The escapades of summer vacation...

My summer vacation is rapidly coming to a close. Instead of three weeks off like I had at the beginning of the summer I am only getting two weeks and two days. Not that big a deal because by the end of three weeks I go a little stir crazy but this time I feel like it has gone by way too fast. I didn't really get a chance to do anything of things that I originally set out to do which is essentially draw my balls off. This coming quarter I start my first sequential art class. It is going to be a real "gutcheck" as to whether or not I will be able to hack the program. I sort of feel like I am going off to Marine boot camp after sitting on the couch eating McDonalds for the 20 years of my life. But a kick in the teeth never really killed anyone and I am planning on rising to the occassion.
So what did I do on my summer vacation? Last time I built an antenna out of pringles can that I can't really confirm if it works or not. This vacation started off with a bang. I was notified by my employer that my services were no longer needed. Now it wasn't as if I as making big bills working for them, but it was a somewhat steady income that I was relying on. Truth be told I knew it would happen eventually. Nothing last for long in the land of World Courier. After learning of my ending employment and finishing up classes my friends and I headed to Atlanta to see our friend, Adam's, house. We had a blast! We arrived on Sunday and immediately went to Six Flags. The timing could not have been better because the end of the summer saw little or no crowds which allowed us to pretty much walk onto any ride they had going. Actually the longest line we waited in was to gain admittance into the park!
After Six Flaggs we basically hung around Adam's house. Hurricane Katrina was moving in and so we would get hit with really nice weather and then it would rain for the rest of the day. Not a big deal, as we sat around drinking and playing Xbox. Eventually I will beat Adam at Halo, but for now I am content at kicking everyone else's ass. We did go to Stone Mountain. For those of you not in the know, Stone Mountain is the area just outside of Atlanta. The "mountain" as it is called is actually one giant piece of rock. It is supposedly the largest exposed piece of granite in the world. In other words I climbed up God's favorite pepple. Normally I am all about that type of stuff; climbing, hiking, etc etc, but I was not feeling it this day. However, once we got there I said to myself, I am going to climb this thing as fast as possible so that I dont' get caught in the rain and I can get it over with. In the end I was glad I did. You get a hell of a view of Atlanta from up there. I am still not sure if the Rock Mountain is actually a mountain, it felt a little too easy compared to some of the others I have climbed.
Anyway we basically sat around, drank, played Halo, swam the rest of the time we were at Adam's. All in all it was probably one of the best times I have had in a while.
Before I continue on my summer vacation story. I should note that my parents came down a few weeks earlier. It was good times seeing them and because I was so far along on my schoolwork I was able to actually spend time with them. That quality time resulted in me getting a brand new car! To say I was speechless and shocked is actually an understatement. I don't surprise easily and I am never speechless but this time was an exception. Anyway I got a brand new 2005 Mazda 3 SE 5-door. IT KICKS ASS! The trip to Atlanta was its maiden voyage and I must it handled exceptionally well.
Continuing on with summer vacation...
For the most part, upon my return from Atlanta, I spent my time looking for a new job. I hit the usual places, the book stores, the mall, etc etc. However, a few weeks back I happened upon this new company called Kinetic Tours of Savannah. They give tours of Historic Savannah while riding around on Segways! I happen to think that that is the coolest thing going. So I took a chance and knocked on the door and met the manager. She told me to fill out an application and give her my resume. Well the next day I returned and she called me shortly thereafter. I have an "interview" of sorts tommorrow. That doesn't mean I got a job or anything but it is a pretty damn good start and I think I would really like the job.
However, all this job hunting hasn't exactly left me with a lot of time to clean my studio and work on some projects that I have in my head. This really bums me out. I feel I should be doing more than just school work. So when winter break comes a long I am going to try and kick it into a highgear and get some extra stuff done and out of the way.
I did have one really interesting experience this break. I went shooting. Yes, shooting, you know with a gun. I have never shot a gun before and have wanted to learn how for a while. Once my car got shot up and my bag was stolen, I pretty much decided I had to. Well let me tell you, what an experience. I was driving down Hwy 170 heading towards Savannah and I noticed a new building that said "Indoor Shooting Range". I said what the hell and I stopped in. There was a very nice lady behind the counter who asked if she could help me. I told her I wanted to learn how to shoot and did they offer instruction. She said yes they did but she wanted the owner/instructor to come out and talk to me and let me know about pricing and stuff. Well out walks this skinny tall guy smoking a cigarette and missing some teeth. He looks me in the eye and says "What's your name, your age, and your intentions?" Two things struck me when he said that, one he didn't have a twang and two he said it blazing fast, which means he wasn't southern. I took this as a very good omen. I told him about myself and that I just wanted to learn to shoot. We talked about what I knew of guns, which is very very little and then he proceeded to tell me for 50 bucks I get an hour and a half of his time. So I waited for him to finish his lesson and then mine started. It was cool because it was just me and him. He is a pretty funny guy too. Originally from upstate New York, he moved down here a while ago. He is a big time "sportsman" and loves living down here. I told him I wasn't as keen on the South but it was pretty. I can't think of anything better though than a New Yorker teaching you how to shoot.
First off, he ran me through all the rules about safety. Normally I would be like screw this let's rock and roll but to be honest, guns scare the living shit out of me. He had me practice loading a dummy round into the gun and exercise the proper stance and saftey. After about 45 minutes of this it was time to hit the range and boy did I hit the range. Shooting is a lot more difficult than you think. Now I did ok, never missed the target. But I wasn't exactly accurate either. According to the instructor, Ed, I have elevation problems but my windage is good. That's great Ed...what the hell does that mean? If someone came up to me and told me I had elevation problems but my windage is good I probably would have thought they were talking about my johnson and telling my I had gas. But I took it on Ed's experience that wasn't what he was refering too. Either way, I got to keep my target and I will no doubt hang it in my studio. If I ever go again (which I plan on) I will definitly take the new target and compare. Either way I can now load and operate a Glock 9mm, a .38 special revolver and .45 ACP (aka Colt 1911). Hooyah, get some!
Other than that vacation was pretty quiet. I explored the Island a little bit with my neighbor Gary. Read a great comic by Alan Moore called V for Vendetta which is coming out in movie form soon and I got to watch a lot of great movies and anime that weren't on the big screen. I tend to spend a lot of money when I get bored and that usually goes to buying DVD's of movies that I never got see or ones that I found that look good. I picked up this one anime called Samurai Champloo and it is the best damn thing I have watched in a long damned time. It is very funny, lots of great action and the animation is top notch. I think it is playing on the Cartoon Network's Adult Swim but if you get the chance buy the DVD's because you get all sorts of cool extras.
Anyway that is it for me, another Friday night sitting on my ass in front of the computer. I think I will try and draw something...

