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Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Without comparisons; how does a human rate the value of their progress or lives in general?????? It's such a baffling question, because pride and accomplishment is only based on a scale of social norms. It's all a matter of perception; which is a problem because I have no idea where I stand on the scale and what is the difference between actual accomplishments and just simple existence. I already have a poor self perception because I work in fast food currently; which is awful for me because it's considered one of the lowest ends of the job spectrum. I know it's not true to a certain extent, and some people really like working fast food. But as for me...I just feel like I accomplished nothing at all and I have failed to progress anywhere since I'm in the same type of job as I had 17 fucking years ago when I was a teen. So yea, I'm feeling the downs and where people have succeed...I have only stagnated. It's the reason I have been so depressed with work and school. Other than that my life is good. Perhaps I base too much value as to where I work? Where is pride to be found? I'm not writing this for the purpose of gaining attention; but for the purpose of asking a very real question that has too many different answers. Being 27 years old, I have seen world communication skyrocket from a limited amount to what it is today. Culturally, people believed and acted within their societies with firm knowledge of what is expected of them and what factors to feel prideful about. With communication and full knowledge of the world at ones fingertips, it's difficult to assess oneself and have any solidity as to what is successful and what is not, all from a cultural standpoint. I'm not saying I fail to love technology, but I'm just noticing and feeling as to how vast knowledge can effect ones own identity and self worth.
~Gemi
Monday, October 16, 2006
My site, www.GeminiMystica.com, received a slight re-design. The layout is pretty much the same, but the “pages“ are re-done to better fit the way it's set up. Not only being easier to view, I also finally created an “art“ section which features my best Gemini pictures. I also feel that it has nice presentation, especially the art page. The “Design Sales“ sections is still down, but I have some plans within the month to get a Cafe' Press account when I received my first paycheck from my new job.
~Gemini
Saturday, July 15, 2006
I have added “The Bloodletting“ art page to my portfolio. This little flash page is located in the “Web Graphics“ category, under the “Designs For Clients“ sub-category. Or click here to warp to it. And yes, some “promotional art“ for the game is in the making because I really want to display some of these pictures in their full forms, such as Angela Death and Alex Brubaker. Their designs look really nice.
~Gemini
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Between tedious job hunting and some personal matters, I allowed myself to procrastinate a little too much with the game characters. Oh well, I have most of them already done and I should be able to get them all complete before Saturday of this week. All of the characters are already drawn, so they only need to be inked, scanned, and quickly colored. Here are the finished products, and I will add the pictures to this post when I complete the rest.
From the left:Alex Brubaker, Angela Death, Vampiric Clan Member, Black Fist Ninja, Caledonii, Road Thug, Spry Nimble, “Saint“ Niccolai, Simon “Rock“ Riccola, Melody Morningstar, Lugoman, Bongo, Hannibal McKay, Penumbra, Nuke Zombie, Elite Ranger,
~Gemini
               
Monday, May 22, 2006
A question has been poking at me for about a year now on the subject of copywriting and trade-marking material. Ever since my anime/manga-style character; Gemini of my upcoming series “Gemini Mystica”, I have been wishing to legally protect her and her series through copyright, and/or Trademark for the character herself. I have performed many searches on my own, but unfortunately was only able to uncover self-promotional lawyers and web sites who claim to sell you the legal rights. Today, my dad informed me that I can ask everyone on this blog and see if I get a response as to the best way to copyright Gemini. So, for those people who had their characters or businesses copyrighted or anyone who has really good information, can you please give me some tips and/or the same way you may have copyrighted or trademarked your character? I also wish to know if there is any licensing or legal maters involving computer and internet sales. I plan to sell upcoming designs and art on my web site, but am hesitant to do so in fear of breaking any legal business regulation. Anyone is welcome to give me information. Thank you so very much! :)
Update:
www.legalzoom.com
~Gemini
Saturday, June 10, 2006
Ever have those days in which you feel like your keeping busy but that you also don't have enough to do? Describes exactly how I feel. My progress in the Web and Graphic designs has taken a record height this week with two clients that I am currently working for! It’s really awesome that my work is finally recognized. Still don’t have a stable job yet, and that sucks. Apparently applying everywhere does not cut it, but I am glad that I have clients because it makes me feel at least productive during the day when my boyfriend goes to a job and I am left at home to plan my moneymaking strategy of the week. Still, the greatest thing about clients is the feeling that I have finally launched the first step to my business and that it has a chance to truly take off. Still, I think I am going to need something more for the future just in case that Gemini Mystica is not a hit. I mean, I do not want to end up working for the same wage of under $10 an hour for the rest of my life! I want to be able to live it up and provide fun vacations and a well-off lifestyle for my boyfriend and I. So, this brings up the need of college. I just don’t know what to take that will make me money! The market of Web and Multimedia that I have previously studied in want people with Degrees for still too little money for the actual cost of the education. So getting into something else sounds like it would be the smartest way to go. Sadly, it is very difficult for a person like me to make a decision for college since the only thing I really like in the job world is art and design. I like science too I guess, but everything else is just unappealing. When my goal is to be happy with my life-long career decision, it looks like I am going to have to cut corners and accept only one of the two biggest factors: Making enough money, or being happy with the work. Sad that it’s a rarity to find both…
Oh, by the way, my portfolio's new layout is finally up. You can view it at www.GeminiMystica.com Still has an old introduction though.
~Gemini
Monday, May 29, 2006
I have noticed that every time I climb over a hump in my Flash work, I find that the resolution presents the basics of pure logic and order. Everything makes sense at that point and seems to apply to not only the program, but the world itself. Perhaps this is another reason why I love to strive so hard to establish my goals in Flash. This ever-sensible program is like my little bubble of serenity; a world in which order applies to all objects and actions. Perfection….
