I got the job, ladies and gents! Yippee! Today was my first day of work, and I gotta tell ya, it was pretty damn sweet. The job is basically this: Photograph the abstract metal art pieces and sculptures, edit the photos so that they look spectacular, and prepare the eBay listings for them. The main goal that the studio is aiming for is to make the images look as close as possible to how the pieces look in real life. A lot of times, people will see the images and think that it has blue or orange when it really doesn’t; it’s simply a light reflecting the wrong color onto the piece. My job is to correct old images and take new photos with the correct lighting and camera settings for the best final result. I spent the majority of the day taking photos, which is like heaven for me, since I love doing that anyway!

One of the nicest things about the job is that I get paid on Tuesdays. That means next week on Tuesday, I’ll be getting my first paycheck, which is so desperately needed right now, even if it will only be about $240 for Friday, Monday, and Tuesday. I work 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, 9 to 5. I’m so excited! Hopefully now, with the money coming in from the two book covers, and this job, I can finally fix my DAMN CAR! LOL. Until then, my wonderful hubby Audi is driving me to and from work.

Tomorrow, my parents are coming up to visit my family in West Palm Beach, and Audi is gonna drive me over there so I can spend some time with all of them. Later on in the evening, I’m going to the movies with the neighbors to see Alice in Wonderland in 3D. Audi’s really not in the mood to see it, but he said that if I wanted to go with them, that it would be cool. Heh. What a party pooper! ;D

Anyway, that’s pretty much it for now. Still waiting for a final confirmation from Random House, and planning on enjoying my weekend before *giggle* going back to work on Monday! XD

Ciao!

Art, Audi, Entertainment, Family, Friends, Fun, Job, Life alice in wonderland, Art, Audi, car, Family, studio, work

So I was contacted by Random House Australia, and they’re going to be printing Amelia Atwater-Rhodes’ “The Shapeshifters” in Australia/New Zealand. They want to use my work “Dirige” for their covers as well! Hooray!! I’m so happy and excited.

I called the art gallery/business I visited last week, and it seems they still haven’t filled the position. So, here’s to hoping they call me up! *crosses fingers* I’m still looking around at other potential jobs, since I don’t want to hang all my hopes on just one location.

On Sunday, I went down to Miami to spend some time with my parents and my best friend Chris. Sunday night we went to the movies to see ‘Shutter Island’. It was pretty intense. It’s the kind of movie that you need a really strong stomach to watch. I don’t mean in the sense of gore or bloodshed, but some of the subject matter is just… wow… like a punch in the face. I thought it was really great, though. The story was definitely unique and gripping. Now, I’m even more interested in buying the novel it was based on to see what might have been edited in the film.

Right now, the hubby is over at our friend’s house helping her out, since she is very pregnant and has a busted ankle. I would have gone with him, but I just wanted to enjoy being home today. I’ll be going over there tomorrow.

Anyway, I must continue my commission work. Ciao!

Art, Audi, Family, Friends, Fun, Job, Life Art, book cover, chris, Job, miami, shutter island

I visited my family again today. My cousin came to pick me up, and surprise, there’s my mama coming up the stairs. She figured, why not just drop off all the stuff that she got for me right now? Here’s a rundown…

- A liquid concealer from Cover Girl.
- Some bamboo place mats for the dinner table.
- Important car papers I needed.
- Two webcams (but after testing them a few hours ago, only one of them really works).
- And best of all, a Minolta 5000i 33mm camera with two lenses, a Minolta flash, two battery packs, lens cleaning cloths, and this awesome camera bag with spaces for everything. She got all this from a friend of hers who was just going to give them away to Goodwill. My mom stopped her and said that I was a photographer and that I would probably love to have it. Wee for mommys who support your craft!

So off I went to my cousin’s house after my mom dropped all this off. My brother and his two kids were also there visiting. So picture this: My mother, cousin, my aunt, my brother, my niece, my nephew, my three godkids, and my grandmother, all in one house. Hahaha. Hooray for big families! All in all, it was a pretty drama free day, thank goodness, and I took the cutest pic with my niece. You can see it here on my Facebook. I also took another really cute pic with my youngest goddaughter, where we’re pressing our noses together. haha.

