Dra Studio.com - Design & Illustration

This week, I bought the latest Death Cab for Cutie album, Narrow Stairs and it is just so gorgeous. The sound is immersive and the lyrics are spell-binding.

As I was reading a devotion this morning from Psalms, I fell into some thoughts about the song “I Will Possess Your Heart” that gave it some real meaning. In Psalms 16:9-11, David says:

No wonder my heart is glad, and I rejoice.
My body rests in safety.
For you will not leave my soul among the dead
or allow your holy one to rot in the grave.
You will show me the way of life,
granting me the joy of your presence
and the pleasures of living with you forever.

When I first heard the song, I thought it was about a boy pursuing a girl that isn’t really interested in him, but every time I hear it now, I hear God calling me, wanting to draw me closer. He is after my heart and has plans to guide my future, but only if I am willing to surrender my all.

Here are the lyrics for your enjoyment:

How I wish you could see the potential
The potential of you and me
It’s like a book elegantly bound, but
In a language that you can’t read just yet

You got to spend some time, love
You got to spend some time with me
And I know that you’ll find, love
I will possess your heart
You got to spend some time, love
You got to spend some time with me
And I know that you’ll find, love
I will possess your heart

The story continues, click to read more...

Day #31

Have you missed these as much as I have? Hopefully, I can get things back on track. ;)

Have you been missing me? I know I have. Things have been pretty busy for me lately, but I have missed drawing, so I plan to make plenty of wonderful updates today and later on as well.

In the way of a conciliatory gift, I offer you my new project, Paper the City. Enjoy and see you soon.

( listening to The Polyphonic Spree )

While enjoying an amazingly relaxing and fun-filled day with visiting family today (love you guys!), I realized it has been a while since I used my sketch blog to write about anything in-depth. About life … about tech … really, about anything at all. Hopefully, you have been enjoying the more frequent sketches I have been posting (how about those 365, eh?), as well as those few del.icio.us links I try to add daily.

In addition to all that wonderfulness, why not add some good-intentioned thoughts about life? For now, why not start slow with my world as it currently stands in terms of the “meta”. Because of the vast amount of things I am currently trying to accomplish/do/intake/etc, I have been experimenting with different methods and mediums for staying current on news, art, learning, and all those other things I see on my pretty 1280px by 800px screen. Not too long ago, I had come to the point where it all just felt like overload and time mis-spent … and just opening my computer was such a chore and neglecting it felt like 20 missed deadlines. I am guessing that many of you (with the absolute bloom of Web 2 o’s out there) have been feeling the same way.

Here’s the happy compromise I have come to with my news feeds, emails, blogs, photos, articles, artists, music, dates and so much more … listed via an ordered list … well, because I am an XHTML designer and it just makes sense, right? Here we go:

The story continues, click to read more...

I am in the process of updating the Illustrative site and I found some old copy that I never implemented … kinda sad and still fun:

Wet iPod fund

On the early Friday morning of April 7th, 2006, my dearly loved and cherished iPod Nano (4 GB, 1st Generation) was lost forever in the mirky abyss of laundry detergent and foamy suds.

Though it struggled for life and fought to maintain consciousness, its fate was sealed with 3 fate-ed quarters and a handful of dryer sheets.

After an hour and 28 minutes of ordeal and painful agony, it was finally rescued and released from its denim pocket prison—but alas, it was too late. Robed in its favorite pink case, iPod Nano passed from this life.

Please help to keep the memory of our dearly departed alive for future generations by donating whatever amount you are comfortable with. You can send donations to drastudio@mac.com via PayPal. Proceeds will go toward the purchase of a new iPod in the near future.

Fun, huh? I am so glad that Jodie bought me my new iPod, “Love”, for Christmas. It is so difficult not having one.

Oh … and of course, I am very stoked for the Leopard launch next week. I will be at our store if you decide to stop by! :D

It really is. I am loving my new Full Sail job and being at Apple (especially after all of this recent fun) is just so great.

Had a good ole’ time night before last … Tyler is finally back in town from his months at CIY, so we spent the night story-boarding a video he and Jason are making. Man … that was so much late night goodness! Before that, Tyler and I hit up a brand new comic shop across from FS and then the always wonderful Uberbot. I got new buttons and stickers … and staked out my next shirt purchase … booyah!

Keep it real, kids. I will be posting more photos and sketches as I am getting settled into the new swing of things. If you want something illustrated or drawn or have a fun lil’ project for me, don’t hesitate. I’ve got hours and hours of semi-empty lab time to kill. I kid … but really, I love a fun diddy for a friend ;)

BTW, Queen is rocking my world right now. How about you?

I hope you all are really enjoying the new site design and the loads of new content. I will work hard to keep it rolling along on a daily basis. This week though, I am at lovely Lake Aurora with the band, enjoy the sights and smells of about 150 middle school kids (Haha!). So far it has been lots of fun in the sun and great worship times.

So here is hoping for no broken bones on the blob and plenty of great memories (along with all that life-changing Christ-centered decision stuff too … chk!). See you all on the flip-side!

Alright … time to weigh in. What did you think of the latest movie releases? Spider-Man 3? Hot Fuzz? The Invisible? What are you planning to see in the coming summer months?

Are you as excited about Transformers as I am? What do you think about the forthcoming FF 2, Iron Man, Speed Racer and Tintin trilogy?

How about TV Shows? Excited for the season finales of LOST, The Office and Heroes? I know I am. GAHHH! :) What else are you planning to watch to get you through those long summer months?

Anyway … just curious. Hope your days are going good. (p.s. enjoy this new hairy bouncy monster … I made him just for you!)

I just love drawing monsters. Scraggely teeth. Hairy arms. Zombie eyes. Bald heads … oh wait. Maybe that is just my monsters. Either way … they always make me smile.

