On July 4, one of my high school classmates, Melina Thornhill, passed away. She drowned in a lake in Tennessee. She was 44 years old.

Although Melina and I weren’t close friends, we grew up together and she was always friendly to me. When I saw her at our class reunions, I enjoyed catching up with her. She exuded warmth, enthusiasm, and kindness. Melina also had a great sense of humor. She followed my page on Facebook and would often share or comment on the cartoons she liked. I appreciated her support.

After I heard the news of Melina’s passing, I decided to draw a cartoon as a tribute to her. Here it is. Melina is behind the cat—and if you look closely, you can see her name on Saint Peter’s list. 

I’d like to think that Melina, as a cat person, would’ve liked this cartoon. I hope so.

My heart goes out to the Thornhill family. Rest in peace, Melina. You were a great person and will be missed by many. 

I drew this cartoon recently, which is a spoof on the show “My Cat from Hell.” After I posted it online, my wife saw it and said, “I like it but it would be funnier if the cat looked more like Jackson Galaxy. He needs tattoos and earrings.”

Whenever my wife makes a suggestion about improving the art in a cartoon, she is right and this time was no exception.

“Yeah, that would make it better,” I said. "I think I'll change it."

Later that day, I saw several comments saying what my wife said: “This cat needs some tats,” “It would be better if the cat looked like Jackson,” “Where are the tattoos on cat Jackson?!” But overall, people liked the cartoon and thought it was funny, which is all that really matters to me. Still, I wanted to add some tats and jewelry on the cat. So I did.

Yesterday, I was happy to see that Jackson Galaxy shared the cartoon on his Facebook page. I think he would’ve liked this new-and-improved version below better. I just wish I had done it this way the first time.

This cartoon has been making the rounds on the internet. If you want, feel free to share it on your blog, social media page, etc. If you do post it on your blog, please provide a link back to my site - www.metzgercartoons.com. Then we'll be, like, totally connected, man.

There have been people asking if they can buy a print of this cartoon. And the answer is: Yes! It's available on posters, mugs, T-shirts, and other merchandise in my store. 

Peace, love, and catnip,
Scott

Yesterday I participated in a Q & A with GoComics and some readers on Twitter. If you're interested, you can read the questions and answers here. Thanks, GoComics. It was fun.

On Friday, March 21 at 1:30pm CT (11:30 Pacific), I’ll be doing a Q & A with GoComics on Twitter. If you want, you can ask questions by using the hashtag #askScottMetzger.  Hope you can join in on the 21st! 
 
Here is GoComics’ Q & A line-up for March.

Do you have friends or family who are Scrabble fans, venison fans, or venison-eating Scrabble fans? Send them this Christmas card! Available for sale here.

I’ve entered the world of online syndication! Today my comic, The Bent Pinky, launched on GoComics.

Check it out. And if you’re a GoComics regular, add it to your comics list. I will do my best to keep you entertained.

The other day, I drew this cartoon: 

I got a few emails from people asking who the woman on the right is supposed to be. One person asked, "Is that Little Red Riding Hood?" In case you're wondering, she's the Sun Maid Raisin girl. 

When I was drawing the cartoon, I Googled "Sun Maid Raisin girl" to get an image to use as a reference. Then I discovered that Sun Maid updated their mascot to make her more "current." Check her out:

She's so cool and hip! Just a fun girl hanging out on the beach wearing a bonnet, long skirt, and an apron. It doesn't get any more "21st century" than that. 

I used the "classic" Sun Maid mascot as a reference and then showed the pencil sketch to my wife. 

"What do you think," I asked, "does she look like the Sun Maid Raisin girl?"

"No," she said.

Once I added color, it helped. But maybe I should've had her holding a basket of grapes. 

A friend of mine sent me an email with a link to this video of a news reporter drawing on a map to show viewers how road construction might be affecting their daily commutes. She ended up accidentally drawing a giant penis on the map. 

The reporter may have embarrassed herself but she’s in good company with Santa Claus. Last Christmas season, I drew this cartoon:

I have some good news to share.

Yesterday I got message from John Glynn, editor of Universal Press Syndicate/Universal Uclick, offering me an online syndication deal. (This was on the heels of a disappointing rejection I received the day before from another syndicate.) I really appreciated the offer and said yes.

Later this summer or in early fall, my single panel cartoons will be on Universal Uclick’s site GoComics!

I plan to post many of my old single panels and of course will be creating a bunch of new material. I’ll post an announcement when the launch date is confirmed.

I’m stoked!