So, guys and gals…. Before I disclose news about the Princesses Drive, I have a VERY important question….

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Am I a bad commissionee?

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I’m asking this because someone had just brought to my attention about two major things that I’ve long neglected: focus and priorities. Before anyone gets confused, hear me out. Ok?


I wish I were a bit more honest with myself about how I handle so many tasks at once and what to prioritize and whatnot. Internally, I shouldn’t feel like I’m playing favorite when it comes to not only Commissions, but art in general; yet I find myself in that position, even when I don’t want to. Forgive me if this sounds a bit selfish, but I wasn’t lying when I said that life is playing a factor into why my priorities are all screwed up. Not only that, while I am grateful that many of you here and abroad have even thought of requesting a paid Commission to me, I should’ve done a better job making those my focus. Adding to that, I should’ve created a better plan to tackle all of these requests in a way that I can easily flow through, rather than build up this wall that I find myself facing against, and it seems that in doing so, I might have lost potential returning customers. All because I needed to hustle and find ways to paid overdue bills, which I’m STILL fighting to do. On top of that, someone told me that doing Drives for extra money but not being able to do or finish what I’ve started with the Commissions…. To me, it’s unacceptable on my part. It’s bad enough that I make folks wait for almost a year for me to even start or finish up a paid request, regardless of a need to pay bills: but also, the flow of non-paid personal arts and trades with close friends. Don’t get me wrong: I do appreciate doing a silly gig in that front every now and then. Just bear in mind, I do have a life outside of this place, and it was wrong for me to put you all through that unneeded wait because I bit off way more than I could chew, just like I did IRL. And now I’m drowning in debt, forcing me to miss card payments just to stay afloat, and I’m still jobless. So, in some weird essence, arting here IS my go-to job… at least until I find a good-paying one. Until then, this is all I got, aside from disability benefits.

Okay, I’m going all over the place. I’m terribly sorry, y’all. I get stressed out SUPER SUPER EASILY. And it’s solely my fault for not prioritizing the earlier arts first, and now look where I’m at. If I had a better plan to do these Commission requests and not solely rely on Drives to put in income and ACTUALLY do and finish the first arts in some kind of organized system, I’d be WAY better off. Again, it’s no one’s fault but my own for NOT putting the earlier pieces first and going from there so I can gradually work faster and stress-free. Not to mention a number of personal projects I wanted to do as well. Now that I think about it, Focus and Priorities go hand in hand, I guess? In fact, it was a piece of advice I tried to give to myself some time ago, but kind of but it on the back burner. Again, because I’m financially struggling and still having no luck finding a job that I can feel comfortable with. Heh… I keep talking as if I’m only arting because I need to make a quick buck and not for the fun of it. Not true. I love arting and have been for the past 11 years or so. As I’m aware, other cartoonists in this community are already making a living doing the same thing, except better. Ignoring the jealousy side of things, ALL OF YOU deserve better from me. I know it. I’ve been a lousy commissionee, if I’m not mistaken. My focus has been all over the place for a good while now, and I’m not sure how to fix that without going under in the real world. In a way, I caught myself between a rock and a hard place here. I need money, but I don’t want to come off as selfish and stupidly unreliable, and at the same time, my backlog is just as unforgivable.

With all of that in mind, let’s go back to my earlier mention of Drives, and going back to a point I made earlier. Again, someone pointed out that if I would have done my Drive pics as fast as I would have for any other art, folks would want to come back for more. If that’s not how it works, then I have no one to blame but myself. Willa all of that, what I gonna do will most certainly bite me and my wallet big time….

… This can kill me (or not), but it is with a heavy heart that I am deciding to PUT THE DRIVE (SUNS, MOONS and HEART BELLY BALLOONS) on a PAUSE until January 04 (Wednesday). Hopefully this move can give me ample time to catch up with my stupidly long backlog of overdue Commissions. BUT… if anyone still has the generosity to tip me, you can still do that. I just won’t be accepting anymore new requests at this time.

Now, I just need the right source of motivation, if any. I am so, so sorry, y’all…. I don’t normally do this, but I believe it’s necessary if I want to catch up and have a clean slate. But, at the same time, I know that with this pause, I’m gonna struggle even more with my bills. Again, this is my punishment for biting off more than I could chew…. And just maybe, this can prove to everyone that I’m not as slow or greed-driven as I made myself out to be.

