3/20/2005- Chicago, IL |
| Journal
#2/3: Backwards/Forwards. Sunday, March 20, 2005 DESCRIBE YOUR DAY WORKING BACKWARDS IN TIME. DESCRIBE SHAPES & COLORS WITHIN YOUR DAY. This journal entry is brought to you by Anne’s Stream of Consciousness. A-SOC: Not as stinky; but just as holy. 1.
Mmmmm. Breakfast. Pig in a blanket crepe with WOAH! A load of eggs.
(a mountain of yellow) Vegetarian still? Yeah…but I am celebrating.
I have a job now. *Butthead chuckle* Hehehehe. Workin’ for the
man. I’m writin’! No worries… ::Insert
tedious morning ritual here:: Huh….do I have A.D.D. ? |
| 3/19/2005- Chicago, IL |
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Today's entry will cover the subject of choosing one's animal guide (*sigh*) and writing about our reaction in reference to our animal guide. Such contemplations will be followed by recitations of two poems penned by moi and complimentary coffee to all card carrying beatnicks. *snap**snap**snap**snap**snap**snap* I THOUGHT I WAS...BUT NOW I AM... I thought I was a Teddy Bear; but according to this scale I am a Fox. I always felt like my pal Ron and I were Teddy Bears; big, tall, strong and squishably soft when hugged. But alas, at this point in my life, I am a Fox: hoarder of info and mistress of camouflage & secrecy. Dum Dum DUMMM! My friend Raven, spiritual medium and disciple to the Virgin Mary in Ballard, has told me that my totem is a BAT and my guardian angel is named "Mike" (not Michael...A COMPLETELY different angel). Go Fig. A CONCRETE POEM about the Desert FOX. And for all those D.D. fans out there. And I think I know who you are... AN ODE TO A FOX Within
the dusty caves, Agent
of the FBI, A modern
day Heathcliff His
mind He’s
there Yeah...you didn't actually think that I would write about a real fox now didja? Silly Rabbit. |
| 3/07/2005- Chicago, IL |
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I
know I should have been doing this assignment for my Dramatic Words
& Images class Feb 15th; but I was lazy....well more confused, but
that is behind me now. At present I am going to use this Live Journal
Blog to fill my assignments and take it from there. So if this stuff
sounds a bit stuffy or formal, I am sorry. I feel I need to start out
with that style before I really let loose with the opinions. It can
get a bit outrageous sometimes; but bear with me. It'll get good. ;) Today's (er Feb 15th's) question is: HOW
DOES THE PHYSICAL COMPOSITION OF A SPACE AFFECT YOUR EMOTIONAL RESPONSE? Space
and it's use of it conveys many different emotions throughout your life.
In one's youth, space as seen on a blank piece of paper is to be conserved.
As an adult (in U.S. culture at least) space needs to be filled. The
more, the better. Details, scale and accuracy are more important for
children, as opposed to the whole picture. It is difficult for an 8
year old to understand it is faster, easier and more effective to draw
a fish's scales larger or even just drawing an occasional squiggly indicator
as opposed to every...single...tiny...scale. The perception is that
one's direct translation from "reality" to artistic/creative
media is "the right way" to do things. Only after a daunting
2 hours of noodling does a child realize that such a detailed endeavor
is hard work. However, that doesn't mean that they have realized the
"larger picture;" that of a drawing project and the understanding
of the most efficient plan to complete an assignment using alternative
styles and techniques to achieve just as effective results within a
compressed period of time. The
reason for detail, size, scale could also explain the reason that paper
within a drawing assignment is used so sparingly. Teacher's are always
mystified by the fact that students, from kindergarten to college, have
a tendency to only use space on a piece of paper so sparingly. When
it comes to adults, I cannot tell you how many times I have heard people
drawing small due to conservation of materials and consequently...money.
It has been conditioned into younger children to never waste or it is
better to leave something for later (unless, ironically, you are referring
to eating habits. Go Fig.). So it has become better to draw small and
save the rest for later...just in case. The result is small landscapes
and animals that only fill 1/16 of the 8 1/2" x 11" paper
much to the amazement and confusion of adults. ("Man! How do they
draw that TINY?!"). Suffice it to say, small drives most adults
NUTS! The funny thing is: no one ever wonders: what might be tiny to
adults, could be "scale" to a child's eye, size and perception.
