The Tomb

I just got done reading F. Paul Wilson's "The Tomb" and I have to say, Repairman Jack is possibly one of the best characters to ever grace literature. I recommend the Repairman Jack series to everyone who likes to sit down and read a good book. Even the villains are awesome, admirable characters. To celebrate me finishing the book I decided to do a quick drawing of the creatures featured in the book called The Rakoshi (Rakosh in singular), amazing avatars of rage and violence with a burning loyalty to their masters.
This was all done with a mouse...Not sure how long it took, maybe like an hour or so.

Watch me shine

I've been tossing and turning all night. Excitement running through my body. Yes, this is my first day working in the art industry. A very nice lady over at DYA Studio looked at my portfolio and apparently liked what she saw. I'm a nervous wreck, however, since my expertise is in character design and not commercial work, but it's not the first time I decide to make logos or plan out marketing campaigns (I took plenty of that in college). It's a great opportunity to have my headstart in the art industry, not to mention I'm going to be learning a lot and spending time with people that have been working in the industry for years.

I'm very happy these people gave me a chance, not to mention I needed a job....badly.

I'll post some of the stuff I added to my portfolio for your viewing pleasure

After a long hiatus....

I have finally gotten around to doing something in Photoshop.

Now back to playing Left4Dead 2 (Or at least the demo)




I just noticed that I use this side view A LOT...Guess that's my comfort zone. Shame...I really like that portrait...pose...view...look.

Don't open that door!

Video games...

They've been a part of my life ever since I was 4 years old. I remember discovering that invisible brick on the first level of Super Mario Brothers for the NES and mumbling my first curse words at that damn dog in Duck Hunt. Forward years later and I'm discovering new worlds in Super Mario World on my SNES while being awestruck by the new technology of Sonic and Knuckles on my Sega Genesis (A CARTRIDGE IN MY CARTRIDGE WAT?!).

I skipped the whole PSX phase (I never had one!) and while my friends were still talking about Bushido Blade and Final Fantasy 7, I was still completely loyal to my SNES and then the N64...Then the Dreamcast (The best console EVER made, might I add) came along and blew my fucking world upside down.

A couple of console generations later, Im still stuck with my XBox (the old one) and a Gamecube and of course...My PC. As I think back on all of this, how video games have evolved in the past 23 years the first thing that came to mind was...

Video Games are fucking terrifying!

From the angry sun in super mario 3, to zombies in Resident Evil to ReDeads and Wallmasters in Zelda. Video Games have known for over the years to trigger one of our most primitive emotions. FEAR. I swear to this day I still refuse to play games with underwater levels...I hate them! I LOATHE them! The mere thought of what could be in depths, lurking and waiting for my character to stay still while I check on the map or read adventure text or dialogue. Made a wrong turn? DEAD! Took too long? DEAD! Oh, this is the home of some powerful sea monster...FUCK!

I acknowledge I am cursing far more than usual but there's no other words to express the sheer terror that has surged through my body every time I play games like these. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the feeling of being scared in a game, it means it's doing its job...However, to say people go unaffected by said levels or events in video games is a complete lie. I bet every person that has played Left 4 Dead literally shit their pants when they heard a loud rumbling, the change in music and the distinct ROOOOAAWWWWWRRRR from a distance, looming ever so closely.

Thank you, video game industry, for the endless nightmares and hours of fun, hopefully someday you shall take me under your wing and I, too can torment the lives of 8 year olds indirectly through a video game.

She called me a cow!

I don't usually write sappy entries but this one deserves some recognition as I've been thinking about it for a couple of days now and the events of today kinda triggered the last bit of inspiration I needed to actually sit down and write this. It's not a beautiful love letter, but merely a recollection of feelings and thoughts. Some of them may come out wrong, but conveying these feelings is sometimes hard on writing. I am no expert writer and my vocabulary and wit can be limited at times (Thankfully I managed to keep this entry clear from dick jokes) but I think the ideas behind it are good fruit for thought for some people, others may not care for it. But I managed to get it off my chest and hopefully the person I want to read this will (mainly cause I told her I'd post something here). For those of you that may come across this post, there's a TL;DR at the bottom, but it doesn't really carry the same feeling as the whole entry does.

