2007, be gone!

Okay, so one last post before el New Year. I did s'more sketching yesterday. Of note, they all look horrible. The first is just off, the second has a mangled hand, and the last has massive thighs. They're all from ref, fyi. You may have seen the one of the left from the video circling the 'tubes where a chick fires a deagle and practically pistol-whips herself.



Oh, and just for the record, Julia Stiles is way hot. Oh, if only I wern't completely out of her league, was closer to her age, happened to see her on a street and had enough guts to approach her... I might just say something to her.
Happy 2007/2008 (however you want to look at it) everyone. That is all.
-Cril

Samson went back to bed
Not much hair left on his head
He ate a slice of wonder bread and went right back to bed
And history books forgot about us and the bible didn't mention us
And the bible didn't mention us, not even once

You are my sweetest downfall
I loved you first, I loved you first
Beneath the stars came fallin' on our heads
But they're just old light, they're just old light
Your hair was long when we first met

Regina Spektor - Samson

Swirling clouds in violet haze

Ok, so I did my 100th post and then... That was it. Kinda sad, really. I met the goal I was aiming for so then I stopped completely. Well, to be a little bit less of a lazy bum I'll post once more before the new year. That way I can say I exceeded my goal. And that sounds far more impressive.

Christmas was pretty good this year. I have to say, my haul wasn't anything truly fantastic, but the atmosphere in the house was great and I think everyone just had a good time. I got some Lego, some socks, lots of candy, a map book, a personalized cleaver, and other odds and ends. No 8800GT or iPod Touch or Gears of War or Call of Duty. Oh well. We did get the Wii though (that's what we used all our Christmas gift money for... And then some). It's been lotsa fun so far, even though I can't seem to really securely beat the computer at tennis. Mario Galaxy is pretty fun too, in the whole mind-bending, having to look at things in another type of dimension kind of way. Much like how Portal really messed up the way you had to approach puzzles and whatnot. But we've been having lots of fun with Wii Sports too, it's so simple but enjoyable at the same time. I can't say we've touched much of Wii Play, though.

Steam has a great sale on all the games right now, so I went ahead and bought Psychonauts for $10. Great game - I'm probably about half way through so far and it's been a bundle of laughs. Great concept, and excellently funny writing. It's a really unique game, I can see why so many people love it so much. It too has a mind-bending level a la Mario Galaxy/Portal. Good times. Well, often frustrating too.

Anydangway, today I discovered that someone I know is engaged. What is with returned Mormon missionaries getting married within four months of being home? Apparently nobody is really concerned or even take note at the fact that these people get married after only a few months of courting each other. Maybe it's just me. Heck, it probably is just me. Maybe I'm concerned so much with this because it's finally someone my own age that's getting hitched. I always thought of that particular guy as being a bit of an oddball. A nice guy... But a bit odd. Hmph, certainly makes me wonder why I'm not so much part of the mold as other people. Does it even matter? I can't say. But it does bring me to question myself in oh-so-many ways.

A new beginning for two people and a re-examination of another person's life. I guess that would classify as an appropriate New Years Eve-esque post.
-Cril

Starry, starry night
Flaming flowers that brightly blaze
Swirling clouds in violet haze
Reflecting Vincent's eyes of china blue
Colors changing hue
Morning fields of amber grain
Weathered faces lined in pain
Are soothed beneath the artist's loving hands

Now I understand
What you tried to say to me
How you suffered for your sanity
How you tried to set them free Instant Song Lyrics
They would not listen they did not know how
Perhaps they'll listen now

For they could not love you
But still your love was true
And when no hope was left in sight
On that starry, starry night
You took your life as lovers often do
But I could have told you Vincent
This world was never meant for one as
Beautiful as you

Don McLean - Vincent

Truly gorgeous lyrics.

100%, in more ways than one.

Well, that's it. I finished my last exam today, it went... Maybe a little bit worse than I expected. A few questions I didn't expect, but overall I think I did alright. I went to get my graphic design prints afterwards, though, and they weren't on the wall like the prof said they would. Oh well, I guess I took longer than I should've to get them. As long as they haven't been pitched and I can pick them up later I won't mind.

I got a bit of company work to do this week, two ads and a few website banners. Hopefully I can get that wrapped up soon. After that, I need to clean the kitchen, register for an extra-curricular art course, do some laundry, and... Play my sax. On Thursday we're probably going to go see I Am Legend, which should be pretty good. I've watched the Dark Knight trailer at least three times now. I am sooo stoked to see that one.

I'm not feeling particularly talkative (would... 'blogative' make more sense?) So I'ma close out here. Oh yeah - this would be post #100, looks like I met that goal before the year was out. Woo hoo. I'm ofta bed.
-Cril

God rest ye merry gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember Christ our Saviour
Was born upon this day
To save us all from Satan's power
When we were gone astray

O tidings of comfort and joy
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy

Barenaked Ladies - God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

I have something on the mind...

Can you guess what it is? It's was a ridiculously boring day otherwise - I've felt like nothing but dirt all day - Slouched in my chair at the computer - doing absolutely nothing. Ceck out Digg. Check Joystiq. Check Kotaku, check Digg. Play crappy flash game, give a quick glance to the clan website. Go back to the start. Lather, rinse, repeat. What a... Blech feeling. I suppose the fact that I've eaten nothing but waffles and ichibahn all day doesn't help. So yeah, after ~12 hours of incredibly unproductiveness, I did a bit of sketching and the following occured:



This in part was due to me breaking out the tablet yesterday and drawing a little cartoon for the company Christmas cards. I put my signature in the bottom-right, where it normally goes... I tried to keep it subtle, so that it wasn't too prominent on something for the company. Apparently it's too subtle - the boss couldn't spot it at all. Meh, whatever. I may or may not be getting a new (and used) tablet soon. Mine is losing pressure sensitivity, and can be a bit frustrating to get consistant results from. My uncle is getting a new Intous, and I might get his (older) 6x8 Intous. A Wacom, if I weren't so poor I'd have your babies.

...

Yeah, cuz that made sense.
-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

66.66%

Got the PHIL100 exam over with today. It was absolutely brutal. Long. Oh so long. I left class, and at the bottom of the campus stairs was a table setup for buying used textbooks. I ditched my book then and there - a symbolic washing of the hands. And I got $34 back for it too!

I used the tablet a few times this week, mainly for work stuff. But, as it so frequently happens, I doodle when I should be getting other things done. The real problem, though, is that I don't doodle except when I have other, tablet oriented things to do. It's rather pathetic. I should be drawing for the sake of drawing, not to procrastinate something else. But when I do doodle I enjoy it. Makes me wonder why it's so hard to do it on my own. I think I'll take a drawing course in the new year. Not for credits, but using real tools and stuff. Anyhoo, this is what I dun doodled. A doobie doo.



Anyways, gotta get some other stuff done. I can't believe Christmas is a week and a half away. How freaky is THAT?
-Cril

Remember that old fireplace
That held the room in warm embrace
And as we watched for Christmas ghosts
The fire held the shadows close

But now upon that Christmas scene
The candle wax of melted dreams
And ornaments of shattered glass
Now belonging to the past

But all these things are now long gone
And not to be wished upon again

Trans-Siberian Orchestra - The Music Box

33.33%

Well, one exam down and two to go. Got MACS over with today - the exam was pretty short itself. It took me about half an hour to do it and another fifteen to look it over. I'm not to confident about it though - I used the same study method for the midterm, and that went a lot better. Ugh - and this isn't even the cumulative test for MUSC or the uber long AND cumulative test for PHIL.

I haven't figured what to take next semester. It's a bit of a problem for a few reasons... I don't actually want to take any courses, but I kind of need to so that I can stay on my Mom's extended medical plan and get dental work done. Without the extended medical I'd be paying almost as much as courses themselves. Might as well take a few more extended studies...

I've played and beaten Gears of War PC. Good game - a bit repetitive at times - but otherwise a good game. I like the shoot and scoot mechanics, and the cover system. The cover system, by the way, somehow drastically warps my mind when I play other games. All of the sudden I was trying to press space to immediately go into full cover behind objects. Really throws of my Team Fortress and BF2142 game. Bah. The question now, though, is whether or not to purchase it. I ran well enough, and I'd like to play it online, but... Will it be worth $50? Maybe I'll go for it if I find a good deal on boxing day.

And speaking of deals... I don't know why but I am oh so tempted to upgrade my computer right now. All I need is a new motherboard, processor, and video card. And maybe a case. That'd only be what, $550-$700? Yikes - it sure looks more scary when you post the totals like that. Sigh, it must be nice to be not poor. Oh well, I figure I'll upgrade in a year and a bit. Not this summer, but maybe next. I think I can justify upgrading every 3-4 years. I can wait. I hope.
-Cril


Life inside the music box ain't easy
The malots hit the gears are always turning
And everyone inside the mechanism
Is yearning to get out
And sing another melody completely
So different from the one they're always singing
I close my eyes and think that I have found me
But then I feel mortality surround me
I want to sing another melody
So different from the one I always sing

Regina Spektor - Music Box

Beethoven has never been so badass...

