This thingy was sent to me by jay88.
Fill it in yourself and feel the love,

1) How old do you wish you were?
18, the first year of uni was such a bludge, had great holidays..and by that stage you can drive and have fun.

2)If you were an animal what would you be?
A peregrine falcon.
Being able to fly would be sweet, and as an animal, you have to be up the top of the food chain. Those birds go really really fast, and they look so cute!

3) What do you do when vending machines steal your money?
stare at it with anger that it took my last few coins, see if there is an attendant around, and then walk off simmering.

4) Do you consider yourself kind?
Somewhat.

5) If you HAD to get a tattoo, where would it be?
Bicep...i would have to get one of those first.

6) If you could be fluent in any language, what would it be?
Mandarin, Japanese and Ancient Greek

7) Do you know your neighbours?
Yeah, they are cool, one is an artist and her husband works at sacchi sacchi, the others are having a deck built. They are really nice.

8) What is one place in the world you would like to live in?
Somewhere with trees, preferably closeish to the city.

9) Who was the last person you kissed?
Mum

10) Would you move for the person you loved?
Why not.

11) Are you touchy feely?
Dunno, don't think so..

12) Do you believe that opposites attract?
Everyone is different, its just amazing that 2 selfish people can live together fullstop.

13) Dream job?
Illustrator/Environment painter who works on Christian Kids books and other stuff. Building Gods Kingdom.

14) Favourite channel(s)?
SBS (top gear) and 7 (heroes)

15) Favourite place to go on weekends?
Out...and church.

16) Showers or Baths?
Showers are quicker.

17) Do you paint your nails?
No.

18) Do you trust people easily?
Yes.

19) Do you want kids?
Yes, very much so. 2-3, they fit in a car that way, but who knows what God has planned.

20) Do you keep a handwritten journal?
I have an artists diary. thats mostly pics and doodles though. And i have a sermon book where i write down points from talks.

21) Where would you rather be right now?
In the sun, doing something fun with friends. Mountain bike riding...or chatting/Bonsaing ... or drawing/painting plein air.

22) Are you impatient?
Yeah a little, i would probably say that i was more lazy than impatient though.

23) Have you been burned by love?
Argh...alas, who has not?

24) What's your main ring tone on your mobile?
When its not on silent, By the Way by the chillies...old school i know..but so is my phone. Coloured screens and cameras? who needs it.

25) Whose bed did you sleep in last night?
Mine, as always, its comfy.

I'm passing on what I've read from Etoli in her journal, and somewhere else too.

Art, we do it and love it...but then theres moochers, theres only so much "exposure" before we can no longer support ourselves. Artists rock and deserve to be able to live ^_^ I made this a journal so i could keep reminding myself and so that it gets passed on too.


"Every day, there are more and more Craigs List posts seeking “artists” for everything from auto graphics to comic books to corporate logo designs. More people are finding themselves in need of some form of illustrative service.

But what they’re NOT doing, unfortunately, is realizing how rare someone with these particular talents can be.

To those who are “seeking artists”, let me ask you; How many people do you know, personally, with the talent and skill to perform the services you need? A dozen? Five? One? …none?

More than likely, you don’t know any. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be posting on craigslist to find them.

And this is not really a surprise.

In this country, there are almost twice as many neurosurgeons as there are professional illustrators. There are eleven times as many certified mechanics. There are SEVENTY times as many people in the IT field.

So, given that they are less rare, and therefore less in demand, would it make sense to ask your mechanic to work on your car for free? Would you look him in the eye, with a straight face, and tell him that his compensation would be the ability to have his work shown to others as you drive down the street?

Would you offer a neurosurgeon the “opportunity” to add your name to his resume as payment for removing that pesky tumor? (Maybe you could offer him “a few bucks” for “materials”. What a deal!)

Would you be able to seriously even CONSIDER offering your web hosting service the chance to have people see their work, by viewing your website, as their payment for hosting you?

If you answered “yes” to ANY of the above, you’re obviously insane. If you answered “no”, then kudos to you for living in the real world.

But then tell me… why would you think it is okay to live out the same, delusional, ridiculous fantasy when seeking someone whose abilities are even less in supply than these folks?

Graphic artists, illustrators, painters, etc., are skilled tradesmen. As such, to consider them as, or deal with them as, anything less than professionals fully deserving of your respect is both insulting and a bad reflection on you as a sane, reasonable person. In short, it makes you look like a twit.

A few things you need to know;

1. It is not a “great opportunity” for an artist to have his work seen on your car/’zine/website/bedroom wall, etc. It IS a “great opportunity” for YOU to have their work there.

2. It is not clever to seek a “student” or “beginner” in an attempt to get work for free. It’s ignorant and insulting. They may be “students”, but that does not mean they don’t deserve to be paid for their hard work. You were a “student” once, too. Would you have taken that job at McDonalds with no pay, because you were learning essential job skills for the real world? Yes, your proposition it JUST as stupid.

3. The chance to have their name on something that is going to be seen by other people, whether it’s one or one million, is NOT a valid enticement. Neither is the right to add that work to their “portfolio”. They get to do those things ANYWAY, after being paid as they should. It’s not compensation. It’s their right, and it’s a given.

4. Stop thinking that you’re giving them some great chance to work. Once they skip over your silly ad, as they should, the next ad is usually for someone who lives in the real world, and as such, will pay them. There are far more jobs needing these skills than there are people who possess these skills.

5. Students DO need “experience”. But they do NOT need to get it by giving their work away. In fact, this does not even offer them the experience they need. Anyone who will not/can not pay them is obviously the type of person or business they should be ashamed to have on their resume anyway. Do you think professional contractors list the “experience” they got while nailing down a loose step at their grandmother’s house when they were seventeen?

If you your company or gig was worth listing as desired experience, it would be able to pay for the services it received. The only experience they will get doing free work for you is a lesson learned in what kinds of scrubs they should not lower themselves to deal with.

6. (This one is FOR the artists out there, please pay attention.) Some will ask you to “submit work for consideration”. They may even be posing as some sort of “contest”. These are almost always scams. They will take the work submitted by many artists seeking to win the “contest”, or be “chosen” for the gig, and find what they like most. They will then usually have someone who works for them, or someone who works incredibly cheap because they have no originality or talent of their own, reproduce that same work, or even just make slight modifications to it, and claim it as their own. You will NOT be paid, you will NOT win the contest. The only people who win, here, are the underhanded folks who run these ads. This is speculative, or “spec”, work. It’s risky at best, and a complete scam at worst. I urge you to avoid it, completely. For more information on this subject, please visit [link].

So to artists/designers/illustrators looking for work, do everyone a favor, ESPECIALLY yourselves, and avoid people who do not intend to pay you. Whether they are “spec” gigs, or just some guy who wants a free mural on his living room walls. They need you. You do NOT need them. Say NO to free art.

And for those who are looking for someone to do work for free…please wake up and join the real world. The only thing you’re accomplishing is to insult those with the skills you need. Get a clue.

If you agree with the above important information, please pass it along. The more people know, the faster we can correct this problem."