Brief Data

• Name: Mary Anne Gebpimai Mercado
• Thai Spelling: แมริแอน เก็บพิมาย เมอร์คาโด
• Birthdate: January 20, 1989 (age 19)
• Birthplace: Los Angeles, California, USA
• Zodiac Signs: Capricorn/Aquarius, Dragon (Chinese New Year)
• Ethnic Make-Up: 50% Filipina + 37% Thai + 13% Chinese
• Religion: Buddhist
• Languages Spoken:
  • Fluent English
  • Conversational Spanish
  • Learning Thai, Tagalog, & Japanese
• Height: 5' 1" (155cm.)
• Waist Measurement: 25.5"
• Weight: 112 lbs. (50.8 kg)
• Siblings: Alison & Sarah
• Marital Status: In a relationship with Richard ♥ 05.02.2007
• Occupation: Currently not employed, but a freelance artist
• School: California State University, Long Beach
• Academic & Career Interests: Visual & verbal communications, graphic design, fine art, computer technology, video game design & programming
• Additional Interests: performing arts, skiing, fishing, snorkeling, tennis, Cherry Coke, a variety of video game genres, shopping, traveling to places off mainland U.S., electronica and acoustic music, candy, white chocolate mocha, fruits
• Typing Speed: 114 words per minute
• Cars Driven:
  • Burgundy 1992 Acura Vigor
  • Red 1992 Ford Aerostar
  • Sapphire Blue 2007 Nissan Versa
  • Blue Blitz Mica 2006 Scion tC (my boyfriend's lol)
• Video Game Systems Owned: Atari, Sega Dreamcast, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Game Boy, Sony Playstation X, Nintendo64, Game Boy Color, Sony Playstation 2, Game Boy Advance SP, Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo DS, Nintendo Wii

Last updated 07.07.2008.
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Detailed Autobiography

My name is Mary Anne, "แมริแอน" in Thai. I was born on January 20, 1989 in Los Angeles, California and was raised in the suburbs of Riverside County, California for 18 years of my life. In the Greek zodiac, I can be either Capricorn or Aquarius according to various sources. In the Chinese zodiac, I am a snake in the American new year, but if you consider the difference between American and Chinese new years, I'm actually a dragon.

As far as I know, I am mostly Asian, a mix of Thai, Filipina, Chinese, and a very likely, slightly Hispanic background, though it hasn't been confirmed. I can only speak English fluently, but I am learning to write and speak four other languages: Spanish, Thai, Tagalog, and Japanese. I was supposed to be raised as a Catholic but religious conflicts led me to be raised Buddhist, along with both of my younger sisters, Alison and Sarah Mae. I have traveled to Thailand and the Philippines a few times, and I have also been to Hawaii to tour and snorkel, and spent a brief amount of time in Japan wandering their airport-mall waiting for our flight transfers. Within the United States, I have been as far out east as Owensboro, Kentucky.

Despite extensive cultural exposure, most people perceive me as someone who is quiet and introverted, and in person I often do come off that way when I am not familiar with the people surrounding me. I admit that my social communicative skills are not the best but are developing. When I am comfortable in a certain environment I have a greater tendency to socialize with others, but I still do attempt to moderate my verbal interactions and to speak only when necessary, especially since speaking or thinking too fast causes me to stutter and slur words, a habit I'm learning to break out of very quickly. I have many friends but only keep a few close ones as a second family with whom I confide various thoughts on many issues both on a personal and interpersonal scale. Often times they have at least one very dominant intellectual perspective on various aspects of life, whether it be about politics, science, morality, pop culture, activism, art, or religion to name a few, and because of such qualities I do not even want to think about severing ties with those friends. They are a survey of everything in life.