That is, until the electric guitar, drums, lighting systems and flames. Big, 10 foot high flames. That were multicoloured.

And what am I talking about exactly? Yesterday I saw the Trans-Siberian Orchestra in Vancouver. Wow, was it intense. It was about 2 and a half hours of rockin' goodness. The first half was the Christmas Eve and Other Stories album with narration, which was hella cool. The second half was a bit of everything, including some Beethoven, Mozat, and Linus and Lucy. The sound was a bit loud - I was hoping I would adjust like at the movies, but the treble was rather piercing the whole way through the performance. I could've used some earplugs or something, just to take the edge off. As for the visuals... YIZA.

Quite an incredible lighting system they had. There were different rigs that would rise and lower and rotate with various lighting attachments. There were textures on huge screens, spotlights, laser shows, and flames. At first I thought the flame emitters were just those novelty-store items, the ones with lit up orange fabric being blown around by a fan. And then flames shot ten feet high. In five or six different colours. In time with the music. Wow, was I blown away. Then they had an elevated uber flame with the sound/production crew near the back by where we were. That thing was massive. We could feel the heat. Way intense.

So yeah, hella good time. We went to Anton's for pasta before the concert, and that was pretty good too. Afterwards, though, there was not an ice cream joint to be found - Starbucks, DQ, and some milkshake place were all closed, so we just went home. We got back at ~1:30am, after which I proceeded to sleep for 12hours. Yup, I woke up at 1:15pm. Blech, what a nasty feeling, I wasted the majority of the day. I did manage to get most of my long procrastinated philosophy essay done. I should be able to finish it off tomorrow and have it ready for class on Monday.

It's snowing. I went out for a walk an hour and a bit ago, but it was really light. Now it's coming down a bit heavier. I want to go for another walk...
-Cril

An angel returned
That night through the sky
But time it was short
He had to decide

And so as he flew
Back over the land
A gift for his Lord
Was there in his hand

It was the glow of a light
It was the heart of a song
It was the tear of a child
Where they never belonged
It was the wish of a soul
On an old neon light
And the Lord smiled at him
On that cold winter night

Trans-Siberian Orchestra - An Angel Returned

No bidniss like snow bidniss

Yup, we got our first snowfall last night. One, maybe two inches worth of wet snow - We briefly lost power too. I was a bored last night (not wanting to turn my computer back on in case the power would go again) so I dusted off the car and went out for a drive with Rob. We found a deserted parking lot (that had already been abused like what we had in mind) and had a bit of fun. Mind you, it was partly educational - this is the first time I've driven my car in snow, and I really wanted to get a feel for how it handles. It is such a front wheel drive. We were only out for 15-20mins, but by the end I was able to do a bit of power slides with counter-steering and everything. I want to go out again so I can practice different ways of braking and turning in the snow. I really want to be familiar with how my car handles.

And of course, in true Lower Mainland fashion the snow is now melting down into a wonderfully slippery and wet slush concoction. Things are dripping and damp. I'm going to have to plan out a different route to school - that vicious hill that I usually take scares me. I'm so hosed if I get stuck.
-Cril

Dear Prudence, won't you come out to play
Dear Prudence, greet the brand new day
The sun is up, the sky is blue
It's beautiful and so are you
Dear Prudence won't you come out to play

Dear Prudence open up your eyes
Dear Prudence see the sunny skies
The wind is low the birds will sing
That you are part of everything
Dear Prudence won't you open up your eyes?

Dana Fuchs, Evan Rachel Wood, Jim Sturgess, Joe Anderson & T.V. Carpio - Dear Prudence

Return of El Guavo

Okay, so I went back and tweaked the guava again before I printed it off. Speak of which, wow that was painful. The campus printing people have Illustrator CS3, which would not load my CS2 file. Therefore, we had to import/rasterize it into Photoshop CS3, which took ~30mins for each of the two files. Wow, what a pain. It wasn't all bad, though, the lady working in the printing services area was really nice and patient with me. I got everything printed and foam mounted for $23, which is way better than the ~$50 prof estimated. And speaking of prof... Ugh. I'm so very annoyed that we haven't seen *any* marks so far this semester. We haven't even gotten the midterm back yet. This is so frustrating, I'm going to avoid any more classes with him if I can get away with it.

So homework-wise, things are coming along nicely. I have two projects completed, one on the final stretch, and I've started the last one. Good progress. There's a little bit of work I have to do yet for.. Work. I need to do an ad for this Friday, and it's currently in the bosses hands for review and content. On other work topics, I wonder what's going on with that elusive catalogue...

And I got to see the Trans-Siberian Orchestra this Friday. That should be great, but I need to solidify some plans. Like when/where we're meeting up, what we're doing for dinner... And who I'm taking along. Prolly gunna be my mom or sister. It's all kinda sad, really, that I'm turning 21 and can't muster the guts to confront the ladies. Sigh, such is life... At least the guava looks pretty, and you can't ask for much more than that.

Although, it gives me an idea for another blog. I won't say much more than that, in case it doesn't get off the ground. Like a certain other project I won't mention.
-Cril

This feeling won't last cause I cannot survive
I tell you I've been here before
When it's movin this fast
It's a matter of time
One of us walks out that door
It seems that I thrive on the dark side of things
I always feel alive when the death bell rings
Now you come and you bring out the tears in me

Santana - Wishing it Was

Coming soon to a college hallway near you...

And by 'near you' I mean 'in the Fraser Valley'. I got some better instruction from my graphic design prof for the final project. One 14x22" poster with a single element on it (this'll most likely be the textured guava. I think it's the most impressive piece I've done this term... Even if the leaves look like crap.) The other 14x22" poster is to be a mosaic/collection of differant pieces I've done. And thus I present the below.



Not much else is new... I spent ~3hrs doing yard work today, in the lovely gray and wet weather. They were collecting any yard waste people had for free, down at some dump or quarry or something. We got rid of a quarter of our hedge, many tree branches, and several shrubs and bushes. Our yard is looking a lot less depressing now, but it still kinda sucks. Maybe we can get rid of the whole hedge this spring/summer. That thing is ugly.

Speaking of gray and wet winter weather and being ugly, my skin is on the fritz. Which is odd, really, because when I was in Calgary for winters it didn't get this bad. And it's infinitely more humid here than up there. I just don't understand why my skin is so dry and tight. To all those people who do commercials for skin cream and complain about "dry, itchy skin...", you ain't got nothin' on somebody with eczema. When you're skin honestly looks and feels like leather, than "dry, itchy skin..." is such an understatement.

Well, enough whining from me. I'm coming on the end of the term, that means final projects, midterms, and trying to decide what to take next semester. Needless to say, I think I'm going to play some TF2. But on the good side, it looks like the Trans-Siberian Orchestra is coming to Vancouver late this month. My mom booked me two tickets for my birthday. It's a shame that I don't have anyone to invite that I'm not already related to... Hey Frank, wanna come up from Miami to see a group you've never heard of?
-Cril

Sexy Baby
Happiness and silhouettes
Revolving in the deep water indigo
It's high tide, night sky
Pleasure moment
Thinking big
Thinking positive
And itching to get on with it
It's all stops out

Imogen Heap - Daylight Robbery

Wish Liszt

Every so often I open up a text document called "Stuff.txt" that I keep on my desktop. About once a year, in fact. At about this time. "But Chris," you ask, "What could possibly be in this wonderfully vague titled notepad file?!"

"Well," I reply, "IP addresses and student numbers and server names and passwords and a wonderful plethora of small bits that I never make use of twice."

Oh, and a list of items and such that I'd like to acquire at some point. Music albums, DVDs, video games, mainly. At this point in time, it looks a lil' bit like this...

Moby - Go
Frou Frou - Details
INXS - Switch
Apocalyptica - Apocalyptica
William Orbit - Hello Waveforms
Ocean's Eleven OST
Ocean's Eleven
Cowboy Bebop OST
Gears of War PC
Call of Duty 4
Twilight Princess
Mario Galaxy

Generally speaking, this are things that I'd like to purchase for myself when I get the money (hah!). I honestly don't expect to receive anything from this liszt in gift form. That'd be most unlikely. But hey, THE WHOLE INTERWEBZ CAN SEE THE LISZT LOLOLOL. That means anything's possible, right?
-Cril

It's like it was meant to be
I'm not kidding, it's like it was meant to be

I'm not kidding
No, I'm not kidding
I've never been more serious in my life
My life with you
OH

I'm not kidding
I'm seriously not kidding
I'll never stop joking
Oh wait, I mean I will stop joking
Because I'm serious
It's like it was meant to be!!

