I know I said last week that I would post some more about the painting on Friday but Friday has totally passed me by. I suck at deadlines, self-imposed and outsider imposed. Not a good look. Anyway life and frustrations got in the way of me finishing this sketch. I'm not ecstatic with it but since it isn't the final, I decided I should stop fussing over it. So that I did. It's fine with me as long as it shows of the concept I was going for. The image quality of this sketch is subpar because my scanner totally sucks today so I snapped a pic of it with my because it would have been waaaayyyy too much of a hassle to use my SLR. Call me Lazy J this week. Whatever, I have the right to be lazy every once in awhile.

But anyway, here goes the second third of Music is my Drug.


Once I started drawing this, I had one direction in mind and I totally ended up going a different way. My usual way that is. I was trying to do something different by giving this more of a cartoony feel, but I suck at that and my stuff always ends up on the more realistic side. Oh well.

Music is my Drug

So..I haven't died or anything. I've just been busy. It's been a minute since I missed an entire month of posting. I been slackin on my pimpin. But oh well, t'is the past and I can't change it. But since it's been so long, I decided to preview a painting that I've been working on this past month. It's called Music is my Drug. This is only a tiny snippet. It's still in the sketchbook planning phase so the color scheme may change.

I know it's not much so I'll reveal the rest on Friday. Hopefully. Cross your fingers "X"

Until next time, peace out.

Oh and btw, those words won't be just floating out in the air like that. But you'll see when I reveal the entire concept.

The Beach

The water calls as the waves crash. The sand shimmers at the water's edge where the water leaves evidence of where it's been but never where it's going. The line of its path is ever changing. With each ebb and flow, the water shapes the sand , smoothing mounds here, carving edges there. The water flows wherever it wants to go, changing the sand in the process. You can never step on the same beach twice because the face of the beach is never the same. It may appear the same on the surface but it's always changing underneath; water and sand in a dynamic relationship. Never the same beach.

Yet, it's always the same. It's always comforting, whether the tide is out or the waves are threatening. It's always changing, erasing what was there a second ago to make something new, whether it be a footstep or sand castle. It's always forgetting, washing away the past to make way for the future. The sand is always shimmering at the water's edge, whether it be in the sunlight or the moonlight.

Can you hear the water calling?

Ferry Me Across

One sunny weekend I took a trip on the ferry across the Delaware River to Camden, New Jersey with Jirbaud and my nephew. It was a fun, short trip but an opportunity for some candid shots nonetheless. Here are a few:

With the City as my Backdrop

I realize I've been missing my Friday posts. No excuses, that's not cool because I'm only hurting as I'm doing this to build my portfolio. My life has changed a little so I haven't had as much time to dedicate to working on it, especially drawing. I'm in the process of rearranging things and figuring it out so hopefully I can get back into a regular rotation soon. One heads up though, I have been working on a more extensive piece that can't be finished in a weeks time unless I dedicated a 40 hour work week to it, but hopefully it'll be done soon.

Anyway, last week, I promised some more shots from the Ben Franklin bridge. I guess you can call this a mini photoshoot with poet Jirbaud in between my snapping pics of the city elements. Here goes...




This last one we both felt really captured his personality. If you know Jirbaud, you know his shoes.

Nature

I want to go to a national park and take in the scenery, like Yosemite or Yellowstone or the Grand Canyon. That would be awesome. I can't help but think of all the great pictures I could take.

On the Open Road

Earlier this week, I went on a road trip. It was supposed to be 9.5 hours there and 9.5 hours back. No big deal right, easy peasy; I've driven that long in a straight shot before so I wasn't really worried. However, other people were because I was driving alone, no one to be my co-pilot and keep me up or takeover when I got tired. I was confident I could make it with no problems and considered this as a very good introduction to how it will be when I get my RV and move from place to place easily and at will.

