Wednesday, November 15, 2006

Trying Something New

If you haven't noticed, I've been playing with a few things on site here, inspired by an idea I got from Yensid. Any tips, suggestions, and pointers on making it better would be appreciated. Comments: sikaurai No, the pink one is from the other bush (we have two), the bush they trampled is a hybrid tea rose with an unusual colored blooms. I have a feeling you'll be more annoyed at the roofers once you click that link. It's always a shame to see a thing of beauty destroyed. I'd like it just fine if the temperatures would even out here and not keep going up and down, it's just insane. One day it's hot, then it's cold, then it's warm, then it's cool, I can't make heads or tails of the weather. I'll take your word on that and not plan any trips to Minnesota anytime soon, though I can't plan any trips anywhere for the time being, it's hard to travel with no money. Yensid: I can't be a grumpy dragon all the time, no one would talk to me. sango87 I had to do something when that PM system kept blocking my efforts to pass the message along. I realize they want to cut down on PM spam here, they could do it in better ways. Since I'm not good with copy and paste ASCII pictures like that, I dug up one of my best ones to spread the word the only way I could. scorchbird12 One of my better pictures, if I do say so myself. For everyone reading, there's a bit of graphic content in this paragraph, so if you're squeamish, you might want to skip it and move on to the next one. The "based on true events" or whatever tagline was used for the Texas Chainsaw Massacre remakes, on the packaging, posters, and in the opening narration I hear, is just a storytelling element (one I like to use a lot, it's called "false document"). It, like Psycho and The Silence of the Lambs, are believed to be (some writers/producers dispute the claims) based on a real man, Ed Gein, who lived in Wisconsin. He's the guy who had lampshades and other things made of human skin, bones, and other body parts in his house, and is believed to have killed several people to get the materials he used. I used to live in Texas myself, in the town that used to house a Texas Instruments factory (yes, those calculators used to be made in Texas), called Lubbock (and elsewhere, but that's all you get from me). There's actually a bit of a UFO phenomenon that happened there in the 1950s, well, near there in Levelland Texas, but that was before my time. Anyway, the claim by "authorities" was something to do with St. Elmo's Fire (an electromagnetic phenomenon like fireball lightling on a larger scale, not the movie), which the people who saw it say different. As for the Mothman, I'm nit-picky with the details because a good investigation done properly will produce results. And so far, the movie hurts objective evaluation just by having been made (as evidenced in the Sci-Fi investigates show). People see that and think it's presenting the facts of the case, when it's not. Sad to say, but most amateurs are ignorant when it comes to doing things completely, or competently. For all the bunk that's out ther regarding the Mothman, someone has to be there to set the record straight, in this case, I guess that's me. Most of the time I lean over the camera when I'm in a tunnel with it, or a put my cap on it to keep the drips off, that's how I got this one. Having a good light source to find a non-drippy spot is a good idea too. Fuji doesn't make a cover for the camera I have, nor am I aware of any aftermarket covers available for it, but that's a good idea, I'll have to investigate it a little more given my recent difficulties with an umbrella. alphonse13: It sure is. Anime Dreams!

Points of Contact

Comments (6) | Permalink

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Soft Candle Light and Warm Tea

For those of you who sent me those ASCII roses yesterday, I couldn't get them to send correctly myself, so, here's a real rose instead. I know it's a little late, but it's the thought that counts. Comments: Shireishou The term may not be familiar, it's an older term. Back in the 1940s and 1950s in the US there where malt shops and soda fountains in the drug stores everywhere, and usually the people behind the counter at the soda fountains were called soda jerks. I don't really know where the term came from, but a while back I got this ridiculous picture in my head of a classic sci-fi, RPG video game lizardman dressed up as a soda jerk. Unfortunately, I couldn't draw it myself, so I made that an open challenge here on MyO to see what kinds of art would be the result of my rather freaky mind. Magnus Lensherr If you'll forgive an American his ignorance, I apologize for the assumption. It's so easy to forget that different countries will have different systems. The calls are bothersome, especially the ones from automated machines. The Telezapper device here here just sends the three audio tones that the local phone system uses to signal computers that a number has been disconnected. If your phone system does the same kind of thing, you could record those tones, or single tone by dialing a known out of service number to get the phone systems "(tone[s]) We're sorry but this number is no longer in service" message, cut the tones out of the recording and and put them (without the phone system voice message) at the start of an answering machine message (leave a two second pause before recording the message). That would foil, at least temporarily, the autodialed telemarketing calls. I can't promise it'll work, but that's the theory in a nutshell, trick the computes into thinking the number is shut off, and usually it'll make a note not to dial it again. Nah, that was just my poor attempt at humor. I'm not the one they need to worry about. My Mom, who's room is the most effected by the improper job done, is from New Jersey, and that state isn't the home of the Leeds Devil for no reason. If I just take a little break and let it stew for a day or two, I'm sure something will come up to fix these early, really badly done attempts. I was trying to make an origami dragon to put on the cover (I need to see a real paper dragon to know how to draw it right), but that's the only origami sculpture I can't get to work, even after repeated attempts. I have the steps for three different ones that I found online, and none of them were written or illustrated correctly, so I have to come up with a whole new take on the idea I'm working with right now, or find a couple photos of origami dragons to base the art from. Yensid: Sure thing. It's easy to get down while sick, or about being sick, or both at the same time. I meant every word of that, a true friend doesn't get tired of trying to cheer up a friend who's not well, and a true friend will always be there to listen. When I see someone having a bad day, I do wish I could be that person who says just the right thing to get a laugh though, but we aren't all meant to be funny people I guess. My family certainly could use the luck, that's for sure. I only hope this round is more productive than the last. Breakfast Squid They'll get straightened out one way or another. I'm taking the wait and see approach to this second round of repairs, because I do want to give them the benefit of the doubt, but I do have to consider that they didn't finish the job they claim they finished. That never looks good. sikaurai I have an array of implements(I collect swords, knives and things) to impale them in the yard with if they do that. All joking aside, if they do any damage, they'll be asked to remove themselves from the property, not get their money, and someone more professional will be called in to finish. Actually, it's gotten warmer again here in West Virginia, unnaturally warm for November if you ask me. It was almost 80° here the other day, that's not right. Minnesota's always in the news come wintertime for snow fall, and usually record lows this time of year. I don't think I could live there myself, like most reptiles, I like it warm. scorchbird12 I just pay attention to commercials, and in the case of The Mothman Prophecies Living so near the actual town kind of provides for more inside info on a few things. Just for kicks I did a search and found Centralia PA, that's believed to be the town that the Silent Hill Movie is based on, and the one I spoke of in previous posts. There are only 11 people living there now. That's the only one I've ever played, so that's the only one I can really talk about. I just found a few that I have got to get to in PA, they're on an abandoned section of the Turnpike, and they're mucuh longer than any of the ones on the Rail Trail her in WV. I have to admit I was scared of them the first time though, but after being in them enough, and having gone though with a 1.5 million candlepower spotlight, I'm used to them. I hate to do photo work in them because they do drip and water don't mix with digital cameras well. MilleniumChaos Leaving that alone. No pun was intended, but oh well, c'est la vie all over again. I like my mind untamed, it makes things interesting, so for now, I'll let it do its own thing. beyblader Actually, I had a short little blurb above my comment break, but I posted without checking my punctuation for my paragraph class (CSS is so particular about puctuation) and I only noticed upon checking my commetns that it wasn't there. It wasn't really important anyway, just al ittle thing on getting right to the comments sicne I had nothing to say. I'm not sure that I'm familiar with that song, but I'm lucky to know anything about music these days. And for the next two months, I'll be having my radio turned off because all that Christmas music will drive me insane. Anime Dreams!

