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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Wine Day 30

So. Over the years, my taste buds have changed. In terms of alcohol, I went down many different paths. Going from drinking heavy shit to tipping on some cold ones to some more expensive taste like IPA’s and Whiskey on the rocks. In the past year, it has been wine...

My mom always enjoyed wine and she always had it in the house. From time to time, I would have some with her. Either for a holiday or with dinner or something. Not sure why, but I always liked the cabernets. It might be the boldness of it kind of like how I like my coffee black. I haven’t gotten into merlots so I guess it isn’t that heavy or bold. But whites just didn’t sit right with my taste buds and I don’t know why. Maybe I like the cherry taste? But since I moved, I tried to buy a new bottle of cabernet every weekend. It was fun to explore all the different labels and actually drink it and dissect its flavors. There’s something about pouring a glass of wine that resembles the relaxing moments of enjoying a cup of tea. I’m drinking for the flavor, not to get drunk. But if that does happen, I won’t be mad haha

My bank account is getting closer to zero so I haven’t been able to buy a bottle of wine in a while or more like I shouldn’t. Now that it is a beautiful day here and it is Friday, all I can think about is turning on “Luca” and enjoying a glass of cabernet. Cheers!

Stay tuned for Day 31 tomorrow. Getting drunk of curiosity and wondering the story behind my posts? Check it out: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Insta Day 29

So. I have some exciting news... at least in my eyes. I got a second Instagram account! I feel like for the past 3 years, I have been trying to build something but it just feels like I am running in place. My drawing skills and interests keep growing bigger and I keep trying to show the world that. I have been picturing myself as a character designer or cartoonist a lot recently and I would love for it to become a reality; or at least get some commissions! Unfortunately, my bank account has been taking priority and I need a job where I know I can get money. So the plan is to get a job to pay the bills and hopefully grow his dream of mine and make it real down the road.

To help with this, I made the second Instagram account. So now I have one that is purely personally and one focused on professional. I am not very active on social. Yes, I scroll a lot but I don’t like famous accounts posts or encourage engagement or anything like that. So I saw this new account as an opportunity to start fresh. To actually create content people want and to interact with my audience. I also didn’t want to delete all the posts I previously had so this was a better option. I want to make this account fun for me and my audience. I plan on posting something every day and reaching out to viewers for feedback. And hopefully connecting with other artists along the way by interacting with their posts. It’s a beautiful way to get yourself out there, you just need to do it right.

I only have two posts as of now (I created it last night) but if anyone wants to check it out or follow it or whatever my handle is benthompson.creative. I will also be posting stuff there about the comic series I mentioned before!

Stay tuned for Day 30 tomorrow! Wanna know the story behind these posts? Check it out here: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Spot Day 28

So. This was me this morning. I haven’t been going on a whole lot of bike rides recently because it has just been sooooo hot and I have been waking up later so I can’t really go in the mornings. But today, I went on one after I rode with my girlfriend to her work.

I’ve been telling myself for months, that one day, I should go on a bike ride and choose a random spot to just chill at. Maybe sketch a little or maybe just sit silently and enjoy my surroundings. Well, I have been saying this, and it hasn’t happened. Today I went on a familiar path down by the water. The last time I rode this path, it was towards the end of winter, so everything looked differently. The path goes from a little boardwalk to the woods and there was a spot that I passed where I literally had to stop.

There were maybe a few people that I ran into during this journey and this spot had no one in it. It looks like the perfect spot to have a beach picnic and not be interrupted by others. To the right of the bike path I was on is where you can access this area. full sand with no rocks or pebbles. Perfectly shaded so you can decide whether you want sun or shade. The perfect amount of space to have a good chunk of people and play yard games or something. I had to sit there for a minute and take it all in. It was pure bliss to sit there in silence, with perfect weather and just enjoy it all. I will be back soon!

Stay tuned for Day 29 tomorrow! Check out Day 1 to see where all this hullabaloo is coming from: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Cereal Day 27

So. The wonderful world of cereal. What isn’t to love about it? Pour up a giant bowl on the weekends, flips through some comics, pour a cup of coffee, maybe watch some Spongebob or something? It’s quick, easy and delicious. But there was a period where I fell out of the life of cereal and didn’t eat breakfast at all...

