A merry unbirthday to me!

a href="http://pics.livejournal.com/grimdc13/pic/0000g41a/">

This is done by Bri-chan an awesome illustrator!! If only the Disney princesses at Disneyland could do this XD Enjoy the pic.

Sorry I've been long absent everyone I've been very busy with things.

Oh I had an awesome belated b-day present!! It was worth the wait, My aunt took me out to eat at the Blue Bayou Restaurant, (it's the One in Pirates of the Carribean ride). My Aunt is such a Disney nut she even has Disney Dining on Speed Dial. YOu need reservations I strongly recommend, and it's worth waiting for a waterside seat. We went there at lunch when it was packed, but its almost empty at dinner. I had a montecristo and I got chocolate mouse for dessert. Really good.

We didn't go on alot of rides, I'm still recovering from having my back adjusted and my aunt is a senior citiaen , but we went on Pirates, Pinocchio, Peter Pan, and It's a small World. I love to look at things rather than just go on the rides. Next we went to big thunder Mountain Ranch for Santa's reindeer round up where decorated cookies. And then I took pics with the real Laplander reindeer and not the caribou or elk you see in the movies, REAL REINDEER are compact and short but they can haul twice the wieght.

I din't get a picture with Santa, when I considered it again the line was longer. We stayed for a magician and a yodeling session. Then we went to see the Pardoned white house turkey "pumpkin". WHere I heard some one exclaim:" hooray for Vegetarianism." Umm vegetarianism? No this is a white house tradition lady and being a vegetarian had nothing to do with it...more like Hooray for Animal Rights Activists , you mean!! Sorry,I'd rather take action and make my words count for something. Like the hubbub over one elephant at the LA zoo getting a 3 mile sanctuary that cost millions of dollars and activists say it isn't enough..where is it supposed to go Running through the wilds of Downtown LA or thrgh Griffith park. THe Elephant is captive, not wild, is tame, it would not survive outside or in that zoo. My best guess is to give to the San Diego zoo who has a an exisiting herd at the wild animal park!!! Rather than all this talk about how the elephant should be free, not in the zoo and in the wild..wake up an BE REALISTIC people!! Sorry for the Rant , but this just happened to piss me off!!! Also why spend millions of dollars for one exhibit, why not pump that in to the welfare for the poor and homeless. Humans need it more than the neglective zoo. THe best bet is to get that Elephant to the San Diego Wild Animal Park.

Okay now back to Disneyland, the best bet to get around is taking the train, so nice..not to be run over by strollers. Or anger Mothers who are saving placers in line for their families on the parade route..well sorry.. i'm coming through lady!! I saw the Christmas parade and took lots of pictures..which I hope to upload in the next day or two. My batteries died and I'm recharging them ovenight.

Oh the lights are so purty!! THe Castle at night is spectacular! and we got a ride on the fire engine!!

OKay SWAG count: (Free lunch, Free Cookie, Free hot coco) Free Trading Pin million dreams with Donald, Happy Birthday button to put on my Dream ears. THe only one thisng I did pay for only cost a dollar, I collect the smashed coin tags, I got one with Stitch!. I also saw a real cute Stitch pin, I wanted with Stitch as Yoda, next time I go I'll buy or trade for it. I think you get it at tomorrowland, near Star Tours. Oh not to forgot Lots of photos!! My Aunt wants to put them on a cd to print out at the store...oh wow..how long has it been since I last got film developed or pics printed out??? I've been using a digital camera for the last four years!! ^^;

I'll come back and edit with pics! But I truly had a awesome belated b-day outing.

Cool tip , if you feel like it go to city hall and say it's your b-day and get the happy b-day button! Oh and a big thing next year..You can get in free on your b-day if you register here:

http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/disneyparks/en_US/WhatWillYouCelebrate/disneyland/index?name=CelebrationsDLRFreeOnYourBirthdayPage

So cool beans!!