And that is my update, everyone. I REALLY REALLY wish I would have given a more light-hearted update, or to wish you all a Merry Christmas on a more cheerful note given that we’re close to year’s end… but it’s not happening with me this time, I’m afraid. Not because I don’t want to, but because of the situation I put myself in. As I said earlier, you ALL deserve much better, and hopefully, I can be better. I want to be a better commissionee AND a better artist… but most of all, a better friend.

2022 was hell enough. Let’s hope I start off 2023 correctly….
And I don’t know if I can improve by myself… if you have any tips or just wanna, you know… chat… you know where to find me….

I wish I didn’t sound like such a train wreck, but this was SUPER SUPER important… and I’m stuck, too….
Forgive me, for this was more of a vent than an update…. Still, I’d like to wish each and every one of you a Merry XMAS and a hopefully happier 2023.

That’s it for the year, I think…..

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Not sure if I would even agree with myself if this is still too early to even announce, and then I though “to hay with it”. So here it is, fuzzbutts!

I HAVE DECIDED…!
… that to not complicate things further for myself or for any of you, my new Drive will be pushed until shortly AFTER New Year’s Day. Until then, I think I’ll dedicate this time, along with tackling my over Commission, to doing some Fall and XMAS themed YCH auctions! What do y’all think? If there’s something specific that you’d like to see before you pay, feel free to hit up a brother fox!

Perhaps this may give y’all ample time to ready your wallets for the COUP-DE-GRAS (or whatever the heck the wording is, I dunno…), which is my next Donation Drive.

Speaking of the latter, I’m not to spoil much if at all, so here’s a tiny hint of the theme for that:
it is going to be a ROYAL BLOAT OUT! (Let it sink in.)

LASTLY, and perhaps more direly… since posting this update, your boi ran into a teely-tiny little problem in the real world…

I’M OVER 250 OVERDRAFT, I STILL DON’T HAVE A JOB, AND BECAUSE OF THAT, I’M FORCED TO SKIP PAYMENTS AND MY INTERNET IN DUE TO CUT OFF.

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Whew… Had to get that outta my system.
Looks like I REALLY need to pick up steam if I want to do some Emergency Commishes and YCH’s just to keep from going under.

And there. THAT is the update for you. I promise, you will not be disappointed. (but if you are disappointed, please let me know, and see if we can work things out)

See you generous fuzzbutts in whenever my next YCH drops, so be on the lookout! Thank you all again. Rupert out.

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Hello, everyfur and everypony. Well, let’s not waste any time. THIS is important, y’all!

Trying to cut this short, but… I just wanna take this moment and thank you all. To those unaware, over the last week or so, I happen to have mentioned that I’ve lost a very close family friend. This is where I thank each and every one of you who took their time to share their grief with me. It means a lot to me, man…. But, even with all this death around us, we shan’t lose sight of why they were here with us. Life is too precious, like an antique vase (as an example). As I mentioned before, don’t think about the fact that they’re gone: think about what they fulfilled when they were with us. Live life to the fullest, and you got to keep on moving on. And now, with a funeral and some period of time to reflect behind me… let’s focus back to arting and fandom stuff!

And enough melancholy for the moment. Moving on! RIGHT NOW, I’m debating as to whether I want to hold my next donation drive for early November or a bit later down the line. Part of me wants to hold it before the time for everyone to go Christmas shopping, and I don’t wanna burden y’all even more than what’s worth for these Drives. What do y’all think should happen? Also, not spoiling much, but the next Drive will be back to its old formula… and it’ll be another 3-WAY RACE, similar to the CMC’s. You’ll have to see who’s involved this time…!

On the same topic, I currently have 1 or 2 YCH idea’s I’d like to put out there, and real soon, given my money situation. Don’t worry, I’m still open for Commissions as well, in case you’re wondering. And not to mention, I hope I haven’t worried anyone who’s still waiting for those from me. STILL, even in tough times, I gotta do what I gotta do. Bills and all…. ANYWAY, who’s up??

LASTLY, as I may (or not) have sneaked in around my preceding Birthday a couple of weeks back, I’ll be focusing more on a “chibi” art style for a whole year! Don’t worry, I’ll still do normal cartoon stuffs. You can also request chibi in your next Commission, if you want. I’ll call this period… “Rupy’s Year of Simple Ways”. Yes, I know… working title….

And that’s it for now, I guess. Don’t be afraid to ask your boi something that I MIGHT have missed. Thank you all again for reading through and sharing your love and support for me, despite these trying times. I promise to be more positive going forward. But if I slip, you’ll let me know, yes? Anyway, that’s it for now. Rupert out.

