Drawing more

I had dinner with some art school friends a few weeks ago.  We were talking about how important it is to keep working on art and of course, how easy it is not to work at all.  My friend Maria said she had taken an illustration course and her teacher had stressed the importance of drawing every day. Maria had been trying to do that and showed us some of her work, which of course was beautiful.  We all resolved to try to draw every day.
A week later I was fretting that I hadn't pulled out my sketchbook once and wished I had time to draw.  As I dug around for a pencil, I started thinking about what to draw and thought of doing some more perspective examples.  And then it occurred to me, I draw all of the time, and during the week, pretty much every day.  So what was I worried about?  I draw examples for the kids, I draw with the kids, I make signs and diagrams for them all the time with drawings all over them.  Wasn't that why I wanted to be an art teacher in the first place, so I could keep my hand in?
Another thing I have started doing is keeping a notebook for when I visit my Dad.  I try to ask him about something from his life and write it down.  When he is not cooperating, or when he starts repeating himself, I do line drawings of him or the other residents.  They don't move around much, so they are pretty easy to draw, and all of those lines and wrinkles make interesting drawings.
So I am drawing everyday and sometimes a little bit more, tonight I'm drawing into the ground on my etching plate which is a pretty cool surface to work on.
I rarely photograph my sketchbook, but I have some of my beach drawings.  This one is from Sandbridge, VA a couple years ago.