Llamanade.net Blog

Menus

2009-02-17T15:38:00.000-08:00

My menus for OMGWTF. The layout is pretty much set, but I'm still working on the text.

Appetizers

Entrees

Deserts

Drinks

I wish I knew the code to make pdf graphical previews.
-edit - Lots of typos. I'll have to fix these eventually.

YouTube - 2mag MIX 1 - Magnetic Stirrer Demo

2009-02-09T08:23:00.001-08:00

How awesome would it be to use this to mix drinks at a bar. Full pitcher of margaritas with no noisy blender.

Bioluminescent Algae

2009-02-06T18:19:00.001-08:00

I saw a glass wall/tank/tube system that glowed using bioluminescent bacteria or algae, but I can't find the site again. So I guess I'll be researching how to make it work for what I need it for.

DNA Printing

2009-02-05T21:08:00.001-08:00

OMG WTF Working font development

2009-02-03T18:01:00.000-08:00

Nothing too special

OMG WTF Concept Statement and Logo/Signage drafts

2009-02-02T16:18:00.000-08:00

This is my potential concept statement for my Interior Design restaurant project this semester. I think I did a pretty good job forming the basis for understanding nerdery, but please share your opinions. Below the statement is a couple of rough drafts for the signage/branding.

Too often the nerd is uncomfortable in the typical night club atmosphere, I want to create a space where nerds and geeks feel at home. I will derive the style of the interior from common cultural interests of the geek, including math, sciences, literature, science fiction, and other pop culture. Cuisine will feature upscale versions of home made meals and comfort foods.
The distinction between nerds and geeks is precise, and often misidentified. Nerds are generally regarded as socially inept people who compensate for their lack of social grace with a heightened intellect or fondness for academic pursuits. Geeks on the other hand are specialists who focus their nerd energy on certain specific areas. A nerd may be interested in Math, Science, History, or Literature, while geek will take one of those categories and find an obsession within, such as Civil war history or pyrochemistry. Nerdery and Geekery often overlap, but not always. Its perfectly normal for a geek to obsess over Star wars while being uninterested in any real area of science. Likewise, a nerd may never find a specific area to focus on, and will therefore never become a geek.

One of the defining characteristic of a nerd and/or geek is the lack of social comfort. This is actually a stereotype that is only half correct. A typical nerd or geek will not seem interested in social interaction unless others of his kind are present. This anti-social stereotype gained credence due to the fact that nerds and geeks were a relative minority in most societies, and therefore seemed awkward without others like them around. However, with the shift in global economic influences from labor to information services, the population of the nerd has risen to its highest level in history. The result is meta-population with its own culture that transcends ethnic, racial, and religious social constraints. And where once nerd interests were considered irrelevant, they're becoming an important part of mainstream culture, and should be respected as such.

OMGWTF is the next logical step in the progression of the nerdification of the world. As the nerd population rises and nerd culture becomes mainstream, traditional venues of entertainment and leisure will profit by adapting to this new cultural norm.

OMG WTF Concept Imagry

2009-01-29T21:30:00.000-08:00

Our next assignment was to create some 4"x11" digital collages of reference imagery that we're going to use as inspiration for the project. My first concept revolved around Alcohol, but I couldn't develop it very far. My second idea was a Moroccan themed restaurant, but I was mostly into that because I had just watched Casablanca, and I really couldn't get excited about the concept in general. So as I was wandering around the ID classrooms I saw a couple of RAM chips I hung on the wall as a reminder to fix a couple of the computers, and I was struck with inspiration. I'm going to make a nerd friendly nightclub/restaurant/entertainment venue. Score.

"Cultural" Imagery

Other Imagery

Text options

ID5 Restaurant Project

2009-01-27T13:55:00.000-08:00

This is my last semester as an undergrad at SDSU. In addition to some graphic design classes, I'm in my final Interior Design course. Our only project is the creation of a restaurant w/ a second floor for a nightclub type setup.

