Look at the KITTY!

Last Thursday, my laptop refused to start up. So now it is in the shop for TWO WEEKS. OMG, right?

As soon as they took my baby away to get mailed to the service center, I switched to mobile phone mode, texting my friends and using it to check email and Facebook. And then I thought, "Well, maybe it will be good for me to not have a computer for awhile. Maybe I will get more sleep this way. Or actually take time to see friends and family outside of school."

Well, I won't know how that is, because the Toy Design chair (who apologized about stressing us out on Election Day) very generously got our IT guy to lend me a MacBook!!! Phew.

She just doesn't want me to fall behind on our design work. No excuses for me!! I kinda like how small this MacBook is so I don't have to carry extra weight to school...

In other news, I had to get up before 6am this morning to register for classes. OMG again. And I will be taking an online class for the first time next semester. It's a whole new frontier.

But I think it was worth it, because I will likely have FOUR DAY WEEKENDS next semester. Holy mother of GOD I cannot wait!! (Except for the part where I still have to take Liberal Arts classes in U.S. History and Indian Art History. And I will surely have so much homework that it will take at least half my weekends away.)

BTW I did dress up as Kenley from Project Runway for Halloween. Not many people really got it, but they did like my makeshift feather barrette. I liked it so much that I think I'll go buy some real feather headpieces.

Also, just as I finally started to get comfortable with my blunt bangs, Xtina and Madonna got them too. But I think they look a little weird on Madonna. I think I'll keep mine for a little while, as they transition from Bettie Page to Francoise Hardy length.

Not related... but I have to share this video, because even thought I'm not a cat person, this cat (aka "Maru) is pretty darn awesome:



Thanks to boingboing for bringing that into my life. Also thanks to BK for informing me that Barack Obama is a Scrabble fan (of course!) and once owned a pet ape.

Ok, taking a nap now. Got a math test tomorrow. OMG!!!

Party over, oops, outta time!

Rock Band 2 was a hit with my classmates, especially with the addition of rockstar-attire, a star-shaped-purple tambourine, a feather boa, a tiara, taro-flavored birthday cake, chips, candy-corn, pumpkin-flavored beer, blueberry-flavored beer, Canadian Molson, cider, vodka, and red wine.



It may have also helped that we just survived another draining all-nighter for a doll-design assignment, so we needed to celebrate and let loose.

However, it did take a bit too long to download new songs, so we had to switch to Singstar & Karaoke Revolution to finish the night with more song variety.

We finally did get one noise complaint from downstairs, just asking us to not jump so much. We mostly obliged, but kept the singing going. (It was Friday night in NYC and not even 1am!! Jigga please.)

In other unimportant news, I have since discovered that you can shake branches on the game, Locoroco Cocoreccho, which makes the game so much more manageable!! My god. So I take it back; maybe now I do enjoy that game.

Also I'm really ambivalent about Halloween this year. Last year was a pretty lackluster experience. I might just reprise last year's costume, if I even decide to go anywhere for the occasion. Or I might be more subtle and dress as a certain Project Runway villain. Hmm.

This week, we start a new assignment about green-friendly toys. Finally, an eco-conscious toy project! I'm so relieved. Except the syllabus already looks intense, because we have to research and design a whole line of toys with different price points, with class reviews, critiques, and presentations, in about 3 short weeks. Ruh Roh.

Is that a Full Moon Out?

Cuz all kinds of craziness is happening!

1. I impulsively ran out to buy a Playstation 3 last Saturday for some emergency karaoke. Yes, in my world, there is such a thing as emergency karaoke. At least this time I didn't break my tooth doing it. Phew!

Like I told Lilo, you laugh at me now, but you will thank me later.

2. Not only does Dubbledubs know all the lyrics to Corrine Bailey Rae's "Put your Records On," but he sings it like a champ.



Like a real pre-teen girl scout champ.

3. My friends and I consumed 80 pounds of amazingly delicious food at Fatty Crab, and we were still hungry for dessert (at Chickalicious –so much more satisfying than Magnolia Cupcakes).

4. The Emotion Eric and my other friend Kawabunga came over and helped to get the Internet working on my new PS3. (It only took two days for them to figure it out, even though they supposedly work in "tech-no-logy.")

And WELL WORTH it, as I was then able to download Singstar karaoke videos of Spandau Ballet's magic hit wonders, "True" and "Gold," as well as "Hold On" by Wilson Phillips for our eternal singing pleasure.



Jealous, no?

5. A sleazy weirdo from my long-ago past commented on my recent entry about sleazy men! Funny, disturbing, or ironic? Maybe all of the above. (Sorry Nick, just bein' honest there. You're not gonna change my mind on that one.)

6. My 2 classmates, Jee & Lilo cannot get that stupid "Beep-Beep" song by PCD out of our heads. Thanks, KP. Bum-bum, BUM-BUM, bum-bum-BUM!

(BTW, karaoke-ing to this is so much better if you replace the beeps with "crotch," "boobs," "butt," and the like, as demonstrated by Lilo.)

7. I passed on drinking cider and playing speed-Scrabble at home with my roommate and out-of-town friends just so I could study 3 problems for an open-book math test. WTF is wrong with me.

