Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Epic Accomplishment or Epic Failure? We shall see.

I realize it's been quiet on this blog for the last month, but believe me, in real life it has been anything but. I moved to Atlanta and I started a new job, but that's only the tip of the busy-ness iceburg. You see, soon after I started this project, I knew I would want to display it; not only to share it with everyone, but to hold my short-attention-spanned-self accountable to finish it. Last November at the annual Famous Fictional show, I talked with Mad Art gallery owner, the lovely Ron Buchele, about putting together a group show with a general theme about friendship.

He totally went for it.



Now, eleven months and 20 incredible artists later, it's almost here! Hence, the silence. I've been feverishly cranking away at getting ALL four-hundred-some-odd portraits finished. SO, what does that mean for you? It means that you STL locals should come out and see them all LIVE at the Sidekicks & Soulmates opening reception! I mean really, how many times will your sweet mug ever hang in a gallery?

Q&A Section

Q: Can we buy our portraits?
A: You sure can! Portraits are $10 a piece. BUT WAIT! Come out to the reception on October 7th and you can get your portrait for only $5! If you can't make it to the opening, fear not. I will post instructions on how you can get yours after the show.

Q: Will we be able to take them with us that night?
A: The show will hang until October 31st and then each portrait will be scanned if hasn't been already and then it will be on it's way to you! (About 2 weeks after it comes down.) 

Q: My portrait hasn't been posted on the blog. Did you get it done?
A: If you've been my friend for the last six months, then YES, you're picture will be up. I must confess that a few people did get skipped due to only having pictures of their kids posted or having pictures so small that I couldn't make them out. 

Q: We'd love to come, but no one will watch our horribly misbehaved children.
A: No problem. While an art opening isn't really a kid-friendly event, they are certainly welcome to tag along. Mad Art is an old jail that's been converted into a gallery. If they act up, we can throw them in a cell. Just make sure they don't touch the art. 

Q: WHAT ABOUT THE BLOG!! 
A: To me, the write-ups are the best part of this project and they will resume after the show! 

Any other questions? Post a comment below. 

SEE YOU THERE THIS FRIDAY (October 7, 2011)




Monday, August 22, 2011

Facebook Friends: Jason - Jean

Jason Roton
A very sharp, outgoing, and hilarious q-ball-headed father of 2 unfortunately beautiful children. Unfortunate for everyone else's kids, that is.



Jason Scollin
I hope every girl who goes away to college has a guy like Jason on the floor above her. A guy whose stout brawniness makes her feel safe from the bumbling drunks stumbling around campus at any given hour. A guy who would rip any guys head off who was even slightly disrespectful (or at least give him a firm verbal threat.) A guy who hangs out in her dorm room watching MTV with her all day while she lube his new super stupid flaming eagle tattoo. A guy who she can call at any hour to escort her to the dining hall so she doesn't have to eat alone. A guy who she can make fun of relentlessly who will dish it right back. A guy who is a genuine friend who never makes moves on her or makes her feel like he's hanging out with her expecting some sort of payoff. A guy who will say, "Psssh. No you're not." when she tells him that she's every bit as pretty as Jennifer Love Hewitt. Yep. Ever girl needs a guy like Jason.



Jason Scott
Jason Scott is a big deal to me. I don't see him anymore. We live worlds apart. He's on one side of the river, I live on the other. You know how that is, right, St. Louis?

Before I crossed over to the big city, Jason had a pretty big influence on me. I was a new Christian hanging out in the shallow end of the spiritual pool and Jason was doing cannon balls and back flips over in the deep end. What? Cannon balls? Can you do that over there? I thought it was more like lap swimming. A straight line between the rope at an appropriate speed to go the distance. You know, dignified.  That's not what Jason was doing. He was having fun and I wanted to have fun, too. It's not just about fun for him by ANY means. Jason is a pusher. He's not afraid to challenge you. That big heart of his is full of wiseness, passion, stubbornness and tell-it-like-it-isness. He's good stuff.



