So now that I have gathered my senses after hearing the news of your gainful employment I will submit a proper post. I checked out Lit Workshop's site and am not surprised in the least that they chose you. They love boxes and sneakers, two things that you have demonstrated complete mastery over. I am really curious as to how you presented your portfolio for the interview and what exactly you included. It must have been a very merry Christmas for you to know that a job is waiting in the new year and I suspect it is just the beginning  of  Wheelock-World Wide (once you have devoured them).
I can only hope (and work like the Devil) that something good is coming my way this year. Otherwise, it's getting pretty fucking dark in here.
Above are two of the several synthetic skin tattoos I gave away for Christmas this year. There is nothing more I can learn (technically speaking) from these practice skins. I need blood.
I am glad to report, however, that the little butterfly tattoo posted earlier has apparently healed quite nicely and that all the ink has stayed put. This was not a given because, at the time, the tattoo-ee (Amy) had drank several beers just prior and I was working mostly blind in a puddle of body fluids with tiny shader needles that are, I am told, very easy to overwork, which I did. For two days afterwards she was able to press a piece of paper to the butterfly and get a print off of it! I plan to build my empire off of this little tattoo, somehow, so I was on the edge of my seat about it.
I would love to see some MOG mobile sketches and , again, a Mad Madelaine when you can.
C.

Extended forecast: Hell has frozen over with a %100 chance of flying pigs.

Charley!!! A Job! ...A Job!!
I feel....wierd.

I got a job in the manufacturing sector!

I need to google "Project Manager".  Why?  Because I am going to start being one Jan 4th!  I got a job!  What the hell?  I have been trying to get a job for 5 years!  I just can't believe it.  I have been in a state of euphoria for the past couple of days.  The company, Lit Workshop is a manufacturer with a design department consisting of three or four people.  They do a lot of fixtures and display units for retail environments.  They have some amazing machines.  a water jet cutter, a laser cutter, a 5 axis cnc router, a big finishing booth and a lot more.  I am going to have huge responsibility.  I have to professionalize my ragged ass.
I told them I just committed to the MOGmobile so I am starting there working 6 hr days through Jan, then full time.  Three months of probation and then hopefully, a raise, some bennies and a job!
What should I do?

I want to draw I want to dance I want to puke, I just feel so expressive with the weight of years dropping onto the floor.  What a relief.  I mean, my self confidence has been plummeting for some time now.  It sure does feel good to have someone believe in you.

if you don't title the post, who will?

Christ, Charley, you're a busy man. I am very glad Madelaine's adventure turned out O.K. A very scary moment for a parent that I can only imagine. Your description of her closing her  eyes just before the surgery gave me chills. Then again, who would you rather have administering the anesthetic then Dr. Stoner himself?..Dr.Stoner..that is just too rich. How do you make it to, or even through medical school with a name like that?

I can see from the photograph that you have your work cut out for you to get Madelaine to make an angry face. She obviously finds the whole exercise much too silly. Still, you must prevail for me, other wise my secret project will be in vain. When you try again, please do it out side in an even light. The lighting needs to be similar to the picture of Leo.

So, I read the latest posts on DesignTrench.

Where in the world do you find the time to illustrate and post a recipe!!? I think I'll give those onion grenades a try for Christmas dinner. I suspect the gastro-intestinal fuse on those bad boys is about 45 minutes and then it's all out biological warfare. I pity the fools.

I was pleasantly surprised to see an Erwin Wurm fat car on the blog as well. I think you two were separated at birth. I would post other examples of his work that remind me of you but Google takes all the fun out of that.

You and Jesse must be beside yourselves (which is quite Wurmish, come to think of it) about the DesignSponge home feature. You two have always run a pretty tight ship, it seems, so I hope there isn't  much work to do. I do, however, suspect that you're cooking up some ill-advised prank home accessories to keep the invaders on their toes. A small touch, like a vibrating door knob or perhaps a completely inexplicable apparatus that they are too afraid to ask about. Anyways it's very exciting and I expect my drawing of the cow to figure prominently in the article.

Thanks , too, for the plug in your story about the hilariously mangled job proposal that you gave to the library. I don't think I've ever been quoted on line before except by myself.

