Author: koalie

#inktober 2017 days 6-10

[Inktober: 31 Days 31 Drawings, following a prompt list]

Day 6: ‘sword’. Ink drawing of a swordsman. Black ink Uni-ball pin pen (0.05 mm).

Black ink drawing of a swordsman

Day 7: ‘shy’. Ink drawing of a shy girl hiding half her face behind a shoulder. Black ink Uni-ball pin pen (0.05 mm).

Ink drawing of a shy girl hiding half her face behind a shoulder

Day 8: ‘crooked’. Ink drawing of the MIT Stata Center, by Frank Gehry. A crooked building. Black ink Uni-ball pin pen (0.05 mm), and grey soft brush Pitt Artist Pen.

Grey ink drawing of the MIT Stata Center, by Frank Gehry. A crooked building.

Day 9: ‘screech (owl)’. Ink drawing of a screeching barn owl. Black ink Uni-ball pin pen (0.05 mm).

Black ink drawing of a screeching barn owl

Day 10: ‘gigantic’. Ink drawing of a couple taking a selfie in front of Dancing Nana, by Niki de Saint Phalle, an exhibit on the bank of La Seine since 1995. Black ink Uni-ball pin pen (0.05 mm), and Pentel brush pen.

Black ink drawing of a couple taking a selfie in front of Dancing Nana, by Niki de Saint Phalle

Inktober’s prompt list:

Inktober prompt list

#inktober 2017 days 1-5

[Inktober: 31 Days 31 Drawings, following a prompt list.]

I’m doing Inktober again and I like it. It was fun last year. I’m rather pleased with what I did thus far. I have the impression I have progressed. It takes me 2 to 3 hours every night, depending on how long I need to find my subject, then I focus without interruption till I’m done and realise my coffee is cold, I have not smoked and I’ve done something pretty.

Day 1: ‘swift’. Drawing of a swordsman wielding a Japanese sword. Black ink Uni-ball pin pen (0.05 mm), and grey soft brush Pitt Artist Pen.

Grey and black ink drawing of a swordsman wielding a Japanese sword

Day 2: ‘divided’. Wooden jigsaw puzzle of three camels, one separated from the others and slightly behind. Black ink Uni-ball pin pen (0.05 mm), and grey soft brush Pitt Artist Pen.

Black and grey ink drawing of a 3d wooden jigsaw puzzle of three camels, one separated from the others and slightly behind

Day 3: ‘poison’. Poisonous frog viewed from above, in black and white, with black spots. In real-life, these are green and black. Black ink Uni-ball pin pen (0.05 mm).

Black ink drawing of a poisonous frog with black spots viewed from above

Day 4: ‘underwater’. Still woman immersed, the top of her head breaking the water. Black ink Uni-ball pin pen (0.05 mm), and grey soft brush Pitt Artist Pen.

Black and grey ink drawing of a still woman immersed, the top of her head breaking the water which reflects her with distortion

Day 5: ‘(so) long’. A sailing ship at sea, far away on the horizon, big waves in the foreground, and cloudy heavy sky. Copy of work by Bernie Wrightson, who was much much gifted than I am. Still I quite like my work. Black ink Uni-ball pin pen (0.05 mm).

Black ink drawing of a sailing ship at sea, far away on the horizon, big waves in the foreground, and cloudy heavy sky

Inktober’s prompt list:

Prompt list for Inktober 2017

When the job gets physical

I have a rather sedentary job which involves computer work, a lot of typing, listening, thinking, talking, storing a lot of information to be able to throw it up at the right time, in the right form, or to connect the right people or the right dots, etc. I no longer travel very much and don’t get to meet people a lot to conduct my work. I do not have any RSI hurting my wrists to prevent me from typing, and I love my job and care enough that I happily spend hours at my keyboard. I have a lot of stamina.

But the other day, I had been at my desk for several hours reading feedback and input on Social Media on some very controversial work that W3C recently completed, when it hit me: shaky hands, heart beating a little too fast steadily, and the dizziness. That slight tingle in the back of my throat and nose, the faint metallic taste and smell. It lasted a few seconds. I didn’t faint, but I know the signs.

I carried on with my day but later thought that my job had gotten physical.

Memory of my memoir

My Dad reminded me tonight of that time, just before my twenties, when I had to write a memoir for the end of my studies –a two-year secretarial degree. I had worked as an intern twice a few months in the same Hilton hotel in Cannes, doing admin at the HR office the first year, and doing admin for the CEO the second year.

When it came to writing the memoir about what I had done there, I invented something, because otherwise there wasn’t a lot of glory or interest.

So I came up with a study to enhance efficiency throughout the various departments. The study was genuine; I had witnessed first-hand how the hotel worked and there was room for optimisation. The write-up was coherent and made sense. And I got away with it!

The following year, the hotel manager contacted me to get my approval for a group of local students at a business school to use my work and reorganise the hotel accordingly, which I happily gave. I was quite honoured they had kept it, were considering it seriously, and called to ask!

Anyway, I guess my Dad’s point was that even then I was doing some Comm work, and he went on recalling when years later I was offered to join the W3C Comm team and refused several times because I had no idea what comm work was, and he said “look at you now.” I figure my dad is proud of my ‘career’, as he puts it. And maybe people see in me more than I do.