Twilight Twailer

Twilight Twailer! No it isn't a lisp it's short for twilight trailer! The final one!
Looking good so far!



Twilight HD Exclusive Trailer

Home again and BE update

Well it's been three weeks since I relocated back to So. Cali. and and it's amazing that I was able to find a place for most of my stuff!! So the the getting settled part is over, but I'm still in a new area and I'm still trying to learn the layout of Surf City whenever I get a ride from my friends. They have been driving me around town to get grocieries, dineout, movies, and they come to my place for swimming. We've been working out in the pool for 2 hours a day so far, doing laps and and underwater challenges.I have a tan, a real tan..i been so pale all my life... my skin color is weird did i get rolled in dust oh, wait i got tanned! @_@ Wonder boy got me in the head playing the ever dyslexic verion of "corma lopo(marco polo) (where we say a phrase or name that comes to our heads when one is it) and I have sore from where his finger nails tagged me on my forehead. I scratched myself on the upper lip during breast stroke laps. And during backstroke laps i kept hitting the edge with my wrists >_<. I had to set up reference targets that told me when I was getting close to the edge to do turns or stop. With backstroke , your almost blind and have to see out of your periphrial vision. Before this I haven't swam for a long time, but I want to make up for lost time before the water gets too cold in the late fall. My goal is to get my body toned, tanned and get the extra lingering weight off.

But when all the fun is over and done with and I have a day off to do job search related stuff..I just don't know what to do with myself. It's annoying to want to get a job but having to fill out the stupid paperwork in my untidy scrawl. >_< I already got resumes can't I do that instead of filling out applications?

No sense in putting off much longer need to get some income flowing in to my coffers, so I can keep my place and pay my loans and paint.

Oh my aunt has been very nice to me and the arrangement is cool too. A hands off approach is just the rest I needed since this whole summer began. It's also really nice to be with friends again after summer of reclusive isolation. It really feel great to be back "home" again.

My family had abig b-day bash over laborday weekend and everyone came. My Mom was so skinny now since her gastric bypass, even more than when I saw her in December. She's starting to look her age now with out the extra fat to plump out the wrinkles. She looked weird to me, 140 lbs less.

Everybody had a good time. we even had a good time finding an obscure cartoon flea's song from "merrie meldies an ITCH IN TIME..*sings* "There'll be food around the corner , Food Around the corner, food around the corner for me, alleluia brother! Food around the corner for me!" You really can find almost anything on youtube!

B.E. update : For those who want to know about how the graphic novel is going, it stopped production for most of the summer due to the move, but I am going to do a major rewrite/redraw of chapter one. I feel that my narritve is better for a novel than to storyboard it just yet in pictures and if that's what it takes to finish the story the way I know it can be, then that's what I'm going to do. I thought about just illustrating scenes and making it young adult novel, but we'll see. Thanks to my mentor, I have more people to bounce off ideas on. I feel the beginning just jumps too fast and doesn't allow time to develop for the characters just right in the bookworld. I thought I wanted to fast forward to the modern day of the real world, but it wasn't working, my brain keeps shouting wrong, wrong! So I might write out the rest of the novel first and then redraw the layouts for the chapters I have so far. By then It will be crafted into the story that was meant to be.

Surf city Here I come

I haven't had internet in a month and a half , so that's why I've been so absent.
A month and a half ago I had been making plans to move back to So Cali. To be nearer to friends and family while applying for work. But now I arrived , have bought some furniture, and am now almost done unpacking. So far the move has cost me around $2000.00. I shipped my stuff by FEDEX,and it costs so much less than it would to hire a mover or rent a uhaul. My boyfriend and I shopped around online and Fedex was undercutting evn usps for cheapest rates for 100 lbs.

Set called and is accompanying his mother to France. Wondering if she wants to go to Euro Disney, his mom wants to see all the parks.

