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arkratirmaWHEW! Waking up at 4:30 AM (just this morning, maybe others in the near future) is not entirely fun, even though at the time I woke up, I'd felt relatively rested.
My first week of college at the Art Institute of Portland was fun, exciting, frustrating, tiring (even exhausting), refreshing, weird, and more.
(Tangent: I finally own Pan's Labyrinth! WIN.)
I'd wanted to update this journal to describe how each day went at the end of each day, but I couldn't get around to it, partly due to misunderstandings in my library's check-out system and elsewhere, partly due to lollygagging at last night's spectacular lightning storm, partly due to spending time with my family.
I am relieved to have reached my first college weekend. I will be driving with Aunt Pam to Portland tomorrow to get a feel for the trip myself.
So, I will just describe my days in note form, as I took them in my notebook - with some excursions into greater detail.
OH MY GOD THIS IS LOOOOOONG.
MONDAY, JULY 9
+ sat for four hours in Powell's before school (roughly 8:20 AM to 12:30) due to carpooling with Uncle Larry
=== bought Dean Koontz's One Door Away from Heaven (paperback, on sale for $2.95!) to pass time
+ first class, Language of Animation & Film (12:45 - 4:30); teacher Nancy Breaux, guyish and funny
===(Breaux's tangents: "We should see Ratatouille in a field trip!" upon my saying "I need to see it"; Brad Bird's visit to the Platform Film Festival upon my mention of my love for The Iron Giant) :D
+ watched early film (Edison, Lumiere brothers) and early cartoons, including:
---Winsor McCay's immortal Little Nemo in Slumberland (1911); Gertie the Dinosaur (1914); and How a Mosquito Operates (1912)
(Tangent: HOLY SHIT I haven't seen the 1982 Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland IN AGES. I just learned that Miyazaki and Takahata worked on the pre-production for a short time) ... (Aaand I'd had no idea that it had been so well-received by so many critics. I HAVE TO SEE THIS MOVIE AGAIN. RIGHT NOW!)
+ let out 20-30 min early; Dad 'saves' me and we change my schedule: NO NIGHT CLASS! - my advisor, Amber, is very helpful and friendly during the whole process (my replacement class is a more advanced version of Computer Fundamentals in which I will be working with Photoshop, Illustrator, and Flash!)
TUESDAY, JULY 10
+ Dad and Cammy leave for home; drop me off at AIPD 30 min or so early
+ second class, Design Inquiry (aka Freshman Seminar) (9:00 AM - 11:45 AM); teacher Colleen Broderick, has cerebral palsy (walks with a limp) and is very open about it
+ I buy a hummingbird book at Powell's; Jessi picks me up at Powell's; we ride the streetcar to The Oregonian (where Uncle Larry works); lunch at Madison's at Fifth
===chilled watermelon / strawberry 'soup' with mint, cran-turkey burger; both DELICIOUS
+ at home: Jessi and I run through the sprinkler and spray our legs with the hose to keep cool, because it is FREAKING HOT; Draco gets a cool bath
+ Elizabeth calls to see how my first couple days of college have been; veggies and dip for dinner
WEDNESDAY, JULY 11
+ third class, Digital Principles (advanced Computer Fundamentals) (8:00 AM - 11:45 AM)
+ teacher, Ms. Gifford (I forget her first name, argh) is sixteen minutes late for her class (I read more of One Door Away from Heaven)
+ admits she has no idea of what she's supposed to teach for this course; we spend the entire period creating silly photo collages in Photoshop
+ first project (due in two weeks): photo collage in Photoshop with drawn / photographed / scanned components
=== Gifford sees my draft for my poster and exclaims, "Wow, you're good - it's rare to see someone who can... actually draw"
+ I mention that I'm in for Media Arts & Animation (she had also been in for MA&A when she was a student at AIPD); she grabs my shoulders, shakes me a bit, and declares, "We're going to be great friends!"
=== I offer her my Brainsick sketchbook: "Wow, you're really good with dogs!" and "It's nice to see work from someone who doesn't draw anime." (yes, she is an anime hater, hehe)' suggests I take advantage of AIPD's free figure drawing classes on Friday, which is a wonderful suggestion
+ Gifford shows me her work, which is STUNNING and wildly professional (duh); let out 30 min early
+ checked out ICOR 100 reading packet (Broderick) in library for homework
+ at Powell's: my backpack and other items are taken to Lost and Found because I'd left them alone for a long time; picked them back up, settled in the cafe; long haul filled with reading and some sketchbook inking
+ back to AIPD: called Dad, he has my keys to the Voyager in CALIFORNIA (lol) and is going to send me a package (he put a $200 insurance on it, because two of my old art binders are being sent up with my keys)
+ back to Powell's: 30 min wasted waiting inside when I was supposed to wait for Uncle Larry outside at pillar; I am frustrated by my misunderstanding but extremely grateful for his mellow attitude (understand that picking me up at Powell's is an extreme kindness, but very inconvenient for him as he has to leave work, walk across Hawthorne Bridge, drive his car to Powell's to pick me up, and drive back over Hawthorne on to home)
=== (had a split-second glimpse of a guy who could have been the real Finch (with a nose) as I walked to the front doors)
+ picked up Aunt Pam (Uncle Larry is driving her Astro; his Geo Metro is being worked on)
+ at home, I take Draco out to munch on the grass as Aunt Pam is watering it; as it has been a hot day, Draco rubs his chin and crawls through the water in pure delight, much to my and Aunt Pam's adoration (I take a short, 2-min video of him, too!)
