Frenetic Pen Project

MOHPA visit

2009-07-09T00:20:00.005-05:00

mohpavisit, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Northfield, MN

2009-07-09T00:20:00.003-05:00

gbluemondaycafe, originally uploaded by chengan800.

coffee shop patron

2009-07-09T00:20:00.001-05:00

dbregpatron1, originally uploaded by chengan800.

A regular patron at the coffee shop.

coffee shop patron

2009-07-09T00:18:00.001-05:00

dbregpatron3, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Haven't seen him before.

poordog

2009-07-09T00:17:00.001-05:00

poordog, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Seen while sipping coffee at fav coffee shop

Atelier-final

2009-06-20T00:34:00.001-05:00

Atelier-final, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Last full drawing I did at the Atelier Minneapolis.

Catching up

2009-05-24T09:32:00.001-05:00

2009-May-005, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Catching up

2009-05-24T09:31:00.001-05:00

2009-May-003, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Drawn May 8th - when new Star Trek movie came out

Catching up

2009-05-24T09:30:00.003-05:00

2009-May-004, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Catching up

2009-05-24T09:30:00.001-05:00

2009-May-002, originally uploaded by chengan800.

A mix of folks downtown and at Dunn Brother's Linden HIlls.

Catching up

2009-05-24T09:29:00.001-05:00

2009-May-001, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Getting into obsessive cross hatching. Right page all from Dunn Brothers

2009-04-25-sketchbook-001

2009-04-25T14:35:00.001-05:00

2009-04-25-sketchbook-001, originally uploaded by chengan800.

2008-04-13-sketchbook-013

2009-04-13T23:37:00.003-05:00

2008-04-13-sketchbook-013, originally uploaded by chengan800.

2008-04-13-sketchbook-012

2009-04-13T23:37:00.001-05:00

2008-04-13-sketchbook-012, originally uploaded by chengan800.

2008-04-13-sketchbook-009

2009-04-13T23:36:00.001-05:00

2008-04-13-sketchbook-009, originally uploaded by chengan800.

2008-03-15-sketchbook-monster

2009-03-15T22:29:00.003-05:00

2008-03-15-sketchbook-monster, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Doodling while killing time watching Quarantine on DVD.

2008-03-15-sketchbook-ids-drawings-008

2009-03-15T22:29:00.001-05:00

2008-03-15-sketchbook-ids-drawings-008, originally uploaded by chengan800.

New Moleskine sketchbook . MUCH MUCH better than the cheapo sketchbook I've been using.

2008-02-22-sketchbook-ids-drawings-007

2009-03-02T23:08:00.001-06:00

2008-02-22-sketchbook-ids-drawings-007, originally uploaded by chengan800.

2008-02-22-sketchbook-ids-drawings-006

2009-03-02T23:07:00.001-06:00

2008-02-22-sketchbook-ids-drawings-006, originally uploaded by chengan800.

2008-02-16-atelier

2009-02-22T22:28:00.001-06:00

2008-02-16-atelier, originally uploaded by chengan800.

I'm currently attending a Life Drawing class at the Atelier in Minneapolis. It's a 15 week class with 3 long poses (spanning 5 classes each). Here's one I did last week.

2008-02-22-sketchbook-ids-drawings-004

2009-02-22T22:25:00.003-06:00

2008-02-22-sketchbook-ids-drawings-004, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Minneapolis skyway sketches

2008-02-22-sketchbook-ids-drawings-003

2009-02-22T22:25:00.001-06:00

2008-02-22-sketchbook-ids-drawings-003, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Minneapolis skyway sketches

2008-02-22-sketchbook-ids-drawings-002

2009-02-22T22:24:00.001-06:00

2008-02-22-sketchbook-ids-drawings-002, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Minneapolis Skyway sketches

2008-02-22-sketchbook-ids-drawings-001

2009-02-22T22:23:00.001-06:00

2008-02-22-sketchbook-ids-drawings-001, originally uploaded by chengan800.

I'm currently getting into sketching people around the Minneapolis skyways during my weekday lunch breaks. Here's a few of those sketches....

20090202-manila4

2009-02-02T12:24:00.001-06:00

20090202-manila4, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Back from Manila

20090202-manila2

2009-02-02T12:19:00.001-06:00

20090202-manila2, originally uploaded by chengan800.

A few sketches from Manila, Philippines ...

20090202-manila

2009-02-02T12:18:00.001-06:00

20090202-manila, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Back from Manila, Philippines...

20090113-doodle

2009-01-13T01:19:00.003-06:00

20090113-doodle, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Doodles while talking on the phone...

20090111-JiffyLubeWait

2009-01-11T14:59:00.001-06:00

20090111-JiffyLubeWait, originally uploaded by chengan800.

20090110-Steve

2009-01-11T12:17:00.001-06:00

20090110-Steve, originally uploaded by chengan800.

Excuse the crude cartoon...

2007-04-27T00:27:00.000-05:00

museum
Originally uploaded by chengan800.

This was the scene at the local museum tonight.

I was supposed to go to a caricature workshop tonight but the class got canceled at the last minute. I found myself with some free time this evening so I went to the local museum to check out what's happening.

I found out that the museum is having this annual event where floral artists are called in to make floral arrangements that complement the art pieces all around the museum.

The arrangements were set next to the paintings they were supposed to complement. Basically, the arrangements were done with colors similar to the painting they are complementing.

Unfortunately, for me, they were more like eyesore. The arrangements were beautiful (no doubt - I mean they are works of art) ... but I think they don't belong inside the galleries next to the precious paintings. They were more like distractions and take away from the pleasure at looking at the paintings.

There are a lot of paintings in the museum that give me goose-bumps when I stand before them. I was mildly annoyed by people who totally ignored them in favor of the flower arrangement next to them. It just seemed disrespectful of the art work next to it. I'm just griping. I don't know. Maybe I'm just not getting the hype because I'm not much of a flower-person.

more portrait drawing

2007-04-10T08:18:00.001-05:00

portrait-afghan
Originally uploaded by chengan800.

