Daily Doodles

I’m drawing again!

I decided to do a doodle every day for 40 days. The last time I attempted a self-imposed Lenten daily doodle challenge, I only made it to Doodle #27. Below are some of my ballpoint sketches from that time period.

For this year’s daily doodles, I’m using my iPad, Apple Pencil, and Adobe Fresco. Would love to try Procreate. So far, these digital doodles are taking about 30 minutes to 1 hour. The outlier was #5. That Duran Duran one probably took about 3 hours — 2 for the portrait and 1 hour obsessing over the type and color of the number 5. My goal is to limit my time to 30 minutes. We’ll see.

For the full story on each doodle, check out my ardith_the_ardith Instagram feed. You’ll notice that the last posts were from 2015. I have been locked out of that account and finally figured out how to log in recently!

It feels good to create art again.

Doodles from 2015 by Ardith Ibanez Nishii
© 2015 // Illustrations by Ardith Ibañez Nishii

My 7-Year-Old’s 1st Tinikling Performance

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bc0p9Vpnc5E/?taken-by=ardiddy

I already posted this on Cedro’s Blog, but I am so proud of him that one blog post isn’t enough!  I was so impressed by his presentations today for the Filipino Cultural School – FCS Fall Program Graduation and Holiday Party.  Out of the small class of 8 kids (of varying ages), he was the first in line to do a brief, oral report about himself in Tagalog.  He announced that he was “matapang” (brave), his favorite [Filipino] food was Adobo, he was interested in baseball and that he was good at Minecraft.  I had no idea he was supposed to do this today and he went up there and powered through without preparing at all at home!  I could never have done that at his age in front of a room full of strangers and in Tagalog no less!

And then, he blew me away with his Tinikling performance.  Again, he didn’t really practice at home apart from clapping the Tinikling rhythm every so often over the course of the Fall term.  He went up there without missing a beat and afterwards, volunteered without any prompting from anyone to a demo to try to get audience members to come up and try it.

Thank you, Cedro, for sacrificing your Saturday mornings for the past 8 weeks for this.  I’m sorry I’m always complaining out loud that there isn’t enough “Filipino” in our lives.  I was wrong.  You amaze me.  I’m so proud of you.

Social Media Fast + Tagalog Pass

Two major things happened this past weekend besides the fact that my baby boy turned 7 on Saturday!

#1.
For the first time since I've owned either a Facebook or Instagram account, I did NOT post some major event on the same day that it happened on either of those accounts.

#2.
I noticed that instead of reprimanding Cedro for not speaking to me in Tagalog when he wanted to say something, I just let him speak to me in English.

Because of these two things, I had some pretty important epiphanies and have made some new resolutions.

I hereby declare a self-imposed 2-week minimum social media fast for myself (after this blog post)!

I confess that I often get lost in the art direction and documentation of the moment rather than living in the moment itself. I admit that I spend more time and energy posting and reading other people's posts rather than resting or DOING something else… anything else! Drawing or sleeping immediately come to mind. Haven't done much of that lately yet I constantly complain about the lack of those two things in my life.

Time to take control of my choices and be more accountable for my health. Instead of buying more and more makeup and fancy skincare products to mask the fact that I don't get enough sleep, I really have to make sleep a priority! As a start, I have deleted my Facebook and Instagram apps from phone for the time being. I still want to document memories for Cedro and Drae and for myself. Instagram has been amazing for that and I just have some posts automatically shared on Facebook, but my motivations have been pretty messed-up. I should just post and then close the app, but NO. It becomes a black hole and then all of a sudden 1 or 2 hours are gone. Poof! All because I can't decide on the right filter or crop or hashtags or that I can't stop scrolling through my newsfeed until there's nothing new to see.

I am in desperate need of a major Social Media Cleanse! I need to recalibrate and remind myself of my priorities and motivations behind future posts. My late mentor, Freda, used to remind me to try create art with the assumption that no one would ever see it. Obviously something else happens in the creative process and the end result when you don't have an audience.

