123 Days

It's surprising how fast time has went over the past couple of months, and how quickly my upcoming moves are approaching. Who knew that a year ago I would actually begin to accomplish the tasks I set out for myself? 

I have indeed moved home to save money, but frugality is intertwined with my transition to minimalism. I don't want to spend exorbitant baggage fees when I move to Scotland, so I've been slowing downsizing from my move from Portland to Benton City, and now from Benton City to New York. I'm even participating in a fad/movement, tiny homes, as you can see above. This 70s nomad camper is my home, and I've surprisingly come to love it. It's my own little space where I can work on projects, watch a movie, and wake up to cows, horses and the dreadful call of a peacock. It's country living, and I don't mind it one bit. Plus, since I'm running off solar power, I have no utilities to pay with the exception of my cell phone bill. This has proven to be extremely beneficial, whereas now the entirety of my paycheck can be saved. 

Speaking of paycheck, I've began work at a print shop that specializes in roll labels (and a slue of other printed material), and it is interesting to say the least. I am learning a lot regarding pre-press, file setup, industrial production and so forth, but it is a huge change from working in Portland the past 10 years. Although interesting, it's extremely under stimulating. I've been accustomed to the "go-go-go" mentality, working 5 jobs simultaneously while attending class full time, plus commissioned work and so forth; but now it's one job at a time, literally watching paint dry. I'm not even kidding. For example, say I'm printing 15,000 wine labels. It'll take about 2 hours to print, in which I must man the machine, refill ink as necessarily, listen for machine malfunctions and keep an eye on print quality as it finishes onto a huge roll to move on to the die-cutting phase before being sent to the customer. It may sound like a lot to watch over, but realistically it's sitting in a chair, watching prints come out and listening--but mainly watching the paint dry on the labels as I inspect for quality. 

Woof.

But it's a job, one I'm thankful to have and thankful to leave within the next month.

So I've been recovering from the two operations, working on commissions, working-working, and also traveling! My brother attended the Oklahoma Farrier School in Purcell and recently graduated. Unfortunately, neither of my parents were able to attend the ceremony and drive back to Washington with him, so I was sent (no complaints by me!). I flew from Pasco to Minneapolis to Oklahoma City, where Evan picked me up, stayed the night and then drove through Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado, Utah, Idaho, Oregon and finally home to Washington. All in less than four days. Seriously, it was a whirl-wind, but I got to see so much and learn a lot about myself during the trip. 

Will Rogers International Airport in Oklahoma City

The first thing was an experiment in packing light. I've been scouring blogs, pins, posts and what-have-you the past year on how to travel lightly and efficiently--without sacrificing--and this trip was the perfect chance to try out some of the tips and tricks I picked up. Since I knew I'd be traveling though a variety of climates, I made sure to pick clothes that could be suitable for heat, or layered for chilly conditions. Using the roll and rubber band technique, I was able to fit 7 interchangeable outfits into a laptop bag along with my gallon bag of toiletries, and 7 pairs of socks and underwear. At first I was nervous, but then realized I had all that I needed for a week, let alone 4 days. The great thing was that I still had wiggle room in the bag, you know, just in case I wanted to pick up a souvenir. 

Hotel room in Norman, OK 

My clothing bag was complimented by my purse, which housed my laptop, a sketchbook, charger, case of drawing utensils, wallet, sunglasses, headphones, earplugs and an eye mask. I was set, and after returning home, I feel like I could move to New York for the summer with what I brought on the trip. The best things I learned were:

-Roll your clothes and use a rubber band to secure them--for me this is great, because I use small black hair-ties anyways, so now my clothes were compacted and I had tons of back up hair supplies! 

-Be comfortable and bring the toiletries you use everyday--you'll feel a lot better!

-If you have an opportunity to shower, take it!

-For girls, leggings+tunic+cardigan+scarf (what I wear normally) is the ideal travel combo. If your tunic is long enough, it can bee a dress in hot conditions, or layered for cooler weather. Plus, it all rolls and fits better compared to jeans. 

-Staying in a hotel? Damp one of the hand towels and secure over the vent/fan before you go to bed! The rooms tend to be dry, so a DIY humidifier is ideal to wake up refreshed versus feeling dried out. 

Snow in Denver!

One of the biggest things I learned about myself on the road trip was that I hate snow. There was a point where we were entering Colorado on a back country highway with no indications of human life to be seen as the snow began to fall--quickly. Before we knew it, we were driving through two feet of snow in the middle of nowhere, running low on gas, no cell phone reception, no homes in view and 40 miles to the nearest town. I was so nervous that stomach acid came up my throat, my body began to ache from clenching and I felt as if I were suffocating under water. Although we reached a hotel safely, the anxiety stayed with me all through the Colorado Rockies and only subsided when we reached the desert in Utah. The desert on the other hand, a climate that I grew up in, was calming. I know that I don't like being warm, but it didn't feel as desolate as the snow. I think that's why I enjoyed living in Portland so long, it was a balanced climate with a lot of rain that kept me indoors to work on projects. Summer in New York might be miserable, but a year in Scotland is going to be heaven.

