Andrew is my friend. When I meet someone for the first time, I like to find out if we know the same people. With Andrew, this process started when I asked where he was from. Oh, Cavalier you say? I went to Romania with a girl from there. What’s that? You took that same girl [...]
Archive for April, 2012
Riding the Beartooth Pass
Posted: 29th April 2012 by Alex Amiot in Adobe IllustratorTags: Beartooth Pass, Cavalier, Friends, Prom, Travel, Yellowstone
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Experiencing stereotypes: Longboarding hipster
Posted: 26th April 2012 by Alex Amiot in Adobe Illustrator, Wisdom for LivingTags: Hipster, Longboarding, Society, Stereotypes
The thought occurred to me as the breeze calmed from the passing longboarding hipster that he probably thinks he’s cool. Maybe he is cool, but I didn’t know it. It takes a bit of personal information about someone before he or she is labeled ‘cool’. In contrast, no personal information at all is necessary for [...]
Series II 1981 Z28 Camaro
Posted: 25th April 2012 by Alex Amiot in Adobe IllustratorTags: Cars, Dad, Spring
Springtime held the promises of new life and the reactivation of the Camaro’s insurance. The 1981 Z28 Camaro would come out of the garage after the last of the spring snow subliminated and the firmament held no immediate threat of precipitation. The needle climbed the speedometer faster than Sammy the cat could climb the carpet [...]
The calendar was open to a cold month. Hanging years ago near the kitchen in my parent’s undersized main-floor bathroom for small people, the picture of the month was mostly white. Only a tree or two stood in the foreground of a snow-covered red-river-valley-like field. The calendar creators used the word ‘austere’ to describe the [...]
Goodnight, Space Shuttle Discovery
Posted: 18th April 2012 by Alex Amiot in Adobe IllustratorTags: Discovery, Government, NASA, Outer Space
Space shuttle Discovery is headed to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. I remember scoffing when I first heard that people returned from space at an airport. That’s ridiculous. Everyone knows the first thing the astronauts do upon their return is take a dip in the ocean. I was sure that whoever told me [...]
Revolving Chess Pieces
Posted: 15th April 2012 by Alex Amiot in Adobe IllustratorTags: Chess, Games, Revolve
Let’s illustrate some chess pieces. You can do this. Forget that you’ve never used Adobe Illustrator before. It’s a simple matter of drawing the curvy shape to the left. This half-outline of a chess piece (queen, maybe?) turns into the upright white chess piece above when you apply Illustrator’s 3D effect: Revolve. I followed [...]
Spring Grad Announcements & Receptions
Posted: 13th April 2012 by Alex Amiot in Adobe IllustratorTags: Class of 2012, Graduation, NDSU, School
It’s mid-April. If you’re late in the game, you’re doing your taxes. If you’re on top of your game, you’re planning a graduation reception. I’m doing both. Game on. Because of my aversion to paying others to do what I can do myself, and because of the fun I’ve been having with Adobe Illustrator lately, [...]
A late night with faces and a side of beard
Posted: 8th April 2012 by Alex Amiot in Adobe IllustratorTags: Beards, Engagement, Friends, Photography, School, Wedding
Last Thursday I had a paper due and a test to take. On Wednesday night I wrote my paper and took a few generous Adobe Illustrator study breaks, so studying for the test was delayed until the next morning. Productive studying probably isn’t realistic after 3:00 a.m. anyway. As a result of the study breaks, [...]
Plaid and Opacity
Posted: 6th April 2012 by Alex Amiot in Adobe IllustratorTags: Clothes, Friends, Plaid, Style
If you’re not a perfectionist, drawing plaid is simply a matter of opacity. To draw the plaid on Tim’s blue shirt, I made his vertical plaid stripes white and 30% opaque. When the vertical stripes cross the 15% opaque horizontal stripes, the intersection is 45% opaque, giving it enough of a plaid look to please [...]