Our first assignment for this project was to go out and research higher quality restaurants and nightclubs by going to them and having a good time. I was a moron, and left my ID at home, so I couldn't get in when our little ID crew went out on Friday night. But on Sunday Hector, Tiffany, and I went to Sevilla and Osetra, both downtown.

My first impression of Sevilla was that it would be a great place if I felt like hiding in a dark corner and drinking alone. It had an overall feeling of being run-down, but in the same kind of way your of favorite dive bar. We were greeted by a woman who was very excited to tell us about the tapas, and convinced us to eat on the bar side, not the restaurant side. Speaking of which, the first thing I noticed was the distinct separation between the bar and restaurant. Even to the point where the bar had a bouncer and the restaurant had a hostess/greeter. The bar hugged the north wall, with high tables and chairs in same the general area. The lighting was overwhelmingly red. I had a hard time distinguishing color in the bar because of the abundance of one color. It could just be that I'm old and my vision sucks. The sound of the place was a little intense. Loud music and lots of hard surfaces made me a little uncomfortable, as I don't like shouting to talk to the people I'm with, but it played well with the general theme of the place. The tables were minimally adorned, due to their minuscule size, and the tall, hard chairs were uncomfortable to sit at for longer than a few drinks. I couldn't see the kitchen from where I was sitting, and the music drowned out any kitchen noise if there was any. My favorite part of Sevilla was the service, and the pride the employees had in their food and drinks. I would probably turn down the music and change the lighting if I were to redesign it.

Our second spot, Confidential, is closed on Sundays, so we went to Osetra, a place I knew about from working with Finley Designs while they were considering a redesign job there. Walking into Osetra, I immediately felt comfortable and welcome. The greeter at the door showed us in without any hesitation, and even joked with us about our lack of reservations. The first thing that jumped out at me was the large bar, two stories high, with color changing pulsating lights. It was obviously placed as a main feature of the restaurant, front and center, and with good reason. The core of the tower directly behind the bar was filled with wine bottles. Sadly the “wine angels”, harnessed women tasked with retrieving the wine bottles from the upper levels, were not on duty the night we went. The lighting was sufficient and warm. General lighting was recessed in the ceiling, with accent pendants hanging over the bar and some tables and sconces for accent lighting upstairs. Overall the acoustics were pleasant. I couldn't hear any of the other patron's conversation, and the music was soft enough for me to have a conversation with my companions. The table presentation was simple and small, an orchid floating in a water dish, and the normal tableware. The furniture was very soft and comfortable. The bar height chairs are not a favorite of mine for dining, but for the time it took to drink my cognac, I was comfortable. From my seat I could see the kitchen doors, but they were unobtrusive, and there was no noise from them, so that I didn't realize it was the kitchen doors until someone carried food out. Aside from the fine selection of alcohol, my favorite feature of Osetra's design was the color changing wine bottle wall. I think that I would definitely add more lounge or booth seating. After visiting Osetra I looked at their website, and it advertises a lounge atmosphere on the west side of the main floor, but when we were there it was just table seating.

I think this outing, as well as the failed attempt on Friday, have given me a jump off point for the concept of this project.

Table

2008-10-02T08:44:00.000-07:00

http://sintesi.gruppo-sintesi.com/en/product/28-be-bop

ID 4 Conference Room

ID3 Project 1 Flux

2008-04-01T21:06:00.001-07:00

We got our ID3 projects back, and I spent the last few days getting it updated on my site.

www.llamanade.net/id/id31

Flux

Interior Design 3
Finished Feb 28th, 2008
Grade: 90%

Flux strives to achieve a balance of energy levels to facilitate the needs of the individual workers The floor plan expresses a dynamic traffic flow, allowing speedy transmission of ideas throughout the design process, High Ceilings and natural light over the work areas stimulate the mind and body, while the lounge and patio areas allow quiet relaxation.

I'm Upset

2008-03-03T08:15:00.000-08:00

Up in Seattle last night an arson group burned down a series of luxury homes in a new development. No one was hurt, but four houses were ruined

Full Story Here

The group who claimed responsibility calls themselves ELF - Earth Liberation Front. They left a sign at the scene that said:

"Built Green? Nope BLACK! McMansions + RCD's r not green. ELF"

RCD means rural cluter development.