A Word about Heroes...

Jim Lee's Beer
Originally uploaded by maq911.

I have been thinking about this a lot and being meaning to post but this is my first chance to do so.
I been thinking about who my heroes are, who influences me and who inspires me. Obviously my parents are a big influence. If they weren't it is either because I am an idiot or they weren't good parents, neither of which is the case.
But aside from them, the people that inspire and influence me are really few and far between. The people that impress me aren't the typical people in the spotlight. Some big name movie star could be in the same room as me and I wouldn't even blink but you put me in a room with Lance Armstrong or Jim Lee and I become a star struck fool.

I don't think it is any secret my love of Jim Lee's art. I have posted several times in this blog how much I admire his talent and appreciate the years of entertainment and fascination he has provided me. But there is more to it than that. There is more to being a "hero" or an "inspiration" than just being good at what you do. A great example is my other hero, Lance Armstrong. We all know that he is an amazing athlete and he has succeeded in doing what no one has up to this point, winning 7 consecutive victories in the Tour De France. But aside from his athletic prowess his legacy was insured by his off-bike activities. His creation of the Armstrong Foundation, his advocacy, and his kindness to fans, cancer patients and survivors will ultimately outshine his athletic records.
The same could be said of Jim Lee only on a smaller scale. As much as I am a fan of Jim Lee and Lance Armstrong I also see them as contemporaries of a sort. I would love to go ride and train along with Lance. To be coached by him and learn from him would be worth all the money in the world. At the same time I wish I could sit down with Jim Lee for at least an hour and just ask him everything about art and the comic business. That is sort of the reason why I went to the convention in Chicago. Partly because I wanted to get his autograph and say hello. The other reason was my hope that I would be able to run into him and have the opportunity to chat and get some inside information or just some tips regarding my artwork. To communicate with someone like that on a level other than being a fan would just be amazing. To be honest I am jealous of the people that work along side him. They get to pick his brain on a daily basis and learn from him which you just cannot put a price on.
Aside from being a great artist, Jim is considered one of the nicest guys in the business. There are untold number of stories by fans or young artists trying to break into the industry of his generosity and kindness. I think that is what sets him apart in many ways from a lot of the professionals out there. While in Chicago, my friend Griggs wanted to get a sketch by an artist named, Rob Liefeld. Liefeld was really big in the early 90's with his work on a book called X-Force for Marvel Comics. He literally became the next big thing in the industry and not without good reason. His style of art was unlike anything that had ever been out there. Then during the Image boom, Rob left Marvel and started his own books at Image Comics. After a while it was clear it had few original ideas, his art wasn't really progressing and he got a reputation, a bad one. Well Liefeld was at the convention and Griggs decided he was going to try and get a sketch from him. After standing in line for over an hour, Griggs finally got to approach Liefeld and as him for a sketch. Liefeld said no. It wasn't that he was too busy or wasn't doing sketches that day, he would only do a sketch for you if you bought his $50 book. Here is a guy who went from hero to zero, whose career is pretty much over and he is demanded $50 from someone who just stood in line for over in hour to get a quick sketch. You never here these types of stories about Jim Lee. He always manages to at least say hello and shake hands. True it is damn near impossible to get a sketch from him at big conventions, but that is primarily due to the number of people standing in line to see him and get his autograph. He goes out of his way to talk with fans and answer questions.
I have had two run ins with Jim over the years. The first was at my first big convention, Wizard World Philadelphia. I was entering the convention center and as I opened the door this short Asian man came running right for me. Shot through the door with the quick "Thank you!" and headed for the escalator. It took me all of 10 seconds to realize who it was after he ran by me. My other run in was more recently at Wizard World Chicago. It goes as follows...
It was Saturday, my last day at the convention. Griggs and I were pretty tired. I had been hanging out in artist alley watching Dustin Nguyen draw while asking him questions unendingly. I loved his work on Wildcats 3.0 and has since become a really big fan. I didn't know he was going to be there and when I found out I made it a point to try and talk to him. Well towards the end of the day on Saturday while I was sitting there talking to Dustin. He let me in on a little secret. There was a VIP after party for all the vendors and artist being held by the convention promoters, Wizard Magazine. He told me that he couldn't go and handed me his ticket. I sort of felt like Charlie pulling the Golden ticket out of the Wonka bar, except this was way cooler. Unfortunately the ticket only admitted two and I was with a group of four. Well another up and coming artist, Joe Dodd, was sitting next to Dustin and said he couldn't go either and gave me his ticket. I had successfully scored two VIP passes to an open bar party my last night in Chicago. Some days I am amaze myself.