So why is our friend here so “grizzly”? Is it his demeanor? His physical disposition? Interesting, isn’t? I mean, on one hand, he looks pretty angry and about ready to just chew off your left leg because you beat him again in Mario Kart. Then again … doesn’t his face look completely down-fallen from the fact that you just rejected him because he was just too hairy? How could you? He’s gonna cry … then he probably will chew your head off. Nice going.

Well every good monster deserves a decent poem, so here is his:

I was looking for love,
you’d say “in all the wrong places”.
I was convinced otherwise,
until I saw their downtrotten faces.

They laughed and jeered me.
“Wanna be friends …?”, I sighed in reply.
“Go get a shave!”, they yelled,
from behind a fast flung chocolate cream pie.

Broken and lonely,
I sit on the curb of Elm Street and Pride
Consolling with and to myself,
that, if at least nothing else, I still had tried.

I know. I know. “Where have you been?” It is all I here. Sorry for that. I’m working on it. Have this tasty sketch morsel to appease your curious habit monster. And if there is any left, pass it along to a friend. They are probably hungry for an Oscar-meal too.

I have had such a mash of wise and helpful words run through my head the past couple of days. In chapel last Tuesday, the speaker reminded us to look inward first for the cause of problems in building a strong community in the church. At Gateway Christian Church in Tennessee last Sunday, Jodie’s dad spoke about each of our own callings and about service and making sure of where your priorities and investments (whether they be time, emotion, or otherwise) are centered. Reading over an old letter, I was reminded of how sharing one’s dreams with friends and family is not only for their benefit, but for your own as well … as they come to share in your dreams and understand your hardships. Even sitting at lunch today with a friend, I found myself surrounded by so much insight and underlying feelings of motivation. Needless to say, I have been working a lot today to make sure that I am making every effort possible to further build myself up and strive for the dreams that I have been falling behind in.

Motivated thought over. Go to bed and dream of DRM-free music, played back on NAS-equipped Apple TV offerings. I know I will be.

If you’re reading this in the wee hours of the morning on March 8, then I congratulate you … and I reward you with three links to add some internet fun to you night/morning. Here you go:

• MaxWax - Weblog by Superchic[k]’s Max Hsu. He always has some great life insight, music/instrument enjoyment and lots of photography knowledge to share. If nothing else, at least read his latest post, Living passionately. I know it perked up my ears/heart when I read it.


• Photos from Cali - My little bro just got back from his paint-ball tourney in beautiful California. He was nice enough to post 1300+ photos to his Flickr account. His Canon EOS 30D is pretty pimp, so they are worth the look.


• iMixes - I uploaded some of our current playlists, so here you go.

Enjoy and maybe get some sleep later on!

Saturday and Sunday were chalk ’ daddy full of great deals and super bargains, with Nathan, Karson, Jennifer, Jodie and I heading to all the local thrift stores (and Plato’s Closet too) and finding wonderful things. I, personally, picked up an amazingly huge collection of classic poetry, a copy of James and the Giant Peach, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and a few other 99¢ goodies.

Right now, Jodie and I are watching most of the same shows (including The Office and Heroes … even if they are on a spring hiatus currently), but here is a good list of what I am enjoying at the moment:

• The Black Donnellys (the premiere is pretty sweet)


• The Invincible Iron-Man (not a show, but the animated movie did just show on CN and it good so far)


• NewsRadio (I just found out that I can DV-R old episodes, which isn’t too shabby at all)


• Hellboy : Blood and Iron (it premieres this weekend on the CT. Woot!)


• Psych


• VH1 : VSPOT - Top 20 Countdown


• LOST


• The Simpsons


• That 70’s Show

That’s about it … I should be back to caught up on my blogging by Friday. For now, if you haven’t already, check out the fun clock artwork I did for the 452 girls. Yes … those are supposed to look like PacMan ghosts!

For last week’s Illustration Friday theme of “Hide”, I thought I would go with something from the book I am currently reading … Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. A great buy (even if it hadn’t been only 99¢ at Goodwill), I am loving the way it is reading right now … literarily comfortable and greatly intriguing.

I did this piece with a mechanical pencil and some of my new PrismaColor markers that the Jodie got me for Christmas. It came out really well, though I still need to take a chance on trying to blending multiple colors together and not stick to just grays and black.

Oh, and if you think I cheated by using “hyde” instead of “hide”, I say blame Mr. Utterson. He’s the one that said,”if he be Mr. Hyde … I shall be Mr. Seek.” ;)

If he could but once set eyes on him, he thought the mystery would lighten and perhaps roll altogether away … At least it would be a face worth seeing: the face of a man who was without bowels of mercy: a face which had but show itself to raise up … a spirit of enduring hatred.

** This is the color version of my Alphabet Soup sketch … makes you kinda hungry, doesn’t it? **

So, sadly enough … the Chick-fil-A opening we had all planned on was canceled at the last minute (or at least, we only found out about it at the last minute) and we found ourselves with two whole days of free time. And far be it for us to go to work when we planned not to. Instead, we enjoyed some great times at Cocoa Beach and had a really great couple of sleepovers (you can peep the great photos). Yay for friends and free days!

It started to rain today … during the middle of the day. Right about when chapel was letting out. Everyone was running around in the dress clothes; on their way to lunch or coming in for afternoon classes … and there was just something so fun and carefree about it.

In passing, Clayton Wheeler said something to me that really captured the moment: “There is a certain freedom that comes with the rain.” What does the rain remind you of? What is one of your favorite memories that happened while it was raining?

** The painting is called “Escape” and it was Michelle and my first attempt at painting on book canvas. Pretty fun. **

Well, there you go. A good portion of Monday was spent finalizing the New Creation shirt design … what do you think? (You can see the back in the Flickr sidebar).

The shirt color is actually the same “Texas Orange” we used for the Kenny Beers Band shirts, so it should turn out really nicely. As for staying consistent with the poster design and yet still giving it a cost-efficient and fun “edge”, I think it worked out quite well.

