Andromeda

It feels like there's a communication breakdown somewhere, but this wasn't a problem years ago, so I don't know where I'm suddenly going wrong now. I'm dreading each day more and more. I'm so very tired it all, but there's no way out.

It's like I'm simultaneously valued and not trusted. Despite our extensive documentation, I spend half my time serving as his external brain, at the cost of my own work. Any time I request input or support, I regret it, to the point where I've almost entirely stopped asking.

Lately I'm feeling completely demoralized by basically every interaction I have with my boss. Everything feels like a battle; nothing is a win. Even our conversation about my annual review, which was stellar, left me feeling like I'm not doing a good enough job.

Did not really expect my little nonsense drawing to end up on the website, but I guess that’s what happens when things are running late. Enjoy it while it lasts! The real banner art for this month is guaranteed to be more skilled and less silly.

A photograph of an in-progress knit swatch. The fabric is blue and has a lovely, toothy texture.

Started swatching for my first new sweater in over a year, trying to get out of my knitting rut and better look after my mental health. I should really knit more @babycocktails.bsky.social designs; the textures are always so delightful. This will look really lovely once I add the stripes, too.

In case anyone was wondering (I know you weren't), today it's Arvo Pärt who's tugging at my heartstrings. <3

I've been listening to a lot of piano music while working today, and invariably, whenever I hear something that stops me dead in my tracks with this sense of heartbreaking beauty and sadness and quiet longing, it ends up being Satie. He crushes me every single time, and I love him for it.

A poorly drawn, very long cat.

Silly meeting doodle based on an equally silly reference photo, just in case anyone else needs a pick-me-up.

lmao, I spent all day on this, only to end up right back where I started. 💀 (At least as far as my e-reader is concerned—the plugboard is refusing to update the title upon export, which was half of the point of this endeavor. Thankfully, the metadata in Calibre itself is now gorgeous.)

Curse the past version of me that started converting ebooks into MOBI instead of EPUB. Praise the current version of me that is spending the winter storm getting my Calibre library in order once and for all. <3 good metadata.

A digital drawing of Hornet, a character from the video game Silksong. She’s holding a needle as a weapon and surrounded by greenery.

Been working on this one for a while. I *love* how Hornet came out, but the foreground needs more than a little help. I’m going to need to learn how to draw landscapes at some point, but for now it’s time to move onto the next thing. Still really happy with this piece overall, though!

A photograph of the woods, covered in freshly fallen snow.

The view from my kitchen this morning. I know everyone loves complaining about winter weather, but I find it all so tiresome. There’s beauty in all seasons.

I am such a nerd. I got access to some new data tables at work (something like 2 years after I first requested it), and I am just bouncing-off-the-walls giddy about the reporting I'm *finally* going to be able to generate.

Only saw the news after posting this, and I gotta say… I think more art is in my future today. I honestly don’t know how to cope with the onslaught of horrors anymore.

Digital drawing of a black cat on a roof. It’s evening, and the sky is bursting with a moody sunset light. The moon and stars are above.

Was feeling really down on myself last night, and decided to use art as a coping mechanism. This was from a tutorial, so I don’t get any creative credit, but it was fun and got me using brushes I hadn’t used before. Also, painting with color directly instead of relying on layer blending. #ArtWithFlo

Word of the year: potato.

I’ll take it. 😂

Thank you so much! I have a long way to go, but it’s a fun journey.

That’s a junimo, from Stardew Valley! (Can you tell I picked the characters based on what would be easiest to draw? 🤣)

Very kind of you to say, thank you!

A drawing of bunch of video game characters (Kirby, a korok, a junimo, a metroid, and a goomba) in Santa hads sitting around a bunch of presents. There are Christmas lights in the background. Text reads: "Dwelling of Duels Secret Santa."

Baby's first commissioned artwork! Although I use the term "commissioned" lightly, and I asked that the $ be donated to my local animal shelter. Sure, I still have no idea how to make objects actually feel like they're sitting in a 3D space, but I was still pretty pleased with how this turned out.

A pair of hand-knit socks. They’re 80s style, with blue/green-tinted rainbow stripes and long rippled cuffs.

I’ve been in a bit of a knitting rut this year, but at least I finally finished some socks. Hopefully I can find a better balance between hobbies next year.

I'll go one step further: it's a shitty move to yuck someone's yum. I've been guilty of this myself, and I'm trying to be better. But it's infinitely kinder to say "eh, not for me" than "this is garbage, and you should feel sorry for liking it." If it's not hurting anyone, let people have their joy.

YES! My cousin had Sega Channel, so I got to use it sometimes. It rocked. But at the time, I definitely didn't recognize just how wild it was that it even existed. That only hit me much later.

Digital drawing of a gray cat staring out of a gloomy window.

Oh hey, maybe I should also share the art! Complete with silly frame because I knew the edges of this were going to get cut off for the vid, and thus didn’t put any effort into drawing them. PS, fur is hard. #DigitalArt #Procreate

A Cat Is a Cat | Calico cover YouTube video by Andromeda

For someone who has a dog, I sure was cat-obsessed last month. Check out my cover of "A Cat Is a Cat" from Calico, composed by @slide20xx.com. It's such a cozy little tune... and I even drew the background art for the video. Meow! youtu.be/SoC9HiYnHdA

Photograph of a dog staring down the viewer, begging for food.

Gib chikn. Gib chikn now.

A digital drawing of a Junimo from Stardew Valley, colored to resemble a prismatic shard, over a dark blue snowy/starry background. Text at the top reads “keeper of the forest.”

Not done with sharks by a long shot, but here, have a palate cleanser: a cheerful prismatic #junimo to counteract the gloom. #StardewValley is my favorite comfort game. Been playing a lot of it again this year; I wonder why…

A digital drawing of a blacktip reef shark, seen from above.

To be clear, I was definitely *not* joking about the sharks.

Thank you so much! The compression ruined it a bit, but so it goes.

A digital drawing of a hammerhead shark, seen from above.

Perhaps you thought I was joking about the sharks.