Sunday. Cycling. Soccer. Swimming.

I started the day with a ride. In the winter months we keep my bike on a trainer. I like to spend about an hour every day riding + watching something. Usually it's an episode of Northern Exposure or X-Files that I've already seen 100 times. The past couple of days I've been watching cycling documentaries. It's a little more inspiring. Yesterday I peddled along with Ride the Divide which I thought was really great and certainly fueled my wanderlust. This morning was To Live & Ride in L.A.. Not something I'd normally sit down and watch, but it was interesting and the soundtrack was great. 

My cousin was playing in a soccer tournament today so we went downtown to watch one of his games. Soccer is one of the few sports I actually enjoy watching. He's #11 there.

After a couple weeks of trying to avoid crazy crowds, we finally went to check out the brand new Greater Cleveland Aquarium. I was really excited about that. I love aquariums. What I think is really awesome about our aquarium is that it was built in an old powerhouse downtown and they didn't try to hide it. There are so many great architectural features that they built around that make it a very unique place. 

Going back to Little Italy.

I called Little Italy home for four years. It is one of my absolute favorite places in Cleveland and so many of my best memories were made there. I love the atmosphere, the walkability, and the food. Definitely the food. So with that being said, I'm really excited to share that I will now have my work for sale in a new breakfast nook/gallery in Little Italy called Sunny Side Up! The grand opening is on March 1st. It will include a few pieces I made over the summer as well as some new ones like this:

I'm looking forward to the opening and I hope for a big turnout so if you're free on the 1st and live in the Cleveland area please come support some local artists!

Valentine's Day with Bill.

We each got a little metal mailbox perched outside of our cubes on Valentine's Day and my co-workers and I exchanged treats. These were the Valentines that I made to share with everyone. 

Howl.

I was organizing some folders on my computer tonight and came across this image that I made several years ago for Rise and Resist apparel. They never printed it, although they did print this one, and it seems that they've since taken another direction with their aesthetic so I don't expect to see it anytime soon.

Sights to see.

We went skiing in New York this weekend and I couldn't believe that the only place I saw snow was on the slopes. And even some of those were lacking. This winter's weather seems so bizarre. 

I decided that we should take some extra time on our trip home and stop at Niagara Falls since Andrew had never been and we had been talking about it for a while. There was barely anyone there which was probably due to the cold and dreary weather. The experience was quite different from the first time I was there, but it's still amazing to see something so powerful like that. 

A few thoughts here and there.

Tonight was the first time I've been able to sit down and really work in my studio since we completed it. It feels good. Really good. Especially with several projects on the horizon.

I've been working on ideas for some album artwork over the past week. Some of the subject matter falls into the category of things I've never even thought about drawing before and some of it is right up my alley. I like a good challenge.

It seems as though we've been building a small community of friends here in Cleveland Heights which excites me. And not just because we finally have more people to play Settlers of Catan with. 

Heather Lende's If You Lived Here I'd Know Your Name is my current read. Just throwing more fuel on the fire that is my desire to live in a cabin in Alaska. 

Oh, and if you watch anything on Netflix this week, make sure it's FOODMATTERS.

Alaska's auroras.

My initial thought after seeing this article.

"Say, its only a paper moon..."

My mom recently shared this picture of my grandparents with me. I can't get over how great it is.