Have you been out today?

Do you think if I just draw strange creatures the whole time then eventually someone from Pixar will chance upon this blog and offer me a job?

The lack of posting in recent weeks has, of course, been as a result of my being oh so terribly busy with amazing and interesting stuff that I cannot detail here for fear of throwing light upon the drab horror of your own tawdry lives and furthering your already well-developed (though repressed through vigorous denial) feelings of self-loathing, worthlessness and inadequacy. It is not, in any way, due to me spending my days rather boringly sat on my arse in front of the computer working. And it certainly isn't anything to do with a barely controlled addiction to internet Scrabble (though if it were then the blame would fall to Richard Herring and Stefan Fatsis rather than any failing in my own character). No, no, no - life has simply been too packed with glorious adventure to find time to bother you with it.

Well, all right then, just as a taster I could tell you that I have twice spotted a second frog on my allotment. How exciting is that? Oh, I'm sorry, it's just too much for you isn't it? Have a cup of tea and a sit down.

Normally at this point I would make some rash promise about writing more soon but having recently discovered a rich online vein of Paul Slater's very fine illustration work I may well have to spend rather a long time perusing the wonders therein and then weeping copiously at my own inadequacy. Thus I may well be kept from my blogging duties for even longer.

Many years ago when I was a mere stripling of an illustration student Mr Slater visited the college I was at to show his work and bestow upon us many words of the wisest wisdom about the worthy trade of illustration. I can't actually remember anything he said but what I do remember is that a) he seemed like a lovely bloke and b) he had the most amazing sketchbooks. Big, thick, hardbound volumes they were (I think he said they came from Paris which just made them lovelier) full of the outpourings of a clearly very lively mind; more ideas in each one than I will have in a lifetime and all finely rendered and gorgeous. The bugger.

See also his related (but seemingly sadly not updated since 2002) Practical Nudity site.