In this week’s installment of Adventures in Moving, I’ll be talking about…cats.
I have 2 cats, Scarlet and Bree Bree. Both will be 14 years old in May (next month!). In the times they have been in my family, they’ve moved 4 times.
The first move happened when they were kittens, going from my neighbor’s house to ours.
Second, from our old family home to our new home.
Third, when they lived with my younger sister for a while.
And fourth, when they moved back into my home.
When I DO finally get an apartment and move, that will be their fifth move in their life.
Like I mentioned before, they’re reaching 14 years old. They are, by all accounts, cranky old ladies. I’m not sure how well they will handle this next move, especially since this one will be across the state.
I WILL say – Scarlet has surprised me. I had to take her to see the vet last week, which meant putting her in a carrier. For the first time in nearly 4 years.
She handled it better than I expected.
Of course she trembled. But I gave her treats and pets. And she didn’t hiss or growl while in the carrier.
(Reacting to the vet is a different story).
This response to the carrier has me hopeful, though. Hopeful that the move will be easier than anticipated. I expected a lot of growling and hissing and I didn’t get that from Scarlet.
Bree Bree, on the other hand…
Well, I have to take her to the vet as well, so we’ll see how THAT goes.
I know I said I would be ok. That I didn’t need anything. That if you had the energy and funds to spare, share that with other artists in need. (Which, if you have helped other artists, thank you.) But now, I’m asking for help.
This is Scarlet. She and Bree-Bree are keeping me company during this weird time we’re all in. Both of the girls will be 14 years old on May 16. Which is impressive for cats!
Scarlet is a fussy princess. She knows she’s pretty. She’s VERY mouthy. You can have full conversations with this cat. She’s appeared quite a few times in livestreams over the past month, because she wants people to give her attention…on her terms.
I am her human. She doesn’t really tolerate much of anybody else. She will sniff you, and she will meow at you. But you pet her on HER time. When she does want love, though, she can be incredibly sweet.
Sadly, she’s been losing weight and vomiting. I took her to the vet this past Tuesday for a physical, and the vet said there’s muscle deterioration around her hips. The vet was unable to get a blood sample, so they told me to bring Scarlet back in for a round of testing today. They think there may be some hyperthyroid issues.
Now, financially, I prepared for a lot of things… but I did not prepare for vet bills like I should have. That’s on me. Moving forward I will do better.
But right now, IF YOU CAN, I’m asking for your help. I have half of the costs covered, but if you can help with the other half, that would be HUGE.
For the next two weeks, I’m running a sale on commissions if you are so interested. I’m offering these discounted rates if you’d like to jump in on this sale:
$15 $10 Head and shoulders in black and white
$30 $25 Full-body black and white
$40 $30 head and shoulders in color
$65 $60 full-color full-body
These prices are PER character (or person, or animal if you wanted a pet portrait). More info on the Get a Commission page if you’d like to get a commission.
If this is a bit much, I have an online store with comics, buttons, stickers, and original art.
Need something more unique? Well, you can also support me on Ko-Fi if you would like…
$5 for a social media icon
$3 for a blog post tacking a question you have for me
$3 for a poem
$10 for a short story of 1500 words or less
Or you can just give a donation through Ko-Fi with no strings attached.
I accept PayPal (just specify that it’s a gift to friends to avoid extra charges). And I also accept Venmo ($KelciDCrawford) and the Cash App.
IF YOU ARE STRUGGLING FINANCIALLY, DO NOT BUY.
I don’t want you stressing out just because I planned poorly. Just share this post with folks whom you think could help. Shares help a LOT.
That’s all for now. Thank you for your help, however you give it.
As far as platforms go, Ko-Fi and Patreon have similar goals: make it easy for fans to support creatives. I get the impression that some folks use one but not the other. I DARE to use both. So how do I do it?
Well, let’s cover the similarities and differences first:
Ko-Fi (I think it’s pronounced ‘coffee,’ and you’ll see why) is a platform that lets you donate the price equivalent of a cup of coffee (get it?) to your favorite creative person. By giving, you support the creative, AND you get access to some supporter-exclusive posts.
Patreon lets fans subscribe to their favorite creatives by pledging a specific amount of money, to give either each month, or for each project. You get rewards in exchange for how much you give. The more you give, the more rewards you get.
Ko-Fi also has an option to let folks subscribe to their favorite creatives with a monthly donation, but this option is only available if the creative pays for a Ko-Fi Gold plan. Otherwise, it’s just one-time donations.
Patreon grandfathered me into a particular package deal, because I had been on the platform for so long.
As of this writing, Patreon has 3 plans, depending on how big your team is. If it’s just you, you get a simple button and you don’t break down your rewards like tiers (like KickStarter does). If you’re a handful of people, but not a huge team, you can get on the Founder Level, which is what I have. This allows patrons to select their level of patronage from the options you provide just like you would with KickStarter. Patreon also has a level above Founder, but that’s intended for creative teams that are 10+ people, or folks who run a business with subscription boxes that ship.
In the indie comics verse, I’ve seen some folks use one platform, but not the other. More often, I see both. I decided to be kooky and use both platforms, as well.
So how am I using them?
Admittedly, I sought out using Ko-Fi to fund a side project. Then the side-project fell through. So then I thought, “Maybe I’ll offer this as an alternative to Patreon! I’ve seen some people’s eyes roll at the mention of Patreon. Maybe they just need an option that’s different.”
But after having received a few donations through Ko-Fi, and after having been on Patreon for many years, I’ve discovered this in my experience:
The support I get from Patreon is for my art. The gifts I’ve received from Ko-Fi come with notes thanking me for my blog.
So – I’ve decided that Patreon will fund my art…and Ko-Fi will fund my writing.
Yes, I DO write. I’ve done the National Novel Writing Month Challenge two years in a row, and I’m hoping that this year will be my third.
And obviously I write blog posts. And, curiously, I’ve had patrons on Patreon ask me to make poetry for them.
So that’s the plan moving forward!
If you would like to support the art-side, check out Patreon. Heads up – I will be revamping the reward tiers and promotional art soon.
If you would like to support the blog, check out the Ko-Fi. I have new rewards available that are writing-specific. You can give once OR give monthly (I opted for the Ko-Fi Gold).
Way back in 2014, I drew this Apprentice Wise Woman.
…Mostly to play with the aesthetic. But also to practice drawing with some new pens I had acquired at the time.
In retrospect, I consider her a prototype for The Woman of the Woods. The face paint patterns are also proto-Nafrit, Nafrits being the nomadic women warrior peoples in The Legend of Jamie Roberts. The gang hasn’t met them yet.
Actually, I may draw more ladies like this one…
Oh! And she’s available as a hi-res download for Ko-Fi and Patreon.
