Tuesday, February 6, 2007

Coming Along Nicely; Then Where Are The Pics, Grifter?

A couple o' posts ago, I told you guys about the new "How To" book and anime and manga. Well, I'm pleased to report that it's going quit nicely. I've been working on a trade piece for Spacecowboytv. He's the guy that sent me the Kaname pic in all her curvaceous glory. (Bless you, E) Anyway, I've been working on a pic of our favorite hard-luck heroin, Faye Valentine. It's an original, of course, and features her in a...well, I don't want to give it away. At least not until the owner sees it first. I hope that it's well received. If I know E, it will be. Once I'm finished, I'll submit it and then post for all of you to enjoy. Naturally your feedback will be most appreciated. I have another piece that I'm working on as well. It's already been inked, I just need to scan it and add color. I fear it may be a bit too risque' for this site. There isn't any bits and pieces showing it's just mildly, shall we say, suggestive. However, I'll let you guys be the judges. I hope you all had a chance to read my last story. I posted it late Friday so I didn't get a lot o' responses. If you would go back and read it, let me know what you think, I'd greatly appreciate it. That's it for me. Later, Grif

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Friday, February 2, 2007

"The Se7enth" -The Grifter

It is with a heavy heart that I am before you today. I will not waste this time with shallow remarks or empty words. I am here simply to enlighten you and impart my feelings. May these words take flight on swift wings to find those who have gone before us. What leads have we got so far? We have a young woman working concessions placing John Doe and the victim at the theater the she went missing. Anything else? Um…yah, traffic division got a match on a vehicle believed to be John Doe’s. They’re running the VIN to see who the registered owner is. Good. So young and full of life; that is how I would describe her. She was a good student; never got into trouble. She had exemplary attendance and was well liked by the faculty as well as her peers. I could go so far as to say she was a model student. We will all miss her terribly. How’s by you, anything? Yah, tox report was negative on the last girl. There weren’t any drugs or alcohol in her system. They found small trace amounts of ephedrine in her though. How’s that? Mom said she used to get head aches a lot; real bad ones. Lab says that’s pretty normal for a kid with an academic record like this one had. A shame really, all those book smarts with no common sense. I’m afraid it’s common place for kids her age. On top of the world one minute, then buried six feet under it the next. Our families would go camping a lot. There was this old tire swing near the river where we camped. We would all go there in the heat of the day and spend hours playing in the water and swinging across in the tire. Once, she was so determined to be the first to the swing that she fell down and twisted her ankle. I carried her the rest of the way. It was later, under that very tree that we shared our first kiss. How ‘bout the family? We interviewed Mom and Dad first. Standard questions: Did she have any enemies, anyone with a grudge, a jealous ex? Anything pan out? Nah, nothing. This kid was so clean, she squeaked when she walked. We interviewed the boyfriend later that day. He said he never heard her mention her date. We asked if he thought she might be cheating on him. What did he say? Typical answer: No way she’d ever do that, blah, blah, blah. Either way, they all came up clean. Damn, still no leads. Well, at least nothing to really go on. We still have time. That is until the next victim. We can’t assume anything just yet; not with out proof. We pray, almighty God that you take this child, into your arms and give her peace and eternal rest. May you make your peace and grace and mercy shine down upon those who mourn. For it is written that blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted. It is with these words that we commit your child to the ages, ashes to ashes and dust to dust. Amen. *phone rings* Detective Hughes...I see...very good, thanks. What’s up? They’re laying our young friend to rest as we speak. What?! How...why? Because a grieving family needs closure. That’s nuts, just nuts. Be that as it may, grief will do as it wants to do, regardless of the circumstances. I suppose...do you think we’ll find her body? Hope so. That casket can’t stay empty forever. Wouldn’t be the first time. True, but it won’t be the last time. Detectives? You got a package on your desk. Who’s it from? Some guy named John. Who?! *enters office* It’s a box...should we open it? I fear we may have to. *opens small box* What is it, Hughes? ...closure.