As for the Tagalog… Maybe it was because it was Cedro's birthday and I subconsciously didn't want him to feel frustrated on his special day (Tagalog is his weakest language of the 3 that he knows) or maybe it's because he was clearly excited (we went to Legoland for the first time) and I didn't want to dampen the mood or interrupt his train of thought.

You know what happened? He expressed more to me in the past couple days than ever before. Don't get me wrong. We are super close and we talk all the time, but this was different. The sentences were spilling out almost non-stop.

I know it's common sense to expect that he would communicate more complex thoughts and emotions to me in English – his default language after Japanese. I will always enforce the Tagalog rule when he speaks to me, but I will be more mindful to do it in constructive way going forward.

How can I be upset or frustrated with him or jealous when he seems to have more lengthy in-depth conversations with Brian when (a) I am the only one who speaks to Cedro in Tagalog (Sure there are my parents and extended family, but a weekly video chat and the occasional holiday visits are not going to improve his Tagalog skills); (b) And by the way, my Tagalog sucks and I myself struggle with it; (c) He doesn't go to a Tagalog immersion school; (d) He doesn't have local friends or young cousins who speak Tagalog; (e) Cedro has never been to the Philippines; (f) I can't find any quality, modern children's programming in Tagalog, at least not on YouTube.

So what am I going to do about all that? What are my options other than taking a leave of absence from work and taking Cedro to the Philippines next summer and every summer until he's an adult? Well, since I'm his only Tagalog teacher right now, instead of feeling sorry for myself about how my Tagalog sucks or whine that Cedro doesn't seem to be making an effort, I have to hustle and really learn the language, continue to practice and gain proficiency. If I can stick to my Social Media Fast, then some of that time can be dedicated to reading my Tagalog language books and listening to the accompanying audio recordings and exercises. I can take the initiative to reach out to friends and cousins who are fluent and just keep practicing.

I just have to do it and try to teach by example and not put so much pressure on Cedro.

Bye for now, Social Media friends. I just remembered what my priorities are.

Pinoy Pride Weekend

 

Adidas Philippines Jacket (Photo by Ardith Ibanez Nishii)

Last weekend, I enjoyed back-to-back Filipino cultural events up in Seattle.  I was able to reconnect with old friends, experience some amazing art, support some important causes and express my Filipino pride. Special thanks to my hubby for being on double daddy daycare duty AND for driving Cedro to Tagalog class on Sunday without me.

I planned the trip around the Here Lies Love musical, written by David Byrne and Fatboy Slim about Imelda Marcos and the political climate in the 70s-80s in the Philippines.  The show stars some NYC friends (who I had met through my dear friend, Liz Casasola).  I thought the show was closing on June 4th, but it has been extended until June 18th at the Seattle Rep Theatre.  I highly recommend it.  It’s not just for Filipinos!  It is the most unique musical/theater performance you will experience.  Get your tickets now!

Then I found out that coincidentally a Broadway Barkada benefit concert was happening the following Monday night in Seattle.  It was the perfect excuse to have a mini reunion with friends and to support Fil-Am performing artists as well as The Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project.

Liz Casasola and Brian Jose — 2 of the 3 Broadway Barkada co-founders at rehearsal, Seattle, WA

Liz Casasola and Brian Jose — Broadway Barkada co-founders at rehearsal // Seattle, WA // 04 June 2017

Filipino Festival Time with Liz in June 2017 Seattle

Filipino Festival Time with Liz — This was moments before a raven swept down and STOLE my Filipino BBQ stick that was sitting on my plate that I had put down on a table while I was buying a drink! // June 2017 Seattle

https://www.instagram.com/p/BU_rZdbFxxg/?taken-by=ardiddy

Lately, I have been struggling with balancing Filipino culture and language exposure to my kids in our trilingual household. Those couple of days in Seattle were exactly what I needed to stay strong.  Mabuhay!

Artisan Made Philippines

2016_1001_artisanmade_barkadako_post_by_ardithibaneznishii

Ay nako!  It has been almost 2 years since my last post!

Yesterday, I attended an amazing launch event for Artisan Made Philippines.  Overnight my cup runneth over with the sense of Pinay Pride.  And just in time!

