I Have Returned - Hopefully, for GOOD.

I am sure that many of you have noticed my absence. For those who do not follow me elsewhere, you may not know why I had abandoned this blog.

I have, for about eight years now, struggled with an eating disorder. During the last few months, I have been struggling to find my way out of the darkness which is anorexia and back into a world filled with the things that I love most.  

This summer (left) compared to now.

I am finally getting somewhere recovery-wise (again, and hopefully this time it will last) and am able to focus on the things that I care about. 

I have a recovery blog here, but will also be updating this blog much more often.

Mirror, Mirror Spock and Captain Kirk Shirts

Out of all of my Star Trek shirts, only two of them have to do with a specific episode - and they both just happen to have to do with the TOS episode Mirror, Mirror.

Yesterday while I was at the comic shop getting my Stealth Cyberman figure, I also came across this wonderful "Evil" mirror Spock shirt:

On the bus ride home, however, I had an anxiety attack over the fact that I got a shirt that implied that Mirror Spock was evil - when I disagree. I never thought he was evil, but perhaps I merely define "evil" differently.

I also have a Mirror, Mirror shirt with Captain Kirk and Mirror Spock on it that I got used for five dollars at the Comic and Toy expo a year or so ago:

I also picked up a new tripod today, which makes taking quality self portraits and such much, much easier. No more propping my camera up on books and a stool for me!

My visit home - Yaret ha-kel t'nash-veh

Vokau du wak lu yaretal nash-veh ha-kel fi'T'Khasi - eh vesht kum-tor t'hai'la nash bikuv t'nash-veh fa'wuh t'huhrik kahrlar ha.

Remember that time that I visited my home on Vulcan, and a friend took this picture of me in front of one of the major cities?

Fai'ei vokau nash-veh.

because I do.

T-Shirt: TardEx Express - When it absolutely, positively, has to be there before you ship it.

Looking through the T-Shirt section at Comic Con is always fun, for two reasons: firstly, I love nerdy T-shirts. And secondly, I love puns. A couple of years ago I found the most amazing Doctor Who shirt in the history of Doctor Who shirts:

I neglected to take a close-up photo of the shirt, so I borrowed an image taken by geospizafortis:

Oh, and if you feel like you really need this shirt (which you should), you can buy one HERE. Unfortunately, they will not be shipping using TardEx Express - you will have to wait for shipping.

Vita Xenos - Ornithoid Lifeform as seen on Pyris VII - Catspaw

Vita Xenos
The classification of "Vita Xenos" (Life Stranger) includes all intelligent life outside of the Milky Way galaxy. Very few species from outside of our galaxy have been discovered. Very little information is available when it comes to these beings. The brief information gathered on these aliens suggests that the developement of life outside of the galaxy differs very little from within our own.

Ornithoid Lifeform
The ornithoid (bird-like) life form seen on Pyris VII (Korob and Silvia - TOS episode "Catspaw") is one such outside species. From what we know from brief tricorder readings and the dissection of deceased specimens, these orthinoid lifeforms originated on a cold, dry planet with low atmospheric pressure and a very low gravity - about one sixth of the gravity of earth.

It is theorised that their primary source of nutrition is provided by liquids, due to their simple digestive tract and straw-like mouths. Their eyes have concave reflectors which capture and focus images. This species is known to be an advanced tool maker which is capable of space travel - because their claw-like limbs are not likely to provide sufficient manual dexterity, it is also theorised that their proboscis are used when handling and manipulating items.

Due to their transmuter technologies, they were able to amplify their mental abilities and survive on Pyris VII. When this technology (appearing as a wand) was destroyed, they were unable to survive on the planet due to their frail physiology and tiny stature.

It is also know that these beings answer to "the Old Ones", but it is unknown who or what the Old Ones are.

Note: The top image of the ornithoid lifeform was drawn by myself with a tablet. I scanned and edited the second image from the Star Fleet Medical Reference Manual.

