2007, eh? A lot has happened over the past year, and there was a lot more that didn't happen. Crazy, I know. But I'm not going to go into some kinda wishy-washy post about the highlights and crap of the year. No, instead I'll say this. 2006 sucked. End of question. I hope 2007 will be better. I may or may not have control over how well the next year goes, but I'd like it to be a bit of an improvement. What will the next 12 months hold? I seriously don't have a clue.
On a differant note, how many people out there are like me and simply don't care for New Year's celebrations all that much? How many people are staying home and taking the chance to do a bit of gaming, draw something, or watch a movie before going to bed earlier? Going off of the Gamespy multiplayer stats, there's at least 141,000 of us. Heh. Nice to know I'm not necissarily the only one who isn't fond of the crowds, parties, and getting hammered on whatever substance is at hand.
So the question is... Do I go see the "Ardrie Lights" and fireworks, or stay put and try some BF2142 or Company of Heroes?
-Cril
Man I feel like mold
It's prom night and I am lonely
Lo and behold
She's walking over to me
This must be fake
My lip starts to shake
How does she know who I am?
And why does she give a damn about me?
Scala Choir & Kolacny Brothers - Teenage Dirtbag
Wow, what an emo song, eh? I heard it off of Covervile... It just sticks out with the way the choir sings it.
Sunday, December 31, 2006
Thursday, December 28, 2006
Happy-fun-Christmastime
Back! It's been a hectic two weeks. First, I'd like to say that I think I hate Christmas shopping. Completely. Can't stand it. Yes, I got something for everyone, but I absolutely loathe roaming the isles and isles looking for who-knows-what. Even if you DO know what, it's just as hard to hunt down what you're looking for. Gah. What an annoyance. It got to the point where I was ready to give up and scream all sorts of 'BAH-HUMBUG!'(s). Not fun.
But, I did go home for Christmas, and I did enjoy myself. The tooth ache sucked, what with all the good food around that needed to be eaten. But it got better and I snacked out. It was nice being home. I had fun filling my sisters stockings and getting extra gifts for my parents with my siblings. I relaxed, I biked, I skated, I went for a walk... A good vacation. Made coming back to real life that much more painful.
I didn't bag any astonishly good lewt this year. Some socks, some pens, and some junk food. Nothing overly exciting. First time in a while that I didn't get any software. Did I get anything from my list? Notta thing. Except for the BNL CD, that I got for myself after seeing it in a discount bin. Meh, it couldn't hurt. I got a bit of cash for Christmas ($100), but I haven't spent it on anything. I want to buy some CDs, but...
a) They're SO expensive. $80 for FIVE albums? JEEZ. I'm sure I could save a chunk by going through iTunes, but I hate that DRM crap and I like my physical disc, case, and book. Maybe I'm old fashioned. But make no mistake - I *really* hate DRM. I'm never buying anything from iTunes again.
b) I can't find anywhere to get what I want all in one place. Okay, so I've only checked Amazon.ca and Futureshop.ca, but you'd figure with their size they'd have what you want. But no, they don't. Each site has a differant album missing.
I think I'll just hold on to my cash and grab them when I find them instore. Pick them up one at a time, hopefully when cheap. And speaking of albums to buy, Love by the Beatles is now on it. Quite a great remix. Some of the songs sound more or less the same as the origionals, but some are phenomanally differant. I gotta get my hands on that action. I saw it at Costco, but I didn't want the special edition with DVD. I'll go cheap, thanks.
I think my finances for the month have effectively been shot. I wasn't keeping very good track of what I have been buying where for how much. I have a vague estimate of how much I used, but I'm not quite sure what I actually spent. I got a bit of a bonus from work which should, in theory, cover my Christmas spending. That's nice. Gotta keep on savin' the monies.
So what do we have to look forward to? 2007. I'm sure done with 2006. What a crappy year it's been. And y'know what the New Year means, aside from the excuse to break resolutions? BSG and Heroes come back. And to a lesser extent of caring, Lost and Scrubs also. Oh, it also means the BNL concert is coming up quickly. And sometime over the course of the next 6-8 months I may be getting my hands on HL2 - Episode 2, Supreme Commander, and a Wii. We'll see if any of that happens, or if I'll stick to my money hoarding ways.
In the mean time, it's back to work with me. Hooray for inventory time, when I get to count anything and everything. The time of year when numerical order matters so much, although I start counting 25, 26, 28, 29, 13, 14, 15...
Back to the ol' grindstone.
-Cril
I look from the wings
At the play you are staging
While my guitar gently weeps
As I am sitting here
Doing nothing but aging
Still my guitar gently weeps
The Beatles - While My Guitar Gently Weeps
But, I did go home for Christmas, and I did enjoy myself. The tooth ache sucked, what with all the good food around that needed to be eaten. But it got better and I snacked out. It was nice being home. I had fun filling my sisters stockings and getting extra gifts for my parents with my siblings. I relaxed, I biked, I skated, I went for a walk... A good vacation. Made coming back to real life that much more painful.
I didn't bag any astonishly good lewt this year. Some socks, some pens, and some junk food. Nothing overly exciting. First time in a while that I didn't get any software. Did I get anything from my list? Notta thing. Except for the BNL CD, that I got for myself after seeing it in a discount bin. Meh, it couldn't hurt. I got a bit of cash for Christmas ($100), but I haven't spent it on anything. I want to buy some CDs, but...
a) They're SO expensive. $80 for FIVE albums? JEEZ. I'm sure I could save a chunk by going through iTunes, but I hate that DRM crap and I like my physical disc, case, and book. Maybe I'm old fashioned. But make no mistake - I *really* hate DRM. I'm never buying anything from iTunes again.
b) I can't find anywhere to get what I want all in one place. Okay, so I've only checked Amazon.ca and Futureshop.ca, but you'd figure with their size they'd have what you want. But no, they don't. Each site has a differant album missing.
I think I'll just hold on to my cash and grab them when I find them instore. Pick them up one at a time, hopefully when cheap. And speaking of albums to buy, Love by the Beatles is now on it. Quite a great remix. Some of the songs sound more or less the same as the origionals, but some are phenomanally differant. I gotta get my hands on that action. I saw it at Costco, but I didn't want the special edition with DVD. I'll go cheap, thanks.
I think my finances for the month have effectively been shot. I wasn't keeping very good track of what I have been buying where for how much. I have a vague estimate of how much I used, but I'm not quite sure what I actually spent. I got a bit of a bonus from work which should, in theory, cover my Christmas spending. That's nice. Gotta keep on savin' the monies.
So what do we have to look forward to? 2007. I'm sure done with 2006. What a crappy year it's been. And y'know what the New Year means, aside from the excuse to break resolutions? BSG and Heroes come back. And to a lesser extent of caring, Lost and Scrubs also. Oh, it also means the BNL concert is coming up quickly. And sometime over the course of the next 6-8 months I may be getting my hands on HL2 - Episode 2, Supreme Commander, and a Wii. We'll see if any of that happens, or if I'll stick to my money hoarding ways.
In the mean time, it's back to work with me. Hooray for inventory time, when I get to count anything and everything. The time of year when numerical order matters so much, although I start counting 25, 26, 28, 29, 13, 14, 15...
Back to the ol' grindstone.
-Cril
I look from the wings
At the play you are staging
While my guitar gently weeps
As I am sitting here
Doing nothing but aging
Still my guitar gently weeps
The Beatles - While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
God only knows...
I coloured this for Frank. Apparently it was based after some song by Seal that I hadn't heard. So when it was my interpretation... I guess it turned to a Heroes/X-men themed peice. I used and abused the dodge and burn tools, but it gives it a decent surreal feal to it. Oh, it's gunna feel like forever for Heroes to return in January...
I think I overheard my bosses/supervisors talking about mistakes being made by me and my coworker. This is driving me mad. I thought I was getting better, it's been a few weeks since my last mistake. Gah, so frusterating. It's simple. I should be able to do this. I don't know why I can't. ARGH.
I have Christmas gifts figured out for everyone thusfar. I haven't actually gone out and purchased them as of yet, but at least I know what I'm doing. I could use a lil' something extra for the family, though. I went pretty small and simple, but I'd like to do something additional. We'll see if I find anything that catches my eye.
Christmas break can't come soon enough. I need to detach for a while.
-Cril
If you should ever leave me
Well life would still go on believe me
The world could show nothing to me
So what good would living do me
God only knows what Id be without you
God only knows what Id be without you
God only knows
Jonatha Brooke - God Only Knows
Sunday, December 10, 2006
Bang.
What a complete... Surprise? Shock? How would I describe it?
Okay, so there was a kid, way back in 6th and 7th grade that I used to hang out with. We were pretty good friends, if I recall correctly. Anyhoo, this guy was really smart - The type to get A's in every class (Yes, even PE) without doing rediculous amounts of work. I used to look up to him so much, even though I was a bit older. And y'know what I just found out? He dropped out in Grade 10. He got a chick pregnant. He's currently a single dad, raising his two-year-old child and looking for work. Wow. How could someone possibly predict that? It's absolutely insane. I can't effectively put words to it. A bit of a blow to my mind.
General observation: It's interesting how some people change the way they act when someone is in their presence. No, I'm not talking about slandering someone behind their back, but the more subtle and most likely subliminal changes. Do we all change slightly when we're around some people? I'd assume so, you have differant degrees of relationships with differant degrees of people. I don't generally act the same around my mom as I do with my friends. But what about when several differant people are in the same room at once? It's interesting to notice someone becoming more confident and demeaning while you're on the other end of it. It's not something you can call them on. You know they're not doing it on purpose, it's just who they are and how they tick.
And, even though no one reads this, these are some things I wouldn't mind for Christmas. I hate asking for gifts, or giving people ideas for what to get me. I feel so selfish or something, it just makes me so uncomfortable. But here are a few things I wouldn't mind to have in my immediate possession, that I know I'm probably not going to get anyways.
Moby - Go
Frou Frou - Details
INXS - Switch
Apocalyptica - Apocalyptica
Yoko Kanno - Cowboy Bebop OST
BArenaked Ladies - Barenaked for the Holidays
Jack Johnson - In Between Dreams
William Orbit - Hello Waveforms
Battlestar Galactica Season 2.0, 2.5
Band of Brothers
Flight Simulator X
A good pen
On a differant tangent, what do you get for someone who doesn't appreciate anything longer than a week? What do you get that they'll put miles on for months and months, when they don't care what they got for their birthday a month ago? Something generic, that's what. Is it worth the effort to do something extra? It sure would make me feel better if I did, but I know it'll have zero impact on the other end. Gah, I hate shopping for Christmas. I hate shopping in general, really.
Feelin'... Seclusive and semi-deperessed.
-Cril
In your tears and in your blood
In your fire and in your flood
I hear you laugh, I heard you sing
I wouldn’t change a single thing
And the wheels just keep on turning
The drummers begin to drum
I don’t know which way I’m going
I don’t know what I’ve become
For you I’d wait till kingdom come
Until my days, my days are done
And say you'll come and set me free
Just say you'll wait, you'll wait for me
Coldplay - Till Kingdom Come
Okay, so there was a kid, way back in 6th and 7th grade that I used to hang out with. We were pretty good friends, if I recall correctly. Anyhoo, this guy was really smart - The type to get A's in every class (Yes, even PE) without doing rediculous amounts of work. I used to look up to him so much, even though I was a bit older. And y'know what I just found out? He dropped out in Grade 10. He got a chick pregnant. He's currently a single dad, raising his two-year-old child and looking for work. Wow. How could someone possibly predict that? It's absolutely insane. I can't effectively put words to it. A bit of a blow to my mind.
General observation: It's interesting how some people change the way they act when someone is in their presence. No, I'm not talking about slandering someone behind their back, but the more subtle and most likely subliminal changes. Do we all change slightly when we're around some people? I'd assume so, you have differant degrees of relationships with differant degrees of people. I don't generally act the same around my mom as I do with my friends. But what about when several differant people are in the same room at once? It's interesting to notice someone becoming more confident and demeaning while you're on the other end of it. It's not something you can call them on. You know they're not doing it on purpose, it's just who they are and how they tick.
And, even though no one reads this, these are some things I wouldn't mind for Christmas. I hate asking for gifts, or giving people ideas for what to get me. I feel so selfish or something, it just makes me so uncomfortable. But here are a few things I wouldn't mind to have in my immediate possession, that I know I'm probably not going to get anyways.
Moby - Go
Frou Frou - Details
INXS - Switch
Apocalyptica - Apocalyptica
Yoko Kanno - Cowboy Bebop OST
BArenaked Ladies - Barenaked for the Holidays
Jack Johnson - In Between Dreams
William Orbit - Hello Waveforms
Battlestar Galactica Season 2.0, 2.5
Band of Brothers
Flight Simulator X
A good pen
On a differant tangent, what do you get for someone who doesn't appreciate anything longer than a week? What do you get that they'll put miles on for months and months, when they don't care what they got for their birthday a month ago? Something generic, that's what. Is it worth the effort to do something extra? It sure would make me feel better if I did, but I know it'll have zero impact on the other end. Gah, I hate shopping for Christmas. I hate shopping in general, really.
Feelin'... Seclusive and semi-deperessed.
-Cril
In your tears and in your blood
In your fire and in your flood
I hear you laugh, I heard you sing
I wouldn’t change a single thing
And the wheels just keep on turning
The drummers begin to drum
I don’t know which way I’m going
I don’t know what I’ve become
For you I’d wait till kingdom come
Until my days, my days are done
And say you'll come and set me free
Just say you'll wait, you'll wait for me
Coldplay - Till Kingdom Come
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
Still me.
My birthday came and went. Nothing too terribly exciting, I tried Indian food, had a nice perogie dinner, and some how conned Dave into making me a Battlestar Galacticake. What is that, and how did it turn out? See for yourself. How did it taste? Not half bad, considering the actual origional cake and icing were about a month old.
And now, tomorrow is my Dad's birthday. What with the craziness lately of my aunt and her sister, then work, I almost forgot. So excuse me if this is not as polished as you'd like. I kinda like the rough style, but I hope it'll pass for a gift of sorts.
What else? I just changed my battery on my iPod, and it's botted up and charging alright. We'll see if I got everything right when I use it tomorrow. Before then, I gotta sort out this Brian Setzer Orchestra music so I can listen to it tomorrow. If the 'Pod works, that is. Need to tag and rename some tunes. Oh joy. But I like Big Band, so it should be worth it. And for my birthday, my maw got me the Trans-Siberian Orchestra Christmas Trilogy. Totally awesome, I was gunna buy myself a legit copy this Christmas anyways. And their music rawks.