8. I took that math test, in which I calculated the number of Parsecs away an object is in outer space from earth, based on its positioned angle between the earth and the sun, also known as a stellar parallax. Oh yes, say it with me: SOH CAH TOA!

9. Two couples I know got engaged. I think Princess Tater & Prince Dodger started a trend! Congrats to Amy & Mark and Kevin & Coley!

10. Oh, one more thing: dogs can walk like people.

Welcome, Class of 2010!

Hello Juniors! It's come to my attention recently that at least one of "the new class" has been reading my blog. I haven't met you all, but so far you seem like nice enough folks. And it's apparent your drawing skills are ridiculously good. Your drawing teacher basically flaunted your summer work at us like we were inferior morons. (We don't take it personally. Well, I don't at least.)

If you've read my entries from the last year, I guess you've gotten a nice preview of your life ahead. I hope it hasn't worried you too much. I'm still in the program, and despite my blogging about all the work, lost social life, lack of sleep, toxic chemicals, ridiculous schedules, physical injuries, emotional breakdowns, crazy demands of teachers, rants about quitting school... wait, where was I going with this?

Oh yes, it's still a lot of fun and you are learning some really great skills.

As you have found out by now, first semester (plus Winterim) of the Toy Design program can be, how can I say it? Grueling? Crazy? Yes. It is a test of your patience, persistence, listening ability, resourcefulness, creativity, and willingness to learn. But just think! If you can just get past those few months, school will get just a little bit more manageable. And you will sleep regularly again in 2009. I promise!

That said, I will offer some general advice; sorry if it came too late:

1. Do what you can.
Improve as much as you can, and do as much work as you can, but don't stress that much about the grades. (–Especially don't worry about getting A's in drafting class. It's best to just be happy with a passing grade there.) Yes, you can lose some sleep, but we all hit a wall at some point. Just brush yourself off (when you wake up) and keep going!

2. Ask Questions
Sometimes the faculty likes to mix it up and try something new. This can lead to confusing assignments and guidance. If you are confused, just ask! That's what they're there for. Some teachers, are a bit reserved and will require you to be a bit more pro-active.

Or if you have a classmate that seems to be good at something, ask them how they did it or what tool they used.

Also, we "Seniors" are generally nice folk and would be happy to answer questions about what to expect. We definitely have some goofy weirdos, as I'm sure you do too. But don't be afraid. We will try to be honest and helpful, as much as we can.

And of course, you can always ask the Internet for answers.

3. It's about the TOYS!
Some of you know this already, but do not take criticism personally! Your concept teacher is wise and is just telling you what the real world will tell you about your work, but he says it in a much nicer way.

He is not talking about you, he is talking about your design and whether it'll sell on a toy store shelf. Listen and learn. Focus on what you can do to make your toy more appealing, easy-to-use, unique, accessible, and fun!

If you need to vent, just perform the necessary impersonation of whichever teacher amuses you the most, all Project-Runway-Santino style (not in front of the faculty, of course). I always thought of our concept teacher as our own Michael Kors. Have a laugh and move on.

4. Watch your health!
Okay, you're going to lose sleep, but it doesn't mean you can dismiss the rest of your body's needs. Drink lots of fluids, take vitamins, and remember to eat your meals! Don't touch the subway with your hands. Wash hands, carry sanitizer, and don't share cups and food. You do NOT want to get sick. Falling behind is a bitch.

5. Nobody likes a sycophant or a smart-ass.
Being a smart-ass is not cute to the faculty, and being a kiss-ass will irk both the teachers and your classmates.

6. Try not to annoy each other.
Be considerate of other classmates, apologize when you've offended them, and let bygones be bygones. Don't copy other peoples' ideas! The class itself is a small group, in a small space, and you are spending most of your waking hours with these same people for at least TWO YEARS.

Even after you graduate, you will enter a small industry, and stories of your being an ass will come back to haunt you! Especially now with the INTERNETS! So be respectful to each other!

Better yet: watch out for each other. If someone's missing from class, check on them, see if they need a missed assignment. Someday when they are VP of Hasbro, they'll remember what a nice person you were.

7. Give your brain an occasional reboot.
If you are freaking out, or you're really stuck on a design, you probably just need a short break. During my all-nighters, I would turn on my dance playlist and jump around for 5 minutes and then maybe grab a snack. Or a blueberry beer. Or a short nap (but make sure someone's around to wake you up).

We each have our own methods of coping. Don't do the booze if it you are a lightweight, because it will put you to sleep. Some of my classmates sing. If you're at home, have a short IM chat with a classmate to vent, then let them get back to work, because you should finish that rendering too.

8. Get your head out of your butt.
The rare moments that you get away from class to see friends, relatives, meet new strangers, or just see the city are also valuable for inspiration.

Watch kids play, look at what's going on in museums, window-shop, ask what people like, how things work. Play with gadgets, take a video game break, browse the Fashion Week coverage. Surf your favorite blogs. Look at cute animals. This all works for inspiration for toys. It comes in handy when you do actual research for your portfolio (during Winterim and Senior year) and future work.

