Forgot to put up my Easter Painting!

TODAYS DATE/STAR DATE UNKNOWN?

Is facebook giving me an alternate consciousness -one far less competent or independent? why am i thinking/doing anything in terms of audience? 

Luckily my blogs don't have that kind of delusional grandeur. I know nobody looks at the blogs, based on statistical data I can look at. Only very random, mostly failed google searches. It's very freeing....not that I don't still have an inner monologue that speaks as if acting out a part, I do...but there's something uniquely symbolic in my life to the act of performing for an empty theatre. That truth started for me when I realized that I wasn't being watched all the time, by a god, by the government (knock knock...the pun reverses the purposeful result), or by anyone as long as I was able to be alone. 

It's realizing you're alone, while still entertaining the feeling that there's someone watching. And there is, the (false) Self. 

I do not like the blogs as my form of keeping a journal or diary. I don't know why I've taken to this modality. The obvious answer is course, ease and speed and multi-media aspect of it....and I like glowing pixels. But I miss the books I once poured into. Even if I rarely finished one page for page. The feeling of paper  and ink and paint, and the weight of a book. 

Afterthought: It's the moments in life where you loose this sense of voyeurism of the ego -that it's looking back at itself- where you truly live. Emptiness, sunyata, what have you...it's the void -the singularity that observes and does not observe itself, that is the true Self, peeled of the conscious layers until left naked and unquestioning. No mirror, no projection. Just subject. 

VALID QUESTION

iGod

 Wood, nail, iPod, headphones. 5.5'' x 11.5''

Potentially too controversial for prospective employers, this new piece will have to land here for now. Which is goofy but true. It's really more of a commentary on our societies collective newfound habit of worshiping technology -which I call "iDolotry"- than anything to do with Christianity. (Crucifixion was a form punishment used by several major civilizations before the Roman Empire, and after.) Every time I see the masses with their heads down and hands clasped around their little phones and iPods or whatever, completely oblivious and their minds somewhere else literally high in the sky, it looks like praying to me. Brings a whole new perspective on "Cloud" technology and divine (AKA wireless) inspiration. The satellites are our angels beaming down at us from heaven, protecting us from not knowing who's posted to our Facebook...

A note about the logo: One friend told me this could be a meme (I had to look it up and still didn't get it. So another friend clarified, and told me to put a watermark on it. I later got paranoid and agreed, but I think it makes it look silly/poppy. I tried my hardest to make it look like the QAD was designed for it.

UPDATE:

Just happened upon this in a stack of papers, must be Lara's. But check the logo and compare it to the one I developed. Pretty odd coincidence...

"HAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaa"

ALL FIRED UP, OR AT LEAST 99% FIRED UP....?

I knew we lived in a somewhat angry neighborhood, but now it seems it is also politically charged. Or at least it would seem that way. This bank arson attempt leaves me perplexed. Was it fueled (yes pun) by the Occupy movement?? Or did the bomber receive extemporaneous surcharges on all of his savings account like I did? I would like to sit down and have tea with this person, ask him/her some questions.

Firebomb Defused at Othello Bank, Streets Reopened

JANUARY 6, 2012

in 911,BUSINESS,TRANSPORTATION

KOMO (RVP News partner)
OTHELLO – Streets have reopened and light rail service has resumed near Martin Luther King Jr. Way and South Othello Street after police defused an incendiary device at a bank near there.

The device was spotted Friday at about 6:35 a.m. by a customer at a Chase Bank branch in the 7100 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Way South.

The customer, Ericson Gonzales, told KOMO News that he and his wife went to use a cash machine at the bank and spotted a box with two bottles taped together with wires in the foyer of the bank, under an ATM.

Gonzales said the device looked dangerous.

“I’m scared for my wife’s safety,” he said.

Gonzales said he flagged down police, who went to the scene and immediately closed streets and shut down light rail service in the area. People were evacuated and police tape was placed around the area.

A bomb squad determined that the device appeared to be intended to set a fire at the bank, but it failed to ignite. Officers defused the device and rendered it harmless, said Seattle police spokesman Sgt. Sean Whitcomb.

Traffic was re-routed around the area and the Othello light rail station was closed for about three hours while the bomb squad investigated. Streets were reopened and light rail service resumed after the bomb was defused.

Whitcomb says the investigation into the incident is active and ongoing. Anyone with information is urged to the Seattle police Arson Bomb Squad Office at (206) 684-8980.

4Q

Does anyone make better custom bikes (or lip tricks) than Max Schaaf??

