I’ve also been actually to get out and do things, like see live music preformed by Jecsa Hoop, Robyn Hitchcock and Janelle Monáe (not on the same night). My most recent musical outing was earlier this week to see and sketch a dress rehearsal of the Portland Opera’s current production of “Hansel and Gretel.”

For the past two productions, Portland Opera has invited a gaggle of cartoonists to come watch the Monday dress rehearsal before opening night and create art from their impressions of the same. Mike Russel has posted a summary of the first one, a production of “Paliacci” & “Carmina Burana” (which I couldn’t attend, alas) which includes links to reports of cartoonists as well as his live sketch blogging previous operas.

Below are my expanded sketches from the visual “notes” I took during the dress rehearsal of a very frenetic performance.

Sandman comes

Gretel in the woods

These are actually executed digitally in Photoshop, using brushes to mimic the colored pencil and pastel on colored paper I brought to draw on during the rehearsal. I tried to keep the execution expressive and loose, reminiscent of my approach to life drawing.

Below are examples of the sketches I did during the performance, including the gesture drawing I built the expanded sketches on. (click on thumbnail for a larger view)

Other cartoonists who attended include Barry Deutsch, Jonathan Case, Indigo Kelleigh, Emi Lenox,Adrian Wallace, Tally Nouriget, Trixie Biltmore and about eight others whose “Hansel and Gretel” art can be viewed on the Portland Opera website itself.

To make up for last week’s lack, there are three pages of “Don’t Look Back” from Patrick this time out. (permalink)

This week’s suggested soundtrack is “Magnum Opus: Father Padilla Meets The Perfect Gnat / Howling At The Moon / Man Overboard / Industry On Parade / Release The Beavers / Gnat Attack” by Kansas. Quote Patrick: “I miss the era of song titles with slashes.”

On that note, I’m shamed to say that I didn’t get the pun in the above image until it was pointed out to me. I will now hang my head low.

Mike Russell filed his report on Michael and Margo’s (Fake) Wedding over at Culture Pulp. He did a good job at capturing some choice highlights.

By the way, there’s another press report from “Lyle Dashwood, the columnist from The Oregonian’s little-known society pages” over on Alas.

Patrick gamely assisted in clearing out basements, hauling fallen air conditioners, wrangling cats, cleaning house, picking up and dropping off folks at the airport, shopping, cooking, co-hosting a baby shower, getting food for pregnant ladies with headcolds and participating in a faux wedding as ceremony DJ. Nevermind breaking in the new computer that he got gratis to replace his clearly defective one this past weekend. I’m actually pleased he found time to get the bitchin’ tattoo he had planned on months ago.

So, yes, Kip’s Baby Shower happened this past weekend. Here’s the guest of honor himself:

It was a very nice shower, organized by Dylan and co-hosted by Patrick. I think the most notable thing was how most everyone showed up precisely at 1 o’clock–unknown to me after 12 years of having parties in Portland where I calculate the fact that folks will arrive about an hour after the start time. My only regret was being unable to chat with everyone (I guess it was kinda my shower too)

We had all just about recovered from the shower when we had to get prepped for a LARP wedding Tuesday evening in which I got to play the bride thanks to Taran. A very awkward and dumpy bride to boot. Here’s a lovely photo of Dylan in her role in Barry’s dream wedding:

She’s my second favorite groom ever.

Actually, thanks to Brenna, there’s a nice contrast between my ring exchange with Kip and the one with Dylan.

Kip and Jenn’s ring exchange:

Michael and Margo’s ring exchange:

That’s Brad officiating at Kip’s and my wedding up top; he’s also onstage at Michael and Margo’s wedding as Best Man and brother to the groom.

Barry, in who’s honor this was all put together, has a post about his impression of the faux wedding that include links to other folks entries and pictures. I imagine Dylan will add her two cents after she returns from her trip for work. I certainly hope so.

Not only do we get two pages from Patrick for this week’s installment of “Don’t Look Back,” but we get a very special art lesson. (permalink)

By the way, I intend to use this Dicebox Aside to help explain to Taran the way the world was when Mommy and Daddy and Uncle Patrick were growing up. That and Larry Jordan

This holds true with web apps and communities as well. It takes awhile for me to decide the usefulness of joining and using, this was true for LiveJournal, Flickr… and now Twitter.* (Interesting examples as I consider all three journaling sites: traditional, pictorial and expositional.)