9. Que sera, sera, whatever will be will be.
You may not want to hear this part.

I hope this doesn't happen, but the reality is that there may be a few of you that will not make it through the semester. It may be too much. Even with all your hard work, they may tell you that you aren't improving enough. Maybe you just don't have the discipline for it now. Maybe you've got too much else going on in your life to focus like this.

As the oldest person in my class, who has had a previous career and has witnessed many friends switch careers and endure quarter-life crises: your life is not over.

For one thing, you don't need a Toy Design degree to work in toys. Secondly, there are lots of other ways to apply your love for creativity and design. Whether or not you decide to stick with the toys may require some soul-searching. Listen to your gut.

If for whatever reason you don't stick with the program, you are not a failure. It's just a bump in the road, and you will find another success. If it's meant to be, you will come back to the world of toys. Just keep exploring what you can and like to do and something great will work out!

10. Have fun.
Who knew Toy Design school would be so hard!? But just remember: YOU GET TO DESIGN TOYS. Your friends outside of school are jealous, right?

This sounds cheesy, but when I ride the subway to and from school, even when I'm tired, breaking out, dateless, getting fat, cramped up, covered in clay and sawdust, and have too much to do:

I think about how I am one of the luckiest people on earth, to have this opportunity to live in New York City, to hang out with other creative, smart, and funny people, to draw, to make things with my hands, and to learn how to design toys!

Sometimes I even smile about it, like a secret joke, and people on the subway probably think I'm crazy or in love.

Best of luck! Now get back to work!

Back to the Nuthouse

School started this week, and already I am feeling the abuse. My ass is feeling sore from sitting on that hard, wooden chair ALL DAY LONG. The a/c is always too low or too high. Teachers are warning us of the impending workload and to stay on top of things. Carrying my laptop and supplies to school is already straining my shoulders.

On the first day, the chair of the department talked to us with an ever-present, encouraging smile, but she let it slip that several of the models made by our class last semester ended up looking like "shit" and that we weren't going to let that happen this year. We were also given the grand opportunity to tackle an extra assignment this year for the Toy Industry Association, an assignment that was already failed by a world-famous graphic designer. Just like last semester, we have classes for most of the day, from Monday through Saturday, and 4 out of those 6 days, we don't finish classes until after 8 or 9pm.

This year, our major project is to write, design, illustrate, and create childrens' books, based on our storybook plush character that we designed last semester. And then we design licensed toy products based on the books we create.

So on Wednesday, we each took turns presenting our outlines and rough plots for our story characters. Very quickly, it became apparent that everyone's invented storybook character was a mirror of themselves. It got to the point that my BFF and I had to refrain ourselves from cracking up, because as soon as each person started to talk about their characters, it sounded like them talking about their autobiography. And most of them didn't even seem to realize it!

After each character was presented, the class would ask questions, give feedback, and brainstorm to help them develop their stories, in case it didn't feel complete or needed more direction. In the end, it seemed that this process helped everyone quite a bit.

But there were a few storylines that sounded a bit flawed and unbalanced, which felt very awkward and uncomfortable, because it seemed to reveal unresolved issues about that person! And so toward the second half of the day, it began to feel more like a group therapy session that would never end. Or a painful Alcoholics Anonymous session that needed to be picked up another day.

For example, one story involved two main characters, who were part-human, part-animal (drawn much cuter than it sounds). Basically the story starts with them being ostracized by people in the city, so the main characters escape to the forest to find each other as best friends, who bond through their different but complementary personality traits. But they never reconcile with the people they escaped from!

So basically the story makes it sound like people will forever be evil. Or that you should just run away from your problems. Another student asked for clarification on what the message of the story was about. The answer was, "Well I see it as a story about acceptance, like people should accept other differences." Really? Huh. Because it sounded like the message was that different people should be segregated. Luckily after some brainstorming, we helped her balance the story out and she agreed to leave out the "evil people." Phew!

When I shared my character's story with my class, K-boy asked me if there was a romantic interest in the story. I said, "No. Princess Mooki is too young. She probably thinks she's too good for boys at this point. Maybe that'll be for Volume 5." I didn't even realize until later, that I had basically outlined an unusually feminist princess story, where she wasn't going to be saved by a boy; boys didn't even enter into the plot, and it was all about her learning to be the ruler she was destined to be.

It was a little exhausting to go through a whole day of this. But at the same time, I think it will be exciting to see everyone's finished work at the end of the year. After that class ended, already my classmates were acting loopy, goofing around and making strange voices like they were drunk or high. Except nobody had ingested any alcohol or illegal substances. And this was just the FIRST WEEK!

You see why I am a little concerned.

And THEN, today it verged into physical abuse when the chair of the department actually smacked me on the arm! This was over a totally normal question I asked about what was due the next day. I think she must have misinterpreted the question, (to mean that I expected another student to do more work than she had to?). I believe she smacked me jokingly, but it was kind of hard! Half of the classmates that witnessed it gasped, and then laughed nervously, because they all already kind of fear her.

I don't fear her (because I'm old and I know I can already get a job, which gives me the opportunity to not really give a shit about what people think, and I already have a degree so I don't really care about getting a 2nd BA). But I was weirded out all the same, and so my reaction was, "Uh, WOW." It was totally uncalled for, and not really that funny.

