...this is me taking a small break from studying. School is such a bitch right now. I'm graduating in December, but holy SHIT I have so much to do until then. I'm cleaving away at my thesis right now...can I break 50 typewritten pages by Friday?! Hope so. The Maerz Herp Lab and I discovered a new intraerythrocytic bacteria recently (most likely in the Rickettsia family) and it seems like...I have no time to draw anymore :C December can't some soon enough. I need a fucking BREAK before vet school starts up in August.

WILDLIFE BIOLOGY IS A TAXING MAJOR. I'm ready to roach this degree and start up exotic animal medicine. ENOUGH with the tree measuring and white-tailed deer already.

Back to hacking away at this towering stack of literature....

These last few months have been a storm of vet school applications, GREs, salamander research, and tests tests tests tests. I am FINALLY done!!! ...but now I can't get my pencils a-goin'. I'm so terrified that my creative side of my brain has atrophied; it may not be possible, but I'm getting hang-ups about it! Every time I go to draw I resort to, well, not-so-inventive things. My sketchbooks have been littered with unfinished technical drawings of skulls, herps, birds, and leaves. I miss the days when whimsy came natural. I need a fantastical artistic boost right about now!

Where do you guys go to find inspiration?

If I put up a few skulls for sale here, would anyone be interested in buying some? My collection is...ridiculous, to say the least. I need to cull a few heads. I have the following species that I would sell: white-tailed deer, raccoon (LOTS), coyote, vulture, bobcat, and I have a TON of deer vertebrae, longbones, and pelvises. Would anybody be interested in any of these? I'll put up photos if there's interest.

EDIT: Awesome! Looks like a lot of you are interested! I'm getting everything together and photographed! I'll make a new journal when they're for sale!

Ask me anything!!! http://formspring.me/talkingowls


Also, I needed to bump that old old ranting journal off my front page! How's everyone's holidays? They kind of snuck up on me. I lost track of time which doing all my studying last semester. I really like this time of the year. Everything is so withered and dead and frosty and fascinating.


Sketchblog: http://shroomstalks.blogspot.com/
Personal journal: http://laughing0wls.blogspot.com/ and http://le-chien.livejournal.com/

Because it seems like every time I upload a larval salamander somewhere, I get someone who thinks it's an axolotl, I will explain a few little things about some of my favourite herps: the Caudatans.

ALL salamanders, save a few Plethodontid salamanders, go through a larval phase (a characteristic common to amphibians). The larval phase is typically synonymous across all genera, featuring external gills, a paddle-like tail, and the absence of eyelids. There are a few more special larval traits, but those are the big three. For most salamanders, this larval phase is temporary and they end up morphing into an adult form after several months to a year. BUT in some cases, it would be more advantageous for the salamander to mature to adulthood and NOT morph into an adult form. These specimens are called paedomorphs-they are sexually mature adults that have retained their larval form. These individuals are common in permanent ponds that are, for the most part, weakly populated by predators. The Mexican Axolotl is an example of an obligate paedomorh-a species that never morphs into its adult form in the wild (it's been done in labs and only a few adult forms have been found in the wild). Other obligate paedomorphs you may recognize include members of Sirenidae (sirens) and Proteidae (waterdogs).

Tl;dr summarization: Not all Caudatan larvae are axolotls! The more you know!

Anybody want a yard of 3" thick carving foam? I purchased it with the intent to build a partial with it, but it's just taking up space in my closet :C I'll sell it for $20 shipped to whomever would like it!

Also! I am taking those little head commissions, and I updated my commission info. page to include them!

Thanks to everyone who gave me advice and feedback in my last entry! That was super helpful!

I'm offering little head commissions like these: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1269698/ ! The price will be $10, and I'll send out the picture to you when it's complete! Each head will be detailed in coloured tech pen, with an optional background colour wash as well if you like! If you would like your headshot to be fully coloured, it will be an additional $5, and I can do it in your choice of marker or watercolour!
I take paypal primarily, but if you don't have one, I'll make an exception c:

If I offered little head commissions, like these http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1269698/, would anybody buy them? It's been a while since I did commissions, and I really had no intention of ever offering them again. I'm finding myself in need of some extra cash now though, so maybe now's the time to pop them back up!
Also, what would be a reasonable price? Each of the heads from the picture took me about 30 mins to complete, if that helps at all.

I'm really starting to like FA way more than DA :/ I never thought that day would come! FA, you're winning my heart over!

If you don't know your formulas, no Cresselias for you!
http://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Catch_rate

I wanted to puke blood reading through that D: It's cool...but numbers totally aren't my thing, and they need to get the fuck out of my Pokemon.

http://www.eroticfalconry.com/Site/Home.html

You guys, seriously. Check that out. That shit is hilarious.

Animalympics? I loved that movie/show(?) pretty badly as a kid, and I just found it free ONDemand, or however you spell it, and showed it to my sister. The whole house sounds 80's-tastic right now!

I'm selling 2 coyote skulls from my collection over at DA! Give it a peek if your into bones or canines! http://chien-san.deviantart.com/journal/17075287/

Thanks for looking, guys! c:

As most of you will already have figured out by the time you read this, I am about to make a hot, steamy art dump. I am also very itchy because of my poison ivy that I seem to have contracted this lovely Labor Day weekend whilst off following deer prints in the spongy Michigan dirt.

I just want to give everyone a big huge THANK YOU SO MUCH for all the comments and faves and watches I recieve and don't have time to respond to :c I read every last one of them, and am going to try to do better with being e-talkative now. You guys are awesome and inspiring!

I'm going to go itch and possibly spread the ivy to more of my body now.

ART DUMP IN 3...2...1...

Hello all you lovely people of FA c: Thanks to everyone who has watched and fav'd my pieces recently! Everyone is so nice here. Gosh.

I just wanted to plug for my prints, which are available over at my DA store. The prints are LOVELY quality (I've seen a hard copy of a print and I'm completely satisfied with the product!) and you do not need a DA account to purchase them!

http://chien-san.deviantart.com/store/

Are there any pieces you'd like to recieve prints of? If so, just holler and up it will go c: Thanks guys!

Thank you to all my new watchers and lovelies who have let those sweet comments on all my images! This place is starting to feel a lot more comfortable for me, so expect more art to be uploaded here in the future!

Maybe I will start uploading more here. For those interested, my main account and general sketchdump is currently here:

http://chien-san.deviantart.com/