day twenty-nine - water vole

yep, of all the animals i could have chosen - eagle, shark, cougar, gecko (seriously) - i chose a water vole. and not because they're endangered, that's england's problem...

© jem barratt

just kidding of course, but their surprising cuteness still trumps their endangered-ment as far as giving me reasons to draw them. unfortunately my vole is not as fatly cute as he should be. or as cute.

hmph.
xj

day twenty-eight - fiddler crab

fiddler crabs are the best crabs. especially if you refer to them as fiddly-winks...

© jem barratt

that face in the corner belongs to this fruity character. but this guy defies all logic surrounding the cuteness of crabs. he even has what appear to be pretty eyelashes.

all i can tell you about fiddler crabs is that i love them, and that they are the geishas of the crustacean world, what with their coyness, face-hiding, and hand-size discrepancies. (hands are a type of claw... look it up [on this blog, not in an encyclopaedia])

xj!

day twenty-seven - praying mantis

i am such a hypocrite. yesterday i was ordering everyone to watch the doco on the great rift valley in africa and i didn't even watch it myself. tsk tsk.

what happened this week? someone tell me quick! i can guarantee it didn't include this guy:

© jem barratt

back-stitched, not drawn. praying mantises are the best. i miss my pet mantis. go here to see mantises who look like oriental dancers and orchids. pretty!

once when i was camping, a little orange rectangular mantis hitched a ride on my shoulder while i walked for an hour back to camp. that was the best. but he was clearly using me. sigh.

someone remind me to DRAW these stupid animals before i stitch them. stitching takes hours and it's just plain silly to stitch straight from a photo. you may (slightly) notice this is unfinishe...
xj

day twenty-six - pygmy hippopotamus

such a cute genre of hippopotamuses... (hippopotami? i think it's both).

© jem barratt

just like real life, the baby one is much cuter.

i would like to request that all two of my readers please watch 'the great rift: africa's wild heart' on abc tomorrow because then i won't have to link to it all the time. speaking of which, go here to see some horrific hippo-teeth-tearing-up-gums-action.

yum!
xj

p.s. i have officially dubbed the pgymy hippo at adelade zoo pygmalion, so please address him accordingly

day twenty-five - meh

© jem barratt

sorry. this is all you get because today: my dog ran away, my wallet was stolen, i lost my job, i had to wash my hair, i was in a car crash, i had a funeral to attend and i had to go to hospital. (two of those are true... well three, but i didn't NEED to wash my hair)

© jem barratt

i only drew the right page in the first picture today. the others are lunch-time doodles of the week.

i'll cover my penchant for animals riding other animals at a more opportune time. g'night.
xj