I admit it, I am very lucky.  Lucky that I work a 9-5 job at home.  And lucky that I have enough freelance work that keeps me busy, keeps the bills paid, and keeps me sane.  Not many, especially in my field, are that lucky.

With that said… I really want to start creating, making, doing things that are completely mine.  Not something I’ve designed that has some other big name brand attached to it.  I’ve always wanted to have my own work out there, but it’s only now that I really feel the need to get things in gear and plan this out.  It has nothing to do with becoming famous or incredibly rich (although, I wouldn’t mind it :P), I just want to do MY own thing.

The past few months I’ve been brainstorming exactly WHAT I want to do and WHAT I want to create.  I think I’ve finally narrowed it down.  I’m not going to share exactly WHAT just yet.  I still have a lot more planning to do, as well as learning a few things before I launch anything.

I’m excited!  And I hope this works out.  More importantly I hope I take this motivation and all these ideas and turn them into reality.  The good thing is that I haven’t been amped like this in a very loooooooong time.  I’ll take that as a good sign.

I got a new camera today!  OH YEAH!  I purchased a Canon PowerShot SX100 from Best Buy this afternoon.  I have a good ol’ reliable DSLR (the 1st Canon Digital Rebel) but I needed a camera that I could carry with me all the time.  I used to carry my Rebel everywhere I went, but my shoulders can’t take it anymore!

But the original reason I decided on it?  I’m gonna see John Mayer in concert this month in Irvine!!  Photography is allowed, but professional looking cameras are not allowed.  Sucks ’cause I could’ve taken some really good photos if I was allowed to.  Anywho, I want to take lots of pictures at the concert.  I LOVE me some John Mayer :=o)

My criteria for a new point and shoot was:

1. Excellent Picture Quality
2. Good amount of Optical Zoom
3. Something small and lightweight
4. Decent price (read: no more than $300!)

The Canon Powershot SX100 definitely met all of my criteria.  I was also looking at the Canon Powershot S5, but it cost more AND the sucker is big!  It’s not as big as my DSLR, but big enough that I might as well just carry around my DSLR, ya’ know? And then I was looking at the Nikon Coolpix P80.  Again, it cost more and was bigger.  PLUS, it’s not a Canon.  Sorry, I’m a loyal Canon user.

Right out of the box, the camera was super easy to use.  I have experience with both point and shoot and DSLR cameras, so it wasn’t too difficult to figure things out.  I will be going over my manual tonight just so I don’t miss anything.

It takes very good photos and pretty decent video.  Here’s a sampling:

Big nosed Cooper :=o)

Lil’ Miss Horry trying to get some “I’m hungry” sympathy

Here’s a video of Horry crying/ whimpering/ grumbling at a video of Cooper playing and barking. BTW, this is at the lowest setting.  At max setting, the videos come out pretty good.  The file size at max was pretty large.

So far, I am really loving this camera.  I can definitely see where I would miss my DSLR, but this is perfect for everyday use.  Would I recommend it?  For sure!  Especially if you’re new to the world of digital photography.

Some things to consider:

1. It takes AA batteries.  I suggest using rechargable batteries.  They save you from constantly buying new batteries AND is eco-friendly since you won’t be tossing batteries after each use.
2. Blurry imagery - So far without using flash… my images aren’t as crisp as I would like them to be. I will continue using my camera in different lighting and different scenarios.  I’ll keep you updated on this.

So that’s it for now.  WOW, just realized this is my first review of any kind, haha!  I hope to do more of these whenever I get a chance.

Dining ROOM that is, har har!  So our dining room is fairly naked at the moment.  We have our tiny table from our days in our old apartment.  It does the job, but not when you want to have more than 4 people over.  I’ve narrowed down my choices.  It’s going to be a while until we get to buy this stuff, but I’d rather plan ahead, you know?  But here’s more info on the goodies I’ve got my eyes on:

