dino valentine-o!

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

DerbyShiva!

Derby Shiva will very soon be having an epic clash against the Battle Hipsters of Milwaukee!!!

Stay tuned for more info!

The fantastic battle poster was designed by the amazing Jackie at Lovesick Robot Studios.

So, Derby Shiva was inspired by an actual conversation after deciding we were too poor to attend the roller derby bout:

Jackie "If only there was a way to sneak in... Perhaps dressed as derby girls... HRMMMM"
Tara "Weeee couuuld tooootally pull that off!! I gots skates!!!"
Jackie "I don't have skates, but I do have a helmet... I can ride on your shoulders, and we could be DerbyShiva!!!"

sweetness

I received a gift of delicious, homemade, dark chocolate-covered strawberries! So sweet :3

sullen squirrel

Sullen squirrel in a suit. Drinking scotch. BOOM. Do I need more explanation? I think not. We're done here.

triple C morning!

Chessmasters goes waaay back to a time much simpler than this. MIAD. Fourth floor. Illustration studio. *sigh*  We had a scoreboard (which I'm sort of glad to be rid of since the score was embarrassingly one-sided) and enjoyed our Triple C mornings (that's chess, coffee, and cookies), which has now I think been officially changed to CCN mornings (chess, coffee, and nuts?). Doesn't quite roll off the tongues as nicely, but it'll do.
Sorry, Pietro, I couldn't draw you winning that first game because I was just so excited to get a win in before you drop the hammer. To everyone else: I did not actually dance on the chair. Though I probably should have...

I heart music!

I told you - crazy random assortment of songs. And I have to reiterate: She Wolf is an amazing song. And the video... Oh man, the video rocks. my. socks. I can't stop watching. It's gots wolfies in it! XD I'm obsessed... (And yes - I know, I know. Kesha is on this list... I reeeeally dislike Kesha. But that song has a good beat and it's soooo catchy!)

christmas for the kiddos!

I have a nephew and two nieces that all got some homemade presents from me this Christmas - including some hand-embroidered felt ornaments! yay! And ever since my nephew was born (almost 3 years ago), I've always taken his gifts, wrapped them in brown kraft paper, and drawn on them with sharpie and paint markers, so now I do it for all of them. Beckett is the only one who's old enough to recognize the drawings, but I still like to do it. Love those kiddos :3

the usual suspects...

The Steffen-Bublitz cats: Wilma, Grendel, Lando Cat-rissian, & Jonesy.

solstice stroll

Happy Winter Solstice! Mac and I decided to take advantage of this lovely clear night and go for a late night stroll. It was a lovely walk despite being quite cold and a bit windy - but I was thoroughly layered up, so I was nice and toasty. :) I usually walk/jog on the roads in town since I have to drive to get to any trails - but I thought I'd give Mac a break, so we ventured out into a wheat field not far from my house and walked down a snowmobile trail. This would generally be ill-advised, but there's not quite enough snow for anyone to be out using the trails yet.

wee painting!

This is from waaaay back when - I'd say maybe around 2007? My friend Mie and I sometimes made "wee paintings." This lil' guy is 3x3" and I found it in with a bunch of relics from my illustration studio. *sigh* I so do miss having a studio... Just posted it for funsies - it's the only one I kept and I still love it. :)