And as soon as I have this and that wrapped up, I get to watch the mid-season finale of Heroes. w00tage. BSG still has a few episodes left. We'll see how those go. And Scrubs is mediocre. The first episode was rather flat, I hope it improves. Oh, and Zach Braff? He makes a hideous woman. *Shudders*
Oh, I played some of the Supreme Commander beta this weekend. Hella sexy. Just like TA, I love it. The graphics are gorgeous, and the scale is rediculous. Total awesomeness, although I suck at it. I think I micro-manage too much for a game of that scale. I've been saved twice now by the sole fact that no one expects the use of a navy. Those were hella close games.
And now, I'm gunna tend to some crap so I can get to Heroes. Oh, and the WWII navy disabling the Focke Wolf launched guided bombs by plugging in electric razors to jam frequincies... Genius.
-Cril
You're a monster, Mr. Grinch.
Your heart's an empty hole.
Your brain is full of spiders,
You've got garlic in your soul.
Mr. Grinch.
I wouldn't touch you, with a
thirty-nine-and-a-half foot pole.
Brian Setzer Orchestra - You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch
And now, tomorrow is my Dad's birthday. What with the craziness lately of my aunt and her sister, then work, I almost forgot. So excuse me if this is not as polished as you'd like. I kinda like the rough style, but I hope it'll pass for a gift of sorts.
What else? I just changed my battery on my iPod, and it's botted up and charging alright. We'll see if I got everything right when I use it tomorrow. Before then, I gotta sort out this Brian Setzer Orchestra music so I can listen to it tomorrow. If the 'Pod works, that is. Need to tag and rename some tunes. Oh joy. But I like Big Band, so it should be worth it. And for my birthday, my maw got me the Trans-Siberian Orchestra Christmas Trilogy. Totally awesome, I was gunna buy myself a legit copy this Christmas anyways. And their music rawks.
And as soon as I have this and that wrapped up, I get to watch the mid-season finale of Heroes. w00tage. BSG still has a few episodes left. We'll see how those go. And Scrubs is mediocre. The first episode was rather flat, I hope it improves. Oh, and Zach Braff? He makes a hideous woman. *Shudders*
Oh, I played some of the Supreme Commander beta this weekend. Hella sexy. Just like TA, I love it. The graphics are gorgeous, and the scale is rediculous. Total awesomeness, although I suck at it. I think I micro-manage too much for a game of that scale. I've been saved twice now by the sole fact that no one expects the use of a navy. Those were hella close games.
And now, I'm gunna tend to some crap so I can get to Heroes. Oh, and the WWII navy disabling the Focke Wolf launched guided bombs by plugging in electric razors to jam frequincies... Genius.
-Cril
You're a monster, Mr. Grinch.
Your heart's an empty hole.
Your brain is full of spiders,
You've got garlic in your soul.
Mr. Grinch.
I wouldn't touch you, with a
thirty-nine-and-a-half foot pole.
Brian Setzer Orchestra - You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
More questions than answers.
Bear with me, I'm typing this out again because Firefox crashed when I was just finishing up the post. I think I have to reinstall it.
What's the big deal about being a teen? More specifically, what the big deal about no longer being one? I have 2.5hrs left until I find out. People have been going on about it and I don't understand. What's so important? It's just another number. Two differant digits. I'll be the same person tomorrow morning that I am now. Right? Not with the way people are acting about it. What am I missing out on that makes the teenage years so great? What do I have to do in the next few hours to find out what I've been missing out on? Fail a test? Crash a car? Kiss a girl? Get hammered? Are any of those things so incredible? What did I miss?
Or maybe it's not that I'm no longer a teenager, but something new, something fresh. What changes? Is there going to be a significant, life-altering event that I need to be older than 19 for? Is it that I'll advance to being an adult? Is that it? I don't get it. I really don't. It's just another day. Nothing's gunna change. The norm has probably been established. Should I be expecting anything to be drastically differant?
No, tonight will be just another night. I'll finish this, browse the internet some more, play some games, maybe do some art or read.
Anyways. Need for Speed Carbon sucks. NOT worth $50. It's a resource hog. There are too many unlocks in too many parts. The autosculpt feature is kinda weak. The new options to work with graphics really needs optimization. It takes forever to move or resize vinyls. The interface is clunky and awkward. The police are way too unbalanced and obviously cheat. The story is flat and short. Some parts are okay... The muscle cars are a nice touch. Some of the new cars are neat.
Heroes keeps on getting better. I'm really enjoying it. I'm still looking forward to BSG this weekend, though. Oh, and Scrubs starts tomorrow. I hope this season turns out to be okay, as it's Braff's last. That, and the writing has been quite weak these past few seasons.
I need to figure out Christmas presents for people. I have no ideas so far.
I'm really busy at work. I feel like I'm falling behind, even though I've been working hard. I might have to put in some OT this weekend. That's okay, though, 'cuz I can use some of it to compensate for the time I'm taking off for the holidays.
Feeling... Fried.
-Cril
Hey that's the story of my life
I had a good plan but it didn't go right
Oh no, I'm overdrawn
I check my account and my money's all gone
Why me? I don't know what to think
I finally get aboard and the whole boat sinks
Seems to be the story of my life
Smash Mouth - Story of My Life
What's the big deal about being a teen? More specifically, what the big deal about no longer being one? I have 2.5hrs left until I find out. People have been going on about it and I don't understand. What's so important? It's just another number. Two differant digits. I'll be the same person tomorrow morning that I am now. Right? Not with the way people are acting about it. What am I missing out on that makes the teenage years so great? What do I have to do in the next few hours to find out what I've been missing out on? Fail a test? Crash a car? Kiss a girl? Get hammered? Are any of those things so incredible? What did I miss?
Or maybe it's not that I'm no longer a teenager, but something new, something fresh. What changes? Is there going to be a significant, life-altering event that I need to be older than 19 for? Is it that I'll advance to being an adult? Is that it? I don't get it. I really don't. It's just another day. Nothing's gunna change. The norm has probably been established. Should I be expecting anything to be drastically differant?
No, tonight will be just another night. I'll finish this, browse the internet some more, play some games, maybe do some art or read.
Anyways. Need for Speed Carbon sucks. NOT worth $50. It's a resource hog. There are too many unlocks in too many parts. The autosculpt feature is kinda weak. The new options to work with graphics really needs optimization. It takes forever to move or resize vinyls. The interface is clunky and awkward. The police are way too unbalanced and obviously cheat. The story is flat and short. Some parts are okay... The muscle cars are a nice touch. Some of the new cars are neat.
Heroes keeps on getting better. I'm really enjoying it. I'm still looking forward to BSG this weekend, though. Oh, and Scrubs starts tomorrow. I hope this season turns out to be okay, as it's Braff's last. That, and the writing has been quite weak these past few seasons.
I need to figure out Christmas presents for people. I have no ideas so far.
I'm really busy at work. I feel like I'm falling behind, even though I've been working hard. I might have to put in some OT this weekend. That's okay, though, 'cuz I can use some of it to compensate for the time I'm taking off for the holidays.
Feeling... Fried.
-Cril
Hey that's the story of my life
I had a good plan but it didn't go right
Oh no, I'm overdrawn
I check my account and my money's all gone
Why me? I don't know what to think
I finally get aboard and the whole boat sinks
Seems to be the story of my life
Smash Mouth - Story of My Life
Monday, November 20, 2006
Simply frusterated and amazed.
That one was on a bit of a whim, without any reference or anything. I'm really impressed at how the pose and proportions turned, it looks half-believeable. Not mentioning the hands of course. Well, I got the upper hand on my first one. That was cool. I like it, overall. Nice and simplistic. It could stand to use some more contrast. Ah well.
I've been messin' up at work quite a bit recently. It annoys me because I've noticed it and I'm trying to do better, but... I'm not getting anywhere. It's annoying me to no end. I know how to do the job. I've done the job well before. And now, I just... Can't.
In other news, I really really want a Wii. For the slick controls, but moreso for Zelda. That game looks friggin' slick. I miss Ocarina of Time, and this looks like its successor. So, so sexy. That, and Red Steel, Mario Galaxy, Smash, and... Quite a few of the other in-house titles. They all look so good. Maybe for Christmas + birthday. We'll see.
-Cril
I want to wrap all my moments around her
I want to watch as she glitters the night
Floats her dreams in the air
People watch, children stare
At these tears of captured light
While she awaits ever patient
She awaits rarely seen
Still her moments are taken
For in the dead of the night
Gathering light
Christmas dreams
And a tear falls upon her snow-white hair
And it runs to the end where it lingers there
Then it falls through the air of a winter's sky
Till it captures a dream and it's crystalized
Trans-Siberian Orchestra - Christmas Dreams
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Mountains and mountains
Why is it that as you go about your day you have thing after thing you want to write in the blog, but when you actually get infront of a keyboard... Blah. Let's see what I can remember.
I want to go on record as saying I hate phones. Talking to people I don't actually know over the phone is worse. I suppose the same goes for VOIP. I like in person, in email, in instant messaging, in writing. But I get unusually nervous phioning people I don't know well. I don't mind talking to my family and close friends, but beyond that... Gah.
Anyhoo, I week ago today I drove back home for a surprise visit. I had a blast, it was great to get the jump on my family and hang out with them for the Rememberance Day long weekend. The drive was pretty brutal. I have better things I could do with ~11hrs of my time, but I gotta say... The drive between Calgary and the BC Fraser Valley is *gorgeous*. The mountains are so fantastic, and you go through such an assortment of environments. Plains, to mountains, to desert, to rainforest. Absolutely stunning each way. It looks just as good during the winter as spring. I loved it. The drive itself were pretty hairy in spots - There was some pretty nasty snow. On one stetch of road, there were about a dozen cars in the ditch. But as per request by Frank... Happy fun photos! These were only taken on the start of going west. It got dark fast, and we made the return trip during the night. And the fact that I took the pics from inside a moving van doesn't make it better. Meh.
The last one may not seem too exciting, but keep in mind that was taken some ~4000 feet above sea level. We were driving the Coquihalla, which is basically... A highway riding the top of a mountain range. Trees as far as the eye can see, but you're *really* elevated. Drove my ears crazy, what with the popping.
In other news, I got demoted at work for something I didn't do (Although I DID have it coming), played commander for the first time in BF2142 and got 120 points, I have a few ideas for things I want to draw, I enjoyed skating tonight (it's a lot more fun when you get to throw your weight into your movement), and I ordered a $15 iPod battery that came to $37 after tax and shipping. The kicker is that I think it may be a HD or memory issue. The battery dies when I go to something not pre-stored in the memory. I ran some diagnostics which turned out green, so there shouldn't be something to worry about. But if the battery doesn't fix it, 30GB video here I come... For Christmas, that is.
And Smallville sucks. Lana? Having Lex's CHILD? How horribly, stereotypically, bad drama is that anyways? I watched all of the current season with Rob, and we tore it apart the whole time. That show's only good for making fun of at this point. Oh, and I LOVED Heroes. It's like Lost, except not... Sucky. And Battlestar is good. As always.
-Cril
When all you got to keep is strong
Move along, move along like I know you do
And even when your hope is gone
Move along, move along just to make it through
All American Rejects - Move Along
I want to go on record as saying I hate phones. Talking to people I don't actually know over the phone is worse. I suppose the same goes for VOIP. I like in person, in email, in instant messaging, in writing. But I get unusually nervous phioning people I don't know well. I don't mind talking to my family and close friends, but beyond that... Gah.
Anyhoo, I week ago today I drove back home for a surprise visit. I had a blast, it was great to get the jump on my family and hang out with them for the Rememberance Day long weekend. The drive was pretty brutal. I have better things I could do with ~11hrs of my time, but I gotta say... The drive between Calgary and the BC Fraser Valley is *gorgeous*. The mountains are so fantastic, and you go through such an assortment of environments. Plains, to mountains, to desert, to rainforest. Absolutely stunning each way. It looks just as good during the winter as spring. I loved it. The drive itself were pretty hairy in spots - There was some pretty nasty snow. On one stetch of road, there were about a dozen cars in the ditch. But as per request by Frank... Happy fun photos! These were only taken on the start of going west. It got dark fast, and we made the return trip during the night. And the fact that I took the pics from inside a moving van doesn't make it better. Meh.
The last one may not seem too exciting, but keep in mind that was taken some ~4000 feet above sea level. We were driving the Coquihalla, which is basically... A highway riding the top of a mountain range. Trees as far as the eye can see, but you're *really* elevated. Drove my ears crazy, what with the popping.
In other news, I got demoted at work for something I didn't do (Although I DID have it coming), played commander for the first time in BF2142 and got 120 points, I have a few ideas for things I want to draw, I enjoyed skating tonight (it's a lot more fun when you get to throw your weight into your movement), and I ordered a $15 iPod battery that came to $37 after tax and shipping. The kicker is that I think it may be a HD or memory issue. The battery dies when I go to something not pre-stored in the memory. I ran some diagnostics which turned out green, so there shouldn't be something to worry about. But if the battery doesn't fix it, 30GB video here I come... For Christmas, that is.
And Smallville sucks. Lana? Having Lex's CHILD? How horribly, stereotypically, bad drama is that anyways? I watched all of the current season with Rob, and we tore it apart the whole time. That show's only good for making fun of at this point. Oh, and I LOVED Heroes. It's like Lost, except not... Sucky. And Battlestar is good. As always.
-Cril
When all you got to keep is strong
Move along, move along like I know you do
And even when your hope is gone
Move along, move along just to make it through
All American Rejects - Move Along
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Oh, the rain and snow.
MAN, I am such a sucker for good, story-driven video games. KotoR 2 RAWKED. I couldn't put it down. Yeah, it's kinda old and buggy, but... Gah, I miss storyline stuff like that. I want more. Will there be a KotoR 3? There are rumours, but I may just have to buy it if it arrives. Gah, the whole thing makes me miss Star Wars. Y'know, everything the expanded universe did right before Georgy-boy butchered it. C'mon, Fett a clone? Jeez, that was so lame.
...
So sue me, I used to be a *hardcore* Star Wars fan.
With KotoR out of the way, that leaves me with BF2142 to play. I'm eagerly waiting on the new patch, hoping it'll smoothen things out a bit. I'm still a bit sick of it from playing ~20hrs of it within three days a while back. I think I can go back for more.
It doesn't stop me from wanting to get NFS Carbon, though. All those cars look so sexy, and I want to get my hands on that autoscult feature thing. FINALLY, a little bit more versitality in the customization department. Even just being able to rotate vinyls will be nice. I just replayed Underground 2 and Most Wanted (I've been on a racing/driving binge recently), and I really liked the customization and drifting from Underground and the cops and slow-mo from Wanted. Carbon looks to be a decent hybrid between the two. The car selection looks fantastic - the muscle cars especially. Now the real question is... What version do I get? I understand both the Collectors and downloaded version have special cars. Does either of them have all the vehicles? Jeez, why is stuff like this so hard to find out?
