1.
my relationship is on the rocks. he wants to put me in the friend zone but remain close. we've had a lot of talks at this point and have resolved to start over and take it a day at a time. it feels like being in limbo.

positive - it's given me a push i needed to reach out to old friends and get the new band off the ground in a big way. after two writing sessions we have two songs, i'm reworking old material, and getting back to what i love doing.

2.
lyme disease. i'm feeling really run down. i'm not in remission but not getting worse. minimal treatment right now, but the storms rolling in are really taking a toll. i'm in a lot of pain.

positive - this... ]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/26161095/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/26161095/ Fri, 24 Jul 2009 22:33:55 PDT










...or your..dA!

first and foremost and super important. those of you who have expressed concerns about all the awesome new stuff coming to dA possible not being awesome...i assure you it is. and if you think the intentions are ill-placed...plz2b-leev they are not. deviantART wouldn't exist as it does if those who keep the wheels turning weren't listening. for details about the latest stuff, please read $chix0r's journal here. it addresses what many deviants assumed was a money-grubbing ploy.

which is silly. you know why? here's why.



in other news...but still dA news...dA is turning 9 soon and there's a SHIT-TON going on for that.

=Jucali is putting together a HUGE mosaic piece for the celebration and needs all of us to pitch in by allowing permission for some of our work to be used in the mosaic. if you'd like to read more or let him know you'd like to participate, clickie here.


continuing the positivity trend, check out ^Ikue's latest project...friendship through art!

not enough for you? then i want to direct you to two of $Moonbeam13's journal entries.

the first is the annual weekend to end breast cancer. she participates every year as many of you know and it's that time again...so if you'd like to show your support either by commenting or donating, you can read about that here.


to bring it all to a positive close, she also recently issued us all a challenge: positivity. check it out in her words and see if you can contribute to turning the tables on the attitudes you encounter. i plan to take up her challenge in my next journal. even if you don't feel like posting a journal about it, this is a great exercise to do for yourself, in my opinion.

looking for a custom tattoo design?

<... ]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/25849561/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/25849561/ Mon, 13 Jul 2009 17:07:59 PDT Helpful Abstract, Surreal, and Fetish links for photographers

• What is abstract photography?

• What is surreal photography?

• What is fetish portraiture in photography?

• ABCs of abstract and surreal photography - a more in depth look historically and lightheartedly

• ABCs of fetish portraiture - like the other ABCs article, detailing fetish portraiture

• Did You Know? Elements and Principles of Design - a brush up on the building blocks of our art, all art, and always a handy resource to have at hand

NEW

groups and portfolio whoopwhoop! for all the latest on new features add #hq to your watchlist. very handy. and if you haven't yet, check out the skinny on portfolios here and fish around! portfolio is currently in beta so if you're a subscriber you can take it for a spin! i know i did, check out mine: [link]

show me yours?

and speaking of new, here are the latest additions to the CR team...we have some fresh welcomes and some festering sores of a welcome (i mean...welcome backs ) to the following folks:

1. ^Gonzale - Street Photography
2. ^Thebuild - Traditional Art - Sculpture
3. ^DCZed - deviantART Related
4. ^l8 - Wallpaper
5. ^budgie - Anime/Manga

YOUR ideas!

keep em coming! i love the brainstorming. i'm still taking ideas and seeing how many people want to see the same sort of thing.

you can also send me ideas for fetish now that i have some momentum on abstract and surreal. i'll probably end up doing polls and such to decide what direction to go first, and hopefully i'll eventually be able to run something for everyone

DD suggestions

note me if you have suggests for fetish portraiture, abstract photography, or surreal photography.

please note that work in these styles from non-photographic media should not come to me! if you can't find who to send it to (there is an up to date list in $Moonbeam13's journal at all times), then send it to me anyhow, let me know you can't find the right moderator, and i'll forward it along for you

i do not respond to 99% of DD suggestions because of the volume of notes i receive in general--even when i DO feature the deviation! however, i read ALL notes i receive.

things to include in your note:

1. "DD suggestion" as the subject line
2. a thumbnail (:thumb#######: format) of the image you're suggesting
3. a short writeup (a sentence or two is fine) describing what about the image makes it stand out to you, why do you think it needs to be seen by more people on the site?

and that's it! those 3 simple ingredients and you have yourself a DD suggestion. huzzah!

Pimp!

feel free to note me if you have something you'd like pimped here!

Contest Link | Deadline
Resources Print Challenge - July 15
PhotoJournalism Contest: LIFE - Aug 31
Keith's Super Awesome Photography Battle - Sep 01st

articles of interest
The Contribution of the Makeup Artist
http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/25678711/ Wed, 01 Jul 2009 17:13:31 PDT










cuz like. you should be.

i've been waiting for this shit to come out for ages, as i think a lot of people have been. if you made it to any of the HQ meets you got to see a glimpse of what's to come. portfolios, son!

and if you want to see more of what's in store you can check out the test run that i or other volunteers have taken so far [link] <--!!!

want MOAR? get more! the official w0rd

so awesome.

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/25578102/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/25578102/ Fri, 26 Jun 2009 23:47:42 PDT










contests are always going down, it seems!

here's a list of some of the things going on in other galleries and communities here on dA:
Contest Link | Deadline
Addictive Lust - June 30th
Daqueran #2 Fanart Contest - June 30th
Fractals and the Outside World - July 6th
Fella's Pride Contest - July 8th
Resources Print Challenge - July 15th
PhotoJournalism Contest: LIFE - Aug 31st
Keith's Super Awesome Photography Battle - Sept. 1st
Story of a Nude Artistic Nude Photography Contest - Sept. 1st
Anthro Ninja's vs Pirates Treasure Feature Challenge

and outside of CR, there's a great fiction lit event called Flash Fiction Month. check it out or their chat on dAmn for details (#flashfiction i believe)


not to mention, new gallery moderators! please welcome the following volunteers (some of them familiar faces from the past )
^DCZed - deviantART Related
^Thebuild - Traditional Art - Sculpture
^Gonzale - Street Photography
^l8 - Wallpaper
^budgie - Anime/Manga


as for me. WORLD TOUR BABY. sunday HQ hits nyc and i'll be there along with ^limnides, ^Platinus, ^oilsoaked, =distortified, and hopefully ~lwheat. and if you're in the metro area and you're reading this, hopefully you too info here!

i'm pretty stoked.

when i get back i'll be working on ironing out a few songs for the potential new gig. and then hopefully sometime next week we'll all meet up with the guy and jam out, show him what we can do

looking for a custom tattoo design?

^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/25405520/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/25405520/ Sat, 20 Jun 2009 15:38:52 PDT










i'm going to central park on sunday. why? check the roadmap bitches! [link]



UPDATE: stupid rain! the devMEET is rescheduled for next sunday, june 28th instead of tomorrow. check out the blog here for the latest: [link]



and i'm dragging ~lwheat with me, as he's moved back to the states from down under! he's kept me entertained for a couple days while i gave him a place to keep his stuff and a couch to crash on while he sorted some things in the city. very happy to have him back. but don't tell him that.



in other news, check out this shit my fetish and nude loving fiends. story of a nude contest and fetish photography workshop in CA. good stuff.


on the personal front, the dust is settling and we are moving on. yes, we. as you know i was axed from the band lineup before i was even in (other than the live shows) and then some of the most unprofessional bullshit i've ever endured came to light when i contacted the manager about missing photo credits. did i get my credits? no. does it matter? no.

because those photos are now useless, as rich left the band. so they are unlikely to be used in publication again.


mind you, rich's departure was not based on how management treated me; this was just a symptom of longterm and underlying issues. they had a band meeting friday that basically built the coffin for him, and the way things were conducted regarding photo credits was quite a nail. especially since they were supposed to begin writing new material soon. if simple photo credits were such an issue, what would happen when it came to writing and recording credits? so fuck that. i'm proud of him for axing that stress from his life, and knowing where his passions lie (in his case, in recording/engineering/mixing/producing). so he's been in the studio all week.

i believe the other guitarist will also be leaving or at least only staying on in a strictly enforced "hired" sense of things. he's also come in contact with a solo artist in nyc who is looking for musicians for his live band. he told them how the three of us had been on a nationwide tour together and even have a cohesive vibe and look, and essentially may have gotten us a paying gig doing local shows with this guy. information and auditions pending.


but in more ways than one, everything happens for a reason. and karma is a bitch.

i'm really looking forward to things with rich and i normalizing now that we're not stressed to hell and back about the fucked up politics of the situation. in fact, tomorrow night we're going on a double date to meet justin's new girlfriend rich ran into her sunday when they stopped by the studio briefly and i've spoken to her on facebook. good vibes so far. which is awesome cuz justin deserves some positivity and whatnot, so i'm looking forward to dinner.



and of course...thanks to all of you for your continued support, whether things are good or bad, chill or stressful it means the world and helps me stay grounded.


my final thoughts on the situation? something that concerns everyone. integrity means being professional without bullshitting; say what you mean and stand up for yourself, while remaining productive and self-aware. say what you mean, and mean what you say.


