John LeMasney (lemsy) is an artist, graphic designer, and technology creative. He is located in beautiful Nelson County, VA, but works remotely with ease. Contact him at: lemasney@gmail.com to discuss your next creative project.
This is the first of a set of posts in which I am experimenting with using grand concepts of design as a basis for sketches. In this case, the big idea is the book. Books carry a thematic idea through a series of pages, are portable, generally, and did so very much for the forward movement in learning, information distribution, and ideological archivism. I have my own feelings about its paper form and how it may not survive our movement to digital, socially, but for now, here is a small celebration of the idea.
So, about a year ago, in November of 2011, I stopped posting to 365 sketches, a project with most of two years in its history, and some success. It was simply that I was tired, depressed, and in a very chaotic state. Now, exactly one year later, I have stopped drinking for over 6 months, lost about 90 pounds, exited and entered different, more positive relationships, and repaired many of the bridges that I had burned. In the interest of completing this project, I am going to restart the project for the final two months of 2012 to complete the 2nd series that was originally intended for 2011. I consider abandoning this project one of the most public and private signs that I was in trouble, and I’m happy to say that it will finish strong, here. now.
Of course, this sketch is in reference to the hilarious series of spoofs on life in Portland, Oregon, done in Portlandia.
Crapt fattie fattie by John LeMasney via 365sketches.org
I don’t take part in Hallowe’en, I don’t feel guilty, and I don’t support giving out handfuls of candy to anyone for any reason. Our focus, socially, is off. I have a few other reasons to dislike the holiday, including the passing of my mother, lots of lost childhood popularity contests, and a dislike for the faux, but this post is about giving, identity, and food.
I am a socialist, if you need to know, on the political scale, but I’d rather give someone money or help or some other support than candy. I refuse. We should all be giving things away to those who need them, and not recollecting in different forms. I suggest Goodwill, or freecycling. But the idea of us all buying the same candy from the same distributors in droves to exchange with each other out of some wacky societal pressure to take part is, in a word, odd.
Have a party if you like, dress up for kicks if that’s what you’re into. For me, I think there is enough wonder, mystery, and surprise in who we actually are, and that we should focus on that. You should get to know me, and in reading this post you are, much more so than if I came to your door or party dressed as Heisenberg from Breaking Bad. I support getting to know others, though I’ve never done it on Hallowe’en in a 30 second exchange at the door, often with people I have only ever seen at my door for that purpose. I have gotten to know people better at gatherings, but no one needs to wait until the 31st of October to have a gathering. You can even wear costumes if you like, but I’d prefer to see you dressed to explain who you are, not how well you can emulate someone else’s creation. Make your own character, and have it be a bit about you. Or, just be you.
No one needs to eat a bag of candy. No one. This blog is nothing if not about health, and I would be dishonest if I said that it was fine and okay to excite anyone about eating thousands of calories in some gluttonous orgy of chocolate. Have some delicious, extraordinary chocolate, be aware of how much you had, and enjoy it. I had a bagel today, a treat, with some dark chocolate in it. The warm, toasted chocolate met and mingled with the salt in the bagel. It was delicious, and special, and no one ever handed one to me at their door on Hallowe’en.
In much the same way that other American holidays are about purchases, discounts, fear, escaping identity, excess, comparison and guilt, I think this one leads the pack. I’m not participating.
Hey, Pinterest, please let me know who follows me back - lemasney.com
Hey, Pinterest, please let me know who follows me back – lemasney.com
“Google strikes again! Pin what!? Just when you thought you had it down. Gmail, Maps, Google search, iGoogle home page, gadgets, even games and utilities. Then Google comes up with Google + (plus) and it gets even more involved. Hangouts, Photos, a news feed, Circles! What can we make of all this? Pinterest has been appearing more and more as something to consider if you like graphics and sharing your likes online with others. Ever notice the tiny little “P” shaped logo on websites and wonder why and if you would ever “pin” something? Even though I’ve been “pinning” for a while, I am curious how much more I can do and how I can personalize this to make it more interesting. We at BCUG are certainly curious about its usefulness and how much fun it can be. So the question for October’s speaker is – What do I make of these web-based services, and how and why would I use them? Where do I start to integrate these into my online experience? Enter John LeMasney, our featured speaker. At our general meeting this month, John will update us on two new services that have emerged and that are free and, yes, somewhat useful. We have all heard him talk on various interesting topics including his year-long creative 365 project as well as enjoyed his expertise in applications like Sketchup, Gimp, Inkscape. In addition, John has been a regular and exciting speaker at our Graphics Workshop, where he has instructed and introduced us to programs that work with video, graphics, and online freebies. This writer can attribute many explorations into artwork and free games and apps to John, who is overly generous with his time and talent. He is supportive of BCUG and we are grateful for his participation in our programs through the year. He’sthe Manager of Educational Technology Training and Outreach at Princeton University where he is responsible for training and presenting to faculty and students about the effective use of technology for communication, work, teaching and learning. John has a BFA with honors from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. He is extremely creative and always has good ideas to convey. He also holds a Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership (communication) with honors from Rider University. Let’s make a date to be at our general meeting on October 19 to greet John and learn about two new useful web-based activities – Google Plus and the new popular Pinterest. You will come away with a clearer idea and new knowledge about Google + and Pinterest and how they can be used. Not only will we be ready to join Circles and participate in a hangout, we will honestly be able to say Happy Pinning!” (http://www.bcug.com/speakers/2012-10-spkr.html)