Colorado/Utah border

Driving though certain parts of Colorado and Utah revived my love of the Western genre. As we were going through canyons, I half expected to see a Native tribe on horseback looking down on us (thanks John Wayne films). But I also kept thinking about the work of Italian artist Sergio Toppi and the killer comic Pretty Deadly. Heck, even The Sixth Gun. I love westerns! This acknowledgement of my passion for the genre also inspired my future creative endeavors, as I've not only been doing western commissions, but I have a bounty of personal stories that would make an interesting autobio comic. I really look forward to exploring some of those ideas about growing up in the country in sequential form. 

Next up: MARVEL! 

I'll be working in the Trades and Special Project division beginning May 31! I fly into New York on May 25 and return to Washington briefly on August 30. After scavenging Craigslist, I'm feeling pretty good about finding an affordable place to live and part-time work while I'm there, not only o support myself, but to continue saving for Scotland. It will no doubt be a life-changing experience, and I am really looking forward to my east coast adventure. More on that next time!

142 Days

I've moved home in order to save money for my Scotland adventure, but I hit a speedbump. Within two days of moving to Benton City, WA I landed a job, but on that same day a pain in my side increased exponentially. Appendicitis. So, laid up on the couch, I think I'm on the mend. Joke was on me. I kept feeling a stabbing pain where my appendix used to be--ghost appendix?  Nope, it turns out that hiding underneath my appendix was a ping-pong ball sized cyst growing on my ovary (see below).

Cysts are normal for women, but this size is not. So I was opened up for a second time in less than 5 days. The doctors removed the cyst and also found a bit of blood in my stomach, which as they put it, can feel like an acid burn (because blood isn't supposed to be there). Yikes! This is not what I was expecting when I moved  home! Now I am slightly delayed on my savings plan, but I'm confident that I'll catch up to where I need to be soon enough. 

Oh, what's that cute little space? It's my new home!  Although I can't really move much stuff around yet (whole two surgery thing), I'm excited for this tiny home living adventure. It's a 1970s camper that my parents are kind enough to let me commandeer for the time that I am here--that is when I can move off the couch. There's enough space to do arts and crafts, a closet, bathroom, stove and bed, what more could a girl need?

https://www.facebook.com/events/1546205515680057/

Also, I'm getting back in the art swing and participating in a group show at The Emerald of Siam in Richland, WA. I'm so excited to create some new work and meet some local artists in the area. I'm really missing Portland and my family I left behind, so hopefully participating in this art show will ease my homesickness. 

150 Days

It's official! I've graduated, moved to Benton City, WA, got a job and also lost my appendix--all in less than a week! 

Moving back home was bittersweet, as I left my partner Phillip and our cat Buffy behind as he is pursuing his own business endeavor. It's a good thing that social media and fancy phones exist to make the transition easier for the both of us, but there's still plenty of stuff in the air (jobs, internships), so returning to Portland may be an option in the future. As for now, I'm back to country living to save some money for grad school, the one thing that is still for certain.

So, I moved back on Tuesday, applied for a job on Wednesday and was interviewed and hired on the spot Thursday. The thing is that I was feeling weird since dinner on Tuesday. I thought it was just bloating or constipation from eating sour cream (lactose intolerant), but the pain was intense. Luckily, my mom persuaded me to go to the doctor, you know, better safe than sorry. Well I'm glad that she made me go, because my appendix was telling me it didn't want to live in my belly anymore. Yikes!

The zinger is that I was supposed to start me new job on Friday morning, the exact time my surgery was scheduled. Oh, the irony! Thankfully my new employers are flexible and understanding--especially since there's no way I could foresee I would have appendicitis. So they took my appendix out and I'm a couch potato for the next week, which is a good and bad thing at the same time. Good because it gives me time to adjust, settle and let my body adjust to the dryer climate. Bad because I get stir crazy all too easy, but again, I'm thankful that the internet exists.

My new job is actually pretty damn perfect. It's only a 2-mile walk from where I'm staying, and is perfectly aligned with my skill-set. But, since I signed a NDA, I can't say too much. But it's a print production company where I'll be assisting in designing, pre-press and the actual printing of a variety of products. It's also full-time and starting at $13/hour, and thanks to Washington, the wages aren't as heavily taxed as they are in Oregon (where they take an average of 33% per paycheck). It's pretty cool, and I can transfer a lot of the knowledge gained to my future career in the comic book industry. It's also a job I won't feel too bad saying goodbye to if I get a summer internship, or when I have to say goodbye and set sail for Scotland.