But I have learned from a very early age, that there will always be crazy people around me, and I am not fazed by them. They are temporary distractions, and I don't let them get the best of my good energy. Nonetheless, wish me luck this year!

Oh, in other news, the girls in my class have decided that our MIT-alum, Ph.D-earning math teacher is this semester's eye candy. Well, except maybe for his buck teeth. We like his brains, humor, hair, clothes, and that he noticeably works out. But he ruined it for me today though, when he revealed that he was born in 1980. Holy crap I am old.

Anyway, I've decided to be a Golden Girl. I recently came to the revelation that dating and relationships don't do it for me, even if I did have the time for it. I'm a really contented person on my own, as long as I have my friends and my creativity. (Either way I figure it's inevitable that I will become a crazy old lady, probably not much different from the chair of my department!)

So, thank you for being a friend. Your heart is true, you're a pal and a confidante...

Blargh

I accidentally ordered way too much food in Toronto's Chinatown for dinner and felt like I was going to regret it from the moment it arrived at the table. I wasn't even that hungry to begin with! I just wanted to try this noodle place that my cousin had recommended! It was so bad, I started to feel like I was in a food-eating contest. I stopped before downing the last two lychees in my drink.

I've generally overdosed on food over the last couple of days. My friend Amy stopped by for a wedding last weekend, so I joined her for a splurgy Omakase dinner last Thursday at Kaiseke Sakura (tragically, we both forgot our cameras). It was really wonderful, authentic Japanese food.

Then the other intern and I accidentally ordered way too much food at a Vietnamese food on Saturday. Plus we had the jumbo hot dogs at the street vendors for dinner. (Quite a bargain for Toronto food, and tasty too!) And last night, I met my friend Holly, who was visiting her brother who also lives in downtown Toronto.

After Holly introduced me to the delicious sushi from Sushi Marché, we went to get "Timbits" at Tim Horton's, which is apparently some kind of Canadian staple. Timbits are basically donut holes, so as you might guess, Tim Horton's is basically the Dunkin' Donuts of Canada.

I especially enjoyed the cruller Timbits, but ALSO I indulged in a special new strawberry blossom donut they had, that's shaped like a cute little pink flower, with red jelly in the middle and delightful strawberry candy sprinkles on icing. It is a sugary explosion of joy. It reminded me of the strawberry shortcake ice cream bar that you can get at New York ice cream trucks, which I also highly recommend!

I feel very lucky to know so many friends and family (who especially enjoy food), that even when I move to a new city (and country), I know I won't be go for too long without seeing someone I know. I think part of it is also getting older (having met so many people throughout the years), as well as having worked at such a huge company that employed such friendly people (Yahoo!).

I still miss my Karaoke-in' friends, but alas all my fun has to go on hold again, because I'm totally behind on my HOMEWORK! Isn't it enough that we have full-time jobs to deal with? As well as adjusting to new living environments!? I am reconsidering taking that year off from school or... perhaps dropping out. This is redonkulous. I have a degree already after all!

BTW, the judges on "Canadian Idol" are way too nice. Where is Canadian Simon??

(Donut image from Flickr user, Kodamakitty)

One more year. ONE MORE.

Here it is, the hard toy project that nearly killed us:



I didn't design this. We built this project, based on an existing design. We were just learning about construction methods for this assignment. Thankfully, mine looks pretty decent, but it's not properly constructed. We were supposed to screw most of it together, but we ended up super-gluing most of it, due to lack of time. And who knows if this floats like it's supposed to. We gave up on making any of the parts squirt. My doors open, and the flag can turn, so that's a lot more than I expected to get done.

Here are some of the other Marina sets built by my classmates:



That front one, by Soo, is nearly perfect. She is one of the very few that actually completed every part. But even she didn't attach the rooftop to the house. I chose to leave my rooftop detached as well, and I gave up on making the nozzles for the firehose and gas pump, myself. You might notice that some of them gave up on finishing a lot of the parts. And I don't blame them. In the same week, we had papers due, plush toys to finish sewing, oral presentations, and exams to study for! I could only finish what I did by pulling a couple of all-nighters. It was painful.

So, even though finals were done Monday night, I am still recovering from the exhaustion. Well, I was almost recovered yesterday, but then I went out for a late night of dancing with the new Senior class (my class) and the newly graduated class of Toy Designers from FIT.

So now I'm recovering from:

• manual labor of building hard toys (during which I breathed toxic fumes, callused my fingers, and coated my fingertips in crusty superglue and paints)


• frantically sewing plush toys (which caused me to have my first sore back in years and left most of my clothes and bedroom in a layer of aqua-fur lint)


• lack of sleep from writing papers and sewing all night


• drinking plentifully at Elmo's Lounge in Chelsea


• dancing a few too many hours in gold heels at Sway in West Village

I know of three different students who started crying in despair during finals week. Note: they were not all female, and I was not one of these students. Honestly, it was too much to work to expect from us. We had to make compromises toward the end on the quality of what we were going to finish. It's difficult to make those decisions, because flaws are so obvious on a visual end-product.