Well I spent the first couple of days hanging out with artgoddess and her hubby, Wonderboy. We went to see Iron man at the dollar theater, it was so much fun to watch. "Yeah, I can fly. B)" my favorite line. As WB would put it it was either an engineering wet dream or a engineering boner. XD ILM really outdid themselves though , especially the holgaphic interfacing...reminded me of all those HP computer is personal again commercials, where they show the hands moving themselves around.

We also ate out at a few restaurants , one is Gyaku, a japanese restaurant where you grill your own food on a hibachi set in your table. How they got the insurance for americans to do this i'll never know. But you go at happy hour and every can order a side of meat tips, vegetables, and a side for five bux each item. We also had green tea, water and dora yaki(taiyaki:panckes red beans with icecream) I had lychee icecream which tastes like rainbow sherbert with the fruit in the mix. we had a great time despite the lively noisy background, which makes it hard to hear anyone talking.

The next restaurant was silk Thai cuisine , we had "galloping Horses" crushed nuts, chicken, in a caramel like sauce over pineapple slices. Chicken Basil, Thai tea and Tom ka Khai. I accidentially got a chili in mine(i'm noit used to mine being hot) so I had to order another thai iced tea to wash it down with because of the neutralizing properties of the the half and half. After the movie we came back for mango sticky rice. I found out that they loved it just as much as I did. I 'm trying to perfect my recipe..it's taken me a few tries to get the rice mixture just right. Also my mago cutting skills are abysmal..it's tricky to peel the skin and cut the fruit to get the pit out with out totally cutting the fruit into a oblivion, for me. They didn't have any so we got the rice served with coconut icecream which also very good.



This weekend I spent 12 hours unpacking. Bought a bed and desk chair at IKEA, had two breakfasts at IKEA and Artgoddess spotted my new desk at in someone's driveway. The desk that I have now has 6 wood shelves to hold my system and it's periphrials and is comapact. My Bed is a unstained pine twin bed and my poofy black leather chair is just like the ones at Ringling. I spent half the day assembling furniture,unpacking books, dragging my new desk down the street, a strange sight for the neighbors, but I left the payment for the owners in the mailbox ( they said I could). A desk like mine would probably run for 70-80 bux, and I got for $30. It like it was made for me ...or a t least made by me.

What's next is once I get everything in , I going to job hunting and possibly apply for a substitute teaching credential. I figure to do this as a day job while free lancing as a illustator.

I hope to update my work on The butterfly Exchange soon !

Counting down to Moving Day

Some are counting down to the Olympics, I'm counting down until moving day. T-minus three weeks and counting until I relocate back to southern California, to begin my life after graduate school. With all the stress of getting packed, I had to deal with emotional baggage as well as material non functioning luggage.

I've had to put my graphic novel on hold until I get settled. Found out I'll have to leave all my mediums, inks and stuff here..so I'll have to get over there to get my gamasol/paint thinner sprays, and painting mediums and ink. They all need permits and so much hassle to ship even by ground,so I'm leaving them with my roomate. I hope I can ship my paints, there's no way I'm leaving so much here, it's way too expensive.

My family here doesn't understand why I'm leaving, but basically I'm homesick, even though my physical home is no longer there. I just want to be around the familiar for a while while I start my career. They don't understand my thought processs, nor do I want them to, but if I didn't give myself a deadline I would have stayed until the last minute. I don't know what to expect at my new place, but that's half the fun and is the extent of my adventurousness or unpreparedness. It's here in Florida, i was too long without my friends, and Calif. family.

I hope for the best. That's what I have to do, I just need a new start.

Manatee sighting

I was walking through my backyard of my condo complex which runs along a brackish (salt and freshwater) estuary called Whitaker Bayou when I saw at first looked way to big for a fish during low tide. It's hard to see in the murky brown water, but the Manatee luckly surfaced to come up for air. I estimate it's length to be about 5 1/2 feet..it was long as me. It's skin had the dark patina of the algae from the bayou.