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Wednesday, January 31, 2007

Bit By the Drawing Bug; Pencil, Don't Fail Me Now!

As in my last post, I shared with you all my endeavors to become a better artist. Well, I'm in the midst of working on a rather sultry piece with Faye Valentine. This is in response to a gift from my brother in arms (so to speak), Spacecowboytv for his wonderful gift to me. I'm referring to the Kaname piece featured in my profile area. I don't want to give anything away, suffice to say that it will be posted one way or another on this site. I'm going for a sexy/playful piece that blends in the very passions we both share. I hope you enjoy it, E. I am mainly re-inventing and refreshing my mechanics and style. Sort of "knocking the rust off" as it were. However, if you'd like to see some of my drawings, please take a step into my archives and see some of my own characters that I posted back when I was new to the neighborhood. Once I'm satisfied with my progress. I'll start posting/submitting my fan art to the rest of the My O community. Don't worry, I'll still write stories and poems for those of you that fear I'll abandon that. That is still very much a part of the Grifter. Later.

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Monday, January 29, 2007

As Iron sharpens Iron; Grifter's Persuit to Be Better.

I've always loved drawing since I was a little kid. My favorite pastime was to draw my favorite anime and cartoon characters. Much to my chagrin, I've fallen out of favor with some of my styles and techniques due to lack of skill, practice or interest. It's sad considering I was the toast of my circle of friends when it came to drawing. Now I feel as though I've been surpassed by everyone around me. Not to worry, the Grifter shall not go uncounted nor be found void and go quietly into that good night. I made my way to my local mega-book retailer and thoroughly combed the shelves of the drawing and artists section. Lo and behold I found the book I was looking for, or perhaps, it found me. 30 chapters of straight forward, no nonsense how to's both in color and b&w, bound lovingly in a polyurethane sealed cover-stock. All for an affordable sticker price of $19.95. Too good to pass up, I thought. Thanks to the two gift cards that we're burning a hole in my wallet, I was off to enjoy my new purchase: "The Complete Idiot's Guide on How to Draw Manga". Now, mind you, I'm no idiot when it comes to drawing, I thought this would be the best way to hone my skills as an artist and thus give back to my beloved anime community. So I press on towards my goal of becoming a better artist in the genre I most enjoy. Now, it's just a matter of time and talent. Grif

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Friday, January 26, 2007

Be Like Water. - (A True Story)

As most of you know, I'm married. With that, I've inherited a brother and sister-in-law. Both are very cool and easy to get along with. It helps when my bro-in-law was a good friend of mine before I married his sister. Anyway, my sister-in-law, which shall be called Asuka, to protect her identity, is 28 and in the midst of a very major crush with a guy she met. She's asked Zealot for countless bits o' advice and has followed through with a lot of it, but still this guy wavers on closing the deal. (aka becoming her boyfriend) Now, Asuka is not very strong in the esteem category. She's always struggled with her weight and hasn't had a whole lot o' interest from the fellas due to that. However, in the last five years, she has transformed from an awkward overweight girl into quite the knock out hottie. No surgery, all diet and exercise. Trust me, she's a freak when it comes to working out. Believe me when I tell you this, I've been with Zealot for eleven years and I've seen this amazing change in and out of Asuka, but I digress. It was one evening that Asuka approached me and said that she was going to go on a date with this guy. She was quite nervous and was so sure that she was gonna crash and burn. I assured her that everything would be fine. Now we all know that no matter what anyone says, when you're on a date with the person o' your dreams, you're going to be anything but calm and collected. Never-the-less, i told her that no matter what happens, you're doing something new and exciting. That whatever happens have fun, be who you truly are; be like water. She gave me a puzzled look and asked what I meant by that. I explained saying that with water, it doesn't matter where it goes, it'll always get there, seeking it's own level. If it comes up against a barrier, it seeks another way. Eventually, it gets to where it needs to be. Much like you, I said, you will get to where you need to be. You just have to go around a few obstacles to get there. You just need to flow and become the current, take yourself wherever you want to go. With her nervousness subsiding, a calm air flowed around her and a big confident smile illuminated her face. Asuka thanked me and went upstairs, off to bed. Zealot gave me a look of uncertainty. I assured her that all would be fine so long as she stayed the course and, well, flowed. The day after Asuka's date, she came over to spend the afternoon with Zealot. Upon my arrival home, I kissed my Zealot hello and asked Asuka how her evening went. With a gleaming look in her eyes and an enormous smile on her face, she looked at me, gave me a hug and told me, "I became water". Zealot smiled as she looked on. I always knew you would, Asuka.