Nay and I were sitting today looking at her old notebooks that contained information of her life years before. Past relationships, breakdowns, happy moments, drawings, you name it. It got me wondering about my own evolution and how she and I have grown out of the "emo shell" and changed our look on the world so drastically.

If any of my past online girlfriends read this they might throw a fit or two at me but they have to agree, most online relationships are set to fail...If I would've known this I wouldn't have gotten involved with the exception of maybe a certain lady from Wisconsin who, being older than I was taught me a great deal on life on how to face certain things. Without her guidance in my angsty years I made a lot of mistakes...If only I would've listened to her. I've been in quite a couple of relationships. Weird to say about a guy with my body structure: tall, chubby...is a huge nerd/geek, wears glasses and is pretty antisocial. I was never the party type but I always managed to meet some woman girl that took my breath away and I took hers as well...Or so I thought.

Most relationships I've been in have been full of lies, deceit and lots of cheating...LOTS. From the first long distance girlfriend that was scared of me cheating but was great friends with another male friend of mine (emphasis on great) lead the relationship spiraling down into a huge fuckbomb of insults to the ex-girlfriend who couldn't have enough god damn cosplay in her life, I broke things up and she filed a lawsuit against me cause of emotional abuse. Yeah, apparently I only attract the crazy ones. But I'm derailing the topic to the point I'm trying to get to (or am I?). Evolution.

I always kinda knew about my significant other's past relationships, yet she never spoke too much about them, I just knew what kinda went on. On the other hand, I wouldn't shut up about my past. My family says it's wrong for you to speak about the past so much with your significant other. Why, though? Shouldn't the person I'm with know why I'm so freaked out at her going to another room with 5 guys fearing she might start blowing them off while she does the macarena? She has every right to know. And regardless of what my past is, I'm very open with my experiences in life. The fact I remember them does not mean I cherish them or miss them (yeah, like I LOVE to get cheated on and played with). As I was reading Nay's notebooks I was thinking..."Damn, this relationship must've sucked for you" but she was indeed happy. She didn't have to deal with any bullshit of getting cheated on (or so she believes...In an online relationship you never know. But hey the guy could've been faithful.) yet, I strolled into the picture and pulled her away from this fantasy where she was decently happy...What the fuck am I doing? Which led me to analyze our relationship.

Those letters are over 3 years old. Letters about sadness and emptiness and longing to be with a person...3 years ago I was writing about the same thing. People often can't find what they truly desire in a relationship and they strive for something over the top. People fall in love with friends and then they shy away their feelings, worried about ruining a relationship...A friendship, if you will. See, Nay and I did something uncanny (for me anyway) we got to know each other on a very personal level but we escalated from that to actual dating. We would talk about how our relationships were going nowhere and we would give each other advice on the matter. We liked hanging out with each other but that was it. I always thought a girl like that was way out of my league so I never really tried to hit on her...She was is truly a gem. I used to call her my ray of sunshine in the early morning. Since I would see her at my first class of the day...While I was extremely groggy. Later on, I ended my last relationship and sought shelter in friendship since I can't stand being alone. Nay was there.



Nay back then seemed like the weirdest girl ever (Now I just deny she's human altogether). We would sometimes strike up conversations about random stuff to quickly jump to some other subject without even ending the previous one. She had an obsession with Pocky and sweets overall, which led me to believe that was the reason of her inhuman hyperness. She then started opening up even more about her relationship once I asked her about it. It was online. My expertise on that kind of relationship left me indirectly giving her my advice: "Don't get your hopes up." I always said and I would see her eyes getting watery. I felt like a monster, but I was thinking ahead when she would eventually call me at 4 in the morning about how her online boyfriend was a jerk for not coming over on christmas for the 5th time. I was already used to being the shoulder most girls would cry on about their boyfriends...I was expecting the same thing from her.