And yet another drawing copied from a book of photos. Playing with a blending tool can get out of hand.

Last night's life drawing session

2007-04-10T08:15:00.001-05:00

life-drawing-04-09-07_1
Originally uploaded by chengan800.

It seems that everytime I go to these life drawing sessions at MCAD, it's always the same model. It's a good thing she's a good model. But I wouldn't mind drawing a different model.

Thursday

2007-04-05T22:43:00.000-05:00

Frustrating day at work. I'm glad I'm home. I am SO glad I'm home and not thinking about software code.

I made two portrait studies tonight. I used a book called "Portraits" which is a collection of photos of people from all around the world by Steve McCurry. I had this book for awhile now and did a few portrait studies awhile back but got frustrated with the way I was drawing faces. I had this book on my shelf since gathering dust.

Here are the studies...

(A guy from Pakistan)

(A Burmese lady)

Monday Life Drawing

2007-04-03T01:43:00.001-05:00

life-drawing-04-02-07
Originally uploaded by chengan800.

Trying to get back to regularly attending life drawing groups.

Reading too much Kierkegaard

2007-04-01T22:22:00.000-05:00

I'm becoming an existentialist nut lately - which also means that I'm going through existential crisis. I'm 34 as of this writing. I was told that it's around this age that you're suppose to experience something like this. Second guessing what you have become and where you are aiming. I thought I weezled my way out of thinking about those things when I turned 30 - by making it not a big deal and spending the weekend of my 30th birthday cooped up at work fixing software bugs. I didn't even go out and celebrate. Business (busy-ness) helps keep your mind off things that are constantly in the background of your thoughts - things that come out eventually in weird ways. Sometimes hurtful to both you and others around you.

It's actually good to read stuff by existentialists like Camus (who doesn't want to be called an existentialist), Sartre (who wants to be called an existentialist), and Kierkegaard (who unknowingly became the father of the existentialist movement).

I'm stuck with Kierkegaard these days - and hence the drawing on this entry.

We've heard phrases like 'you are free to do anything' and 'you can change' so much in popular media that they have lost their meaning. At least for me. They have become cliches. They are phrases that make you roll your eyes. And that's bad because these are important things to remember in times of hopelessness and despair.

What reading Kierkegaard did is to bring back meaning onto those phrases. I think it's because of the way he writes - they're kind of cryptic and difficult to understand. And unless you relfect upon your own experiences into what he was trying to say in his books, there's no chance you'll understand them.

I got hooked on Kierkegaard upon reading this section from his book "The Sickness Unto Death" written 1849...

"The human being is spirit. But what is spirit? Spirit is the self. But what is the self? The self is a relation which relates to itself, or that in the relation which is its relating to itself. The self is not the relation but the relation's relating to itself. A human being is a synthesis of the infinite and the finite, of the temporal and eternal, of freedom and necessity. In short a synthesis. A synthesis is a relation between two terms. Looked at in this way, a human being is not yet a self.

In a relation between two things the relation is the third term in the form of a negative unity , and the two relate to the relation, and in the relation to that relation; this is what is from the point of view of soul fo soul and body to be in relation. If on the other hand, the relation relates to itself, then this relation is the positive third, and this is the self.

Such a relation, which relates to itself, a self must either have established itself or been established by something else.

If the relation which relates to itself has been established by something else, then of course the relation is the third term, but then this relation, the third term, is a relation which relates in turn to that which has established the whole relation...."

Software engineers like myself can see this as a challenge in UML modelling. That is actually how I ended up "sort of" understanding what he was saying there. By drawing diagrams we use in software design to put those nouns and verbs together. That was fun and there were more of those in his writings. It's like solving Sudoku puzzles.

Ultimately you wonder, what was Kierkegaard smoking when he wrote that?

If you want to know about what true despairing is about, then Kierkegaard's your guy. His concept of despair is quite in depth and so modern. Like: Despair in the context of the self totally lacking a sense of finitude (i.e. imagination unbound) is sickness where the self becomes fantastical. Sounds like schizoprenia.

Now, why would it be important to know about what despairing is about? Well, wouldn't you want to know if you are in such state? Wouldn't you want to do something about it?

So far, I've read three books by him and I am no smarter than before. I say this because in the end, I find out that his ideas aren't new. However, I can say that I am more inspired than before. I can now appreciate it when somebody tells me that I am free to do what I want. I now wonder if the next person who tells me to "be myself" really has any idea how hard it is to be oneself.

His books are good tools for self reflection. Much, much better than buying "The Secret" from your local bookstore (please stay away from that book - seriously).

I highly recommend Kierkegaard if you are ready to examine your life. Examining your life, I was told, is what sets us apart from other creatures in this planet.

Playing a Fool

2007-03-31T21:26:00.002-05:00

There are objects in the local museum that I've longed to draw on the spot but I couldn't because I had this fear of drawing in public.

But today, one day before April Fool's day, I was the fool with the drawing tablet at the museum. And it was alright.

It felt good to finally shut that annoying voice in my head feeding me with scenarios of public humiliation. Lot's of "what-if's".

What if somebody makes a nasty comment on how I draw? What if I can't draw the object? What if people gather around and collectively disapprove of what I am doing? Uggh.

It was no big deal it turned out. There wasn't any crowd that gathered around. No hecklers or smirkers. Only a few people who quietly looked over my shoulder. No comments, some smiles. It was alright.

I was left alone, just as I wanted. I was left alone to study two sculptures that I've always wanted to try to put on paper for the longest time.

I want to draw more from the museum and I'm glad I now able to.

Sketches of Faces

2007-03-31T21:11:00.000-05:00

My Day (My Life?)

2007-03-01T01:33:00.000-06:00

Today I found myself actually feeling sick staring at my computer monitor at work. I skipped lunch in order to try and finish up stuff I need to finish today (which I didn't finish after all). I think not having lunch had something to do with it. I describe sick as in feeling nauseated when I try to scroll through texts in my text editor - like my eyeballs also wanted to scroll along. Feeling frantic in switching between opened windows on my desktop ( I think I had 12 or something) . I actually did not bring up Google on my browser at all today. Amazing. And then there were the periodic are-you-done-yet cube visits disguised as you-can-do-it-because-we-believe-in-you. Geez. This wasn't a good day.

