Happy Monday.

Today is one of those soggy, damp, bone chilling spring days that does not really feel like spring. I am actually not really ready for spring, I'm quite smitten on winter this year and I suppose the skiing is to blame. 10 days til we take off for Colorado! The Snow Report is promising, with 10" in the past 7 days and up to 3" expected this week in Breckenridge. Yet the temperatures are a fair 35 to 45 degrees during the day, which Andrew tells me are amazing skiing conditions. To have fresh powder at your feet and not need to wear a jacket... I think I will appreciate the unbulkiness of it all, fer sher man.

Busy busy busy, on Friday I did my photo shoot with my second model for Chanda's House, and it was a fun little cultural experience. I got to meet Natasha, her mother Vandana, and a handful of aunts, uncles, in-laws, cousins and one new baby sister. Vandana's family emmigrated from India when she was a child. Natasha was born in America but often wonders "why wasn't I born in India too?" They had just visited their native country last year and had many photos to share. After I took photos of Natasha for my illustrations, Vandana made me some hot chai and fed me some of their favorite Indian cookies and snack food. She showed me all her bottles and jars of spices (dozens!), then Natasha showed me her collection of Care Bears and some of her latest drawings (which were really good). Then Vandana took me to her cousins' house around the block so I could take pictures of the large gods and goddesses that they displayed in their living room. There were a lot. Katrina's story came to life for me, right before my eyes. The smell of the curry, the little shrine with god and goddess dolls that they worshipped every morning, the evidence of Hinduism around every corner. Kat, it was like I walked in to Chanda's House with you. Your manuscript describes it perfectly.

Natasha even has a best friend on her block that doesn't come over very often. Once or twice. I wonder if she feels like little Katrina did about visiting Chanda's house. Maybe this book will introduce Natasha's friends to her culture in a positive way.

So it is time to get back to work.

Ahoy!

Yay! The amazing Brianna and Josh have got me back up and running! I am now a happy customer of Utopian.net for all my web hosting needs. The people, phenomenal, the customer service, excellent. I highly recommend them.

So what's been going on? Well I'll tell you. I have been inundated with illustration, design, trips to CEO's house, a wedding, a ski trip and Maggie. Alright, so most of that is really nothing new. But the ski trip---OOHHH, the ski trip!

Andrew and I were doing a little research on how much it would cost to fly to his favorite ski destination of all time, Colorado. It wasn't long before we discovered that if you're going to ski cheap in Colorado, the time to do it is in April. Flights are cheap, hotels are doing all kinds of specials upon their regular "off season" reduced prices, and you can get discounted lift tickets as well. We did our homework and couldn't find a better deal than through Expedia (dot cooooommmm...). And wait til you see the accomodations. Ok ready? "Oooooh... Aaaaaahhhhhh..."

We're making up for last summer. That's how we're justifying ourselves. Plus, I will only have to take one vacation day because it will be a long weekend. And Andrew needs, NEEDS to ski again before the season is over. Fine with me! This will be our first "real" vacation since our honeymoon in Antigua in 2001. Caribbean vs. Colorado--talk about polar opposites!

So. I got a lot going on. And even more importantly than all of the above, Saturday is MAGGIE's 1ST BIRTHDAY! I can hardly believe the little nipper is already 12 months old. Of course she is still all puppy. Tireless, fearless (almost), nippy and full of games, my Maggie brings a little enjoyment to every day, even the worst ones. She'll be sure to have a fiesta going on at ME, MAGGIE this weekend. Rumor has it that she's recently received a shipment of bling bling from Posh Poochy, so check her out on Saturday. Yes, my girl is modeling again... she gets more work than me!

Thanks for standing by and sending me worried emails and comments and ESP. Things are frantic as usual and I'm back on the scene like a lovin' machine. Get up, get on up...

I changed web hosts.

And we're working on updating my blog. This is a test.

Taking care of business

Thanks for the well wishes. I am feeling better and I am back to business. This week is choc-full-o children's book illustration, with the deadline for color work for Chanda's House fast approaching (you can already pre-order it from the publisher's website!). My studio is a streamlined operation full of watercolor blocks, masonite boards, tubes and brushes and sketches and reference. I have a photo shoot scheduled with one of my models on Thursday, and I am waiting to hear from the other. In the meantime I am working on any illustration that does not require fresh photos of the girls.

So there isn't much time to do anything else--and I must get back to work!

I stayed home.

Because I am really, really sick. Bleh.

So far, so....?

My first day on the day job at home might have been better had I not contracted this horrid painful burning cough, runny river rapid nose and achy breaky muscles. It was just a matter of time--everyone around me (and even those "virtually" near) joined the Sick Club long ago, some as far back as December and are still sick today. If you have been ill recently, I am not surprised. Then Andrew had to go and ruin everything by saying this weekend, "You know... everyone I know has been sick lately, even at work, and I am the only one that hasn't been. Well, and you. How did we manage to be so lucky?" BAM. At that moment the germ fairy turned her clogged ear our way and made a bee line for my bronchial passages. Took a while for her to germinate, but once she did I felt it like a spear in my chest. Yes, it was about 1:30pm on Tuesday. Immediately after her strike I fell into a deep sleep and did not wake until nearly four. At that point I became a lost cause.