^opioid


_{p.s. hope to see you sunday}

http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/25292791/ Sat, 13 Jun 2009 14:38:42 PDT










i'm fairly positive that i never want to shoot with a band who has management again.


it's ridiculous that conflict arises with management when everything with the band is gravy.


right now i'm extremely pissed off for some completely irrelevant and disrespectful things that were said to me when i pointed out that management promised me print credits and didn't come through.


adults plz. overreacting, nothx.

opioid

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/25117022/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/25117022/ Wed, 03 Jun 2009 23:18:27 PDT










so i've been avoiding writing this. partly cuz i'm exhausted. partly cuz it's not going to be as upbeat as i'd hoped. partly because i don't feel like rehashing. but i also do...vent a bit, throw it out there, clear things up. write it down. etc.


back from tour obviously. i keep fighting off this cold that i think rich and i keep passing back and forth. i thought i had it beat, but he's been sicker this past weekend and of course i hung out with him and i'm starting to feel crappy again. d'oh! karma for harassing him while he was trying to sleep i suppose.


you can see pictures from tour all over my facebook if you have that, and i linked to that video on youtube for anyone who cared to see me rock the fuck out

but unfortunately i won't be continuing with katc. signals got sort of crossed and marketing plans didn't include a 5th member. i don't think they really cleared it with the manager before having me hop on the tour...everyone just got overexcited. so i had a fucking BLAST. but i'm back to status as the guitarist's girlfriend and sometimes photographer.

i miss the road already though. i'm anxious for another project that will bring that sort of activity back into my life.



the same couple days as all this was happening my grandfather went into the hospital via ambulance. he'd been to another hospital first due to breathing problems and they said it was asthma. idiots. it turned out to be pneumonia. so he stayed at the hospital a few days and was discharged last friday, back home with my grandma. but my grandma just finished chemo for lung cancer, so her immune system is down...and she also has tons of appointments for various shots and soon, radiation as well. so my mother went down there friday night to juggle them, and saturday my grandpa ended up back at the hospital with fluid in his lungs.

then once they dealt with that they had to get his various heart medication levels stabilized but gave him too much blood thinner.

so he should have been out monday, but then they had to deal with that. however! he was discharged today and is now home. my aunt has been there since..tuesday i think, maybe monday night, to pick up where my mother left off.


needless to say my mom is freaking out, stressed as hell, exhausted, and even injured herself in the whole process. her toe, if you ask me, is broken.



and then to top it off, the way the band situation unfolded opened some very old wounds that i had suppressed from like...frickin high school. so i've been pretty insecure lately. fingers crossed it isn't weighing on my relationship with rich. he's being more supportive than i'd probably be if the situation were reversed.


but hey, things may be turning up a bit now, eh? pop pop's home. so mom is breathing easier. i'm spending time with cricket. still managing some time with rich. they're playing 3 shows..tomorrow, friday, saturday. so i'll go to the friday one most likely. if things aren't too awkward then i'll go saturday too. i don't want any of this to take away tagging along at shows. i really don't have a lot going on in my life socially and it would feel really awful to feel as though i could no longer go support rich at the shows and hang out with the people i've spent so much time with these past couple months.



i also think i'm just worrying too much. and i know that if i try to keep a distance from the shows and whatnot now, it'll only make it seem like things are tense when i finally see everyone together again. but really..this shit happens. it's part of the business. there's no hard feelings. the only way there will be hard feelings is if they come to a point where they can add a 5th player and they don't try me out to see if i'm still a good fit. that'd be a bit offensive to me and i'd take it personally. but barring that, haha, no hard feelings.


in fact i'm thinking of trying to convince them to still take me on warped tour as live photographer like we did the first time i hit the road with them. i'm a sucker for life on the road, i swear.


another positive though. tomorrow morning (afternoon for most people) i have another session with jamie on my left sleeve. surrealist fish thing based heavily off a design on threadless, believe it or not. should be rad as shit i'm sure we'll get the outline done tomorrow. and then just see if she's in the zone or not and keeps going or if i need another appoin... ]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/25006457/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/25006457/ Thu, 28 May 2009 22:05:28 PDT










quickie CR updates while i continue to get my bearings back at home!

YOUR ideas!

`cybergranny was the only one who noted me some ideas! i want MOAR!

we're long overdue for a surreal photography contest and an abstract photography contest (separately! you asked, you receive). comment or note me with your ideas for the ideal contest for one (or each) of these areas.


i also want to hear your ideas for other events, features, articles, etc you'd like to see for fetish, abstract, and surreal. i was also considering (once we get you an abstract and surreal contest) running the fetish firsthand contest again--would you guys be interested in fetish self portraiture again? let me know your thoughts either way!

DD suggestions

note me if you have suggests for fetish portraiture, abstract photography, or surreal photography.

please note that work in these styles from non-photographic media should not come to me! if you can't find who to send it to (there is an up to date list in $Moonbeam13's journal at all times), then send it to me anyhow, let me know you can't find the right moderator, and i'll forward it along for you

i do not respond to 99% of DD suggestions because of the volume of notes i receive in general--even when i DO feature the deviation! however, i read ALL notes i receive.

things to include in your note:

1. "DD suggestion" as the subject line


2. a thumbnail (:thumb#######: format) of the image you're suggesting


3. a short writeup (a sentence or two is fine) describing what about the image makes it stand out to you, why do you think it needs to be seen by more people on the site?

and that's it! those 3 simple ingredients and you have yourself a DD suggestion. huzzah!

Pimp!

Contest Link | Deadline
April Showers, May Flowers - May 31st
Butt Out Film and Animation Contest - May 31st
Death in Spring - June 13th
Comicslist Stamp Contest - June 15th
Extreme Expressions Contest - June 17th
Addictive Lust - June 30th
Daqueran #2 Fanart Contest - June 30th
Fractals and the Outside World - July 6th
Resources Print Challenge - July 15
PhotoJournalism Contest: LIFE - Aug 31
Keith's Super Awesome Photography Battle - Sep 01st
Anthro Ninja's vs Pirates Treasure Feature Challenge

article serieseseses
TradSavvy IV: Rubius on Biro
Artistic Nudes - Fleshy Features #6
designers'Block : Edition 28
15minutesOfFrame("LazyMuFFin");
PhotoJournalism Interview(s) #7 [Digitalgrace]
On the Couch with Nyssa Brown!
Game Art Interview - Josh Harvey
Anthro Artist Spotlight: =Pixel-Spotlight


MOAR

5/31 Blacklight Photography/Bodypainting Workshop
The Contribution of the Makeup Artist
Relay for Life
Digital artists and stock: do you play nice?
Global Tutorials Project [updates + awesomeness]
^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/24883076/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/24883076/ Fri, 22 May 2009 22:05:52 PDT










home as of 1pm but lurking mode only til i've caught up on sleep

which i've been working on all day

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/24754166/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/24754166/ Thu, 14 May 2009 13:35:37 PDT










had a couple days off (sunday to today) to be home which was good because i got very sick. just a nasty cold, but with a compromised immune system it hits pretty hard. i started feeling a lot better late last night and i feel alright today except for the fact that i lost my voice. i hate that!


we're driving past cleveland, OH now. or maybe we just did. it's hard to tell...we left 7am today from NJ to get to indiana and there is about 2.5 hours left.

we found this on youtube from saturday's show in pittsburgh: [link]


that is all for now!

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/24614250/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/24614250/ Wed, 06 May 2009 11:56:05 PDT










i think i'm up state. i WAS just in maine. we were rockin it at the station in portland last night, whoo!

it was supposedly a low turn out but it was a good crowd so who cares


we're on the road on our way to clifton park, NY tonight. pretty stoked. a little birdy told us it's sold out.

tomorrow we'll be in rochester, ny. good stuff.



speaking of good stuff!
#hq <--preview groups and join up! i'm pretty stoked for this. *ItDoesNotHaveMe is definitely going to benefit from this


EDIT: ALMOST FORGOT! my mother texted me last night to let me know that the june issue of alternative press (AP magazine) has hit the stands at the likes of borders and barnes and noble. this issue contains my promo shots of the band and announcement about a new distribution deal we've got. yay!

unfortunately the photos are blown out farther than i ever would have edited them but thems the breaks when you send your photo off for other people's use. not sure why they felt it necessary to completely amp up the contrast til kelsey and the boys looked like ghosts, but hey. whatevs. it's still my shot lol

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/24368215/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/24368215/ Sat, 25 Apr 2009 21:38:25 PDT philly sunday 4/26:




but more to the point...quickie CR updates!

YOUR ideas!

we're long overdue for a surreal photography contest and an abstract photography contest (separately! you asked, you receive). comment or note me with your ideas for the ideal contest for one (or each) of these areas.


i also want to hear your ideas for other events, features, articles, etc you'd like to see for fetish, abstract, and surreal. i was also considering (once we get you an abstract and surreal contest) running the fetish firsthand contest again--would you guys be interested in fetish self portraiture again? let me know your thoughts either way!

DD suggestions

note me if you have suggests for fetish portraiture, abstract photography, or surreal photography.

please note that work in these styles from non-photographic media should not come to me! if you can't find who to send it to (there is an up to date list in $Moonbeam13's journal at all times), then send it to me anyhow, let me know you can't find the right moderator, and i'll forward it along for you

i do not respond to 99% of DD suggestions because of the volume of notes i receive in general--even when i DO feature the deviation! however, i read ALL notes i receive.

things to include in your note:

1. "DD suggestion" as the subject line
2. a thumbnail (:thumb#######: format) of the image you're suggesting
3. a short writeup (a sentence or two is fine) describing what about the image makes it stand out to you, why do you think it needs to be seen by more people on the site?

and that's it! those 3 simple ingredients and you have yourself a DD suggestion. huzzah!

Pimpaho! Contests ahoy!

