Thursday, April 30, 2009

Street eats

Pictures I took on the run of a vegetable market in Poona. Most of it is out in the street, but some of it is in an ancient building with real stained glass windows. It's like walking into a different world. I only wish I had time to compose my shots, but I hope you'll get the idea!

Here's the structure I just mentioned - all old black stone with strange spire-like thingys...




There were bunches of onions and garlic and peppers suspended in mesh bags, along with bananas and pineapples and lemons...

The ceiling is very high, with those windows all around shining red and green.

And this is the outside part of the market:




Can you tell this place would be blindingly bright without those awnings?


I wish I had more pictures of the fruit stalls. There were strawberries and figs and papayas and pineapples and pears and peaches and pomegranates (OK, that's a lot of p's, but you get the idea) not to mention the grapes, bananas, apples, and oranges, of course...and a few others I didn't even know the names of.


This strawberry seller's awnings really caught my eye - they were so festive!



Broccoli, bitter gourd, eggplant and cucumber...


And all the fresh green (and red) things this man could find...




Look at those mounds of produce...stunning!



They had everything packaged and ready to go - corn, lentils, mushrooms, stir-fry medleys...I would happily turn vegetarian with a market like this to go to!

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

And it's here!

Remember how gray (grey?) everything was in my getting ready for Spring picture? It's still a little dull back in the patio, although there is quite a bit of green there as well now, but out front it's like this!





Sunday, April 26, 2009

Featured on Etsy - again



I don't know how many times this particular piece of mine has been featured in a treasury on Etsy, but no one has ever bought it!!!

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Getting ready for Spring

Last week DaddyBoy cleaned up the flower beds in our little patio...the shovel had a happy mixture of dirt and pine needles and old leaves in it...



You can see the honeysuckle, all intertwined with the hibiscus, is already sprouting. The hibiscus will take a while though. I think even its dried out remains of flowers are pretty.

Friday, April 24, 2009

Final look (sort of!)

OK, so I played with the plain backgrounds, and fixed the mommy's facial features (the earlier version was about background selection - plain vs. patterned - so I hadn't worked on the face at that point) and yes, here it is.

Until I tweak it again.

Which I really shouldn't, since I have the green light on these.

Again, please do not use these in anyway!




I'm wondering if I should keep the flower in the little girl's hair, or lose it. Or replace it with something else?

Thursday, April 23, 2009

No patterned backgrounds

This is the look that was approved by the publisher and the author:



They want me to stick with plain backgrounds, which is fine. I was just quite keen on experimenting with patterns. Either way, I'm just happy to be doing this!

Please do not reproduce this image in any way without my permission!

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

New work

I have work illustrating children's books! YAY!!! I did some quite a few years ago, and they were so much fun, but I never did any after that. Until now. And this time I'm using Adobe Illustrator to color them. I started only a few days ago, but my learning curve skyrocketed just by trying to figure out how it works.

SO MUCH FUN!

It would help if BabySnuggleBug actually snuggled up and took a nap, but oh well.

Here's a prototype for a character in the first book:


Thought, comments, suggestions?

Monday, April 20, 2009

Saturday, April 18, 2009

Oh, this and that...

So I'm back from India, the land of extreme impossible-ness. I swear I don't know how that country ticks, but wow, does it ever!

BubbleToes had a blast, that's for sure, what with all the aunties and uncles and cousins and nieces and nephews fawning over her. I was so glad to see my parents again, and all my incredibly talented relatives, especially all my young cousins who continue to amaze me with their accomplishments. More power to them!

So we came back, and DaddyBoy had a tape of Slumdog Millionaire ready for us to watch. I'm not sure why, but there it was. I ended up watching it alone, and in the end I had only one thought - "Ugh!". This movie won at the Oscars??? If you don't count the one scene that still gives me nightmares, it's still a mishmash of Bollywood cliches not worth the truckload of accolades it got, with noise for music, and strange camera work, but that's just my opinion. I mean if you watched it and liked it, great.

And then we watched Twilight, and I didn't like that either. Too choppy, not surreal enough. Lacked atmosphere. Weird acting.

Is it coz I'm watching these on the small screen? Or maybe it's just me?

Thursday, April 16, 2009

So you wanna be a parent?

My friend sent me this for wannabe Mommies and Daddies:

JOB DESCRIPTION:

Long term, team players needed, for challenging,

permanent work in an
often chaotic environment.
Candidates must possess excellent communication
and organizational skills and be willing to work
variable hours, which will include evenings and weekends
and frequent 24 hour shifts on call.
Some overnight travel required, including trips to
primitive camping sites on rainy weekends

and endless sports tournaments in far away cities!
Travel expenses not reimbursed.
Extensive courier duties also required.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

The rest of your life.
Must be willing to be hated, at least temporarily,
until someone needs $5.
Must be willing to bite tongue repeatedly.
Also, must possess the physical stamina of a
pack mule
and be able to go from zero to 60 mph in three seconds flat
in case, this time, the screams from
the backyard are not someone just crying wolf.
Must be willing to face stimulating technical challenges,
such as small gadget repair, mysteriously sluggish toilets
and stuck zippers.
Must screen phone calls, maintain calendars and
coordinate production of multiple homework projects.
Must have ability to plan and organize social gatherings
for clients of all ages and mental outlooks.
Must be a willing to be indispensable one minute,
an embarrassment the next.
Must handle assembly and product safety testing of a
half million cheap, plastic toys, and battery operated devices.
Must always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.
Must assume final, complete accountability for
the quality of the end product.
Responsibilities also include floor maintenance and
janitorial work throughout the facility.

POSSIBILITY FOR ADVANCEMENT & PROMOTION:

None..
Your job is to remain in the same position for years,

without complaining, constantly retraining and updating your skills,
so that those in your charge can ultimately surpass you

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE:

None required unfortunately.
On-the-job training offered on a continually exhausting basis.

WAGES AND COMPENSATION:

Get this! You pay them!
Offering frequent raises and bonuses.
A balloon payment is due when they turn 18 because
of the assumption that college will help them
become financially independent.
When you die, you give them whatever is left.
The oddest thing about this reverse-salary scheme is that
you actually enjoy it and wish you could only do more.

BENEFITS:

While no health or dental insurance, no pension,
no tuition reimbursement, no paid holidays and
no stock options are offered;
this job supplies limitless opportunities

for personal growth, unconditional love,
and free hugs and kisses for life if you play your cards right.

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

A poem remembered, somewhat

I fell asleep next to the little BabyHedgehog, and when I woke up these lines came back to me from many, many years ago:

alone in the empty valley
with a bundle of fresh hay
lies the white horse

he is like a piece of jade

oh do no be like gold or jade
do not go far from my heart


I cannot remember where I read these lines, or who wrote them.

I don't know why they suddenly came back to me, or even if they came back correctly, but I feel enriched.



image from flickr