This is my second sighting, the first time I saw a manatee was a year ago, it was a mother(cow) who had just given birth to her calf and was nudging it up for it's first breathe and swim lesson. That is something I will never forget and I was hoping that this female and the one I saw today were the same one. Females only give birth around every 2-3 years after reaching sexual maturity after 5 years(males only need 3 years) and it takes a year to raise the calf. They are getting killed faster than they can reproduce.

It is sad that our bayou has so many propeller driven boats, which is the leading cause of death death for manatees because their lungs are located along their backside and the fact they go slower than molasses. But despite their snoots I love these sea cows and to sea possibly without a horrible gash from a propeller on it's back or scar, makes me smile.

Another Day in Paradise

My boyfriend and I took photos of this awesome double rainbow after a thunderstorm. I keep getting reminded of the story of Noah's Ark in the Bible(or older tale of Gilgamesh meets Eurphishtim) and of God's promise not to flood the Earth, I just hope the people living alongside the Mississippi can see this and that the floods will subside soon. I just have to say"hey Look Hun..a rainbow!", and we ran out in the drizzle and snapped 40 pics. It was awesome as was the susets.

There is truly life outside of my apartment(ave q song) afterall!

We also found out we can have a pretty decent evening at the beach for under $6.00 spent on the bus, instead of paying money for a rental car. I don't drive a car, not because of choice, but by economics, but with the prices increasing everywhere, the bus is not a bad alternative. We went later in the evening, took the trolley to St. Armand's Key and then walked to the beach to swim in the warm waters of the gulf. After sunset we went out to dinner and managed because of slow service of the restaurant waitstaff to catch the last trolley/bus home. But It was such a great day, I needed the excercise and inspiration. Set and I kidded eachother about retirng here. We could have just pitched a tent right there, but I don't htink they would have allowed that. Oh well.

It's great having my boyfriend here, my real life Yori-sama! He felw here to keep me motivated and cheered up! He's great as a model or to roleplay with for character info. Although today we had to get refills for my depleted first aid kit, it's good to be prepared, my BF cut his fingertip off and and he had used up my supplies. ^^; I have a kit because of preparedness...I have a girlscout upbringing, my dad's a retired Paramedic and I'm a clutz, so I have to have one for home and one for school. I've even had the occasion to bandage up a classmate who cut her hand while scraping down her palette with a razor blade. The other big reason is to be prepared for either hurricane season in FLorida or Earthquakes in California or Diasters period. I feel safer having it nearby, because "you never Know."

Wag of my finger: Tokyo Pop! Unfair contract kill creator's rights

More backlash is coming out against publisher Tokyo Pop. I worked in trade books at my art college store and I found out Tokyo Pop was only a subsidiary of publishing giant Harper-Collins. I also found out from my favorite american mangaka that she had a three book deal, but they made her do two and she can't even buy her characters back to carry on with her storyline. I was also thinking of entering my baby into their rising stars of manga contest, not I'm considering selfpublishing. ($6,000) and no royalties/residuals. That doesn't even seem worth the work. I wish I can say I would boycott their manga, but if it was just me , it wouldn't make much of a difference, but if more people could boycott buying or not publishing TP to protest against unfair contracts, to fight or bring up a union type case against them to change their contracts. MAybe we can hope. I like to consider myself a realist though.

I'm posting a link to destryerzooey's artist blog ! Every comic artist should read this and get educated about heinous contract practices that don't respect creator's rights!:

http://destroyerzooey.livejournal.com/180842.html?view=3097194#t3097194

But what for those just starting out who don't have access or money for lawyers? Where do we go , to the pro bono attornies?

The tokyopop contract is as bad as the deviant art licensing agreement that I railed against long ago.

My character's mean alot to me and I don't think I can sell them without knowing that both the creator and the characters are in good hands. If that is not the case I shall publish it myself or go to a smaller indie publisher.