I hear back home there's been a lot of rain, and a bit of flooding in nearby areas. Scary stuff, although... Not surprising. It *is* the lower mainland. Here it's been off and on snow and rain and sun. I hate Calgary weather. It went from -20c to +15c over last weekend. Crazy.
Anydangway, what is with some people and their car? Okay, I get how much in can mean to some people, but... What's so jaw-dropping scary about a plastic containter siiting on a hood? Will it scratch it? Will it melt or leave marks in the -5c morning? It's not like it's brand new or you don't know an autobody specialist or anything. Maybe it's something about it being a 14-year old beater that you're about to retire within the next few months. Whatever. I'd be protective of my car if I still had it. *Sigh*
Y'know what ticks me off? People who are always so hard to impress and act so... Bitter or condescending. They make you feel so horrible, whatever you try to do to get on their good side. Why is it that you try and talk to them in chipper and mutual tone, when all they do is reply and talk down to you? I don't get it. I don't know how someone can be like that.
My iPod battery may be on the fritz. It might be a good $40 to get it replaced... Sucky deal. I'm so annoyed at how much more expensive things are here than in the 'States. Yes, INCLUDING the exchange rate. It ticks me off. A new iPod is $20 cheaper down south than here. Don't even get me started on the BSG DVDs. I can't wait for the Canadian dollar to come out on top. It'll be bad for the business I work at, but... MAN, I'm sick of these lame prices.
This seems to have been a rather ranty-esque post. Now I gotta go upstairs, get a drink, and look at the orange-purple sky as snow falls under the light of street lamps. Mmm...
-Cril
I find it hard to tell you
I find it hard to take
When people run in circles its a very very
Mad world
Mad world
Enlarging your world
Mad world
Gary Jules - Mad World
...
So sue me, I used to be a *hardcore* Star Wars fan.
With KotoR out of the way, that leaves me with BF2142 to play. I'm eagerly waiting on the new patch, hoping it'll smoothen things out a bit. I'm still a bit sick of it from playing ~20hrs of it within three days a while back. I think I can go back for more.
It doesn't stop me from wanting to get NFS Carbon, though. All those cars look so sexy, and I want to get my hands on that autoscult feature thing. FINALLY, a little bit more versitality in the customization department. Even just being able to rotate vinyls will be nice. I just replayed Underground 2 and Most Wanted (I've been on a racing/driving binge recently), and I really liked the customization and drifting from Underground and the cops and slow-mo from Wanted. Carbon looks to be a decent hybrid between the two. The car selection looks fantastic - the muscle cars especially. Now the real question is... What version do I get? I understand both the Collectors and downloaded version have special cars. Does either of them have all the vehicles? Jeez, why is stuff like this so hard to find out?
I hear back home there's been a lot of rain, and a bit of flooding in nearby areas. Scary stuff, although... Not surprising. It *is* the lower mainland. Here it's been off and on snow and rain and sun. I hate Calgary weather. It went from -20c to +15c over last weekend. Crazy.
Anydangway, what is with some people and their car? Okay, I get how much in can mean to some people, but... What's so jaw-dropping scary about a plastic containter siiting on a hood? Will it scratch it? Will it melt or leave marks in the -5c morning? It's not like it's brand new or you don't know an autobody specialist or anything. Maybe it's something about it being a 14-year old beater that you're about to retire within the next few months. Whatever. I'd be protective of my car if I still had it. *Sigh*
Y'know what ticks me off? People who are always so hard to impress and act so... Bitter or condescending. They make you feel so horrible, whatever you try to do to get on their good side. Why is it that you try and talk to them in chipper and mutual tone, when all they do is reply and talk down to you? I don't get it. I don't know how someone can be like that.
My iPod battery may be on the fritz. It might be a good $40 to get it replaced... Sucky deal. I'm so annoyed at how much more expensive things are here than in the 'States. Yes, INCLUDING the exchange rate. It ticks me off. A new iPod is $20 cheaper down south than here. Don't even get me started on the BSG DVDs. I can't wait for the Canadian dollar to come out on top. It'll be bad for the business I work at, but... MAN, I'm sick of these lame prices.
This seems to have been a rather ranty-esque post. Now I gotta go upstairs, get a drink, and look at the orange-purple sky as snow falls under the light of street lamps. Mmm...
-Cril
I find it hard to tell you
I find it hard to take
When people run in circles its a very very
Mad world
Mad world
Enlarging your world
Mad world
Gary Jules - Mad World
Monday, October 30, 2006
Craptastic day.
Buh. What a horrible, horrible day at work. Let's see, I broke my expensive earbuds, found out I screwed up ANOTHER order, forgot ENTIRELY about a magazine ad (and, as a result, we're having the same ad run THREE times in a row), neglected to tell the bosses about losing everything in my old work email address. Yeah, that's just great. I feel so... Horrible, basically. And, knowing me, I'm gunna dwell on it and let it all ferment for the next week. I wish I wasn't so hard on myself. But enough of this emo nonesense.
Frank gave me the choice of "falling or fallen". I chose the prior, and he presented me with a sketch of a gut for me to ink and colour. The below is the result of a few hours of work. I kinda like it. Although, it is the first time I've used the dodge and burn tools (pathetic - I know). Regardless, I did a horrible job with the lighting. It should've been more even considering it's (supposed to be) night time. Bah.
I'm really jealous of Frank. He's such a great artist - he can draw *so* much better than I can. I love working on his stuff.
In other news, BSG. Wow. I thought last weeks was good. The atmo attach was the best sci-fi military maneuver I've ever seen. It had me standing up and excited. The Pegasus taking out the basestars was incredible. That was a work of art. And then I saw this week's episode. Not a single shot fired or explosion, and yet *easily* the best BSG to date. The writing was sheer genious, and I really found myself locked in to what each character was thinking and doing. Just... Wow. I think that's what makes BSG so great - It doesn't need the action to make it good. What a fabulous show.
Then there's Lost, which sucks.
Then there's Heroes, which is awesome. Not BSG awesome, but a significant runner-up. I'm really enjoying that one, and can't wait for tonights episode.
This weekend I played +8hrs of BF2142. I had fun 'cuz I played most of it with Frank. Regardless, it leaves me feeling quite unproductive. I need a break from that game now, so I'm trying out KotOR2. I want to get the new Need for Speed, but I can't spend the cash. I've totally blown my budget with the skates and Cardel pass. I don't want to spend anymore money on myself until the new year. With the exception of the Trans-Siberian Christmas Trilogy, of course. Chirstmas music is one of my favourite parts of winter, specifically because of TSO.
I gotta find me a image host. Allbrand does a fabulous job, but I'm needing more bandwidth for some reason. I don't know where are the hits are coming from. Could it be that significant amounts of people are reading this? Probably not. Regardless, should I get just an FTP or an actual image hosting account? Beats me... Maybe I should ask Steve or Eric...
Anyhoo, gunna go play some KotOR. I'm a sucker for a game with good storytelling. Oh Starcraft, how I miss thee and HL2 Ep2 seems so far away yet. *Sigh*
-Cril
PS- I bought the new BNL album from their official site. It cost me $17 for 27 tunes that downloaded within 4 minutes. How sweet is that? I can't wait to go see them live...
Some people are just all show
I don’t mind that if the show is worth watching
But it’s all bark, and not tree
What’s more ironic than a hippie in Versace?
It’s all peace and love and limousines
You’ve got the right message but the wrong intentions
How can you be touchy-feely when you’ve lost touch?
I think its time we had a little intervention with you
Barenaked Ladies - Down to Earth
Frank gave me the choice of "falling or fallen". I chose the prior, and he presented me with a sketch of a gut for me to ink and colour. The below is the result of a few hours of work. I kinda like it. Although, it is the first time I've used the dodge and burn tools (pathetic - I know). Regardless, I did a horrible job with the lighting. It should've been more even considering it's (supposed to be) night time. Bah.
I'm really jealous of Frank. He's such a great artist - he can draw *so* much better than I can. I love working on his stuff.
In other news, BSG. Wow. I thought last weeks was good. The atmo attach was the best sci-fi military maneuver I've ever seen. It had me standing up and excited. The Pegasus taking out the basestars was incredible. That was a work of art. And then I saw this week's episode. Not a single shot fired or explosion, and yet *easily* the best BSG to date. The writing was sheer genious, and I really found myself locked in to what each character was thinking and doing. Just... Wow. I think that's what makes BSG so great - It doesn't need the action to make it good. What a fabulous show.
Then there's Lost, which sucks.
Then there's Heroes, which is awesome. Not BSG awesome, but a significant runner-up. I'm really enjoying that one, and can't wait for tonights episode.
This weekend I played +8hrs of BF2142. I had fun 'cuz I played most of it with Frank. Regardless, it leaves me feeling quite unproductive. I need a break from that game now, so I'm trying out KotOR2. I want to get the new Need for Speed, but I can't spend the cash. I've totally blown my budget with the skates and Cardel pass. I don't want to spend anymore money on myself until the new year. With the exception of the Trans-Siberian Christmas Trilogy, of course. Chirstmas music is one of my favourite parts of winter, specifically because of TSO.
I gotta find me a image host. Allbrand does a fabulous job, but I'm needing more bandwidth for some reason. I don't know where are the hits are coming from. Could it be that significant amounts of people are reading this? Probably not. Regardless, should I get just an FTP or an actual image hosting account? Beats me... Maybe I should ask Steve or Eric...
Anyhoo, gunna go play some KotOR. I'm a sucker for a game with good storytelling. Oh Starcraft, how I miss thee and HL2 Ep2 seems so far away yet. *Sigh*
-Cril
PS- I bought the new BNL album from their official site. It cost me $17 for 27 tunes that downloaded within 4 minutes. How sweet is that? I can't wait to go see them live...
Some people are just all show
I don’t mind that if the show is worth watching
But it’s all bark, and not tree
What’s more ironic than a hippie in Versace?
It’s all peace and love and limousines
You’ve got the right message but the wrong intentions
How can you be touchy-feely when you’ve lost touch?
I think its time we had a little intervention with you
Barenaked Ladies - Down to Earth
Friday, October 20, 2006
Afterglow
Mary asked me to draw a "french dude" for our sick French teacher. He's an AWESOME guy, so I sat down for two hours and spat this out. It makes me laugh looking at it. The guy looks like such a sleaze bucket. No offence to any of the french out there... I was trying to be stereotypical :)
In other news... Lost. This week's episode wasn't too bad - It returned a bit of the... Dare I say "charm" back to the show. It was good, but nothing too stellar. Still, it was probably my favourite episode of the past year. I hope things pick up a bit and progress. Knowing that Locke is a "hunter" and that he's going to get Jack & Co. back from the others semi-excites me. I hope we see John open a can of pwnage.
Battlestar, as usual, is excellent. Absolutely perfect. I can't wait for tomorrow night's episode. I'm sure it won't disapoint... But on the other hand, I hope it doesn't end on a cliffhanger where Adama had (pretty much) admitted defeat in the battle over new Caprica. That'd tick me off, 'cuz I'd have to wait *another* week.
As suggested my my brother and sister, I'm looking into this "Heroes" show I've heard of. It might be interesting, I'll report when I actually watch them.
I talked with an "old friend" (I'm not sure if either of those words are appropriate...) last night. It was interesting. I found out that she found someone she likes. I'm so glad for her. I hope it all works out just right.
In other news, I'm going rock climbing tomorrow. That should be fun, eh?
-Cril
Here I am, lost in the light of the moon that comes through my window
Bathed in blue, the walls of my memory divides the thorns from the roses
It's you and the roses
INXS - Afterglow
What an awesome song.
Monday, October 16, 2006
Screw EA
So. In the latest CGW podcast, they received retail boxed copies of BF 2142.
When you open the box, a big slip of paper falls out first, preceeding any discs or manuals. The slip of paper says, essentially, that 2142 includes monitoring software which runs while your computer is online, and records "anonymous" information like your IP address, surfing habits (probably via cookie scans), and other "computing habits" in order to report this information back to ad companies and ad servers, which generates in-game ads.
Now, I can live with certain in-game ads (though apparently there will be Dodge truck and Neon ads in the bleak, futuristic world of 2142), but including a lengthy description - outside of even the Eula - seems to indicate even EA knows that this is some shady borderline spyware shit. I don't support it and won't be buying 2142 (for a host of other reasons, too).
That was from here.
Now... I understand ingame ads. When they're done properly, that is. I'm fine with the developers pimping some empty texture space to sponsors for a little $$ on the side. Sure, fine. It makes some games feel more realistic, even. I didn't mind it in games like Underground 2, where you see billboards for the companies you're tricking out your ride with. It's cool, it made sense. No problem.
But spyware? No thanks, EA. I was probably going to fork over a good $50 to buy your model and sound pack that is 2142. I put up with the crappy two heliplanes, horribly wussy mechs, a retarded HOVER tank that doesn't work on water, mediocre infantry weapons, and a generally weak 'futuristic' theme. I tried, and you had me. But you lost me at the part where you decided that because I PAID YOU $50, it was grounds to look over my shoulder. You stepped over the line there. You're a giant, and quite frankly you probably don't care for a single one of your customers. We're all suckers to you for buying the games that really outta be patches. So when I say that I'm not going to spend any money on you and your game, you're not going to care. At all. But I feel like I'm standing up against something that is... How to put it delicately... WRONG. I know this'll never be read by anyone relevant to the issue, and you'll sit comfortably in your comfy executive chair without noticing the loss of $50 from your fat wallet. Or maybe you do, but you simply don't care. That might as well be the case.
There's probably a few others like me. I hope I'm not a lone fanatic with rediculously high morals. I admit - I wanted Battlefield 2142 despite it's flaws. And now I don't.
GG EA.
-Cril
I'm so happy 'cause today
I've found my friends
They're in my head
I'm so ugly, but that's okay, 'cause so are you
We've broken our mirrors (We broke our mirrors)
Sunday morning is everyday for all I care
And I'm not scared
Light my candles in a daze
'Cause I've found God
Hey, hey, hey...
The Polyphonic Spree
Monday, October 09, 2006
Batman, a dancing lady, cylons, and MORE!!
I did a bit of drawing/painting the other week. I think I need to just doodle a bit more, rather than only drawing for the larger peices. Blah.
I think they're both pretty good. I used references just to get the general composition down, but I pretty much did the rest on my own. I'm pretty pleased, I think (especially the Batman one) is some of my better stuff. I took the reference for that one from the new Batman cartoon series. I've actually been enjoying it a bit, I like that take on the universe. Here's a lil' gif of a few steps of the process. Be grateful - It took me a while to dust of ImageReady and figure out how to do animations again.
Anyhoo, you can get a 1600x1200 version of the finished peice here.
