Eric At Random

Here we go again...

2010-12-05T09:57:00.001-08:00

Hello all. Moving again. My new home is:

EricAtRandom.com

It has all the posts from this blog as well as my old Live Spaces one.

Hope to see you there!

Ask me anything -- anonymously!

2010-03-27T09:34:00.000-07:00

This is totally anonymous, and admittedly, I feel like opening this up is stepping out on a limb. I can't say I'll answer every question, but I'll try!
&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.formspring.me/EricAtRandom"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;http://www.formspring.me/EricAtRandom&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

But How Eternal Is That Sunshine?

2010-02-13T09:39:00.000-08:00

While Debbie was here, I shared with her Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. This is a favorite film of mine. I've seen it no less than 7 times -- often when I was in "a mood". If you have not seen it, you really must. And if you don't want any spoilers, you should probably stop reading now, because the film's story and ending will be mentioned soon.

It's really amazing what your current state of mind can do to perception. The first time I saw this film (at home, unfortunately, as it is incredible visually) I think I came out in a slight state of shock. It was kinda like, "what just happened there?" I understood the film -- which can be a feat in itself. I thought, "How hopeless. They can never make it. And they know it. And yet, with no actual memory of the relationship going bad, they are fated to try again." I felt like if I'd seen it in the theater, I'd have had to have been asked to leave by the folks cleaning the place -- it wouldn't have even occurred to me to get up and walk out at the end.

Other times, I would watch it and ponder, "They have these tapes that tell them the pitfalls ahead. Without the anger and hurt that split them up in the first place, could knowing how it failed help them make it?"

Later, as I came to realize my marriage was beyond repair, I rented it for the Nth time (I still do not own it, but I really should), and I watched again from yet a different perspective. I watched as the bitter faded away with erasure to early relational bliss. I looked back at my own relationship, and I could see the good times in it. They were tainted by my current situation. We had both changed so much, and those good times were no longer available. They wouldn't be coming back. They stood simply to contrast the "now" from the "then." The credits scene, where Joel is in the car listening to Beck's "Everybody's Got To Learn Sometime" had me in tears. I still have to fight that when I watch it now.

Again, at the end, all I could think was that they were cursed to do it all over again (a theme that was present in the film in a few places). Everyone changes over the course of a relationship. You fall for someone in the "impression phase", and it's all up to chance whether you can live with them afterward. Erasing the exposure to the latter phase left this poor couple with only the impression phase to go on.

I've watched the film since my divorce, and since I've been with Jess. And this time it was different. It was like they had let the relationship slide, and at the end, with the tapes to guide them, they could avoid that the second time around. Otherwise, hearing how it ended would have stopped them from starting again, right? They were going to make it!

I watched with Debbie because weeks and weeks ago I rented a DVD from Netflix of Michel Gondry's music videos and have yet to return it. I was showing them to her, and this movie came to mind because it's also from Gondry. So we streamed it. I didn't intend to finish the film, as we'd started late, and I knew the ending. But I guess I can't leave this movie, even when precious sleep is at stake. The end of the film came, and she questioned why they got back together. This time, I didn't have a definitive answer. The future is open and love is strong, and I guess that is why they got back together. There was no way to know how they'd fare.

What did you think of this film? Did it affect you, or was it just a movie? If you saw it in a theater, would you say it couldn't have the same impact coming from the small screen? What were your thoughts on what happened after the closing credits?

Almost a year.

2009-03-24T01:07:00.000-07:00

I should be in bed right now. Instead I find myself watching this. It's so hard to think a year has passed since my younger sister was taken by cancer. This song was all over the radio when Lynda was sick. I really hope there's more than just "dark", but sometimes I wonder.

"I Will Follow You Into The Dark"

In addition to the direct connection to Lynda, the scenes with the old man and little boy remind me of my dad and my sons. But the song is so sweet, and the video so beautifully done, I can't put either away forever.

I don't dwell on the people who have passed, and tomorrow when I wake up I'll be fine. But at times, yes, I revisit them, and sometimes it hurts almost as bad as when they first left.

The Actual List

2009-03-21T23:15:00.000-07:00

I know... been a month and a half... but here's the actual list M7 wrote up. I just thought it was that much better than the transcribed version.

Elements Of Life As Viewed By A 7-Year-Old Boy

2009-02-08T22:22:00.000-08:00

The following is a list compiled by my 7-year-old son about things in his life and how they rate. Rather entertaining, if I may say so myself. I've done my best to preserve the original spelling and punctuation.

Things To Do	Good Or Bad
music	no
science	yes
keroty	yes
art	no
fun	yes
boring	no
Thomas Edison	Great
xbox 3-60	Awsome
Wii	Awsome
GameCube	Awsome
Evry Game tation	Awsome
Work	Boring
baby shows	BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
x-box	Awesome
Evry thing that a 7 year old boy would want	Awesome ya
computer games	Awsome
School	boooooooo boring
homework	boooooooo boring
weekends	woooooooooooo ya Awsome
Barbie	boooooooooo boring
Girl stuff	terible boring boooooooooooo
People that kick my but	Scary not smart mean
people that get me in trouble	not smart
people that hog time	not nice
candy	wooooooo ya awsome
Hershy's	Woooooo ya Awsome
baby toys	booooooooo boring

Remember when it was all so simple to categorize? Hee!

It's So True!!

2009-01-07T18:17:00.000-08:00

I Love XKCD.com!!!

2008-12-22T23:11:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Eric's Flickr Mosaic Meme

2008-08-30T16:41:00.001-07:00

Eric's Flickr Mosaic Meme, originally uploaded by Eric And Michelle.

This is a meme created with fd's Flickr Toys which I got from some online friends (Dylan, Anverie, and Leila).

You type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr search. Then, using only the first page, pick an image.
Then, copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into this mosaic maker fd's Flickr Toys.

1. What is your first name? Eric
2. What is your favorite food? Buffalo Chicken Wings
3. What high school did you go to? Archbishop Molloy
4. What is your favorite color? Green
5. Who is your celebrity crush? Alicia Witt
6. Favorite drink? Coke
7. Dream vacation? Beachfront Spa
8. Favorite dessert? New York Cheesecake
9. What you want to be when you grow up? Older Than Dirt
10. What do you love most in life? Family and Friends
11. One Word to describe you. Quirky
12. Your flickr name. Eric And Michelle

If you're reading this, consider your self tagged. :)

Shaken, Not Stirred (much)

2008-07-30T00:08:00.000-07:00

Today we had an earthquake (technically yesterday by now). I'm going to consider it practice for the real thing, as no one got hurt (all I've heard thus far was two people were injured in the quake... both by banging their heads trying to get under a table).

The key thing I learned today was how quickly people plug up the cell phone circuits. I could not reach anyone, which is hard because that is the first instinct (after self preservation). We felt the shake in Hollywood, and had no way of knowing if we were at the distant edge of something huge or in the middle of something minor. Luckily, we had internet, and once the shaking stopped, I could tell home was not very much affected.

It's funny to watch. We've had a lot of construction going on near work. So a little shaking is not a surprise. Everyone just stopped and looked up. Then came the realization it was a quake. There wasn't room in a doorway, so I stayed near my desk and got ready to drop next to it (new guidelines suggest finding a space that would form a triangle if something falls). It was over before I could kneel. The overall mood was a big "oh well". Then we went outside for a bit.

So... should the big one come, I really don't know what I'll do. Make for a doorway before they fill up? Run outside? Or just get down beside my desk? But for now, no one was hurt, and I know that phone silence is to be expected. Oh well.

Catching Up

2008-06-16T15:12:00.000-07:00

I just posted about 200 pictures to Flickr. I could not believe just how much time had passed since I did that. Here's just a few... click through to see the rest!

Levitating Boy

Leaving Elementary School

Overly Happy Birthday Child

Mother's Day Family Picture

Messy Easter Egg Hunter

A book meme!

2008-06-03T18:23:00.000-07:00

ChatBrat gave me this meme. You know I'm a sucker for being tagged for these things. Haha!

The rules:
1. Pick up the nearest book (of at least 123 pages).
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people.

OK, story here is I read this but couldn't reply right away. So I picked up the nearest book at the time, and chose that to be my book. I figured it counted more if I wasn't prepared when I read the instructions. Knowing the rules, I was afraid it would influence my choice later.

The closest book by a longshot was "Computer Animation: Theory and Practice". I packed this book in my backpack for laughs. It was printed in 1987 and was the textbook for a class I took while in college. Things were different then.

Here's the text:
"Sammie was designed in 1980 at the University of Nottingham. This is, so far, the best parameterized human model and it presents a choice of physical types: slim, fat, muscled, etc. The vision system is very developed and complex objects can be manipulated by Sammie, based on 21 rigid links with 17 joints."

Long sentences. Not the most exciting thing to share. haha The primary focus of the book was a video called "Dream Flight". I found it on YouTube. Prepare to be (retroactively) amazed!!!!

Who do I tag?
Rosa
Aynde
Jaycatt
Karys
Catholic Mom

Have fun folks!!! :D

Rest Well, Little Sister

2008-04-15T21:44:00.000-07:00

The rain won't come.
So I sit in the sun and
I stare into its light through closed eyes.
This is where I go for comfort
But there is none today.
You're not here, and yet you are.
Only yesterday I would have said the same,
And it would have meant something good.
But today I can't bring you closer
With an email
With a joke over the phone
With a trip to the east coast.
I could work through the Gone that
The miles created.
I could get past the distance.
Now I can only remember.
That will be good in time,
But now it just reminds me
That you should still be here.
My eyes are alight with brilliant red,
My mind with memories of you.

My "little" sister Lynda died on March 30th after a long battle with cancer. Ten years ago, the doctors would probably have given her less than a year to live. I am so glad they were wrong. Most of those years, you would never have known she was ill. Still, it doesn't do much to make it easier knowing she was only 38 years old and the mother of a young son when she finally passed.

I'll talk about her in a better light someday, I promise. Right now, I am just having a little trouble finding words to do her justice.

Roots -- 72750,1412

2008-03-05T20:56:00.000-08:00

Today, I put my oldest computer to bed. It was purchased in October 1996, and was running Windows 98. Technically, it was retired about 18 months ago, but it sat in a room waiting for data harvesting for all that time. Tonight I did that, and the harvest was good.

Once I had what I needed, I started destroying personal data, thinking I might donate it, but the big recipients don't seem interested in a machine over 5 years old. So I will locate a responsible recycling program and have it destroyed in a "green" fashion. The hard drive will suffer a rough end to ensure it can't be read, because the more data I destroyed, the more I found in "ini" files and registry entries (tax programs and financial programs I've used over the years).

Along the way, I found this...

Good ol' CompuServe. My entry into the world outside my home computer. This was my first account, started in 1983 on a 300bd modem and an Atari 130XE computer.

My first online experience dates back to 1982, when I was 15 years old. I was visiting a pen-pal, Holly, in upstate New York. Her dad took me into the office one day and set me off on CompuServe CB while he worked. "This is other people typing to me? Incredible!!!"

No one seemed interested in speaking to me, though. An old friend-of-the-family had stopped by recently and was telling us about his actual CB radio experiences. I was using his handle, which -- though I did not know it then -- was rather offensive. I learned that day, though, how offensive it was, as I CB'ed in the presence of Holly's dad. I sent a formal letter of apology for that, and he replied that he hadn't noticed. Kind of funny looking back, but terrifying at the time.

Later, on my own account, I made many friends, although I have a hard time remembering who they were. Daddio was from Long Island, my old haunts. I never learned where VirtualVixen originated, but she was on my channel all the time, too (the number of which, btw, I fail to recall -- 13 maybe?). Later on, I remember Peaches, who was pregnant and deathly afraid of giving birth. My name was EeeTee (all other variants were taken, and it was my pen-pals in upstate New York who gave me the nick "E.T." in the first place, so I chose to adapt and spell it the way E.T. said it). In time, a number of these folks migrated to IRC channels dedicated to the old CB channels. Eventually, I lost touch.

As the years went by, my number, "72750, 1412", proved to be very low. A 5-digit first part meant instant respect (i.e. - you were "mature" and not liable to spend the whole time trying to "hotchat" everyone on the channel). I maintained my low numbered CompuServe account until the advent of CompuServe2000. I had to convert the account to reactivate after a brief stint with AOL, and I ended up with a high 6-digit number -- a true sign of being a newbie. But that was alright. The web was alive, and really all CompuServe was for was getting to it. The number no longer mattered.

Looking today, I expected to see CompuServe gone. Last I saw, it was under AOL's reign. But, it's still there. Netscape is running it now. I wonder just how many people it hosts, if they still call it CB instead of "chat rooms", and what Daddio is up to today.

There Used To Be A Boardwalk

2008-02-29T10:32:00.000-08:00

I've posted about my hometown before, and you may or may not know that my feelings about it are not very positive. But I've finally drawn an analogy that left me feeling quite sympathetic. Far Rockaway is like a beautiful child who, through years of abuse has turned into an abusive parent. What drove this home is the following video, sent to me by my brother-in-law, Mike.

Thank you Ben Budick for this song, and Skip Weinstock for the slide/video show.