Strong Bad - It's Like It Was Meant To Be

Call of Duty...tastic.

Illustrator seems to have issues with anti-aliasing some objects that are skinned. You can see it mainly on the large red and blue shapes. Whereas the other smaller swirls used a solid colour, I used gradients with the larger ones. I wasn't pleased with how the built-in texture/skin shading feature worked, so I fudged it by just making it a gradient. The object of the assignment was to make an abstract scene based on putting patters and symbols onto 3D shapes. It turned out to make an interesting abstract background, but the AA problem kind of cripples it. Gah.

It other news, Call of Duty 4 destroyed my weekend. What a fantastic game. I got a hold of the uh, 'downloadable extended demo' for the single player campaign. And I gotta say, I was so blown away I'll pick up a retail (or Steam) copy as soon as I have some cash. The characters were memorable, the story solid and fluid. And the method of story telling was excellent. I mean, it shakes the very foundation of my inner Half-Life fanboi. There were some absolutely moving scenes, and some perfectly executed cinematic scenes. A true masterpiece. If anything would sweep the GoTY award away from the Orange Box, Call of Duty 4 has my stamp of approval. And I haven't even played the multiplayer component yet.

Sigh... Procrastination, thy name is me. I haven't done any homework yet. Hopefully I can get some done tomorrow.
-Cril

So drink me in
Like tainted wine
Come bite down on my sharpened cup
And taste the dreams that numb the mind
A simple word
A harmless glare
That binds me with the thinnest thread
And pins me down to pleasures bed
Everybody wants
Everybody says
Everybody begs in time

Moist - Silver

Mmm... Beeftastic

Ok, so we dabbled in using Illustrator's built-in 3D engine. We had to make a humorous object so... Aerosol Beef Spray it was!



I'd be lying if I said I wasn't starting to grow fond of Illustrator. It still has the odd quirk that drives me NUTS, but I'm really seeing the advantage over Corel Draw. Wish I could say I was growing more fond of my prof, though. For our final project of the term, he gave us a brief spoken description of what he wanted. Is it just me, or for something like a final project wouldn't it be nice to have a physical sheet with written instructions? Maybe it's just me. Oh well, either way I'm going to need to get two 22"x14" posters printed out and mounted. Ugh. Probably going to cost me a wee fortune.

This weekend I need to homework. That being:
MUSC - Make a song and invent some notation to write it down with
PHIL - At least read over that essay. It'd be nice if I could put it into standard form, but we'll see.
MACS - I want to finish the final project for the course. Just needs some checking over and fine-tuning.
GD - Do that darn abstract art thing. I have a baaad feeling about it...

Wow, I have homework in every class. I didn't realize that. But then again, I didn't realize that this was a long weekend, what with Rememberance Day. Hopefully I can get it all done.
-Cril

There's an art to perception
So see it as you will
Can you adjust my reception?
Just give me the latest pill
I don't need to deceive you
'Cause I feel no pain
Maybe I should let you
Come on and eat my brain

Odds - Eat My Brain

Recreational fraggin'

Warning: If you are not a nerd and/or gamer you do not want to proceed past this point. Trust me, I'm getting my Geek on.

Quick update on things and such. Mainly of the videogame variety.

I downloaded the Need for Speed Pro Street demo and... Was quite unimpressed. Call me shallow if you want, but I think the more "realistic" car handling isn't that great, you become far too reliant on getting just the right line through corners. Also, the damage modeling is mediocre. I think the first FlatOut did a better job, and that is already a few years old. The wipeout physics still feel a bit wonky too. I still want to play the game, though, if for no other reason then the customization. Hopefully that's been a wee bit fixed since Carbon. I have to admit that I'm excited because they're including my model of Civic. I think I'll have fun virtually pimping my ride. So I'll strike this game from my list for the time being. Perhaps I'll look into it in a year when the prices has dropped 60%. I might see about downloading an "extended demo", and if it turns out better than I'll buy the retail copy.

Call of Duty 4... The reviews are looking pretty good, and it didn't run too terribly on my system. I may just pick it up. I'll probably get it for my b-day at the end of the month unless Frank really wants to play it. Then I can scrape up some monies from somewhere to make it happen.

Gears of War PC. Apparently my system doesn't meet the minimum reqs. Hopefully they'll have a demo so I can see how my rig holds up. If not, then I'll see if I can find an "extended demo" and give it a go. As much as I want the game, it'd be rather foolish to buy it only to find out I can't play it. I've drawn the line in the sand - I'm simply not upgrading for another two years at least. I guess I'll just stop paying attention to new games. All of the sudden I'm starting to see the allure of consoles. Oh well, at least Valve is developing for common hardware. Half-Life for life <3

Oh, and I'm watching Cowboy Bebop. Again. Yeah, this'll be my third or fourth time through. It's such a good show. The music is perfect, the animation fluid, and the humour excellent. What more could you possibly ask for in an anime?
-Cril

PS- I'm hoping that if I let out my inner post fiend I can get in 100 total posts before the year is up. Will it happen? STAY TUNED TO FIND OUT!

Spring has come
Women are looking in mirrors
Egg pies are baking

Yoko Kanno - Green Bird

EPIC FAIL!

LEt November the 2nd be always remembered as... The day that Chris, yet again, failed a drivers test. I suppose this can be looked at from two angles: (1) I'm not actually a good driver and/or (2) I get ridiculously nervous. Funny how that works. I almost failed the whole thing at the FIRST intersection, but a lack of right-hand shoulder checks and inability to properly line up and proceed at intersections ensured I didn't stand a chance. It's funny, because at the end of the test I couldn't feel my feet. It was like they fell asleep. It's never happened to me before while driving and, as one would image, makes it rather hard to operate the clutch/breaks/gas. I must have been see freaked out that my body stopped fully circulating blood through my legs. Go figure.

In other news, a textured guava:



Sigh...
-Cril

You got me running and there's no fun in it,
Why should it be so much to ask of you,
What you're doing to me?

Beatles - What You're Doing

Damn extroverts...

Ok, so in Media and Communications we had a student-led activity today. The group was talking all about our use of internet and media in our lives, blah blah blah. One chick started talking about how she uses email and facebook and her cell to keep in touch with her friends. She said she sends THREE-HUNDRED text messages a MONTH and that "it's probably average for everyone else with cell phones".

I almost threw up a little. There's something about it that drives me nuts. This chick sits a table infront of me in class, and she's always chatting in MSN or posting Facebook comments. I don't know why but I just can't stand it how some people are oh-so-social. I have no good reason in this - I don't really see what's wrong with keeping in touch with however many friends through whatever means are convenient. But I can't stand it. Damn extroverts.

If it is average for people of my age to be constantly be sending messages from their cellphone... I must be a rare breed indeed. To think I only turn on my cell phone in cases of emergencies or special circumstances. Go figure.

I posted a Guava about a week back - I've been playing with using various pattern-fills to give the appearance of texture. I think I may have figured out something that'll let me apply a gradient to make the textures more effected by light. It's all so very exciting and in-depth (...probably not), I'll post the results if I get it to work.

I have a drivers' test tomorrow. So if you'll excuse me I need to go prepare to fail. I mean be nervous. I mean to pretend to know what I'm doing.

And by all that, I mean "Play around with guava textures and then play some Team-Fortress 2". Yeah, that sounds like a plan.
-Cril

Through ups and downs of facing each other
Together were better together we'll find

We try
To crawl
(Together)
To live
To know
(Better together)

The Polyphonic Spree - We Crawl

What to be... THAT is the question.

And, as a result, HOW to be, is also a question. Looks like the graphic arts program is still on hiatus (or "under review"), and still won't be around for for Fall 08. With no word of when it's coming back, of course. It's not fair, I tells ya... School sucks. I'd go ahead and wing it with some other program if it wasn't so expensive. I guess I'm just not that keen on accumulating student loans or blowing so much money on something I may or may not ever use in the future.

Who knows, maybe it was never meant to be. Maybe I've got it allll wrong.
-Cril

It's a thousand pages, give or take a few,
I'll be writing more in a week or two.
I can make it longer if you like the style,
I can change it round and I want to be a paperback writer,
Paperback writer.

If you really like it you can have the rights,
It could make a million for you overnight.
If you must return it, you can send it here
But I need a break and I want to be a paperback writer,
Paperback writer.

Beatles - Paperback Writer

Guava-MESH!

Yeah, so the latest assignment was to use Illustrator's Mesh Tool. I found it frustrating for a while, mainly because I can't re-arrange the mesh lines/contours to be anything but horizontal and vertical. For the leaves, for example, I would've put more details in but I couldn't alter the orientation of the lines. I suppose I could've done the leaf from scratch along the horizontal axis rather than rotated. Oh well. Another problem I kinda found with using the mesh tool is that I (personally) only saw square gradients during and several hours after I made the piece. When I went back to it a while later I could actually see it for what it was, but while working on it I was quite skeptical it'd look like anything but small and big rectangular gradients.



