O HAI
AGAIN I RISE FROM MY GRAVE TO SPREAD MY GLORY. I-it's been over a year since my last sign of existence on the internet, huh. :D() (And even longer since I last updated this website...) The previous layout wasn't even ever finished, but here I am now with a new one! I had actually started working on this July of last year, but the front illustration took forever to complete because after a certain point I found it very difficult to trudge further on it (particularly painting the details on the mansion and the cobblestone), and even after that was done I found even less motivation to code the HTML. Whatever, in any case, it's over and done with, so um, no worries!
So I guess I should explain myself? :<a
Well there was of course the whole thing with living in Japan for a year. While I had originally intended to continue work on my comic and website while I was there, it turned out that I'd had rather spend my time fulfilling my role as a foreign tourist the whole time I was there. W-whoops. :<
But now the problem is that I came back nearly a year ago, July 2007. So what was I doing that whole time? Well I hadn't been completely ignoring my art and comic because I had actually gone to a few conventions during the past few months promoting my work. But as for not putting anything on the website, well, it was kind of a mix of shame and uncertainty. Shame because I had nothing to really show for myself in excuse for my absence, and uncertainty because if I were to update then I had better write something to clarify when exactly I would be able to fully resume my work on the comic. I didn't have a clear answer for that, so I guess I felt that it'd be better not to say anything just yet because I didn't want to give anybody more false hopes and missed deadlines. :\
In addition I had also moved out of my mom's house into an apartment closer to school, partly because Japan had spoiled me with providing me a sense of independence, but mostly because my little brother had taken over my room in my mom's house leaving only the living room to me. :D() So there was the whole period of adjustment as well as greater responsibilities which I had to balance next to school and stuff.
However, what finally got me motivated to update my site and get back into work had probably something to do the last big bundle of responsibility: my lil' buddy Rupert, the three-month-old Maine Coon I adopted from a cat lady in the mountains. Aw man, such a sweet lil' guy, so spunky and affectionate, but also so snarky and snobby! He's kind of a food whore, but in a way that makes me proud as a fellow food whore. :D() The downside is that in three months I'm probably gonna have to reinspect my life once I catch myself cooking a chicken mushroom souffle while Rupert sits impatiently at the table wearing a bib with a knife and fork in his paws. 8(
I'd been undergoing toilet-training with him over the past two weeks (toilet-training as in actual toilet-toilet-training, because he had already been trained to use a litter box before) and it's causing me endless amounts of stress and grief, but also moments of triumph inbetween. Right now he's using a litter-box-ish thing that's sitting in the toilet; it's got a hole of about four inches in diameter in the middle and although he'd been pretty tripped out about it before, he's pretty okay with using it now, and I hadn't had to scoop for the past four days now since it all goes straight down through the hole into the toilet. ;D
Cute, smart, but also, um, kind of expensive?? I won't say how much he was (hint: he's a purebred), but basically I had to promise myself that in order to keep Rupert I had to get my ass in gear and start doing something about my life. So, here I am. I mean, I had been working on stuff on and off for the past several months, really I had, but I just never got that last push to really get the ball rolling, so I guess you've got Rupert to thank for that.
So what now? Well I'd like to focus on getting Unit 2 started for my comic, but I'd also like to take up a few commission jobs. I've got a Commissions section on my site now that's got a pretty thorough breakdown of my system, and I am very free for jobs, so if anybody's got anything they want drawn, please drop me a note!
Anyway, Rupert says hi. :D
And I thought I was seeing things when I saw the new layout (which is lovely by the way).
Hurrah! You're back! And with a cat too! :D HELLO RUPERT!
WOMG. YOU'RE ALIVE.
Excitement! I was seriously wondering if you had been kidnapped by the Japanese mafia.
I'll definitely have to consider a commission. Please come back with more art soon :D
'Allo kitty :)
Well I'm stupid. I thought Rupert was a dog. Alright cat, I got it now.
Welcome back from wherever and it's good to know that the Yakuza (sp?) didn't enslave you to draw them mafia propaganda. By the way, is it still possible to buy the Something Colorful artbook?
THANK YOU, RUPERT!
And welcome back to the internet. We missed you!
omfg. You're alive.
