So I moved to Wellington early January to begin studying Digital Media Design at Uni. After the first month or so, feeling homesick and depressed about how suddenly everything has changed... I've had time to settle in, move in with my girlfriend and get my 'sea legs'.

Things are really good now. Part time job is still sucky (kitchen hand), but it pays the bills and I'm learning a lot of important fundamentals on my course. I've been through and finished with the partying scene for a year or so now, so don't really have the proper student life going. But I'm enjoying the atmosphere I'm in.

My course has helped with networking, and I'm getting some great tips from both tutors and students alike, and after the 4 years of study I'm aiming to get a job at Weta (based in Wellington too), so fingers crossed and knuckles down right?

Anyway, going to go now. Things are working out great here, and I can't wait to get into the digital amimation aspect of the course.

Ciao.

Surprising that I'm not actually being emo, and that the title of this little lick of literature is relevant enough.

I used to stay up late doing nothing but drawing / painting. Hours toiling away at my desk prodding my wacom tablets stylus with the digi-pen, or scratching away at a sheet of paper with the shortened, stubby HB pencil that's been sharpened many times. I was very happy doing it. Waking up at 7am for work, getting back at 5pm, working on design and art until 2:30 - 4:30am then getting a couple hours sleep before starting again at 7am.

Obviously you can't do that all your life, so the Friday and Sunday nights were essentially me slipping into an amazing coma, then slapping the snooze button and slipping into another.

I got a LOT of work done. And taught myself a lot during those times... But now for some reason I can't seem to stay up past 1am. Last night is a good example, I was working on something that was a lot of fun, and wanted to keep working on it... But I almost fell asleep at my desk at about 1am (or 1:30, I don't recall entirely), it wasn't a matter of simply being too tired as it was that I'd been sitting at a PC all day, and was having a hard time focusing, concentrating, and almost trouble *seeing* essentially. But I woke up at 11am that day, surely I can stay up for more than 14 hours.

It's odd. I gave myself a break for about a week and got some regular sleeping pattern going just to see if it was fatigue, but it's getting harder and harder to get back into my formerly nocturnal self where I was always learning new techniques until the wee hours of the morning.

This isn't a cry for help, haha. Just an observation.

blighted_art@hotmail.com

(but don't tell anyone)...

/random.

Hey guys.

Quite a few people are leaving comments on my geek alerts now, which's awesome. Just posting a blog to say that I'm sorry if it seems rude if I don't reply to a lot of the cool comments you guys leave. No lying here: It's not because there are too many comments and it's not because of being snobby, it's just the fact that I basically can't think of anything worthwhile to say as a reply to the excellent comments you guys leave. My replies really wouldn't do your comments justice unless "XD lol ty!!" just so happens to be the modern equivalent of an intellectual retort. >_>

So yeah, Just putting it out there that I'm sorry if I come off as rude or anything...

I really just wanted to use "rock the casbah" in the journals title. Me and my brother went to Rock 2 Wellington this weekend, then I saw Queens of the Stone Age and Smashing Pumpkins in Christchurch.

So man, what a crazy weekend. On Good Friday me and my brother coached up to Christchurch at 8pm. We arrived at about 3am Saturday morning. On the way we were watching a movie called Out of the Blue which was filmed in my town... I've seen it before but this time when watching it I was sitting next to someone who was in the movie, so that was interesting.

When we got to Christchurch, Hamish and Bryony picked us up from the stand and drove us back to their flat so we could crash the night (best sleep ever... or rather best sleep so far, just wait until later). The next morning all four of us flew up to Wellington, also known as "Valhalla of Rock and Roll" for the time being. We met our friend Candice up there and had a good look around, Wellington is an awesome city and looking around was also a good opportunity for some photos that are still on my cam for the moment.

The place we were staying at was too freaking nice for us. It was HUGE, and the first thing we said upon entering was "... my god, we don't belong here D:". But saying that, it was awesome. And then it came, 7pm... our hotel was also really close to the Rock 2 Wellington venue so it was real easy to walk to. The place was PACKED. And it's not really a surprise:

Two nights of 6 hour gigs featuring Lordi, Alice Cooper, KISS, Poison, White Snake and Ozzy Osbourne. We went to both nights and the atmosphere was just intense. On each side of the gigantic stage were two statues of guitars about 10 storeys high, one of an axe guitar believed to refer to KISS, and another of Zakk Wylde's signature guitar. Next to those on the stands were two platforms for fire-dancers and cheerleaders, next to that on either side were two smaller stages for "intermission" bands, with two large screens so that anyone too far away from the stage could still get a close up on what's going on.

At the back of the Westpac Arena was a giant dragon (made by WETA studios btw) which exhausted steam from it's mouth while shooting green lasers from it's eyes that scanned the crowd. There were fireworks and lights all around. Pretty lights. Pretty bright lights even!

... It was fairly pretty... I mean uh... it rocked hard. REAL HARD! >_>

... Anyway, all of the bands were excellent despite what the newspapers said (KISS have always been one for bad reviews despite having their own fan-based army and a standing of 35 years...), all of the bands knew how to work the crowd and the atmosphere in general was just intense... There were a lot of bogans, but there were no prats that diminished the experience for anyone. So it's all good!!!

We were so tired and always on the move, we got back at 1am the second night after a huge grand finale, then had to get up at 5am. Funny thing is before that we got an alleged "gourmet meal" from room service for $15... which turned out to be a very expensive McCains microwave meal.

No really, they actually sent up a microwave meal for $15.

The 5am start was the second time I've had to quickly pack at that time before hopping on a plane, and it doesn't get easier. We got back to Christchurch and pretty much slept at Hamish and Bryony's flat before we had our THIRD night of rocking at a Queens of the Stone Age & Smashing Pumpkins gig. I like Smashing Pumpkins and love QOTSA. QOTSA got the crowd pumped incredibly well but we really didn't like Smashing Pumpkins Live. Their music is great, but I think we were standing in the wrong place because we really couldn't hear what was going on... it was an indoor venue so there's a good chance that the sound ricocheting off the walls was the problem, because a lot of the people at the gig said they were great. I think after three nights of rocking we really just wanted to get home, haha.

I met a lot of great people on the trip and also so HEAPS of people from Dunedin at both events. We also topped the whole thing off by leaving sticky notes all around our friends flat with funny comments on them... On the toilet, on the mirrors, and someone put one on the pet cat's collar or something... Y'know, just because.

It was a "most excellent" weekend, dudes. /air guitar