Art class fun-ness

So I've been taking this art class for a couple of weeks now and wanted to share a bit of my work with my loyal readers. This is the first drawing that I've done that I'm quite pleased with. I have a picture of some oranges that was our first assignment, and a purple daisy that turned out pretty nice. This is the one that I've put the most work into I think. It's also the first drawing that I've completed with ink, and ink is scary because there isn't an eraser. I wonder if white-out is an acceptable tool in art. Probably not...

Here's the process (kinda boring, but just wanted everyone to know how hard it was :) ):
Draw the outline of the flower with pencil
Using tracing paper, transfer the outline to a second piece of paper (so I still have the original in case I mess something up)
Sit for 2-3 hours putting little dots in the outline until it starts looking something like a flower
Erase the pencilled outline

It was fun and rewarding but also very frustrating. My teacher gave us the option of stipling (which is what I did with the little dots) or line drawing. Stipling, she said, is easier since it's a lot easier to mess up lines if your elbow gets bumped or you lose track of what you're doing.

Next week, we're supposed to start working with colored pencils... should be exciting :)!

Switchfoot, green chile, and a whole house to myself

One of my roommates in college loved Switchfoot to death. She said once that Jon Foreman wrote everything her heart wanted to say. I'd gotten sick of everything else on my MP3 player and for some reason avoided listening to a lot of Switchfoot, but I finally hunkered down and paid attention to some of their more recent CDs. They get down to the nitty-gritty of humanity and ask a lot of questions most people are afraid to ask. Jon Foreman, their lyricist, digs deep and asks questions about life and love and what it means to be happy. I'm not saying other bands don't ask these kinds of questions, but somehow, Switchfoot is one of the few that has helped me understand myself better.

I've still been asking myself lots of questions about the choices I've made and what my life actually looks like right now. At this very moment, I just finished enjoying an especially spicy dinner of ground beef with pepper accidentally dumped on it, mixed with green chile, cheddar, and whole wheat pasta. The house is unusually peaceful as both of my roommates are out to their various errands and events. And I'm at home with nothing huge looming over my head (for the moment). And I'm really not questioning anything right now either. That's an unusual feeling for me to have, especially lately. Some things I've been thinking about have become more clear, while others still need to be addressed. For example, I "decided" (I try to use that word as loosely as possible) that I am not going to Cameroon for a Vision Trip in May. I hadn't really had a lot of peace about deciding to go in May and have had trouble getting myself to move forward in working through the logistics. A lot of people had been questioning that decision as well since the Field Director in Cameroon wouldn't actually be in the country at that time. I think I was just trying to move forward too quickly. Sometimes, I get too caught up in all the action and trying to "keep the ball rolling" to really stop and pay attention to what my heart is telling me.

For now, I am still looking forward to not working in medical records any more when the summer comes. I'm planning on going to school for linguistics in June and am praying about getting a job as an "educational assistant" when I come back. And I'm still trying to draw pretty flowers in my art class and record sort of pretty music with my new microphone. (I've also "decided" that I have way too many hobbies, but I'm not willing to give any of them up, so I guess nothing will change.)

Well, that's it. Life's crazy. And there's a crazy dog who's licking my shirt because he wants his dinner. I'll end with Switchfoot's quote: "Life begins at the intersection".