Dear Tasha: Winter Break Day 3 Update

The last day of Fashion Merchandising class.

The night before finals started, in which we played Cards Against Humanity whilst drinking champagne. 

Jet's first In-N-Out meal! That milkshake though.

Walked around the Pier after dinner.

Early Christmas dinner. 

Me finishing this entire meal (plus taking extras) is pretty much an accomplishment. 

Spent the night at Paige's. When we went back to her parents' home, they weren't in so we had to go through the back door. Lock the front door but not the back? I don't get it but it worked out for us.

Me currently, minus the brownie & ice-cream. 

In response to Tasha Iman.

Yo, finals kicked my ass. Not in the I-hate-my-life-I-hate-cramming-till-6-in-the-morning way but in the damn-I-have-so-much-to-do way. I like finals week in art school more than Inti though, because instead of cramming 14 chapters in a week or two, I'm out in a cafe drawing in my sketchbook. At the cafe, two girls beside me were cramming for their science-related finals and I'm just chilling with my sketchbook. It was fantastic. Although when they get jobs and I don't, that would be the opposite. Me, pessimistic? About the future, yes. 

On Friday, Jet came to SF from San Jose. It was pouring the entire day and I just got back from my drawing finals, so I was exhausted. All we did was have In-N-Out by the pier and then walked around being all touristy. The sea lions fascinated us, in which we contemplated the chances of having a shark find a loop hole and actually entering the sea lion side of the pier as well as a lone sea lion that possibly may have been bullied. All of these theories were concocted by Nikki and I, Jet entertained us by not saying much. 

The next day, I lugged all I needed for a month down the hills of SF, which is incredibly tough because my suitcase kept rolling away from me, to the BART station. So far, my time out of SF consisted of visiting a hoarder (he has so many trucks and cars, it's crazy but super cool), an old woman who is incredibly talented in painting, celebrating Christmas early (presents included) and having Korean BBQ for lunch (today). Also, binge watching tv shows and movies on Netflix: Parks & Rec (done), Portlandia (halfway done - prepping), Donald Glover Weirdo (so good - you need to watch it) and so many more. 

I'm so happy to have so much time on my hands, you have no idea. It's so liberating. 

Till then,

Talk to you soon. 

On Location: California Academy of Sciences

  

H&M coat & skirt, Factorie backpack, Thrifted sheer top, 

Forever 21 bralette worn underneath.

{Image credit (above): Ashley Fenison}

As art school kids, we are constantly on the edge of being broke, thus when the golden opportunity of free Sunday at the California Academy of Sciences arises, we take it. How can we not when it's the only museum in California that has a planetarium, aquarium and rainforest under one roof? It is ridiculous.

Looking into the rainforest.  

Inside the rainforest.

There was so much to see, to touch (I touched and lifted up the head of skinned cheetah or tiger I can't remember and I'm still shaken by that experience). The rainforest was amazing and surprise surprise, the first level was Borneo. It was nice to be surrounded by greenery that reminded me so much of home. Also, the humidity. Butterflies were everywhere and a striking red coat is a bright decision (get it, no? No, ok.) because it attracted a couple of butterflies to chill on my arm. (We freaked out so we didn't get to take a proper shot. As usual, we are always on top of things.)

The aquarium was nothing to shout about but it sure was nice to see all sorts of sea creatures. Seahorses will always remind me of aliens, they just don't look natural at all. But then again, what does something 'natural' really look like huh? We touched starfishes and sea urchins; the latter feeling like toothpicks.

The best part about this museum is most definitely the planetarium. Flashback to Interstellar, in which you witness the vastness of it all and realise how earth is just a speckle. It makes me feel so small and insignificant. How there are bigger things out there, yet we are so troubled by the issues here. But then again, what's before us and happening to us right now has its own weight in being significant in our lives. Time to reread some philosophy books, kids.

Hello reindeer!

Our last stop was the living garden that is the rooftop. It reminded me so much of a dystopian book/movie, in which good things happen and humans didn't fuck things up for once. Perhaps the aftermath of said fuck up. It's always so sandy when the future is depicted. (Interstellar is still fresh in my mind, that's why. Resident Evil comes to mind too though.)