1. Basque Small Dining Table - Raf and I both fell in love with this table when we went to the new Crate & Barrel store at UTC mall.  We actually found it last November when it first came out.  We wanted to buy it for our 1st Thanksgiving shindig, but sadly… they were sold out.  Of all the purchases we will eventually make for the dining room, this will be the first purchase.  We are 100% sure of this table.  It’s so beautiful!  It has this nice rustic quality and it’s made of dark mango wood (VERY eco-friendly).
2. Basque Small Bench - To go with the dining table, obviously.  I’m about 70% sure of this possible purchase.  Since we live in a fairly small house, it will save a butt-load of space.  It can fit 3 regular sized people and/or 4 small fries.  Plus, it’ll allow for more room in the dining room.
3. Delta Barstools (24″) - I’ve always loved these style of chairs!  Crate & Barrel offers a more decently priced one.  I’ve seen the elsewhere for A LOT more.  I LOVE these, but I am still figuring it out if we need them.  We have cool red diner style barstools.  They add a POP of color in our kitchen.  So we’ll see.  Plus, I think I’ll wait until we renovate our kitchen in the future.  This’ll probably be the LAST purchase if we purchase it at all.
4. Eames Molded Plywood Dining Chair, DCW - I LOVE THIS CHAIR!  I’ve loved it waaaaay before we bought our house.  It’s a classic.  If we do purchase these, I think we’ll only get two, one for each head of the table?  I dunno.  They’re kinda pricey.  But they are sooooo beautiful.  If we don’t get them for our dining room, I’ll definitely settle for one of the lounge version :=oP
5. Eames Molded Plywood Dining Chair, DCM - A slightly more economical version and just as beautiful.  And I do love the metal legs.  I’m leaning more towards getting these guys.
6. Eames Molded Plastic Side Chair - An even more economical choice.  These are so great.  I’ve always loved the look of these Eames chairs.  I don’t know if Raf is too keen on these, but g’damn it… if I want them, we WILL have them.  LOL!
7. Eames Molded Plastic Arm Chair - If I decide on the Side Chair, I’d get two of these bad boys for each head of the table.

So that’s my list!  What’s what I want!  And if you’re wondering why I don’t just make life easy and go with the Basque dining chairs… I don’t want them!  They’re very heavy looking and quite frankly, I don’t like to be all matchy matchy.  It’s gonna cost a shitload of money, but I’m all about making investment choices.  These are pieces I KNOW I will be in love with for a long time.

Well, well, well… look who decided to come out and play?  If you haven’t already guessed… it’s ME!  That’s right.  I’m back at it after a 2 year hiatus.  I think it was 2 years.  I just remember blogging less and less once I started working in the “real world” in 2005.

I haven’t been completely gone from the blog-o-sphere.  I have my LiveJournal (which actually, I don’t update anymore), I have my vox (which, oops, I don’t update all that much either).  Now I’m into the micro-blogs (i.e., Twitter & Plurk).  The micro-blogs are fun.  I am all for quick and random updates, but I started to feel a void.  I just feel that sometimes you need more than the 140 characters to say what you need to say.

Oh yeah, and I needed to create a NEW illustration.  I haven’t illustrated anything outside of work for almost 2 years. That is just plain sad.  I mean, I doodle here and there, but this is the first time in a long time where I sat down and dedicated my time to illustrate.  It’s nothing fancy, just the few things that matter to me, like my family and my house :=o)  I’ve realized that my illustrations are so static.  There’s no real movement.  I hope in the near future to go outside my box of illustrating, and try new techniques.  You know, just something different.  But hey, I was happy with my last style, so I went with what I know.  Oh yes, and with my illustrations, I finally drew up my puppies, Cooper and Horry.

Anywhoobers, so what have I been up to?  Not much, to be honest.  I’m still working as a designer full-time and freelancing part-time.  I actually work from home now since my company moved to Tucson, AZ.  I got lucky, what can I say.  Well, that and I worked my ass off to prove that I am reliable, hard-working, and that I am an asset.  I hope my luck doesn’t run out anytime soon.

Speaking of Tucson, I take the occasional business trip there.  I’ve taken 5 or 6 trips within the last 3 months.  It took a while to get used to, but Tucson isn’t all that bad.  Well, I wouldn’t live there.  It’s been nice being surrounded by familiar and new faces.  But the best part of my Tucson trips is the flight back home to San Diego, LOL!

The home life is swell as well.  In case you didn’t know, Raf and I bought our FIRST house together last year.  We’ve been spending our time making changes here and there.  They’re small changes, but they’re changes nonetheless.  We have two dogs, Cooper and Horry.  They’re so great!  I couldn’t imagine life without them around!

Okay, so this is getting longer than I expected.  I guess there’s just so much to say when you’ve been away as long as I have, eh?  Oh!  And before I forget, I have plans for this site.  Not crazy earth shattering plans.  Just plans to be more active with my website.  LOL, really it just means I’ll be posting more visual stimuli.  Hopefully it motivates me to take more pictures again.

So anyways, just thought I’d say HELLO :=o)