When I redesigned my website and set up my new Wordpress blog, I realized I missed traditional journaling; documenting an event or thoroughly exploring an idea. Besides the discipline and mind stretching, I enjoy and find it useful to go back and see where I was at at a certain point in time. The only reason I didn’t start there and then is this was about the time I discovered I was pregnant. Naturally this would’ve been the topic most on my mind and I was far from ready to reveal or discuss anything about that.

But that (and this) type of journaling can consume more time than I have to spare. This is partly why Flickr became my default journal of sorts a couple years back. It’s an excellent way for me to document things I’d done and when. But, naturally, it doesn’t capture thoughts.

In walks Twitter. Actually, I was first introduced to Twitter about two years ago and was unimpressed and bewildered by the application. But then, the examples I saw all followed this model:

“What a nice day!”

“I had breakfast.”

“My neighbor mowed the lawn.”

And so on. It just took enough people I knew to join in and the standard use to tweak slightly before I became intrigued. Brenna’s regular Twitter collections helped soften me quite a bit, actually. It’s nice to have a place to share a thought or simple happening without feeling obliged to build a post around it nor look for commentary.** (People can comment on a particular entry, but it feels more conversational than an acknowledgment.) Or create an email and figure out who all to send it to. This way it’s out there free to amuse or annoy as folks may choose.

Also, as I do these things for my own benefit as well to share, I’m pleased to have a place to jot things down, have time stamped and then collect every week as an ersatz diary. And, yes, a lot of the thoughts and events are about my pregnancy—it is changing and ruling my life after all. It’s for that reason that I wish I had started Twittering before, then I would know exactly when Kip first felt Taran kick, laughing and crying as he did so. (Thankfully I happen to know when I first felt her as I was dashing off an email to Dylan at the time and chose to mention it to her.)

And, really, the biggest reason I decided I must start Twittering is that I can think of no better way to document my labor and delivery while sharing with those who can’t or choose not to be there first hand.***

* Yes, somewhere after Kris and before Dylan, I joined Twitter. And by god, I enjoy it.

***I imagine there will be a point in the process I’ll be handing it over to Dylan.

Where the hell is Matt?

The most delightful thing I’ve seen courtesy of the internet in ages.

(via Making Light)

There are a few reasons for me not to have gotten a full page done. And here’s one; I said I had lots to report last week, which is true, but can really be summed up in one statement: I’m pregnant.

Say hello to our now and future daughter:

This picture is from her landmark 20 week ultrasound yesterday (she has all her organs, we’re so proud!) Her ETA is October 31st.

This is my explanation for my somewhat erratic Dicebox updates, unanswered email and lack of internet presence. Well, along with the day job and other factors, the Kid just added another obstacle. And will probably continue to mess around with my schedule and plans for the near future.

I actually first suspected I was pregnant when Kip and I were enjoying a spectacular lunar eclipse in February. My cycle is reliably 26 days in length and January’s cycle began before the last full moon. True, work was heating up, as was getting ready for the Stumptown Comics Fest, so there was a stress factor–but that usually makes me early, not late.

But I was feeling bloated and pre-menstrual in general and so assumed things would begin to flow any day now; I bought some nice chocolate in anticipation. Ten days later I realized these chocolates were as of yet uneaten.

I bought my first pregnancy test. In my life. And was a bit stunned when I got a positive result immeadiately. Kip’s reaction: “Goodness.” In fact that was his reply to the next five things I said. I think he was stunned too.

The thing is, after trying for about six years (or not trying to not try) and getting certain results from certain medical tests, we had decided that a homegrown kid was not going to happen for us. We had started to talk seriously about adopting in the near future–the consequence being me getting knocked up, naturally.

I remember talking to Patrick at the beginning of February about how I thought I might be developing a food allergy, cause I felt lousy after every time I ate. A trend that continued with a vengance throughout my first trimester–I was pretty much nauseated every waking moment to lesser and greater amounts. Never got physically ill, but then, I wonder if it would’ve been a relief if I had.

The most frustrating and near unbearable first trimester symptom was how I was compelled to go to bed at least two hours early every night–nevermind needing to have a bit of a lie-down as soon as I got home from work. This rather sucked as I count on these hours after work to get things done. This is what was lead to my rough updating of Dicebox beginning the end of February throughout March and the beginning of April. And is one of the many reasons why the Kid is so grounded for the first three years.