I have no idea what the LEED specs for this development is, so I don't know exactly how green the construction is. It doesn't matter, burning down a house isn't the way to get your point across.

Eco-Terrorists, and for that matter, anyone who chooses to spread their message through destruction, are hypocritical and immoral. But specifically for environmental activists, who philosophically search for balance in nature, to believe that destruction of property counteracts destruction of the earth is illogical. The burnt out husk of a building didn't make room for regrowth of a forest, it left a charred foundation on which another house will be built.

And it bothers me so much because on a daily basis I'm working towards the balance that the eco-fiends say they want. I study building design, material usage, and recycling practices in order to bring sustainable living to the world. The ELF and their ilk take the easy way out and go break something.

I'm really too upset to even finish this with coherent thought. But I do believe I've found a new source of motivation.

Motivation

2008-02-21T11:02:00.001-08:00

A common sentiment has been creeping up among the Interior Design denizens, myself included.

"I'm not motivated"

Over winter break I was constantly excited about what lay ahead. I got a couple of paintings done, did some matting work and put down sketches or concept statements for a dozen other projects. Then the new semester hit and nothing seemed worthwhile. The two new design assignments handed down were rather bland in my opinion (heaven help me if an ID instructor reads this). I thrive on creative problem solving, and neither of the new assignments offered me a place to shine in that regard. But assuming I was the only one feeling this way, I kept my opinions to myself. Then someone else mentioned that they weren't feeing motivated, then someone else said it, then another person, and another person.

I'm a firm believer in grading curves. If a few people aren't performing well, its their fault. If the majority aren't doing well, maybe something is wrong with the institution. Of course, it would take a very (very very) brave soul to complain about lack of motivation to the instructors because one of two responses are expected.

"You're just being lazy"
"Its not my job to motivate you"

So its unlikely that the topic will even be breached with the powers that be.

Is cooperative motivation a viable solution? Do we need to be each others cheerleaders? I think its a great motivator to have someone offer words of encouragement, but unless its an instructor, I usually treat compliments from others as sycophantic ass kissing. Maybe thats just a personal problem I need to overcome. In any event, I'm not sure I have the type of personality to inspire motivation in others. I'm much more of a 'shoulder to cry on' kind of person, which is a necessary role to play, but not always the most helpful.

So it all boils down to self motivation. We all have days when we don't want to get out of bed, or when being a couch potato is the highest aspiration of the day. But god dammit, we're artists! We create. It is our passion, and we're good at it. If we cease to create, we destroy our identity. And that perhaps is the greatest long term motivating factor in my life.

Persistence until death.

This Weekend

2008-02-18T16:47:00.000-08:00

This weekend started off with an experience which exemplifies why I hate dental/doctor appointments.
I had previously made my appointment for Friday at 11:00am to have a full exam.

Timeline:
10:20 I arrive at Western Dental
10:40 I finish filling out insurance paperwork
-HUGE ANNOYING GAP-
12:10 I'm taken into an X-Ray room, an hour and ten minutes late
-30 MINUTE GODDAMN GAP-
12:40 Nurse arrives, takes my X-Ray
12:55 Nurse leads me to scary dental exam chair
1:10 Dentist arrives to start the exam.

At this point I'm in so much pain, and so frustrated from the wait, that I tell the dentist that I don't want a full exam, I just want my wisdom teeth looked at so she can refer me to an oral surgeon. The dentist obliges, sets me up with the surgeon for March 4th - two days before my first ID project is due. Wonderful. She also prescribed me Amoxocillin and Vicodin. Oddly enough the vicodin has no effect on me. Doesn't kill any pain, hardly even makes me sleepy. An opiate immunity would be interesting - morphine won't work on me, but I'll never get hooked on heroin! So after three days of taking the medicine my teeth aren't in constant pain, so I can live out the next two weeks in relative normalcy.

Last night (Sunday) Jaimie, Aaron, Dana, Jackie and I went to Dizzy's and listened to a couple of Jazz sets. I went for extra credit in my History of Jazz class, but I liked it so much, I'll be going back a few more times this month.

