Charles vs Char-les.

After yesterday's post, I forced everyone in the house to look at it. One of those people, thought they would point out to me that CHARLES only has one syllable. This person bet me EVERYTHING I have that it only has one. Well, let's settle it. I say it has two; a family member says one. What do YOU think? Please VOTE!

A Sad Haiku.

My 1st pet was a parakeet. Charles removed him, I took the cage out and vacuumed. I feel like a part of my childhood died with the bird. Miz. It's okay if this makes you laugh because it's sad and funny... not that the bird died, but the haiku.

Rip Van Winkle.

I just woke up from sleeping for 22 hours. TWENTY TWO HOURS. I deserve a medal for being the sleep champion. I didn't get any art done. I'll be able to do something tonight though because I probably won't be sleeping. RAD.

I AM THE WARRIOR!

I'm listening to THE WARRIOR by SCANDAL on repeat. Has anyone ever seen The Warriors? It was the pick over on The Hallway Show. I've never seen it, but I watched the trailer and I liked it. Aside from being in the gang of The Warriors, I would probably be in The Furies or The Hi-Hats, but The Furies scare me A LOT; they're menacing. Check out the trailer and let me know which gang you'd be in.

Post-Birthday.

I wanted to thank those that made it a point to acknowledge my birthday. I received wishes in every way possible. The response was overwhelming and made my day. From the bottom of my heart, thank you to each and every one of you.

My cousin, Raechel, wrote a blog entry. The actual post is longer, but I liked this: "This weekend has shown me both who I can trust and who I have to remember is only a transient player in my game of life. You know how in the movies there are extras who, for some reason or another, get a few lines? Or maybe they play a confidant to the main character for a few episodes in your favorite television drama, and next week they are gone. That is a grand majority of the people in my life. The thing I need to remember is that the people who matter have recurring roles. They never leave me high and dry. Or out on that limb. They are always right after that commercial break. Whenever I need someone to talk to or to sit next to me at a baseball game, they are there. They know who they are and they know I would do the same for them. Some of them are gone for entire seasons, but they always come back. They just can't stay away. We laugh, we cry, sometimes we even scream.

It's all about how you pick 'em. I think I would make an amazing casting director. I am a fairly good judge of who can make the cut and who needs to stick to just doing infomercials [...] But every once in awhile it's important to take that step back. Remember who you are. Where you came from. Who helped you get there. And who is going to be there to get you where you are going." Raech took these:

IT'S MY BIRTHDAY!

I was born 23 years ago today at 1:34 am. If I had money, I would buy myself the schwinn bike I've had my eye on, polaroid film, and probably a pizza. I don't really enjoy getting old, but I love counting down to my birthday AND birthday cards. I've been saving my birthday cards since I was like 6; no joke. Well, it's here and I am looking forward to all the birthday wishes and I'm looking forward to everyone being nice to me. So far, the family has THE WORST ATTITUDES EVER. I hope my friends don't. Leave me something nice to read! Here's an updated version of my previous illustrator portrait. Party on? I will! Happy birthday, to me. Thanks everyone!

In The City.

I was with my dad in Detroit and I quickly sketched the scene in front of me and the sketch was AWESOME. I should've scanned that, but instead I decided to go over it with a sharpie, but it's not as cool. I can sit here and complain about the things I don't like or I can keep making things regardless of how they turn out so I will do that.TOMORROW IS MY BIRTHDAY. I feel like I started counting down YESTERDAY. I am REALLY excited. I'm doing fun things tomorrow and Sunday. Birthdays are great because it's the one day where people can't be mean to you. I'm going to kick off the day-before-my-birthday celebration by taking a very, very long shower.

Avatard.

I spent 9 1/2 hours making JJ look like an Avatar for the release at Best Buy. It took FOREVER. It doesn't look like 9 1/2 hours were spent on him, but BELIEVE ME, they were. Sarah was supposed to help, but she fell asleep. I've been up for 31 hours:Today was great. I got baby birthday gifts because I got a bunch of JB posters from my friends haha. I watched UP and I forgot how great it was. I also watched the finale of Project Runway, and I'm not gonna spoil it, but I love who won.

Nick Jonas.

