A Dog and His Boy

This is Igor Cheek and he is a Zen master.

His favorite disciple, follower, and believer, is RWC.

For many, many years, Igor was RWC's closest confidante, staunchest supporter, and the biggest constant in a life that was often magical and strange and turbulent.

Last week, after sixteen or so years of taking care of RWC, Igor left us and moved on to his next appointment. Somewhere, in the universe, a lost boy is getting a new master, disguised as a pug.

It goes without saying that RWC will miss his Zen master Igor for the rest of his life. These are the things that make you never want to open your heart that wide again.

But in the end, we all have to know, the only true constant is change, and that is the lesson. Change doesn't mean bad, change doesn't mean good, it only means different.

RWC is going to be just fine. And so is that next lost boy that will be graced by the essence that is Igor.

Godspeed, Igor, you have so much work to do.

The Art of Old School Animation

Old animated film is fascinating to me. Mostly, it's the process that intrigues me because it's magic without the aid of technology. If the electric grid went down, you could still create animated cartoons, the old school way. These days, cartoons are computer generated. Where's the art in that?

From some reason, I feel the need to archive this video by posting it on my blog. Old school animation is a complex art form. This video takes us from story line conception, drawing, sound effects, all the way through to completion.

A Vacation Souvenir

It was an instant karmic event.

J2 found a stick of gum on the sidewalk, and convinced his brother, J1, that it was from the hotel room and got him to eat it. Then, once it was in his mouth, J2 yelled "ewww, you're eating sidewalk gum!!!!!", turned around to run, and ran smack into the corner of a square stucco (hence the complimentary scrap marks) column.

I keep trying to tell them about universal law, someday they'll believe me.