The Roller Coaster Comes to The End of the Ride

It's been an emotional roller coaster of a last couple of weeks.

If you have been following the story of my dear friend Patty you might want to scroll down to the post before this one for the end of the story...

The past few days I've been finding comfort in drawing at my refuge at

Tacos Jalisco. I know there's such a thing as "comfort food", now I know there's such a thing

as "comfort places" too.

The familiarity of this little Mexican Restaurant; my dear friend Carlos, who is there, along with his mom and dad, who do not even know the Patty Story, give me comfort just being in their presence.

On this day I  drew "Hooked on Solar Guy" and his two friends; and two other guys on his right who bleed over into my second drawing of that day ... Oh, and a woman with pink hair found in front of them ... I was really taken by surprise when the guy to his left turned suddenly and I saw the size of his nose! I loved drawing that big schnoz!

See, there they are, the two guys on the left were on the right in the previous drawing!

This was the day the woman approached me to tell me that I had drawn her and her mom there last year. I told her that they are in my book. She became SO EXCITED, she said they would buy a copy. I directed her to Blurb Books to order the book by title. Anyone else still want one you can click on the book cover on my side bar. She said she also read about me in the Vacaville Magazine! Then she said "We have a celebrity in town!" And THEN she said: "I want to hug you!" Really! So I got a hug that day from a perfect stranger! It felt really good.

I was back again on Wednesday! I mean, you can't get enough of a good thing, right? Carlos was sitting at the counter with his friend, Alfred. They were eating lunch. Alfred is an artist too.
Carlos showed me a painting he had finished on his iPhone. It's really good. He showed me a second photoshopped piece he plans to paint next! He is also painting the frames these paintings are in. When he gets a small body of work completed this summer we are going to hang his and my art from there on the walls.
This too is very EXCITING!

The Couple (from my book) came in and waved to me from their seat in the front. So I drew them into the picture. The little girl was sipping water at the table right in front of me. So she got into my picture too.

Carlos finished his lunch and went back to serving the other patrons! Alfred got up from the counter and came up to me at my table and said: "Can I draw with you!" Well of course I was majorly flattered!  He had just told me that he'd seen my book and that he thought my art was "BAD ASS!" I took that to be a humongous compliment! Once again flattered to the max!

So Alfred joined me at my table sitting kitty-corner to me so as not to obstruct my view of the folks I was drawing. After I finish the third drawing here, I went on to Draw Alfred! And he in turn drew me!

That fourth drawing is me drawing Alfred drawing me!



And this is the drawing Alfred did of me!

I am of course linking this to Paint Party Friday!

Go there to see probably 100 amazing artists works!

I'm doing better today than I was a few days ago.

I want to thank everyone who sent prayers and good wishes to my friend Patty.

She knew you were thinking of her and she appreciated it, and so did I.

I also want to thank you for sending your good wishes to me. I appreciated your comforting words

from the bottom of my heart. I can't tell you how much they helped and continue to help. I go back and re-read them again and again.

I will continue talking about my feelings and drawing too, as both I find to be very therapeutic.

I am indebted to my family and friends and to this community on line.

You are amazing.

THANK YOU AGAIN!

PS: Over at Somewhere to Sketch we are drawing my hometown of Vacaville this month of August.
I hope you will join us there to visit and to sketch! Click on this link to hop over there next!