Post Op

Posted on by Thor

There was a Post Operation room I went to at Orlando Health Central on West Colonial Drive in Ocoee. That is the hospital that looks like a clown school. When I woke up from anesthesia, I was relieved to see that KC Cali was there. Her joking snapped me awake with laughter. I was slurring my words but it was good to have a friend to talk to. My general impression was that the operation went as planned. The doctor and then KC filled me in on the details.

As the doctor described it, a laser had been guided up my penis and it was inserted into the prostate. The outer edges of the inside of the prostate were pealed much like an orange and then the instrument was shoved like a finger into an orange to separate the sections. The prostate was sucked out from the core outward. All this was done deep inside my pelvis, I thought there would be more pain, but I was just given a Tylenol.

Soon I was wheeled up to the room and KC sat on the couch keeping me engaged and entertained. Nurse after nurse entered taking vitals and introducing themselves. There was a convenient board at the foot of the bed on the wall with names and numbers and a description of the procedure, which was removing my prostate.

I hadn’t eaten for over 24 hours. I was hooked up to the IVs which helped hydrate me a bit. Then a nurse wheeled in a table of food which fits over the bed I was lying in. I looked at it and hesitated. I was hungry, but also my head started swimming. I took deep breaths. I felt like I might faint. Also on the table with the food were foot long blue plastic tubes. Those were like airline barf bags. I grabbed one quickly and retched, filling it half up. There was nothing in my stomach but water, but even that feels awful coming up. KC jumped up from the couch and helped and disposed of the blue tube. Soon a nurse was checking on me and I was given a pill which I was told would stop the nausea. KC chatted with me for a while and I started to feel better. I decided to try some food again and the nurse wheeled the table over my belly. I grabbed a blue tube and immediately retched again. The nurse explained that I was having a bad reaction to the anesthesia. I wretched about 4 times.

KC was a saint through all this and managed to keep me in high spirits. A much stronger anti nausea drug was pumped directly into the IV bag. I started to feel better but now the drug was making me tired. I gave up on the notion of food. KC read me a long list of events happening in Upstate New York. The one I remember best was goat racing with snow shoes. Now that is the sketch opportunity I have always dreamed of! Maybe I am imagining that, I was in a sort of fever dream. My eye lids were getting heavy and KC quietly slipped away when I drifted off. It is rare to find a friend like this.

The sketch above was done the next morning. KC had told me that I would not get much sleep and she was right. About every half hour a nurse would come in and ask questions and take  some vital sign. I dropped back to sleep immediately after each nurse left and the next morning I felt good enough to sketch. Pigeons roosted right above my room window, I could see then swoop in and arch up to land. Some of them pooped on the landing approach and splashed the window.

This would prove to be a long day to see if the operation had been a success or a failure.

PRE-Op

Posted on by Thor

My urethra was being choked off by my prostate. Because of this I would have to pee every half hour or so and could not sleep through the night. Worst, I couldn’t sit through and complete a sketch. It became unbearable. The prostate produces the fluids for male ejaculations. I decided to get an operation that would remove the inner prostate. I would no longer be able to have children but I would recover some normalcy to my life.

KC Cali volunteered to be my Health Care Surrogate for the operation. She had been through several harrowing hospital experiences with her husband Bob Szafranski, so she had experience with doctors and the hospital system. Having her join me was the smartest thing I did going into surgery. My sister Pat Thorspecken-Napolitano drove up from Port Charlotte to drive me to the hospital and back. Just Jeff who was in Lake County from Ohio to see a friend’s UCF Masters Thesis Presentation joined us to help Pat drive back to Lake County. He was a huge help. KC was driving from a different direction and we met her in front of the hospital.

Security and reception were fairly simple and then we went to the second floor. There I was separated from my Health Care Surrogate. The whole point of having KC there was to have a second set of eyes and ears going into the process. Before I signed away my life on the three long forms, I took pictures of those forms and sent them to KC to see if she had second thoughts. Once you read that Death might be one of the side effects, you start to have second thoughts. Once those forms were filled out and collected, KC could come back to my Pre-Op cubicle.

First thing I had to do was get dressed in the hospital garb, which included a gown which was incredibly complicated with snaps and belts. It might have actually been a straight jacket. There were knee high garters I had to wear that were insanely tight. They were to protect against blood clots during the operation. KC had to explain how to put them on by rolling them up like women’s stockings. After that she disappeared behind the curtain for the sake of my privacy. Socks had rubber strips on then to avoid slipping in the hallways. Lying on the gurney helped hide the fact that my butt cheeks wanted to escape the open flaps out back.

