July is the busiest month of the year for me. It's mainly because I participate in two of the major conventions in their respective industries: Anime Expo, the biggest anime/manga/entertainment show outside of Japan, at the beginning of July, and Comic Con International, the comicbook/entertainment show in the world, at the end of the same month. The preparation for both shows, however, stretches out to May, when I am busy and lazy. But I usually tried to start preparing for it as early as March, where I would be busy but not feeling lazy.

Preparation for the shows this year, which would total up to be four shows done for the year, was extremely difficult for me, because unlike the last two years, I have a full time day job this year, as opposed to freelancing jobs the last two years. The obvious lack of flexibility took away a lot of my free time, and even dug into those time some more because of the ridiculously long over time. On top of that, the days I had to take off from work for the shows brought on a strong sense of guilt, which is directly related to my strong sense of responsibility.

And it shows in my work. I don't have as many artwork to choose from to put into my sketchbook this year, because most of the drawings I did were storyboards done for the company I work for. Those are neither available for personal use nor really push my ability as an illustrator.

I've also been spending a little more time lifting weights, cycling, and riding my motorcycle. Those undoubtedly also made drawing for personal reasons an opportunity cost.

Nevertheless, I did put together some new work, and was able to deliver some freshness to those show attendees whom have offered their supports to me each year.

1. First up, Anime Expo - Long Beach, California:

This piece and ones coming up are some of the few commissions I did at AX that I personally felt was worth noting.

This was Lanny's favorite piece. It was certainly a pain to pencil and ink the armors. More on Lanny...

My buddy, Winston, was (unfortunately) stuck working through out the show. So I enlisted Lanny to color the commissions. Here she is hard at work.

Tata...

She made an attempt to run off from the slave labor I induced onto her. So I had to carry her back to her spot!

All in a day's, or 4 days', work, yeah?

AX Earnings: I actually reached the numbers I hit last year on the second day of the show. So a new record was set this year.

2. Next up, Comic Con International - San Diego, California:

Due to CC cutting Artist Alley spaces this year, it has been very stressful waiting for the final cut listings. To be granted a table space at CC is a confirmation to me, that as an artist, I qualify to play with the bests in America. Needless to say, I was extremely excited, and on top of all, honored, to be selected. Here I am holding open a page of the CC Souvenir Book, where my artwork tribute to the 10th Anniversary of Buffy The Vampire Slayer, accompanies the first page of the article.

Naruto fans hunted me down for commissions, too...

A big fan of The Green Lantern had some really amazing GL commissions in his sketchbook. I knew for sure that my artwork could not have been the best, so I went after having it being the hottest.

I did a lot of freebies for kids. This was one of the many, which turned out well.

This is a caricature sketch of Tia...

...Who was so kind to have came all the way out there to grace me with her hotness.

I invited my buddy, Jenner, to get away from World of Warcraft for a few days. I was quite worried that the comic scene would not fit to his liking. Apparently, the fun went to his head, as he went after Sgt. Slaughter for a spot on the Joes.

Fan of my artwork...

What's up the cat ears, anyway...

As anime and manga became more and more popular with kids, it always make me feel good to bring them smiles with my artwork, especially when it becomes harder and harder each day for parents to raise kids and for kids to be kids. With our multimedia society constantly trying to shock and desensitize its audience, I find myself the need to be even more responsible as an artist and an adult. After all, these kids love my work. I need to show a bit more consideration to how my artwork may influence them.

Tom Nguyen, a talented artist of DC Comics (Batman, Superman...etc.), was my neighbor at the show. We are the two T.A.G.s  (Token Asian Guys) of the Artist Alley.

Oh, Lisa, I love you~ I mean, Psylocke, I love you. PSYLOCKE!!!

Stuck in a time warp loophole where both The Enterprise and Josie and The Pussy Cats exists...

And uh, yeah... I forgot to take a photo of the money I made before I deposit them into the bank. But it was good. Big thanks to everyone who came and support me at the shows. Both of the shows!

You can be as generous and as kind to people as you possibly can through out your whole life. But you will find out who your true friends are when it becomes your turn to be in a ditch and needing a lift. Or when girlfriends shows up in your friends' life.

Common sense. Corny. But not too many people seem to find any of life's common sense, or their criticisms to others, applicable when it comes to themselves. In other words, people hold double standards when it comes to self-evaluation. If you ask me, I'd go as far as pointing out that's being hypocritical.