Around 5 or so, my cousin went and dropped off my mother, brother, nephew, and niece at the train station while I babysat my godkids. My youngest goddaughter gave me the worst scare. We were in my cousin’s room, coloring and playing with those Webkins toys. I’m taking a video with my iPhone of my oldest goddaughter throwing the Webkins at me, when all of a sudden I see the little one fall head over heels off the bed. She must have miscalculated where her knee was supposed to land on the bed and took a nosedive. I panicked and rushed to help her. Other than a big scare, she had NO signs of damage. Thank you, baby Jeebus! I thought at first that her arm was broken since she wouldn’t move it. But then she relaxed a bit and I flexed it back and forth just fine. *phew*

Anyway, the day went on as usual. A few hours later, before my cousin dropped me off back home, the whole lot of us (except my grandmother) went out shopping to different places. I bought a really cute jacket at Walmart, and I plan on taking some photos in tomorrow. Wee! I’ve already got a make-up idea planned out for them.

At the present moment, I am camming with a good internet buddy of mine, Jenest. Hey, look, I plugged your name, girl! She’s super adorable, and very sweet.

Well, I am off for now. Ciao!

Audi, Family, Friends, Fun, Life camera, Family, gifts, shopping

Yes, indeed it was a very busy day today. I woke up around 11am. Of course, this was after taking a 3-hour nap, being awake for 7 hours, then taking another 3 hour nap right after… Heh. My sleep schedule is fucked, I know. I installed the part I’d bought from my friend Dave, and… the car still accelerates on its own! Apparently, changing the mass air sensor did NOT fix the problem. So, that means that it might be a vaccum leak, or a problem with the fuel injector. I really don’t know anymore. My uncle suggested just taking the

My hubby and I also finally ran those errands that we’d been putting off for days. He sent some Magic cards to a friend in Miami, and I sent a package to a buddy of mine that I know through deviantart.com. She had bought a Fella doll (Fella is the site mascot and they sell stuffed toys of him on the site) and sent it to me. I in turn would send it to her for MUCH cheaper shipping than what deviantart charges. I only paid $11 to send it to her in Romania, whereas deviantart charges almost $60!! It’s highway robbery.

Thank goodness though… we have less things to stress over now.

Our friends Arthur and Ellen invited us out to the local county fair. We drove over to their house and then we all went together in their SUV. The fair was actually a lot of fun, and nothing like the fairs I am typically used to. I didn’t get any souvenirs or anything, unless you count the ticket stub. We also didn’t ride anything; we mostly just went for the sites and the food. They were also giving the H1N1 vaccine for free in one of the main buildings, so all of us except Ellen got the vaccine (she’d already received it previously). Considering the vaccine costs $20 and the entrance was $15, we basically got a $5 discount on the vaccine shot. LOL.

I put up a new website layout a few days ago, and I also re-arranged some of the information and images on different pages. It was time for some clean-up and TLC. I figured now would be the best time to do it, since I am going to be very busy in the next few weeks with commissions.

I also put up all the prints that I’d gotten through deviantart up on my walls. I made a sort of mini-gallery right behind my computer. You can see it below:

My goal now is to get even more prints so that I can make the collection more impressive.

I can’t think of anything else to discuss, so… ciao!

Art, Audi, Entertainment, Friends, Fun, Life

So I wrote all this in my deviantART journal, but I figured it would be good to post this all here, too. A lot of good news coming my way, and here’s to hoping this year is just as eventful and fruitful as 2009.

 I was contacted by a metal band from Nottingham, UK called Martyr Defiled about doing the art for their upcoming August CD release. They want the front cover, back cover, a 12-page booklet, and the front and back design for the CD. I’ve already sent them my price, so here’s to hoping they say Yes.

I’ve been in Miami since Sunday visiting my family, and while I had plans with one of my best friends that got canceled, it actually turned out OK, anyway. A friend of mine and some of her gal pals want some very witchy portraits done of them. So, what I’ll figure I’ll do is create a series out of it. I’ll be going over to my friends house on Wednesday to take all their photos.