GET WELL SOON MR. JACKSON

If anyone has questions about F.I.C. (Feline Idiopathic Cystitis), feel free to consult me. Vet's can be suspiciously uninformative. Their pet health care system mirrors our own. For example, I had to pay $30 for subcutaneous fluids (i.e. 125 cc's of sterile saline, i.e. salt water.)  My Pops ran into the exact same type of what he called "extortion" from the elder care center when his folks were on their way out, for i.v. drip bags (1 Liter of saline), costing $45. He inquired the hospital about how much they buy theirs wholesale: 1 dollar, twenty five cents.

GABBA GABBA HEY, GET OFF MY CLOUD!

Halloween weekend show at the Blue Moon Tavern. Odd to think it was an old stomping ground for Kerouac. Now it's just another college pub. Rawmones crushed it that night.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN, OR ELSE!

WE MISS YOU, MOLLY

My Old Man's from Texas. I'm from Louisiana. Southern blood bonds us, somehow r'nuther. There's a certain humor, a genetic attitude in our DNA. Ivins shared that, or crowned it

Molly fought the good fight, with a wip-like wit and wonderfully foul mouth. They don't seem to make journalists like her these days.

The Fun's in the Fight
By Molly Ivins

Austin, Texas--

I've been talkin' to a bunch of the fun-lovin' freedom-fighters of Texas lately, and we all agree that there's one thing we need to pass on to all of y'all from the few of us before I take a leave from these pages. (I'm takin' a leave of absence on account of I have to write a book, and time has become both scant and precious.) The thing is this: You got to have fun while you're fightin' for freedom, 'cause you don't always win.

Havin' fun while freedom fightin' must be one of those lunatic Texas traits we get from the water--which is known to have lithium in it-- because it goes all the way back to Sam Houston, surely the most lovable, the most human, and the funniest of all the Great Men this country has ever produced. While Sam was president of the Republic of Texas, he was visited by a French ambassador.

This Frog was quite the wonder of frontier Austin; he minced along the wooden sidewalks wearing a silk suit with lace at the collar and cuffs, with a gilt epee, no less, slung along his side. Though Sam had a perfectly good fine house, he elected to receive the Frenchman in a log hut with a mud floor. By choice a sometime Indian, Sam wore only fringed leggings and a blanket around his big ol' hairy chest.
While the French ambassador held forth grandiloquently, Houston, who was himself a magnificent orator, replied only with an occasional, "Ugh."

Our Texas freedom-fighters have been prone to misbehavior ever since. A recent Ku Klux Klan rally in Austin produced an eccentric counter- demonstration. When the fifty Klansmen appeared (they were bused in from Waco) in front of the state capitol, they were greeted by five thousand locals who had turned out for a "Moon the Klan" rally. Citizens dropped trou both singly and in groups, occasionally producing a splendid wave effect. It was a swell do.

But I reckon the man who taught most of us how to have fun while fightin' for freedom was John Henry Faulk, who went and died on us a few years back. Despite gettin' blacklisted during the McCarthy Era and having a number of other misadventures during his life, Johnny never lost his sense of mischief, and, to the end of his days, he could be counted on to hatch some elaborate practical joke to bedevil whichever do-badder had most recently and most egregiously harmed the cause of liberty and justice for all.

Johnny used to tell a story about when he was a Texas Ranger, a captain in fact. He was seven at the time. His friend Boots Cooper, who was six, was sheriff, and the two of them used to do a lot of heavy law enforcement out behind the Faulk place in south Austin. One day Johnny's mama, having two such fine officers on the place, asked them to go down to the hen house and rout out the chicken snake that had been doing some damage there.

Johnny and Boots loped down to the hen house on their trusty brooms (which they tethered outside) and commenced to search for the snake. They went all through the nests on the bottom shelf of the hen house and couldn't find it, so the both of them stood on tippy-toes to look on the top shelf. I myself have never been nose-to-nose with a chicken snake, but I always took Johnny's word for it that it will just scare the living shit out of you. Scared those boys so bad that they both tried to exit the hen house at the same time, doing considerable damage to both themselves and the door.

Johnny's mama, Miz Faulk, was a kindly lady, but watching all this, it struck her funny. She was still laughin' when the captain and the sheriff trailed back up to the front porch. "Boys, boys, " said Miz Faulk, "what is wrong with you? You know perfectly well a chicken snake cannot hurt you."
That's when Boots Cooper made his semi-immortal observation. "Yes ma'am," he said, "but there's some things'll scare you so bad, you hurt yourself."