It's been getting cold (and dark) lately. It's currently 6c (42F for ye Yankees) outside, which made for a nippy walk. It's okay though, I get to laugh. Calgary had snow.
-Cril

PS- Y'know what my blog needs? A lil' 'Previous' button at the bottom to scroll back through posts. I'd do something about it if I either knew something about programming or if there was someone that actually wanted to read previous posts.

Been looking forward to the future
But my eyesight is going bad
In this crystal ball
It's always cloudy except for (except for)
When you look into the past (look into the past)
One night stand. (One night stand, off!)

One night and one more time
Thanks for the memories
Even though they weren't so great
He tastes like you only sweeter

Fall Out Boy - Thnks Fr Th Mmrs

V is very, very extraordinary

Been a while since I've actually drawn something. Oh well, better a sketch than nothing at all, right? I did a quick trace of one and just used a photo reference for the other... I'll give you a hint, I traced the most attractive one. Keep in mind I'm a total nerd, and in actuality I wouldn't stand a chance with the other one in the drawing.

Moving right along... I finished two midterms last week. One was easy, one wasn't too bad. I'm practically all caught up designing the catalogue for work, at this point it's all stuff that I can't complete without receiving info/media. I can't wait to get this project done and out of the way. I still need to get some ad concepts done so I can put something together for Servo Mag by the end of the month.

Speaking of the end of the month (or more precisely, the start of the next), I have my driver's test on the 2nd. Totally nervous about it. I'm a good driver. I know I'm a good driver. Does that mean I'll be calm, confident and relaxed? Of course not. I need to read through the driver's manual to see what exactly I need to do to pass when driving standard.

I was going to talk about the TV I've been watching, like Heroes (which I'm not too thrilled with), but I've got tons of stuff to do. So I will go and get busy being productive.
-Cril

L is for the way you look at me,
O is for the only one I see,
V is very, very extraordinary,
E is even more than anyone that you adore can love.

is all that I can give to you,
love is more than just a game for two.
Two in love can make it,
take my heart but please don't break it.

Love was made for me and you...

Natalie Cole - LOVE

More Adobe Yellow-Strainer

aka, Adobe Illustrator. Today we learned how to use the blend functions, so we had to do a pattern and a 3D-esque object. Huzzah, I'm quite underwhelmed.





And in other news... I gots me a Wii! And by 'me' I mean me, my bro, and two sisters. And by 'gots' I mean purchased way early for Christmas, so we'll have to wait two months before using it.

I'm gunna be blowing a large amount of cash this season on games. I need to get Gears of War PC, Call of Duty 4, and Need for Speed Prostreet. Kinda sad, really, when you think about it. How do I possible get the time to play all those?
-Cril

A thousand miles seems pretty far
But they've got planes and trains and cars
I'd walk to you if I had no other way
Our friends would all make fun of us
and we'll just laugh along because we know
That none of them have felt this way
Delilah I can promise you
That by the time we get through
The world will never ever be the same
And you're to blame

Plain White T's - Hey There Delilah

The cake is a lie!

Let there be no debate:
The Orange Box rocks all manner of socks.
Liek seriously. Wow.

Team Fortress 2 - One of the best multiplayer games I've played in a looong time. I'm amazed at the variety of roles and styles that are usable through all the many classes. There's something for every mood. I've pretty much 'figured out' (ie, how to totally rock) most of the classes. I've been the top of the server with the majority of classes, save the medic. I find that gameplay to be a bit too slow and not rewarding (points-wise) enough. But I've unlocked all the achievements, except for the 'Play with 7 friends' one. I don't have that many friends, especially those with TF2. Anyways, good times.

Portal - This really took me by surprise. I thought it'd turn into a stale gimmick rather quickly, or that the gameplay would be so puzzle-oriented it wouldn't be that enjoyable. Was I wrong - it's was so entertaining. It was very fresh, and the problems were all challenging enough you felt so very satisfied after solving them. And the humour is a point in and of itself. For a game where you get zero interaction with other characters, GLaDOS did a fabulous job of making me laugh the whole way through. Oh, and the credits? Best video game credits EVAR. Too bad the main game only lasted ~3hrs...

Half-Life 2 Ep.2 - I think this might be the most story-packed releases for the HL franchise. It felt like there was so much development, in terms of character and plot. The action was great, a whole bunch of different situations and types. I felt kind of cheated at the end, though, as a certain character dies that you would have otherwise looked forwards to getting more plot info from. Overall, it felt like a very 'full' episode. The play length was spot-on, and it was loaded with things to do and see.

All in all, probably one of the best $45 I've spent on a game. If I hadn't played HL2/Ep1, it'd be even more awesome.

Some more assignments from Graphic Design, we had to take an everyday scene and 'stylize' it into vectors. The prof doesn't seem to understand that some of us don't actually have art training, and therefore only know how to do the vector part of it. Oh well. Hooray for gradients.



-Cril

This was a triumph
I’m making a note here:
HUGE SUCCESS!

It’s hard to overstate
my satisfaction

Aperture Science
we do what we must
because
we can

For the good of all of us
except the ones who are dead

But there’s no sense crying over every mistake,
you just keep on trying til you run out of cake

And the science gets done
and you make a neat gun
for the people who are still alive!

I’m not even angry
I’m being so sincere right now

Even though you broke my heart and killed me

And tore me to pieces
And threw every
piece
into
a fire

As they burned it hurt because
I was so happy for you

Now these points of data make a beautiful line
And we’re out of beta, we’re releasing on time

So I’m glad I got burned
think of all the things we learned
for the people who are still alive!

Go ahead and leave me
I think I
prefer
to stay
inside

Maybe you’ll find someone else to help you

Maybe Black Mesa.
That was a joke,
HA HA
FAT CHANCE

Anyway, this cake is great
It’s so delicious and moist
Look at me, still talking when there’s science to do.

When I look up there
it makesme glad I’m not you

I’ve experiments to run
There is research to be done
on the people who are still alive!

And believe me I am
still alive

I’m doing science and I’m
still alive

I feel fantastic and I’m
still alive

While you’re dying, I’ll be
still alive

And when you’re dead, I will be
still alive

still alive

still alive

GLaDOS - Still Alive

No one on the corner and there's no one at home

Oh boy. If ever there was a concert I would love to have attended, it'd be Souvenir of Tokyo. Oh man, that'd rock sooo much. Makes me want to watch Cowboy Bebop... Again...

Orange Box comes out on Wednesday. I have all my preloading done, but I probably won't get to play until late in the day. I bought a new deck for the car, and have an appointment to get it installed at 10AM. That pretty much means I go into Chilliwack to get it installed, and then head over to Abby so I can make class at 1PM. Bah, oh well. On the plus side, the new deck has Aux In, so hopefully that'll get rid of some of the static/distortion from when I use my iPod transmitter.

Oh, and so far I've been loving Team-Fortress 2. I know I started playing like 3 weeks ago, but I've neglected to post about it. Really fun game - the humour and art direction is phenomenal. I can't wait to get my grubby lil' hands on Portal and Episode 2.

...

And then after that I want Gears of War PC and Need for Speed Prostreet. But those aren't out yet.

In the mean time, I've been grinding away at the Illustrator assignments. I'm not extremely fond of the prof yet, but I'm enjoying learning to use the new program. I'm still not that thrilled with Illustrator, there's still a bajillion small things that are driving me nuts, but I can see a few merits and I've made some interesting stuff.

Anyways, I gotta get back to the grind and work on the Solarbotics Catalogue. Oh, and the new site launched, the one I had (a bit of) a hand in (graphically) designing. Chekkit oot: http://www.solarbotics.com/
-Cril

I’m waking up at the start of the end of the world
But it's feeling just like every other morning before
Now I wonder what my life is going to mean if it's gone

The cars are moving like a half a mile an hour and I
Started staring at the passengers who're waving goodbye
Can you tell me what was ever really special about me all this time?

But I believe the world is burning to the ground
Oh well, I guess we're gonna find out
Let's see how far we've come
Let's see how far we've come
Well I believe it all is coming to an end
Oh well, I guess we're gonna pretend
Let's see how far we've come
Let's see how far we've come

Matchbox Twenty - How Far We've Come

Philosofikletastic!

Oh boy, I'm trying to write an essay for PHIL 100. I'm obviously not enjoying it too much if I'm here posting about. It's kinda hard - with your average essay, like on I did for MACS 110 last week, you can play around with the wording to stretch it out a bit. But not for philosophy, I'm having a hard time expanding the basic ideas into a full paragraph. Heck, I'm having a hard time re-wording it so it isn't exactly from the textbook/class notes. Oh well.