I got the part I needed to fix my car. Thankfully, a good friend of mine who works at NAPA Auto Parts was able to get the part for half the price I found it for everywhere else: $50. Now, I can finally have a working car!

Someone bought my 2010 calendar recently, and it allowed me enough money in my deviantART.com dollars to buy the very last Birthday Gold t-shirt available in Women’s Large. Now, large is too big on me, since I’m a small/medium up top. My mom can just make it smaller for me, so it’s no big deal.

Art, Family, Friends, Job, Life

My car is pretty much kaput until I can take it to a mechanic. And since I don’t really have the funds for a mechanic, it’s basically sitting out in front of my apartment, collecting bird poop and falling leaves. Hooray. The problem with it is that it accelerates on its own. After much research through forums and websites, it turns out the problem could be one of many things; the fuel injector is malfunctioning and giving too much power, or the Cruise Control is stuck, or a vacuum hose is leaking, etc etc etc… All I know is, I’m not a frigging mechanic.

I’ve been doing some cheap commissions lately, since we really kind of needed some income badly. I don’t regret turning down that job with Olan Mills, because I know I would have HATED getting up just to go stand at the front of K-Mart to convince people to buy photos. No thanks. Let the little old lady who’s retired and bored and had her interview right before mine have THAT job. So, basically, here’s how the commission prices go:

Commissions for <b>$5</b>:
- Photo retouching (Using a photo of you, your friend(s), or a loved one and making it look professionally taken; Image MUST BE High-Res.)

Commissions for <b>$10</b>:
- Portraits (Using a photo of you, your friend(s), or a loved one and making it special; Image MUST BE High-Res)
- Digital Art Piece (A simple digital work in a style of your choosing; dark, surreal, fantasy, etc…)
- Tattoo Designs (If you’ve got an idea for a tattoo, I’ll draw it out for you.)

Commissions for <b>$15-$20</b>:
- Uber Portraits (Using a photo of you, your friend(s), or a loved one and making it extra special; Image MUST BE High-Res)
- Specialized Digital Art Piece (A work based off of your own personal idea or concept, done in my style)

So, if anyone’s interested, just email me at neugotisch(a)hotmail.com. I’ve added three of my latest commissions to my website, in case anyone is interested in seeing what kind of results you’ll be getting.

As far as personal stuff, things are fine. I’m going to be heading down to Miami for Christmas, and I hope that these last few days of the year are kind to both me and Audi (as well as everyone else, of course).  I seriously can’t believe a DECADE is so close to ending. Cripes, where does the time go?

Anyway, I guess that’s all for now. Ciao.

Art, Audi, Family, Friends, Life Art, Audi, christmas, commissions

Well, I was completely dreading the trip my hubby and I were taking down to Miami for Thanksgiving, but thank goodness, it was actually a rather pleasant experience. Our friend Ellen dropped us off at the train station, and as usual, it was a boring ride down. When we got there, Audi’s sister, Karen, was nowhere to be found. Turns out she took the wrong exit and ended up getting stuck in the airport, fighting her way out of the traffic jams. When we finally made it to her apartment, Audi’s mom and niece were so happy to see us. His niece was the most excited, though. She was jumping up and down and wanting to play and so on. She’s SO cute, and so smart! She has this very mature way of speaking, so it sounds like you’re talking to a 20-year-old as opposed to a 5-year-old. LOL! We played some Wii, watched some cartoons, and then we all went to bed.

The next day, Audi drove us all in his mom’s car over to the Metro PCS store (I think it was Metro PCS, anyway) so she could pay her cell phone bill, and then he drove me over to my parent’s house. In the meantime, he went shopping with his mom. I hung out with my dad, and then later with my mom when she came home from work. My brother was there, too, and we talked a little bit here and there. Afterwards, our friends Dave and Sandra drove over to pick me up, and then to pick up Audi so we could all hang out. We had made plans a few days earlier to hang out on Wednesday, since neither of them had to work the next day (Thanksgiving day and all). That was some of the most fun I’ve had in a long time. We played Magic the Gathering (because we’re all such raging nerds) until the crack of dawn. When we finally decided to call it quits, we walked outside and the sun had risen. Magic the Gathering. My anti-drug and drug all at the same time.

