this week i had my mid-term review for drawing class. stressful... especially setting everything up once i got home from the band of horses concert on sunday night. but it was so rewarding, hearing critiques from my classmates and realizing just HOW FAR i have come. :)

[photos from my drawing review and another poster for my roommate's band].

things and things...

i've been keeping myself busy with school, friends, and art. my most recent endeavor was to make a poster for my roommate's band's show at our school's coffee house:

lately i am realizing just how passionate i am about the combination of visual art and literature. there is little that holds more wonder for me than the written word and works on paper. i'm so excited to follow this passion and see where it leads me.

sources of inspiration these days:

- the changing fall weather and all things associated with it (pumpkins, browns, yellows, oranges, coffee, scarves, boots, and warm tights, halloween, warm cider, and all things cozy and natural)

- the decemberists, always. new margot. alexi murdoch.

- getting to know people in the anderson community and looking for ways to make a difference

- sneakily sending anonymous postcards :)

- edward gorey.

- kim smith's blog

- having meaningful conversations with near strangers

- the exquisite book.

what is inspiring you?

art-wise i have been doing a lot of sketching and little side projects... this is a postcard i made for the rsvp of courtney and austin's wedding. :)
life-wise i have been going on lots of adventures with my friends from anderson. i'm so excited for the coming year because i know it's going to be filled with so much life, vigor, curiosity, and love.

summertime and the living is easy

here is the (almost) finished wedding invitation!

it was so much fun to make. :)
so... summer has turned out to be far less dreadful than i had expected. i've made some visits to anderson and been visited by my friends from there, as well as spending time with my old friends from high school.
creatively, this summer needs to get revved up a little more but it's been somewhat productive. i've been doing some sketching, but this wedding invitation has been the biggest project thus far. last week, my roommate kirsten surprised me with a visit and we made music together. :) when i hang out with her, it seems like my creative juices flow a little better. maybe because i'm secretly a little jealous of what an amazing writer and musician she is. either way, we had a lot of fun.
some summer goals i would like to accomplish:
-make some headway on my summer reading. right now i'm in the middle of wuthering heights and the grapes of wrath.
-go exploring.
-make yummy food with fresh vegetables from the garden and give this vegetarian thing another shot.
-write in my journal more often. and spend time talking to God, asking big questions and staying curious.

i leave for tanzania in less than a week! i'm excited, nervous, and scared. but so happy to be going back to africa. hopefully i will do some more blogging as the summer goes on. :)
there are so many incredible people who love me. i wish i could somehow express to them how wonderful they have made my life and how much they have taught me.
life is strange and beautiful.

tonight i met cyrus, kirsten, and josh at the nile. at one moment, i looked up at cyrus as he took a long drag from his cigarette. his eyes widened and it was as if he was trying to inhale life itself, all wisdom and experience and energy, from that cig.