Is it just me...

Is it just me, or is it getting scary out there? I graduate from college in May, and the economy continually takes steps backward as I move forward. I'm planning on moving to New York, as most college graduates from the Midwest do, and how can I not worry that there won't be a job waiting for me on a silver platter?
But I guess nothing is really like that, is it? Shit, everything is so much hard fucking work, am I right, people? Maybe I'm just lazy and American, and maybe I've just lolligagged my way through college without making any friends or real connections. Is that depressing or just the way it is? I guess at this point, for me, it's both.
New York City, though, can you imagine? Just to think about it gives me butterflies, since I've lived in Nebraska my whole life and let me tell you how that goes: it gets fucking old. I wanted to run away to New York with my friend Jen years ago, but instead we made longterm plans to move in, and slowly but surely the oppurtunity is creeping up on us. How I hope the years will go by in New York... I'm so ready to start my adult life.
Peace on Earth
-John



Photo from London 6/08

Pylones

Pylones: who knew? While I was browing Style.com, I came across a stereo dock for an iPod that is shaped like a Lego and a link to the makers, known simply as Pylones. Now, who doesn't love Legos? I immediately fell in love with this frivolous website. I definitely plan on purchasing a Lego stereo dock right away, don't you?

Silly Seriousness with Christian Lindemann

These works are smooth, simple and easy on the eye. You don't have to look closely, but when you do, you find limited color schemes of two or three colors, super-perfect lines that are graceful yet jerky enough to keep you interested, and an overall playful flatness. Childish, yet sophisticated. Silly and serious. Arty and... not arty.

Real Art

Just a few results from the Google image search of the words "real art."

Real Art

good to know i'm safe on an aeroplane, doodle dandy!

Typically, airlines do not permit visible tattoos, body piercings (save for your ears), long hair on men, "rebellious" hairstyles, bizarre or offensive-looking makeup or jewelry, poorly manicured hands, etc. All airlines are different. For example, some do not even permit facial hair on men! During training, you will be given specific grooming regulations which must be strictly adhered to.
Company Physical and Background Check
If you have thoroughly read through the minimum hiring requirements (above), you may be thinking it would be easy enough to "cheat" a little bit during the application process - maybe say you are a year older or an inch taller than you actually are, or fail to mention that DWI conviction you had three years ago. You do not want to do this, trust us! Airlines have a couple of ways to determine whether applicant have lied on their application about their age, height, past use of drugs, work history, or any other area that would preclude them from landing the job.
Every airline administers a company physical examination to every new-hire. During this exam, an airline is able to detect whether you lied on your application about your height, whether you have a drug or alcohol problem, or whether your past medical history shows anything adverse that would disqualify you from getting the job. Since you are given a urinalysis during this physical, it is very important that you inform the examiners of any medications you might be taking.
In addition to the medical exam, there is also a thorough background check. During the background check, which can go back as many as 10 years, virtually everything about you is investigated - your age, place of birth, school records, criminal records (if any), etc. If an airline finds that you lied on your application or you have any sort of criminal record, you will be immediately dismissed

