2 May 2010

Originally uploaded by wellspring4_23

2 May 2010 - New York Post
"TIMES SCARE: Gasoline bomb parked in middle of Broadway"
Read the article here: www.nypost.com/p/news/local/napolitano_bomb_not_part_of_l...

1 May 2010

Originally uploaded by wellspring4_23

1 May 2010 - Chicago Tribune
"They've got rhythm (If they could just get a little respect)"
Read the article here: shar.es/mcOtO

New Art Series

After last weekend's trip to Washington D.C. and the Newseum, I was inspired to begin a new art series that graphically interprets headlines from the Newseum's "Today's Front Pages". Similar to On Kawara's date paintings, each piece is begun and completed in one day. May 1st was my first piece, and I will begin posting them in a Flickr gallery called "From the Front Page".

Thoughts from the Sky

As we left Baltimore, the ground was covered with snow as far as the eye could see. The further we ascended into the sky, the snow seamlessly transitioned into clouds until the white was no longer below us but around us. During the flight, I began reading “Simple Spirituality: Learning to See God in a Broken World” by Christopher L. Heuertz. His first chapter commented on his thoughts of true humility, and as I looked out on the vastness of white outside my window, I couldn’t help but feel humbled.

Looking down at the ground on the flight to Dallas reminded me of Brent Good’s work. I wonder if he found his inspiration traveling between PA and Dallas during his grad school years.

A change of perspective can be everything. Flying above the storm clouds reveals only blue sky and sunshine, while standing below gives you only darkness and rain.

Clouds make me want to jump into a swimming pool full of cotton balls.

"By the Grace of God I Am What I Am"

This is a long overdue post that I meant to write on November 30, when I was reading Oswald Chambers' "My Utmost for His Highest." And by write, I mean tell you all the great things that Oswald Chambers has to say.

"By the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain..." - 1 Corinthians 15:10"

The way we continually talk about our own inabilities is an insult to our Creator. To complain over our incompetence is to accuse God falsely of having overlooked us. [...] Never worry about whether what you say sounds humble before others or not. But always be humble before God, and allow Him to be your all in all. There is only one relationship that really matters, and that is your personal relationship to your personal Redeemer and Lord. If you maintain that at all costs, letting everything else go, God will fulfill His purpose through your life. One individual life may be of priceless value to God's purposes, and yours may be that life.

We complain about our incompetency as much as we acknowledge our imperfection, all in an attempt to achieve some sense of humility. I think, though, that we forget that the standard for perfection is different from the standard for competency. God created perfection; God is perfection. Compared to Jesus' example, we all fall short. We are imperfect. Competency is world-created, based on the people in our lives and in this world who seem to do certain things particularly well. We strive to meet their standard and complain when we do not reach it, but perhaps not all standards of competency are ours to meet.

Circumstances & Glee Episode 9: Wheels

The other night while driving through my neighborhood, I saw an old man, perhaps in his late 60s, getting into his car. He drove a dark green sedan, and on the roof of the car was a dimly lit "Papa John's" sign. My first feeling was sadness as I wondered why this man had to deliver pizzas. Perhaps he was just laid off by the company he dedicated many years to, and in this rough economic period, pizza delivery was the only choice. Or perhaps he had retired last year only to discover that his pension is not enough to sustain him and his family. But then I realized, how can I make assumptions about this man's circumstances? And who am I to pass judgment on the pizza delivery job as a "last resort" opportunity? I have no idea what this man's story is, whether he drives that green sedan for extra income or for his own desire to spend his free time anywhere but in front of the TV.

People have their own stories, their reasons for what they do and who they are. There's probably a reason why this one woman I know has been divorced at least twice, why that one boy at school always wears a super-long scarf, or why that beautiful girl everyone is jealous of thinks so poorly of herself. And from last week's episode of Glee, we see that there is a reason why Tina stutters and why Sue would accept a girl with Down's Syndrome onto the Cheerios (and perhaps a glimpse at why Sue is so negative and emotionally destructive).

Sure, things make a lot of sense when you hear the whole story, and that makes me curious about the big picture. But the bigger question here: should you treat others differently once you see the big picture? We might pity the boy with the scarf rather than consider him odd when the scarf transforms from a symbol of eccentricity to a memento of a lost loved one. Or maybe we deny Papa John compassion upon the discovery that his delivery job is an excuse to get out of the house and away from the family. Or we go from hating Glee villain Sue Sylvester to feeling sympathetic toward her. I guess what I'm really asking is this: If we loved others as we were called to love, why should circumstances change the way we view and treat other people?

*Sorry for not including quotes, as I normally do with my Glee posts. Having a job and being in the real world makes it harder to watch each episode at least twice, like I used to do.

Pay Day

"I guess this is your official welcome," said the VP of my office, as she handed me my very first paycheck of my first post-graduate, "real world", putting-the-degree-to-use JOB. For three weeks I have been going into that office and working on different projects, but tearing off those perforated edges seemed to make everything a bit more real. It kind of hit me this morning as I got out of my car and headed into the office: I'm going to work. I'm not going to class or just visiting this place. I am going into this building, as I do every Monday through Friday, to work. Every weekday, I go into an office where my time is worth something (right now, it's not worth that much, and even less after taxes). And every two weeks, the company shows me how much they value my time (and every month, I show my landlord how much I value having a place to live).

So far, everything has been going well. I'm currently juggling a couple projects, and my boss is impressed with how much progress I have made on them. It will be a great moment to receive my projects back from the printer and hold my work in my hands. As I have been working on these projects, I have come to appreciate my graphics professor's "client-based" approach to teaching and grading our work. I turn in version after version and receive revision after revision, until at last, the client (my boss) is pleased with what she sees. Though sometimes I don't understand why she wants what she wants, I am able to disassociate myself from the work. When an idea is shot down, I don't have to go down with it. As my co-worker told me during my first days at the office, "If she changes everything you did, don't take it personally." My co-workers are really great and make working a lot of fun. Today, the art department had a Pixie Stix eating contest, which ended up being more of a joke than a competition. At least once a day, I hear, "That reminds me of this one movie..." or "Who was that guy who was in...". Lunch consists of half an hour of Sports Center or cheesy sci-fi movies, and when the opportunity arises, practical jokes are sure to happen.