Without A Scanner

2007-02-15T10:16:00.000-06:00

My kitchen's getting some serious renovation this week. My living room is a bit of a mess so no scanning of drawings (I can't even see my desktop computer in my living room anymore because of the mess).

The kitchen's beginning to shape up. What once was a non-functional, bland, 1960's themed, cabinetry-lacking kitchen which is just a nook in my living room - is still a nook. But it's now functional. It's looking contemporary. And there's lots of cabinets.

Before...

After....

My involvement in the remodeling project is limited to making decisions around color, placement of things, materials, and occasional painting of walls and ceilings of the kitchen. It's a limit that I have to impose upon myself because I am just not good doing construction work. Ask me to hit a nail in the wall - you'll get a hole in the wall.

I found an interesting information in looking at colors for the ceramic tile backsplash I want to put on the kitchen walls. There is something called The Color Association of United States (CAUS) which is a group that publishes color forecasts for the aesthetic industry. I guess they announce things like "Orange is the new black" or how the color purple enhances your crown chakra. Things of those sorts. I wonder how people who work in that group brainstorm with each other or do their research to come up with their forecasts.

Seen and Heard

2007-02-11T12:25:00.000-06:00

Patience wasn't my virtue last night. I was quite hungry and I stood behind a middle aged couple over at Boston Market. They have been standing there already when I got there and they still haven't decided what to order. And they had to haggle with the poor server with how many or which sides they want for their turkey.

You might say, "Well, we have the right to have decent service or do as we please in this country...". I'm not going to argue with that, friend. But come on, it wouldn't hurt to have a little consideration for the hungry people behind you.

Drawing Challenge: Salt and Pepper Shakers

2007-02-01T22:15:00.000-06:00

Another drawing for the "Everyday Matters" group.

This weekend I'm thinking of going out and walking on a frozen lake here in Minneapolis. I've lived here 10 years now and I've never stepped on a frozen lake. Something I've chosen to overlook because of the fear of falling through the ice and into the cold lake water. I think it's time to be brave and venture towards the frozen lake. For safety, I'll do the following:
1. Wear a life jacket.
2. Get a rope and tie one end around my waist and the other on a nearby stable tree.
3. Carry a loud bullhorn.

Cheers.

Drawing Challenge : An Exercise Equipment

2007-01-28T01:53:00.000-06:00

Elliot Smith

2007-01-27T11:00:00.001-06:00

This post is a bit of a downer, I know. I drew this while listening to two of his CD's ("Either/Or", "From a Basement on the Hill"). He knows loneliness so well and he sings about them. And we all know what it feels like to be lonely. No?

Power Plug

2007-01-21T01:07:00.000-06:00

EDM Drawing #102. I was way over my head in drawing the cord. I almost abandoned the drawing but it is important to finish. So there you have it.

Sketch: Cat Stuff

2007-01-20T12:25:00.000-06:00

The Kitchen...

2007-01-20T02:08:00.000-06:00

I'm going to have my kitchen renovated in 2 weeks and I thought I'd capture what it looks like now in a sketch.

The kitchen was a compromise when I bought my condo unit back in 2001. The price of the unit was right at my price range. The kitchen is small but that is not the problem because I don't cook much. It's the look. It's so 60's. And also the lack of cabinets. There's this wall of faux wood panel on the back wall which was an utter waste of wall space. Cabinets could have gone up there. Faux wood must have been big in the 60's. I don't know.

Anyway, I am not looking forward to the messy state of my place while the work is being done and also the home loan payment that I have to incur. But I am looking forward to a much functional kitchen - with cabinets that will keep all my tuna packets, pasta boxes, rice-a-roni's, hamburger helpers and canned goods.

Drawing

2007-01-18T03:10:00.001-06:00

I've been busy working on drawings that my friend Casey requested me to do for his blogs. All that struggle to draw a rhino an entry or two ago were all for the drawing on the right. I don't know really what the drawing means. Casey can probably explain it best on his blog site.

I have a couple more to do for him.

Working on these drawings is actually cool because of the "research" I had to do to figure out how to draw French guys and rhinos. In the process too, I found that I want to improve my pen and ink drawing skill. I admire the pen and ink works of R. Crumb , Heinrich Kley, Gustave Dore and Honore Daumier .

More fun struggles with drawing for me.

(this is not good... I'm posting this at 3am).

Drawing a Bar of Soap

2007-01-14T21:34:00.000-06:00

... plus other things in my bathroom.

Rhino Drawing Challenge

2007-01-10T01:01:00.001-06:00

Study of Rhinoceros
Originally uploaded by chengan800.

From a recent visit to New Orleans....

2007-01-09T20:41:00.001-06:00

Da Vinci Crap.. I mean... Trap.

2006-05-16T22:25:00.000-05:00

It's roughly 3 more days until the "Da Vinci Code" movie comes out. Check out any of your local bookstores and you'll see the familiar pile of Da Vinci Code-related junk (as illustrated above - with exaggeration, of course).

And all the Christian right wingers wish they have some equivalent of a "fatwah" that they can throw at Tom Hanks and Ron Howard. Well that is just too bad.

I don't think they need to worry about Ron Howard. He's probably going to dilute all the juicy stuff (i.e. blasphemous) from the book. That's just what he does. Movies that are never risky - guaranteed safe for the entire family. Ron Howard movies are good - they win awards, but you just don't buy them as DVD's. You just rent them, occasionally, usually for Thanksgiving gatherings.

2006-02-27T01:59:00.000-06:00

Back in the cold

2006-02-09T01:02:00.000-06:00

I'm now back in Minneapolis - technically I call home.

The frigid 9F wind that greeted us last Monday when we arrived, only made me regret coming back. Two weeks living near the equator can really spoil you. And spending time with family you haven't seen for a year just nails it.

