Ice Cream and the Crud

It's been a rough week at Ye Olde Michael Hopkins Cartoons Factory. I've been fighting the crud (probably not the technically correct term) for about a week. Good news is, I'm on the tail end of this latest strain of cold/flu going around. I fought off the invaders via a variety of name brand medicines from CVS, friends suggestions, a former drug entrepreneur's suggestions, plenty of coffee and orange juice…oh…and ice cream.

However, I do have one suggestion: should you encounter this crud, avoid the ice cream. It just makes it worse. Although, while I'm on the subject of avoiding ice cream, I do have an ice cream recommendation for you (should you have about as much willpower as I do), Dreyer's Cookie Cobblestone. 

It’s simply amazing…Once again though, one probably should avoid it during the crud, as it does not help the healing process (but ya gotta do whatcha ya gotta do…right?)

 Whenever I get the crud, it always reminds me of one of my favorite films, Osmosis Jones. It's a great live action/animated flick from 2001, starring Bill Murray and the voices of Chris Rock, Laurence Fishburne among others. 

“This infectiously funny live-action/animated caper kicks off in the "real" world as Frank (Bill Murray) ingests a villainous virus named Thrax (Laurence Fishburne).

Now, deep inside the spectacular, animated inner realm of the City of Frank, it's up to a maverick white blood cell cop named Osmosis Jones (Chris Rock) and his reluctant, cold-capsule sidekick Drix (David Hyde Pierce) to thwart Thrax's epidemic of evil!”

WarnerBros.com

I gotta tell ya, I hold a lot of respect for Warner Brothers. From Looney Tunes, through the Clint Eastwood films, Osmosis Jones to the Harry Potter series and beyond, they're a class act!

My latest Aviation Caricature was completed a few days ago. The drawing is of a General Dynamics F-16. The drawing came out beautiful! It took me three days to complete, but it was well worth the time expended. The drawing was created on 11"x14" Strathmore Bristol vellum surface drawing paper, Faber-Castell Pitt Artist Pens, and plenty of wash.

Since I survived the crud, I'll see ya on the next blog...

Michael

My blog's endorsements Warner Brothers Films or Dreyer's Cookie Cobblestone Ice Cream was not paid for (under the table or otherwise) and I am not receiving any compensation for mentioning this product/service. It's just a Cartoonists opinion...

Good Intentions

Well, I had a good idea (at least I thought it was a good idea at the beginning of the year). To quote myself…

The Michael Hopkins Cartoons 365 Challenge Begins Tomorrow January 1st 2025

Must complete one drawing each day for 365 days, beginning January 1st, 2025. A continuation of a drawing from the previous day may be substituted for a completed drawing. This continuation may include inking or painting/coloring or additional drawing.

As it turned out, it wasn't such a great idea. 

First off, when one works 40 hours a week at a “regular job” (at The Daily Planet), it doesn't leave much time to complete one drawing each day for 365 days. As my mom would have said, I've bitten off more than I can chew (which i've literally done on a few occasions as well)

Secondly, when I forced myself to create a new drawing the first four days of the year, the quality of my drawings took a serious hit.

Whether it was a good idea or not, it achieved its objective of getting me off my ass and drawing again. Hell, I've even started some serious distance walking again as a first step towards getting me back into hiking. Who knew that doing something that I love (drawing) would lead to better health?? Apparently Sally Gunnell knew…

Passion Breeds Motivation

When you engage in activities you are passionate about, motivation flows naturally. Passion is like a wellspring of energy that propels you forward, enabling you to overcome challenges and persist in the face of adversity. Whether you're an artist, a scientist, an athlete, or any other professional, the intrinsic motivation that comes from doing what you love leads to higher productivity, creativity, and innovation.

Sally Gunnell

(check out her entire article here)

So anyways…life is pretty good right now and I’m back on the better health track. Not a bad way to start 2025.

By the way, below is my latest Aviation Caricature, The Super Guppy…

The Super Guppy. I easily could have spent three more days on this drawing. However, my mind keeps creating more ideas that need to be turned into reality or at least my version of reality. I love this, it's beautiful!

This drawing was created on 11"x 14" on Strathmore Bristol vellum surface drawing paper, with Faber-Castell Pitt Artist Pens

See you soon,

Michael

 

Happy Birthday Elvis

From my Instagram @iamscribbles

To say I'm a fan of Elvis Presley would be an understatement. Obsessed? Maybe...

I've drawn two Pen & Ink Caricatures of Elvis, both 70's Elvis (my favorite era of Elvis), I performed at my high school talent show as Elvis (I think my sister has a picture of that somewhere), I remember exactly where I was when I first heard about his passing, my youngest daughter was walked down the aisle to "Can't Help Falling in Love" (still gets me emotional) and my youngest son once told me I have a man crush on him...all true.

So, Happy Birthday Elvis, (yes, I'm sure he's still alive), although he's damn old 😆 but aren't we all??

Finito! As previously mentioned, this is my completed Tiny Tim, Pen & Ink Caricature. Although I completed this today, it's been an ongoing process for a while. Sometimes, to achieve what I perceive as perfection takes time and clear focus... which I've been missing for a while 

This drawing was created on 10" x 16" Canson artist board with pen & black India ink and a very slight wash. Do you remember Tiny Tim? I remember from The Tonight Show, Starring Johnny Carson.

Thanks to you soon,

Michael

Alrighty Then

 As one of my favorite comedians would say, “Alrighty then!”

These first four drawings were fun, but they were basically stretching exercises to get me back on track. My serious work (Pen & Ink Caricatures, Aviation Caricatures and dare I say my webcomics (“Missed Approach “ and "Cosmic Fowl") can take days to complete one drawing. As such, I won't be posting daily “completed” drawings. I'll still be drawing everyday and I’ll tease you daily with snippets of what I'm currently working on everyday, however you won't see the entire drawing until it's finite! 

Of course, now and then, you'll see the Event Caricatures (because I like to make people smile), occasional “one off” random scribbles ( like I've drawn the first four days of the year), the YouTube channel I'm working on and of course The Michael Hopkins Cartoons Blog, but my main focus will be (what I call) my serious work.

My Muse has taken flight back to California, but I want to thank her for the inspiration she left behind and her essence remains with me.

My current focus is a Pen & Ink drawing I started a while ago of Tiny Tim, the musical "genius" from the 60’s and 70’s. 

Now it’s time to get back to Tiny...

Stay tuned!