Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Republicans are radicals, not conservatives.

I did not have this on my fuck 2022 bingo card.

Good lord, these people are nuts.

Balloon Juice has never been a refuge for the linguistically delicate.

They love authoritarianism, but only when they get to be the authoritarians.

I’d hate to be the candidate who lost to this guy.

“Everybody’s entitled to be an idiot.”

Roe isn’t about choice, it’s about freedom.

The next time the wall street journal editorial board speaks the truth will be the first.

Republicans in disarray!

Too often we confuse noise with substance. too often we confuse setbacks with defeat.

A democracy can’t function when people can’t distinguish facts from lies.

The poor and middle-class pay taxes, the rich pay accountants, the wealthy pay politicians.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

Is it negotiation when the other party actually wants to shoot the hostage?

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

I’d try pessimism, but it probably wouldn’t work.

Usually wrong but never in doubt

The GOP is a fucking disgrace.

When your entire life is steeped in white supremacy, equality feels like discrimination.

Republicans do not pay their debts.

I’d like to think you all would remain faithful to me if i ever tried to have some of you killed.

Not all heroes wear capes.

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

You are here: Home / Pet Blogging / Cat Blogging / If You Love Your Pet, Get One of These

If You Love Your Pet, Get One of These

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You know, the economy has hit a lot of people pretty hard. I try to help out where I can, and I donate to certain charities that I think are worthwhile. However, I think the best way to help is to buy products from good people rather than wasting my money sending it to corporate whores. As such, I buy local as much as I can, and I support people like this every chance I get:

Larime Taylor is a disabled mouth artist living in California. Life on $750 a month from Social Security isn’t easy, so he supplements his income with his art. Feel free to look around, and if you like his work, please consider commissioning something of your own. All purchases help to support Larime and his disabled artist wife, Danielle.

Larime draws with his mouth on a Wacom Cintiq tablet generously provided by Wacom. All artwork is digital – there are no ‘original’ or ‘hardcopy’ versions – and finished art is provided in hi-res, print-ready .TIF format.

Here is a picture of Larime doing what you and I can’t do with our hands. It really is amazing, when you think about it:

Recently, he has been going through a tough time. The state has put a lien on his caregiver, making life very difficult for Larime and his significant other. But, like a real American, he isn’t asking for a handout. All he wants is some work, some way to sell his wares and provide for himself. If others choose to donate, well, that would be great, too. Here is Larime in his own words:

I’ve been hit hard. California has been taking over a third of my roommate/care provider’s checks for ‘owed taxes’ she doesn’t owe, and it’s clobbered us good. I paid the rent at the beginning of the month last month before I knew this was going to be happening, and then went the rest of the month unable to pay any of our utilities and barely able to feed us as a result. This month, I’ve taken care of the utilities and can probably feed us, but I can’t pay the rent. Our landlord is in a position where he’s not really able to help cushion us anymore, so I’m really up against the wall.

The good news is that they’ve taken all of the supposedly owed money that they claim we owe, so they won’t be talking anymore paychecks going forward. The bleeding is over. Come April, we’ll be back on top of everything again and able to pay rent, bills, and food without a problem. Before the new year, this would have killed us for months, but now we’re in a much better position to take things like this.

Unfortunately, the landlord isn’t. He’s been unemployed for a while but is getting by, though he can no longer float us. I probably owe him around $10K in back rent over the last 5 years, but he’s not pushing me for it. He just wants me to keep current so he can make the payments.

Once we can satisfy the state that we don’t in fact owe them, they’ll refund the money they’ve taken. That’ll be great, whenever it actually happens, but right now doesn’t do us any good.

Our rent is $875 a month. Anything that you might be in a position to help with towards that would be greatly appreciated. If not for this tax lien bullshit, we’d be fine. Things are actually going pretty well for us right now. I apologize for bothering all of you, and thank you again for all that you’ve done. He has Paypal (I don’t) for anyone wanting to give directly that way. Contact me at: xlarimex(at)gmail(dot)com and I’ll give you his paypal.

I support that. If you think a nice commissioned piece of artwork of your piglets is something you would like to have, something you could frame and place somewhere in your house, please consider giving Larime the opportunity to make something that will make you smile as much as the piece above makes me smile. I challenge you to find something that captures the essence of Lily and Tunch and Rosie more than that, and HE DID IT WITH HIS MOUTH. It’s good honest work, it’s of a timeless quality, and it will make you happy every time you see it, just like the picture of my piglets makes me smile every time I see it.

To order through his website, go to http://www.larimetaylor.com. He’ll be able to work out whatever you want through that website, and I guarantee you will love his work. Hell- look how good Tunch looks above. There may even be a slimming effect for your pets, too!

Reader Interactions

63Comments

  3. 3.

    ruemara

    hmm, I got nothing much, since I’m in a pickle myself, but I’d like to point out for those of you who don’t need a portrait, he’s got an awesome e-book you can buy.

  6. 6.

    Little Boots

    still just us?

    thought this was a blog.

    where the hell are the coleistas? coleites? colediggers?

  7. 7.

    MacKenna

    Here is a picture of Larime doing what you and I can’t do with out hands.

    Even with hands, I can’t do what he does.

