Advice on Projects

Years ago, the town newspaper featured an article about a local artist whose career was animating cartoons for cereal commercials. I managed to contact the artist, and out of all our conversations, there is one piece of advice they gave that still resonates with me today.

They told me whatever I did for a career, make sure it doesn't take away from what I WANT to do.

See, their “day job” was working on commercials, which was very demanding. The deadlines were tight, and there were constant changes from the execs as to what they wanted in the commercial, causing the artist to spend extra hours revising their work. It was such a demanding job, they never had the time, energy, or creative inspiration to devote to the what they REALLY wanted to do, and that was oil painting.

The artist's advice has motivated my responses over the years when random people ask me to draw something specific. I'm not necessarily opposed to it, but I try and make it worth my while. Often, people are surprised at my terms, but I explain to them to work on their project, I have to shelve what I enjoy drawing. I'm no longer drawing what I want, but what THEY want, so I make sure the project is worth my time. If they decide the terms are too steep, I can continue to work on what I want to draw. 😉✏️

The Draw

It's still a shock to see people's reactions to my cartoons. 🥰

I've said before I look for opportunities to work on my art, so I often carry a sketchbook with me when I leave home. Instead of spending time on my phone, I work on my cartoons. People tend to walk by and comment when they see me at work. I have to admit, it's quite a motivation when random people compliment you on your artwork! 😊

Trouble

There were times I "tested the waters" to see what I could get away with while I was grounded. Occasionally, it worked, and I was able to slide back into my normal activites, but there were times it backfired, and I ended up tacking on more time to my sentence! 😳

Caught

Sunday nights, the family gathered to watch "The Wonderful World of Disney" on television...that is, unless we were grounded and not allowed to watch TV!

I tried to slip downstairs to watch a little from a distance, but I wasn't sneaky enough - I usually got caught! 😳😅 

Grounded...Still

It was always difficult having to explain I was grounded to my friends when they came by the house. 😮‍💨

 

No Shows

When I was grounded, my television privileges were taken away. That meant I'd miss when new episodes of my favorite shows aired!

The younger generations wouldn't understand the impact! With today's streaming and "on-demand" services, it's easy to watch shows when you want. In my youth, if you missed a show, it could be months (or longer) to catch the episode in a rerun!

I tried the "puppy dog" look, but my parents would never budge! Their response was usually, "you should have thought about that before you did what you did!" They were giving me more credit than I deserved...I rarely thought at all! 😅

Dressin' Up

I rarely had to wear anything formal, so when I had to put on a dress shirt, I had trouble with the buttons. I'd get to the last button and realize they were in the wrong placket! 😅👔

Mickie D's

It was a treat when we picked up Mickie D's for dinner! The smell of French fries in the air alone was practically magical! 😋 🍟

Prize

A trip to the dentist was definitely stressful, but there was one thing to look forward to...the prize cabinet!

Our dentist kept a large cabinet full of toy rings for the little kids to pick through at the end of their visit. In the hundreds of choices, I could usually find one in my style! 😁

Impressions

"Impressions"...is this still a thing?

The dentist (or orthodontist) would fill a metal dish with this pink putty, and they'd jam it into your mouth, pressing it against your teeth. The idea was it made an impression that can be used to create a mold of your teeth, but that goop had a tendency of rolling out of the dish, down towards the throat. I gagged on that goop every time! 😝

Dentist

A visit to the dentist was always nerve-wracking! The pick they used looked so menacing, and when the dentist forced it in between my teeth... often getting it stuck there...the pain as they tried to pry it free was nearly unbearable! 😖

Surprise

 

So while I was grounded, I had a lot of privileges taken away, leaving me plenty of time to focus on my schoolwork. If I devoted more time on school, it was highly likely I'd improve my grades, but that never changed the fact that I'd be totally floored to discover I actually did well on a test in a subject I was struggling in only a week earlier! 😁🥳

Wandering

With very little to keep me occupied on long drives, I found my mind wondered. I often imagined I could climb up onto the roof while it was in motion.

I know that sounds crazy, but I'm think my imagination was inspired by a scene from the movie Teen Wolf. 😎 

Feel the Breeze

When I was grounded, I looked for any opportunity to feel small moments of freedom, like enjoying the windows down on the drive to the grocery store.😎🚗🛍

No Games

While I was grounded, my parents took my video game system away so I couldn't play it while I was being punished. It was a solid plan, except they kept it right under the television in their bedroom, so when they left me alone in the house...😉🎮

🤫

Friends

When I was grounded, I was banned from catching up with friends after school. To make up for that, my friends and I tried to maximize our time together throughout the school day. It made the evening of complete isolation a bit more tolerable! 😮‍💨

Grounded

It's about that time of the year!

The school year is quickly coming to an end. All the months spent goofing off in class are really starting to show on my report card! This is my last chance to bring my grades up so I can pass all my classes for the year! My parents, seeing the dire situation I put myself in, after yelling at me for an hour, would ground me for the rest of the school year! 🥺

Not exactly an ideal situation...being grounded for weeks...but miraculously it worked every time! 😅🎓

Liar

I was never really good at lying. I'd often lie to avoid getting in trouble, but my mother usually saw right through me. She'd force me to stand still in one place until I admitted the truth. The problem was, if I admitted I had lied, I'd be in trouble for that, too. My punishment would be even worse! So, I usually just stood there without saying a thing. I don't remember how long, but there were times I must have stood motionless for an hour or more without saying a word. 🤫😅

Homework

My parents eventually realized I had enough toys, comics, and games in my room that I'd be easily distracted from working on my homework there. To give me some focus, they forced me to work on my schoolwork at the kitchen table, away from any distractions, until it was all done. It felt excruciatingly grueling! 😮‍💨📚

Work is Never Done

There was rarely an evening or weekend that my father wasn't working on a project.

Though I have always admired his work ethic, there were times I wished he had time to shoot some hoops with me! 🏀😎

The Next Day

When we stayed up all night on our sleepover playing video games, it was nearly impossible to wake us up at a reasonable hour the next day! 😴

Sleepover

Sleepovers were meant for playing video games!

🎮😎🤜🤛😎🎮

The Draw

A great way to keep me quiet for an evening...give me a blank sheet of paper and a pencil, and let me get lost in my drawings! 😁✏️

Some things never change. 😉

Chores

Chores...those jobs around the house we'd do to try and earn a little spending money.

With the weather beginning to warm up, one way to earn a little cash would be washing the salt off the family car. 💦car🚗😁

Bus Ride Home

The bus ride home can be a bit lonely when you don't have a friend to sit with. 😮‍💨🚌