KalYouBloggin.

Lighters of the 21st Century.

Fri, 08 Mar 2013 00:47:00 -0600

Studies show that when two people are performing a duet, their brain waves sync with one another…

Imagine now, hundreds, thousands of people with their brainwaves synced together. Droves of people, all different ages, races, nationalities coming together to enjoy something they have in common; a handful of individuals performing their art for stadiums full of fans. Under other circumstances, if some of these people meet, they may be enemies, but for these few hours, in this one place… none of that matters. There’s no differing sides, no competing teams, no conflict of opinions–the conflict you’d most likely encounter at a concert might be:

“Yeah, my favorite song is X.”
“Are you serious? ALL the songs on album Y are better than that song!”

or…

“My favorite song is Z… oh you don’t know it? That’s because I’ve been listening to them since before they were popular.”

The only thing that matters is that everyone has gathered together for one common purpose; to experience this music that has somehow made an impact on them whether big or small.

There’s nothing like looking over at a complete stranger and seeing that you’re both singing the exact same words in unison. And yet, those same words touch each individual in a completely different way…

Or witnessing a sea of people clapping, stomping, screaming together, but still feeling the overwhelming resonance between you and a loved one swaying together, bobbing to the same rhythm, as the music pulses, seemingly for only you.

In our world where violent stories riddle the news and paranoia hides around every corner, concerts are able to provide a brief escape to a place of union, camaraderie, and peace.

A sea of cell phones, signaling for an encore after tonight’s concert.

Child at Heart.

Tue, 08 Jan 2013 01:50:00 -0600

My cubicle decorations at work.

==============================

Having discovered Lex Luthor’s power armor, Shredder disbands his Foot Clan under the belief that he has no use for them with his newfound toy. From New York, to Metropolis, Shredder goes on a destructive rampage that brings him to West City. Confused by the armor, Vegeta thinks that Shredder is another one of Dr. Gero’s Androids and comes to the rescue. During a battle, Shredder fires a beam at Vegeta who attempts to deflect what he believes to be a ki blast. The beam, which is in fact powered by Green Kryptonite, has an odd effect on his Saiyan body. He is instantly split into two pure entities: Vegeta, comprised of pure good, and The Prince of all Saiyans, made up of pure evil.

Realizing the strength of Kryptonite, the Prince searches for more and thus stumbles upon a ring of gold in Gollum’s cave. Unbeknownst to him, Gollum’s precious is actually made of Gold Kryptonite, a powerful mineral. Upon wearing the ring, the Prince is able to harness its power and ascend to Super Saiyan level.

Following a map, Lex Luthor arrives at Gollum’s cave in search of the ring only to find that he is too late; it’s already gone. Desperate to get his precious back, Gollum teams up with Luthor who fools him into thinking he’ll concede the ring once they retrieve it. Little does Gollum know that Luthor has his own intentions for the ring. He has discovered that the Gold Kryptonite is capable of stripping Superman of his powers or even killing him. Exiled by Shredder, a lone Foot Soldier sides with them in search of revenge on his former leader.

Hiding in the shadows of the cave, Bilbo Baggins witnesses the entire exchange and heads off to retrieve the ring. An unexpected journey leads him out of Middle Earth entirely and back to West City. Here, the Prince and Shredder have reunited and continued their destructive terror. Upon his arrival, Bilbo finds himself standing shoulder to shoulder with an unlikely group of heroes:

Bilbo, a lost little hobbit trying to retrieve his ring;
Vegeta, a Saiyan trying to save his home and the world;
Donatello, a Ninja Turtle on a mission to stop Shredder’s rampage;
Superman, a hero attempting to keep the ring out of the wrong hands.

Having already been split once, the now pure Vegeta no longer has any internal emotional conflict and thus a second Kryptonite blast would destroy him. With his sights set on Vegeta, Shredder is ready to fire his fatal blast, until the little Hobbit charges onto the battlefield to the rescue. All the while, even with the strength of Superman, he and Donatello struggle to take down the Super Saiyan Prince; only growing ever stronger with the Golden ring.

Remember.

Tue, 11 Sep 2012 23:34:00 -0500

I walked into my next class as usual, a few minutes early, and sat in my desk waiting for class to start. The class was Woods, woodcrafting, and my teacher was usually very punctual, but today he seemed to be late. I sat there, on the far right of the class room waiting, it was something like ten minutes past at this point, but I still didn’t think anything of it. I overheard a conversation going on behind me as two girls were talking, one of the comments was something to the effect of…

No, I’m pretty sure if a plane hit the Empire State Building, it would just bounce off, I think they made it that way.

