pshaw_raven | This Aggression Will Not Stand, Man

One of my pumpkins has been GNAWED ON by an ANIMAL. Probably a squirrel. It didn't get far enough to really damage the gourd too badly, it looks like it mostly shaved off the green outer skin and the pumpkin is already healing. But it's probably time to put socks on them. This is an experiment - I've been told that animals dislike the texture of stretchy nylon stockings and won't bite into them, so you can slip a knee-high over the pumpkins to keep them safe. Hopefully even if the chewed pumpkin isn't suitable for eating I can still save seeds from it.

Not much has really been going on lately - it's happily quiet out here. I've been able to more consistently sit down and draw each day, and I'm knocking out a short comic. I enjoy stories where someone adopts a horrific monster-like creature and makes it a pet, and the monster starts behaving like a pet as well. And yeah, I'm also into monster girl/boyfriend stuff, too. (it's me - I'm the monster) But I;m just enjoying playing around with story ideas, weird imagery, and getting used to setting aside art time. Hopefully this will allow me to get back into working on Lora and finish the thing.

Speaking of art, I got a copy of Japanese Design Through Textile Patterns by Frances Blakemore. It's a collection of textile stencils that would be used to dye fabric, with descriptions and discussions of symbolism, etc. It's an enjoyable flip-through that will give me ideas for clothing patterns, backgrounds ... or just eye candy.

I also made my first attempt at melon pan. They were ... okay. The cookie layer didn't come together well and was super-crumbly. I switched recipes and was just reading through the pineapple bun recipe in Modern Asian Baking At Home which made much more sense to me. The inner bun is milk bread, so you start with a tangzhong and proceed much as you would for shokupan. She also doesn't call for scoring the tops of the buns, but I'll be doing that and sprinkling on coarse sugar. The ones I made aren't bad, they just aren't great, but I think I can nail it next time.

Since my birthday is coming up next month I might make a more elaborate cake, something like a butter cake with matcha frosting. Or a loaf of chocolate shokupan made in my kitty-shaped pan. Not sure yet.