flora and fauna designs

looking for updates to my blog? go here:

http://floraandfaunablog.blogspot.com/

P.
xo

99.8% moved, 80.5% unpacked, 72% organized... etc.

we're in the new place. it's awesome. the cats are loving it here - ninjiom has even been usingthe litterbox consistently since we moved here. photos to follow once it's set up properly.

(we have jaccuzzi tub) ^_^

and then...

micah rode my bike and it took a bloody bite of of his leg.

and then, i rode it (for the first time since last year). and i can still ride it sorta shittily. ;p

kicking buttons...

i've been kicking buttons these days - getting things done for school, and for work, flora and fauna designs. the cat is feeling grumpy because she's not getting enough attention (and extra grumpy today, because we... uh... ran out of cat food).

hey, check out the flora&fauna blog... it just might be more interesting that this one...

p.xo

the city through the hair curtain, and the blue sky beyond the knee mountains

the city through the hair curtain

***

the blue sky beyond the knee mountains

***

happy father's day.

home vs. home II

last saturday: sitting around picking my nose in richmond hill with my best friend from highschool...

home vs. home

we're home from a short trip back home ^_^

firsts...

this morning, i went to the gym for the first time in my life. it was awesome.

the garbage heroine -slash- why steph is cooler than me

so my friend steph, the dumpster diving queen, has put together this fabulous little website all about making stuff (stuff you can USE, and stuff for FUN) out of GARBAGE. i mean... sure, it's kinda yucky that she dumpster dives (see her blog for some of the yuckiest stories)...

i especially love the projects section - gotta make some of those notepades and notebooks with my piles of scrap paper (read: paper hand-outs from marketing lectures.. zzzz...)

one thing i found in common with all the eco-designers (and other eco-geeks ♥ ) i've met, is that all of them are happy to share their knowledge, ideas, and resources - knowing that we are all working independently towards a common goal. could this be gemeinschaft? ^_^

checkkit:
http://www.thepapertrail.org


***

listening: juno soundtrack


p.
xo

this song...

keeping this post short, since my to-do lists are long...

this song

p.
xo

words starting with the letter U

a week of classes at BCIT was gone by and already i have learned a lot about small business start-up, and feeling more confident about my business idea. (also had the pleasure of spending a part of my mornings observing the baby geese along the salmon run on campus...)


p.
xo

conversing with the cat

♥ ♥ ♥

this post needs a caption. any ideas?

p.
xo

the hardest part of anti-consumerism...

shoes.

locally sourced. ethically made. recycled materials. minimal carbon footprint.
feeling 100% guilty (and i didn't even buy them... yet).

committed!!

i have accepted the seat at BCIT's small business program, and will be starting classes with them at the end of the month. I did get accepted into the other school, and was tempted to join them instead - because they are much closer to home, and course load is much less demanding (which would give me more time to goof around, and also work on my designs...). but had a good feeling about BCIT, and am looking forward to a more academic program. (also got a really good vibe from the instructors there.) ^_^

met with my client today to pick up my cheque. we had a good chat, and everything is good between us again. i am very happy about this.

working at the epic show this weekend.

keeping busy - in discussion for a new project with a new client this week (a very very exciting one to benefit youths living with cancer), as well as tying up some loose ends and doing some prep work before school starts. i haven't found time to draw lately - and am looking forward to getting back into it SOON.

good news, good news, and sad news...

i have been accepted into one of the schools for the small business program i applied for. (i am still waiting to hear back from the other 2, but will most likely go with this first one because i absolutely abhor waiting for stuff.)

i am meeting my client later this afternoon to pick up the cheque for my work.

my great-aunt passed away on monday, after a long battle with cancer T_T...

alice heads...

home again after a short vw camper trip to alice lake, where we (kyle, michael, and i) made friends with stellar jays, bumble bees, humming birds, and returned several stones to the water.

steller jay

bumble bee wearing sunglasses [?]

***

meeting with BCIT went well - i will be very happy to join their program. i will know by the end of the day on wednesday if they have accepted me.

***

listening: final fantasy
(still) reading: ishmael by daniel quinn
anticipating (in the somewhat distant future): getting our own awesome veedub camper bus!!

p.
xo

buzzing...

so much is going on right now - i am buzzing with excitement... i have been running around meeting with small business schools. i am putting in my application to 3 schools this week - lots to do to get my applications ready.

***

last night, i had a dream last night about putting on the hayden's 1996 7" vinyl single, featuring the song "i wake up with me". lovely. i have this record in waking life, and am dying to put it on... but i can't seem to find it, and don't even have a turntable...

***

this blog has been lacking sketches lately. i have finally found the pen for my tablet (which was lost in a clumsy black cat slip-and-fall-accident), and will remedy that situation... when i damn well feel like it.

note to kyle: same goes for the dishes piled on the kitchen counter situation.