The crappy part of crossing oceans when you travel is jetlag . I'm now in my usual cycle submitting to nap time at 3pm and waking up hungry at 3am. It's also exacerbated by my migraines, which renders me useless for about 3 days to a week. The nice thing about jetlag is the trippy feeling I get when I wake up from a nap all confused not having any idea where I'm am.

I caught a bug from the Far East. All the vitamins and herbal supplements I've been taking while I was in Singapore did not work. What a waste of luggage space. I don't think it's bird flu - otherwise I wouldn't be writing this entry.

Sentosa Beach

2006-02-03T13:09:00.000-06:00

Singapore Chinese Garden

2006-02-03T13:05:00.000-06:00

2006-01-30T23:11:00.000-06:00

Happy Chinese New Year from Singapore! For those who haven't been keeping track - it's now the Year of the Dog in the Chinese Lunar calendar. This pic was taken during a stroll along the Singapore River area where a free festival is being held.

Since it's the year of the dog - there are a few Singaporeans walking around with their pet dogs. And the song "Who Let the Dogs Out" seem to be playing in loop.

Castle in the Sky

2006-01-30T23:01:00.000-06:00

Taken January 26th...
We went to Genting, Malaysia - 45 minutes away from Kuala Lumpur. It's a huge amusement complex high in the mountains. The complex is a cross between Las Vegas and Mall of America. The climate is quite cool - a nice break from the warm humid weather in the lowlands.

2006-01-18T01:13:00.000-06:00

Since my last entry, I quit my old job, took another job downtown, and quit that one after two weeks. What a way to start my year. I am not proud of what happened. I luckily was able to land another job downtown - which I start after I get back from Singapore in February.

Despite the fiasco - I'm happy that I've adjusted to working downtown again. I'm enjoying the energy of the people in the skyways. I've been taking the bus to downtown and being a slave to the bus schedule wasn't that bad. It's comforting to see almost the same set of faces everyday in the bus. People are interesting and it's good to be around them.

I leave for Singapore this Friday. I'm hoping I can catch up with sketching while there.

Happy Holidays

2005-12-23T23:55:00.000-06:00

Christmas is 2 days away and I now regret why I haven't finished my shopping.

Everybody's on the road in a mad rush to get all their shopping done. And everybody's buying the same things I need from my shopping list.

However, the panic and stress of last-minute shopping did serve as a good distraction from stuff going on at work.

I quit my job yesterday and it's a relief since things have been weird at the office for the past couple of months. It is somewhat depressing watching the office you've been spending 8 hrs every weekday for a little over a year, disintegrate before your very eyes - one cube wall after another. As cube walls go down, you can't help but feel sentimental as you associate old office mates with each M&M, peanuts, and food crumbs you see on the floor.

At the mall, as I rest in the middle of the square along with other tired shoppers, I watched the mall Santa take on one kid after another on his lap, with welcoming arms, smiles and all. No crying kid could resist him. What energy. I tried to amuse myself by pretending he is real - and thought about all the cool Santa powers Santa has. And then mall Santa stood up for a break, walked over the Verizon stall and started trying out cellphones.

Feliz Navidad.

long weekend done

2005-11-29T13:40:00.000-06:00

Thanksgiving weekend came and went. I was lucky to have been invited to two feasts on Turkey Day - naturally I ate a lot. That's what I did over the long weekend - ate a lot. Totally non-productive but that's okay.

I saw "Rent" the movie version last weekend and it was okay. I had a hard time appreciating the musical even when I saw it live on stage in NYC way back. It's the music I've always had problems with. Most of the songs I thought were so cheesy (like rock ballads you might hear in GM SUV car commercials) except for maybe three of them. Watching the movie version made me love the things I already love about the musical even more.. and it did the same with the things I already hate. It was an unimaginative transposition of the stage version to the big screen. I wish they had more non-singing character interactions in between song numbers - which would have made the movie version unique and not just a copy of the stage version. It just felt like the whole movie was a string of one music video after another.

I also saw "Walk the Line" which I loved. It's about the looong courtship of Johnny Cash to June Carter. Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon were great in the movie as Johnny & June Carter. They weren't just doing impersonations of the people the were playing. It's a love story but not like "Love Story" in that there's no melodrama involved. I heard that Joaquin Phoenix had to learn how to play the guitar himself and sing like Johnny Cash - but I couldn't believe how good of a job he did when I saw the movie.

Yeah and lastly, I had a haircut last Friday and I discovered this weird hairless patch at the back of my head. I thought the girl who cut my hair accidentally shaved that spot but she made a convincing argument as to why it wasn't her fault. I think it's scar tissue but I can't remember when or how I scarred the area. Alien abduction? Remnant of the socket removed from when I awoke from the Matrix? It just goes to show how parts of your body you don't see everyday can shock you out of your wits.

Have you checked what the underside of your tongue looks like?

2005-11-20T23:26:00.000-06:00

The latest Harry Potter movie (Goblet of Fire) is a good watch. In my opinion - it's as good as the 3rd one (Prisoner of Azkaban). Both don't feel like they're Christmas kiddy movies. I haven't finished reading the Goblet of Fire book - I'm so backlogged. I was not going to read it anymore having seen the movie. But apparently - there were a lot of subplots and elaborations in the book not done in the movie version that it's still a good idea to finish the book.

Enjoy the drawing.

2005-11-20T21:13:00.000-06:00

I keep forgetting Thursday eve at the Y is a bad time to swim because it's Hydro-Aerobics class and there's only one or two lap lanes open. When I do forget and show up, it's somewhat entertaining watching numerous legs cycling underwater almost in sync.

Drawing Group 11/14

2005-11-14T23:41:00.000-06:00

I haven't been feeling very well. Partly psychosomatic after watching a few tv shows related to bird flu. I willed myself tonight to go to my regular drawing group. I'm glad I went. A nice break from a hard day at the office.