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Wednesday, January 24, 2007

And So It Goes.

You know, I have to say I'm a bit disappointed in the fact that my writing has gone on a longer vacation than I. I still have to finish the third and hopefully last installment of my big epic. Not to mention the fact that I haven't written a new poem in months. There's just so much going on at the law school lately. I used to chat with some of you on AIM. Man, I haven't done that for a while either. Guess I'd better get back into the swing o' things. A few months ago, I asked you guys whether or not I should reveal the identity of the Grifter. I really only heard from a few of you. So I'll pose the question to you again. Would you like to know the man behind the mask? Do tell why or why not. Okay the PJ's are on and the eyelids are fully weighted with sand bags. I'm out.

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Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Eureka! On-line at Last!

That's right, I'm up and running from home. It took a while, but I finally got internet at my place. Now Zealot and I can surf and be part of the rest of this God forsaken, techno-doomed planet....oop, sorry. Internal monologue volume was set a bit too high. Anyway, this is officially the first post from my home. Mighty cozy, sitting here in my PJ's typing away. I had my hockey game tonight so, I'm a bit sore from letting the opposing team have it for 60 minutes. Don't worry, my back is just fine. I'm reziliant for my age. I mean, I'm only thirty-two, but as I say, it's not the age, it's the milage. Fear not, ol' Grif is gonna be around for a good long while. *crosses fingers* ^_^' Well, with that said, I'm gonna head off to bed. I'll try to make as many visits to websites as I can. Later all, Grif

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Friday, January 19, 2007

"Won't Be Long Now" -The Grifter (revisited)

I drive alone on a rain slicked road Hours away from your embrace So cold in this car, I shiver Won't be long now Feelings long for a place I just want to feel your touch The thought of your lips sends me Won't be long now Eyes strain to see the way ahead Night and weather can't keep me away Keep those candles lit Won't be long now Clothed in satin, patiently waiting Warm comfy thoughts drive me closer All signs point the way to your arms Won't be long now Soft and warm brings to light Finally, my journey done Rain soaked coat falls to the floor Blow out the candles and lock the door Won't be alone now

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Tuesday, January 16, 2007

Back Among the Living

Just as the title indicates, I'm back to my usual self. The back is at about 95% healed, mind you I'm still taking it easy. As for that stupid cold, I'm getting much better. I still have the residual gunk in my lungs but that's departing my body on the Cough and Hack Express. All things considered, I'm feeling better, so thanks to all those who wished me well. I'm going to keep it short today, seeing is how I have a mountain of work to do. Take care all. Grif

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Thursday, January 11, 2007

On The Mend; Easy Does It, Grif.

My most sincerest apologies to you all for my absence. After a week long break at Christmas, I returned with renewed vigor...that is until I caught a nasty cold and strained my back very badly. The cold sucked and I'm still on the back end o' that, but my back is another story. I had a two week break from playing the sport I so dearly love, ice hockey. Upon my return to the ice, I pulled the two large muscles along my lower back while chasing after the puck. I finished the game at about 50% normal body functions. After I got home and took a long hot shower, I realized my injury was a lot worse. To make a long story short, I was flat on my back with heating pads and muscle relaxers for three days. Not cool to say the least. I know I've been neglecting my site, but I'm back at work and easing my way back to all of your sites. I'll also be getting internet at my place. Time Warner will be out next Friday to dial me in with high speed cable internet. Huzzah, I can finally update from home. Anyway, I hope you all had a great Christmas and I wish you all a successful new year! Warmest Regards, Grifter

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