While bumbling around London, we stumbled upon St. Paul’s Cathedral. This is where Charles and Di were married. Of course, I didn’t know that. It cost about $50 bucks for us to step inside for a minute, so we took a pass (that means we didn’t go in). You used to be able to walk into a church for free. I guess that's not a thing anymore. We quickly got back to bumbling around town.
Louvre
This might seem odd but the best part about my recent trip to Europe was that I never set foot in an art museum. I just chilled and wandered the streets and boulevards. It was heaven. I sometimes melt down in museums. There’s too much art. I can only look at stuff for about 20 minutes before I get overwhelmed and have to leave. So it turned out that looking at no art was a pleasure. It gave me the chance to create my own little scribbles. This is the Pavillion Mollien.
Paris
I hadn’t been to Paris in a few years. The thing that jumped out at me was the smoking. Wherever I walked, every person I passed seemed to have a cigarette in their mouth. I may have even seen a few children lighting up. Then there was the mushroom clouds of vape smoke. Some people even had a lit cigarette in one hand while they vaped with the other. I made that last statement up but it did feel like that was happening at points. I managed to make a drawing from the balcony of our flat on Rue De Lisbonne.
London Calling
While in London recently, my wife found out that a bunch of old British money we had was no longer valid. During the pandemic, England switched to new bills. Being foreigners, we could either change the money at the Bank of England or do it at a post office. When Yun and I entered the nearest post office, we were shocked to find out it was also a curry restaurant. So as people stood in line waiting to get stamps or mail a package, there were people sitting at a counter eating curry over rice or getting take-out. I can honestly say it was the best smelling post office I’ve ever been in.
Thanksturky
46 million turkeys were whacked for Thanksgiving this year. Americans were estimated to spend 1.1 billion dollars on turkeys this past holiday. 88% of Americans atet Thanksgiving turkey. Tommy Kane wasn't one of them. These animals suffer terribly. Mine was one of the few that were pardoned.
GIrl
This may be the least amount of detail I’ve ever put into a drawing. Doesn’t even look like I had anything to do with this piece of art.
Godzilla
When I was staying in Hoboken, I would take a walk and hangout by the waterfront each day. There is a beautiful view of the Manhattan skyline. I knew I would draw it but I didn’t want to do the ususal urban sketch. In my mind, I wanted to get Godzilla in somehow. I left a space in the illustration to fit him in. It turned out as weird as I thought it would.
JB Smoove
One of the funniest people on the planet is the great comedian and actor, J.B. Smoove. Not only is he a genius but he also happens to be VEGAN. If you’ve ever seen his TV talk show, One Course With JB Smoove, then you know he's also the best dressed man in Hollywood too. I would love to be him when I grow up.
Emperors
Emperor penguins have just been listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act because the animal’s sea ice habitat is melting at an alarming rate. Experts predict that 99 percent of the world’s emperor penguin population will disappear by 2100 without significantly reducing carbon pollution. The culprit, climate change. Duh.
Cowdog
I drew half a cow’s face for an advert I will soon run for my Vegan art Book. As the sketch sat next to my desk for a few days, I began to continue drawing on it. First I drew a dog’s mouth in profile where the cow’s moth should be.
Everything Everywhere
Whenever I visit my nephew in Maryland, I always draw some of his toys. He’s at at age where he’s getting too old for toys. I really had to scrounge around to find the one, odd plastic monster that I drew in dark blue ink. In order to finish the sketch, I searched out some animal images to illustrate with colored pens. Each time I start one of these drawings, I never know what it will look like when I’m done. It pretends to have meaning but in actuality, there is none.
Dead Birds
Recently while taking a walk, I came across a dead bird on the sidewalk. As I continued on, I came across a second dead bird about a block away. I’d never seen that before. So, when I stumbled upon a third bird another block on, I knew I had to go home and get my sketchbook and return to draw these beauties. Another unsolved mystery until some of my Instagram followers informed me that the birds had flown into windows. They were discovered alongside a newly constructed building when new windows had just been installed.
Snow Crabs
Alaska has just cancelled its snow crab season due to disappearing stocks. From 2018 to 2021, the snow crab population has dropped 87%. Further fishing could wipe out the the population entirely. Climate change has played a major role. As these types of events happen with greater frequency, it might be time to eat more carrots and califlower. Those species are not endangered.