I don’t really remember breakfast as a kid. I believe we mostly had pancakes and shit like that. We did have cereal in the house, but my mother always bought the off-brand kind. My favorite cereal was always Fruity Pebbles. A bunch of vibrant colors and a cereal where you could feel the sugar with every bite. When I got into college, I didn’t eat a whole lot. I completely forgot about breakfast and I told myself that I felt better when I fasted in the morning so breakfast as a whole was out of the picture. Fast forward about 5 or 6 years later and my girlfriend comes into the picture. All about cartoons, fantasy, video games and... cereal. She brought it back into my life and she ONLY buys name-brand. So we always get the giant sizes of Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Honey Bunches of Oats, Frosted Mini Wheats, Froot Loops and we always get a random pick when we go shopping. My recent favorite has been combining Honey Bunches of Oats with Frosted Mini Wheats then adding slices of banana and a hefty scoop of peanut butter.... YUM! But I made Gus out of Froot Loops for color/fun purposes. :)

Stay tuned for Day 28 tomorrow. Like hearing my stories but curious why I say them? Check out why here: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Anger Day 26

So. During my time at college, I would get angry a lot. I have no idea why, but the little things would just piss me off and I would take it out on others. There was once a time where I got so upset with my brother, I put him in a choke hold. But since then, I have gotten ahold of my anger and the little things don’t bug me as much. I got super into mindfulness and meditation, and I think that helped a lot. I became self aware and was happy with the way things turned out... Today was different though.

Reality set in for a second and it was just a giant shit show from there. I had a bad thought about my future and that just irritated me. Then, all the small things just started to pile up. I like to think that I have a long fuse to a giant stick of dynamite. It takes a lot to piss me off now, but when the wick is gone, I’m fucking PISSED. That’s what happened today. I felt like my old angry self. I let all the stupid shit pile up and I didn’t like it one bit. I did better at not taking it out on others... I hope, but I feel like a monster when I get like that. Getting upset isn’t going to solve anything and I know that but I guess I just let it get the best of me this time.

Stay tuned for Day 27 tomorrow! Want to learn why I am writing this shit? Check it out here: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Cookin’ Day 25

So. I love to cook. Me and my girlfriend have it where I cook all the meals and she cleans up the meal. So at times, I am cooking three full meals a day. My mother has been a pretty good cook and I enjoy a lot of her dishes. I guess this is where I got the desire to cook. I also just really love good food.

She never really taught me techniques so I kind of had to learn that on my own. I think one of the fun parts of cooking is the experimentation with it all. It is a big thing of trial and error I feel like. Luckily my girlfriend will eat pretty much anything I put in front of her. So, if it is really shitty in my eyes, we won’t let it go to waste.

I try to make new meals as often as I can, especially since I have to cook vegetarian meals all the time. Plus, I think cooking different dinners every night helps me out in the long run. I can take the things I learn from the new meals and apply it to other meals that I have a good handle on. Like recently I have been cooking with tempeh. I didn’t even know what that was until this year. But now I know and now I can apply it to other meals!

I am definitely no Gordon Ramsay, but I have fun cooking!

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Taco Day 24

So. I suck and accidentally skipped another day. But the good news is, is that I had tacos last night! Fun fact... I hated mexican food growing up. Taco Bell was the most disgusting fast food chain in my eyes and I never looked forward to taco nights in my household. I’m not sure what happened, but now I love it! When people asked what my favorite food was, I wasn’t really sure how to respond. So, I probably gave a generic answer. If someone were to ask me now, I will say tacos...

I could eat that shit every single day! Carnitas, al pastor, chorizo, pollo, it’s all sooooo good! I think one of the things that got me, is how it is served and prepared. If the tacos come out on a tortilla shell or a hard shell, I probably won’t get it. Or I know it won’t be as good as a corn tortilla. The classics with meat cilantro, onions, melted cheese and a lime wedge... no better way to go. (I know most places don’t serve it with cheese, but I’ve had some with cheese and it can definitely add to it). Damn, just typing about tacos makes me want to have some, and I just ate dinner not too long ago. :)

Stay tuned in a few minutes for Day 25. Getting hungry? Curious why I am talking tacos? Check out why here: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Pokémon Day 23

So. I missed yesterday’s post, so this is technically for yesterday... But I made Gus a Pokémon card! I played Pokémon Sword and Shield last night so that’s why this came to mind.