Next thing I know, the teacher, Mr. Balfanz, walks into the room, doesn’t say a word, sets down a radio on the chalkboard ledge, turns it on, and walks out again. I didn’t understand what just happened, until I began to tune in to the news that was unfolding…

Eleven years ago seems so far for something still so vivid in my memory. I was lucky enough not to lose any loved ones from the tragedy of 9/11, but no one in America went unaffected. As impactful as the events of that day were, not only on America but on the whole world, it’s surprising to me how little it feels is done to remember those who were lost on that day. I can’t do much, but I will hold those people who were lost in my thoughts and prayers tonight. All I ask is that you do the same. The simplest way is to remember where you were that day so that we may never forget, so please share with me…

What’s your September 11, 2001 story?

Mirror in Time.

Wed, 05 Sep 2012 01:11:13 -0500

Wake up bright and early, anticipating the new day and ready to start a new chapter in my life. Showered and prepared for anything the world decides to throw at me, I’m out of the house with the rising sun greeting me, as I travel into a new environment eager to meet new people and learn new things.

This may have been true for me this morning, but it was just as true for me exactly twenty years ago to the day. At that time I was a five year old boy, dressed in my blue school uniform, combover neatly in place, waiting for the bus to my first day of school, bright-eyed with dreams of conquering the world. Replace the school uniform with a purple dress shirt and tie, trim the combover and spike it up a bit and you’d find me in essentially the same situation twenty years later this morning.

As I drove out of my neighborhood and saw the same look in the eyes of the children patiently waiting for their busses as I had twenty years ago, it made me take a moment and reflect on where I’ve been; the journey I took to get where I am now. Whereas twenty years ago I was eager for my first day of school, today I was off to my first day of training for my new job. While this may not be my dream job yet, nor in my ideal field, it’s still a step forward toward getting me there.

Somewhere along these past twenty years, I feel as if that world conquering ambition has gotten lost. Hopefully this new chapter will help get me one step closer to getting that back in my eyes.

Farewell Jason.

Wed, 29 Aug 2012 02:02:00 -0500

As I was about to turn out my light and go to sleep with my first day at my new job tomorrow on my mind, I looked over and saw a giant zebra staring back at me… on the front of a huge card my old coworkers made for me in my last week. As I picked it up and read through each of their final words, I remembered everything that I learned from that year and a half at TCF; improving my customer service, acquainting myself with the banking system, learning how to train people, and most of all patience.

I’ll definitely miss everyone at my old branch, but I came to realize that I felt like I was running out of room to grow. The only way left to grow from my position there was as a supervisor at a different branch, and honestly, the main thing that was keeping me there was the people, not the company, so that was never even an option. And so, when an opportunity came up at US Bank (ironically the same position I was denied when I applied to US prior to getting accepted at TCF) providing me a chance for professional growth, a substantial pay increase, and more convenient location, there was no way I could turn it down. But still, no matter where I go, no matter who I work with, I will never forget anyone I worked with at TCF, all of whom I am forever thankful to for everything they taught me. This is the first time I’ve had to leave a job, not only leaving behind a company, but leaving behind friends and people I’ve come to know and care about. It’s also the first time the people I worked with cared enough to make me anything like this…

Jason the Reese’s Loving Zebra
Previously read “Goodbye Jason - We’ll Miss you”
A cake made out of cupcakes, full of inside jokes.

Giant card covered in so many zebras
Hand added for scale reference.

So to the final crew I was working with whom I had to leave behind: Shanda, Jens, Shirley, Jada, Kathy, Addis, Afnin, Lee, Mai, Wags, and Michael; I guess you were right, I may not be working with you anymore, and I may not always bank there, but a part of me will always be a TCFer for life.

picsofaznstakingpicsoffood: Needs moar foodie pix @kalyoubyein...

Fri, 10 Aug 2012 00:46:33 -0500

picsofaznstakingpicsoffood:

Needs moar foodie pix @kalyoubyein (Taken with Instagram at Minato Sushi)

Closing Time.