So, I'm going to let my thoughts on this town flow here for a bit.

Many years ago, The Rockaways were a beach paradise. They were in the shadow of Coney Island's attractions, perhaps, but beautiful nonetheless. I am reminded periodically of this, like when we were walking the halls of Disney's Boardwalk Resort and saw vintage pictures of Far Rockaway framed on the walls in the elevator lobby.

The problems came about when legislation was proposed to allow casinos in the area. A great deal of land became tied up waiting for casinos to come through, and eventually low-income housing projects were put up on that land. If I understand correctly, the Long Island Railroad line was split and the western link became the "A" train subway (elevated through the Rockaways). The local streets, at one time lined with beachfront bungalows, went abandoned. Houses were replaced by buildings.

When I was very little, I remember concession stands in Far Rockaway (furthest from NYC and Brooklyn) and Mom offering me a taste of a knish ("ewww!!" at the time). My memories of Rockaway's Playland amusement park are a bit more recent and clear. I may be combining two stories here, but I remember my mother talking about riding the roller coaster there repeatedly, as they were giving out free rides while filming a Cinerama film. The growing pain in her stomach was, unbeknownst to her, appendicitis. I grew up through Playland's downfall. As I got older, parts shut down, and I remember coming to realize it was "not a very nice place" as time went on. Still, when I heard it closed and another beachfront vintage rollercoaster was leveled, it saddened me.

My sister, when she was dating my brother-in-law, drove through "the crack capitol of the world" which lay between our area and his. One night, a cop approached her at a red light and told her not to wait for green lights anymore. "No cop would ticket you for running lights here."

There are still a lot of good neighborhoods in the Rockaways. And there are lots of good people holding on and working to keep it nice. I can see this by those who are still living in my old neighborhood when I go back. I am also certain that throughout those rough areas there are lots of good people just trying to get by. I take my hat off to all of you. But do not confuse my respect for optimism about the town's prospects.

The casinos never came. And the beaches are there for the residents, but not welcoming to outsiders. Many people who live there make the trek to Jones Beach instead of the short trip to the local beach.

A picture taken by my dad of a mural commemorating Rockaway's Playland.

I don't miss the place I grew up. But I miss the people, and I somehow miss a place I never knew. That I caught an occasional glimpse of as it faded away. That I see in memories of others, as recorded in the video above.

I Didn't Even Know The Earth Had A Face...

2008-01-28T21:43:00.000-08:00

... So How Did I Fall Off???

Once again, you may have wondered if I'd finally put my poor blog to sleep, and once again the answer is no. Well, yes, if you count a little winter hibernation. We are working on an absolutely wonderful project at work, but it's a doozy. The hours have been long and it's almost like I'm working away from home. But, as there's a small degree of anonymity to my blog, I have chosen not to share titles and such here.

However, we have had some time on the weekends to enjoy some of what California has to offer. We've discovered hiking and we LIKE it! Our first trip was to Vasquez Canyon. This is the site where westerns were filmed. Blazing Saddles was filmed here as well as everyone's favorite western, The Flintsones. Huh? Oh well. Earthquakes have caused huge rock formations to stick up at odd angles from the ground. We climbed quite high, but what looks like a 30-degree incline feels like a 60-degree incline when you reach about 150 feet above the ground (aka that very large, very hard thing that would not be disturbed in the least if you were to splatter up against it). The four stages of this incline were as follows. "S12, let's go up!", followed by "S12, it's getting a bit scary and dangerous". Next came, "I only climbed this far in case you get hurt and need help getting down", and finally, "Well, it was nice having ya while it lasted. Hope you make it down on your own." I will make it to the top one day, myself.

More recently, we went to the Hollyridge Trail. This is the path that takes you up as close as you can get to the Hollywood Sign. It also puts you on the pinnacle of the Hollywood Hills, where you can see both North Hollywood and Hollywood. During this trip, we spotted another special treat... snow capped mountains in the distance (which is a good place for ANYTHING covered in snow unless I'm wearing a lift pass).

So, the truth is, we're stretched, but we're getting by. Our back yard is under construction and coming along nicely. Pictures of that will come soon enough. The kids are doing well in school (M6's last paper came home with a comment, "Perfect, again." on it - haha). Michelle's work has been extremely understanding of the chaos in our house. We're very appreciative. We hope it calms down.. but not too much. Gotta be careful what you wish for when you freelance.

Thanks for bearing with me, and I hope I didn't lose too many of you in the rush.

What's really scary about this...

2007-12-14T12:13:00.000-08:00

... is not the fact that these are cloned, glow-in-the-dark cats.

It's the fact that my entire reaction was a mildly bemused "that's cool!". This is really the domain of "mad scientists!" Now... if they could just mount a laser on their heads.

Click here for the story.

From Here to There -- Wild Speculation

2007-12-01T17:31:00.000-08:00

I am about to let the sci fi geek in me slip out somewhat. Consider yourself forewarned.

Picture two states of human existence. The first is today. One source of intelligence in society... humans. Machine intelligence is on the rise, but simply not much of a threat. This is not about a "Matrix" or "Terminator" style threat. It's more Asimovian. It's about one potential reality and our path to it.

The second state is where machines have reached or exceeded human intelligence. They're not taking over or controlling us for our own good. The only point I'm getting at here is that they can basically do any and all sorts of labor previously dominated by humans, including reparing each other. In my version of this state, there is no desire and there is no real need to understand their self awareness. They don't create a society. Desire and curiosity, in my opinion, were there long before human intelligence. The simplest of animals experiences emotion. The machines would be content to serve humans, as that was what they were made for. Their goals would be given to them by us, but they could think through them faster and more creatively.

Realistic or not, how the machines feel and think is not my question. What I am thinking about is this: Currency fails at some point. What are we exchanging? The only thing I can think of, when I think of exchanges, is real estate. Granted, someone may own the machines, facilities, and materials, but if there's no need for people to run them, where do the customers come from? With no one making money to purchase things, the values collapse.

Society kind of falls vaguely into the communist realm. The machines provide, the people consume. People are free to pursue what they want because those producing the goods just do it. There's no need for incentive. So, you may simply go to the store and get a lamp. Soon, another lamp will be there to replace it at no expense. You can go on a vacation where you want because the transport systems and hotels simply run. You may have to wait, though, because anyone else can do it too.

Now... there's today, where we earn and spend. Then there's the distant tomorrow, somewhere beyond the Singularity, where we don't need work to earn to enjoy life. What happens between now and then?

Machines have already taken certain jobs away. The most obvious to me being the welding bots on assembly lines. Soon, you'll be able to tell a machine to retrieve objects. Enhancements here will start to reduce the need for people in stores and warehouses. Continue onward, and jobs requiring more and more "human" skills will be replaced. We're seeing ads now in California for robotic surgical procedures (still entirely human orchestrated, but machines are doing the cutting/stitching while the surgeon works with joysticks and a video screen -- human hands have now been surpassed). What happens as machine intelligence progresses to a state above ours?

I have not figured out this scenario. It would seem to me that there will come some sort of economic collapse. Using the simplest expression I can think of, there will come a point where twenty percent of jobs are performed better by machines, or fifty, or eighty. You can't simply "turn off" money, because it's the whole incentive to do the remaining percentage of human work. But corporations won't pay a person twenty dollars per hour to do what a machine can do for eight. Those that try will be shut down by those that don't.

So, creative types, speculate with me. How do we get from a currency-based society to one with no currency? What happens to the rich and poor when the labor pool dissolves from the bottom up? What, in the more distant robotic labor society, prevents exhaustion of resources (I'm guessing anything you replace gets recycled by some process that human labor makes impractical today, mind you, and materials once mined are minimally needed again from the earth)? How would real estate work? If only one thing has value, how do you get it for the first time?

I've not seen this "middle state" addressed before. Is anyone aware of any novels or stories about this?

Eight Random Facts

2007-11-21T14:37:00.000-08:00

I've been tagged by IT Catholic Mom to do the following meme. It's taken me forever to get to it, but here it is:

Here are the rules. (1) Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves. (2) People who are tagged need to write a post on their own blog (about their eight things) and post these rules. (3) At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names. (4) Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

Fact one: I'm currently listening to Discworld by Terry Pratchett on MP3. The reason I included this is that so much of the book surrounds the number eight, which is reflected in the number of random facts.

Fact two: I look for patterns and numbers everywhere I go. Primarily they are 42's, but I also seek out 1138's (as in THX1138, George Lucas' first film which he and his buddy Steven Speilberg reference in most of their films) . I look for birthdays and numeric references to letters. Look hard enough, and you'll notice that 42 is in every Pixar movie somewhere, and also in the sequences of numbers presented in "Lost" and "Donnie Darko".

Fact three: I am completely a type-B personality. That is, unless you get me in the driver's seat. A magical transformation occurs and I'm suddenly type-A, prompting my wife to utter, "WHO...ARE...YOU?" when I am faced with an unpleasant driving situation.

Fact four: People generally cannot tell I was raised on Long Island by my accent. I lost my accent during four years of radio shows at college. Listening to my tapes, I could hear the accent, and it didn't fit in with what I heard from the other DJ's. I wasn't aware that what I worked on for the radio show would carry over into daily life, but I've been OK with that as I moved about the country. Still, if I've had a few to drink or am angry, it comes back out. I've been pegged for Poughkeepsie (quite accurately based on where I lost the LI accent) and Canada (I say "eh", and have picked up a slightly Canuck "ya" from friends on the ships).

Fact five: I am addicted to online socialization. There's no word shy of that which fits. It started with "CB" on CompuServe in 1983 (actually, it goes back to the less-technical pen-pals I had as a teen). It led into a brief stint on AOL chat rooms. Then to IRC. At this point, Second Life is my compulsion. There are two reasons for this. One is that I cannot get out to social venues much at this stage in life, and the other is that people like me frequent these places, so there is commonality. Of course, this blog is yet another outlet of this addiction, although it's suffered at the hands of SL and an exaggerated commute lately.

Fact six: In the early 1980's, I was given the nickname "ET". When the film first came out, I went to visit my pen-pals in upstate New York. Young teens, themselves, they had a very different view of my hometown than was reality (i.e. - "how can a little guy like you survive without a gang?"). One of them made the comment, "Wow, it's like you're all alone in a whole different world?" One thing led to another, and my fate was sealed. My first car, a Ford Torino Elite, was named "Eliot", and hanging from its rearview mirror was a plushy ET figure from a carnival. In college, I argued lightheartedly with a friend (another Eric) whose last name began with "T" as to who truly owned the nickname. It was never resolved.

Fact seven: I am not easily embarrassed. At work once, a friend got a botched up haircut and fixed it by buzzing his whole head with a #3 guard. My boss asked, "How much to get that buzzcut on purpose?" I suggested $100. He dropped 5 $20's on the table. I did it and got the money. My haircutter jokingly asked numerous times if I wanted that haircut again. At animation school, for some reason, I landed on 7 of the 12 students' demo reels interacting with CG robots. they said it was because they liked my acting. I attribute it to simply being willing to let loose in front of a recording device.

Fact eight: I require very little external stimulus. I can simply think for hours. When I left Florida for California, I had bunches of CD's in the car and an audiobook on MP3. Three days later, the Police best-of CD was still in its wrapper, and I'd only made it halfway through the 8-hour audio book. I listened to The Jam repeatedly and took in what passed by my windows. I don't really recall boredom the entire way. On our first driving trips, Michelle was worried about how I'd handle being on the road. Once I learned not to drink iced tea on the road (20 minutes between potty breaks?? no way!), we established a very zen mode of travel. Our kids have inherited this trait, thank God!

OK... eight other people... I'm going to start with my newest blogging friend, Karys, who was looking for a reason to restart blogging. Next, three others with whom I've been blogging buddies longest... Aynde, Cara, and Christy. Then, I'll move to friends from Second Life (of whom, Karys is one)... Rosa, Jaycatt, and Johan (who ASKED for contact and who might kill me for giving it in this form haha). I'm even going to go out on a limb and ask Dolmere to join in (fellow second-lifer and fellow poster of randomly found 42's!). Kinda hard to come up with eight people when your circles have already been tagged. :)

OK... time to walk away from the keyboard before the urge to socialize online overtakes me once again!

Maybe Just A Few Too Many Monkeys

2007-10-29T22:46:00.000-07:00

Fall Greetings Everyone!!

As I learned from my friend Anverie, even a mad scientist needs a love song once in a while. Jonathan Coulton was courteous enough to oblige ...

This is Anverie (in the tee). :) Her dance partner is Flippant.

And who better to represent the spirit of "Boo!" than Marvin? OK, well, will you accept "Boohoo!"?

Happy Halloween!!!

Could it be???

2007-10-24T22:11:00.001-07:00

Mocha Momma? Is that you??? (http://mochamomma.com)

(sorry for the quality -- cell phone was all I had)

Quick added note: Per Mocha's comment... yes, that says "Coffee and Fudge". I would not guess it was you based on chocolate alone. :)

Quickie Rant...

2007-10-07T15:58:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post in case that last one: a) hurt your brain or b) made you question mine.