My first handheld gaming system was the Gameboy Advance. I never got the original or the Gameboy Color. And my first Pokémon game was Pikachu Yellow... which I still have. I played Pokémon all the time! I never beat the game but I still played. I think I had four of them at one point. Yellow, Gold, Leaf Green and Sapphire. Along with these games, I also had/have a TON of Pokémon cards! I still need to go through them and see if any of them are worth anything. But I love Pokémon. The games, cards, shows, movies. But I fell out of it because I thought the Gen’s were getting out of hand and I enjoy the OG’s. But then Sword and Shield came out on the switch and the open world got me! I love that they jumped away from the traditional storyline and you can spend sooooo much time doing whatever the hell you want. So I got back into Pokémon and I am even more excited for the new game to come out next year! I want to catch em’ all!

Stay tuned later today for Day 24! Why am I making a Pokémon card you might ask? Check out why here: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Super Day 22

So. I had the thought today of what would I pick if I had to pick one super power? Usually my answer is “to control time”. Wouldn’t it be cool to never fail because you can just go back in time and fix things. Or maybe you missed out on something. All of those regrets you may have in the future could totally be avoided. You could know the future even! But as I was sitting there today thinking about this, I thought to myself “that could be problematic”.

I think about the past year and how much I have failed and there are a lot of things I wish I wouldn’t have done or said. There have been plenty of times where I wish I could jump ahead in time and see what the future hold for certain situations. But I sit here now writing this, and I have no regrets. All failures should be treated as a gift. It shows us what is wrong so we can truly learn from those mistakes and make ourselves better. If we were to travel back in time, we would just say or do whatever needed to be said or done in order to get what we wanted. I also think that if life were too easy, then it wouldn’t be any fun. There is something satisfying about knowing you fucked up but came back from it and you’re better than how you started.

With all of this said, I’m not sure what my actual super power might be. Maybe flying... because I fucking hate traveling...

Stay tuned for Day 23. Check out why I am talking about some deeper shit here: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Buddy Day 21

So. Growing up, I had a family dog. After that dog died, we got another dog. My parents split up and then my dad got a dog. I have never been a cat person... ever. The only person I knew that had cats was my neighbor who I used to hang out with and go over there a ton. His family hate 4 fucking cats... Two of them, you would only see when it was feeding time. One them was the complete devil and would do nothing but hiss. The last one was a silent killer. I never liked cats, I saw them as creatures with no personalities. Especially since I grew up with very expressive dogs.

I moved in with my girlfriend once we moved and she has a cat... When we first started dating, she would always talk about how great her cat is. And yes, he is great! This cat never scratches, never hisses, never bites and acts like a dog. He is lazy, gentle, calm, playful and just loves to be pet! When my girlfriend exits the door to go to work, her cat goes absolutely crazy and runs around the apartment. He also loves being chased so I guess it is sort of like a game to him. Him and I are homies when she is gone. When I sit at the table to do work or anything, he comes up on the chair next to me and looks on the table to see what I am doing. When I am reading comics next to his bed, he gets up and sits down right next to me as I read. Never thought I would love a cat in my life, but he has changed that. That’s the good thing about keeping an open mind... you might get surprised one day and am glad you gave it a shot.

Stay tuned for Day 22. Like stories? Check out why I am writing them here: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Shopping Day 20

So. Today was grocery day in our family. It definitely sucks being an adult and paying for all of these things... Luckily me and my girlfriend do bulk shopping like once a month maybe even a little bit longer. But it is very interesting. Where I grew up, you only went to Target for household things like kitchen shit or bedroom things. Now that I have moved, I cannot believe that people do their grocery shopping there! And I love it (I don’t love paying for it) but it is super organized, clean (at least the location we go to). I am past the shock phase but I just didn’t realize it before moving and it was interesting.

