Random Musings of an Uninspired Muse.

Well, I guess I need to update to get that review off my front page. I dunno, my trial subscription to Photoshop CS3 ran out yesterday, sooo that means no digital art for awhile I guess. Oh well. Overall though, Im pretty happy I guess. Im still kind of worried about my math class, and I think Im going to try and find a tutor tomorrow after I get out of class if I can. But, like I said, everything is just pretty chill right now. Im enjoying myself, and Im just happy to be here? I guess? XD well, I know, but yeah.


Like I said before, I wont be able to upload any digital or traditional art, but that doesnt mean I cant do traditional. I havent done much (read:any) traditional art since I got here, so I guess this is as good an opportunity as ever. Anyway.

Thats it, like I said, short entry. Just know that everything is cool in the land of Me <3

Book: The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite
Written by: Gerard Way
Illustrated by: Gabriel Ba
Published in: 2008 by Dark Horse
Time to read: One MARTA trip from North Ave. to Sandy Springs (in other words, about 25 minutes)


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I first heard about The Umbrella Academy when Blair Butler recommended it on Attack of the Show on G4. Now, as far as comic book gurus go I hold her in the highest regard, for obvious reasons. She knows her stuff. Even so, I couldn't help but be slightly dubious when she mentioned that it had been written by a certain Gerard Way, who happens to be the frontman for My Chemical Romance. Im familiar with MCR's music, and I would even go as far as to say I like a couple of their songs, but I, like Butler, was under the impression that this was just some Hollywood musician fulfilling a lifelong hobby dream of publishing a comic book. Once again, Im completely thrilled to say I was wrong.

This book took me all of about 30 minutes to read. Im not quite sure how many pages there are (no page numbers), and Im not about to sit here and count them all, but as an estimate I'd say its a regular-sized comic book; not to thick, not too thin. Thing is, the story is so engaging that you just cant put the thing down until you've finished it.

The story follows a 'family' of seven children who've been adopted by a space-alien millionare and raised as an elite fighting group. The first chapter deals with them as children, and except for the occasional flashback, the rest of the book deals with them as adults. However, these arent your run-of-the-mill superhero children ten years in the future. They have some serious issues, including a weird White Stripes-esque sister/wife love thing going on with a couple of the characters, but I guess its all copacetic.

One of the characters that stand out to me the most, besides Vanya of course, is Number Five, the one brother who time-travels and reappears in present day, still in the body of his younger self. This kid represents what so many other comic book writers, and writers in general have tried to capture and ultimately failed in doing so. To put it simply, he's pretty much the coolest 60-year-old kid ever. He reminds me of a mix between Artemis Fowl and, oh, V from V for Vendetta maybe? And that my friends, is a recipe for awesome.

As I said before, I was pleasantly suprised with the writing and dialogue in this book. Way's style of writing to me is somewhat reflective of his music, in that you've got those darker undertones. However, I wouldnt go as far as to say that the writing and the music are the same. The Umbrella Academy is dark without being too dark- I dont think it's unaccesible to the general comic book reader at all. Thats not to say that MCR fangirls/ the general emo population wont swoon over it, or that your standard Batman/Superman/JLA comic book reader (I.E., me) wont find the subject matter slightly off-center, but in the end we get a nice, cohesive piece of work. And dont get me started on the artwork, either. Gabriel Ba is brilliant, to put it simply. The artwork is pointed, and reflects the subject matter in a way that puts the point across without diluting the dialogue, which is the most important thing to me. Every panel is a work of art.

All in all, The Umbrella Academy is a great read, and has great re-read value. If you're looking for something different whenever it comes to the comic book superhero status-quo, this is definately a book to pick up.

Well, my sister has come and gone. We had a lot of fun, and I guess I didnt realize how much I'd missed her until she came. She got here on Wednesday night and we hung out for a while before going to bed, and yesterday we went to the Underground an I got some awesome 'Imported' (read: bootleg) movies from that cool martial arts movie booth there. We then went to see The Dark Knight, it was the second time for me. I swear, that movie gets better every time I see it. Then we came back home and watched the movies with Rodney and ate pizza and had a generally awesome time. Today we decided to walk around Buckhead in order to locate DSW. We went all the way to Barnes n Nobles before we realized that DSW was like, right beside the MARTA station. Smart. By the time we got back to the MARTA station at North Ave I was ready to turn in.

Waiting outside anywhere in Atlanta, especially near the MARTA stations, pretty much guarantees that you will encounter all manner of people, homeless or otherwise. Considering the fact that I hail from a small town, the culture shock I've experienced hasn't been all that extreme, I dont think. While we were waiting outside for the Metropointe shuttle, my sister spotted this older woman across the street. She was carrying a greenish-blue backpack, but she wasnt wearing any pants. Like, she was wearing this huge pair of pink underwear- I mean, she was pretty big, but these panties were just blatantly... huge. And pink. I guess there were some people laughing at her on the our side of the street, because this woman just goes crazy and starts screaming in our general direction. After a few seconds of this, she turns around, pulls down her pants and moons everyone on my side of the street to kingdom come. After the initial shock of the grossness of the situation I just laughed and went on minding my business, but my sister and the other people around us were just dumbfounded by the whole thing. Personally, I didnt think pmuch of it. She did it a couple of other times, I guess to get a rise out of all of us, but I dunno. I just wasnt affected. It was weird. Had something like that happened back in North Carolina I would have flipped out. Im certain its not necessarily the norm here either, but I just wasnt all that bothered by the situation.

Before I left, my Sunday School told me that when I came back home from school after my first quarter that I would be so different that people wouldnt recognize me. Honestly I disregarded what she said, seeing as, well, for the most part I've been the same person since I was in the seventh grade. I'd like to think Im a bit more mature, but other than that, I dont know. Maybe I am different. Im not sure if this is a good thing or not. I havent really done anything thusfar - no drinking, I've only experienced the forgetfulness as a result of second-hand marijuana smoke, but I dont think thats altered my way of thinking or my views of life. I dont know. I will admit though that theres a numbness in my chest that wasnt there before. Im not sure why, but I feel detached from things. Who knows.

Well, It's been a while. And despite my current mental state and situational....well, situations, Im going to update. No, dont run away. No craziness, I promise.

God, I love Atlanta. I was a bit wary when I first came here, but now...damn. I love this city. I love the unbearable heat and working up a sweat when I go walking. I love riding the MARTA, I love Five Points and walking up and down the street with Kris and Rodney. I love jaywalking through crosswalks and making drivers angry. I love being new here and making an adventure out of everything. I love it that my roommate is so caring and compassionate, even though she keeps getting screwed over by people. I love the fact that I can walk to and from school from the MARTA station. I love having my own area to think. I love being able to watch Cartoon Network 24/7. I just love it here, sooososo much. <3

Anyway. So, this week should be exceptionally awesome seeing as I wont have to go to class on Thursday, and seeing as my sister will be coming down from NC, yaaay. Im so excited to see her, she's like my best friend. I as much as I love it here I miss my family and friends back home, so it'll be refreshing to see her. Speaking of home, even though Im having fun I still have a hard time refering to Chateau Metropointe as 'home'. I dont think this place will ever be home to me, despite the fact that Im getting used to having my room by a loading train station and the constant sirens and the fact that its never completely dark. I caught myself calling this home last week and it bothered me, but at the same time I feel uncomfortable calling Rutherfordton home because I dont want to be stuck there the rest of my life. I dont want to have to go crawling back and end up staying there. So technically Im homeless? A little?

The title says Im going to blog about my inhibitions, but I've changed my mind. Sooo yeah, this is the end XD Ill update everything else later.