i got to watch the EAGLES lose the superbowl tonight, it was somewhat expected. following that team for as long as i have, i know damn well it takes them a couple of years to get something right. it is at least neat to see that in the last few years that i haven't been watching football (because i don't see many EAGLES games in new england) andy reid (the EAGLES coach) has done a great job of shaping the team into a dangerous force within the NFC. its pretty obvious that the team was only in the superbowl this year because of his work since taking over coaching duties back in the late nineties.
i got to watch the game with my girlfriend and my pal brian. the girl made guacamole that was so good that brian described it as follows: "guacamole? more like guaca-AWESOME!"
spent the majority of the weekend with the girl. she is totally cute and i am really enjoying talking with her and getting to know her. it appeared to me that things sort-of sped up a bit this weekend, but hopefully we can keep it at an even pace. i'm in no rush to do anything other than get to know her better (and wake up next to her whenever possible).
she also gives an AMAZING foot massage. my feet and ankles should be really sore today based on last night's dance explosion (gumbercules = dj awesomeness).
i also got some new music this week:
GBH - "the punk rock hits"
Type O Negative - "life is killing me"
Diamanda Galas - "la serpenta canta"
moving on...
PURE GRAPHIC FURY ROUTINE: ENGAGED
destination: peak performance
i've been slothful this weekend and i've done a bit of unhealthy eating. my body has felt tight for the last week but my behavior this week will cause some sort of flabbiness in the coming weeks.
my body should be hard, firm and taut...
an expression of my will and focus.
the confusion and disorientation of early to mid-january has sorted itself into a series of neatly self-contained projects, all of which, i am currently primed to take advantage of. for the first time in quite a few years, i am in a position to make good money off of the furious work schedule i commonly put myself through. money is not a big deal in and of itself;
money is a resource.
this is a scan from my sketchbook to give you an idea of what goes on in my fucking head all day.
this is important. the battle plans need resources. the two most important aspects for me to achieve success are time and money (talent, creativity, drive, ambition, self-discipline and will-power are inherent within me and not subject to outside control). by manipulating my environment so that i end up with a reasonable supply of time and money, i will have the opportunity to actually DO what i have been working towards in the last three to four years.
right now i truly feel like i am at the beginning of a new chapter; i am tying up loose ends, i am being overrun with ideas, thoughts, stories, characters, illustration ideas...
all the work i've done in the last few years has been foundation work to protect myself when the time to be creative came. i learned how to run a business. i learned how to be a salesmen. i learned how to protect myself legally and financially... i never wanted to be in a situation where i would have to compromise myself based on my artwork. i've read too many horror stories about too many of my heroes who were ripped-off and exploited by the talentless, gutless and weak. i always felt like it was more important to sacrifice a few years of my life to learning how to defend myself and my work then it was to keep up with my peers artistically.
i call myself a punk for a lot of reasons, but the BIGGEST one is the creedo listed in my profile:
"D.I.Y. or DIE mothafucka!"
it was the hardcore punks of the early-eighties who really brought a sense of independence to the culture we are ALL currently enjoying. i don't care if you like indie-pop or punk or hip-hop or metal... chances are, the foundation work done by people like greg ginn, chuck dukowski, ian mackaye, jello biafra (and MANY, many others) is the reason you can go see a band almost any night of the week at a small club in some small town somewhere in this country (the reason you have independent comics, the inspiration for much independent film, independent publishing, etc).
the punk ethic, the do-it-yourself mindset is what i believe in to the core. what the hell is the point of spending two years of your life writing and drawing a graphic novel only to hope some schmuck decides to publish it and then to hope that they market it properly and that you ever get to see fucking royalty checks (let alone genuine profit) from YOUR OWN FUCKING WORK!!! being an artist is like being a parent to some extent, if you bring something new into the world, it is your responsibility to look after it.
even worse, how can you write a script or create a character and then watch as some corporate fuck neuters it in front of your eyes... watch as some media-mouthpiece with no soul takes who your are and spins an image to sell a market-able idea...
this is why so many people think marketing is evil, because the major marketing entities in this country market fiction, not fact. they sell the vision they want you to represent, not the vision that you DO represent.
i've been working with businesses that may not inspire me creatively, but if you really want to understand business, sales and marketing, then try to sell something you know nothing about. try to market a scooter store. try to run a sign shop. this is what i've been doing.
do you have any idea how easy it will be for me to publish, market and sell my own work in the next few years?
