Ain't got no job; Ain't got shit to do.

Being jobless is pretty damn nice, aside from that entire money thing.

I've been hanging out at Bookpeople, and coffee shops downtown because I actually have time to sit down and read; I read two books in two days. I've been knitting, and cooking, and painting, and making collages, and doing arts and crafts, and watching entire DVDs of Cowboy Bebop in one sitting because I have time. I've been able to sit down and think about what I want to do with my career, and do research on the internet because I have time. Now I just need some fucking money.

The jobs I want, I can't get at the moment. I know Illustrator, and I know Paint Shop Pro, but I know nothing about Quark, or Photoshop. At the moment I'm mostly looking at stuff that's short term and flexible so I can save money to buy Adobe CS2 (About $500 with Nick's student ID), gain certification, and build a more diverse portfolio than just fliers and postcards. I've been kind of looking at some office work with a little design mixed in, but I'm not putting too much faith on that. Still haven't told my parents I lost my job because they're going to give me shit about it, even though I did nothing wrong. Don't want to tell them I'll be getting a ho-hum job while I gain certification for my career because they will give me shit about it, even though it is probably the best solution.

Nick's parents suggested we move in with them to save up money for grad school. It will be weird. No sex ever. Just too weird.

Sushi: Let me Shouyu

Art journal entry.

I Like Books

I threw away a book once, and I've felt guilty about it ever since. It's not just that I like to read books; I like the idea of them, and I like the way they look. I like the aesthetics of books: Cover designs, dust jackets, paper stock. My favorite thing to see in a home is a bookshelf so crammed with books, it's unthinkable that it's maintained any sort of ordering convention.

For these reasons, I have a healthy appreciation for art journals, decorative book binding, and altered books, as the book has become almost more art than literature. (recycle the link a few times for a few different pictures.) The latter I think is a perfectly wonderful solution for those books you'd like to throw away, but simply don't have the stomach to do.

I've had one book sitting on my shelf for a few years that I didn't know what to do with. I picked it up from a discount pile for $1, an while it wasn't atrocious literature, I don't really have a fondness for it, and didn't know what I should do with it. I finally decided to just deconstruct it and make myself a nice little art journal, and that's exactly what I did this past weekend.

The original book (the dustjacket is lovely)


The new cover, created over the original cover board. (The title is to remind myself that entries are solely for practice, much like a sketch book, and not to become discouraged if things don't turn out as I'd like.)


Exposed spine bound with a decorative stitch. (Coptic Stitch) I folded the original pages in half to create new pages for the journal.


The binding style allows the book to lie completely flat while open, so it's good for journals. I glued the original dust cover to the interior.

In Other News

I pierced my septum. I swear it's up there. Unfortunately, this is the only picture I have with it showing that turned out:

Ready! Aim! Fired!

Long time no see. I've been gone sulking. I was laid off last week, and while there are more positives to it than negatives, being let go was a bruise to my ego. What you are about to see is a rapid fire posting of entries. I like my updates in nice little categories, so a lump update is a 'no.'

Fantastic things about being laid off:
* My former employer has promised me glowing recommendation for when I apply to grad school, as well as when I apply for my next job.
* Pretty much gauranteed to be paid more, as I will not apply to another start-up.
* I actually know what I want to do at my job now that I've had a chance to try things out.
* Severence pay = paid vacation.
* Agreeing to be a consultant = free copies of Adobe Illustrator 10, and Paint Shop Pro.
* I will likely get a larger budget for my work and use a professional printer more, instead of printing most everything myself.

The downside to all of this is that I just don't have a job or a paycheck, and frankly... job searching blows.

Jinkies!