Update

These are just more of my random pics:





The first pic of the fairy is the result of a photshop tutorial to "coloring anime style." I wanted to learn skills over the Summer. I need to upgrade my versions of photoshop and painter though so I can do more cool tutorials in this awesome book!! Please get this book if you are a digital or going digital artist!! There's anime color, concept tips, graffit fonts etc .I found this microcenter and Ilove it but the projects can be harder if you don't have at least Photoshop cs or painter 9 or higher. I was working with adobe 6 and painter classic so it came as abit crude. The hardest trick with the anime color was the polygonal lasso in PS v.6. Some parts weren't even possble, the gradient or didn't exist in this version so I would used the source file elements and copy and pasted the stuff I couldn't reproduce. That's the main drawback. Here's the link:

" The Complete Digital Art Creative Handbook" retail $24.99

Found at: http://www.futurenet.co uk



The second picture is my sushi sculpture made with Super Sculpy polymer clay(funnest project ever). I'm doing another set to sell at my favorite sushi restaurants in town and leaving my cards down mainstreet. I'm still thinking about pricing considering sculpting food is very labor intensive. But $60.00 for a set or more depending on how many pieces. I would like to make more sushi sculptures and other foods like hamburgers and tacos food is so fun to do. My teacher really challenged me to make them look as real as possible. He was really challenging me this year and glad for it.

The third picture is of my senior thesis booth for my grahic novel : The Butterfly Exchange . My backboard display introduces the characters, location and fashions of renaissance/peach mountain period 1573-1603 Japan. The dolls or reference manneque\ins dressed up. and the rest of the decorations.


Another favorite book is called "Fantastic Folds, Oragami Projects by Andrew Stoker (not for beginners for intermediate and advanced folders." I gave this book to a friend and missed it so much I had to buy myself another copy. My favorite thing to make is the origami bags to make thankyou presents.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_b?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=fantastic+folds&x=0&y=0



Well come Monday, the work resumes on the job hunt and the graphic novel, I have to finish penciling chapters one and two. After the inking, toning, compositing process etc.. scripting the next story arc which will see the heroines trying to adapt to their new circumstances and meet their antagonists. I have to get get it up to 180 pages for submission. That's the size of a dime store romantic novel or should it 99 cents store nowadays?

I also thought about finishing up the first comic pages for the short science fiction story "of missing persons" by Jack Finney. I really love that story of a man struggling with an idea so hard to believe that a mysterious travel agency can show him how to get away from his life by transporting him to another world. But he'll only one chance and a one way ticket to find out. I liked the story so much I drew the bar in the beginng scene as Finney's Irish Pub. Iloved the period too for research the film Noir and New York City of the 1930's.

Until next post, This is Grim signing off.

I hope to to get it into an anthology.

I have have nothing to promote, but myself and my art!

That coming from a senior thesis gone awry. I caught up with the glitch to get my business and postcards, apparently I didn't enter my adress correctly into the second line, so that mistake has cost me 83.00 and alot of tears. And that wasn't an end to the badluck i hurt my shoulder bone or clavicle on my left arm. I just sprained my ankle last month...why is it when one part is almost healed I get hurt again? It hurts to type.

On the other hand I'm glad at least I got the kimono ahead of time, which paid off, because it was so red , no one could miss it HAHAA! What is with people though not wanting to stay and chat with me am I hovering too much do I scare people with the red kimono?I'm not ugly, I'm darn right cute, just I must exude a scary aura! >^w^<

The show was fun, but crowded, I just shoved my parents through and then went back when the crowds were thinner. My arm was hurting by that time..I just got the sling for it yesterday.

I'm having a vacation now , just till I get back my life after graduation..I need to catch up on sleep and after that I have to job hunt, but I can work on my comic book in the mean time.

Senior Thesis Show

Sorry it's been so long since I last blogged, but I was working on my senior thesis project. I'm almost done with school and ready to graduate from Ringling! hooray! Today we had the opening to the senior show for Illustration!