I remember inviting her over for a D&D session with Javi, Snoop and Kabuto. I told the guys "Do NOT hit on this girl." Mainly because admittedly I liked her. I was too much of a pussy to actually make a move on her since I didn't think she saw me that way, but I found it would be way too awkward to have my friends dating a girl I had a crush on...Already went through that experience...Not a good one. I was nervous. Insecure. mostly about my weight and the way I looked...Granted I'm not a gigantic 600 pound yeti, but my chubyness affects my psyche sometimes. Kabuto, snidely replied to my comment saying "But, you just got out of a relationship!". "I don't care! Don't hit on her" and they all laughed and we carried on with our D&D normally.

I was always scared she might fall for my friends. Snoop being the athletic one, being able to kill a man with his pinky, Javi being the sensitive, caring one and Kabuto being the quiet, geeky one. But I wasn't willing to separate myself from my friends cause of a girl and she was my friend after all. We carried on with D&D normally. After that, Nay and I would go out with the guys to the movies, the mall, everywhere. I got to know her family, her brother, it all felt so natural. Granted the first thing that drove me wild about her was the words "You have to meet my family." That says a lot about a woman in my eyes.

From then on, our first kiss was while listening to flaming undead babies wailing down a rainy street, chasing a woman down, savoring every shrilling cry as they start to crawl up her legs to devour her face (Yes, Silent Hill). I also remember going to her house and saying the most romantic words that have ever bloomed from my lips: "Let's cut the shit...I like being with you...Do you like being with me?". I had no need to be fancy or eccentric, this woman liked me for who I was and how I said things.

Reading back on my past and Nay's made me see how we have grown from being in this fantasy world where love is just how the songs in the radio and the media portray to something a little bit more natural. I'm happy my life has taken me to where I am (emotionally...financially? FUCK YOU LIFE!). And this relationship is what actually gets me going. The wheels of time keep spinning and intertwining into a beautiful nova of events that lead from one thing to another. That is what I've been missing all these years and there's plenty more of growing to do only that I'm pretty sure this one's the one I will be growing with.

Who would've thunk that March 24th would be one of the happiest days of my life.



TL;DR: I am in love still after 2 years. And as I look back on my life I couldn't be any happier. And as I look back on her life, I am sure it has all been for the better.

New sketches!

I can't seem to fall asleep. (Sorry Nay!)

It is currently 5:30am and I'm just doodling away, sketching the time away. It's such a shame the nighttime is when I feel this sudden burst of inspiration to actually sit down and draw something. I guess it has a lot to do with the fact of finding nothing else to do, although it's practically no different from other times of the day...Taking in consideration I am still without a car until I get everything sorted out with my registration sticker.

This late night adventure did have its benefits. Two new sketches have come to fruition and I'm actually quite proud of them. It seems I am taking a liking in increasing the girth of the outside lines in my sketches. I've always liked that style.

I can't seem to think about things to write although I really want to fill this whole damn page with words. Maybe the inspiration was short-lived and died as soon as I let go of the pencil and laid my hands on the keyboard...I'm sure it's in protest of me not playing WoW. CURSE YOU, HANDS!

The first sketch is my undead rogue, Xheoul.

Second one is some random zombie. -Braaaaaiiiiiiiiinnnsssssssssss....

Stop Uwe Boll!

I've found this neat little petition:
http://www.petitiononline.com/mod_perl/petition-sign.cgi?RRH53888

I signed it and you should too. With one million signatures we may be able to stop his reign of terror and horrible...HORRIBLE movies.

http://www.slashfilm.com/2008/04/06/uwe-boll-will-quit-making-movies-with-one-million-signatures/

The Maxx

The Maxx has always been the most memorable superhero for me. Superman cartoons always bored me, and while Batman was a always a badass, the whole rich superhero thing never really impressed me. The Super Friends are extremely lame. The X-Men were cool (in the comics) but it always had way too much drama with the whole love triangle thing they wanted to shove down our throats.