What next... Ohhh! CYLONS! OH BABY THE CYLONS! BSG is back and I'm loving it... Oh, how I've missed the sweet sweet adventures of the Battlestar Galactica and friends. I'm starting to believe that this really is going to be a dark season... The whole first episode(s?) was so... Intense. Especially with the suicide bombing. The whole thing reeked of political messages relevent to what's going on now. Especially the whole thing with Baltar denying the torture. Either way: I LOVE it. So dark, so dramatic, so exciting.
Can't say the same about Lost. It's getting near the same page as Smallville. I'll keep watching it for intrests sake, but really... I've stopped caring. Once again, more questions than answers and they're questions I don't really care to see answered all that much. Bleh. I've stopped watching Smallville altogether though. No point in watching if I can't tear it apart and butcher it with someone.
There's a few good games coming out this month eh? We got some Flight Sim X, Dark Messiah, Splinter Cell, NFS Carbon, and BF2142. Oh, BF2142... I downloaded, installed, and played the demo. I have mixed feelings about it, but I might buy it. If you really want to know what I think, check out my, um... 'review'.
So many games, all so expensive... Am I the only one who thinks $50 is too much for a game? Bah, probably not. I'll end up buying some of them anyways. Prolly BF this month, NFS next month (I've been on a bit of a racing binge lately). We'll see what some reviews say.
And on a differant note... Have you ever had a weird conversation with someone when you tried to get a message across and figure out where they stand on something, only to end it knowing less than you initially did? How very... Surreal perhaps?
Anyways, if this whole post seems rather disjointed, it may because I haven't posted in a month or... Because I'm watching the Colbert Report on the other monitor. I've already corrected a handful of bizarre errors. And I don't feel like going back to fix more except URLs or something. Suck it up.
-Cril
Well, its a marvelous night for a moondance
With the stars up above in your eyes
A fantabulous night to make romance
neath the cover of october skies
And all the leaves on the trees are falling
To the sound of the breezes that blow
And Im trying to please to the calling
Of your heart-strings that play soft and low
Van Morrison - Moondance
I think they're both pretty good. I used references just to get the general composition down, but I pretty much did the rest on my own. I'm pretty pleased, I think (especially the Batman one) is some of my better stuff. I took the reference for that one from the new Batman cartoon series. I've actually been enjoying it a bit, I like that take on the universe. Here's a lil' gif of a few steps of the process. Be grateful - It took me a while to dust of ImageReady and figure out how to do animations again.
Anyhoo, you can get a 1600x1200 version of the finished peice here.
What next... Ohhh! CYLONS! OH BABY THE CYLONS! BSG is back and I'm loving it... Oh, how I've missed the sweet sweet adventures of the Battlestar Galactica and friends. I'm starting to believe that this really is going to be a dark season... The whole first episode(s?) was so... Intense. Especially with the suicide bombing. The whole thing reeked of political messages relevent to what's going on now. Especially the whole thing with Baltar denying the torture. Either way: I LOVE it. So dark, so dramatic, so exciting.
Can't say the same about Lost. It's getting near the same page as Smallville. I'll keep watching it for intrests sake, but really... I've stopped caring. Once again, more questions than answers and they're questions I don't really care to see answered all that much. Bleh. I've stopped watching Smallville altogether though. No point in watching if I can't tear it apart and butcher it with someone.
There's a few good games coming out this month eh? We got some Flight Sim X, Dark Messiah, Splinter Cell, NFS Carbon, and BF2142. Oh, BF2142... I downloaded, installed, and played the demo. I have mixed feelings about it, but I might buy it. If you really want to know what I think, check out my, um... 'review'.
So many games, all so expensive... Am I the only one who thinks $50 is too much for a game? Bah, probably not. I'll end up buying some of them anyways. Prolly BF this month, NFS next month (I've been on a bit of a racing binge lately). We'll see what some reviews say.
And on a differant note... Have you ever had a weird conversation with someone when you tried to get a message across and figure out where they stand on something, only to end it knowing less than you initially did? How very... Surreal perhaps?
Anyways, if this whole post seems rather disjointed, it may because I haven't posted in a month or... Because I'm watching the Colbert Report on the other monitor. I've already corrected a handful of bizarre errors. And I don't feel like going back to fix more except URLs or something. Suck it up.
-Cril
Well, its a marvelous night for a moondance
With the stars up above in your eyes
A fantabulous night to make romance
neath the cover of october skies
And all the leaves on the trees are falling
To the sound of the breezes that blow
And Im trying to please to the calling
Of your heart-strings that play soft and low
Van Morrison - Moondance
Thursday, September 07, 2006
"The universe is a big place..."
Wow, just wow. I just watched a clip on YouTube: The Hubble Deep Field: The Most Important Image Ever Taken
Crazy. Absolutely, friggin' crazy. Makes you feel so... Aw heck, I'll let Calvin explain it:
Humbled. Completely humbled.
-Cril
Images of broken light which
Dance before me like a million eyes
That call me on and on across the universe
Thoughts meander like a
Restless wind inside a letter box
They tumble blindly as
They make their way across the universe
Across the Universe - Fiona Apple
Crazy. Absolutely, friggin' crazy. Makes you feel so... Aw heck, I'll let Calvin explain it:
Humbled. Completely humbled.
-Cril
Images of broken light which
Dance before me like a million eyes
That call me on and on across the universe
Thoughts meander like a
Restless wind inside a letter box
They tumble blindly as
They make their way across the universe
Across the Universe - Fiona Apple
Monday, September 04, 2006
Her name is Rio...
Pfft. Quick update.
Futureshop SUCKS. I had the best experience yet with one of their employees. He went way the heck out of his way to help me, and I was quite impressed with what he tried. When I tried to give him kudos, the people at customer support blew me off. And there's no way to provide feedback on their site. How retarded is that?
I hate the video game industry. Why? It doesn't take itself seriously. Why is it that when the game industry is larger than the film industry, DVD movies are in stores for the day of release while games take another one to two weeks? I've been trying to get ahold of Darkstar One for TWO WEEKS. It's been out since Aug. 14th. I had to order it from Amazon. Futureshop didn't have it, and EB Games told me to check back on specific dates three times now. Ugh.
Anyhoo, I've been home alone for the weekend. I did some dishes, cleaned up, and went for a few walks. I suppose I'll art something this afternoon. I've been doing a Photoshop battle over the past week with a friend over at the FNF Clan. Here's my latest entry:
-Cril
I don't know where to start
Say I'm tired or throw a party
These cucumber eyes are lying the more that I smile about it.
And all of my clothes feel like somebody's old throwaways
I don't like it.
It's good to be in love.
It really does suit you
Just like everything.
I'm happy you're in love,
'Cause every colour goes where you do.
Frou Frou - It's Good To Be In Love
Futureshop SUCKS. I had the best experience yet with one of their employees. He went way the heck out of his way to help me, and I was quite impressed with what he tried. When I tried to give him kudos, the people at customer support blew me off. And there's no way to provide feedback on their site. How retarded is that?
I hate the video game industry. Why? It doesn't take itself seriously. Why is it that when the game industry is larger than the film industry, DVD movies are in stores for the day of release while games take another one to two weeks? I've been trying to get ahold of Darkstar One for TWO WEEKS. It's been out since Aug. 14th. I had to order it from Amazon. Futureshop didn't have it, and EB Games told me to check back on specific dates three times now. Ugh.
Anyhoo, I've been home alone for the weekend. I did some dishes, cleaned up, and went for a few walks. I suppose I'll art something this afternoon. I've been doing a Photoshop battle over the past week with a friend over at the FNF Clan. Here's my latest entry:
-Cril
I don't know where to start
Say I'm tired or throw a party
These cucumber eyes are lying the more that I smile about it.
And all of my clothes feel like somebody's old throwaways
I don't like it.
It's good to be in love.
It really does suit you
Just like everything.
I'm happy you're in love,
'Cause every colour goes where you do.
Frou Frou - It's Good To Be In Love
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Last Firstborn
A quickie from the other day. I like the style with the crazy outlines and whatnot. It came together well, except for the hair. It origionally was supposed to be a guy with a ballcap, but it just didn't seem to work. This way has more conflict/contrast. Inspired by Cellweller's "The Last Firstborn"
-Cril
I hear the sound of a heart
From the shadow in the dark
Waiting for the poison to hit its mark
(Listen--my son) I see the darkness
Surround the shape on the ground the
Killer straight up and a body face
Down (firstborn-last one) i hear the
Din of the screams, sorrow in streams
The smell of farewell and gasoline
(Listen--my son) I see a heart set free
And my legacy hear a voice from a
Shadow that is beckoning me
Celldweller - The Last Firstborn
Friday, July 28, 2006
Yes, I know...
It's been a month or something since I last updated, I know. No excuse, just really really lazy. Here are my last three arts of the whole class, and I'll leave it at that. To be honest, I've been avoiding doing so for some reason, so I'll get it out of the way, nice and simple. In order: a crappy self portrait, a crappy tree (Complete with crappy lumberjack!), and a crappy inside view from the cafeteria.
Anyhoo, that's good enough for now methinks.
-Cril
Tragedy
When the feelings gone and you cant go on
Its tragedy
When the morning cries and you dont know why
Its hard to bear
With no-one to love you youre
Goin nowhere
Tragedy
When you lose control and you got no soul
Its tragedy
When the morning cries and you dont know why
Its hard to bear
With no-one to love you youre
Goin nowhere
Celldweller - Tragedy
Anyhoo, that's good enough for now methinks.
-Cril
Tragedy
When the feelings gone and you cant go on
Its tragedy
When the morning cries and you dont know why
Its hard to bear
With no-one to love you youre
Goin nowhere
Tragedy
When you lose control and you got no soul
Its tragedy
When the morning cries and you dont know why
Its hard to bear
With no-one to love you youre
Goin nowhere
Celldweller - Tragedy
Monday, June 19, 2006
Hands are the Devil's Playthings
Hands are a bugger to make believable. Presenting this weeks... erm... 'Art':
We're studying the process where you draw the basic core and bends of the shapes first and then expand to object outlines and then details. He put a bunch of crap together in the center (A chair, statue/manniquen, and various arms and limbs), but I think I got the worst possible angle. I could barely make sense of it in real life. But I did my best, and it turned out okay. I ran out of time, so some of the outlines are kinda weak in areas. And the arm on the bottom had a hand on it, but after 45mins working on it with no results, I chopped it off. Hense running short on time.
And holy crap, a SECOND arting?
I did this quickey Friday night, as I had a hankering to do something with colour. It's been stormy recently, so lightning seemed like something worth trying. The clouds look a bit too 2D and chaotic. The lighted grass looks okay. The parts I like best is the glow behind the lightning and the tree for the way it's lit and how it's being blown away. I tried to make the tree like the one I did a few drawings back. Oh well, I like it. Especially the colours.
In other news, the Honda died on me. In the left-hand lane. Of an intersection. During rush hour. While it was raining. A guy from the Minit Lube across the street helped me move it out of traffic, and let me use a phone to call me uncle. I was within spitting distance from the school, so I went ahead to the art class while he picked it up. All worked out. Sucky 20 minutes though.
-Cril
If you're listening to this song
You may think the chords are going wrong
But they're not;
He just wrote it like that.
The Beatles - Only a Northern Song
We're studying the process where you draw the basic core and bends of the shapes first and then expand to object outlines and then details. He put a bunch of crap together in the center (A chair, statue/manniquen, and various arms and limbs), but I think I got the worst possible angle. I could barely make sense of it in real life. But I did my best, and it turned out okay. I ran out of time, so some of the outlines are kinda weak in areas. And the arm on the bottom had a hand on it, but after 45mins working on it with no results, I chopped it off. Hense running short on time.
And holy crap, a SECOND arting?
I did this quickey Friday night, as I had a hankering to do something with colour. It's been stormy recently, so lightning seemed like something worth trying. The clouds look a bit too 2D and chaotic. The lighted grass looks okay. The parts I like best is the glow behind the lightning and the tree for the way it's lit and how it's being blown away. I tried to make the tree like the one I did a few drawings back. Oh well, I like it. Especially the colours.
In other news, the Honda died on me. In the left-hand lane. Of an intersection. During rush hour. While it was raining. A guy from the Minit Lube across the street helped me move it out of traffic, and let me use a phone to call me uncle. I was within spitting distance from the school, so I went ahead to the art class while he picked it up. All worked out. Sucky 20 minutes though.
-Cril
If you're listening to this song
You may think the chords are going wrong
But they're not;
He just wrote it like that.
The Beatles - Only a Northern Song
Sunday, June 11, 2006
XPalicious
That was from last class. Hella crappy, imo. I dunno why, but I just 'gave up' at some point. That's when I added in the other student and my canvas with hand. From there it was the obvious 'oh DUH' video game connection. I was tempted to throw in a crowbar or something... But blah. I added in the crosshair and hud. Just out of frame at the top I had "sp_acad @ 1FPH". That of course, would be cl_showfps 1 in Half-Life 2 console, which would translate loosly to "single painting Alberta College of Art and Design at 1 frame per hour". Yeah, whatever. I'm quite disappointed with the overall quality, but I admit I had fun doing it and listening to some Dave Matthews Band on my 'Pod. Good times.
I got Windows XP Home. I formatted today, it seems everything has gone well. Not only that, but I moved my entire desk/setup to somewhere else in the basement. I like having my computer out of my room. As for reinstalling crap, I always dread having to get iTunes back on its feet. It basically involves copying and pasting everything from the old install and hoping it works with the same library, settings, and checked items. Ugh.
This is gunna be a long week of work. It's pretty exhausting stuff to clean out and work on the shop for 8hrs... Not so much fun.
-Cril
It's crazy I'm thinking
Just knowing that the world is round
And here I'm dancing on the ground
Am I right side up or upside down
And is this real or am I dreaming
Dave Matthews Band - Crush
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Somedays you just need the speedbumps so you can take in the scenery.
I started my cred-free course this Thursday. It was three hours long, but it went by quickly. We did a shape study using the 'enveloping' technique. It was pretty fun. It's the first time I've really worked with charcoal, which can be quite the... Instrument. It's messy. A little bit goes a loooong way. It smudges where you don't want it to. But it does look hella sexy... I had a blast. Sorry about the pic quality, it was taken on my bro's Palm.
I had to go to the campus at some point to get the paper (22x34"?! Holy crap, does that even exsist anywhere else?) during my lunch hour. I was gone for an hour and forty-five minutes. Okay, so the traffic was horrible. But driving around an unfamiliar large city wasn't the problem. The thing that sucked is that I got lost on campus. The campus where I was supposed to be, and the campus of the next door university. Ugh. Boy did I feel dumb when I went into the wrong bookstore and wondered why it was lacking art supplies... On a good note, though, I knew where to go for my class when it rolled around.
Anyhoo, things of note... I'm now Health Insured, although I still need to finish reading through the papers that came. Holly Brook's album is coming out this week, which I will most likely 'evaluate' before purchasing. FlatOut2 supposedly comes out this month, but videogame release dates tend to be one of the great mysteries in life (Seriously, the site has like three differant dates on it. Helpful...). I beat the new HL2 episode. What a killer game. It was short, yes, but DANG. The best looking graphics I have ever seen, smooth animations, and superb storytelling. Well worth the $20.