By the way, if you haven’t been watching Heroes lately … you definitely need to get on that. Last night’s episode really set us up for a great next couple of weeks.

** My entry for Illustration Friday’s “Communication” topic this past week. Mmmhm. I plan to turn it into a fun Threadless design, so make sure you stop by again in a few days to see how it pans out. **

Last Friday was so amazing! Work went by quick and easy, with plenty of stuff getting done, and I had the whole night to spend some much needed fun “guy” time with Eric Herendeen, Billy Babbino and Jared (a future FCC hopeful). We pretty much did it all … some Freaks and Geeks, a couple episodes of The Office, a yummy dinner down under, Virtua Fighter 4 (even if I ended up losing a lot to Courtney), Marvel vs Capcom 2 (freakin’ yay!), Soul Caliber II, and yes … double-glazed, HOT NOW Krispy Kreme donuts! That’s right … enough sugar to choke a gorilla!

Besides the Shirley Temples and the many victories with Yunsung, probably the best part of the night was singing loudly along to 80’s classics like Queen, Styx and Quiet Riot with the guys, while driving down the big Vine.

Oddly enough, I didn’t keep any of the things I drew yesterday, so instead I will leave you with two nuggets of YouTube goodness.

The first? John Reuben’s new Word of Mouth video … not too shabby of a track, and the animation is pretty fun. It has this kinda Cartoon Network meets 1970’s School House Rock feel too it. (It was directed by Chris Oatley, who’s work is pretty great stuff).

Second? No More King’s Sweep the Leg video … because I just bought The Karate Kid on DVD, Principal Belding is cool, trailer-park Cobra Kais make me laugh, and I still think Ralph Macchio is amazing! (You will probably get that song stuck in your head though … so fair warning).

Yesterday was pretty standard, with work being typically long and boring and party time at our house being really great. Guitar Hero II battles and yummy Wii goodness, thanks to Josh McGrew. Billy Babbino was there too, with an FCC prospect for next year.

Probably my favorite parts of the day were: 1) The compliments I got on the New Creation posters and 2) Right before Googly’s Cafe, when Jen and I were at the pizza place and having the owner ask us where we had been and how come we hadn’t eaten there in a few days … since neither of us had been there is well over 4 months.

Today was another great day of accomplished tasks … among which was the New Creation poster (check out the Flickr sidebar!). Karati-gami at d-groups went really well … even if I did make Jen mad at me for a bit. ;) I am now well on my way to getting those thousand origami cranes so I can have my wish.

After Southside band practice, Jen and I worked on this desktop wallpaper together … not to shabby, I think. And the poem, in part, really speaks to my feelings as of late. Enjoy.

She stands upon the precipice,
her gaze within the rocks’ warm embrace.
her hair … it floats on the midnight breeze,
while a forlorn sadness darkens her face.

She’s taken a few steps more,
closer still to night’s starless intent.
A decision must be made,
this choice, now is beyond circumvent.

When from a sudden, she is found;
stumbled upon by loved one’s loving eye.
“Hold fast … still!”, is the desperate plea.
“Speak to me and share! Why it is that you must die?”

Choice now stands at your side;
Leaving you with two ways to end tonight.
Sure is the fate that lies before you,
while hope, it beckons to set things right.

Finally! This morning was one of the first in a long while that I didn’t absolutely despise as soon as I woke up. I stayed up late last night, seeing to some website updates for Mark Atteberry and a few other projects, and even with the minimal 2-3 hours of sleep, I really felt so much better starting the day out.

We had a bit of car trouble that had to be sorted out today, so the biggest thing I was able to accomplish at work was definitely the work on the New Creation poster (I will upload a pic once it is done). It was a slow start, but I really like the direction I went with it. The rest of my FCC day was a blur of missed emails and answering phone calls.

The highlight of today was definitely being the Chick-fil-A cow again at Southchase. There really isn’t a feeling more wonderful than having 3 and 4 year olds run up to you and give you a hug … especially with me in huge cow suit and them in their nifty PJs (it was pajama night this week … pretty fun).

The rest of the night rounded out nicely with picking up some supplies for our Karati-Gami D-group tomorrow, watching The Prestige with the gang, and working up a logo for Josh’s upcoming “Ignite” event. Heads up … its April 13th and you might as well mark it down on your iCal. Kenny Beers band will possibly be playing and Illustrative will have a booth and some pimp shirts for sale. Whoot!

Laters.

*This is a painting I just did on my hoodie. I have come to the happy realization that I have more fun painting on my clothes/bags/hands/etc than on paper sometimes.*

I ran into a little boy today on the way to the market. His hair was matted down and his feet were dirty from the city streets. As he stole a quick glance up at me, I caught a glimmer of recognition in his eyes. Tugging on my coat, he pulled me down to him and said that “there were words we must share”. Here is what he did utter to me:

I have seen my greatest love.
I have tasted a wonderful joy …
One never before known to me.

And now I find that I have lost it all.
The empty place in my heart,
momentarily filled with cheerful destruction,
is once again a seeping hole;
a gaping wound.

I wish only now
that the happy times I had enjoyed,
could be taken back
and I could be left with every day’s hope,
instead of unending sorrow.

As I tried to console him with my own feelings of loss and despair, he knowingly turned up his eyes and remarked in words my heart echoes within:

Your sadness is only so great;
your pain is only so deep,
because of the friendship you held too near;
because of misgiven things you let go of too late.

Had you acted with ration and true concern,
and less with young, headstrong ambition,
you now would find yourself with the same strong love of the past,
instead of vain hopes for dreams you never really had.

With these last words, the boy within (my arms) fell down and ceased his life’s breathe. And I, alone, was left to stare out blankly into the darkening night.