The guys and I decided we would go home first, shower up and eat dinner and then go back for the after party. The entire time I was hoping that Jim would be there and I could sit down and talk with him away from all the other fans. The entire convention I wasn't able to get closer than my zoom lens would allow because he was mobbed. He and Frank Miller (of Sin City fame) were working on a project together and were both at the convention. On top of that the convention had a new policy of having to get tickets at a certain time to be allowed to stand in line to meet certain people. Jim was one those "certain people" and I was never able to get a damn ticket. I was pretty hopeful he was going be there.
We arrive at the party and give our passes. I am surprised they let us in because I think it was pretty obvious we were not vendors or artists. Anyway we get in there and get our free drinks. I ordered a Jack Daniels and got a Jim Beam that tasted like fermented dog piss. The guys and I grabbed a table and talked while I was monitoring who walked in and out of the room. No Jim.
As the party was ending we decided to go downstairs to the sports bar that was attached to the hotel. The place is packed. Nothing but fanboys and comic creators. Still no Jim. I pretty much gave up at that point. I ran into a few people I had met earlier that day, Had another drink, shot the shit and then the guys and I decided to go home. Just as we are trying to leave, the sea of geeks parts and in walks Jim. He isn't there 10 seconds and he gets swarmed, like Jesus in a leper colony. I really try not to be another fan when meeting these guys. I try to say something intelligent and insiteful to let them know their works i appreciated. Nine times out of ten I still sound like a dick, but hey I try. I was determined at this point to meet Jim, say hello and move on. I post on his blog often enough, he should hopefully recognize my name. Well the minutes go by, Jim buys a round of drinks for people. Fans ambush him left and right while he is talking to his friends and colleagues. I pretty much decide that in order to meet him I have to interrupt someone and come off like a rabid uber-geek.
I walk up to Jim and introduced myself. He has been drinking a little bit and it takes a second and low and behold a light goes off in his eyes, he knows who I am. This is most pleasing. He introduces me to a few people, name one guy that is running an online contest sponsored by Jim's blog. I talk to him briefly. Then go back to Jim. I say something like, "Before I leave you alone, will you be signing tommorrow..." but before I can get the words out, he looks at me. He has this smart-ass grin on his face and a beer in his hand. He gives me the beer and says "Here ya go, this my gift to you." At this point I am trying not to laugh hysterically or to tell him that I don't drink and actually HATE beer. But instead I shut up and smile and like a little boy who just made out with the homecoming queen say in a shaken voice "Thank you. Before I go, are you signing tommorrow?" Jim tells me yes but he doesn't know what time. At that point I say thanks again for the beer and walk back to my table...
At least I think I walked, but I don't remember my feet touching the ground. I do remember I was smiling and I kept saying to myself, "Jim Lee just gave me a beer!" I got back to my table and told my friends. At first, Griggs didn't believe me. Then he says "What did he buy everyone a beer?" Not to let him piss on my golden moment I reply most forcefully "NO! He gave this to me!" I don't think I stopped smiling for the next 48 hours.
I originally went to Chicago with the intent of getting his autograph on a few comics and introducing myself. Instead what I got was a pretty damn cool story to tell. That is a whole lot better and worth more than signing a book, at least to me it is. The picture up at the top is of me holding the beer that Jim gave me. I wasn't able to take it with me unfortunately but I got the picture to remind myself. This story is why he is my favorite artist. It isn't just about the pictures. It has just as much to do with the person as it does with the art or the sport or whatever. I think if more people realized that they would find themselves in better company and probably more successful.
Anyway, that is enough out of me. Like I said this has been on my mind a while and I wanted to get it out. I should be posting more soon and the blog should be changing it's appearance as well. Good night all
Mark
PS. Jim, thanks for the story

Wizard World 2005! continued...continued...

Cobra Commander and Destro
Originally uploaded by maq911.

Another big part of conventions is people dressing up at their favorite characters. Everything from video games and comic characters to cartoon and anime characters. I thought these two were just outstanding. For those of you who aren't children of the 80's we have Destro and Cobra Commander from GI JOE fame or um...infamy depending on how you look at it..
YO JOE!