Two little pet peeves I would like to set straight... (clears throat):

At Starbucks, a 16 ounce, medium coffee is called by the Italian "grande" -- pronounced "GRAHN day" -- and, Ms./Mr. Barista, you do a fine job pronouncing that. But, please don't take that pronunciation to the next level and call the 20 ounce, large, aka "venti" (Italian for 20, for anyone who didn't know), by the name "VEN tay". It's pronounced "VEN tee".
And the letter "Σ" (hope this shows for you) is a Greek "S", not "E". It always rubs me the wrong way to see the word "GRΣΣK".

OK... I'm done now. Back to my usual cheerful, optimistic view on life.

Just Thinking...

2007-10-06T17:18:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while, a random chain of thoughts leads me to something really odd. I was thinking the other day about the flow of time, and the theory that at each deciding point, a parallel universe is spawned for each of the choices. Infinite numbers of universes varying in from one another on trivial things like whether you chose the minivan or the sports car. Whether you stepped on a bug or over it. Or bigger things, like "Did the politician push the button or choose not to?"

I am not speculating on whether or not this happens. I have a very solid answer to that question... I don't know.

But that means, that somewhere, another Eric might be driving a sports car or minivan (I picked the family sedan, so there!). Yet another may be living in the wake of nuclear holocaust. Oh, and the bug? The inconsequential bug? In my universe I stepped over it. Perhaps he flew into the window of a car, panicking the driver and causing a fatal accident? Or maybe he fertilized the flower that had the genetic aberration that spawned a cure for cancer? Or, some teenage girl swerves around it, and bumps into her male friend, spawning a "bumping game" that leads to a date.

I doubt any of this is new. But from this chain of thoughts, I came to another one. What if, in these forks in the time-space continuum, your consciousness picks one path. Or perhaps it is filtered into the paths where you continue to live. If this is the case, each of us would be immortal. Certainly with an infinite number of paths, one of them would lead to immortality, and you'd simply filter down to that path. It still works with existing reality, mind you, because on your path along this line, not everyone else would be.

Perhaps you know someone who passed away, but on some other path, they are still alive, and you may or may not be. On their path, though, you will either die eventually or benefit from the same choices and life-events that will make them immortal. On their path, they will live forever because that is the one to which their consciousness has been filtered down.

I'm neither a physicist or philosopher. So I'm sure there are a million holes in this. Also, I don't believe this is how consciousness works. I just enjoy thinking about perception and the tricks of perception that could be going on all around us. Others must enjoy this too, or we wouldn't have movies like The Matrix or Back to the Future II (I mention "II" because that's the one where they break/repair time).

Here's another one for though... is it possible there's only one consciousness in all the universe? That when you die, your soul jumps back in time to the point where the next baby is born and lives his/her life, and that this one soul is currently (from our perspective of time) inhabiting EVERY person you know? For the source leading to that thought, read Slaughterhouse Five.

The Punk Rock

2007-09-23T17:40:00.001-07:00

My friend Jaycatt posted an entry about his tendency to collect things based on their emotional value more than their financial value. I replied about this little guy.

In the year between college and moving to Florida, my friends Jimmy, Michael, and I hung out at a punk/alternative club called Paris/NY. There was a large group of regulars there, and you could go anytime and know there was someone to hang out with. Eventually, we made several other friends with whom we hung out with in general. Not just a "nightclub crowd".

One night, Michael and I were hanging out in the patio area, and he picked up a rock from this small rock-garden. He pitched it against the back of the garden, which was railroad ties. I joined in. After about four rocks apiece, a man we'd never seen before popped out of a door we'd never seen open. Angrily, and with an accent I can only describe as "B-movie Russian", he yelled, "What are you doooing?!?" We apologized, and he popped back in. We burst out laughing. It was like he was waiting there for MONTHS just for this moment. From then on, we'd relay that angry quote, and it spread within our crowd.

Eventually I moved to Florida with my job.

After a while, however, I came back to visit, only to find out Paris/NY was closing. It was different. Much less populated. I could see why it wasn't going to last. Out on the patio, I spotted the little rock garden and said, "What are you doooing!?!" My friends and I each grabbed a rock to keep as a souvenir. It wasn't long before I realized mine had an angry face, and I nicknamed it "Punk Rock". Everyone rolled their eyes. But then, that's the sign of a successful "Eric-like" joke, isn't it?

To this day, I can't see the rock without laughing. And remembering the old crowd. Sometimes, something of no financial value at all does carry great emotional value.

California-isms

2007-09-19T19:23:00.000-07:00

Every place has it's own lingo. Little colloquialisms that separate the locals from the newcomers. It's entertaining to learn to speak "Californian." The words are mostly the same, but the phrases stand out.

As the roads are a big thing here, I'll start with them. In New York, we called the roads by their names... "The Van Wyck Expressway", or "Long Island Expressway". If they only had a number they were "Route 684" or "Route 9" despite being interstates. In Florida, they just got numbers if they were roads. Sand Lake Road was just called "482". Interstates got "I" attached... "I-4" or "I-75". In California, they get "the". I drive to work on "The 101" or "The 5".

When you ask how far something is, you're answered with a question. "When are you going?". When you answer that, you get the answer in time, not distance. "At 3pm, that's about 35 minutes away." I think that's because if you found out that those 35 minutes would be spent travelling 3 miles, you might get a little down.

So... Los Angeles and Hollywood are considered SoCal. Kind of obvious. Makes total sense. But I got all sorts of laughs when I called San Francisco "NoCal". It's NorCal. Here in SoCal, we pronounce the street names in a way I didn't expect (pardon my makeshift phonetics)...
Tujunga - "ta HUN ga"
La Cienega - "la see EN iga" (I'd have said, "lah SEE in AY ga")
Sepulveda - "sip UL vidda" (not "SEP ul VEE da")
Cahuenga - "ca HUN ga" (you sure it's not "cah HWAYN ga"?)
Oh, and on a totally unrelated note, Historic Route 66 comes right through town and ends on Santa Monica Boulevard at the shore.

License plates are called license plates here. Not "tags" like in Florida. To me, a tag implies something flexible... paper or fabric. Pressed steel is a plate to me.

The train here is the "metro" (how Parisian!). In New York we had the subway and the railroad (i.e. Long Island Rail Road). Two distinct lines with two very distinct pricing structures. In Florida, we called commuter rails "wishful thinking".

In New York, you had "Kennedy", "LaGuardia", and "Newark" to choose from for airports. Long Islanders are lucky enough to have "Islip". In Florida, I'm pretty sure you have "the airport", as it's rare two are close enough for consideration. Recently, though, Orlando got the Sanford/Orlando airport. Here, it's not "Los Angeles", it's "LAX". And "Bob Hope" is simply called "Burbank." So, the airport names don't vary quite as much.

Northern Hollywood is undergoing "gentrification" at the moment. I always though of that word as "aging". But, if you take the root of the word, "gentry", and relate that back to the knights and chivalry and class, it makes sense that they use the word here to mean bringing culture and class back to the neighborhood.

I have yet to determine whether I live near mountains or hills. The best I've gotten from anyone was to say they are either huge hills or tiny mountains. I call them mountains. It's more impressive, and my ears pop going over them on the 405. Hills wouldn't cause ear-popping.

I'm sure there's loads more of these. There's probably a whole collection of things I don't even realize I'm saying that sound out of place here. In time, though, I'm sure I'll start to hear from my New York and Florida friends that I'm talking like a Californian. Oh well... when in Rome...!

My Turning Point

2007-09-10T21:30:00.000-07:00

"I don't know when that road
turned into the one I'm on."
Jackson Browne - Running on Empty

Well, that's not entirely true. As a matter of fact, I have a pretty definite point. I can narrow it down to roughly a two-month time period. June or July of 1982. I know this because I remember I was 15 and had not had my birthday yet. And because it happened at Silver Point Beach Club in Atlantic Beach, NY.

Yes, there was a girl involved, and no, it doesn't involve romance (despite that being the initiative). The moment I gathered up all my teenage bravado and talked to Lynn in the beach club swimming pool is the point in my life when New York became a temporary home for me. Not the turning point you were expecting, eh?

Mom and Dad did their best and were wonderful parents, but I never did like my home in Far Rockaway. Cold winters and a town that was on a downslide were things I hated. Across the train tracks were the Redfern Welfare Projects. Our garage was broken into more times than I can count. I had five bicycles stolen in as many years -- three from that locked garage, one from my back yard while I went inside to use the bathroom, and one directly from me by three kids, one with a wrench poised over my head. But Far Rockaway was all I knew.

Our neighborhood, itself, was really great. Like a giant extended family. Standard New York City stereotypes like moms yelling out the front door for the kids to come home for dinner. If they called too many times, another mom would relay the call. We played tag or hide and seek on a grand scale. Three city blocks -- back yards, trees, and garage roofs (and a nursing home roof at times) were all part of the playing field. Large numbers of kids would swarm the ice cream truck whenever it came by (I don't know how old I was before I read the truck and realized it was the "Good Humor Man" and not the "Gujooma Man").

But there was the rest of the town. My younger sister needed our German Shepherd to go trick-or-treating on Halloween to avoid her bag being snatched. Friends' parents considered it "character building" when their kids were jumped between school and home. I don't know whether it was me or my parents who were more afraid of me going to public high school. I wasn't big, nor was I in anyway athletically inclined or a fighter. So I commuted about an hour each way to/from school.

But then I met this girl. We never dated. She lived in upstate New York and was just in town visiting a cousin (a friend of our family). So we started writing to each other (pre-internet, stamps, envelopes, and paper!). We had a great time writing back and forth, and for Christmas, she "gave me" to a friend of hers, Holly. So, I had two pen-pals in upstate New York.

Holly and Lynn were both in band at school. There was a big banquet coming up, and a friend of thiers wasn't dating anyone at the time, so Holly invited me to visit and be her date. I had such a great time. They had interesting preconceptions about city life (i.e. "The Warriors") which were quite exaggerated. And I had never met people as outwardly friendly and "unchallenging" as their crowd. Holly's dad took me into work, where I experienced CompuServe CB (chat) for the first time. Keep in mind, this wasn't rural. Just more suburban than I'd experienced. I came home with two more addresses and two more pen-pals.

But I had been outside the "fish bowl". I went into a really deep slump, knowing what else was out there. I wonder if my parents second-guessed their choice to permit me to go on that trip. Or if I ever expressed to them why that trip left me so unhappy. But I knew I was leaving the city when the means presented themselves.

Seven years later, I had stopped writing to all four girls except Lynn. I had graduated college, and had restricted my job search to companies in the San Diego area. I ended up working in Newark, NJ at a really great company in a very good job (that's another story). I was very happy at work. I was getting ready to find an apartment near home, and hopefully near the Long Island Railroad. But I was worried I was falling into a track that would delay my "escape" indefinitely.

Then the news came. Our department was moving to either Atlanta or Orlando. To show you how great our department was, they put it up to a majority vote as to which. Orlando it was. I was offered two choices... find another job (in or out of the company) or take a nice relocation package and move to Florida.

Since the turning point is the subject of all this, I'll simply relay the chain of events since then... I was in Florida 8 months before I met Michelle. We got married. My company split up and my job moved out of state. I chose to take a severance package and went to Disney. I had a wonderful time working for Disney, but started spotting TV ads for The DAVE School. Michelle and I tried to work out some plan for me to learn 3D animation but couldn't. If you've been reading for a while, you know the rest. My Dad, in passing, provided the means for me to follow that dream. That path took me to where I am today.

What strikes me about this is how impressed people are that I left. People still in my hometown have commented, and I quote, "We always knew you'd be the one to get out!" What was it, prison? Just about all of my family has since left that town for "The Island". Long Island does offer a lifestyle similar to what I experienced at age 15. But it also has winter. That was the other side of the equation for me.

I love visiting New York. I miss the city and the beaches -- I haven't found anything to compare with the Long Island beaches. My sisters' homes (and aunts' and uncles' homes) and their neighborhoods are wonderful, and they're not at all like the town surrounding our old home. While I kind of pulled at them to follow me when I left, I am sometimes glad they didn't because I wouldn't have such close family to draw me back.

Still, I'm glad that I had that glimpse outside my life and that it prompted me to act. It really opened up the door to changes that have put my life on a good track. If I'd chickened out that day (at least a 50/50 chance at that age), where would I be now?

SLCC - The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, and The Optimism

2007-09-07T22:30:00.000-07:00

This is an optimistic story. It has a happy ending, but it really had to work to get there... read on. The pictures are in this Flickr Set

The Good

I recently had the good fortune to take a trip to Chicago for the Second Life Community Convention. I've been a member of Second Life for a little over a year now, and have many friends whom I've wanted so badly to meet in person. Several of them, I can now say, I have met. The convention ran from Friday, August 24 through Sunday, August 26. For those unfamiliar, Second Life and "SL" are interchangeable terms.

I chose to arrive the evening of the 23rd so I wouldn't be in transit when the event began. This was highly unnecessary, I later found out, as registration began at 4pm on Friday. It was really great, though, as most of the people I'd sought to meet arrived at the same time and also had no event-related obligations. We just hung out at the hotel bar. It was precisely the kind of time I'd hoped to be spending. Beer, food, and great conversation. And a whole lot of "Oh my God!!! You're [insert avatar name here] in SL????" But I'm jumping ahead of myself.

