Sunday, October 07, 2007

Don't Jump in the Leaves

When I was a kid, I used to helpfully watch as my mom spent hours raking our whole yard by herself. When she was finally finished, she would warn me, "Don't jump in the leaves." I assumed she was trying to keep me safe from the man-eating leaf pile which would certainly open wide and swallow me whole if I jumped at it. Only recently have I realized that she only told me not to jump in the leaves because then she would have had to rake them all again. My mom can be so selfish.

Just kidding, Mom... you're the best! Sorry I didn't help you with the raking, but I've never felt comfortable around piles of leaves... as you can see.

23 comments:

Ellen said...

FUNNY piece! Very timely!

Valaine said...

Funny stuff! :) Great work, it has lots of action!

vink said...

:) funny and fun..i like the action..

David said...

Great illustration for the autumn. Love the colors. The background shading looks like mist...giving a great feel for the weather.

FYI- Man-eating leaf piles usually have colds this time of year and will cough you up after a few moments. Ha ha.

Nathan Lindsay said...

awesome shane. I can't believe you drew each leaf one by one-such dedication to your craft. you are amazing. I love that your head was the same size when you were a child as it is now.

Flora Chang said...

Hahaha~~ love it! Very different approach and an interesting story! :D

arxo said...

Very Calvin&Hobbs this one (to my eyes)!
Great illo !

Unknown said...

your mind entertains while disturbing me....

I love the conflict

Seth Hippen said...

A snow pile once swallowed me whole like this. It must've been a close relative. Nice work on the leaves. Y'know, you could get paid for drawing, I bet.

Karalenn Hippen said...

I love this drawing! It's one of my favorites of yours. Very nice. YOu know, I pictured you more blondy as a little kid. I guess because I was and then as I got older it turned brown. btw- love your lower post and drawing. Too funny. How is your little prego Lindy doing? I was thinking about her yesterday and how we've got to visit you guys before she pops and afterwards of course too. :)

aintshakespeare said...

Oh man I used to love jumping in leaves. Until one day when I was about 11 and I crawled out of a pile covered in bugs. :P

This cartoon is great. I love the notion of the mid-air epiphany. Uh-oh, too late. That leaf monster is outrageously funny.

Joe said...

Fun one. Love the color variation of the leaves and the composition. Very cool amigo.

Kris said...

I am the mother. This is a true story.

Josh (musarter) said...

Great rendering and detail. I also really enjoy the boys expression and subtle texture. Nice work.

thefridayfrog said...

well...that puts ol' linus's theory to the test:

"never jump into a pile of leaves with a wet sucker."

or "never jump into a pile of leaves that wants to EAT YOU!"

JUST WONDERFUL! an ode to mr. calvin and mr. hobbes...or not. :)))

bee'nme said...

You've got a great mind - and you've got the artistic chops to be able to bring your brilliant ideas to life! This is just so fun and clever and beautiful - it makes me smile!

Anonymous said...

Great illo, and this makes me miss Calvin & Hobbes. :)

Florian Satzinger said...

Just wonderful. It reminds me my childhood sundays. Great, Shane. Thanks.

Anette Heiberg said...

This is so funny!

Anette Heiberg
www.anetteheiberg.com
my etsy shop

L. D. Torres said...

hillarious stuff shane, this is one of my new favorites! the leaves and grass are amazing! job well done!

Ken said...

haha man, i love this image! How did you do those leaves? it looks great

Marcelo Vignali said...

Oof, I tried this, and it was not pleasant!

When I was about the age of this boy, I raked up a pile of leaves, climbed the tree, and proceeded to jump into the pile.

I nearly knocked myself unconscious when I landed face first onto the ground! My nose started bleeding.

Lesson learned: Never jump into a pile of leaves.

Anonymous said...

This totally reminds me of a Calvin & Hobbes cartoon. LOVE IT! So funny!