After eating some breakfast and catching a few Z’s, I got my stuff together. Audi had some fun taking pictures with my camera while I was taking a nap on the couch, by the way. ;D haha. Dave and Sandra drove me to my parent’s house again, and they drove Audi back to his mom’s place. A few hours later, my family started showing up. My brother, my niece, my aunt, my cousin (and her three kids aka my godchildren), and my grandma all came to celebrate Thanksgiving with me and my parents. It was a REALLY nice time. All the kids behaved, the food was wonderful (especially that pumpkin pie, YUM-MY!), and there was NO drama whatsoever. That’s a holiday that deserves some major thanks! After my extended family left, only my niece was left to head out. I was originally going to have my niece drive me over to Audi’s mom’s house, but my dad offered to take me since it was already getting late. I get there, and the first thing Audi’s niece says is, “You’re late!” LOL. I love that little girl. I had some more Thanksgiving dinner, talked to some of Karen’s friends, and once again, watched cartoons with Audi’s niece.

Finally, we all went to bed. The next morning we woke up (officially woke up, since Audi’s niece kept waking us up every hour on the hour) and got our stuff together (again). My parents came by to pick us up and drop us off at the train station. After another boring train ride, our friend Arthur came to pick us up. Before dropping us off at our apartment, he swung by the new house that he and his wife are in the process of moving into. The house is AWESOME, and has a lot of room, which they’re going to need since Ellen is pregnant. ;D

Anyway, that’s the gist of my trip. It was a really nice time, and despite a few tiny moments of drama, I had a lot of fun. And now, I am off to do my weekly features for deviantart, and then watch a movie with the hubby.

Ciao!

Entertainment, Family, Friends, Fun, Life Audi, Family, Friends, magic, thanksgiving

Today (well, technically it would be yesterday since I’m writing this at three in the morning) was just one of those that went from bad to just plain shit. I was seriously debating whether or not to actually go out and do something, just so that I wouldn’t be at home all day. I finally decided I’d go out to the mall. *shrug* So I head out, get there, walk around, buy nothing and decide I don’t want to go home just yet. I drive across the street, go to some more stores. As I’m exiting the Best Buy, I say to myself, “I’m just gonna go home. I’m tired of being out.”

I get to my car, turn the engine… and nothing. It grinds for about two seconds, and then NOTHING. No lights, no sounds, no indication that this car is alive in any way. I immediately know what the problem is. One of the clamps on my car battery is slightly cracked, so I figured the problem was that there was no power going to the engine. I ended up having to call a towing company to take my car back to my apartment. >_< Thankfully, since my insurance covers towing for up to 50 bucks, it ended up being free. AND the tow truck guy was actually really nice, efficient, and knowledgeable. He knew exactly where my address was and after taking only 10 minutes to get to me, I was home within 20 minutes of calling my insurance company.However, now I have the joy of having to fix my car. There’s no point in trying to find a job if I have no car to get me there! More money that needs to be wasted on that piece of shit. UGH.

Well, after I got home, my neighbor asked what happened (it’s not that easy to hide the sight of a huge tow truck, apparently). I explain to her what happened, and we got to talking. I told her that I was basically home alone for the weekend. She invited to hang out with her and her boyfriend if I wanted some company. So, after I made myself a sandwich (in my kitchen, of course), and checked my email/messages, I headed over. I played some Call of Duty 4, we watched TV, I had two beers, etc etc… It was nice to have someone to chill with. I’ve been pretty lonely for the last few days. =/ I’m such a wimp. LOL.

Anyway, Audi is coming back home tomorrow and I am VERY happy about that. ^_^ Hooray! I get to see my hubby again! *dances*

And now, I am off to bed. I hope. Ciao!

Audi, Friends, Life, Rants Audi, car, mall, neighbors, tow