A barrage of tests followed, blood pressure tests, a heart rate monitor on the tip of my finger and a hook up for an IV. KC had the genius idea that I should ask for the IV on my left hand so my right hand remained free to sketch. Once snuggled under the blanket on the gurney, I started sketch as did KC. It turns out my new fountain pen bleeds when water color washes were added to the sketch. I had to live with it. My other fountain pen was out of ink.

Then doctor Amin who was performing the operation, nurses, the anesthetist, and  a barrage of other techs each came in one at a time to ask questions. As my nervousness rose, KC kept me amused and entertained with her stories and my sketching calmed me down. Soon I was given a mild sedative. I was told that I might not remember anything that happened. KC was the last person I saw as I was drifting off. I said, “Who are you?” She smiled and I was out immediately. When I opened my eyes, KC was there in a differed Post Op area. I was slurring my words but the pain was minimal.

Yalaha Bakery

Posted on by Thor

By Thomas Thorspecken

I started seeking out landmarks from around Lake County to sketch. The Yalaha Bakery is Yalaha’s only tourist attraction.

Traffic on 48, the road the bakery is on, is intense but I got used to it during the sketch. A friend told me that during bike week this place gets insanely packed with motor cycles. I plan to return to do a series of sketches on that week. I have been inside the bakery twice now. The first time I had strudel which is delicious and the second time I had a coconut delight and it was life changing. It takes every ounce of will power to keep me from returning to the bakery again and again to experience that taste sensation once again. I just told my sister Pat that if I am in extreme pain after my surgery today, she should get a Coconut delight and I am certain that any pain will disappear.

Today I can not have breakfast and bloody hell I desperately want to make a scrambled egg with butter slathered on a toasted Thomas’s muffin. Maybe I shouldn’t write about it since it seems to be making me more hungry. I’ll go have a cup of water that should hold me until I am put under anesthesia. Anyway today waiting for surgery should be a good sketching experience. I have a mini sketch kit in my day bag. I will be in the hospital overnight so that must be a sketch opportunity. I heard nurses come in every half hour to draw blood or get blood pressure so that could be many quick sketch opportunities.

The Cathedral Comes Down

Posted on by Thor

By Thomas Thorspecken

On February 25, 2025, Stella P. Arbelaéz Tacón asked me to help her dismantle and pack away The Cathedral into a U-Haul. I got up at 5am for an early morning drive down to the UCF Gallery. It was a glorious drive with literally no traffic until I got close to Orlando. Stella had to pick up the U-Haul truck and there was some type of complication. I was thankful, since it gave me time to sketch the installation piece.

While sketching, a flock of herons few overhead. They made an amazing honking racket. They glided down to a grass field beside The Cathedral. Once on the ground they continued honking. Something about the herons flying overhead was truly beautiful. The piece is meant to allow the viewer to experience the enormity of the natural world, while bringing forth a profound awareness that we are a small part of a large but delicate ecosystem.  As the artist said, “The Cathedral offered deeper appreciation of life by prompting reflection on the fleeting nature of human existence, contrasted against the timeless and majestic presence of the environment that surround us.” I felt all of that as the herons flew overhead on the cool, misty, and otherwise quiet morning.

Slowly the parking lots filled with cars and the art students filed into the building. A grounds keeper fired up a loud edger and the herons flew off. The noise and clutter of humanity began to encroach. The Cathedral felt so much larger on that peaceful morning. The last time I had sketched it was at night and it blended into the dark night sky. Here its bold silhouette was predominant against the sky which turned from a dark grey to pure light.

I tried pulling up some stakes before Stella arrived but, like King Arthur’s sword, they were stubbornly impossible to extract. I decided there must be a tool needed to do the job. Many bamboo stalks were tied to the metal ring with natural string. I tried untying one with my fingernails but the knots just got tighter.  Bolts refused to budge as I tried to loosen them with my fingers. This sculpture wanted to remain standing. When Stella arrived she had a tool box with all the tools we would need. I snipped the strings with a wire cutter but better yet, she had an Exacto Blade which made the job simple. One by one the bamboo poles were walked over to a spot in the grass where she would later park the U-Haul.

