Smooth-Dream

Brief obsession with this certain colour combination

.....See?

Rainbow clouds :3

Stay tuned for the February set, coming up once February is over, and I get around to posting some favourites.