IMPACT this weekend was pretty amazing. Not only was I really pleased with my bass playing for our sets, but I have heard so many great things already about how we did. Yes, that was me on stage … the kid in the Karate Kid bandana, killin’ it rockstar style. :D

And even more than being pleased with how the band did, I was totally psyched about how much the kids/teens enjoyed us and how much they were able to take away from the worship sessions with Josh Finkler. And of course, it doesn’t hurt that plenty of people had great words to say about my shirts and were interested in having some Oscar-art of their own. *Chhsk*

So, I have been thinking about getting a new bass. I mean, I do like my most recent (2 years now?) bass plenty … but it is just a Carlo Robelli 5-string with built-in pre-amp … nothing too special, and I think I have outgrown its look and feel. And as much as I like having a 5-string, I really don’t like any of the available options that any of the big guys put out (Fender, Gibson, etc.) … most are just so ugly and pretentious.

Everyone has been recommending Fender Precision Basses to me, and a few of them are in the picture above, but I also had my eye on a few others. I really like the look of the Gibson Thunderbird IV, but I hear some disconcerting things about its weight and playability. And even before I saw the Dark Romantics girl with a Rickenbacker, I have loved the way they look. But I am pretty much pushed that aside, since I have been told more than a few times that they lack the low-end a better bass can deliver.

So right now, I think I am really into the Fender Reissue ‘51. It’s simple and slick, with just a touch of retro-goodness. And the more I see the butterscotch blonde color, the more I like it.

Yes! Finally! Now I am old enough to … to … um … er … drink? Nope. Smoke? Nah. Go clubbin’? Ehh. Oh wait, I got it. The best and only way to celebrate your 24th Birthday is to lose your Canadian Citizenship! How could I forget. :)

Thanks for all the “Happy Birthday” goodness … among some of the best was the pizza party, the house party that I missed most of (band practice and all … but that was good too), and of course, the day off of work. I don’t remember ever going to school or work on my birthday and I don’t plan for that to change any time soon. ;)

At the top of my B-day gifts was definitely the M-Audio USB MIDI keyboard that Jodie got me. I just started taking piano lessons this year and this 49-key wonder is just perfect. Not only does it have a nice feel and weight to the keys, but it interfaces with Garageband so stinkin’ well (for instance, like how the volume slider on the board matches the individual instrument volume sliders … so yummy).

So thanks to that and a few hours of getting us to playing with MIDI tracking and notation, here is my song (in MP3 format) I wrote for this week’s piano lesson. Nothing too fancy. Just 15 measures and it had to be in the key of ‘C’. Enjoy.

Here is my newest painting, done for our kitchen at the 2324 Apartment. Oh how I love drawing monsters … really if it wasn’t for me already wanting to own a pet bear, I would want a pet monster. :)

This week is, of course, part of the wonderful tradition that Jodie and I started of celebrating “Birth-Week”. This year, it looks like besides my actual Birthday party tomorrow, the main celebration of each day is new episodes of our favorite shows (Heroes on Monday, Veronica Mars on Tuesday, LOST on Wednesday, The Office on Thursday) … and, obviously, finishing off the week with our band playing for IMPACT on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. :)

If you watched any of the new episodes, let me know what you think … and if you are gonna be out for IMPACT, be sure to pick up one of our shirts … they came in today and I know I want one.

Oh I wrote the piano music for my first song today … I still am working on the words, but I will try to put into Garageband soon, so you can all have a listen ;)

I know I haven’t posted anything of significance in a good long while, and I apologize for that. I am still working through things in life … including not sleeping well and waking up completely depressed … but things should get better soon (hopefully).
For now, I’m keep it nice and simple, just until I get back in the habit of posting every day again. So, along with this colorful commentary on pop culture and city art that I did yesterday, I will also leave you with 10 of My Most Favorite Things right now:

1. Love - (as in Jodie, but it is also what I call my new iPod Nano.)


2. Nintendo Wii - (oh Santa … do you make February deliveries?)


3. Guitar Hero (I and II)


4. U2


5. VH1 Top 20 Countdown


6. Straight-edge paint brushes


7. Friends - (as in mine … not the show)


8. Kenny Beers Band


9. Piano lessons - (from Jodie)


10. Remote Desktop Connection - (because I really do hate using a PC ;))

This morning began like so many recent ones:

1. Me waking up late, even though I really needed to wake up early and work on Illustrative designs, or at least warm-up sketches.


2. Me feeling completely unrested.


3. Me feeling totally useless and definitely somewhat depressed.


4. Me rushing to get ready for work at FCC.

I think I am finally beginning to realize why this is happening, and I think that the realization is along the lines of me not being where I need to be in my current FCC job … but, like several wise people have recommended, I think I will pray about it some more before I make any decisions.

The day got better, thanks to a fun-filled lunch with Jodie and my finding out that I still had a bit of leeway on some of my projects. Hanging with the crew a bit tonight was also beneficial. I am sure things will get better and stay that way … I am just being impatient and restless, I guess.

Speaking of design work, why check out that sweet looking piece up there that I just finished for a (maybe) shirt for the Kenny Beers Band and the upcoming IMPACT football tourney in February. Woot woot! Speak up and let me know what you think. It is based on a request directly from Kenny, but I also saw it fitting so well with this scripture from one of my recent devotions:

“I [God] m the one who looks after you and cares for you. I am like a tree that is always green, giving my fruit to you all through the year” (Hosea 14:8, NLT).

As part of my many New Year’s resolutions, I decided to cook 3 new recipes each month … one Chinese, one Japanese and one Mexican. Last night’s recipe was sushi!
Thanks to help with ingredients and instruction from Missy, shopping with Jen (at a local Asian Market … so much fun), and cooking with Jill and Josh, along with everyone else, last night’s party went amazingly well.

There was a great blend of friends, food and feng shui. Along with both the crab and all-veggie sushi, we had some of my Mom’s yummy stir fry with white rice, spicy teriyaki chicken from Josh, and of course, delicious chocolate-chip cookies from Amy P. Chopsticks were provided by our local P.F. Chang’s and Hunan take-out.