I'd say I was probably the best in my class at staying calm about the whole process. (It might be all those years of working with unrealistic deadlines.) Luckily we mostly retained a sense of humor together toward the end, which kept us sane. A few got caught up in ridiculous drama over who got more assistance time with the sewing teacher and whatnot. I wasn't too concerned with any of that, because I was pretty independent about my sewing work. And fortunately most students were pretty generous about helping each other out, as we were all struggling to finish.

During finals week, I started to mutter a lot to myself. Most often, I would say, "Ohhh, you little SHIT!" when something wasn't working like I wanted, and someone would say, "What?" And I'd say, "Oh nothing. Talking to myself again."

Sunday night, at around 1am, I got agitated while painting one of my hard toy pieces in white, because I kept seeing tiny splotches of red show up randomly on it. I said, "Tschh. Where is this red paint coming from? Aggh. How annoying." Then I kept trying to wipe it and reapply the white paint, until I said, "Oh. Is this red paint? Wait. This is blood, isn't it? Oh yes, I see the cut now." I had cut my finger slightly on an exacto knife earlier but didn't notice.

Also, I wounded my knuckle on the sander machine, while working in the Toy Shop (–not a store, but the wood shop, with vacuum-molding machines and a paint room). I didn't even really feel it too much, but I saw it, and thought, "Crap. That doesn't look good. At least it didn't really hurt... maybe it's not that bad... it's not bleeding... yet? Ohhh is it going to bleed now? Dammit, it is. Now I have to interrupt my workflow to clean this thing and bandage it? Sheesh."

So I calmly dug up the one crappy Hello Kitty band-aid in my computer bag. (We ran out of bandages in the classroom's first-aid kit, and nobody had refilled it.) However, it may come to you as a surprise, that Hello Kitty bandages don't stick that well. I tried to ignore the flimsy bandage flying around as I cut more wood and molded more plastic, but the bleedy wound peeking out was a little distracting. And I probably didn't want sawdust getting in there. So finally, grabbed some blue artists' tape to stick the bandage better to my hand, which looked utterly ridiculous, but I didn't have time to be concerned with appearances at that point.

So anyway, I'm relieved it's over, and I'm really happy about my two-week break before my internship starts. –Except, I will have lots of homework to do over the summer on top of the internship, and frankly, we are afraid of senior year. It doesn't sound like it will be that much easier at all.

Not to mention, that working this hard does not bode well for a social/dating life, which is a travesty for someone living in a nice apartment in New York City. Will calls me the "femme fatale" of the class, and K-boy has asked to marry me, which is sweet, but sadly, I think I will only ever get this kind of flattery from gay men. Straight men seem to be incapable of expressing actual feelings with me until it's too late. Also, I'm super picky, so I may end up being single for life. And I think I could be okay with that.

On the other hand, maybe I'm not missing that much, because I've had a string of disappointing relationships, with guys who have mostly asked to get back together with me a year later. Also, they've all gone on to marry the next girl they dated.

I never had that weepy "When Harry Met Sally" reaction; in fact, I've predicted it half the time, and I'm relieved they found someone else good for them. I certainly couldn't deal with them anymore. I'm just a little tired of being the trainer girlfriend. Can't I get some kind of referral bonus or something for the time spent on these guys?

Plus, the recent guy I dated has demonstrated some real jackassery. I knew the crocs were a bad sign! The pretty eyes, Scrabble skills, and karaoke talent must have distracted me, but I know better now. It's ALL IN THE SHOES.

STOP IT ALREADY

See that last blog post?

Yeah, well add another day of (much needed) hard toy hours on Sunday.
Plus we found out today, about an important meeting Friday, before Marketing class, to talk about our summer internships. You know, because we have ALL THIS FREE TIME.

So... I don't know when I'll get to study for Art History or write that paper. It will be a miracle if I finish building that Marina bath toy set for hard toy class.

Also, I stayed up all of last night, sewing. I nearly sliced my hand at while cutting fabric hapazardly at 5am. Luckily I had band aids.

Sewing class was supposed to end at noon, but it was clear that the whole class still needed at least another 2 hours to finish their work. So everyone was frantically sewing, ironing, mending, cutting, past the end of class, and I know at least two people started CRYING in the process. At 2pm, the next class arrived to use our classroom, to find it filled with piles of sewing supplies.

The next teacher to use the classroom was not very sympathetic (aka a jerk). We packed up and cleared out into the hallway, as I finished sewing up my last seam. I felt victorious, as I did manage to add sew detail on my monster's crown and scales on its pocket, which I didn't expect to have time to do. I even added a little hangtag to it; the teacher had one of those retail plastic things to attach the hangtag to the toy.

Some students were helping others who were struggling to finish their toys, as they were about to have a nervous breakdown. Some of us who did finish happily admired each other's work and quickly took photos of our creations as they were soon to be rudely taken away from us, like babies going to the adoption agency. Despite the madness, our teacher thanked us for the hard work and even said, "When you start running toy companies, remember me! I have four kids to feed and will need the contract work!"

After sewing class, half the class still had oral presentations to do (I did mine last week, knowing that I didn't want to add that to this week's hell), and nobody had eaten food since last night's dinner. I was just telling someone last week, that I never feel like needing a massage, but I really needed one.