Drawing so far has been the staple of the creative part of life; I started to take drawing a little seriously when I was six years old, but took it to an even more serious level when I was in high school, leaving the cliché animé style for a more realistic artistic style. My current artistic style fuses my knowledge of cartoonist and realist styles. I am experienced with a variety of drawing and painting media, including graphite, pastel, charcoal, watercolor, and acrylic. I have also recently picked up a digitalizing tablet for my digital artwork. This site, in fact, originally began as a small gallery for drawings I had from my early teen years. I first started learning HTML when I was 9 years old, and have been developing my web design skills slowly ever since, combining my abilities in traditional fine art with modern digital media.

I graduated from Rancho Verde High School as the valedictorian of the graduating class of 2007, and was accepted into the President's Scholars Program at California State University, Long Beach. I'm majoring in graphic design with a minor in web & technology literacy. Sometime in my future I hope to become a video game designer. I grew up playing video games, so since I was a little girl, designing them or working with them in a creative manner has always been my dream.

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Multimedia

Please do not repost or alter any of the following images without my explicit permission. Thanks.

Self-Portraits

Videos

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Educational Background

• California State University, Long Beach
  Junior Graphic design major, September 2007 - present. GPA: 3.55.
  • Minoring in web & technology literacy.
  • Has completed 63 units to date.
    • Designated college sophomore upon 1st-year enrollment due to attainment of 36 units from AP exam credit.
  • Clubs & Organizations Associated
    • Japan Club
    • President's Scholars Program
    • Sailing Association
    • University Honors Program
  • Anticipated Courses: Fall 2008
    • [AH 366] History of Graphic Design
    • [ART 101] Artists in Their Own Words (tentative)
    • [ART 132] Foundation Color Theory
    • [ART 223] Foundation Typography (tentative)
    • [ART 287] Foundation Painting
    • [CECS 110] Web Design I
    • [SRL 210G] Sailing (tentative)

• Riverside Community College, Riverside Campus
  Concurrent enrollment, June 2008 - present. GPA: n/a.
  • Attended summer school to finish my last lower-division general education requirements.

• Rancho Verde High School
  Valedictorian, August 2003 - June 2007. GPA: 4.5.
  • Maintained academic class rank #1 throughout junior & senior years & ranked #3 school-wide as a junior.
  • Scored 1700 on the SAT Reasoning Test;
    • 590 (9/12) on writing
    • 570 on reading comprehension
    • 540 on mathematics
  • Passed 10 AP courses between sophomore and senior years and earned college credit for 7 AP exams altogether.
    • World History
    • English Language & Composition
    • U.S. History
    • Art History
    • Studio Art: Drawing
    • Biology
    • English Language & Literature
    • U.S. Government
    • Calculus
    • Studio Art: 2-D Design
  • High school representative at numerous art competitions & exhibitions.
  • Clubs & Organizations Associated:
    • JV & Varsity Tennis
    • UCR MESA Engineering Program
    • National Honor Society
    • Art Club
    • Metropolitan Water District Solar Cup Team

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Employment History

• California State University, Long Beach
  • Gallery Receptionist, November 2007 - April 2008.
  • $10.00/hour.

• Art Commissions
  
  • Self-employed, September 2005 - present.
  • Produced t-shirts, paintings, and murals for personal use and special events.
  • Pay varied; between $25-$200/piece.

• Rancho Verde High School Cafeteria
  
  • Cashier, January 2005 - May 2007.
  • $16.00/hour.

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Awards & Honors

• CSU Long Beach President's Scholarship
  May 2007
• Rancho Verde HS Excellence in Fine Art
  May 2007
• Bank of America Recognition in Science
  May 2007
• Solar Cup Team "Hottest Boat" Design
  May 2007
• Rancho Verde HS Student of the Year
  May 2007
• Inland Valley League HS Varsity Tennis Team Championship
  November 2006
• Southern California Fair
  1st Place Acrylic Art, October 2006
• Rancho Verde HS Student of the Month
  September 2006
• Val Verde USD Superintendent's Recognition Award
  September 2006
• Solar Cup Team Top 5 Visual Displays
  May 2006
• Val Verde USD Art Competition 1st Place High School Art
  May 2006
• Indio Art Festival 1st Place Acrylic Art
  early 2006

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