Got home from work to find an unexpected package on my porch. A late Christmas gift it seems, from whom I haven't a clue. Someone who knows me well! This is a beautiful book!

There is absolutely nothing worse than rain in the Winter. I'd prefer 10 below and a foot of snow over this crap.

A customer just bought a bunch of fly-tying materials for his grandkids who got fly-tying kits for X-mas this year. They'd never tied before, but spent X-mas Day at the kitchen table tying flies and proudly showing them off. Kids don't require a screen to be entertained after all. #baitshoptales

I am mad at China. China has made us all have to deal with one of its worst inventions, and one of the worst inventions humanity has ever contrived: fireworks. I swear, I will die of a heart-attack triggered by fireworks. >:(

I wish that the "can't wait for Summer" folks could understand how badly INEED IT TO BE COLD RIGHT NOW! No matter HOW many times I remind these folks about how much my business depends on ice fishing, they can NOT get it through their heads!! #baitshoptales

Optimus is shameless. :D #lifewithcats #baitshoptales #catsofbluesky

Do NOT EVER buy fishing gear from ANY local pawn shops; there is a VERY good chance that it was stolen! In my area, there appears to be a very organized network of people, at least some of whom are my customers, stealing fishing gear from my store AND other local retailers. (Continued in comments.)

Wasting the last few minutes at work by doodling. I have not even attempted drawing a dragon since I was a kid (I used to draw them a lot.). Maybe I should revive that [very] old hobby. LOL

The last 2 fish I plan on drawing for a while.

My shop Christmas tree, with a combination of fishing-themed ornaments and family traditions. One or two ornaments were made by my mother in the '70s. Others were accumulated during my childhood. Some are just modified bobbers and lures. (Continued in comments.)

Did anyone else get the weird feeling that Christmas was EXTRA lackluster this year?

Got an up-close look at a Cooper's Hawk while walking to work this morning. Almost missed it because I was so lazer-focused on not slipping on ice on the sidewalk!

Ginger Reign of Destruction, play the hits.

Never got around to "showing off" my IMPROVED Brook Trout and Brown Trout here, so here goes! :D The Brookie was actually too good to sell; I sent it to my dad instead.

One side of the Black Crappie finished. Definitely one of the tougher species to draw. Weird proportions, irregular pattern, difficult transition between dorsal and ventral pattern. I enjoy the variegated fins, though.

Cranking through the last 2 fish ornaments of this holiday season. For next year, maybe I'll have the sense to get started a few months ahead. LOL Coming up next: either birds or non-avian dinosaurs. Haven't decided yet. LOL

Heard a Great Horned Owl at the zoo last night. It could have been a zoo resident OR a wild owl. It was too dark for me to tell. Zoos often provide wildlife habitat; I saw my first wild Barred Owl in a tree at the St. Louis Zoo and White Storks nesting atop a building at the Stuttgart Zoo.

Gender-affirming care matters. It saves lives. This is a good essay about why (& how to help), from the Science Classroom substack by @sciencewhizliz.bsky.social and other authors. Thanks, Liz! fromthescienceclass.substack.com/p/why-gender... #trans #LGBTQ #LGBTQcommunity #gender #genderaffirming

Went to the zoo last night to see the holiday light display. Many animals were not on exhibit or were, as is often the case among zoo animals, choosing to hide themselves from view. Several were visible, though. The very WORST part of almost any zoo visit for me is the VISITORS! (continued below)

Happy Solstice! Looking forward to longer days! :)

Sometimes I wish we'd been creamed by an asteroid in the '90s so we'd have all been saved the horrors of the 21st century. :'(

My dad built this Nativity stable from dogwood twigs when I was a baby. My mother and I bought a new figure or accessory for it every year. Most figures are Fontanini, but I bought one wooden donkey in Rome in my teens. All of this is currently packed away in a box in my basement, sadly.

If you're GOING to put new line guides on a vintage fishing rod, PLEASE be sure to line them up properly with the reel seat, if for no other reason than not giving me freaking apoplexy!!

