Kween of the Museum, perched under a blanket on the Queen Anne

Today is my birthday, and I interrupt the previously scheduled “Inktober” drawing posts to share a couple of fabulously wacky and delightful portraits of me by my dear friends, the Chickens, Zac and Tara Lynne.

We were all on a conference call (they called to sing me Happy Birthday), and knowing I was sitting on the ol’ Queen Anne sofa in my living room, they decided to each draw an impression of the scene. They sent these while we were still on the phone and we had a hilarious time dissecting the images (and cackling like the chickens that we are).

Here we have Z’s drawing; appropriately dark and highly witchy. His rendition of the blanket turned into a kind of beastly thing— seen in one way it looks like a giant crow; seen another it becomes a sort of warthog! He moved my giant clock from the dining room into the living room, and included the boxy little fish tank in the drawing. I’m looking dreadfully serious, and we joked that it was my “I must send some money to PBS, I simply must” face.

And then TL upped the ante, including labels in her diagram. Proud paintbrushes (she really knows me, haha) and hidden clothing (it’s a closet!) The money tree is so money that it speaks, and she included my Halloween makeup in this, rendering me a bandit queen. Even the phone charger snaking out from under the couch is here, and she turned my coffee table into something quite minimal and chic! Hahahahaha!!

I hafto say, these absurdly sweet drawings are among the best birthday gifts I can imagine. And they are rather inspiring as drawn bits of storytelling, too, so I really wanted to share them. Thanks, chickens!!