I forgot my music this morning…

I was saddened by this realization when I arrived at the C-train Park n’ Ride, but it was a little too late to turn back just so I’d have something to do on the LRT. You see, I finished the book I had been reading several days ago, and I’m finding that, even though the train is packed lightly during the summer months, in the winter it is shoulder to shoulder human sardines, and no matter where you are, be it sitting or standing, someone is always looking over your shoulder. Thus, if I don’t have a book and I don’t have music, I still feel too uncomfortable to write.

During the summer I had gotten a lot written, but as people started coming back from their brief reality breaks, too many people are interested in what you do on the C-train. I have considered being gassy to get some privacy, but I don’t think I’d be able to stand myself.

So, I thought I’d be bored. I was wrong! What I was, in no uncertain terms, was “annoyed!”

I have prided myself with growing up in a matter that has afflicted me with no, in my opinion, odd fears or anxieties. I am afraid of falling to my death from a very high altitude, but I’m certain that no unnatural force is going to propel me through my fifth story office window. I am afraid that some lunatic might run me over in the streets for no good reason but to test the traction on his truck, but I’m not going to fear the outdoors because of it. I can let an object such as a tree or a light post come between me and the ones I love without fearing the karmic repercussions. When I eat my Smarties and I eat the red ones last, it’s out of choice and not some sort of obsessive compulsion.

However, that being said, I have a particular aversion to disgusting noises. This is a trait that I share with my sister. I have risked losing marks on a test to tell a friend, acquaintance or stranger to chew his gum with his mouth closed. Practically every day I have to inform Rylee that the food will stay in her mouth better if she would stop smacking her lips. While being oriented at the Naval base after my basic training had completed, I told a new recruit to go get a Kleenex because he kept clearing his nose backwards into his throat. Yes! It’s a compulsion, but I feel it makes the world a better place when people are aware of the others occupying their surroundings and act accordingly. I’m not saying “pinkies out” with every glass of punch, but just thinking “is what I’m doing annoying anyone?” would suffice.

I managed to get a seat on the train before it filled up completely. This makes the ride to work a little more pleasant because standing on the C-train in the morning isn’t quite as nice as standing on the way home. On the way home I want to stand…I’ve been sitting in my office for most of the day prior to that. Yes! I got a seat. There are seven stops on the way to downtown, and on the very next stop a gentleman got on the train, stood right beside me and, due to a lack of room, directly over me.

He started to sniff. He sniffed again! And again! He sniffed in an almost rhythmic beat, and he didn’t sound plugged up which sent my imagination into overdrive. I could picture a watery droplet clinging to the rim of his nostril, threatening to drop. He sniffs and pulls the droplet partially inside his nasal cavity where it pauses temporarily and begins to slide back out. This man was playing games with the top of my toque, and there was nothing I could do about it. I would have offered him a tissue, but I had none. I didn’t feel right about getting on someone’s case before 7:00am. I toughed it out, and when I say “I toughed it out,” I mean it was tough to ride it out.

One stop before mine, another gentleman who knew Mr. Sniffy engaged him in conversation. Instead of joining him in a nostril snorting duet like I was afraid of (okay, maybe one or two unnatural fears), Mr. Sniffy stopped sniffing or, at least, just stopped sniffing over my head. The throbbing in my neck ceased, and I stopped grinding my teeth. I’m pretty sure Mr. Sniffy shortened my lifespan a little.

Sticking with my daily artistic (hah!) contribution, I sketched two character sheets from our upcoming webcomic. I didn’t ink them, but I will. I wanted to try a watercolour feel because, first, I wanted to see what it would look like, and second, it took like 5 or 10 minutes:





The facial expressions will become avatars for Shannon and I upon his approval. I didn’t really pay attention to proportion or, in fact, realism, since I’m pretty sure we want to go in a more cartoonie direction, but I just wanted to quickly sketch out some funny facial expressions and body positions.

And something came to mind while sketching these out: being the artist, I can put my friends in any situation or position I want. Thus, Shannon is swooning!