Thu, 14 Jun 2012 22:53:58 -0500

The day is here. Honestly, half of me didn’t expect to make it, I had this looming feeling that something would come up and prevent me from graduating, and yet here I am preparing myself for tomorrow’s portfolio show and graduation ceremony. It still hasn’t sunk in, and I’m not exactly sure when to expect it to. Because of this, I’m feeling a bit numb to the situation so I don’t really have much to say on it right now. Instead, I’ll post a letter I wrote to myself a few weeks ago, but have yet to post. I think I was feeling a bit more emotion at that time…

Dear Future Justin,

Two weeks.
This post is to remind you of the stress, fear, anxiety, tension, frustration… the exhileration, excitement, adrenaline, absolute pure and overwhelming exuberance, the kind that can bring you to tears of joy. All from being so close to graduation. You got set back a few years, but not really set back at all; only set onto the right path. Never forget what it took to get here, to FINALLY get here… well, in two weeks. Never forget this feeling, this stomach-churning, amazing feeling. Be thankful for what you have, and appreciate the journey that it takes to get there.

Sincerely,
Pre-graduate Justin

Let it go and set yourself free.

Sun, 27 May 2012 14:44:00 -0500

Let it go and set yourself free.

Be the Match.

Thu, 03 May 2012 11:59:00 -0500

I received an email yesterday that I got pretty excited over. It wasn’t anything even beneficial to me, but it was simply an informational correspondence from Be the Match whom I finally joined the registry for a few weeks ago.

If you don’t know what Be the Match is, no it’s not an online dating website, it’s actually a nonprofit organization that provides bone marrow donations to patients in need. There are thousands of patients that are looking for a bone marrow transplant, and many never receive it. This is primarily because finding a match for bone marrow is not as easy as finding a match for a blood transplant. To put it into perspective, those thousands of patients looking for a match are in contrast to the nearly 10 million potential donors on the registry list, and many of them are still struggling and failing to find the match they need to survive.

I was excited for this email, not because they found me as a match for anyone, but just from the prospect of maybe being found as a match in the future. They informed me that if someone is ever found as a match, it’s likely that it will only ever happen once in a lifetime. I had to take a moment to think about that; once in a lifetime. People talk about soul mates in the context of love all the time, but I feel like something like this is akin to that. If I am able to find that one other person that I match in this world and I’m able to provide them a second chance at life, that would be so amazing. And if I have even the slightest chance that I’d be able to help someone this way, I want to make sure that I try.

I feel like people look for their match in love to help themselves, so why not do the same and find my match this way as well, to help someone else? Now, I’m not trying to coerce anyone into joining, but I am asking that if you’ve somehow found yourself here, reading this blog, and you’re not already on the registry, please consider it. I have no affiliation with them and I don’t even know anyone personally looking for a match, but the statistics speak for themselves. If this reaches even one person that decides to join, that would be great, but at the end of the day, if I’m at least able to inform a few people about something this big that they didn’t know about, I’ll feel accomplished.

If this is something that you’re even the slightest bit interested in or even just curious about, click the link below and check it out.

I know a song is something special when I’m in a car full...

Thu, 03 May 2012 08:47:11 -0500

I know a song is something special when I’m in a car full of loud people and when it comes on the radio, suddenly everything else goes silent. My mind goes back into that movie mode:

I envision an outside shot of myself in that open car window, wind jetting through the car, but nothing else can be heard; no ambient noise of the wind, no sounds of the cars whizzing by, no voices from the others in the car. All of a sudden, this song is superimposed on an image of me, juxtaposed against the rowdiness of my friends behind me. The street lights are intermittent spotlights on my face as I look out, obviously lost in entirely different world, lifetimes away.

[April 23, 2005] Every week, when Sunday comes around, I always...

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 23:14:00 -0500

[April 23, 2005]

Every week, when Sunday comes around, I always try my best to make it to church. I’ve been doing slightly better lately, but I’ve gotten into a habit of arriving quite late into the mass. This week, somehow, something in me was able to get up and muster the power to get there (almost) on time. Partway through, I had drifted off into my own world when something caught my ear from our priest…

…bless the souls of those who are no longer with us, including Carlos Calubayan…

Suddenly, it was as if the blurry world instantly snapped into focus and the realization dawned on me, it was the anniversary of Lolo’s passing. Since then, thoughts and memories have been buzzing in my mind intermittently throughout the days. Memories of his cooking, his gardening, his hugs and smelling kisses, and of course, his famous yellow bike. Though, along with these happy, somber memories also came the inevitable questions/wondering.