Jason Zellmer
Jason is a great man. That is such a simple sentence, but in my mind, it says so much. To me it's someone who leads. Not mafia-style fear-inducing type of leading, but inspiring people to follow with compassion, creativity, insight, accessibility, honesty, wisdom, bravery and a great sense of humor. I haven't seen him in years, but I know that he is doing incredible things the pastor of Peine Ridge Church in Wentzville. If you're out that way and looking for a church to call home, I suggest you check them out.



Jean Cimino
This is my Momma. The woman who bestowed unto me her good looks, her sparkling personality, her short attention span and, yes, her turkey neck. We have a really unique relationship that I cherish above any other. It is by no means perfect. She crabs at me about the way I stand, dress, do my hair, the way I (don't) clean and the way I don't live up to my potential. I crab at her about the way she can never find her keys, the way she obsessively plays Bejewelled, and her myriad of unintentional quirks like opening her eyes too wide and chicken-winging her arms while she's driving.  My mom and I don't make much of an effort to be polite to one another. And why should we? That's the best part about being a family. You can let all your ugly hang out and they love you anyways.

And love each other we do! Saying that we're "close" doesn't really seem to encompass how tight we really are. We talk about EVERYTHING. Life changing decisions? I call mom first. Heartbroken? I call mom first. Exciting news? Mom again. Just need to vent? Mom. Absolutely nothing to say at all? You guessed it. I call mom. In fact, I would say that talking to my Mom is my favorite hobby. Do I take her advice all the time? Heck, no. But I always want to know her opinion.

Mom has been through a lot the past few years. She's the caretaker of my entire family and there's been plenty of care-taking to do. From one side of the country to the other, she puts her life aside and does the what needs to be done. When she's not doing that, she's working 12-hour night shifts in the ER. She's been completely selfless and tireless. She needs a break! Hopefully, with my sister and I both moving down to atlanta be near her, she'll get one. Maybe not. But, at least she won't have to drive so far to rescue us.


Sunday, August 21, 2011

Facebook Friends: James - Jason

We made it to the J's!!!
James Halton
James Halron as we like to call him. A good pal from High School who drags his family all over the world. Awful places like Hawaii and Japan. They must really love him. And who wouldn't? This devoted dad is like the poster child for awesome.


Jason Bauer
If Jason had been born about two thousand years ago, he would have made a fearsome Roman gladiator. His size, his booming voice and those piercing eyes would have made lions whimper like kittens. But he was born in 1981, so he was a giant football-playing teddy bear instead.
Jason gives THE. BEST. HUGS. They make you feel so tiny and protected. If you see him around town, make sure you ask him for one.

sidenote: This just might be my favorite portrait so far. I almost threw it away.

Jason Cook
Lemonhead. Chicken Sandwich. Kitten. Tiger. He will answer to any of these. Jason is my co-worker, and this is one of those situations where I have so much to say that I don't know where to start. I mean, according to my calculations, Jason and I have spent about 13,520 hours together over the last 6.5 years. That's a lot to sort through. If I had to break it down I would estimate that I spent 1,000 of those hours giving him a hard time about swallowing to loudly or having smelly food; 4,000 were spent in total silence with our headphones on; 500 giving each other knowing glances about something going on in the room; 1,000 on him talking about stupid effing LOST; 1,500 on me talking about the totally awesome Hunger Games trilogy; 1,500 just laughing; 2,000 on me giving him a hard time in general, leaving about 2020 hours of doing actual work.

Jason is a good sport and he puts up with a lot of teasing from me. But really, how can I help myself? The guy talks to his silverware.




Jason Fry
Father. Husband. Traveler. Activist. Human-Trafficking Hater. Business Maker. Jesus Lover. Avid Facebook Friends Blog reader.
Quite a long way from the guy who was always helping me get the stink-eye from our spanish teacher and the occasional invitation to stand in the hallway with all of our disruptive talking and giggling.