Points of Contact

Comments (2) | Permalink

Monday, November 13, 2006

Round Two!

Comments: Yensid: I'm glad one of my weirder thoughts was good for a laugh. I'll have to try to put something together on those lines just for kicks. It hasn't happened to me directly yet (Believe me you'll hear about it if does). But, I have had it happen to a couple friends of mine, some of whom are no longer here because of it. In the end it wasn't about reporting artwork of questionable origin (many times the citations were the user's own DeviantArt account), it was about harrassing the user. That's where the TheO moderators failed to really step in and stop the "playing Mod" that was going on. That's all I'll say on the matter till it happens to me directly, or till I lose another friend to that garbage. I'm sure the roof will get strightened out, but I'll have to insist they be told to figure out how to get to that section of the roof from the front of the house. The rose bush is down to two branches, I don''t need them taking any more off of it. As far as epoxy goes, I don't know that that's acceptable in building code for roofs. Magnus Lensherr Cloud 2.3 is a long way down from 9. To be honest, I think they did the whole job backwards. They fixed the other two leaky spots on the roof, but because they were just using the time they had between contracts, they had to rush at the end. If they had fixed the front of the house first, which was the worst part, then it probably wouldn't be leaking now. At least it's not as bad as it used to be, but any leak is a bad thing. They'll be back, apparently they wer contracted to repair the front porch roof (which needs almost a complete rebuild - where'd the money for that come from?), so they'll be told about the missed leak and if they have any morals, they'll fix what they didn't finish the first time. That's the plan anyway, of course I can't promise that they'll be accepted. I've designed a couple covers, but none of them are coming out how I want them, so it's going to take longer than I originally thought. I have decided on the name for the project though, but you'll have to wait till it's up to see that. They're actually using Caller ID data now (some of it bogus), they've figured out how to bypass the Telezapper thing, and they leave messages on answering machines, which is very annoying. As for people getting smarter too, you don't answer the phone to an 800 number with no name on your CID do you? How about a number that's 2-222-222-2222 or random repeated digits? The consumers are getting wise to the antics of telemarketers, and there's the national "Do Not Call" registry (find it on the Federal Trade Commission website) that keeps some of those calls out of your hair too. sango87 I think it will, if the point is hammered home enough, it will. sikaurai The only way those idiots could get my dander up any higher than they did when I saw the rose bush would be to break out one of the windows to my room, which happens to be near the spot they need to fix again. They'll be back to fix the porch roof, and I hope they'll be told about the spot they missed from their last efforts, but as I said before they'll be challeneged to gain access to it from the front, not the rear of the house. scorchbird12 We hope they'll get it right this time. They did the same with The Mothman Prophecies, it was filmed up in Kittanning PA, not in Point Pleasant WV, where it should have been filmed if you ask me. Maybe the director was afraid the real one would show up on film, or worse, for that travesty. I'm not sure which town you're talking about since I mentioned a couple, but in the game Silent Hill is creepy, the town I live in and Point Pleasent are both creepy, and definately the town in PA that has no zip code anymore is creepy. Yeah it is complicated. Getting the right endings for that game is complicated, you have to save Cybil, and do this, and do that, but to my credit, I figured out the puzzle with the "Ring of Contract" in the kitchen in Nowhere even when my sister couldn't. At least they make it worthwhile by giving you gas for the chainsaw and rock drill, the katana, the channeling stone (whihc must have a purpose other than the UFO ending), and maybe a few other things. I've heard that there's a way to use the distilled water and glucose in the Hospital to build a bomb, but none of the sites that my sister gets her tips and cheats from seem to have the details on how to to just that. I think that's a bogus thing that someone on crack posted somewhere just to watch people try to do it. I don't have a PS2 either, so I only know what my sister showed me of Silent Hill 2 on her computer (she has the PC version and a computer that can run it). I don't know anything about 3 or 4 at all actually. It was unsettling the first time to come up to a tunnel with the number 13 on it and see the plaque about the train wreck there. After that, it just feels like another tunnel on the trail to me, and I do intend to go back out ther when it warms up again. It's going to take a bit longer, I'm not getting the results I want rigth now. I am still working on it and I hope to have something done really soon. MilleniumChaos And who are you again? You know I'm just joking right? It never rains but it pours, or something like that. I know it's a song that plays on the oldies station once in a while. Muphey's Law or c'est la vie, whichever you prefer, personally, I like the French (translates to that's life if I recall) better, but the exotic seems to fit my personality. Things are going all right, I'm getting behind in projects and ahead in others, but oh well, I'll tame my wild mind eventually. Breakfast Squid You only missed my brief little blurb about the idiot roofers not getting the job done right the first time because after a rain the other day the front part of the house still leaked (not as bad, but that's beside the point). It looks to me like (and I already said this) they did a normal job on the back and side of thouse, but had to rush the front which should have been done first because it was the worst part of the roof. They're coming back to do the porch roof (I believe that was part of the contract), so they'll be informed about the leak they missed if I have to climb up on the porch roof myself and tell them. If they want their money they [Censored] well better fix what they didn't complete when they were here last. I'm not sure if you caught my rants about the rose bush those idiots trashed or not. Anime Dreams!