The process of bringing our groceries up to our apartment is also kind of not the best... Park the car in the ramp, grab MULTIPLE grocery carts from a floor below, roll them up the ramp, load groceries, wheel down the elevator door, buzz to get in door, buzz to get in elevator, take elevator up, wheel groceries down hall, unlock door, empty carts, someone unloads groceries while the other take the carts back down the elevator. Luckily we don’t have to carry them at all but I think it’s funny that pretty much everyone feels this way about groceries like Gus is doing here. One trip and one trip only. Makes you feel like a superhuman sometimes haha.

Stay tuned for Day 21! I may not know what tomorrow brings, but I know why today brought what it did, check out here :p :https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Sailing Day 19

So. Ran into a friend today, and he said he has been sailing on a lake nearby. I kind of grew up by water. I wasn’t the kind of kid that was out on the water every weekend sailing for fun with the rents of anything. But I did know lake etiquette and the rules and such. I also grew up with people who were around water a lot more than me, like my grandpa and my older cousin.

My cousin went from having toy boats in his room to having his own boat shuttle service. Because of him, I have set foot on sail boats more than I thought I ever would. There is something a lot more interesting about a sailboat when you are comparing it to other boats. I feel like the breeze hits passengers differently and obviously it takes a lot more work to put the boat in the right direction. There was once a time when I went on a charter sail boat on a bigger lake. It was a sunset sail served with cigars, steak and wine. As golden hour came to be we all dove into the refreshing reflection of the sky. I will remember that moment forever.

Anyway, I might be getting on a sailboat this weekend and I just wanted to share my thoughts about the water and boats...

Stay tuned for Day 20! Randomly seeing this on your dash? Check out the story behind it here: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Dreaming Day 18

So. A few months ago, I go interested in lucid dreaming. I bought a book on it and tried to follow the books tips and practice it. Not sure why I was drawn to it. The research in it sounded intriguing and the author for the book I was reading sounded like he experience a lot of surreal things. So, I thought I’d give it a try. I tried to lucid dream every night. Or at least get into the mindset so that when I was asleep, I could realize I was dreaming.

I used to think that I lucid dreamt every now and then but the more I got into this practice, the more I realized that I have never lucid dreamt. While doing this, I decided to keep a dream journal and I would write my dreams when I awoke. From doing all of this, I realized that I could remember my dreams EVERY night. And when I woke up, the dream didn’t fade away. I could recall it for a few hours before details started to fade. It is also interesting to look back on your past dreams.

Through months and months of attempting to lucid dream every night, I think I only had one lucid dream... and it only lasted a few seconds. I knew I was lucid because I got super excited and I had a task in mind while dreaming. And I recall through my past that I have never experiences anything like that before. It was definitely cool and I’d love to do it again!

Stay tuned for Day 19 and if you’re dreaming about the cause of these posts, find it out here: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Beach Day 17

So. Went to the beach today with my girlfriend and I decided to bring a sketchbook along. I started to draw nature and park benches and shit just so I can practice for my mini series. Then I saw this man walk up to a bench near us and he reminded me of Mr. Incredible when he has to get a normal life. Some muscular dude that looks like he gave up on super hero work a while ago. This man’s demeanor also seems like a gentle giant to me. Like he is a very calm dude but if you piss him off to some point, then HE WILL FUCK YOU UP! So, I gave him a draw from my perspective.

I always hear famous character designers say that they go to coffee shops and just pick random people and draw them based on their body language and things they are doing. They create a story for that person and they illustrate it in their own way. That’s what I did here. This guy obviously didn’t look exactly like this but that is how I saw him. I think doing this is very interesting and I see how it helps when it comes to character design and creating stories. I can also see how it helps with shape language. You have something to work off of that is right in front of you but skew their features into different more simplified shapes and boom. I think it will be easier now that the covid restrictions are lightening up to be able to go into public places with others and to draw them. I need to practice on that type of stuff. I started to get into building my comic characters and I am already getting frustrated on how they looks. So maybe some outside life drawing will help with that.