There wasn’t really a specific recipe we used (basically Missy’s past experience instead), but there are plenty of good ones on Google. It is super easy and a decent amount of ingredients makes a lot of sushi. Why not go ahead and try it … it’s lots of fun!

So while I was walking to the Chapman Center to mail a package to my sis up in Wisconsin yesterday, I realized that a manila envelope’s name was probably derived from a combination of “mustard” and “vanilla”. Mustard+Vanilla = Manilla. Interesting, eh? How come we don’t call it a “vustard” folder or a “mustanilla” piece of paper instead?

And did you know that vanilla extract (like the kind I use in the homemade pancakes I made for everyone yesterday :)) has a hefty percentage of alcohol in it? Or that it is probably one of the worst tasting things you have ever put in your mouth? Gahhhh! Just wait till you see the pictures. Who knew something that smelled so delicious could put leave you with such an awful disposition and making faces like an old whiskey grandpa!

What are your suggestions for some semi-harmless, but totally repugnant foods that would be great consequences in a good game of Dare Spoons*?

*Dare Spoons is a slight variation on the card game “Spoons”, with the added twist of having to suffer a group-decided punishment if you reach your limit of lost rounds (i.e. spelling out S-P-O-O-N).

And oh yeah … peep the AMAZING pin that Rick gave me yesterday … a vintage Apple IIe! Simply wonderful.

Just in time for all of your New Year’s Resolutions, if you’re interested in reading the Bible in its entirety this year, might I recommend The One Year Bible? Not only does it look nice, have a matching Google Homepage widget for convenience, you can also listen along with each passage.

My favorite part? The guy reading along sounds alot like Sideshow Bob! Seriously … it’s the best!

I haven’t been sleeping well lately. I am not really sure of the reasons, but I do know I am feeling the effects. The past couple of days I have slept at least 8 hours, if not more, and I feel so much more tired than when I went to bed … which is ridiculous for me, when I have gone on just a few hours of sleep for days before. I am not sure what the problem is, but I know it is behind me not getting to do all the things I want to and it is definitely making me feel totally unaccomplished. Especially in this new year. I have so many new plans and goals and can’t wait to share them with more people (like you) and get them all under way, but I haven’t had the energy or early mornings recently to do so.

So if you are wondering what is to blame for my lack of posting, art, and whatever else I am failing in … blame that. I hope I get the chance to talk about the last couple of days later on, because they have been great. I just don’t feel it right now. That’s about it for tonight, but if you have any suggestions on why this might be or ways for me to get some better sleep, do share.

** The ninja is for Jenn … something from what we were discussing a few days ago. Go Go Karate Kelly! Can you point out all of the weapons? ;)**

**Note: This is the second version of this post. Why, you might ask? Let’s just say that staying up late, typing in a comfy cozy bed and feeling drowsy while waiting to talk to a friend on iChat aren’t the best combination for blogging. At some point while typing in my sleep, I managed to lose the first version. Oh well.**

So Christmas morning was most wonderful this year. Not only did we get to enjoy some yummy Chesser “breakfast puffs” (quite delicious), but there were stockings for all and plenty of presents and gifts to sedate our materialistic urges. ;)

As you might have guessed from my little sketch, I am very happily back among the “I own an iPod” cult (thanks, Jodie!) and what a good cult it is. The dues are cheap, the poison is long-lasting and you get to name your own vice. I call mine “Love”, after the scripture from Psalms that Jodie had engraved for me. And since I knew an iPod might be among one of my presents, I requested one of the (Product)RED ones, so that I could participate in their worthy campaign (My gift will provide anti-retroviral (AVR) treatment for one month to a person living with HIV).

There were plenty of other gifts and giftcards and fun toys (and some pictures of geeky me growning up too … thanks Mom! ;)), but “Love” was of course my favorite. Coming in second were probably the Prismacolors (also from Jodie) and 3D drawing paper (cuz I miss the Wilsons) and then the iTunes card (I’ve been making a Buy Me! playlist for awhile now). Oh and of course the yummy yummy cookies from my Great Grandmother’s recipe that my little sis made me! So delicious.

Jodie liked what I got her (every boy can relate that it is always good when those gifts go over well :)) and the rest of the morning did result in some Nintendo Wii fundage, which is very exciting.

So, tell me. What did you get for Christmas? What were the expensive things and what were the personal things that meant alot to you? Ohh and what was your favorite Holiday song this year? Mine was “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” by U2. Peep the music video on YouTube … so 80’s amazing!

Ga’ ah! The last real post was on the 13th and now it is the early morning of the 27th … but I am not in the mood to look back or anything. There were some good things that happened and plenty of crappy ones, too … but I am okay with letting it all fade to grey and not really dwell on the past 14 days. Sorry.

I am ready to get back into it again, though … so, yay.

**Here is a small something I did for that great girl Michelle a few days ago … just to get us all back into the swing of things.**

Seeing you cry,
hurts me inside.
It cuts deep at my heart,
and bleeds emotions I can’t hide.

As you trade your wisdom for fear,
you turn your face down.
There is anger and ire …
See, they pattern your frown.

Your tears well up,
as your eyes go red.
I truly want to hold you,
but longing stares must suffice instead.

I feel your pain
and it hurts me too.
Please consider that if you left me,
All that I enjoy of me, would leave with you.

(… night passes …)

Awake and find delight,
Smile at morning making night’s end.
Today is fresh and unstained,
and I’m still here to be your friend.

Isn’t it the worst feeling when you realize you can’t leave a good enough tip for a waiter/waitress that has been exceptionally nice and attentive? I hate when that happens. It instantly makes me feel so cheap, even if I know the problem is a lack of funds and not a parsimonious outlook on my part. Agh!

