Yeah, here I am again; seems my writing has frittered down to once a month again... sorry about that. I don't want you to think I've abandoned you, I've been caught up in learning processes. Did you ever have those times when you are taking on something new; I'm not talking shopping here... this isn't about the latest style of shoes, or a 'killer' new sound system... I'm talking about your own personal education.
I'm talking about what I try to do during those times between work and life, when work is just that, work; and life has fallen into a routine. It may be a small space of time, early in the morning, late at night, actually for me, it becomes whenever I have to wait for someone or some thing to occur (TV, email, and phones are not always a good option); where I try to squeeze in learning how to do some skill or information. Now, normally, with such a little bit of time, I don't do anything too messy or that gets in the way of work or life - you can't always let stuff go until tomorrow; and the commitment to it has to be on my terms. I try to do something that can be easily put aside, and believe me, if it's something you have any kind of passion for, that ain't easy.
So... when all else for the day is done... well, yes, I've gone and done it. I'm on the computer, so there's no clean up. Actually, I did it once before, but my information was limited, along with my time, at the time. I'm in the midst of doing a genealogy search for my Mom and Dad, this time, I logged onto Ancestry.com. I've traced some of the Maxwell and Steigerwald Clans to The Old World. But that's not the half of it. I'm doing this for my parents; they want to know the 'when and whys' of ancestors, something I may or may not be able to deliver. I am sure that the search for answers could be a life-long endeavor... as for me, I may have to put it aside at some point. There are other venues to search for the answers my parents wonder about, besides Ancestry.com. For me, one word: Time. In the meantime, I have found out some surprising things; like, part of my Mom's side of the family have seen themselves as wholly and totally German, yet, it seems my Mom's great-grandmother's maiden name was Conery or Connerly.... I'm still looking for the correct spelling and whether she was a Scot or Irish. That blows that theory. "We" are the World... at least a good deal of Northwestern Europe.
Now, most of the art I render, can't be really be shown until the client has his/her debut with it. When it's public, with most of it, I can JPEG away - online or wherever. There is some artwork that I show reluctantly, though I have shown it in my blog; "A Retro Artist in a Digital Age", as I think that it's good to live the journey, to show 'the warts and all'. There is some disagreement on this, in some camps; but I think, in this 'faux world' we live in, that being genuine has it's merit.
The art I'm talking about is the stuff I do on my digital tablet. I am by no means a 'digital wizard'. I come by whatever I have learned honestly, with a lot of failure, frustration and finally, some enlightenment. That said, I still don't consider myself a 'digital wizard'. On the right I show you some 'unfinished business'; a small section of an illustration I've been working on with my tablet. It still has a way to go, but as I find the time, I apply whatever I have learned - about myself and learned skills - to the art. When it's finished I'll post it.
I guess what I'm saying is, that's what life is about, there is always another lesson and as a result, more 'unfinished business'. Speaking of 'business', I'd better get back to mine!
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