Right now I'm under self sequestering in an ID classroom, getting some major work done on my two projects. Taking a break to write this up, and go get a beer, before I work until the wee hours.

Roses

2008-02-14T07:24:00.000-08:00

This year I really don't have anyone to give flowers to, so I decided to give flowers to anyone that wanted one.

Over the past three weeks I drew out and rendered 40 of these flowers. I ended up giving away 2 at work, but the other 38 I just hung on a bulletin board in the art building for anyone who walks by to take.

A Burger Blast From The Past

2008-02-12T05:43:00.000-08:00

Unbeknownst to me, a Portillos opened up near Disneyland. This is a big deal! Previously, Portillos was a Chicago-land only burger chain, with a few dozen spread around the city and 'burbs. Being my favorite burger place EVER, I naturally had to go check out the one in Anaheim to see if it met up to my standards.

I was not disappointed!

After a bacon double cheeseburger, large cheesy fries, large strawberry shake, and a piece of chocolate cake, I left fat and happy.

SDSU Sculpture Class Installation

2008-02-05T08:59:00.001-08:00

So the other day I was walking to class And I see this.

The freshman sculpture class had posed themselves and wrapped themselves in packing tape, creating hollow life sized sculptures. This in itself was pretty cool, but the installation of the jumping/falling guy was freaking sweet.

Here are all the ones they put up around the art building

Trip To Tijuana

2008-01-21T13:02:00.000-08:00

Saturday I went to Tijuana with some of the ID folks.
Our first stop was the office of Bosque de Agua Caliente, an architecture firm based in Mexico City. Angelica, our guide, took us first to a community of new house/condo/apartment buildings, where we were shown around by a man named Rrrrrrogelio (trill those R's).

The architecture and floorplans were nice, about what you'd expect out of a high income, densely populated American city. The community is situated on top of a hill, overlooking most of Tijuana. Maybe not one of the prettiest cities to live above, but still a very nice view.

Next we stopped off at the Bosque High-Rise project. The site includes 12 buildings, each 12 stories high, a central forest area with pine trees transplanted from central mexico, quite a few community amenities, such as a movie theater and day care. Each unit is 3 Bedroom, 2 Bath plus the normal kitchen, laundry, etc. And each unit comes with a fully computerized wireless system to control Audio/Video, lights, window covering, security cameras and pretty much anything else you can run off of a windows system. Price ranged from $265,000 US to $325,000 US, which is about comparable to similar sized apartments/condos in the San Diego area.

We lunched at a gourmet Pizza place, and then set off towards Rosarito, where an American development company had finished building (nearly) beach front condos. The architecture here was familiar to us, as it was similar to a building in Little Italy in San Diego, designed by an Architect who lives and works there.

I did enjoy the reflection pool in the center of the compound. This development also has a cascading waterfall pool being constructed, which looked awesome. The overall purpose of the trip was for us to learn differences in Architecture and construction in an area outside of the US. From what we saw, the differences I noted were: Most construction is done in concrete because northern Mexico doesn't have as vast forest resources as the US does. Many of the building codes are more relaxed because Mexican society is lest litigious than in the US.

The trip was fun and informative, but I don't think I'll be returning any time soon. Border wait, insane drivers (myself included) and the cops carrying M1A4s may be the subject of a later blog.

Interesting (or maybe not so) Links
Bosque de Agua Caliente
Toke - Galeria del Objecto
Expo Marmol Natural

Back in business

2008-01-16T12:53:00.000-08:00

Its finished, uploaded, and awesome.
And I'm exhausted.

Its been a really productive break. Since I took the site down to redesign it I've completed six projects that I had been sitting on for a while.

-Two new large canvas paintings
-Three new mats
-And one new over the door "Protection Charm" that I haven't had a chance to mat and photograph yet.

Today I'm going to work on staining a bare wood shelf I have in the garage, then install it as a bedside table in my room next week some time.

Thats all for now, I'm gonna to take a nap I think.

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Now playing: Kanye West - Stronger
via FoxyTunes