Wizard World 2005! continued...

Dustin Nguyen
Originally uploaded by maq911.

Another artist I got to meet was a real surprise! I was a huge fan of the book Wildcats 3.0. During the run of the book I was introduced to the art of Dustin Nguyen who is pictured here doing a sketch for a fan. I got a sketch from him picturing Grifter and Zealot. I LOVE this guy's art. After seeing him in Wildcats I really started following his career. Right now he is rocking on The Authority: Revolution. Check it out if you get a chance. OR you could go to his website at www.duss005.com.
Acutally I would be remiss if I didn't tell this tale. While at the convention I was walking around and I was pretty tired. I stumbled upon Dustin by accident and was really excited to get the chance to meet him. However, when I got to the DC booth he was just about to leave. Expressing my disappointment he told me about his table over in artist alley. So I walked with him over to his table and we started talking. Well next thing I know I have been chatting with him for an hour and he offers me a seat. I ended up hanging out with the rest of the convention which was REALLY COOL. It was great to talk to him and hear about the business from the other side. At the end of it all, Dustin gave me a VIP party pass that was for the creators only party held by the convention. IT WAS AWESOME! So thank you Dustin, you are the man...keep up the great art too

Wizard World 2005!

Ale Garza
Originally uploaded by maq911.

A lot of what comic conventions are about is getting ot meet your favorite creators and possibly get them to draw you something. My goal for the weekend was to meet Jim Lee and Frank Miller, who are currently working a on book together. Unfotunately I would have had better luck getting to meet President Bush.
However I did meet some cool peeps. Here is Ale Garza who works for Wildstorm and is just coming off a really hot run on Batgirl. He is doing a creator owned book that should be coming out over the next year. Anyway I got him to sketch me a Cassandra Cain, the "new" Batgirl! Check it out!

Wizard World 2005!

DC Booth
Originally uploaded by maq911.

Upon entering the Rosemont Convention Center just outside Chicago this is the first set up you see at the convention. Yes, the DC booth. My favorite company and of the big two (Marvel and DC) the most fan friendly.
Saw some really cool stuff at this booth. For those of you that are fans of "Robotech" there is a new movie coming out on DVD. An updated backstory or sorts. They showed a preview at the booth and I have to say I am really freaking excited! Robotech was so fascinating to me and a real inspiration to the imagination. Can't wait to see it when it comes out. I haven't been able to find the trailer online anywhere but when I do I will probably post the link up on here. For now...check out www.robotech.com

Hello Chicago!

Chicago
Originally uploaded by maq911.

I know it has been a while since I wrote but with the end of the quarter coming on fast spare time is few and far between.
So I went to Chicago a few weeks back to check out Wizard World 2005. It is a huge comic convention and my Griggs and I decided to attend this year.
I had never been to Chicago before and I have to say it is an amazing city. I sometimes forget living on the East Coast how much older everything is. Chicago is like a brand new city fresh out of the box. Incredibily beautiful and clean. Sure there are some bad parts but it isn't anywhere near the shit-hole that Savannah is. Just going down to the lake shore is worth the trip. It still wierds me out that Chicago is on a lake that is so big you can't see the other side. Growing up on the Atlantic Ocean you think the only thing nearly as big is another ocean. Seeing Lake Michigan really puts it into persepective just how big this planet is...

Words...

Self-Pity

I never saw a wild thing
sorry for itself.
A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough
without ever having felt sorry for itself.

D. H. Lawrence

Man, what a week. Things are picking up like a clepto in a dollar store. My plaster heads are all dry, which is good. Now I just have to figure out what to do to them. I been watching a lot of those motorcycle shows on the Discovery Channel. I think I want to paint one of the heads like they paint the bikes. We'll see how that works out.
Anyway, I have royally screwed up my thumb. I have a really nasty sprain from taking a huge hit in dodgeball. Tieing my shoes has become a real chore and just trying to get my wallet out of my back pocket is something of an exercise. I just hope it heals up quick so when the tournament comes I will be able to rock and roll.
Today was really wierd. I generally do not get a lot of phone calls but today my phone was blowing up from friends I hadn't spoken to in a while. It was actually great to hear from all of them but as usual I had limited time to chat. Such is the life of a SCAD student.
I have to say I really do like 3D design. One of the reasons for this is that while I am in class there is another Professor from school who is working on making his own stained glass windows. I am not sure why but I find this really fascinating and I tend to finish my work really fast so that I can watch the process. It is actually really a tedious process that requires a lot of attention to detail and trial an error. BUT IT IS SO COOL!
On another note, I think my blog is starting to get around. Which is cool because that means more people are reading and possibly commenting. However I am opening myself to less privacy and much more criticism. Naturally I am weary of this but I think it might be good in a way. If I ever actually use this blog to write something other than my daily thoughts and experiences, maybe people will read and I will get even better feed back. There is a really drunk guy outside my window right now and he was just being attended to by an ambulance. Now he is just stumbling away...ah life can be sooo entertaining.
My friends are watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer right now. I can't say I am big fan of the show but they are so it is interesting watching with them. The life of a fan-boy is a constant struggle.
Anyway, I am gonna run now. Have a good night

Lights, Camera, ACTION!