The biggest thing that’s been on my mind, is that I just hope that he’s proud of where I am today. Coming up so close to my graduation, I know that he’ll be there to see me, but part of me still wishes he could be there physically, to see me graduate. Then again, at the same time, if he was able to be there, I’m not sure I would necessarily be graduating in Graphic Design. The picture above, which I made for Lolo, of a quote from my then five year old cousin and the single surviving Tulip of the garden he was so proud of, is one of the main reasons I am where I am today. This was the first thing that I ever made that I was truly proud of and was one of the main reasons I became so interested in Graphic Design. And so, even though I didn’t pursue Graphic Design right away, this life changing day when he passed away, eventually led to the development of what is now one of my passions in life.

From the immensely dark storm cloud, seven years later, I’m reaching the edge of my silver lining with my imminent graduation, and I think Lolo would be happy to hear this. In particular, because of one last story that I’ll share from a blog post that I wrote in my LiveJournal, the day that he passed. But before that, I just want to say:

Lolo, seven years later and we still miss you dearly, but I know you’re watching us daily and you’re making sure all of our gardens are taken care of. Thank you for everything you taught me that I was unable to realize at the time, but now I can look back on and appreciate. Sandali nalang po hangaan makaka kita ulit tayo. Sige na po. Mahal ko po kayo…

…it seemed though, there may have been one person who knew it was coming. As strange as it may sound, Lolo himself may have had an idea. Listening to everyone talking today, it seemed he was acting a little out of character the past few days or weeks or something. The strangest thing to me, was something he apparently said yesterday. Apparently, while at the mall, he said something to the effect of ‘you have nothing to worry about anymore, all of our children are successful in America now’ it was as if he knew everything and everyone was alright, and he could move on, and just wait to see everyone again whenever the time came…

So Close I Can [Taste] It...

Mon, 02 Apr 2012 13:59:22 -0500

Previously: So Close I Can [Smell] It…
Previously: So Close I Can [Feel] It…

Prior to beginning to write this final installment in my coffee-themed road to graduation chronicle, I decided to go back and read the previous two entries, and I can’t believe that 8 months have passed since I decided to start this. Looking back at my journey so far, it was most definitely not a cakewalk.

This past quarter was most likely the roughest, with the most stressful finals, that I’ve had to endure along the way. Having four studio classes with no gen. ed. classes to act as a bit of a buffer, my plate was always more than full and it was not easy. I mentioned previously that I was going to need to take care not to burn myself and I must say, I definitely had some close calls throughout that quarter. Overall, my outlook on the results of my classes are pretty diverse.

There were two classes that I came out of with some pretty good work that I’m proud of and I’m currently developing further to become solid portfolio pieces.
One class that I had to work with a group for the first time ever to develop and design a project over the course of the quarter. For this class, I was happy with my personal results from my contributions to the project, but the project as a whole was a bit lackluster.
My last class was the one that gave me the most trouble, as it was my only early morning class (which I have not had to deal with for over a year, thus was out of practice). In the end, I came out with a few projects that I’m proud of in that one as well, although I was not necessarily proud of my contribution as a whole.

All in all, aside from a few potential portfolio pieces, the most valuable thing I gained from this past quarter was knowledge from a teacher I had never known before. He’s been around, though he teaches in a different field so I’d never had him for a class in the past. However, this quarter I had two classes from him and ended up learning a lot about logo designing and web design in particular (since he is primarily a web design teacher). Although we didn’t necessarily develop a close bond or anything like that, I developed enough of relationship with him that I could bring my portfolio to him and trust him to critique it honestly.

Still, although I’m so close to graduation, the one thing that’s been stressing me out the most over the past few weeks is that I need an internship to actually be able to finish out the quarter. Over the past few weeks, all I’ve seen are a few missed opportunities, but earlier today I got my first chance to actually land something that sounds fun and like something that would be a valuable opportunity. All I need now is to wait for my advisor to give it the thumbs-up and I’ll be ready to go.

So, I got through the quarter without any major injuries, I have a potential internship right before my grasp, and now here I am, settled down and ready to enjoy my drink. I took the first sip today and as expected, the beginning is still sweet, light, and fluffy. From here, the quarter is looking entirely manageable; it’s all a matter of taking control of it and not letting it control me (which I have been known to allow to happen in the past). As I continue to drink, I know things will quickly go from sweet and light, to bitter and maybe a bit harsh. The most important thing for me to remember is that I can’t let up on the work, this is the home stretch and I need to put in 100%.

Relax, take it one sip at a time, work hard.

This is will be my mantra for my final quarter. It’s all right in the palms of my hands; 6 years of hard work has led me to this, and I am not going to drop this spill everywhere. I will to do everything I can to see this through to the very last, bittersweet drop.