I will upload photos later, but to celebrate my project, a graphic novel called The Butterfly Exchang, which I wanted to explore doing my own *horror* manga..it's a dirty word at my school. To answer the FAQs Yes, I've never been to Japan, but I do speak it, write, eat live it , breathe it..it's an otaku/geek thing. Do I have to to go to Japan to write an authentic story? Yeah, let me just get back in my freakin' time machine and I'll go all the way back to the 16th century! No I can do just as good with good old fashioned research, periodicals, books, and reference photos. Yes, it's hot in my kimono!! You try to sit and stand perfectly straight for 3 hours. LOl i'm sarcastic of course. I got my kimono from a japanese student. No, I'm not part japanese, although I do look 1/4, cause of my eyes. I wanted to explore what I loved and I don't regret it, well onward!

Here's some of my concept pics of my samurai mario and luigi, Yori and yoshi, they two have to save a princess in peril!

I got to go play rockband and avoid DDR, I sprained my ankle on it a month ago, I wish they had para para paradise .

I'll update later.

Midterm

Top reasons why I procrastinate:

1.




Umm..well it's midterm into senior Thesis now, and that makes me really busy and distracted by stupid housework..I just can't work at home...oh why did we have to have a big tv?

But honestly music is helping i have a playlist now for character and mood. Am trying to script and enviornments done for my thesis story then I can go into thumbs and roughs.

For my story, I like to listen to Jpop, Techno buddist chant, taiko, shakuhachi, DDR music for both time periods of modern and ancient Japan. ..oh I'm getting ahead of myself..My thesis is the first chapter or possibly two of the graphic novel I hope to prodce..at least I know myself well..that I couldn't turn out a 168 page graphic novel in one semester and keep my sanity. 8 weeks left wish me luck.

snow !

I don't know about you guys, but for me yesterday was the first time I've seen a blizzard or snowfall ever! I've seen flurries, but never a good dusting of powder. Living in the south west and south east all my life..I've only experienced snow as many time as i have fingers on one hand. I've never had regular winters. So to come up to the NorthEast and experience Snow for New Year's was really an experience..despite nearly nearly getting hypothermia on New Year's Eve during Boston's First Night Celebration. My bf had to wrap me in blankets and made me a hot cup of milk to warm me up. We had so many layers on, but my legs were very numb and wouldn't warm up. But we had fun. Except the bands according to him sucked... I can't tell I'm not a musician like he is. So maybe next year he'll have a band formed and be playing then. who knows?

Back to snow..once evertyhting got covered, it was beautiful site seeing all the rooftops dusted, but then the rain had to come and wash some of it away. :(

we still have to make a snowman!! I know , but I only made one twice. I also want to go sledding and Iceskating too. And see the city from the top of the prudential bldg before I leave.

should I make New Year's Resolutions?

Should I resolve not to make resolutions?
These are in no particular order:

I know there are things I do want to do.

1) Pass my Thesis and Graduate. Write story, layout, pencil, ink, tone and get manga software.Get adobe creative suite 3 and good internet. Also cell phone upgraded.

2) pay off the overhead interest onj my loan.

3) get a day job to pay bills that will allow me to be flexible, so I can run off to conventions on weekends in the summer to promote work.

4) start venture as a side business.

5) save up for a used 1st car. I'm a third there.:)

6) lose 10 more pounds, I've lost 15 so far. I could use more toning at the school Gym. I cut alot of junk and walk around alot.

7)find a good creative job!

8) Move out of apartment..saty in Florida , go back to california, or Atlanta..possibly even Texas?

9)One day settle down and live with my bf together, no longer 1500 miles apart.

10) be a more responsive , caring person, instead apathetic me.

11) beat .hack// gu vol. 3 this year..I don't know if I can beat t in 3 day..probably just get through the sage tournament.

12)Spend spring break in Calif.

13) Go to a convention with bf and cosplay.

14)get those people to get back to making my costumes.

15) stop procrastinating!

16) finish Saiunkoku Monogatari anime.

17) lifetime Goal: get Published, get my books published. Wether graphic novels or children's books.