“Do you support ICE?” “Not really.” “Hell f*ckin’ nah.” These two dudes drink for free on us if we ever run into them in Minnesota 🍻

Once again, the head didn't turn out quite right, but the colors are good. I never seem to have much success drawing the head of a Pike. :/

Having spent literally my whole life surrounded by everything fishing and people who call themselves "fishermen," I have come to the understanding that there is a BIG difference between "fishermen" and "anglers." The latter is a much rarer, smarter, and more tolerable breed.

Introduce yourself with 5 animals you've seen in the wild: Eurasian Lapwing White Stork Golden Plover Sauger Pronghorn

Rutherford has finally become a Lap Cat. :D #lifewithcats #catsofbluesky

My orange dingbat, Rutherford, has finally learned how to be a complete cuddle monster. He has decided that my lap really is the place to be. Took him long enough! LOL #lifewithcats

Too early for #SundayFishSketch, but I'm pretty proud of this one and just had to "show off." Unlike most folks, I don't particularly love to eat Walleye, but I love their golden color and subtle mottling. They're a pleasure to draw. This one's head is a bit large, but the colors turned out well.

My latest fish ornament, a Largemouth Bass. Definitely NOT A.I.! I used the template of the Smallmouth, tweaked the head, caudal, and dorsal, then finished with colored pencil. Yes, each side is different. Oh well. :D #SundayFishSketch

Morning shenanigans with Optimus Prime. #baitshoptales #lifewithcats #catsofbluesky

Had to dive for cover to avoid getting splashed with slush from one truck, only to get showered in slush from another truck a few minutes later while walking to work this morning. I swear, pedestrians in this town just get punished for not driving.

The evolution of the "perfect" Smallmouth Bass ornament. Each pencil sketch and line drawing in pen remedied a problem with angles, shapes, or proportions, minutiae like the curvature of the jaw, eye position, shape of the caudal fin, and number of spines and rays in the dorsal and anal fins.

I wonder if there are any gross versions of the song "Feliz Navidad" in English to appeal to the MAGA crowd? I can just envision that.

Sometimes I like my rough pencil sketches better than I like the finished products. Been struggling, inexplicably, with black basses today. First attempt at a Smallmouth looked more like a Rock Bass (which is actually a sunfish!). The Largemouth went in the recycle bin. #SundayFishSketch

Working on another Channel Cat. It is interesting how using different references for color, pattern, and proportions can result in such different end products. I use a combination of photographs, other artists' renditions, and my own observations when I draw fishes I'm familiar with.

Disappointed with the Pumpkinseed (Even harder to draw than the Brook Trout!), but the Bluegill turned out OK.

YouTube, your advertisements are sickening! They are solid A.I. and their "selling points" are so incredibly stupid that I can hardly believe that anyone is dumb enough to take them seriously. Apparently, LOTS of people REALLY ARE that dumb, though. Holy s***!

The morning routine. #baitshoptales #lifewithcats #catsofbluesky

Did anyone else watch this year's National Dog Show and feel like punching the dithering announcer right in the chops?

I don't often get so picky about correct proportions in my fish drawings that I start taking measurements and calculating ratios.

I was originally going to stick with Michigan fish, but Arctic Char are fun to draw, so what the heck? :D

Here's hoping for a reasonable ice-fishing season in the Midwest this year. It drives me BONKERS that so many "outdoorsmen" and people in the "outdoor" industry have drunk the MAGA/climate denier KoolAid. They can't see that their own hobbies and/or livelihoods are at stake!

A BETTER Lake Trout.

Tell me why I can draw a Rainbow Trout with no problem, but can't draw a breeding male Steelhead (same species, slightly different proportions) to save my butt?! #artistproblems

Hard to believe, sometimes, that this orange doofus is the product of millions of years of evolution. :D #lifewithcats #catsofbluesky

Digging into my HUGE collection of grown-up coloring books lately. :)

Lake Trout is only partially done. Gonna take me FOREVER. Ugh.

Working on fish-shaped Christmas tree ornaments. It's been a while. I had forgotten how difficult a Brook Trout is to draw and color! My hand is severely cramped now.