6 minute sketch: My Father, Fred

This past Winter, just before COVID-19 had exploded and spread like an atomic cloud in the USA, Mayumi and I met my parents for about two weeks of travel in California. Greeted to blue skies everyday, we spent our time with them enjoying walks along the beach, a taste of Americana’s culinary treats, and sunsets in the sand next to the Santa Monica Pier, or looking out over Morro Bay. This portrait that we drew in 6 minutes gives my father a sort of stoic pose, like an additional face on Mt. Rushmore. I tend to concentrate on the details, such as the “SPAM” polo shirt that my father is wearing (purchased in the Spam Museum in Austin, Minnesota). I also zeroed in on the Cofidis cycling hat that he often wears, signifying his love for the sport of cycling and recalling all those years we watched the Tour de France on television together, even heading to France and Italy to watch the Tour and the Giro D’Italia on a few lucky occasions. Mayumi does a much better job of outlining his whole frame, and gives his forest tuft of grey chest hair a swirl with the pen. I still remember enjoying the 6 minutes of silence as we put together this quick portrait.