Besides that, well... There's nothing else to report. We're recording the Band of Brothers off of the History Channel, and me n' Rob plan on watching them. Also, Dave supposedly has a good connection for scoring some more Munchkin games. But he hasn't heard back from him yet. Argh. Oh well, at least I still have my Pantyhose of Giant Protection that I can ridicule Dave for not being able to have.
-Cril
Paint the town
Take a bow
Thank everybody
You're gonna do it again
Are are the few, the proud
You are the antibody
Mind soul, and zen
And the world's a stage
And the world's a faze
And the end is near
So push rewind
Just in time
Thank anybody
You're gonna do it again
Smash Mouth - Then the Morning Comes
I had to go to the campus at some point to get the paper (22x34"?! Holy crap, does that even exsist anywhere else?) during my lunch hour. I was gone for an hour and forty-five minutes. Okay, so the traffic was horrible. But driving around an unfamiliar large city wasn't the problem. The thing that sucked is that I got lost on campus. The campus where I was supposed to be, and the campus of the next door university. Ugh. Boy did I feel dumb when I went into the wrong bookstore and wondered why it was lacking art supplies... On a good note, though, I knew where to go for my class when it rolled around.
Anyhoo, things of note... I'm now Health Insured, although I still need to finish reading through the papers that came. Holly Brook's album is coming out this week, which I will most likely 'evaluate' before purchasing. FlatOut2 supposedly comes out this month, but videogame release dates tend to be one of the great mysteries in life (Seriously, the site has like three differant dates on it. Helpful...). I beat the new HL2 episode. What a killer game. It was short, yes, but DANG. The best looking graphics I have ever seen, smooth animations, and superb storytelling. Well worth the $20.
Besides that, well... There's nothing else to report. We're recording the Band of Brothers off of the History Channel, and me n' Rob plan on watching them. Also, Dave supposedly has a good connection for scoring some more Munchkin games. But he hasn't heard back from him yet. Argh. Oh well, at least I still have my Pantyhose of Giant Protection that I can ridicule Dave for not being able to have.
-Cril
Paint the town
Take a bow
Thank everybody
You're gonna do it again
Are are the few, the proud
You are the antibody
Mind soul, and zen
And the world's a stage
And the world's a faze
And the end is near
So push rewind
Just in time
Thank anybody
You're gonna do it again
Smash Mouth - Then the Morning Comes
Saturday, May 27, 2006
Holy lack of updates Batman!
I can't believe it's already been a month that I've been back. Time sure has flown by. On the same not, I start my art class next Thursday. I went shopping today and got most of the supplies I need, except for the paper. Where the heck do I find a pad of 22"x34" bond paper? I can't very well go to the campus art supply store if I'm working. Bah. I hope Michael's will have something.
The sucky part of having to start classes on Thursday is, of course, the fact that I'm missing the release of Aftermath. But I suppose that can wait. At least of gotten some other things done. Health insurance, course corrections, and... Okay, maybe I actually haven't done as much as I thought. Nuts.
I'm having second thoughts about the whole motorcycle/scooter thing. I found out that my old karate instructor was in a motorcycle accident and really got banged up. That's not the part that's bothering me, though. I'm not getting a motorcycle and I won't be driving on highways. I guess what's really getting at me is that it won't do me any good when there's snow on the ground. And there's snow on the ground much longer here than there is at home. Bah. I keep telling myself that if my CRX gets repaired, I'll stick with that. But that situation seems to be pretty bleak. *Sigh* I'd like to have the independance of my own transportation, but I don't know how to go about it in a cost-effective manner.
I saw X-Men 3. I'm not a fan of X-Men as a whole, but the movies were pretty good. I enjoyed seeing the variety of skills/talents that differant mutants had. Smallville has been feeling a bit like X-Men in that perspective. And not in a good way.
Oh, and I've entered into a contest over at Half-Life Fallout. I'm not quite sure how well I'll do... It'd probably be foolish of me to expect to even place. Oh well, it's the experience that counts, right?
-Cril
The judges will decide
The likes of me abide
Spectators of the show
Always staying low
The game is on again
A lover or a friend
A big thing or a small
The winner takes it all
ABBA - The Winner Takes it All
The sucky part of having to start classes on Thursday is, of course, the fact that I'm missing the release of Aftermath. But I suppose that can wait. At least of gotten some other things done. Health insurance, course corrections, and... Okay, maybe I actually haven't done as much as I thought. Nuts.
I'm having second thoughts about the whole motorcycle/scooter thing. I found out that my old karate instructor was in a motorcycle accident and really got banged up. That's not the part that's bothering me, though. I'm not getting a motorcycle and I won't be driving on highways. I guess what's really getting at me is that it won't do me any good when there's snow on the ground. And there's snow on the ground much longer here than there is at home. Bah. I keep telling myself that if my CRX gets repaired, I'll stick with that. But that situation seems to be pretty bleak. *Sigh* I'd like to have the independance of my own transportation, but I don't know how to go about it in a cost-effective manner.
I saw X-Men 3. I'm not a fan of X-Men as a whole, but the movies were pretty good. I enjoyed seeing the variety of skills/talents that differant mutants had. Smallville has been feeling a bit like X-Men in that perspective. And not in a good way.
Oh, and I've entered into a contest over at Half-Life Fallout. I'm not quite sure how well I'll do... It'd probably be foolish of me to expect to even place. Oh well, it's the experience that counts, right?
-Cril
The judges will decide
The likes of me abide
Spectators of the show
Always staying low
The game is on again
A lover or a friend
A big thing or a small
The winner takes it all
ABBA - The Winner Takes it All
Monday, May 08, 2006
Back to the Present
It's been a while. While, a few weeks, but it seems longer. What's to say? A lot, apparently.
I went home for a week to attend my sister's wedding. It was nice returning to the area. I was glad to see some faces, while I wouldn't have minded to have passed by some others. I got everything done that I wanted to do, including hitting two bakeries and a pizzaria. I brought back a fair amount of swaggage. I was hoping to bring back my bike, but that didn't turn out how I was hoping. Oh well. I got books, DVDs, some clothes, blades, and some misc odds and ends.
I installed C&C First Decade on the WinXP partition, and low and behold it ran when I booted to 2K. I just ran the .exe and it plays fine. Now how retarded is THAT? EA, you guys are lame. Jeez.
Speaking of games and lamness... Sony. Lol. Coincidence that they've incorporated some aspects the Nintendo Wii control setup? I doubt it. The stole the rumble pack and analog stick from Nintendo, it's logical that they'd keep up with the competition by continuing to use their ideas. Ugh. What a bunch of idiots. Who's gunna pay $500 for a console that doesn't control as well as a $200 version? Not me, that's who.
Don't get me wrong, Nintendo isn't all perfect in my eyes. 'Wii' says it all. *Rolls eyes* I have to admit though, I find their games to be funner and more creative than the average competition, and they seem to be the only company out there pushing the envelope not in graphics and performance, but in the overall gaming experience. The controller is freakin' awesome. I've never followed a console like this before. Heck, I've never even bought a console within the first two years of its debut. But I'll tell you this right now: I will be one of the first ones to purchase a Wii.
Anyways, I need to get off my butt and:
-Draw something regularly
-Change my course selections & dropp Photoshop
-Get the book for motorcycle licencing
-Clean up my room and UNPACK
-Purchase HL2 Aftermath
And the list goes on, but those are the major ones. I'm really dreading taking that drawing course. I haven't been to school in a year, this is a strange town, and I *totally* don't know my way around or how I'll be getting to/from. I wish I could just get a scooter and not have to worry about borrowing a car or figuring out buses. Darn Alberta vehicle classifications...
I've been reading 'Flyboys' by James Bradley. I'm almost half-way through, and so far it's about the general air combat in the Pacific during WWII. I found the background history to both the US and Japan to be fairly interesting. I didn't know how close and apart they were. How the US used and abused Japan before the war. How retarded the US armed forces were for not listening to Billy Mitchell (If anyone deserves a bomber named after him, it's Mr. Mitchell). How the Japanese were trained to destroy whatever human instics they had. How the Japenese didn't treat their soldiers as valuable resources. How racist and white-supremist many of the American Presidents were, included Roosevelt.
The book is quite graphic in its descriptions of the Japanese in China, with their Three Alls (Burn All, Kill All, Loot All). What really got me, though, was how the US in the Phillipines was just as bad as the Japanese. I didn't know that, and it blew me away. I also didn't know how bad the Americans were in destroying the indians of their country, to make room for white settlers. It made me sick. Here's the self-proclaimed 'Defender of Freedom' with a past so bloody... It makes you wonder how they did it and how they slept at night. I remember being very disgusted when I found out that the Japanese don't teach their students about the Japanese rape of China during WWII. Now I found out the US is just as bad: Not through a history class or assignment, but through a book my mom just happen to give to me because the libaray already had a copy. It scares me in two ways: It's not so bad with Japan, because they're somewhat peaceful. The US is joyriding around the Middle East under the name of freedom, starting wars and causing deaths (Innocent and otherwise). If they don't teach about their past, what's to keep things from going far south of where they currently are? We're 'more civilized'? I hope so. And the other thing that scares me... I didn't know about the US slaughter of Filipinos, and I'm not even from the 'States. I understand why they should hide it, but why the Canadian Educational System? It makes me wonder: If we don't even know about the gruesome American past, what are we hiding? We like to thing Canada is a peacekeeper. But the US is the Defender of Peace, and look how blood-soaked its history is. Who have we killed? What blood is on our hands?
Do I even want to know? No.
But every self-respecting Canadian should.
-Cril
There are places I'll remember
All my life though some have changed
Some forever not for better
Some have gone and some remain
All these places have their moments
With lovers and friends I still can recall
Some are dead and some are living
In my life I've loved them all
Beatles - In My Life
I went home for a week to attend my sister's wedding. It was nice returning to the area. I was glad to see some faces, while I wouldn't have minded to have passed by some others. I got everything done that I wanted to do, including hitting two bakeries and a pizzaria. I brought back a fair amount of swaggage. I was hoping to bring back my bike, but that didn't turn out how I was hoping. Oh well. I got books, DVDs, some clothes, blades, and some misc odds and ends.
I installed C&C First Decade on the WinXP partition, and low and behold it ran when I booted to 2K. I just ran the .exe and it plays fine. Now how retarded is THAT? EA, you guys are lame. Jeez.
Speaking of games and lamness... Sony. Lol. Coincidence that they've incorporated some aspects the Nintendo Wii control setup? I doubt it. The stole the rumble pack and analog stick from Nintendo, it's logical that they'd keep up with the competition by continuing to use their ideas. Ugh. What a bunch of idiots. Who's gunna pay $500 for a console that doesn't control as well as a $200 version? Not me, that's who.
Don't get me wrong, Nintendo isn't all perfect in my eyes. 'Wii' says it all. *Rolls eyes* I have to admit though, I find their games to be funner and more creative than the average competition, and they seem to be the only company out there pushing the envelope not in graphics and performance, but in the overall gaming experience. The controller is freakin' awesome. I've never followed a console like this before. Heck, I've never even bought a console within the first two years of its debut. But I'll tell you this right now: I will be one of the first ones to purchase a Wii.
Anyways, I need to get off my butt and:
-Draw something regularly
-Change my course selections & dropp Photoshop
-Get the book for motorcycle licencing
-Clean up my room and UNPACK
-Purchase HL2 Aftermath
And the list goes on, but those are the major ones. I'm really dreading taking that drawing course. I haven't been to school in a year, this is a strange town, and I *totally* don't know my way around or how I'll be getting to/from. I wish I could just get a scooter and not have to worry about borrowing a car or figuring out buses. Darn Alberta vehicle classifications...
I've been reading 'Flyboys' by James Bradley. I'm almost half-way through, and so far it's about the general air combat in the Pacific during WWII. I found the background history to both the US and Japan to be fairly interesting. I didn't know how close and apart they were. How the US used and abused Japan before the war. How retarded the US armed forces were for not listening to Billy Mitchell (If anyone deserves a bomber named after him, it's Mr. Mitchell). How the Japanese were trained to destroy whatever human instics they had. How the Japenese didn't treat their soldiers as valuable resources. How racist and white-supremist many of the American Presidents were, included Roosevelt.
The book is quite graphic in its descriptions of the Japanese in China, with their Three Alls (Burn All, Kill All, Loot All). What really got me, though, was how the US in the Phillipines was just as bad as the Japanese. I didn't know that, and it blew me away. I also didn't know how bad the Americans were in destroying the indians of their country, to make room for white settlers. It made me sick. Here's the self-proclaimed 'Defender of Freedom' with a past so bloody... It makes you wonder how they did it and how they slept at night. I remember being very disgusted when I found out that the Japanese don't teach their students about the Japanese rape of China during WWII. Now I found out the US is just as bad: Not through a history class or assignment, but through a book my mom just happen to give to me because the libaray already had a copy. It scares me in two ways: It's not so bad with Japan, because they're somewhat peaceful. The US is joyriding around the Middle East under the name of freedom, starting wars and causing deaths (Innocent and otherwise). If they don't teach about their past, what's to keep things from going far south of where they currently are? We're 'more civilized'? I hope so. And the other thing that scares me... I didn't know about the US slaughter of Filipinos, and I'm not even from the 'States. I understand why they should hide it, but why the Canadian Educational System? It makes me wonder: If we don't even know about the gruesome American past, what are we hiding? We like to thing Canada is a peacekeeper. But the US is the Defender of Peace, and look how blood-soaked its history is. Who have we killed? What blood is on our hands?
Do I even want to know? No.
But every self-respecting Canadian should.
-Cril
There are places I'll remember
All my life though some have changed
Some forever not for better
Some have gone and some remain
All these places have their moments
With lovers and friends I still can recall
Some are dead and some are living
In my life I've loved them all
Beatles - In My Life
Friday, April 21, 2006
Bufmgh.
Wow, and I thought things were getting less hectic. Or not.
Nothing great. I haven't drawn in a while, so I just wanted to sit down and do something. A bit for the sake of actually doing something and a bit for the sake of stress releif. This is my first attempt at rocks and flowing water. The rocks themselves aren't too bad, you can kinda tell what they are. There isn't a lot of detail, I sketched and messed around with the brush I had selected. Not long, less than an hour. Kinda had fun with the brush, but most of the detail is in the sketching. You can't tell what's going on without the sketch layer. Whatever.
I thought things were gunna get easier. Hah. Oh, how very naive I am. Work is just as busy as ever, even though it comes and goes in spurts. Life at home hasn't been significantly better. Tomorrow will be the first time in a month or so I've had a car at my disposal. I have a week-old cheque to cash, mothers sandles to pickup, and a mini Spitfire to buy. I get to go out and actually do something.