Points of Contact

Comments (6) | Permalink

Sunday, November 12, 2006

On Cloud 2.3

Well, we know for sure now the job on the front portion of the house wasn't done right. It was raining today, and the front part of the house was once again leaky, but not as severly as it had been, so that kind of indicates the roofers were on that section, but they must have missed something when they were there (they seem to be good at not seeing what's right in front of them). I'm still livid about the rose bush though, there's no excuse for that. Comments: scorchbird12 Living here, it's easy to see why they'd want to use West Virginia as the setting for a Silent Hill movie (though it was filmed in Canada), there are a lot of creepy little towns here. I know there's no such place, I'd actually laugh my head off if I found a "Silent Hill" in any state, regardless of hauntings there or not, it would be ironic to find one, especially in West Virginia. I am aware of a coal mine fire still burning under a town in PA, the USPS dropped the zip code I think it was only in the past few years, maybe that was in 2003. The pictures I saw of that town were just tragic, everything was so empty, the streets, the buildings, there was smoke everywhere, but they were oddly serene at the same time. A lot of reality can inspire great fiction sometimes. For the UFO ending, you have to play through the game and get a "Good+" ending (you have to do it twice if you start on the easy game mode I think). After that and you start over again from the "Next Fear" save point listed, and you get the channelling stone (it's in the convenience store), once you have the stone you have to use it in certain spots throughout the game, the last being at the lighthouse. If you do it right at every point you're supposed to use it, you see UFOs in the distance, except for the lighthouse where, well, I don't want to spoil it. You have to get the UFO ending to get the hyper blaster gun, the deathray thing that plows right through the grunts at the start of the game (my sister has a lot of fun with that). My sister and I are still also trying to get the katana for the coolness factor of having a sword, but that one is a little harder to get. I count going through them each way separately. Strangely, there was a train wreck outside of Tunnel #13 in the 50's, but those "bad" numbers haven't really been bad to me, so I think nothing of them. I'm not very supersticious. I'm still working the cover now, and I've got the basic story outlined for the first short. These are going to be the stupid things that pop into my head at all hours of the day and night and cry for an outlet. I hope to get the ground work done soon so I can get things submitted. sango87 I'll certainly try my best to get things up soon. Juz Cuz: You stop by when you can, that's enough for me. The plan is for me to try showing it off here, yes. sikaurai I can't promise that it will be "serious" manga-style art, probably more like the artists pages at the end of the Wolf's Rain graphic novels, silly, not really trying to do it well nonsense. I'm going to try to post things as I go along with this project, just to see if I can handle self-imposed deadlines. It's another part of my aggressive art training. Yensid: Given that TheO, and MyO both provide the appropriate means to report questionable content, users who spam comment threads with those accusatory comments should be banned from commenting for a week or more, no question. I don't care if they are "in the right" to make such a comment. The people who deliberately call public attention to such comments only do it to get pleasure out of humiliating someone else, and to me, that is the worst kind of harrassment anywhere. The art of "playing mod"(borrowed from the OtakuBoards rules) like that is also discouraged just about everywhere else I go, it should be strongly discouraged here. The report content links are put at the bottom of the pages for a reason. Maybe Adam should give them an intense epilepsy inducing neon pink flicker so the ignorants who spam comments with plagiarism accusations can see them to report things correctly. Now that I have spouted off about that, yeah Fan Manga is new here, but given the way the articles and reviews went, I wouldn't count on anything to do with written content being added here. I believe that so strongly that I'll draw myself eating a hat if fan fiction ever becomes a section of TheO, and I'll even let you choose the hat style for me to eat. You talk to anyone who saw him, and they'll tell you it's a real creature. To this day some of them won't even look at their windows at night it terrified them that much. That's no figment of imagination, it isn't psychic, and though it may have been created by whatever the Government was really doing in the TNT area down there (some people speculate uranium enrichment for the Manhattan Project, but that's only speculation). The Sci-Fi show didn't focus on the Mothman himself, it tried to pull everything that was going on down there together and make them all part of the same whole. I keep bringing up the book The Mothman Prophesies for a reason. Read the book and you'll see more of the separation between the Mothman, the lights in the night sky, the Men in Black, and the other stuff that was going on at the time too, like the telephone anomalies, and the Indrid Cold thing going on up near Mineral Wells. A one hour show where you have a bunch of amateurs (even the so-called "paranormal investigator" seems questionable) handed a camera and told "film yourself doing this" isn't going to cover things correctly. Now, there have been shows featuring the Mothman on Discovery Channel and the History channel I believe (maybe even National Geographic), those were reasonably well done because they were objective and thorough. You know, I never thought of doing a Mothman theme, Hmm. . . I have to admit you got my attention with that thought. I hate to say it but the little guy seems to have gotten too big for his britches (well if he actually wore any) lately. The commercials are cute and all, but they carry an air of arrogance to them now. For the longest time Geico wasn't even available in WV even though the commercials were on TV. They are here now, but they aren't as money-saving as they claim in all cases (from what I'm told it would have cost more to go with them when my family switched providers). Now I have an image of that little gecko in a pair of faded blue-jeans in my head too, with a little tattoo of a tire iron and car jack on his shoulder (don't ask). KyuubiKhaos I do need the luck, and I'll try to get enough done that I can have something up here later next week if possible. I do want to have the first short done before I submit anything. mysterious rei I hate when I do that, I have a whole drawer full of short stories that I wrote which are missing parts because I didn't keep them together that well. Good luck finding it, or if you have to recreate it, go for it. kout3uka In retrospect, I probably shouldn't have used the term "manga-style" because it probably won't be a traditional manga style, it may not even look like the funny pages on Sunday morning, but it is a fan comic of sorts, and there will be anime character cameos. These short comics will be pictoral representations of my thoughts, and anime characters like to torment me about the weirdest things, that's why they'll be there. They'll probably just be insanely stupid fan comics, but they'll be my insanely stupid fan comics. As much as I say West Virginia is evil, that only applies to a majority of the people that I've had the displeasure of meeting or communicating with. There are a lot beautiful places to look at, the town I live in happens to be one of them, where you look at it from afar. I'm in the process of finding out whom I would contact to gain access to the park after dark (it closes at 5:30PM) so I can get a couple night shots of the town, those would be spectacular if I could get them. I'm glad you liked it. Anime Dreams!