Then, there was The Maxx. I remember scratching my head in puzzlement every time I saw this show starring a blond chick (Julie) that would occasionally visit a tall, muscular hobo living in a tiny cardboard box in an alley where it always seemed to be raining. Delving into every character's dementia, having them always show their alter egos was always kind of intriguing.

Dethalbum II

I just got my hands on Dethalbum II and it's probably the most brutal album ever made. Grats Brendon Small on putting together an amazing band for an amazing show!

Dethalbum II is scheduled to be released Sept. 29

Track Listing:

1. "Bloodlines" 3:30
2. "The Gears" 4:21
3. "Burn the Earth" 3:59
4. "Laser Canon Deth Sentence" 4:35
5. "Black Fire Upon Us" 5:40
6. "Deth Support" 2:42
7. "The Cyborg Slayers" 4:16
8. "I Tamper with the Evidence at the Murder Site of Odin" 4:30
9. "Murmaider II: The Water God" 5:43
10. "Comet Song" 3:48
11. "Symmetry" 4:31
12. "Volcano" 4:18

For old time's sake...

My first AMV

Aliens, Mechs, Pigs!

I've been playing a lot of Plants Vs. Zombies lately so Nayka decided to get me out of that routine and have us sit down and watch a little movie called District 9.

While the plot is completely predictable, I would have to say this is one of those rare movies that grace the cinema world with its sheer awesomeness. Not only does it show both sides of the coin in one movie, but in the end it all comes together in harmony, forming one huge fuckfest of epic proportions. You start liking characters one second, then completely hating them the next...Only to have them redeem themselves and have their story touch your heart.

Of course, District 9 is not about rainbows and have aliens warm your soul while they pick flowers in a garden. There's plenty of blood and gore. People exploding, being impaled by sharp alien hands, mechs tossing pigs at people (yeah, its that awesome). Yeah, we're the main bad guys in the story...But not all humans are corrupt, see. They always have the big corporations be the bad guys in Sci-Fi movies which obviously leads to people saying this movie is a cliché...But what is more cliché than what, to be honest, would happen in reality if mankind was in the same position as in the movie?

I loved District 9 and I pray that they release a sequel (and have the aliens lay waste to planet earth.) Yeah, I wanna see a movie where everything gets blown to bits and doesnt have that same bullshit about the human spirit overcoming every obstacle. They're pissed off lobster people with lazers...Fuck mankind.


That there cute little fella is Christopher. One thing I have to admire about whoever designed the aliens in D9 is the ability to have them convey emotions so easily by just using their eyes. It's truly amazing work.

Depth Mercenary

The fruits of my boredom (or slight madness?) have finally matured. Been at this for almost 4 days now...Granted it's not amazing work but I do enjoy how it came out. Don't ask for the background...I'm horrible with backgrounds. The idea of merfolk has always been fun. From the swamp monster (which is KIND OF a merfolk I guess) to D&D to Zoras from the Legend of Zelda. They've always been fun. Aquatic creatures in ancient sunken cities worshiping forgotten sea gods? Sign me up.

Insomnia

For some odd reason, I've taken pleasure in staying up at odd hours in the morning. I can't seem to get to sleep. A lot of things are going through my head and I can't seem to put a stop to them. Whether it is me being worried about a job, my studies, my girlfriend...It always crosses my mind.

I am extremely tired...Sleepy. I put my head on the pillow and I feel I'm placing it on a pile of rocks. Eyes wide open, anticipating sunlight and motion in the cold, still air conditioned darkness. Artificial lights flickering in the room as my computer scans my system for viruses...Thankfully, the wailing through my speakers follower by the "Virus has been detected" message has not made me spring up and rush me into thinking my computer is in danger just because some lowlife was bored and decided to create a virus that wreaks havoc.

What kind of point are these kind of people trying to get across?