I left Los Angeles at 6:15am on Thursday. By coincidence, my plane flew through Denver airport and my connecting flight was the same as my friends Jaycatt and Frogg. These guys are musical geniuses, and Jaycatt is one of my best friends online and in real life. Having met Frogg, I think he could easily be as well, time permitting. In any case, our strongest common ground is a slight(?) obsession with "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy". Given that, what were the chances we'd all end up on flight 42 into Chicago?

In Chicago, we met up with Sumar at the airport. The four of us shared a shuttle to the hotel. We had a great time chatting away as the weather outside slowly went downhill. By the time we were downtown, parts of the city were blacked out. This is where the trouble begins.

The Bad

The bad started before the trip even began. Sporked was supposed to be my roommate. He's another dear friend I'd so wanted to cross over from online to real life. Much of our crowd was very disappointed when, after four months, his passport failed to arrive, and he could not cross into the U.S. from Canada.

Next in line was the weather. Four of us made it in, but Onionpencil's connecting flight was cancelled, as the Chicago control tower had to be evacuated and the airport shut down. The resulting delay trapped the poor woman midway between home and the event for a whopping 31 hours!

Finally, the first night there, someone stole Sumar's purse, charging up inordinate amounts of money on her credit cards.

The Ugly

The real challenge is a hard one to describe. I will leave it at this. I wound up spending a lot of time with a friend of a friend for whom circumstances took a negative turn. I didn't feel I could leave this person alone as in her state, and I gave up much of the little time I had left to making sure she was alright.

The Optimism

For all the challenges, I still got to spend quality time with some really great friends. I'm so afraid of leaving someone important out, I'm reluctant to list them, but I will anyway (in the order we met)... first were Jaycatt and Frogg, then Sumar on the way to Chicago. In the bar, I met Cylindrian (another musician whom I now consider a friend), Peter, and Adri. Rosa and Patrick appeared soon after. The following night I met Travis and, finally, Onionpencil. I made new friends with Yummie, FlipperPA, Ecocandle and Lofty (he's got a really long name I don't dare try to spell). I got to hear all the musicians play multiple times, and Jaycatt treated me to a semi-private (close friends only) performance of "Journey of the Sorcerer" (HHGG themesong).

We hung out in the lobby of the hotel, the musicians in our crowd using its grand piano in addition to their own instruments to practice. Travis, Sumar, Oni, and I chatted over pizza and beer until 3am on the night of Travis and Oni's arrival.

I had dinner with Sumar and Onionpencil on Saturday night. There was a masquerade ball, and while we didn't dress in costume, Sumar, Oni, and I went and threw "peas" at each other (throwing peas is a sign of affection started by Oni in Second Life). Oni threw one at a stranger at our table, and Sumar brought a second table into the mix.

We had a lot of issues on this trip. For all I know, I'm probably leaving some out (a lost memory card for one person's camera, and a failing flash in mine for example). Still, if I could choose to start the trip over or skip it knowing what I know now, I would stick solidly to my plans as is. I wouldn't give up these memories for anything.

The Next Big Thing...

2007-08-29T21:54:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone! Not much time for an entry tonight, but I had to let you know that I'm back in the workforce. I can't give much in the way of details, but I'm working on an effects team for a feature film that will be released next summer IN THEATERS!

WooHoo!!!

Poops and Passing On

2007-08-21T14:39:00.000-07:00

I have two stories to share today. The antagonist could be any one of my boys, but he isn't.

I'm guessing the year was 1970. Could have been a year in either direction, I suppose. My mom hands over her son to her younger brother, perhaps in his early twenties, who has no interest in having children for years to come. Together, my uncle Larry and I went out to lunch. We had pizza at Schianos in Lawrence, NY, I believe.

Then comes the inevitable moment where I announce I have to use the bathroom. My uncle was probably very relieved to find out I could do it alone, being new to the game. Little did he know that I had a surprise up my sleeve. Once locked in the stall, I began a lecture the family now knows as "Where Poops Come From". I don't remember the lecture, but I remember quite clearly the imagery in my mind. Picture the plumbing animations from the opening titles of Monty Python's Flying Circus. I can only figure I caught it on TV when Dad was watching it one night.

I know this story more from hearing than remembering, but to tell it right, it must have been the busiest possible time in the bathroom. My young uncle was totally embarrassed as the lecture unfolded, and I was out of reach behind a locked stall door.

That is story number one. Some time later, as I remember this one quite clearly, my mom took me to the Nescott Drugstore. I spotted a cheap plastic train, and through some form of manipulation got her to buy it. That night, poor Uncle Larry took me out again. This time to a stock car race / demolition derby. It was perhaps 30 minutes from home. Well, after whatever junk food I forced him to buy, I had to go again on the way home. As the trip progressed, need became "urgent need". He was panicked, but still maintained his sense of humor. He turned on the alarm system in the car like a police siren, rushing as fast as he could toward my house.

In the end, we made it. I ran in, spotted the toy train, and commenced to play with it. "WHAT?? What about your 'emergency'?!?" he asked. With gleeful innocence, I replied (can you guess?), "It went away."

These stories have been recounted at so many Christmas and Thanksgiving dinners, and Memorial Day and Labor Day barbecues over the years. Uncle Larry had countless anecdotes, and all of them had us in stitches. I attribute a lot of my sense of humor to the times I spent with him. He passed away yesterday. Rather than dwell on what I'm feeling right now, I chose to share the stories he'd most likely have shared with you if I could introduce you to him.

I'll miss you, Larry. After your illness, though, I know you're in a better place. God Bless. You've left me so much to smile about.

We're Here!!!

2007-08-15T21:13:00.000-07:00

OK... I don't have time for a full post, but we're in our new home. Like in "The Incredibles", I suspect it will be three years before our last box is emptied. However, it's nice to have a place to call home and a family with me living in it!

For our first jaunt in Los Angeles, we hit Griffith Observatory. As a huge fan of "The Rocketeer", I've been interested in seeing this for many years now. It was featured as the scene where the Rocketeer, along with the FBI and the mob, battles the nazis. The younger crowd might remember the Transformers leaning against this structure discussing their options.

So, I'll suggest this... click on the pictures and look at the shots in Flickr. They'll tell the story I don't have time to post here.

Oh yeah... WISH ME LUCK!!! I interview for my preferred job tomorrow (Thursday) at 2pm!!!!

A Bump In The Road

2007-08-14T13:41:00.000-07:00

This was supposed to be a post with a bunch of pictures of our new house, but Flickr seems reluctant to let me upload at this point (the forums indicate this is a database issue at Flickr, so as soon as I can post pics, I will).

So, instead, I chose this moment to share some disappointing news. My contract came to an end, and I am currently without work. My final day was Friday. I should state that this happened with no negative feelings, and I still hope to maintain a great working relationship with the company in future contracts should the opportunity present itself.

However, on the positive side, I am in communication with three other effects houses, and two of them seem quite interested. One important thing to know is that job-hopping is very common in this industry. And the more companies for which I establish a reputation, the more likely I am to hop uninterrupted. In the meantime, we have funds set aside for just such an event, but were hoping not to use them so early in the game.

I haven't shared this until now because right up until Friday, I was hoping to have something lined up immediately. I figured I might not need to share any negative news, but as it's actually happened, I feel compelled. So many of you have been with me through this ride, I can't leave parts out.

Now comes the other bit. Next week, an event called "Second Life Community Convention" happens in Chicago. I am currently enrolled and have plane tickets (non-refundable, mind you). The one job for which I've already interviewed is on a very tight schedule. If I get that offer, I will not be able to go to this convention and meet some very good friends I've known online now for about a year. So... if you're thinking positive thoughts for me, please have them inlcude a start date of August 27th! That would leave me at home with the boys until school starts (which would really complicate the work schedule for Michelle and I) and allow me to keep my travel plans!

Still... work is work, and I'll take it regardless of its impact on my social plans. Either way, I'll be sharing.

My First Earthquake!

2007-08-09T01:25:00.000-07:00

Tonight, while poking around on my computer, the house shook. This was no semi going by. It felt like being on a ship in light seas. Boxes stacked along the walls creaked, but didn't move too much. The house didn't seem bothered in the least, but Michelle and I met running toward each other on the stairs. The kids slept right through it.

Here are the details...
http://quake.wr.usgs.gov/recenteqs/Quakes/ci14312160.html

In case you want the short version, we were 10km (6 mi) from the epicenter. The quake registered 4.5 on the Richter scale. The shaking lasted about 6 seconds at 12:58am local time.

All I can say is... wow! How often is that going to happen?

Settled in... almost?

2007-08-07T09:27:00.000-07:00

Well, the family has finally arrived in California. The kids are all thrilled with their new digs except S11, whose room is smaller than what he had in Florida.

The big thrill for the boys was being reunited with their GameCube. These poor kids have been on the road and away from Mom and Dad for three weeks, now, so anything comfortable and familiar is a draw for them. Michelle worked amazingly with the movers to get the house looking like a home so it wasn't in total upheaval when they arrived. I will get some pictures up as soon as I possibly can.

A funny thing about the house is that directly across from us, there were four little girls running in and out of the house all evening. The community is all new construction, so we suspect that not all of them live there, but could this be the proverbial "girl next door" for one of our boys? Who knows? As for last night, they weren't even willing to go near the windows for fear of being seen.

I was hoping to have a picture for this post, but my cell phone won't e-mail it. We've got a bunch in our camera, and hopefully I'll have time to sort through those soon. But at the very least, I wanted to get something out to say that we have survived the move and are looking forward to stabilizing a little bit before the school year starts.

EDIT: Here's that picture I promised... check out the mountains behind our community!!!

Vagabond Life

2007-07-21T11:42:00.000-07:00

My friend Rosa ends every one of her posts with a little poem, most often custom written to go with the post. I thought I'd join in the spirit with one of my own as I near the end of my stay at the hotel and head back to my friend's guest room. Michelle's arrival and closing on the house are less than a week away! And the kids will be here soon after!

Tomorrow night
We reunite,
My beloved computer and me.
It's wrong for a geek
To be apart for a week
From his favorite technology.

The little hotel
Was kept so well
By unseen maids but at such cost
With evenings spent
In deep lament
Over the socialization I lost.

With family and friends
At the furthest ends
Of the country where it's three hours ahead
Even my phone
Left me alone
Since it's rude to wake someone in bed.

But in just a week or two
My family will be here, too
And my computer will have its new home
So, when all are in bed
Back online I will head
And when they're awake, I will not be alone.

It's A Winner!

2007-07-19T20:04:00.001-07:00

I'm posting this one quickly, as I am on the way out the door and have no internet at my hotel. Hopefully I type the links correctly.

Anyway, I may or may not have mentioned that I had a short-term project after graduation from Dave School. Well, I've kept quiet about it until now, but I think it is safe to share.

The owner of the school asked some friends of his to put together a musical number about Battlestar Galactica. It was to be used for a video for a competition on the Sci Fi Channel (http://www.scifi.com/videomaker). Well, the song that came back was a humorous rap song about life on Earth after the journey across space was over. Come to think of it, wouldn't current-day Earth life seem awfully mundane?

We made the video using computer generated versions of little characters called "Minimates", which are collectible figurines representing characters from TV shows. SciFi must have liked it because WE WON! Our video will be aired during a Battlestar Galactica marathon before the new season. WARNING: This video is absolutely in the "TV-14" category for language and content.

If you go to the SciFi channel's site (see the link above), the name of the video is "Homecoming" by Jeff Scheetz.

If you want to see a better copy, go to http://daveschool.com/galactica.

I hope you like it!

Crossroads

2007-07-19T10:15:00.000-07:00

While searching for houses, I came across this sign. There's nothing apparently special about it to most of you, and I really can't explain too much without violating my own personal privacy guidelines.

Still, there's a group of people who are liable to burst out laughing when they see it. One person even suggested there must be a lot of collisions at this intersection. Wagner and Armstrong, you meet again!

The Speed of Life (cell phone post)

2007-07-09T22:53:00.001-07:00

Still no internet. I am back in California, again. The pace lately has
been nothing shy of breakneck. Granted, I am having fun, but I really
miss communicating. I owe so many people phone calls, and now I am
even cut off from the bulk of my online friends. Rest assured, as soon
as I have internet, or even a spare moment at work when I am not on
the phone with my realtor, I will be reaching out to my much neglected
friends! Don't give up on me yet!

Accidental Tourist

2007-07-05T20:50:00.001-07:00

Tonight I am staying in Dallas. I didn't plan this stay, but the
airline insisted, even footing the bill. Orlando and my family will
just have to wait. Ah, the joys of the jet set!

Uncivilized

2007-07-01T01:52:00.001-07:00

Two and a half days without a live internet connection and I'm ready
to paint a face on a volleyball to chat with! How pathetically
addicted can one be? Thank God for cell phones!

Not Sure I Wanna Admit This...