Luckily our History of Industrial Design teacher was kind enough to bake us gingerbread for our last day! And despite our weariness, a lot of the presentations were really interesting (about Barbie, Waldorf dolls, Ningyo dolls, Super Mario Brothers, "Spectacles," and the Hummer).

Finally when class ended, we went outside to find a warm and sunny day. I treated myself to a medium Parksberry with mango and strawberries (which were slightly frozen --not as good as Pinksberry, but acceptable). There were even vendors selling clothes and jewelry, and I bought a cute little green top.

Then I went home and slept for seven hours. Now I need to get up (after midnight!) and start a seven-page marketing paper... and probably that Art History paper too, while I'm at it. Classmates are already texting me and calling me with questions about Marketing class notes! I don't even really know how to write this thing. Blargh.

OMG TOO MUCH WORK

Seriously, WTF, FIT Toy Design!?

Monday 10am - 9pm
Hard Toy lab hours (woodshop)
Hard Toy lab & class
Ancient Art History class (oral presentation)

Tuesday 9am - 9pm
Soft Toy class (finalizing storybook plush)
Hard Toy lab hours (woodshop)
Computer Drafting class (3-D rendering & orthographic views of car due, plus presentation)

Wednesday 1pm - 9pm
Motor Learning class (Childhood Toy analysis paper due)
Computer Graphics class (Storybook logo/hangtag vector art due)

Thursday 9am - 5pm
Soft Toy class (final Storybook plush due)
History of Industrial Design class

Friday 1pm - 4:30pm
Marketing class (8-15 pg marketing plan due, plus final exam)

Saturday 10am - 6pm
Hard Toy lab hours

Sunday
Frantically cram for Art History Final
Write my Art History Paper
Glue or Paint anything I can for Hard Toy
Freak out and then pass out

Monday 10am - 9pm
Hard Toy Lab
Hard Toy Class (Final Marina Bath Toy set due)
Art History (Final Exam and paper due)

Tuesday
hibernate

Wednesday
Intern for my last day at Head Start with the pre-schoolers
Start clearing out my room for my summer subletter
Find that passport so I can go to that internship in Canada

Now I must go sew like a madwoman.

The madness continues.

I wanted to blog about my first day I had at the local Head Start classroom, but I'm about to start an insane week of school:

Sunday 11am - 6pm
Sewing lab hours (for Soft Toy class)

Monday 10am - 9pm
Hard Toy lab hours (woodshop)
Hard Toy class
Ancient Art History class (midterm exam)

Tuesday 9am - 9pm
Soft Toy class (finalizing infant toy, sketch storybook characters)
Hard Toy lab hours (woodshop)
Computer Drafting class (Diego Boat drafting project due)

Wednesday 1pm - 9pm
Motor Learning class (Infant Toy analysis paper due)
Computer Graphics class (spaceship & alien rendering due)

Thursday: 9am - 5pm
Soft Toy class (final Infant plush due)
History of Industrial Design class

Friday: 9am - 4:30pm
Intern at a Head Start class of 4-to-5-year-olds
Marketing class (possible midterm exam, tbd)

I'm not even quite sure how completing this week is even possible. The Saturday after, I take off for a much needed Spring Break, in Sunny California, thank GOD.

Wish me luck!

Missing out, yet again

If I were doing anything but Toy Design school right now, I would just quit, because I keep missing out on things in New York that are kind of driving me mad:

• I live right on the edge of the biggest Chinatown in the country, and I did nothing to celebrate Chinese New Year, except maybe I picked up red velvet cupcakes for my roommate and me on the way home from school. Even the lobby of my building was decorated for Chinese New Year. Oh, also I had Chinese takeout for dinner. But that's the same as every other night of my week.

• Fashion Week? Was that last week? Wait, don't I go to a fashion school? My roommate went to a fashion show, but I spent my days and evenings either in class or recovering from lack of sleep.

• Oh what's this, one of my friends covered Fashion Week for New York Magazine? And she's releasing a book about celebrity fashion, but I probably won't make her book party, because I will be in CLASS that evening??

• Knitting? Crocheting? Oh was that a hobby of mine? Oh yes, I remember those days. Hey, whaddaya know! My apartment is surrounded by fabric stores, some filled with yarn, but I don't have time for such things. But I did go shopping today for fabrics today for my soft-toy class though, and they don't carry fuzzy fabrics, really, because apparently fabric stores in Manhattan focus on clothing fabrics, not "craft" fabrics.

• Going out Saturday night? Hey, my cousins are inviting me to dinner and a movie! And my roommate is inviting me to the clubs! Oh wait, I had class all-day SATURDAY, and now I'm too tired to get my ass out the door.

• Broken camera? Too bad, I have to put off buying a new one, because I have to buy a $300+ wacom tablet, sculpting/masonry tools, and hundred-dollar textbooks. Luckily I have a fairly decent camera on my cellphone to get me by for now.

• Cute, straight boys who love karaoke? Oh wait, I left those in California. And my roommate is meeting the New York ones for me while I'm out hanging out with gay boys and teenage girls at Spice Girls shows.