Today was so very yummy. Leftover chinese food for lunch, while watching old episodes of The Office; Chinese food for dinner with Jodie, Michelle and Courtney and then opening presents with the whole girlie gang from 421 (and the boys too); Rockstars and cherry Cokes for staying up late at Denny’s with Missy and Beth; and finishing off an Amazing Pizza logo for Jimison. YUMMY!

What are some things you would be doing and/or buying right now if you had more money? How much would it take for you to be able to get that “really amazing” thing? If it actually doesn’t cost that much, what is holding you back?

Gah! I am so sick of the emotional crap. My Saturday and Sunday should have been better, but they weren’t. The bitter taste of arguments and depression and frustration is still in my mouth and it leaves no room for me to focus on the few positive things that happened. Let’s just skip these couple of days and look forward to one last week with all of my FCC friends before the long and lonely holiday break.

** P.S. - This monster is on my backpack. I asked him if he would mind being trapped there for a while and his response seemed positive … I think.”

Work just dragged on and on, but chinese for lunch with friends was pretty fun. The lady at Great Wall just seems to get funnier everytime we go. We got Missy’s sweater finished and it is probably the most wonderfully tacky thing ever … and I discovered how incredibly difficult it is to not laugh out loud when *someone* compliments something you know is a total joke. Ah well, what can you do?

Friday night was most amazing, with me again getting to go with Tyler to a show … again to see a couple of bands I don’t really know and again being totally blown away by the goodness. This time it was the Death + Taxes Show at the HOBO (House of Blues, Orlando … hehe) and it was Appleseed Cast and Copeland playing. Owen as the opening act wasn’t too shabby; I really didn’t care for Acute, except maybe the piano/keyboard portions.

Appleseed had such a phenomenal sound and Copeland … well, Copeland definitely surprised me. Back when good ol’ D Marrs drummer, John Bucklew joined them, I wasn’t a fan at all of their music. But what they brought tonight was very enjoyable and moving … though it is entirely possible that my opinion was swayed by the piano sounds from Aaron Marsh during most of the show. ;)

Tyler and I finished off the night with some Rockstar and a few late night vodcasts … DL.TV and The 1UP Show to be specific. Oh and his new Brian Regan DVD. Very fun.

** P.S. - Before I forget, the rabbit there is for Vanessa. That’s right. Vanessa … that cool girl that we don’t get to hang out with anymore, except over iChat or the phone. Yay for a very Merry Bunny Christmas! **

Sometimes love isn’t all that you want it to be. Sometimes you do things that provoke anger and frustration from what you thought for certain was love. Occassionally you find yourself tired, alone and needing someone’s help to put out the fire you started with ill-conceived words and misplaced emotions. We all make mistakes; in life and in love. It happens. Sometimes, a lot. Just thank God that He gives us friends that are willing to stay on the line and let us get out our frustrations and give us a chance to cry/vent/share/whatever.

A friend loves at all times,
And a brother is born for adversity.

Psalms 17:17

**P.S. - A keen eye will notice that I added a new link to the sidebar … The Gross Uncle. I have been following Grant Gilliland’s blog for a few days now … from when he was posted on Drawn. His stuff has consistently made me crack a smile (if not shudder a bit from the silliness) and I love that aspect of certain art styles … the way emotions are conveyed and received. Check him out if you get the chance. **

So … inspired by something great I read on the new blog by Ale Garza (inker and artist extraordinare), probably the best thing I did today was head over to Panera Bread and sit and draw the people around me and whatever came to mind … in hopes of meeting someone new with an interest in my work/art in general. It was lots of fun and I am sure to do it again really really soon. Just the idea of drawing with no real purpose other than to meet a new friend and share a conversation with them is so very appealling and meaningful to me.

This is one of the sketches that came out of that. I am not really sure why or what exactly it means, but it is me and I am okay with that. Probably the most enjoyable part of the evening art-wise were the sketches I did with the softer lead pencils on neighboring peoples face sketches. It allowed alot of expression with minimal need for details.

The rest of today is kinda fuzzy to me … there were plenty of fun things, but definitely this was the highlight. Later!

An apt name for a post that should really be about all the things I didn’t do at work today. What with it being “Take Your Daughter-esque Friend to Work Day”, how could I not have been distracted and less productive … ;).

Truthfully, I got quite a bit done at work today … it is absolutely amazing how well your mind can work on zero hours of sleep and just one cup of coffee. “Why an all-nighter”, you may ask? Who knows! But nothing is better than getting caught up on design work while talking for 7 or so hours on iChat (that is AIM for you, Bethie!).

Plenty of people were in and out of the office today … some of whom were nice enough to contributed to the beginning of my sketchbook collages, which makes me very happy. Thanks in part to the great post of David Kilpatrick’s sketchbook on Drawn yesterday, I am now so excited about filling each page with as much art and color as possible, especially of the mixed media kind. And the idea of a sketchbook that is overflowing with items and artwork inspired by a roadtrip or tour of a foreign country sounds so incredible!

Chick-fil-A was pretty bomb-diggity tonight (don’t ask … I think it is the ice-dream going to my head … literally … right though my ears, Missy!) and if you happen to be one of the many in attendance at our Chick-fil-A’s grand re-opening coming up soon, you might just get a hug from a really cool guy in a cow suit :) … hehe. There was plenty of other fun had tonight … involving hair dye and frosting and Rockstar and possibly me forgetting about Amanda, but those are just great memories of a well-spent youth.

I hope you like the piece for today. It started out pretty innocently but evolved into something a bit grander, I think. Jack’s Mannequin and “I’m Ready” weren’t necessarily the inspiration, but they are the dedication. Enjoy.

** You know … that was just supposed to be something cute for Jodie … I don’t want to hear anymore jokes about the snowman asking to be licked … silly kids. **

It sounds all wrong coming out of my fingers, onto the keyboard and into my little blog window, but it seems as though today was really wonderful. Full of easily-accomplished tasks at work, plenty of friendly visits to my cupcake-scented office (mmmhmm … yummy fat kid candle), and just enough free time for me to catch up on some artist blog-diving (thank you so much for Drawn!, John Martz) and even a quick sketch or two.

