This is for one of my oldest friends in the furry fandom (I was penpals with her when LiveJournal was still a thing), and while we had our…disagreements, we were (mostly) on good terms.
I had done this for her as a birthday gift last year. She appreciated it when I showed it to her on FurAffinity, and another friend noted that she was surprised, given her ideological leanings (since many furs don’t like their fursonas depicted in…certain outfits, as I learned many times the hard way). Even if Reaux (the giftee) wasn’t sincere in appreciating my artwork, she was nice, so that sits well with me.
Some other art…
Been messing around with ideological art lately. Someone on DeviantArt thought my own political leanings were…vague, and I’ll acknowledge that I have strong beliefs in many directions, and as a result, I really don’t fit in perfectly with any specific ideology, party, or whatever.
Anyway, here’s the first.
My Christian views, as well.
And part of a new series I’m starting, called “Insanity is…”
Written by Union Civil War General Lewis “Lew” Wallace, the first fictional work of literature blessed by a Roman Catholic Pope (Leo XIII), and the inspiration for numerous live-action and animated film adaptations, Ben-Hur opens with the Three Magi: Gaspar the Greek, Melchior the Hindu, and Balthasar the Egyptian, visiting the newborn Jesus Christ in Bethlehem. Twenty-one years later, the Roman Messala and the titular Jewish protagonist, Judah Ben-Hur, have a rivalry, with the latter being sent to galley slavery for life after a tile from a home whence he witnesses a procession nearly kills the new procurator of Judea, Valerius Gratus.
A few years later, Ben-Hur labors as a galley slave aboard a ship commanded by Quintus Arrius, who is fascinated by the young Jew and thus adopts him as his son. In Antioch, Judah sees Messala again and yearns to rival him in a forthcoming chariot race while hearing of a Messiah speaking of a greater kingdom, not of the Earth. The race transpires, but the results are contested, with northern barbarians dispatched to kill the Jew when he finds himself in an empty palace following the games. However, a maneuver involving his falsified demise allows him to escape.
Afterward, Pontius Pilate succeeds Valerius Gratus as governor of Judea, and Ben-Hur seeks his mother and sister, who went missing after the incident that led him into slavery in the first place. He eventually meets the prophesized King of the Jews, witnessing His miracles and returning to his former palace. Throughout the book, Judah befriends Balthasar’s daughter Iras, who talks of an escaped galley slave Jew who murdered others when they reunite. Messala’s fate receives its resolution, Judas Iscariot betrays Jesus, and the Messiah is crucified, having refused the throne of His ancestor David.
While I had read this around a decade ago, it didn’t very well stick with me, but I remembered some elements. However, I enjoyed Ben-Hur more with my recent reread. The historical and geographical tidbits indicate that Wallace did his research, with the names of the Wise Men and their respective countries of origin adding nice touches. I could well relate to the themes, within and without my Christian faith, and while there were many portions I somewhat skimmed, I could still follow the central plot well. Granted, much of the dialogue is awkward, such as “Unclean, unclean!” regarding lepers, but Ben-Hur is a must-read for any Christian book enthusiast.
Today was “Cow Milked While Flying in an Airplane Day,” and since it was also Sunday, I used the prompt “holy cow” to generate these on Bing Image Creator:
And created a “holy cow” of my own using the old coat of arms of Holstein (in what is today Germany), using its namesake cattle breed (i.e. Holstein Friesians, or spotted black-and-white dairy cows as they’re more commonly known):
I’ll try to make it a new year’s resolution to post some of my art here, but here are some memes I did today that demonstrate what I can do artistically. In particular, discovering FireAlpaca’s symmetry feature made doing anthro art a lot easier.
For probably the first time in my life, a hymn in the church I attend had a substantial emotional impact on me to the point where I completely soiled the handkerchief I always keep on hand, specifically that in this post’s title, in celebration of Hallowtide, which has probably and officially become the most emotional season of the year for me. The main verses that teared me up, with the music really helping, were And one was a doctor, and one was a queen / And one was a shepherdess on the green and And one was a soldier, and one was a priest / And one was slain by a fierce wild beast, the former bringing to mind Elizabeth II’s recent passing and the latter my grandfathers and granduncles that had been in the military. It actually inspired me to write a supplemental verse, keeping in mind contemporary vocations, animals, and to an extent, the furry fandom, with my use of the term “Dark Lord” reflecting my affinity for fantasy novels:
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