At least I have the internets, so I can read and see pictures about all the fun I'm missing. It's like I'm there! But really, I'm not. And I can live vicariously with my roommate, who is apparently now hanging out with our neighbors and spotting the cast of "Make Me a Supermodel" at the local Whole Foods.

BTW, after the Toy Fair ends, in addition to my EIGHT classes, we start volunteering at a headstart program every week.

Well. I can't bitch that much. I did have an amusing adventure last Wednesday, taking the train from Manhattan out to Long Island for the Spice Girls concert. I am rather unfamiliar with the local geography, but I was tickled to pass through Hollis, which reminded me of the Run DMC Christmas song ("Christmas in Hollis").

We got to Nassau Coliseum early, so we stopped a nearby Marriott lobby to grab dinner at a sports bar... where they were playing nothing but Spice Girl songs! And we also got drinks without being carded, while I saw businessmen looking very confused among tables of too-young girls wearing very revealing clothing.

Of course the audience was heavy on the estrogen, with several girls dressed as Posh or Baby Spice, but we did spot the occasional boy who went by themselves!! The show was filled with spectacular stage theatrics, super-girly-fun choreography and the gayest backup dancers ever (who could breakdance and flamenco). Several costume changes and props were involved (including feathers and boas, of course). Costumes were by Roberto Cavalli, and my class BFF and I favored Posh's outfits the most.

We opted out on on the overpriced concert shirts ($45!), but I did buy a tote bag and buttons. To get home (on a school night!) I shared a cab with 5 half-drunk strangers.

After Marketing class on Friday, I went to see Juno with the bff, the only other person I knew who hadn't seen it. After that, we went to the Times Square Sanrio store, Toys R Us, and Sephora–you know, for research!!

So basically, I spend my free time like a Tween.

Tomorrow I think I find out who I'm interviewing with for an internship. I hope it's something good! I better go pick out a nice interview outfit... and oh yeah, finish some drafting and marker homework.

(Spice Girls photo by thewindytree, from the San Jose show. My seats were not quite as awesome.)

30-something going on 13

I hate to say this, but I think I kinda like Avril Lavigne, after seeing her remix of "Girlfriend" with Lil Mama. It's the super-girly answer to the old Run DMC/Aerosmith video. Avril's much more fun now that she's shed her teenage angst and embraced her poppy-glam (and sexy!) side.

Hmm, should I quit Toy Design before I fully convert into a tween?

I just browsed my Facebook wall, and the topics include: ice cream, puppies, bulldogs, rainbow poop, paper craft, and Super Mario. Next week, my class bff turns 23, and I told her we'd be reverse number ages! Woot!

In the meantime, I have to quickly figure out who I'm taking to see Spice Girls on Feb. 6 or sell the tickets. I might just take my class bff, but that means we'd both have to skip class to go. Of course it is my computer graphics class, and I already know how to do all that anyway.

I've also realized that despite being the eldest in class, I am probably a "bad influence" on my classmates, meaning:

• I slept between 2-6 hours a night from last monday-thursday, as opposed to 0-2 hours a night, like my classmates


• I am fairly militant about eating 3 meals a day, as opposed to my classmates, who forget to eat breakfast and lunch. Sometimes I get pissy when my classmates dilly-dally and then I just storm off by myself to get food. Then they get all pouty that I ate without them. (Oh wait, this is how I was at my old job.) But lately I've also been in charge of ordering delivery food, for 5-7 classmates at a time.


• My party/dance playlists that I play to keep my energy up --apparently have a lot of curse words, which I didn't realize, until we played our iPods on speakers in class, and surprised my classmates. But they liked it, cuz it's really cheeky cursing, as in the uncensored "London Bridge" and Fatboy Slim's "F***ing in Heaven".


• I plant ideas like going to pick up some wine or beer to bring to class, when we're up late in class doing work, to counter our stress level. And then some of my classmates forget they have Asian flush until it's a little too late. Luckily they have me to finish off their glasses--er, plastic cups for them.


• I went out dancing last weekend (during crazy Winterim) and invited my classmates by text, who all ignored me cuz they thought it sounded like a joke. I subsequently got the worst hangover of my life the next day, complete with a splitting morning headache that I couldn't sleep through... and vomiting. I hadn't done that in years, and I don't really ever want to do it again. Oh yes, I am a college student.
  
  I was all shaky from recovering on Sunday, that I couldn't draw steadily, so I called in sick for Monday class. I ended up drawing all day at home anyway, to catch up. I also didn't want to go to school when it was like ZERO degrees outside. But I would like to point out that ALL of FIT got MLK off except the Toy Design program! WTF!!


• I take the time to blog, Facebook, websurf (for inspiration!) and email/IM my friends from time to time.

I think my classmates are puzzled at how calm I am about the ridiculous workload we have to keep up with. I am naturally not a stressful person anyway, but it probably helps that I already had a career for awhile that I could go back to, and that I am paying for my own education with my own savings, AND I know the workload the department is placing on us is just unreasonable.

Yesterday, we were supposed to have our ten "idea books" completed by 2:30pm. (Idea books include 4-6 pages of idea sketches--on jumbo 14" x17" paper, a graphically designed title page, a mood board, a competitive product comparison board, and any color studies. Then we were to hand-mount them paper and bind them into books by hand.)

