Cooper

I will either get a black lab or a Vizsla when I get a dog.
His name will be Cooper.

2010 Mustang

8:30 PM on this past Saturday I was driving past a Ford Dealer. I learned my lesson from buying the Mazda not to visit dealers at night or when they are open; which in cities like DC is late into the evening. Well down here in the South things like to close a little early, so when I saw that the dealership was closed I swung in to take a look at the new offerings.

I have to say that the 2010 Mustang is a work of art. From the exterior styling (supposedly pulled from a ‘66 Mustang) to the interior trim it is a beautiful car. The dealer was nice enough to leave a few unlocked so I got to see what I could on the inside. The word Mustang on the door sills are illuminated in a cool blue, the driver’s seat is adjustable up, down, forwards and backwards. I fit, which to everyone who knows my lengthiness, is hard to come by when looking at cars. Surprisingly most of the models they had on lot were automatics, which just doesn’t seem to do the Mustang brand justice. Trust me though, I have to say that sitting in the cockpit of the 2010 made me feel like I was sitting on raw horsepower and scared me just a bit… in the “…if I ever got to drive this thing… it would be so much fun” sort of way.

Being the type of person I am I would have to go with manual, no convertible just the coupe. However for some reason they dropped the powder blue that I liked so much from the 2006 model. So in keeping with tradition I would either have to custom order it in that paint color (but with brown leather interior) or get it in white, just like Pop had the ‘66 before he gave it to me.

Hmmm… better start saving my pennies today, because there has been a slight change in price from ‘66. But honestly I would like to see a price comparison after reviewing inflation, although I am sure the 2010 is still far more expensive.

No hope for the Cash for Clunkers on this one as Ford has kept with the tradition of horsepower over fuel economy although 17/25 (city/highway) is a lot better than what the ‘66 gets which is closer to 12/18.

2010 here I come, along with a high paying stable career.

Fall Schedule Change-Again.

UPDATE: So I guess I just can’t decide. I am now taking Digital Studio II, Printmaking and an online class in Typeface Design. Fibers and Printmaking taken together would have been a little to costly to take together in one quarter and with tuition going up, financial aide going down… well you see the dilemma. Plus I plan to do some traveling over the winter and hopefully pay off the car a little early. All this calls for a little money management.

Oh and I am a little saddened that I haven’t received any checks.

Hands-on art classes are always fun. I was already signed up for one, printmaking. I have decided to switch around my classes so that I can take another, Fibers (from the course description it sounds like an advanced Papier-mâché class). (See update above.) I figure I would enjoy that class much more than the Non-Fiction writing class that I had chosen when I first registered. Knowing that my strength has never been writing, I will hire a really good editor if I ever choose to write a book.

So the change opens my schedule up a little so I will have time to eat during the week, but I am sure that it will keep otherwise engaged. So in the fall I have to hands on art classes, a digital (website) class, my candidacy review and a wedding… no problem.

I will start taking donations for my recovery travels during my 7 week vacation after the fall quarter. Please make checks payable to Nicholas McMillan and email for an address to send them to. I will need the break after such a fun filled quarter.

Story of two cars

At my parent’s home in Newport News I have a 1966 Ford Mustang that was my grandfathers. When I first got it, I had it painted back to its original color of powder blue. Today it sits in my parent’s garage waiting for me to take ownership once again and bring it back to life. Surprisingly it was once a daily driver for both my grandfather and myself. But after years of neglect it has seen better days (like most of us).

Since the redesigned Mustangs in 2005 reintroduced the powder blue color, I have always dreamed of restoring my grandfather’s mustang and driving one the updated model as well. It would be the perfect combination of cars to own. A perfect set if any.

2006 Powder Blue Mustang GT

As I begin to notice “flaws” in my Mazda from shoddy repair work and questionable workmanship, my dream of owning both has come back alive. Maybe as I restore my grandfather’s mustang, it will help me restore a bit of my old life and help me remember his.

And maybe, even though the Mazda is almost paid off, I can find a way to get my hands on one of the newer powder blue mustangs.

Work displayed in Poetter Hall

3D Graphics Studio Work

Description

Three of my classmates and myself have work being displayed in the graphic design building at SCAD.

