cerona

ell, it's been a long time since I updated my journal and quite a lot has happened since then. First of all, thanks to everyone who wished me a happy Birthday, and a massive hug to those who gave points, subscriptions and even art! ♥ It was such an amazing surprise that people still remembered me after my basically year-long absence, and cared enough to drop by :3

I think it's safe to say that I won't be forgetting this Birthday for a very long time. My fiancé took me out for a meal at a restaurant in town, and on our way back to the house, the car got hit by a bus. There's this horrible junction in a one-way system where one lane turns and splits into two lanes depending on which way you're going next. It would have been fine if it was just that one lane, but there's a bus lane right next to it. So while we were on the right lane, indicating to turn to the left one, a bus rushes past on the lane to the left. Long story short, we stopped for the first bus even though we had right of way, then a second bus comes along, doesn't look where he's going and corners our car, crushing the side of it as it goes past. It doesn't really make much sense, I know, but it was such a horrible feeling, and it almost seemed like it all happened in slow-motion. I could see that there would be no space left for the car and knew what was going to happen. Luckily the bus driver actually stopped and didn't just keep driving, so we could exchange details and all that. But just knowing that our car, our lovely perfect little car, had been damaged so badly was awful.

The next day my fiancé rang up the bus company, and they said that he would have to pay for all the damage caused to his car AND to the bus, even though there was nothing we could have done. The bus driver claimed it was not his fault and of course they sided with him. Fortunately for us though, the company received some witness calls within the hour, and one of them stated that our car hadn't been moving, thus making it impossible for it to be our fault. So in the end, the bus company ended up paying for all the damage without it affecting the insurance for the car. It got sent off for repair for two weeks, and I don't think we've ever been happier to see it when we finally got it back.

OTHER NEWS

I recently had my official graduation, all dressed up in the funny hat and gown, shaking hands with strangers and being herded like sheep. I received my official grade, which I'm very disappointed at! I was expecting a nicely rolled up parchment scroll with ribbons and waxed seals and everything old-fashioned, and it's just a plain old boring paper in an envelope! To top it all off, we were even given a fake scroll to hold during the photo shoots, to make it look like our certificate. All lies..

Job-wise I'm quite caught up at the moment. In addition to my other job, I've also been offered a freelance contract with actual pay, so excited! My tablet's finally working the way I want it to, or maybe it's just me that's got used to how it works. Got my specially cut protective film for it so it's now all smooth, shiny and scratch-free after a month of frequent use.

Finally, sorry for the inactivity even after I promised I would return with more art! It's taking a while to adjust to my new job, and organising the days accordingly. And unfortunately, after my 8-hour intense drawing session is over for the day, I'm kind of sick of drawing and prefer to do something non-art related. But I hope to find a balance in there somewhere so that I can still draw without losing all inspiration!

Features

s the title suggests, I can finally and safely say that I am back! I've had a few months of pure relaxation - no rush, no obligations - during which I forced myself to put everything on hold and just enjoy the moment.

In the beginning of July, me and my fiancé went to visit my family again. This time, I stayed for the whole month, including a couple weeks by myself. As always, it was wonderful to see them all again and get to spend time with them. I was hoping to make another appointment with my allergy therapist, but she was on holiday the whole time. So I have to continue struggling with my allergies until I find someone closer that can help. We didn't do much else as such, just enjoyed some nice weather at the summer cottage, went biking, swimming and so on.

The scary thing right now is not knowing what the future holds. It's the end of Summer and I should be getting stuck in looking for a job, which I sort of am. I'm in a horrible situation where I've been offered a "position" with a small company, but they have no money or funds to offer at the moment, and won't be getting any before 2-3 months, maybe more. Which means I am working for free with no guarantee of any income, ever. They still want me to put in full working hours during the week, with only a promise of a full-time position if they get enough funds together.

I don't mind working for free, as it would still be a valuable asset on my CV in the future, but having no income and not being able to look for other jobs is quite depressing. Should it all go well (which I of course hope) then it would be a great way in to the gaming industry, but should it all turn out to be a flop, then well, it's all been a waste of time that I could have spent looking for another job. So it's all a bit up and down at the moment. My job at the moment is character concept and environmental design, though I'm more of the digital colouring artist in collaboration with another designer. Unfortunately, because it's a work in progress for this game, I am unable to share any of the images with you guys, sorry!

MY TABLET

In regards to my previous poll, thanks for all the suggestions about a new tablet! I have had my eyes set on the Wacom Intus4 for a long while, and you all helped make my mind up. As you may already know, my previous Bamboo tablet broke last year, and I've been using my fiancé's one as a back-up, which he hasn't been too happy about. A lot of new marks and scratches have apparently appeared since I've used it..!

So, as a graduation present for receiving a First Class Honours Degree (yes, the highest possible!) in my course, my parents kindly bought me a new tablet of my choice. So this little (or rather, huge!) beauty arrived just last week ♥



I haven't had the chance to try it out yet, since I don't want the surface to get worn before I've received the screen protector for it. The first shock was when the package came. It was frickin' enormous! I had gone over the dimensions of the Intuos M several times online, so I should have known the size of it, but for some reason it stuck with me that it would be the same size as my previous tablets. As you can see from the photo, it's almost double the size, and it is literally as big as my laptop.



That surprise aside, I did have a little go at it (come on, who wouldn't?) using the plastic bag it came in as a temporary cover. The few things I did notice didn't impress me like I thought they would, but hopefully it's something I can get used to in the future. Even after fiddling around with the sensitivity options, I found that I have to push nearly double as hard to get the same thickness and flow of the stroke as I would with my Bamboo tablet. I don't like pushing hard in the first place, so it kind of concerns me a bit. And of course the large surface means the brush moves a lot slower than I'm used to!

For now, while I still try to figure everything out and where I am in the art world again, I won't be uploading any new art, just some of what has been left out during the half a year that I had no time uploading anything. I will also need to work on my human drawings more, since it's vital for my job, so I'm not sure how much horsey stuff I'll get a chance to draw either, apart from the few commissions I still have.

That's all for this time, hope you are all good ♥

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