Jules' & Manda's Incredible Vexel Contest #2 -April 24th
Earth and Animals Campaign - April 29th
Your Secret Garden - May 2nd
Mater Contest - May 2nd
Seeing Red - May 15th
[link]>death chicks - PHOBIAS - May 31st
Keith's Super Awesome Photography Battle - Sep 01st

Articles and Interviews

Over To You...pullingcandy!
Over To You...HerreVermeer!
[link]"Over To You...Xerces!
Over To You...BlueSatine!
Photojounalism Interview(s): Obsidian-Fox
Behind the Symbol with Damaged927
PhotoJournalism Interview(s): hersely

Assorted other pimps

4/24 SoCal devMEET at D. M. Gremlin Open House!
FC03: Flashers "Electricity" Challenge Winner!
Artistic Nude Advanced Critique Feature
Critique-Me, a Brand New Club on dA
Global Tutorials Project [updates and awesomeness]
5/31 Blacklight Photography/Bodypainting Workshop
The Contribution of the Makeup Artist
Logo and title contest help =piratephotography make her mark!


not to mention the new critique features and the release of posters over in the prints department. awesome stuff. apri... ]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/24264591/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/24264591/ Wed, 15 Apr 2009 20:47:27 PDT












punnnn.

so what's all this nonsense with me lately? you may wonder. or you may not. either way, pencil me in the gap here:

and call it a day.


my new pals kelsey and the chaos.

rich has slid over to to join justin on guitar, his natural habitat, leaving a gap in the band for a bassist. *points to self* why here's a bassist! and you already get along with her!
i "auditioned" last sunday and it was good times and last night was the first rehearsal of the full set for the tours. another practice takes place tomorrow and the manager is supposed to come to that

my first show with them will be this monday, april 20th, at the nuyorican cafe in nyc.

we're playing the community center in sterling, VA friday the 24th, and alexander's in philly sunday the 26th. these shows will be opening for the scenic and mandy K.

if all goes well, i'll be back on the road with them for select dates starting may 5th on a nationwide tour with forever the sickest kids and white tie affair. also on this tour at any given point are mercy mercedes, cash cash, the friday night boys, the audition, a rocket to the moon, and tina parol. we'll be in maine, new york, pennsylvania, minnesota, nebraska, missouri, arkansas, and tennessee.

annnd...

to top it off, one of my promo shots (the closeup of them above) will be appearing as an ad in AP magazine next month. i also just sent over a bunch of files of promo and live shots to use in the myspace page revamp that will be coming up (the current one is...man. gotta be a year old by now).

and yes i will have internet on the road, just like last time it's definitely slower than my broadband at home so we'll see about a dAmn absence, definitely no worse than last time.



hope you all had lovely holidays and are enjoying the intermittent shift to spring temperatures. i was until the rain yesterday. now i ache

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/24157133/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/24157133/ Fri, 10 Apr 2009 00:44:28 PDT












i hope you'll pencil in an hour of your night for me on april 26th and pop over to alexander's.

i don't know where that is yet, but i'll be there, that's for damn sure!




i know most of you are loving the new layouts, but for those who love and hate alike, are there more modules you want to see? if so, click over to $Moonbeam13's journal here and leave her a comment explaining your idea!


also about time to revamp my etsy page. i got a black velvet necklace form that'll give some continuity to the shots, so it'll be less distracting from the jewelry itself. i think i may also lower my prices. i'm a little too in the hole from this endeavor to keep the pride that causes me to crank my prices haven't heard back from shana logic yet either about stocking it for the spring (something the founder suggested doing when i contacted her in november or december). email bomb!

but i enjoy doing it, it helps with fidgety anxiety so. i'll keep tossing money into it.


but anywho. yes. things. they are happening. and still not entirely announcable. but i'm the new kid all over! it's been a while. i'll manage



so other than philly, april will also be bringing me out to nyc (the 20th), plains, pa (the 22nd) and sterling, VA (the 24th). pencil me in bitches

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/23925170/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/23925170/ Fri, 27 Mar 2009 21:38:12 PDT












i have a bunch of major news, and i can't share any of it yet.

it's irritating the shit out of me, but it's okay because it's in a good way.

secrets are like UTIs, i swear.

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/23778037/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/23778037/ Thu, 19 Mar 2009 10:42:28 PDT

bloodLUST!

the contest has ended AND the results are in!

i'm so pleased with the response to this contest, as i have been wanting to do it for a long time. thanks to `DistortedSmile for being our guest judge and conceptual inspiration!

the winners!:

3rd Place:


2nd Place:


1st place:


thanks again to all the contestants, and i sincerely hope to run another contest of this nature in the near future talk about fun. horrific fetish. mmmm!

see the full winners article HERE for prize list, features, judges, and other information!

DD suggestions

note me if you have suggests for fetish portraiture, abstract photography, or surreal photography.

please note that work in these styles from non-photographic media should not come to me! if you can't find who to send it to (there is an up to date list in $Moonbeam13's journal at all times), then send it to me anyhow, let me know you can't find the right moderator, and i'll forward it along for you

i do not respond to 99% of DD suggestions because of the volume of notes i receive in general--even when i DO feature the deviation! however, i read ALL notes i receive.

things to include in your note:

1. "DD suggestion" as the subject line


2. a thumbnail (:thumb#######: format) of the image you're suggesting


3. a short writeup (a sentence or two is fine) describing what about the image makes it stand out to you, why do you think it needs to be seen by more people on the site?

and that's it! those 3 simple ingredients and you have yourself a DD suggestion. huzzah!

pimpage!

Contests
Jules' and Manda's Incredible Vexel Contest #1 - March 24th
Western Design Conference: for all Artisans - April 1st
Design A Deviant Contest
- April 15
Your Secret Garden - May 2nd
Soft as the landscape of a dream CONTEST!! - Aug 30th

Articles
Friday FumZ FrenZy / III - Underwater!
Resourcefully Yours / Weekly Gems/16/Textures!
Resourcefully Yours / Weekly Gems /15/Lit Templates,3D Model & Vector!
Resourcefully Yours / Weekly Gems/14/Tutorials!
[PhotoJournalism] Community Choice #2

Interviews
Interview with Filmmaker Kealan O'Rourke
Conceptual Photography Interview - roseonthegrey
Behind the Symbol with Little-Vampire
Over To You...vennecto!
Over To You...SandyClaws91
Over To You...tigerpusen05
Over To You...digitalarticulation

m... ]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/23619623/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/23619623/ Mon, 09 Mar 2009 23:58:35 PDT












hello lovelies.

so tour is underway and has been a shit-ton of fun, both shitty and awesome venues included. the road life is not for everyone. but i have to say...i really like it. i can't put my finger on it. most of the kind of stuff people hate about it comfort me. i think i just like being on the road, on the move, and i always have.

it's been a bit tough keeping on top of my hours for work, but i'm managing thanks to mobile broadband. w00t!

that and lots of photography and music, always good!

i'm being stubborn as shit (as is characteristic) and have been shooting all the shows with a 50 prime on my 350d, manual focus only. avoiding flash as much as possible. not that there's anything wrong with flash. this is just how i prefer to shoot. i don't shoot for a living, so when i do i have no reason NOT to do it in a manner that i find enjoyable.

and for whatever reason, these days i find it most enjoyable (and challenging maybe? that's usually the motivation behind any shifts in my preferences) to manual focus and run around with a prime lens. not to mention the deliciousness of a wide open aperture.

which is also a challenge, since such a short sliver of space is in the focal field. but when it's on, it's on. i lurve it.

and most importantly it's got me shooting again in general.
these are my favorites so far. especially the one of rich



i guess i could also assume part of the fun of it is spending so much time with rich. i think it's always a good test in a relationship of any kind to travel with the person. you're at your best and worst when you're out of your element. for us, it's all gone quite smoothly. the rest of the band seems to enjoy watching us interact as well. we have very similar personalities, and together we sort of feed off one another and amplify one another's humor and sharpen one another's tongues. like a 2-man comedy act 24/7. inappropriate jokes abound.


i'm home at the moment as we're moving back and forth through PA, NJ, and NY and therefore it doesn't make a ton of sense for justin, rich, and i to stay in a hotel when we have...houses. tomorrow morning i'll head over to rich's and we'll go meet up with the others in PA for the show. then long island the next day, another day off, and then back on the road to bum around upstate.


so the only downside, for those of you wondering how it feels for me to be outside of the music on this, is the jealousy.

of the groupies? hell no. i've suggested rich and the boys start up a kissing booth to push merch at the shows. i'm jealous of the band.

it's a little depressing in the moment, but i think when the tour wraps up and i sit on it all a little more it'll just motivate me to keep pushing. that's just how music is...most of the bands you form don't work out. musicians are flaky, fickle, and stubborn (look at me, for example!), and forming a band that can make it to its debut is no small task.

so. i just need. to. breeaaatthhe.


(which would be easier if i weren't congested apparently another staple of road life: getting sick halfway through it).




needless to say i've been less present on dA. i'm sad to see the #skinART chat so empty when i pop in. but i am managing to post DDs most days and keep my eye on things in a lurking-way. so i miss dAmn and the like but at the same time i'm having a blast, jooknow? the tour wraps up next week so never fear, i'll soon be back at things. including commissions (haven't been able to work on them on the road).

on that note, don't forget bloodLUST!
http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/23443465/ Sat, 28 Feb 2009 01:17:24 PST





















^Thiefoworld has been super nice enough to make stamps for all the gallery moderators on the CR team!

here's mine if you wish to sport it:


we also have a new photography GM; please welcome ^PorcelainPoet as one of our general photography GMs.




so how about my neck of the woods? you haven't forgotten about bloodLUST right? GOOD. if you have, then let's fix that shall we? check out the contest details here!


speaking of horror, a genetic disorder is on the table that has come up in the past and its very likely i have it because its very likely my sister has it. or should i said...each of us have enough symptoms to make it very likely, but its genetic and inherited so the fact that we both present with joint laxity and other collagen-related weird symptoms...makes this the likely culprit. more to come after she sees the geneticist i suppose.


in the meantime!

i WILL have the internet...but i will be away for the next two weeks. hyup. i'm grabbing my cameras and getting on the go, touring with rich's band for the first leg of things and photodocumenting the whole shebang. if you want to come and pop to the merch table and say hi, we're going up the easy coast starting in georgia and you can see all the dates on their myspace. i think in general, we're hitting GA, NC, VA, NJ, PA, NY, CT...and that's it for me. the rest of the band will continue out to MI, chicago, and cleveland.



and yes i still have that headache. i'm feeling the headache thats been there for the past 3+ weeks, but now also sinus pressure so maybe i'm getting a cold on top of it. we'll see. lots of vit C ad b12 shots for me!



terms did change somewhat due to nonpayment when it comes to tattoo commissions so check out the link at the end of this journal to see the protocol and details of commissioning me. fankyew!


tomorrow (tonight technically) i will be hitting up my north jersey pals ^oilsoaked, ^limnides, and =distortified to shoot the shit and shoot the pool balls! buahaha. dragging rich along too. 'twill be good times.

