January 2012
3 posts
First hump day of the new year
May be a good day for wearing a funny hat to work. Or maybe crank Prince’s Purple Rain album during your commute, windows down. Or take a twelver of Mountain Dew to share with your co-workers or customers or whomever. Whatever you do to bring some joy and levity to the day, go big with it.
Me? Maybe I’ll sport a funny hat and crank the Purple Rain in the studio. Then I’ll get...
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You have the thunder
There’s a lot of gobbledygook that can derail your best laid plans. Gobbledygook distracts us, it mesmerizes us, it steals our time and diminishes our capacity for making art, for making awesome, for getting the things done that we wrote on the list (the list that was here a minute ago, but now it’s under a pile of gobbledygook).
Think about the gobbledygook that routinely comes...
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Getting aggressive
Hello 2012. This year, it may serve the artists, the small business owners, the freelancers, and the indie peeps to be more aggressive. Not saber-rattling and war-mongering and swinging-your-fist-first. I’m talking diligent aggressiveness toward growing your art, your enterprise, your independent megaphone. Like Mr. T after guzzling a twelver of Mountain Dew. Awesomely aggressive.
What...
December 2011
3 posts
4 tags
Yoga love and mini-interview and stuff
April Armistead loves yoga, teaches yoga, and writes a blog about yoga. Today on her blog, Hearts Expanding, she shares a little interview she did with Yours Truly. Plus, she feeds the Star Wars Yoga monster!
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What it's like to be a kid
Wild. Zany. New. Glittery. Weird. Grubby. Adventurous. Outlandish. Intergalactic. Dangerous. Sort of like living the life of Calvin in Calvin & Hobbes.
Now that you’re all grown up, how can you get more breakneck, full speed adventure into your life?
Hint: On a snowy day, it might include building a snowman. Doing something absurd. Get wild with it. Scare the neighbors.
November 2011
12 posts
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“The man with a new idea is a crank until the idea succeeds.”
– Mark Twain
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Thanking someone for something specific
It’s commonplace for Americans to give thanks on Thanksgiving. Oftentimes, the Thanksgiving thank you is a big tent of thanks, covering friends, family, health, and general well being.
Perhaps, in addition to such an all encompassing thanksgiving, you might find someone you would like to thank personally. Maybe your thanks could be for something specific. More specific than “thanks...
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Can't we just get married and make super babies?
“Oh, Clark!” art print by Yours Truly. Hot from the studio!
This is the first art print in the Wonder Woman pop romance art collection. “Oh, Clark!” draws inspiration from master pop artist Roy Lichtenstein and redoubles the geek chic of classic comics art. THE STORY: Wonder Woman is A strong, heroic woman, but she tears up at the thought of what could be with Clark!...
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Broken windows
Last Saturday morning, as I was headed to Austin Comic Con, I was pulled over by a motorcycle cop. No, I wasn’t speeding or driving recklessly. I was barely a mile from my home. And driving quite nicely, thank you.
The reason for the stop? My inspection decal was past due. In Texas, all vehicles must be inspected annually to demonstrate their road-worthiness. According to the state of...
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You've gotta want it
Say what you want about Tim Tebow. Everyone else has.
(stay with me people, even if you’re not a football fan)
I didn’t watch much of the game last night, but I watched a little. I was compelled to tune in and see what this whole “Tebow is starting and winning with only two completions” thing was about.
The knocks on Tebow’s game have been plentiful, and from my...
What it means to conquer the world (abridged)
Self-direction rather than subjugation.
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Hanging it out there
Most folks play it real safe. If you want to make progress, you have to hang it out there.
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October 2011
25 posts
November convention schedule
November 11-13 at the Austin Convention Center, it’s the second year for Wizard World Austin Comic Con.
The weekend before, November 4-6, I’ll be at the Tucson Comic-Con. That show will include the exclusive Desert Storm limited edition. Only 50 of these will be available.
