Goin away.

Less than a week left and I haven't even packed yet. No use in panicking since I'm not bringing much anyways. I got my itinerary in the mail last night or early morning. I came back from a great last day at work. Learned quite a bit about various people, black mail stuff. Haha. seriously, black mail stuff. Regardless, I'm flying out August 1st at 12:50 in the morning. That's pretty early. I still have some loose ends to take care of, but that's only a few phone calls.

I had a talk with a friend last night and she asked if I was scared of this entire adventure at all. All I had to say was "No, I'm pretty numb." All of which is true, and it's a bit weird. I don't know why but I don't feel a single things, no anxiety, no fear, and no sorrow. Ah, strange things.

-Mr. Tea

"It's all about location, location, location."

"Good news everyone" as Professor J. Farnsworth would put it. In this case it's something awesome. I just checked my TaLK account and I've been placed at an elementary school! I'm going to be teach at 이평초등학교 (Ipyong Elementary School) for a whole year. That's exciting news and I look forward to experiencing new things. I know I will be missing a few people, but I'm okay with that. I'm on to bigger and better things!

Anyways, these two paintings were done 2 days ago on my front yard again. One is a plant that my parents grew and i have no idea what it's called. The second painting is the rooftop of my neighbor's house. I haven't officially introduced myself to them as I am seldom home. Not that it matters anyways, I'm leaving in two weeks.
Here's a few realizations when I was was self-reflecting these past few days. I've realized that
a) I don't understand color and how it works at all. Also, i can never get the color right. I know people say practice, but it'll be great if there's guidance. Guess I'll have to be a Master Colorist the hard way.
b)I need to find a way to be motivated instead of constantly being lackadaisical .
c) I have no flavor. I hate to admit it, but my work is usually influenced by something I see and is hardly ever original. I wouldn't call it plagiarism, but there are certain things that I know I borrowed. Not just that but to me, my art style seems so plain. My rudimentary aethetics are so booooring. You might think that I'm just drawing attention, but it's a legitimate concern of mine.
d)I am very bad at realizing/analyzing what I see and process. Art can resonate with me and I know when it's good art or bad art (according to my personal preferences, anyways), but I can't always pinpoint why it resonates. Either a lot of people at college can see it and I can't, We're all on the same page, but I'm willing to admit it, or they're full of it and can talk their way out of a paper bag (I've seen many of these types). It's safe to say I'm confused.

So far, my proposed solutions to these problems are:
a)Study and observe alot more which leads to
b)I have no clue how to be motivated. I may just have to wing it.
c)It might be counter intuitive, but I might have to "steal" a lot of things I like about art and fuse it into a piece of metal, which then would be refined and forged into a sword.
d)Perhaps I should start critiquing a lot more.

Of course, this is just referring to my artistic abilities. My personal list is elsewhere and that's only for me. Possibly a therapist. maybe.

But enough about that, here's a shot of the school I'll be going to:wooo! Looks kinda barren and rather cold, but I'm a bear.

-Mr. Tea

A very hot day...in LA

This heat wave seemed to have come from nowhere and it's caught me off guard. With conditions being terrible, I decided to go outside and paint. I tried my hardest not to butcher these paintings (which are small, about 3x5). It was very zen to sit under the shade, observe, and to paint. The green blob is a cactus flower next to the tree I sat under and the second is a vignette of a view I had. It had an interesting negative space.

Anyways, I have only 2.5 weeks before I ship out. I'm rather amazed at myself for not being pressured to get everything ready, but it seems things are smooth. Of course, it may get bumpy near the deadline, but I'm trying to avoid that. I should probably go get a few power converters...

-Mr. Tea

Obtaining Your E-2 Visa

This is from my experience from the LA branch of the consulate and provided you have your contract.

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Things you'll need:

- Passport sized photo (I took a print out and was told to go across the street to take a real photo) $10

- Visa E-2 application

- A copy of your contract (in my case, the TaLK contract)

- Cash Money: $45 (may have changed since this post)

- Passport

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To get your E-2 Visa (in LA):

1. Go to the L.A. Korean Consulate at 3243 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90010. Their hours are from 9-12 and 1-6 Monday through Friday. The number to call them is (213) 385-9300

2. As I have mentioned in my previous post, the commute to L.A. is terrible so go around 10. If you get there at 12-1, you're going to have to wait. Park in the lot right next to the building (don't worry, it's free for the first 20 minutes).

3. As you enter the door, you are going to have to go through a metal detector and once that's done, head to the left and around the corner. The window 2 is your destination as it says "VISA"

4. The wait is very quick if you go at the time I recommended. Just hand over the photos, the application, the contract, the passport, and the cash. She'll give you a receipt for the transaction. DO NOT LOSE THIS RECEIPT AS YOU WILL NEED IT TO RECLAIM YOUR PASSPORT.

5. The turn around for this process is a single day.

6. Return the next day and reclaim the passport. This should take 5 minutes at most if you time it right. Since you're already in Downtown L.A. at that point, you might as well visit Little Tokyo or Korea town.

7. Best of luck.

-Mr. Tea