***

listening: okkervil river
(still) reading: ishmael by daniel quinn
anticipating: making and eating dinner
not-anticipating: cleaning up the kitchen before making dinner...

p.
xo

novi sad cats

novi sad cats : cat shelter in serbia.

...i am thinking of ways to help.

(this post explains everything)

why freelancing sometimes suck... part III

i met with my client's husband on monday evening. i agreed to give them a generous discount to make payment more feasible for them. they have agreed to pay the new balance in full the middle of the month.

[no picture again, sorry... maybe later]

***
eating: cereal with soy milk
listening: blockhead
(still) reading: ishmael by daniel quinn
anticipating: long walk to the pet food store

p.
xo

just this. i really like it.

"Do what is good.
Do what is right.
For the earth,
for your spirit
and for others."

- nicole bridger

pink trees, blue skies, cell phone camera... + runaway client update

not quite as lovely as real life - but you get the idea...

***

i am feeling a bit anxious and unsettled. i have scheduled another meeting with my run-away client - actually, the meeting is with her husband, as i still cannot get a hold of my client at all. hope to have closure by the end of the meeting.

also, thanks everyone for your support, sympathy, and advice, from your comments and emails.

***

eating: organic fuji apple
listening: air
(still) reading: ishmael by daniel quinn
anticipating: regaining peace, and moving on to new projects

p.
xo

why freelancing sometimes suck... part II

i showed up at the building for my meeting with the client today, to discuss the payment situation for the 38 hours of work i have done for them (at their request).

no one was there.

i waited outside (in the unusual and very beautiful vancouver spring snow storm) for 1/2 hour. phoned their office and cell phones. no answer.

***

all my work and relationships with clients has been based on mutual trust and respect. up to this point, i had never had a problem with payment. thanks to my innate ability to genuinely believe that all people are good people, this one came as a surprise. also thanks to my innate ability to genuinely believe all people are good people, i feel like this situation will be resolved in a civil manner - with kind words, understanding, and compromises.

stupid? no. childish. naïve. simple. callow. yes.

there is a lesson to be learned in everything. this one was expensive.

***

eating: ...later
listening: neil young
reading: ishmael by daniel quinn
anticipating: brasstronauts show tonight!!
feeling: defeated... and fundamentally dumb

p.
xo

why freelancing sometimes suck...

sometimes, after the work is completed, the client refuses to pay.

more on this after the meeting tomorrow.

***

eating: fingernails
listening: future sound of london
anticipating: peaceful resolution to above issue
feeling: really bad , and defeated... T_T

p.
xo

goodbye productivity, hello puppies for brains...

i have puppies for brains
i think they are irish dancing

♥

brain-dead...

duhhh...

(just needed a break from real work)

all-right ~

a quick tiny whale of a hello...

working hard today, enriched by the beautiful music of:
brassastronauts, stars, joel plaskett

meme-time!

oh boy oh boy...

1) 7 things meme taggeroo:
steph tagged me for a meme. this is what you're supposed to do, says the below blurb:

“7 Things” Meme How To:
1. Link to your tagger and post these rules.
2. Share 7 random facts about yourself
2a. Share 7 random fabricated facts about yourself
3. Tag 5 people at the end of your post and list their names (linking to them).
4. Let them know they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment at their Blogs
5. Have fun!

2) seven completely true facts about me:
1. my first crush was astroboy
2. i did not speak at all at school for a year when i was in grade 4
3. i won best MIP and Best Shooter in 1995 ice hockey tournament, at leaside girls hockey league
4. seeing other people or animals cry (or looking super sad) triggers my own tears instantaneously T_T
5. i am terrified of phone "automated assistants" (i.e. "emily" when you phone Bell Canada for technical support or whatever...). it temporarily reverts me to awkard grade 4 silence
6. i have an obsession with cute little bellies on people with otherwise slim or toned physiques.
7. i used to... uh... "collect" tiny spoons... from restaurants... the ones for green tea ice cream at japanese restaurants were highly valued. they're sooo small and cute! (this collection habit ended shortly after i began to study/practice buddhist teachings -- although the tradition lives on through a few friends ;p)

2a) seven completely fabricated facts about me (with explanations in brackets parentheses):
1. i am 6 feet tall (i used to wear these awesome swear boots)
2. i am a "日本妹" (translation = "japanese girl") who always wear black (that's just the "nick name" the cantonese speaking sewing ladies gave me at my last work place. and i don't always wear black.)
3. i am an excellent baker (nope. but i only share the stuff that turns out well...)
4. i am a vegetarian (i eat meat rather often for a vegetarian...)
5. i am good at math (i am good at using calculators. does that still count?)
6. i am good at following instructions (not literally. i tend to embellish... see 2a in "7 Things Meme How To" section above, that didn't use to be there)
7. i am often insensitive (no. i am honest. if you find that hurtful, you need to toughen up.)

