Sunday, June 29, 2008

Occupational Hazards -- Part 1




If you live in Nashville, you may or may not have noticed all the advertisements that have cropped up in the past month about the Sudekum planetarium. If you do not live in Nashville, the Adventure Science Center has been working on a new wing to the museum for the past three years, which include (apart from the third largest planetarium in the country), an exhibit simulating microgravity, and a moonwalk. The planetarium has stadium seating for about 500 people, and uses an IMAX projected screen, displaying approximately 20,000 stars, as well as hosting animated featurettes. Yesterday was the Grand opening, and the mayor cut the ribbon for us, and everyone clapped. There were balloon contortionists outside, ice cream inside, and everyone had a roaring good time.

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

And then it started raining


I haven't thought of a title for this yet, but the girl in the center is named Valerie, and I think she will probably show up again. Perhaps in her new job she will make friends with Nina (from West Jersey). I can think of several things I would have done differently in this picture if I were doing it again, but I am beginning to think that if I spend a lot of time on anything, it will be of quality regardless of my biased feelings about it

Same Hat Same Hat is translating Shintaro Kago's manga Dance! Kremlin Palace! which has been amusing me recently.

I found out this week my boss at the Science Center frontloaded all my hours this month, so Monday night at Bound'ry was the last time I will work until Saturday, when I start shifts again at both places. I've got enough for rent, and I'm going to start a whole lot more hours in July, so it's fine by me. Four and a half day weekend, here I come!

I got a library card today from the Nashville Public system. I had been using Vanderbilt's library for all my needs up until now, but the college's selection of (ah... ahem, uh) children's literature is somewhat lacking, for reasons that are not entirely beyond me.

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

What I have been doing all this time


Though I've told some of you this in person, to verify I am in fact working two jobs right now, and they are completely different from each other in almost every way. Both these companies, however, shape a distinctive part of Nashville's identity in their own way.

The Adventure Science Center looks like a giant electric castle. It is pretty hard to miss if you are driving down any of Nashville's interstates (except 440 I think). I work the front desk, which means I sell people admission tickets/memberships and give people directions over the phone. Lots of sitting is involved. Occasionally I will run the flight simulator ride (BlueMax it is called), which is sort of like being inside a giant can of soda pop as someone shakes it up, except you are the one doing the shaking. I usually work from 9:30am to 5pm, and wear a red polo shirt with the Adventure Science Center logo on the left breast.

Bound'ry is a bar a couple blocks away from the Vanderbilt campus. I am a food runner, which means I stay in the kitchen until we get an order (or five or six) and then take the food the chefs have prepared, and deliver it to the correct table. This involves being able to balance several plates on a tray (or sometimes my forearms), and memorizing all one hundred of the non-sequential table numbers in the dining area. For this job, I usually work from 6pm to 10:30pm (unless I am closing, in which case it is much later) and wear a black collared shirt with black slacks.

I keep meaning to take photographs of either of these places, but never seem to get around to it. If I ever do, I'll post them here. Working two jobs leaves me little time for much else, so the infrequent blog posts will probably decrease further at least until school starts back.

Thursday, June 5, 2008

"'But suppose God is black', I replied."


I did this in honor of the fortieth anniversary of Robert F. Kennedy's assassination in Los Angeles.

My supervisor at the Science Center was out today, and it was kind of a slow day anyway, so I had a lot of time to sit and draw as I sat behind the front desk. These are some sketches I did in preparation for the cartoon you see above. Also, I got my paycheck today, which means I'm going shopping tomorrow at the art supply store (WOOHOO!)