I am alive, but I can't say that for everyone else :(

It's been a little while since I last posted something on here. So before people start worrying, I am in fact still alive.

I am still unemployed. We're hitting an epic (personal) record in failed job applications. In this week alone (2 days so far) I've had 6 rejections. Though I'm slightly hopefully about Septemeber, two school boards have acknowledged receiving my applications.

My car died on the weekend. It still hasn't been repaired, which restricts my movements a bit. "Fortunately", the modern job market is one of pure online applications, in person visits and phone calls to places are forbidden!

Topping off everything my grandmother passed away yesterday. This is sad, but was not unexpected. She was 101, and had a really good run. Still just one more thing to add to the not happy pile.

To fight off depression and my slowly (but steadily) lowering self esteem, I've dove into a number of art projects.
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You get a preview of this one:
It's my feathered Tyrannosaur. Only now I'm posing her.

Not just in a random pose. She needs to match this skeleton precisely. Why is a secret for now, all I'll tell you is that it is for a big joint project on ART Evolved.

With my T-Rex matching the skeleton closely, I decided I need to make somewhere for her to live. This is my progress with a Cretaceous landscape over the course of the last week+.

First I tried a generic forest. I didn't like this on a number of levels. I'm sure had I played with the tree density it would have gotten better. However I had a different idea...

Since my Rex lined up perfectly with the skeleton everywhere BUT the legs (in particular the feet) I decided to cover this up. With what else but water!

I also wanted the mountain range I'd put in the background to be visible.

Well okay, the trees covered up the mountains. Something I still have to fix, but there is room for them.

However yet again the trees were to few. My ginko trees leaves are too bright, and look plastic now (which is annoying as they are textured with a macro photo of a ginko leaf I took in New Zealand!!!). I also found the riverbank colour to be too cartoony. The biggest problem of all was the ground was too sparse.

Okay getting closer. Most of the elements are now present, it is just a matter of tweaking them.

There needs to be splashes at her feet, and I've already constructed these. I just need to add them (which might be a pain in the neck!). I also want to add some horsetail in the water.

I'm also vowing here to start getting some Traumador posts up (it is just so hard when I'm down. Traum is the embodiment of my happiness, and at moment he is starving. Poor guy. So I'm going to force myself to "Traumitize", and get some posts up darn it!).