This is as accurate a cartoon as I can draw that properly sums up my feelings about the NBA playoffs. Personally, I think the NHL playoffs are a bit long too, but those are usually pretty entertaining.
The NBA, not so much. At least not for me

Talk about plan gone awry. Yesterdays “Take a Break” toon was just a bad idea all the way around. Well, I men the idea of taking a break, which all of us need to do from time to time is great but it was bad timing on my part to use it yesterday. Next time I think I’ll just find a golden oldie to post or just put a note up telling you all I’m on deadline for something, which was what I did yesterday and into early this morning. I did update with an NFL cartoon after I got it drawn yesterday morning but it was noon before I posted it. If you haven’t seen that one, it’s below today’s toon.

I’ll let you know when they post the illustration I did for Johnette Howard’s column on ESPN.com. It’s a great column so you really should check it out. If you haven’t subscribed to my RSS feed its a good way to find out when I post something new. I’m toying with updating multiple times a day with stuff, like videos and such I find around the web while I’m doing my daily research for cartoon topics. and, yes, I’m toying with bringing back a weekly caption contest. Not sure what to do about prizes. I don’t have time in my schedule to handle the mailing and I don’t have the budget for gift cards. Any thoughts?

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So it came to my attention (thanks Badger) that today stands for something that I didn’t even know about (4/20).
Since I have spent my lifetime railing against the use of drugs (I’ve never tried them, and never will) I think it’s appropriate for me to strike the “Take a Break day” announcement and post my latest cartoon for United Features. I really posted the “Take A Break” one because I have a bunch of deadlines breathing down my little neck. Working on an illustration for Johnette Howard column on ESPN.com, this cartoon, & the Guadalupe County Communicator. So I was just trying to give myself some breathing room.

For us in Colorado, 4-20-99, will forever be scars on our hearts. We are all Columbine. And they will Never Be Forgotten.

Drew

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Several weeks ago I was approached by two students, Chris Hampson and Annalisa Andrews, from Colorado State University who asked if they could do an interview for their class in Broadcast/TV Video Communications which is part of the Journalism program at CSU. This is the result of their incredible work.
I offer this instead of my usual Friday cartoon because I believe that the work of Chris and Annalisa deserves recognition and the piece they did is the finest, most polished, insightful interview I have had done in my entire career. I’ve had stories about my cartoons featured by most every TV station in the Denver area, and all of them have been great. But this one is special. Really special.
Yesterday CU in Boulder voted to kill it’s journalism program. To those who made that asinine decision I say take a look at this amazing work from Chris and Annalisa, two fine young “journalists” from CSU. And realize by killing your program that you’ve made a mistake. A big mistake.
But, then again, this is clear evidence that CSU was kicking the Buffs tail in Journalism anyway.
Oh, and remember those names: Chris Hampson and Annalisa Andrews. They will be winning Emmys, Pulitzers and Oscars someday. Yes they are both that talented!!!
And so here it is, in all it’s 14 and a half minute glory. Grab some popcorn and enjoy a look into my world.
A big Thanks to both Chris and Annalisa and to Mile High Comics for allowing us to set up shop for the shoot. And Thanks as well to Drew Soicher from 9News and Jim Saccomano, the head of media relations for the Denver Broncos for doing the sidebar interviews. The checks in the mail for all of the nice things you guys said.
And please leave some nice comments for Chris and Annalisa. They deserve to hear kudos about their work which is very well done.

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It’s so hard to believe it’s been 2 years since the Rocky Mountain News ceased publication. I miss it and I know so many others feel the same way. I miss the many talented friends who were a part of my life for over 26 years. I miss the wonder of working at a daily paper, the creative energy of a newsroom in the midst of a big story.

But, life brings changes. We all know that. So many of us have experienced profound changes in our lives in recent years. What we do when those changes occur is the important part. As the great Winston Churchill once said “if you’re going through hell, just keep going.”

So, that’s what we do. Like my friend, Gene, who is finishing classes for a career change. My former colleagues, Kim, and Mel became teachers. My good friend, M.E. Sprengelmeyer, bought his own weekly paper in New Mexico, where I draw one cartoon a week. For me it meant starting this blog, which by the way is 2 years old today. Yay. Happy Blog Birthday to you all.

