Killian's Blog/Website/Whatever

Daily Deity will be going on hiatus until I'm back in Seattle! It was probably stupid of me to start it before the new year, but I was excited about it, and excitement leads to impatience, which leads to rash decisions. In addition to having a nasty cut on the middle finger of my right--i.e. "drawing"--hand (not an impediment to typing due to my being an index finger "pecker"), I've been battling a mild-but-nevertheless-remarkably-inconveniencing illness, and doing family stuff, and trying to see all my hometown friends, and snuggling with a puppy, et cetera. I've also had hiccoughs for the past, I dunno, ten minutes (Matthew's fault). That's not really related, but it is annoying. Anyways, point being that I will get back to structured drawing exercises when I'm back home. OMG , these hiccoughs are horrible. Let's see, good things. I got a haircut today! It looks tres spiffy (it's a bob. A blue bob. Sounds a bit like a bird, doesn...

I missed yesterday. Already, one day missed! But whatever, because I was traveling, and I feel that's a valid excuse. Now, safe and sound at the parentals' for the holidays, I can get back to it. Thoth! I did two of them today. That can be my penance. The first one was my "warm up" and the second is more my personal style. warmin' up (again, these pictures taken with my phone. haaaa.) doin' the good stuff Obviously, my idea of the good stuff is drawing a cartoon. Plus, cartooning is faaaast! The first one took me about half an hour, and the second took me maybe five minutes. I realized, after sketching the first (and then trying to make it interesting with some shading and sharp lines), that I should really be allowing myself a warm up and then actually going for it in my style instead of settling for things that are slightly boring. I mean, Fenrir took me two drunk minutes to draw, and he was great. I just need to loosen up! Which, coincidental...

So, apparently we've got an "animal" theme at the moment. Let's just roll with it, shall we? Today, adding to the diversity of both geography and biology hereby represented, I give you Moritasgus! the Celtic/Gaulish god associated with the Greco-Roman Apollo, often called upon by those in need of healing, and bearer of a name that means either "Great Badger" or "Sea Badger"*. I decided to just go ahead and make him a Sea Badger. (duh.) His lady-friend's name is Damona, and the snake/hand combo is her little shout-out (based on the only remaining bits of a cult-statue of her at a healing spring shrine). I'm also particularly fond of the hand, because I basically want to be Hellboy when I grow up. No one draws like Mignola. Seriously. But sometimes, for the sake of exercise, it's fun to try! Anywhoo, my buddy Kait gets the credit for suggesting this badger-licious dude. :D In other news, I'm getting super jealous of people w...

Today's deity was suggested by Daniel: A fab quote via wikipedia, which was part of the inspiration :  " Further into the poem, the völva foretells that Odin will be consumed by Fenrir at Ragnarök." Rad . This is a nice li'l homage to my term studying Icelandic Sagas (remarkably, most focused on the mortal, and not the godly. But that doesn't mean those ol' vikings didn't like their gods. I, myself, have an unintentional-but-all-around-snuggly love for Odin, but Fenrir is pretty hardcore. Rowling, as many of you may have already concluded, made him famous in these strange, contemporary times of ours). Fortunately, since I've had about 2/3 of a bottle of wine, he was not the hardest to draw. Three cheers for wine and wolves!  Ain't he cute? Grad school apps are all due tomorrow*. All of my stuff is submitted (phew), so... Wish me luck! *except for one, which is due in March

Today, we have Khonvoum , the Mbuti (or Bambuti; an indigenous pygmy group from what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo) god of the hunt, in addition to being their creator. His bow is made from two snakes, which we mortals see as rainbows, and he often appears to humans as a chameleon (which is how I decided to draw him). Again, bad picture quality. Sorry! We're tearing the house apart, trying to find our camera charger. Other new stuff since yesterday: I got some new perfume in the mail this morning from Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab (aka The Only People Who Supply Me With Perfume)! They discontinued my old scent*, so I'm experimenting with something new**. Each one  comes in little 5ml. bottles, and, since they're concentrated oils, they're not gross and alcohol-y. You should check them out! Granted, I'm a little obsessed with all things olfactory, so their website is my version of an artisan chocolate shop. I spend hours drooling over their stuff. If I ...

There are a lot of blogs out there, written by people who do really cool things. It would appear that I'm addicted to DIY and fashion blogs (have you seen 365 Lucky Days , for instance?? Holy cow.) and I have been wondering to myself if there's some kind of project I could come up with that would make me practice art every day (my otter comic would be good for this if I thought my life was more exciting and worth visual documentation, but most of my day occurs...um, in my head? I'm not quite good enough at the auto-bio comic thing just yet, and I also need a bit of diversity in my subject matter. People with webcomics don't just draw their webcomics). The added bonus of something like this: it gives me something new to procrastinate! When I have an art project to work on, I procrastinate by writing. When I have writing projects to work on, I tend to procrastinate by doing art projects. However, I've been a bit dried up on the Drawing Inspirations lately, so my writ...

