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Calligraphy and Meetups
Completed the last batch of commissioned handwritten calligraphy postcards. Thankful that the revenue from the commission was more than enough to cover the cost of the batch of expensive handmade recycled paper that I bought to show support for a local paper artisan. I even had extras to put back into my personal art fund to support further artistic endeavors! Grateful for this unplanned opportunity.
Aside from the unplanned commission, I had been working hard to catch up on my planned Q2 goals. Wrote more than a hundred characters from the book with a thousand character samples. Shouldn’t be a problem to finish off the remaining dozen or so characters this coming week before the quarter ends.
Thur. was a public holiday (Dragon Boat Festival), I ate the last of the Chiu Chow rice dumpling given by a neighborhood por por (friend’s mother-in-law) for lunch. In the evening, I met up with some high school friends as one of them was in town for a short visit and flying back to US in a couple of days. I also met up with other friends for dinner on Wed. and Fri. Frankly, I’m introverted and not too social, but I actually took a proactive role in initiating the 3 dinner meetups! I now cherish the time to meet up friends more and more, especially friends I’ve known since young. We never know when, or ever, we’ll be meeting again now that so many people are emigrating away from this deteriorating city. I myself could very well be the next one to fly out.
44th Birthday
Took a day off on Mon to give myself the gift of time to do whatever I want for my 44th bday. I finally took the time to organize and display my growing series of critically endangered animal caricature paintings in my private living-room gallery.
I’m not particularly fond of celebrating bdays, but I’m courteous enough to follow suit and offer my birthday greetings to friends whenever someone initiated the greetings in messaging groups. Likewise, when it was my turn, I was flooded with bday greetings as soon as I woke my phone that morning. Some friends didn’t remember the exact day of my bday, and I conveniently reminded them that it’s the 2019 protest anniversary. I’m grateful that friends remembered and took the time to type up the birthday greetings, especially those who privately messaged me. A fellowship brother even spontaneously treated me lunch at a restaurant where I stumbled upon my favorite sculpture to do a sketch! Another fellowship brother gave me a gift about a week ago and it turned out to be a wooden board with an “outstanding” cutout. I actually felt a bit ashamed by the gift, but didn’t tell the gift-giving friend of course. As I review my nearly 14 years of return from Canada, I felt I had been a letdown to both my family and God.
Birthdays are a good time to reflect on life. Having spent 44 years of life with much love from family, friends, and God, I couldn’t be more grateful. At the same time, I don’t have much to be proud of either. I felt like I had just wasted 44 years of time and love from others. Didn’t want to be left in a depressed state, I allotted my bday evening with nothing but a long running practice. Although it was slow, but I was proud that I pulled through a 10k run on a hot muggy evening. For a short period of time, possibly under the influence of endorphins, I felt good. The rest of the week was gloomy and rainy and didn’t allow more runs. I picked up more calligraphy work at the studio and completed another batch of hand-drawn postcards commissioned by my sister.
Another week has just passed by after my 44 years of time spent here on Earth. Can someone please put a pause on the cruel passage of time?
Workshops, Postcards, and Meetup
Just realized that I had attended 3 workshops in the past week – DIY coffee grind soap on Mon, Chinese rubbing technique on Tue, and letterpress on Sat. Work-wise, I managed to complete the first couple batches of commissioned work – a total of 25 handwritten calligraphy postcards. Those activities have occupied the bulk of my time this past week.
Besides workshops and commissioned work, I also managed to help my mom pickup and install a peace alarm (平安鐘), which she insisted she didn’t need even though she occasionally complained about possible fainting at home during our absence. In my opinion, It will be well worth the money if a small amount of subscription fee can buy my mom and the family peace.
Had an evening meetup with some drinking buddies on Fri. Enjoyed some nice German food, many glasses of beer and some lively conversations. I was more of a listener trying to empathize the troubles and stresses they were undergoing. The city now seems to be teeming with stressed up people, the deteriorating political and economic situation and the increasing heat will likely add fuel to the bottled up anger. It’s better for me to keep quiet and indulge myself with work and art so as not to put extra burden on an already stressful city.
Oh God, pls hear our cries and prayers and don’t stop pouring grace and mercy on Your ppl. 🙏🏻
“Special Day”
It was a super hot and muggy week. I started going back to work earlier in the morning for the sake of AC. After completing the custom chop for the studio’s new “resident artist”, I started prototyping some postcard-sized calligraphy artwork which I hope to make available online in coming weeks.
Today marks the 34th anniversary of Tiananmen Square Massacre. As expected, the annual candlelight vigil at Victoria Park was banned once again. Many people who attempted to commemorate the tragedy in public were arrested. One of the organizers of the annual vigil started a 34-hour hunger strike while under detention and was further punished as a result. Many government officials and public figures who once proudly protested the mainland’s bloody authoritarian regime and wished to bring justice, democracy, and freedom to the country now stand to oppose the activists who persisted in their belief. Some were even too coward to mention June 4th and refer the date as simply a “special day”.
It’s depressing to witness the city deteriorating so rapidly. Knowing there’s nothing I can offer to deter the situation felt powerless and hopeless. At times I would even feel afraid to voice out my opinions before friends whom I wasn’t certain of their political stance. This suppression, plus the aforementioned depression, powerlessness, and hopelessness make it especially challenging to stay mentally sane in this city. The super hot weather and the crowded environment made the situation even worse.
Oh God, I desperately need You, pls help me survive and strive in this deteriorating city. Pls continue to lead and guide my steps forward. 🙏🏻
Staycation
Had an unusually “busy” long weekend packed with a letterpress sharing session, a historic architectural tour, and a Chinese painting workshop. It started from the letterpress sharing session on Fri afternoon, I learnt about the inspiring story of Robert Morrison inventing the Hong Kong Font (香港字) letterpress to assist in preaching the gospel. I also serendipitously connected with a letterpress company who just happened to have recently moved to the same building of my studio! On Sat, I went to see a recently “discovered” remains of a water reservoir built in 1904 that was almost bulldozed by the gov. if not for the strong protest of local citizens. The historic excavation is actually right next to my church where I go for Sunday Service every week! And on Sun (today), I joined a workshop and had my first Chinese ink painting experience. After learning Chinese calligraphy for ~7 years, I felt at ease in copying the ink paintings of rocks and orchids, but it was very challenging to control the color tone and the ink’s wetness level.
It wasn’t a productive week work wise. I had put in uncountable hours on crafting a custom seal for the studio’s “resident artist” – KOKB (King of Kowloon Bay). There were a couple of days l worked till sunrise at home! The seal is more or less finished, new products should be ready to be sold online in coming weeks!
Thankful for the week-long staycation, will need to catch up with my Q2 projects this coming week, add oil! 💪🏻