Points of Contact

Comments (5) | Permalink

Saturday, November 11, 2006

Basic Update

More on my project. I am working on the cover page of an ambitious collection of short comics, probably done in manga style, and poor attempts at humor. I have the first one mapped out in my head and will try to get things in order soon, but the cover comes before anything else. Comments: Yensid: I kind of figured that's what you were going for in that statement, but the rain itself was really nice too. If I can get a clear day, or just cloudy day shot of a train on that same bridge, I'll be really happy cause the lines won't be blurred by fog and rain. If you're talking about that piece of garbage that was on Sci-Fi (Sci-Fi Investigates), the other week, they were totally off base from the accounts of what went on. They didn't investigate correctly, and used the incorrect "facts" that were presented in the movie The Mothman Prophesies based on the book, rather than the book itself which contains much more credible and thorough information. Sure, if you can, or want to do it digitally, by all means go for it. The media hasn't been specified for the very reason of not stifling the creative process. Different artists are more comfortable with different things. If you do it digitally though, take frequent rest breaks for your wrists. I don't need you doing any damage to yourself over a picture for me. Magnus Lensherr Not sure where I got the idea myself, but it's in my head and I can't draw it, so I'm asking others to draw it for me. It's all right if you're not comfortable with doing it. Actually no, that's just the rain and fog making the picture hazy and clouded like that, add the distance between the camera and the train, and you get a lot of atmosphere in between. The power station is a good 20 miles off I think, it's not close enough to have that kind of effect on things. Telemarketers are trying to worm their way around the FTC and FCC regulations regarding when and how they can call people, but people are getting smarter too. As for the roofers, they left a note on the door yesterday actually, so hopefully they won't be calling anymore at all, they don't really need to call anymore. I'm not nearly as good a gardener as I could be, but I like to take care of the roses so they will bloom and make great photos. As I lay the groundwork and get things going, I'll be posting more information about this project. This isn't going to be one of my secret offline projects. Anyway, things should start rolling with it soon enough. More details will come in the next couple days, I promise. Angel Slayer My title is, of course, referring to the 24 hour Spongebob marathon (the show is cute and all but who can stand to watch it for that long?) on Nickelodeon that ran all Thursday night and Friday. Congratulations on the date. I've never seen or read The Taming of the Shrew, but it's supposed to be a good play, you won't be disappointed with it. And a good play is always nice to share with someone anyway, three years in theatre taught me that. Is Thanksgiving coming up already? I'll have to get started putting things together for that. kout3uka I did get the panorama done, but as with all things it could be better. Because of the nature of optics, the images don't stitch together exactly the right way (you can see the seams and some of the features aren't correctly lined up). Next time I'm up there, I'll do a short video burst panorama and try to upload the clip somewhere. This image is too big for Photobucket, so I'm hosting in on Geocities. If you get an error from Yahoo!, try again in another hour, or another day to see the pic. Sure thing, glad to help out. By all means quote me, and quote me loud. If you need or want to use my real name for the quote, pop me a PM and I'll hook you up with the right info. or I can give you the pseudonym I'm using on a project that's not public yet. scorchbird12 The idea is to see how other people see the same thing I've had stuck in my head for weeks now. It's just a fun little challenge to exercise the mind and drawing skills of anyone willing to try. There's nothing on the line except for a link on my page here when the work is done, but everyone gets that. If you don't feel comfortable drawing it, then don't do it. That tunnel is only 353 feet long. I've been halfway through one that over 1000 feet long and has a ghost story attached to it, it's on the same trail. All told I've been in that tunnel (tunnel #13) six times, I've been in Tunnel #19 twice - it's the haunted tunnel), tunnel #12 six times, and tunnel #10 twice (it's cut from the rock, really nice but hard to get to). I think we're meshing the movie and the games a little here. I never saw the movie (I don't watch horror films period), but I did see a lot of promo stuff for it, and have some key points to bring up. The Silent Hill movie is set in Taluca County WV, there is no such place (I can get you a list of all 55 counties if you want it). You've played the second Silent Hill game (My sister was showing me on her computer, which can handle it), so you might recognize that "county" as the name of the lake. At least the movie producers paid some homage to the games in that respect. As for the setting of the games, I'm not aware of any of the games specifically stating the location of the town as being in West Virginia, but I could be wrong. I've only played the first one, and my sister showed me the second one, she can get through it in about 6 hours time, that's a straight through from start to finish. The first one has a fun thing to do, you can get a UFO ending if you play it right (I'm a proponent of extra-terrestrial existence, go figure I like that secret) I still haven't managed to get that ending yet though. My sister had to write down all the steps to do to get it, and I think I messed up already. sikaurai Yes, you did. That was Breakfast Squid's artwork you saw. I have to say I like that piece. I just have this going to inspire new ideas, and creativity, I'm glad to hear you're on board for it. It'll be especially fun and challenging for you because you haven't done lizards before. I really like your art style, so I'm looking forward to seeing your take on the challenge, a lizardman soda jerk, but don't hurry through it, and handle your other obligations first. Anime Dreams!

