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| Matticus, Cinibuns, GNat, Joshums and Sadie Sadie the crazy cat lady |
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| Cindy, Myself, Josh, and Sadie |
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Surprise Party for Natalie
Before leaving for the states I made a few 'appointments' to meet with some people that I knew would have a crazy schedule. Matt said that he wanted some 'Nat time' and what with his two jobs and girlfriend I thought nothing of a planned dinner until I arrived to discover balloons and some of my favorite peeps to hang out with in Birmingham. <3
Monday, December 27, 2010
Breakfast of Champions - Oh how I missed you
Food in New Zealand is extreemly healthy and has so much less corn than anything we have in the states. They don't have grits, biscuits are cookies, and bacon is a 4 inch slab of something. Only eggs are similar. So good to eat southern cooking again
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Impromptu Party
A wonderfully impromptu party (at least for me) ensued at a mexican restaurant halfway between Atlanta and Wilsonville after my Aunt and Uncle were kind enough to surprise me at the airport. It was nice after 31 hours to see a friendly face and get my first real hugs in about 5 months. Mexican food tasted as good as I remembered it the only down side was that since it was Sunday there was no margaritas. For the best I think as I would have probably immediately passed out from the combination of exhaustion and tequila.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Itinerary
Several people have asked so I think I'll post this one public.
All flights are operated by Quantas
Leave: Dec 26
9:45amNZT - 10:50NZT -- Palmerston North to Auckland -- Air New Zealand NZ8318
3:10pmNZT - 6:35am PST - Auckland to LA -- Quantas 0025
9am PST - 2:10pm CST - LA to Dallas -- American Airlines 3021
3:45 CST - 6:50 EST - Dallas to Atlanta -- AA 4716
Depart: Jan 20 - 22
11:45am EST - 1:15pm CST--Atlanta (ATL) to Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) -- American Airlines flight 4722
2:15pm CST - 3:45pm PST -- Dallas (DFW) to Los Angeles (LAX) -- AA flight 3032
9:30pm PST - 5:15am -- Los Angles (LAX) to Nadi, Fj (NAN) -- Air Pacific 3838
10am - 1pm NZT -- Fj (NAN) to Auckland (AKL) -- AirPacific 3842
2:25pm - 3:30pm -- Auckland to Palmerston North -- Air New Zealand NZ8337
All flights are operated by Quantas
Leave: Dec 26
9:45amNZT - 10:50NZT -- Palmerston North to Auckland -- Air New Zealand NZ8318
3:10pmNZT - 6:35am PST - Auckland to LA -- Quantas 0025
9am PST - 2:10pm CST - LA to Dallas -- American Airlines 3021
3:45 CST - 6:50 EST - Dallas to Atlanta -- AA 4716
Depart: Jan 20 - 22
11:45am EST - 1:15pm CST--Atlanta (ATL) to Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) -- American Airlines flight 4722
2:15pm CST - 3:45pm PST -- Dallas (DFW) to Los Angeles (LAX) -- AA flight 3032
9:30pm PST - 5:15am -- Los Angles (LAX) to Nadi, Fj (NAN) -- Air Pacific 3838
10am - 1pm NZT -- Fj (NAN) to Auckland (AKL) -- AirPacific 3842
2:25pm - 3:30pm -- Auckland to Palmerston North -- Air New Zealand NZ8337
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Loudhailer Christmas Tree
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| Day one of tree: we couldn't find lights or ornaments so we decorated with ribbons, paper clips, storm troopers, dexter action figures, and toys |
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| best cookies ever!! |
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| last day! |
Weta Workshop
Makers of Xena , Hercules, Lord of the Rings and middle earth in general, District 9, King Kong, Narnia, Avatar, I Robot, and soon to be the Hobbit!
The Mecca of geekdom!
The Mecca of geekdom!
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| Weta workshop <3 |
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| Narnian Sheild |
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| reepicheep the mouse |
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| Gandolf plush! |
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| District 9 |
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| Sauron |
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| Lurg, life size |
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| gollum/smeagol |
Monday, December 13, 2010
Graphic Design
Recently I had a friend send me an email. Thought I would share:
Hey Natalie, I am thinking of getting a second degree in graphic design. Can I ask how you got involved in that at UAB and what are the introductory courses like?
ok at uab i think they are pushing graphic design to be a bfa only major. what this means is you are required 128 hours studio plus a art history minor. you will have portfolio reviews every semester and a gallery exhibition upon graduation. you must have a b or better in every studio class or you will have to retake it.
classes:
you'll have classes on your computer software as well as design. design studios will own you life. for every hour you spend in class (3hours) you spend 5-9 outside of class. seriously. if you don't you will fail. if there are 20 people in a class, about 2-3 will get a's 7-10 bs, and the rest are failing. you cannot pass a studio in bfa with a c average. you will learn typography, print layout, editorial layout, packaging design, interactive space, wayfinding, some flash and web design,ect. it's a very well rounded program. we are lucky at uab to have a great/fantastic teacher
cost:
you will have to buy a few books at the beginning but they can be used all 4-5 years. big expense is paper and supplies. i averaged 150$ per month on projects. during busy times like reviews and end of year projects i would spend upwards of $250. If you have a macbook with CS3 or better that's awesome. if not that'll cost you around $7000 or download the software illegally. another student can prob give you a copy. you can also use the computers in the lab but you risk losing your work a lot and you can only work certain hours.