I normally don't like driving, but this trip I realized that I actually do like to drive. I just don't like to drive in the city with the crazies and the traffic. You're so disconnected from your environment and the scenery around you, that's why I prefer to use a bike in the city. Driving on the highway is a totally different experience; it's like riding a bike in the city. There's much more freedom on the open road, no need to worry about traffic lights or cars cutting across at cut streets. You can just enjoy the view that surrounds the highway and let it accompany you while you drive. What's so great about driving long distances is that you get to watch the sky change as the hours pass or as the weather changes from location to location. It's really quite spectacular if you think about it. From this trip I have decided that I love the open road and an RV is perfect for me.

I like the way the sunrays pass through the trees and make patterns of shadow and light on the road. And the way when there's a bend in the road there's an element of mystery as to what's coming up next.

The bridge ahead of me and everything around me disappeared in the fog. It was serene, like driving to a cloud, so peaceful.

I like to catch glimpses of a beachy shore when entering and exiting a bridge. It just makes my day better.

P.S. Not the best pics because they were taken with my tele while driving.

City Elements

The first time I visited Philly, I crossed the Delaware river riding from New Jersey on the Ben Franklin bridge and was amazed at the view of the city from the bridge. I thought it would be a great place to take pictures from. When I moved to Philly, I found out that the bridge is open to pedestrian traffic and I immediately decided that this would be my favorite place in the city.

This week, I finally got the chance to walk on the bridge, hang out and take some pictures of the city. It really has lived up to my expectations and so far is my favorite place in the city. On this trip I focused more so on elements of the bridge itself than the view of the city, capturing patterns in the urban landscape. So here's a few shots from that trip, more forth coming later this week.





This last shot was from this pretty little park sitting on the river bank looking at the bridge. This might be my second favorite place, but more on that later.

You say I'm different. It's because you don't know me anymore. I've changed. I'm more me now than I ever was before.

Sometimes I wonder why I write

South Beach

I want to go back to Miami. I was only there for a week once, but it has so much potential. Everything was so sparkly and wonderful. To start, the drive in to South Beach across the MacArthur Causeway was eye catching, I had a hard time keeping my eyes on the road. I was surrounded by clear blue water and boats that made my eyes jump from the cruise ships on the right to the marina on the left and back.

Arriving on the island, I was confronted by Art Deco architecture and pre-1960s cars parked in front hotels that all referenced another era. I felt as if I was in a different world.

It's not the beach that made it great, I've been to better beaches but they didn't have the same kind of atmosphere. The city scene combined with the natural scene and laid back vibe is what made it so welcoming to me. Is it my paradise? No, waaaayyyy too many people, but it is a place that I would like to visit often and have a more extended stay.

Paradise

I want to go to a beautiful place, my own little paradise. There would be a beach of course, with grass blowing on the sand dunes and sparkling blue water. There would be an endless supply of beauty for me to discover, be inspired by and capture with my pen, camera or brush. The sunrise and sunset would always be different and worthwhile to see, so I would never miss it. I would walk along the beach and feel the sand between my toes, the sun's warmth on my shoulders, and the light sea breeze on my cheek. Don't you think life would be pleasant? I wonder if my utopia exists.

Music

I still haven't come up with a name for this weekly feature thing.I was thinking about calling it "Sharpening my Tools" since this whole exercise is meant to resharpen my skills as I build my portfolio. However, it sounds a little lame when I say it out loud. Anyway, the theme I've chosen this week is music. I chose music because, if you know me, you know I love music. I love all kinds of music, I'm eclectic like that.

I chose to shoot these two instruments, the saxophone and acoustic guitar, because they are so versatile. They can be used in any style of music. I went with that idea because they reflect my music tastes. I hope you enjoy.

Click on the images to make them larger.



Don't forget to suggest another theme.

What's in a Name?

I need to come up with a name for this new weekly project that I'm working on. Last week I called it weekly check-up, but that was because I hadn't thought of anything yet and that made sense at the time. It's not the permanent name that I want to keep so if anyone has any suggestions, feel free to let me know.

