My parents decided early in my life that I had talent for drawing. I’m sure I did not have as much innate ability as they imagined, but I’m glad they encouraged me, particularly my mother. I think my father probably was ambivalent, much like Arlo, but he didn’t try to dissuade me. My mother, on the other hand, overtly coaxed me. She often suggested that I might become a “commercial artist.” This was her way of subtly guiding me toward a lucrative discipline and away from a squalid life spent painting naked women. Thanks, Mom.