a RECORD of THINGS TO COME

Hello people,

Here's a quick collection of my most recent stuff.

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So i've been playing a tabletop wargame with John Gruber and a few others recently, and tonight I sat down and created the first twof two tiles to use as terrain
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Alright, so here's the second video. Got a little bit of coloring started, but it's pretty basic.



There you go!

This is my most recent project. A multi-step video series thingy. I'm going to show my work at the various stages. Danny, take note! This is for you.

If I'm doing anything you don't understand, let me know and I'll explain it. I think this is all pretty straight forward at this point, though.



Let's see if that works.

Howdy folks.

So it's been, what, a year since I posted? long time no see! I'm at school, avoiding homework. So here's an update of my life.

1. Got a girlfriend about 11 months ago. Still got her. Still like her.

2. I have a new job doing more of the same. I have now added sublimation, computer controlled engraving, and trophy making to my list of skills. And I still get to play with lasers, which is fun.

3. Suddenly found motivation to return to school and improve my life (see #1).

4. I am now in my last semester at Heartland, and I have been accepted to the School of Technology.

5. I'm an "Integrated Manufacturing Systems" Major, which basically means I'll be learning how to mass-produce things.

6. I have a cruise coming up in January, the first I've been on, and it's pretty exciting. Our family is going together, so that should be interesting. Also, Linda (see #1) will be coming.

Danny, I really enjoy seeing your comics all the time, so I thought I would spread the love and post one of 2 finished pictures that I did in the last year (besides your comics). I seem to remember you talking about tentacle monsters at some point, which planted the seed that later became the basic inspiration for this picture.

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Well, I'll talk to you's in, lets say, a year? yeah, sounds good.

Nothing makes my day more (creatively speaking) than a customer gushing over a frame I've made them.

There are days when I don't get enough accomplished, or mess up too many projects, and I just go home feeling dissatisfied.

There are days when the boss, presumably justifying to himself the minimal wage he pays me, spends the morning telling me i'm not good enough, I need to improve, etc.

But even though I constantly contemplate leaving to find a better paying job, I've got to say that the customer reactions really make it all worth while.

And that's all I've got to say about that.

So my lj login screen is telling me it's been 15 weeks since I posted anything.



And counting.

I went to chicago on friday with my grandmother and aunt, who were in the country visiting, and then yesterday I finally visited john in peoria. Sad though it sounds, that was the most travelling I've done in years.

Bye!

I purchased a sheet of brass for my latest project (at $40 a pop, no less), but couldn't figure out how to cut it into the shapes I needed. It's a much tougher metal than I gave it credit for, the little blighter. Thank goodness for fathers who work with tools, I guess, because my dad happens to have a Boom saw, which is perfect for my needs. In the next few days I'll be cutting the brass, at which point I will run into my next problem, which involves assembley.

But once it's done it'll be totally cool, so I'll post a video.

It's going to be an Iris, with 20 pieces rotating in to close the hole. I'm going to use it as my "curtain" on my front door. Yeah, I know, totally fantastic.

You know you like it.

*grunt*

A drunk post... probably not wise.

I could say a lot of things and regret them later, so intead I will say that I enjoyed the company of my compatriots this evening, and only wish to experience further shenanigans with them.

Maggies, with katie, shortround(name?), voice girl, jesi(K)a, Niall, and others. Niall once more affirmed his status as a cool guy in my mind, while katie became, as is her wont, insane.

I struggled with moodiness, and think I won; I was generally happy, pleasant, etc.

Life can only be good, in the long run.

It sometimes hurts, but damn it, isn't that the point?

Sigh. My drunk has taken over. My elbows are well and truly intoxicated.

I Finally got my I.D. back after the current-insurance-card fiasco.

Yay, drinkies.

Purchased a cheap amp, which is barely good enough to drown out the accoustic of my mandolin.

yay, musiks.

Built a semi-functional 20-segment iris, which will, in the finished model, act as a window curtain.

yay, projecks.

decided to use a strange repetition in my latest journal entry.

yay, hackneyed lit-cha.

In other news, nothing.

Imagine me giving a suspiciously fake smile, and waving frantically.

Consider yourself adieu'd.

Been playing the mandolin.

Been feeling the nerve-death start in my fingertips.

Made a little three chord progression thing.

Made the worst lyrics in the history of man;

"You said half an hour,
so I jumped in the shower."

Repeated endlessly.

My first, crappy, song.

Been walking around downtown bloomington. Been liking it.

Not sculpting yet. Give it time.

Yeah.

see ya's!

I'm finally done moving in. Boxes all unpacked, dishes all put away, etc. I took about a week just living surrounded by boxes, and I finally finished everything up the other day.