About going to and fro, I've decided to buy a scooter for transportation. Really, cars are so bloody expensive (Gas & insurance) and I want more freedom than a bus. A scooter is right in the middle. My main concern is getting larger objects to and fro, but I'm sure I can borrow a vehicle or use a bus or something. Besides, a scooter has like 70mpg (compared to the ~30 of a CRX) and it only costs $300ish to insure a year. Better than the $85 a month for being an occasional driver. Sounds good to me, I'll hopefully save a load of money in the long run.
I've yet to pack, clean my room, make space for Rob, do some computer/music organization, etc etc etc. Blah. I feel overloaded.
-Cril
Because maybe
My shadow's the only one that walks beside me (You're gonna be the one that saves me)
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating (You're gonna be the one that saves me)
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me (You're gonna be the one that saves me)
'Til then I walk alone
Sing with me (sing)
Sing for the year (sing)
Sing for the laughter, sing for the tear
Sing with me, if it's just for today
Maybe tomorrow the good lord will take you away
Party Ben - Boulevard of Broken Songs
Nothing great. I haven't drawn in a while, so I just wanted to sit down and do something. A bit for the sake of actually doing something and a bit for the sake of stress releif. This is my first attempt at rocks and flowing water. The rocks themselves aren't too bad, you can kinda tell what they are. There isn't a lot of detail, I sketched and messed around with the brush I had selected. Not long, less than an hour. Kinda had fun with the brush, but most of the detail is in the sketching. You can't tell what's going on without the sketch layer. Whatever.
I thought things were gunna get easier. Hah. Oh, how very naive I am. Work is just as busy as ever, even though it comes and goes in spurts. Life at home hasn't been significantly better. Tomorrow will be the first time in a month or so I've had a car at my disposal. I have a week-old cheque to cash, mothers sandles to pickup, and a mini Spitfire to buy. I get to go out and actually do something.
About going to and fro, I've decided to buy a scooter for transportation. Really, cars are so bloody expensive (Gas & insurance) and I want more freedom than a bus. A scooter is right in the middle. My main concern is getting larger objects to and fro, but I'm sure I can borrow a vehicle or use a bus or something. Besides, a scooter has like 70mpg (compared to the ~30 of a CRX) and it only costs $300ish to insure a year. Better than the $85 a month for being an occasional driver. Sounds good to me, I'll hopefully save a load of money in the long run.
I've yet to pack, clean my room, make space for Rob, do some computer/music organization, etc etc etc. Blah. I feel overloaded.
-Cril
Because maybe
My shadow's the only one that walks beside me (You're gonna be the one that saves me)
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating (You're gonna be the one that saves me)
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me (You're gonna be the one that saves me)
'Til then I walk alone
Sing with me (sing)
Sing for the year (sing)
Sing for the laughter, sing for the tear
Sing with me, if it's just for today
Maybe tomorrow the good lord will take you away
Party Ben - Boulevard of Broken Songs
Saturday, April 08, 2006
Unsent
Been a while. The past week or two has been... Craptacular. Hella busy at work. But I got a surprise visit from the mother, which was nice. I'm stuck at home without a vehicle... Well, I'd be home on the comp anyways.
There's a lot of things I want to get over the next little while. Currently I have a $100 monthly budget for entertainment/food expenses. I want to get that down closer to $50, but there are so many thing I want... Oh well, this month is pretty much shot as is. Granted, I got a raise & bonus for March, but... That just makes up for the chair and jacket. I didn't really spend any other money last month. Oh well, I think I'm just gunna blow it all this month. April is pretty much screwed as is, with wedding presents, the road trip, etc. So what am I getting? I diecast Spitfire model. It's hella slick. I've also decided to get How to Save a Life (The Fray album). I'll also be getting Like Blood Like Honey (Holly Brook album) and Half-Life Aftermath, but they're not out for the next little while. Hm, that's not quite as bad as I thought, aside from all wedding/road trip expenses.
There's a CRX down the road for sale at $1850. The sign claims it's a '89, but it has to be at least '87 'cause it's first-gen. There's also a fair bit of rust on the body. I'm sure I could talk them down to at least $1500. Open the offer at around $1200 and work up. But blah. There's no point. I've decided that I'll either get my CRX if it's repaired, or nothing. It'll probably be way cheaper in the long run to bike and use the bus. Not that I really want to. I really wish I had a car.
In other news...
Tell me - When you first saw that, did you see swaying grass in the wind?
Okay, this is my first painting in Photoshop. I didn't spend a whole lot of attention to detail on this one, most of the time was spent figuring out and messing with the settings and brushes. I had fun trying a new program, I can definitely see some of the advantages. There are a few things that tick me off about the interface from Open Canvas to Photoshop (Can anyone tell me if it's possible to bind a mouse button to sample colour? Not bring up the tool and have to switch back, just a way to right-click on a colour and have it set to your brush.)
The sky is interesting... It's hard to make out the clouds. I'm thinking that's because the sky should be closer to one consistant colour/gradient, rather than being able to make out strokes and whatnot. But back to the grass thing... It didn't work out too well, did it? I'm thinking I need to have a look at a tutorial. I should've thrown in a few leaves flying off to give a sense of wind. Hmph.
-Cril
Innocent lives have been changed
By these winds of passing fortune
Hoping that you had been sleeping
Hoping that you had been dreaming
But it's all true
But it's all true
Let the truth come down
Let it's fire keep you warm
Let the love come up
And keep you safe within the storm
Billy McLaughlin - Safe Within the Storm
There's a lot of things I want to get over the next little while. Currently I have a $100 monthly budget for entertainment/food expenses. I want to get that down closer to $50, but there are so many thing I want... Oh well, this month is pretty much shot as is. Granted, I got a raise & bonus for March, but... That just makes up for the chair and jacket. I didn't really spend any other money last month. Oh well, I think I'm just gunna blow it all this month. April is pretty much screwed as is, with wedding presents, the road trip, etc. So what am I getting? I diecast Spitfire model. It's hella slick. I've also decided to get How to Save a Life (The Fray album). I'll also be getting Like Blood Like Honey (Holly Brook album) and Half-Life Aftermath, but they're not out for the next little while. Hm, that's not quite as bad as I thought, aside from all wedding/road trip expenses.
There's a CRX down the road for sale at $1850. The sign claims it's a '89, but it has to be at least '87 'cause it's first-gen. There's also a fair bit of rust on the body. I'm sure I could talk them down to at least $1500. Open the offer at around $1200 and work up. But blah. There's no point. I've decided that I'll either get my CRX if it's repaired, or nothing. It'll probably be way cheaper in the long run to bike and use the bus. Not that I really want to. I really wish I had a car.
In other news...
Tell me - When you first saw that, did you see swaying grass in the wind?
Okay, this is my first painting in Photoshop. I didn't spend a whole lot of attention to detail on this one, most of the time was spent figuring out and messing with the settings and brushes. I had fun trying a new program, I can definitely see some of the advantages. There are a few things that tick me off about the interface from Open Canvas to Photoshop (Can anyone tell me if it's possible to bind a mouse button to sample colour? Not bring up the tool and have to switch back, just a way to right-click on a colour and have it set to your brush.)
The sky is interesting... It's hard to make out the clouds. I'm thinking that's because the sky should be closer to one consistant colour/gradient, rather than being able to make out strokes and whatnot. But back to the grass thing... It didn't work out too well, did it? I'm thinking I need to have a look at a tutorial. I should've thrown in a few leaves flying off to give a sense of wind. Hmph.
-Cril
Innocent lives have been changed
By these winds of passing fortune
Hoping that you had been sleeping
Hoping that you had been dreaming
But it's all true
But it's all true
Let the truth come down
Let it's fire keep you warm
Let the love come up
And keep you safe within the storm
Billy McLaughlin - Safe Within the Storm
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
Where'd You Go?
Yeah. Finally managed to convert the songs I've purchased through iTunes into MP3s. Good ol' CDex. Good program... At least I don't gotta beat around the bush with a gazillion programs you have to pay for and that aren't as good. Gotta love freeware.
What else... Today I registered for ACAD courses. Came to ~$500 with tax. I'm having second thoughts about going into drawing. Maybe graphic design is the way to go. I'm much better at it... Oh well, I still need to draw to get a portfolio together. Good thing I have almost a year before I decide. Even then, it isn't the end of the world if I choose wrong. It'll work out. Me hopes.
Not much to say about it... I painted over a frame from the Fort Minor 'Where'd You Go' music video. It's supposed to be Holly Brook, but she way more attractive and less dead looking in the origional. It looks alright, but I definitely screwed up with the colour. The right eye is awkward as well. Bah.
About Holly Brook, though, I checked out her site (http://www.hollybrookmusic.com/). Listen to the music she has available through the little music player. I like it... Definitely gunna get her album, whenever it comes out. I subscribed to her mailing list.
-Cril
Tell me
What do you think of me now
That I've traded all my armour for a crown?
Common
What do you do with me now
That I've taken down the mirror on the wall?
Holly Brook - Giving It Up For You
What else... Today I registered for ACAD courses. Came to ~$500 with tax. I'm having second thoughts about going into drawing. Maybe graphic design is the way to go. I'm much better at it... Oh well, I still need to draw to get a portfolio together. Good thing I have almost a year before I decide. Even then, it isn't the end of the world if I choose wrong. It'll work out. Me hopes.
Not much to say about it... I painted over a frame from the Fort Minor 'Where'd You Go' music video. It's supposed to be Holly Brook, but she way more attractive and less dead looking in the origional. It looks alright, but I definitely screwed up with the colour. The right eye is awkward as well. Bah.
About Holly Brook, though, I checked out her site (http://www.hollybrookmusic.com/). Listen to the music she has available through the little music player. I like it... Definitely gunna get her album, whenever it comes out. I subscribed to her mailing list.
-Cril
Tell me
What do you think of me now
That I've traded all my armour for a crown?
Common
What do you do with me now
That I've taken down the mirror on the wall?
Holly Brook - Giving It Up For You
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
*fizzle*
Ugh. Buf. Muh.
That isn't really supposed to mean anything in perticular, it just conveys how I'm feeling at the moment. Burnt out, I suppose. Work is pretty hecktic, and now my Aunts mom is on her deathbed. Things aren't going to great, and it doesn't look like there'll be relief anytime soon. The next little while is gunna suck. In other news, I'm signing up for some non-credit ACAD courses to help me build a portfolio for next fall. I also have to sign up for health care. I tried uninsuring my car over the phone, and wasted my entire lunch hour on hold so it didn't get done. Things aren't looking up.
But, I got my act together and painted something. I suck, but here it is anyways...
It was really crappy near the beginning, I almost ditched it. But, I fought it out and it turned out much better than I had feared. The water isn't too horrible, considering I've never done it before. I should've used a reference for it though. The body isn't very well proportioned and looks crappy. Yes, those are feathers he's holding. There's some problem with the balancing between foreground and background, it's somewhat difficult to focus on one or the other. I think the hat is the best part of the peice. Not for how well it was done, but for the element it adds.
I'm feelin' pretty down at the moment... Kinda of insignificant and not able to change anything. Exhausted from trying. Defeated almost. Definitly exhausted though. I'm not looking forward to the next several weeks at all.
-Cril
Closing time - time for you to go out, go out into the world
Closing time - turn the lights up over every boy and every girl
Closing time - one last call for alcohol, so finish your whiskey or beer
Closing time - you don't have to go home but you can't stay here
I know who I want to take me home
I know who I want to take me home
I know who I want to take me home
Take me home...
Green Day - Closing Time
That isn't really supposed to mean anything in perticular, it just conveys how I'm feeling at the moment. Burnt out, I suppose. Work is pretty hecktic, and now my Aunts mom is on her deathbed. Things aren't going to great, and it doesn't look like there'll be relief anytime soon. The next little while is gunna suck. In other news, I'm signing up for some non-credit ACAD courses to help me build a portfolio for next fall. I also have to sign up for health care. I tried uninsuring my car over the phone, and wasted my entire lunch hour on hold so it didn't get done. Things aren't looking up.
But, I got my act together and painted something. I suck, but here it is anyways...
It was really crappy near the beginning, I almost ditched it. But, I fought it out and it turned out much better than I had feared. The water isn't too horrible, considering I've never done it before. I should've used a reference for it though. The body isn't very well proportioned and looks crappy. Yes, those are feathers he's holding. There's some problem with the balancing between foreground and background, it's somewhat difficult to focus on one or the other. I think the hat is the best part of the peice. Not for how well it was done, but for the element it adds.
I'm feelin' pretty down at the moment... Kinda of insignificant and not able to change anything. Exhausted from trying. Defeated almost. Definitly exhausted though. I'm not looking forward to the next several weeks at all.
-Cril
Closing time - time for you to go out, go out into the world
Closing time - turn the lights up over every boy and every girl
Closing time - one last call for alcohol, so finish your whiskey or beer
Closing time - you don't have to go home but you can't stay here
I know who I want to take me home
I know who I want to take me home
I know who I want to take me home
Take me home...
Green Day - Closing Time
Sunday, March 12, 2006
Holy BS freakin' G.
Battlestar Galactica. Wow.
You have your Star Trek type season enders that only influence two or three episodes before it's forgotten. You have your Lost enders, which introduce new elements that will bend the next season around it. Then you have your Battlestar Galactica season enders, which totally change the situation of the series around. Wow, just wow. That was an incredible episode. They have a ONE YEAR jump. Normally a season finale revolves around one large incident. They threw that away with the circumstances you're familiar with, and practically rewrote the plot. That was freakin' incredible. The worst part is that we'll have to wait until October for the next episode. Personally, I'd like to see one ready for tomorrow night, but... I wish.
I reinstalled BF2. It looks (and runs) great on my new system. I was never fond of the netcode, though. I never ping well in Battlefield, and lag is really noticable. That and the ingame server browser seems clunky. I like my Steam. Oh well... There's a torrent running upstairs, so I can't play any online games if I wanted to. I get hella laggy... 'Guess I'll hafta draw or something.
-Cril
I, I can remember
Standing, by the wall
And the guns, shot above our heads
And we kissed, as though nothing could fall
And the shame, was on the other side
Oh we can beat them, for ever and ever
Then we could be heroes, just for one day
David Bowie - Heroes
Not that it matters, but this was the intro song for NHL '98. Ah, that was a great game...
You have your Star Trek type season enders that only influence two or three episodes before it's forgotten. You have your Lost enders, which introduce new elements that will bend the next season around it. Then you have your Battlestar Galactica season enders, which totally change the situation of the series around. Wow, just wow. That was an incredible episode. They have a ONE YEAR jump. Normally a season finale revolves around one large incident. They threw that away with the circumstances you're familiar with, and practically rewrote the plot. That was freakin' incredible. The worst part is that we'll have to wait until October for the next episode. Personally, I'd like to see one ready for tomorrow night, but... I wish.
