The new MacBook Pro is Apple’s first laptop with their new Intel chip, which will make it the fastest Apple laptop ever by far. Unfortunately the current version of Photoshop is not configured to run on the Intel chip, so until the next version comes out Photoshop will actually run slower on the MacBook Pro.

Having a good laptop would be a great addition to my business. My wife could go online or help me with administrative tasks (which she loves doing) without booting me off the computer. I could take my projects out of my lonely studio and into a coffee shop or bookstore, where at least there are other people around. I don’t travel much, but when I do I could take work with me (though that may not always be a good thing), even working in the car while my wife drives. Best of all I could check e-mail and go online wirelessly from just about anywhere. With the built-in iSight camera I could do free video chats with my wife. And the MacBook Pro doubles as a portable DVD player and iTunes player, complete with remote control. In short, a MacBook Pro could really free me up.

But would it be worth the $2,500 price tag?

So I’m wondering….do any of you blog readers use a laptop for artwork? If so, what do you like (or dislike) about it? And how does the wireless internet thing work? Do you get good connections or is it not as great as it sounds? Post a comment and let me know what you think.

First, I want to thank everyone for your kind words of concern for my Dad. He is home from the hospital and doing well. I am very thankful considering we came within a whisker of losing him. If the paramedics had arrived a couple of minutes later, he would have died. It really makes me realize how much I appreciate him and how easy it is to take our family members for granted. I’m looking forward to spending a little less time running myself ragged and spending a little more time with my Dad.

On the “art” side of things, I just recieved some great news. Recently I had the privilige of illustrating a cartoon gospel tract for Living Waters. The tract rolled off the presses in January with 80,000 copies, and I was just notified that the tract has sold out in only six weeks! Living Waters is printing 250,000 more (that’s a quarter million copies!). Needless to say, I am very stunned and excited! (In case you are wondering I choose not to accept any profits or royalties. That’s not what this project was about.)

You can read the tract online and order packs of 100 HERE or by clicking on the image below. More copies should be available in a couple of weeks.

Yesterday I received the gut-wrenching news that my father has had a heart attack. Fortunately the ambulance arrived just in time to revive him, the surgery went well, and it appears he is going to be just fine. For that I am extremely thankful to God, it could have been so much worse. And I’ve received a lot of prayers and well-wishes from friends, which really means a lot. But I’m still kind of shaken up as I realize what almost happened. It’s the kind of thing that is supposed to happen to “other people” but never to you.

Over the next few days I will be doing nothing but spending a lot of time with family and trying to catch up on freelance work. So my blog is going on the back burner for a while…but hopefully not too long. Thanks to all my regular readers for your patience and understanding. I’ll be back soon!

Cedric

My wife is out of town and I’m stuck at home all weekend trying to meet deadlines, so I’ve been watching some great animation to keep myself occupied. I rented Curse of the Were-Rabbit (a hilarious movie) and have been listening to the audio commentary in my studio as I work. Then during breaks I’ve been going into the living room to watching some classic animated shorts on DVD and enjoying the cool special features.

The Looney Tunes Golden Collection is of course full of classic characters and bits. But I’d forgotten how fun and charming the Tom and Jerry shorts are. One of the special features is an entire short in animatic form (crude storyboard drawings), and I’m amazed at how well it holds up. The animators told their stories entirely in pantomime–no dialogue, just expressive drawings, clear pose, and flawless comic timing. The Pink Panther shorts also tell a lot with a little (at least the ones I’ve seen so far). Again no dialogue, and practically no backgrounds. If you are a fan of the cartoon “retro” style (as I am), the early Pink Panther stuff is full of rich eye candy. If I get around to it I’ll try and post grabs of some of the funky backgrounds.

Well, I’d better get back to work….

Concept art for a short Flash animation I am creating for a client.

Another doodle…