Jason Missey
I had a big fat crush on Jason Missey in college. He did not have a crush on me. He preferred my tiny, bubbly, blonde co-worker. Psssh. Typical.

We did get a long great though and we palled around a lot one summer.  He even spent a hot sweaty hour chasing my roomate's dog through the mean streets of Warrensburg. He's also responsible for introducing me to the love of my life; Jeff Buckley.

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Facebook Friends: Holly - Jake


Holly Scott
Holly Scott is one very strong and beautiful woman. I remember being pretty intimidated by her when we first met at 2 Rivers Church MANY years ago. She seemed a little hardened, a little cautious, like she'd been through some stuff. I am always intimidated by people who have been through some stuff because I haven't been through much at all. I'm always afraid I won't be taken seriously, because, what do I know? I'm just a spoiled and inexperienced nitwit.

Holly warmed up to me pretty fast and her hard candy shell quickly melted away to reveal a loving, affectionate, kid-loving, sensitive soul and a good friend who isn't afraid to dole out some tough love when necessary. She's VERY sharp, observant, funny and opinionated. Four of my favorite traits!!



Holly Terry
I got to know Holly in High School when I managed the girls volley ball team that I wasn't good enough to make. I had a great time with those girls though and they never made me feel less-than for being the only girl on the bus not wearing a white polyester collared jersey tucked into green spandex underpants. I know in this picture she looks a little bit like Elpheba from the hit broadway musical Wicked, but a wicked witch she is NOT. Holly is excels at being friendly and engaging and has one of the biggest and most beautiful smiles a girl could ever want.



Ima Jerk
Jen and I had a real easy time making one another laugh. My most prominent memories of her are of sitting in art class story-swapping and sitting on the bus, pulling up to her stop and watching her casually stroll towards the bus like she was in absolutely no hurry, which was fine with me, because I was still doing my homework.




Jacque Nodell
Another marvelous one-time Science Center Intern that we wanted to keep forever. Jacque makes me feel extremely unaccomplished and lazy. That's good though. That shame is what keeps me going. Jacque has AT LEAST 2 blogs that she updates. REGULARLY. Stop what you are doing and go to each of these links. You will get lost in awesome.
Sequential Crush   For Comic book lovers.
The Coziness Project  For vintage home decor lovers.
Pinterest - The coolest thing that I didn't know existed and will be signing up for immediately.



Jake Zettelmaier
Artist. Musician. Political Ranter. Bug Slayer. Jesus Lover. And the undisputed King of Crabgrass. Jake and I met at Special Effects make-up school. He was dirty, he was grouchy, he smelled like an ash-tray, and he dressed like an anarchist. I liked him immediately.

I think when God is in heaven making people cookies in his heavenly kitchen, we must have plenty of time to get to know one another while we're baking. When we're sent down to earth we forget all about where we came from. Our brains are wiped clean and we go about our business growing up. Occasionally, as we go, we meet people that we recognize without ever having met them. "Oh, Hey! It's you again." I think those people were all from the same batch. Batch Buddies. You're friendship is pretty effortless even if you have nothing in common.  Jake Z is one of my batch buddies.

Make sure to check out the music of Black Jake & the Carnies.

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Facebook Friends: Heather - Hollie

Harmony Hamill
I met the beautiful, talented, sensitive and obnoxiously driven Harmony Hamill in Orlando when we were both students at the Joe Blasco school of make-up. She was fresh out of high school and knew exactly what she wanted to do. I was fresh out of college with an illustration degree and had no idea what I wanted to do, but I knew it had nothing to do with a 9-5 kind of job. Harmony was definitely the most passionate about make-up in our class. I, as always, was always more interested in making giant bloody tampons out of latex and making the guys look like drag queens than in developing my talents.

