Grand Return.

Not too long ago, the fam went to Wendy's and I got a Kid's Meal because they're the most exciting meal because sometimes you get a cool toy. This time around, my toy ruled. I got a bunch of these i-spy style cards with all of these neat illustrations on them. I couldn't find the artist, but I love this style. There's 8 cards, front and back, and they're filled like this. Thank you Wendy's for not giving me some cheap, plastic, piece of crap toy. This is way better. I saw DISTRICT 9 for the first time today and I loved the little kid alien. It was ADORABLE AND afterwards, Star Wars was on TV.

Custom Vans.

For the past 3 days, I have been relentlessly working on these shoes for my friend Sarah's 'friend', Eric which is why I haven't been answering calls (sorry, guys). She enlisted my efforts to make him a custom pair of vans. We sat around thinking of ideas, when I was finally hit with THE idea. In 2004 or 2005, I asked Sarah to make me a list of everything she liked and I made a collage; black and white (The first image below). I used to love making those things. I made one for Sarah, Mrs. Dudek, Scott Lashuay, and my grandma. So, Sarah asked Eric to make a list of everything he likes; EVERYTHING. He gave her an 8 page list with over 200 items on it. I incorporated about 120 of those things into these shoes. It took me literally 36 hours, too many sharpies, & I HAVE BLISTERS, but it was worth it (it's all freehand too!). I'm excited that Sarah commissioned me to do them. If anyone is interested in a pair of custom shoes, I'LL DO IT. Also, I don't have my computer back yet and Shelby won't let me on hers anymore so I'll update when I get mine back. Happy birthday, Eric! I hope you love them. Click the images to make them larger; It's DETAIL city. Side note, Sarah included the ERIC graffiti on the front left shoe.

Coconut What?

Janine found this at work and brought it home for me. It's a coconut carved jar thing. I can't decide if it's good luck or cursed. I think it's probably from LOST.

Movies.

I slept for 19 hours yesterday and woke up at 4 this morning. I watched The Breakfast Club, St. Elmo's Fire, and Say Anything. I love John Hughes. He's made so many great movies over the years (including Dennis The Menace which surprised me because I didn't know he had anything to do with it), but I honestly think The Breakfast Club is one of his best. I can basically quote the movie word for word and I am in love with John Bender (Judd Nelson). I liked St. Elmo's Fire. I thought it was also by Hughes, but it's not. Say Anything was OKAY. Everyone always says Lloyd Dobler (John Cusack) is such a great guy and he's the type of guy every girl would want, which I do agree with to a point, but I thought Lloyd Dobler was kind of sketchy. There was something about him. Maybe it was the way he talked or his personality or his emotion (or lack thereof), but I wasn't entirely convinced. I'm working on a cool project that I'll post when I finish. Maybe I can take some crappy photobooth pictures with my sister's computer or something. I don't know. I keep thinking about the Apple store somehow erasing all of my data and it's giving me nightmares. That'd be the worst thing to happen. All my music and my art; gone. MIZ

LOST.

I've been looking forward to the LOST finale for weeks although I had never watched an episode. I heard the finale was going to be "epic" and "something people will talk about for years" so I was intrigued. Last night, Rhiannon and I separately watched the pilot episode, read a recap of seasons 1-5 and watched an 8 minute clip of seasons 1-5, and read an even longer recap for season 6 to prepare us for tonight. We condensed 121 hours into 4, but it was done, and we were excited. The anticipation was building all day. We knew all the characters, we knew their stories, and we were ready for the finale. The two and a half hour finale was filled with endless amounts of tears (on my part), tender moments, remembrance, and some big answers to even bigger questions, but the end left me even more confused than before. I understand it's open to interpretation, but I enjoy solid answers. I don't want it to be open to interpretation. Of course the first thing I did after was get on facebook and I saw that my newsfeed was flowing with my friends' thoughts on the finale, but they were equally as confused. I turned to Jimmy Kimmel for hope because the entire cast appeared on there. No such luck. In the beginning, Jimmy got pretty deep and they talked about the ending for a few, but the remaining 55 minutes were as helpful as ten thousand spoons when all you need is a knife (alanis morissette). I know to all the true LOST fans out there that have invested all of the time into the series, I'm a joke, but from someone that majorly crunched everything down and watched the finale, I thought it was beautifully done. Sure I would've enjoyed answers to my questions, but it still left my mind completely blown. It was one helluva ride and quite a show. Naveen Andrews if you see this I wanna hang out with you.