But now I'm officially skint; not because of the move, but because I felt compelled to buy myself a second-hand audio mixer to power my microphone (bass ackwards, I know) and a first-hand mandolin. It's an electric mandolin, which apparently isn't common, but I don't own an amp, so i'm just teaching myself the accoustic end of things. It's a nice sound; If only I could play it.

Nothing much else in the world of Ryan. Been making sample pieces to send off to prospective corporate employers, but no news on that front.

I really need to get back into the habit of sculpting. And I have pictures to send off to Dick Smith, but I haven't yet. Not sure why. Procrastination of some sort.

I'll see you all around.

*pose*

I'm out.

sigh

girl

If only, you know?


If only.

Just got back from Transformers, and on a scale of "1 to Geek-out" it was a certified 23.5

I pretty much liked it a lot. Loved the humor, loved the graphics, loved the action. Everything a growing geek needs.

The camera-work kind of bugged me, but that's the trend these days, is the hand-held,in-the-action shaky stuff.

Plus, you know, token hot chick was hot AND self-assertive, so she became more than just eye candy, and i liked that. It made her so much more interesting.

And to everyone out there who's going through bad times right now... I hope you can be happier soon. My thoughts are with you.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go and sleep, and dream of childhood fantasies come to life. My very own side-kick super car! With GUNS!

So, after visiting www.steampunkworkshop.com and looking at the keyboard/monitor mods that guy did, I have recently developed an obsession with steam-punk-ery . I rewatched the anime "Steam boy" despite not liking it the first time. With my new found obsession, it was a completely new experience.

Also, I'm moving. I guess I have to move out by the end of the week. At last my habit of not collecting things is going to pay off. It's amazing the piles of random junk that john (roomie) has. I will feel silently superior to him, quietly lording over his world of turmoil; Like an unkempt buddha, contemplating my far superior navel.

As a side note, my obsession with swing-dancing had not abated. In fact it slowly growing. I went on youtube looking for how-to's, but they were pretty horrible and anyway they required a partner to really get it. As it stands right now, I have no partner, so that's one dream that will have to be put on my cluttered back-burner. (Oh, so cluttered)

More work news; The boss told me yesterday that he's probably going to send me on my own to see the production facility for Cabelas. He's got family issues which mean he can't leave town, and he said he has no problem sending me when they want us to go.

Not sure if thats good, but it FEELS good. Like "Yay, i'm important!" But who knows, maybe he's just desperate. I mean jesus, I'm 23, and I've only been engraving for less than a year. How much can I know?

Even so, I'd say this is a bargaining chip when it comes to asking for a raise. It'll make me seem more important in the eyes of Cabelas, at least. And they may be the ones signing the paycheck.

I'll probably just lie, and start telling everyone I'm 25.

That will fix all my problems.

I finally got to a point on my most recent sculpt where I felt I could send it in for evaluation. Here it is.

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I went to IBC last night. A very strange experience. It seemed to be inhabited by 'trendy nerds,' as I think of them in my head. People who have embraced their sub-culture status and who are totally ok with it. Maybe they're more "indy rock." Like, people who don't dress in the standard polo shirt and cargo pants, and are totally fashionable - guys included.

I thought the place and the people were really cool. And for that reason, I felt very uncomfortable there.

I ended up leaving and wandering around for a while. I sat on a bench, then some guy walked by with food in his hand, and I jumped up to find what crazy restaurant was open at 12:30am. It turned out to be La Bamba (i think that was the name...burritos as big as your head. that place.), and I partook of a Nacho supreme. Then John finally left the bar, and I told him I'd got mexican, and he wanted it too, so we went back and he got a Burrito.

And then I went home and crashed.

I was about to leave for my class today, and at the last second I went to the website so that I would know what was going on.

NO CLASS TODAY!!!

yay. Now if only I had some cool folks to hang out with. My roomie is totally gone, and I have no idea when he'll be back. So I'm kinda stuck on my own. Maybe I'll bike downtown. I recenly fixed up an old bike, so that could be fun. Yeah. that could be fun.

I'll just need to make sure I take music to listen to.

ALSO!! Yesterday the owner of the store told me that I should work up a budget of my living expenses. I take this to mean that he honest-to-goodness expects us to be moving soon, going off to bigger and better things. I really don't care one way or the other, as long as I'm making more money. I suppose that leaving town would be kinda suck, but it would also be pretty great I think. I've not left this town for an extended period of time for about 12 years, so it's about time that I left and lived my own life for a while.

Yeah.

P.S. Unrequited affection kinda sucks. It's like having a sandwich without anything in it; It'll fill you up, but it won't satisfy you.