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/23243458/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/23243458/ Mon, 16 Feb 2009 20:18:34 PST










do you have bloodlust?

check out the details here and get to work! this is going to be...fucking awesome, basically!


join me in welcoming the latest round of CR victims if you haven't already:
Anime/Manga: - ^ctJemm
Emoticons: ^Synfull & ^DeMaulwurfn
deviantART Related: ^2dazed
Pixel Art: ^armaina & ^Mistress-Jaeden
Game Art: ^ForksOfTheSalad & ^technographer
Literature: ^fllnthblnk & ^SparrowSong
Commercial Photography: ^orangefruits
Glamour Photography: ^cosfrog
Space Art: ^gucken & ^taenaron



how was everyone's vday? i'm not big on massive celebrations, especially of artificial type holidays, but i can't say i have anything against the spirit behind valentine's day. i just prefer to go the lowkey route, so i slept late, got some work done at my job, and spent the evening with rich.

vday is also my grandpa's birthday, so the family got together yesterday. i brought rich along so he got to see my sister, her fiance, and my mom again and meet my aunt and uncle and two of my three cousins (the third was at school). my uncle was pretty thrilled to talk shop with a touring musician. practically everyone in the family plays music, but generally at the school band level. or like me, and the failed band level


my grandma is doing well after her surgery last week, things are healing up and all that. she seemed pretty exhausted after the commotion of us all being over, but she's a tough little lady and is healing up much better than one would expect someone her age to be able to do! i'm sure she wishes she were back on skates already, but it's only been 10 days so that is certainly not on her surgeon-approved to-do list.


my sister threw some pictures on facebook, if you have me there you can see. nothing exciting. and if you don't, then i indulge you with a photo of rich and i that my mom took, in all our stepped-straight-out-of-urban-outfitters glory.

^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/23176541/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/23176541/ Fri, 13 Feb 2009 14:53:46 PST
THAT'S RIGHT. the long promised contest is here. adapted from the AWESOME ass kicking contest held by `DistortedSmile in a galaxy far away, ^Katerina423, ^RockstarVanity, and i have teamed up to bring you a CR-inflated version of this awesome horror and fetish contest. check out the details here and get to work! this is going to be...fucking awesome, basically!


i'm super stoked and you should be too.




in other news, have you heard that $Moonbeam13 and ^JunkbyJen are awesome? they have both had a very rough week in terms of bad news but are very strong women, so show them the love they well deserve.


and $Moonbeam13 has come up with a great idea to help self-motivate showing the love to anyone you feel is deserving!

it's the end of the week, but i want to encourage the random acts of kindness week "festivities" to continue...oh...how about indefinitely?




as for me, my journals have gotten scarce but those of you who dAmn regularly know i've been around

things are pretty good over here. i was VERY sick for a while. i have had a headache now for 2 weeks straight, and last thursday my throat looked like infected ground beef. it cleared up tuesday and now i feel a bit like i'm at the end of a cold. i also think i'm developing stockholme syndrome with this headache. we have many long, cathartic chats.

and then last friday brought me some drama. and ...those of you who know me know i don't bring the drama. but some crazy ho that rich hasn't seen (except for a half hour drop-by at a news years party she showed up at) since before we were together...thinks that he's her boyfriend. her myspace profile screams "i am not in touch with reality."

silly women and their denial.

but rich is home now, he got back monday night. saturday was his birthday and last night his parents and aunt took he, i, and his friend to dinner. was verra nice. now he's just working on getting samples and a website together for his programming business. if you need drum tracks and programming and other audio mastering and production, stay tuned, i'll be sure to pimp the site when it's live. the dude is seriously talented. and that is NOT the girlfriend in me speaking, it's the musician.


annnd on that note. i texted him to come cheer me up because of the medical bills and he just called to ask me out to dinner with his friend and that guys girlfriend. so i'ma try that approach.


to ye all. as usual, and moreso!

looking for a custom tattoo design?

http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/22850530/ Tue, 27 Jan 2009 22:20:23 PST dA spam, noes!

there is some mass comment link spam going around and about. check here for a description and updates as they become available.

user pages

as you should have well been aware by now, new user pages have been floating around. they've been in beta for SIX weeks and went alpha last week, so we can all play around. everyone can customize, and subscribers to a further degree. i personally love it.

you can get the detailed rundown here

DD suggestions

note me if you have suggests for fetish portraiture, abstract photography, or surreal photography.

please note that work in these styles from non-photographic media should not come to me! if you can't find who to send it to (there is an up to date list in $Moonbeam13's journal at all times), then send it to me anyhow, let me know you can't find the right moderator, and i'll forward it along for you

i do not respond to 99% of DD suggestions because of the volume of notes i receive in general--even when i DO feature the deviation! however, i read ALL notes i receive.

things to include in your note:

1. "DD suggestion" as the subject line


2. a thumbnail (:thumb#######: format) of the image you're suggesting


3. a short writeup (a sentence or two is fine) describing what about the image makes it stand out to you, why do you think it needs to be seen by more people on the site?

and that's it! those 3 simple ingredients and you have yourself a DD suggestion. huzzah!

recent favs of mine!

abstract





surreal


^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/22772749/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/22772749/ Sat, 24 Jan 2009 20:02:47 PST














whoo! this evening i spent a few hours at the tattoo shop having jamie work on my left arm. this time i just gave her a sketch for posing/size/position and let her design me the rest and run with it. its already beautiful. we got the main linework and a lot of the shading done this session.



i go back march 20th so far. but i'm on the cancellation list and since i work from home at whatever hours i want, i can pop in any day of the week or time of the day! hehe. makes it more likely she can squeeze me in sooner for more shading and color. so yeah. sweet.

no pictures tonight. i'll be in delaware tomorrow afternoon hanging out with my sister and picking up my macbook pro (i miss you so!) and then i can probably get something up for those of you wanting to see. hee.

rich is still on tour but i'm in contact with him daily and all seems to be going well, aside from the constant presence of lots of people in cramped quarters lol


sigh. tattoos make me happy. the new one is a peacock that takes up that whole arm. it will be full color and lovely and make me smile every time i look at it

mom's not pleased. but if the worst thing she has to worry about with my sister and i is that we're tattooed...she's pretty damn lucky. we're both employed, have our degrees, are well spoken and emotionally stable. and i'm certainly ambitious enough for a dozen people. s'fine. hear that mom? i love ya. its fine.

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/22683466/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/22683466/ Mon, 19 Jan 2009 21:41:54 PST














i've been super busy lately, as you may have noticed. first i just want to point out that the customizable userpages are now in alpha testing if you haven't noticed, so start messing around! very cool.

i also extended cathARTsis IV's deadline to this coming friday to give a little extra time to wrap up entries. my hope is that an extra week will help to offset the holidays. i've yet to come through on my part of things and write the last two awareness articles, so i'm sure that's not exactly motivating, but they WILL get out. visit *ItDoesNotHaveMe for all info in the meantime.


+ about that apple..._________________

so yeah. where is my apple...laptop? my macbook pro to be exact. the answer is delaware. why, you may wonder? because i'm a dope.

thursday morning rich left on tour with kelsey and the chaos, who are opening for just surrender for this leg of their tour along with a few other bands...pull the pin, jesse barrera, and it seems like a local band in each city to start things off. so he texts me late thursday night to ask if i was going to come to the show the next day. buh? i say to myself. turns out that friday night they were playing at a venue 15 minutes from my sister's house.

so of course i went. i showed up a bit early and was on the guest list so i got to slip in and hang out with everyone, get intros out of the way. rich's friend justin is in the band as well, and i've hung out with him a number of times by now. so that was fun. i didn't want to subject my sister and her fiance to 13 year old emo kids, so we decided to meet up for drinks after.

the show didn't end til around 10:30 and the boys obviously had to pack shit up, so going out for drinks turned into me inviting both justin and rich to hang out at my sister's house. this then turned into...well tomorrow's show is in allentown so how about we stay the night and you drive us to that venue.

since i had my new car with me, this was a no-brainer. hehe. so we chilled there and crashed out for the night. the next morning, i packed my shit up and threw it in the car, minus my macbook pro so that i could grab directions off google maps to copy down. so i did that and we rushed out.

and i left the damn thing in the guestroom. along with the vest i had been wearing the night before. D'OH!


i was half tempted to drop off the boys and drive the fuck back for my computer but i need to go back for work related stuff soon anyway, so it hardly seemed like a good idea. so it's just me and the dell for this week, and my poor mac is sitting on the bed in the guestroom draining its battery. again i emphasize, d'oh.

i think it balances my electronics karma though because i did get the xbox360 hooked up to my HD monitor, yay. so i'll cope for now.


+ but i digress..._________________

anywho. so we drove to allentown which proved a pretty easy trip, and i played the role of part girlfriend part roadie. we got there before load time so we chilled on the bus squeezed into those little bunks. rich's bunk is above justin's, and he about shit a brick when he realized we were both crammed up there. he was pretty positive it would collapse on him. i think he was calling me fat. i don't know, might have to bust a cap in his ass.

but load time was called and i'm like...well i'm here. and what am i gonna do, leave now or sit on the bus? i'll grab what i can. so i did. though uh. _{the singer apparently doesn't engage in the unloading and loading process *cough*}. personally i'm more a fan of the do it yourself if you want it done right philosophy, so i'd be all over that shit if were my band. to each her own!

so that show definitely had more people around. allentown is a shithole but its only about an hour away from where we live, so both rich and justin's parents came and rich's parents took us out to dinner.

i ended up sticking around for the whole thing and helping carry shit back to the bus until it was just too fucking cold and we said our goodbyes. the tour only goes further from here so it'll be another week with just surrender, and then they may or may not come home for a couple days before leaving with red car wire to head south.