With few poles left the metal ring became unstable and she had to hold it up by balancing it on her shoulders. She looked like Atlas holding up the world. When the final bold let loose the ring was gently lowered to the ground by both of us. It then rolled a short bit, and fell to the grass. It too needed to be disassembled into two strips of metal. I asked about the price of The Cathedral but Stella told me it is not for sale. It would make a magnificent centerpiece to a homestead garden.

The shortest bamboo poles were the first to be loaded on to the truck . The larger poles would have to be loaded corner to corner and they barely fit. One pole in particular had to be repositioned multiple times before the trucks back gate could be lowered. A student approached to ask the artist a question since she is a teaching assistant in a drawing class. A professor also approached to ask a question.  The artist seemed quite at home in the university setting. She has so many opportunities in the hopper as the Masters Program winds down for her. Only time will tell which way her path might turn. Of one thing I am sure, she will get her masters degree, which was well earned.

Masters Thesis Defense

Posted on by Thor


By Thomas Thorspecken

I went to the UCF Art Gallery (12400 Aquarius Agora Dr, Orlando, Fl.) to sketch Stella P. Arbelaéz Tascón, who presented her thesis defense at the UCF Art Gallery 

The sculpture in the foreground of this sketch is called The Broken Woman. To create this piece a  mannequin was busted open with a sledge hammer. The distressed surface is covered in gold and hot pink. A sacred heart is in the open chest cavity representing sacrifice. Golden beams radiate from the heart. The crotch is busted open and dollar bills rest chaotically, illuminated from inside, representing the commodification of woman. The broken cage where the head would be is also broken open while a cell phone played static until it shorted out and died.

Stella talked about the concept of a work’s aura, of bringing the presence of it into your life. Her work is about healing. When asked if the healing is for her or others, she pointed out that she hopes to connect to others, but as she is not one of them, she can not know what a person viewing her work might feel. She just wants to be honest about what she feels. She hopes the work will be healing to others.

The Cathedral, was set up on the lawn outside the gallery. It is comprised of over 20 foot high bamboo stalks arranged in a circle outside the gallery. In The Cathedral the visitor is greeted by the sounds of chirping birds when they enter into the circle, which would usually  be silent in the evening. The feeling is of being engulfed by nature. Several people I overheard at the opening, expressed a sense of peace. The person is meant to feel elevated as if transported elsewhere. One thought to make the piece more permanent, was to recreate the cathedral with live bamboo, but the artist is also considering the option of recreating it in bronze. The Cathedral reminded me of the bird cage which was broken open above The Broken Woman.

Some work in the exhibition was small in size like intimate etchings of Memories of a Dead Love. Whereas The Cathedral was monumental in size. Stella feels that her work is moving from the micro to the macro. The larger work can be seen and experienced by more people. Each piece dictated its size. She wanted to experience the labor of chopping down the bamboo with a machete, it is physical sweet labor. Much of the bamboo was already collapsed in her yard, after hurricane Milton. When discussing the materials she used, she said, “This is me, I am the cell phone, I am that bamboo. The choice of materials is important to each piece.” The perfect home for The Cathedral would be as a permanent installation in a garden or museum. She also feels a good location would be in a large city where it could have a large outreach.

In 2020, the artist walked the whole length of the Florida Scenic Trail which is over 1,100 miles, and it was a reset for her after the trauma of divorce. Her work reflects her journey of healing and growth. Soon after walking the trail, she created a persona called The Nature Goddess. She wore a black gown, had horns and a found animal skull on her staff.  She performed in a park lying on the ground and crying for the devastation of nature imposed by humanity.  She was asked why she does not do more performance art. She feels the action of physically moving the materials is in itself a performance. Painting is a private act of performance. These acts of performance are done as the work is created. She does imagine more performance art in her future.

Her work has begun to act as an advocate for the preservation of nature. The job of stopping humanities destruction of nature is too large for one person, so she has become a part of a movement. She wants to help make people aware so they can heal themselves and the earth they are a part of.

The artist is a semi finalist for the 2025-2026 Fulbright Grant and hopes to research the role that technology and media play in an indigenous community there. She wants to share her knowledge of 2D animation and sees herself as a tool. She is part indigenous herself and wants to contribute to the empowerment and dissemination of their voices, while they author their own stories.

The work shown is just the beginning of her artistic journey. The work will continue to evolve. Three years ago she had no idea she would be producing the monumental work that is on exhibit today. She is excited to see what is yet to come. The art is intending to spark peoples empathy. Even a one degree shift towards empathy can make a difference in a world intent on division. Her work lets the viewer know that there is a way out, and there is hope. Anyone can overcome feelings of entrapment. When she moves her studio back to her house, the work might scale down, but  she knows that as life happens, she will continue to grow and large scale work will take form and evolve as she does. For her, monumentality contributes to the presence of a piece.