This is officially one of my most favorite choreographies (quite...

Fri, 16 Mar 2012 14:19:10 -0500

This is officially one of my most favorite choreographies (quite possibly the number one) that I’ve ever seen. From a technical standpoint, Brian Puspos has amazing body control; each move is so intentional, so precise, there is not a single wasted movement all the way from a step and foot turn to an arm wave that starts at his fingertip and resonates throughout his entire body. While this is amazing to watch, the most inspirational part, and why this is one of my favorites, is the amount of emotion that he poured into the piece. He tells a story through the lyrics with his movements. Watching his face, you can see that there are moments where he looks like he’s almost moved to tears, all the way to the end, where he looks up at the sky with a smile; every single second is full of emotion and meaning and you can feel it even watching it through a computer screen. I’ve yet to watch this video once without it bringing a tear to my eye. Absolutely beautiful.

Challenge Accepted.

Tue, 13 Mar 2012 02:56:00 -0500

One of the most rewarding lessons, I believe, that one could learn, is to realize and accept the consequences of their actions (whether good or bad) as a result of their own choices. The reason why this is on my mind at the moment is the fact that I am currently midway through my first all-nighter in quite some time. However, I’m not here to complain about it, I’ve already come to accept the fact that I only find myself in this situation as a result of my own choices, and there’s nothing else that I can do about it now. I had the opportunity to do more of my work earlier on, yet I chose to put it off (as so many of us usually do) in lieu of more interesting (and sometimes even less interesting) activities. Even the decision to pull an all-nighter in itself was my decision; it’s not even entirely necessary, I could finish my work with time to spare and sleep some, but I’m choosing to do this in order to set myself into a better position where I will be ahead on my work, rather than catching up or even right on task. In the long run, I’m hoping that this sacrifice will be beneficial.

I could try to place blame on teachers for placing due dates so close to each other, or my boss for making me attend a work meeting rather than allowing me to do my school work. But in reality, I know that I am the only one that put myself here now; having chosen to improperly utilize the rest of my free time in the days leading up to this. By understanding this one simple fact, it makes life a bit easier and a bit more enjoyable, because I don’t have an unreasonable resentment towards others whom I try to blame for my lack of sleep.

And so ends my ten minute break in an attempt to muster up some energy to help me power through the night. With Barney and the rest of the How I Met Your Mother gang keeping me company in the background, it’s time for me to dive back into this ocean of graphic design that I call my life.

Late sauce.

Grand Old Day.

Mon, 12 Mar 2012 01:56:00 -0500

In the land that is lovingly referred to as Minnesnowta, we’ve seen an abnormally warm winter this year. Barely a trace of snow around Christmas, not a single snow emergency declared throughout the season, and now we’re hitting 60-70° days in March; I think a more fitting term for us this year is actually Min-no-snow-ta. But I’m not really complaining, as much as I adapt to enjoy the cold weather when it comes every year, the arrival of spring is always a warm welcome, and today was most definitely one of those days.

Having missed yesterday’s 60° and sunny day because I was trapped inside all day due to work, I had to make sure that I would take advantage of today’s warm weather. Even though the sun wasn’t as prominent, the warmth still made for a great day. Since my fellow bro Erick also missed yesterday, we decided to adventure out to a key Saint Paul area spot, Grand Avenue.

It started off at the local Tea Garden for bubble tea with cousin Johnny, which consisted of discussions of a levitating Rob Schneider, the ideal Treat Yo’ Self Day, and drinks that mysteriously tasted like panties. After we parted ways with cousin Johnny, Erick and I took to the road, cruisin’ down Grand, windows down, without a care in the world except for what to eat. We finally parked and started walking when spontaneity kicked in; as we walked by a busy outdoor bar, we decided to stop in and take a couple day shots. A couple Washington Apples hit the spot, warming our bellies, and we were off again only to be interrupted a few steps later when we heard our names coming from across the street. Low and behold it’s a friend of ours that we haven’t seen in quite some time; playing an eleven-string guitar (it was actually a twelve-string but I noticed one missing), jammin’ out, he was just spending the day outside enjoying life with some friends. We spent the next 10-15 minutes talking, the conversation interwoven with stories reminiscing of the past along with his tales of his adventure travelling around the country. We split from him to continue our journey to find food only to get it cut short by time constraints due to a work meeting I had to attend. Still, after a great day like today, I did not let that kill my mood.

Today was the first day after daylight savings and I’d say we most definitely seized that extra hour of sunlight and made it our own. If this winter is any indication of what the rest of 2012 will bring, I’d say it looks like we’re in for a Grand Old Year.