Points of Contact

Comments (6) | Permalink

Friday, November 10, 2006

The Best Day Ever, If You're a Yellow Sponge

Since it seems to have fallen by the wayside, I'm going to put my open challenge into my Intro up there ↑(point) ↑(point) so it doesn't get lost again. It's open ended right now, so no worries, or no hurry, those interested in tryinglet me know, and when you get your work done and uploaded (be it here or elsewhere) let me know so I can link it here like the first submission. Course if it's hosted elsewhere, you'd have to give me the link for it. Actually, I do have a project I'm working on that kind of just hit me today really. I won't say any more about it till I get the groundwork laid for it and get it underway, but I'm sure it'll be a fun thing for everyone who reads my page here. Comments: Magnus Lensherr I'd love to get a picture of a Conrail train engine in about that same spot on the bridge. They're a very distinct engine, a bright, almost sky blue with white lettering on them. My grandfather was the engineer of a Conrail engine, and I have seen them on the local tracks once in a while, it's just a matter of being in the right place at the right time. If you think those school busses are butt ugly from that angle, you should see them on the road. And those are supposed to be the latest thing. Other points of interest in the photos are the the building with the large H on it, that's a hospital, and further in the background a red neon sign "Shoneys" being a restaurant. I do have a couple more nice shots from this set, but I really want to get a clear day shot of the horizon. Looking the right way there's a power plant's smokestacks you can see in the distance. With the white smoke billowing out of them, it's a beautiful shot, if I can manage to get it. Only thing I can think of would be pruning shears, there's two kinds and I have both. I recommend the bypass shears, the impact ones won't do much damage they only have one blade. Ironically, these guys did seem to be more than one taco short of a combo platter on several things, so they'd probably react that way. Things will be handled soon I hope, those rejects seem to like calling when my father is at work, not when he's home to answer the phone, so it may take a while. I have faith that it will be handled soon, though the plastic spoon idea does sound like a good one (j/k). Yensid: People tell me that, I wish I could use my talents for income since I can't get an honest job anywhere. The rain, and fog and everything made the shot so much deeper, but the train does kind of get lost in the background a little. If that rosebush recoveres even slightly from this damage, I'll be impressed. I don't think it will recover, but I don't know much about rose bushes either, I was learning as I went this year with that one, and another one we have. If it recovers, I'll be impressed with the plant. You can bet this will be one of those times where my family gets to teach as well as learn one of those hard life lessons. I'll see to it that this thing isn't taken lightly. Outlaw Melfina: Looking closely at the pictures, you can see where a good bit of the plant is no longer there, and part of what was torn off was new growth. The bush should be alot fuller than it is in the last picture, it should ble slightly more full that the first two pictures considering the growth since those two pictures were taken. Well, the only thing I can comment on Immigration is from the US perspective, which has our own problem with that same thing. People who come into a country illegally (by crossing the border without a visa or something) do not pay taxes most of the time, and usually take jobs away from legal citizens because the illegals are willing to work for below government mandated minimum wages (it's not like they can complain without drawing attention to their illegal status in the country). the citizens are starting to wise up to such practices, and aren'tr really happy about it. From my personal perpective, I haven't been able to get a job in six years, and I'm a full blooded American, why should someone who has no legal right to be in this country, much less work here, be able to land a job before I can? Sure, our cultures were immigrants themselves at points in history, but there is a right way through the process of coming into another country these days, and it's in everyone's best interest to follow that procedure. kout3uka I guess I do with the camera what I do with words on paper, and shoot what my heart tells me. Things like that are so much better than staged pictures if you ask me. I hope it recovers too, but I don't think the evidence of that will be known till next spring. All we can do is watch and see. I know it's hard to find that kind of mixed color bud, so replacing it if it has to be done won't be easy. You can't really see it in the picture, but the rose bud goes from white, to yellow, to orange, to peach to pink from the outside in. I couldn't agree with that more, fulfillment is easy to find through giving oneself to others. Granted I don't really do that in the conventional sense, but I do like to share those moments of beauty and wonder I manage to capture with the camera, and it does me good to hear them well received. I am working on stitching some of the photos I took of my town (I still don't call it home) together to make a kind of panorama image, that's really the only way to see everything like you're standing there on the hill. scorchbird12 Hmm, creepy huh? I can do creepy too. How's about an old railroad tunnel in the morning fog? I don't have many shots like that, it's so hard to get good fog and haze pictures because putting oneself in the right place at the right time is a logistical nightmare. The train just happened to be in the right place at the right time to make a "timeless" shot. A lot of this town is run down, and does resemble Silent Hill, you just can't see it from that one photo. Now, if I were to pan over a little bit, you'd see the stack from what's left of a marble factory, you'd see an empty furniture warehouse, an empty hotel in the distance, and a few other derelict buildings that I can't really name because I don't know what they are. Speaking of Silent Hill though, the creepiest picture I happen to have is of West Virginia's very own Mothman. Well, it's actually the statue in Point Pleasant WV, and I took this one at night. Let me tell you, coming up on the statue during the day is startling enough, to see it at night is unnerving at first. The best resource for information on the Mothman is the book The Mothman Prophesies by John Keel, and don't even go near that piece of trash that was supposed to be a movie, it was horrible and inaccurate. The trip down to Point Pleasant itself is a real trip too, especially at night down those old two lane highways. By the way, I loved the first Silent Hill game, that one was creepy, disturbing, and fun all at the same time. Normally I'm not a fan of the horror genre, but I make an exception for Silent Hill. The only reason I haven't played the others is I don't have a PS2 to play on, or a PC that could handle them either. I'm hoping the rose bush recovers, I really am. As I previously mentioned, I don't think the true extent of the damabe will be known till next spring. Mamma Vash: I never thought of rooting it, I'll have to run that suggestion by my Mom, she might know how to do that. That's the consensus, and it's one of my favorite pictures too. Now, if I could get a telephoto lens for the camera (it has an adapter for one), then I would get insanely great shots from that hiltop. I think I had maxed out the optical zoom to get that train shot, I didn't want to go into digital zoom because the fog would have really blurred the image. It's only a tense situation if you let it get to be one, that's a demon you have to thumb wrestle with once in a while (he hates conflict, but he's got nimble fingers so watch out). Stop, take a breath, and sit down. Ignore all my accounts of what went on with my roof and rose bush, and any other things people may have told you. Now, start to think about your situation in smart terms. Don't just have the best friend of your co-worker do the job because he's a contractor, or works for one. Do a little research, ask around, call up some contractors in the phone book or newpaper ads, get a couple free estimates, then decide based on cost, and how the contractor treats you during the inspection of the damage. You want a friendly, straightforward, honest contractor, and one who keeps you informed throughout the process. Those are things you'll pick up on during the contractor's inspection. priestesspower444 Sure thing, I try my best. Anime Dreams!