So far the guidelines are that I pick a theme or subject or medium for the week and come up with either a piece of art or photography executing that theme. The theme can either come from suggestions or my own head. I will reveal the final piece in a blog post at the end of the week, either Friday or Saturday.

If you have a title or theme suggestion, shoot me a comment.

Weekly Check-Up 1

So...this year off I'm working on my portfolio for grad school. To help me stay on track, I made a deal with my friends to post some art work or something at the end of each week to show that I've been working on something. All of these works won't end up in my portfolio but they are helping me get back in the mix of things since it's been so long since I've used my drawing skills. This week was the first week and I probably picked a pretty hard subject to jump right back into drawing,, but it's something close to my heart, my camera. I decided to draw it because I couldn't capture in the earlier post that showed my tools. This is the beginning of my journey. I decided to show various stages of completion to show how I work.


This first image is me putting down the outline of my camera. You can see some of the construction lines that I used to guide my angles and the shape of the lens. You can also see a slight difference in the sketching style between the camera and strap. I used a looser style on the strap because it wasn't as necessary to be precise, just needed to rough in the basic shape.


In this image I'm beginning to shade and define the camera's shape and how the light plays on the surface.


It's not finished yet but this is what I have so far. I used a hatch on the strap instead of the smoother shading I used on the camera body to give the strap some texture. There's still some white spaces because I haven't decided how detailed I want to get and whether or not I want to draw in the brand name and writings on the lens. Also, I haven't quite figured out how I want to deal with the glass on the lens yet. I still need to darken the values in some places to give it a more finished look.

Practicality? ...scoff

Should you ever give up your dreams for any reason? What if it's so impractical, you can't imagine how to succeed? Should you abandon them then due to practicality? Maybe. I hope not. I once had a professor who said if your plan seems obtainable, then you're not dreaming big enough. I always try to keep that in mind when people tell me my dreams are impractical. Screw practicality.

Next Chapter

At the beginning of this month, I graduated from college, culminating my 17 year journey of education. Over the course of two days, I walked across a stage, shook hands with the dean, marched into a stadium, sat in the sweltering heat, and shortly thereafter received my degree, a BA in Philosophy.

In the weeks leading up to graduation, there was a little excitement but mostly indifference. I don't think I really had the time or energy to be excited. I finally submitted my thesis on April 6th and defended it two days later. It was about 23 pages long and it took everything I had to complete it. It's still not fully complete because I need to do a few revisions but nothing major that would hold up my grade. I passed the oral defense which was actually my senior comprehensive exam and the paper itself with an A. What a relief right, not really, no time to enjoy it because all my grades were due by April 22nd, so I had about 2 weeks to complete 7 papers and 3 exams. Although sometimes it really felt overwhelming, apparently, it wasn't too too much to handle because I finished the semester with a 4.0 and graduated college with a 3.79 cumulative. So now I have alumni status.

In the past three weeks since I left school, there's still indifference and not much excitement. My plan is to take a year off before I head to grad school for architecture. Back to architecture, how many people saw that coming. Anyway, I've been chilling in Philly trying to get used to the idea of not having to go back to school after this summer is over. Although that doesn't mean I won't be working and keeping up with my studies. I have time now to return to things I love that I couldn't do in between my reading and writing major. I've been reunited with my art supplies. I'm spending this summer and year off working on my portfolio and trying to knock the rust off my old tools. This should bring a lot of peace to my soul compared to the stress of all that writing. I'm looking forward to it.

April Beauties

This weekend, I had a blast with my friends. We're always together during the week and the weekend, but this weekend something was different. Our usual weekend routine consists of going to the mall or to the movies and follow that up with dinner out or chilling at the crib playing wii or board games. Sometimes we mix it up and go to a play or musical and really enjoy the change of scenery.

This weekend was one of those times we did a total change of scenery. For the first time in a while the weather was beautiful and really accommodating to enjoying the outdoors. It definitely made lose focus whenever I was indoors, hindering my work efforts. So instead of being cramped up inside, we went outside Friday thru Sunday and enjoyed the weather.