http://www.cabincrewjobs.com/flight-attendant-qualifications.html













http://www.myspace.com/harpace

peut-etre

So, you want to learn how to tattoo or pierce? If you're serious about it, you'll do it the right way. The wrong way is by buying a "shop in a box" kit and trying to teach yourself. The right way is through apprenticeship - learning from a skilled artist with hands-on experience.
Finding a tattoo apprenticeship, or should I say finding a good apprenticeship, is like looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack. There may be many offers with pricey dues, or no offers at all. With so many "traps" and cons out there, the hunter many times becomes the hunted. Don't become the victim of your own prey. Gear up, my friends! The hunt is on...
Your Mission: ApprenticeshipTo find an apprenticeship within your means that will provide the proper training to get you into the business of tattooing. This is not a "get rich quick" scheme. You are looking for an apprenticeship that will last long enough to provide you with the proper skills needed - not just in tattooing - but also in sterilization, proper cleaning, and business management. Among these skills you may also learn things such as needle making, prepping, making stencils and every other aspect of the business. A complete apprenticeship cannot be accomplished in just a few months time. A good mentor won't even let you begin tattooing until you have learned all these other things.
Your Prey: Tattoo ArtistsThere are many out there - some good, some not. You must find a strong, able tattoo artist with plenty of experience, usually at least 5 years, preferably more. You obviously need to find one that is willing to take a budding new artist under their wing and train them. You will want to find someone that you believe you can get along well with, as you will be working side by side with them for an extended period of time.
The Bait: Your PortfolioTo show a prospective mentor your artistic abilities, you will need to carry along a portfolio of your best work. This can be drawings or paintings, but can also be pictures of wall murals, sculptures, or anything else artistic you have done. If you have had any formal training, bring along any certification you have received. This is not absolutely necessary though - if you have enough raw talent, your mentor will help you to hone these skills over the time of your apprenticeship.
The Trap: Enthusiasm & HumilityA prospecitve mentor is going to be looking for someone with a lot of enthusiasm and a real love for the art. If you walk in with the attitude that they owe you something, you're sure to leave empty handed. Knowing at least a little bit about the business is also helpful, and it doesn't hurt if you have a few tattoos!
Your Weapon: MoneyAlthough there are a few artists out there that still offer free apprenticeships, these are few and far between. The other end of the scale are the artists that are more interested in your money than providing you with an education. You will more than likely be looking for a happy medium between these two - a price you can deal with and make it worth the artists time for training you. If you happen upon an artist that offers apprenticeship at no cost you have found a real gem. But don't think this means a free ride! You will have to work very hard and be as dedicated to your training as they are.
Your Armor: ContractBe sure to sign a contract before all is said and done. This will protect you in the event that your apprenticeship does not turn out as you expected. Sad as it may be, serious deals cannot be made with a handshake anymore. Do not sign anything unless you agree 100% with the terms in the contract.

Synopsis:Finding a good apprenticeship is not an easy task. You may have to visit several studios before you find someone willing to take you in. You may not find anyone in your area, and relocation might even be a consideration. But the fact remains that if this is what you really want, it is more than worth it to do it right! Learning how to tattoo or pierce on your own is not only unwise, it is dangerous. You must be properly trained in sterilization techniques and how to avoid harming the customer. There is nothing more damaging to your own reputation than 100+ people out there showing everyone what a horrible tattoo or piercing you gave them. Or worse yet, the disease or infection they got as a result of your ignorance. Take your time and learn the right way.



Guide since 1999
Karen L. HudsonTattoos Guide
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Maybe I should be a tatoo artist

isn't it funny how Christians once classified the animal world in terms of levels - bugs at the bottom, then animals, then humans, then angels and so on. How coincidental that evolution actually aligns with this theory. I ain't no Intelligent Designin' dude, but that's something to think about people.

The word nous is somewhat ambiguous, a result of being appropriated by successive philosophers to designate very different concepts.
Homer used nous to signify mental activities in general, but in the pre-Socratics it became increasingly identified with knowledge and with reason as opposed to sense perception.
Anaxagoras's nous was a mechanical ordering force that formed the world out of an original chaos. It began the development of the cosmos.
Plato described it as the immortal, rational part of the soul. It is a godlike kind of thinking in which the truths of conclusions are immediately known without having to understand the preliminary premises.
Aristotle asserted that nous was the intellect, as distinguished from sense perception. He divided it into an active and passive nous. The passive is affected by knowledge. The active is an immortal first cause of all subsequent causes in the world.
To the Stoics, it was the same as logos. This is the whole cosmic reason. It contains human reason as a part.
Plotinus described nous as one of the emanations from divine being.
Some modern followers of the God Antinous consider him the oppossite of nous, the irrational, Dionysian aspect of Spirit.