Sarek as a Teenager

I started sketching a Vulcan on a piece of thick paper that was going to go in the garbage, and then I turned it into a teenage Sarek. And then I figured I may as well paint it. So I did. And now it looks like this:

I even added tiny chest hairs.

Click to enlarge. Gouache, acrylic, and india ink

Romulan - the species I would sometimes like to be.

R is for Romulan!

Three alien species that I would, if I had the choice, have been born as are Vulcan, Mintakan, and Romulan. Notice a pattern?

About a week or so ago, I began drawing a picture in ink of what I might look like as a Romulan:

I find Romulan (and Mintakan) forehead ridges to be quite aesthetically pleasing.

More art: Bitter Ambiguity.

Lal - The Beautiful Daughter of an Android

L is for Lal!

Lal - Data's android daughter - appeared only in the TNG episode "The Offspring". She was probably one of the most adorable androids in the Universe, and it is a shame that she had to fail. When she began to grasp concepts such as verbal contractions and feel human emotion, I was sure that she would be special - exceeding her father. Unfortunately this was a symptom of cascade failure in her neural net, and complete system failure followed.

As Data moved "frantically" to save her, I was sure he felt love for her. (For more information on the episode, please visit Memory Alpha.)

As Lal is one of my favorite Star Trek characters, I decided to do a quick sketch of her. The sketch turned out better than I had thought it would, and so I inked it:

After that was finished, I decided I would scan it and alter it digitally for practice. Unfortunately, I do not own a tablet so I had to use the pad on my netbook - resulting in shaky lines. Despite these difficulties, I believe it turned out quite well:

For those of you who may be interested, I also have an art blog called Bitter Ambiguity.

Presenting: A Drawing by Sam.

The other day while I was at work (my first day with braces on!), my friend Sam decided to draw a picture of me in an effort to combat boredom. It is accurate in every detail. (Except for the fact that the brackets of my braces are in between my teeth - but wearing braces correctly is TOO MAINSTREAM. Take that, Ortho.)

So much Angst.

She even got my ears and eyebrows right. I am actually obsessed with this drawing right now.

Feel special, Sam. Feel very, very special. You have earned a spot on my blog.

Seven of Nine - Gouache and Ink

I have been experimenting lately with different styles of drawing and coloring.

She kind of looks like a pug.

Taluhk Nash-veh K'dular - Sarek heh Amanda - Neshuk Bes (Ink Drawing)

I have been absent from this blog for quite a while now, as I have been devoting myself to an ink drawing of Amanda and Sarek. I was originally going to have it finished for Valentine's Day, but I ended up focusing on the details with more intensity than I had originally planned.

Sarek and Amanda are my all-time favorite couple, for all of the reasons. Notice also, in the drawing, that I used a a common human interpretation of a heart for Amanda, and a realistic Vulcan heart for Sarek. It's symbolic and... stuff. It was done traditionally, using black pen-ink.

And now, without further ado...

Fun fact: Many people, for whatever reason, use the word "adieu" instead of "ado" in the phrase I used previously. "Ado" means fuss, or trouble - "adieu" means goodbye. "Without further goodbye" does not make sense in any context. This misuse may be known as an "eggcorn".

Hnafirh'au-d - Arhem Llaiuri - Mnahen!

The only reason I am putting this on here is because I wrote on it in Romulan/Rihannsu. It says, roughly, "Can ('t) you see? I am dying. (My) hatred!" I drew this on an old law class sheet.

Bitter Ambiguity - Branching Odd

I have been away from Vibrant Oxymoron lately, due to an extremely busy schedule and the fact that I have delved into the arts once more. In fact, I have set up an alternate blog called Bitter Ambiguity which I devote entirely to the messes I create. You can check it out by clicking HERE or by clicking the picture link on the sidebar. Here is a tiny preview:

PS. This will be the only post that is not in any way related to Star Trek or Doctor Who. But there is some Trek/Who drawings on there...

Also PS. I am back now, so expect some Trek/Who posts soon...