I've been asked by a few people around me whether or not I am as critical of myself as I am to others. Usually they find out that I am actually lenient to entities that are not myself by comparison. It's probably why I am being looked at as a virtuoso and can stick out like a sore thumb to those who have inferiority complex. Or superiority complex. Or any complex or deficiency possible, because someone like me is always threatening their spotlights.

Then it becomes a choice right there: Do you, maintain your spotlight on stage, or marking your territory, by showing you have the substance to shine on your own, or do you start sabotaging me and trying to remove me as a target option for the spotlight? The latter is a cop out, because it's not only an easy way out, it also eliminates your opportunity to push yourself to be better than you are now. It also shows that you don't believe in yourself, that you can't win against a competition so you had to remove it by cheating.

How do I know if I am bring fair to others, or rather, unfair to myself? The more I am asked of that, the more I realize how little people self-reflect. And when you don't self-reflect, you're not thinking, which means you're not asking yourself the very questions that you appointed onto others:

Do you, as a "friend", only think of your friends when you're in need of help, and hardly ever talk to them when you're not in need?

Do you, as "friend", find it completely okay to trouble your friends' career expertise during their off-work time slots?

Do you, as a "friend", have no problem using things your friends bought, but do not cut them any slacks when they are short on change?

Do you criticize other guys for changing their lives around their girlfriends, but did exactly the same when if came to your girlfriend(s)?

Do you criticize guys for stealing other guys' girlfriends, then turnaround and get a girl's phone number by using one of your friend's name and her faith in the friend, without asking him about it first?

Do you often make claims to know something when you really don't? Why?

Do you make up lame excuses to make your bad habits sound noble?

When your friends excel at somethings, do you bitterly put them down behind their backs, when you should be happy and be proud of them?

Do you say "they don't think so." when it really is "I don't think so?"

It's hard not to be fair when you constantly ask yourself questions the way I ask myself. However, in order to be fair, you have to learn to accept what is right, instead of being self-righteous and accept only what makes you feel better. It's hard to win an argument against someone like me because reasoning and logic is always on my side. When you argue without those two thoughts, you're going contradict yourself, and yeah, pretty much look like an dumb ass.

I've met quite a few people that didn't like me not because of who I am or how I treated them, but because of how they aren't able to be the best, coolest, bravest, funniest, or whatever when I am around. It really isn't my fault if their character flaws become so apparent when standing side by side with me. It also isn't because I am better than them, but the fact that I am willing to reach out and be kind to people. You always have to earn praises by walking the walk. Way too many people just talked, but hardly delivered.

I dug out a few old CDs I bought back in 1991, just to see how well pop music of the early '90s hold up against the junk I listen to these days. Somewhat surprising to me, these "oldies" held up great. The songs I am not fond of are basically the sames ones I didn't like back then. The upbeat rock songs were, unfortunately, showing their age, sounding dated, and most of the time, down right silly. However, my favorite genre, the ballades, proved that pop music has evolved very little through out the years.

Never The End, performed by Hashimoto Maiko for the 1987 - 1991 anime OAV hit, Bubblegum Crisis, was my favorite song outta the 30+ pieces composed for the series. This bittersweet, encouraging and inspiring song, coupled by Hashimoto's clean and charismatic vocal, helped in injecting passion into my illustration and written work. Maybe it's the superior talent over in the land of the rising sun. Maybe it's the timeless limbo the ballade genre seems to be stuck in. Maybe it's just that I refuse to let the old school within me go, as much as I embrace everything new. I still love the song, 16 years later.

16 years later, I still hold faith more than ever that my ability will take me somewhere I need to be, and want to be.

16 years later, manga and anime no longer have the same integrity or production value. But I still love to draw.

16 years later, the lyrics I have written made my family wondered and even appalled at what I may have gone through in the ten years I've spent without them by my side.

16 years later, friends found stories within my words and my singing. They are somehow convinced that I am a talent.

16 years later, I believe even less in humanity, thanks to stupid people and hypocrites that wouldn't stop procreating.

16 years later, I still have yet to put a face onto the singer of Never The End. If I ever meet her, I would show her how much her voice has inspired this guy, who has never learned an instrument, to write lyrics.

16 years later, I've had the pleasure to meet the voice of Lynn Minmay of Macross. Her words to me were: Wow, you really listened to my songs. Not just Minmay's.

16 years later, the world is on a retro trend. If Never The End holds up well almost twenty years later, then it might hold up till 2033 A.D., the year Bubblegum Crisis takes place.

16 years later, I am still chasing my American dream with all my heart.