Because, I found you in the morass that is the internet, only AFTER you fell off the face of the earth, with only the occaisional signs of life in between. So, actually seeing signs that you're more than just some text, it's pretty cool. But it's okay, we're all procrastinators on the inside. My site hasn't been updated in forever, and I've been meaning to do a new layout since summer. And it's not even anything horribly fancy either. But I ramble. :B
Yeah, toilet training is tough. Back when we were toilet-training our cat, it was horrid. But now, it's all worth it.
Also: The date says December 28, 2006. That's probably wrong.
Hanh: Yes, I plan on putting up an order page for Something Colorful online in the next week or so :D (It'll be the first time the book will be made available for order online!)
Rose: Oh, that's actually a link to the previous entry, which was made in December 2006. Maybe I should do something to make it more obvious that it's a previous-entry link? :<a
You're alive!
(^-^)
Something Colorful was nice, but this makes me much happier.
Thank you Rupert. I hope to see pictures of you soon.
LAWL The second coming of Hans. Please do not be returning to aforementioned grave.
I think everyone has a lot of love for Rupert now, and rightly so! Now we can stalk you again!
Luff teh kitty.
You live! And there are pretty things to look at! Best Friday ever. :D Welcome back!
Glad to have you back around, I have been waiting anxiously for your return!
I have a maine coon as well so I know how expensive they can be, especially if you have breeding rights to them. But most breeders sell them with the clause that you have to fix them. Did you?
Yeah, I think it says in my contract that I have to neuter him. I don't really mind though because I heard that tom cats can get pretty crazy, and I don't want him stinking up my apartment if he starts spraying. >_o
BTW THANK YOU EVERYBODY FOR ALL THE COMMENTS :DD They're very motivating, although now I really can't back out of updating, huh. 8D()
Its great that things have been happening in your life, I'm so happy for you!
I know how you feel about your cat Rupert. A little over a year ago my boyfriend rescued a Siberian cat. While she's not going to end up as big as Rupert, she's over 13 pounds and still has another 3 and a half years to mature. Mina (that's her name) is well trained but believes that every time I cook meat she should get some instead of her once a week feeding. So, good luck with Rupert!
And, no, you can't back out of updating. I'm friends with you on Facebook (m'name's Alyssa) so I can always make sure you update. Mwahaha! ~.^
Before I congratulate on coming back to Directions of Destiny, I have to say....DON'T POTTY TRAIN YOUR CAT! Sorry! I have a cat who, unfortunately, has turned out to be somewhat sickly and apparently..., oh, there's just no right way to say this:
There are a few ways to tell what illness your cat might have but if there is any uncertainty, the doctor can sometimes check the cat's "stuff." If the cat is toilet trained, however, there is no way to do this!
Ehm. So yeah. Your choice, anyways....
CONGRATS! I'm so glad to have checked back into this comic because now you're back! I love your artwork, oh so much. It's what inspired me to start drawing back in the day....Not that I'm that great, but hey...we can't all be amazing comic artists. :)
Congrats on your new apartment (I'm trying to get one of those myself) and congrats on your cat. :D
Hope to hear more from you soon!
So nice to have you back, and good luck in all of your endeavors.
But, um, WE WANT PICTURES OF RUPERT.
Khera, Rupert believes that every time I cook ANYTHING he has to right to steal it from under my nose. =_= It's not just meat though, it's also rice and noodles, and today he was even sniffing longingly at my natto and kimchi. Come on, Rupert, you're American, you wouldn't like this stuff so get over it and go back to your food bowl! =_=
Claudia, Rupert's breeder actually told me about how if worse comes to worse I can keep his poop in a ziplock bag and bring it in to the vet, so I've considered that aspect as well. But I've read that toilet-trained cats have no problem with using a litter box again if the toilet is not available to them, so if Rupert does ever become sick, I can always just have him use the litter box again for the sake of preserving his fecal matter. No problem! >3<b
CelestialChild, Rupert's pictures are coming!!
Mina's the same way. She just asks for meat rather vocally. To date she's tried a number of things including cheez-its and adobo. No matter what we make or eat she at least wants to smell it. She has a couple of favorites (ice cream) that we use as rewards in her training.
\o/ YAY Hans is alive, we missed you!
I'm so glad you're back!
We've all definitely missed you.
You're a great inspiration.
Amazing work.
Congratulations on your new cat! You can look forward to him having a long life! I have a Maine Coon (mixed, not purebred) and he's fourteen now. I get the impression that well cared for cats can easily live into their twenties. Anyhow, it sounds like you're having a lot of fun with Rupert.