I've analyzed my gas mileage for the car. If I'm doing it right, I'm getting about ~36MPG. I was afraid it'd be drastically lower, but I guess I've been driving so much it's actually necessary to fill up 2-3 times a week. $60/week for gas still sucks though. I have to find a way to cut it down a bit, but I'm doing a lot of driving to and from school on my own. Oh, and I need an oil change. I've put on about 6000km since I got the car in July...

I've been playing a good chunk of Team Fortress 2 since it came out. I preordered it and everything. It kinda sucked that I spent most of Monday twiddling my thumbs for it to be released, but I spent ~5hrs the next day in fragging heaven. Good times, the classes are each unique (and hilarious), the art is superb, and the game play... Is a complete twitch-fest. In a fun way. I'm quite enjoying it. Alas, when Oct. 9th rolls around, I'll be going for some of that sexy, sexy Episode 2 goodness. I've been rather vigilant in staying spoiler-free, so I should get extra enjoyment out of the game. I hope. Oh well, if nothing else, I enjoy getting excited for a big game release.

Speaking of which... What's so special about Halo 3? All the reviews generally say that it's more of the same, and yet award 100% scores. Bah. I have to admit, I'm incredibly bias because I'm a PC gamer. I played (and beat) the first Halo, and found it to be wonderfully underwhelming and mediocre. Essentially, it was the first time an FPS was done kind of well on a console in a long time. Apparently something that had been standard with PC's since Half-Life all of the sudden became a big deal when it was on the XBox.

Anyways, if all goes well I'll be able to get all my homework done on Thursday/Friday so salvage some of the weekend for more TF2. I have to tackle some Illustrator assignments yet. Boy, am I not enjoying that class. Well, more specifically the professor. I'll try to post the pics when I get them done. In the meantime... Hooray for being redikerusly busy.
-Cril

I think it turned ten o'clock but I don't really know
And I can't remember caring for an hour or so
Started crying and I couldn't stop myself
I started running but there's no where to run to

I sat down on the street, took a look at myself
Said where you going man, you know the world is headed for hell?
Say your goodbyes if you've got someone you can say goodbye to

I believe the world is burning to the ground
Oh well, I guess we're gonna find out
Let's see how far we've come (right now)
Let's see how far we've come
Well I, believe it all is coming to an end
Oh well, I guess we're gonna pretend
Let's see how far we've come (oh yeah)
Let's see how far we've come

Matchbox Twenty - How Far We've Come

Illustrator? This is MADDNESS!

Ok, so one of the classes I've started this fall is an intro to Adobe Illustrator. Great, I'm familiar with vectors in Corel Draw, have been using Photoshop for a while now and am interested in learning it's "sister" program.

It's like an unholy cross between the functionality of Corel, the interface of Photoshop, no advantages of either, and a few steps of retard thrown in for good measure. Now, I'm not trying to brag or anything, but I can generally figure out a program on my own without too much problems. But Illustrator... I can get results, but they frustrating to achieve. Either this program is completely dumb, or the developers made sure there was no trace of intuitive mixed in anywhere. It's not a pleasure to use. Mind you, this verdict only comes after two weeks and maybe ~15 total hours of use. But I'm still learning, so will see if some of this issues I'm having get ironed out. But one thing is for sure - the interface is just different enough from Photoshop to drive me mad. Yes, it looks familiar I you *kind of* know where to look for things, but there are some parts that don't match up. Anyhoo, below is what I've accomplished for this week's class assignment.







All of those came from ref, of course. I have to find more like the Blue Lady... I think there was a URL on the image I used.

And in other news, my headset broke. Less than 24 hours away from the Team Fortress 2 release, of course. Ain't life grand?
-Cril

Hey you, you say the race is much too fast
It's okay, with me I'm keeping pace
It's my game, the music is inside my head
For every one on top there's one who can't retrace

You realize now
You should have tried now, oooh ooh
The music's gone now, you'll find out
You lost it somehow
Hey you, sha lalala
Hey you, sha lalala
Wooo, sha la la la
Wooo, sha la la la

Bachman-Turner Overdrive - Hey You

Peggle EXTREME!

So, I totally pre-ordered the Orange Box. I mean, why not? PEGGLE EXTREME, that's why. Not just any Peggle, but Peggle extreme. Need I say more? Well, the price is good with 10% off and you get into the early Team Fortress Beta. I'm excited!

In other news, I've finished my first week of school. Looks like everything is coming along nicely... I have an Illustrator assignment due today and a song review for next week. Oh, and reading. Lots of reading. Like, 30+ pages per course. It kinda sucks.

I've been driving back and forth a lot. Like, I filled up on Friday and I just did it again. I'm probably averaging 2hrs a day for weekdays. At least I'm getting some of the gas money back, but I still wish I didn't have to put so much strain on my car.

Speaking of which, the speakers in my car are crackling a bit. Apparently I need a deck that does 60-100 watts x 4 channels, but I can't seem to find anything that goes higher than 52. I really, really hope my speakers aren't blown. I mean, I've only had them for a few months and I don't think I've really played them too loud. Best case scenario, though, it'd be my iPod transmitter. I think it's not the problem, but I'll burn a CD with some of the more problematic tracks and see if it does any better right from the deck. If that's the case, I'll get a new deck with Aux In. If not... I really gotta see if my speakers are blown. If that's the case I sure hope the 90 days since purchase are up. They probably are...

Sigh, a lot of jumbled thoughts for today. Guess I've been all over the place since school started. Driving so much is doing funny things to my brain.
-Cril

You might throw your rock, hide your head
Work in the dark with your fellow men
Sure as God made you rich and poor
You're gonna reap just what you sow

Go tell that lonesome liar
Go tell that midnight rider
Tell the gamblin', ramblin' backslider
Tell them God Almighty gonna cut 'em down

Moby - Run On

Every day you learn something new

First day of school! Ah, it brings back all those wonderful feelings of being nervous and stressed. You know what else school has? Lots of attractive ladies. Not that it matters, I'm pretty sure I have enough guts to do anything about it anyways. But it leads me to my main point:

I discovered today that I have a different personal dynamic in a large classroom setting than in a small, personal group. It's somewhat odd, I made a few jokes and ask questions and comment alright in class discussion. To be honest I'm slightly surprised I'm that... "outgoing"/confident as is. But when it came down to spend time in a group of 4/5 people for an assignment, I shut right up. Didn't say a word unless someone addressed me. How odd is that? I wonder why that is.
-Cril

Something has to make you run
I don't know why I didn't come
I feel as empty as a drum
I don't know why I didn't come
I don't know why I didn't come
I don't know why I didn't come

Norah Jones - Don't Know Why

Seepage of my brain and wallet.

Okay, so I've been watching the Dick Van Dyke Show recently. We got a few season DVD sets out from the library, and my bro usually sets it up to play some episodes while he's surfing the web or whatever. First off, that show is pretty darn funny. Dick Van Dyke is (er, was) a really funny guy. The writing is also great. I guess it might be a bit cheesy at points, but for a show that was made in the early sixties it's still pretty funny and, dare I say, fresh. Great original humour.

And secondly, Mary Tyler Moore was pretty darn attractive back then. I can't say she's aged too well though. Well, I'm not sure if she's aged at all, or if it's just the newer chemicals and wonderful plastic compounds that remain. Regardless, it makes you wonder - What would all these once truly attractive people look as they age had they not turned to plastic surgery to prevent the inevitable? Because honestly, the way the look now is a bajillion times worse than what they could have possibly been when they opted for the quick-fix surgery.

And in other news, I got the vinyls put on my car. Well, that was a while ago and since then I had to wait for decent weather and an opportunity to use the family camera. All in all, it looks pretty slick. There's small bubbles on a few of them, but it isn't that noticeable unless you look close enough. Anyhoo, chekkit oot:









It turns out I have a bit of a leak with the sunroof. It isn't too bad - I place a little scrap of cloth by the clasp and it pretty much keeps it from dripping or spreading around. It also leaks at the front, but that's when I open the sunroof right after rain or whatever.

School starts Tuesday. I haven't made my mind up about how I feel about it yet. Nervous? Excited? Maybe semi-depressed, what with how all my money seems to be going out the door so quickly. Bah.

Speaking of monies, I wasn't planning on spending any of my $50 entertainment budget for August, and then I ran into a discounted pair of rollerblades in the mall that fit just-right. I'll take them out for a quick spin tonight... It's a shame, my other pair (which is now too small) was pretty good and I didn't want to spend the entertainment budget at all. $50 a month does add up... I think the only money I'll spend between now is on the Half-Life Orange Box and maybe on Gears of War PC. And maybe a Wii for Christmas, but no guarantees on that. Bah, even those items still seem like a lot. I gotta cut down on my spending... Even though I don't think I'm really spending that much. I guess there's nothing I can do about it. No matter how tightly you hold your cupped hands, wanter still seeps out, doesn't it?
-Cril

She said I think I'll go to Boston
I think I'll start a new life
I think I'll start it over, where no one knows my name
I'll get out of California, I'm tired of the weather
I think I'll get a lover and fly him out to Spain, oh yeah
I think I'll go to Boston
I think that I'm just tired
I think I need a new town, to leave this all behind
I think I need a sunrise, I'm tired of the sunset
I hear it's nice in the Summer, some snow would be nice

Augustana - Boston

Do you feel the wind?

