Announcement
This blog has served its purpose well but I think it’s time to focus on just one active blog. I can always revive this if the need arises.
I have decided to customize my Tumblr blog to make it my official website. You can see more of my illustrations and commission work there.
Thank you for visiting this page. See you at The Otherness of Things.
love,
Lorra
A Busy Weekend
Last Saturday and Sunday were the busiest days I’ve had in weeks, for the Komikon Summer de Avance and my group portfolio exhibit respectively.
To read more about the experience or to see photos, just click on the following links. Enjoy!
My Komikon Experience
New Comics I Got
“Digital Genius” Exhibit
Work-Related Portfolio by Lorra Elena Angbue-Te
I’ve always added all my artworks in all my online portfolios but since I’ve been getting more freelance illustration and design work lately, I decided to make a work-exclusive portfolio.
My friend, Ponci, signed up for a Coroflot.com account and when I saw how nice and clean the interface was, I was sold.
I’ve included some pieces in my Coroflot portfolio that I’ve worked on in the past few months but haven’t been posted anywhere yet. So if you’re interested, visit this link.
I accept freelance commission work, freelance illustration jobs and freelance graphic design jobs and possibly, collaborations and art trades.
Both my portfolio and my commission request form are now hosted at my Tumblog, The Otherness of Things. Please visit if you’re interested.
On Kindness and Being Thankful by Lorra Elena Angbue-Te
Thank you.
I just wanted to be able to say that. I feel that I haven’t said it enough during the past week and a half just because of the overwhelming outpouring of support from loved ones, acquaintances and strangers. I feel that how I’ve been showing my gratitude has been disproportionate to the happiness and gratefulness that I feel inside. And most especially, I feel that it’s disproportionate to the amount of love that people have been sharing selflessly. There really is nothing to feel bad about and letting myself feel bad for something inconsequential is just putting shame on all the kindness that I’ve witnessed this whole time.
House Bunny has been showing on HBO lately and one of Anna Faris’ quotes hit it right on the money. “Kindness is just love with its work boots on.” It’s so true. We need to give that little something extra to extend kindness towards others, especially to strangers, but there’s also love propelling our kind acts which makes every act of kindness ultimately easier to do. House Bunny might not be a movie that critics label as award-winning or compelling but it shows us so much of life and being people.
Certainly, not everyone is able to choose kindness because some people have just so much anger and meanness to latch on to but we also have to remember that kindness is our currency in this world. At the end of our individual journey on earth, we cash in all the kindness points we earned. Will it all be enough? I’m not saying that people should act kindly and be loving for the selfish goal of reaching heaven but think of it this way, how great a memory will you be leaving behind if all people remember you for is your mean-spiritedness?
I’ve asked myself that question recently and I couldn’t help but smile because I know I’ll be leaving great memories behind. I know I’m not the best at everything nor am I someone who’s kindhearted every single second of my life but I know that I am on the right track.
To anyone who’s feeling spite or anger, just put a little love in your heart. It’ll work wonders and maybe someday, you’ll be happy too.
To everyone else, thank you, again and again and again. To both old and new followers, to those who helped out, to those who are still helping out, to those who simply asked about how I am, to those who made me laugh, to those who made me cry from all the love, to those who gave me wonderful real-life hugs, to those who gave me virtual hugs, to those who are reading this, to those who will read this until the end, to those who make at least just one person happyeach day…THANK YOU.
Identity Theft Uncalled For by Lorra Elena Angbue-Te
I’ve never had to assert my identity before. I never thought someone would steal my identity in the first place because I’m not a famous person. Who is Lorra Elena Angbue-Te? I am not a celebrity, I am not a prominent public figure, I have no plans of running for public office, and as much as I joke about wanting to become an actress, I have no real plans of pushing through with that.
In this day and age, it’s very easy for people to act callously out of anger, malice and mischief. Especially when they have nothing to lose and can hide behind anonymity.
Up to now, I still don’t know what I did to merit this kind of reaction. If it was the review that I posted then this reaction is beyond disproportionate. I wrote honestly and not out of spite. I wrote based on my observation of the exhibit projects’ aesthetic value and communication efficacy.
If this poser is directly affected, aren’t there better ways of dealing with criticism? One can improve on points that were negatively criticized. One can brush comments aside, stand by what you chose to do. There is no need to commit a crime or hurt other people.
If this poser is someone who’s completely not connected with the project and the criticism I gave, then I am at a loss as to why I’m being targeted. I don’t think I have done anything to hurt other people. I may be spirited and unlikely to back down from a fight but I don’t think I’ve ever actively started one nor have I done something with the sole or main intent of being malicious.
It’s a little sad, I have to admit but I am also seeing the good in this. I have been reminded that I have friends who care about me, that I must have done something right in my life to deserve these people and their love, that I have a clean conscience.
And most importantly, I have realized that I am better than this situation.
- Lorra Elena Angbue-Te
Being Zen by Lorra Elena Angbue-Te
I know that I have moments when I am mean to people, both intentional and not. What has happened during the past few days has made me realize that there are other people who can be far meaner and ill-intentioned than I’ll ever be or will ever understand. What this person has done, far outweighs whatever I did because it’s clearly directed and malicious.