While in Orlando I had a conversation that irreversibly changed my life. That conversation was with Harmony (Stef was there too.) When I went to Orlando I was not a Christian. I thought Christians were all closed and simple minded. I thought it was so arrogant for any religion to think that they KNOW. I mean, who can KNOW something like that? But, all it took was this one conversation. I asked her about a bumper sticker on her car with every intention of giving her a hard time about it. She told me what it meant. A half hour later, it suddenly hit me like a bolt of lightening. It made sense. It was real. And I KNEW it. I wasn't looking for it, nor did I want it, but I couldn't deny it. I went to my car and just sobbed. Oh no. I was now a Christian....whatever that meant.

Quite honestly, I'm still figuring out what it means to be a Christian and will be until the day I die. It's hard and it takes a lot of work and a lot of wrestling, but it's the most important thing that has ever or will ever happen to me.

And to think, it all started with Harmony and her stupid bumper sticker.



Heather Bair
Heather Bair is such a good friend to those who are lucky enough to call her one. She's always so positive and every time I see her I know that we are genuinely happy to see one another. She's one of those people that really focuses on finding out about YOU. Supportive-like. Truth be told, Heather is actually the girl that inspired the last paragraph of my Too Much Coffee Confessional



Heather Biondo Smith
Heather is funny, boisterous, opinionated and just fun to be around in general. She loves hanging with her kiddos and organizing trivia nights.


Heather Hollingsworth
Heather (Bishop) was our classes official Biggest Flirt. How could that title go to anyone else? She's bright, adventurous, spunky, friendly, gorgeous, full of energy and always smiling. She's a natural at being the center of attention which is where she belongs.


Hollie Harris Caupp
Hollie always reminded me of Jessie Spano from Saved by the Bell. Not in the aggressive, eco-femenist, bathroom pop star kind of way, but in the ultra smart, driven, hard-working, uber-involved sort of way. She had big plans for success and she knew what needed to be done to get there. And by golly, she did it! 

Friday, August 5, 2011

Facebook Friends: Ernst - Georgia

Ernst Ben Ratsputten
Ben is my friend's Rat. Ben is a girl. She loves cheese, toilet paper rolls and watching the Secret of Nimh. Since I have about 300 more of these to do, I'll just let Michael Jackson do the rest of the talking for me.



Feliciano Mora
The Artisian Rogue. Mario is wonderful. His quiet, introspective and gentle spirit always had a beneficial calming effect amongst a class full of show-offs, loud-mouths, and naked people. He is a passionate and dedicated person. If he loves something, that passion and dedication gets applied to it, and believe me, it's a long list.

He loves comics. Making them and reading them. I wish I had a thimble full of the artistic passion that Mario has. Just a thimble!! Be sure spend a few hours on his site. He'll passionately love you for it!



George Anagnos
So, I don't date. It's the worst thing in the world to me. Okay–I'm exaggerating, there's plenty of things in the world FAR worse, but I REALLY dislike it. Anyone who can appreciate my crippling fear of awkward silences will understand, and what is a first date if not one long awkward silence with a high-five and a sigh of relief at the end. Can't we just skip to the good stuff?

About once a year, I give in and go on a date. A few years back, George was one of the lucky few, and I have to say, we had a GREAT time! All thanks to George. He took charge. He had a plan. He ran that show. He didn't leave me to do all the talking. No room for awkward silence. Not a single "Well, I don't know, what do you want to do?" All that he required of me was my company which is exactly how I think a first date should be. And while there weren't any romantic sparks between the two of us, it's men like George that keep me going on this quest for love and remind me that not every first date will be like Chinese water torture.

Aside from his dating expertise, he's funny, outgoing, kind, thoughtful and has an entrepreneurial spirit with the karate (or some form of asian fighting) skills to kill an attacking rabid tiger.



Georgia Damalas Snodgrass
Georgia and I had a good thing going. I miss her. A lot. We were both pretty new Christians when we met. She's was something of a wise older sister to me. Wherever I was going in my life, she'd already been there and she'd tell me all about it. It's important to have people in your life who already know what you're about to learn.