Studio for a Day

Posted on by Thor

Stella P. Arbelaéz Tascón had an amazing turn out of friends who came to support her Masters in Fine art gallery opening at UCF. There was a large contingent of artists and friends she met on her hike on the Florida Trail which she hiked from Cypress National Preserve in the south up to Fort Pickins in the North.

The day after the opening, Stella invited friends to her home including, James Parris, a former Disney Feature Animation colleague, and her daughter.  New Bear had a car which he had driven down from Maryland and he brought Just Jeff. They were both hiking buddies from Stella’s hike on the Florida National Scenic Trail. Since I was working back at my studio virtually, I missed much of the gathering.

With my last student, I was teaching contour drawing methods, and she was in a coffee shop, so our last prompt was to use contour to draw the room around us. Since I was in bed, I drew my feet extended On the Pulse comforter. At 6pm I threw on my art bag and rushed over to Stella’s to join her friends.

The plan was to have dinner at my Alex Alberaez’s home which was a short drive away. I got to catch up James Parris there.

Stella set up her power point on her brothers big screen TV and we got to experience what she would be presenting at her thesis presentation for her professors and committee members. At the beginning of her presentation she thanked those who had helped her on her journey towards getting her masters degree. Then she started talking about her family and she had to pause. There was so much love in the room with family and friends and she must have felt that. Then her presentation hit it’s full flow. The story is profound, universal and moving, and it is fueling some amazing art.

Soon she will be giving the presentation to the actual committee and professors whose job is to cross examine her and ask questions. Her job at this rehearsal was to defend her positions when asked challenging questions by friends and family. My few questions were rather soft balls.

This is her artist statement: “I explore the relationship between Nature (viewed as a living entity) and mental health through the intersections of personal experience and societal constructs. I share my evolution while healing from emotional trauma and after having walked 1,130 miles (1,818kn) as a through-hiker of the Florida National Scenic Trail. The work aims to be of service and entice a higher level of consciousness, directed to the nurturing of the self and protection of nature. while increasing appreciation and respect for it.

UCF MFA Spring Midterm Critique

Posted on by Thor

By Thomas Thorspecken

I was invited to go to the UCF Spring Mid Term Critique. It was great for me to meet the graduate students and talk art. Artist Zoe Nestlie had invited me once before, but at the time I was recovering from a COVID-19 infection.

Zoe had two paintings on display. Both were self portraits. In one a clown in white face had red rings around her eyes and a painted on smile while she face reflected sadness. An extra triangular canvas sat on top extending the blue clown’s had upward. Actual blue pom poms adorned the hat. Above the  painting was a round canvas painted red representing a balloon. One professor advised Zoe to use an actual balloon while another advised against the idea. It is up to Zoe to figure out what would work best. A second self portrait titled Facade, had heart shapes rose colored glasses. On that piece red orange and yellow flowers acted as a physical bouquet. Her work is about the psychological impact of emotional abuse within an intimate partner relationship.

The previous time I had sketched the the UCF Critique, Zoe was showing off her first painted explorations. She is still a first year student and this is her third time showing her work to the School of Visual Arts and Design, (SVAD)  faculty at large, for a formal critique. I happened to do my sketch quite close to her work. All of her work had been digital at the first critique. She had done a very consistent series of digital paintings of large eyed girls in uncomfortable positions. I asked Zoe if she preferred working digitally or traditionally. She still does some studies for paintings in the digital medium but now prefers to work larger on canvas. She likes the physicality of working on large paintings that have three dimensional elements. It is interesting to see her work progress as she moves through the masters program.

One female artist was talking about how women artists have been marginalized throughout the history of art. She followed up with the fact that she was in the masters program and that meant that the tide had turned. There are 3 men in the masters program, but only one guy made into my sketch. He is looking at his cell phone.

As I was sketching, Anna Vic Webb asked if I could stop back and visit her studio when I was done with the sketch. When I got back to her studio, she was just wrapping up with several professors. She had a self portrait on display. The eyes were a disturbing red but impossible to avoid looking at. As I was talking to Anna. I kept glancing back at those red piercing eyes in the painting. Sections of the painting vibrated with florescent brightness. Hair was painted on the legs in a spiraling pattern similar to Van Gogh’s nigh sky. A lone wolf was peaking printed on her tee shirt in the painting. We had a long talk about art which was quite rewarding. I didn’t really critique the work but instead offered suggestions on techniques she might like to try to tie all the elements together. I lost track of time getting to chat about art. I finally slipped away when a professor came in to offer her critique.

