Holiday UK #2 – Dartmoor Bog

Posted on 13/07/2013 by bighair63

Except from L’s holiday diary entry, 24th June:

“Up on to Dartmoor today via several stops for Amy to gawp at horses and take photos. We a parked at the Postbridge information centre to start the rather boggy walk up to some standing stones with picturesque views of the moors. We ended up meandering around a peat bog for a bit before giving up and following a wall to the obligatory water feature challenge of the holiday…” NB. We often find ourselves traversing fast flowing water courses on our expeditions.

My response to L’s diary entry:

“I think L has underplayed The Bog. We were walking for 8.5 miles and for at least 5 of those miles we were ankle deep in bog. At one point we found ourselves lost in the middle of a vast expanse of moorland (as far as the eye could see) with no visible path in sight. I was secretly calculating our water rations in case we started to sink into the stinky, relentless bog and had to wait for rescue…”

I must mention that today is my mum’s birthday. Happy Birthday Mum!

Holiday UK #1 – The Hole Incident

Posted on 12/07/2013 by bighair63

Excerpt from the holiday diary 23rd June:

“We’re sitting in the Pilchard Inn, a tiny pub perched on the edge of Burgh Island, home to a posh hotel where you can stay for a mere £400-600 per night. If you want to come by helicopter, there is a convenient helipad in the grounds. The ‘Rif Raf’ are welcome on the island but only if they walk across the sand bar when the tide is out or catch the giant sea tractor…

We walked from Ringmore along the SW coastal path dotted with flowers and pretty grasses. The winds were high but they blew the forecast showers over our heads and inland. L has become adept at simultaneously pointing out wildlife and dangerous obstacles…”

We recently returned from a great holiday in Devon and Cornwall. Not usually ones for taking a summer holiday in the UK (due to unpredictable weather) we decided to risk it this year and it paid off. Clear skies, turquoise seas, belting sunshine, rolling moorland, white beaches – If you could always guarantee weather like this, who needs to go abroad, there is so much to see right here?

As always we kept a running commentary of the holiday by way of a diary and this year I aimed to draw a cartoon a day to supplement the entries. For the next few days I’m going to share a few short extracts from the diary and a quick cartoon. Don’t expect beautifully penned, Wordsworth-esq, descriptions of the holiday. Sadly, I lack the vocabulary to paint a picture, instead, I draw cartoons.

Old people

Posted on 19/06/2013 by bighair63

I’ve been desperate to create good looking cartoons using Adobe Illustrator. I’ve known the basics of the programme for quite a while but up until now, I’ve been too lazy to spend the time researching how to use it to its full advantage (and I doubt I will do more than just scratch the surface).

Most of my cartoons are drawn by hand, scanned into the computer, then coloured in Photoshop using a Wacom tablet. My hand is a little unsteady at times and Illustrator is the perfect tool for creating smooth lines and a professional look. But, I’ve really struggled to find a way to easily create shadows without a lot of faffing about.

Today I spent some time sketching some old people in my sketchpad, before deciding to experiment with Illustrator (with a little help from YouTube). I came across this little gem, The Ultimate Inking and Colouring Tutorial. There are some really neat little tricks to help with shading and highlighting, it really speeds up the process and I LOVE IT! (I’m sure you seasoned artists are chuckling to yourselves…I’m slow off the mark).

So here are three practice attempts – I’ve still got a lot to learn. The first one was before the tutorial – it was painstakingly slow. The second two were after I’d watched it several times.

Bee Encounters

Posted on 16/06/2013 by bighair63

Do you have a friend that overreacts whenever a bee or wasp makes an appearance?

Public Toilets

Posted on 21/05/2013 by bighair63

This genuinely happened to me yesterday… I was minding my own business in the ladies toilet when out of the blue (err…cubicle) a little old lady started to talk to me. Or should I say talk at me. I’ve been pondering the statement – what problem(s) was she referring to? Was she suggesting I take heed, book a flight to Switzerland and check in to Dignitas in the morning? Or, was she simply commenting on her own gastro-dilemmas? I shall never know.

Pigeon Capers

Posted on 15/05/2013 by bighair63

Pigeons frustrate the heck out of me!

Between jobs

Posted on 14/05/2013 by bighair63

For the past few weeks, I’ve been between jobs. Towards the end of last year I decided to take the plunge and leave a permanent job, in which I was very unhappy, for a temporary post with more opportunities to get out and about. The risk was calculated and sadly despite efforts to extend my contract, they had to let me go due to lack of funds…don’t you just love austerity?!

So April was spent scouring the papers, writing job application after job application (A thoroughly demoralising process) until I was offered another temporary contract. Frustratingly, I’ve had an agonisingly long wait while they process references, do criminal records checks, et cetera et cetera . In other words, I’m still waiting for the contract.

In the mean time, I’ve been trying to pay the bills and generally keep myself out of trouble. It’s amazing how busy one can be when they’re unemployed. For the past month I’ve been practicing my cooking skills:

Making some extra dosh on Ebay:

And excitingly, I’ve reignited the freelance work using People Per Hour which allows people to buy and sell their skills/services. I’ve been doing a few things here and there and have been lucky enough to secure an 18month contract drawing a web comic for someone…sneak previews to follow soon! I’ve also set up another wordpress site www.designedbyamy.wordpress.com to showcase some of my design work.

All in all, things are ticking over and although money is tight, life is generally good. Signing out!

Caffeine overdose

Posted on 13/05/2013 by bighair63

It’s been a while since I last posted. Things get in the way and inspiration has run off with the weather – you know how it is. This was just a quickie, I had almost forgotten how to draw for a minute.

5 Minutes of British Sunshine!

Posted on 14/04/2013 by bighair63

I think I saw it! I think saw that golden orb in the sky – radiating light, warming the earth, sending birds into a frenzy of nest building, tempting the buds on the trees to burst into bloom.

With that tiny chink of sunlight, Britons up and down the country tore their clothes from their bodies (despite the temperature only just creeping into double figures), donned their sunglasses, ran for their BBQs and hoped for a prolonged spell of bright, warm weather! Alas, no sooner had the flip flops had time to flip and flop than the sky returned to its familiar dull grey. We are left wondering, was that just a figment of our imagination? Then we reach for the bottle of vitamin D.

Easter Bunny in Employment Crisis

Posted on 27/03/2013 by bighair63

With Easter nearly upon us, there is a frenzy of chocolate egg buying and giving – and of course EATING! This morning a co-worker set up an office Easter egg hunt before piling mounds of Easter cakes, chocolate and eggs onto the ‘treat table’ for all to indulge. What a nice way to start the penultimate day at work before I find myself gainfully UNemployed.

It is a sorry state of affairs and I will mourn the past four months which have rescued me from the isolation of my previous job. I have certainly felt more alive, more inspired and more ‘me’ since changing jobs, and although the risk taking didn’t quite pay off, there is still a glimmer of hope on the horizon. So don’t start sending me your messages of condolences just yet. In the meantime, here is a little cartoon to celebrate Easter.