Ed - The Rowland Family Blog

Enzo Ferrari Supercar Trace

My newfound fandom of all things autosport has taken me back to the days of creating vector art. I used to traces when I was in graphic design school. I really enjoyed using Adobe Illustrator to recreate photos. I did one for a class project and was hooked. Moving on after finishing school, that was 12 years ago, I stopped doing them. Boredom struck over the holidays and I knocked this one out. I originally picked this car because of the photo. I thought it looked challenging, but not too challenging. I knew very little about the car other than it was a bad ass looking Ferrari. As the project progressed I began to become curious about the car. The more I found the more I was enamored with it. This particular car was made in 2003 and Ferrari claimed to have made only 400 of them. According to this video some internet sleuths have found over 400 VIN numbers registered throughout the world. Ferrari only sold the car by invitation only. I’m sure Ferrari has more than 400 gazillionares in their Rolodex. Some were probably butthurt over not getting an invite so Ferrari made extra. My theory anyway. I …

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Guy in the Mirror…

I had 10 seconds from the time I pushed the shutter button to bumble up those stairs, dive left dive left! dive left! , barrel roll backwards, and get my fat head around the banister. 10 seconds! I got this! Not going to lie, it was very close. Probably 9 something seconds, but I did it. The World is Burning I was thinking just the other day about that our little family unit has had a pretty long streak of good times and even now that the world is on fire, the good times still keep rolling. I remembered in the past I was little scared, because I knew that times can change quickly. A run of good luck is usually followed by a spate of bad luck, or so goes my experience. Then I realized, I haven’t felt that jolt of fear in a few months. Are these the bad times? I keep thinking that it can get worse than this. I probably sound like a selfish prick, because I know for some, it can’t get worse. Some here in Vegas have lost everything. I know enough to know that I’ve been very fortunate and an unfortunate change could …

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New Year New World

Well, maybe not an entirely new world, but it just seams this pandemic won’t loosen it’s grip. About four weeks ago Dana tested positive after being exposed at work. We had to go into lockdown mode. Dana had a cold for a few days and that was about it. Feiya and myself didn’t show symptoms. I was able to continue to work. I only did unoccupied houses during that time. Fortunately, it was the slowest time of the year. This virus is no joke. Dana’s small office consists of herself and 4 other co-workers working in close quarters. Dana started showing symptoms a day after her coworker announced he had tested positive. We tested negative 10 days later after showing no symptoms for 3 or so consecutive days. Dana was one of the first of her coworkers back to work and one week later she had found out the mother of one of her coworkers had died from the virus. Her mother was retired and lived her. It came from the same outbreak Dana and the rest of us were exposed to. This is why we have to be very respectful of this virus. Sorry for being so glum. That’s …

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Feiya's Ibis drawing created on her phone.

Feiya’s Phone Renderings

Feiya has become interested in anime these past months and it’s been influencing her drawings. I’ve seen her watching drawing lessons on YouTube and practicing in her sketch pad. I wish she had that passion for her homework. But I get it, anime and drawing are so much more fun than math. I’m finding that teaching is a tough nut to crack. Teachers earn their pay and I’m not sure if that’s a job for me. st So, here’s a proud dad moment for me. I’m very glad she’s found something that she can express herself with. This was done with the Ibix app on her iPhone. She wants a new iPad for Christmas so she could have a bigger screen. Of course, Ibix isn’t available on Android or PC. We’ll see how her grades go. Everything else has been going pretty well. I’m really busy with work. That is good that real estate is still humming along. Dana voted for the first time ever this past week. Not sure if our vote has been counted yet or not. Nevada has some interesting politics. Not place to say anything, I just moved here. She was very happy to vote nevertheless. …

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Bryce Canyon National Park | Camping Trip 2020

Camping is one of my favorite pastimes. Since leaving Colorado over 12 years ago I haven’t been camping once. Come to think about it, I bet it’s been almost 14 years since the last time I went camping. It’s not that I lost interest, it’s just that it was an activity that just didn’t fit into my life for the past decade or so. I’m so glad to have rediscovered it and am able to share the experience with Feiya and Dana. The seeds for this trip were planted one year ago when we visited Cedar Breaks National Monument just outside of Cedar City, Utah. While exploring this beautiful area we stumbled upon a campground located in a high meadow full of wildflowers. We walked the campsite loop and saw several empty sites that had spectacular views. We were excited thinking we could be sleeping under the stars in anyone of these sites. And it was a busy holiday weekend to boot! I camped regularly in the Mountains of Colorado in the 12 years I lived there. In my early 20’s camping was more or less finding a secluded spot on a backcountry access road and set up a tent, …

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