My classmates were freaking out. The Dean/teacher kept insisting that was when everything had to be finished, but I knew it was humanly impossible! So what is the point of stressing, except to just keep working as hard and fast as you can? On Friday, I told the Dean's assistant that even if we had all our work ready to print and bind by the next day, there were only Two photo printers to use, so how were we all supposed to even finish printing our work? He said we'd just have to be wise about alternating computer time.

So basically I've realized that they are all in denial about what is reasonable for completing work, and I don't really take any of the deadlines seriously. So I just work as hard as I can and maintain some level of rest so i don't burn out.

Of course, on Friday night, I only slept for 20 minutes. And then I stayed up all night drawing and laying out title pages. I showed up to class, and all the printers were being used. So I tried to sit and design my mood boards on my laptop as I waited, but I finally got so exhausted, I had to put my head down and nap on my desk. Another classmate brought a blanket (because half of them basically live in that classroom now) to put on me. (Earlier, I brought them extra clean towels and a sleeping bag to get through the week.)

I was impressed, though, that the Dean was there all day (she was also sick and this was SATURDAY), and taking the time to help two of the students bind and mount their books. These two students have interviews on Monday already, so it was especially important for them to finish on time. Also the Dean recruited two of our alumni to come in and help some of the less-computer savvy students complete their title page layouts mood boards, and whatnot.

So last night I got a huge night's rest to recover, and today I am going to finally finish the damned idea books... well at least making all the pages I hope? The Dean said she'd come into class today too (Sunday!), to help out if needed. And tomorrow morning I hope I'll finally bind them, which also takes time. I think the mounting/binding part is the worst. I hate glue and cutting things straight!! That'll be especially challenging when I'm tired. Also, btw, our second semester starts tomorrow. That's right, we have absolutely no break between Winterim and 2nd semester!!!

This whole internship interview process is such a mystery. She doesn't tell you who you're interviewing with until the night before! And during week of Feb 18, we have to be on campus all day all week, with our cell phones, dressed to impress, in case an interview comes up. Like we're on call. You'd think we'd be saving lives, but no, we're waiting to chat with people about toys. They also want to know if you have a car, incase the internship is in a town without good transportation options. I told them my car is in Texas, but that I could take a road trip again maybe? I hope they don't place me in Texas just because my car is there.

On the upside, we start a class w/ one of the cute alumni guys on Tuesdays. And Toy Fair is around the corner! Yay!

Toiling away

I was sitting at my classroom seat, working with 7 other classmates after midnight. And I realized that I had a bottle of Formula 50 Vitamin Water (for hydration and energy), a doubleshot soy latte from Starbucks (to keep me awake), AND a plastic glass of cheap plum wine (snuck into school by my classmates, to ease our stress level) at my desk, all partially consumed.

...all as I was trying to figure out how many more kinds of crazed, silly monster faces I could draw.

The rest of them are staying the night at school, but I decided I needed to get some sleep, cuz old folks like me need to reboot. And my hand was already cramping from all the drawing.

But just before I left the rest, we played our new favorite song, which by the way, I highly recommend at karaoke.

Back to the sweatshop

It's 6am and I overslept!

I meant to take a nap for 3 hours and then finish more homework... but my body protested. 'Doh!

I might finally post photos of my toy design portfolio later... As a teaser, here's what it includes:

• a bunny-shaped car
• a spinning rocketship
• robot animals
• a time machine
• a housecleaning jellyfish
• a monster croquet set
• space girls who shoot aliens
• disco earmuffs
• Mexican wrestlers
• gorillas in dresses

I'm finishing the croquet set and time machine today, and then I will pass out.

Two of my classmates have been really sick but still have been working almost all night for the last week! I don't know how they do it. I only had one hour of sleep the night before, and I'm already hating life right now.

But our Dean seems pretty pleased with how we're doing, even though we're all freaking out a bit lately. At the same time, I keep meaning to blog about more funny stuff that happens in class, but that will have to happen later. Gotta run to class!

Visitor Embargo Begins next week!

Okay. School is officially insane. I had to pull yet another all-nighter to keep up with the increasing load of homework.
Yes, friends, when you see me online at 2am PST, I am actually up. And if I'm not responsive, It's because I'm frantically markering or drafting another homework assignment.

On top of that, some of my lovely Californian friends are visiting and staying with me later this week. But honestly, I don't know if I'll even have time to hang out with them.

So I am placing an embargo on entertaining visitors, starting next week. If you are visiting New York, sadly I can't commit to spending time with you. If I magically can get away from school, I'll let you know.

They tell me school will be more manageable starting 2nd semester. In the meantime, I am NOT going out, unless you catch me on my rare once-a-month allotments.

Every month, I am allowing myself one concert, 1 date, and two other miscellaneous fun activities per month. This works out to one fun activity per week at most, if I can even fit those in. With the recent Tokidoki party, my upcoming visit from Emotion Eric, KP, BK, and Steph (we're going to see Spoon), plus Halloween (with various friends and classmates), and hopefully another date sometime this month... I am done for October!!

But my N.Y. cousins get a special pass to have meals with me.

I will now return to Santa's workshop.