Sleep in invertebrates
The electrophysiological study of sleep in small invertebrates is complicated. However, even such simple animals as fruit flies appear to sleep, and systematic disturbance of that state leads to cognitive disabilities.[6] There are several methods of measuring cognitive functions in fruit flies. A common method is to let the flies choose whether they want to fly through a tunnel that leads to a light source, or through a dark tunnel. Normally, flies are attracted to light. But if sugar is placed in the end of the dark tunnel, and something the flies dislike is placed in the end of the light tunnel, the flies will eventually learn to fly towards darkness rather than light. Flies deprived of sleep require a longer time to learn this and also forget it more quickly. If an arthropod is experimentally kept awake longer than it is used to, then its coming rest period will be prolonged. In cockroaches that rest period is characterized by the antennae being folded down and by a decreased sensitivity to external stimuli.[7] Sleep has been described in crayfish, too, characterized both by passivity and increased thresholds for sensory stimuli as well as changes in the EEG pattern, markedly differing from the patterns found in crayfish when they are awake.[8]

The Hmm... Factor: a few photos from Micheal Neff's portfolio

What I'm assuming Neff's done here is trace the shadow quickly at a certain time of day, then solidified it with a large piece of chalk and returned to the same spot the next day at exactly the same time. I think it's genius, really, in its simplicity. An art class in elementary school could doe this - but he thought it up, and it looks simply... magical. It's a neat play on the phrase "every cloud has a silver lining," because here they have blue, pink, orange and green linings. To me, it's as though there were some sort of light behind the solid form of the shadow, a light that peeks out from behind and winks at us (in the form of chalk). There's clearly a comment on adulthood and childhood - the child's toy (chalk) is marking the world of the adult (the city streets). Is the light that peeks out from behind the shadows the child in all of us, so to speak? There are no humans in any of the pictures except for those cloaked in cars, so the city landscape is slightly hostile and desolate. I think Neff was trying to make a modern Atlantis with this series, e.g. a magical world where humans can't really exist.

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The quizzical world of Damien Weighill

I'm already cursing myself for not including more of Weighill's work here, but you can visit his site if you like. He's funny, and there's a crispness to the way he draws that I really like. He uses a thick, simple line that is both child-like and very sophisticated. Who else can draw R2D2 that well and make it look so easy? He's really an amazing artist, and, fortunately for us, designs t-shirts as well at Super Superficial, and amazing t-shirt site I've just now discovered! Worth looking at if you like arty, ironic tees.

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Lorin Brown's monsters are out from under the bed: and they're adorable!

I just can't stand to give simply one example of an artist's work, since it's all so incredible, usually! I found Lorin Brown through Lost at E Minor (see Internet Adventures links), and I can't help but fall in love with her cartoon cloisonee every time I look at it! The little monsters that make up the geometric blocks of vibrant color are happy, weird, and invite the viewer to take a second, third and fourth look. In the world of Brown's artwork, there seems to be an underlying silly beauty to everything (even guns!), which she reveals with ease and grace. Lovely!

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Nature can be weirdly captivating

The first photograph was taken by my older sister, Katie, right here in Nebraska, and is an amazing picture to say the least - you almost can't even tell what it is. It's a photograph but it almost looks like a painting! The rest of the pictures were taken from National Geographic magazines a long time ago when I was working on a website on Geocities, and I wanted all the backgrounds to be these breathtaking landscapes, which are a dime a dozen in NG.

David Shrigley art: pictures with something to SAY

As you can see, I'm really impressed by this artist, David Shringley. This is just the tip of the iceberg of his huge amount of work, all very funny and thoughtful (from what I've seen so far). I love that he's eliminated color, and the connection between text and picture is not only essential, but makes both the text and the picture more powerful. The simplicity is childlike, and recalls a nand-drawn comic book, and I wonder if there's not a sort of argument regarding "graphic novels" like those by Daniel Clowes, Jeff Smith, Charles Burns, Marjane Satrapi, David B., and so on. The works by these authors unifies drawing and text beautifully and creatively, often with an odd humor like Shringley exudes here. It also recalls the one panel comics from the internet like Suicide Bunny and Toothpaste for Dinner.com (see my other blog entries!), which is a sort of funny vernacular for serious art. Any way you slice it, it's strange and intriguing and I really like it.

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