My grandparents 50th anniversary was last month, and I wanted to do something special for them. I decided to draw a prairie landscape for them, they both came from small farms out in Saskatchewan before moving out to a town in northern BC. I caught a quick glipse of a photo my grandfather took when he went back to visit his family. The picture was of his home; an old shack, no glass in the window, an old and weathered roof, and weeds/grass consuming the whole structure. When I saw it, it just struck a chord with me. In that decrepit old hovel is where a family spent years of blood, sweat, laughter and tears. And here it was, the remains of somebodies home.

The process of the piece was pretty... Interesting, I guess. As I worked on it, I shot copies to both Steve and Frank for input. They'd tell me it was too dark, too muted. Then I'd go back, redo levels, touch up problems, add detail, at one point near the end I completely re-did all the grass. My grandmother is an especially cheerful soul, so I threw in a bright red kite in the background to cheer things up. I had a rich blue sky and bright yellow grass. I printed it up and got a frame, and my grandparents loved it. My grandfather was taken by it in particular, even though I didn't get the original picture for a reference of the building, I heard him say "It's the farm!"

But I digress. I'm glad I put together a bright and colourful piece for my grandparents, but I wasn't quite happy with it. During the process the Frank told me "you can't make a piece be something it isn't". And it hit me - This needed to be something that would parallel what I felt when I saw the photo. It had to be a shade of sad, and have a tint of longing to it. It wasn't meant to be a happy piece. And so weeks after I got back from the anniversary, I opened up the file again. And I admit - I didn't do anything big. I tweaked the brightness. I played with the contrast. I toyed with the levels. And... That was it. It wasn't quite as far off as I originally thought. But now it feels right.

If you haven't skipped all this by now to get to the pic, chances are you just want me to finish. So here it is:



And a hi-res, 1600x1200 version here. I drew it at super-dumb high resolution, so if you're interested enough for a certain resolution let me know.

Overall, I think I'm pretty pleased with it. Probably some more of my best stuff yet. I guess to me this was more of an emotional piece than anything else. That being said, huge thanks goes out to Steve for the feedback and to Frank for the guidance. Thanks fellas, I really appreciate it.
-Cril

Under this national rain cloud
I'm getting soaked to the skin
Trying to find my umbrella
But I don't know where to begin

KT Tunstall - Under the Weather

It's the same old story.

A month gone by without a post. Oh boy, how lazy I've been in keeping this thing up-to-date.

I've settled in, I've moved most of everything important over, although I'm still having one heckuva time getting through to Revenue Canada. I think I'll fax-in a form, I just can't seem to get through on the phone. HAd a lil' run-in with a policeman about my car. Apparently something was wrong with my Alberta license, and I almost got towed and fined. But it's all fixed, and I'm back to the lowly New Driver's permit. Bah.

But the real stinger? Insuring the damn car. $2400 for one friggin' year. Ouch. I hate that, just because I'm a younger driver I'm automatically a bad one. I'm so depressingly poor - I have about a quarter of what I did a few months ago. I guess I'll see how this one semester of school goes, and then I'll probably work for a bit and re-evaluate in a few more months.

I'm going to try and do more art in my spare time. And I know this is just something that I decided on today, and I know I've said it before, but... When you find yourself replaying old games just to amuse yourself you should really find ways to be productive instead of wasting time. I should go through and uninstall all those games I'm playing through for no good reason.

In my defense, though, I have been drawing a bit for a project. Why don't I mention what said 'project' is? Because that's classified information. And by classified, I mean that if there is someone that reads this (hahaha), there's a surprise in store. Maybe. Hasn't quite gotten off the ground yet.

But aside from that, I need to do a bit of work on what might be one of my better drawings yet before I'm ready to post it. I also have to do some freelance ad design work for someone to go in a magazine. It's coming along ok. And then there's the catalogue from work. I think I'm making good progress all things considered, but the lines of communication between here and the head-honchos leaves a bit to be desired. Oh well, I can't complain if it keeps some money flowing in, right?

On a last note, being back is so very odd in so many ways. So many things have changed, and so many more things haven't. Me being one those things in both ways. What a strange feeling.
-Cril

It's the same old story
Everywhere I go,
I get slandered,
Libeled,
I hear words I never heard in the Bible
And I'm so tired.
I'm oh-so tired.
But I'm trying to keep my customers satisfied,
Satisfied.

Simon & Garfunkel - Keep the Customer Satisfied

So very experimental

Oh. Boy.

I did indeed make the move home, save a few items which I oh-so-inconveniently left behind (my hat being one of them - argh). The trip wasn't all too bad. Sure, it was long and hot, but me and all my stuff made it in one piece. You'd be surprised at how much stuff you can cram into such a small Civic. Two 19" CRT monitors, a hella big computer, an OFFICE CHAIR, and loads of other stuff. I forgot all my sleep/grub wear though. I'll my sweats and crappy sweaters are in a bag or two in the corner of the basement in Calgary. Oh well.

Okay, so what I've got to do from here:
-Change phone number/address
-Get car inspected, insured
-Get BC licence
-Finish drawing for the anniversary

The last one is the biggest, because we leave before the week's out. But it's okay, I'm getting really close. I just have to tweak one or two elements, and it should be ready to get printed. I've been getting tons of help from Frank and Steve. Some of it more vague and some of it more pointed. But it's all good - I think this'll definitely be one of my best ones yet.

And on another note, now that I've moved home with all stuff, I've realized I left a lot of stuff here that I basically don't need and never missed. So there'll be a lot of sorting and throwing out and setting aside to give away. I have to say, as much of a hassle as this whole moving thing has been thus far, it's definitely put some perspective on life.
-Cril

The color of infinity
Inside an empty glass
It's for this experimental film
Which nobody knows about and which
I'm still figuring out what's going to go
In my experimental film

Yeah!
You're all gonna be in this experimental film
And even though I can't explain it
I already know how great it's gonna--
Yeah, you're gonna be in this experimental film
And even though I can't explain it
I already know how great it--
Even though I can't explain it
I already know how great it's...

They Might Be Giants - Experimental Film

Go figure, the one time I think of a half-decent post title I can't seem to type in the title field. I just click there to select and it doesn't do anything. Bah, so here goes:

Silverhands

I've spent probably 15hrs of my weekend working on my car. I cleaned up a lot of rust (not that my car even has all that much to start with, but there were a few ugly patches), grinding, sanding, priming and painting. Hence the silver hands - that's the colour of the body, and whatever the spray paint came in contact with. Anyways, it's amazing how drained I'm feeling - I guess it's tiring to be that productive doing manual labour. In any case, my car has a lot less rust now. I can't say I did a great job on the paint, but what are you going to do for a 12 year old car?

Anyways, I'm moving home on Saturday morning. So before then I'll have to pack everything up so it can fit in my car for a 12 hour drive. I suspect I'll end up Greyhounding quite a bit of it, but we'll see. I'll at least fit my computer stuff in and some clothes. But I have a lot more to do yet, including a newspaper ad and finishing that drawing for my grandparents. Sigh, I shoulda been doing more last week... But in my defence, I didn't know "touching up" my car would take as long as it did. Such is life, I'm sure it'll all come together.
-Cril

Fallin’ asleep at the wheel again baby,
You’re driftin’ over the line (the line), Yeah
Your hands are tight but you’re losin’ grip quickly
Fix me, can you read the signs?

Thumbin’ your way to Vegas, dirty
And Dreamin’ of the other side
Save your tears and laughter because
It doesn’t matter what you find

It ain’t pretty
After the show
It ain’t pretty when the pretty leaves you
With no place to go

INXS - Pretty Vegas

Uphill

Okay, so let's start with an update on how productive I've been.

Movie Reviews - Haven't done 'em, don't think I will. Too much time has passed since I've seen them.
Father's Day - Didn't do a darn thing, and now it's too late.
End of month finances - All caught up!
Comic site - Done! Given to Eric to Code! Huttah!

Considering I wanted to have those all done by last weekend, you'd probably assume I haven't been as productive as I wanted to be. But, actually, that's not the case. Every night for a week I did the comic site - It turned out to be a lot more work than I expected, but I got it done. I've also chosen what classes I'm going to try and register for (I got accepted for school, btw), and have found a car. Not too bad, eh? I guess that kinda makes up for not posting last week.

