North Korea South Korea

This is a "small" book that I picked up the other day for about $6. I had always been curious at how an author could hope to capture such a broad topic in this tiny of a book.

To his credit, Feffer does well in conveying his thoughts. Unfortunately his thoughts are far too odd for my tastes. He is quite Anit-American and belives that the US opperates with a type of Gun-boat diplomacy. Now he may not be totally wrong in that, but it would be nice to see him take the other parties involved to task as much as he does the US. (*cough* Cumings *cough*)

Pick it up if you find it cheap somewhere.

Practical Poser 6

Well I tried my best at sligging thorugh this #d art boook that I bought online. And while there were some good tips in it, I am still not able to do what I want as freely in Poser as I am in Photoshop.

Ah well, maybe in the future.

April stuff

I just realized it has been quite some time since I updated this blog. Honestly, I've been pretty busy of late (not with work) and I've just kind of forgotten about this place. My appologies, if you are reading this then it means you actually care (or are really bored), I'll make sure to give you something to read then.

This month has not been all that eventfull. Work is good but not too taxing. I get to sleep in most days and work out most evenings. Joo and I are both doing good in the "getting in shape" dept. Every so often she comes into the computer room and shows me how slim her stomach is getting.

Art wise I've been quite busy of late. I've had a few commissions (yup, got paid a little) and have a new mini-gallery that you can check out here:
http://juggertha.deviantart.com/gallery/
Mostly superhero stuff but I am very proud the progression in skills - be sure to click on the little thumbnail pics.

As for movies and tv, well my big kick of late has been dowloading the Sopranos. Season 6 has started and I'm enjoying it so far. I had to watch 3 weeks of season 4-5 to catch up and understand what's going on though.

We're planing on heading to Canada in June so if you want anything (from either place) make sure to tell me.


-Ed

Downloads - updated

If you are wondering how I am downloading all these cool movies you can download the Bitcomet program here and then search for movies/files here or better yet here.

It is really just that easy.



(thanks go to my favorite idiot )


Bumping this for some friends.

Yodok story

Yodok tells the story of a young 강령화, a lead entertainer in the North’s propaganda department, and her struggles for survival.
Initially 강 is praised throughout the North for her talented acting, but that is soon to fall apart when her father is accused of spying for the South.
The family is stripped of it’s honors and is sent to a labor camp... Yodok. There the family encounters cruelties that were previously beyond imagination.
From the brutality of her initial rape, and the constant abuse levied at them from the guards, comes a mixture of sorrow and hope.
This hope, is their story.

Before I get started, I must say one thing - I am usually not a big fan of musicals. When I watch Disney films, I always think the songs ruin the animation. And when I watch the Sound of Music ... well, I don’t actually watch it. So it was a great surprise to me when I actually enjoyed this musical. Not being a big fan of the genre I expected to sit through it and understand little (it is done in Korean). I am glad that was not the case.
The songs, instead of taking away from the story (or distracting me from it) instead added surprising power to it. From the opening act of the propaganda films to the scenes where death was a moment away, the songs gave voice to the spirit of the actors. One song in particular moved me - sung from someone who had seen the South, he begged God not just to visit the South but to come to the North too.
The singing itself was superb and the lead actress enchanted me from the start. As well, the act changes and set design left me feeling like I was watching ... not just a movie, but something more real, more alive.
This performance may not change your beliefs about the Peninsula, but if you can sit through it without shedding a tear - you’ll be the only one in the audience to do so.

Of Mice and Men

John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men has been around for quite some time. I've always heard the title mentioned, but like so many books, that was all I knew about it. i figured it had something to do with great men - maybe in comparassin to thsoe lesser men (mice?).

So I read thebook and the 100 or so pages went by too fast. It was a very easy read (note above 100 pages) and I finished it in one day. Basically the story runs with two men in the dirty thirties trying to find work and a future. They end up finding one but not the other.

Read it to find out.

My stuff

So, as you may have noticed, I've only been writing on this blog about once every few weeks. It's not because I've lost interest, but rather because I a MORE interested in other things ;)

I've been doing quite a lot of drawing of late and if you have the time you can check them out here : http://virtue-art.blogspot.com/
I've actually been paid for a couple of those and I'm going to save all that money and buy myself a how to draw book. hehe.

