sorry things have been a bit neglected here. having gone through a pretty crappy thoughts in my head, following a rather not so great half a year, but i’ll try to talk about it less. thanks for putting up with me folks. i think im having mood swings lately. sudden highs and sudden lows. i feel like my mentality is on the end of a yoyo under someone else’s control. some how ive just managed to step away and comeback to a life isn’t my own. i talked to someone about it, they asked me if staying at uni was worth my health and if i was considering dropping out. i stuck to my stubborn and very child like thinking, if you start something you should finish it, and coming here was a decision i made myself even if the university and the course isn’t right for me. i can’t really describe how difficult its been to keep looking on the greener grass side of things although one thing is for certain there’s always someone worse off then yourself. my problems are pretty trivial. i wanted to learn something new. If its not difficult to obtain then its something thats not worth having. this is. i want so badly to succeed in graphic design even though im hating it right now. my idea for my latest project fell somewhat flat on its face. i have 9 hours to turn this project around and then polish it off for thursday. so here i go.
Archive for January, 2009
i have a great uncle. who spoils me with delicious cakeys.
Published January 26, 2009 munchies 2 Comments
mm delicious center with cream, fruit and strawberry jelly center! thanks uncle!!
how do you say ’sorry’?… SORRY.
Published January 26, 2009 chinese related stuff , hohoho oddness , munchies 1 Comment
[a post from the first week of january that i never really put up. yes im still sifting through my holiday snaps 
]
the great thing about living in 3 different places is that when you’re finally back you sort of appreciate it more, and then notice things you never noticed before.. i took the time to rummage through every room in the house.. found some lovely herbs… mums into her TCM (traditional chinese medicine) all the soupy mixes .. look at all the textures.. total novelty..
awesome way of packaging dried peel.. it doesn’t show clealy but the fruit is cut in three places before being peeled and the three bits of peel help it to be bound neetly together. which reminds me, been meaning to buy this book. I originally came across it in the uni library, its got mind booggling clever and traditional ways of wrapping various things. I think the cover says it all really.
and this is how its used.. cut into shreds and sprinked on fish before being steamed.. takes off any unfresh taste. this is a john dorey.. by far the coolest fish in all the land. looks like its been chewed up a bit but its really yummy.
although ive never really been a huge fan of chinese foods.. theres some stuff thats really special. soups.. homey and simple brothy goodness.. and also jellys.. a rarity even in london unfortuantely. this is oxtail and papaya and peanut soup. i might steal the colour palette later..
chinese herbal soup, or whatever its called. really yummy.. the twig like things are very sweet roots i think.. and on the spoon you have dried dragon eyes and also dried goji berries. looks horrible, but tastes great. chinese soups are more liquidy and brothy compared to western soups, and usually the things used to flavour the soup aren’t eaten, of course me and dad are greedy and don’t like to waste so we eat it anyway.
and for pudding, these are glutinous rice balls. these are home made with only glutinious rice flour and water and then boiled in a sugar syprup with ginger, so easy to make. you can buy them with red bean centers, or sesame or peanut. a bit similar to japanese dango and korean rice cakes.
read whatever you like into that. preparing my portfolio.. spending hours looking through my badly organised folders each with a different piece of work from different projects in no logical order whatsoever... came across these pics i took while stying with a friend.. a bit different from my usual i guess.. dont understand how wordpress formats text... sorry about the inconsistancy.
BAH HUMBUG. seriously grumpy lately… hoping its just SAD (seasonal affective disorder) and will go away soon
anywho.. here are my slightly late resolutions
- try not to think negatively of BAGD at csm
- have fun with briefs (helps with the one above)
- listen to useful things tutors say..
- don’t listen to hard.. referencing a certain culture project
- don’t over think a project.. you’ll never get it done and you’ll end up thinking everything you do is shit
- learn what gut instinct is and go with it (a resolution from 3 years ago that i still haven’t gotten near it)
other (slightly more cheery) stuff:
- make at least 1 drawing a day
- spend 10 mins creatively writing a few times a week
- spend less.. (its not my money ffs!)
- call mum and dad more
- argue with mum less.. even if she starts it..
- keep in touch with old friends better.. (sorry my lovely neglected friends)
- dont’ hesitate to do the right thing
- talk more to people i dont know
- talk less with people i do know, listen more (ranting has made me a crappy listener)
- write better essays!!
- read more
- don’t judge so harshly
- be adventureous in pursuing what you love even if you feel miserable because you hate your course and would rather do essays and exams..
[right now i could rant for hours.. luckily i dont have time for that... atm busy doing d&ad brief and sorting out portfolio.. i feel like a corpse..]
… hmm great.. editing photos for portfolio.. scratch disks are full… can’t save work .. hohoho
disclaimer… csm is okay(ish) not as bad as i make out.. just not right for me.
urgh.. i decided to see what the fuss was all about .. so i watched wanted.. a movie that looked like a bit of a shallow actionflick just from the trailler, which is why i never watched it in the cinema.. nothing like watching a semi decent ish/just about okay ish film and feeling completely cheated.. a bit like my dads computer.. doesn’t matter how many inches his monitor is.. when the computer doing all the work is from the last century
within the first minute im greeted by the terrible sound of james mcavoys terrible american accent that sort of oscillates from high to low.. wtf.. how did he get away with such a terrible accent… initially i thought it was some kind of dubbed parody.. with some guy trying his best to fake a (very) bad (horrific) american accent… NOOOOOoo ffs….
… just a rant. lets see how the rest of the movie fairs..
big thumbs up to snooping.. mum brought this from a charity shop… had i seen this earlier, i definately would have used it for the design classics brief. apparently this bulb is probably older than me… id believe that.. its made in great britain!
why i like it:
.one colour printing with no nonsense on the outer box
.the old ‘pattern continues on the other box’ trick had been used (much earlier than i imagined..)
.corrugated cardboard, offers protection for the bulb.. as opposed to the flimsy card we get with our bulbs today
.corrugated cardboard holds the sheet of info about the type of bulb, thus holding the bulb in place
.the box has no top and no base.. a little fearless no?
id be very happy if i designed this.. and i dont really see why bulbs today aren’t protected in anyway..
one sheet, cut and folded to become a rack for tic tacs… smarty pants..
a few more observations from bristol..
Published January 11, 2009 brizzle , design , hohoho oddness , inspiration , outing , pikchas 3 Comments
ignoring the work at the V&A’s china design now exhibition.. theres something about chinese products , shops and even shop names that make you think EWWWW. i found this place in bristol.. hurrah! enough of the bloody Golden gate, dragon, pheonix rubbish! cheers to a great name that high fives chinese heritage.. nice old schooliness about the sign too!!
nice!! no idea if its a banksy.. if only all vandalism was so pretty.
really unusal looking wooden sign that had the text debossed.. very stylish and different
heres a rarity.. charity shops really making an effort to jazz up their window displays…its not really overly visable but its a mini set made with layers of printed papers.. there were several in a shelf.. with every other shelf displaying their crimbo goodies!
a few observations i never got round to posting in the holidays. most of these were taken on the back of a moving motorcycle so excuse the poor quality.