Points of Contact

Comments (3) | Permalink

Thursday, November 9, 2006

Carnage

The Carnage Images in this table hosted by Photobucket A picture is worth a thousand words isn't it? All images are clickable links, I hate blue hyperlink borders so I did away with them on all my pics. There's not much I have to add realy except that the first two pictures were taken a couple months ago so they provide a relatively good look at the leaf structure of the rose bush, and the last picture is the one I took yesterday. Comments: Magnus Lensherr My father, who has his Doctorate in Divinity (D.D.), would probably be the first person to remind me (or anyone else for that matter) that the Bible says "Judge not, lest ye be judged." Don't get used to my quoting Biblical references, this is an extenuating circumstance that deems it appropriate. The likelihood of Divine Retribution is slim to none, but there are more down to earth methods of dealing with, the nice way to word it is incompetence, I think, or it might be negligence, anyway, whatever the proper legal term is, there are ways to handle it appropriately. From what I can see of the parts that were repaired, the job is above par, the thing is, we are not sure if they finished the job because no one in the house heard them working on the front portion of the roof, and there's no evidence that the front portion of the roof has been repaired. I did a visual inspection today, and what I'm seeing in terms of the front of the house is telling me it wasn't touched. As I understand the terms of the contract (I don't have a job I'm not the one paying for anything here), they got part of the payment up front (for supplies), and they're supposed to get the rest later, which I can assure you they will not be getting until they make amends for the damage they've done. Not only did they mutilate a very fine rose bush, they may not have finished the job like they claim they have, and they walked off with an extention cord that doesn't belong to them (a 100 ft outdoor cord for our electric string trimmer). When those things are corrected, then they'll get their money. As for the rose bush's damage, I think the photos speak for themselves. Yensid: This experience (at the expence of my father who hired the crew) is just a life lesson in not hiring friends of co-workers. As much as I hate to say it, the people you work with can't be trusted when they tell you "My friend is a contractor, and he can do a good job." You're better of doing some research on your own and maybe hiring a more well known company in your area for anything you can't do yourself. My father is the one handling this, and he knows that neither my mother, nor I, are happy with the rose bush being ruined the way it was, so I certainly hope he'll be sure they hear about it and the other things too. It's always a good idea to drop by Adam's page. I learned just this morning that he tweaked the comment boxes, they now show 50 comments per page instead of the 10 that they used to show. He's also got some big plans in store for the whole site which he mentions sometimes (he hasn't revealed any details yet though). Outlaw Melfina: Don't get used to it, I only let myself go like that when I'm really, and I mean REALLY livid about something, and I think a bunch of idiots tearing up a rose bush qualifies for anger. I guess incompetence is a requirment for manual labor anywhere in the world these days. Are those people trained to be rude, ignorant, irresponsible, and self-centered in Trade School? It sure sounds like it. I have foxes in my area too, my mom and sister see them alongside the roads at night once in a while. I suppose I shouldn't have posted the carnage thumbnail, and just did a text link to it instead, but since it's a plant photo, and not that of a person, it doesn't qualify as "graphic" in terms of censorship. At any rate, I posted it. kout3uka I do tend to get carried away when it comes to certain topics. In my Flashpoint, I addressed the causes of humanity's unhappiness, if I understand correctly, your asking me if I believe that underlying all of those causes I discussed is Humanity's disregard for itself? If that's what you're asking the answer is a resounding "yes" Right now humanity is very self-centered. I see people all the time trying to figure out how to get by on someone else's dime, and the dime they want is the one from the person who can't spare it. Let me put it this way, they won't be getting their money till this thing is resolved. As you can see from the photo, I have a pole near the bush to help it grow up instead of out (I didn't have a trellace to use), so how hard is it to see a pole with a plant attached to it and work around it? It's not like they had to step over the thing there's enough space to get by it to where they were working. "That which we call a rose, by any other word, would smell as sweet." That's a bloom I shot a couple months ago. I wonder if I'll get any more blooms like that from the bush. sikaurai To our fortune, this bush wasn't anything really high end, it wasn't from heirloom seeds or anything like that (if it was, those guys skins would be handing from our toolshed even as I write this). This bush wasn't very costly, but the principle of the thing is they ruined something of value with their ignorance and irresponsibility. Well, if they didn't fix the frint portion of the house's roof that's part of their contract, then they didn't ahere to that piece of paper either. I think these contractors are going to learn the hard way that their irresponsibility has a cost, and it may not be one they like too much. Some people need to be taught lessons the hard way. scorchbird12 I heard the line on a cartoon somewhere and retooled it to fit my personality, but it works and sounds good too. That kind of legal action is usually best kept as a last resort. Since they haven't been payed the rest of the contract amount yet, we do have a little leverage to make them deliver on all the points of the contract, and possibly for some reparations for the plant damage that was done. The pictures are only of the rose bush, since that's what they damaged. I probably should get some shots of the roof section they didn't repair and were supposed to. I think I'll get those today, just to have them. Normally I don't part with a picture like this, but I thought I'd make an exception this time. Sometimes the simplest things can make us stop and wonder, the everyday can lead to inspiration. Just a CSX train making it's normal run through town, but I though it was a wonderful picture to share. I hope it inspires you all. Anime Dreams!