2007-06-23T21:22:00.000-07:00

Aynde posted about this, and I took the bait... not entirely sure I'm happy with the results! But... I'm a good sport, so what the hey!!

Which Princess Bride Character are You?
this quiz was made by mysti

First Week Finished

2007-06-16T17:35:00.000-07:00

"Is this the real life?
Is this just fantasy?"
Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen

I've finished my first week at work. And what a week... every day, out the door before 9am, back in the door after 9pm. But the work and the company are fantastic! It's just a few of us, in an office building that was once a little hotel. It was a hectic week because it was only four days and there was a deliverable to the client on Friday afternoon. We made it!

In addition to the hours, though, was the commute. I am being put up by a friend, and she lives about 30 miles from my workplace. That's 30 "Los Angeles" miles, mind you. They don't go by fast. Michelle and I are hoping to live significantly closer to both of our jobs (which are about 10-15 minutes away from each other). We'll see what the real estate fairy drops in our laps. :)

In any case, if you look at the picture, you can see a hint of what we're making. There's a giant squid holding a submarine on my screen. How cool!!!

OK... off to meet with some friends for dinner. Just wanted to drop a quick post and let you know what I am up to! Oh, by the way, nobody tucks in their shirts in this town. You want that story?

Finally in CA!!!

2007-06-11T14:54:00.001-07:00

I made it into California at about 7:30pm (PST) last night. I made the calls I needed to make, ate a quick meal, and went to bed early at 10pm (which still, to some degree, felt like 1am to me!).

The trip was a major success. I took one wrong exit and ended up headed into downtown Los Angeles, but had it corrected with my host's help within 10 minutes.

The trip was actually fun for the most part. I suffered a little anxiety over being alone in the middle of the desert here and there, but the car never threatened to overheat, and the road was pretty good for the most part. Even the construction areas never dropped below 60MPH.

A major highlight of the trip was meeting Aynde and Stud Hombre, with whom I've been blogging buddies now for about 18 months! BTW, she's as cool in person as she is in her blog.

There is also a sense of accomplishment to driving 12-plus hours per day for three days straight! I can now check off "driving cross country" on my life-long list of to-do's.

Today, I've got a nasty little headache (sinus? eyestrain? exhaustion? who knows?). Anyway, I'm nursing it along, hoping it's gone for tomorrow, when I start work. I'm glad I scheduled a "down day" between the trip and first day.

Thanks to all who put up with long boring phone calls during the trip and helped me maintain a little sanity! Travel adventure over, career adventure JUST beginning!!!

You wouldn't believe!

2007-06-09T10:38:00.001-07:00

I an posting this from my cell at a rest stop on I 10. Last night, I
saw a comment from Aynde telling me look her up if I passed through
Houston. I was approaching Houston at the time! We met this morning
and had a nice breakfast together! How cool is that?!? More on that
when I have a real keyboard...

Tomorrow, I Go

2007-06-07T17:52:00.000-07:00

OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG!
OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG! OMG!

Wait!!! In the words of the immortal Douglas Adams (who, ironically, wasn't)...

DON'T PANIC!!!

Whew... that in mind, off I go! Be back when I have a computer with an internet connection!!!

Those Promised Details

2007-06-06T14:32:00.000-07:00

OK, this is going to have to be a really quick post. Hope I get it all correct. I'm leaving out names to protect the innocent. :)

Friday, last week, I heard I "had a job" and all but had to be told so. So, I got just a few details and hugged my cell phone all day just in case it rang. No such luck.

All weekend, I was pins and needles. I'd heard about opportunities before, and they fell through before I even got the call.

Monday, I was told, "it's going to happen!", but I kept up my guard. At about 2:30, I was given a name and a phone number and told to go ahead and call from the school parking lot (no reception inside, but my instructor meant "don't go home!"). I did, and I was offered the job sight unseen. :) "I loved your demo reel!", I was told.

I am working for a small company, something of an upstart. Again, so as not to offend, I'm leaving this intentionally vague. However, I can share that the owner of the company is VERY well established in the Lightwave 3D community, and has done some work you have undoubtedly seen. I was offered a salary that was not quite what I'd been making before, but significantly above the "acceptable minimum required to switch careers" I'd set back when I started school.

Here's the shocker (for some of you, at least). It's in HOLLYWOOD, CA! I will be spending 3 days on the road (I'll be back to help the family move, but my car won't). I have a contact out there who will let me borrow their guest room until I can get something semi-permanent established. The family will follow, not terribly far behind.

So... that's about as much as I can share openly at this time. I'm thinking it's quite a bit, actually! I hope to keep you up to date on this as the whole migratory story unfolds!!!

Three Simple Words

2007-06-04T13:52:00.000-07:00

I'VE

BEEN

HIRED

!!!

Details to Follow -- Too Many People To Call Right Now!

It's Meez!!

2007-06-02T17:37:00.000-07:00

If you go to Meez.com, you can create your own! Thanks to Catholic Mom for leading me to this great site!!!

(later edit...)
While I'm on the topic of my "virtual self", take a look at this one...

That's me on Towel Day with my Second Life self. Not too far off, huh?

The Tao of Starbucks

2007-06-02T16:20:00.000-07:00

Starbucks Coffee has these little thought provoking paragraphs on their coffee cups called "The Way I See It". Dr. Victor J. DeNoble was quoted on a recent cup I had (#188 in the series), and one phrase caught my attention so strongly that I kept the cup so I could post it here. He was talking about how his research in the tobacco industry prompted him to testify against it.

"There are some events in life that don't need a decision -- just action"

There is something positive happening for me at this moment that is embodied in this statement. I hope I can share it soon.

Boy... I'm all about the cliffhanger these days, aren't I?

What in your life requires no decision, just action?

Been Forever, I Know

2007-06-01T12:02:00.000-07:00

How strange... seems I start all my posts lately with the same apology. Ah well.

In any case, I have some new stuff coming down the pike. I have worked on two projects in animation: one paid (and ALL consuming for the past 2½ weeks), and the other unpaid. I am, as of yet, unable to post on either of them, but I expect to be able to show them off in the near future.

Keep your eyes on this space for more news. In the meantime, watch this and see if you can figure out which is mine (should it ever appear, haha!) ...
Sci Fi Channel Video Maker Competition

Thanks for dropping by!!!

Love of the cell phone camera

2007-05-09T10:29:00.000-07:00

I love having a camera with me anywhere I go. I love the fact that when I see something odd, I can capture it -- not beautifully, mind you -- to share with others later. When it comes to taking meaningful shots, I admit, I am challenged. But I love to capture the irony in things and little amusing bits that make me smile or laugh. Here are some recent examples. Sorry... I'm easily amused, I guess.

Down to 171.5 pounds!!! Can I subtract even more weight for the cell phone I had in my hand at the time of this shot?

In this shot, I thought I was experiencing my own version of Silent Hill. There is a huge white Mormon temple less than a mile away. I could see it, but it was faint enough that the camera could not.

This is SMOKE. Not fog, smog, or haze! Truth be told, it's difficult breathing this stuff 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. And they say this entire year is going to be bad this way for Florida. :(
Here's the same shot about 8 hours later...

Again with the smoke. By the way... that white SUV proceeded to cut me off and prevent me from taking a "right on red" at the traffic light. GRRRRR!!!!

This is a street I couldn't live on. I would not be willing to write that name on my return address. Who comes up with these names? Don't they realize there are people out there with a sense of humor like mine who will mock those who live there???

So... there's the "At Random" viewpoint I see during my daily travels. I hope it brought you a little smile, too.

Return of 42!

2007-04-25T08:19:00.000-07:00

As my long term readers know, I love finding hidden 42's in signage and movies. The little odes to the works of Douglas Adams always garner a smile from me. That said, I am not of the belief that EVERY 42 is placed. Some are just happenstance. But those are fun too. Here are two examples.

Michelle and I often take the boys to Fort Wilderness Campgrounds to ride their skateboards while we get a healthy walk in. Well, apparently walking is out of style as so many people cruise the campground in golf carts. I've taken to watching the numbers of the carts, looking for number 42. For YEARS, I've casually taken note of every cart we've passed. Well... after acknowledging that either the cart doesn't exist or was adopted by some official with a Hitchhiker's Guide obsession like me, we found it! (big whoop, I know... bit it is for me!)

The next two shots are even a touch cooler. We went out on the fourth floor overlook at Disney's Contemporary Hotel, and the boys climbed some steps to see the monorail track. I followed them up, and sure enough, there it was again! The segments of track are numbered. The one entering what I still consider the coolest hotel on property was 42. So I snagged a couple of shots with the monorail itself in view. On these, you may have to click through the picture and view "all sizes" to see the label.

All of this reminds me. I need to migrate my pictures from the old Microsoft blog over to Flickr. At the very least the 42 set, which is not tied to any specific time period or blog entry.

Hey Eric? Where are those blog entries you promised?

2007-04-24T19:32:00.000-07:00

Heehee... good question.

I vowed to give myself a week off everything after leaving school to rest up from the pre-graduation rush. That totally failed to happen. :) With visitors in town, and a surprise job interview, and some follow up work on the Star Trek shots, I kinda kept busy.

So, I said to myself... why don't I take the next week to cool down and see if that goes any better. Well... that totally failed to happen, too. :) The one shot I took over in the Star Trek redux took three times as long (at least!) as I expected. This is not because things went wrong, but because I don't do the whole "time estimates" thing very well... even more so since the move from my familiar world of computer programming to the "no concrete definition of finished" world of digital artistry.

So, I said to myself, not this week... T7's celebrating his First Communion and the in-laws will be arriving for the week before. Soon after that, my sister and her family will be arriving for the event itself and some time after.

Doing nothing is HARD WORK!

So, I've had a wonderful week tooling about with family, but I'm beat to a pulp! The boys, also beat to a pulp, were very happy to spend time with their 10-year old triplet cousins! That's 6 kids, mind you, and only four adults to control them. But luckily, the gods of child behavior smiled on us and everyone did quite well.

And, now I've given up on "doing nothing" and am just looking to the next thing to keep me busy and possibly attain some employment. I'll be hitting school and joining up with one of the many projects they have going. They are all quite interesting, but I can only reveal one at this point... the next graduating class is working a project called "Aurora", which takes place in a dystopian Russia in the future. The artwork I've seen thus far is incredible, and looks to be part of a great project. But I have to see where I'm needed and which of those tasks appeals to me most. It's not employment, but it will keep me close to the craft and those who will recommend me for employment.

Oh... and I mentioned the one interview above. One final sentence summed up the whole experience... "Please keep us informed on any future projects you may be involved in." Not setting the expectations meter too high on that one. But I have other reels floating around out there, and will continue to send even more.

My Moment With George Takei

2007-04-07T10:18:00.000-07:00

At our graduation, George Takei proved to be a gracious and wonderful guest. He socialized with the group and really seemed to enjoy being there.

During our group photo, I ended up standing dead center in our crowd. When George joined us, the photographer obviously wanted him in the center, so I knelt down.

Feeling punchy (and remembering a little skit about "Sweaty Basketball Players" from the Jimmy Kimmel show), I said to James Cauley (Captain Kirk in the show), "Wow! If you'd told me I'd be on my knees in front of George Takei tonight, I'd have NEVER believed it!" James was quite taken by this and leaned way OVER me to tell George. George apparently found it quite funny, too.

After the photo shoot, George and I hugged. Despite the appearance of this shot, we did not kiss. :) Still, it was emotional enough that my friend Little John welled up a tear in his eye.

I'm sorry to dwell, but this was SUCH an incredible night in my life. My first ever memories of my science fiction addiction were those of watching Star Trek with my dad (most probably in reruns by that point, but I had no idea). George was there from day one and once again at the point where I am ready to enter a career in that exact business. Speaking of "the business", expect a post soon on the status of my fledgling job search. No news yet (haha -- if there was, you'd see it in LARGE, FRIENDLY LETTERS right here!), but I can share my experiences a little.

A Touch More On Graduation...

2007-04-02T13:37:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned to my friend Rosa, I knew I would forget some very important details in my post about graduation. Rather than sneak in and edit the previous post, I thought it would be better to put up a new one in honor of those I left out the first time around.

The first thing I cannot believe I left out of the post was my dad. In passing, he gave me the opportunity to pursue this. In honor of him, I didn't quit or slack off when things got overwhelming. I owe the entire experience to him, and I think somewhere, he's smiling down on me at this point for fulfilling a dream. I never learned from him what his dream would have been, but I suspect it would have had something to do with singing. After retiring from the phone company, he became an avid karaoke enthusiast. Within the club where he did this, he had his own microcosm of celebrity. People there knew him and cheered him on when he got up to sing. He never got to go professional, but I'm happy he found the niche he needed to explore and enjoy the activity.

The other thing I left out was that my sister, Lynda, flew her family down to celebrate and spend the weekend with us. My other sister, Caroline, would have, but had another trip planned for the same time period. She'll be here in a month, though. :) I was so happy to have some extended family around and to spend some quality time with her. It was all on short notice, because I was short-sighted (i.e. buried up to my neck in Star Trek!) and had neglected to see the importance of the event to those around me. My wife coordinated the trip without my knowledge, and I found out when Lynda sent me an e-puzzle that, when assembled, formed a note announcing their plans. It was such a wonderful gesture, and I loved having you in the audience at the premiere, Lynda!! Thank you!

