As recently as two years ago, I still considered airplane travel an adventure. But a few months ago, I found myself flying a LOT, and just like that, the magic was gone.

I still try to get dressed up and put on makeup when flying, though. Too many people are being lame and wearing sweatpants. It is not that hard to sit in a chair for a two-hour flight, people. Step it up.

(And, as a side note to all you kids out there--get off my lawn.)

xoxo Rachel

...Not to mention that I'm sure I ordered a tall, rather than a venti.

Just another example of me taking things almost painfully literally.

Also, I want a wig in this color, though I have absolutely no reason for owning such a thing. The first person who comes up with a Halloween costume that incorporates a powder-blue wig wins a prize.

xoxo Rachel

This kind of sums things up right now.

Somehow, even when I try to be depressing, it always ends up cute. It's a gift and a curse, really.

Is this better than the Easter Bunny?

I say yes.

Shout out to my sister Karen for helping come up with the idea. I told her that she should draw it, but then she had to remind me that she doesn't draw things.

P.S. - The bunny's nose is glowing.

Click for the full-resolution version!

I have never been so amused by something I've drawn. Every now and again, while I was working on this, I would zoom out to check the colors, and then find myself giggling.

There's a perfectly rational explanation for all this: sometimes my sister Sarah and I sing Neko Case songs in high-pitched squeaky voices. It's one of those activities people do that's fun for the participants and no one else. Like ballroom dancing.

Over Christmas, we once again burst into this song, which is a fairly common occurrence in the Swan home. Our father immediately sounded annoyed.

"What in the world are you DOING?" he asked us.

[pause]

"Singing Neko Case like cats," we responded. Because seriously--was it not obvious?

I felt that the cats in question must be drawn. They are clearly more than a little wasted. I love them.

xoxo Rachel



PS: The song itself is actually beautiful. It's called "Magpie to the Morning." Look it up--you will not be disappointed.

What did you do today?

I had free pancakes at IHOP with some friends to celebrate National Pancake Day.

My friend Courtney made dinner for me.

Oh, and I went to the Penny Arcade book tour with my friend Katy, where Gabe and Tycho signed my sketchbook. PLUS, Gabe (aka: Mike--I know he has a real name!) answered my question about how his drawing style has evolved!

I may not get excited about a lot, but when I do, it is with gleeful abandon.

This is--hands down--one of the weirdest freakin' things I have ever drawn. And that's saying something, seeing as I'm the girl who brought you an orange listening to an iPod.

The suggestion came from Ms. Victoria Vance. I'm sure this is not what she meant, but this is what she gets.

This fish kinda scares me. I was going to give her a speech bubble, but could not for the life of me figure out what a fish in a dress would say. Any thoughts?

Hey, folks.

I'm making some changes to the Stick Rachel universe:

1. Obviously, we're on LiveJournal now. Why LJ? Because I've been on it for almost a decade, and I know it backwards and forwards. And not to worry: unlike my other journal, I won't be locking anything out to non-LJ users.

2. Hey! You can leave comments now! And you should totally do that!

3. I'll be adding in backdated entries for all the old content, so there's a working archive with tags and everything.

4. I THINK you can RSS this as well. I don't see why not. As far as I know, only one person was subscribed to the old feed anyway.


Much love to you all! And please send me a comment so I know it's working.

- Rach

Maybe she doesn’t have a girlfriend to go shopping with. Maybe she has a big date tonight and wants to look her best. The point is, she is asking for your input, and you should help her out if you can.

Hey, look--digital! I haven’t forgotten how to do this! And most importantly, I haven’t forgotten that I own this website.

Much love,
Stick Rachel