Marty Stu.

Day 2; sans-comp. I found this Marty Stuart shirt at Value World. I brought it home, showed Janine & Charles, and told them I had no idea who he was, but it was the most awesomely bad shirt I'd ever seen. Charles promptly declared, "Your mother had a big crush on him back in the day." Yikes! I hope this same situation doesn't happen when I have kids and they bring home Jonas Brothers shirts as jokes.

REAL MIZ.

My computer is being held hostage at the Apple store in Ann Arbor and I probably won't see it again for 7-10 days (Side note; if for some reason all of my data gets erased or compromised, I may contemplate killing someone and/or myself because I didn't back it up and I couldn't afford to have them back it up so I hope everything goes down smoothly). Therefore, the updates, while my computer is being repaired, are gonna be random and they won't be of my art. Right now I'm at a get together and the two people that I know are Micaela and Matt, but everyone is really nice. I decided I should take the time to update my blog while I have a computer to use. So I came across this guy, Josh Cooley, and he makes illustrations in the Golden Book style. My favorite is this one of Buffalo Bill:I can't stop looking at this and laughing. I also can't stop laughing at the word JORTS. Another side note; Today Janine and I went to Ann Arbor to drop off my computer and she bought me some not-good-for-you-treats: a pretzel AND a red velvet cupcake (which is my fave). Then we went to Whole Foods. They had WHOLE CHERRIES as samples so I took a handful because I am poor. Suck it.

The Final Ed Emberley.

This post concludes Ed Emberley week. I have another one of his books, but I'll mess around with it in a few weeks. I've learned a lot from Ed Emberley. It's all about SIMPLIFYING, but when little details are added, it's easy to do. I recommend his books to anybody and I stand behind that statement now more than ever.

Ed Emb 7.

Here are heads and tips to help you draw different faces! I like to write things down like that to remind/help me, and hopefully you, too. I like all of these and the animals!

JB/ED 6!

FIRST OF ALL, I GOT SECOND ROW TO A JONAS BROTHERS SHOW WITH RHIANNON GOEDEL IN CLEVELAND. WE ALSO GET VIP TREATMENT AND GET TO GO TO THE SOUNDCHECK PARTY. I AM SERIOUSLY DYING RIGHT NOW! dfjlsdls;flds;jl OH MY GODD (they're playing with demi, but she sucks).So this is an old man and another Ed Emberley book. This was the big green book. I like dracula the best, the boat, the car, and the snake charmer.

Ed Emberley 5.

Brother Chan and I have been lighting marshmallows on fire for the past 3 days. I LOVE charred marshies. They're one of the quintessential items of summer. We only do one a night/person. We do it in our kitchen with forks and use a lighter, but Chan has to light them because I don't know how to use a lighter. Someone told me that was very REDNECK of me. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't, but I'm not gonna make a big production, aka BIG FIRE, out of two marshies. This photo is from the other day.Ed Emberley week continues. I drew these from his book of drawing WEIRDOS. What a great title. I like Frankenstein and the blue werewolf best!

I GOT THE JOB/Ed 4!

After patiently waiting, I can finally say that I GOT THE CRANBROOK JOB! I was starting to lose hope! I am SUPER excited. However, I wouldn't have it if it wasn't for: Mickey for recommending me and my three wonderful references (BD, DK, & Carla). I'm looking forward to the opportunity and teaching art to eager students!ED EMBERLEY week continues. I picked up the drawing animals book. That was pretty fun. I also added this little quote/drawing from The Little Prince!

Juanita Ruiz.

Today is the viewing for Juanita. I'm excited because each of Mickey's illustration friends created a portrait of her mom. This is mine. I used illustrator, spent all night on it, and included two of her favorite things: elephants with trunks up and purple. I wanted the only detail to be in the face and wanted everything else to be simple.