+ ambivalence much, though?_________________

i have to say, i'm super jealous. even though none of it is really my ideal cup of musical tea, the lack of an active music project in my life right now is made all the more evident by bumming around with these folks. must do something about that.

it's the odd mix of "oh i'm happy for you!" and "i would be a little happier though if i were off doing something similar at the moment" http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/22443458/ Tue, 06 Jan 2009 22:08:10 PST














oh hallo thar!

happy 2009 everyone

i ended up spending a low key evening at home watching the twilight zone marathon on sci fi. hehe. ended up sitting at the table with my mom when the clocked ticked over to this year, drinking and chatting. twas nice.

before that, i spent 3 days in delaware, dragging rich along with me. he met my sister and her fiance (also named rich), and that monday we all drove down to my dad's for post-xmas with him. everyone really liked him and he liked...the important ones. (i.e. my sister, the other rich, my dad, and not the step-folks. haaah.)

anywho. yeah it was nice. my mom thought it was odd that we didn't spend NYE together but..we had 3 days straight of each other. wasn't necessary

on our way back from delaware we got dinner and went out for drinks with some of his friends so i met more of those folks, who were awesome. i'm fairly positive they approved of me. partly because his one friend kept saying things like "i like this one, keep her around" and "i really like you two together." fairly clear-cut, no?





so i got an xbox from my dad for xmas (how appropriate) and oblivion. mmm oblivion. by the way, i fucking suck at any video games that aren't on NES or SNES (or DS) so...it's interesting. but i like it despite sucking at joysticks so hah. i just got guitar hero 3 in the mail today, and orange box is on its way.

but i still need to hook up the xbox. oops. my mom bought herself a 32" sony bravia with her xmas money and gave me her 20" old tube tv to replace the..12 or 13" white thingy i had in my bedroom. so i decided that in honor of the diagonal upgrade, i would hook the xbox up to that one instead of in the rec room. i'm not really sure why anyone would need to know this, but it's my journal so you're stuck with excessive details. hah!

anyway. so yeah. then friday i went with rich to see his cousin's band play. he went up and jammed with them toward the end, which was pretty awesome. he shreds like a mofo. and his family is cool so all seems to be going well.


almost too well lol



the car. ah yes. my parts and plates are in and i made an appointment for tomorrow to drop it off to have the security and spoiler installed. it's also getting a protective coating inside and out. i should have it back by thursday, friday at the latest, and then i'm all done! permaplates, registration, purty car. process complete no payments til february. lol




as for health, that's probably the only thing that's still crap. my hand is still numb, but i DID call my doctor. it's probably ulna nerve compression or pinching so she wants me to see a chiropractor to relieve pressure. i think instead i'm going to go with ibuprofen and take it as motivation to make an appointment with the acupunturist i keep meaning to see.

other than that, lots of joint pain. headaches aren't as bad as they were a month ago though.

i'll live though as usual.



now that the holidays and such are over i'm finally getting back to commissions, so if you're waiting on something from me, sorry about the hiatus but things are back on track.

and speaking of art, i want everyone to mosey on over to *ItDoesNotHaveMe. check out the info for cathARTsis IV. spread the word. enter!

participation has been steadily waning with each round, and it's been a downer after the time i invest in it. though i admit, i still owe article prizes. so i guess that's fair. i'd better get my shit in order and deliver the awareness, stat.




in the coming weeks i should definitely be more productive though. rich is going on tour for 3 weeks on the 16th so i'll have less distraction




so i hope 09 is treating you all well. few to no complaints from me



also worth mention, another good start to the year, my conclusion to the canvas series of self portraits won 2nd place in =cosfrog's f... ]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/22235134/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/22235134/ Sat, 27 Dec 2008 23:20:51 PST














that's right! the car!






i love the thing. ridiculously. i'm glad i took the plunge.



so to those who celebrate, how was everyone's xmas?

mine was pretty good. ate entirely too much as we all should this time of year. mmm homemade ravioli. i still have part II though. tomorrow evening rich and i are driving to my sister's, and then monday morning her fiance will drive us all to my dad's. dad's getting me an xbox. yay games! hehe

just hoping my family won't scare rich off. but if he hasn't turn and run cuz of me, they'll be a cakewalk for him. lol



things are going well for me i'd say. like i said, rich is still around. yay. and the new car, double yay. and monday i went into the city and met with the president of the tattoo society of new york. i'm going to be helping him out along with other contributers with a book he's putting out on tattoo culture. i should be interviewing key figures in the scene as it gained headway in the 70s and 80s and then writing articles as well as helping to edit articles by other people. it isn't for pay, but it's going to be a blast like my thesis was and it'll be published. i think it's just the intellectual stimulation i've been craving since i finished my degree.

the guy is a documentarian and photographer these days rather than a tattoo artist and my friend from uni is apprenticing under him for photography. so much thanks and kudos to monica for thinking of me when he told her about this project


the only thing that's throwing me off in general is that xmas eve morning i woke up with a small part of my hand/knuckle numb. more on xmas. same friday, but more again today. i still have full function of the hand and arm, and can feel temp changes and stuff on the very top layer of skin, but all the muscle tissue and such is numb. it's starting to unnerve me, but i'm going to keep an eye on it. could just be from joint swelling or a pinched off nerve or something.



but yeah. i've got to figure out if i want to do anything for new year's this year. some years i go places, some places i chill at home and keep it low key. if you know what you're doing, comment and tell me! maybe it'll give me some ideas. hehe.

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/22143677/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/22143677/ Tue, 23 Dec 2008 20:11:45 PST




i'm not thrilled to feel the need to set aside my original plans for a diatribe as my CR update, but i feel it's necessary that i don't come off as though i'm ignoring the drama. i am listening.

the entire community relations newsletter can be found here

stop flaming DDs

and thank you `equivoque for diligently sticking up for abstract art in general and in this case.

many of you have noticed by now that i featured a blurry abstract photo as a DD today.

but many who have criticized it don't seem to realize the point of abstract art, whatever the media. it's about composition, first and foremost. that being said...

i think people also don't realize the cultural value of art that pisses people off by making them question what art is


thats how movements are started, particularly out in the real world before the internet and despite the internet. now it continues here as well.


DDs are not prizes, they are features. they are featured by gallery moderators who deal with specific areas of art. i deal with fetish, abstract, and surreal. thus, the DD i post are fetish portraits, abstract photographs, or surreal photographs. i'm here to represent you guys to the community at large, not to tell you what the best piece of art by all fine art standards and should win a million dollars and an all inclusive trip to the bahamas..would be.

it's..hey look at this, this represents this genre and is well done.
check out the artist.


far too much energy is being put into negativity, and it's completely unnecessary. but if you have voiced your opinion in a less than savory way, then as i said...know that you are part of a long tradition of critics who made the work they hated rise above the crowd.


for future reference, if you disapprove of a DD it is not appropriate to bash the artist because the artist has nothing to do with the work appearing on the front page. i received NOT A SINGLE NOTE from someone telling me they were upset about the feature, but clearly it is all over the piece. with the amount of dissention expressed, i was expecting to check my inbox and find it flooded. i reiterate..not a single one.



i'm just absolutely disappointed in the way people conduct themselves. perhaps i had become an optimist for a moment, but i expected more.

about me as an artist

to address another point of dissention, i am indeed an artist. my gallery reflects only glimpses of the work i produce. i am educated in art, both by virtue of growing up with a former art teacher, in my own public education, and further in college. i have background in cultural studies (anthropology) as well as art and music history.

this doesn't mean that when i like something it is or isn't art. but know that everything i feature expresses some aspect of important trends i've seen in art. i lived in nyc for 2 years and i spent a LOT of my time in galleries, both private small galleries and the museum of modern art, as well as more classical museums like the met.

usually multiple times per week. sometimes for class, sometimes for fun.

i studied at the guggenheim with the education director for a semester and learned about the curating process.

i studied photography under charles harbutt for a semester as well. he's awesome, by the way.

i say all this for basically one reason: my activity in the arts is not random. i have devoted time to knowing what i'm talking about, and to learning about things when i'm proven wrong. i have an eye on what's going on in the art world. i've seen a lot of gallery shows that i loved, and a lot that i thought were crap. that's just how art is.


i'm also a very open and approachable person, and while i don't reply to DD suggestions because of the sheer volume, i read every single one and i DO reply to any note you send me expressing concerns about something. DD suggestions are the *only* notes i don't reply to.

so PLEASE. if you have an issue, and you don't want to contact $Moonbeam13 about it to discuss it on a larger scale, you CAN come to me. even if just say "hey opioid, fuck you, you have no idea what you're talking about." i will respectfully disagree, but i will read it. i will respond. i will have a dialogue with you.


most of you also know i'm really active on the chats, so that's another way to find me and discuss issues you may have with any of my actions or decisions if you prefer live-ti... ]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21956973/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21956973/ Sat, 13 Dec 2008 11:20:57 PST














ALRIGHT WHO DUN IT.

i just got in the mail. THANK YOU! polgas for every month of the year


---

hey all!

how goes. good? good!

the *Death-Chicks contest has ended and the results are out! [link] congrats to the winners!

cathARTsis IV has launched over at *ItDoesNotHaveMe so be sure to check out what that's sll about.

and third is of course a contest i'm guest judging over in Lit! if you write avidly or if you never have but want to try something new, i encourage you to check it out: Litmas!


i just want to throw it out there that the *IAMmodified contest for an ID and avatar is still open, and will most likely take entries til the end of this month.


as for me, stuff's okay! i'm all over the place this and next week. i'll be driving way down south jersey for my doctor appointment tuesday, then back to delaware (i was just there this week) for a day. then next friday my mom, sister and i are going into the city to see wicked. should be really fun

boy still=good

but the pain i've been in lately is definitely becoming a distraction so i'm glad all the people who care about me enough to yell at me did so to get me to move up my appointment.



oh and yes, i'm on twitter. same username.


but more interestingly! here are some new submissions to the abstract photography and surreal photography galleries that caught my eye:





http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21886115/ Mon, 15 Dec 2008 14:30:14 PST














EDIT: subscribers! quickly! go turn on beta testing. you now have shiny userpages to test too. read more here to find out how to get fancy: [link]




by now you've no doubt seen the journals popping up from CR and CommOps volunteers all over. dA userpages are going CUSTOM.


i just spent an assload of time messing around with my own page, and i love this. i can finally make my contact info more prominent, which i feel is important for a community volunteer. and i can separate my faves gallery from my own by a little more space which...is just something i'd always wanted to do. shrug. hah!

