The D&D Jailbird Blues Part Two: Cuffed!

Wow, I think this is the most blog traffic I have ever had! Everyone loves a scandal... So I'm posting the next episode a little early and I'll post the third installment on Monday.

So I was handcuffed.

I’m trying to keep pretty close to actual events in this little tale, but in this episode I’m leaning more toward comedy that was perhaps the case in life. In real life I was not at all comfortable about being handcuffed on Game Night. So the first panel, where I don’t want to turn around? ...that went on for a bit. And it was definitely the part where I was the most “resist-y.”

Also, to be fair, the officer may have just been fiddling with his belt. And the side he was reaching toward/fiddling with had a (super cool) stun gun and not the other kind of gun.

The D&D Jailbird Blues Part One: The Arrest

On Wednesday evening, out of the clear blue sky, a police officer arrived at my home and arrested me for a crime I did not commit. A felony, no less, which involves a warrant and handcuffs and (apparently) no reading of rights and a “fun” ride in a police car and some time sitting in a jail cell waiting to be processed. Also, for a felony, according to the officer, they can just walk right into your home and drag you out. Oh, and this all happened on Dungeons and Dragons night. So my kitchen was full of guys who like roleplaying games.

It was one of the most bizarre and surreal experiences of ...well, of the month, at least. So the most obvious response is for me to make a series of comics about this misadventure. Here is part one:



Visit again on Monday for the next exciting installment!

Felony Fun Fact: In Virginia theft is a felony at $200. Does that seem low to anyone else? I mean for a crime that puts you in the same bracket as guys who burn down orphanages?

Sketch of Anna

Hello Internet. What a busy week it has turned out to be. Here's a quick sketch of my lovely Anna:

National Gallery Visit

Yesterday I made a day trip to the National Gallery in DC. I’m fortunate to live in a place surrounded by natural beauty but, even so, it helps sometimes to refresh the eyes and mind with other kinds of beauty. Yesterday’s outing gave me the chance to see both the beauty and technical achievement of masterful works of art, as well as the beauty of throngs of people enjoying a day in the sunshine in the capital.

Visiting the gallery is difficult in a way. On the one hand there’s great joy in seeing what these great artists of the past have been able to achieve. It’s truly thrilling. So much, in fact, that at one point during my visit a security guard had to ask me to stop singing. I hadn’t even realized that I was singing. On the other hand, though, there’s a kind of pain in seeing these works. So great is my desire to reach that level of artistic skill that it almost hurts to look at them. But the pleasure outweighs the pain, especially since there’s always something new to discover.

Yesterday’s discovery was Monet! I had never looked at one of his pictures in person before. His paintings are unbelievable and they are something that a reproduction can never capture. The paint is layered on so thickly that the works almost move into the realm of sculpture. Up close the pictures are almost pure chaos -beautiful but almost unintelligible. Step back and, and as if by magic, you suddenly have startling order.

Stinky New Neighbor

The conversation above is semi-fictionalized. The true part is that we really do have a black and white striped friend who has been poking around the yard in the evenings. The first night I heard him before I smelled him and when I went out to investigate we just sort of looked at each other for a moment. Then I went back in the house.

I always thought skunks only smelled when they sprayed or died. But if our new stinky neighbor is any indication they kind of smell ALL THE TIME.

It's For Real

Last week the little Family Hatke traveled to Indiana to visit family and friends. It was a fun time for all, and of course nothing says summer like a roadtrip! At the end of the trip, as we pulled back into our own driveway, what should be waiting on the doorstep but a sample copy of the hardback edition of Zita the Spacegirl! After seeing the pages as images on a screen for so long it was a real treat to finally see real hold-in-your-hand copies of the book. I’m really pleased with the production. Have a look:





Videos after the jump.

In the Pink

Not too long ago I created a two page illustration for Mothering Magazine (the images above are snippets from the illustration). The article was titled “Handsome in Pink” and tells the tale of a fathers mild anxiety surrounding his toddler son’s fascination with all things pink.

As usual, it was a pleasure to work with the folks at Mothering (Plus the DMH particularly enjoys that magazine). The magazine’s art director apparently also enjoyed working with me, and has written a short blog entry about it. You can read about it here.

Finished -I Think.

Eh. Probably this is as far as I'm going to take it:


For something truly charming check this out: Studio Ghibli is adapting The Borrowers!

Motivation Part 2: Progress

Here's where we are with the picture of Angelica:


I'm not a terribly confident watercolorist and so far I've brought this picture to a point where I like it, but part of me feels that I should push it further. The other part of me remembers that with Watercolor there is no going back, no rubbing out or painting over mistakes. With watercolor, when you make an area dark or saturate it with color that's IT. Art, like life, is often about balancing courage and prudence. Which path will I choose?

Angalica's own life drawing and also something I have no desire to do ever after the jump!