Also, the earthquake stimulator was pretty rad.

Till then,
3 more days till the end of finals.

Painted Gold

H&M crop top, cardigan & boots, Thrifted skirt.

Maybe it's me missing Rathika, Sheena and Zoé unwittingly or the gloomy weather, but I threw this outfit together only to stand in front of the mirror questioning the huge percentage of black in a single outfit. If you know me, you know colours are my thing. To further strengthen my point, witness my struggle in which I went an entire week with the absence of colour where I Got My Morticia Addams On. 

Ra, Sheen, & Z, if you're reading this: I miss you gurls so much...especially our café sessions where we sit for hours talking about everything and nothing. 

Till then,

Rindu. 

Dear Tasha: You're Cordially Invited To My Existential Crisis Party!

Crossing the Bay Bridge into the city on my way back from Woodland.

Drawing workshop (Dah lah 6 hours of drawing class per week. On top of that we have to attend 3 hours of workshop.)

I use pastels for the rough and charcoal pencils for the actual drawing. 

The dining hall across the street was closed so I had to grab breakfast from the Sugar Cafe.

On Saturday, we went to a shitty house party, but we looked good doing so. 

[This shall be a weekly post as a letter to my lumpster, Cupcake aka Tasha Iman aka Cottonball83. You don't have to read it, duh.]

Dear Tasha,

I'm throwing an existential crisis party soon because finals can be a brokeass bitch tryna get makeup instead of food. You know what I mean. It's tiring. Instead of sitting at my desk reading and writing notes, I have to go to Fedex and print out close to $70 worth of boards for my Merchandising project. Art school is expensive, as we all know now. Here's a lowdown on my finals:

Marketing: The only paper, but we have to present an event idea to the creator of Glanse app. 

Merchandising: Create a window display for a department store. You've seen it. 

Color & Design: A notebook of all the work we have done over the semester, an analysis of an editorial, and a collection/photo shoot based on colour schemes of your choice. I'm planning to do a makeup shoot so that I can play with colours, you might see it soon!

Drawing: 3 best drawings in class/workshop, 3 sketches of a place using different medias. 

It sounds like fun come to think of it, but it is tiring. I have so much to do and you know how I feel about time. I'll get through this. In less than two weeks, I'm free to binge watch Netflix, devour books on Oyster (planning to read Philosophy to at least understand what life is all about because right now I can't see it, constantly feeling like I'm living a dream.) & just explore the rest of California and Oregon. 

My week is going swimmingly so far. How is yours? It's 12:17am and I'm ahead of my schedule so I shall reward myself with a movie. 

Till then,

Miss you loads.

On Location: Kayo Books

Juxtapoz $3 ; Absolutely Zippo! $15

Living in a city means constantly stumbling upon new spots. Thus, I've decided to document such glorious finds as we all know urban exploration is oh so thrilling.

This week, Nikki and I decided to check out a bookstore that carries pulp fiction, erotica and generally books that are NSFW classified. Nikki refers to it as 'the sex shop', which it kinda is in some sense because look at the titles on display [refer to image 2 & 4]. Besides the erotica/gay/lesbian/prison genres, they do have a lot of other books, such as those produced by the Beats generation, war stories and all forms of other literature. Most of these books, if not all, are secondhand, but they are in extremely good condition at really good prices.

Browsing in this bookstore can take hours. There's so much to see what with such a wide selection available, it's tough to stop your inner bibliophile from imploding. Venturing upstairs because I had to tear myself away from the art books, I met up with Nikki. She told me about a book that was of a Nazi's pilot diary. It was sad because he didn't believe in what he did. On a brighter note, she found a Canadian bill in one of the books along with this note:

Kayo Books is instantly my new favourite bookstore, replacing Bound Together only because Kayo is within walking distance. Now I don't have to take the MUNI all the way to Haigh-Ashbury or Mission just to get my zine fix.

