First half of November has been pretty rough. Lost a close family member to cancer, and Current TV laid off a ton of people (I dodged the bullet this time). I’ll eventually write about both things (once I get a slice of free time) but in the meantime, here’s a video I stumbled across on the interwebs and it made me laugh out loud (seriously). I thought I’d share it with you. It’s my new goto “pick me up” video.

So when we last left off, I had outlined what my plans were for rebuilding my bike as a cafe racer. This past weekend I started making good on those plans.

First up, I picked up a Vance & Hines exhaust system from a guy who was going to tear down a Seca II he bought and convert it to an electric. Sold it to me for $100. It was covered in surface rust and missing a couple of the exhaust springs; the can was stained and oily and overall the whole thing was snotty, crusty, but entirely salvageable. I called up V&H to see how much it would cost to order new exhaust springs, and much to my surprise, they offered to just send me a bunch for free. Now THAT’s service. I broke out the 120 grit sandpaper, steel wool, rust remover, high temp black paint, my latex gloves and set about refurbishing it.

Day 1: Refurb the Exhaust.

Refuribing the old rusty exhaust took most of the day. I finished it up and left the bike for the night. The next day I picked it back up by removing all the leftover fairing mounts, disassembling and removal old speedo / tach, removing the old turn signals, cutting out the original light bulb based tail and replacing it with a LED tail light I hacked together from a truck trailer LED light, and taking off the old bent handlebars and replacing it with a brand new club man bar. Needless to say, it was a long day in the garage.

Day 2: Turning an old Japanese sport-tourer into a badass cafe racer: the beginning steps.

Next steps: Install the freshly rebuilt 7″ round headlight, install LED turn signals (front and back), rewire bike’s front end electrical system, and install & calibrate a new speedometer/tachometer. Plenty more to come.

Recently I heard from friend from way back in the day. My friend (who shall not be named out of respect for his/her privacy) was a religious individual. One who searched for the truth in the belief of a god, or THE God, or what have you. I have great respect for people of faith. Evangelicals not so much, but educated individuals searching for truth, not hillbillie bible thumpers damning all that disagree or challenge their “view”. Anyways, my friend recently contacted me through email to ask me my views on certain theological topics, from an atheist’s perspective.

Just as a sidenote, it’s no secret that I’m an atheist. I’m not ashamed of it, nor do I feel the need to be. Some of my friends and family strongly disapprove of my views, or my publicity of them, but most are indifferent or at least not vocal about it. It is one of those three taboo topics for dinner conversation though. The others being politics, and sex; one pure, and one evil…but I’ll let you decide for yourself which is which.

I felt like the questions that were asked in My Friend’s email were extremely interesting from a purely theological perspective. I feel like it was a chance for me to really define what I believed in relation to what was being asked by someone who’s religious faith had been shaken. My friend’s identity will be protected, but I’ve included the theological portion of the initial email, and my response as I think it starts a very interesting conversation.

My Friend’s Initial Email:

Hey Mr. Tibbs,

< snip >

Secondly, 2009 has sucked for me because I quietly disowned my lifelong exploration and quest of trying to believe in a god. The admittance that our existence is, by default, without purpose makes me sad and intimidated by this huge world that has little governance. What’s more: we’re born, then we die, and for nothing worth bragging about… done.

My question is, how do you enjoy your life from day to day knowing that what we see is what we get?

Any insight you can provide, I’d appreciate.

< snip >

My Response:

Mr < snip >,

< snip >

I’m terribly sorry to hear of your disillusionment in the pursuit and understanding of your faith and exploration of religion/god. Having a realization (if you can truly call it that) which balks at the very epicenter of what you’ve grown to believe and put your faith into cannot be a very easy ordeal by any stretch. My deepest condolences to you for that. The reasons for your departure of faith are your own. It’s something very personal and I empathize with your internal struggle with it.

That being said I don’t think the question is how do I enjoy my life from day to day knowing that what I see is what I get. Rather, I find the question to be more how do I not enjoy my life with all the wonderful fleeting moments that are in it?

My self-actualization comes from the belief that each and every moment I experience while alive is limited, finite, and fleeting. Every path crossed. Every friend made. Every fight won or lost. Every tragedy. Ever triumph. There is a very simple, but astoundingly subtle beauty in it for me. No moment is unique. No moment is ever the same. No moment will ever be repeated. And at some point, in my life, I will cease to be aware of those moments, I will cease to exist, and all those many multitudes of experiences I’ve encountered will also cease to exist with me (though it can be argued that I live on through my shared experiences with friends, children, and/or family, etc…). It’s this time limit that makes it so special. If it continued evermore in whatever incantation that man creates to dull the mind to the fear of death, then the value of my life and my life experiences would be diminished. I personally believe that because there is a limitation, or an end to life, that anything experienced during that duration is that much more special.