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So, everyone… bland stuff and money trouble. Not exactly how I wanted to approach my 30th Birthday coming up. Anyway, let’s just get into this update. No?

To start off, MOST IMPORTANT, as of this post, I am 7 days away from turning 30! But… it’s probably not gonna BE very special this time around. One would think with a number like “30”, something AMAZING or OUT OF THE ORDINARY would happen, something I don’t normally do o a day like this. But… perhaps it's just a simple gathering, like all the others.

NIT-PICKING ASIDE, time for ACTUAL news.

I just opened up my Etsy shop, hoping to expand my services. If y’all or someone you know are interested, check it out below! (also, just got my 1st customer there. Hopefully not the only one)
https://www.etsy.com/listing/932633982

I even made a “TRIP JAR” there, because why not.
https://www.etsy.com/listing/1307184199


NEXT, remember when I announced my selling of the iPad Pro? Well, thanks to a leasing site, I got a newer-ish iPad Pro, one that’s better by 2 years. The thing about that is… it’s on a monthly lease, so Commissions are (kind of) a must. Unless I can find a job, that is. For now, that is basically my job.

On the same topic, I got MORE YCH’s in store for you. Be on the lookout.

Back to the birthday stuff: I just had a thought, since my BDAY is near, I’m thinking of for a whole year, my focus will be PRIMARILY on “chibi” arts. I’ll still do normal toon work. Also, if you want a chibi Commission (or two… or three…), you know where to find me.

ALSO, I plan to have a LITTLE fun with my IRL partial fursuit. Lookout for some videos on that, that I can’t wait to share!

NEXT, I’m still experimenting some things on my Discord. Feel free to join the fun over there, if you haven’t already.
Rupert The Blue Fox#3408

Moreover, I AM HOOKED ON SPLATOON 3!! MY GAWD…!

LASTLY, I might need to take another stab at my long-neglected Patreon. But first, I need an opinion. What can I do to make it attractive? Let me know below.
https://www.patreon.com/RupertBlueFox

LASTLY LASTLY… oh? Periodic art-live-streams…?

And that is it for now, fuzzballs! Not exactly how I envisioned starting Autumn, but hey. Better than naught. If I sounded like a downer, my apologies. I’ll do better next time. Thank you all again for reading. Rupert out.

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Again. Many pardons for these delays. So, let’s waste no time and get right into this IMPORTANT UPDATE.

I’d hate to sound negative, my friends, but at this point of the Mane 6 Dragons Drive, I’m not feeling TOO confident of its success. Already have one failure so far and it’s underperforming. It’s my new attempt at this format I was going for, but now I’m wondering if it was even worth…? Should I have just gone with the formula of my older Drives? I’m conflicted, guys. Let me know below. And on that note, stay tuned for Twilight’s turn (at the time of this update).

ANYWAY, news from the IRL side of things: HOPING to “exchange” it for a newer one, I’ve just sold my 2018 iPad Pro. While I have the back up waiting to be used on a new device, my eyes are on one of the 2021 iPad Pro’s, some of which are refurbished for not even a thousand smackeroos. BUT, the thing is this: I had to pay off a couple of my outstanding small loans along with some bills, hoping that I would then be eligible to lease on this device I wanted to replace the other one with. Only time will tell, I guess. In the meantime, I have this Drive and overdue Commissions and I’m still job searching. Times are tough, but I gotta do what I gotta do.

Still on the topic of money, since I’ve had to pay down some overdue bills before risking debt collection or, heaven forbid, my utilities get cut off, I’m going to need some more help than usual. I even resorted to cutting off CABLE TV in exchange for a cheaper option in one of those subscription stuffs, but that to me is like a temporary fix for my wallet. I’m still kinda screwed until funds come in for my sold iPad (which is not a lot).

And that’s all I can muster for the moment… unless I may have missed something. If I have, please let me know. Thank you all again for sticking with me through this. Rupert out.

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Well, I’m back from my 3-day casino away trip as of Wednesday, and on top of running my luck out on just $25 in my pocket (walking out with just $5, plus a less than subtle family emergency on the return trip), ON TOP of all that, I’m in more financial trouble than ever. It STILL doesn’t help that my Tax Return in still not in my mailbox, the deal is this:

If I don’t pay up $126 for cable tv and internet by MONDAY + $122 for my phone by TUESDAY + $82 by the 24th to keep my lights on + $51 for gas by the 30th AND I just missed a $117 loan repayment… I’m gonna be MEGA SCREWED. ALL of which are 1 month late and are due to be disconnected SOON. Not to mention late credit card payments.