This time, I tried my very best to refrain from getting any new books. Yet my lack of self control decided it was a good idea to get a copy of Juxtapoz, an art magazine, and Absolutely Zippo!: An Anthology of a Fanzine 1988 - 1998. My reasoning: I probably won't be able to find this around, so may as well get it now.

Kayo Books

814 Post St

San Francisco, CA, 94109

(415) 749-0554

Till then,
Live life with no regrets. [Hook x2]

November Favourites

7th Nov - 9th Nov: Reno
It was slump week. I jumped on board at the idea of a spontaneous trip to Reno, Nevada. 6 hours on the Megabus right at the very front on the top deck. The view was amazing. Lost all the images because I fried my phone, but hey, that calls for another trip to Reno. Every semester I face a slump week and the only remedy is to go on a spontaneous trip to rejuvenate all energy that has been lost.

10th Nov: Meeting Julian Casablancas
I've talked about this, so no more. Still a highlight though.

18th Nov: The 1975 live
They were amazing live. Matty sounds exactly the same, probably even better live. When Me came on and everyone was just silent, goosebumps ran up and down my spine. It's moments like that that reminds me I'm alive.

21st Nov: Field trip to Japanese Tea Garden
The best thing about art school would be the field trips. Leaving the classroom behind and being in a new environment that you have to sketch onto paper are moments that I will savour. It was beautiful, more images on my Instagram and Tumblr.

26th - 29th Nov: Thanksgiving break
Unintentional artsy shot of a taco from Taco Bell. Hard shell + soft shell, the best of both worlds really. Thanksgiving break was filled with food coma inducing delicacies, unconventional company and laid back car rides.

Oyster Books
The Spotify/Netflix version for books, this has kept me occupied as I wait for buses that are never on time. Currently reading Philosophy 101 because I want to understand the larger meaning of life or at least catch a glimpse of it. This could be a momentary existential crisis in university even though it has only been one semester.

Shoplifting from American Apparel by Tao Lin
Not too dense, I finished this book in a sitting. (That's saying a lot as I'm a slow reader and get distracted easily.) It's an engaging story as you follow Sam to NYU libraries, shoplifting in American Apparel and his short stint in jail.

Favorite quotes:
"Our bios: 'They lived in poverty writing their masterpieces.'"

"When I'm talking to someone I think 'can I use this dialogue in a book,'" said Luis. "If the answer is no, I try talking to someone else."

You can read a snippet here.

The Princess Bride
A proper fairy tale like story that reminded me of my childhood with humour that would cause you to giggle like a kid again. Rescuing princesses, escaping eels, venturing into Fire Swamp, The Princess Bride is made for a night in when you feel like leaving the world behind and stepping into a fantasy.

The Dreamers
I like the idea of watching films in a palace, breaking the world record for running through the Louvre, reading books that require thought and discussions. The best part of this movie are the film splices made in reference to other films. Does that even make sense?

Hard Candy
I've been meaning to watch this for awhile now but after reading this film review on The Pulp Zine, I immediately decided to watch it. Throughout the movie it made me so tense watching this and when it was all over, I had to let out a sigh. This is a movie dealing with pedophilia and rape culture. Personally, I thought this was a damn good movie, especially when it came to the message. Read the well worded film review after watching.

Favourite quote:
“Just because a girl acts like a woman, doesn’t mean she is ready to do what a woman does.”

Human Sadness by Julian Casablancas + the Voidz
Probably not everyone's cup of tea, but this song evokes emotion unlike any other song I've ever heard. It could just be me and my off the walls emotions, but I do hope that you guys feel what I feel. It's not necessarily sadness. Be warn, it is an 11 minute song.

Vanity, overriding wisdom, usually common sense.


High Street by Blood Orange
The late Michael Jackson doing the moon walk on the telly and I was like "who's bad?"

Danger In The Dancehall by Jesse Woods
Walk with the creatures of the moon. Cause we're young, and life's a vacation.

Back Of The Hand by The British Expeditionary Force
Listen with the windows down on a clear night drive.

Till then,
May the last month of 2014 kick ass.