And isn't that what we keep doing in this country, over and over again? We get scared so bad--about the communist menace or illegal immigration or AIDS or pornography or violent crime, some damn scary thing--that we hurt ourselves. We take the odd notion that the only way to protect ourselves is to give up some of our freedom--just trim a little, hedge a bit, and we'll all be safe after all.

Those who think of freedom in this country as one long, broad path leading ever onward and upward are dead damned wrong. Many a time freedom has been rolled back--and always for the same sorry reason: fear.

So one thing I have learned from Johnny Faulk, Texas, and life, is that since you don't always win, you got to learn to enjoy just fightin' the good fight.

On the occasion of the bicentennial of the Constitution, the ACLU was fixin' to lay some heavy life-time freedom fighter awards on various citizens and one of 'em was Joe Raugh, the lawyer who defended so many folks during the McCarthy Era and the civil rights movement (note that the rightness of those stands is always easier to see in retrospect). Rauh was sick in the hospital at the time and asked a friend of his to go down and collect the award for him. His friend went to see him in the hospital and said, "Joe, what you want me to tell these folks?"

So there was Rauh lyin' there sick as a dog, thinking back on all those bad, ugly, angry times--the destroyed careers, the wrecked lives--and he said, "Tell 'em how much fun it was. Tell 'em how much fun it was."

So keep fightin' for freedom and justice, beloveds, but don't you forget to have fun doin' it. Lord, let your laughter ring forth. Be outrageous, ridicule the fraidy-cats, rejoice in all the oddities that freedom can produce. And when you get through kickin' ass and celebratin' the sheer joy of a good fight, be sure to tell those who come after how much fun it was.

NEW SKATE BLOG, HOLMES.

Click below or on the blog title. Daggers rule.


http://theatomicchildren.blogspot.com

NEW ART BLOG!

Click on the title of this post or go to:

http://qadart.blogspot.com/view/flipcard

MAN vs. SHARK revisited

Infographic made to comply with 70 - 30 (%) aspect ratio of info to space. Mega-info. But I guess it works when you're trying to bring a point home. Save the sharks, people. Thus save yourselves.

And make the message pretty.

WAYZGOOSE

First time for me and mine visiting Letter Press event at SVC, called "Wayzgoose" this weekend. Definitely need more time, to peruse and get a poster printed next year. Several groups print all day via large poster plates, hand-rolled ink, and a steam roller. They hang them from the balcony railings of the buildings successive floors. Very cool. Print shop, movable type bins and machines are inside. Highly recommended event.

Get out whilst you can...

First and so far only trek into the real woods this season. Mt Townsend, while ill but happy.

AD SPACE

Here's to swimmin' with bow-legged wimmIn.

Mock info-graphic for school. But the facts are true. Inspired while watching Sharkwater documentary. Watch it, and/or go to SavingSharks.com and do what you can to help. As much as Jaws is a favorite, it took it's toll. And the fin has zero flavor...

Inner Beauty

Just returned from East Coast. This was taken in Virginia, which, to some, is still part of the 11 Confederate States. Warm and cuddly.

SKATEBOARDING IN 4 STEPS

Found it in a random Men's (Dude's) magazine.

South Park (AKA The Shire, Marble Madness, Star Gate)

MIND FIELD

Pen tool practice, in class. One of my all-time favorites...Albert, not the Pen Tool...

"The key to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources."

DISPOSITION

School has consumed my life. It's all I have to show for anything lately.

Photo illustration self portraits. We choose our own battles...

Sun Over Marin

Another fun school assignment. Full re-creation, before and after. Reminds me of South Bay.

Perched Aloft

Photoshop assignment for school. Supposed to be a self portrait, using only our own photos. Smoke and ashes in city still sort of pending.....need to take smoke/cloud tutorial from my 2,343,576 page textbook. My gaiters look like leg warmers. 

"Fun Times!!" :)

"Those who know, do not talk; Those who talk, do not know." -Lao Tzu

84 days later and a recent small victory (state-sponsored vindication) for me. You either know, or you don't. This one's for my real friends, who know....

;)

Guy Mariano

We've both spent time away from skating and have come back. I know there are things that I really appreciate about it when I'm not around it and things I really hate about it when I am. Maybe hate is too strong, let's say really find great discomfort in. Did you find this to be true when you started skating a lot again?

Yes I agree. It's like a love / hate relationship. When I was away from skating I would only wish to be in a 10 hour van ride to some random town going to battle a trick just to end up not getting it and then being so sore the next day it would hurt to walk. People might think that's the bad part but to me that's the love. People might think that it's all about the money, the contracts, and the fame but that's the part that I find discomforting. That's the stuff that will pull you away.

