Brace yourself, I've got a lot on my mind....

Last Friday I went to the Otis Art College senior show, and booooy. Well, I mean, there are some that sucked, some that were spectacular, and some were so-so... but more experienced (i.e. better) than me. Though with more training and experience, perhaps I can catch up. But here's what sucks: I gotta do more than be as good as everyone else. In order to succeed in this biz, I have to be better than the average-joe-digital-artist. And... well, I'm not sure if I can be that. I look around at SMC, and there are sooo many students, and so many of them want to do what I want to do. Let's just say that I'm feeling apprehensive. Does God intend me for success in this area?

On Mother's Day, we went over to my aunt's to have dinner with my grandparents and other relatives. We had salmon steaks and some halibut, and mmm mmmm mmmmm, that salmon was gooooood. All the food was really good. Luckily, the little cousins, when together, can now play together with very general supervision. So I wasn't roped into doing that. I did, however, help out my 4th grader cousin with her homework -- a poster advertising her favorite book. Well, she did wait until the last minute, and a lot of her drawings and letterings were... sloppy. But the way that my aunt just yelled at her for that. Dang. She got so pissed and basically took over and told her what to do. Like a really bossy art director. But all I could help but think is that she's only 9 years old, and yes, the quality of the work isn't as great as it could be, but as long as she was trying, and she was proud of her work, I figure to just let her be. My aunt could have just said, hey those letters are crooked, hey, that's hard to read, hey, that doesn't sound right, etc. But instead, she just berated her, and my cousin just shrank. My aunt's a fashion designer, so she's used to perfection in design and presentation, etc. But the way she was acting... boy, she was so cold.

I remember in elementary school people starting reports and other major projects the night before. I must admit that I've been guilty of that sometimes. But... well, you learn. Or you could be like me... so arrogant that I couldn't stand the thought of not having the best report, the best-looking project, etc. Then you learn to be more careful, to put more thought, to put more care into things. You learn to draw things in pencil first, and then when you're satisfied, you ink it in. You learn. I mean, I know my aunt wants my cousin to get a good grade, but if that's not her desire, then yelling at her isn't going to make her want it any more.

Well, that's what I think....