I reinstalled BF2. It looks (and runs) great on my new system. I was never fond of the netcode, though. I never ping well in Battlefield, and lag is really noticable. That and the ingame server browser seems clunky. I like my Steam. Oh well... There's a torrent running upstairs, so I can't play any online games if I wanted to. I get hella laggy... 'Guess I'll hafta draw or something.
-Cril
I, I can remember
Standing, by the wall
And the guns, shot above our heads
And we kissed, as though nothing could fall
And the shame, was on the other side
Oh we can beat them, for ever and ever
Then we could be heroes, just for one day
David Bowie - Heroes
Not that it matters, but this was the intro song for NHL '98. Ah, that was a great game...
Thursday, March 09, 2006
The crowd starts to sing...
I've finally decided what I'm going to (try and) do with my life. Some form of visual arts is the name of the game. At the moment, graphic design and seem to be my forte, but deep down I want to do illustration/drawing/painting. I think I'm going to try for the latter. In order to get into ACAD, though, I need to have a portfolio which I am severely lacking. So here goes: I'm going to lean off on the gaming, and try to step up my... Arting. And the first victim:
It's Batman! Kinda... I'm surprised at how well I pulled of the positioning and proportioning of the body. It turned out not half bad, to my disbelief that I couldn't do a full figure without a reference. Well, a fraction of a body in this case. You'll notice that he's mostly hidden by the cape. At least I did a decent job on the cape's lighting as well... It looks like there's actually a person under there.
I stole the Batman idea from one Frank drew. His was mostly a portrait with the face. Either way, I had fun. Speaking of Frank, we had a good chat the other night. That guy is so much smarter than I am at this point in the game. He really understands where I'm sitting with school and what I need to do. Dare I say, he's pretty wise on the subject. His art is pretty good too :)
I FINALLY got my iPod back. I could've had it last Friday, but nooo... DHL is rediculous. I changed it to the work address online over the weekend, and it arrived at the house on Monday. I phoned and changed it with customer service, and it didn't even come the next day. So it finally came yesterday to the office. 'Bout time... Apple's service was bang on, fast and to the point (Although I was less than thrilled to pay $40 for shipping when I WORK at a shipping company...). The delivery left something to be desired though.
Props to Frank for his taste in music. I found out about The Fray and their "How to Save a Life" album through his blog. Not much of it made the cut to stay on the iPod (I only have 4GB of space, I gotta be tough...) but it's great listening. I really dig their style. The music is great, and the vocals are well done and seem unique. Me likes.
-Cril
And all at once the crowd begins to sing
Sometimes the hardest thing and the right thing are the same
Maybe you want her, maybe you need her
Maybe you started to compare to someone not there
Maybe you want it, maybe you need it
Maybe it's all you're running from
Perfection will not come
The Fray - All at Once
It's Batman! Kinda... I'm surprised at how well I pulled of the positioning and proportioning of the body. It turned out not half bad, to my disbelief that I couldn't do a full figure without a reference. Well, a fraction of a body in this case. You'll notice that he's mostly hidden by the cape. At least I did a decent job on the cape's lighting as well... It looks like there's actually a person under there.
I stole the Batman idea from one Frank drew. His was mostly a portrait with the face. Either way, I had fun. Speaking of Frank, we had a good chat the other night. That guy is so much smarter than I am at this point in the game. He really understands where I'm sitting with school and what I need to do. Dare I say, he's pretty wise on the subject. His art is pretty good too :)
I FINALLY got my iPod back. I could've had it last Friday, but nooo... DHL is rediculous. I changed it to the work address online over the weekend, and it arrived at the house on Monday. I phoned and changed it with customer service, and it didn't even come the next day. So it finally came yesterday to the office. 'Bout time... Apple's service was bang on, fast and to the point (Although I was less than thrilled to pay $40 for shipping when I WORK at a shipping company...). The delivery left something to be desired though.
Props to Frank for his taste in music. I found out about The Fray and their "How to Save a Life" album through his blog. Not much of it made the cut to stay on the iPod (I only have 4GB of space, I gotta be tough...) but it's great listening. I really dig their style. The music is great, and the vocals are well done and seem unique. Me likes.
-Cril
And all at once the crowd begins to sing
Sometimes the hardest thing and the right thing are the same
Maybe you want her, maybe you need her
Maybe you started to compare to someone not there
Maybe you want it, maybe you need it
Maybe it's all you're running from
Perfection will not come
The Fray - All at Once
Sunday, March 05, 2006
Feelin'... Brief.
Well, what a weekend this has been.
My first car is screwed and isn't repairable. Insurance here currently doesn't cover the likes of me, so I'm not going anywhere. I would've gotten my iPod this Friday, but there wasn't anyone home to sign for it. I filled out an online form so it should get to the office on Monday. Battlestar Galactica was pretty good, I haven't known them o do musical montages before. It worked. Lost was pretty good, although parts of it gave me the jibblies. I finished Red Alert 2 and played a bit of Generals. I'm sick of RTS at the moment, so I'll do some FPS for a while. The WWII mod for Generals doesn't work. Bah. The Minerva missions for HL2 was good. I got the Empires mod, which is fairly laggy. Fantastic 4 sucked. Got a $60 aviator jacket. I'm sick of trying to phone Jena. I went sledding for a few hours today. It was fun, but I'm gunna be a hurtin' in 24 hours. I need to answer emails, install (and use) my tablet, and actually write something in my physical journal. Humph.
-Cril
Testing 1,2,3
Can anybody hear me?
If I shed the irony
Would anybody cheer me?
If I acted less like me
Would I be in the clear?
He's everything that you need
You wiped out on your ten speed
And either he will succeed
Or just suck
Barenaked Ladies - Testing 1, 2, 3
My first car is screwed and isn't repairable. Insurance here currently doesn't cover the likes of me, so I'm not going anywhere. I would've gotten my iPod this Friday, but there wasn't anyone home to sign for it. I filled out an online form so it should get to the office on Monday. Battlestar Galactica was pretty good, I haven't known them o do musical montages before. It worked. Lost was pretty good, although parts of it gave me the jibblies. I finished Red Alert 2 and played a bit of Generals. I'm sick of RTS at the moment, so I'll do some FPS for a while. The WWII mod for Generals doesn't work. Bah. The Minerva missions for HL2 was good. I got the Empires mod, which is fairly laggy. Fantastic 4 sucked. Got a $60 aviator jacket. I'm sick of trying to phone Jena. I went sledding for a few hours today. It was fun, but I'm gunna be a hurtin' in 24 hours. I need to answer emails, install (and use) my tablet, and actually write something in my physical journal. Humph.
-Cril
Testing 1,2,3
Can anybody hear me?
If I shed the irony
Would anybody cheer me?
If I acted less like me
Would I be in the clear?
He's everything that you need
You wiped out on your ten speed
And either he will succeed
Or just suck
Barenaked Ladies - Testing 1, 2, 3
Monday, February 27, 2006
Well, that's the one thing we've got...
What a week. Or something. My iPod has gone on the fritz, and the battery is dead. Surprise, surprise. There are TONS of people who have this problem, and yet they haven't made an iPod which doesn't suffer from said defect. Kinda dumb... Apple is so big and powerful, but they can't properly engineer one of their flagship products to be reliable. Yes, I love my iPod. It's a greast little device, but dang... They sure cost a lot to repair or replace. Ugh. $40 to have it shipped to Apple for repairs. It better come back fast, and it better come back OPERATIONAL.
Got my computer fixed. I had to remake the BIOS updater floppy in safe mode. Who'da thunk? I got XP on here now... Ugh, I remember why I like 2K better. Less annoying popup messages. Better organization. Less wizards that don't do what you want them to. In other news, I'm trying to get a gameport to work... It seems both of the sound cards I have on-hand have audio difficulties. GG Creative Labs. All I wanted to do was enable their gameport, but use the mainboard audio... Apparently that's too retarded for XP to handle. I tried for an hour with no luck. Ugh. But hey - Now C&C: The First Decade works!! I'm not sure if it's worth it or not. I think I gotta break down and get a USB to gameport adapter.
I finished watching the Cowboy Bebop series. Again. This would be my third or fourth time through. And each time, I'm always impressed. At the characters, the animations, the music, and soforth. Great show. You really feel it in the last episode when Spike dies and 'Blue' is played. Perfect song for the ending. I've yet to conclude this all with the movie, but I suspect I'll try and get around to that soon. Scrubs and Lost should be on this week. Curse the Olympics for holding them from me. Battlestar Galactica was really cool. Interesting perspective on the other side of things. Well done episode.
I haven't been sleeping weel these past three nights. Lots of tossing and turning. Last night I didn't get sound asleep until 4 or 5. Something to do with playing too much Red Alert 2 over the weekend. I had little pixelated men running about through my dreams. Very distacting when you're trying to get some rest. Yuri must have claimed my mind before I knew it.
-Cril
You say we've got nothing in common
No common ground to start from
And we're falling apart
You say the world has come between us
Our lives have come between us
But I know you just don't care
And I said "What about Breakfast at Tiffany's?"
She said "I think I remember the film
And as I recall, I think we both kinda liked it"
And I said "Well, that's the one thing we've got"
Deep Blue Something - Breakfast at Tiffany's
Got my computer fixed. I had to remake the BIOS updater floppy in safe mode. Who'da thunk? I got XP on here now... Ugh, I remember why I like 2K better. Less annoying popup messages. Better organization. Less wizards that don't do what you want them to. In other news, I'm trying to get a gameport to work... It seems both of the sound cards I have on-hand have audio difficulties. GG Creative Labs. All I wanted to do was enable their gameport, but use the mainboard audio... Apparently that's too retarded for XP to handle. I tried for an hour with no luck. Ugh. But hey - Now C&C: The First Decade works!! I'm not sure if it's worth it or not. I think I gotta break down and get a USB to gameport adapter.
I finished watching the Cowboy Bebop series. Again. This would be my third or fourth time through. And each time, I'm always impressed. At the characters, the animations, the music, and soforth. Great show. You really feel it in the last episode when Spike dies and 'Blue' is played. Perfect song for the ending. I've yet to conclude this all with the movie, but I suspect I'll try and get around to that soon. Scrubs and Lost should be on this week. Curse the Olympics for holding them from me. Battlestar Galactica was really cool. Interesting perspective on the other side of things. Well done episode.
I haven't been sleeping weel these past three nights. Lots of tossing and turning. Last night I didn't get sound asleep until 4 or 5. Something to do with playing too much Red Alert 2 over the weekend. I had little pixelated men running about through my dreams. Very distacting when you're trying to get some rest. Yuri must have claimed my mind before I knew it.
-Cril
You say we've got nothing in common
No common ground to start from
And we're falling apart
You say the world has come between us
Our lives have come between us
But I know you just don't care
And I said "What about Breakfast at Tiffany's?"
She said "I think I remember the film
And as I recall, I think we both kinda liked it"
And I said "Well, that's the one thing we've got"
Deep Blue Something - Breakfast at Tiffany's
Thursday, February 23, 2006
One of those things.
Y'know what's a great feeling? Waking up one day to realize you're over it. It haunted your dreams and popped up at odd times, summoned by words or phrases you heard all too much. As much as you fanatically tried to get it out of your thoughts and memory, it came out of nowhere, smacked you upside the head, and hung around for the rest of the day. And once it was there, you couldn't just lay it aside. You just had to mull over it some more. And all of the sudden... Poof! That's it. Sure, it's not completely erased or evaporated from the depths of the mind. But you have to go out of your way to purposefully bring it up for it to come into your consciousness. And that... Is a wonderful thing. You simply don't care anymore. You can look back and it might bug you a bit, but it doesn't overshadow your day and what you're trying to do with life. It's an experience gained and a lesson learned. That's it; no more, no less. A great feeling.
Looks like I might be able to go to the wedding with Tim, road-tripping it down like I've wanted to do for a looong time. I'm pretty excited about this, I think it'll be a blast. I just gotta get the details sorted out. At the moment, though, I really aughtta be looking into my iPod's battery problem, sending my Palm off to Rob, and figuring out what's b0rked with my computer. Curse that sneaky BIOS. I'm suspicious of its intentions...
-Cril
So good-bye, dear, and amen
Here's hoping we meet now and then
It was great fun
But it was just one of those things
Just one of those things
Ella Fitzgerald - Just One of Those Things
Looks like I might be able to go to the wedding with Tim, road-tripping it down like I've wanted to do for a looong time. I'm pretty excited about this, I think it'll be a blast. I just gotta get the details sorted out. At the moment, though, I really aughtta be looking into my iPod's battery problem, sending my Palm off to Rob, and figuring out what's b0rked with my computer. Curse that sneaky BIOS. I'm suspicious of its intentions...
-Cril
So good-bye, dear, and amen
Here's hoping we meet now and then
It was great fun
But it was just one of those things
Just one of those things
Ella Fitzgerald - Just One of Those Things
Sunday, February 19, 2006
Bah
resistentialism (ri-zis-TEN-shul-iz-um) noun
The theory that inanimate objects demonstrate hostile behavior against us
I had it all working fine: I was switching between XP and 2K just fine, and had gotten about half way through the Allied Red Alert 2 campaign. Then, for some reason, my computer has started restarting oddly. I didn't even change any settings or anything... I just restarted to change the OS, and my keyboard wouldn't work, drives took a while to detect, and it generally took longer to reboot. Like... WHAT THE HECK?! What'd I do?! Changing USB ports doesn't even recognize the KB in Windows. A normal PS2 port doesn't detect at all. At the OS selection screen, though, if I press any buttons the countown slows. So it must be detecting somehow. However I try to update my BIOS, I end up with a frozen PC. When I use nTune the first time, my mouse freezes. When I use it agian, I lose the keyboard. The computer itself is still functioning, but nothing for input. Argh, I just don't get it. It must have something to do with me installing XP. It's EA's fault. I just know it. Either way, I have no idea what to do next... Format perhaps? I already nuked the XP partition, and it didn't do anything.
Anyways, I should be grateful it is starting up in the first place, and that I can run Win2K stuff just fine. Which is why I'm currently pirating Command & Conquer Generals. The origional version worked just fine with 2K. So did Red Alert 2. In fact, so did ALL the other C&C games, through some form of compatibility mode. Why EA decided the First Decade should be less compatible than it was before, I'll never know. Must be to make people like me mad.
I don't wanna format again... If it'll even fix anything...