My weekend was spent mostly setting up a simplistic PVR (Personal Video Recorder) on my desktop computer. I had this project in mind waaay back a year ago when I bought an ATI TV Tuner card. Mark disuaded me from wasting time on this project, and just get Tivo. I still went ahead and did it - mostly because I already bought the stupid TV Tuner card and I refuse to pay Tivo's monthly subscription. I got things to work - but it's far from Tivo quality. Not fancy at all - only functional enough to regularly record "Family Guy" and a few other shows.

Anyway - enjoy the sketches.

Back from slumber

2005-11-03T13:00:00.000-06:00

Wow it's been two weeks since my last post... so I have three drawings to make up for my hiatus:

First: This is my late Halloween bit. I hope you see the disturbing quality that I see in it.

I spent my Halloween watching horror movies, a tradition that I stick to every year. This year: the original "Psycho" and "Land of the Dead" .

Next: Rosa Parks passed away.

Finally: A growing fascination with Bob Dylan after watching "No Direction Home"

Peking Duck Friday

2005-10-16T23:34:00.000-05:00

Nothing beats gloom better than having a Peking Duck dinner with dear friends.

Mark and I went along with a few of my Filipino friends over at Grand Shanghai in St. Paul last Friday. The place was packed, the service was quite spotty, but the food was awesome. The place served "authentic" Chinese food - meaning, for me, they serve more than your usual General Tso's chicken and House-Special-anything.

The three-course Peking Duck meal was the highlight of the dinner and it didn't disappoint. Ducks, next to pigeons, are pathetic and they don't have much meat in them. So you have to appreciate the fact that you can serve three dishes out of a small duck that can feed 10 people. There are places in this planet that serve up seven-course Peking Duck. Amazing.

Grand Shanghai served the traditional series of meals out of a Peking Duck: crispy duck skin on flour wraps, duck soup (from the duck's bone), and stir fried duck meat. Not advisable for anybody with cholesterol problems.

Wonderful dinner. Will be back there... when it's not busy.

medition on cynicism pt. 2

2005-10-13T23:34:00.000-05:00

meditation on cynicism

2005-10-13T23:21:00.000-05:00

2005-10-07T00:04:00.000-05:00

Random topics discussed in the office today:
- Wearing long sleeves shirts at our office could either mean you don't want to get pneumonia from the cold weather OR you had a job interview.
- Freudian slips : "shirt" has an "R" in it.
- Differentiating between a Japanese person and a Chinese person.
- Possibly selling a software named DBStalker.
- Fascination with the obsessive-compulsive Garden Orb Spider - which inspired the sketch on the left.

2005-10-05T22:29:00.000-05:00

I've always considered getting your country noticed by US news agencies - particularly CNN - a major score. Countries in the Middle East, for instance, hold very high scores. China is getting there. To get noticed, you have to be really bad.

The Philippines haven't been scoring high. Until today, when news broke that a possible spy was caught within the White House. The accused spy was charged with stealing information from the White House (Cheney's office) that included documents with damaging information about the current Philippine president. The accused spy is an ex-marine and a Filipino national who is a naturalized US citizen.

Associated Press listed this news higher than the Tom Cruise-Katie Holmes announcement that they're going to have a baby.

Aside from feeling embarrased over this thing, I'm worried about how this will affect the already messy state back home in Manila. A few months ago, the President (Gloria Macapagal Arroyo) got involved in a scandal where recordings of phone conversations between her and an election official surfaced in public - allegedly proving she rigged the 2004 presidential election. She never got impeached for some reason but since then, there have been threats to overthrow her. Rallies are being made, bombs are being blown. And then most recently - an "anti-terror" bill got passed (like the US Patriot Act) to guard against global terrorist threats. A lot of people now fear that it's more like a thinly veiled martial law - which we still have a bad taste in our mouths from the Marcos regime. Things are getting worse. It's like a zit waiting to pop.

As the investigation on the espionage unravels, I'll be curious to know why is Cheney keeping documents containing damning information about the Philippine president?

More news links...
http://news.inq7.net/breaking/index.php?index=1&story_id=52482
http://news.inq7.net/nation/index.php?index=1&story_id=50146

Model No Show and Holy Teeth

2005-10-03T23:57:00.000-05:00

Tonight we had the largest number of attendees in the life drawing group and the model didn't show up. Quite a disappointment. We joked back and forth about somebody from the group volunteering. One guy asked how much money was on the table. Yeah - everybody laughed but I was almost certain some of the eager newbies there were really hoping somebody would have a kind heart and strip down for the sake of art. I decided to leave before somebody gets creative and start drawing names from a hat. I heard after I left, one of the folks ended up modeling, clothed.

I got home thinking I should draw something... and I came up with this....

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Everyone has to take time off from work to go to the dentist -- even Pope Benedict.
At the end of Monday's morning session of a synod of bishops at the
Vatican, the secretary-general of the gathering, Archbishop Nikola Eterovic, made an announcement about the afternoon session, scheduled to begin at 4.30 p.m.
Just before the microphones on the dais were turned off, reporters following the synod on closed circuit television could hear the Pope telling Eterovic in Italian: "Unfortunately at 4 p.m. I have an appointment with the dentist."

I'm not completely happy I drew this because of the pope's recent shenanigans which irks me quite a bit. But the image of the pope on a dentist's chair got stuck to my head like a bad song.

drawing co-op 9/26

2005-09-26T23:52:00.000-05:00

annoyance

2005-09-24T01:11:00.000-05:00

more life drawing

2005-09-19T23:25:00.000-05:00

Some drawings from this evening's session...

2005-09-15T22:51:00.000-05:00

Pardon the awful caricatures in this entry. My hand went on auto-doodle mode and drew Republicans.

Nothing interesting happening in my week so far. I've been watching the news or listening to the radio following things like the New Orleans flooding or John Robert's confirmation hearing. Very upsetting.

The only thing that kind of perked me up a bit was hearing that Donald Trump will be appearing in a soap opera - Days of Our Lives. Will surely be recording that.

I went to Barnes and Noble tonight and was treated with the presence of Garrison Keillor. It was kind of surreal seeing him in person and actually hearing his voice ... which sounds exactly like his radio voice. I listen to the Prairie Home Companion whenever I catch it and it's quite an amusing show. Apparently, he has a book out and there was a long line for his autograph.

