oink travel insurance

When I was a kid (and that was a long time ago), I was a voracious reader -- but more importantly, perhaps, I was a constant "looker". It didn't matter what the magazine was -- if it was laying around, I was leafing through it -- looking at the pretty pictures, studying the typefaces, drinking up the photos, wondering how these artists all created these amazing illustrations. In those days, magazines seemed to be FILLED with illustrations -- full page ones, half page ones, and these smaller, inconsequential images that I later discovered were called "spots". What dawned on me back in the mid-1960s was that while all these magazines each had a single cover, they had many, many more spot illustrations inside. It was then that I set a goal for myself; to be known as the KING of the spot illustration. Okay, so all plans go a little awry -- animation design comes along, you do a few children's books, and with any luck, you get a few covers in there -- and all those things cut into your goal as the world's preeminent self-employed purveyor of all things spotty. But I digress (gee, THERE'S comething new) -- the point is, I still LOVE spots! I absolutely, completely and thoroughly LOVE spots! Anytime a client says "hey, Schlomo -- got time to hit me with a spot?", man, I am ON it! They're quick, they're pressure-free, and they're always an opportunity to just kick back, blast the iTunes and draw. I saw this one in my head so didn't bother with a sketch -- a line in the story "alligator blood as a kind of gator-ade" was enough to suggest croco-vampire. An hour later, I'm finished, the 3" x 4" piece is emailed to the client (Boy's Life) -- and they like it so much that they respond back asking me if I have time for ANOTHER spot.

Bring it on, baby -- bring it ON!

First J.D. posted a recent assignment for the lovely and talented Soojin Buzelli, then Scott Bakal jumped in, so now I might as well also. This was the cover. The main thesis of the story was "lifting up standards" -- and for some reason i thought of a train to represent the traditional business model, but then levitate it over the track to demonstrate "lifting up". It was a stretch, but apparently Soojin was able to sell her editor on it. The main thing I wanted here was a very simple image, so I gave her four potentila facial expressiions on the Henry Dreyfuss-esque streamline moderne locomotive and then went to finish.

A video of me creating this week's cover of the Politics 2008 issue of

The Presidential Debate LINGO cards proved quite popular so it only seemed natural (and almost embarassingly easy) to come up with a set for the VICE Presidential debate.

I'm guessing the word "Couric" comes up within the first 5 minutes -- but only after Biden works in "moose", and when Palin says "Todd" in that weird, twangy, nails-on-chalkboard voice of hers, YOU shout "LINGO!"

My hunch is that the debate may produce its share of cringe-worthy moments -- so might as well turn the whole thing into a ridiculous game.

Let's face it -- presidential debates can get a little boring. Well, not any more. Download and print these EIGHT different LINGO cards and watch the televised debate. When a candidate utters a buzzword or phrase -- from trillion to golden parachute, solar to drill -- cross it off. First player to get five in a row wins!

...And Served Inside An Open Clam!"

It's always nice when you get that box of fresh new books from your publisher, but when they give off that sweet sugar-frosted dough aroma, well, that's an unexpected bonus (I'll thank my editor Diane for that).

My new picture book,