We went to see the Cherry Blossoms a few times, we walked around Georgetown, and we sat outside on the restaurants' terraces and had go food and conversation. (We played laser tag and went to the movies too, but that doesn't count because it was inside.)

My friends are the greatest, this weekend wouldn't have been the same without them. Here are some April beauties we captured together.

Beautiful Tulips


Beautiful Butterfly and Blossoms


Beautiful Friends

Wanderlust

My wanderlust is beginning to get the best of me. Everyday I dream about being somewhere else, traveling the world and documenting it with my pen and trusty camera. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel I'm in now; however, I'm stuck in traffic and time is moving ever so slowly. I can't help but wonder, "Will I ever get out?" I see those emergency exit doors every ten feet offering me a chance to escape and begin my travels now, skipping this impeding traffic. I could hop out and abandon my vehicle, but what's the point when I'm so close to the exit? I might as well suck it up, scoot along, and continue to daydream about my destination after I exit this tunnel.

Dare to Dream

I want my escape from reality to become my reality, my possibilities to become my present actualities, my dreams to become my truth.

I have a plan.

I have so much to learn :-)

New Ventures

I think I want to start a new blog/website that isn't so personal. It would have a theme and more of a focus than this one. I acknowledge the fact that most of my posting here is random, but that can be excused somewhat because of the nature of this blog. Most of what I say is kind of irrelevant to the general public because I'm just talking about how I feel and what's going on in my life at the moment and not discussing something outside of my inner circle. For that reason I want to do something new while still maintaining this here glimpse into my world. I hope I have something meaningful to add to the interwebs. I'm thinking about maybe a sketch and photoblog where I capture the world around me and share why I think its beautiful. It would be kind of like finding beauty in everyday life, in ordinary things. What do you think? Any suggestions?

Full Moon

So my mom calls me up as she's driving home and says, "Can you take a picture of the moon? Because I'm having a hard time and it's so pretty :-)" I said sure and this is what I came out with.


The moon itself.


The moon poking through the clouds.


More clouds with the moon. (This is actually a composite image because I had to overexpose to get the right light on the clouds and that blew out the detail in the moon. So I photoshopped a plain moon over the blown out moon and voila!)

Tuo

Ya Know...

If you're not sure whether you're gonna come through with something, don't tell someone that you definitely will and leave them hanging.

That is all. Peace.

Chasing Perfection While Standing Still

This is how I feel sometimes, especially when writing. It really plagues me. I want my first attempt to be perfect for some reason, even if it's something trivial or something that only my eyes will see. I know I'm anal, but this is beyond that.

Take my sketchbooks or my journals for example, there is a very particular way that I lay them out, the handwriting must be smooth and flawless because I hate strikethroughs, but I hate white out even more. I always think ahead to when all that's left of me are the things I've written and drawn; I want those things to represent me in a good light, the best light. At least I think that may be the reason behind this craziness.

What's the problem with wanting to be perfect or near-perfect? Nothing really, except that in my desire for perfection, I stifle my production. I get stuck in the planning and brainstorming phases coming up with what I think are wonderful ideas, but never putting pen or colored pencil to paper because I don't want it to come out wrong. This is the main reason why it takes me so long to finish essays for class, post to my blog, or add to my portfolio. I want my first attempt to be perfect so there's lots of self-implied pressure that I have to overcome.

I really hate that I'm like this so I have been trying to let loose and let it flow. To get my papers done, I have to fool myself by typing my rough and final drafts in note-taking software instead of directly into Word. The crazy part is, I like what I write the first time around so there's really no need to change anything, but I wouldn't be able to write that if I had started in Word. I'm crazy. I need to get over this quickly before I have nothing to show for my life. I need to  stop letting my fear of failure halt my progress. Any suggestions?

Peace

Blizzard 2010

It's been snowing off and on in DC for the past couple of weeks. It's really quite beautiful, aside from the hazardous nature of driving on snow and ice-covered roads, power outages, and roofs collapsing from the weight of the snow.

