May 7, 2003 - Check it out! Ricardo just got interviewed in Newsday in New York link

April 4, 2003 - Even though the war news is occupying most of my downtime at work, I'm still taking an interest in the news of Dowtown Redevelopment. This article from the Chronicle talks about the long-standing Vietnamese business area in Midtown that is being slowly diminished by "urban renewal" and redevelopment in the area.

It brings up some very good points about the "irony of [re]gentrification" and the good business sensibility of the Vietnamese businness owners. It sounds like the business owners are very sensible about the whole thing - they are geting pushed out by higher land values and higer rents, as well as relocating to be closer to their target market. It also sounds like the developers and would-be-future-members of the community are lamenting the un-diversification (as it were) of the community they hoped to occupy. It's an interseting real-estate/cultural issue to imagine that the area between Milan and Travis might become as hoaky and sterile and touristy as Little Italy in Manhattan (Though some would argue that it's already been moving that direction for a few years already). It's also fun to see the article address issues of Asian immigrant locale stereotypes. I must admit that my own stereotypes of the suburbs have been challenged by the points raised in this article.

April 3, 2003 - Shady Eddie dropped by our house today to show us his new Segway. It's one of those two-wheeled scooter things that balances itself. You just lean forward and it goes. We took pictures of him riding the thing and they're right here

March 12, 2003 - I was making plans for a darkroom the other night. Actually, Sarah was talking about them with me. I'm not sure if I want to put my darkroom in our second bathroom, but we agreed that would be the only logical place. It looks like it may take some construction, especially with the ventilation system (since there's currently not one in that bathroom). The rest of it can probably be managed more efficently with removeable tabletop surfaces; kinda like shelves. It actually seems like it could be a reality. The only problem I need to solve next is how to store my chemicals. I know I can just have them in plastic vats like they used to do at school, but I wonder where I'd have room to put three big vats like that (dev, fix, and probably hypo-clear). I'm sure I'll figure it out, but if anyone reads this and knows how to put a darkroom together or has any ideas, please let me know.

March 6, 2003We made enchiladas last night. MMMMMMMMM. Sarah bought me some cilantro (she doesn't like it but she knows I do) and I had some jalapeños and some St. Arnold's Bock; and damn if that wasn't the best dinner I've had in a long time. Sarah made beans and fideo to go with it and opened up an aguacate. I got some for lunch to day and I can't wait to eat it! I'm photographing a wedding this weekend, so I need to get my equipment together. I need to buy film. It's so expensive - especially since I want to get some shots from my Yashica Mat as well as my Minolta. I'm actually excited about this one. I haven't shot anything in such a long time, even doing a wedding sounds exciting. It's Rocio's brother who's getting married, I think.

February 25, 2003 - The sink is in! We put in the sink, the garbage disposal, and the dishwasher. Man, we're living fat now. No more washing dishes in the bathtub!

February 8, 2003 - I just got through seeing some art today cause I got the chance. I saw Juan Muñoz at the CAM and I dug it. The sculptures were dramatic and narrative and I think that's what I liked. The hands of the figures were rendered kinda strangely - almost like the soft hands of a fabric manequin. The faces of the figures were expressive and engaging, but the arms and hands were done so stiff and unexpressive that it kept the figures from looking too life-like. I think I liked that about it, too. The "raincoat drawings" were amazing to me. They were nothing too new or groundbreaking, but they were beautiful. They're white drawings on black gabardine fabric of interior domestic spaces abscent of people. I think I enjoyed the technique as well as the juxtaposition of the oraganic and architectural shapes. Every drawing was composed of a room with some furniture. The furniture was always cushiony, pillowy, or appolstered with draping fabric. There is always some architecural element included like the door trim or a stairway; and it's always very precise ans straight. Otherwise, there may be some kind of architecural element decorated with some organic, curvy trim or something. I liked the way those things worked off of each other, and I also liked the way the interiors always looked dark, even though there were drawn with a white crayon or pencil. I was very impressed.

February 3, 2003 - Don't forget to apply for the Artadia fellowships in Houston. You have to apply and send in slides by February 7. I'm gonna try and apply. I don't think I'll get anything because I don't have any recent work to show, but I think it's worth a try. I'm nervous, though. I don't have a studio, I'm not represented by a gallery, and I haven't done real substanital work since I got outta college. I'm about the least-legit artist in Houston. I'm afraid that if I apply and send in my slides, the pannel will look at my CV and laugh because I haven't done anything since 2000. Then they'll look at my slides and be like "so what?" That will prompt them to come directly to my house and begin yelling at me for wasting their time! Still, I know should probably try. It's not like I ain't been laughed at before, right?

January 17, 2003 - I really like the house. It feels great to live in it. It's beginning to feel like our house and not like a strange, deserted building (the way it did when we were in the proccess of buying it). Sarah's excited, too. It still kinda looks like a contstruction area because we're still putting the kitchen togather, but the rest of the house is mostly cleaned out and much more comfortable and liveable. It's the best. I wish this for everyone. I'm gonna encourage everyone I know to buy property if they can help it at all. I already want to buy more and renovate it. This time I want buildings. I know exactly which ones, too. Man, I could do so much with MECA and HITS if I only had the time to do it. I could help them with building repairs (since I know how to do light construction and stuff now) and all kinds of stuff. Now that we own a house I feel more free and I feel like a were formative to my developement. If I only I didn't have to work for an evil corporation. Well, they're not that evil, I guess. They just exploit my time by offering me an attractive wage and benefits package. Don't they all.

January 3, 2003 - We're now in our House! Everything's moved out of the apartment and now we're trying to get it all situated in the house. It's more complicated than we thought. We have to find new places to put things and almost reorganize other things. Not having a kitchen is problematic - especially with the lack of kitchen storage space- but nothing we can't live with for a while. The house seems so much smaller with all the stuff in it. We have furniture and boxes stacked up against the walls and there's only limited walkways in between. That's only because we don't have vertical storage space set up yet. We were talking about having a yard sale just to get rid of so much junk that we now realize we have. That's always the good thing about a move. You really get to know what you can live without and what your were saving and why. How is it that people can collect so much stuff? In my case, I was taught to keep documents and records for everything, which is always stacks and stacks of paper. Then there's old clothes and tiny things like rolls of film and small things that friends gave you as gifts. So why is it that some people in the world have absolutely nothing - no belongings other than some tools and clothes on their back - while decadent people like me can't seem to prevent things from comming into the house?