3. i don't want to do that. is that bad? it's just that i don't think i can deal with the rejection of other bloggers not meme-ing with me.

how about this: if you are a blogger, and you are reading this right now, would you play "7 things" meme with me? i would love it if you leave me a comment with the link to your blog ^_^ (or if you're not a blogger, and want to play anyway, just write in my comments)

4. see above.

5. ok thanks!

IT'S OVER!!

***

eating: surf sweets gummy bears
listening: bjork
anticipating: rubbing ninj's belly before we head to bed

p.
xo

happiness is...

reminded myself of this quote in conversation with nicki today:

"happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."

- Mohandas K. Gandhi

***

eating: leftover guinness chocolate cake with cream cheese icing
listening: the cure ♥ ♥ ♥
anticipating: another fabulously harmonious productive work day tomorrow, and for the rest of next week

last night...

last night ~ 4:30am snuck up on me, and i knew i should go to bed, but didn't want to - i was
still very much awake, alert, and working contently. i went to bed anyway, with strange dreams coated in restlessness.

in one dream, i was at a chinese restaurant with my mom, sister, and kyle. we had ordered a huge shellfish platter. i asked them what each of the species were... one of them was a soft shell hermit crab. i was thoroughly disgusted, and even more so as they ate the meaty part and left the leggy carcasses on a plate in front of me... the dream whisked me off to the shores of a sandy beach, where i found several spiraling seashells. i picked up each one and looked inside, hoping to find a squirmy hermit crab - but instead i found the soft fleshy living pulp of the original inhabitant of the sea shell. my dream wraps up as things have come full circle again...

***

i wanted to hop over to coco et olive for a little company this afternoon, but remembered selin is not working today... so i will head to benny's instead. they have wireless, and i might bring the OLPC with me. as much as i strive best hermit style... with a beard and a pipe and a kitten on each side ~ i really miss my daily interaction with people.

[2:30pm edit: decided to go for a quick walk around the neighbourhood, and make it to benny's or coco et olive tomorrow instead. thinking it will become my weekly friday blogspot + sketching + reading place(s). anyone care to join me?

also, it's st. paddy's tomorrow, i have a guinness choclate cake to make!!

~ p. xo]

***

the neighbour's cat (aptly named 'runty') just dropped by the side window looking for our cats... i wasn't quick enough to get a photo, but here's his routine captured last week:

"herrrro? anybody there..?"

"where the f*ck are you guys??!?"

"let me in LET ME IN!! i needs baffroom real bad!!"

***

eating: scramble eggs and flax seeds grainy pita
listening: nick drake
anticipating: going outside into sunshine


p.
xo

pow pow pow!!

i am kicking some serious ass at pretty much everything today.

lately (and for as long as i can remember) i excel at drawing from midnight to 4am. this means, for the sake of my freelance illustration project, my daily routine is as follows:
10:30 - wake up and snuggle novi, in-bed-laying-down-half-asleep meditation
12:nn - get out of bed, turn on the computer. clumsily stumbling around until i stumble right into coffee. check email, check email, check facebook, check blog stats, check email. feel a bit woozy (forgot to eat)... flip through magazines and books for reference material*, obsessively-complusive cleaning/organizing (today, it was kitchen). rock-out. still woozy...
5:00 pm - make dinner, hang out with kyle, clean up. eat cookies, clean up.
8:30 pm - nag at kyle about playing too much video games, feel guilty about nagging
9:00 pm - drawing*
10:30pm - tuck kyle in. tidy up. check email, check email, check facebook.
12:00midnight - i am here, and now i'm off to get some real work done.
12:30am - realistically start working super hard*

* = doing real work

***

eating: fries with simply natural ketchup
listening: talking heads - stop making sense (funny i didn't know this was a movie until i looked it up for the link just now... did you?)
reading: cochonet rouge
anticipating: late-night shift doodle time

p.
xo

late-nite renderings/rambling...

on sunday we went on a hike at the very beautiful pacific spirit regional park. it's march, and everything here is starting to blossom. the trees were magnificent regal giants, and i was reminded of how small I am -- how small we are on this planet, and could not even try to rationalize the great violence and injustice we have done to the environment...

the way the moss blanketed and dripped from the branches and logs was so beautiful - and the scent of spring - everything was perfect, even the dirt was the perfect squishiness under my feet (and i, for once, did NOT wear the wrong shoes). there was so many tiny details i was trying to memorize - the braille-like texture on the bark of tree trunks, decomposing up-rooted plants in shapes of animals, a little ravine lined with golden leaves (reminiscent of andy goldsworthy)... and for a moment i regretted not bringing the camera, but was immediately grateful that i saw everything through my eyes, not through the camera lens. (also noteworthy is that i purposely did not bring the camera, as i was in the presence of a real photographer and kyle, and felt particularly uncomfortable and embarrassed to be fumbling around with the camera... on auto focus... and would still probably be taking blurry pictures...)

the halfway point of our hike broke into view at spanish banks, and i was secretly ecstatic to meet the ocean at low tide. every cell in my body was buzzing with the memories of mackenzie beach in tofino. we stopped for some snacks and coffee, in the company of a dozen crows and a few seagulls.

on our way back home, i decided to go back again soon - armed with sketchbooks (and maybe even a camera), and capture all the things nature gave us to cherish and protect.