As I mentioned earlier I was working on a short movie for one of my classes. It is done! If you want to see it and you know you do check it out at my webpage. It is under the multimedia section. The site is a work in progress and will hopefully in the near future be the main source for all my artwork and writing. Don't worry though, the blog will continue here and I will have it linked at my homepage.
Edge
PS. Did you know Kangaroos cannot walk backwards? The is my Snapple fun fact for the day!

Today!

Well, yesterday I was in an absolutely foul mood. So nasty was it that I did not post for fear of upsetting myself at a later date. Why so nasty? Well it started off with some rude emails that I had gotten from some friends of mine, then I had to give a speech yesterday that was an absolute disaster! I totally bombed it and the real shit of it is that I would not have had to give my speech if my classmates had bothered to show up. THEM BASTARDS! To top it all off we lost our dodgeball game to a far more inferior team even though I had a personal best with several catches and spike outs.
Anyway, today has been a much better day. My clay head is finished. It looks nothing like me, but it looks human and that is all that matters. I was able to make a mold of it today using this really nasty stuff called "mix-a-mold", think slimy jello that looks like whale fat. After making the mold I was then able to make 4 plaster casts of my head. Two full-heads and two faces. That took me a total of 7 hours. Class is only 2.5 hours long, you do the math and it equals out that I am a determined student with no social life. BUT IT IS DONE! HUZZAH!
So, what's next? Well...my trip is coming up in 48 hours. I have two papers to write, one is another freaking speech and the other is a critical analysis of a speech. I have to finish a movie (soon to be up on my website), polish off a website (the one previously mentioned), do a still-life and then my friends that is the end of my quarter. I am sure there are some final exams in there somewhere but with the exception of art history I have yet to have to study for anything here. This is a school of doers and thinkers not of memorizing reguritators. AND that my friends, rhymes (sort of) which makes me even cooler (kind of).
Next up, is the rents coming to visit which means I have to clean the house. Laundry to fold, Harry Potter to read, things to draw, women to...well you get the idea
See ya soon
The Edge

Montgomery Hall, The Sixth Circle of Hell...

Ah, what a weekend! I did nothing but homework. I am trying to get ahead because next weekend I will be out of town and trying to do sculpture on an airplane is against FAA and TSA regulations.
I am in SCAD's world famous Montgomery Hall right now. The only building on campus that doesn't close at 5:30 during the summer. It is essentially the digital media/art building. Lots of animators and visual effects people, as well as film and game design. In a nutshell, it is a building full of single guys who stare at monitors for weeks at a time, never showering, barely eating, dreaming of Brittney Spears and not realizing there is a world outside of Cyberspace. I fit right in...
Anyway, I "finished" my clay head. However, it looks NOTHING like me and to be honest it barely looks human. Such is life, I only had a weekend to learn terra cotta, and create a self portrait with it. NO EASY FEAT! The last time I even worked with clay I think I was like 13. But anyway it is done and Tuesday I will start the plaster casting process that is the major part of the assignment. I was actually instructed to do at least three self portraits in my sketchbook. I have never actually looked in a mirror and drawn myself before. It is incredibly hard and when you have to stop and analyze the details of yourself two things happen: 1) You realize just how ugly you really are 2) How much you suck at drawing. So all in all this assignment has been a real kick in the balls as far as my frustration level is concerned.
If that wasn't enough, tommorrow I have to give a speech on the Tour De France and Lance Armstrong. As if I haven't milked that guy enough (i.e. my pointilism project) now I am doing an oral report on the man. Sooner or later I am going to have to start paying him royalties. Whatever, at least it is done, I just have to make up some note cards and I am good to go. Then when I finally get home, I have to make a movie for another one of my classes. This weekend is very ironic because I thought it would be one of those weekends where I would get to catch up on all my extra work and be in the green for my trip. As my luck would have it, I am just barely out of the red and I have a ton of shit to do before tommorrow rears its ugly head. Yes, I know I complain but the truth is I like my classes, especially my 3-D Design (read that as sculpture) class. I get to build stuff which I like to do and until I had to make something that was actually human and out of clay I was kicking ass. This too shall pass...
This weekend wasn't a total loss though. I got more of my cds onto my computer and thusly onto my iPod. Furthermmore I been hearing from my boy Caz in Berlin and the Gooch in working for the Sox in Beantown. Miss those guys, so it was great to hear from them. Only problem is I have little time to chat on the phone so I always have to cut the pleasantries short. I did manage to go out one night this week. I didn't drink because I had so much to do but my friends did and man where they smashed! Now when I get smashed I have a tendency to say off-color things...who am I kidding I do that sober. Regardless I never do anything stupid...for example. We went to Sorry Charlie's and there were all these custom choppers out front. My buddy Kelsey was highly shit faced and decides he is going to sit on one of these 150,000 dollar bikes. Well as Adam and I start yelling at him, the bikers that own the bikes come out of no where and all hell breaks lose. Adam gets Kelsey off the bike and they both begin to grovel in front of this rather large bald tattooed (probably a canabal) biker. Who responds with "Get him the fuck outta here" YES SIR QUICKER THAN YOU CAN BLINK! Yes, I may say stupid thing and embaress myself but I dont' get my friends in potential fights, unless it is over a girl but was only one time and I wasn't drunk...oh and it was MY girl.
So you can see it was kind of crazy this weekend. Stress levels were high and Savannah was full of hell. But all in all, it wasn't too bad. I think it was the longest amount of time I have actually spent in my house since the quarter began. I am usually at School from Early mornnig till late at night...
In other news..DAMN YOU ANONYMOUS POSTERS with your hints of how to get a date or members of the opposite sex willing to take on this hideous monstrosity. Have some balls and leave your name!
Ok well back to working on my speech...I am starting to feel the Sandman
M
PS. I can't wait for Mel Gibson's new movie "Revenge of the Christ."