The Cathedral

Posted on by Thor

 

By Thomas Thorspecken

Back in October, I visited Stella P. Arbelaez Tascon, a UCF Masters program art student in her studio where she quickly sketched out an idea of an installation titled, The Cathedral: Within and Without for me, while I watched. It was an idea that had been living in her head, rent free, for a very long time, and she now wanted to make it a reality. Hurricane Milton had ripped through Central Florida and knocked over several trees on her property. Huge root balls forced fence posts up into the sky. Large stalks of bamboo were scattered in the yard. After destruction, comes recovery and  creation.

I volunteered in my small way to help bring the vision to life. It was exciting getting to watch her problem solve at every step of the process. She knew exactly how she wanted it to turn out, and the engineering involved would be adjusted based on the demands of the naturally sourced materials. The Cathedral was constructed of heat treated bamboo, solar lights, natural rope, steel fence posts, rebar, wire and a motion sensor box. It was 8 feet in diameter by 22 feet high.

All the bamboo for the installation was sourced right from the artist’s yard. Many were already fallen and she cut the others down using a machete.  A few months later, while I sketched the work on the opening night of her MFA exhibit, I heard some students asking one another where where the artist had sourced so much bamboo. I wanted to shout out, but decided to remain the silent witness.

This is how she described the piece: “In this piece, I capture the experience of being enveloped by towering cathedral like trees, where the enormity of the natural world brings forth a profound awareness of one’s own smallness. The simplicity of the lines within the work invites the viewers  gaze upward, toward the heavens, offering a pathway to the transcendence beyond the physical self, without the distractions of earthly possessions. It encourages a deeper appreciation of life by prompting reflection on the fleeting nature of human existence, contrasted against the timeless and majestic  presence of the environment that surround us.”

It was a cold night as I sketched. I wanted to sketch the cathedral against the pitch black night sky. I deeply respected Alex, the undergrad student, who was on duty as docent to the piece. She was the only person wearing a mask protecting herself and others in the ongoing pandemic. She encouraged everyone who left the warmth of the UCF Art Gallery to enter the Cathedral. All were invited to lie on their backs and look upwards. Many did. Before sketching, I entered myself and looked upwards. The bold lines of the bamboo pointed to the stars. It felt like a more elegant, refined Stonehenge.

As I sketched I could hear  everyone’s comments. When people entered the structure they were greeted with the sounds of birds chirping. A motion sensor would play the audio when people were inside. Mostly people felt peace when they entered the Cathedral. One woman told her boyfriend that she would love to have one in her back yard. She could use it for reflection and meditation. Most people exiting the UCF Masters exhibition titled Haunt, made their way to the installation and experienced it first hand. It became a place where people congregated, adjusting to the cold evening and sparked excited conversations to warm up. It also became the place where people hugged for the last time as they went their separate ways. It was a portal back to reality.

Haunt was on display until March 7, 2025 at the UCF Art Gallery (12400 Aquarius Agora Drive Orlando Florida.) Unfortunately The Cathedral was only on display through February 25th. I will be helping the artist dismantle the piece that day. The logistics of moving such a large piece are incredible. The U-Haul Truck she rented to move it is just barely large enough for the tall bamboo poles. One pole in particular had to be put in the truck at just the right angle, corner to corner, for it to fit. She has been keeping the installation in a storage facility and once again the poles just manage to fit. The stalks were protected from Florida’s humidity by being heat treated with a flame thrower and covered in varnish to protect them. Fans were placed to keep the air moving. It would be nice if the installation found a more permanent home where others could experience the peace and wonder it inspires.

.

Cabaret

Posted on by Thor

The Orlando Shakespeare Theater (812 E Rollins St, Orlando, FL) is presenting a cutting edge production of Cabaret. This show is more topical than ever in today’s heated political environment. People like to pretend that the worst isn’t happening but ignoring the problem empowers the problem. The parking lot to the Shakes was completely packed, so I exited the parking lot and found street parking nearby.

