Short pleasantries

Yes it has been a while. Was down in Vegas for the first time. It's an amazing and beautiful place. Maybe some people will find that hard to believe seeing that it's a dessert, but it's true! Yesterday I finally got around to update my passport. Well, not that I have been putting it off. More so of waiting for the right time to do it. The studio and I have been working at some internal changes that I feel will better suit the team, and we'll be able to have the opportunity to greater things for the studio.

Extended weekend at Extended Stay

My eyes awaken, as I mentally recall the weekend that was too short. Plans have been in motion for a bit now to rendezvous with M. Meet up in northern NY for the weekend at a decent hotel. M would Greyhound it south to Syracuse, and I would drive 4 hours up. Always having some sort of trepidation when it comes to long-distance driving, I wasn't a fan of the 8 hour trek and much preferred a public transit travel. Economically speaking; however, driving is the best option, as it saves on money and gives the freedom of driving wherever once M and I were in NY. Friday evening I spent the hours packing up M's belongings to take with me. When I was packing up the 'kit', I realized this is the remaining thing of M's left at my place. Packing up everything took longer that I expected, as it always does. When Saturday morning came around, I was ready to get on the road planned on leaving the house at 7:30. With the kindness of uma I had some packaged food for the hotel stay. Driving the 4 hours wasn't too bad, as I had a pretty energizing music selection from my iPod. On the travel up, M let me know the bus was going to be late, so I waited at the Syracuse Greyhound station for a few hours. I ended up getting there early. During the wait, there was a problem with my car starting. This had happened before and usually charges back up within 2 hours. Waiting inside the station, M had arrived and it was a blast being reunited. After some pleasant pleasantries, we headed to my car and noticed how absent minded I was by leaving the car lights on, which explained the battery drain. See on the travels up to NY there was an heavy fog. I must have lost track of having the lights on. M was starving, but I came prepared with some steamed corn and munchies, which we both snacked on until AAA arrived to save the day. After everything was sorted out, M and I drove to the hotel, which was 15 minutes from the station. Checking in the hotel was a breeze, and we relaxed the remainder of the evening away after spending some quality time in the kitchen and cooking some spicy noodles. I'm not normally a chef by any degree, but I enjoy being in the kitchen with M. Later that night, M was having a harsh migraine, so I ventured out to the lobby to get the location of the closest shop to get some Tylenol Extra Strength. Wegmans was 2 miles away and the trek out wasn't too difficult although if it wasn't for my GPS it would have been. M and I tossed out some ideas for Sunday, and we both agreed on the 2 hour journey up to Niagara. Sunday morning arrived and M wanted to drive to help alleviate any tiredness I would get for my drive back home. With some confusion with where to park, we arrived at Niagara around noon. We walked up to the peak of the falls while enjoying some it water rapids beauty on the hike up. The heat was quite brutal. After some thought, we decided to do the discovery pass, which allotted 5 excursions for only $33. Plus you can use the tickets of the excursions you don't use up until October. Venturing on the Maid of Mist first, the boat ride proved to be exhilarating! Seeing the Horseshoe Falls up close was magnificent and very breathtaking. The noise from the falls made it really difficult to hear anything and the gust of mist clawing away from the falling rapids soaked everything in its path, plus making it difficult to take pictures as I had to constantly clean the lens. Before entering the boat, they suit you in a plastic poncho, but the wind nearly nullifies the effort to keep you dry. The day was moving pretty fast. The time was 5:30 in the evening. From there we set out to do one more excursion and jumped on the trolley, which would take us to the Niagara Aquarium. Having seen the Baltimore Aquarium, this one did not impress me. There was only one level, which wasn't quite big nor didn't have any sea life that you wouldn't see anywhere else. Heads did turn as people noticed the clown fish, which society seems to instantly recognize as "Nemo" thanks to Pixar. After seeing everything on the first level, M and I went to the top floor. Just before we were about to leave the building they announced a sea lion show that was about to start soon. M and I stayed to watch it. The sea lions were trained very well and were very cute. Did you know that sea lions actually swim with their eyes closed? Yes, they do. Their super sensitive long whiskers allow them to feel the vibrations very well under the water as well as in the air. After we left the show and ventured back to the trolley stop, it was getting quite late. When we got back to the parking lot, we noticed it was going to be nearly 9:30 when we arrived back to the hotel.

The air in the room is quite different

As I enter my room after my 9 to 5 session, the different feeling in the air hit me like a Mack truck. Nor devastation or depression fills me, just a longing for a feeling I know will return.

It's hard to say goodbye to yesterday

You will be missed!!!!

Last Artists Standing

In the next coming week, the last Philadelphia convention will take place. My entire studio will be there for a good part of the weekend. We will be at booth 125 in the artist alley.

Have a good one.
Jae

Gift giving

So I stayed up pretty late creating my special gift package. It's a balance of merchandise, crafted creativity by yours truly, and sweets. Hope it is appreciated.

The sound of a wolf

It's late night. A bear heard some great news from goldilocks. The type of news to make the coldest porridge taste heart warming. Listening to some Yoko Kanno music. She's definately my all time favorite composer. A true inspiration to my creativity.