+ called home and talked with Mom, Dad, and Cammy (and Lupin) <3
+ read LA&F article after another dinner of veggies and dip
THURSDAY, JULY 12
+ fourth class: Drawing (8:00 AM - 11:45 AM); teacher, Amy Zollinger
+ drawing exercises in opposing teams, "The Incredibles" (of which I am a member) and the "Billy Bobs"
=== my opponent and I have to draw each other with our left hands; other students comment on how good mine it turning out despite my "I'm extremely right hand-dominant!"; Zollinger comments "We're going to have to watch this girl!"; lots of laughs at other prompts
+ blind contour and continuous line exercises; Zollinger gives me a pine cone to draw because I finished my other drawings so quickly; complimented my pine cone
+ LET US OUT AN HOUR AND A HALF EARLY 0___________0 (around 10:30)
+ I listen to a phone message from the librarian: I must return the ICOR 100 book as I misunderstood that it is ONLY to be checked out and used IN THE LIBRARY; I explain what happened and she lets me go without paying the fine ($5 / day otherwise); thanked librarian for clearing up my misunderstanding
+ at Powell's: looked through Flight: Volume 1V from the graphic novel section (these collections (Flight) are truly amazing)
+ continued One Door Away from Heaven; talked with Dad
=== Powell's intercom: "Powell's customer Jillian, please come to the Green Room to meet your grandmother, Claire...." :P
+ Uncle Larry picks me up at 5:30 (I was out front by the pillar this time); we pick up Aunt Pam again
+ at home: burgers, lollygagging, laptop...
+ SPECTACULAR lightning storm!
+ copied pages from ICOR 100 book (which I returned on Friday)
FRIDAY, JULY 13
+ woke up at 4:30 AM for a change in Uncle Larry's work; locked out of house, woke Uncle Larry up by calling through bedroom window
+ walked across Hawthorne bridge with Uncle Larry; got a Snapple at a small cafe
+ went to streetcar stop, got bored and began walking to find AIPD / Powell's myself; got lost but didn't panic, talked to a (smoking) 20-something guy who liked my Depeche Mode t-shirt and socks and invited me to coffee (I'm paranoid, so I don't know if... he wanted to be just friends or more); found my way to school by following a fellow student I recognized (whew!)
+ fifth class, Principles of Visual Communication (aka Design Basics) (8:00 AM - 11:45 AM); teacher, Renata Hoeckel
+ diluted India ink drawings; ink drawings for homework stressing LINE
+ let us out about 15 min late, which is good for having to wait at Powell's until 4:30
+ bought rubber cement, rubber cement pickup, and student artwork labels at the Student Store (Prismacolor markers are $3 each here, which is the best in-person store price I've seen thus far)
+ saw some GORGEOUS Media Arts & Animation work on the second floor (figure drawings used to base animated characters off of)
+ walked to Powell's, took a window spot in the cafe; I see a split-second glimpse of a driver who resembles the Smoking Man
+ headache sets in from lack of adequate breakfast, later borderline I-think-I'm-going-to-vomit nausea; I drink lots of water and nibble lightly at a biscotti; call Uncle Larry, leave for streetcar to The Oregonian; short nap in computer room; drive to car place to pick up Uncle Larry's Geo Metro (which gets FORTY-EIGHT MILES PER GALLON)
=== I drive Aunt Pam's Astro to her work (which was actually quite fun, but my headache raged a little more after I was done) and ride home with Uncle Larry
+ along way home, discuss the day and animation in general with Uncle Larry; at home, I take a nap in the trailer; put Draco in his outdoor cage and take another Excedrin; talk with Mom and Dad after reading more of One Door Away from Heaven (which is REALLY good)
+ I watch The Last Mimzy with Maddie, Aunt Pam, and Uncle Larry - it's VERY cute, quite touching, but the conflict it resolved way too easily
DAMN I needed to get that typed.
Love to you all! <3
My first week of college at the Art Institute of Portland was fun, exciting, frustrating, tiring (even exhausting), refreshing, weird, and more.
(Tangent: I finally own Pan's Labyrinth! WIN.)