This is what I had:
My portfolio needed a Site Map, but the site is set up so that the “pages” are individual .swf files that are loaded into the main .swf layout when the site is being browsed. I did this by using the “loadmovie” command and it’s “location” property that directs the desired file to show only in the designated masked layer. I had real fun with this, and love how the main layout is never left when browsing the site. It keeps information organized and uncluttered. However, when making a site map, I discovered that it is literally impossible to direct a “loadmovie” file to load into a separate flash file. I solved this by creating the sitemap in a different frame number of my layout page in which the mask does not exist. From there, each button contains two separate sets of source-code. The first source jumps to the frame number that contains the mask, allowing the movie to now use the second source, “loadmovie” into the masked layer. Flash feels so limitless.
~Gemini
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
After tampering with my portfolio for a little while today, I have discovered that I am going to have to make another decision on to either keep or leave a planed feature. This means that my new portfolio layout will take a little longer than I have hoped. This, however, does not mean that I can’t upload any new pictures to my web site itself. I ask you, please do not look at the portfolio itself because the layout is an old thing that I created a few years ago. Click the links below to see my most recent art pieces of my very own character, Gemini. These pictures are hand drawn in light pencil, inked, and scanned.
www.geminimystica.com/gemsleep.gif
www.geminimystica.com/fromthetop.gif
GeminiMystica.com, Gemini Mystica Character, and Gemini Mystica Logo © 2003-2006 Mindy Lea Miller aka: Gemini Mystica
~Gemini
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
The weight of being broke is starting to finally crack me. I am actually discovering how upset I feel when the pathetic jobs tell me that their hiring has been canceled. This fact makes me feel low, so high spirits were not exactly in store for me today. Low spirits usually mean low production on my part, and it unfortunately does not aid my cause. I am hoping that when my Dad and I finish The Bloodletting, the popularity of my art will go up a notch and attract some possible financial attention to my portfolio. I will most likely upload my portfolios new layout as soon as I am done with the site map. I faced a slight dilemma while creating the map, but I know that if I give it at least 10 minutes of my undivided attention, I could find which frame the bug is in and what part of the source code got messed up. I have just been too sluggish to do anything with it though. As for the Bloodletting, I did some practice sketches of them based on the first thing that comes to mind when I read their bio’s. Not looking that great yet, thus the phrase: “practice sketches”. Time is against me in all other levels accept for The Bloodletting, and that feels good, very good.
~Gemini
Monday, May 22, 2006
First of all, I never though of myself as one to start a blog. Blogs just seemed so outdated for my use, like a silly thing where teenagers vent their feelings of universal “blah” or a thing to go on about how many hours they spent at a mall picking out makeup. But today, I finally seen the intelligence I have ignored for so long in blog use and a reason of attraction to even the intellectuals. It’s also kind of fun to read a side of family members and friends that you don’t always see in person. Get into their head, it’s interesting…. Anyway, why would Gemini be suddenly interested in bloging? For research and development process recording of course! I am constantly finding new methods to create my flash sites/animations/etc. and new breakable limitations in which I spend hours trying to crack. Damn, thinking about this makes me always wonder “Why can’t I ever be this motivated when working for someone else?!” I mean, there was only one employer in my life that I actually did work hard for. Unfortunately, my efforts were still not good enough because of two factors: 1: The hiring and promotion of a new Supervisor; and 2: The bulk of my work (creative writing) was slowly decending into repetition of words, making me loose my touch after writing about the same products for nearly a year. All of the sudden, my stuff was not good enough anymore; not to mention that when more pressure was placed on this supervisor of mine, she became intolerant of everything and expected absolute perfection from this run-dry creative writer. My ability to design web pages and graphics was unable to save me since I was only assigned the web and graphics work when the primary workers were too busy to work on them. After loosing the only job I have ever truly respected, finding another professional design company proved to be more difficult than I have hoped. My resume’ was ignored by the design companies for so long that it has become a necessity for me to go back to the pathetic kinds of jobs in which I must compeate against the local teenagers for. I had hoped that I seen the last of these jobs when I left a movie theater position in 2004. Now it’s 2006 and have the feeling that I will have to start from the beginning…yet again. Sad really, but there are plenty enough Americans going through this kind of thing right now, so I have no real room for anything but statements because complaints are useless to their furthest extent. In conclusion: rather than make a blog of my personal complaints, I will most likely use this for personal statements and logging of my progress into finally reaching my true goal: self employment.
Later,
~Gemini
I have theorized that I am a blog nut due to the fact that this is my second post within the same few hours. The first post was, however, just an introduction. What brought me here to begin with is the GWB Game Design Contest. Now, I am not entering on a stand-alone game, but to aid my father in the development of his game: “The Bloodletting”. My father, Scott Miller, has been into computer programming for years, and I was especially surprised when he informed me of his ability to create video game mechanics. I was excited when he told me about it and how he needs me to do the art for the cards in which the game is played. As an artist/web developer type, I am always scrounging for new material to place in my portfolio. So, I instantly agreed to it and am now running through ideas on which is the best way to properly express the soul of each card. I am not unfamiliar with cards such as these, as I have seen my boyfriend play “Magic: The Gathering” a number of times. To be honest, I find myself gazing in amazement at the pictures that purely express the cards more than playing the actual game. My personal goal is to create personality for The Bloodletting that is at least close to the amount of soul that the Magic cards seem to possess. As I progress in creating the pictures, I will continue to log all things new and also mull over what to say about my portfolio. I will not bother with placing a link to my portfolio yet, due to the fact that it’s still in it’s older format and I need a few days to finish up it’s flash version. It’s looking good though. Anyway, if you wish to view progress about “The Bloodletting”, please visit my Dad’s blog at http://geekswithblogs.net/appsguild
~Gemini
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