To me, the beauty is that nothing lasts forever.

As for the declaration that “our existence is, by default, without purpose…”, I disagree with you. For that statement to be true, some higher power would have to decree that you have a specific use and purpose. In my personal beliefs, I find that to be one caveat of religion that I truly cannot understand. To me an individual’s purpose is whatever he or she wants it to be. You can choose to be and do whatever you want. You can affect peoples lives in great and deeply moving ways. You can spend your years doing absolutely nothing, and that’s okay too. Purpose to me is a personal choice. It’s whatever you want it to be and the fact that it’s yours makes it significant. I think that however you feel about what you choose to do should be the barometer by which you measure your own greatness. That freedom of personal choice is scary though. The question of “what is my purpose in life?” is one of the most complex and challenging questions that mankind faces.

I hope that my personal opinion can offer you some solace, or even direction on this experience you’re having. These questions you’re asking now will only beget more questions…but that’s the beauty of it. You’ll be viewing your world and your experiences through a lens untainted by the dogma of doctrine. You can experience life in it’s purest form.

What are your thoughts?

So back in February I got hit by a cage (car for the non-riders). Hit and run actually. Banged up my 96 XJ600 Seca II pretty bad (I walked away unscathed; take the MSF course and ALWAYS wear gear). Lost my front fairing, scraped up the exhausts on both sides, bent the handlebars (not the fork or trees thankfully), and generally turned my once pretty bike, into a mangled mess.

At the time I was unemployed so I just took the money and pocketed it, and fixed the mechanics on the beast to keep it running until I had some money to buy a new bike. I’ve since been working again but instead of a new bike, I decided that a new computer is more important (I’m an aspiring director so I need good tools) so I’ve decided to make a cafe/rat/hooligan bike out of my old SECA II, and since I love the project threads so much, I’ll be making my own.

For posterity, here’s how my baby looks right now:

She’s in dire need of a bath, but mechanically she’s pretty solid. Could use a carb cleaning and all, but that’s part of the plan. I have it pretty much worked out that I’m going to rebuild her in stages.

Stage 1 – The Basics
In this stage, I’m replacing the dash cluster with an Acewell Unit, 7″ headlight, LED turn signals, LED brake light, black clubman bars, grips, and bar end mirrors. I went online and purchased a bunch of stuff and it’s slowly arriving. Hopefully by this weekend I’ll have all the parts I’ll need for this stage.

Stage 2 – Performance
I’ve recently come into a V&H Supersport Exhaust full system for my bike. They usually go used for about $500, but I picked this gem up for 1/5 of that. The thing is super light. I can effortlessly lift it with one hand. Definitely a departure from the heavy and gargantuan system currently weighing my bike down. It does have some surface rust and scratches, but I’m going to refurbish it (more on that in another post). Anyways, Full 4-into-1 Exhaust System, black heat wrap, silicone sealing spray (for the wrap), a 20mm Pilot Jet, FactoryPro Jet Kit, and a good ole fashioned carb cleaning and (if needed) valve adjustment.

Stage 3 – Suspension & Propulsion
For Stage 3 of the Hooligan conversion I’ll be getting a new rear shock (progressive 420, or an OEM), going with a heavier oil on the front forks, getting some steel braided brake lines, going down 1 tooth on the rear (48 -> 47) and going up 1 tooth in the front (16 -> 17), new Pirelli Sport Demon Tires (upgrading from a 130 to a 150 in the back), POSSIBLY do a FZR front end swap so I can get dual front breaks (and better stopping power), and a partridge in a pear tree.

Stage 4 – Spit and polish
Re-black the engine, matte black (or graphite grey) paintjob for the tank, side panels, and rear plastic.

I’m budgeting ~$2k for this upgrade. I know I can buy a faster, better bike etc, but I’m doing this because it will be awesome to build my own custom bike, I’ll learn a buttload about bikes, I’m an artist so this kind of thing appeals to my creative side, and I think those mad max looking bikes just look badass (if done right).

As some of you know, I’m 1/2 Iranian. I was raised Iranian. I grew up Iranian. 98% of the family that I know and interact with on a regular basis are Iranian. Genetically I’m 1/2, but for all intents and purposes, I view myself as an Iranian (American).