If you want to secure a print or have a special request, send me a note: rob@robosborne.net
Picasso kept talking
Pablo Picasso projected what was in his mind through his hand to the brush and paint, then onto the canvas. He attempted to make real what was in his mind. He sought to manifest an object in reality which didn’t exist before.
Yeah, it was painting, just painting. But the notion that an artist can whirl something into existence with canvas and paint, that’s pretty cool.
Everything...
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Pablo Picasso said something
On this day in 1881, Pablo Picasso was born. He proceeded to make art, a name for himself, and a ruckus. He’s also been quoted.
Action is the foundational key to all success.
This message has been delivered over and over and over again by the influential, the inspirational, and the tyrannical. Perhaps there’s something to be said for action, no?
Every child is an artist. The...
Doing bigger things
It’s easy to get caught up in the small routine tasks. Fixing meals, cleaning the house, shopping, yard work, changing the oil, whatever. Even work can be menial.
What a drag, right? So we need some downtime too. We watch a little TV, maybe read a romance novel or play video games.
This is all very normal. And if you aim to keep things as normal as can be, then the following could be...
“I’m so positive that the only time I look for shit is when I’m...”
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Atari Pong
When I was a wee lad (the one who told the “chicken on our car” joke) in Meridian, Idaho, my family got the sweet Atari game system known as Pong. In a new piece, I’ve married video game nostalgia with pop, and it’s available now in the Etsy store.
Blow through the comfort zone
This whole “comfort zone” thing is so played out. We get it. There’s are activities, routines, and interactions that make human beings uncomfortable. So we avoid the those things and remain…comfortable.
Remain comfy for too long, and we get into a rut.
When we’re feeling like stretching ourselves, what do most of us do? We tinker around the edges of our comfort....
More lessons from the running trail
5. Eat sugary, salty junk. This one blew my mind. When I read the suggestion to guzzle Mountain Dew during an ultramarathon, I was up for it. And from my experience, Mountain Dew and M&Ms and potato chips and cookies help to keep the mind alert and lively while staving off the doldrums and negativity that can set in during a long haul.
6. Chug fluids, keep the urine flowing. That last part...
Lessons from the running trail
New people are tuning in to the bloggy-blog all the time, so please allow me a moment to set the table. Soon, I turn 39 years old. In celebration, I intended to run thirty-nine miles.
On Saturday, I did just that.
It took me 8 hours and 50 minutes. The longest I’d run previously was a marathon, so this was thirteen extra miles over my longest run ever.
This kind of experience typically...
Did the run
I ran a 39 miler today. My birthday run. My legs are blasted.
Is it too soon to ask, “What next?” Yes.
More to come. For now, I’m recovering on the couch.
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39 miles for 39 years
I look younger and better than my years. At least, that’s what I tell myself.
Soon, I’ll turn 39 years old. On Saturday, to “celebrate”, I’ll be running 39 miles.
I’ve run a marathon before. Did that back in February. Hurt like hell. Probably because I tried to run it too fast. It was a particularly windy day and unseasonably hot too. That didn’t make it...
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Star Wars Yoga
My Star Wars yoga artwork has begun popping up around the internet. Probably because I’ve made the pieces available in my Etsy shop. This is Boba Yoga, the first SW yoga piece.
Boba Yoga debuted at an Austin Books art show. It was well received by fans, and the series was born. Eventually, I collected all of the SW yoga poses in one piece, Galaxy Yoga.
Plans change
The best laid plans of mice and moguls often go awry.
You make a plan, prepare your tactics, head out to make a ruckus. You arrive to discover that the situation on the ground is different than you anticipated. Your original plan, as formulated, is insufficient.
Your plan sucks.
Whoopee. Devil may care. Do not panic. Plans don’t get things done. You get things done. Right?
When you made...
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Navel-gazing
When you’re navel-gazing, your eyes are off the prize. Instead, you’re peering into that dark abyss at your midsection, ogling the lint that has accumulated.