Blending in with Nature

Blending in with nature

While I was headed out the other day I glanced at our building and saw one of the most spectacular moths I think I have ever seen. Coming off a quarter where we were advised to look towards nature for influence on our packaging projects, I am amazed how nature itself has evolved to blend in with its surroundings. Being held captive in the a city which had pigeons, bees, fireflys and the occasional hawk or bald eagle, Savannah has reintroduced me to the variety of nature. From the stick bug I posted earlier, to the lizards and geckos, the life that comes from living close to a waterway and now this moth I have seen some really cool things. Of course I must mention the swarms of mosquitos and the wasps as well as a number of other strange and annoying creatures that can be found in the South, but all in all it is a very interesting place to live.

Home Page

WordPress limits me to the number of “themes” I can choose from. While I really liked the previous theme, it did not have a “Home” button which I feel is an important part of the navigation as well as my visitor’s experience. Therefore I changed the look again. I am going to leave that nice image that it came with unti I find one of mine that has a similar effect.

Plant

My plant and its yellow pot

So I bought a plant. I am not usually good at keep things alive so I chose the one that said “virtually carefree”. That sounded about right. I don’t even know what type of plant it is, I just know that I don’t need to water it until the soil is dry. So far it is still alive, hopefully it will grow to fill the pot I bought once I have the time and spare change to repot it (the lady at Home Depot said it would need to be transplanted for another 5 months-so I have some time).

One Year Done.

As of May 28, 2009 I finished my first year of Graduate School with one “A” and one “B”. My summer classes start in about two and a half weeks which will keep me busy enough, however I have my 45 hour review to attend to as well as ironing out my concept for my thesis with the help of a few of my professors.

Busy and as far off as it may seem, I know that as soon as classes start time will quickly pass. I have spent the past few, five, days catching up on sleep and other such errands. Now I must begin the work of writing an intitial brief of what my thesis is all about. Although it does not sound like too much fun I am actually looking forward to it.

3D Final Outcome

For my 3D Graphic Studio class I created an auto care kit from sustainable materials. While the majority of the class was concentrated on the process, through creating mood boards, various readings and work-in-progress critiques, we had to also create a brand and packaging design for our idea.

As part of our final grade we had to take four product shots that would tell the “story” of our product. These are the photos I took which represent the final project.

Seatbelt Bag Exterior

Taking out the Product

Full Product Spread

Close-up of Product

Change of Plans

Well I had a slight change of heart and have decided to take classes this summer. As of right now I am taking Intro to Printmaking and Computer Illustration (both are 5 week classes, one at the beginning of the summer and one at the end of the summer – basically at any point during the summer quarter I will only have one class).

Therefore I will be reviewing in the Fall as well as presenting my thesis in September. The advance in my schedule should allow me to finish in the Spring of 2010 instead of that Winter. I will receive financial aide for the Summer quarter, which if budgeted well, will provide for me the entire summer and into the fall quarter.

In the Fall I am taking Digital Studio II (or a very large website), Art Criticism at 8AM (Yikes!!) and possibly Typeface Design.

So there you go. I will start summer classes on June 22, 2009. But will start working on my review pieces soon after this quarter ends as well as developing a strong thesis idea. I may call upon some of my friends and family to read through some ideas (although since they will mostly pertain to design or design education, I hope you can help narrow or expand my thinking if necessary).

I am looking forward to the challenge of getting everything done and do not worry I will have time to relax as well.

PS. The review is in the second week following the start of classes, so around 1 October and should not interfere with the wedding.

3D Work Progress

Lable Progression

Seatbelt Bag

This quarter I am taking a course that is called 3D Graphics Studio (aka packaging design). I am working on a packaging kit that includes a container and four individual products that would theoretically be made from recycled car parts. The course challenges us to create a brand name, sustainable packaging and packaging that would have a second use before being disposed. The pictures included in this brief post are of the the outer handbag (container) and one of the four packages with a tentative label design applied. Everything is a work in progress until hours before the final project is due (which is either on my birthday – Yeah!! – or the Thursday after my birthday – Super Yeah!!!).

Anyway as part of my final grade I have to take four product shots which I will post here to show you how everything finally progressed.