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few days, you’ll know of the sham election in Iran. The government has killed internet and text message communications, shut down news stations, and put dissenters on “house arrest”. They are trying to quell the will of the people. In this age of the Internet and vast communication, there will always be a way for people to communicate.

As it’s been used in the past, Iranians have harnessed Twitter as a means of communication. I’ve stumbled across a Twitter Grid that is streaming information as fast as it comes in real time from people IN IRAN. If you’re Iranian, or if you just want to know what is really happening, as it’s happening, from people who are there, follow the link now.

Looks like things are finally starting to move a little for me. I got laid off from my job back in January which essentially forced me to become a freelancer in the worst economic climate since the Great Depression. Needless to say, it has NOT been fun. I’ve had to curtail a lot of my old habits. Learn and develop entirely new ones. I cook for myself a LOT now. I don’t go out nearly as much, and when I do, I’m much more careful with how I spend. There was a time where I used to lament my lack of a girlfriend, but due to my financial situation, I couldn’t be more thankful to be single right now. There is now way I could show a girl a good time on my negative income right now. Plus, the kind of girl I want to be with would not be impressed if I decided to splurge and super-size her combo meal. That’s not a metaphor mind you.

As I’m sure the 3 people who read this intermittently updated blog know, I’m trying to become a director. Yeah yeah, I know the whole “kid with big dreams moves to L.A. to chase that Hollywood fantasy” is a bit cliche, but it’s true in my case. I want to be a director. My time away from being a 3d animator (after getting laid off) has allowed me to really explore if that’s what I want to do, and it’s an unequivocal and resounding “yes”. During the downtime (what I say when referring to my unemployment) I’ve actually had the opportunity to direct a live action piece. I can’t say much about it because it’s still under wraps and in post right now, but I wanted to thank the people that I worked with on it, and those that gave me the chance to do something like that. They know who they are, and it’s greatly appreciated.

So that little taste of the action solidified me in my quest to become a director, and I’m happy to say that things are finally starting to show some signs of life. I spoke with a friend of a friend of a friend (seriously) yesterday who is an established director here in L.A., and he and I are gonna meet up and discuss the best possible path on how to get there. On top of that, I’m flying out being flown out to San Fran by current_tv to interview with them for a position with their broadcast division and/or freelance work. I’m pretty psyched to just check it out. Always good to have more contacts. On top of that, my good friend Hana helped me out and possibly has something with a friend of her’s that needs an AD (assistant director). If that weren’t enough, my old employer Nau might have a job coming up where they need me for a bit.

All in all very promising. Nothing has actually come through yet, but it’s a great, wonderful thing to finally have some traction after spinning my wheels since the end of January.

I know this was more of a boring post than what I usually put up, but it’s 4:15am. I can write whatever-the-hell I want.

Holy shit.

So today is my 29th birthday. It’s strange to know that this is the last year of an entire decade of my life. Your 20′s are supposed to be full of promise, and adventure, and new experiences. Now that I think about it, as I embark on the final 365 days of my 20′s, mine have been full of adventure and plenty of experiences (both good and bad).

I wasn’t really thinking about it (typical) until I had a conversation with my friend Hana the other day. We were in her car on the 101 heading out to pick up a hard drive that has some video footage I’m editing and compositing (more on that later). Typical California day: bright and sunny, warm, smoggy. There wasn’t much traffic, which for 4:15pm on a Sunday was odd, but welcomed. As our conversations always seem to do, we traversed the banal to the esoteric. At some point after we picked up the drive, but before arriving back at my apartment, we ended up talking about where we were in life compared to where we THOUGHT we’d be 10 years ago. More like her telling me “Ari, I’m nowhere near where I thought I would be and that shit sucks.”

Which got me thinking a lot about where I thought I would be by the time I hit 29. Honestly, if you had asked me 10 years ago where I’d be when I was 29, I had my textbook response already practiced and read to tell you with a completely unintentional air of smugness: “Twenty-nine, workin’ at Pixar, living in California, and probably married.” That was my answer. Ten years later I find it hard to swallow that a) that’s how simply I could boil my future life down to just a single sentence, and b) I was SO far off the mark (besides the California thing, but even then, Pixar is located near SF, not LA).

Compare where I am to where I thought I would be. Currently I do in fact live in California, southern Cal, but still California. I do not work for Pixar, in fact, thanks to the recession, I’ve found it pretty hard to work for anyone. I am not married. The girl that I thought I would be with just recently got engaged to someone else. But, even though I’m completely off the mark of where I was so sure I’d be 10 years ago, I’ve never been happier.

