Leopold might be a brave little monkey but he does have a fear of flying. That isn’t going to dampen his enthusiasm for a trip to Cabo San Lucas. I turned my back for only a moment and he was inside my bag, packed and ready to go. He is looking forward to sun, [...]]]>

Leopold might be a brave little monkey but he does have a fear of flying. That isn’t going to dampen his enthusiasm for a trip to Cabo San Lucas. I turned my back for only a moment and he was inside my bag, packed and ready to go. He is looking forward to sun, surf and margaritas the size of a fish bowl. Now if I can only get through customs…

Take a look at this little monkey. Leopold is sitting back after a day causing trouble, reminiscing about his exploits, and enjoying a relaxing smoke.

Watch out or that martini will be gone before you can blink an eye!

Leopold is at it again. You can’t leave a bowl of fruit or a drink for that matter unattended without his little mind racing to find some new acrobatic way to grab a taste.

I came across this photo and article in the new today about Cheetah the chimpanzee from the original Tarzan movies. The good news is that Cheetah lived a long and it appears well-cared for life.

From the Associated Press, photo credit: Anonymous/AP

A Florida animal sanctuary says Cheetah the chimpanzee sidekick in the Tarzan [...]]]>

I came across this photo and article in the new today about Cheetah the chimpanzee from the original Tarzan movies. The good news is that Cheetah lived a long and it appears well-cared for life.

From the Associated Press, photo credit: Anonymous/AP

A Florida animal sanctuary says Cheetah the chimpanzee sidekick in the Tarzan movies of the early 1930s has died at age 80.

The Suncoast Primate Sanctuary in Palm Harbor announced that Cheetah died Dec. 24 of kidney failure.

Sanctuary outreach director Debbie Cobb on Wednesday told The Tampa Tribune ( http://bit.ly/rRuTeJ) that Cheetah was outgoing, loved finger painting and liked to see people laugh. She says he seemed to be tuned into human feelings.

Based on the works of author Edgar Rice Burroughs, the Tarzan stories, which have spawned scores of books and films over the years, chronicle the adventures of a man who was raised by apes in Africa.

Cheetah was the comic relief in the Tarzan films that starred American Olympic gold medal swimmer Johnny Weissmuller. Cobb says Cheetah came to the sanctuary from Weissmuller’s estate sometime around 1960.

Cobb says Cheetah wasn’t a troublemaker. Still, sanctuary volunteer Ron Priest says that when the chimp didn’t like what was going on, he would throw feces.

Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house.

Not a creature was stirring, except for one small monkey wanting to get soused.

He lifted his glass, and with a wink and a nod, little Leopold announced, “Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!”

It looks like Leopold has found a few new friends. What they were doing in the barrel to begin with and where did it come from no one knows.

Leopold was out looking for a drink and finds something more… I was having fun working on a quick sketch this week and suddenly felt like adding a barrel of wine to the drawing. Then one thing ran to another and the next thing I had was Leopold trying to pull the cork and [...]]]>

Leopold was out looking for a drink and finds something more… I was having fun working on a quick sketch this week and suddenly felt like adding a barrel of wine to the drawing. Then one thing ran to another and the next thing I had was Leopold trying to pull the cork and discovering it wasn’t a wine cask but a barrel of monkeys. I’ll  have to see where this goes and find out who is in the barrel.

I like the process of letting the drawings unravel into little unplanned stories. It reinforces my need to draw every day. I build upon my drawing skills and discover new ideas through the process that I hadn’t planned or visualized before beginning the sketch. I also love the crude quality and sometimes awkward quality in the poses, expressions and perspectives of the drawings.

Sometimes I go back and redraw the same image to solve an odd problem but many times I marvel at the child-like quality and the lack of refinement. I don’t need to be a skilled draftsman creating a finished drawing. I realize the process of sketching is more akin to the actions of an explorer who does not know what is around the corner but keeps taking one more step. This gives me an appreciation for drawing as a process of discovery and maybe one day I will create a coherent body of work but right now I love the time spent sketching these crude little drawings.

“Mr. Gator, you are right it is fun to play dentist…Hey uncle Fred is that you down there?”