By the way, Dylan begged me to amend my statements of having “a touch of the flu” in regards to delaying a Dicebox update to “a touch of the pregnant.” She’s known for a while, and has been entertaining me with the odd visual jokes which were well timed for those days I felt particularly oppressed by the fertility of it all. A prime example of Dylan humor is below:

Ah, my little parasite.

I have to admit, I’m not a pregnant personality, in fact, I’d outsource if I could. I never had a biological clock–where as the ticking of Kip’s can be quite loud times. Well, really, more accurately, his desire to raise children.

All that said I am feeling pretty good about it these days. I’m finding the whole process absolutely fascinating (as well as valuable writing research). The ultrasounds delight me, the BIG needles of the CVS and Amniocentesis, not so much. I’m having issues with my ever mutating and disobedient body but am looking forward to meeting the Kid and working with Kip to help her adapt to this world.

But actually, the real reason that there’s not quite a page of Dicebox this weekend is that Kip and I went back this east this weekend. Initially to visit my Mom and see MoCCA again, but it quickly expanded into an event packed family weekend in New York City, what with my brother and his wife and daughter coming to town as well as Kip’s folks being in NYC for a Leica conference. Which was great fun, if a little crazy. Mom scheduled a lot of touristy activities that I never did in twenty years of living an hour away from NYC–the pictures here give a hint of all we did that weekend. (Not pictured, seeing the musical the Lion King, which was everything I heard it was: amazing puppetry, effects, costumes and performances. As for the story, well… )

We did get some time to see MoCCA as well as David Byrne’s installation, Playing the Building. Also a quick trip to the Met for the disappointing Super Hero Fashion exhibit and a more satisfactory ramble through some of the more permanent exhibits. And it was in the ancient Egyptian section that I found my patron fertility goddess:

She looks as thrilled as me about the entire process.

Oh Isis-Aphrodite, hear me in my ennui…

But what’s been keeping me really busy these past few weeks (besides the day job) is my work as part of the Stumptown Comics Fest organizing committee.

As you all probably know, Stumptown was this past weekend and it went really swell. I’ve added my photos to the Stumptown Comics Festival 2008 Pool but have no real report to make. Instead, I direct you to the observations of others: Dylan’s, Ivy’s, Bill’s, Sara’s, Barry’s and Brenna’s – part 1, part 2 and part 3. More reports are appearing about the web, you can find some press reviews right here.

I was actually out of it most of the weekend and missed a lot of great things, including most of what was offer in the exhibit hall. One of the events I deeply regret having missed was the Comics Art Battle at Cosmic Monkey Comics Saturday night.

Photo by stutefish

Above is a great picture of Team Web: Christopher Baldwin, Dylan Meconis, Barry Deutsch and Bill Mudron. Or, as I like to call them, my people. Actually these folks really are my people, I have shared residence (and a bathroom) with all of them at one point or another. Nevermind than Dylan, Barry and I all updates our comics on Wednesday and take part in the same “collective storytelling experience” (aka, a role playing game) Oh, hey, and all four have done Dicebox fill-ins for me. Crazy.

But then my lovely mother called me to wish me Happy Thanksgiving, and she was, as she described it, “rosie.” This is is referring to that state she gets in when she’s had a glass or two of wine and has a a happy mellow buzz going.

This instantly reminded me of the Really Rosie TV special of the 70s featuring characters of Maurice Sendak and the singing of Carole King. Naturally this led me to think of the recent noise on the internet of early Sesame Street being rated adult only. For anyone who might not know, they’ve been deemed too depressing and scary for young children–for a variety of reasons that I find overly cynical and paranoid, and well, depressing.

This led to my recalling that they made the Snuffleupagus real on Sesame Street, a move I, and many of my peers, disapproved of. Then I tried to decide if there was ever one of those oversized character balloons of the Snuffleupagus in the Macy’s parade.

Naturally the Macy’s parade brought me back to Thankgiving, reminding me that I had better get cracking on my pie for today’s dinner or I would lose my window of kitchen time.

And this is the cranberry-apple pie I made before it went into the oven:

It’s a happy pie. It wants to be eaten ( A concept that really freaked me out as a kid.)