Not only that, but she's funny, determined, and warm as a freshly toasted Pop Tart with the most beautiful perfectly and ever-so-slightly crooked smile I've ever seen. I really admire her.

Oh, and Georgia, if you're reading this, here is that song for your baby girl I was telling you about that you probably never looked up because you didn't know how awesome it is. You're welcome!



Greg Franklin
Artist. Musician. Designer. Writer. Critic. DJ. Dancer. Hat Wearer. Beard Grower. Cat lover. All around terrific human being. Greg Franklin is the best friend I never had.

He's in Seattle, I'm in St. Louis and we met in Kansas City. Once. Years ago. We took an instant liking to one another and became fast facebook friends. We have a lot in common, but I get the sense that he's sort of the male version of myself. You know, outgoing, creative, warm, and a lover of the people. And like me, he is world famous-ish for his sweet dance moves–the difference being that he actually has rhythm. The laughter and cheering from the surrounding circle is WITH him as opposed to AT him.

Greg has both a powerful and gentle presence. He's light and deep. He's vivacious and dark. He's well put together in that accidental sort of way. I always feel like I'm a walking set of contradictions and I get that vibe from Greg, too. But then again, I barely know him. I guess I can smell my own kind. I'm happy to see that Greg has met his match and is on his way to the alter with a beautiful girl that looks like a rainbow.

If you have a few hours, you should spend some time looking into all the pots that Greg has his hand in here.

Time to update, Greg.

Too-Much-Coffee-Confessional: A Weird Phenomenon


Drawing these pictures of you all is pretty easy if you have a good picture up. I'm getting better at it and I apologize to those of you who have names that start with "A." You were my experimental group.

Writing the little blurbs is HARD, but it's my favorite part about this whole project. If you're in an upcoming post I'm thinking about you all the time. In the car, in the shower, staring at the computer screen. It takes a lot of thought processing to figure out just what I want to say.

Some people I know so well that trying to condense what I think about them in a paragraph or two seems impossible. Others, I haven't seen in ten years and remembering them takes a lot of sorting through all the countless memories I've collected since they were in my life. And still others are just people I've met in passing and all I have to say is superficial. I don't really know who they are at all, but I have to say SOMETHING.

All of those people-writing scenarios make sense. I get them. But there's this one phenomenon that keeps occurring and I wanted to share:

Every other post or so, someone pops up that I've never really gotten to know. It might be someone that I've met once or that I've met a thousand times and never had more than casual conversation with, but when I sit down to write about them all this stuff pours out. I have no real reason to have the sense of them that I do. Maybe that sense is wrong, but it's effortless. It just comes out. Maybe the people that do know them read it and think, "Uhhhh, that's not them at all." But, whatevs. Some people just leave an unintentional impression on me and that's what I write.

Just wanted to share.

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Facebook Friends: Emily - Erin

Emily Reutebuch
I got to know Emily when she was an intern over here at the Science Center. I'm sort of anti-intern. That's horrible of me, I realize. I mean, I get what a great learning experience it is for them, but the payback is usually nil. In fact, you end up losing a lot of time training them and then just having to redo their stuff anyways. Emily was a rare find. She knew what she was doing. No hand-holding required. She had a good eye for design and she got stuff done. Another thing that separated her from the pack was her ability to come in and be a part of the group. She wasn't intimidated by us. We're a pretty hilarious bunch and interns usually cower in the corner hoping to avoid our witty insults and hard-time giving. Not Emily. She stepped right in and joined in the fun. Maybe it's her theater background. Maybe she was just ACTING like she wasn't afraid of us. If she did, we totally bought it. We really wanted to keep her, but alas, she moved on to bigger and better things in NYC.


Eric Little
I went to high school with Eric and he always had that "little boy" appearance. He's growing into his man face quite nicely these days. I'd say he looks at least 21. Not bad for a 30 year old.