And yes, you have, without council, I might add, gone public with Pan'sPeter. And now, with the imminent onslaught of hungry consumers desperate to have a piece of us,  we need to manufacture a clothing/screen print line based on homeless rags from  'free' bin outside the Salvation Army. I'm totally in, as you already know and am presently counting the millions yet to be made.

1...2...3...4....5...6....7.....hhmm, I can't think of any more friends who will buy one for a dollar.

I thought for a moment that Pup-puh-ho could be our star graphic ( he does grace the blog marquee after all), racing across the random  polo or bitchin' plaid trousers we scavenge, but still, a simple skull might still be the answer. The Pup-puh-ho might be a little too...shlafty. An actual Faun could work, after all this is Pan'sPeter but only if he's gnarley enough. No prancing or flute. I will also prepare a new "Fuck the Race" logo for consideration.

Below is my first completed tattoo. I'm terribly pleased with this humble little butterfly. It was an addition to a memorial tattoo by an unknown artist from Alabama that resides on Beth's older sister's leg. "Jayden" is her grandson (Amy was a grandmother at the tender age of 37) who died a newborn from a birth defect where the organs form on the outside of the body. Nice going, God.

Some fairly high stakes for such a rank beginner as myself,  considering not only the sentiment, but also that my effort is adjacent to an obviously seasoned shop pro.

I look forward to hearing about your job interview, the mere fact that you were even able to drum one up  in this economy deserves a celebratory wine stained thumbs up.

C.

do we have to put a title on every post?

Yo Bro,
Sorry about the delay.  I took a couple of pictures of mean Madeleine but couldn't get it just right.   I couldn't get to not ham it up for the picture. Before I had a chance to do another photo shoot, she was struck with appendicitis!  We had to take the poor little thing to the hospital where she was under the knife within hours.  She was a champ.  I was really impressed with her courage.  I will get one when she feels better.
She was well prepped for her hospital visit.  I don't know if you are aware of this book: Madeline (n I can't figure out how to underline the book title, grr) but it is about a little French girl who gets her appendix out.  We know it well over here and I think it gave our Madeleine some strength.  I brought our copy of the book to the hospital and got everyone I could to sign it for her. Even Dr Stoner, the anesthesiologist.  I love this town.



It looks like the blog design*sponge is going to do a feature on our house!  There is a section called sneak peeks where they show the domiciles of designers and artists.  So Jessie and I took a bunch of pictures and sent them off.  The home editor sounded like she was going to do it, so that is exciting.  Last time I was in design*sponge my blog and my website took record hits.  That was from the award winning soapbox car though.  that thing is a slam dunk.  I am a little anxious to see if the design savvy masses will approve of my humble abode.  Design*sponge is pretty big. This link is directly to the sneak peaks section that we are going to be in.
I have been planning on how to handle this little opportunity.  I have set up a a traffic tracking program called Google Analytics to monitor my web site, trenchdesign, the etsy shop and panspeter.  Last week in a long rambling boring blog entry I went public with panspeter.  I am equally excited as I am horrified to see if the design*sponge gets us some visits here, through trenchdesign. I will give you the secret passwords and whatnot if you are interested in seeing the action.
Do me a favor and take a look at my blog post called "Two Ways Prepare Crow" or something.  Is it too verbose?  Is it worthy of visitors or is it too long for someone who doesn't know me?  I wanted to write a lot so I could bury the link to Panspeter as deeply as I could.  Shroud it with text so cryptic and prose so indecipherable that nobody will ever be able to get to that part.  I want to have some fun stuff up there.  And I want to have some more fun stuff up here!  I want more fun stuff everywhere!  So get on it Ruppert.  I am counting on you to shine.  Somebody might see this.
Make a fuck the race shirt, take a picture of it and I will put it on our new etsy site.  It seems like my price point is too high for etsy.  We need to sling some $10-$20 items.  How about it?  We need to do it this week if we want to cash in on the free third hand publicity we might get.  Sounds like a good enough reason to drop everything, right?
Make a shirt, don't even bother with the silk screen yet.  We will open the umbrella when it starts to rain.

I have a big job interview tomorrow so wish me luck.

ps: I really like that Sardinia tattoo.

much love