Nick Jonas recently participated in this new game show called "I Get That A Lot". NJ worked as a Forever 21 cashier and tried to get away and if he does get recognized, he has to say "I get that a lot". Too bad if I saw him, I would start screaming because I KNOW Nick Jonas when I SEE Nick Jonas. Just like when I saw him through the window at Starbucks. I KNEW. YOU CAN'T FOOL, AMERICA, NICK JONAS AND YOU WILL NEVER FOOL ME. Isn't there some saying that's like; the guy you like should never make you cry? The JBS are always making me cry. BITTERSWEET. Rhiannon took all of those pictures except for the NJ one at Forever 21. 3 DAYS TIL MY BIRTHDAY. This is a self indulgent post. I'm allowed and you're allowed to laugh.

Doctor Lost Park.

My parents are trying to give me magnesium/calcium pills because they "help your bones" and "stop you from getting charlie horses", but I'm skeptical. They've never tried to give me such things before so I think this is probably rat poison. Janine thinks I threw her toothbrush out the other day. NOW IT MAKES SENSE. Nice try, parents. Not this time. Today I went exploring in the woods with my friends.THE WINGS WON! I was pretty excited to be at Applebee's for that, but everyone there acted like zombies and they weren't getting rowdy at all. WELL I WAS. I also think WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER is underrated. Here's some sketches:

SNOOKIE.

I forgot that the deadline for The Hallway Show is today/right now so I had to hurry up and do a Snookie from MTV's Jersey Shore. I wanted to focus on when Snookie got punched. I call this SNOOKIE WK. My friend got punched in the face at work not too long back and everyone was saying she got "Snookie'd". Click to enlarge!Today is my grandma's birthday. I really wish she was here so she could share it with us. Happy Birthday, Grandma. (My birthday is in 5 days)

Toledo Museum of Art.

I went to the Toledo Museum of Art with my cousin, Raechel, and her bf, Carlos. It's free, but parking is $5. It's well worth it though. The museum is quite large. We went for the Gordon Parks photography exhibit. I wasn't familiar with Gordon Parks prior to this so his work was a real eye opener. He reminds me of Robert Frank. We didn't have long at the museum so I ran around the entire museum seeing everything. I was really inspired by Joan Miro and Francisco Toledo. I couldn't find the pieces by either artists online, but I found this piece by Toledo that I really enjoy. It's definitely worth the time and drive to head there. Outside of the museum is this really cool polar bear seat/bench. My cousin took these photos (minus the Toledo piece). Afterwards, we went to Mongolian BBQ and met up with our friends Jessie, Joey, and Corey and the griller told me he liked my hair. Then I ate my bowl and almost threw up because it was too much. Click to enlarge the pictures!

ONE WEEK!

...until my BIRTHDAY; EXCITING! One of my oldest friends, Jessica Stewart, bought me THESE really great "Robin Hooded" shoes for my birthday and I squealed in the car upon receiving them (Thanks again, Jessie! I love em). I'm not one to wear flip flops, because I hate them, but these are little boot flip flops so it's legit. I put a decent chunk of magenta in my hair. Shelby touched my roots up and then tried to dye the magenta back to blonde by covering it with bleach, but the only thing THAT accomplished was turning it hot pink. Rad. The interview went well. I was in there for an hour and 20 minutes! I really liked the lady that interviewed me and we got along well. I guess we'll see how well we got along if I hear back from her about the job.I wanted to thank everyone for their feedback. I've been working hard and it's nice to receive comments, as well as, compliments. Side note, BEARDS = TRICKY. I wanted to let Just Doodle It know that it was, indeed, a beard and not a coat.

Henry David Thoreau.

It's finished! It's 2 1/2 inches by 1 1/2 inches on my Alice in Wonderland midnight showing stub. I received two guesses: 1) Gene Wilder and 2) Edgar Allan Poe. At one point, he looked like both, but it's Henry David Thoreau painted using gouache. I can hear THE SHINING on the TV in the living room and tomorrow is my interview. I am omega excited and I will let everyone know how it goes! Wish me luck!

Gouache Party.

This is a WIP. If you can't tell who it is yet, I'm not telling you. I'm working towards the finish as we speak and I am put off by how I should've elongated his face more, but I am NOT turning back because I've already invested too many hours into this. I set out to do this to prove to myself that I can still paint. This is a little baby painting too. I'm using gouache aka the best medium in the world. I painted on this movie ticket because it seemed like a good surface. I'm pumped to finish it. Party on!

Valentina Deux.

Here's Valentina colored. I didn't want the color to be overbearing. I wanted it to be soft and I wanted the line work to be dominant (in contrast to the color). I like this piece and the previous piece, but I like them as two separate pieces and not necessarily one in-process and one finished (if that makes sense). Maybe I'll do some more Imaginarium pieces. Maybe not. Should I put the colored one or the previous b&w one on my flickr? I need opinions! P.S. My birthday is in 10 days.