Since I am lacking a good in-depth thought for today’s post, let’s fall back to the basics (which are still plenty interesting). Name one thing that you love to do in your spare time – something that you consider your leisure pursuit and diversion from life. Now, how did you become interested in this activity? Who was/is your inspiration? Do tell.

Oh and if you find yourself with as many free moments as I did today, and are in need of some quality skate distractions, check the photos and videos that Element has posted from their Summer of Endurance. Ohhh, I miss my board … freakin’ pop shovits and broken trucks! Maybe Santa will leave me some money for a new one under my Charlie Brown christmas tree. Eh. Maybe not.

Starting out amazing and ending on the same high note, today was a definite improvement from one week ago. Hardly any of the emotional nonsense, and an overflowing amount of enjoyment with friends, church and art.

I haven’t had the opportunity to play my bass in quite a bit (though IMPACT is on the horizon ;)), so playing in the worship band helped to set my mind right a bit more. A verse that stood out to me today while I was playing:

Delight yourself in the LORD;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the LORD,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it.
He will bring forth your righteousness as the light
And your judgment as the noonday.

Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him …
Psalms 37: 4-7

The message that Lyle Bundy shared had so many relevant words; it was about “silence” and how we easily we can miss what God is saying/where he is leading because of the noise we fill our lives with. Here are a few points/phrases from that:

• In Matthew 1:23, we learn that the name given to Jesus, “Immanuel” means “God with us”.


• Noise is the equivalent of “spiritual suffocation”.


• “If noise fills the air, we don’t have to think.”


• Often we attempt to fill the void we feel with people and friendships … because we fear being alone.


• It isn’t from inside the thunder or the raging wind that we hear God … it is out of the silence that comes the “still small whisper of God.” (1 Kings 19). Lyle compared the whisper heard by Elijah to the proclamation given to Mary … “God is with us”.


• Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, speaking about the devastation in his country, once said “Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this is happening.”


• C.S. Lewis, in Surprised by Joy, said: “You must picture me alone in that room in Magdalen, night after night, feeling, whenever my mind lifted even for a second from my work, the steady, unrelenting approach of Him whom I so earnestly desired not to meet. That which I greatly feared had at last come upon me. In the Trinity Term of 1929 I gave in, and admitted that God was God, and knelt and prayed: perhaps, that night, the most dejected and reluctant convert in all England.”

The rest of the afternoon/night was filled with fun times hanging out with Jodie, Erin, Michelle, Courtney, Jennifer, Matt and Tim … chips and pizza, Anastasia, Veronica Marrs, india-ink tattoos and so much more. I even managed to get to bed before 1 am … very nice.

How well do you know your iTunes Library? I think I know mine pretty well, but I am still finding tracks that either don’t have names or I have never even heard. Like last month, I totally discovered some great songs by Coldplay that I didn’t even know were in there. Just today, I found/re-discovered songs by The All-American Rejects, Bayside, and Bright Eyes. So much fun.

Today was a pretty laid-back Saturday, full of not much else than lounging around, sketching, inking, coding and all that other good-time easy stuff. I made some minor updates to the Illustrative site, but no biggies … hopefully more to come soon. Spent plenty of time with Jodie, too … shopping, hanging out and watching some much needed Simpsons. Lots of fun and the perfect way to chill-lax’ from this week.

On Wednesday/Thursday, I took a few more shots of Melissa’s shoes … click through to Flickr and check them out. I really love the way they turned out … they are going to be so great for her upcoming trip to Amsterdam. And her mentioning their likeness/relevance to John 15:1-7 made it all that much more meaningful.

“I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.”

** Fun little Holiday Color-Me! for all the kids. Enjoy and be sure to use plenty of funky colors! **

Plenty of great things happened today … like D-Group, which went really well, even if only 4 people showed up … or lunch with Jodie and Matt (mmhmm for yummy Chinese food!) … but what I enjoyed most was hanging out with and talking to friends that I hadn’t had the chance to in quite some time. Eric, Jodie, and I spent some fun times watching more of the Death Cab for Cutie videos and we got to talk about ministries and life over some delicious Chipotle burritos. Walking around the Loop, we met up with more friends from FCC and Gold Coast Christian Camp and enjoyed a few minutes with them. Later on, Adam and Vanessa (she is cool … see? Now you have a reason to read this post!) gave us a call and we got to catch up a bit. And of course, I got to end the day late into the morning, in my most favorite way … chatting it up online until my eyes couldn’t stay open any longer.

*Sigh* Time spent with friends is so wonderful. Oh, and getting a new pair of jeans, a few new inking brushes and a fresh sketchbook always make things better! :)

Maybe it’s all this emotional junk that seems to be going on right now or maybe it’s just that Jack’s Mannequin has been dominating my playlist lately … I don’t know … but I am falling in love with the piano.

Andrew McMahon is a bit of a hero of mine right now and tonight’s Night of Noel at FCC only further re-enforced my growing love in that sound. Uplifting to my current state of mind and so sweet in my ears, it is just the best right now. It’s almost enough to make me want to learn to play, just so I can be a part that sound.

Here are some of the piano rockers I am currently listening to:

• Jack’s Mannequin


• Death Cab for Cutie


• The Rocket Summer


• The Early November


• Waking Ashland


• Forever Changed

Do you have any that you like? What is favorite sound in music right now?

Today is the first in many that I feel like I actually might want to talk about my day and not slip into a mire of lyrical prose or drown myself in fountain of memories.

What started out as a lazy, but promising Wednesday (what with no work and nothing to do in the morning except wake up and eat breakfast), it progressed into a bit of a disappointing afternoon. Apparently both the Orlando Museum of Art and the Mennello Museum of American Art close earlier than I had originally understood – definitely ending our art trip before it even began. Darn you Museum people and your amazing work-hours (including Mondays off)!

