Hit the 100-page mark on Salman Rushdie's THE SATANIC VERSES, my threshold for testing my appetite for any given book. It still feels like a drop in THE SATANIC VERSES' hellish waters, because it's not even a quarter of the way through and I'm not entirely sure what it's even about yet. Rushdie writes beautifully. It's all very poetic, but I haven't the slightest clue what the hell is going on most of the time. When I do have a grasp on the narrative, it is in fact captivating, but those pages are far and few between.
Just put the child down and my body is aching and my brain is dead and I cannot for the life of me see myself spending my extremely limited leisure time carrying on with THE SATANIC VERSES. Do I feel guilty for putting it aside? Not right now. Maybe tomorrow.
Need a palette cleanser of sorts, something easy that I know I'll enjoy. It's been years since I've read Elmore Leonard, who's always an easy bet for me. I think I'll read TOUCH, a battered old paperback of which I picked up in Denver for three bucks some years ago and have yet to crack open. Pages literally falling out, this may be the last time this particular copy will ever be read by anyone.
#reads
“Marijuana smoking by white youth represented a symbolic threat to normative suburban values and capitalist ideologies” — Mathew D. Lassiter on America's war on drugs.
The U.S. military's Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) expresses concern over China's expanding presence in Antigua and in the Caribbean region.
House passes contentious Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan aid package — “China, Russia, Iran and North Korea are working together in a new axis of evil to harm our alliances and undermine our national security,” House Armed Services Chairman Mike Rogers, R-Ala., said on the floor ahead of the vote.
Some light reading after failing to put the little one down for nap time. Thought for sure soccer practice would zonk him out. Could use a little shuteye myself tbh.
#journal
PROJECT OLDBOOK trudging along, around the midway point now. Really need to move faster though.
Very early on in the project, the idea of something AI-based was suggested. But no, I ended up going in the absolute polar opposite direction with the most tactile and labor intensive thing imaginable for some reason.
Masochistic tendencies probably.
#work
Steven Heller isn't wrong in calling me an “Artist Who Designs (and Vice Versa)” in this short interview over at his blog The Daily Heller (hosted by Print Mag).
Quite an honor to be featured on Steven's blog. I remember first encountering his book, Design Literacy, at the tender age of 19 some decades ago. Very formative reading for me and one that I still recommend to young designers just starting out.
#journal #coverage
Accounting today, which I am behind on and will certainly suck my soul dry by day's end.
Also on the docket:
– Fulfilling Mythomatic orders.
– Meal prep (because not enough time over the weekend).
– Excercise
And that's probably already one thing too many to fit into a single workday.
#journal
Love me a good drag show.
The thing about drag shows is that they could either be a sign of a closed society (where women performing in public is considered taboo) or an open one (where men needn't abide by heteronormative restrictions). I get the sense that in Houston, it's actually a little bit of both.
#journal
We all know about Diego Riviera the great muralist, but seldom do we hear about Diego Riviera the illustrator.
Picked this up in Mexico some time ago and I am positively obsessed. I'm not entirely sure why, but there's a quality to Riviera's lineart that I find wholly attractive.
#art #books
Sometimes you just gotta bust out that glue stick.
Nothing about how I approach comix is conventional, and it's going to get weirder and weirder.
Inboxes zero. Glorious day.
#work #comix #TSG
Apparently, there are websites you can't access from Texas anymore.
I remember how the use of VPNs became quite wise in Egypt towards the tail end of the half-revolution, certainly becoming a thing amongst more tech-saavy folk. Never would I have expected it to become a necessity after settling in America, but here we are.
The downfall of western civilization aside, work on TSG coming along today. Detailed fucker of a page though.
#journal #ResistDystopia
Awoke last night to the sound of thunder and discovered a mad storm brewing, lightning from every direction blasted bursts of light into the apartment. Most of the morning was gray, the city enveloped in thick clouds. Then suddenly by day's end, the blue behind the clouds revealed itself and the sun shone bright. It would've been sweltering hot had it not been for the windy tail end of the storm playfully lingering about.
Not much of an art-making day, but a good day nonetheless. Newsletter drafted and scheduled for late Friday night central time. Mythomatic orders dropped off at post office, and groceries picked up. Many emails responded to, but still going through the rest. 51 between inboxes, but many are notifications, and a few are bills.
Tomorrow should be a good TSG day, and Friday can be blocked off for Project Oldbook.
#journal