[Kimberly Dow]

Isabel,

This is a beautiful drawing - yours are always SO impressive.

Your story with your parents is one we all hear over and over. Theonly solution is to do as I did - pay for college yourself by going into wicked debt, working 2 jobs and going hungry. That way you decide what you study. Not only will you get to chose for yourself, but you wont fail any classes because in your head you will remember how many tables you waited on to pay for that class, or how many pizzas you delivered, etc..

I think a lot of artists can get carried away with their passion to create and not take care of business. There is nothing romantic about not being able to pay bills, failing grades, or not taking care of yourself. It IS hard to do other things when you just want to draw or paint - but take care of business FIRST so you can afford the time to create, afford the supplies and have the peace of mind necessary to live happily while doing your art.

OK, that's my one lecture for the week.

Good luck Isabel!