Late sauce.

fueledxcaffeine: Sleeping Beauty by Niels Shoe Muelman Simply...

Sat, 10 Mar 2012 23:03:46 -0600

fueledxcaffeine:

Sleeping Beauty by Niels Shoe Muelman
Simply amazing calligraphy or calligraffiti with a floor brush by Niels Shoe Muelman! A floor brush!
His precision is amazing.

Enjoy!

This really is pretty amazing. It is exactly what it reads, beauty.

typethatilike: Type That I Like - Poster Giveaway I’m giving...

Thu, 08 Mar 2012 12:52:38 -0600

typethatilike:

Type That I Like - Poster Giveaway

I’m giving away the classic Keep Calm and Carry On poster to 2 lucky followers. (60cm x 91.5cm)

Rules:

1 - Must be following Type That I Like.

2 - Must reblog this post.

The 2 people will be selected at random from the notes of this post and will be contacted if chosen!

The competition ends on Monday the 12th March at 9am. (GMT + 0:00)

Good Luck!

- Rob

erockervass: NEW EP for FREE My homie/producer Free Soul Sound...

Mon, 05 Mar 2012 02:14:40 -0600

Album Art by John Carlos Calubayan

Album Art by John Carlos Calubayan

erockervass:

NEW EP for FREE

My homie/producer Free Soul Sound and I have dropped our joint project called “An Eastside EP” for FREE! Click the link below to get it! The project features Deep Cookie (Eastside Bound) and guitar work by Ryan Limbag on “A Dream.” Download it. Listen to it. SHARE IT. Love & Support. Stay up my friends and enjoy the project!

DOWNLOAD “AN EASTSIDE EP” HERE

I’ve told you guys about this man before, but I’m here to reintroduce you to him. Local hip hop artist Erock Ervass is at it again, finally releasing his highly anticipated “An Eastside EP” available for FREE on his new Tumblr page. If you want some free tunes, or if you’re just a fan of quality music in general, show him some love and go download a copy. After that, pay it forward and tell a friend about it, you could always use more good karma right?

beautifultype: “Aria – a typeface” _ Aria typeface made by Rui...

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 21:27:00 -0600

beautifultype:

“Aria – a typeface” _ Aria typeface made by Rui Abreu, released by Fountain Type.

This is absolutely fucking beautiful. I don’t know what else to say.

So Close I Can [Feel] It...

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 11:24:55 -0600

Previously: So Close I Can [Smell] It…

Eyes half open with my mind in a zombie state, bitter black coffee trying to kick my brain into gear, grumbles of hunger emanating from my neighbor’s stomach as if it was a guard dog trying to shoo me away… it must be the first week of a new quarter.

And that it is, the beginning of my second to last quarter till I graduate in fact. Each day I feel like I realize more and more of what I have to do and I can already feel the stress building ever so little at a time. I need to take heed of this and actually make attempts to catch it before it builds too much. The good thing is that last quarter helped do a lot to get me starting on my preparations for this last stretch.

As I had previously mentioned, I had to take a Portfolio Prep class; I came out of that class with an immense amount of new knowledge from the graduating seniors as far as preparation for the end and with a good amount of my own work prepared for my portfolio show and graduation. Still, I am only a fraction of the way done with where I need to be in the upcoming months. Right now, I have a preliminary idea of my print portfolio layout (which is likely going to be changing quite a bit) and a revised version of my website (which is still a work in progress). With these in place, I still need to think about doing informational interviews with potential employers, start researching print prices and techniques, business card printing, designing give-aways for my portfolio show table, getting an interview for my last quarter… at the moment the list appears to be never-ending. The most important thing is to take a deep breath, take a step back, and take my time. I know I have a lot to do, but the reality of it is that I still have two quarters worth of time left, rather than only one. So, I can’t let the gravity of the situation overwhelm me; I need to take control and steer it, one thing at a time.

Previously, I was only as close to my Cappucino as to be able to smell it. The bitterness of the espresso was fresh in my nose and I was ready to grab it and go. Now, with the beginning of this new quarter, I’ve taken a step forward; I’m closer now to the end and the coffee is in my hands. However, the mild warmth of the cup is deceivingly hiding the scalding hot contents. I have to handle the next quarter carefully, as I mentioned, and go one step at a time. With care, I’ll make it through, with the inevitable lost drop here and there, but if I’m careless with my time, I could lose control and only end up getting burnt.