I think I got everyone now, and I hope my sister and father will forgive me for such blatantly obvious exclusions from the announcement notice.

GRADUATION DAY!!!

2007-04-01T14:10:00.000-07:00

Well, folks, I finally made it! The last few months involved lots of time. There were 7-day weeks for 2 months, and some of those days went longer that 16 hours. But, as a class, we pulled together to drop our final project in just 17 seconds before the countdown clock ran out.

The real heroes in this scenario are with me in this picture. They put up with a very STRESSED EricAtRandom for a VERY long time. Michelle was nothing but supportive, and even stayed several days in a tent with the boys to ease the stress of my total absence during the last week of project work. MY GREATEST APPRECIATION TO YOU, MICHELLE AND THE BOYS, FOR HELPING ME MAKE IT THROUGH THIS EFFORT AND FOR COVERING FOR MY ABSENCE AT HOME THROUGH ALL OF IT!!!!!!

I put up a few pictures for now, but there are many more I need to get hold of to complete this entry properly. I even have one with George Takei!

Graduation was such an incredible high. We showed our completed episode of "Star Trek New Voyages: World Enough And Time" to a packed theater. The crowds cheered at most of the visual effects shots, including both of mine. It's really something to see your work on a movie screen and hear that shouting coming from behind!

At the end of the show, the New Voyages team stood up and bowed to us as their effects team. Mind-blowing! There's no description shy of that to explain it.

When I came home from celebrating that night, I signed into Second Life... partially intoxicated and totally exhausted. Just a quick hug from friends and good night was my plan. Nope... I got THIS:

My friends in Second Life decorated our house with balloons and banners and waited for me to show up! I couldn't believe it! Poor gang probably lost a good deal of sleep! :) In this picture, that's me on the left (Marvin), Semaj in the tie-dye, Skoshi in the white tee, Rosa in the distance, Bashiri in the "Predator" look, and Flaming Moe in the giant metal mech. Jaycatt and Sporked were also there, but probably obscured by the bots. :) These guys make up such a wonderful crowd! I literally sat at my computer with a tear in my eye. THANKS YOU GUYS, YET AGAIN, FOR TAKING THIS HIGH ONE NOTCH HIGHER!!!!!!

I know a lot of you have wondered about me and the status of my blog. Well, I'm fine (although a little worn of late!). Truth be told, after the long hours at school, I would come home, feed my Second Life addiction for an hour perhaps (family already gone to bed), and settle in for 5 hours or so of sleep. I apologize for the lack of entries, and I really hope to go back to every 2 or 3 days from now on. So long as I am unemployed, I can pretty much guarantee that.

However -- and I'm stepping out on a limb here -- I have reels in at a couple of places, one of which I've been told by connected individuals I should be a *very* strong candidate. So I'm hopeful without merit, but since I've been away, I felt I should share my early optimism.

Our Final Project

2007-02-22T20:24:00.000-08:00

Yes, I know, it's been forever since I posted, and even LONGER since I mentioned school. Well, usually, when I talk school, I like to post examples of what we're doing. I have to apologize early... you won't be seeing any in this post.

The project we're doing is different from previous classes in that it's not an entirely in-house production. We are working with this group (the image is a link):

These guys have invested great efforts in continuing the original Star Trek series from 1966. As the show only lasted 3 years, they would like to produce the remaining two years worth of shows to fulfil the "5 year mission".

We are acting as a visual effects house for the film, producing space shots, some interior sets, and even some cosmetic enhancements.

The effects are coming along incredibly, but the countdown clock is racing toward zero at a dizzying pace. Most of the class is working extra hours daily, as well as weekends. We're expecting it will be worth the effort!

So... that's where I've been. I've been planning a post on this for so long, and somehow never got it out there. I apologize for my apparent disappearance.

I'll try to be more diligent about posting, but at our recent pace, I can't offer any promises. Just realize, it's all good stuff!

What do your dreams mean?

2007-01-31T14:28:00.000-08:00

What Your Dreams Mean...

Your dreams seem to show that you're a bit disturbed... but nothing serious.

You may have a problem you're trying to work out in your sleep.

You tend to be a very productive thinker.

Your dreams tend to reflect your insecurities.

You have a very vivid imagination and a rich creative mind.

What Do Your Dreams Mean?

OK, I got this from Catholic Mom. The really weird thing is... we got the same result! One more thing, Ms. Brenda, that we have in common!

A Difficult Anniversary

2007-01-20T19:08:00.000-08:00

On January 13, the first anniversary of my father's death passed. It was not a good day. We'd planned some distracting activities to make the day easier, but issues with work kept us home. The kids were bored and hard to deal with. It was a long day.

I had planned an entry that day in his honor, but just never found it within myself to post. My friend Rosa posted a nice entry on her blog about milestones, inspired by our online chat that day. I felt it was too late and abandoned the idea for my own blog completely.

Yesterday, however, I got this letter from Brother John in Arizona. I decided that, despite the anniversary being past, I still needed to make a post. I'm going on the assumption that Brother John won't mind me posting his letter.

When my father was young, he spent some time at a seminary school. He later realized that he wanted a wife and family and left, much to his father's dismay I might add. However, he still felt very strong ties to his former classmates. Brother John is one of them.

Later in life, with Mom gone and the family grown and out on our own, Dad found himself with time to locate several of his classmates and reunite them. He then started traveling to Arizona annually to help Brother John provide charity assistance to the unfortunate among the Navajo in the area. They built additions onto houses and made various repairs to ensure they had a place to live.

Dad's passing obviously affected these people greatly, and they are showing their appreciation in a beautiful way. It's comforting to know that there are many people -- within and beyond my family -- who, despite the fact we didn't speak, were also thinking of my father that day. He was a great man, and people far and wide were obviously aware of that. I miss him terribly.

Watch fast!

2007-01-14T12:23:00.000-08:00

Last November, for Michelle's birthday, I gave her tickets to drive a racecar at the Richard Petty Driving Experience (I'm not married to a fast woman, but I am married to one who goes fast!). I am pretty sure she enjoyed herself, but judge for yourself.

Michelle's Race Day!

Warning, this video is quite large (27MB), so consider your connection speed before you decide to download it.

I wanted to post this earlier, but my online storage provider at the time (FileLodge) had problems uploading it. So I decided to do something really radical... actually pay for online storage. I couldn't be happier with MediaTemple!

Hope you enjoy going along for the ride!

At Random...

2007-01-07T19:52:00.000-08:00

Here are some random observations I've made in time...

I prefer songs that tell stories over those that profess love or a desire to dance ("Space Oddity" by David Bowie, "The Old Apartment" by Barenaked Ladies, "Fake Plastic Trees" by Radiohead). Don't really know why, but I do.
Tattle-tale stories progress in reverse time.
"He hit me!"
"But he called me stupid."
"Only after he broke my toy."
...
"Yeah, as soon as he was BORN!"
I believe this could go all the way back to the big bang if unchecked.
One can spend all one's time analyzing life and neglect to live it.
You can accumulate a LOT of recyclables if your pick-up day is cancelled due to both Christmas and New Year's Day.
Children have to be awakened on school days, but will wake up plenty early on their days off.
Christmas lights reflect more brightly off of children's eyes than any other surface.
Perception is reality. Therefore, the world truly is blurry before I get my contact lenses in.
My closest friends are my farthest friends.

Oh, I'm sure I have dozens more of these, but I need to get going at the moment. I'm looking to get a Bluetooth adapter for my computer... then I can start downloading pictures from my cell phone again (New phone, working camera, but no way to get pics to the computer currently).

Long Overdue Welcome to Rosa!

2006-12-29T09:22:00.000-08:00

As my regular readers know, I've been entertaining a serious addiction to an online environment called Second Life (aka "SL"). I did a little expose on a great deal of people I hang around with there, and shared pictures. Well that group has expanded greatly, but I've still got a couple of really close friends with whom I spend the bulk of my time (you may remember Jaycatt from an earlier post).

Rosa G. is my best friend in SL, and she's started a blog of her own. I helped her with formatting and some setup, but the content is all hers. She posts her observations on life and follows each with a poem of her own creation directly related to the post. It's a wonderful site to read, and I really think you should head over there!

Rosa's Rambles

Thanks, Rosa, for your positive contribution to the Blogsphere!

Just a quick note... we don't have RSS publishing turned on for her site yet, so you can't add it to Bloglines. But, I think a public feed will soon be available.

Twofer!!!

2006-12-19T14:51:00.000-08:00

OK, I'm posting this, but you have to read the next post down, too because they're both appearing on the same day, OK?

This is a little filler project we were given. Remember the HP printing commercials where the guy puts picture frames on and off his head, and they turn into photos as he does?

We were given footage of our dear TA, Sammy, putting frames up to his face, and told to produce that effect (these frames weren't big enough to go over his head... or his head wasn't small enough to go through the frames). This was a little two-day process meant to fill the space between the end of "Demo Reels" and the final exam, which is tomorrow.

Enjoy...

Our big finale for Compositing class...

2006-12-19T14:27:00.000-08:00

Attached is a video we made as a culmination of all we've learned this quarter. We watched the movie "I, Robot" as reference. We were each given a task for a robot to perform. Mine was the FedEx robot (how coincidental, as in the film, he has a "42" plastered on his head!). We were told not to copy the movie's robots, but to make one that would fit in seamlessly in the film's setting.

As for the elements of the video, I was charged with:

Writing the story.
Getting the actor (or acting myself).
Directing the video shoot (someone else shot the video).
Directing the motion capture session.
Building the robot.
Animating the robot (applying the motion capture data to the robot so he fits in the scene).
Voicing the robot and an unseen character.
Putting the whole thing together to create the final scene.

All that said, here it is (a quick note... the published version here seems to have a very quiet soundtrack, so if you don't hear anything, try raising the volume)...

I really hope you like it. Especially if you're in charge of an animation or special effects team and looking for a budding artist!

Six Weird Things About Me

2006-12-13T18:02:00.000-08:00

This post goes out to my friend Caz Wahula, who tagged me on my MSN blog almost a week ago (sorry, Caz!). I am being punished with presenting 6 weird things about me (I could have just cut and pasted 6 items from my 101, but I went with "original" items).

In order to avoid hogging the bed, I roll over in place. This causes the fitted bottom sheet to bunch up underneath me as I sleep. I wake up on a replica of the San Andreas fault.
I can roll my tongue 180 degrees in one direction, then smoothly turn it a full 360 degrees to end up upside down twisted in the other direction.
I stretch incessantly. I hook my knees under the desk and stretch backwards over the chair at work or school. Without my knees, the chair and I would certainly go over backward. I don't remember doing this at home, but my computer chair here recently broke... the back fell off. Do the math.
I don't care the severity of the situation... there's virtually always room for a joke. When I was shot and about to receive a chest tube, I asked the anesthesiologist for a second consent form. She asked if I'd messed up the first form. I said, "No, I want two doses." This humor prompted the doctors to ask my wife if there was something wrong with me. She informed them it was just the opposite... it confirmed I was acting normally (well, for me).
Some people can't see the forest for the trees. Trees? What trees? Look at the texture of this BARK! There are trees here? I tend to obsess over the tiniest of details, sometimes at the expense of even the small picture.
I get food routines. They can last for months at a time... or years. I've had half a piece of Starbuck's marble loaf and a coffee every possible day for at least two years (other half gets saved for the next day for financial and caloric reasons). When I discovered Jersey Mike's subs, I ate there virtually every day for at least 3 months. I used to go to Chick-Fil-A every single day (except group outings) when I was working full time. Repetitive meals don't bother me in the least... in some cases.

If you know me... have fear. This punishment is intended to be passed on. Perhaps I'll spare Rosa, as she's new to the blogsphere (speaking of which... I owe her a post of her own to welcome my good friend to blogging!). All others are fair game! ;)

New Family Portraits!!!

2006-11-17T19:08:00.000-08:00

About three years ago, after a wonderful photographer could no longer justify travelling from Louisiana for employee shots at our job, Michelle and I took the kids to Sears. It wasn't very good. The shots came out OK, but the experience was frustrating and the photographer even lost patience at times with the kids.

Well, today, we went back to Sears. What a difference! Look at the photos in my strip at the top of the page. Click on one to see the whole album in Flickr. The two ladies who handled this evening's shoot had the kids laughing the entire time. The kids were having fun with all the poses. The pictures came out wonderful, and they then applied effects like vignettes and sepia tones. To top it all off, we could purchase a CD of the pictures with a release to use/copy them as we wish!

We're SO happy with these photos. I hope you enjoy them even a fraction as much as we do. By the way, no edits here. Some of the photos are shots we did not chose to develop, but I left them in anyway. It's just more fun to see all of them.

I Wanna Be A Hitchhiker!

2006-11-07T13:24:00.000-08:00

I let this project reach its end without ever posting the midway points. So you didn't have to see it five times to get to the final edit. :)

This is the scene from Hitchhiker's Guide (sense a theme here???) where our heroes first land on the Starship Heart Of Gold. The method of traversing the universe for this ship generates some rather (or should I say "infinitely") improbable things to happen.

