"The older the fiddle, the sweeter the tune."
-English Proverb.

Hello everybody!

Well, as you might have noticed, the age-ticker on top of my profile ticked off another digit.

"Normally I'd put on a festive hat and celebrate the fact that the Earth has circled the sun one more time. I really didn't think it was going to make it this year, but darn it if it wasn't the little planet that could all over again."

So, now I'm 26, which is an interesting age to be. I say "Interesting" because all the people I know, not to mention all of youthful culture in general considers 26 to be decrepit and ancient, whereas all the middle-aged people I know say I'm still just a young pup or a "dumb kid."

It seems I've entered some realm where I'm a magical, timeless being, or I've just become a timelord... Or possibly everyone I've talked to on this subject lacks some fundamental perspective on the human life cycle.
... But I'm still going to go with the timelord theory... for now.


But anyway, I'm not here to bitch about getting older, I'm here to give some thank-yous to some very kind and wonderful people for blessing me with some birthday art.

First we have the young, vibrant and talented Who gifted me with this very sweet and very personalized piece:

So... We have a tiger, an osprey, a minke whale and a silver fox...
Does this young lady know me, or does she KNOW me?
Having had a love of tigers ever since I could walk erect, having had a fascination of Ospreys ever since I moved into a nest of them in Florida, having had a once-in-a-lifetime encounter with a minke whale on Stellwagon Bank this past summer and having adopted the mantle of the silver fox ever since my debut here on DA, this piece really encapsulates my zoological geekery and my love of the natural world most succinctly.

Thank you, thank you so much Anna, not only for producing this piece with lightning-speed, but for being thoughtful enough during your summer of leisure to create this beautiful, sweet piece of birthday goodness.
You're entirely too kind to me.


Secondly, we have perhaps one of my oldest and dearest DA friends, Who crafted this magnificent piece

With the flair and artistic élan that adds depth and weight to even her simplest pieces, we have a rendering of one of my very favorite Elfquest characters. This lithesome lass had the (figurative) testicular fortitude to defy the pseudo-magical mating laws that define her universe and got it on with her boyfriend, magical recognition be damned, and you have to admit that takes some moxie... Not to mention she's one smoking-hot huntress.

So thank you, Kayleigh. You really didn't have to. You've got a shiny new website and everything. [link] You're a real artist. Giftart should theoretically be beneath you at this point... But I'm so glad it's not.
So thank you for being so sweet and taking time after moving back to the United States after over a year in Bulgaria while looking for a way back into the real world in a shaky economy.
You're a better friend than I deserve and a marvelous talent to boot.


So, now after the actual birthday gifts, we have some incidental birthday gifts.
By which I mean pieces of art that aren't strictly birthday gifts or pieces that aren't even gifts for me... But through some convoluted shenanigans in the comment sections of said deviations, might be loosely construed as pieces for me... kinda.
So, we have
by
And by

Now I know I might be construed as a social gadfly by posting these pics, trying to inflate my popularity to seem greater than it really is... Well, that may be partially true, but mostly I want to post these pieces because I genuinely love them, just as I genuinely love the people who made them, whether they were for me or not.

Well, thank you very much everybody!
You're all kind, wonderful people, and I'm grateful to have met you all through the hallowed, digital halls of DA.


[link]

"Grab the chair boys! We've got another bucket kicker!"

Happy Birthday my old friend
It seems this horror show will never end
Any moment's your last breath
Here is to another day closer to death

The cake is on the table
And it is awfully bright
Cause there's so many candles on top
But you are so decrepit
Your chest is so tight
blow them out your lungs are gonna pop

You cannot complain each time you feel a pain
You have arthritis and gout
Cause when you start kvetchin'
Your teeth fall out
So have another cigarette, have another beer!
Raise your glass to one more year!

Happy Birthday my old friend
It seems this horror show will never end
Any moment's your last breath
Here is to another day closer to death

Your skin is so worn out and old
all over your body its saggin'
Especially loose is your old caboose
You're dragging behind you with your wagon

You're an alcoholic and you're blind and deaf
And you have Alzheimer's I bet
You're too old to remember and you're too drunk to forget
So have another cigarette, have another beer!
Raise your glass to one more year!


Happy Birthday my old friend
It seems this horror show will never end
Any moment's your last breath
Here is to another day closer to death

You're so old you smell like dust
Now your bones begin to rust
See that face it's full of wrinkles
So have another cigarette, have another beer!
Raise That chair to one more year!

Happy Birthday my old friend
It seems this horror show will never end
Any moment's your last breath
Here is to another day closer to death

Happy Birthday my old friend
It seems this horror show will never end
Any moment's your last breath
Here is to another day closer to your sweet death!