I'd wanted to update this journal to describe how each day went at the end of each day, but I couldn't get around to it, partly due to misunderstandings in my library's check-out system and elsewhere, partly due to lollygagging at last night's spectacular lightning storm, partly due to spending time with my family.
I am relieved to have reached my first college weekend. I will be driving with Aunt Pam to Portland tomorrow to get a feel for the trip myself.
So, I will just describe my days in note form, as I took them in my notebook - with some excursions into greater detail.
OH MY GOD THIS IS LOOOOOONG.
MONDAY, JULY 9
+ sat for four hours in Powell's before school (roughly 8:20 AM to 12:30) due to carpooling with Uncle Larry
=== bought Dean Koontz's One Door Away from Heaven (paperback, on sale for $2.95!) to pass time
+ first class, Language of Animation & Film (12:45 - 4:30); teacher Nancy Breaux, guyish and funny
===(Breaux's tangents: "We should see Ratatouille in a field trip!" upon my saying "I need to see it"; Brad Bird's visit to the Platform Film Festival upon my mention of my love for The Iron Giant) :D
+ watched early film (Edison, Lumiere brothers) and early cartoons, including:
---Winsor McCay's immortal Little Nemo in Slumberland (1911); Gertie the Dinosaur (1914); and How a Mosquito Operates (1912)
(Tangent: HOLY SHIT I haven't seen the 1982 Little Nemo: Adventures in Slumberland IN AGES. I just learned that Miyazaki and Takahata worked on the pre-production for a short time) ... (Aaand I'd had no idea that it had been so well-received by so many critics. I HAVE TO SEE THIS MOVIE AGAIN. RIGHT NOW!)
+ let out 20-30 min early; Dad 'saves' me and we change my schedule: NO NIGHT CLASS! - my advisor, Amber, is very helpful and friendly during the whole process (my replacement class is a more advanced version of Computer Fundamentals in which I will be working with Photoshop, Illustrator, and Flash!)
TUESDAY, JULY 10
+ Dad and Cammy leave for home; drop me off at AIPD 30 min or so early
+ second class, Design Inquiry (aka Freshman Seminar) (9:00 AM - 11:45 AM); teacher Colleen Broderick, has cerebral palsy (walks with a limp) and is very open about it
+ I buy a hummingbird book at Powell's; Jessi picks me up at Powell's; we ride the streetcar to The Oregonian (where Uncle Larry works); lunch at Madison's at Fifth
===chilled watermelon / strawberry 'soup' with mint, cran-turkey burger; both DELICIOUS
+ at home: Jessi and I run through the sprinkler and spray our legs with the hose to keep cool, because it is FREAKING HOT; Draco gets a cool bath
+ Elizabeth calls to see how my first couple days of college have been; veggies and dip for dinner
WEDNESDAY, JULY 11
+ third class, Digital Principles (advanced Computer Fundamentals) (8:00 AM - 11:45 AM)
+ teacher, Ms. Gifford (I forget her first name, argh) is sixteen minutes late for her class (I read more of One Door Away from Heaven)
+ admits she has no idea of what she's supposed to teach for this course; we spend the entire period creating silly photo collages in Photoshop
+ first project (due in two weeks): photo collage in Photoshop with drawn / photographed / scanned components
=== Gifford sees my draft for my poster and exclaims, "Wow, you're good - it's rare to see someone who can... actually draw"
+ I mention that I'm in for Media Arts & Animation (she had also been in for MA&A when she was a student at AIPD); she grabs my shoulders, shakes me a bit, and declares, "We're going to be great friends!"
=== I offer her my Brainsick sketchbook: "Wow, you're really good with dogs!" and "It's nice to see work from someone who doesn't draw anime." (yes, she is an anime hater, hehe)' suggests I take advantage of AIPD's free figure drawing classes on Friday, which is a wonderful suggestion
+ Gifford shows me her work, which is STUNNING and wildly professional (duh); let out 30 min early
+ checked out ICOR 100 reading packet (Broderick) in library for homework
+ at Powell's: my backpack and other items are taken to Lost and Found because I'd left them alone for a long time; picked them back up, settled in the cafe; long haul filled with reading and some sketchbook inking
+ back to AIPD: called Dad, he has my keys to the Voyager in CALIFORNIA (lol) and is going to send me a package (he put a $200 insurance on it, because two of my old art binders are being sent up with my keys)
+ back to Powell's: 30 min wasted waiting inside when I was supposed to wait for Uncle Larry outside at pillar; I am frustrated by my misunderstanding but extremely grateful for his mellow attitude (understand that picking me up at Powell's is an extreme kindness, but very inconvenient for him as he has to leave work, walk across Hawthorne Bridge, drive his car to Powell's to pick me up, and drive back over Hawthorne on to home)
=== (had a split-second glimpse of a guy who could have been the real Finch (with a nose) as I walked to the front doors)
+ picked up Aunt Pam (Uncle Larry is driving her Astro; his Geo Metro is being worked on)
+ at home, I take Draco out to munch on the grass as Aunt Pam is watering it; as it has been a hot day, Draco rubs his chin and crawls through the water in pure delight, much to my and Aunt Pam's adoration (I take a short, 2-min video of him, too!)
