"First-Timer"

One day while I was driving home after another 15-hour day teaching art at UAF Summer Sessions, I actually saw this on the side of the road. Well, similar enough scene (gaggle of waaay overdressed tourists on gawking about campus) to trigger a quick pull-over description onto the notes I keep on the iPhone. There's pages and pages of random captions and descriptions of possible panels house there in my "remote brain" - and the iPod - to merit a couple transcription sessions into the current sketchbook every year.

Another factor that absolutely brought home a real-life application of my "prescription glass" theory that I frequently lecture about. It's a phenomenon that happens after immersion in exercises focusing on any number of specific aesthetic criteria, like for example linear perspective. After enough practice runs designed to drill fundamental concepts and perceptual awareness in the studio one should ideally the same principles fleshed out real-time throughout the entire rest of ones daily routine. In other words, everywhere you look you should in theory see examples of whatever it was I've been trying to teach.

Here in this specific case, I had been yammering on about how getting into the proper frame of mind/mental groove is crucial when coming up with new material ie "getting ideas." If you are constantly hearing, seeing and thinking about comedy, it begins to slowly seep into all other areas of your waking life. There are ideas everywhere, all we cartoonists do is simply remember to take notes. And in my case, many times there has to be an accompanying illustration to make the point clear. At some point it all just evolves into a cartoon. An added bonus is laughing out loud at random things which might get ya some funny looks but the jokes on everybody else. No really, I'm serious.