Battle of Ojai Valley - War Journal
Journal Date: June 24, 2007
Journal Keeper: Henry Liao
Photo credits: James Chiu, Stewart Hsu, Mike Kam

June 24, 2007 - 8:00 AM
Battle of Ojai Valley
Force Deployed: Rangers - 16
Field Commander: James Chiu
Rookie Ranger: Henry Liao

Per Galactic Law Enforcement's orders, a platoon of 16 voluntary Power Rangers was assembled at the bottom of the Angeles Crest Highway to enter the Batlle of Ojai Valley through San Luis Obispo Mountains...

With the world facing eminent danger, 16 brave Rangers set out to fight for the people...

Although trained by the bests, The Rangers couldn't hide the tension and anxiety for the rookie in the group... *Yeah, that'd be me. And no, I wasn't doing GQ poses on my bike*

At a pit stop right before venturing into Frazier Mountain Park, Commander James gives out the orders and having perhaps his last cigarette for what may be a long long while...

Super Ranger Sunny, with his I'll-Smoke-Yo-Ass-If-Yo-Come-Near-Me Suzuki GSX-R 1000...

Rookie Ranger Hank, the x-factor of the group, with his trusty RR...

Ranger Joe, like many in the platoon, wonders if Ranger Hank will be able to survive the battle...

Off they go... *Go Go Power Ranger~*

Shortly after entering kill zone, Ranger Will, one of their best, left early to fight a battle of his own...

The Rangers lost contact with a couple of their bests and made a temporary stop for a change of plan. But the kill zone was far from being a good place to linger around... *Okay, so maybe we were just looking at a spot to pee*

The Rangers regroup. But four of them were reassigned to enter Battle of Angeles Crest...

With Ranger Will out of the picture, Ranger Joe becomes the fastest runner by default...

The Rangers that stayed gathered up for food deep in the mountains at Screaming Squirrel...

Ranger Hank emits light rays in order to balance out his even inner force...

Unfortunately, they were ambushed by the Evil Harley Empire...

Muscles vs. Finesse...

Eight against Sixty...

A devastating display of power by ruthless tyrants...

But the survivors moved on...

The Harleys were unable to keep the Rangers off the mountain top...

And Battle of Ojai Valley continues...

A coworker walked by my cubicle and saw me working on an artwork with the Wacom Intuos in my right hand, while clicking on the mouse with my left hand. I guess it impressed her because it stopped her in her tracks to wherever she was heading towards and watch me work for a few minutes...

Her: Hey! You're ambidextrous!!!
Me: Oh, no. I am not.
Her: Yes you are. You're using both hands!
Me: Well, we all have two hands... It's really just like you picking up the cellphone with your left hand while you're writing the info down with your right...
Her: No. That's different. You're working on your artwork with both of your hands!
Me: Most of [graphic designers]  do...
Designer 1: I don't.
Designer 2: I don't, either. [Jeez, thanks, guys]
Her: See? You're ambidextrous!
Me: "No. I am NOT."

So I finally explained it to her that "ambidextrous" by definition, states that a person is able to use either of his/her hands to do things equally well. While I am able to do just about everything my right hand does with my left - dribbling, shooting, mouse-clicking, eating... etc., I don't do any of the those actions with my left as well as I would with my right hand. To say that I am ambidextrous is pretty much saying that I do things equally lousy with my hands, since by comparison, my left hand holds almost an absolute disadvantage to my right. It would also be saying that both sides of my brain are equally (un)developed, which I know for sure isn't true.

I am still learning how to do certain things (like basketball) really well with my strong hand. Trying to divert part of that time to learn with the other is a waste of time, because I would just end up being a mediocre ambidextrous person. When you do things well, no one really cares if you can do it as well with your off hand. Same idea can be said about being ambidextrous: when you do things like an average Joe, who the frak cares if you can do the same things equally as average with your other hand?

Ambidextrousness comes in the few people that are TRULY special: Meaning not you, not me. Some of us confuse ourselves, forgetting the fact that we are all biologically borne with TWO hands. That means, at one time or another, however often, the off hand WILL come into the picture to help the strong hand in getting things done. But if you call that ambidextrous, you're really overestimating yourself.

Like my coworker, I am not ambidextrous. And she walked away saying that I don't know how to take a compliment...

Your results:
You are Spider-Man

Spider-Man 80% Superman 55% Supergirl 55% Batman 35% Wonder Woman 20% The Flash 20% Robin 10% Hulk 0% Green Lantern 0% Catwoman 0% Iron Man 0%

You are intelligent, witty, a bit geeky and have great power and responsibility.