zomg I'm soooooooooooo close to being done with school this year! I can hardly handle it! School was interesting this time around. I was in architecture first term, but left that and sort of drifted around art minor stuff during Winter term. I applied to/was accepted into my university's school of Product Design, and took classes for that during Spring term. Normally I hate not having everything regarding school planned and anticipated, so this was an interesting experience. I discovered that I really, really love product design. Like, a lot. We have the most fun assignments, and different parameters to how we accomplish them. However, I also learned that I'm not thrilled about my school's product design program. It's still suffering growing pains, and is about 10,000 x less refined than the school of architecture. It's way too easy, and I'm seriously considering applying at other places. Yet again, my education future is up in the air.

But enough about that! I'm selecting 2-3 projects to embark on for the summer, and figuring out how to go about investing in them. I know for a fact that I will be learning plastic casting, as I did a bit of it already in a class. I just need to think of little casts that would sell well and help me break even on the cost of the materials. This will  mean setting up an Etsy, and thus a Paypal. I also wanted to learn Python, since this would set me up for interactive computer projects on Blender and other various coding things. Eventually I'd like to learn how to use micro-controllers and basic electronics, so Python would be good for that as well. However, I did a pretty crazy sewing project in a class and now I want to get better at sewing. I learned that adding buckles, zippers, straps, and all manner of things isn't actually that difficult, nor is it impossible to get a nice looking end-product if you're careful and precise in the beginning. So now I want to sew :/ I think tackling all three of those things is probably too much for one summer, especially since I'll be working full time and would like to get back into community theater. I'll have to figure it out, lol

And now one last thing: a brief rant. Product design has me banging my head against the wall because of the attitude of the students. It's a completely different culture than the one in architecture, so maybe I'm just suffering from culture shock. Either way, there are a couple things I'd love to say:


Yes, you are going to have to work outside of class on occasion, and on rare occasions that means the weekend too. This is college, and college is known for a little thing called homework. Get over it.
Did you design your project to be super easy? Don't brag about it. Instead, consider making it challenging for yourself so you're not completely and utterly wasting your time at college.
If your project came out extremely rushed, try starting earlier than the night before the project is due.
Please don't be careless with class materials. Just because you paid the class fee (like we all did), that doesn't entitle you to be wasteful. Use your noggin for a minute or two extra and spare other people suffering the consequences of your carelessness.
Please use the appropriate safety precautions, if not for yourself then for others. Turn off saws and sanders, don't crank the spot welder up to max and leave it there, don't pour toxic fuming chemicals with the hoods up and the fans off. Some of us don't want nasty cuts and nervous system damage.
For the love of potatoes, please clean up after yourself. There's no excuse to leave wood scraps lying about, tangled lengths of thread and needles all over the tables, and slippery puddles of liquid plastics on the floor. Unfortunately, part of being grown up means picking up after yourself sometimes.
Don't like something? Rather than whining and complaining, get off your butt and be proactive about the problem. Your get what you put into the program, and one teacher can only do so much.
Not caring about your project or design in general is not something to brag about.

Ug, I really needed to get that out. Sorry -.-

Anyway, the arts shall be commencing soon. Finals happened and I had to abandon ship temporarily, but I'll be back shortly!