Warming up...

Another great thing about blogs is that when you have to write several papers in one weekend it is a great way to warm up your hands and brain for a several hour long typing session. Blogs are also a great way to procrastinate so my warm up will probably be quite long!
Anyway, my previous post about "the girl" I stumbled upon really seemed to spark a lot of interest. I think I got more random anonymous responses from that one post than I have from anything else I have written. Only one regular reader that I know of commented on the entry.
Well continuing the saga of the "girl behind the bar", I have some more news. The young lady that I found so stunning has actually been fired from her place on employment! I found this out the other day by my usual method of keeping my ears open and my mouth shut. This girl apparently got arrested one night and did not show up to work the next day. This really pissed off her co-workers as some of them had to come in earlier and then to top it all off she was a few hours late for her shift the next day. The boss told her not to bother coming in and fired her over the phone. I find this to be really amusing. First off, I said the girl was beautiful, and she is without a doubt pretty damn stunning. However, I never said she was smart or had a personality. After hereing she got thrown in the klink my opinion of her isn't really stellar. All beauty no brains my friends leads to nothing but misery.
I do however appreciate people's supportive comments. Telling me to make a move and go out on a limb and all of that. For the record I have done that 100 times over in other situations with different girls that grabbed my attention. Almost always they have boyfriends or want NOTHING to do with me. Now some might say I try too hard or that I am girl crazy and go after everything in a skirt. I don't think either one of these statements is true. What is true is that I am incredibly picky so when I stumble (I mean that literally) upon a girl that I like then I usually go for it. Sometimes it isn't worth the effort. The girl is a dud, has the personality of a dead sea slug, etc etc. Sometimes it is worth it but they are already involved or more commonly don't like yours truly. To say that I act the fool is as accurate the sun will rise in the morning. Such is life.
What I refuse to believe though is that non-action will bring results. The old adage that if you don't look for it will come to you. Well folks I am not exactly acting like Indiana Jones on some quest for the "Holy of Holies". But when I see an opportunity I think it is just stupid to not try and make something happen. But like many things in life there are many truths to my tales and one of them is while I would love to have a girlfriend again I am not really sure I have the time or money for one. School keeps me extrodinarily busy with work as well as preoccupied with brainstorming for new ideas.
What really annoys me though is the assumption on the part of the female species. It isn't like when I try and talk to you I am convertly asking you to get naked and hop in bed with me. The assumption that a guy isn't genuinely interested in getting to know you is a big mistake on their part. I understand girls need to be on their guard, but I am not exactly a physically or mentally (sadly) intimidating guy. Quite the opposite I would think, but regardless don't assume that just because I ask for your number or if I can take you out that I want anything more than a date! A chance to talk and get to know who you are and whether or not I WANT anything to do with YOU is basically all I am looking for. And if you are so lucky to make the first round cut and become a draft pick then consider yourself damn lucky and don't act like you had it coming! Anyway...as for the bartender girl, well she has a co-worker that I have had a little crush on for a while. Not that I have been any more successful there but she is a hell of a lot smarter. So it was all just a passing moment between me, my cheesesteak and the fugitive bar keep. I have other things I need to focus on, like making a clay head.
Keeps your eyes open for some sculpture to appear soon on the blog. I have a giant frog and a dragonfly to show. I am also currently working on a mini-bust of me which will have three variations. This latest project I am NOT looking forward to, only because my experience with clay has not been that great. However, I will accept this mission with an open mind and embrace the challenge wholeheartedly. Art is hell...

motivation

selfportrait
Originally uploaded by maq911.

Man, there are just some days no matter how many deadlines I have bearing down on me I just don't have the motivation to do a damn thing associated with school.
I don't have anything due tommorrow but there are things I need to work on and I just don't have the fire in the gut to do so. There are some older projects that I want to retune and resubmit but I just can't seem to be bothered to finish them.
I often wonder how people who make their living doing art can get out of bed and stay motivated. I am sure it is just a weekend thing for me and tommorrow on my way to class I will have pumped myself up. But right now I just do not care for any sort of homework. It is really frustrating actually to be so unmotivated, and it actually scares me. The key to the art game or doing any sort of creative work for a living is discipline. The people that make are the ones that get up everyday and do there thing. People who get books published or get their art noticed are the ones that work hard at it. For me to succeed I need to go the distance and not just get up and go to work but work harder every day than I did the day before. The SEALS have a saying "The only easy day was yesterday,"
Enough of my bitching I will just suck it up and hope this lack of balls goes away.
The work that is posted is a self portrait I had to do for a class in 2-D Design. Basically you use different colors to describe the value and "map" of the face and then you add a "motif" to add more detail. It was fun...sort of

Something...