Eric Minor
Minor is one of the people I love most in the world. I've always referred to him as my Wise Old Man. He's been listening to my problems, guiding me through them and putting me in my place for 16 years now. We haven't lived in the same zip code for more than a few months in the last 12 of those years, but if I had a dollar for every 2 hour phone session we've had, I'd have, like...50 bucks! That's a lot of talking! Minor and I are NOTHING alike. He's solid, I'm mushy. He's tidy, I'm a slob. He's practical, I won't touch anything practical with a ten foot pole. And yet, somehow, we totally get each other. Maybe it's our differences that make us admire each other so much. I always know I can say anything to him and I always respect his opinion and want to know what he thinks. I trust him. (Except when it comes to making plans)

He's the kind of guy you can just feel safe with. If bombs were falling from the sky, I would want to be where he is because I know he'll know what to do. And even if he doesn't, he'll take charge and pretend he does, so... same thing.

Minor and I have always had this weird "will they, won't they" sort of relationship. We never have and chances are at this point, we probably won't. There's been a significant drifting over the last few years, and we really don't need each other as much as we did when we were younger but, I know we both have left an impression on each other that doesn't go anywhere.


Erica Hennessy
Sweet and genuine Erica Hennessy is a pal of mine from high school. She was everyone's pal. She's impossible not to like. I think I may have had every single class with her all four years, and we had many of the same friends, so we spent a LOT of time together. Being so naturally supportive and encouraging, she was always willing to laugh at my jokes that weren't funny at all. AT ALL. So, thank you Erica for helping me to develop such a highly inflated ego! It was no small task!

Erin Murphy
Because my beautiful, talented, and good friend Erin is such a wordsmith, I feel a lot of pressure to write something really clever here. Now, whenever I'm really TRYING it always ends up to just be a bunch of word vomit. So, I'll try something different with this one. Maybe if I just start out with word vomit, it will turn into something clever.

Let's see here:

Erin. Short. Feisty. Revolt. Quick. Powerful. Hard shell. Soft center. Words. More Words. Loud. Ponytail. Astute. Creative. Bitch Face. Hilarious. Traveler. Seeker. Finder. Friendly. Finger Gestures. Laughing. Beer. More beer. Wine. More Wine. Books. Brilliant. Unique. Word Daggers. Word Hugs. Cultured. Adventure. Injustice Hater. Fighter. Encourager. Unstoppable. Vigilante. Yellow.

Meh. That didn't really work, but basically, Erin is cooler and funnier and sharper than anyone you know.

Friday, July 22, 2011

Facebook Friends: Elias - Emily

Elias Cantu
Elias is good people. Movie star handsome with a heart of gold. My roommate and his roommate dated and, therefore we were thrown together a lot. Elias was the person that made me feel safe and respected in a crowd that seemed very shallow, dismissive and usually wasted. I'm pretty sure our friendship was 98% platonic and I honestly can't remember if the other 2% was us actually dating, or me just thinking we should so much that I started believing we did. It was a weird time for me, but I'm glad he was in it.


Elizabeth Kell Miklas
Tiny and terrific. Definitely one of the easier people to be around in High School. I have a really good recollection of Liz's laugh and I can't picture her with out seeing Michelle Czj.......kowski right next to her.


Elli Flynn
Elli Jo, the Funniest Girl I Know, is theatrical and full of character. When she tells a story, every part of her body tells it with her. Her hands, her eyes, her hips, heck, I'm pretty sure even her toenails were in on it. She doesn't walk; she prances.

I owe so much to Elli Jo. I really don't know if I would be an artist today had I not met her. I also doubt I would have the sense of humor that I do. Elli and I spent 2-3 years in high school passing notes back and forth every single day. Not just any notes. These were legendary. Funny scenes and illustrated comics involving people we knew and people we made up, which, looking at them now, are disgusting, sort of mean and not nearly as hilarious as they were at the time, but nothing from our youth ever is. I didn't realize it then, but it was this partnership that was the cornerstone on which the rest of my creative life has been built on. It stretched me. Up until that point, I knew I could draw rose tattoos on people at lunch, but that was about the extent of my artistic self-awareness. So, if I ever end up a famous dead artist and they do a documentary on my life, my stupid comics with Elli Jo will be my point of revelation. The point where I realized what I loved to do.