The snow looks so peaceful as it gathers on my windowsill. But if you look up, you'll see this.

It's still beautiful and takes my breath away. I love the snow.

This Year...

I'm making my dreams come true.

I'm not going to let school or other issues hinder me from doing the things I want to do. If I just complete my assignments quickly and stop procrastinating because it's not interesting or it's not what I want to do, I would have more time to do the things I really want to do. So knock the school stuff out the way and then do the fun stuff.(Although some of this school stuff is kinda hard. THESIS!!!!!)

I have realized that everyday offers a chance to start over and re-evaluate your progress. So, I'm starting today and if I don't do it right, I can start over tomorrow. Eventually, I'll make it happen.

Peace Out

All Growed Up in 101 Days

Everybody has visions and dreams of what they want to be and how they want their life to go when they grow up. There is a mere one hundred one days separating me from what's going on now and my being spat out into the real world after I graduate. My grown up time is rapidly approaching; this is what I want to make come true:

I want to live a nomadic lifestyle. I don't want to be tied to one particular place in one particular country; I want to travel and see the world. That is one reason why I would like to buy an RV and live in it full time. For the time being I have labeled it my tour bus. I can drive and park and see the entire continent. Or I could park and fly to another. I realize that this type of lifestyle comes with its own set of pros and cons versus a more traditional route; however, in my opinion the pros outweigh cons, plus traditional is boring in this case.

What are the benefits of this lifestyle?

Freedom - I can pick up and go whenever I want. I won't have to worry about paying rent while traveling extensively overseas. My worldly possessions will travel with me or be stored; so when I move to a new place I won't have to worry about packing and unpacking all the unnecessary junk that I've accumulated. (Yes, that means I will have to downsize a lot, but I am willing to part with most of this stuff anyway, except my technology, Oh please don't take that away, I would absolutely die! Just trying to be dramatic.)

Experience - Living like this will give me some amazing life experiences that otherwise, I might not encounter. It will push my out of my comfort zone. I'm typically an introverted person unless you know me. However, in living this lifestyle that would need to change as I will alone be in different locales all the time so better become excellent at making fast friends. How many people can say they have friends on all seven continents. One day I will. Not to say that I'm going to forget the friends I already have, I actually hope they will be able to join me on some of my adventures. I want to catch the Cherry Blossoms in Japan, surf off the coast of New South Wales, float in a hot air balloon across France, snowboard in the Alps, pedal a bike in Copenhagen, smoke a hookah in Egypt and Morocco, go topless on a Brazilian beach, party at Carnivals across the Caribbean, do cocaine in Columbia (jk), and so much more. I know many of these things sound cliche and touristy but that doesn't stop me from wanting to have the experience. Also, I not only want to do these things but also fully immerse myself in the cultures, picking up the language, participating in local customs, eating local foods (might be hard since I'm such a picky eater). I want to feel like my permanent address is where I am at the moment.

Independence - Traveling extensively around the country and the world will put me out the reach of my familial base. I can call them but they won't be a fifteen minute drive away and able to just pop up when I need them. I will have to rely on myself and my own wits which I like to do anyway. Most people who know me know I don't like depending on other people. So I guess this will be that to the extreme. No problem dude.

Art - Who wouldn't be inspired to produce beauty in all the different locales that I'll eventually go to. For each place I know I'll want to have at least one completed major work, whether it be a painting, drawing, photo essay, animation, short film, etc. The inspiration will be infinite, and if I ever get stuck I can pick up and travel somewhere else. Plus thing of all the artists I'll meet from everywhere. Can we see awesome collaborations in the future? I know I can. I can't wait.

This is the life I'm working towards after graduation. Any stop between now and my dreams is just a stepping stone. So if you meet me in the future and I've been in the same place for the past few years, it doesn't mean that I've given up on my dreams; I'm probably just saving up for my next adventure or saving to start my adventure.