hours: you will never have a weekend again. i worked thru school so that i would graduate with experience. i would be up at 6 for class at 7. lunch was eaten at work followed by night classes till 9pm. all that time in-between is classes and work on campus. homework until midnight. repeat. weekends i would take sat off and work all day sunday but i would buy project supplies sat.
stress: classes are extremely competitive. one girl got shingles on her face. another had a nervous breakdown. some people developed eye twitches. I didn't have a period for 10 months and would gain and loose 10 pounds in a month over stress.
Jobs: there are no graphic design jobs ava in birmingham. period. not the good ones. 20 people graduated with me. i was in the top 4. 2 of all 20 have full time design jobs. 2 have internships. the others still have restaurant jobs or no jobs. the two of us with jobs moved. one works for her dad doing photography and design. i moved to new zealand. problem is a lot of people say 'i want to design' and do horrible design at a low price and kill the market. that's kind of ok. gets rid of horrible clients. but also a lot of people with degrees came out the past few years. that plus the recession means that design studios can hire people with more experience for less money. if you don't graduate with a amazing portfolio and experience your degree is worth less than the paper it's printed on.
people: are kick ass awesome.
if you still want to do it rock on. but you had better love it and have thick skin. they will rip you to shreds and laugh. if you suck it up and learn you will get respect and be better for it. if not you'll quit like all the other newbies.
best o luck
Hey Natalie, I am thinking of getting a second degree in graphic design. Can I ask how you got involved in that at UAB and what are the introductory courses like?
ok at uab i think they are pushing graphic design to be a bfa only major. what this means is you are required 128 hours studio plus a art history minor. you will have portfolio reviews every semester and a gallery exhibition upon graduation. you must have a b or better in every studio class or you will have to retake it.
classes:
you'll have classes on your computer software as well as design. design studios will own you life. for every hour you spend in class (3hours) you spend 5-9 outside of class. seriously. if you don't you will fail. if there are 20 people in a class, about 2-3 will get a's 7-10 bs, and the rest are failing. you cannot pass a studio in bfa with a c average. you will learn typography, print layout, editorial layout, packaging design, interactive space, wayfinding, some flash and web design,ect. it's a very well rounded program. we are lucky at uab to have a great/fantastic teacher
cost:
you will have to buy a few books at the beginning but they can be used all 4-5 years. big expense is paper and supplies. i averaged 150$ per month on projects. during busy times like reviews and end of year projects i would spend upwards of $250. If you have a macbook with CS3 or better that's awesome. if not that'll cost you around $7000 or download the software illegally. another student can prob give you a copy. you can also use the computers in the lab but you risk losing your work a lot and you can only work certain hours.
hours: you will never have a weekend again. i worked thru school so that i would graduate with experience. i would be up at 6 for class at 7. lunch was eaten at work followed by night classes till 9pm. all that time in-between is classes and work on campus. homework until midnight. repeat. weekends i would take sat off and work all day sunday but i would buy project supplies sat.
stress: classes are extremely competitive. one girl got shingles on her face. another had a nervous breakdown. some people developed eye twitches. I didn't have a period for 10 months and would gain and loose 10 pounds in a month over stress.
Jobs: there are no graphic design jobs ava in birmingham. period. not the good ones. 20 people graduated with me. i was in the top 4. 2 of all 20 have full time design jobs. 2 have internships. the others still have restaurant jobs or no jobs. the two of us with jobs moved. one works for her dad doing photography and design. i moved to new zealand. problem is a lot of people say 'i want to design' and do horrible design at a low price and kill the market. that's kind of ok. gets rid of horrible clients. but also a lot of people with degrees came out the past few years. that plus the recession means that design studios can hire people with more experience for less money. if you don't graduate with a amazing portfolio and experience your degree is worth less than the paper it's printed on.
people: are kick ass awesome.
if you still want to do it rock on. but you had better love it and have thick skin. they will rip you to shreds and laugh. if you suck it up and learn you will get respect and be better for it. if not you'll quit like all the other newbies.
best o luck
Friday, December 10, 2010
Brighten my day
today i found a flower on the sign post where the button is to cross the street. i thought wow, how awesome for someone to leave it there for me to see. as i reached to take it i realized that if i did, no one else would see it today so I left it and took only a picture so that it could be shared with all my friends and many strangers. Thank you random stranger who brightened my day
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Afternoon in the Park
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| This is the view I have enjoying a perfect day in the park eating pita bread |
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| This is the one duck I tossed pita bread to |
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| These ducks then magically appeared and called their friends |
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| Then this army of cheeky ducks tried to take my pita |
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| cheeky ducks |
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
View from the new apartment
Overall I like my new apartment. I have less internet but a bigger bedroom. I have more roommates but a 5 min walk to work. It's a give and take. Here are some pictures of my view...
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