Halloween came and went. There wasn’t much of a celebration on my end, didn’t even make the annual Melbourne Zombie Shuffle (opting instead to check out a local festival), the only notable task being an optometrist appointment, which wasn’t so much “spooky” as it was “six months overdue”.

Guess who needs two pairs of glasses because they said no to bifocals?

Apparently my good eye is no longer compensating for the bad one where distance is concerned.
Actually I take back what I said about it not being spooky, my lack of depth perception is downright terrifying.

Aside from the new spectacles, October found me embarking on an “inktober” drawing challenge, where one picture was drawn each day of the month- much to the delight of my RSI. It could’ve ended disastrously, considering the last “30 day” drawing challenge I took lasted 15 months, but keeping it simple with ink-based traditional mediums and enforcing an A4 size limit, somehow the full 31 days were successfully achieved!

So, without further ado:

Inktober 2015:

_{Day 01: Steven Universe – Peridot}

It started with gel pens for Peridot, because I binge-watched Steven Universe and accidentally fell in love with her. Or am her. Maybe both.

_{Day 02: Narkaniis Rex}

Next was a ballpoint scribble of Narkaniis, one of my many anthropomorphic winged canines.

_{Day 03: Yu-Gi-Oh! – Seto & Mokuba Kaiba}

After Nark it was time for my favourite pair of interdependent brothers. Because Mokuba is a precious cinnamon bun and should be protected at all costs.

Also maybe because I’m not done shoving as much Yu-Gi-Oh media into my face as is humanly possible.

What’s not to love?
They solve all of the worlds problems by playing what is essentially a bastardised version of Magic the Gathering.
And somehow it works?!

Maybe because everybody dresses like discount bondage slaves? Seriously, I came for Yugi’s hair and I stayed for Kaiba’s legs. The character designs are fucking flawless. You could base your entire thesis on Seto Kaiba’s fabulous trench-coat collection.

But right now is probably not an appropriate time for that.

_{Day 04: My Little Pony – DJ Pon-3/Vinyl Scratch}

Number four had the gel pens back out for my favourite fourth generation MLP… who’s tail I may or may not have initially forgotten and hastily added in later.

_{Day 05: Gotham – Oswald “The Penguin” Cobblepot}

A combination of felt tipped markers and ballpoint pens for day five’s Penguin.

_{Day 06: Sol & Khye}

Six was ballpoint pens and Tria markers for Khye and his favourite delinquent feline brat.

_{Day 07: Team Fortress 2: RED Team Medic & Archimedes}

On day 7 I got out the gel pens, fineliners, and Promarkers in order to reluctantly accept that I couldn’t draw pigeons for shit.

_{Day 08: Sheia}

Ballpoint pens and felt tipped markers had Sheia following up on Narkaniis for the occasion.

_{Day 09: [ R e C h A r G e B a N a N a ]}

Self explanatory, really.

_{Day 10: Mhakus Varanidae}

Felt tipped pens and markers for my most fashionable reptile.

_{Day 11: Dr. Sigmund Wagner}

Ballpoint pens for my least fashionable primate.

_{Day 12: Maggot Boy – Owen Wright}

Varying degrees of pens and markers for this precious undead murder babby.

_{Day 13: Pharaoh Hound}

Listen, buddy, I shouldn’t have to tell you how important Pharaoh hound ears are.

_{Day 14: Huntsman Spider}

A confused huntsman spider, because I think about them a lot.

Growing up in a forest they were everywhere, or at least they seemed to like it behind the posters my room was plastered with. In hindsight it seems kind of obvious that a spider adapted for living beneath the bark on trees would feel perfectly at home tucked up behind a battered Starfox poster enthusiastically torn from a magazine.

Generally I’d keep 3-5 huntsman spiders at any given moment, and by “keep” I mean: “it was too much effort to keep putting them outside and eventually the indifference led to genuine affection.”

Since moving to a more residential area they don’t invite themselves in quite as much and I miss them.

One must have heard I’d been sad when I looked up the other night to find this little friend (pictured) sitting nonchalantly just below the ceiling above my primary desk. Then it rained for two days.

Huntsman spiders are not fond of the rain, so you may notice them finding their way inside more frequently just before a downpour. They don’t mean to startle you, they just want to keep dry.

_{Day 15: Homestuck – Karkat Vantas and Dave Strider}

Because I’m Davekat trash 5ever. Fight me.

_{Day 16: Animal Crossing – Brewster}

Seriously though, don’t drink the pigeon milk.

_{Day 17: Super Mario – Ludwig von Koopa}

Colourful ballpoint pens for my favourite of Nintendo’s 7 Koopaling siblings.

_{Day 18: Professor Alfred J. Phisch}

That one fish with aspirations of world domination. You know the one.

_{Day 19: Pokémon – Mewtwo}

In all honesty I haven’t really kept up to date with Pokémon since the first generation, but boy did 11yr old me have an unhealthy obsession with Mewtwo!

_{Day 20: Self Portrait}

An attempt was made at a self portrait. Evidently, I have no idea what I look like.

_{Day 21: Back to the Future – Marty McFly}

21/10/2015 happened to be Back to the Future day, it would have felt disrespectful not to acknowledge the occasion.

_{Day 22: Commander Keen – Billy Blaze}

This was a fanart heavy challenge. All my favourite characters were invited. Not all of them could attend, but, that’s just how it is.

_{Day 23: The Strain – Vaun}

Felt tipped pens and markers for my favourite strigoi, Vaun.

Hands up if you’d climb him like a tree? Keep your hands up if you actually know what that even means?! Seriously, I’m asking.

_{Day 24: Lainey}

Straight up permanent markers on 220 GSM paper.

_{Day 25: Monster High – Catty Noir}

Is it true Lady Gaga signed a deal with Mattel for Monster High? Because that appeals to so many of my interests I don’t even know where to begin.

_{Day 26: Goldfish}

Not saying I accidentally spilled a coffee on this one… Then again, I’m not saying I didn’t either.

_{Day 27: Yu-Gi-Oh! – Kaiba Brothers}

Well, I was in a brotherly mood after a coffee date with my No.1 Brother, so even though these two assholes already turned up on day 3, they got to come back for seconds.

_{Day 28: Solaris “Sol” Wagner}

Shirts are for chumps.

_{Day 29: Sigmund & Sol Wagner}

Father and son in ballpoint pen.

_{Day 30: Evangelion – Ayanami Rei}

Felt tipped pens and markers for the First Child.

_{Day 31: Headless Puppy}

Finally, for Halloween, the confronting yet benign headless puppy from that one emotionally devastating dream I had eight years ago but still haven’t fully recovered from. Because dreams are bizarre and horrific and above all: inspiring.

Then again, I never was particularly committed to reality.