Aloha
I got to talk with my parents the other day, and they expressed a little concern that I wasn’t updating my DA account lately.
I honestly didn’t know they looked at it that much (they rarely comment on my work) but it warms my heart that they do… So I’ll try to update more.
Working at Huggins as a designer is a lot of fun. It’s pretty similar to doing graphic design classwork, except I have multiple projects instead of just one at a time (though I guess I did in school too, just with different classes) and rather than being able to learn how a professor grades or what they expect, you have to guess that from every customer.
It’s difficult, but it’s not hard once you get the hang of it. And also, you get to learn what the different Huggins Salesmen are like and what kinds of customers they get.
The best customers are the ones who have absolutely no idea what they want, because mostly they just trust your judgment on things. I get a lot more freedom and get to stretch my abilities more.
Recently I was involved with a play called “The Maafa: What it means to Speak Life”. It’s a play put on by one of the members of my church (African American) and so naturally I have to play the token white guy.
It was been really really tough for me to do, especially since my two big roles are a wannabe Black Panther member and a slave buyer (among a few others). It literally goes against every fiber of my being, but I’ve slowly been able to resolve myself enough to be able to get into my characters. I came to the realization that the reason my characters exist at all in the play is to poke fun and body-slam historical actualities of the way white people were, and a lot of people need to realize that.
Plus, where else could I make a complete idiot of occidentally-minded people and have the audience think it was awesome? 
Tamika and I have been doing wonderfully, and I’ve pretty much come the conclusion that by this time next year (Lord willing) we’ll be engaged. Money is still very tight right now, which is probably the main reason I haven’t done anything about it sooner; but it has been good for us to learn more about each other. With each day I learn more and more that I am absolutely in love with her.
Oh what a feeling! (cheesy 70’s ballad music in the background.
I’m still living in Lemoyne ([link]), and I am growing into my house. I’d still rather be across the river, but I like my home. I’ve been getting rid of more and more stuff, and am trying to live simply and inexpensively. As a matter of fact, this weekend I’m having a yardsale (or joining in) with my landlady and her son. It’s a cozy little place. I don’t quite have a kitchen table yet, but if you don’t mind eating off the coffee table, stop by for a visit.
Tamika and I were recently blessed with cars! She got a candy-coloured red 97 Volkwagen Jetta, and I got a maroon V6 96 Volkwagen Passat. They are really beautiful cars. I’ve been trying to take really good care of them. I got the manuals for both and have been doing my best to make sure they stay in shape. We just took Tamika’s to Firestone the other day, and she has a few things that need to be tuned up, so pray that we’re able to get the money for that. I haven’t taken my car for it’s first checkup yet, but I know that it needs leaks repaired with oil and steering fluid. But they run beautifully, and we’re so blessed to have them.
I just got done fixing up my motorcycle, and surprised Tamika with it last week. I’d been working on it secretly for about 2 or 3 months with Greg, the husband of my old boss at Messiah, and finally got everything done on it. Now all I need to do is get it inspected and go for my liscence test (I have a permit now). She said that riding the motorcycle was one of the things she really liked doing when we first started being friends, and had been gently pestering me about it all summer. She was floored.
That’s pretty much the news on this end,
Thanks so much for all your prayers!