Again, I’m really REALLY sorry to keep bringing this up to y’all, but I guess this is the cost of me not having a STEADY source of income (aka, a FRACKING JOB…!) So if it’s no problem, I shall make myself available to a slew of EMERGENCY COMMISSIONS. Okay?

To put something else in more context, the $117 I mentioned is one of the repayments for the $3900 loan I recently took out, HOPING that it would help me catch up with my credit card debt… turns out that didn’t go so well.

ALSO, a new development regarding school. Last time, I mentioned that I would have to start classes in a new online film school after getting accepted. Well, my folks made me realized that since I still don’t have a job, or a way to pay back the $26,000 out of pocket (AND external loans are a no-go), I didn’t really want to put myself in an even bigger money burden than I’m already in. So I made a decision to cancel my enrollment there. I still need to pay $1600 in the OTHER school in order to take the last class and graduate there (finally).

Still, though, I need help… unless I can do another one of those Drive things again, which I am hoping to start in mid or late August.

That’s all I can muster for this one, fellas. Again, my sincere apologies for such negative vibes coming from me, and I normally try to avoid it, but this is a DIRE moment for me right now.

If you have any questions, ask away…. I’ll be here if any one is willing to chip in a bit. Help out a brother fox….

All right guys and gals. A small piece of BIG NEWS first.

First off, this can be both good and not-so-good news. Last month, I’ve got ACCEPTED into another online school: THIS time for a Bachelor’s degree in the field of digital film production. This will DEFINITELY keep me on par and current for job seeking, and I’m set to start on the 27th of this month.

BUT… (this is a big but.) I’m running out of financial aid, and I learned that with my standings, and because I went to two other colleges, I’ll only get student loans enough to cover my first year and parts of my second year (this is a 4-year-long program. Keep that in mind.) So, my new counselor and I are in talks about possible external loans to cover the remaining $26,000+ that WILL BE COMING OUT OF MY POCKET. This and even the mention of more loans my folks are heavily against. But what can I do? I don’t have a steady job, according to them. BUT, as far as I’m concerned, Commissionee’ing with you guys IS my job. The trick for me here is consistency AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, being able to pay bills, which are racking up to ALMOST $2000 monthly. That’s in OVERDUE bills, utilities, run-up credit cards ($7000 worth) and smaller loans, ALL just so I can stay afloat. My original finance plan moving forward was to make AT LEAST $1000 a month, somehow. I STILL don’t have my tax refund, so I’m gonna need some help as I began to start school on (again) the 27th. I likely won’t get a loan until like, August or September, at that point.

ON TO THE NEXT TOPIC: next Monday thru Wednesday, I’ll be away with my folks to a casino trip in Alabama. No more art will be available by then, but I will be checking in on y’all periodically. So, before that, I have an idea for my next YCH auction. More on that soon, so keep your eyes peeled.

Lastly, I’ve been curious lately about creating stuff using 3D Blender. Yes, it’s not easy, but I believe it’d be worth it to be if I can make my ideas into this style. What do you think?

And that’s all I have for now. Sorry if my droning on money has turned some heads, but it needed to be shared. Questions? Let me know below. Thank you all so much. Rupert out.

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After careful thought of how to close this Drive, I have decided to extend the deadline of donations to tomorrow (Monday) night!
Meaning the pic should be up Tuesday (or Wednesday).
There is STILL a chance for either side to take over the plot of land, so WHO DO YOU WANT TO WIN? Let me know by DONATING now!!

> https://www.paypal.me/RupertBlueFox

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A couirtesy reminder that donations for tomorrow's Fat/Cat Drive Milestone are due tonight. If you want either side to get even BIGGER in weight, now is your chance!
By far, the sloshy Sphinx is bound to crescent the pyramid... UNLESS the tables are turned and the mares below sniped it. What will it be, bois?
https://www.paypal.me/RupertBlueFox

ALSO: I have a new Trello board, so you can check out what's in store and what's coming up.
https://trello.com/b/WwTCipov/magic-ruperts-commishes-and-agenda

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NOTICE:
Tonight is due for the next Milestone of the Fat/Cat Drive. While it did gain some steam over the past few days, CAN WE KEEP THE PACE GOING? Only one way to know... and that's DONATE.

> https://www.paypal.me/RupertBlueFox

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