Listening to this is helping me perk up. I think if there ever was a sign from on high that Daniel and I were meant to be, it's that we both (due to the best childhoods ever, no doubt) know every word on this album. Tea is nice, too. Speaking of the Muppets, the new movie--since I don't think I've mentioned it--was great!! Not enough Gonzo, though. That's my sole complaint. Gonzo is my homeboy. We're existential bros. image from the muppet wiki I guess I should go make some cookies or something. Yes, I will not let this meh -ness defeat me or my cookies-and-pajamas party! UPDATE: We've moved on to the Muppet Treasure Island soundtrack. Suddenly, life is totally beautiful.

There's a funny story in the Czuba household* involving my mother and a particularly charming malapropism (is it still technically a malapropism if she just made up a word, entirely? I'll finish the story and let you decide). My father, in particular moods--e.g. whilst experiencing flattery, great pride in the acts of his children, etc--likes to say " I'm all verklempt! " in his best Old, New York Mother fashion**. So, once, while feeling very emotional, my mom proclaimed "ahh, I'm over-kelmpt!" I hope she doesn't kill me for sharing this story; I really do find it adorable and sweet, even though we poked a bit of fun at her for it, at the time. The point of this little anecdote is that the term "over-kelpmt" has become its own Czuba Family Phrase, complete with alternate definition (instead of being generally overwhelmed with emotion, it tends to have an anxiously-overwrought flavor). Why am I telling this story? It's not to embarr...

One of my best buddies--L.--made the most amazing portrait of me. She uses pastels and genius to make her artworks, and you can even commission her to make one of you (or your loved one, or pet, etc)! This is her website:  http://www.porkwaportraits.com/index.html   There are a butt-ton of things in life that I love, and two of them are (1) L. and (2) supporting artists (writers, painters, embroiderers, cartographers, etc). I am also slightly vain*. When I saw what she made, my brain exploded. This is what it looks like: I don't know if I'm even that good-looking in real life. Man. I love it. I love L. I love everything! Check her out, because her work will make you fill up with optimism and fuzzy feelings--like Ecstasy**, but safe and legal.  *some days more than others. but who isn't , really? be honest--it's okay to love yourself a little bit. in fact, it's healthy. **since I've never done E, this is based on satirical representation and h...

At this point, you are all well aware that I am applying to grad schools. The number of hours spent on research, applications, and crying measures into the millions*--so what happens when I get back a bunch of rejections? Or if, for some reason, moving is suddenly not an option? Things like this happen. I'm primarily concerned about the first of those two, that dreaded "R" word. How does one steel herself against the pain that comes with that word, the sentiment that clearly reads "you are not good enough, we do not want you"? I'm already setting myself up for a lifetime of this feeling, so I can't say I'm particularly thrilled about the idea of schools --which I would be attending in order to improve myself--turning their backs on me as well. There are two things I have done to protect my pride: 1. Gave it my damnedest effort. 2. Made a list.** The first needs no explanation (I should hope). The second probably does, so here goes: I have a pr...

PERSONAL STATEMENTS: THE LEADING CAUSE OF THROWING THINGS SINCE THE CHURCH INVENTED HIGHER EDUCATION AND THE MAN INVENTED APPLYING FOR IT.

If you can't tell which one is me, then we have probably never met. Nice to meet you: I'm the otter with freckles.

We're back stateside, y'all. Have I already said that? I don't remember. This past week (almost a week?) has been a blur of Welcome Back!'s and sad goodbyes and lots of jet-lagged drinking and living room re-organizing and angry throwing of to-do lists. SO MANY THINGS. Daniel is going to blog, some time this week or next, with the last bits of our trip. I have other things to talk about! Like this: 1. I miss already superduper miss Stacy and Jon, who moved back to California this past weekend. Stacy (who writes this blog ) and I have serious lady bromance (is there a better term for that yet? I'm too tired to be clever and think one up--and "homance" just won't cut it), and it makes me shed a million tears to know she's not a few blocks away from me anymore. But this gives me further incentive to travel, and she'll be back for business trips. Thank freaking goodness. This little consolation is the reason I haven't spent every minute cry...

And if, for some insane reason, you do them within five minutes of each other, you will most definitely experience a full-blown existential crisis.

