Collaboration.

So, I recently acquired a new nephew. He’s not an adorable toddler but he’ll do, I guess. He’s actually a college student and a musician. And my mom was concerned about making him feel welcome as part of our family this Christmas. She wanted to give him something to let him know that she was interested in his life, and was learning about him. All very nice for a step-grandmother, I think. But somehow I got mixed up in all this.

You see, she called me with a “job.” She wanted me to make a piece of art for him, depicting him doing some of his favorite things in his favorite places...you get the drift here, right? Except, if you know my mom, which you might because that woman knows everyone, then you also know that she has a very complicated way of describing things.

There was a lengthy phone call with many confusing directions and conflicting ideas. There was a lot of  “draw him in this place that neither one of us has ever seen but it won’t matter, ” kind of stuff. So I dug in, I knuckled down and I googled the heck out of everything I could find about this guy. And this is what came of it.

I think it came out kinda cute. But I don't have his permission to post it here, so I’ve allowed him to retain his anonymity. Sort of.

(Honestly, I wish I could show you the original notes for this thing. He was to be in a “convertible, wearing a cardinal, silver and black scarf, driving right to left down the beach in front of The Hangout. Maybe put a palm tree in it. Have him singing ‘The Sweetheart of Sigma Chi.’”

Obviously, I took some liberties.)