Photoshop collage

Here is one of the multitude of Photoshop collages I will do over the next two years. God help me.

Kites, jobs (or lack thereof), relocation

Quick updates on the fly:

Tomorrow, Thursday, April 26, 3-6pm at Cesar Chavez Park in Berkeley there will be an amazing feat of kite flying. Students in our department have organized a great afternoon to make and launch kites. Prizes for person most able to maneuver. It shall be grand and amazing. We're closing the waterfront side of the park for OUR purposes ONLY, which is to drink free beer (hopefully), let loose on the kites, and maybe even play some frisbee when our kites fall apart in the wind. Throw in some cartwheels and photo opts while you're at it. Kind of wish I had a real kite...

No job leads for me yet. I am concerned, yet optimistic. The game plan is to relocate to Portland for the summer unless something comes up down here. I figure I can live for free in Stumptown and I'm ripe for a change of venues, anyway. I will look for some kind of menial service work if all else fails (and it probably will!).

I just at a box of Good & Plenty. Now I will close up shop here at school, and wander down to catch the Door-to-Door shuttle.

Long day, but a good one.

Guilty

I've done this.

Some new clothes, a fundraiser, and Spats

Nothing has been happening on this blog lately, save for a rollerskating ipod-listening Ray Smuckles. My life has been kind of boring lately, just working a lot, and feeling depressed about not having a job. The big job I wanted in Portland I ended up not getting. Not really a huge surprise, but I was actually hopeful about it. So now I have to figure out a backup plan. I wish I had more time to devote to this.

Last weekend I went to crappy Bay Street and bought some clothes. They weren't fun clothes, but just some things that I needed - jeans, sweater, tank top, and pants. I was quite economical in procuring the items. I spent about $250 in 2 hours. I felt good that I got something out of it. Spending time shopping and coming home empty handed is more than frustrating.

Saturday night I am going to a fundraiser in the Haight in the honor of Kaye Bock. She was our graduate advisor who suddenly died in January. People have raised several thousands of dollars since then to create a memorial scholarship in her name to help graduate students entering the city planning program at Berkeley. There are several fundraisers happening over the next few weeks. I have a ton of work to do, but I am going to cut studio and go to this fundraiser. It should be a nice party.

Thursday night some of my classmates took one of the undergrads in our department out to celebrate his 21st birthday. It's kind of strange, but all of us old folks have a great friendship with him, and we were all really happy to take him out to the bars. I think he had a good time, despite the fact we ended up at one of the creepier bars ever, Spats on Shattuck. They have a very precise bartender and a list of some of the weirdest drinks ever. I give them points for detail and presentation. The "Fog-cutter" is such a drink that draws wows. It's a small snifter glass serves on top of a large mug with dry ice in it. It comes to the table billowing fog. What I didn't know about dry ice until last night is that it is actually a heat-expelling reaction. The dry ice gives off heat as it interacts with air. I had no idea about that one.

Inspire

Here is a picture of the lifestyle I lead:



This is what the studio appears like after we've had pretty much three all nighters. Before I took the picture, I removed about 8 beer bottles and pizza crusts from the table in the center.

Two new albums

I've been in studio since Thursday pulling all nighters in anticipation for this Wednesday's final pin up. We are designing some artist's studio spaces that are built out of containers. Yes, freight containers.

During all this worktime, we listen to music together as a group a lot. Today, for I swear no less than an hour, someone was playing possibly every Van Morrison song ever recorded. It was AWFUL. I cannot stand Van Morrison. Listening to him is the worst torture. Anyway, it was during this torture session that I stormed off to Rasputin Music. I needed some new music that I could concentrate on and hopefully turn up over the drone of Brown Eyed Girl. Ugh.

Here is what I settled on, both albums are really quite good:

Willy Mason, If the Ocean Gets Rough
I saw Willy Mason live almost two years ago. I predict he is taking off. Soar-ing.

Stars of Track & Field, Centuries Before Love and War (not sure I understand why it's called this....)

Gee, thanks.

Today I received a check in the mail from the IRS. Strange, seeing that this year I owed money and actually wrote the government a check about a month or so ago for upwards of $3000.

The check just came in a simple window envelope with no note attached (perhaps saying something like "Hey, idiot, you overpaid your taxes. We are graciously cutting a check, but watch it next time....."). But I really do not think I overpaid my taxes. The only thing I think it might be is the Earned Income Tax Credit option. Last year, I filed my taxes, got a small return back, and later received another check in the mail with a note that said they figured out I paid too much. But this check had no such note attached. Just a check for $495. I wondered if it was some check cutting scheme (like the one Bush did in 2001), but I asked around my apartment and none of my roommates had heard that was happening again.

Has anyone else received such checks from the IRS?

Portfolio redux

The title page is still hideous, but here are some of the rest of the pages from aforementioned portfolio.

Glam crack habit

Do any of you out there have a web site addiction that you are even a little shy about telling people about? Sure you do. The usual suspects are suicidegirls, CL, online betting, or online porn. My addiction is the stuff of grocery store checkout lines.

Yes, it's the online version of US magazine. I simply can't get enough. I check this stuff 2-3 times a day. I yearn for new entries. I love all the vicious camera angles and the dirty looks celebrities give me day in, day out.

First I started here.

Now I go here, too.

There is a whole smattering of celebrity blogs out there but these two tend to have the best stories and angle. My professor caught me looking at one of these a while back and I really had nothing to say for myself. These are the kinds of web sites that make celebrity life really the last thing you'd ever want to dabble in.