One of the biggest things that has been weighing down on my mind, heart and soul has been my struggle to teach my kids Tagalog and cultivate their Filipino identity.  Yes, I speak to them exclusively in Tagalog, but I know my version of Tagalog is not enough.  I myself need some immersion crash course in order to discuss more complex thoughts and feelings with them.

Thanks to Artisan Made, I came away from last week feeling connected to a vibrant Filipino-American community.  I’m feeling happier.  It’s the kind of feeling you might experience when you spend a whole day with cool cousins.  Mind you, I only knew Kristine Surla, the founder of Artisan Made when I walked in the door, but everyone felt familiar as they shared their stories of being Filipino or Filipino-American.  It didn’t matter that we were from all different parts of the Philippines or different parts of the US.

It’s a huge understatement to say that I was thrilled and inspired.  The day wasn’t about fleeting fashion trends.  It was about Filipinos and Filipinas making a difference in other people’s lives.

  • Moved by the work that the non-profit, Gawad Kalinga, is doing to end poverty and hunger in the Philippines.
  • Lost my mind shopping for beautiful pieces by Anthill – a social and cultural enterprise in the Philippines working to preserve local weaves through contemporary design to sustain livelihood and tradition.  Each piece had a story about the specific weaves and the weaver or craftsperson who created it.
  • Witnessed the inventive and improvisational culinary skills of The New York Times-featured Filipina chef, Yana Gilbuena.  I inhaled the 5-course kamayan meal after admiring her artful presentation.  I also learned that you can peel ginger with a regular spoon!  It’s work, but it means that you don’t waste any of the ginger!  Genius.
  • Discovered that “heirloom Philippine rice” exists!  Last night’s menu included black rice by Social Products — an organization that sources organic food products from Philippine coop smallholder farmer partners that empower rural farmers, women, and indigenous peoples with a more sustainable way to eradicate poverty.
  • Excited to taste and learn about Kalsada Coffee from the Philippines and roasted in Seattle.
  • And wow!  Theo & Philo artisanal chocolates.  Yum!  They’re the Philippines’ first bean-to-bar artisan chocolates.  You have to try them!
  • And calamansi liqueur?  Yes, please!  I am now on the hunt for Manille Liqueur de Calamansi.  According to Forbes, it was “conceived as a Filipino take on the Italian limoncello by president and CEO Olivia Limpe-Aw, in collaboration with restaurateur-turned-writer-and-television-host Stephanie Zubiri-Crespi, Manille Liqueur de Calamansi, launched in January 2014, is a vodka-based drink that uses the essence of the zesty calamansi rind sourced from Mangyan farmers in Mindoro, a province located off the coast of Luzon, and northeast of Palawan.”
  • And most importantly, I have secured some SoCal Tagalog play dates in my family’s future!  In fact, because of the press coverage leading up to the event, I now know that there’s a show, Kababayan Today.  And because of that show, I now know that there’s a summer school program by the Filipino Cultural School here in LA!  It’s far but it will be worth it to enroll Cedro next summer.

Maraming salamat, Kristine! Mabuhay!

 

 

4-min Daily Doodles for 40 Days

IMG_5801

For Lent this year, I’ve decided to draw a 4-min doodle every day. Today’s doodle is inspired by my friends, Tom and Thomas, who I’ve known for 18+ years. They are 2 of the sweetest people on planet Earth. I love how they make time for community work despite their busy schedules. (Tom has owned a few Boston Terriers over the years in case you were wondering about the dog.)

Drawing Again!

ArdithNishii_working_vs_relaxing

I always need a deadline to push me to draw more than a doodle.  Tonight’s final deadline for the 2015 Communication Arts Illustration Competition was as good a reason as any… The piece is inspired by the tendency of feeling like I have no ideas when I need them the most.  It’s as if my mind were completely blank with the soundtrack of crickets in the background.  Ironically, when I want to try to relax and put my mind to rest, that’s exactly when my brain starts buzzing with no off switch within reach.

It feels good to draw again.