I got home and found myself obsessing over drawing his face - which I thought was quite interesting.

2005-09-12T23:50:00.000-05:00

After a long break for the summer, the fall sessions of MCAD's Life Drawing Co-op finally restarted tonight.

Finally.

I've been eagerly awaiting for the group to start meeting again.

I've been religiously going to these sessions for over 2 years now and it has helped me a lot in my drawings.

And still, I see TONS of things that I need to improve on.

Tonight's session was good. Not many people attended, which I am not complaining about.

For those interested in attending these sessions -
it's every Monday from 7-9pm at the MCAD . It will cost you 5 bucks per session.

2005-09-10T23:13:00.000-05:00

Sketching at Dunn Brothers, Xerxes & 50th St.

2005-09-10T01:11:00.000-05:00

There's no use deconstructing this drawing. I have no clue what I just drew. It's a mess - probably induced by drinking too much caffeine tonight.

It's one of those days...

2005-09-08T13:12:00.000-05:00

Catching up...

2005-09-05T23:52:00.000-05:00

A few Minnesota State Fair inspired drawings. I went there Thursday evening last week and found it to be pleasant. Not too crowded and the weather was just right. Just right for cheese curds.

The market place building (?) had all sorts of things being sold. However, there weren't much variety. For instance - there must have been 5 stalls or more all selling different brands of mops - complete with demonstrations. Or several stalls all selling chamois.

We roamed into the fine arts exhibit - which was a good idea. There were some excellent works there from local artists. I wish I have taken a few pics of them. I got some idea on what I will be doing as art piece for my bloody red bedroom.

The amusement area was pretty much the same as last year's. We decided not to get into any of the rides because of all the cheese curds we ate.

We searched with no success for the stall that sold deep fried spaghetti and meatballs.

Recap of my other weekend activities:
- Cleaned up my newly painted bedroom so I can move back into it again.
- Saw Grizzly Man at the Lagoon Cinema - which I found quite disturbing.
- Vented out by playing "The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction".
- Currently finishing the remaining episodes of The Office on DVD.

2005-08-30T23:43:00.000-05:00

Have been overdosing on all sorts of quack medications such as echinacea, garlic pills and vitamin c's in a desperate attempt to minimize my cold symptoms. I'd like to believe it is working since I am feeling less crappy.

2005-08-28T23:28:00.000-05:00

I have been busy painting my bedroom so not much sketch updates lately. And I caught a bug which is making my painting project go really slow. Paint fumes are really getting to me and I am feeling REALLY sick.

I'm painting my bedroom a color called "Canyon Red". I'm hoping I don't regret my choice of color.

2005-08-24T23:23:00.000-05:00

The property management at our office treated the tenants to a picnic this afternoon. The roast pork wasn't too bad and the cookies were actually chewy.

And there was a musical band - who were playing something called ragtime music I think. They caught my eye because they looked distinctly bored... maybe even hungry.

Pat Robertson's at it again. I think I really wasted ink on this one - but it's one of those images that stuck to my head like a bad song as soon as I heard about the news from a co-worker.

Discussed in the office: Benefits of traceable golf balls.

2005-08-23T23:22:00.000-05:00

Requested caricatures of my brother, sis-in-law, and nephew. Nowhere near Andy Warhol quality but that was the idea.

'Hiya - oks na ba to?!? Gawa pa ako ng iba - praktis lang to.

"ee-KAY-uh" or "eye-KEY-uh"

2005-08-21T23:03:00.000-05:00

Finally had a chance to visit the local IKEA store. Went there last Saturday to help Mark look for art for his living room & kitchen and for me to get some ideas on what to do with my bedroom. Man, that store is huge! I've been to only one other IKEA - in Houston, TX 6 yrs ago. I think the one we have here is bigger.

As expected - there are lots of cheap, beautiful, disposable furniture.

I'm bummed because I didn't get a chance to try the Swedish meatballs. Will have to come back for those sometime.

2005-08-18T23:58:00.000-05:00

We thought we take advantage of free Thursdays at the Walker Art Center tonight to check out the new Chuck Close pieces in it.

Walker is known for permanently housing Chuck Close's "Big Self Portrait" which is the image you see on the left of this paragraph. Well.. the image on the left is my sketch of "Big Self Portrait".

The original at the Walker is a huge 9x7 ft piece. It's actually a photorealistic painting and not a photograph - but it was done so well that you'd think you're looking at a blown up photograph. Pretty cool - it's worth the trip to the museum.

We walked around the museum and its new wing to check out other artworks. They are still as weird as I remember them from my last trip to the museum.

A rice cooker on a platform?

A rose on a graduated cylinder?

Who am I to judge?

2005-08-17T23:55:00.000-05:00

There was a violent stampede in Richmond, VA of folks out to purchase old Apple iBooks selling for $50.

People threw themselves forward, screaming and pushing each other. A little girl's stroller was crushed in the stampede. Witnesses said an elderly man was thrown to the pavement, and someone in a car tried to drive his way through the crowd.

Jesse Sandler said he was one of the people pushing forward, using a folding chair he had brought with him to beat back people who tried to cut in front of him.

"I took my chair here and I threw it over my shoulder and I went, 'Bam,'" the 20-year-old said nonchalantly, his eyes glued to the screen of his new iBook, as he tapped away on the keyboard at a testing station.

"They were getting in front of me and I was there a lot earlier than them, so I thought that it was just," he said.

I am not at all familiar with Apple computer models - so I am wondering if the iBook is the one that has the form design copied by George Foreman grills. Regardless - I don't think I would break a leg or pee in line waiting just to get my hands on an Apple product.

2005-08-16T23:15:00.000-05:00

I have been dragging my feet with drawing since last weekend. No valid reason - just pure laziness. Some sketches inspired from recent headlines...

Windows worms attack (again). Symptoms include repeated shutdown and rebooting of computers.
The director of Microsoft's security response center, Debbie Fry Wilson, said the computer giant was in an "emergency response" mode. "Right now, we're mobilizing our two war rooms," she told CNN.

