April 2, 2006
Patented Arizona weather this morning. Balmy and crystal clear. Waiting for the palo verdes to bloom, then the saguaros. Or, is it the other way around?

Struggled all day with the Tombstone footballers illustration. Did three pages of sketches, trying to capture Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp on a third down blitz. Aiming for something between James Montgomery Flagg and Burne Hogarth. Unfortunately, I'm floundering somewhere south of Ted DeGrazia. Still on the case though (3:40 p.m.) and aim to nail it before the sun sets.

Signs of Old Age
"A QUESTION FOR YOU ? WELL BOB, I MUST SAY THAT YOU LOOK JUST LIKE MY GRANDFATHER DID AT YOUR AGE SO I MUST ASK THIS QUESTION MY GRANDFATHER WAS ADLER RUDDLE BELL, HIS WIFE WAS INEST NETTIE BELL,I HEARD THEM SPEAK OF A ROBERT BELL OR BOB BELL MY GRANDPARENTS WERE FROM OAKLAHOMA TULSA THEY MOVED TO CA IN THE 1940'S. SO BOB ARE YOU REALATED TO MY GRANDFATHER? HIS SISTER'S NAME WAS BESSIE , AND HE HAD ANOTHER NAMED LOTIE. PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF THEY ARE RELATED TO YOU MY MOTHERS NAME WAS DORCAS BELL, MARRIED NAME REYNOLDS. MY NAME WAS DEBBIE REYNOLDS AT BIRTH AND MY NAME NOW IS DEBBIE KELLY. ALSO BOB I HEARD MY MOTHER SPEAK OF AN UNCLE CHARLIE?"
—Debbie Kelly

Sorry, our honorary uncle Charlie is a Waters, and the Norsky Bells I'm related to all hail from Iowa, and family tradition says that the name was originally Bjelda, but that it was voluntarily changed or the port authority officials changed it. (depending on who you want to believe)

Deena Bell and her boyfriend Frank came out yesterday. They hiked the creek while Kathy and I made tacos, guac and cowboy beans. Watched George Mason go down and UCLA dominate Big Baby and the swamp boys. After the kids left, Kathy and I rented "Ice Harvest" off the dish ($3.99). That's the film with John Cusack and Billy Bob Thorton that came out last year about small town hoods and a heist in Wichita, Kansas. It was okay, Kathy liked it more than I did. I thought the script lifted a whole bunch from the Cohen Brothers' "Blood Simple."

"Boys will be boys, and so will a lot of middle-aged men."
—Kin Hubbard