+ called home and talked with Mom, Dad, and Cammy (and Lupin) <3
+ read LA&F article after another dinner of veggies and dip
THURSDAY, JULY 12
+ fourth class: Drawing (8:00 AM - 11:45 AM); teacher, Amy Zollinger
+ drawing exercises in opposing teams, "The Incredibles" (of which I am a member) and the "Billy Bobs"
=== my opponent and I have to draw each other with our left hands; other students comment on how good mine it turning out despite my "I'm extremely right hand-dominant!"; Zollinger comments "We're going to have to watch this girl!"; lots of laughs at other prompts
+ blind contour and continuous line exercises; Zollinger gives me a pine cone to draw because I finished my other drawings so quickly; complimented my pine cone
+ LET US OUT AN HOUR AND A HALF EARLY 0___________0 (around 10:30)
+ I listen to a phone message from the librarian: I must return the ICOR 100 book as I misunderstood that it is ONLY to be checked out and used IN THE LIBRARY; I explain what happened and she lets me go without paying the fine ($5 / day otherwise); thanked librarian for clearing up my misunderstanding
+ at Powell's: looked through Flight: Volume 1V from the graphic novel section (these collections (Flight) are truly amazing)
+ continued One Door Away from Heaven; talked with Dad
=== Powell's intercom: "Powell's customer Jillian, please come to the Green Room to meet your grandmother, Claire...." :P
+ Uncle Larry picks me up at 5:30 (I was out front by the pillar this time); we pick up Aunt Pam again
+ at home: burgers, lollygagging, laptop...
+ SPECTACULAR lightning storm!
+ copied pages from ICOR 100 book (which I returned on Friday)
FRIDAY, JULY 13
+ woke up at 4:30 AM for a change in Uncle Larry's work; locked out of house, woke Uncle Larry up by calling through bedroom window
+ walked across Hawthorne bridge with Uncle Larry; got a Snapple at a small cafe
+ went to streetcar stop, got bored and began walking to find AIPD / Powell's myself; got lost but didn't panic, talked to a (smoking) 20-something guy who liked my Depeche Mode t-shirt and socks and invited me to coffee (I'm paranoid, so I don't know if... he wanted to be just friends or more); found my way to school by following a fellow student I recognized (whew!)
+ fifth class, Principles of Visual Communication (aka Design Basics) (8:00 AM - 11:45 AM); teacher, Renata Hoeckel
+ diluted India ink drawings; ink drawings for homework stressing LINE
+ let us out about 15 min late, which is good for having to wait at Powell's until 4:30
+ bought rubber cement, rubber cement pickup, and student artwork labels at the Student Store (Prismacolor markers are $3 each here, which is the best in-person store price I've seen thus far)
+ saw some GORGEOUS Media Arts & Animation work on the second floor (figure drawings used to base animated characters off of)
+ walked to Powell's, took a window spot in the cafe; I see a split-second glimpse of a driver who resembles the Smoking Man
+ headache sets in from lack of adequate breakfast, later borderline I-think-I'm-going-to-vomit nausea; I drink lots of water and nibble lightly at a biscotti; call Uncle Larry, leave for streetcar to The Oregonian; short nap in computer room; drive to car place to pick up Uncle Larry's Geo Metro (which gets FORTY-EIGHT MILES PER GALLON)
=== I drive Aunt Pam's Astro to her work (which was actually quite fun, but my headache raged a little more after I was done) and ride home with Uncle Larry
+ along way home, discuss the day and animation in general with Uncle Larry; at home, I take a nap in the trailer; put Draco in his outdoor cage and take another Excedrin; talk with Mom and Dad after reading more of One Door Away from Heaven (which is REALLY good)
+ I watch The Last Mimzy with Maddie, Aunt Pam, and Uncle Larry - it's VERY cute, quite touching, but the conflict it resolved way too easily
DAMN I needed to get that typed.
Love to you all! <3
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no subject
Date: 2007-07-14 04:49 pm (UTC)Was he cuuute? XD
no subject
Date: 2007-07-15 05:30 am (UTC)(The funny thing is I thought you meant the guy I thought looked like the Smoking Man from The X-Files!) :D
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Date: 2007-07-15 05:51 am (UTC)I MEES YOU AND LOVE YOU. <3
no subject
Date: 2007-07-15 06:03 am (UTC)I MEES YOU TOO! <3 LOFF!