This reinforces what Drake Jones told me about ducking out of professional skateboarding: "it feels like a job." For most of us, what this means is 'it sucked having to do stuff and deal with stuff I don't want to do, based off the feeling in my gut.' It's just amazing that this can happen even in careers where the employee is doing exactly what he wants to do, what he's passionate about, he just doesn't like the forum or context he has to do it in as a pro. This has everything to do with how freedom, can be so frail a concept (and how it is an addiction).

GOLF THUG LIFE

This one's for the old man, who is bewildered by the plethora of "No Skateboarding" signs in public domain. Well, turns out, we aint the only vandals.

The 4th Dimension is Mind

This is Elliot Ave from 2 perspectives, North-bound, then South-bound. I bent space and time. Seattle can never get its fill of colorful corners.

Flash Blizzard W/ Flash

Lastnights flash snowstorm was a fun surprise. I enjoy "harsh" weather, just as long as it changes with the seasons. Using a flash in falling snow added a stipple effect to the graffiti shots. Wish it had all stuck around longer than morning.

 Learned this move from Danny Torrance.

 

"And just like that -poof, it was gone..."

Eyes Wide Shut Me Down

First project in class at AIS. I put some solid effort into it, 12 layers/7 channels, and the teacher said, "eh, it was just to get you working, I don't even want to see it."

How could you deny that face??

"Assassination is the extreme form of censorship." -George Bernard Shaw

 "On Thursday, Gabby Giffords rose in the House of Representatives to read the First Amendment to the Constitution. On Saturday, she was gunned down by one of her constituents. Giffords held "Congress on Your Corner" outside a Tucson grocery, something she has regularly done to talk face to face with the public, not all of whom supported her. The interchange of views and information is precious to me, nothing is more symbolic of that than the First Amendment and Giffords' commitment to dialog with her community. Nothing is more offensive to me than efforts to cut that off, the ultimate means of silencing an adversary being assassination. The vituperation we've seen in politics is, in and of itself, a means of cutting off the conversations that are needed to move this society and this nation forward. That the vitriol that has become so common can inspire the weak-minded to physical harm and even murder is something we should be concerned with. Please, we are not Enemies!"

~G Armour Van Horn

Clown Flip

BIG PANTS LITTLE STYLE from Quinn Davis on Vimeo.

Weird music for weird times...

IF one has to accept certain stages as necessary in the history of progress, than this is truly an experiment in learning humility. I probably only showed this to a handful of people, reluctantly. But it was all filmed with some unclear intention. I never really thought of anything beyond shop sponsorship or turning pro. I was obsessed, but progress was a thing of self, and moving forward. Or somehow backward, if you think about this period of big pants and small wheels. (Tho perhaps necessary as it grounded us long enough to get a feel for a need to get back speed and air.) And yet looking back, as embarrassing as it may be, I'm glad we used to film this stuff. And it's amusing to go back and watch, to get to acknowledge where you were and how far you've come. My pants fit and my wheels roll.

RECORD TIME

 

I don't technically celebrate Christmas per se, because I am not a Christian. I celebrate some sort of family tradition, which holds most of the normal commercial tenants of Xmas -namely getting a tree, putting up little lights, and exchanging gifts. 

It's also a good excuse to make artwork, and a hell of a kick in the pants to meet a mutually accepted deadline. I get some interesting work done in these times. 

Another clock. 12'' with mock label sticker. I've got a lot of unused crappy records laying around. I'm thinking they could be of use. Anyone want to commission one?

PATRON SAINT OF PATIENCE

 

Finally finished what was supposed to be a mother's day gift in 2008. (see older post about pending work here) Needless to say it swallowed many hours. Pen and ink, scanned in sections, realigned the scans, used channels to isolate sections and color in certain layers. Also made some major structural changes, such as the flames in the background, by mirroring one side and cloning it....I even made her taller by warping a lower section of her in Photoshop. 17 layers, 25 channels. Guh. But it turned out nice, Kinko's (Fed Ex, ahem) did a decent job printing, however late.

Poor angel remained crushed underfoot. I can't even remember why I was mad at him to begin with. 

Like I wrote on the back, "Happy every day Ma!"

WE DELIVER

Xmas Day junk wallie a la Blair Taylor, limited only by constant rain.

WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE.....

AMAZING VS. AWESOME

La Push vs. Cascades from Quinn Davis on Vimeo.

SK8 RAT VAULT VID #2

SK8 RAT VAULT FILES 2 from Quinn Davis on Vimeo.

HOME IS WHERE THE BOARD IS.