Funny
how society, culture, peers and overall exterior experiences change
most peoples idea of size, space and it's use as well as it's connection
to importance. As you grow, bigger becomes better. In American society
in particular size does matter (Don't get me started on the ol' Bob
Dole E.D. commercials) and has a direct bearing on your success and
failure in the eyes of your peers. What sells a car? More head room,
more storage capacity, bigger media system. What makes it safer? The
size. SUV, Truck, Van. What is rich and successful? A large house with
huge tracks of land. However, let us not forget the technology connection
with space. The more gadgets the better. Small is still good and should
be taken into account; but the smaller technology is, the more you can
stuff in your designated space. George
Carlin's take on stuff and space along with our culture's preoccupation
with it is truer than we wish to admit. Americans love space. When we
get space, we feel compelled to fill it with stuff. Mostly little stuff;
but stuff all the same. Our houses are merely storage spaces for our
stuff. When we fill our houses up with stuff, we need to buy a new house
to make room for our stuff. With more room available, we feel compelled
to fill it up...with what? MORE STUFF! However, when we see other people's
houses filled with THEIR stuff, we are shocked about how much S#!T people
can collect! It's always OTHER people's stuff is S#!T and your S#!T
is stuff. The routine and circular reasoning continues on from there.
My
point is this...Be comfortable with what you do and don't have. Minimalist
attitude and multifunctional stuff doesn't mean you are a popper on
the brink of homelessness; and a studio apartment doesn't make you a
starving artist. To prove your social status by the stuff you have,
how many monthly loan payments you must pay and cards you've maxed out
just makes you one thing: Full
of S#!T. |
|
11/24/2004- Chicago, IL |
Today's entry title: SNOW IS NOT SUPPOSED TO INJURE YOU.Yes here I am. FINALLY! I have had a bugger of a time getting back to this blog thing. Between school, colds, homework and class observations I have been at a loss for time. But it is the Thanksgiving weekend and I have quite a set of small stories to tell. My digital camera broke on me and I am saving my money to get a new one. So, no new pics for a while. Boy, do I wish I had that camera today. Why? Well, check the title and listen to this un!The other day I watched the news to find out that today is SNOW DAY! Yep, the first day of snow for the season. The weather is a bit unpredictable here, you know, like the convergent zone between Everett and Seattle. Only turbocharged. In the span of 5 minutes waiting at a bus stop it snowed, rained, hailed and had wind gusts strong enough to buckle my knees if I wasn't careful. By a small miracle I finished my errands today. By the time I came home I found that I had a nick or two on my face. Trust me, I didn't have that when I left this morning. Snow and rain is coming down...kinda. I mean, it is coming down 140° angle. The hilarious part is: I am one of lucky ones! There are power outages (In Chi Town! Can you believe it?!) 4" on the West Side and 9" South in Indiana. For those who don't know the reference to Indiana, the border of Indiana is "normally" a 45 minute - 1 hour drive. According to the news, it's taking 2 hours or so to hit the border. CBS Evening News has highlighted the weather. Now that's neato. More snow is supposed to come Saturday as well. Surreal. I really can't help but laugh. Viva Thanksgiving!As you read this blog you might be realizing that, yes, I am still in Chicago for Turkey Day. No family, just Yours Truly. No worries, tho! I have a reservation at the local Vegetarian Restaurant for "Tofurkey Dinner." I know. Some are saying "EEEEEWW! TOFURKEY!" Remember, I am a vegetarian now. This'll be my first year trying it. I am keeping an open mind. Of course, it's not going to be ANYTHING like Mom's home cooking, but it'll do. I can't believe that this town doesn't shut down for holidays. This is what a real city is like! Woohoo! Downtown businesses and streets are already decked out for Christmas. It is beautiful! Of course, I am SO not going out the day after Turkey Day to see the sales. I don't have a death wish. Imagine 1 million or so people compressed into 10 blocks at once. HELL NO!On the other fronts, I have found out so much about this city. Unfortunately, I have not had a chance to play tourist. When my friend PAUL comes from Manchester, England, I will do that with him. I have been learning the way to function in this town. This place is so greedy and corrupt it's comical. For those people out there that complain about the Federal Government in it's present administration being so bad...you make me LAUGH! HA! HA! See? I laugh. The only way a person can get through the day is that you know certain schemes to avoid and the rest of them, you just swallow your pride and take it in the buttocks. Why? 'Cause there is nothing you can do about it. Example: There is at least 1 corruption scandal at Chicago City Hall at all times. Presently, there are 3 or 4. Reaction? So what else is new? Plus side of this town, Unions are BIG TIME! I love it. The way it is supposed to be. Down side? Corrupt. Answer? So what else is new? Taxes and prices for, well, ANYTHING! Everything is taxed. Groceries for example. Deli sandwich meat is sold here by the HALF pound, at the same price of a full pound in Washington. I have to pay taxes on food. Here is the tax pyramid for me: Chicago City Tax, Cook County Tax, Illinois State Tax, Illinois INCOME Tax AND Federal tax. What do you say to that? So what else is new? I sense a pattern. Hmmm...If I haven't mentioned it before, I am in a fairly good and safe neighborhood (knock on wood). However, there is a series of homosexual murders going on in the area (HALSTED ST=Seattle's Broadway)." 