"Great Scott!"

I went to a soiree, watched Back to the Future (one of the greatest movies EVER; if you disagree, I'd love to know why) in the backyard on a giant projector screen, and it was a clear night. "If my calculations are correct, when this baby hits eighty-eight miles per hour... you're gonna see some serious shit." - Dr. Emmett Brown. Perfect.Jason Curtis thinks Ed Emberley week is over, but I'm just getting warmed up. I'm waiting on more books. Ed Emberley week continues next week; unabridged.

Eddy Emb 3!

This is a continuation from the truck book with the addition of the HALLOWEEN book. I LOVE once September hits because you get fall weather, fall things, Halloween, and then Christmas. Best time(s) of the year. I love all of these doodles!

Ed Emberley 2!

I am glad that Ed Emberley was well received and that many of you have memories of his work from your wee years! I'm glad you enjoy him as much as I do because I rented a book a day and it's officially ED EMBERLEY week. Each day I'm tackling a book of his and I'm going to post the results. This one had trains, trucks, and trolleys. My favorite parts were: the first train, the camper truck, the camper, and the logs. The logs are so simple yet so effective. Ed Emberley is a genius. Less is more.

Ed Emberley!

I stumbled across Ed Emberley books at the library and I remembered hearing about him before from Andy. His books are how-to books. He teaches you how to draw the "Ed Emberley way" and, I must say, I've learned a lot from him. I recommend these books to anyone. Regardless of your experience, his step-by-step instructions make drawing simple and FUN. This particular book was Ed Emberley's Great Thumbprint Drawing Book. I tried dropping ink on my thumb to make thumbprints, but that didn't work. These are supposed to be drawn on thumbprints.

For Juanita & Mickey.

One of my best/closest friends, Micaela Ruiz, lost her grandmother last week and lost her mother between Sunday and yesterday. I can't even imagine how this must be for her. When I heard, my heart instantly broke and I felt, and still feel, both sick and helpless. I spoke with Mickey on the phone momentarily and she told me to call/tell the people that needed to know because she couldn't and she told me to go hug my mom. Mickey is an incredible person; for those of you that know her, I don't need to tell you that, and for those that don't, you would love her. Her being so wonderful is a direct reflection of her mother, Juanita Ruiz. Juanita was the very definition of kind. She had a warm, loving nature and I was always greeted with the biggest smile when I saw her. She treated us like we were one of her own because that's the kind of person she was. She instilled everything that she was into her children and she raised one of the greatest families I have ever known. The Ruiz's are full of strong, loving individuals. It is now that they need to stay strong in the midst of these tragedies. Mickey, you aren't alone. All of your friends are here for you and even those that aren't can offer their condolences. I'm so sorry. I love you so much. I am shocked to my core by your recent losses. If you take anything from this, let it be not to take those in your life for granted. Take Mickey's advice and hug your mothers. Hug everyone and tell them you love them.

From The Top!

It should thrill those of you that lurk this blog to know that I am back to drawing. I can only imagine the reaction when people check my blog, expecting art, and all they see are WORDS. You don't wanna read, you wanna SEE (as I type a novel) well starting tomorrow there will be art. Here is the inside front of my sketchbook. That paper on the left with the writing is from On The Road (Jack Kerouac). I found it taped in the back and decided to yank it. It's a quote from the book, one of the best, and it inspires me. I paired it with a photo from The Shining and Nick Jonas. I'm sure everyone agrees it would be great if Nick Jonas wasn't there, but he is also great (sometimes). Thanks for your patience while I was in the pit. Click to enlarge!

The Laughter Club.

