I painted this the other day, but Photoshop decided to freeze on me. Because the painting started spontaneously, it didn’t occur to me I should save my work as it progressed. I kind of loves when that happens, because then I paint more than I think. I also hate it, because I sometimes lose what I am working on.

When Photoshop froze up, I swiftly pressed the Print Screen button, and pasted the screen dump into MS Paint.

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I’ve had a great start on the new year. I visited the dentist today, and fixed three holes and pulled one wisdom tooth (have pulled the two lower ones earlier). From this point on it is likely I don’t have to do much with my teeth, at least hopefully.

Many people have a stressed relationship with dentists. Luckily, I don’t. My teeth have been exposed for more dental treatment than most people have to endure. I don’t think it is usefull to go into very specific details, but let’s just say it involves cutting both rows of teeth from the jaw and cranium, screws and jaw wiring.

Despite my experiences with extensive dental treatment, I still have a pretty relaxed relationship with dentists. However, the conversation they had today, while working on my teeth, seemed rather strange. New tools, better equipment, budgets, different types of fillings where all topics they openly discussed. I thought for myself I would probably cry from listening in to this conversation, if I had some sort of phobia related to dentists and strangers in my mouth. I don’t think many patients enjoy hearing a discussion on the finer points of dental scrapers and other tools, while they are working the very tools they are discussing inside ones mouth.

Anyhow, I might have been slightly hazy from the anaesthetization while suffering from a serious lack of coffee. The dentists where not as vicious as they look on the picture I painted, they where actually sincerely sweet, and I could give them a hug.

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This worm thingy is something I drew up quite recently. It was made with an old Wacom drawing pad, which I found in the trash. It was working fine, but the pen was missing. The person that threw it away might thought it was useless, or had bought a new one. I had been thinking about buying a Wacom pad for a while, and was thrilled about the find. I bought the pen for a fraction of the cost for a new Wacom pad, and have enjoyed it ever since. This happened some years ago, and it is still working fine.

The picture was made with ArtRage 2.5, which is a nifty little painting application. It emulates real paints very successfully, and is much lighter and easier to use than Photoshop. Regarding the price tag, it is very friendly at $25. The Photoshop to ArtRage ratio is almost 1:40, with Norwegian pricing on Photoshop. I’m not saying Photoshop isn’t worth the money, but ArtRage is much simpler and cheaper for doing digital painting. As for the moral of this post I might say, pick up the stuff you find in the trash?

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While walking home from my girlfriend one night, I caught a glimpse of this character. He looked like he could be something like 25, but he radiated the impression of an elderly man. He wore a sixpence (the right way, not backwards which I remember was very cool some years ago), had a large coat and was walking with a cane. Additionally, he carried a bag from “Deli de Luca” somewhat in a strange manner. I guess there was some sort of food in the bag, he didn’t want to spill or wave around, but it still looked rather special.

I only looked at this person for a split second, but the impression was so strong. When I got home, I drew this drawing on my computer. Most of the things I draw these days are on the computer. I like painting the most, because of the colors and brushes. Drawing on the computer can be much like painting, if you got a tablet like the Wacom. Compared to the real deal, it’s not the same, but it has other qualities weighing up for the differences. It is faster, simpler and less messy than real paints, but still very flexible.

Have you seen any strange characters lately? If so, you could draw and share them. Then you’ll be able to remember them for times to come.

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This is something I made some time ago. I was thinking about liberal gun laws in the USA versus the restrictive alcohol law. I found it somewhat strange to trust guns to people as young as 18, when they don’t allow serving you alcohol before you are 21. I guess some people even get to handle a gun at a much younger age than 18, if the parents allow it. I think the world could use a little less of each, but why not start with the guns? They are intended for killing, and most people don’t need to kill other people.

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