For now, I am just relaxing and trying to catch up on updates and internet what-have-you's. I suppose I can take this required leisure time and work on some art now that school is done. Speaking of school, you see that image above? Yea, I have 5 degrees and a 3.95 (out of 4.0) GPA. I'm pretty darn proud of myself, even if I got an A-. :)

170 days

The time has come, I'm going into my FINAL finals week at PSU! Not only that, but I ONLY HAVE TWO WEEKS LEFT IN PORTLAND before I move back to the Tri-Cities in order to save some money. I can't believe that it's all happening so fast, and that it is indeed happening!  I've been putting the time and effort in, and now that I can see the light at the end of the tunnel I am equal parts stoked and scared.

I've lived in Portland for 10 years now, 5 of which I've lived in my cozy little house on Montana Avenue. So moving back home will be an eye opener, but something that I do look forward to. BUT, there's some things in the works that might truncate my stay in the Tri-Cities, and that thing is MARVEL. I only have an interview, but hey, I HAVE AN INTERVIEW WITH MARVEL F*CKING COMICS! It's for a summer internship that will perfectly fill the gap between now and Scotland. I just can't even!

The only downside is, I desperately need to save money for school and that will be hard if I get this internship. I have a lot of pros and cons to weight out, but I trust in my ability to figure shit out and make the best of it. We'll see what happens, but for now I'm just glad to be presented with this opportunity.

Also, my crowdfunding page is still up, link to your right!  I still have a ways to go to reach my goal of $2000, but I do have some donors!  The photo above is one of the snail mail packs I'm sending out that includes: a custom portrait, a woodblock print, a notebook and variety of self-published comics. I can't make Scotland happen without outside support, and please know I do appreciate it and will reward patrons with gifts from the heart.

For now, I must prepare for finals and get ready to host my first ever COMICS WORKSHOP!

174 Days

My final term at PSU is quickly coming to a close. I'm so proud of the work that I put in, and the opportunity to present at my first academic conference at CSUN. Above are pictures from the Comics and Visual Culture Symposium, and I cannot believe the engaging conversations and presentations I encountered! I look forward to more conferences and opportunities to share research with like minded scholars. 

Also, March 22 marks my return to the Tri-Cities. From there, I will be able to save money throughout the summer in order to get my Tier 1 Student Visa, and then off to Scotland! *fingers crossed*

200 Days

Updates! Updates! Read all about it! 

I'm nearly a month into my final term at Portland State University. I've been feeling a little anxious and stretched-thin as I'm working 4 positions, taking 5 classes (20 credits), preparing for conferences and setting up workshops. I enjoy being busy, but it would be nice to have some spare time to work on scholarship applications and preparations for moving home as well as moving to Scotland. 

The good new is that I've been accepted to present a paper at the Comics and Visual Culture Conference at California State University-Northridge. This will not only be my inaugural conference presentation, but also my first time in LA! It takes place February 27, so if you by chance are in the area it would be great to have some support! More information can be found here: http://www.csun.edu/humanities/comics

Also, the PSU Comics Club is up and running!  We've had two meetings so far and a lot of ideas. The wonderful thing is that we've formed a partnership with a university magazine, The Pacific Sentinel, and will have our own section!  It's only 1-2 pages to start, provides a great opportunity for lovers of comics, cartoonists and students in the comics studies program to get their work out there. Our next meeting is February 12th. It's a little bittersweet to be a part of the club knowing that this is my last term at PSU, but it's a great group of people that I am happy to know.

Since I've been looking for opportunities to gain some teaching experience, I figured why not hold a workshop of my own?  It seems right up my alley to just make things happen for myself, as in the past I argued and manipulated instructors to let me write about comics, and instead of waiting around for a workshop to present itself I'll do it myself! The focus of the workshop will be creating DIY 1/4 fold mini-comics that are 8 pages in length. I'll provide a step-by-step look at the process from making a dummy copy, thumbnails to how to scan and print it by utilizing resources on campus. My pal Andrew Paris has agreed to help out with the workshop by providing some insights into digital coloring through freeware, such as GIMP or PIXLR. Another cohort Chris Giles will lend his superb editorial skills to any writer in the group.

So far it's scheduled for March 7th, 5-8 in URBN 225 at Portland State University. I will be using this opportunity to also provide handouts and comics detailing resources for the frugal student, including websites such as ComicBookPaper.com, where to print for free and so forth. I'm very excited to put this together as I have a lot of information to share through my own trials and errors making comics and as a student at PSU.

I'm currently working on scholarship applications as well as my coursework, so I should get back to it! Until next time!

247 days

Crowdfunding is now live: 

GoFundMe Site

Here is an introductory comic to my crowdfunding endeavor. I've listed some early bird rewards while I figure out how to navigate the site and upload more reward tiers. Thanks for checking it out!

(click to enlarge)