Weekend getaway

Went to the North Carolina mountains over the weekend with my dad and uncle for a sort of guys getaway (from what, I'm not sure!). They both have property up there, and we stayed at my uncle's cabin. Mostly a football weekend... watched the local high school game Friday night, watched the FL Gators Saturday night, and listened to the Jags/Broncos game on the car ride home Sunday. Got some decent photos during the trip and thought I'd share a few. Unfortunately, I had my camera ISO set wrong, so the photos came out a bit grainy, as well as blurrier than I wanted too. I hope to be able to upgrade from my fixed-lense camera to a dSLR soon.

Looking South at the top of Baines Mountain.

Looking North at the top of Baines Mountain.

The road near my uncle's cabin.

The southern end of Fontana Lake. That is The Great Smokey Mountain Railroad bridge in the center. They drain the lake in the cooler months, which is why you can see so much of the bank. What's cool though, is that they have a tour where you can see some of an old mining town that was covered when they flooded the area to create the lake.

Nantahala River just upstream from the Nantahala Outdoor Center.

I think this is a White Breasted Nuthatch.
They we in all the bird feeders at the cabin.

The tomato farm at a local market.

Saw this leaf in the driveway. I think it is obvious what it looks like!

Did two sketches while I was there, but really had no time for much (spent most of the time outside with the camera). Drawing in the truck was out of the question as the roads were just rough enough to create a problem. :P

Portfolio... or Bust!

Boy, three weeks goes by fast! Took some time out to take advantage of the nice weather to get some things done around the house. We also had a party for my daughter, and just taking a break to reflect on things. I have been sketching a few odd things, but not much. The drawing above was to be my entry in the recent SCBWI illustrator contest, but time was not available. I actually did this today, based on a thumbnail I created when I learned of the contest. I plan to refine and color it over the next week or so. I also did a couple sketches for the IF "packed" from 2 weeks ago. Plan to finish that as well.

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One thing I have always been interested in is creating a comic strip. I picked up The Calvin & Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book at the library the other day, and have found it to be very informative and inspirational. (Calvin & Hobbes was always one of my favorites.) I have sort of an idea, it is just a matter of taking the time to get something down on paper. Just a matter of deciding what to put off to do that! :P