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Achtung, baby
Man, I bet everyone reading this is fondly remembering the times when every day brought a new round of cat pictures.
Month: October 2007
… Of dogs, storms, and really amateurish artwork
We had a pretty loud storm tonight, but there was more fanfare about it on TV than there was actual storm. (It had raised all kinds of hell in Tulsa, though, so it was worth at least watching the TV coverage to keep an eye on it.) One big clap of thunder woke Evan up. This was also one of the first times in months that Xena came into the house. I’ve gotten to where I let her sit out rainstorms out on the side deck, but when we’re talking hail and worse, yeah, I’m a softie, the dog gets to come in. Naturally, she crashed out, Olivia played with her tail, Obi slept next to her, and she stood guard over Evan. Everybody loves the little guy.
Today was one of those days where I just didn’t have the brainpower to do anything useful, and was leaving the Avid powered down for the whole day (the first tornado watch was popped on us before noon), so I did a little bit of just-for-the-sheer-heck of it design work, and joined the ranks of those who do fan-made Doctor Who DVD covers. Rather than do the 37th cover for some well-known episode that hasn’t even officially been released yet, however, or a “fantasy football” cover for a lost story, I decided to go way off the beaten path: I thought I’d do a DVD cover for a fan film. I altered the basic template a bit and added the now-standard “From the world of BBC-TV’s Doctor Who…” wording that accompanies spinoff productions like Big Finish’s Dalek Empire audios, and came up with this:
(You can download the full-res printable version here. The nifty 3-D mockup abo0ve was generated by an insanely useful program called Imandix Cover, which you can download free here.) While I’m happy with the intent of the artwork, the actual execution is just a bit crap – since it was all done with screencaps from the DVD itself, the main artwork, when you look at it really close up, is very pixellated. Still, I’d like to think I wasn’t a zillion miles off stylistically; I’ve posted it to the forums at Outpost Gallifrey, where I’m sure that my assessment of “crap” may be confirmed very quickly. 😆 But not to be dissuaded, I’m already working on another cover, this time for a series of irreverent “I Love The ’80s”-style documentary segments that aired in 2003. So if I want to burn these to DVD, I can put a cover on the DVD that’ll look something like:
I tried to be a little more…well…artistic with this one. K-9 and the time vortex are screen grabs, while the TARDIS is a 3-D model that I rendered myself. I’d like to tackle Shakedown: Return Of The Sontarans soon, just because…well…it’d be kinda relevant at the moment. 😉 For giggles, I ran my old Countdown To Looking Glass cover through Imandix, which didn’t like the dimensions and chopped some of the artwork off:
…oops. Guess I need to take that one back to the drawing board before I go too far into Who territory. Though ironically, I still like the CTLG artwork better than either of the Who pieces.
Also on my to-do list: an official Doctor Who DVD cover for Olivia vs. the Dalek. 😆… Read more
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Oberon would have the child.
What a difference a few hours, and a cat, can make. Prepare for CUTE OVERLOAD. … Read more
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E.G., a.k.a. C.U.B. (f.y.i.)
I’m Earl Green, and I’m a complete and utter bastard.
I say that because that’s pretty much how I feel on this first-ever night of “let the baby cry it out.” Mom is tired – no, scratch that, she’s exhausted and frustrated – and I’m supposed to be watching the baby. Except that Evan, after some baby formula and a diaper change and a bit of swaddling – decided that he doesn’t like having Mom all the way across the house from him. (Try working a graveyard shift for seven years, kiddo.)
Problem: Mom’s going back to work at the beginning of November. And then it’s gonna be the Evan & Dad show all day. He’s got to get used to me, and he’s got to trust me. I love looking after the little guy, and as much of a drag as it may seem to some folks out there to look after a baby, I have to admit, it’s kinda cool. I guess there hasn’t been enough of a routine set in for me to find it pure drudgery yet.
So tonight he’s got something bothering him, and I cannot figure out what it is. So he gets to cry it out for a bit. I hate that. What’s worse is that we’ve had to close the nursery door while he’s at it. Anytime he gets quiet, you’d think I’d rejoice, but no, I get paranoid and want to go make sure something really bad hasn’t happened (i.e., “Hey little guy, are you still breathing?” “Yeah, here, tell me what you think of my lungs – WAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!”). And if we leave him screeching for about ten minutes, Oberon will run in there to his rescue. And when I say “run in there”, I mean “run into the nursery and take a beautiful flying leap to land right on the edge railing of the crib and then jump down to see what’s wrong with his little buddy”.
And today had gone so well otherwise. … Read more
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It’s Giuliani Time!
Another CNN.com screengrab, because you wouldn’t effin’ believe me if I just tried to talk about it.
Okay, that’s it. Obama? Hillary? Where do YOU stand on an attack from Mars? What would Ron Paul do? What about Huckabee?
The most pressing issues of our time, people…are being swept tidily under the rug while candidates get asked dipshit questions like this, and the equally-ridiculous answers get them actual face time. 😆 🙄… Read more
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Video production, diaper changes, weddings, parties, anything
We’re diverse around here like that. I have a humorous gadget story to tell, on the day after the latest Mid South Gaming Get Together up at Brian’s (icbrkr) place. On the occasion of the first such get-together, in December 2004, Flack festooned us both with copious garage sale and thrift store finds. One of the goodies he gave me was this Radio Shack sound FX generator, complete in the box with instructions, AC adapter and everything. In fact…let me check the ol’ server…yep, here’s the original picture I took at the time:
I distinctly remember him saying that he had snagged this for a buck at a yard sale, had no use for it, and so here it was, mine for the taking. The really funny thing about it? This bought-for-a-buck-at-a-yard-sale piece of electronic fun, given to me for nothing, is now a vital cog in the video production wheel around here:
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Scotch. Neat!
It seems like anytime we lose an animal, we gain one, whether we’re prepared or not. That being said, meet Scotch, the new dog at the farm.
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And the great thing is, the chicks love us
Ever get an idea for a band name that’s just so good, you almost wish you had the musical talent to pull a band together just so someone would use that name? Ironically, I had an odd brain fart tonight and had the idea for the perfect heavy metal band name. And as a rule, I’m not a metal guy. Got nothing against it, and not gonna claim for a moment that I don’t have any metal at all in my vast and cool and unsympathetic library of shiny round things, but I’m just seldom in a metal mood. But I could just about get into one for a name like this:
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The boys are back in town
Last night, Evan had to get all strapped in for a trip to his grandparents’ house that didn’t happen:
(Just two wild and crazy guys!)
But today, the big guy got to stay home with his dad while Mom ran some errands. This was his reaction to the news that he’d be stuck with me for a few hours:
… Read more