3 murders so far. 1 person has been arrested for 1 murder. The others are open still. It would be interesting, though scary if it is another serial killer trolling for victims. For those who might not know, Jeffrey Dauhmer (Cannibal Killer from Milwaukee, WS) would pick up his gay victims a few blocks South of where I presently live.Aggressive homeless people are also everywhere. You push back, there is no problem. Watch out though for them or others trying to pick your pocket. I have had 2 or so incidents where someone has opened my backpack (WHILE IT IS ON MY BACK!) approximately 4" to try and take something, only to find I HAVE NOTHING! I get off the bus to find that my backpack zipper is a bit open. Everything in place. I mock the pick pockets and pushy homeless people. HAHAHAH! Since this is the season, I am opening up the old suitcase locks for use. That'll learn 'em.On the upside, Chicago is an amazing town to be apart of. I have finally gotten down into a routine and am still exploring things. This place is packed to the gills with restaurants. There is a restaurant on the outskirts of town called MEDIEVAL TIMES. It's a castle, NO KIDDING! You might have heard of it. It's a dinner and jousting tournament. No forks allowed. There are also Fancy Pants restaurants as well. Beautiful and High Class. If you aren't interested in eating there is also theatre. My bus that takes me to school heads right down into the heart of town. In the span of 20 blocks I have seen "The Christmas Carol" with Richard Chamberlain, Def Poetry Jam, Diana Ross, Blue Man Group, Jazz Fushion Festival etc. This doesn't cover the small indie theatres in the area. I have found more places just within an 4 block circumference (5 and counting) of where I live. Not to mention the numerous improv theatres and groups (4 in 6 blocks on 1 street). I haven't even mentioned the COOL film community this place has. There is literally EVERYTHING available to see. I have personally totally in to the Historical Silent Film Society and Historical Movie Palace Restoration Projects going on in town. When it comes to entertainment critics in this town, I cannot stop laughing at their scathing reviews. OH MY GOD! THEY ARE GREAT! In fact, I have collected a couple reviews already and hope to frame them soon. If you like buildings the architecture in this place is breadth-taking. There is nothing new about a century old building here. To me, it's romantic. Hand carved masonry is EVERYWHERE. In fact, there is a historical stained glass museum dedicated strictly to architectural stained glass windows from the past 120 or so years. Don't get me started on the museums. I can tell it will take me a summer or so just to see them all. I can go on, but all I would be saying would be: "Beautiful Country!"I better wrap this up for now. I will be writing on the morrow about the trials and tribulations of the Chicago School System. For those out there in Washington State who complain about class sizes and various struggles with the system...Yeah, WHATEVER. You'll presently get no sympathy from me. More about that, later.In the meantime, HAVE A GREAT TURKEY DAY! |
10/15/2004- Chicago, IL |
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Ugh. I am in SO much pain. You see, yesterday I was delivered my new entertainment center. I was under the hope (nae, the DREAM) that it would be delivered ASSEMBLED. No such luck. So I spent the first half of the day procrastinating. THEN, after 1 pot of coffee and an omelette over at IHOP (which is a story unto itself) I came back home and got down to business. Now, I must confess, I still was not in the best of shape to assemble such furniture. You see, as everything is in my life, there is a story behind it. You see, I went to MIKE's FURNITURE, bar none the cheapest furniture store in town; (As written and hereby witnessed by Yours Truly) and I recommend it to anyone...who is able to walk up some of the steepest stairs I've seen since my live-in days at the Haunted House in Olympia. WELL, I went up stairs to check out what they had and discovered the perfect entertainment center for $240 (including tax and delivery). I had to be hurried out (time flies when you're having fun) because it was closing time, so I headed down stairs for my final check out. As I gave the nice lady my code number (they do things by code there) I was informed that my dream entertainment center was out of stock and I had to pick another one. SO, I ran back up the stairs (haha) and quickly went through their reference catalog an chose a back up center. WELL, on my way back down the stairs my center of gravity (aka my upper torso) got me off balance (exacerbated by my backpack strapped to me) and I proceeded to fall down the cement staircase. Thank God I didn't break anything (plenty of cushioning DOES come in handy!) and I was "caught" by one of the hired help (thanks so much CHAD!) Well, more like I bounced off him. He caught the top part of me so I wouldn't lose any teeth but my weight and forward momentum (I fell from the 8th step up) I kind of rolled off of him and hit the floor with a thud. So my back was killing me; but I was able to get up and finish the purchase; all with a discount and free delivery. Ibuprofin was my friend that night. Unfortunately, sleep wasn't. I am still waiting for the mattress that JC Penney's needs to replace, since they screwed up my order. ANYWAY, back to the story at hand. My entertainment center was delivered yesterday. In a box. Twice the size I thought it would be. 5'x5'2"x2'. SO I took out all the pieces and proceeded to read the instructions. Well, they said you would only need a hammer and a friend besides the enclosed equipment. The closest thing to a friend I had with me is Mr. ALLAN WRENCH and a supervisor. 