#andy weber

Andy Weber takes 2.

Prompt ~ @otpprompts

“Doesn’t leaning so much hurt you?” Andy asked worriedly as they broke away from a long kiss. He knew their height difference wasn’t by much, but he always felt concerned for his boyfriend. Jasper merely shrugged and tried to kiss Andy again, too caught up in the moment to say anything. Andy sighed quietly and gently pushed him away.

“I’m being serious, Jasper,” Andy said with an impatient sigh. Jasper blinked as if he just now acknowledged that Andy had even said anything. He opened his mouth to say something then paused and closed it. Jasper had a thoughtful look on his face for a moment before his eyes lit up like a light bulb going off inside his mind.

“Come with me, I have an idea!” Jasper exclaimed, grabbing Andy’s wrist and dragging him across the house before he even had time to protest.

“Jasper,” Andy whined as they walked, but he didn’t get a response from him until they stopped at the staircase.

“Stand on the third step.”

“What?”

“Just do it, please.”

“Fine,” Andy grumbled as he walked up to the third stair and turned around. He looked down at Jasper suspiciously, but before he could question anything he had been pulled into another kiss. Andy blushed and returned it without hesitation this time. This isn’t uncomfortable. He thought as the kiss continued. When they finally pulled away Jasper grinned up at Andy.

“Not so bad, huh?” Jasper asked, the grin growing wider. Andy rolled his eyes and let out a soft sigh.

Character Chart Character’s full name: Andy Weber Reason or meaning of name: N/A Character’s nickname: Pipsqueak, shorty Reason for nickname: He’s very short in comparison to his friends Birth date: May 9th, 1999 Physical appearance Age: 17 How old do they appear: Much younger Weight: 122 lbs Height: 5′4″ Body build: Slender Shape of face: Round Eye color: One brown, one blue Glasses or contacts: Neither Skin tone: Warm Undertone Distinguishing marks: Piercing on the left side of bottom lip Predominant features: Freckles across cheeks Hair color: Black Type of hair: Straight Hairstyle: Short and spikey Voice: Soft-Spoken Overall attractiveness: Average Physical disabilities: None  Usual fashion of dress: T-shirts and skinny jeans Favorite outfit: A red short sleeved shirt with black skinny jeans Jewelry or accessories: Lip piercing Personality Good personality traits: Modest, observant, stoic Bad personality traits: Apathetic, shy, timid Mood character is most often in: Lonely Sense of humor: Self-Deprecating  Character’s greatest joy in life: His boyfriend Character’s greatest fear: Losing his boyfriend Why? He has lost so many people before and doesn’t want it happening again Character is most at ease when: He’s with his boyfriend and playing video games Most ill at ease when: He’s by himself, doing nothing Enraged when: People ill-talk him and his boyfriend Depressed or sad when: He accidentally makes his boyfriend upset Priorities: His boyfriend If granted one wish, it would be: Get rid of feeling lonely Why? He’s tired of that being his main emotion Character’s soft spot: His boyfriend Is this soft spot obvious to others? Absolutely Greatest strength: Really good at video games Greatest vulnerability or weakness: Social anxiety Biggest regret: Getting mad and yelling at his boyfriend Minor regret: Admitting he hates his parents Biggest accomplishment: Stepping out of his comfort zone to say ‘hi’ to who he now calls his boyfriend Minor accomplishment: Graduating high school Past failures he/she would be embarrassed to have people know about: He never learned to ride a bike Why? It’s such a common thing for people to know Character’s darkest secret: Really likes anime Does anyone else know? His boyfriend Goals Drives and motivations: His boyfriend Immediate goals: Buying a new laptop Long term goals: Moving out with his boyfriend How the character plans to accomplish these goals: Relying on his boyfriend, but also pursuing a job involving video games How other characters will be affected: His boyfriend might find himself having to work harder at first, but he would do anything for Andy Past Hometown: Lexington, Kentucky, USA Type of childhood: Poor Pets: A dalmatian named Rocket and a german shepard named Lucille  First memory: Playing Pokémon Ruby Most important childhood memory: Spending hours playing video games Why: It distracted him from his parents never being around Childhood hero: Ash Ketchum Dream job: Video game player Education: High school graduate Religion: Atheist Finances: Lower class Present Current location: Frankfort, Kentucky, USA Currently living with: Boyfriend Pets: None Religion: Atheist Occupation: Unemployed Finances: Upper class Family Mother: Emily Weber Relationship with her: Poor Father: Harold Weber Relationship with him: Poor Siblings: None Relationship with them: N/A Spouse: Jasper Jaynes Relationship with him/her: Very strong Children: None Relationship with them: N/A Other important family members: N/A Favorites Color: Red Least favorite color: Green Music: Dubstep Food: Pizza  Literature: Fantasy Form of entertainment: Video games Expressions: “Fish out of water” Mode of transportation: Car Habits Hobbies: Video games Plays a musical instrument? Piano Plays a sport? No How they would spend a rainy day: Indoors, playing video games Spending habits: Feels uncomfortable buying unnecessary items Smokes: No Drinks: Occasionally  Other drugs: None What do they do too much of? Play video games What do they do too little of? Go outside Extremely skilled at: Being quiet/stealthy Extremely unskilled at: Making friends Nervous tics: Avoids eye contact, plays with fingers Usual body posture: Slouched Mannerisms: Blushing, eye-rolling, cussing, sighing Peculiarities: Two different eye colors Traits Optimist or pessimist? Pessimist Introvert or extrovert? Introvert Daredevil or cautious? Cautious Logical or emotional? Emotional Disorderly and messy or methodical and neat? Disorderly and messy Prefers working or relaxing? Relaxing Confident or unsure of themselves? Unsure Animal lover? Yes Self-perception How they feels about themselves: Unhappy One word the character would use to describe self: Depressing One paragraph description of how the character would describe self: “I don’t see myself as an important person. I’m just here to live and die, like the rest of us. I don’t like interacting with people and I prefer spending my time alone playing video games. I think the only person I genuinely enjoy being with is Jasper.” What does the character consider his/her best personality trait? Modest What does the character consider his/her worst personality trait? Shy What does the character consider his/her best physical characteristic? His hair What does the character consider his/her worst physical characteristic? His long fingers How does the character think others perceive them: Absolutely nothing What would the character most like to change about themselves: Personality