Points of Contact

Comments (5) | Permalink

Wednesday, November 8, 2006

American Standards Are Toilets For a Reason

ALERT: This post contains strong language, reader discretion is advised. I'd like to point out right now that the shade of red my hair is, while being natural has a very unique color name, it's called LIVID BEYOND BELIEF. The jackass roofers claim they finished the job Monday, but I have my doubts since I don't recall them working on the front part of the roof at all which was part of the contract. I'm only partly annoyed at them for that, what really has me mad as all Hell at those bastards is what they did to my mother's rose bush. The words to describe the damage are beyond the scope of our language today, so I will take some pictures in the morning to put along side some I took a while ago to share with you all here, but the faint of heart would be discouraged from viewing them, the damage is that graphic. Sorry, I can't really do this today so cut to the chase. Comments: Yensid: Whenever I mention something like that, I always try to have a reference handy, as a courtesy. I didn't get that e-mail because the address I signed up to MyO with back in 2003 is no longer accessable, I hated the service provider anyway. I did see an announcement about a new mailing list on TheO a while back, and followed through on the provided link with my current e-mail. To my knowledge, the newsletter isn't a regular thing, I can remember getting only like two or three in 2004, if that many. I'm hoping the new one will be a more regular thing, as long as they don't get Anime-Pulse (the Podcasters) to put it together for them. I wouldn't say that I "know" him, but the facts of the matter say otherwise. I frequent his blog, and post comments, and once in a while (usually to complain about something) send him an e-mail. I like to visit his blog to keep up with what's going on on the site, he is the founder, and he does post about projects and features, in an interesting if not cryptic way. I know he's more aware of my presense than I thought because in a comment (read hte comment thread to the article on the Con in Vegas), he did address me by the nickname I sign my e-mails with, which kind of creeped me out to see, but it's cool at the same time. I checked out the Amaya editor's onsite bug list, the list of known bugs already reported, and my image linking bug is listed so they know about it already. If I read that page right, the next build should have the image link issue corrected. Till then, I just do that part by hand. Magnus Lensherr I do feel I'm a bit of a heel for going off the way I did without thinking of the overseas Otaku who would have a tougher time getting to Las Vegas Nevada USA than I would. That's all right, there are Cons in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and there was that Transformers Bot-Con in Kentucky earlier this year, so there are cons close, but still not close enough for me to be able to afford the trips. I have never been to a single animeé convention in my life either as much as I would like to go to one. I'll certainly try, but it's not going to be easy for the next few days. My offline writing project, it's a personal project, and I haven't really discussed the details of it online here yet. When it's closer to being finished I'll tell you more about it. I set the goal to have the first draft done by Christmas so I can then polish it for my purposes. will u suck mine? That's quite all right, half the time, no wait, most of the time, I don't know what I'm talking about either. With the XHTML thing, I'll just get with the W3C on the bug with their program (Dreamweaver is the only HTML editor program I can recall off the bat as an example). No worries on that, I know my way around HTML enough to be able to tweak the base code I get from Amaya. About the con in Las Vegas, well, I'm kind of over that already so no worries there either. The roof, well, I covered that already in my main content area before the comments. sikaurai If you're into that RSS stuff and have a reader, or your browser supports RSS feeds or "live bookmarks" you can follow the directions provided here to add The Otaku to your reader or browser. That way you won't be out of the loop, and won't have to remember to go to the page all the time. Ouch, and I thought I had it bad. At least in my case if a Con came to the Capitol, Charleston, that's about an hour's drive away from me, otherwise theyd be about two hours away at the most in any of the other major (if anywhere in WV can be called that) cities. You'd be on the road for more than two hours, assuming an average speed of 60MPH. Of course, then I'd have to come up with the money to get there. kout3uka I only learn bits of HTML to be able to do things to web pages that I want to do, if I don't want to do it, I don't know the HTML for it. You've already asked me that question a couple posts ago, I answered it here. Don't forget to come back to me when you're done reading, it's quite a lengthy response. Breakfast Squid As I mentioned in previous comments, the W3C knows the bug is there, and hopefully the next build of their Amaya program will have it fixed. Till then I just wrap the anchors around the embedded image url myself, that's all. It's a minor nuisance, and really no big deal. This Con isn't till January, just a couple days after my birthday to be exact, they're doing preregistration for it now. I have TheO's main page set as my home page in both IE and Firefox so every time I get online, it's right there waiting for me. I mentioned the way to get their RSS feed if you check those kinds of things in a previous comment, something to think about (If you use Firefox, it supports "live bookmarks" - which are RSS feeds, and Avant browser does Feeds too). No thanks are necessary, I write from the heart, and that takes an unbending ear sometimes. Shireishou If I understand the designation correctly, XHTML is a very strict HTML standard (it literally means (e)Xtensible HyperText Markup Language. It's HTML defined as an XML application, whatever an XML application is. The anchor bug looks like it'll be repaired in the next release of Amaya, the website says it was fixed on October 27 this year. My build is an older one, and they haven't put out a new release yet, so I have to wait for that, but I'll do the things I know how maually till then. Anime Dreams!

Points of Contact

Comments (4) | Permalink

Monday, November 6, 2006

Another Day, Another . . .DOUGHNUT!

