Meet Ralphie - a.k.a. R.T.C. [Ralph The Cat]
Ralphie was a very special little cat: he was a gregarious bon vivant, a bold Adventurer, and . . .a Foodie. Ralphie was a “people person” who enjoyed himself immensely whenever we entertained guests. I have fond memories of RTC sprawled out on our kitchen counter, amidst pizza boxes and wine glasses, as he held court to our 2-legged friends, endlessly savoring both the bits of food or the loving pets that came his way.
One time, we were cooking up a batch of very spicy chorizos. Detecting the delectable aroma from afar, Ralphie ran headlong into the kitchen and leapt up to his favorite perch (which you see in the photos) and began to howl for more than just one taste of some fine Spanish fare! We teased him a bit, waving bits of charred chorizo past his nose; watching as his eyes zeroed in on those tangy targets.
Seeing my mesmerized Ralphie, I dashed off for my camera - - - who could resist that look of concentration? I saved the best three shots you see here.
Some time later, I took an Introduction to Photoshop class at the local college. Our final project was to design a personal statement - - - the content of the assignment was left up to each student. I recalled my photos of Ralphie and the Chorizo Episode, and how he looked like a Master of the Universe, hugging his own little “planet.”
It was then that “Greetings From the Starcat Cluster” was conceived! I manipulated the layers of backgrounds and photos until I achieved the effect of Ralphie-in-Space . . . and, the ideas just expanded from there!
I was going to just use only Ralphie’s image for all the Starcat postcards; then I realized how many hundreds of fabulous cosmic cats there are in our universe, and tapped into other photos and images. You see my other cats: Alice, Isha, Diva, and Spookie-Bear, in many of the illustrations.
Knowing that my Photoshop skills remained at the intro level; I engaged the advanced competence of my friend, the artist, George Angelini (Photoshop Guru). George is a Mac-maniac, an intuitive illustrator who does the “Vulcan Mind Meld” every time he logs into Photoshop. Using a combination of Photoshop and Painter programs, he transformed my rough comps into the dazzling artwork you see before you.
George and I had such a blast working on this project (pun intended). Who wouldn’t have such fun, launching kitties into outer space? I hope you have fun, too, as you share these entertaining postcards with your friends.
Yours in Spirit,
Debra Halborn
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