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary defines navel-gazing as “useless or excessive self-contemplation”. Really, it’s a prolonged inspection of lint.
Keeping a clean navel is good hygiene. But if you spend too...
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Bring on the rain
We like sunshine and blue skies. After a long, hot, rainless summer, we just want rain. Bring on the heavy, dark clouds. Empty the heavens. Bring on the buckets and buckets of raindrops.
In the wee hours of the morning, I awoke to a torrential downpour. Thunder rocked, and the bedroom window was being pelted. It was a percussive explosion.
I went back to sleep.
Now, I’m drinking coffee....
There was a chicken on our car
When I was a wee lad of about three or four years of age, I was given a joke. I think it was crafted by my mom, this joke, and it was intended to be my joke. I would tell the joke at family gatherings.
It went like this: There was a chicken on our car, and a monkey came by and put a clown suit on it.
That was the joke. That’s it. Nothing more or less.
People laughed. Even those who had...
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You don't even know what the thing is yet
There’s a scene in The Social Network where the honchos are discussing “the face book”. (That really narrows it down) Justin Timberlake (playing Sean Parker) makes the point that adding advertising to the site will make it uncool. Ads will ruin everything.
But that’s not the point. He also says, and I’m paraphrasing here, that they don’t even know what it is...
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Terror on the new path
When you’re on a new path, every step you take is leading you into new territory. Each step into the unfamiliar can be jarring, even terrifying. Each footfall may cause your brain to vibrate with misgivings.
It’s not like jumping out of an airplane. Once you have leapt into the sky blue, you can’t change your mind and go back. You’ll just have to continue, and pull your...
“All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson (Extending the conversation from this post.)
Funny hat
Tomorrow morning, most people will start their work week the way they always do. A few will do something different. The fringe few will show up to work wearing a funny hat. Funny hats change everything.
Getting experimental
In college, I took a drawing course, Experimental Illustration. We used several mediums. We were presented with a variety of premises for the semester’s projects. But it was all very typical of an illustration class. It felt tame and predictable, not very experimental.
We could have ventured into the messy arena of experimentation, where things blow up, mistakes are made, and the unexpected...
September 2011
9 posts
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Do you have Bill Watterson's email address?
I would love to send Bill Watterson an email. Just a digital note to let him know how much I enjoyed Calvin & Hobbes. I might gush a little, as I am quite smitten with his work on the comic strip.
If he responds, I might take the opportunity to ask him what he’s been up to. I think he lives in Ohio, so I might make some small talk about Ohio, see how he likes it. Poking around, I might...
Calamitous opportunity
Unemployment is high. Consumer confidence is low. Many homeowners have seen their biggest asset lose a sizable chunk of its worth, and their mortgage is underwater. The government has a towering, ever-growing debt. Many people are burdened with substantial personal debt.
Where’s the silver lining?
In the midst of calamity and chaos, there is opportunity. A chance for introspection and...
Shazam!
You’re showering, and SHAZAM! A brilliant idea strikes you. As you soap up and wash your hair (or shave your glorious, handsome head), the idea percolates. You mull this sparkly-new concept over, and the more you think about it, the more resoundingly electric the idea seems to be.
As you towel off and dry your hair (or your beautiful, bald head), the luster of the concept begins to fade....
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Building a shanty
You can build a starter shanty, easy-peasy. Just lean a couple of wooden pallets together, binding them with some wire. Boom! You’ve got an A-frame shanty house.
If you want more luxury, you could salvage some scrap plywood. You might scrounge up a plastic tarp to keep the rain out. Ideally, some corrugated metal could serve as the roof. Now, you’re building a more comfortable,...
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Even on the weekend
Famously, Stephen King used to say that he wrote every day except Christmas, the Fourth of July, and his birthday. Then, in his memoir On Writing, he called that a lie. It was a titillating tale for interviewers. It made good copy.
The truth, he explained, is that when he’s writing something, he writes every day. That means Christmas and Independence Day. Yes, he even writes on his...