Granted, I could've done a bit better with my time over the past week, but finding a car was really stressful on me. All of the sudden I stopped sleeping well, lost my appetite, and generally came home each day and crashed like... Something that crashes a lot. But now that I have a car, I just need to figure out the insurance. Hopefully I'll do that tomorrow or Tuesday. Sooner the better: I'm trying to stay skeptical of the whole thing until it's over with. I don't want to get excited too early.

Oh, and it's a '96 Civic CX with 186 000km on it and fantastic service records. Looks like it's been kept in great condition. I'll need to get a set of rear tires and replace the windsheild though. I should be okay considering I paid $700 less than the asking price.

So from here on in, what I want to focus on is:
-INSURANCE, ASAP. From there I get to have a car.
-Drawing - finish up the piece for the anniversary.
-Start packing - I realized I have less than a month until I move away.

And of course from there I get to start stressing about how I bring what back home, getting some basic supplies for the car, changing my address for banking and phone and canceling health insurance, etc etc. All this and more within a wonderful three-week time frame! I think I can do it, I have a few days leeway before I have to leave. The drive home all by my lonesome should be interesting though...
-Cril

If only I could call the rain to melt and wash away the pain you feel
I would
You gave yourself to me and showed me what the truth could be
For that, I say thank you
This was my life
It never made much sense to me

Yoko Kanno - No Reply

This song starts off with such a fantastic strings section. Too bad it doesn't keep through the rest of the piece.

Productivity... Or lack thereof

"Okay," I tell myself, "I have 20 minutes to do a post before bed. Ready, GO!"

That was five minutes ago. These past few weeks, it's embarrassing how little I've been getting done in my spare time. I more often than not just find myself browsing the ever-so-ugly depths of Digg while checking in at Joystiq or CSNation every 45 minutes to break up the boredom. All the while, I should be drawing or photoshopping or something. Gah - I'll have to set a personal goal to only spend X amount of time on browsing the internet. And considering I don't really have any big or exciting games to play, there should be a heckuvalot more art-ish stuff going on. So how about I set some deadlines then:

Wed/Thurs - Post about movies I've seen over the past few weeks.
Before Fri - Draw something for Father's Day to send to my Dad. I'd get him an actual gift, but I'm a poor man.
Mon/Tue - Do end of month for my finances spreadsheet.
Before Fri - More work on the comic site - figure out how the buttons below the header will work.

There, that should do it for now. I also need to do more work on the pic for my grandparents, but that requires a bit of playing around yet.

This weekend I went out to a car lot and even took one for a spin. It was a '95 VW Cabrio. Cool little car - It doesn't handle quite as well as the CRX, but it's quite roomy and I LOVED the soft top. Too bad that the latter is the vehicle's downfall. It requires ~$1300 to replace the roof or the weather seals, so considering I'll be moving to where it rains a lot... Not a very wise idea. That's just asking for trouble. I bet my mom woulda liked it though...

I'm getting ever-so-stressed about this school thing. I can't believe it - I applied so early I now have to reapply. That SUCKS. Waste of $45, and I might lose $1900 worth in bursaries. Gah, I'm really starting to hate the idea of school. Sure, people tell me it's a must-do to progress in life, but... I've saved so hard over the past year and a half, and in less than that amount of time it'll all be out the door. I'm going into something that I know will make me as poor as a bucket. (Buckets are poor? Who knew...)
-Cril

The best things in life are free
But you can give them to the birds and bees
I want money
That's what I want
That's what I want
That's what I want

Your love gives me such a thrill
But your love won't pay my bills
I want money
That's what I want
That's what I want
That's what I want

Flying Lizards - Money, That's What I Want

Stormy

Wow, it has really been storming over the past... Two hours at least. Nonstop lightning, lots of rain, the whole nine yards. The rain came down so viciously at first that it flooded the road - You couldn't even tell where the storm drains were. An the lightning just keeps coming, it seems like there's a flash every minute or so. Some are close, some are far away, some are spectacular and some are weak. There's the odd one that'll flash so brightly and then when the thunder comes it's so strong you feel it in your gut. Ah, I love watching storms. That's one thing I wish they had more of back storm.

I've tried going on late-night walks before bed recently. Just a few times so far. I go out, really enjoy the music, and get some quality alone time. I was hoping it would help me sleep better - Go and get a bit of physical activity and have a chance to slow down the mind. Unfortunately, I've slept horribly after I've gone for walks. It's really too bad - I rather enjoy late-night strolls while I really get into some tunes. Oh well. It has made me realize something, though - I don't like living in the city. Everything smells like sweat. Human sweat, building sweat, car sweat. The "fresh" air doesn't smell so fresh when you're surrounded by so many unnatural odors. That, and the horizon has a fine greyish brown coating over it, making the sunsets incredibly less spectacular. Makes me realize how lucky I've been to live in either a small village or town for most of my life.

Oh, and I've been listening to Wisperings (solopianoradio.com) recently. Really nice music, nothing but a solo piano playing softer music. It's a really powerful instrument in the hands of a gifted player.
-Cril

Sing us a song, you're the piano man
Sing us a song tonight
Well, were all in the mood for a melody
And you've got us feelin' alright

Billy Joel - Piano Man

You know what I really hate?

When someone does something nice for you, and turns around and uses it for leverage. They do it out of what seems sheer kindness, and the next day say "Do this and consider it payment for what I did for you earlier." GAH. At first, you're like "Whoa, this is really really nice of them!" and they go up a notch in your book. And then you go "I should've figured you wouldn't have been some selfless..." And they get bumped down three. Makes me wish I had made a snarky comment when it gets turned around on me.

In other news, I flew off my bike this week. I was going stupid-fast around a corner and my back end swung out a bit and hit a railing. It was quite surreal to be able to think, "Huh, I'm in free fall right now. This should be interesting..." I think I landed correctly, though. Judging by the scratch on my elbow and damage to my foot I got off without any other injury. I think I rolled out of it like I used to practice falling in karate. It's one of those things I never really expected that I'd be able to use effectively, and when it came down to the split-second reaction I did. Or at least I think I did. Who knows, maybe I just was lucky to hit in a safe-ish position. Oh well, the best part of the whole ordeal was when my bike handlebars hit the pavement and my bell went "Ding!" It sounded like quite the contrast to what happened.

Anyways, I've been researching cars. Lots of Civics and Precidias. I gotta go cheap, and I gotta go new. I guess that rules out all the Porsches, but I guess that'll come in the future. I'm looking in the $6000-$8000 range - Hopefully that'll get me a decent enough ride that'll last me through school with minimal maintenance. Being poor, here I come. We'll see how it ends up, though. I need to get a car soon so that it can be insured for a month before I move back home. That way I don't have to pay sales tax. Oh well, worse comes to worst, I can always look for cars when I get back.

Anyhoo, things I should do sooner than later:
-Figure out how to register for the fall semester
-Cancel medical coverage
-Comic website
-prairie drawing

Moving across provincial borders suck. At least it's not across international ones...
-Cril


I bought me an auto, an '81 Ford Escort Wagon
Now the fan it be broke and the tail-pipe it be draggin'
I feel like a schlemiel, my mechanic's fit for hangin'
I got to go to Rust Check , 'bout the price I'll be hagglin'
I can't drive it home because the muffler it be saggin'
Got a car full of pain

Arrogant Worms - Car Full of Pain

Saturday Morning Root Canal

Oh boy, what a way to start the weekend! Nothing like a major dentist appointment at 9AM sharp. It was an... Interesting experience. There I sat for more than an hour, as two rather attractive women stared oh-so-intently at my gaping mouth. I was semi-blinded by the overhead lamp while they proceeded to play with all sorts of power tools and gadgets that made funny noises. And there I sat, with a limp mouth, while all I could see were these terror instruments going into my mouth and coming back out looking not as pretty. Oh, and just to spice it up they threw in some cotton, gel stuff and UV rays that came from a device you could swear came from a 1950's sci-fi ray gun. Some highlights included:

-It was quite interesting when the put my mouth "to sleep". They put some gel stuff on my gums which numbed it a bit, and they went ahead and put a nasty looking needle in my gums while they injected some wondeful substance. It didn't really hurt, but inside I was freaking out because I had a large syringe sticking into my mouth. The sensation that followed was quite intriguing, though. It was really neat to sit while my mouth slowly froze and started to feel like... A frozen banana. Why a frozen banada? I couldn't tell you. Kinda cold, kinda stiff/hard, and yet a bit spongy.

-At one point they put yet another tool into my mouth and moke coming out. The lady apologized, saying it smelled bad. That's not what concerned me - there was smoke coming from my mouth. SMOKE FROM MY MOUTH.

-At one point they were temporarily placing little needles with plastic, multicoloured tips into my tooth. I couldn't feel it, but I sure heard it when the first one went TWANGGGG. I had to try so hard not to laugh. That's the last sound I expected to come from my mouth. Y'know like the smoke.

-I think those little needles were detectors of some kind, because shortly after they went in a machine on the table would beep. One beep, two beeps, high pitched beep, low pitched beep. She was playing music on my teeth! I felt like a human xylophone.