Emily Bogolin
This is Emily. She happens to be my beautiful, wonderful niece's beautiful, wonderful best friend, but I love her all on her own. I don't know what the future holds for this 13 year old, but I'm sure she'll do great things. She's got all the things that greatness requires: ambition, drive, leadership, self-awareness, confidence and a hefty dose of P.M.A. (Positive Mental Attitude). None of these things come to me naturally. I have to work at them, but Emily has them in spades. I can't wait to see where her life takes her–or–should I say, where she takes her life. She's not going anywhere unless she wants to. (Acts of God not included.)


Emily Boyd
I met Emily my freshmen year in college. I can picture her now. Teenie, tiny, crazy-haired, punk rocker Emily strolling through the halls of the art department with her precocious 4-year-old daughter skipping along beside her. I was pretty intimidated by her at first. She seemed dark and edgy and smart enough to give me a good verbal lashing if I said something super uncool. You see, I was afflicted with suburban white girl syndrome. The palette of people I had been exposed to up until that point was somewhat limited. I didn't know what Emily was, but I didn't think she was the sort to sit at home on Thursday nights watching Friends with a bag of Funyuns in her lap. I had to figure her out. And, I sort of did. It turns out, Emily wasn't nearly as intimidating as I thought. She's actually very warm, kind, outgoing, encouraging and awesome. Not to mention just crazy enough to be entertaining. I was right about her being smart enough to shred people with words, but I think she's pretty responsible with not misusing her gift.

Facebook Friends: Donna - Elaine

Donna Pullen Johnson
Donna is my OTHER beautiful, kind-hearted, Harley-Davidson-loving, cousin from my homeland of Gainesville, Florida who I haven't seen in 15 years. Seriously. Someone put this reunion together. Don't put me in charge. It'll never get done.


Douglas Lakey
Long before Doug was happily married, he and I dated. We bonded over our love of being hilarious and disgusting. Doug is a very clever and witty guy. Beloved by pretty much everyone. He's also a super suburban athlete. That's right. He's a professional bowler. He's better than everyone and he's got a giant thumb to prove it. He even hosts a radio show dedicated to the sport. You can check it out here. He also enjoys guitar playing, bar-b-queing, hanging out with The Friends and mens fashion.


Drew Krueger
I don't know Drew, but I do know Andy! Andy and my brother were best friends before my family moved to Atlanta. He's a good kid with a great family and wicked bar-tending skills.


Dustin Swartz
My sweet wonderful Dustin!!!!! How I love him so even if we haven't seen each other since college. (my fault) Dustin was my makeshift husband for our big group trip to Europe right after college. I don't know how I would have made it with out him. So much fun, so much fighting, and so much drama. Dustin was my rock and we were glued to one another for the entire trip. I even made him sleep in my room with me to avoid being alone with my assigned roommate Doris who spent half the trip crying and the other half on the phone with her boyfriend. We spent half our time walking the streets of Paris and London and the other half watching dirty Parisian television.

I could do lots of portraits of Dustin and if he lived here I would make him pose for me every time I had an artistic block. He's a block breaker. This crummy post-it just won't do him justice. He has such uniquely beautiful features. Sleepy eyes, a mouth sent straight from heaven and the greatest ears on God's green earth.

Dustin, I miss you!!!!! Let's go to Europe! (You'll have to pay, of course)


Elaine Crossman
Elaine was a prominent piece of my girl gang in high school. Many nights were spent at her house watching Dirty Dancing and Grease while we waited for her grandparents to fall asleep so we could do things we shouldn't. We shared a locker, which probably wasn't a good idea seeing as we were both giant slobs. (I still haven't outgrown that) She always sort of stayed on the out skirts in HS, and then blossomed senior year and won the coveted role of Prom Queen. Now she spends her time being gushingly in love with and married to, sweet Joey Crossman, raising her beautiful little children, and unleashing her inner party animal when she can get a babysitter.

