#22. The Big M: He decides he will stop painting--but not until he has earned enough money to buy the customized 1949 Mercury he has his eye on.

#21. Criticus Interferus. He was happily working on a big painting called Two Sailboats when he was disturbed by a visit from art critic Wolf Howitzer. Howitzer told him marine painting was a century out of date. The painter threw him down the stairs.

#20. THE BELOVED CAT: In order to try to lessen--or deflect or postpone --the pain of his cat's dying, he threw himself into painting big canvases spread on the studio floor. It was always to no avail. Every painting became a painting of his cat.

No.19: The Superb Cat. His beloved cat was very ill. It was clear he was going to die. He would lie motionless, for hours, on the studio floor, his eyes lusterless and full of sadness. The painter attempted to go on working, but all he could make was image after image of his dying animal.

#18: "Beware of the person of one book"–Thomas Aquinas He decided he had to read more books