Relationships with others Opinion of other people in general: Doesn’t like them Does the character hide their true opinions and emotions from others? Yes Person character most hates: Parents Best friend(s): Jasper Jaynes Love interest(s): Jasper Jaynes Person character goes to for advice: Jasper Jaynes Person character feels responsible for or takes care of: No one Person character feels shy or awkward around: Everyone except Jasper Person character openly admires: Jasper Jaynes Person character secretly admires: No one Most important person in character’s life before story starts: Jasper Jaynes After story starts: Jasper Jaynes

Thanks to Andy Weber of CHIRP - Chicago Independent Radio Project for including us on his best of 2014 list. Check out his eclectic picks, and tune in this morning from 9am–noon for his best of 2014 show!

So I've been taking thangka painting classes once a year with Andy Weber, whenever he makes it to the States. This is my very first thangka, the White Tara we did last year (I finished it during this year's session).

Designer's gouache and 24k gold on hot-press illustration board. Andy taught us how to make a traditional canvas, and my next thangka is in progress on one of those. It makes a huge difference - the canvas is less absorbent and more durable, so in many ways it is easier to work with.

Making these paintings is very different from making personal works. Every single item in the painting has a meaning, a purpose, and specific proportions and colors. You know exactly what it is supposed to look like. There are no doubts about composition, pose, or similar. It is far more meditative and focused than making original art.

We start our working sessions with a meditation, and then the students take shifts repeating the appropriate mantra throughout. As we work, we are surrounded by the mantra. Whenever I pause to check my work, instead of the usual monkey-mind chatter, I find myself thinking of the mantra, keeping me focused. We then close each session with another meditation and the dedication of merit. It's an amazing experience, and one I highly recommend.

Om Tare Tuttare Ture Mama Ayuh Pune Jana Putim Kuru Soha