At the beginning of my stint in college, I got an idea to start a club. My idea was to start The Laughter Club, get student life to sponsor it, eat pizza, drink pop, and laugh for a solid half hour because everyone at CCS is stressed and laughter relieves stress. Meant to be. I was with Nikki and we saw James sitting in the cafeteria and I said, "Hey Nikki. Let's go test it out on James." So we walked up to James, sat down at the table, and explained the concept to him. My idea was that I would start fake laughing and that would cause a chain reaction of laughter. James kind of chuckled and said, "Alright, but I'm not gonna laugh." The pressure was on. I started fake laughing, and within seconds, the three of us were laughing so hard we were crying; CRYING. I don't even know how it worked, but it did. I think Nikki started laughing because of how ridiculous my fake laugh was and then it just went from there. It was GREAT. I don't know why I didn't make the club happen; I think it was because I was scared that it wouldn't work with people that weren't my friends. Regardless, the idea was as funny as trying it out. Long live The Laughter Club (or at least the idea of it).

In A Funk.

Here are some sketches and the Mr. Rogers book I just finished. Mr. Rogers put a lot of things into perspective for me so I'm going to go do some good sketches now. Also, thanks a lot for you comment on the last entry, Jason (and you too, dad)!

Sleep Mode.

I'm kind of dead and burned out right now. I was up drawing all night last night. I need to scan, but I'm fresh out of ideas. Any suggestions or inspiration? I could use it.

Champion Charles.

As you may or may not know, Charles is my father and I bring him up from time to time on my blog. He makes it a point to comment on every post. Sometimes I won't hear from him for a week or so, then I'll sign into my email and have seven anonymous comments in caps lock. This is a signature Charles move; the caps lock anonymity. In the earlier days, he didn't caps lock his comments, but the rest are easily spotted. I'm busy getting a bunch of drawings together for a week's worth of drawing posts, but I wanted to take this opportunity to showcase a "best of", if you will, of his comments. Click to enlarge it. Hopefully they give you a good chuckle.This other comment is probably my favorite. Artist/blogger Tania commented and Charles followed her comment up with a retaliation of sorts. No offense, Tania! Charles isn't angry and doesn't mean it. He just tries really hard to be funny.

Cinco De Mayo.

Friend/blogger Jason Curtis just launched his new website that he's devoted to illustrating/cartooning! Please, head over there, check it out, and wish him well.

I rented things from the library:
DVDs: Planet Terror, What Dreams May Come, and The Lost Boys.
Books: Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs by Chuck Klosterman and The Little Prince.
Eagerly awaiting: 2 books written by Mr. Rogers, The Americans by Robert Frank, an Edward Gorey book, and The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.

I just started the Klosterman, but everything else I read/watched and I'm pleased with all of them. I love The Little Prince the most. It's so imaginative and adorable. The Library is one of my favorite places to go. I always find new and exciting things while there. I want to read Jurassic Park. Has anyone read the book? Is it any good?

Civil War.

I talked to Vince last night and he said he had to draw nazis for his job and that made me remember when I went through this phase where I drew nazis. Well, now I'm drawing old time America. The Civil War Remembrance is coming up at Greenfield Village and I really want to go. It's at the end of May. Does anyone else want to go?P.S. I wish everyone would utilize their blogs and update more.

Best Advice I've Heard.

My friend Edmond posted this on his fb awhile ago and I liked it so I wrote it in my sketchbook to remind me to do it. Over the past week or so, I've really put these words into play and it feels great. I hope you do too. Have a good monday everyone.

I Suck.

I apologize for being a bad blogger lately. I'm going to get to that in a day or two. My sleep schedule has just been so messed up and I've been busy.

Also, I found this quote on my friend Brandi Keeler's facebook: "Good thoughts are no better than good dreams, unless they be executed." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

My friend, Vince Joy, showed me this AWESOME illustration. I think I'm going to do something similar to it soon. I really like the use of type and characters.

Lucky Charms.

First off, I want to state that CHAR-LES is two syllables. The votes are in and 2 wins. Look, MIKE is one syllable. CAT is one syllable. DAVE is one. CHARLES is two. CHAR-LES. Kudos to Bryan Durren for trying to pull a fast one on me with Carl's.

Matt DeBeul showed me this really great link from The Warriors. The guy in the car is actually his cousin! Watch it by clicking HERE.

I had an awesome day. Alison bought me this big charm bracelet. I never post girly things like accessories I receive so I thought I'd take a picture of this. I'm way too beat to do anything right now. I'm gonna listen to Tom Waits and read.