I decided that it would be better with a sci-fi geek wandering about. Enjoy!

My So-Called Second Life

2006-11-03T17:20:00.000-08:00

I promised you at some point, I would introduce you to the world I'm exploring called Second Life. Be warned, it is entirely addictive. Especially for the creative types. You can build anything you want. You can then script it to do whatever you want. That is, if you're willing to learn how. :)

But the real draw of Second Life is the social aspect. I landed, somehow, at a basic "welcoming center" for new "residents" (the term for people in Second Life) some time after requiring a welcome. As I started to meet people there, I realized that I really didn't need to go elsewhere. They are all such great people, as would make sense for volunteer welcomers, huh?

Well, here's my little ode to all the people I've met in my Second Life (SL). I'll only give you first names, and they're all SL names, not real ones.

This is Winry. She's entirely cool and my first friend in SL. She's a new college student and has excellent design and building skills. Oh, and don't mess with her when it comes to ping pong! The room she's in is part of an incredible home built for her by Bashiri.

Winry and Bashiri are great friends with each other, and I have also become very good friends with Bash. Bash builds very complex avatars (av's), and they often have active scripting to make them do things. I've been helping out with a few of his scripts, such as a werewolf avatar that is human unless it senses the moon nearby. Marvin, by the way, is me. Winry is behind me, and Bash is the white/blue robot on the orange ring.

One night, while at the Shelter (that welcoming club I mentioned, which is now defunct and being replaced), I saw Reina, a Purple Princess with whom I'd played some trivia before, dancing with a simulated teddy bear. That couldn't be, so I asked to dance. Marvin's eyes have turned purple in her presence ever since.

I loved the far off look on Sumar in this picture. This is the trivia center of Shelter, where I spent a lot of time and met most of my new friends. Sumar was security at the Shelter... and I'm sure will also be at the new Shelter, which is under construction. She is a really great person!

Reina was dressed up as Rainbow Brite and had a pair of roller skates on this night. Her skates gave her the ability to to wild flips, as demonstrated here. Also seen here are Marvin's purple eyes.

Here, we have a pair of purple princesses. Reina on the left and Mera on the right.

After the demise of the Shelter, the usual crowd gathered at the site of a temporary "Shelter in Exile" party. Eventually, this is the team that would build the new Shelter. Please remember to wear your scuba gear when using the Merry-Go-Round so close to water!

This is my building. Jaycatt and Frogg are big Hitchhiker's Guide fans and performers in Second Life. I built this building, which was then landscaped by my new online best friend, Rosa. Being a performer, Jaycatt was able to then stream a broadcast of the radio series within this building. It was a big hit.

Me (in human form -- with a Marvin tee shirt), Rosa, and Jaycatt resting after a long build. :) The building has a functional solar system, and almost anything you touch talks to you. Much of the design assistance came from Rosa and Jay.

The show was a complete sellout, eventually leaving standing room only for us. My eyes were purple for Reina, but I stood by the opening in the ring bench with Rosa throughout the show.

This is another view of the same venue during the show.

I made an entry about Jaycatt and Frogg putting on concerts. Here they are in the act. The avatars play the instruments, while MP3 quality guitar, keyboards, and vocals come through your speakers. Convincingly like being at a live concert (except there are robots and furries present).

This is Rosa and I in our "Tiny" avatars. She's a purple bunny and I'm a koala. One day, I'll get around to texturing a proper shirt for my tiny avatar!

On Halloween, Rosa took me to a haunted house. We hung around a bit, but mostly ran from scary monsters. Rosa's been in Second Life for a few years and has been a wonderful tourguide!

This is just a sample of all there is to do in this environment. And things change constantly. All of these buildings and events are made by residents. Very few things are "native" to Second Life, which opens up almost infinite possibilities.

So, if my blog's been lacking somewhat lately, you now understand where I've been. I promise the blog will not go abandoned. But my attention will have to be shared to some degree. :)

Ooh... Scary SCARY!!!

2006-11-03T15:25:00.000-08:00

I got this from Catholic Mom, who's not scary at all. How scary are you?

You Are a Little Scary

You've got a nice edge to you. Use it.

How Scary Are You?

But this is nothing I didn't know already. Heh Heh Heh!!

Meet the MiniMates

2006-10-30T19:22:00.000-08:00

Some of the favored projects of my school are those featuring C3 Minimates, which are Lego compatible action figures. These little guys are quite detailed and poseable, and are rather simplistic in their geometry. This makes them excellent candidates for CG animation teaching tools.

We were given some footage of a video monitor with several of the figures on top. We were also given pre-generated and rigged versions of Batman and Wolverine. We were told they should interact with each other. They should convey a theme. At least one should pass behind an existing figure in the video. Beyond that, be creative. Oh yeah... it's about 15 seconds long, and they have to remain perfectly still for the first four.

Well, I'm not done yet. It's due tomorrow at 12:30pm. But I have a low-resolution copy of the video uploaded, so I thought I'd give you a preview. I hope you enjoy it!

For the critics... here's the list of "known defects". I don't know how well you can see them in the embedded video.

Shadow issues. There's a new render of the monitor shadows in progress. Right now, they cross on top of several characters where they shouldn't.
A non-existent Minimate is reflected in the front edge of the monitor. This is a "stand-in" for Frodo Baggins so Frodo can cast a shadow on Wolverine when appropriate. A new reflections render has already been generated.
General lighting issues and such.

These aside, I'm pretty happy with it. By the end of these projects, I always have a dozen things I'd like to fix, but you have to set cutoff points. Otherwise, I'd still be working on what I consider to be rather hefty "smoothness" issues in the motion of the characters.

By the way, did you get that Batman thinks he's Buzz Lightyear in this? Think of the scene where Woody first confronts him on Andy's bed. :)

Spooky Happenings at Fort Wilderness

2006-10-29T19:38:00.000-08:00

Last night, we went all over Fort Wilderness looking at Halloween displays (yeah, you heard me, "Halloween", not "fall festival"!). Anyway, it is utterly amazing what some people tote along in their campers to put up as a display.

One family had an inflatable haunted house you could walk through. Another had a 30-foot tall flapping ghost on top of their camper waving back and forth in the trees.

The coup de gras, however, was this one. We walked by it in the daytime as they were getting set up. We then came by at night. It was INCREDIBLE. Unfortunately, our camera's batteries joined the dead after just one photo, but you can only really get just a hint of the whole impact here. They had ghost heads flying around the site (wires and pullies at three points encircling the entire site!).

If you live nearby and can make it in to visit, get to Disney's Fort Wilderness and take a nighttime walk around. It was utterly incredible!

By the way, I left my blog address in the guestbook. If you're the owner of the site, please leave a comment. If you include your loop number, I'll consider that proof enough that it's actually you! Thanks so much for all your work... we LOVED it!

Meet a friend of mine...

2006-10-25T15:07:00.000-07:00

I plan to do an "expose" of my life in SL (Second Life) with photos of my friends and places I go there. In the meantime, if you like keyboards (of the musical variety) and vocals, check out my friend Jaycatt's blog.

Jaycatt and another friend, Frogg, play live music in Second Life at concerts. The concerts are free, but a good citizen will always throw a few bucks in the tip jar (Linden dollars, that is... currency within Second Life).

In case you're wondering what a concert is like in Second Life, it's just like a real concert. The music is played on real instruments and streamed to the Second Life residents just like a streamed MP3 would be, except that it's live. While the music plays, the artist's avatar plays an "in world" version of his instrument.

I'm hoping to entice some of my regular visitors into Second Life so we can meet there. Just be prepared... Second Life has a tendency to eat Real Life for dinner!

Jaycatt's Blog

Jaycatt's CD Sales Page (with samples of his songs)

Don Quixote of our time?

2006-10-24T19:37:00.000-07:00

You know the stories you hear about "that quiet guy in the house next door"? Well, I just gave my neighbors one of those stories.

My Church is buying out our neighborhood. They got four homes, and the rest of us have stood firm so far. This is not about some protest to protect our neighborhood, though... read on.

Well, yesterday, they levelled the first of the four homes to make way for a new school building. Today, they made it halfway through the second. So, what use would a fan of the Hitchhiker's Guide and budding F/X artist have for a partially demolished house? Watch the following video...

This is a slightly out of whack reproduction of the scene in the story where Arthur finds his home torn down and first spots the Vogon constructor fleet arriving to demolish Earth. Now, I just need to add music, sound effects, and an immensely HUGE alien construction ship, hanging in the air in much the way that bricks don't. :)

Can't Give It Away!

2006-10-21T09:13:00.000-07:00

Recently, a good friend of mine at my job, Donna, won 5 passes for two apiece to see a special preview of "The Nightmare Before Christmas". I have three black tee-shirts dedicated to this film alone (and only one for Hitchhiker's Guide, to give you an idea of the importance of this film!). At first, when she invited me, I didn't think I'd be able to go. Michelle had a work function and I had the boys. Alas, Donna had 4 free spaces, so we could all go (the boys LOVE this film, too).

So, we showed up. There was still one unused admission left, so I called my friend, Jim, from school. I waited for him while Donna, the kids, and the others secured seats in the "dead center" (little Halloween pun for ya there) of the theater. Another guy was standing nearby and walked over. He sighed and said "I can't wait any longer. I have to go in." I thought it odd that he suddenly felt the need to emote to me. "Ooooh Kaaayyy. You can do that," I replied. He gave me four of the two-person passes. Well, there wasn't time for 8 more friends to travel to the theater, so I started peddling the tickets off for free. I was wearing a simple Jack Skellington shirt, so I probably looked to a rare few like an official theater rep.

People literally ran from me! You would have thought I was a Hare Krishna guy at the airport (note to the young ones... rent "Airplane" if you don't know what a Hare Krishna guy at the airport is). We've reached the point where people don't trust anyone giving something away for free!

I was able to give out three of the four, only wasting one pass.

All in all, this was a great experience. To be 100% honest, the 3D didn't add much to the movie. It was very well done, perhaps to the degree where you forgot about it. But what really got me was the ability to see this wonderful film in a large format with incredible sound (I really think they've enhanced the surround effect!). If Burton-esque entertainment is your style, you have to see this. Even if you already have. It will definitely re-awaken your love of the film!

PDA Video As Submitted

2006-10-18T17:52:00.000-07:00

Here we go... final version. Not much different than the last, and the changes are almost not worth posting (I doubt you can tell at all in Flash video). However, I can't leave the "almost final" without the "final".

I tweaked the sound a bit. Primarily the impact of the AT-AT on the ground (and it was a little blown out at parts before). I think it placed pretty well as far as the assignment is concerned, but there were a couple that were just mind blowing. I really have to learn to unleash the old imagination with these things.

Problem is, if you enhance in a way the teacher didn't expect, it's counted as a negative. I just never know how to make that call. For example, one guy, instead of dropping screens off the bottom as they transition, made them shrink like turning off an old TV. Very impressive effect, but very negative comments from the teacher. Others put elaborate frames around the video like it was in video player software. They were commended. Not knowing how "creativity" will be greeted has kept me pretty tight to the project guidelines.

PDA Assignment Near Completion

2006-10-16T18:42:00.000-07:00

The PDA video is almost finished. I think it looks good, but the teacher gets bored with the same sound every time a button is pressed, so I'll be replacing some of those (so much for all that "consistent behavior" stuff we learned in applications interface design!). Anyway, I'm sure I can find other deficiencies to correct over the next day.

How RARE to have a little extra time at the end of an assignment! Wonderful, but rare!

Two New Videos

2006-10-12T18:24:00.000-07:00

Once again, life gets in the way of blogging (I love you guys, but it's no secret that life comes first). I'm going to start of with a little bit of a bummer. Grades are not all A's right now. Our class is subject to quizzes of 10 questions apiece on Fridays. They are pure rote memorization and history. I don't do well at all at this and it's dragged me down to the bottom of the "B" range for this class. Needless to say, it's a bit of a morale buster. The questions are obscure... Name 3 of the 6 items in a drop down list (I gave the right answer... wrong dropdown! -- 10 points off). "Name the man who urged Steven Speilberg to use computer generated dinosaurs in Jurassic Park". Left that one blank, but you can bet I know who Phil Tippet is now! It's in a textbook that we're assigned, but I just do... not... retain... rote... facts. All through school, I was straight "A"'s except for the "D" in History.

Ok, griping over. Time to show off the latest videos. First is our AT-AT redux. This is the final version I turned in. I learned about a required element (smoke billowing from the vehicle after the main impact explosion) with an hour left to complete it... ouch! But I think it looks pretty good considering.

The other video is a work in progress. This is a video of someone poking a turned-off Visor (Palm Pilot competitor). We were given some slides and asked to make some video (i.e. rotating schematics of the AT-AT). I need to tone down the edges of the finger, but overall, I'm happy with the progress on this one.

