mijn boek is done!

my book is done! (online version soon)

that's my lameduck attempt at speaking dutch for "my book is done!" but anyway, the book i've been working on about my august visit to holland is finally complete. spreek je filipijns? (that's dutch for "do you speak filipino? / nagtatagalog ka ba?" and pronounced "sprake ye philly-panes") is all done. well, not really. the one and only existing bound copy is currently in transit to chicago, where it's going to be featured at an upcoming art show this monday. and the other 2 planned hard copies are still in the process of being bound.

most important part is that im quite happy with the finished product. but of course it helps that it's been getting good reviews from officemates. a post it note from kristi says, "amazing. im in awe." angela, on my way to the printer says, "can you take me on your next vacation?," and caroline raves, "hey dude, that book of yours from your trip was crazy shit ass!" was just waiting for her to follow through with "fashizzle my nizzle" but instead she asks how i did that background effect on that family spread (yes, il cone, it's zi beusmans family she was asking about and yes, your complimentary copy will crawl its way to the lowlands). an online launch will be done very soon. im just figuring out how to compress the book into a pdf without ruining the "beautiful spreads" (brockie the brit's words not mine).

view my animation

in somewhat related news, ive also completed the revisions to my animation, "jason's final concept". it's likewise on its way to chicago to be featured on monday. i have a strong feeling its going to win best in show and earn me 2 tickets to anywhere i wanna go in the US (but now that ive probably jinxed it let's see if it still happens).

another pet project went well over the weekend. the get-together lunch i organized was well-attended. the usual folks were there plus some new faces (which is always good). didnt have as much people as kuya germs' lunch but it was good nonetheless. must have been the social relevance of the theme. in the 5 minutes we spent talking about the issue of "brain drain", it was interesting to hear the different perspectives people brought to the table—especially the various reasons why filipinos choose to stay here in the states. the newsletter i prepared was extremely unexpected and well-received (chester was even singing to "babalik ka rin") people enjoyed uncle sammy's goody bag of potchi and dalandan mentos as well.

last night: jason mraz's concert

enough jason p! time for jason mraz—got to see his concert last night. really enjoyed myself (much better than in mayer's concert). he played songs from his new album and hits from his old one. great spiels and stand up comedy from mr. A-Z. he had a great front act too. raul midon, who's stevie wonder on guitar. you should check his music.