Valentina.

This is Valentina from The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. I'm going to give her some color for tomorrow's post. I'm pumped about this drawing because I did it in PEN. There's no turning back once you make a pen mark, but I wanted to use pen because it IS permanent and, because of that, I was conscious of each line I made.I can't stop watching Jurassic Park. I will probably draw some dinosaurs in the next few days if Janine doesn't kill me first because I keep singing the theme song.

The Imaginarium.

I'm still hung up on The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. The next 3 posts are going to be from it. For this particular drawing, I wasn't going for accuracy so much as I was for experimentation (with direct line and style). I also used a variety of ink instruments (pen, nib, bamboo pen). This was just for fun. Tomorrow gets serious.Also, CONAN IS BACK this November on TBS! GET PUMPED!

Pinocchio!

Lane Smith is one of my favorite illustrators and I came across this book that he wrote/illustrated called Pinocchio, The Boy or Incognito in Collodi. I thought I'd share some of my favorite illustrations from it. Enlarge for a closer look!I went to a concert today. I am going to talk about it, but I have to wait until Rhiannon posts the pictures so they can accompany my post. I've also been drawing. I'm hoping to scan soon. Hey my birthday is in 13 days! We're past the 2 week mark!

Saturday Night!

My interview got rescheduled so I took it easy tonight. I shut my phone off and I alternated between Saturday Night Live and 10 Things I Hate About You. Tina Fey and Justin Bieber were on SNL tonight. Justin Bieber doesn't perform live very well and he's not a good actor, but at least he's charming. Anyone else catch SNL?

Creative Personalities.

I thought I'd post this really neat article on the Creative Personality/Individual. I don't remember how I came across it, but I read it the other day and I enjoyed just as much as when I initially found it. Click HERE and enjoy. (15 DAYS TIL MY BDAY!)

200TH POST! WHAT!

It's my 200th post! Today was an AMAZING day. I went out to lunch and to the movies. I saw GREENBERG. It was perfectly delightful. On Project Runway, they had to make outfits inspired by THE CIRCUS. I love the circus! I have a big interview on Saturday for a teaching position at Cranbrook. I am nervous and excited. This piece is a finished version of the girl I posted 3 entries ago. I used illustrator. Janine asked, "Is that one of your friends?" and I said, "No, it's from my HEAD."

TOTAL KO!

I started this forever ago and I just don't feel as passionate about it as I did in the beginning when I should've finished it. So, I'm throwing the towel in on this piece. I started this because one day I went to Micaela's house to hang out and play Wii. When we got around to playing Wii, we decided to play boxing. Bad idea on Micaela's part because I WHOOPED her. I turn into a beast when I Wii Box. The arms don't stop punching til the other person DROPS. I knocked her out several times. She admitted I was a champ. Then we played this game where you had to steer a canoe and she killed me on that because I kept hitting the walls and we were both laughing so hard it made playing even more difficult, but it was a good time. This is illustrator.

Misc Fun.

This post is dedicated to Miscellaneous FUN. Fun - "activities that are enjoyable or amusing". Hopefully you get some enjoyment and/or amusement from these:
--First off, Janine found a tiny castle (literally an inch in width and height) in our backyard by a tree. She gave it to me and jokingly said, "maybe Boo Radley was leaving gifts for you". Maybe...
--Micaela Ruiz made the most INSANE CAKE with her bf, Matt DeBeul; both great friends and artists. It's better, than those cakes on Ace of Cakes and Cake Boss. If you look at nothing else in this post, look at this: THE BEST CAKE EVER.
--For all of you that adore polaroids and died a little inside when they stopped making the film, The Impossible Project has DONE IT! Please READ HERE.
--I found a fb comment I left my friend, Donald. I told him to "quit acting 90's". I don't know what that means, but I'd like to time travel to visit myself two years ago to ask.
--Honestly, THIS and THIS interview that my friend Taylor told me about with The Butthole Surfers, makes me laugh so hard I literally laugh out loud.
--Party Cat gets another shout out because it still makes me laugh.
--My sister, Shelby, signed her soul over to me:--I had a discussion with Rhiannon about movies. Somehow Sinbad was brought up and she said, "Oh yeah, speaking of Sinbad. He was great in Kazaam." to which I said, "That wasn't Sinbad, dude. That was definitely Shaq."
--I've been looking into Schwinn bikes lately because I want one, but I was asking my friend Brad about bicycle upkeep and this convo ensued. Enlarge to read.--Art to come tomorrow! Also, I made an account on FLICKR (click HERE). I'm still trying to figure it out, but if you use flickr, find me on there and let's be friends!
--18 DAYS TIL MY BIRTHDAY! YEAH!