Actually, that is not far from the truth. I've just recently been toying with a program called Poser6 and have thoroughly frustrated myself. To make myself feel better I 1) bought more RAM for my comp and 2) Bought a how to use Poser book from Amazon. My goal is to be able to bring some of my ideas into a more digital look. I love the comic style but would like to see something different on occasion. Something like this...

(and NO, this is not my work but it's something I would like to be able to do some day. This guy is seriously skilled) http://www.douglasshuler.com/shop/images/ValHallaPoster01.jpg


I've also been using my MP3 to listen to some old tunes and some Korean tapes. Heck, if I get any better with my Korean, I just might go to school.... pfffftt. Ok, that's a big "if".

The Third Chimpanzee

The Third Chimpanzee by Jared Diamond is a book I would recommend to anyone who is interested in evolutionary theory. It takes Darwin's natural selection to specifics about human mating paterns (of selection, nothing too juicy). Why are there different races on this planet and what does it really mean to be White or Black or Asian.

He also delves into the environment and our relationship to it. I may in the past have not been the best with recycling at my house, but I'm now inspired to do more. I'd write more but basically, If you liked Germs, Guns and Steel, you'll like this one.

"Creationists believe that our species had a separate origin through divine creation. Suppose, though, that we should detect on another planet a society of seven-legged creatures more intelligent and ethical than we are, and able to converse with us, but having a radio receiver and transmitter instead of eyes and a mouth. Shall we believe that these creatures (but still not chimps) share the afterlife with us, and that they too were divinely created?"

February Update:

I've heard from a few people that they actually read this thing and that they liked Joo's writing. Well, I'll have none of that! She writes one article and people phone me! What's up with that??

Anyway, I thought I would just put up a quick post to say what it is I am up to nowadays...

Books:
I just finished reading War and Peace. It is quite the epic. Nothing I can write in a paragraph would do it justice so I'll just settle with this; It's LONG! Tolstoy is good, no doubt, but he sure takes his time in saying anything. Read it though... if you have a lot of time on your hands.

Movies:
I've watched more movies this year then I probably have in my life time. Now that I am able to download for free, well, I'm doing some catching up it seems. The thing is though, when you get something for free, you don't seam to value it as much. That's kind of how I am looking at movies now. I may watch 5 one week, but god help me if I can remember any of them. Actually, today I watched The Weatherman (Cage) and thought it was decent. And a few days ago I watched Walk the Line (Pheonix) and liked that too (although not as much as Ray). I also watched Brokeback Mountain (which the only thing in it that I liked was the landscape) and Transamerica (now this one I would recommend). I'm sure there is another dozen I am forgetting... but maybe it is better that way.

TV:
These days I am hooked on a few. Desperate Housewives, LOST, My Name is Earl, and Arrested Development (oh and ROME, but it is over now). Again, all thanks to the mighty power of downloading.

Drawing:
I am quite proud of something. In case I have not phoned or written you personally, you might not know how happy I am about something. I sold my first piece. That's right, I actually made money (not much) off of my hobby. It is quite an accomplishment for me and as a commissioned piece, I think it looks quite good.

Thor's Assassin

Oh and just for a bit of revenge on my loving wife, I took this picture while she was sleeping. Enjoy the wondrous Moon-faced Girl!

Happy to be back in Seoul!

I just came back on Friday from Hanoi, and I am so glad to be home with Eddie:)

Yes, I do travel quite alot and I may have to go back in March. I am hoping that that will be my last trip to Hanoi. No offense to Hanoi, but I miss my Eddie and Seoul where I can understand what people are saying. I can understand how difficult it must be for Eddie to live in Seoul but he is doing well.

I am happy to be back in Seoul. My parents are back from China. They came last week while I was in Hanoi. I visited them today and it was like the old days.... but of course, I would not go back to the old days because..... I am enjoying my life as it is.

I am not enjoying everything though. Since I've been back, I have developed a sore throat and cough. Eddie is making me take some disgusting medicine called Buckley's. It is horrible but it seems to work. No more coughing.

-Joo