Why is that? For me, personally, I think that very few people’s plans about where they see themselves “10 years from now” ever pan out. It’s asinine to try to see yourself 87,600 hours into the future when I personally have problems figuring out where I’ll be on a Friday night, and at MOST that’s 72 hours in my future. My Mother and Father said it best (and their advice seems to ring truer and truer as I get older) when they said that life isn’t a race, and it’s not a destination. It’s the JOURNEY that matters. It truly is. There have been so many unexpected events in my life. So many things that you can’t even try to anticipate. It’s not about any of that, but how you deal with it. I made the move to Los Angeles a little over a year ago, and sure, I’m not where I want to be yet, but I’m working towards it.

I know there are people that believe in me, and at the same time I know there are people who don’t. That’s just how things go. I eat well. I exercise and keep myself healthy. I’m making friends and meeting new people. I own a motorcycle, something I’ve wanted since I was a kid. I wake up everyday not a slave to someone else’s schedule. Since moving to LA, I’ve had one of the most explosive growths as an artist since as far back as I can remember even picking up a pencil and drawing. Everyday I’m experiencing new things and meeting new people. I have an amazing network of friends and family that supports me in everything I do.

Yeah, I’m not at Pixar, married, and living in [Northern] California. The way I see it, I’m actually much better off. I wouldn’t trade in any of the hardships, heartaches, confusion, uncertainty, joy, anticipation, anxiousness, elation, and adventure for anything in the world. It’s everything I’ve done up to this point that’s mattered. This point in time on it’s own is meaningless without everything else that’s occurred.

So as I sit on the edge of my 20′s, looking into the last year of this decade of my life, I’m not going to try to figure out where I’ll be 10 years from this point. Who knows. That’s all part of the fun.

Here it is. I finally finished my reel and got it posted. I haven’t put it on my portfolio site yet because I still need to write up a shot breakdown and update my resume (and the site too!), but I wanted to get it up here first.

Enjoy!

So in about 5 minutes, my friend Ashleigh is picking me up and taking me to LAX where I’ll be flying out to FL to visit Vagelis. Ms Xtina will be meeting us up Monday morning and the three of us shall embark on an epic journey from Tampa, down to Key West (road trip what? Cause it’s YOUR DOG) where we’ll enjoy the fun and sun for a few days, then swing back up the coast to Miami where we’ll be meeting Ashleigh and her crew for a night at in Miami.

If we live through it all, we’ll be heading back the following day where I’ll catch a flight and return to the sunny left coast. I’m taking my video camera so there should be some cool photos and videos to come shortly after I get back so stay tuned.

Well, all this unemployed time has actually been pretty awesome for me surprisingly. I’ve felt more creative now than I have in a LONG time. Ideas are just bouncing around in the noggin lately. I think working on other people’s visions is cool, and very rewarding, but it seriously burns me out creatively. After pulling 10-14 hours a day, for weeks on end, working on someone else’s shit I just seem to lose interest in doing my own work. Thankfully (yes, thankfully) getting layed off was a pretty very good turn of events for me. I’m in better shape now than since before high school, I’m eating right, I’m feelin my artwork a lot more, and I’ve never really been happier.

I’m extremely proud of my development over the past year since coming to LA. I’d really like to give my utmost appreciation to Raffi Simonian over at Nau. The apprenticeship I landed a year ago, which became a full-time gig (albeit tragically short), was one of the biggest growth experiences I’ve had as an artist. I definitely have him to thank for always pushing me harder and forcing me to think ever inch of each project I worked on. I’m a much stronger artist for it.

Which leads me to the next step. I like this freelancing thing. I got a 1 week gig that starts tomorrow, nothing glamorous, but it pays. The advantage is, once it’s done, I get to go right back to focusing on my own work. Goddamnit I’m going to be a director within 5 years. That’s the goal. It’s in writing now.

Anyways, I’ve got a couple things brewing, but first and foremost is the new winter 2009 reel and website/portfolio. I’ve been crankin’ away on it for a few days now, and I just finished the intro not 20 min ago. I don’t wanna reveal too much about it, but it could easily be described as “rad”. I should have the new site and reel up and online at parcel-f (my online portfolio) in the next couple of days. I’ll be sure to post when it goes live.

Much much more coming too. After I get my reel up and start snagging some work here and there, I’ll be embarking on a couple of video projects, and maybe even collaborating with some old college friends who live out here in LaLa land.

Check back in a few days for the new reel.