^wynnesome posted a long pageview screenshot of her gallery rearranged-style that you can see here:



on mine, i put my contact info on the right side under my gallery, and i also sandwiched my gallery between two countem TWO "featured deviation" modules.

here's what ^jbensch did with his:


i'm supposed to be working, but after i'm done i'm going to go expand my friends module the way wendy did


you guys, this is friggin awesome. be jealous. BUT ONLY TEMPORARILY.

customization coming to a userpage near you (i.e. YOURS) soon!


fuckyeah.

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21828764/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21828764/ Fri, 05 Dec 2008 09:31:42 PST














whoo!

it's calendar day. what the hell is calendar day? calendars are 20% off and to show you a small sample of what is available, all the DDs featured today are offered by the artist as a calendar. i'm personally drooling over *gnato's.
surreal. conceptual. fun.

sexy? yes, sexy too.


this is completely unrelated to calendars, but totally related to awesomeness. :devmrsste: has been putting together an interview series, and the latest is with shane griffith, the product manager for 3ds Max. talk about getting to the source! you can read that interview here if you are of the customization persuasion


=ian-x, a really talented and community-enthusiastic fetish and alt fashion photographer, has started a project called self estememe.

you can read all the details here, and if you know artists you are close with who wouldn't mind being tagged and would accept it as a really productive challenge...then go for it! i think it's a great idea for those open to taking it on. pimp this shit and let's get lots of people involved, help one another realize our beauty.



as for personal updates, i've not been up to much.

okay so i have, but it's just the usual work, jewelry making, brainstorming holiday gifts, tattoo commissions, jooknow. i did have to move up my doctor appointment because things are sort of hitting a wall and lots of people who care about my wellbeing convinced me that waiting til my old appointment on january 6th was a bad idea.

but things are still going well with the new boy, and my dad is coming up to jersey to visit me for my birthday tomorrow. yay



hope all's well with you guys. tell me something new you've tried lately!

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21764693/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21764693/ Mon, 01 Dec 2008 11:23:04 PST

have you heard the latest information about being HIV positive?

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21689640/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21689640/ Wed, 26 Nov 2008 22:11:32 PST














will not appear here!

hehe.

it seems some of you have found out my birthday is fast approaching and already started wishing me a good one. thanks

tis officially thanksgiving, which means my birthday is "tomorrow" (friday).

my darling friend and hetero lifemate rena is in town so i'll get to see her on my birthday. i may also be catching up with my ol' highschool buddy ~xomatose for coffee in the morning. and most squealingly out of character for me to be thrilled about, i may also be spending the day with my new boy toy.

he came down with a nasty stomach bug sunday though and has been out of commission. he let me claim him for friday provided he's feeling alright. fingers crossed but i haven't heard from him today.


but yeah you heard right. a boy. gah! i've been fucking nuts about it for almost 2 weeks now, as anyone who has spoken to me lately can relate to you. we clicked immediately. a lot of physical chemistry, but a lot of intellectual chemistry as well.

and he likes really fucked up shit the way i do. twisted bastard.

first date was friday the 14th. then we spent monday (at which point he met my mom), tuesday, and wednesday night hanging out. thursday via text message (ghey) we established that exclusivity is cool. i met one of his bandmates/friends saturday and then randomly decided to go back to his place and i met his parents.

i don't get this giddy about any people, let alone boys. my mom thinks i'm cracked out or something. she's also worried that he's gay because he's all metro and well dressed and has good posture and such.


that's how i roll though.


alright enough about that.





so happy thanksgiving, yankees! i'll be spending mine with my mom's side of the family at my grandparents' house. i haven't seen my grandma since before she had her heart attack toward the end of october. she was also, as a result of that surgery/hospitalization, diagnosed with lung cancer. her PET scan came back friday and there wasn't anything other than what they'd already found so they caught it super early. they can't operate because of her age and recent open heart surgery, so they'll do 6 weeks of radiation and chemo to shrink the tumor. if that doesn't work she should be good to go for surgery by then. fingers crossed. from everything i hear she's in good spirits, except being pissed that she can't rollerskate for a while. silly nanny, always skatin'. they usually go about 3 times a week. she's quite a woman.



what's some more weird news. hm.

well the first couple weeks after i was diagnosed with active lyme again i was like..fft bullshit. i feel fine. but it's starting to hit. i've felt pretty fucking shitty lately. i should probably call my doctor to get in before jan 6th (my next scheduled checkup) and get back on antibiotics. buuut i don't want to. plus i waited too long and now they won't be open again til monday anyhow so shush.


good thing i work from home


SPEAKING OF WHICH. let's ping pong back to good news!

as i received notice of my paycheck this week, i was informed that i'm now on salary instead of hourly. yay! this means my health insurance will kick in soon. which won't be as good as my coverage as a student under my dad, of course, but its still insurance and then i can get off COBRA (can't have any gaps in coverage with a preexisting condition or i'll lose much needed coverage for prescriptions stupid healthcare system).

anyway. so i'm officially a big girl i guess! my first salaried position exammaster owns my soul (which my boss literally said to me in an email).


most excitingly, i was also surprised to find my paycheck a little bit fatter this week so it appears i got a sneaky little raise.



so yar. i suppose i'm thankful for my flexible job that lets me know i'm appreciated whenever its affordable.... ]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21558451/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21558451/ Thu, 20 Nov 2008 20:38:50 PST

gallery moderators

please join us all in welcoming the new blood to your community relations team!

digital art
^cmptrwhz and ^Platinus- fractal
^joannastar - 3D
^Pyrochan-dolls - dolls
^shebid - vexel
^yingjunjiu - icons

anime
^Katmomma - anthro

traditional media
^snowmask - traditional art
^Thebuild - sculpture
^noxiousone - traditional street art
^Battledress - body art
^wynnesome - artistic nudes

annnd photography!
^kkart - animals, plants and nature photography
^FaMz - conceptual photography
^dandelgrosso - macro
^RockstarVanity - horror & macabre
^zerocomplex - general photography
^bQw - street photography

there's some shuffle within the team as well, in the form of the following:

^misskittyoooo is now doing animation
^Katerina423 is now helping with general photography
and ^Helewidis joins ^estudio in photojournalism


for the complete and always up-to-date listing of gallery moderators, keep this link bookmarked!


keep sending those DD suggestions to me and the other GMs. please remember to send them in the form of a note rather than a comment on my page, as i can organize notes in my folders to keep track of the suggestions not so much with comments! hehe

policy and politeness

CEA update! this is a relief for those of us in the fetish and artnudes communities. please take a moment to read and spread the word: CEA Update 20081119: Lewd and Sexual Commentary

contests in fetish, abstract, and surreal

alrighty, i know i promised a contest with a challenge-advantage but no one has guessed right yet! keep guessing! which of the 3 galleries that i deal with will be having its own contest?

i'm also pushing off contests til january because i don't want them to compete with holiday related contests that are all coming up soon. this way, you have the best opportunity to participate in all of them rather than feeling crunched for time to whip out a bunch of entries for a billion contests


another teaser on the contest note, there is going to be a really badass contest that ^RockstarVanity, ^Katerina423, and i will be holding and i'm SUPER fucking stoked about it. so excited. it's going to be AWESOME. so get pumped and get the creative juices flowing like mad so when it's announced you can dive in head first!

features

^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21477262/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21477262/ Thu, 13 Nov 2008 23:50:32 PST











vote here!





and on that note! CR can also has noms.

meet n greet the new blood so far!

digital art
^cmptrwhz and ^Platinus - fractal
^joannastar - 3D
^shebid - vexel
^yingjunjiu - icons
^Pyrochan-dolls - dolls

anime
^Katmomma - anthro

traditional art
^snowmask

photography
^dandelgrosso - macro
^RockstarVanity - Horror & macabre (:devKaterina423 has sidestepped to general photography)
^zerocomplex - general photography
^bQw - street photography
and another shift was ^Helewidis to photojournalism to accompany ^estudio


pleeease give much love to `just-an-artist, `lyastri, and ^Sophquest for all they've done for the community so far they're awesome






annnd as for me, i've traded in the pit bull for a cat by returning back to new jersey. now to plan my weekend.


and i think i'm going to post some of the multiple styles of my jewelry to ebay. i feel like i shouldn't make more til i sell off some of the stuff that's taking up space on my coffee table. hehe. so for example, like so: [link]

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21438981/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21438981/ Tue, 11 Nov 2008 13:35:54 PST











happy 11/11 folks!


do you want to volunteer for dA?

can you? FAQ #85: Can I be a volunteer on deviantART?

if so, then be sure to check this out, and keep it bookmarked: [link]

this is $Moonbeam13's permanent home for open positions on the CR team.




in other news, i'm in delaware for a work retreat and am at my sister's house. they got a dog from the SPCA last week and he's the sweetest lil oaf.

so meet my new nephew mason


awww yeah, that's the spot.

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21363855/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21363855/ Thu, 06 Nov 2008 19:47:55 PST











CREATE: [link] community relations contest! a week left, so hop to it.

pinkitude! holy fuck check out the prizes! [link]


results of cathARTsis III: [link]

congrats to the winners!