Sal Paradise.

I finished On The Road by Jack Kerouac today. Danny Wallace will probably never come across my blog, but I have to thank him. Without talking to him about the book, prior to reading it, I never would've read it. I'm really glad I did because it turned out to be better than I could've imagined. I recommend it to anyone. I spent all of today applying for jobs, doing several resumes, and trying my hand at illustrator again. I don't know what happened the other day when I made that self portrait, but I'm having trouble doing it again. I'm turning this drawing into an illustrator file. Stay tuned.19 DAYS TIL MY BIRTHDAY!

Grandma Bonnie.

My grandma died two years ago today. Her time was cut short by cancer. I've never lost anyone close to me before. I was a mess. I can't thank my teachers and friends enough for being so understanding during that time. I wish my grandma was still around. She always knew what to say to make things right and I miss that reassurance. I miss her smile, I miss her laugh, and I miss her stories. One time, up north, she told us this story about "bloody bones" and I couldn't sleep for a week. Another time, I tried coffee for my first time and hated it. Alison tried it and loved it; she's still drinking it. I tried Sonic for the first time with my grandma in Tennessee; before they were up here (the one up here doesn't compare to the ones in TN. The one up here tastes terrible compared to the ones down south, actually). She loved the little things in life and she was full of so much wisdom. Through my grandma, I learned so much. This is one of my favorite pictures of her. On the left is my mother, Janine, and on the right is my aunt, JoAnn. RIP Grandma. You are deeply missed.

Heathster.

Today is Easter, but it is also Heath Ledger's birthday. He would've been 31. I really wish he wasn't dead. I remember I was in History of American Illustration when my mom and sister texted me the news. When he died, I'm pretty sure I interrupted the class and we all started talking about it. I thought I was getting punk'd. Wrong.

Before I Die, I Want To...

I've always been an advocate of people making their dreams a reality. The other day, I had the pleasure of attending an exhibition at U of M Dearborn. This exhibition featured over 200 polaroids; each showcased an individual and what they wanted to do before they died. The exhibition was put on by Steps Toward Change. STC is made up of students interested in being proactive about their namesake. One of those students is Carlos Espinoza (pictured below). "The purpose of the organization is to be a medium for change; change in mindsets, opinions, etc." They were inspired to do their own chapter of The Polaroid Project by creators: Nicole Kenney and KS Rives. They wanted to find out what motivated people to take action in their lives. They posed the question, What Do You Want To Do Before You Die? and they sought to find it out. While the website covers broader areas, U of M Dearborn is a melting pot of people from various backgrounds and, Carlos mentions, most have similar goals and ambitions. The polaroids, although displaying different subjects, had an overall unification; each person has a goal and they want to achieve it. I asked Carlos what his favorite "Before I Die" was, "Before I die I want to be able to look back at my life and say to myself...'it was worth it'"and don't we all?What's next for Steps Toward Change? They're raising money by having a few fundraisers and collecting donations. The purpose? To earn money to buy toys for children that have cancer through a bigger organization called The Bottomless ToyChest. If you'd like to know how you can help, attend upcoming fundraisers, or if you'd like to make a donation, shoot me an email: chelseakirchoff@gmail.com.

1930's Old Hollywood.

23 days til my birthday AND I had this book on Silent Film Stars from the 30's from the library so I did a bunch of sketches while I was at Ram's Horn.My friend, Heidi, did an Interview Feature on me on her blog; Bury Me In Leaves. Heidi and I have friends/pen pals since 2003. She's always inspired me with her craftiness, DIY nature, zines, and her blog. I'm honored to be featured. Head over there and check out her blog (as well as her Etsy shop; she makes neat things).

The Final Countdown!

The Countdown has begun; 24 MORE DAYS TIL MY BIRTHDAY! I was going to throw myself a party, but instead, I've decided that the people that like me enough will try to make plans with me, I will spend a day with them, & we'll celebrate. If close friends don't make an attempt, I will be MIZ. This is the best plan of attack and starts today. Today's post comes late because I spent way too many hours on illustrator making this. Tis for the BIRTHDAY COUNTDOWN (click image to enlarge)!