-Cril
We waited in the night for hours
VIP passes bouquets of flowers
To see the brand new siren sing her song
The virgin's men were thrown into volcanoes
A beating heart, it was held aloft
And no expense was spared
Camper Van Beethoven - Long Plastic Hallway
The theory that inanimate objects demonstrate hostile behavior against us
I had it all working fine: I was switching between XP and 2K just fine, and had gotten about half way through the Allied Red Alert 2 campaign. Then, for some reason, my computer has started restarting oddly. I didn't even change any settings or anything... I just restarted to change the OS, and my keyboard wouldn't work, drives took a while to detect, and it generally took longer to reboot. Like... WHAT THE HECK?! What'd I do?! Changing USB ports doesn't even recognize the KB in Windows. A normal PS2 port doesn't detect at all. At the OS selection screen, though, if I press any buttons the countown slows. So it must be detecting somehow. However I try to update my BIOS, I end up with a frozen PC. When I use nTune the first time, my mouse freezes. When I use it agian, I lose the keyboard. The computer itself is still functioning, but nothing for input. Argh, I just don't get it. It must have something to do with me installing XP. It's EA's fault. I just know it. Either way, I have no idea what to do next... Format perhaps? I already nuked the XP partition, and it didn't do anything.
Anyways, I should be grateful it is starting up in the first place, and that I can run Win2K stuff just fine. Which is why I'm currently pirating Command & Conquer Generals. The origional version worked just fine with 2K. So did Red Alert 2. In fact, so did ALL the other C&C games, through some form of compatibility mode. Why EA decided the First Decade should be less compatible than it was before, I'll never know. Must be to make people like me mad.
I don't wanna format again... If it'll even fix anything...
-Cril
We waited in the night for hours
VIP passes bouquets of flowers
To see the brand new siren sing her song
The virgin's men were thrown into volcanoes
A beating heart, it was held aloft
And no expense was spared
Camper Van Beethoven - Long Plastic Hallway
Thursday, February 16, 2006
I hate the Olympics.
Okay, maybe 'hate' is too strong of the word. I just don't like the Olympics that much. Why? First off, the amount of money spent on them. The opening ceremonies alone were ridiculous. Sure, the choreography was really impressive. The guys blading around with fire shooting out of their heads was neat. But was it really worth the millions, nay billions spent of it? It was unarguably cool to watch, but it the long run... Could we use that money to, I dunno... Feed some starving children or something? Seriously, I kind of find that retarded.
Second, I hate the competition. It's great that the whole world is coming together to participate and blah blah blah, but it seems that 90% of the athletes arrive with high hopes and leave with crushed ones. You see too many people looking depressed after they've just botched their routine or race. It's fun to root for an athlete, and he ends up losing, and now has a whole disappointed country to go home to. That has got to SUCK. You saved up, worked your butt of trying to get there, arrive and LOSE. That's it. The end. Oh, I went to the Olympics, but I didn't win anything. But the experience was worth it, right? Suuure. You hear it time and time again that athletes train and go not so they can say they went, but to win gold. Not silver, not bronze, not fourth or sixth or nineteenth or last.
Then there's the competition between nations. Okay, so it's cool to have a moment in which a whole country can rally behind a single person or team. I admit it was freakin' FUN watching the Men's Hockey at Salt Lake last time, but why? It was because we were beating the United States, that's why. Our neighbour and 'rival'. It felt good to win. They overshadow us the rest of the time, but it's nice to see we can still beat them at a few things. But that's how it is: We want to beat them. All the slander and dirt talk between nations over a GAME. It creates a lot of tension, doesn't it? Why should it be like this? We even keep tally on what country has the most meddles! Now it's not a competition over single matches, but the whole freakin' Olympic event! Jeepers. It makes me sick, it really does. But hey, at least here it isn't resulting is war, economic sanctions, or Danish cartoons. Everything's put to the side for a bit.
Then there are the drug scandles, dishonest judges and people being disqualified for cheating. It shouldn't be that serious, should it? I know it's probably differant to those involved, but isn't it just a game?
I suppose there are a few good things from the Olympics. The chance to have most countries of the world meet and enjoy a few weeks together is good. Although the 'triumph of the human spirit' is mostly a load of CRAP, there are a few exceptions. Something like the Norweigan coach helping the Canadian skiers win silver is really a heart-warming example of kindness. I also heard about an Athlete from Chad who got up and told the world that he was donating all of his winnings to charity for his country, and challenged sponsors to do likewise. Sure, Nike decided to meet his amount in merchandise (What good are sneakers made by sweatshop children going to help other starving children?), but it's good to see some aid. The other good example is the Chinese figure skating pair who soldiered on after an accident to win silver. It looked really nasty, but the female really pulled herself together to deliver a great performance. I was impressed.
A few, really great occurences that made you think "Yeah, this is what the world needs more of." But overall... Too much negetivity between countries and participants. A LOAD of needlessly spent cash. Cheating, crushed dreams, and tears. Not quite worth it, in my opinion. But that's all this is - my opinion.
In other fronts, I went out and bought "Command & Conquer - The First Decade" last night in the snow-blowing -30c weather. It's quite the deal for a C&C lover like myself. That is, if you happen to have Windows XP. That's beginning to become a pet peeve of mine: Developers who don't bother to make a game Windows 200 compatible when it's made for WinXP. They're incredibly similar! Why are people so retarded as to not spend a bit of time making sure something works for the Win2K population?! I'm no programmer, but it can't be that hard! Jeez. Another dumb thing about this release is that you need to enter a key for every. Single. Game. And. Expansion. Ugh... considering I already put a key in for the overall DVD itself, that seems to be a waste of my time. Ugh. I hope there's a hack out there to get it working...
I made myself a new Cowboy Bebop avatar and sig. I don't know if I should replace my old avatar and sig... I haven't been using them too terribly long. I like the new avatar, but I'm thinking the sig is a bit too busy. The colour themes should also match. I'll probably make them both blue. Hm. I got my 'Bebop shirt yesterday, I really like it. It's chocolate brown with this logo. It's comfy to boot.
-Cril
Well, I feel so good, everything is sounding hot
Better take it easy, 'cause the place is on fire
Been a hard day and I don't know what to do
Wait a minute, baby, it could happen to you
So glad we made it, so glad we made it
You got to gimme some lovin', gimme some lovin'
Gimme some lovin' every day
Blues Brothers - Gimme Some Lovin'
Second, I hate the competition. It's great that the whole world is coming together to participate and blah blah blah, but it seems that 90% of the athletes arrive with high hopes and leave with crushed ones. You see too many people looking depressed after they've just botched their routine or race. It's fun to root for an athlete, and he ends up losing, and now has a whole disappointed country to go home to. That has got to SUCK. You saved up, worked your butt of trying to get there, arrive and LOSE. That's it. The end. Oh, I went to the Olympics, but I didn't win anything. But the experience was worth it, right? Suuure. You hear it time and time again that athletes train and go not so they can say they went, but to win gold. Not silver, not bronze, not fourth or sixth or nineteenth or last.
Then there's the competition between nations. Okay, so it's cool to have a moment in which a whole country can rally behind a single person or team. I admit it was freakin' FUN watching the Men's Hockey at Salt Lake last time, but why? It was because we were beating the United States, that's why. Our neighbour and 'rival'. It felt good to win. They overshadow us the rest of the time, but it's nice to see we can still beat them at a few things. But that's how it is: We want to beat them. All the slander and dirt talk between nations over a GAME. It creates a lot of tension, doesn't it? Why should it be like this? We even keep tally on what country has the most meddles! Now it's not a competition over single matches, but the whole freakin' Olympic event! Jeepers. It makes me sick, it really does. But hey, at least here it isn't resulting is war, economic sanctions, or Danish cartoons. Everything's put to the side for a bit.
Then there are the drug scandles, dishonest judges and people being disqualified for cheating. It shouldn't be that serious, should it? I know it's probably differant to those involved, but isn't it just a game?
I suppose there are a few good things from the Olympics. The chance to have most countries of the world meet and enjoy a few weeks together is good. Although the 'triumph of the human spirit' is mostly a load of CRAP, there are a few exceptions. Something like the Norweigan coach helping the Canadian skiers win silver is really a heart-warming example of kindness. I also heard about an Athlete from Chad who got up and told the world that he was donating all of his winnings to charity for his country, and challenged sponsors to do likewise. Sure, Nike decided to meet his amount in merchandise (What good are sneakers made by sweatshop children going to help other starving children?), but it's good to see some aid. The other good example is the Chinese figure skating pair who soldiered on after an accident to win silver. It looked really nasty, but the female really pulled herself together to deliver a great performance. I was impressed.
A few, really great occurences that made you think "Yeah, this is what the world needs more of." But overall... Too much negetivity between countries and participants. A LOAD of needlessly spent cash. Cheating, crushed dreams, and tears. Not quite worth it, in my opinion. But that's all this is - my opinion.
In other fronts, I went out and bought "Command & Conquer - The First Decade" last night in the snow-blowing -30c weather. It's quite the deal for a C&C lover like myself. That is, if you happen to have Windows XP. That's beginning to become a pet peeve of mine: Developers who don't bother to make a game Windows 200 compatible when it's made for WinXP. They're incredibly similar! Why are people so retarded as to not spend a bit of time making sure something works for the Win2K population?! I'm no programmer, but it can't be that hard! Jeez. Another dumb thing about this release is that you need to enter a key for every. Single. Game. And. Expansion. Ugh... considering I already put a key in for the overall DVD itself, that seems to be a waste of my time. Ugh. I hope there's a hack out there to get it working...
I made myself a new Cowboy Bebop avatar and sig. I don't know if I should replace my old avatar and sig... I haven't been using them too terribly long. I like the new avatar, but I'm thinking the sig is a bit too busy. The colour themes should also match. I'll probably make them both blue. Hm. I got my 'Bebop shirt yesterday, I really like it. It's chocolate brown with this logo. It's comfy to boot.
-Cril
Well, I feel so good, everything is sounding hot
Better take it easy, 'cause the place is on fire
Been a hard day and I don't know what to do
Wait a minute, baby, it could happen to you
So glad we made it, so glad we made it
You got to gimme some lovin', gimme some lovin'
Gimme some lovin' every day
Blues Brothers - Gimme Some Lovin'
Tuesday, February 14, 2006
Screw you, St. Valentine
Happy Singles Depression Day everyone! May all of you with someone special to love take this day to enjoy their company and show them you care. After which, you can all fall down DEAD so that the rest of us might not have to recognize this abomination to the calendar system again. Seriously, I hate this.
Who started it, and WHY? These days, it's an obvious commercial event rather than an opportunity to show what's in your heart. You don't see encouragement to just give some small yet significant token of appreciation to that special someone. No, it's all about getting them the roses and chocolates and sugar and spice and everything nice. Apparently nothing says "I love you" like well wasted money on plants that will shortly wilt and die or candy that will soon be consumed and forgotten.
AND, on top of the whole "Let's take your money in the name of this 'love' thing we keep hearing about", it singles out the... Well, singles. You're not even worth to target for advertizing if you don't have someone to buy something for. And everyone else goes through these grand gestures for their partner. The confused and companionless get to stand around like lost idiots who just don't get the point. Us losers and loners get to sit this one out and watch in either awe or disgust as the population of couples fall over eachother to prove that they indeed understand this 'love', even if all they're learning is from card makers and florists and company executives who need a poor excuse for a promotional.
So what is our problem, exactly? Why are we sitting home alone on our computers bashing just another date on a calendar? Fear? Well, what else would it be? Fear of putting yourself out there in uncomfortable territory. Fear of risking getting hurt. Again. Fear of fitting so well with someone. That's my only answer.
Either way, here's a big Screw You St. Valentine and a depressing song to match.
-Cril
Well I hope that I don't fall in love with you
'Cause falling in love just makes me blue
Well the music plays and you display your heart for me to see
I had a beer and now I hear you calling out for me
And I hope that I don't fall in love with you
Well the room is crowded, people everywhere
And I wonder, should I offer you a chair?
Well if you sit down with this old clown, take that frown and break it
Before the evening's gone away, I think that we could make it
And I hope that I don't fall in love with you
Well the night does funny things inside a man
These old tom-cat feelings you don't understand
Well I turn around to look at you, you light a cigarette
I wish I had the guts to bum one, but we've never met
And I hope that I don't fall in love with you
I can see that you are lonesome just like me
And it being late, you'd like some some company
Well I turn around to look at you, and you look back at me
The guy you're with has up and split, the chair next to you's free
And I hope that you don't fall in love with me
Now it's closing time, the music's fading out
Last call for drinks, I'll have another stout
Well I turn around to look at you, you're nowhere to be found
I search the place for your lost face, guess I'll have another round
And I think that I just fell in love with you.
Tom Waits - I Hope That I Don't Fall in Love With You
Happy Valentine's Day folks.
Who started it, and WHY? These days, it's an obvious commercial event rather than an opportunity to show what's in your heart. You don't see encouragement to just give some small yet significant token of appreciation to that special someone. No, it's all about getting them the roses and chocolates and sugar and spice and everything nice. Apparently nothing says "I love you" like well wasted money on plants that will shortly wilt and die or candy that will soon be consumed and forgotten.
AND, on top of the whole "Let's take your money in the name of this 'love' thing we keep hearing about", it singles out the... Well, singles. You're not even worth to target for advertizing if you don't have someone to buy something for. And everyone else goes through these grand gestures for their partner. The confused and companionless get to stand around like lost idiots who just don't get the point. Us losers and loners get to sit this one out and watch in either awe or disgust as the population of couples fall over eachother to prove that they indeed understand this 'love', even if all they're learning is from card makers and florists and company executives who need a poor excuse for a promotional.
So what is our problem, exactly? Why are we sitting home alone on our computers bashing just another date on a calendar? Fear? Well, what else would it be? Fear of putting yourself out there in uncomfortable territory. Fear of risking getting hurt. Again. Fear of fitting so well with someone. That's my only answer.
Either way, here's a big Screw You St. Valentine and a depressing song to match.
-Cril
Well I hope that I don't fall in love with you
'Cause falling in love just makes me blue
Well the music plays and you display your heart for me to see
I had a beer and now I hear you calling out for me
And I hope that I don't fall in love with you
Well the room is crowded, people everywhere
And I wonder, should I offer you a chair?
Well if you sit down with this old clown, take that frown and break it
Before the evening's gone away, I think that we could make it
And I hope that I don't fall in love with you
Well the night does funny things inside a man
These old tom-cat feelings you don't understand
Well I turn around to look at you, you light a cigarette
I wish I had the guts to bum one, but we've never met
And I hope that I don't fall in love with you
I can see that you are lonesome just like me
And it being late, you'd like some some company
Well I turn around to look at you, and you look back at me
The guy you're with has up and split, the chair next to you's free
And I hope that you don't fall in love with me
Now it's closing time, the music's fading out
Last call for drinks, I'll have another stout
Well I turn around to look at you, you're nowhere to be found
I search the place for your lost face, guess I'll have another round
And I think that I just fell in love with you.
Tom Waits - I Hope That I Don't Fall in Love With You
Happy Valentine's Day folks.
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