Hey all. Yesterday was a nice break from losing my mind over these applications (why is a personal statement really necessary?)--instead of working, which I probably should have done, I made a Halloween costume. Speaking of: Happy All Saints! And Happy Day-Before-Dia-de-los-Muertos! This is my favorite three-day stretch in the calendar, bar none. Go ahead, make assumptions about my character (you're probably right). Anyway, back to my story: I made a peacock costume using (a) clothes that are part of my limited, travel wardrobe, (b) tape, and (c) post-its that I found in the flat. The whole thing cost me 99 pence (the cost of tape from the Grog Shop across the street). Though it was no Wolverine--I totally outdid myself last year--it ended up being preeeeetty awesome. Sure, I was the only person dressed up at Daniel's office party, but whatever. I'm comfortable with this. So here's how you make The Cheapest Costume Ever (Peacock used for this example): First, assess...

There are a few things that have been taking up a lot of my brain-space lately; not the least of which are grad school applications but let's ignore that one, because it's about incessant in its pestering as the fly that seems to have teleported into your kitchen and keeps head-butting the closed window. Let's list, since I do love a good list, and then expound upon those that require expounding afterwards. - Busy Monsters , the debut novel by William Giraldi -short story revision -the Occupy movement -what makes a person "brave"? 1. To start with, we have the novel I finished reading last week (I know, I'm slow/preoccupied): Busy Monsters . I basically refuse to give a plot summary (I'd bung it up), but know that it's great. Giraldi has written a novel that made me laugh aloud at LEAST every other page without once sacrificing character, plot, or overall complexity in general. The intelligence of the work is subtle and astounding; every time yo...

(or, Another Daniel Guest-Blog) Oxford! We've been here for 1 week, today. Almost exactly, actually-- I'm writing this at 5:40, and we got in at 6:40 last Sunday, so! An hour less than a week in Oxford. For me, this week has been very busy, in a good way. The morning after we arrived, I walked down to the Future of Humanity Institute's office fairly early, arriving at about 9. Turns out that's too early to start saving the world, and most FHI people didn't show up until later (a few of them work late into the night most nights). That was fine, though; the walk was good, and it was nice to get acquainted with the office before things got too hectic. I sit at a desk in the common area of the office. Behind me is the meeting and break area, which has a table, chairs, couches, and the all-important whiteboard. The great perks of sitting in this area are that 1) I see everyone semi-regularly when they emerge from writing to get tea or food, and 2) I can eavesdrop a...

Ok. Want to see ALL OF THE PHOTOS thusfar? http://www.dropbox.com/gallery/43622799/1/EdinburghOxford?h=b051c4 This here should provide you with The Full Vicarious Edinburgh Experience, and includes at least five pictures of Catherine's cat. I realize that we fail in The Capturing of Oxford On Film (or...pixels?), but since the weekend is right before us, that will be changing! I think this link should still be good as we add more pictures, so check it again on Monday for some new ones (there will probably--hopefully--be a nice new blog post, too, so I'll be sure to remind you). As for the events of today, I bought a headband half-price at Topshop, which was peachy, and then two barrettes from a little boutique in Jericho. I also had a pint ( with lunch! ) at a place called, fantastically, Jude the Obscure. Sadly, JtO was a little bit weird with the customer service. I realize bartenders have to be on the lookout for riffraff and can't always be in the best mood, but...

My computer tells me that it's Wednesday. That hardly seems possible. Monday and Tuesday each lasted about an entire year. Last night, I thought it was Thursday night. Yep. Good times. We don't have any pictures yet--except for one of a snail we found in our flat (he was very cute)--so I will just tell you about the past few days, and you can expect pictures of the city this weekend.* Monday was a day of adjustment. Daniel was out at dinner meeting until fairly late, so I did the following things: I walked around the neighborhood, found a canal, left the canal quickly (I think the stretch of it near us is the sketchy part of town), went to two little neighborhood markets, got all caught up on Occupy Wall Street news, and must have done some other stuff I don't remember. Yesterday, I had tea in a cafe because our power was out (and then I read there for two hours), listened to last week's "Wait, Wait" + a few other podcasts, and drew some pictures I ended ...

The first leg of our trip is officially done. Yesterday was our final big day of touristing through Edinburgh's city center (we'll have a few more days up there at the end of our trip before we fly back, but we wanted to see most of the big stuff during this first go-around) and today we spent almost seven hours riding/nearly-missing/catching trains. We should have had twenty minutes to make our final connection in Sheffield, but our previous train left eight minutes late. Daniel wins 10 points for putting up with my panic. Fortunately, all of that platform navigating is (for the next few weeks, at least) done, and we are settling in to our flat in Oxford, which is where we will be hangin' out for the next few weeks. But let's jump back to yesterday for some re-capping and a few pictures: First, we walked to Leith and checked out an awesome used book store called McNaughton's*. When I say "used book store", I don't mean by West Coast standards. Ins...