i've done the hardest part (which is not to say that my next challenge isn't frightening the hell out of me).
this whole time that i've been flexing my head muscles, my fundamental skills have been languishing; to put it simply:
i've fallen behind.
i'm not good enough.
i am going to work really hard this year at catching up. through a conscious system of training and education, i will begin to cultivate the raw talent i possess. i have the potential to go toe-to-toe with anyone. whether or not i make the most of it is up to me.
i am generally the harshest critic anyone can ever face. i am 100% harder on myself. i would rather hate myself (creatively) then love myself. i want to strive, always. it is important to never stop learning.
right now, my main goal is to reach a level of automatic, subconsious creative control. an idea most clearly defined to me in the texts of the samurai swordmaster yagyu munenori; the essential idea being, that when the warrior reaches a certain level of knowledge and training, he no longer thinks of his training, he no longer thinks of his sword or the act or the fight, he just acts. he just is.
it is an idea i believe in because i have achieved it to some small degree in various areas. i have had sparring matches where i never thought of what i was doing, i just moved as my subconscious directed. when i give lectures, i generally just need to show up and if i know what i am talking about (which i always do) the lecture comes THROUGH me. it flows from the knowledge i have already assimilated into myself.
so, i need to sit down with my sketchbook and do life-studies until i can no longer see straight.
i need to explore, study and set type until the typefaces, their kerning and their leading are second nature to me.
i need to understand color.
i need to wield a brush dipped in ink as well as i do my pencil.
i need to learn to render with a small-nibbed dip pen (hunt crowquill 102 -- for those who care) as well as i do with my precise V's.
i need to understand how light creates shape and i need to be able to automatically translate this into line art.
the last four years of my life have been a two-part battle. part two is about to begin.
(i am calling part one a victory).
you will all see what i am capable of this year. you will see and read comics by jordan. you will see my illustrations and designs on original concepts. you will see the unfiltered communication that appears in the journal every few days being released into the world to strike at the masses and pervert the overly-monopolized corporate media.
i hope ya dig it.
(if not, no big deal, i'm not really doing it for you anyway, i'm doing it for me).
i got to watch the game with my girlfriend and my pal brian. the girl made guacamole that was so good that brian described it as follows: "guacamole? more like guaca-AWESOME!"
spent the majority of the weekend with the girl. she is totally cute and i am really enjoying talking with her and getting to know her. it appeared to me that things sort-of sped up a bit this weekend, but hopefully we can keep it at an even pace. i'm in no rush to do anything other than get to know her better (and wake up next to her whenever possible).
she also gives an AMAZING foot massage. my feet and ankles should be really sore today based on last night's dance explosion (gumbercules = dj awesomeness).
i also got some new music this week:
GBH - "the punk rock hits"
Type O Negative - "life is killing me"
Diamanda Galas - "la serpenta canta"
moving on...
PURE GRAPHIC FURY ROUTINE: ENGAGED
destination: peak performance
i've been slothful this weekend and i've done a bit of unhealthy eating. my body has felt tight for the last week but my behavior this week will cause some sort of flabbiness in the coming weeks.
my body should be hard, firm and taut...
an expression of my will and focus.
the confusion and disorientation of early to mid-january has sorted itself into a series of neatly self-contained projects, all of which, i am currently primed to take advantage of. for the first time in quite a few years, i am in a position to make good money off of the furious work schedule i commonly put myself through. money is not a big deal in and of itself;
money is a resource.
this is a scan from my sketchbook to give you an idea of what goes on in my fucking head all day.
this is important. the battle plans need resources. the two most important aspects for me to achieve success are time and money (talent, creativity, drive, ambition, self-discipline and will-power are inherent within me and not subject to outside control). by manipulating my environment so that i end up with a reasonable supply of time and money, i will have the opportunity to actually DO what i have been working towards in the last three to four years.
right now i truly feel like i am at the beginning of a new chapter; i am tying up loose ends, i am being overrun with ideas, thoughts, stories, characters, illustration ideas...
all the work i've done in the last few years has been foundation work to protect myself when the time to be creative came. i learned how to run a business. i learned how to be a salesmen. i learned how to protect myself legally and financially... i never wanted to be in a situation where i would have to compromise myself based on my artwork. i've read too many horror stories about too many of my heroes who were ripped-off and exploited by the talentless, gutless and weak. i always felt like it was more important to sacrifice a few years of my life to learning how to defend myself and my work then it was to keep up with my peers artistically.