Stay tuned for Day 18 and do you like the shit I have been posting but don’t understand why? Check it out here: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Heat Day 16

So. It is only the beginning of June and it is already 100 degrees here... It was literally in the 40′s not too long ago. I love the heat, but not this kind of heat. On days like this, I feel like it is winter. No one wants to go outside, they are miserable and they are wishing for something better. Yes, there are plenty of things I want to do outside but holy hell, I can’t even step outside without dripping in sweat! I feel bad for all of those who don’t have access to A/C. Luckily, I have gone through that a few times and I didn’t want to do it again. Where I loose sleep because I can’t fall asleep because I can’t breath from the heat. So, I shelled out some extra money so I can sit in comfort if I need to.

Listen to me. Bitching about how the heat makes people miserable when there are people out there who don’t even have a roof over their head. It makes me think how grateful I am for what I have and what I have experienced. Nothing should be taken for granted. I have a great life and even if I was in a much worse situation, I would either try to make myself feel the same way or try and change it if I wanted something different. Life is an exciting thing. It brings plenty of opportunities and plenty of heartache. You never know what you’re gonna get. Didn’t mean for this post to take a turn like that, but it did...

Stay tuned for Day 17. I draw art and rant... check out why here if you missed it: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Family Day 15

So. I decided to give Gus a family for this little comic series I have coming up. (See Day 14 for details) I got the characters descriptions done and the next steps are to dive into research and think about design. I have an initial thought about what each character is going to look like but I want this thing to be bad ass. And I want the characters to really resonate with the audience and make them feel like real life characters and adventures.

To be honest, I am surprised that I even got this far... It sounds pathetic but I tend to do a lot of dreaming but don’t actually go for the dream. I think describing these characters in detail kind of made it real and fun for me. They are based on people I know, people I have seen, things I feel, so it got exciting the describe them. I had to do some research and I love doing the research phase of things. I have always been a fan of pulling things apart to see how they work and then putting them back together. There was one time where when I was younger, my car window wouldn’t roll up or down. So, I took the door apart found which part was not working, went to the junk yard, pulled the piece off a different car of the same model, plugged it into mine and fixed the issues. But watching these characters grow from just an idea has so far been awesome and I can’t wait to see them grow into something that hopefully others will enjoy. Next step is to get a style in my head and to think about the shape language and props/costumes for Gus’ family.

Stay tuned for Day 16. Curious about how this all started? Check out the seed here:https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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benthompsoncreative · 3 years

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Comic Day 14

So. I have been really inspired lately and have gotten tons of support from loved ones over the past year. And I am going to try to pursue something that I have wanted for a long time.

Ever since I was a kid, whenever someone asked me what I wanted to be, I always said “a cartoonist”. I loved drawing and I loved stories. I never really got into super hero comics or anything like that but I liked drawing and drawing imaginative things. The past year, I have gotten into character design and thought about getting into that. I have also been a fan of storytelling. I used to do some creative writing exercises every day and they were exciting in my eyes. I think there is nothing better than a good story.

I have been having issues with doing too many things at once. I used to think it was a good thing to be doing multiple things in a day and to be a “jack-of-all-trades” but honestly, it has just been a nightmare. I don’t know what I want to accomplish and I have no real goals in life. And I think that is a result of wanting to do it all, little by little. So, I am trying to slow down and focus on one thing; creating stories. I am going to do little comic series that involve this guy, Gus. And his gf and his counterpart. I want to entertain people while still working on my cartoonist skills and my storytelling skills. I want to make this a real thing that I will love long term and hopefully others will love long term. I have some things in mind for the first story, but first I need to edit Gus and the other characters so they can work better in panels. I am going to try and do these everyday on tumblr and then hopefully do a mini comic story once a week which I will post in these descriptions. So we will see how this goes.

And yes, this is my version of the cover art to Jeff Smith’s documentary “The Cartoonist” because I love Bone!

Stay tuned for Day 15 tomorrows! Interested in the background of this nonsense? Check out why here: https://benthompsoncreative.tumblr.com/post/651724059343831040/so-i-had-a-tumblr-about-10-years-ago-and-for

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