Seems like it has been ages since I posted. Life has been insanely busy, the summer quarter has started to pick up and I am excelling in two of my class and ripping my hair out in the other. Learning Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator is a real up hill battle. These programs are amazing design programs but it is like learning to write again for the first time. Only time will tell I suppose.
Now onto a different subject that is at least more interesting. There are some girls I find attractive and other that I don't. This is normal for all of us. Furthermore there are some girls that I find attractive that another guy might not and vice versa. Again this is normal. I truly believe that there are some members of the opposite sex for whatever unknown reason I will be incredibly attracted to while the same girl will be unattractive to one of my friends or another guy. I don't think this is exceptional by any means, I think it is very normal. We all have our likes and dislikes and those extend into the realm of physical and emotional attraction. But what is unique is this: I feel that there may be only two or three people in the entire world that you find so attractive that they can stop you in your tracks. The type of person who upon seeing makes your heart race and your breathing hard. Your stomach gets butterflies and the only thing you can do is stare open mouth like someone just hit you over the head with a club. This type of thing might only happen once or twice in your life. But it is an unmistakable experience. Certainly, in my case anyway, there are girls out there that I find incredibly attractive, there are the celebrities/models/pornstars that are outrageous hot and are the stuff of fantasy. There are the girls next door, and ones in your class. The super cute bubbly waitress/bartender. All of them you would date or like to get to know but there are only a few, one or two in a life time that just take your breath away.
I just recently experienced this. I think it may be only the second time in my life experiencing this and the first time I am not even sure was a real case. But this time was for sure. This girl was so amazingly beautiful I couldn't do anything but stare at her open-mouthed and communicate in nods in smiles. My heartbeat sped up and I felt ridiculously silly. If I had a mirror I can guarantee my face was bright red. The experience was not lost on me, I was definitely thrown for a loop. I am not really sure what to do about it.
You see, the problem with being "stricken" as I like to call it is that 9 out 10 times it just happens in passing. You are out and about and it hits you like a flash of lightening. You are so upended that taking action is out of the question and then before you realize it the moment is over and you never see that person again. So I am not sure if I will ever see this girl again, I would definitely like to. I don't know anything about her. To be honest the whole "stricken" experience could just disintergrate about talking to the person and finding out they are a complete moron. So for now I think will just stand in the background and admire. Keep and eye on my pulse and wonder if I will ever be "stricken" again or if this was the one true time in my life...

What I did on my summer vacation...

Cantenna
Originally uploaded by maq911.

You are probably wondering what in the hell the contraption pictured above is. It is an antenna I built out of a Pringles Potato Chip can and attach to my Apple Airport to increase my singal strenth.
Why did I do this? Well first off, desktop is far away from my Airport and my single was pretty spotty. There were a lot of time I was unable to get onto the net and that was truly frustrating. The other reason why I built this was because I thought it was cool and I had three weeks off from school with nothing to do. Yes I am a geek, deal with it...
Anyway the antenna is pretty easy to make, you just need to get a few parts from an electronics supply store (like Radio Shack, but better) and some copper wire. I got the plans from an issue of Mac Addict, and I plan on writing in to them to tell how my experiment went.
There are a few issues with doing the antenna with a Mac and the article didn't cover them. There are also different types of antennas you can build, but I don't know what the difference is. All these things stem from a realm of science called "Wave Theory" which sounds cool but I could not care less about it. You can look up all sorts of info on this "cantenna" on google. The hardest part was soldering the copper wire inside the can. I have never soldered before and I am not very good at it.
Anyway, the results of this experiment are that my wireless internet connection is much more consistent since I set this thing up than it was before. My signal is better but not perfect, I will continue to try to find news ways of increasing my range. All in all it was fun.
The Antenna is mounted on a lazer level that I found in Target that had a tri-pod. It looks cool when you turn the beam on and point it in the direct you want your signal to go...I like to pretend it is my own little spy satellite thingy...
Now that my vacation is over and I am back at school, I will hopfully have cooler projects to show but I am pretty proud of this one. It actually worked!

The Day from Hell...

facialhair
Originally uploaded by maq911.