Been doing some work with the HTML generator, and found a major bug in the program already. For some reason it will not allow embedded images to be linked. I don't see why the program has that bug the W3C makes no mention of doing away with linkable images on web pages. I'll file a bug report and go from there I guess. Till I get something that actually works correctly though, I'll have to manually insert the anchors for linking images. Go figure the program is the W3C's own Amaya browser/XHTML editor. The latest "really cool announcement" from TheOtaku.com/Myotaku.com's own founder Adam is great, for those of you living or traveling near Las Vegas. AnimeFF occurs in January if you want to check it out. It's a little frustrating for me to see news like that because West Virginia is out of the loop a whole lot with cons. Comments: sikaurai I grew up to a lot of music, spanning genres and decades, that's probably why I like so many different things. Hotel California is a unique song, the best way I can describe it is "my mind in a nutshell". It's a haunting, kind of creepy, and mysterious sounding song at first, but the more you think about the lyrics and flow of the music, you tend to pick out the complex little eddies and currents that hide beneath the surface, just like getting to know me, right? I hope they get finished soon too, they are doing a thorough job from the sound of things, so I'm not too worried about quality. Magnus Lensherr I almost didn't give the credit, but I'm trying to get back to how I used to post and crediting everything I use that's not mine. It is a great song, one of my all time favorites. I know, it's really disruptive to have to wait, considering the goal I have set for myself on one project is to have it's first phase done by Christmas this year. That don't give me too much time and I don't think I'm close to being done yet. I'll have to sit down and make myself do some work later today. Yensid: I liked the piece, it's very well done, beyond my expectation. Maybe you're using the wrong type of earplug. There are different shapes and they each do different things well. The straight ones (purple) are better for ambient noises like motor drones, appliances, fans, crowd murmuring, things like that, steady sounds, the bell shaped (Orange) do much better with lower frequency sounds or concussion type sounds like snoring, deep bass car radios, and gunfire, things of that nature. There are also those silicon earplugs (not pictured), but I liken them to ramming a wad of ABC (Already Been Chewed for those of you who don't know that elementary school joke) gum in your ears and advise against using them. Both of the pictured sets are at the highest rating available which is 33dB, and please note that you will not find any earplug that is 100% sucessful at blocking all sound, because your ears not only pick up sound through the air, but through your bones as well. I don't like to use earbuds anymore because those things are more damaging to your hearing with prolonged exposure, and you can't have your earplugs in with those over them either. I had a really good set of headphones, but the wires went bad in them so I have to get a new set. Course I could always use my wireless ones when I'm around the house. Certain situations for me are more disruptive than others, I'm not a one size fits all person when it comes to social exposure. I can be in a crowed restaurant and be fine because all the other people are kept at bay by tables and space, but if I'm in a crowded store, that's different. The environment contributes a lot to how the sound is received and perceived by the listener. I like the rain too, I hope the roof gets fixed before it rains again here so I can enjoy listening to it (My bedroom on the third floor is right under the roof so I can really hear the rain) without worrying about the leaks dripping on the TV downstairs, or on the first floor. When I go out on the Rail Trail, even though it is right next to US route 50, a four lane divided highway, you cna't hear a lick of traffic that's on it when you're out by tunnels 12 and 13, it's so serene you could get lost in it. When I can get a better DVR, I will make a recording of Bond's Creek which sounds nice, and have that up here for you all to hear. I know, that's what has given me the energy to keep on trucking, knowing the job is almost complete. sango87 So am I. beyblader I've been chatting a lot about the noisy roofers lately, in any case that won't be a topic for too much longer. As far as studying goes, do whatever works. I use earplugs for meditation sometimes when I can't get my mind to turn off its attention to the things around me. Anime Dreams!

Points of Contact

Comments (6) | Permalink

Sunday, November 5, 2006

On A Dark Desert Highway

I've been so out of it lately that I haven't given the much deserved Kudos to Breakfast Squid for the Lizard Soda-jerk picture. The challenge is still open if anyone else wants to try. I actually got some sleep Saturday, the earplugs really helped, so I'm not as tired as I have been. That means I can start to think about my projects again, but I still can't put too much into them yet because the roof hasn't been finished yet. I'll get back on track eventually. If anyone cares, the title this week is part of the opening line from Hotel California by the Eagles. Comments: Magnus Lensherr It's a matter of needing to, not wanting to, wear them. Since I live a stone's throw away from a hospital in the middle of town, it does get kind of noisey now and then with the choppers coming in, but it's not an everyday thing. When I'm really tired, I get hypersensitive to sound (I can have my TV volume near 0 and still hear it like it's too loud sometimes) and sometimes I require some assistance to mute the sounds that are keeping me awake. Since part of the roof to be fixed is right over my bedroom, the earplugs are going to be a necessity for me. You have a good week too. Yensid: They're in the Pharmacy section of mass merchandisers, and check the packages. On the back somewhere usually, or the front sometimes, you'll see a number anywhere from 22-33, that's going to be your deciBell rating. The highest rating that I've ever seen is 33dB, that's how much sound they block out. With them in, you can hear loud stuff still, but it's not as loud, and much easier to work with. I use ear plugs when I'm running a vacuum cleaner and other loud tools as well (I don't use a gas lawn mower so no need for them there). I hope they get the work done soon too, I camp out downstairs during the day to reduce my exposure to the noise and it's getting to be tedious. Shireishou That's wonderful, actually I should link it in my TokyoPop account too, and think about getting it onto my personal website as well. I didn't write the article to be specific to MyO, so that's great that people are linking it offsite. I'll certainly read that when it gets posted, I do hope no one got hurt. mysterious rei Actually I did for once. Earplugs are a wonderful invention. sikaurai They say great minds think alike, I guess you and Yensid are great minds that way. I wear a lot of dragons, that should help with the luck I need. Earplugs certainly are great to have. I use them for every high volume application I'm going to be thrust into, they are ear savers as well as noise reducers for those times when you want to concentrate on other things. Anime Dreams!

Points of Contact

Comments (4) | Permalink