In these past few years, besides just this blog, I created a few other blogs you can find links to in the sidebar. I also started my own creative arts and design studio, Littoonz Studios. I’m proud to say I’ve been able to keep the boat afloat with several clients like ESPN.com, the Chicago Tribune, the Guadalupe County Communicator, Mile High Sports Magazine, Colorado Rockies Magazine and, most recently, the Pueblo Chieftain. I’m also syndicated twice a week by United Features as well, which by the way, is owned by Scripps Howard, the same people who owned and closed the News. Last Thursday, essentially the same time frame the Rocky was shuttered two years ago, it was announced that Scripps is closing the doors on United Features in June and sending it’s roster of talent to Universal Press, a terrific syndicate out of Kansas City which syndicates some great strips (Calvin and Hobbes was launched there). So, more change, you see.

That said, I’m not out of the woods yet in terms of financial stability, but I’m making headway. I must be honest and tell you at times these last two years have been scary. Still is, actually. But, this is what I do, draw comics. It’s as much a part of me as the air I breathe. I believe God gave me a gift to draw and make people laugh and feel through the cartoons I create. I do my best to be a good steward of the talent he has blessed me with. So onward I walk, in faith, that this is the path I should continue to follow.

Being that I’m two years into the blog, I thought I would share a few thoughts. And I hope
you will share yours as well.

After two years we have over 603,000 page views. Our busiest day of traffic, for a cartoon about the Saints winning the Super Bowl, we had over 4,000 visitors. Those numbers are not very big, but they have remained steady, and we’re actually seeing an increase in traffic so far in 2011.

The content, for the most part, is still Colorado based. Local content really resonates with readers. It’s how we root for sports. We are Broncos fans or Saints fans or Rockies fans or Cubs fans or Huskers fans or Buff fans or what have you. Cartoons about the teams we root for obviously impact us more.

Retaining the local flavor of the blog is a bit challenging for me since I no longer have a local print media presence in Denver. Which means, well, I draw the local ones, for the most part, for free. Fun to do mind you, but not so good when it’s time to, let’s say, pay the mortgage.

Sports cartoons in and of themselves aren’t huge merchandise revenue generators. I’ve sold some prints here and there, and the calendars sold well the year we did them. My Elway book, published in 2004, was wonderfully successful. I’m in the process of creating some generic sports t-shirts and mugs and stuff that I hope can generate some revenue stream here.

I’m still toying with bringing back the caption contest. I love content that is interactive and fun for you to have a role in. It’s the fulfillment and mailing of the prizes that is the biggest obstacle.
But I’m hoping to bring the contest back in the very near future.

I’m still working on a web comic which I hope will be ready to launch soon. I want one creative enterprise that I can call my own and have complete sovereignty over. It has long been one of my goals to branch out beyond the world of sports. So far I haven’t done that. It’s by far the biggest disappointment for me in these two years that it still hasn’t happened. Here’s why. I have several different ideas and one concept I love, love, love. But I’m scared to do it for fear it will take time and energy and not produce at least some kind of income. So it’s a bit of a dilemma. But, what the heck, I’m going to do it anyway, for the love of it.

Enough about me. It’s you I draw for. You I treasure. I want to thank each and every one of you for being a part of this blog. You make it happen. I appreciate the time you take out of your day to stop by, comment, share a cartoon with friends or tell someone in your life about a comic you saw here. You’re the reason we are seeing growth in 2011. So a tip of the cap to you all. You are my personal MVP’s!

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No “Free” Agents.
Clearly the economy is making a difference in the NFL free agency markets. As owners prepare themselves for the 2011 deadline to complete the new CBA agreement with the NFLPA or choose a lockout instead, no one will admit it, but the spending is staying tight so far. I’m still of the school of thought that the Broncos are dealing with the same financial mess we all are. Maybe even more. Anyway I thought this reference to Goldman Sachs seemed appropriate.

The Makeover is Over
Yeah! I think the final results were worth it. I just hope I didn’t lose too many readers in the process. I’ll always be trying to find ways to make it as fun a site to visit and come back to as possible. Besides the new header and a swatch of gray behind the cartoons ( I think they stand out better) the thing that most excites me are the new Blogroll links. I’ve kept it almost all sports with some fun blogs to visit both regionally and nationally. If you know of a great sports blog that’s not on the list be sure to pass it along. I also made the categories more fun and easy to get to. Feel free to tip the Blog Monster if you like the changes. He’d really like that. (Needs Hot Dogs)

George Karl Card
Maybe I was too late with putting it up but I was hoping to get a few more comments from you to Coach Karl before I send the link to the Nuggets. If you’ve added your get well wishes, Thanks. If you haven’t please, please do.

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