Human-like skin give robots a sense of touch. A flexible, electronic skin could provide robots, car seats and even carpets the ability to sense pressure and heat, Japanese researchers reported on Monday.

End of Fringe

2005-08-14T23:46:00.000-05:00

Last day of the Fringe Fest: Mark and I made the most of our Ultrapasses. I saw 13 shows total.

Round-up of shows ranked from best to worst ( in my personal opinion)...
1. Adventures in Mating by Joseph Scrimshaw
2. London After Midnight by Hardcover Theater
3. Gilgamesh by Charlie Bethel
4. Thirst by Thirst Theater
5. Meditation On Arion by Nautilus Music Theater
6. Spare Parts by Rhino Productions
7. Inspector Rex by Four Humours Theater
8. The Scrimshaw Show by Scrimshaw Brothers
9. D.B. Cooper Didn't Die by Cheap Theater
10. Jaws: The Musical by Mime Rifle Productions
11. Pope Stole My Pretzel by Spoken Word Fringe Productions
12. Funny In The Head by Actors Alliance of San Diego
13. For The Rest of My Life by Esera Tuaolo

Tips for next year's Fringe Fest:
1. Production companies mentioned above will likely produce the same quality of shows next year - so look for them or avoid them depending on the ranking.
2. Shows are an hour long and you are only given 30 mins in between shows. So that's 30 mins to fight the crowd coming out of the theater, find your car, fight traffic, get in line for the next show, pray that it won't get sold out, and find a good seat inside the theater. Schedule around theaters in the same neighborhood. If you can't schedule around theaters in the same area - then give yourself time in between shows. The stress is not worth it.
3. Interact Theater (on of 3rd ave north). If you have to see a show there - get there early to get good seats. Or all you get to see will be huge, black, square posts.
4. When seeing a show at the Illusion Theater, avoid the parking lot at the corner of Hennepin and 5th St. Go to the City Center for parking - it's WAY cheaper.

Ending this blog entry with a rather immature sketch.

2005-08-11T23:55:00.000-05:00

Trying to catch up with Fringe Shows. I need to get my money's worth for the Fringe Ultrapass I bought. In order to do that.. I have to see at least 10 shows. I've only been to 6 so far.. not good.

Two of those shows I saw recently...

"Jaws: The Musical". This has gotten so much good reviews. It was good - but I did not dig the show totally to say that this is the best Fringe show this season. It's fun to watch ... but all that ninja humor got too tiresome close to the end.

"London After Midnight: Victorian Tales of Crime and the Supernatural: Episode 1". A must see in my opinion. Although it ends in a cliffhanger, the show was still quite enjoyable mainly because of the actors being so good (hamming up their Victorian manners). Plus - the script was so well done. Can't wait for January 2006 for Episode 2.

Learned today at work: Being more aware of use of puns . Specifically - when it is intended or not.

Appreciated: Wikipedia. If we learn that earth is going to self-destruct soon - we should seriously think about putting all the data from wikipedia into discs and sending it out to outer space to save human knowledge.

It's only Tuesday?

2005-08-09T23:41:00.000-05:00

Today - things I've kept under the "Maybe" list in my head seem to clamor to move to either the "Yes" or "No" lists.

Nothing a good swim at the Y couldn't alleviate.

Back Sketching

2005-08-08T23:04:00.000-05:00

Today at the office: Crazy things people do for their pets. Discussed dog yoga, dog psychologists, and giving your dog a pet dog.

Also: Went to two shows featured in this year's Minnesota Fringe Festival :
1. "Funny In the Head" - was okay could be a lot better.
2. "Thirst" - was very good despite the bad weather (play was staged up on a restaurant rooftop and it rained).

Sunday - Pinoy Food Binge

2005-08-08T21:14:00.000-05:00

Another non-sketch entry...

Recapping Sunday with Tria & Mandy. Stuffed ourselves at a Filipino restaurant just a few blocks away from Tria and Mandy's house. The restaurant served a buffet of some pretty good home-cooked style Pinoy dishes. I had all the goodies unattractively stacked on my plate...

Recipes:

There was also sinigang which is tamarind soup, fresh fruits, and some pastry dessert which I have forgotten what they are called.

Definitely will be back to this place when I come back next time.

After that huge meal - we went to the Village Creamery which is popular among Filipinos in the area for their Filipino style ice cream flavors such as queso(cheese), avocado, langka(jackfruit), durian(stinky fruit), buko pandan (coconut),and mais (corn). The place is owned and operated by a Filipino guy who used to have a Baskin Robbins franchise. I tried the buko pandan and the queso ice creams. Yummy!

Shameless Saturday

2005-08-07T22:17:00.000-05:00

A non-sketch entry...

Back from Chicago.

A recap of Wizard World Satuday (time marks are approximations):

8:45am: Tria dropped me off at Rosemont Convention Center. I hurried, got my ticket and waited in line for the door to open at 10am. Dunkin Donuts coffee in hand, I waited in line with some guy with the biggest 'fro I've ever seen , some folks dressed up as anime characters, the Black Canary, and dozens of other fanboys/girls talking comic books. A storm trooper walks by to check on the line.

10am: Door opens, everybody rushes into the convention floor. I walk in and realized that this is the biggest comic book event I've seen so far. The one I've been going to in the Twin Cities is nothing compared to this.

Need to stay focused...

1. Meet Alex Ross
2. Meet Frank Miller and Jim Lee
3. Meet Jeph Loeb

Ross scheduled to appear at 12p, Miller/Lee at 2p, Loeb Sunday. I would want to meet all of them but I had a feeling that I would end up meeting just one of them. If I have to pick - I'd shoot for meeting Alex Ross.

1030am: It was amazing to see Margot Kidder & Sam Jones..

11am: Wandering around the floor - I felt so overstimulated like a puppy being rubbed on its tummy. 50% trade paperbacks, action figure bargains, tons of artists doing sketches. Saw a crowd gathered around a table which turned out to be Gene Colan's . And he signed my sketchbook.