1st place
by


2nd place:
by


3rd place
by

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21225264/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21225264/ Wed, 29 Oct 2008 22:47:06 PDT











only had a couple people guess the theme and gallery for the contest, and no one has guessed right yet, so the challenge still stands and i'm holding off on launching the contest til i can give out the challenge prize to someone.

also because i want to give you guys the chance to enter multiple contests and there are lots going on for halloween this weekend.

also because i lost track of time due to a number of circumstances and didn't get my contest proposal in last weekend


but yet. to review...

if you can guess the next theme (out of...oh, anything) and gallery (either abstract or surreal or fetish, it won't be more than one, so don't guess both abstract and surreal) of the next contest i'm holding, you get to have two entries into said contest (or pass your extra onto someone you know is participating if you aren't).

so keep guessing and spread word to any of your abstract/surreal/fetish photographer friends.




in personal news, i'm going to delaware this friday to go to a halloween party with my sister and her fiance. actually i've been told it's a ZEMOWEEN party. dr. zemo is the alter ego of the fellow throwing this shindig so..could mean anything! good times!

less fun news...
tests came back for my grandmother, who had a heart attack a couple weeks ago followed by a double bypass. she has lung cancer. tomorrow she is going for a PET scan to find out if the tumor is contained or has metastisized. fingers crossed. since she just had a double bypass (and is 81, though you wouldn't know it. some 80something year old man at the hospital thought she was in her mid 60s the other day), they can't and/or won't operate so radiation would be the only option.

it's such a fucking kicker. she did smoke heavily for many years, as did my grandpa, their parents, and my mom, but when my mom got sick 30 years ago and had to quit, my grandparents quit in support of her as well. so nanny hasn't smoked in 30 years, and now gets lung cancer. doh.

but if it weren't for that heart attack they wouldn't have found out. that's the thing that's had my mom bugging out paranoid. it's also heightening her intense and somewhat overbearing paranoia about my health situation.


but the only thing i can say about my health situation is that i think i'm fine. i haven't been feeling well these past few days but i'm almost positive it's mostly weather-related (major rain and even snowfall from that nor'easter) has my hips and knees in...what i would call a fair amount of agony.



as you know though, i work from home, so it isn't like i've been straining. granted that probably makes it worse..getting stiff. i'll have to be more simultaneously frequent and careful about being active. in the meantime i've picked up on my commissions again and i think i've made about 20 necklaces, not counting the ones i made to keep lol.

again you can find them for sale on my etsy page here, with a preview of a couple in my gallery here.

remember, the holidays are coming up



i just remembered today that i still have ZOO PHOTOS from my last visit out to see *killjoy that i haven't even attempted to go through fucking insane. i need to get on that shit! i guess i've just felt more like working with my hands lately! (hence all the damned jewelry, which is starting to clutter up the coffee table).

^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21102515/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/21102515/ Sun, 26 Oct 2008 14:27:47 PDT


CR? Buh?

you've been seeing it around. soon all shall be revealed about the details of what's to come, and what it'll be called. Artist Relations is now, in what is definitely a more accurate title, Community Relations. in the same spirit of accuracy and refocus, i am no longer a gallery director.

nor are any of the people you've come to know on the AR team.


if you aren't already, add $Moonbeam13 to your watch to get the CR newsletter, which in this next installment will explain everything you need to know about the restructuring of your community team.

newsletter is here as soon as it becomes available. please hold any questions you might have until then it may already be addressed in that announcement.

and of course, feel free to join us in the new hub on dAmn for CR, #communityrelations (very obscure, right?)

DDs

i've been getting a steady stream of suggestions lately, which makes me super content, but i am still lacking in abstract photography suggestions, so definitely send them my way if you come across anything of note.

i do read every suggestion even though i don't reply. generally, i only reply if i need to direct you to someone else (if what you suggest to me isn't my gallery). as those whose suggestions i have featured will notice, i don't even reply when i accept suggestions. call me silly. or swamped.

upcoming contest

in the next week or so, i'll be announcing a new contest. as i learned from the birthday contests, you guys definitely want to see contests run individually for fetish, abstract, and surreal because despite the overlap in approach and concept, the final product and distinguishing aesthetic features are far different for these three genres!


but while i draft up the proposal for this contest, i want to throw a little pre-contest challenge out there.

if you can guess the *gallery* and *theme* and are the first to correctly post it in a comment on this journal, you get to enter the contest twice! otherwise it will be only one submission allowed per person.

if it turns out not to be a genre you are comfortable in, you can give your "double-entry" prize to someone you know will be entering (simple way to find out who is entering: ask around )

rate me, my friend

this month marks a year since i took on the abstract and surreal galleries in addition to fetish. how'm i doing?

rather than post a poll i'd just like you to let me know on areas i can improve. and i certainly don't mind if you let me know what you dig too. positive reinforcement never hurts

what are your thoughts on the DDs i post?
my AR updates?
contests? (themes, frequency, prizes, length, judging methods)
features?
availability to you on an individual level? on site (dAmn, notes) and off?



please be kind though in considering the issue of miscats, as before the stop was put on moving them this summer i spent time in each of the three galleries every night moving miscats and addressing reports. not that i want an automatic A, but if you can just consider the months up to this summer when it comes to this one issue.


and if you didn't already know, i can always be found to discuss ideas on dAmn in #photographers, #skinART, or of course my GD/GM HQ, #thevaginamafia. not to mention by note of course, if you aren't the chatty type.

speaking of you, where have you been?

right here. but i have been less talkative. don't worry, still posting my DDs, keeping up with notes, journals, watch, dAmn. but september and october have been rough as you know from my recent journals. i definitely withdrawl when i'm dealing with things, but never abandon. it's putting time into things like my job, dA, my own art, commissions, jewelrymaking, traveling...that help keep me focused in the end. go figure, gotta go scatterbrained to stay focused. just trust me on that one, lol

i've finally set up my etsy page, here, to sell the jewelry i keep making that i'm running out of space for. feel free to check it out, i've just got a few pieces up so far. ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20996008/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20996008/ Wed, 15 Oct 2008 02:58:38 PDT













it's been a really crazy week. wednesday i drove down to delaware to stay with my sister for a week. work stuff. and i got my half sleeve filled in on saturday while i was there.


the ivy-like leaves are inspired by the backdrop of some of the crazy insects in wonderland. i'm loving it. i'll definitely update with a photo of the detail when things are healed. already peeling like mad and its day 3!


more importantly, i was able to get through the long drive without any close calls and falling asleep and such. so being back on my sleep meds is COMPLETELY making a noticable difference in my ability to get up right away in the morning upon waking, and not having crazy naps ALL day. take THAT, hypersomnia. i also have a stimulant to take during the day "as needed." so for me that'd just be if i have a long drive or something, so i took it before i drove to DE and before i drove back and that's it. i got through my office days without falling asleep at work without taking that. so it's nice to have a way to manage this more or less!


however, there are a few less positive notes.

tuesday the 7th my grandma had a heart attack. she made it to the hospital just in time. she was grey when she arrived and they had the OR set up for her immediately. she had two blocked arteries and needed surgery right away. my mom visited her the next day (when i was going to delaware) and said she looked really good, particularly for being in her 80s and having a heart attack.

my grandma is a tough little italian lady. she's great. she roller skates 3 days a week. you'd think she just hit 70 or so. but these things happen, and thank fuck my grandpa noticed she left the bathroom light on and then saw her crouched at the foot of the bed. them both.

she was supposed to be discharged after a couple days and my sister and i were going to drive up to see her sunday, but she was still in the hospital. she had fluid in her lungs and some medication complications completely unrelated to the heart attack. heart's fine now. they're running batteries of tests on her lungs though now, so she won't be discharged till...shrug. i'm sure it's driving her nuts. she's not a "sit. stay." sort of senior citizen lol.


i've been getting compliments on the necklaces i make for myself and alter, so i'm stocking up on supplies on ebay at wholesale. it's a great way to keep my hands busy and feed my creative side (which is ALWAYS active on some level) when i'm not in the mood to photograph, paint, draw, etc. point being though, i found a sterling silver roller skate charm/pendant so i snagged that up and i'm going to make a get well gift for my grandma. she's pissed that she isn't supposed to roller skate for 3 months. how adorable is she?



--

next order of business...back to me and such
so my hypersomnia is becoming controlled. it's most likely a result of neurological damage that i have from when the lyme infection was active in my brain and CNS. testing done this past january showed damaged and nonfunctional seratonin receptors, so those neurotransmitters are busted. seratonin regulates both mood and, especially, sleep. so it's probably tied into that. there are also many recent studies tying lack of stage 4 sleep to fibromyalgia (interesting tidbits for those of you who also have fibro, i know there's a handful who read this).

which makes sense if you think about it. that's a complete lack of restorative sleep for the mind and body. not gonna help, that's for sure!

i digress. early in the morning and i'm feeling babbly and rambly.

lord i was born a ramblin' man.


anyhow. i got back to NJ today and was going through my mail from the week and my blood tests are already back from my doc. she ran a full count and a stricker panel to check my cd57 levels (which is a lymph-related test that specifically can distinguish between chronic and acute lyme, and other autoimmune responses). and...i sighed as i saw my level circled. cd57: 1. faaauuck.

notes: active lyme. at least begin cats claw 3xdaily. (herbal supplement for immunte related stuff that kicks infections asses)


since clinically (this is good!) i've been stable and doing fairly well, she isn't having me rush back in to get on another cocktail of antibiotics. we're going... ]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20785195/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20785195/ Wed, 01 Oct 2008 21:22:34 PDT













tis here. i'm back on the east coast, cricket at my side.


(vote here)


some people think i'm kind of batty for visiting my ex a matter of weeks after he ended things, but...those people don't know *killjoy and i very well

of course there was awkwardness. i'll be the first to admit that. but it was still a good time. he's such a good friend of mine first and foremost, that the friendship and spending time with him means more to me than being an item.

not to mention, due to the timing i also was able to give *ospr a really nice wedding gift. no, not from the registry. in the form of wedding photography.


and just before i left, i was able to sit in on *killjoy's tattoo session to begin the shading and coloring of the 3/4 sleeve i designed for him, which was definitely cool to see. i keep saying it was the closest i'd come to actually doing a tattoo (designing it and being in the same room while it was being inked, lol).



and now that i'm back some more things are on my plate, both good and bad. and neutral. this is my first full 40-hour week at work, so i can look forward to a slightly fatter paycheck from here on out.

i'm also spending a girls day out with my former roommate who moved back to this town to catch up on how her new job has been going, how my trip went, and generally shoot the shit. you know. girl stuff.

i guess i can now also get deeper into the hunt for a new band. i'm still pretty upset about the abrupt end and the bullshit excuses that things closed out with but, what can you do. better to find that out a year in than 5 years in.


now that i'm back and have my drawing things again, i can pick up on commissions. sorry to those waiting, i meant to bring my stuff with me to st louis




let's see what else. my sleep study results came. i see my doctor tuesday, but of course i can't just sit and wait (especially when i waited 6 weeks for the read out to begin with). according to any research i was able to do, i don't have narcolepsy (it would have shown my sleep cycle beginning with REM sleep and remaining there for a prolonged period). so that's good. but things did come back abnormal.