Had I actually been in pain, all of this might have qualified as some kind of torture scene from James Bond. But no, not only was my mouth frozen so I couldn't feel it but I paid for it. Yup, that's right. $474.00 to be exact. There are a million different things I'd rather blow $474 on, but no. Instead I spent a third of a month's wages so the dentist could tinker around in my mouth with various power tools while making smoke and electronic beep music.

Although, it really makes me wonder what it actually cost to have the whole thing done, especially if the staff get paid as much as I do. Okay, let's double the wage to $20/hr, for two people, for two hours - That's $80. Lets further assume that the half-swab cotton they used came from mythical unicorn creature that lives in rainbows and eats stars for breakfast. Another $100. And... We'll say that that they needed to sterilize the other tools they used - $50. That's $230, almost half of what I actually paid. Which means one of two things - Either dentists get paid really freakin' well (which is most likely) or 90% of the tools they used are disposable and need to be replaced. *Sigh* Almost $500 out the door for an hour and a half (ish) appointment. Screw graphic arts, maybe I need to be a dentist. So I can make teeth music, stick needles in gums, and make smoke come out of people's mouths.
-Cril

I had enough and you're going down
(Shut your mouth)
What comes around you know goes around
(Shut your mouth)
You're getting what your ego deserves
(Shut your mouth)
What comes around you know goes around

Pain - Shut Your Mouth

Milk, muffins, and a BELT

^ That was my shopping list for today. I should've done it on Friday when I cashed my paycheck, but I completely forgot that and my income tax returns. Oh well. But go figure - There were no belts to be had in Superstore. Sure, they carry every other clothing item you can think of, but no belts to be had. So I had to drive across the parking lot to Mark's Work Warehouse to get one. Normally I'm not that lazy, but it's snowing out. Yes, snow. On the May long weekend. If ever anyone has doubt to whether or not God has a sense of humour, look no farther than Calgary weather. And the platypus.

Anyways, I realize I've broken my rule of posting at least once a week. That past week, nay MONTH has been some sort of wonderful variation of "going to hell in a handbasket" for the entire company. I think I've put in at least a small bit of OT every day for the past month, with a bit of weekend work mixed in. Large orders, an in-town convention, prepping for a very very out of town convention, and finishing it all off with a grand finale of "Chris being in charge of the office for the remainder of the week because he's supposedly the best trained and senior employee to do the job even though he doesn't feel like he knows what he's doing".

Yeah, it was just as scary as it sounds. A lot of "Unfortuneatly, ___ is at a convention right now, and will not be back until Tuesday/the following Monday. May I take a message, or would you like to call back then?" Not a lot of people left messages. From there, I completely winged it on a few FedEx documents, took some phone orders, and generally spent most of my time at the order desk HOPING I was entering each purchase in properly. Sure, I'm technically trained to do all of that - but I can't say the confidence is all there. One thing's for sure, though, I now have a LOT more respect for the people who normally man the order desk. It was really difficult to get so much stuff done while you get interrupted with other requests for things.

But it's all over now! I'm back to being a lowly grunt! Huzzah! Well, that better be the case Eric & Becky are supposedly coming back today, so they'll be at work tomorrow. Tuesday is going to be NASTY with just three of us there.

It looks like all the TV shows I watch are coming to their season finale, if they already haven't. BSG was great, Scrubs sucks and is getting quite stale, Airbender was awesome, Heroes looks to be a blast (just like the entire series thusfar), and Lost is... A "special" case. I don't know what to think after the whole Jacob episode. It was a good, engaging show but dipping into the paranormal takes part of the fun out of the series. I guess deep down I was hoping for some semi-logical, crazy-go-nuts science experiment answer to everything. Now that they're bringing ghosts into the mix, it makes an easy scapegoat for all the other bizzare mysteries. Oh, and then there was The Office. Which ROCKED. The ending was absolutely *priceless*. The look Ryan gave the camera at the very last second was too perfect.

I guess now that the shows are coming to the end of the season, it'll leave me with a few extra hours over the course of the week. "Great!" I tell myself, "Now I can get more drawing/Photoshop work done!" What it probably means is more time spent messing around on the internet, searching the deep, ugly depths of Digg to occupy myself.

What else... OH! Starcraft 2, of course. I'm stoked for that, even though I probably won't get my grubby little hands on it for another year or two. It looks so great, but I'm sure it's still a long ways off. I just hope they pickup with the story - That was my favourite aspect of Starcraft. I'm a sucker for good video game storytelling, and SC is probably the best I've ever had.

I've been getting a bit of travel out of that bike I got. I put a bell and some mudguards on it. I've gone to work a couple of times, and this weekend I took it exploring around the community here. Some on road, a bit more off road. The hills and dirt out back is really fun to ride around on, but it really makes me realize how much I took my bike with dual-suspension for granted.

Anyways, should get going to do something semi-productive. I'd still like to get the house decently cleaned for when the aunt and uncle get back. I've done a bit of tidying already, but there's still a bit to do yet. I got my room cleaned and all my laundry washed, though. I think I'll go and draw something... I've played a bit too much BF2142 with Frank over the weekend to justify more gaming.

Oh, and a closing note - Next weekend I get to go for a happy-fun-root-canal of doom. Oh joy.
-Cril

Link, he come to town
Come to save the Princess Zelda
Ganon took her away
Now the children don't play
But they will when Link saves the day
Hallelujah!

Now Link, fill up your hearts
So you can shoot your sword with power
And when you're feeling all down
The fairy will come around
So you'll be brave, and not a sissy coward

The Rabbit Joint - The Legend of Zelda

Crash and BURN

I got a bike from the neighbour for a whopping $40. It's nothing special, a fixed-frame mountain bike with 16 gears or whatever. But with gas prices threatening to hit $1.40 this summer I figured it wouldn't hurt to get a bike commuting in addition to exercise. That, and I can hopefully beat Dave in the time it takes to bike to/from the office. I spent roughly 1/10th of what he has for a bike setup. I sure do miss my dual-suspension bike at home though...

Oh man, what a week at work. We practically spent the last five days doing nothing but the huge distributor order. We barely squeezed in enough time to do the day-to-day orders. Heck, I even had to get an extension on the ad that was SUPPOSED to be due on Friday. Buy boy, was yesterday hectic. The whole day was spent running back and forth, and we didn't even make the FedEx pickup. Pure insanity. But the dinner afterwards was nice. We were all so fried that we were making dumb jokes and having a good time.

On a side note, though, we had a really cute waitress. She was attractive and smart and funny. She's two years into some kinda biological-something course to get her into medicine. Talk about a job that doesn't meet her full potential. Don't get me wrong - she was an awesome waitress. You'd just figure she's capable of so much more. The scary thing is that she said she's almost 20. Makes me wonder where I'd be if I had gone right into college after high school. I'm pretty confident I've done the right thing by taking time off to work though. I think of found a bit more direction for my life over the past two years. Not that I have anything really figured out, but it's direction nonetheless. But back to the point: Cute waitress. I should've tried hitting her. But I didn't

Some days I just wish I wasn't so comfortable in this shell I've made for myself.
-Cril

February 5th, Friday morning, purple dawn
Broke a yawn, as a I stepped through the fog, like I stepped to a song
A moment like a poem, you wish you could hold it
I shut my eyes like it's frozen, it's gone when I open
It slipped passed the clouds right there where it lingered
Like your band and a girl could slip through your fingers

Mat Kearney - Undeniable

Airbending

Oh man. Avatar kicks ass. What a great show. I love the story and setting, and *love* the goofy moments. It reminds me of Trigun for some reason. I've watched all the episodes over the last two weeks. I really wish I could find out when it starts up again. Sweet series.

After realizing that I had a pretty crappy recording of the Rainbow Connection, I looked for a better one on iTunes. I decided I wanted to get the Sarah McLachlan version. I really liked the 30 second preview. So I was about to login to the iTunes store and make the purchase, but wait a sec... The record label is the same as the Barenaked Ladies new album. And I got that sans-DRM. Could it be that I could just login to the label's site and download away? YES! IT'S SO! Bahahaha! Hooray for no digital rights crap! (And I totally dig the son, btw)

I've decided I haven't been spending enough time being, how shall I say... Productive. I get home and watch a TV show or browse the internet for longer than I need to. I think this week I'm gunna start drawing something. Father's Day is coming up. If only I can figure out something to draw for Dad...

And in other news, it's GREEN outside! Well, not completely. Things are looking alive in some places more than others. But the sun is out more and it's getting warm. IT'S SPRING, BABY! Just never mind the fact that it's almost May.
-Cril

And I forget
Just what it takes
And yet I guess it makes me smile
I found it hard
Its hard to find
Oh well, whatever, nevermind

Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain - Smells Like Teen Spirit