It might have been a day off-of-work for naught, had it not been for some resourceful thinking on Missy’s part. Not only was there art to admire and critique, exotic cuisine to enjoy, but even time for wandering among Orlando’s finest fashions … eh, sort of.

And of course, the icing on the day’s cake was getting to watch all of Death Cab’s The Direction music videos. Each was unique and wonderfully made … with my favorite probably being “Different Names for the Same Thing”.

So … when your favorite places to go for art and culture aren’t closed, what are they? Where are they? How did you find out about them?

Need to Cogitate
There are certain emotions that life evokes,
that grab at you hard, in strangling chokes.
Ones blatant, and rude and horribly coarse.
They are painfully real, fully void of remorse.

Sometimes those emotions give way to end,
to passing of life and eternal rest.
But with love in your life, and side by a friend,
You will find you aren’t as wounded, not nearly, at best.

This is just another chapter in the story of a boy,
a man’s attempt at freedom and purpose found.
It doesn’t have to end, flawed without joy.
It can have hope. It can have love. Reasons to resound.

** P.S. This photo is of an amazing group painting a few of us worked on over the last couple of days for my FCC office. Click through to the Flickr to see the rest of the shots and details. **

Melodies for Disaster

(verse)
Here are some instructions
on how easily to find;
find yourself sitting
beside your darkness of mind.

Take off the paper clothes,
remove your heart from chest.
Leave behind only
what’ll feed the pain the best.

Play now a song
from a playlist marked “For Death”.
Turn high the volume
and take your last breathe.

(chorus)
These are the notes I write.
These are the words of song.
They all lead me down,
under the pathway of dawn.

They are all the words
The ones stuck in my head
I can never speak one,
so I’ll bleed them out instead.

(verse)
When you find yourself weeping
from the hurt you feel inside
speak the word “friend”,
and let hold of your knife.

Even if the cuts
fill you with life;
You’re bleeding all your friends,
along with your wife.

Take a moment now.
Turn down the volume, son.
God is right here
And the day is surely won.

(chorus)
These are the notes I write.
These are the words of song.
They all lead me down,
under the pathway of dawn.

They are all the words
The ones stuck in my head
I can never speak one,
so I’ll bleed them out instead.

(verse)
Do you feel yourself now,
in a huddle, along with friends?
Do you remember the way
you use to smile at them?

Cling tight to hope,
So the pain will start to mend.
Reach out for love,
and God will bring a friend.

Now sleep if you can,
but open up your eyes.
No one drowns with friends.
We can all hear your cries.

(chorus)
These are the notes I write.
These are the words of song.
They all lead me down,
along the pathway of dawn.

They are all the words
The ones stuck in my head
Be real and speak “love”.
It’s just what God would have said.

I don’t have anything to show for Sunday … I only offer this short poem instead:

A day that begins so good,
should never leave the night
so very dark.

This bright morning
should never have become
something so terribly stark.

Finding a friend –
fills life with worth.
Losing a friendship –
tears worth from life.

A day that ends like this,
so near hopeless and so ready to die;
deserves to be strangled
with its own cause for strife.

So you’re heading on a pretty stinkin’ long roadtrip to see family for the holidays. What do you bring? I mean, its gonna be like 6 hours, so the usual “License Tag State” Game is out. How do you plan to spend your time? What fills your backpack? Wanna peak into mine?

• Art box full of pencils, markers, erasers, rulers, whiteout, etc. The essentials for putting anything on paper.


• Plenty of paper (duh!).


• Prayer journal.


• MacBook (I mean … com’n … this is my little pearl baby here … where doesn’t it go with me?)
  
  


• Computer games. Michelle and I agree … the best is getting the old skool ones on there (i.e. PacMac, Tetris, Street Fighter, Dragonball Z … etc.)


• Full iTunes Library. It doesn’t hurt to have plenty of options. Mine included videos from SNL, The Office, The Simpsons, and plenty of Music Videos


• Mix Tapes. Or really, playlists. I had a sweet new Death Cab for Cutie one from Missy … made my trip so much more amazing!


• DVDs. I brought Season 4 of The Simpsons, Lemony Snicket’s S.O.U.E., Spider-Man 2, You Got Served, A Knight’s Tale, and A Goofy Movie. You can never have too many options.


• AC/DC Inverter. Because it sucks when your Mac runs out of juice mid-trip.


• Magazines. This is kinda the de-facto standard, but you should never give up on the basics.
  
  


• Snacks. Obvious reasons.


• Toiletries. Because nobody likes smelly roadtrip buddies.

Any roadtrips coming up in your near future? I would love to hear about ‘em.

**P.S. - The One Dark Summer album artwork is for the FREE Digital Sampler that Tooth & Nail put out this past summer. At some point they updated it and now it includes over 30 free songs from some really great bands. Some stuff is harder than I normally enjoy, but there are plenty of my favorites on there. Check it out … I mean, you can never go wrong with free, right?

Oh man … nothing feels better than sleeping in and not being a part of all those crazy kids and their silly Black Friday shopping. I mean, it’s cool that Jodie, Ana, and David got up at 4am and hit it up for some great deals (What’s up, Margie? Missing out two years in a row? You’re so slacking!), but I mean … we did watch TONS of the The Office until late/early and I was very thankful for the sleep.

My favorite moments on a great post-Thanksgiving day? Lunch at Sonic with the whole fam, which was topped off by a sweet Thumb Wrestling Tournament … which I almost won (darn you Dad and your quick thumbs!). Another … Salvation Army shopping later on. It’s only one of my favorite things to do, and you can’t go wrong with the a majority of the Cortez clan in tow. Now if only I could have gotten both of those motorcycle helmets for under 20 bucks. They so would have come in handy for the bicycle javelin competition I am throwing this week … ;). And ending the day by barely sleeping so you can chat with friends online is always the best way to go!

So tell me. What is one of your