It’s hard to fight an invisible foe, almost impossible people say. And although I may have felt a bit helpless earlier in this ordeal, I know I have a choice. I can continue fanning the flames of this attention-seeker but I can also let it go. I have chosen the latter because I know that there is nothing more that I can do except promote myself, my work and my beliefs as honestly as I can. My work and my reputation will speak for themselves. I do not think a poser and a hater can ever destroy what I’ve already built for myself, nor destroy the possibilities that I have in my life. My possibilities are endless.
I have also come across lovely people who have helped me without my asking. It surprised me that they sent me messages of their own accord and I appreciate their gestures wholeheartedly. I hardly know them and they hardly know me, which makes their gestures genuine and even more special. I am immeasurably grateful.
To those I’ve asked helped from, your gestures won’t go unappreciated. I know I’ve asked helped from people who barely know me but they still chose to help in the manner that they knew best. Thank you.
It’s not easy to take the higher road, especially for someone as passionately involved in everything as I am. It’s just my nature but I’m also learning that maturity comes in a form that is harder to exercise but I have the choice to exercise it. I have the power to make it mine and just let this situation build my character.
So to everyone, we can stop spreading this disease now. We can stop reblogging. We can stop feeding this person’s delusional sensibilities and instead, revel in the fact that amongst mean spirited people, there are truly compassionate people and friends to be made.
This is the last time that I’ll be talking about this person but rest assured that I have taken the necessary measures to ensure that this thing stops. He/She willingly went into this situation, fully intending to malign and hurt, and his/her actions have ramifications.
- The REAL Lorra Elena Angbue-Te
Setting the record straight by Lorra Elena Angbue-Te
Hi everyone,
I didn’t have any prior intention of creating a WordPress.com account because I already maintain too many social networking and blogging sites but I felt the need to when I found a blog, hosted on WordPress, that was posing as mine. I will no longer link back to the fake blog because I’ve realized that’s what this person wants.
There are a lot of malicious people in the world and this person probably had nothing better to do. I am taking this action, however, to set things straight and to be able to spread the word about this.
This all started when I posted a critique of the Information Design seniors’ thesis exhibit in Ateneo de Manila University. I admit that some of the words I used for the theses that I didn’t like were harsh but that’s just the way I am. I try to be as honest as possible. I felt that they weren’t able to communicate what they wanted to convey with their design output. I also believe in excellence, whether you’re doing a small project or something as big as your senior year thesis. A lot of the exhibit output were half-baked, in my opinion and I do feel that I have that particular right to exercise. My opinions are my opinions and hopefully, the criticism that I shared would make the student designers realize what they can improve on and what didn’t work. After all, I’m a part of their audience.
Although I’m not an Information Design graduate or practitioner, I do believe that I have an eye for design and aesthetics because I’m a freelance illustrator. This fake blog is potentially harmful to my starting career in freelance and obviously derogatory and untrue. I am not the most brilliant person to ever walk on the face of the planet but I’m certainly not clumsy, nor am I ditzy. I am very particular with my actions and every action I make has been, most of the time, thought out thoroughly.
Aside from being a freelance illustrator, I also work as a homeroom adviser for the Ateneo’s freshman InTACT program. I am also a preschool teacher, hoping to set up my own school in the future. Although unlikely, this fake blog might still be harmful to that aspect of my multifaceted career path because parents might look for details about me and the kind of education I can offer and they’ll find the fake blog. The impostor made sure to write with bad grammar and spelling. I’m sure no parent would want their child to be taught by someone like that.
Furthermore, this person has been calling me a coward, saying that I’m scared, by leaving an anonymous message on my chatbox and in this fake blog. This is certainly something that I am not. I have been calling out to this person to meet up with me on campus for the past month but I have received no reply. This means that this person is the true coward, which is probably the only true thing about him/her. His/her comment came from my decision to take down the said critique from my main blog because my boyfriend, who’s an Information Design teacher and thesis adviser asked me to do it. Out of respect, I did it for him.
I doubt that this person will ever surface because I’m fairly sure by now that he/she prefers, excuse my French, half-assery. Like my boyfriend said, I can’t really fight back if the enemy is hiding in a hole.
So with little options left on my plate, I’ve decided to fight back intelligently. I’m also planning to write about this for a national paper and have gotten in touch with a section editor. It’s something that’s very rampant today. There are a lot of people who have nothing else to do with their lives and have chosen to slander other private citizens in this way. Also, I am taking measures to find out who the culprit is and hopefully, something turns up. If so, I plan to submit a complaint to the Ateneo’s Office of the Associate Dean for Student Affairs. This illegal action taken by a student is certainly no manifestation of MAGIS.
If you want to help me, please spread the REAL word to your friends. Help me catch who the culprit is. Help me catch a coward. Thank you so much!
Sincerely,
Lorra Elena Angbue-Te
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If you want to get to know the real me, you can head over to my other real accounts:
- The REAL Lorra Elena Angbue-Te