  9. 9.

    jenn

    Hey John, have you thought about commissioning Larime to license that pic above (and others, for that matter) for use on T-shirts etc at the Balloon Juice store? Larime gets paid for the use of his artwork, and the profits beyond his license fee (I think that’s the terminology) and production costs go to animal rescue. Could be win-win! (Yes, I love that pic above, and would LOVE a mug with it!) Anyway, a point to ponder!

    Have a good morning!

  18. 18.

    John Cole

    @Little Boots: What the fuck do you want? What is wrong with you? If you want some one on one time, email me, and I will respond.

    But what the fuck is so wrong in your life that you would take a thread dedicated to help out a struggling artist and turn it into something all about you?

    Jeebus. Seek professional help. You’re sick.

  22. 22.

    Seanly

    Thanks for the tip, John. I may get a portrait of our late dog & her still-with-us son for my wife’s b-day. We’ve been through a lot ourselves – I won’t bore your gentle readers with the myriad details. Suffice to say this atheist knows how blessed he is to have a job, to have a roof over our heads and to right now only have manageable health issues. Our loved ones might be far away, but we all know we love each other. I need to start giving back some more & some commissioned art sounds like a great start. Just gotta find the right pick of my piggies.

  23. 23.

    Mnemosyne

    @Little Boots:

    Sadly, I must head off to sleep now since I have to work in the morning, so my thing must wait until later. I just didn’t want Larime to take what you say the wrong way. We’re used to your free-association style, but he may not be.

  28. 28.

    ulee

    You’re fine Little Boots. Cole has a crush on you and is angry at himself, not you. Notice he asks for one on one time while insulting you. Fourth grade sorta I like you, I hate you stuff.

  29. 29.

    Mnemosyne

    @The Gimp:

    We try to be polite when we have guest stars who come to talk about their work. If you become a regular commenter, then all bets are off. ;-)

  30. 30.

    BonnyAnne

    @The Gimp:

    Your artwork is outstanding. It makes me wish I had a pet! Thanks, John, for posting this, and I’m going to go digging around through my sock drawer to see what I can come up with to help out.

  32. 32.

    Little Boots

    @ulee:

    thanks, but no, I was being a jackass. I was playing around and should have been paying attention.

  34. 34.

    Mark H

    My mind’s blown. Six years ago I commissioned Taylor through a dailykos diary to do a drawing of my then girlfriend for her birthday. We broke up four years ago, but today is her birthday and I just sent her a hello five minutes before reading this. Even though it’s 2:30 am here, I wanted to be the first to say happy birthday to her. Taylor’s drawing is still on my desktop. Holy Shit!

  36. 36.

    Spaghetti Lee

    If You Love Your Pet, Get One of These

    Oh come on, that’s emotional blackmail! Sadly, my kitties are far away from my dorm and I don’t think I could wheedle my folks into it. When I get home again, perhaps.

  38. 38.

    jacy

    I picked up the e-book. Will blog review it when I get a chance and pass around word to my writerly friends (we have a decent network for promotion) as soon as kid #4’s infernal drama production is over this week. (it’s eating all my time)

  39. 39.

    Little Boots

    @freelancer:

    yeah, apparently.

    Larime, if you feel bad about anything I said tonight, and if you’re still around, I hope you don’t take it seriously. I don’t think I actually said anything about you, but I was playing around, and I shouldn’t have been.

    You are obviously very talented, and John was trying to help you out, and I should have just not said anything.

  44. 44.

    Yutsano

    @The Gimp: The Franchise Tax Board is pure evil. Even more so than my agency (IRS) so I wish you a ton of luck there.

    PS: personal pet peeve, a check is levied. A tax lien is a notice of public record of tax debt that attaches to property. That’s about as pedantic as I’m feeling right now. :)

  48. 48.

    Mark H

    @The Gimp: She owns an IT company is fanatical about yoga. So it works. She wasn’t happy about the nose, but trust me, you nailed it. Damn I miss her. Four years is like four days ago.

  49. 49.

    Jewish Steel

    I cried out in anguish yes because I dropped my ipod but also because I knew I would shortly be plunging my hand into a toilet to retrieve it.

  50. 50.

    NobodySpecial

    JS: If the toilet is kept clean and you didn’t dunk the phone immediately after using, the water should be clean. Just cold as hell.

  53. 53.

    cckids

    I’m bookmarking you because I love your work, but am broke for right now. Hopefully my spouses’ clients will pay up by the weekend. Been in this boat too long. Best to you!

  57. 57.

    WereBear

    ERg… multi-tasking too much: wanted to add:

    The picture I used is of John Cole’s bunch, above. Because they are adorable. However, Larime, if you wish to use a different one, or John has an objection, please let me know with dearpammy AT wayofcats DOT com.

  58. 58.

    Svensker

    Cole and Larime, is there a way to donate? Paypal? Larime may not have hands but I apparently don’t have a brain, cuz I cain’t find a link.

  60. 60.

    Roxie

    Woke up to this and it put a big smile on my face instead of the usual outrage that greets me each day. Thanks Jon

  61. 61.

    TheDr

    John / Larime – How much was the picture of the three Cole piglets? I’ve got three little monsters of my own that I’d love a picture of as a gift, if I can scrounge up for the cost.

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