1130am: Line was long at Alex Ross' signing booth. Crap! There were probably close to a hundred folks in line. And I swore I saw people intending to have stacks of comic books signed.

I waited in line still because I can't pass the opportunity to meet Alex Ross. Years back - Ernie introduced me to "Kingdom Come" - my first exposure to Alex Ross' work. The book blew me away not only because of its compelling story but also because of Ross' art. Ross painted the panels rather than using traditional line drawing/inking. The book was painted as if Norman Rockwell did it. So much realism was injected into the design of the super hero characters that it was so refreshing to see. After which, I've been a huge fan of the guy.

Anyways, 20 or so people followed behind me and the line was closed by a convention staff.

12pm: Alex Ross appears and the line moves.... slowly. As we move, slowly, the folks on the convention floor (not in line) got treated to a parade of Storm Troopers, and other costumed guests. There was Wonder Woman, Wonder Girl, Super Girl, Batman with Robin, Shaun (of the Dead), an African-American Captain America, some guy carrying a cross (not Jesus), and a bald Superman. All of them graciously posing their superhero poses at the request of folks for photos.

1230pm: Still in line for an Alex Ross rendezvouz... Uggh... Called up Ernie to give him a hard time for not joining me on this trip.

130pm: Finally - I meet Alex Ross. And thanks to the guy behind me who didn't mind taking a pic of me with Mr. Ross.

Mr. Ross not only signed my copy of Kingdom Come , he also signed his calling card for my friend Ernie.

Off to see Frank Miller / Jim Lee.

145pm: Waiting in line at the Will Eisner Room for a presentation featuring Frank Miller / Jim Lee. Geez I was so tired from the Alex Ross wait.

2pm: Pissed off - Found out that I need to have a seating ticket for the Frank Miller/Jim Lee discussion. I booted myself out of the line. Just outside at the fountain area - there was another long line forming. Apparently, Miller/Lee will start dishing out autographs there at 330p. The prospect of me getting a chance to have my copies of "Hush" and "Dark Knight Returns" is very bleak. Disappointed.

I decided to roam around the convention floor to people watch and shop.

230pm: Only bought two graphic novels from the half price bins: "Flash: Terminal Velocity" and "Batman:Year One" . I could have gotten more but got worried about my luggage space.

Had fun snapping pics of costumed folks around the convention floor:

3pm: Still disappointed over the Miller/Lee thing. And felt so tired. Sat down at a huge carpeted area outside of the main convention floor - along with dozens of people in the same zombie like state as I was.

330pm: Miller/Lee comes out to the fountain area and I decided to snap pics of them signing for the fanboys:

4pm: So tired! As I typed in a text message to Tria to pick me up, I realized that I have not eaten/drank anything the whole day - except for the Dunkin Donut coffee. I was running on adrenaline throughout the day. Tria responds to pick me up at 6p. I needed to hunt for a hotdog.

430pm: Wow - the Miller/Lee fiasco turned out for the better. Walking around to look for some grub, I saw Jeph Loeb. He wrote three of my favorite Batman stories: Long Halloween , Dark Victory & Hush . I had second thoughts whether I should leave him alone until I see him Sunday for his autograph signing or throw myself shamelessly in front of him for a handshake and maybe a picture. Well I decided to go ahead and meet him. It was a bit awkward. But he obliged my request for a pic - his friend took a pic of both of us. Told him how I appreciated those three Batman books he wrote. Left and shook his hands. And I was so buzzed out that the search for a quick hotdog meal became insignificant.

540p: Tria picked me up .. in time before I passed out.

Thanks to Tria & Mandy..

2005-08-04T23:33:00.000-05:00

I'm heading to Chicago this weekend for the Wizard World comic book convention - or "comicon" to those in the know.

Wizard holds extravagant comic book conventions where well-known comic book personalities and celebrities top the events. Film companies also use these big conventions to generate hype for whatever fan-boy movie they are making - by showing "exclusive" clips and trailers, Q & A's , etc.

So I can imagine that it'll be far more interesting than the local comicon Ernie and I go to every fall. My gosh.

Aside from the comicon activity - I'll be eating a lot. A lot of Filipino food with Tria and Mandy. Chicago has a huge Filipino community and thus more Filipino establishments. Am really looking forward to that.

Okay - I think I have all that I need packed.. except for some pomade.

2005-08-03T23:27:00.000-05:00

Persistent annoyance = squirrel turds on my patio.

2005-08-02T22:45:00.000-05:00

Nothing much to report today except that somebody I know bought a LuxSauna Portable. It uses infrared to heat up the inside to make you sweat. It also has a foot heating pad. My only concern was cleaning the thing. Otherwise, I think it's an awesome purchase.

In a few hours, astronauts aboard NASA's Discovery space shuttle will suit up and do a spacewalk to remove dangling cloth strips from the ship's delicate heat shield. These dangling cloth strips were believed to have caused the Columbia shuttle tragedy. Read more and wish the brave astronauts good luck.

Yet Another Theme Restaurant

2005-08-01T22:38:00.000-05:00

Monjo arrived from Manila/China for a very short visit and we went out to Joe's Crab Shack in Maple Grove for a get-together. It was good to be with a bunch of friends talking loud in Tagalog in a public place - which, to locals, must have sounded like "blah blah blah chicken ... blah blah blah diet coke ... ". It was difficult to watch birthday celebrants being ambushed by the restaurant wait servers. And I loathed waiting for our wait server to finish her dance number to get my Jumbo Tequila Lime Shrimp.

2005-07-30T15:45:00.000-05:00

Lazy Saturday afternoon - drawing at Centennial Lakes Park in Edina.

People enjoying much needed nice weather.

2005-07-29T18:43:00.000-05:00

Empty cubicles. That's what we have plenty of at the office. Empty from all the people quitting. It's hard to get motivated at work when people around you are disappearing - including your boss. I'm struggling to find humor in this whole thing. And I'm afraid that if I do find humor - it will turn out to be a bad joke on me.