So today I was going to hold my first Edgeworks opinion poll. The photo above we will call, Item A, is what you will be using to cast your votes. So here it is...Mark with facial hair or Mark without facial, let me know what you think? You can share your opinion by leaving a comment on the blog.
Which brings me to my other request, I love the fact that people read my blog and I love it even more when they comment. However, I would really really love it if you would sign your name to your post so I know who the hell you are. I know I allow anonymous blogs but that is more for those people who don't have a google account, so they can comment and not have to register.
On to the day from Hell...
I wake up today with the intention of exploring the low country with my buddy, Griggs. I slept late and felt like I probably shouldn't get out of bed, but I did and I went for a run. I am on a crusade to lose my gut. Anyway, I shower up, jump in the car and start doing my errands. I get down the end of my street and my car starts sputtering. I am hoping it is just one of those random fluke things. But as I get further down the road, my check engine light comes on, my rpms are all over the places and my car is starting to buck.
I try and find a place to take my car and everyone I go to is all filled up or they don't have loaners or whatever. I hate the remoteness of Bluffton, SC. Back home in RI, this would not be a problem.
I finally find a place to take, Thank you Mr. Goodyear. They hook it up to a machine, 15 minutes later they come back with a bunch of parts wrapped in a rag. The show the parts (which by the way I still have) Essentially it is a stripped spark plug with the top snapped off, and some electrical rubbery stuff that is all melted. Apparently the part of the spark plug that broke off has fallen into one of my engine cyclinders and has potentially cause serious damage as well as made certain parts of my engine's anatomy melt.
Mr. Goodyear then tells me this is above and beyond him and I will need to take my car to the dealership, which is about an hour away...and my car is not driveable. This is yet another episode of WTF, starring ME!
I then have to co-ordinate a towing from Mr. Goodyear to far-off dealship and then somehow get my ass home. Did I mention I was a good 10 miles from home. So I try and rent a car. The car place next door to Mr. Goodyear is ALL OUT OF CARS! At this point I have already grabbed my ankles and started to bite down...As an aside this is nothing new. I have often gone to specialty retailers, like car rental places, pizza places, etc etc and have been told on several occassions that they are out of the only thing they sell. Case in point, I have been to Pizza Hut several times in my life and have been told that they are all out of DOUGH! of that they can't make me a medium pizza, they only have larges! You see the pattern of abuse here...
So, I call another car rental place at a local airport, which by the way is the size of a pinto. They are about 10 miles from my location and I ask if they can drop the car off to me...OF COURSE NOT! They only deliver cars within a 5 mile radius...so I now have a car ready that is 10 miles away and no way to get there. My day is oh so sunny...
Luckily a local friend was home who was able to pick me up and take me to the airport to get the damned car...a freaking Monte Carlo!
All in all it was a shitty day, and a long day of waiting for bad news. So to top it all off, I of course put up two hideous pictures of mug to see what the rest of the world things of me with or without facial hair...
I am reminded of Radiohead "You do it to yourself, you do..."

P.O'ed

I finally went out this weekend after being on vacation for a full two weeks. I didn't plan on going out but after getting to the restaurant where I ate dinner I just decided to stay there for a little while longer.
It was apparently karoke night there which I always find entertaining. I am sitting at the bar and there is a rather attractive girl on the otherside and I was checking her out. I thought (apparently I was wrong)that she was doing the same. What was I thinking!? Anyway I asked her if I could buy her a drink and talk...well I got her the drink but the talk just did not happen. Actually she didn't speak at all! It was totally one sided conversation. That really pisses me off and shame on me for buying this broad a drink. This type of crap has happened to me before and I should have learned my lesson but apparently I am a complete moron.
Why the hell do girls do that? "Sure by me a drink, I will be completely rude to you and then go on my way" I don't think I am a sketchy guy and I am way too nice to people, but what the hell!
My faith in the opposite sex has not been renewed at ALL! I am Jill's worn-out doormat...

New features...

I have installed a counter on my blog to see how many people do in fact visit this site. I hope my ego will be well rewarded...

Zatoichi "The Blind Swordsman"

Zatoichi Movie Poster. UK edition 

I saw the coolest movie last night and I am still in awe. The movie is called Zatoichi: The Blind Swordsman. For those of you who don't know, Zatoichi is a Japanese legend about a blind samurai with incredible sword skills. Now I know what you're thinking, its a samurai movie with a lot of violence and not much story. OH HOW WRONG YOU ARE! This movie was great, it had action, drama, well developed characters, comedy, and dancing. Yeah that's right, dancing...actually tap dancing. Now tap dancing and samurais wouldn't be two things that I would necessarily blend but it was awesome. Think of tap dancing as in "Bring in the Noise, Bring in the Funk" and you have some idea of what it was like.
This movie was amazing. It is Japanese but I bought the DVD and you can choose to have the English dub. I prefer the dubbing only because I can't read subtitles fast enough and watch the scene at the same time. The fight scenes in this movie were awesome and they weren't like Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon which I am really thankful for. All that high wire flying around is pretty stupid looking I think, this had none of that but was 10 times more amazing. It was also one of the funniest movies I have seen a while. Very clever wit and slapstick throughout the film. More movies need to be like this. It was alos like a movie comic book or more precisely a movie real-life samurai manga. The blood splatter was computer generated and you don't notice at first. It was just so damn cool.
YOU ALL NEED TO GO SEE IT!

Lance

Lance
Originally uploaded by maq911.

I have received comments and emails from some people wishing to see some of my work from school. I usually get the question "What the hell do you do there?". What is more remarkable is that yes I have readers, and yes some of them are people I have never met in person. They have no idea what I look like or even what my real personitly is and frankly, I like the anonymity.
Here is my final from color theory. This is an exercise in "pointilism". If you don't know what that is look it up, I don't feel like explaining things today.