Can’t Start a Fire Without a Spark.

The real challenge of writing comic strips and cartoons is that I’m not always in the lightest of moods.  So no matter what’s going down, or how much of it there is, I still need to produce something decent on deadline.  And once the editors send those off to the printers, they are gone. Even if they are too dark.  And sometimes they are too dark, I think. But I guess every writer, artist and creator of a regularly scheduled work product feels the same pressure at various points. Sometimes you just aren’t producing your most amazing work. But your work gets published anyway. And it is what it is. 

It’s like getting your school photo taken on the days you feel sick.

Yeah, it’s completely like that. 

But I’m lucky. At least my awful school picture days are just me having to draw pictures and write smart-enough punchlines even when part of me is feeling down and out, low, walked on, beat up, drowning, wasted, used, battered and did I mention crushed? At least I’m not operating on people or flying planes or arguing in front of the Supreme Court. I’m not capable of too much damage. Those people are amazing. I can’t imagine doing what they do and living through some of what life dishes out. Seriously.

And actually, it’s fun having to write humorous content on deadlines. Because you end up trying to make everything and anything funny. And it makes life funny. Which is very helpful, obviously. And fun. Life is just more fun when you look at it through humor-colored glasses. 

And eventually, almost everything is funny. Or cute. Or sweet. Or awwww. Or smiley. Or something better than bad.

So wearing humor-colored glasses helps.

So I’ve been reminding myself to wear my humor-colored glasses. And I’ve been checking to see if my face is smiling. Because I remembered that other people need to see my smiling face. 

Other people need to see your smiling face. #reminders It’s not about you. It’s for them. 

So I this week I watched more comedy and less heated debate. And it was both fun and funny.  I definitely miss the snarky rants and raves, but I love smiling and laughing more. And it makes writing cartoons so much easier.

And when I needed a break from laughing I watched fascinating documentaries that do NOT involve tragedy instead of my usual doom and gloom fare with body counts and all sorts of science regarding death.

I basically committed myself to watching only things that would make me smile or say “oooooh, cooooool” this week instead of things that riled me up or fed deathly obsessions.

So I watched part of a documentary on shipping and OMG! Those shipyards and cargo ships are EFFING HUGE! That’s how you know how big things get! Look at those shipping yards!

I am very overwhelmed by shipping crates. I would just like to say that. I need to keep my world small. But I wonder how the people feel who work there? They are really influencing the world by being part of the process of shipping out the the most important products people need to live and get through life and work their jobs.  I wonder if the people working in those shipyards feel that excitement. Do they think that’s exciting? I think that’s exciting. But scary. I cannot even imagine being on one of those ships or anywhere near it. 

Now you know why I live on my sofa. I can’t handle the possibility of walking out of my front door and possibly coming into contact with a shipyard. #tooscary

Otherwise, it’s been a “work family” week. I’ve been talking to members of favorite work families. Because I’m writing about my favorite work families. And someone I love is experiencing a really great work family so we’re able to talk about how amazing it is to work with people who really share your passion for the product, mission, energy and spirit.. 

And I am finally feeling more of a family at work now after Covid. And it’s so nice. Work family is good if you can find it. Like really good.

I hope your Saturday is wonderful. 

Try something different. Do something new.

Something small is all you need. Little things spark big things sometimes. You just can’t see it now. But you’ll see it when you look back later.

Let today be the day you spark something you look back on weeks or months or years from now and smile. 

Make a list of sparks and check that off. 

You were on my list. And now you are checked off and I’m smiling. 

Good job making me smile. Thanks.

🤎

Happy Saturday. 

xoxoxo, d and bella