5 1/2 hours later I got everything assembled and put away. It all fit! I always thought I had the most media out of all my friends... Then I remember my best buddy Ron and his house a.k.a. "The Movie Trailer." 'Nuf said. So I wake up this morning...well....this afternoon (DAMN I WANT MY MATRESS!) with all my limbs AND my back in pain. My fat body isn't made to lug around heavy furniture by myself. For the most part, today was uneventful. Until I was suddenly being "serenaded" by Neil Young IN SOMEONE ELSES APARTMENT. For the most part, this is a quiet building. You hear people's music or TV while walking down the hall; but NEVER in your own apartment. So you know if you here it through brick, insulation and plaster, it's gotta be loud. So, I did what any upstanding God fearing citizen would do: I cranked up my FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS CD (you woulda been proud Omar) and proceeded to head out to church. BWAHAHAHA! It's been overcast for the past week and we had our first rain a couple of days ago. The weather reminded me of home. When I opened the door and entered on to the street the wind flash froze me like a box of Birdseye veggies. DAMN! So I peddle my cute squishy FROSTED buns to church. I don't know how it happened, but I have been cajoled to auditioning for the position of lector and commentator (aka reader of the bulletin) at church. I had Bonnie, the lady I met (albeit liquored up at the time) at the church Octoberfest, ask me if I wanted to be a lector. I shrugged my shoulders and said, "sure." She grabbed my arm dragged me across the church aisle, introduced me to the woman in charge and she left me to be, well, lectured to. It'll be good experience for me to speak in front of an audience, that is, if I do get the position. No wage involved. Heck, I never knew money WAS handed out when it came to church participation. Oh well. I wonder what tommorow brings? Oh yeah, homework and dry, endless reading crackpot assignments from my evil Psyche Ed teacher. Talk about a personality clash. I think I'll first have a nice brunch at the Artist Snack Shop on the morrow. It's worth the bus trip down town. (Sigh) It's the romantic in me. This town is beautiful! The people are overall okay, (You have some GREAT PEOPLE and NASTY FOLKS. It averages out to okay. Still no friends yet. Get's really lonely sometimes as you are trying to cultivate friendships) and I know things are going to be okay with the Good Lord looking out for me. Call it melodramatic or evangelical. I don't care, if it wasn't for church and family right now, I would be a complete and total nut case. So BLAH! :) HEY LOOK! MORE PICTURES! |
10/13/2004- Chicago, IL |
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Well, here is my first entry in to the wide world of BLOGging. Here is an update and/or review for those who have dropped by to park their carcass to read, review, reflect, rant or rave about me, Anne Moya, and my site. On 9/08/2004 I did what my friends have called as "brave, insane, weird and stupid." I moved to Chicago, IL. I am originally from Seattle, Washington (give or take a town) and to once again establish myself as a self sufficient chick, as well as help out my parents financially, I relocated to Chi Town to become over-educated (I am getting my Master's in Art Education at Columbia College) and find a job in the Graphic Design field. I have gone through some stereotypical bumps in the road (well, more like sink holes) when it comes to moving and school but I have learned some interesting things so far:
Sound too optimistic? Honey, you are looking at a pessimist here. I am a walking example of Murphy's Law. I am in fact talking from experience. So far I have gotten discount haircuts, coffee, food, tickets and furniture. If you are sincere and nice to people; 99% of the time you have made someone's day and they will be happy to give you a hand. Just remember, tell them to PAY IT FORWARD!
My best friend (rest her soul) Sharon taught me the art of Standing Up For Yourself. If someone has got your money and won't give you the product or service that is comming to you, call them up every day. Trust me, if you are like me, you hate getting in people's face; but if you don't; they'll just walk all over you. Second, never hesitate to go up the Chain of Command. For example, I was treated horribly by Pratt Institute when I was applying for school. After Pratt lost my file 4+ times, I told them to take me off their list. When they didn't I wrote a professional and nasty letter to the Vice-President of Pratt and sent copies to the Head Of Enrollment, Head of Art Education as well as the Admissions Counselor. I got an apology and my admission fee back. A rarity when it comes to colleges. Well enough of my pontifications in reference to life lessons. Lets get to the cool stuff. PICTURES! |