Anyway...If you're a hacker, I got no beef against you <3. Let's be friends...Don't kill my PC.



Boredom and tiredness have taken me hostage. I have to find something to do.

But I promised my girlfriend we would go running today.

This is gonna be a long day.

And I forgot...

So I completely forgot about the blog again... Apparently I'm not as into therapy as I thought I was.

So last night I got into a heavy discussion with my grandmother. Even though she got angry, I found it extremely amusing. My grandmother, a working woman born in Cuba has seen a lot of messed up things and how the American government has saved her from the clutches of communism. She struggled a lot to get out of that piece of rock. So she defends the United States at all costs...Even if she doesn't make any sense. I love the freedoms we (used to) have and all the wonderful things that come from this country... I love it...And because I love it, it saddens me how it's all crumbling down. How greed has taken over and people don't have the power any more...IF we ever had the power in the first place anyway.

We were talking also about the war and she was saying how she would love to have a son that would enlist in the army to fight for his ideals and die with honor. While I'm all up for people dying with honor, where's the honor in fighting a war while your leader is cowardly shying away in his white house surrounded by guards? Shouldn't an honorable leader step into the war with his troops? Nah, not the president, he's far too important to be replaced, even though he will be in a couple of years just so higher powers can give us a fresh face every now and then. Of course, my grandmother said all that about people dying with honor and going to the war, but she argues with my 28 year old aunt whenever she stays out past 10.

I understand my grandmother, she lived through hard times where the only glimmer of hope was the intervention of the United States army in Cuba, but a lot of people born and raised in american soil have this blind ideal of pride in this mass of land that just doesn't give anything anymore. What happened to the world of opportunity? The land of the free? The home of the brave? The U.S looks like a bunch of bullies, pushing everyone around because we can. And while it sounds kind of funny to some, it makes us look bad...No wonder people don't respect us.

On another note, my mother finally lost her faith in organized religion which has given me a small glimmer of hope that she has opened her eyes and finally started doing something for herself instead of leaving it in the hands of some god. It's nice to see people grow, analyze and come to a logical resolve to things....Now if only a mass logical hysteria would happen (People running around in circles, left to right, screaming mathematical equations, quantum physics and deep philosophy while clutching tightly on their heads as the trip and squirm in the ground into the fetal position.) maybe a better world wouldn't be too far off....Yeah, that's my kind of world.

First Rant.

Hello, My name is Gio.

I am a frustrated artist, musician, poet, writer, lover, man, child, friend, son, geek, student, gamer, worker, procrastinator, teacher, leader and comic...Among other things.

I always strive to be good at what I do and work hard at it. Even procrastination. I have a goal in life which is not having a goal and see how life passes by. It could sound like a boring life or it may seem like I'm an underachiever, but that is far from the truth. I have amazing friends, an amazing girlfriend, an interesting family with all their odd ends and quirks, an amazing dog who is as crazy as I am...So overall, I'd say I have a pretty amazing life.

I didn't make a blog to brag about how I've traveled like most people do, nor am I publishing this to make my life sound more interesting than what it is. Honestly, I don't know why I'm doing this. Maybe I see this as some sort of therapy for myself. Or maybe I'm thinking I will reach out to someone eventually, although, with so much blogging going on these days, who hasn't found someone that says "I know what that guy means, I'm going through the same thing."

I'm not much of a writer. My vocabulary is pretty limited and borderlines common use so I wont be using all these big, fancy words people use in their blogs to sound more intricate and deep than what they are in real life.

I've always been horrible with finishing things. Studies, drawings, paintings, songs, sentences, paragraphs...Pretty much everything. And I use ellipses way too much.

So now, fellow reader, that you know something about me, I hope I remember posting my rants and happenings frequently. Maybe someone out there will find these amusing or maybe even therapeutic.

Again, I'm no psychologist. I'm just a 22 year old who is addicted to World of Warcraft, Photoshop, his girlfriend, his dog and Wendy's Double Stacks....