Bellybutton, Elaine. Bellybutton.

Facebook Friends: Derek - Dineen

Derek Goettel
Derek is one very sweet potato. We went to High School together. He could (and still can) grow body hair at rate that puts all other men to shame!–Except on his head.


Derek Goon
Goon!!! Goon was a good buddy of mine in college and I still see him once in a very awesome blue moon. He has the coolest tattoo I've ever seen. And he can do all kinds of things with his hair. He's sort of like the Madonna of our bunch. He changes his hair and looks like a completely different person, but he's always given away by that sweet smile that he always has on. He's also really ballsy and just goes off and lives in other countries like it's no big deal - which always impresses me. He also just got married–see–more ballsyness.


Diane Necker-Cofer
Diane is my sister's sister-in-law, so, what does that make her to me? Well, nothing relation-wise, but she IS my friend and I'm very grateful that my sister has such a great sister-n-law living down the street. She's got a very kind, sweet and generous nature and is happy to help anyone and she's great to just talk to.


Diane Toroian Keaggy
Diane is a born reporter. Very inquisitive with a huge personality, plenty of drive, and a giant backpack full of conviction that she carries with her. If you're a stranger at a party, don't worry if Diane is there. You won't be a stranger for long. She'll have you laughing in no time. But, whatever you do, don't tell her you like Disney World.


Dineen Serpa
Another reason that facebook is cool. Dineen and I got to know each other by commenting on our mutual friends facebook posts. We chatted it up virtually for a few months so by the time I flew to Arizona for our mutual friends wedding, we were already pals who had just never met. It's great to go to a wedding with people you know even though you've never met.

Dineen is clever, outgoing and loves to climb things.

Facebook Friends: Debby - Denny


Debby could have been a supermodel, but chose to use her giant brain instead. She was the girl in High School - and every school had one - who was wicked smart, effortlessly beautiful, genuinely nice to everyone, athletic, able to switch from utter goofball mode to student body president mode in 5 seconds flat. Not to mention cheerleader, mascot, homecoming queen, and general all around do-gooder. If only she didn't have such a great personality too. She's good people.

I got to spend some time with Debby at our 10-year reunion and she is exactly the same - other than the mild british accent she's picked up from living in London, which just makes her all the more charming!


Ah, Dede. The perfect mix of southern charm, northern eastern depth and midwestern inappropriateness. Her life appears to be quite different since the last time I saw her. She's added a husband, a couple of kids, and a near death experience/miracle to her list of accomplishments, but she's still got that same beaming smile and a glow that even shows up in pictures.


I met Deep at a few years ago, and, you know how sometimes you meet someone so amazing that you just know it's going to change your life forever? Well, it wasn't like that, but it was still pretty cool. We had a pleasant and instant camaraderie. I love when I don't have to work for it.
Odds are I'll never see Deep or his beautiful wife again, but I'll think fondly of him forever!


Dena is my beautiful, sunny, radiantly warm cousin who I haven't seen in 15 years. It's circumstances like this that make me so thankful for social media! I think a family reunion is in order, Dena!


Co-worker and friend. Give Denny a pile of scrap wood, some heavy duty styrofoam and some cheap paint and an hour later he'll give birth to a masterpiece. He is 8 parts laid-back, happy-go-lucky, Grateful Dead-loving artist and 2 parts angry revolutionary. He can also illustrate anything and he looks great in a newsboy cap. If you've been to an art/craft show anywhere in St. Louis in the last 10 years, then you've seen Denny's stuff. It's AWESOME and it usually serves some sort of purpose other than just hanging there. See it some more on his website! Click This.