A Facebook post by fellow cartoonist john Sanford has convinced me to try and continue with something I missed in October – Inktober. Everyday of the month post an inked piece of art. I was on the road so much it was impossible to start. Since this new version of #DailyInks basically started yesterday – by one person, no less – I thought I could jump in and see how far I can take it….hopefully past Thursday!

The first is one of a series of cartoon kitties I drew for a friend who is out to help save homeless kitties.

Most will likely be part of a project I’m already working on. Many may be caricatures. Not sure if I will always post an explanation of the art involved, but will when I can.

Drew caricatures for the Aveda school of hair care and massage in Dunedin on October 19th, to help raise donations for breast cancer. Here are a few of the instructors who were drawn by me that day. Thanks to, long time friend, Jo Ann Fenstermacher for having me there! Above is A.E. Sabo, Jo Ann Fenstermacher and me at the event.

After the event I brought into a room where the drawings adorned a number of wall sections. Below is one section.

Our monthly Socrates Cafe meeting on Tuesday covered an assortment of topics. Above and below are a series of sketches about the topics brought up. The first was the struggle of selfishness. The second was about how open we should be about our private life. Then the question of where conscience comes from. Next a question of perception….

The next to last discussion was asking where complaints come from. Finally, the standard philosophical question of the connections of truth and beauty.

I attended a Silver Springs park update on Wednesday and learned more about the merging of the iconic Florida attraction, Silver Springs, into the state park system. The grand reopening will be October 1st and the park’s whole name will be Silver River State Park. The cost to get into the two merged sites: $8. Wild Waters will still be a separate area from the overall park. Drainage is changing significantly and that might be most noticeable in the massive changes in the parking lot. By the way, parking returns to the early days of Silver Springs by being free.

Swampy’s Florida cartoon artwork by Rob Smith, Jr.

This is cartoon artwork for the upcoming ‘Swampy’s Florida: Dunnellon’ coming out next month. Watch for more coming in the next few weeks!

Thought I would share this camel on, what many weekly workers call, “Hump Day”.
Drew this last week for educational materials for my friends at “The Knowledge Exchange”, an educational store in Palm Bay, Florida, near Melbourne.

The art is drawn on vellum bristol and inked using a series of felt tip and brush pens.
Below is video at YouTube of me inking the artwork.:

Drew caricatures tonight for a corporate event at the Peabody hotel south of Orlando in Orange County. The event’s attendees were all involved with containing digital information or servicing those who do.

Here’s a bit of art from an upcoming Swampy’s Florida book. More as it comes along. Should be done by the end of the month.

Had a great, fun lunch today with long time friend Craig Zablo and his wife, Doralya, at Steve’s Famous Diner in Daytona Beach. We talked about Florida travel, education, Jack Davis, Jim Ivey, Sun Bank, etc., etc..

The food and company were excellent!
Thank you, Craig and Doralya!

The photo, above, is of Craig and I. Doralya had to beg off, something about witness protection or something like that. 😀

It was after this lunch and a caricature gig after that I realized how blasted out tired I was. I blew out the bulk of my energy prior to lunch taking a 1.2 mile hike in the heat in a park and literally running around the Downtown cities of Eustis and DeLand taking photos for Swampy’s Florida. Knew I was feeling a bit off during lunch and that was why! Ferget I’m adding the years on and that kind of activity is going to take a toll.

The photos taken should be showing up on the Swampy’s Florida website over the next months. I’ll be making a separate post about the caricature events in the next day or so.

My friend, Ann Archer, turns 90 and a big party is planned today. Here’s the birthday card I painted for this very patriotic woman. She has served in various political posts for decades in Dade and Marion Counties here in Florida. She still is active today despite mobility issues. She’s a great lady with a great sense of humor, something that seems to maintain a long life. Another friend, Lucile Fair, is 105 1/2 and loves to laugh and see the fun in life. We probably all need to smile more in life and Ann and Lucile are examples of that.