i don't get stage 4 sleep. literally don't get it. there was a percentage read out with time lengths for the stages throughout the night and stage 4 (the second phase of deep sleep) was 0%. i also found that this abnormality is sometimes linked to fibromyalgia. so that may explain that. i also have reduced REM sleep, at only 7% instead of 10-25%. those were the main problems.

so digging around, i found that this sort of read out could be hypersomnia, which has visible symptoms just like narcolepsy, but instead of the pattern of REM and wakefulness alternating over 24 hours (which still results in about 8 hours of sleep; it's a misconception that narcoleptics get "extra" sleep during the day), you never hit restful phases of sleep.

so this causes extreme drowsiness and uncontrollable napping at inopportune times and all the kind of things that made narcolepsy a suspect in the first place.

with hypersomnia though, you DO sleep extra. your standard 7-8 hours at night, and then your uncontrollable naps. d'oh.

at least it makes sense. not in my head and all that. not that it would have been, but because of my medical past i get a little paranoid about being accused of making shit up by doctors. my current doctor has never done that, but when i was in high school there was a seri... ]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20740899/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20740899/ Mon, 29 Sep 2008 12:31:49 PDT
dA film's birthday is practically here, and the film gallery directors have a ton of stuff planned in celebration.

if you aren't already, make sure you +watch ^deviantartfilm to stay up to date, not just for the birthday festivities, but for all things film here on dA.


so scheduled chats, contests, collaborations, and features will abound!

all the details are right here, so stay in the loop and have fun!




i'm still in the st louis area, but will be returning to the east coast shortly. i'll be catching up on things with cathARTsis, contest organizing, and general updates on life when i return.

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20535443/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20535443/ Wed, 17 Sep 2008 20:21:44 PDT













not of the fatherly sort of course. it's deviant appreciation day!

there are special little treats all over deviantART for you guys today. of course you can find me in #AR along with the rest of the AR team throughout today for meet and greet, but there's even more going on, from seniorship announcements to contests, which you can read about here: [link]



and in light of deviant appreciation day, i'd like to announce the winners of the Guilty Pleasures 8th birthday contest!

Judges:

3rd place
~OMEGA86

guilty pleasure: narcissism

who wins: a dA lanyard or keychain and a 3 month sub


2nd place
`Doubtful-Della

guilty pleasure: self-pity

who wins: fella plushie or dA t shirt of choice and a 6 month sub


and of course,
1st place!
=ian-x

guilty pleasure: objectification

who wins: fella plushie and either a 1 year subscription or a premium prints account



thanks to all who participated, and congratulations to all the winners!

now go, enjoy YOUR day.

looking for a custom tattoo design<... ]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20489210/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20489210/ Sun, 14 Sep 2008 12:41:51 PDT













i got an e-mail this morning that i wasn't expecting. my band has...disbanded. something about passion? bull. excuses. i put a lot of time and money into this project, but most importantly, creativity.


another end means another beginning though, right? so hopefully it won't be terribly long before i find some like-minded musicians to rock out with.


fingers crossed for sooner rather than later. i'm not a very patient young lady in these matters.

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20300640/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20300640/ Thu, 11 Sep 2008 08:03:14 PDT

guilty pleasures contest

i just want to remind you fetish fans that Guilty Pleasure, the fetish contest for dA's birthday, has ended.


the entries:





judging is underway!


feel free to note me with ideas for future contests! i have a few concepts in the works.

interviews

i haven't received any suggestions for artists you want to see interviewed from these three styles of photography. i have only a couple interviews leftover from project educate, and i'm holding onto them longer than i originally planned because i don't have what i was hoping for: a community generated list of hopefuls to interview! so you can absolutely help me out with this one by either suggesting additional questions to add to the interview structure i've been doing, and most importantly, by noting me with deviants you want to see interviewed.


and for a little more friendly begging...


next on my to-do list is separate contests for abstract and for surreal, because you guys have expressed interest in a contest for each that doesn't lump the categories together. i want to go further with the community suggestions and gather ideas from you guys for themes for these contests. so speak your mind!


i may put a poll in regards to this if i don't get many comments on the journal with feedback.


remember, this is about you. so think about what you would want to shoot as a theme that might interest other deviants too.

pimps!

and don't forget, there's more beyond fetish, abstract, and surreal photography! check out the following contests, articles, events, etc for more ways to get involved around deviantART.

deviantART Birthday Contests
Articul8 - deviantART Related (Sep 4)
Eight Legs - Anthro (Sep 21)
Manipul8 - Photomanipulation (Sep 28)
http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20191582/ Wed, 27 Aug 2008 20:03:31 PDT













to quote nine inch nails


i'm on the market again but not really looking. i love tony and i always will to one degree or another. and if anyone thinks it's a good idea to hatemail him, think again.

it's complicated, but right now it just doesn't look like we're going in the same direction. there are things i'm planning that don't jive with things he wants. either of us expecting the other to give those things up would be unfair. both people in a relationship should be happy, not one or neither. so i understand. i'm disappointed. i'm sad. my heart aches. but i understand.


our love and fondness for each other has only grown over the past year and a half, but there are just some things that are larger obstacles than love can find compromise between.
he's still my best friend and i look forward to visiting him in a few weeks. i've still been a lucky lady.

you tony.


but at least timingwise...i'll get my mind off things a bit. i'm still waiting on the results of my sleep study (called my doc and they haven't received it yet). had a meeting at work today and full time has bee pushed back to oct 1st, but i'll go to 32 hours next week so we can start the ball rolling on health insurance...but the deductible is really fucking high and my medications are pretty expensive so it isn't ideal, especially since i've been spoiled on my dad's insurance all these years.

so. tomorrow morning i'm going out of town. i'll be accompanying my mom to boston because she wanted a break from things and needed a human map (that's where i come in). and feck i could use it. so we're grabbing our dSLRs, grabbing some PJs and a change of underwear and catching a northern train. i'll be back saturday evening.

*runs off to set up some DDs for you folks*


also, for the modified folks, take a gander at *IAMmodified's journal and pump out some ideas for the avatar/devID contest.

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20137297/ http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/20137297/ Sun, 24 Aug 2008 19:35:40 PDT













where the hell have i been?!

everywhere D:

most recently i spent some e-time bonding with my spiritual doppleganger, ^bleedsopretty. i highly recommend checking out her journal for updates and lists of buttons, keychains, pendants, stationery, and other custom awesomeness she has for sale (great prices too, i might add). i have purchased things from her before and she ships promptly and packs generously


friday was our first 3-hour rehearsal for my band. the tenor sax player canceled last minute AGAIN so we emailed him told him his services are no longer needed. i hadn't even seen him since his audition, so i just told them "you know...i think you guys are just messing with me. sam doesn't exist."

so now without the distraction of reteaching him everything we've accomplished in his absence whenever he DOES show up we can concentrate on continuing to progress, finish shit up, choose a new band name now that we've come into a more cohesive group.



saturday i ventured up route 287 to see ^oilsoaked, ^limnides, and =distortified. when i got there, they shackled me, forced me to do manual labor, and fucked me sideways 15 times. or so it feels like today.

but i jest it was fun. i went to help them repaint their new place, as the previous owners had chosen the atrocious combination of pumpkin orange with salmon trim for ^oilsoaked and =distortified's bedroom, minty green with the same salmon for the loft, and deeply saturated orange for the living room. Not to mention they painted over hardware and tile in the kitchen and then added a palette of muted poster board in a pseudo pastel version of flourescent green, orange, and yellow.

^oilsoaked's friend came down from maine to help, as she paints houses for a living and so could act as the voice of knowledge and reason in this undertaking. we were able to prime and paint the loft (which will be their studio, so nice. it's now white and they'll paint and draw on the walls at will), as well as prime and mostly finish painting the pumpkin bedroom.


purple bandana = ^limnides, white bandana = ^oilsoaked's friend kristen, black bandana = =distortified, and no bandana (in this picture) = ^oilsoaked. see? smiles. that means fun!


i got back around 4am last night, but didn't wake up my mom. i called her around 1am to return a call i missed due to paint-hands and she was...shall we say...TRASHED! lol

the neighbors to the right of us were having a party for their 20th anniversary, and to also celebrate both of their 50th birthdays, and they invited her over. and she had...i quote..."some wine."

she...yeah. it was an interesting phone conversation. lol

she was pretty hungover this morning and confused as to why, when she "only had wine."

i bit my tongue and chose not to explain to her that wine is alcoholic *cough*


she so silly.


so today i've just been dicking about. i got block printing supplies in the mail after i felt inspired by ^guruubii's branching out so hopefully i'll come up with something to draw up and carve out to have some fun with it. probably not this week, though, as i've got to get in as many hours at work as possible monday and wednesday because i'm accompanying my mom to boston thursday morning for a 4-day weekend to get her mind off work.


hopefully this week i'll also be able to find out the results of the sleep study i did. i'll have to make some phone calls.


cricket wants attentions so i think i will set aside my journaling and oblige her


http://opioid.deviantart.com/journal/19928085/ Wed, 13 Aug 2008 04:42:47 PDT













`RockstarVanity has taken the initiative to organize the Global Tutorials Project, which seeks to translate tutorials into other languages (mostly from English, but i'm sure some into as well).

you can read more about it at this news article: [link]

she has also put a list of tutorials around dA (and the language in which they're written) into a journal, which you can find here: [link]


spread the word!

on a personal note, you may have noticed a lack of DD or activity on dAmn from me for today and during last night. turned out there wasn't really internet access for *me* at the sleep center, lol. so i had to rely on my phone for IMing and give dA a break while i tried my hardest to sleep.

it went pretty well. i don't snore or stop breathing when i sleep, which wasn't really the main concern, but it's always good to rule out and it's something they're usesd to looking for.


it'll be another week or two before i get the doctor's read out of the specifics. in the meantime i have to try to get a regular EEG scheduled as well.

and a dentist check up while i'm at it. gotta make use of my insurance while i've got it lol









jesus, i haven't been up and mildly alert at this hour since...maybe my freshman year in college. mornin sunshine.

looking for a custom tattoo design?

]]> ^opioid