i call myself a punk for a lot of reasons, but the BIGGEST one is the creedo listed in my profile:
"D.I.Y. or DIE mothafucka!"
it was the hardcore punks of the early-eighties who really brought a sense of independence to the culture we are ALL currently enjoying. i don't care if you like indie-pop or punk or hip-hop or metal... chances are, the foundation work done by people like greg ginn, chuck dukowski, ian mackaye, jello biafra (and MANY, many others) is the reason you can go see a band almost any night of the week at a small club in some small town somewhere in this country (the reason you have independent comics, the inspiration for much independent film, independent publishing, etc).
the punk ethic, the do-it-yourself mindset is what i believe in to the core. what the hell is the point of spending two years of your life writing and drawing a graphic novel only to hope some schmuck decides to publish it and then to hope that they market it properly and that you ever get to see fucking royalty checks (let alone genuine profit) from YOUR OWN FUCKING WORK!!! being an artist is like being a parent to some extent, if you bring something new into the world, it is your responsibility to look after it.
even worse, how can you write a script or create a character and then watch as some corporate fuck neuters it in front of your eyes... watch as some media-mouthpiece with no soul takes who your are and spins an image to sell a market-able idea...
this is why so many people think marketing is evil, because the major marketing entities in this country market fiction, not fact. they sell the vision they want you to represent, not the vision that you DO represent.
i've been working with businesses that may not inspire me creatively, but if you really want to understand business, sales and marketing, then try to sell something you know nothing about. try to market a scooter store. try to run a sign shop. this is what i've been doing.
do you have any idea how easy it will be for me to publish, market and sell my own work in the next few years?
i've done the hardest part (which is not to say that my next challenge isn't frightening the hell out of me).
this whole time that i've been flexing my head muscles, my fundamental skills have been languishing; to put it simply:
i've fallen behind.
i'm not good enough.
i am going to work really hard this year at catching up. through a conscious system of training and education, i will begin to cultivate the raw talent i possess. i have the potential to go toe-to-toe with anyone. whether or not i make the most of it is up to me.
i am generally the harshest critic anyone can ever face. i am 100% harder on myself. i would rather hate myself (creatively) then love myself. i want to strive, always. it is important to never stop learning.
right now, my main goal is to reach a level of automatic, subconsious creative control. an idea most clearly defined to me in the texts of the samurai swordmaster yagyu munenori; the essential idea being, that when the warrior reaches a certain level of knowledge and training, he no longer thinks of his training, he no longer thinks of his sword or the act or the fight, he just acts. he just is.
it is an idea i believe in because i have achieved it to some small degree in various areas. i have had sparring matches where i never thought of what i was doing, i just moved as my subconscious directed. when i give lectures, i generally just need to show up and if i know what i am talking about (which i always do) the lecture comes THROUGH me. it flows from the knowledge i have already assimilated into myself.
so, i need to sit down with my sketchbook and do life-studies until i can no longer see straight.
i need to explore, study and set type until the typefaces, their kerning and their leading are second nature to me.
i need to understand color.
i need to wield a brush dipped in ink as well as i do my pencil.
i need to learn to render with a small-nibbed dip pen (hunt crowquill 102 -- for those who care) as well as i do with my precise V's.
i need to understand how light creates shape and i need to be able to automatically translate this into line art.
the last four years of my life have been a two-part battle. part two is about to begin.
(i am calling part one a victory).
you will all see what i am capable of this year. you will see and read comics by jordan. you will see my illustrations and designs on original concepts. you will see the unfiltered communication that appears in the journal every few days being released into the world to strike at the masses and pervert the overly-monopolized corporate media.
i hope ya dig it.
(if not, no big deal, i'm not really doing it for you anyway, i'm doing it for me).
VIEW 10 of 10 COMMENTS
that is why I luv you. L-U-V.
of COURSE Kill Bills rocked. they rocked even harder on the big screen, but oh well.
Is that weird?
To have a dream about some kid on the internet you've never met?
Anyway, it was cool:
We were both staying in this house that resembled a cabin owned by a couple that neither of us knew.
They were just putting us up for night, all friendly like.
And you had the upstairs loft and I had the downstairs room and we snuck out and made Easy-Mac in their microwave and sat on the couch and drew pictures together and talked about stuff.
Then we went to sleep and when we woke up,
we rode bikes.
It was fun.
And not creepy.
Don't worry.