Things someone drew this morning

Read all about it.

Little dudes cut to the chase.

Super duper

There are new and exciting adventures flying your way soon.

Soon is a relative term, by the way.

Where i am

The bat loses its wings

My four-year-old daughter and i collaborated on this conceptual piece of music about a baby bat who takes flight for the first time, loses his wings, and then must reattach them before flying home to be reunited with his mother. The whole idea included making CDs accompanied by activity books and t-shirts under the title, "The Bat Loses Its Wings". We did that; and it all originated in the mind of that tiny little lady of mine. Over the course of several months, the two of us drew all the pieces of our little project together. We then decided, after much deliberation, that we would christen our little creative outfit/band: Call Me Kitty. 

And it was so. 

These two tiny friends helped lay the instrumental groundwork for the flight of our titular character. They are the major players in the Call Me Kitty arsenal.

Here are some stax of bats and bat-related activities that have since been distributed to the people with whom we shared holiday festivities.

Feast your eyes upon this pair of masterpieces completed by two of Baby Jane's young pals. This is the young artist's dream realized. Voila!

And now, without further ado, please enjoy the following ten minutes of musical whimsey which we call...

Movement I: It Was a Lovely Day

Movement II: Taking to the Sky

Movement III: The Bat Loses Its Wings

Movement IV: Falling

Movement V: Searching...

Movement VI: Glue

Movement VII: The Bat Loses Its Wings (Reprise)

Movement VIII: Going Home

Movement IX: Mama's Wings

Thanks for listening.

The eclectic cacophony, part one

Sweet dreams, margot tannenbaum

And so begins the first full week of twenty thirteen. We've been undressing the tree of festivity and trying to pretend that our hearts aren't breaking inside. Sorry, olde gal, it's time to pull you limb from limb, stuff you into a box, and throw you into the garage until next year. When the time arrives, we'll have some friendly cutout head ornaments for your branches. Baby jane and i have been working tirelessly on them for about forty-five minutes. We know how much you enjoy the melodies of PEARL AND THE BEARD so we made an extra large one featuring their lovely faces.

See ya next year, you ole tannenbaum you.

What a long strange yadda, yadda, yadda

In the spring time of twenty ten, i was invited to be a part of the delightful crew at STRANGE BREW COFFEE in greenwood, indiana. I spent the next thirty three months or so brainstorming ideas, crafting t-shirt designs, solving crossword puzzles, discussing pop culture, sharing stories, ghost hunting, dancing, singing, laughing, crafting delicious beverages, and drinking coffee with Daniel Carr, Toni Carr, Carli Clements, Lauren Chamberlain, Brittany Korreck, Molly Baker, Justin Sluka, Jenn Russ, Kayla Hoogeveen, Jacquelyn Mitchell, Lexi Green, Sean Yager, and the incomparable Miss Carly Purvis.

I made the difficult decision weeks ago to leave my rank as barista at Strange Brew to pursue more work as a printer/illustrator/writer... what have you. The instigators behind the decision were many, but it certainly didn't make it an easy one. 

On new year's eve, in the final hour of my last shift tending shoppe with Miss Purvis (whom i've worked with since day one), we got a little sappy and embraced while gazing upon the snow-covered landscape right outside. Flakes fell slow and plenty to the ground as Jeff Buckley could be heard crying 'hallelujah' from the shoppe's stereo speakers...

I miss you already...

What a long, strange trip it's been... 

Snow, man

Our kids dig building snowmen. Then they eat their frosty brains.

Happy snow days!

Strange recommendations

Propellerhead showed up at THE STRANGE BREW coffee emporium last night to recommend some seasonal offerings to curious customers. His eloquence is to be reckoned with. 

Ripping off your heroes

Wow, gang. It's been a handful of weeks since we've kept you abreast of all the amazing things going on around here. What with the holidays in full swing and such, there's been very little space for updating blogs probably read by no one. Make no mistake, however; there have, indeed, been pudding-packfuls of delightful turns all up in ye olde homestead. More on that later. Patience, little ones... patience. In the meantime, to quench your thirstiness, take a peek at the new characters created by my neighbor and i soon to adorn their own line of apparel by The Mustard Room. We call them the Schluppets. We're pretty sure they're gonna be huge... as in macy's-thanksgiving-day-parade huge.

Here's the ringleader of the Schluppets: Kertis the Kroaker with his little nephew, Batman.

Here are a handful of primary players clockwise from the top left: Fuzzy the Boar, Oznog the Ordinary, Mrs. Pigly (in her Forever Lazy soft fleece lounge wear), and Dolph the keytar shredding action hero.

Disclaimer: Any similarities to characters created by or belonging to the jim henson company, living or dead, are purely coincidental.

I can't believe i ate the whole playlist

Hey, y'all. Here's a delightful assortment of songs about and not about food, friends and pilgrims. We hope it adds life and luster to your thanksgiving celebrationisms. Dig it.

Side A:

1. Turkey Chase - Bob Dylan
2. Sweet Potato - Cracker
3. Gravy - Davy Jones
4. Vega-Tables - The Beach Boys
5. The King of Carrot Flowers, Pt. 1 - Neutral Milk Hotel
6. Green Corn - Leadbelly
7. Monkberry Moon Delight - Paul & Linda McCartney
8. Wild Honey Pie - The Beatles
9. Red Red Wine - The Replacements

Side B:

1. Autumn - Surf City
2. Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground - The White Stripes
3. Cold & Wet - Bonnie "Prince" Billy
4. Yea! Heavy and A Bottle of Bread - Bob Dylan & The Band
5. Red Wine, Success! - Cold War Kids
6. Keep the Home Fires Burning - Bill Mallonee
7. With a Little Help from My Friends - Joe Cocker
8. One More Cup of Coffee - Bob Dylan
9. Young Pilgrims - The Shins

Actual quotes from history

Things i learned in college, lesson one

Living on and passing through campus on my way to classes during my six year tenure at ball state university in picturesque muncie indiana, i was educated on a number of realities. One such lesson came in the form of acorns being dropped like weapons of mass destruction from the towering trees what gave passersby the comfort of shade from the midday sun. Think what you will; we all know who's responsible.