So here I drip, exhaustedly. But it feels good to sit still and type. I worked on crazymaking projects all day, then reported to CEO's home at 5:30 to submit my proof of busy-ness. Bleh. Once that was over I had errands to run, including a stop at the pharmacy for some cold medicine. Came home, threw laundry in, straightened up a bit, put on my pajamas and now I am FINALLY SITTING DOWN at 8:30pm. I eagerly await tonight's episode of the Apprentice--the only show I have ever felt such a deep addiction and longing for.

Now we've got to figure out dinner. Sigh. If only I had my own personal cook. There should really be more time left in the day to have dinner, and actually enjoy it. Looks like tonight will be take out.

Tomorrow morning I report to CEO's barrack's at 09:30 hours and will probably be there all day trying to recover active jobs from the cardboard boxes stacked up in his garage.

Meet my new office.

What a strange week already. Saturday Andrew and I went skiing again, this time at Camelback Mountain in the Poconos. A shorter drive than our last trip to Hunter Mountain in the Katskills, it was also more crowded with pushier people. Lift lines were longer and ski runs were shorter. I fell a lot. Cried once from frustration. But all in all, it was still fun!

Sunday was supposed to snow us in but the Nor'easter did not arrive until noon on Monday. It was a weak one, at that. Forecasts of 24" were wrong, very wrong. We may have gotten 6", maybe. Still, it was beautiful. We lit a fire Monday night and enjoyed wine with my enchiladas.

Monday night I had an unexpected phone call from CEO, asking if I'd work Wed-Thurs-Fri this week instead of Tues-Wed-Thurs. I was told that moving the office got complicated due to the snow. Ok, whatever! I did not mind staying home Tuesday. I got some networking accomplished.

Then Tuesday night I received another phone call from CEO. This time he said something about the situation still being a mess, and we'd be meeting at his house on Wednesday morning. Ok, whatever! When I got to his house this morning he told me that he was having trouble with the new landlords, (i.e., the lease has not been finalized yet) and would I mind working from home for two months? Bringing home the phat G5 and cinematic display and telecommuting? Uh... duh! Would I mind. He really seemed concerned that I might say, "Yes I do mind. Please let me work out of your garage? I miss not having plumbing at work."

Sigh.

Now of course I woke up this morning with a terrible cough, a runny face and aches all over. So when CEO offered to help me get the 2 ton G5 into my house, I tried to defer. Somehow, having this man in my house was a collision of worlds that were never meant to meet. But as hard as I tried to avoid it, I could not. So CEO followed me back to my house in his mega SUV and parked in my driveway and invaded my world. No sooner did he step in the door that he began giving himself a self-guided tour of the first floor. Goddammit, I gotta give a tour. Did I leave anything out I don't want him to see? Like freelance art projects, dirty unmentionables or scraps of paper inscribed with, "I hate my job!" upstairs? I did not have a chance to check, because next he asked to use the bathroom which is of course on the second floor. As he peeked in and out of rooms, marveling aloud at all the 1920s crown moulding, hardwood floors and glass doorknobs, I tried to get in front of him so as to sweep unsightly things away before he noticed them. And of course, of COURSE, I had a little laundry bag spilling over with all my most recently worn bras and undies, plain as day in the middle of the master bed. Oh god, it was so WRONG.

So after the tour, CEO carried the 2 ton Mac upstairs to my studio and continued to gush over our house and our neighborhood. I thought he would never leave. By this time I was: 1) trembling with hunger, 2) sniffing and snorting wildly, 3) doubling over in coughing fits and 4) trying to control Maggie, who did not understand why she was not being marveled over, rather than the house. Was she not the more beautiful attraction? Why was she being left out? "RRRRUFF! RRRRUFF! *whine whinny* RRRRUFF!" jumping up to my waist.

Forever later he left and it was over. The calm descended back into my bones. DAMN that man carries a lot of chaotic, disheveled, frantic energy around with him. Remember the Gravitron ride at the local carnival? Where it spins til you stick to the sides and then the floor drops out and someone throws up and it falls back on their face? CEO's aura spins and spins like that wherever he goes. I never really saw how drastic a feeling it was until today, seeing it spin out of control in my own house.

So I guess all in all, this is good news. I am working from home, every day! Is it not everything I ever wanted? Well not EXACTLY. I still have to drive to his house once a day to show him the work I have done. But at least I am home, and I am safe. And I have a clean, shiny working toilet. It's the little things that matter most.


The mark I left on the wall in my little corner at the infamous Crazymaking office.