Might Get Some Sleep Tonight

Dancing Acid Bears


I was never a Deadhead, but I have many friends who were. Yeah, it was in the late '80s and early '90s. That's a latecomer status by Dead standards, but it's still when Jerry Garcia was around. I got to hear the "real thing" live.

Although the Grateful Dead didn't play in my favorite style, I'd have to be an idiot to not appreciate their artistry and originality. There's no doubt that their influence on the psychedelic sound and folk rock was profound. And the atmosphere of their concerts and fandom was unlike anything else, so welcoming and easy-going, yet so passionate and tightly communal.

Since today marks Jerry Garcia's birth date, in 1942, I figured that we could chill out to some classic Dead tunes. Keeping up the good vibes. ;-)

Skull and Roses (1971)

And since the clocks are running late. . .

From Deepest Darkest Peru

A Bear Called Paddington (published October 13, 1958) was illustrated by Peggy Fortnum

An Anglophile even as a child, my sister badgered my parents into buying her a Paddington Bear doll for her birthday sometime in the mid-seventies.

Although I have great affection for toys, I'm not a teddy bear person. But Paddington Bear has a special quality that set him apart from the run-of-the-mill bears. His big hat, the suitcase, his love for marmalade, these traits appealed to my youthful sense of the distinctive. Paddington was something more than a cute, fluffy doll. He had a story. Heck, he journeyed all the way from the deepest, darkest Peru!!!

Well, there obviously couldn't be two Paddington Bears in the family. So, I contented myself with drawing him and his adventures in Peru. And eating marmalade. ;-)

The BBC broadcast Paddington in 1975


After all these years, I still have nostalgia for the one teddy bear that I actually liked. And marmalade? It's the best!!!