The opening scene in the show had Clifford Bradshaw played by Easton Curtis on a balcony taking note or sketching as snow fell. The play was based on the writings of Christopher Isherwood who was an American who was in Berlin Germany right before WWII and he considered himself a human camera. I am fond of that concept. On stage, the Emcee, played by Shane Bland was warming up the crowd with a classic flair. In the talk back after the show I learned that Shane was the one Jewish member of the cast which made his role all the more poignant.

The play follows the colorful performers in the Kit Kat club and their crazy and comical numbers stood as a stark contrast to the rising tide of hateful politics in Germany. The fast and furious romance between Clifford and Sally Bowles played by Anastasia Remoundos showed how romantic escape is critical and practical in crazy times. Sally’s flamboyant attitudes were her form of absolute denial to the reality all around her.

During rehearsals a Cultural Coordinator was brought in to be a support system to the cast. The play covers some very disturbing themes and it is hard to wear that cloak and then not take it home. There was a sabbath dinner for the cast early in the rehearsals. The cast felt a responsibility to hold a mirror up to the truth. Some actors playing German soldiers had to wear Nazi Swastikas on their arm bands. The arm bands were sequestered right until the moment before actors got on stage. Once the scene was finished the arms bands wold once again be locked away. The same was true with the patches that marked people as deviant. The one Jewish star had to go to Herr Schultz, played by Mark Gray Miller. The other cast got to choose which patch best suited their character. The show was a polarizing experience for the entire cast. It is unfortunately very relevant. One piece of advice from one of the actors rang true, “Be kind to yourself and others.”

Cabaret performances continue through March 2, 2025. Trust me, this is a show you do not want to miss. Tickets start at $40.

 

Snow Globe: Blower Exchange

Posted on by Thor

In this shot from Snow Globe, Big Birdie (Carrie Lauren) stood in her driveway and Guy (Neil Parren) had parked in the street, smugly leaning against his car. The couple had separated or were divorced.

At first Gregory Mohn, behind the camera considered having the red car parked diagonally in the driveway, but when it was backed up into the street to be repositioned, he decided it made sense for Guy to not even bother to use the driveway. I liked the look of the circular cul-de-sac, the definition of which is: a route or course leading nowhere. It was fitting.

Birdie offered to give guy the leaf  blower. She after all was civilized and would not need such a loud obnoxious device. The closest they got to one another is when she handed it to him, extended at arms length. There is a painful moment that happens when you realize that you are never going to see a person who you spent decades of your life with. There had been some good times. But Guy’s girlfriend, Her (Crystal Hanley) was in the passenger seat. He had already started building a life together with someone new. When he put the blower in the back seat of his car he realized he had something to return to Birdie. It was the snow globe. He casually threw it to her. They were about 12 feet apart. Now, keep in mind, this is the only snow globe prop available. To keep it safe multiple shot were done where he acted like he was throwing it but kept it in his hand. Similar shots were done of Birdie acting like she was catching it.

Then the critical shot had to be done where Birdie actually caught the snow globe and reacted. She was moved onto the grass and someone with serious baseball experience stood a few feet from her to lobe the snow globe to her. He coached her saying she should use her body to catch the globe and just cradle it with her hands. Multiple shots were done and I gasped every time. Then the fatal toss happened. The globe slipped through her hands and fell to the ground. There was absolute silence on the set. In slow motion, the globe bounced multiple times and settled between the Saint Augustine blades, unharmed. There was one toss which was a bit too high and Crystal reacted in absolute terror that the globe might fall again. I am certain that will be the shot that ends up in the final cut of the film.

In the next shot the hatchback of the red car was opened and cameraman Gregory sat looking back at Birdie. I had to quickly pack up my art supplies since I would have been visible in the long dolly shot. I hid in the garage with director, Tracey Jane and the mechanical garage door rolled shut. As the car slowly pulled away Birdie got small in the distance. The monitor was set up in the garage and the shot looked beautiful. Tracey was glowing.

There was another scene that was to be shot this day in the pool area after lunch, but I had to drive back to Lake County to teach virtual classes. There were delicious empanadas for the crew. I slipped one into a napkin for the road. This was the moment where I got to share my sketches with Tracey. Her excitement left me overjoyed. She called members of the crew over to look. Gregory kept saying he could not understand how I did what I do. But I have just as much respect for the entire crews mad skills.

This would be the final sketch of the three day short film shooting marathon. It was certainly an adventure for me and I am so grateful I was allowed into the creative fold. When the film premiers I plan to sketch the red carpet while cleaned up in a fresh tuxedo.