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MacMarty89

Can't Leave
Dec 8, 2021
309
2,311
34
Greater Eindhoven Area, Netherlands
Capstan Blue in a MM cob for today.

060D5C53-BAC4-4B94-B98A-1573F11EA875.jpeg

Tomorrow we will go on a holiday to a farmstead in the countryside, so my travel setup has been packed and is ready for action: Peterson Deluxe System 20s and a Pascucci billiard, some Winsløw No. 1 and Orlik Golden Sliced should get me through the week. I was hoping to take my new Tom Eltang Basic with me, but unfortunately it hasn’t arrived yet from Denmark.

77048C3F-2DFA-4835-8D0B-A1D5A69B55A0.jpeg

A5DBD53F-A8C2-44A0-B409-470DD027AA29.jpeg
 

reloader

Lifer
Dec 5, 2021
1,978
23,976
Southern, NM
Capstan Blue in a MM cob for today.

View attachment 142419

Tomorrow we will go on a holiday to a farmstead in the countryside, so my travel setup has been packed and is ready for action: Peterson Deluxe System 20s and a Pascucci billiard, some Winsløw No. 1 and Orlik Golden Sliced should get me through the week. I was hoping to take my new Tom Eltang Basic with me, but unfortunately it hasn’t arrived yet from Denmark.

View attachment 142417

View attachment 142418
Enjoy the vacation.
 

dunnyboy

Lifer
Jul 6, 2018
2,446
29,818
New York
This reminds of something I will never forget. In the late '80s or early '90s, I attended a vintage paperback show in New York. Sitting at one table, were the legendary cover artists, Robert Maguire, Mitch Hooks, and Robert McGinnis. I felt so lucky to meet them, especially, all three at once. My freelance illustration career was only in its fourth or fifth year (I'd been out of art school/college about the same time). I had at least one book from my Ross Macdonald collection for Hooks to sign. These guys were in their mid to late 60s at this point. I asked them, "Does that feeling of dread, the fear of the phone not ringing, ever go away?" They quietly glanced at each other and said:

"No."

I saw the life ahead of me. Always taking on jobs, even if it meant staying up for days to them done. I was horrified and comforted by their answer. The idea that these luminaries still worried about getting work at a time when they should be able to think about retiring blew my mind. But, it made me feel less alone.

Bless Robert McGinnis. He's the only one of the three still alive (the youngest of the group). At 96, he's still painting covers for my friend, Charles Ardai, at Hard Case Crime.

The idea of not working or taking on new work is foreign to freelancers. It's about survival. My life is currently different because I've taken on a 9 to 5 gig. But, I know it's important to take those nights off and relax sometimes. I hope I see you post more pipe themed nights, Jim.
Wonderful insight into the life of a freelancer in a creative field. If it's any consolation to you artists, this feast or famine, keep-the-pipeline-full-but-not-too-full way of making a living is not dissimilar from any job that depends on getting new clients, from taxi drivers to lawyers.
 

JimInks

Sultan of Smoke
Aug 31, 2012
61,262
563,632
Never slept much, so I gave up, and am not far from finishing this bowl of year 2015 Edward G. Robinson's Pipe Blend in a 2014 Basil Meadows smooth slight bend squashed tomato with an aluminum band and a black pearl acrylic stem in the military mount style. Ice water and bergs is my drink.
Basil_squashed_ tomato copy.jpg
 

JimInks

Sultan of Smoke
Aug 31, 2012
61,262
563,632
This reminds of something I will never forget. In the late '80s or early '90s, I attended a vintage paperback show in New York. Sitting at one table, were the legendary cover artists, Robert Maguire, Mitch Hooks, and Robert McGinnis. I felt so lucky to meet them, especially, all three at once. My freelance illustration career was only in its fourth or fifth year (I'd been out of art school/college about the same time). I had at least one book from my Ross Macdonald collection for Hooks to sign. These guys were in their mid to late 60s at this point. I asked them, "Does that feeling of dread, the fear of the phone not ringing, ever go away?" They quietly glanced at each other and said:

"No."

I saw the life ahead of me. Always taking on jobs, even if it meant staying up for days to them done. I was horrified and comforted by their answer. The idea that these luminaries still worried about getting work at a time when they should be able to think about retiring blew my mind. But, it made me feel less alone.

Bless Robert McGinnis. He's the only one of the three still alive (the youngest of the group). At 96, he's still painting covers for my friend, Charles Ardai, at Hard Case Crime.

The idea of not working or taking on new work is foreign to freelancers. It's about survival. My life is currently different because I've taken on a 9 to 5 gig. But, I know it's important to take those nights off and relax sometimes. I hope I see you post more pipe themed nights, Jim.
Thanks. All you said is true. Freelancing is not for the faint of heart.
 

JimInks

Sultan of Smoke
Aug 31, 2012
61,262
563,632
Now smoking year 2015 Mac Baren Virginia #1 in a straight black 1925 Dunhill patent shell Canadian 33 with a tapered black vulcanite stem. First time smoking this new-to-me pipe. Think I'll smoke Canadians/Lumbermans/ Liverpools/Bings this afternoon.
Dunhill_1925_Canadian.jpg
 
Dec 3, 2021
4,905
41,434
Pennsylvania & New York
Thanks. All you said is true. Freelancing is not for the faint of heart.
Egads. I see I left several words out in my original post.

Correction: This reminds of something = This reminds me of something

Correction: even if it meant staying up for days to them done = even if it meant staying up for days to get them done

I'm hoping to switch back to freelance. I'd rather not work in an office. Drawing or designing while smoking a pipe sounds like a good thing.
 
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