***

eating: rice crackers
listening: novi cooing and purring
reading: fit pregnancy magazine (don't be silly, it's for work)/the thrive diet (brendan brazier)/the tale of the unknown island (josé saramago)
anticipating: st. patrick's day fun at the wolf and hound

paying for high priced marketing

remember my previous post here? well, here is a much more intelligent take - pulled an article from carl pope of sierra club (march/april 2008):

"It used to be that when I saw a Mattel toy, I presumed that Mattel made the toy in a factory the company built and manages, with workers it hired and supervises, and that it would not be so crass or dumb as to save a fraction of a penny on a $30 toy by using lead paint.

But Mattel and other businesses know something they are not willing to tell us: In today's globalized economy, top companies have lost control of the quality of the goods that display their logos. They are powerless to prevent a recurrence of the toxic-toy tragedy--and they are terrified that their brands could be dragged through the mud when the next epidemic of dangerous products strikes.

The problem is not China. The problem is a business model in which companies outsource manufacturing under short-term, low-cost contracts to the firm that will follow their design standards most cheaply. All that is really Fisher-Price about Dora the Explorer is the design--the product itself is made in a factory over which the company has almost no control. It doesn't manage the working conditions, environmental standards, or safety practices. As a result, it no longer controls the product itself...

...we're paying for high-priced marketing and design combined with low-wage, exploited workers producing inferior products using shoddy safety and environmental standards. Often we have no choice--we can't find products made under decent conditions by the companies that market them. Yet as long as we allow this business model to continue, we are complicit in a system whose ineluctable outcome is the poisoning of our children."

please take time to read the whole article here.

***

my email to carl is as follows:

"...having spent several years of my career in apparel design and product development, and have found it very disappointing that most companies are happy to cut corners on research and product testing to save time and a few dollars. Few companies are so incompetent as to be unaware of the potential hazards of their products, and the consequences – many simply don’t care. Mislabeling (with false, misleading, or incorrect information), chemical hazards, and unethical practices are too often covered-up by clever marketing. When/if these companies are caught with their mistakes, they plead innocence and ignorance when it is the company’s responsibility to be well versed in all safety and quality issues, and enforce their standards from product sampling through to post production.

There are many resources that provide thorough product testing and are current with all required standards for each country of distribution. Unless the governments make these test mandatory (and perhaps subsidize testing to reduce cost for the companies), and enforce standards with heavier penalties, companies will continue to take short cuts – solely to generate more profit.

Companies need to take a more pro-active approach to this problem, and save themselves time and money in the long run by not having to look for loop-holes and means to conceal these errors, and risk damaging their reputations."

i'd love to hear some feedback from you.

***

eating: melange of cereals
listening: the sounds of a living breathing house
anticipating: warm bed and snuggles, sleeping in and vegan pancakes breakfast, playing outside

p.
xo

if you made it all the way here...

if you made it all the way here, you might as well leave a comment...

***

ated: carburetor with cheddar and bacon and chunky chocolate soy milk
listening: rune factory soundtrack
anticipating: watching darjeeling limited in bed

p.
xo

freelance friday

very happily working hard at home with the cats and day dreaming about underwater galaxies...

***

ated: eggs
listening: everything on the hard drive with the word or letter sequence "sea"
anticipating: apartment viewing at 5pm, and a funny sunny weekend with some of my favourite people

the purpose of everything

as a designer, it is my ultimate goal and responsibility to create only what is needed through the most ethical means. the hardest part of right livelihood is living without it.

"Designers should define their role broadly as agents of good in the world, and limit their work to 'legitimate' products: those that are needed, and those that can be made without damage to nature or - through the unethical actions of manufacturers and investors - damage to people."

- Industrial designer Phillipe Starck, on the purpose of design

***

eating: coffee
listening: in field & town - hayden
anticipating: freelance project meeting
needing: lunch and sun

p.
xo

xhaling the bad stuff

ok... here we go -

***

eating: mega miso vegetable soup
reading: no one belongs here more than you (miranda july)
listening: fur and gold (bats for lashes)
anticipating: everything... and banana bread
promising: a more substantial 2nd post

p.
xo