Thanks for listening to me whine. If you want some cheese with that whine, take a look at this. I tried one of the effects from our textbooks. I took a Marvin figure and placed it right near the camera positioned very carefully. Then I took a few shots of me in the distance (relatively) interacting with it. The came out pretty funny, although not very convincing. Still, I enjoyed it and have always wanted a robot in my kitchen! Pure cheesy photo goodness!

Take Care!

AT-AT Attack!

2006-10-06T16:26:00.000-07:00

No, I'm not stuttering. What would you do if you saw an Empire AT-AT headed your way on a road in this galaxy, on this planet?

You'd call for a missile to take it down, right? Well, welcome to our latest work in progress...

If you'd like to see this one full-scale (I'm seeing a lot of lost detail in the embeded version), click here.

Left to do: Improve the missile's path, work on the smoke, add an explosion, and hide the distant part of the smoke trail behind the trees. I kind of feel that shadows could use a bit of work, too.

This stuff is REALLY fun!

Moving along...

2006-10-04T12:13:00.000-07:00

We're moving along with our compositing skills. In this set of videos, we had to merge a computer-generated helicopter into existing video footage. They are very short videos, but interesting nonetheless. I wish we had more base footage to go with. Ten seconds of video would not have taken much more work and would have given more than just a tiny taste of what we were trying to achieve.

So, on to the videos. Starting with this...

We made this...

But apparently, they didn't get very far. Don't worry, no simulated or real people were hurt in this disaster. But the helicopter is beyond repair.

Late edit: So you know, these are the completed works of two assignments. The tiny little video snippets had no helicopter in them. The first was a "free moving camera" pan. The second was a "nodal pan" (meaning a camera rotating in one place). ALL the helicopters and their parts were not in the original video, and are computer generated.

Like "Flat Stanley" for animators...

2006-09-29T12:55:00.000-07:00

Here's our latest. This is an interesting effect. Nothing you see here is real. Even the bricks were a small picture replicated and tweaked to make a whole wall. The pipes were all created by me as well. Then, we generated images of each and laid the images in planes. The planes are manipulated much like the multiplane camera Walt Disney created.

It lends itself to a surrealistic, pseudo-3D effect. Like a diorama created out of cardboard pictures of real pipes, bricks, boards, etc...

Fun stuff. But I still can't wait to do stuff that looks REAL!

In Support of Mocha Momma!!!

2006-09-26T20:24:00.000-07:00

Please... read this post about Banned Books Week...

451 Degrees

And go out and get yourself some banned books before it's over! Censorship is mind control!

Potty Power Trip

2006-09-26T17:22:00.000-07:00

The Premise
There are some things that we think we are the only ones to experience, only to find out that everyone experiences them. There are others that we dare not mention, but would like to believe everyone experiences, when actually they don't. I don't know which category this one falls into.

The Preface
In our school, the men's room is equipped with, from right to left, a sink, a divider, a urinal, and a full stall (walls, locking door, fixture). The main door has a traditional bathroom lock. However, given the setup inside, I didn't lock the outer door during my first visit. It wasn't going to be a sit down job, anyway. Someone walked in, reacted with total shock at the presence of another person, and made a hasty, humbled exit. I didn't get it. This setup screamed "public toilet." However, even if I'm just washing my hands, I have learned to lock the outer door. For the benefit of the women reading this, you need to know this: It is very important, once the men's room etiquette has been established, never to mess with it. The men's room is a far, far cry from the social environment we men believe the ladies' room to be (do they really serve hors d'oeuvres in there???). Oh, and stop cringing at the topic, you'll get wrinkle lines in your forehead!

The Power Trip
OK, so here's the thing. It's very common, given breaks schedules and such, that someone tries the handle while I'm in there, regardless of the duration of the visit. My initial reaction to the door handle is momentary panic and the thought, "AACK! Did I really remember to lock it?" The failure of the knob to turn changes that reaction to, "Aha!! I have control of this facility. And you, poor soul, are forced to wait until I feel good and ready to release that control! And that will not happen until my hands are thoroughly sanitized, rinsed, and dried! MUAHAHAHA!!"

So, is everyone out there laughing in sympathy or secretly removing me from their RSS feeds?

Oh, and when I'm in there for an "extended stay" (aka - Starbuck's moment), I have that outer door locked and the stall door closed and locked. I've thought about how silly this is, but I feel compelled in a public restroom to lock the stall door. How would you treat the inner stall door knowing the outer one is locked?

Old Block / New Block

2006-09-25T20:24:00.000-07:00

Dual purpose post here.

First, we finished second block on Friday at school. It ended one crazy week of single-parenthood with a two-part final on Friday (scores 98% for modelling, 92% for animating/rigging), and Michelle returning on Saturday evening. Normalcy restored!

Second, we started block three today. I couldn't believe it when we had our first assignment at 8:30am, and it was due at 12:30pm! This guy's serious! So, here you have it, my first composited video. Compositing is the art of compiling multiple pieces of footage into a single scene. The above video is comprised of:

a still photograph of the mountains (with a poorly defined sky)
computer generated clouds
a computer generated waving flag
a computer generated helicopter (not animated)

We took the four elements and combined them into the bit you see above. This was a lot of fun, but underscored that the people who make this software are artists, not interface design experts. These programs do anything you could think of. Just don't expect the same set of button clicks in any two places.

Overall, I see lots of potential for fun this quarter (and immensely hard work). Putting the helicopters into the scene, I imagined them swarming in for an attack on Daryl Hannah (i.e. "Attack of the 50 Foot Woman", modern version). So much to do, so much other stuff to do that I'll never get to it!

Stick a fork in me...

2006-09-21T17:31:00.000-07:00

I'm DONE!

Some of you wanted to know what was wrong that needed to be fixed, and I thank you so much for your vote of confidence! :) I'm going to give you the opportunity to go back and forth between videos looking for corrections, but only if you'd like to.

The background was overdone (can't get away with reusing that desert scene too many times, I guess). :) Teacher suggested something simpler that would contrast with the subject without taking attention away from her.
Hands still drifting from the handles. I spent a lot of time addressing this, as it seemed when you touched the hands, they were messed up for the rest of the ride, meaning a complete touch up of the whole zip-line part.
Upon bar grab, she swung forward, but not backward enough.
The jump from the stand to the bar was almost in slow motion. Speed it up, and the hands don't line up with the bars again for the ride (see #2).
At the end, she didn't travel far enough after letting go.
She goes up and flips and comes down. No "hang time" at the top. Had to stretch that out.
Camera was panning too much. Teacher suggested leaving the camera still, and using two "shots".

If you look SUPER carefully, you'll see that for a frame or two, one of her hands still goes right through the handlebar upon the grab/hang sequence. But I ran out of time and had to get the kids.

So, I'm sure you can see differences in this one, but can you see the subtle nuances. I know it's hard to tell in a flash video, but I expect some of them show. Truth is, even without training, if you watch these over and over, the problems become more apparent.

Thanks for all the nice comments and support!

Ninja Chick strikes again...

2006-09-20T22:17:00.000-07:00

Here's where she stands today. One more day to go. Still not thrilled, but she's getting there.

A Big Welcome Goes To...

2006-09-18T21:41:00.000-07:00

The Ninja Chick

This is our latest assignment. It's back to being due on Friday. This is a very preliminary render, so nothing is timed, nothing syncs up, and the end is cut short. But I'm posting it to give you an idea how a project progresses through its early stages.

As with the previous superhero in the poses, this one was given to us complete, but without any animation. I did not design or build the character. I simply got her to run, jump and (sort of) grab the bar. There's a lot of potential in this one, but not much time to exploit it. I'll keep you up to date on the progress.

Had to post this one!

2006-09-17T17:44:00.000-07:00

This is my grade grid so far. I was especially happy with the "Nice Work" comment on the facial animation (the zombie head). I am personally doing the "YES!!!" pose commonly associated with the guy who just spiked a football in the endzone. Don't get used to sports references... they'll be EXTREMELY rare.

One (crazy, hectic, BUSY) week left in the quarter! Due to a compressed class schedule, we won't be doing the demo reel project. Some of the others have not yet received a grade.

This one was due at end of class this past Friday. We were given the complete character and he was all set up for animation. We just had to do 10 defined poses and two of our own choosing. Any guesses as to which I chose and which were assigned?
By the way, I'm expecting to take a hit on "Hero - High Five". He looks more like "Howdy Neighbor!" to me. He was a sacrifice in the name of getting this done on time.

Oh no not I, I'm still alive!

2006-09-17T09:38:00.000-07:00

In the words of the immortal Perry Coma (you'd have to be a fan of the old Second City Television show to get this entry's title), I'm still alive.

Why haven't I posted anything in the past few days? I got a "situation" here...

Our class quarter ends ~~the end of next week~~ ~~this Friday~~ this Thursday. WHAT? WHO CHANGED IT TO THIS THURSDAY!!! We have our final project (7 days compressed to 3 or 4) due that morning. And our final exam. And our pre-final exam review before that!

So, I should just do the final project in "crunch time" after school, right. Nope. Got single-parent responsibilities this week, as Mom's in CA on business.

I feel like there's more, but I'm pretty loaded up as it is, so consider this the time-compressed equivalent of a three page essay (with references). :) I'm still checking in because I need decompression time. Just not as much.

I'll be back in full-force after the fire. BTW, the one thing I *did* commit a little time to was getting Nicole an entry for her sponsored blog contest. :) Look to her site for it!

Final Zombie Edit

2006-09-12T22:14:00.000-07:00

Here it is... the zombie as to be submitted for grading tomorrow (yikes... it's later TODAY!).

You probably won't notice much difference. It's mostly teeny tweaks to get the consonant movements in sync with the audio.

Enjoy it!

One step closer.

2006-09-08T20:40:00.000-07:00

Here's the latest update... he blinks and has some refinements in the movements... 3 days 'til the due date.

He moves, now...

2006-09-07T13:51:00.000-07:00

We got our due dates for Mr. Zombie. Drafts are due Monday, and finals due on Wednesday. He doesn't blink, but the animation is getting pretty complete. Just have to smooth out some jerkiness and add blinks.

The shaping of the face and all was getting rather tedious. It's so much fun at this point seeing results of all that labor!

Preliminary zombie video... more to come!

2006-09-06T18:50:00.000-07:00

Here's Mr. Zombie. He's back and this time he has something to say. C'mon, dude, put some LIFE into it. Oh, sorry. I mean, put some UNDEATH into it!!!

Out Of Context...

2006-09-06T18:34:00.000-07:00

Tell me if you see any potential in this. It's a little game that's kind of fun. I think I made it up, but I could have picked it up from somewhere. I'll throw out a phrase/sentence/question, entirely out of context, and you give a simple, one-sentence reply. If I continue with this, these will come from all sorts of sources... strangers in line at Starbucks, classmates, family members. This will help to keep it random since I'm not making them up. I like random.

The key here is that there's no setup, no follow-up. The less you think about your answer the better. Please don't read the comments before answering since that could put you in someone else's frame of mind.

Enjoy! Here's the first one.

OMG! And when he said that, you did what?

Tick Tick Tick...

2006-09-03T23:12:00.000-07:00

Time marches on! And almost a year has passed since I posted this, my first blog entry (back on MSN):

Let's start with an attention grabber...

It was September 16, 2005. What were you doing that day?

I'd have waited until the actual anniversary to post about it, but I'm sure I'll forget (S10's birthday is right near that date, too). For most people, absent-mindedness comes with age, but I couldn't wait... I was born with it. So, did I mention it's almost been a year since my first blog entry?

School Update (Good Stuff Here)

2006-09-01T19:55:00.000-07:00

For our current project, the zombie head, I'll be taking this audio and getting this guy to act it out. The goal at this point is to get him to do it better than I did.

The links above, I think, are quite interesting. So, if you've been following my progress at school, you'll really want to take the time to download each of them. Each of these is in the two to five megabyte range. Not very large for broadband. Plus, you get to see me acting. That should be worth a laugh! :)

Embedded, low-res versions of the two videos:

As usual, if you have trouble with the video, please let me know. Sorry to even feel the need to mention that.

Second Life

2006-08-28T20:38:00.000-07:00

OK, when they called it Second Life, they didn't indicate its ability to suck you away from your first. This is "The Sims meets chat rooms", and you're seeing me (towel dutifully strapped over the shoulder!) in my own Second Life.

An article in Popular Science indicated you could build things here. I joined on the hopes that I could exercise my 3D building skills. I have no doubt that's true, but I need to feel it out a bit first. The place is HUGE... and just about all of it was built by the residents, not the hosting company. To really build, you need to get a paid subscription, and mine is free.

My only question... where are all the "normal females"? Not that I have any problem with vamps, but if just a few were walking around in jeans and tees, the family friendly factor would be a bit higher. As is, I go in after the kids are asleep.

So, in the meantime, let's call this a passing phase, addictive as it may be. My recommendation... definitely check this out -- even if temporarily -- just to get the nature of it. Just remember it's your second life, and keep yourself anchored in your first!

First Views of a Work In Progress

2006-08-23T11:59:00.000-07:00

These are pictures of our latest project. We have a set of images of a Zombie head we are to recreate. We'll then take a quote from a live actor (TV or movie) and add all the facial expressions and lip sync to the voice.

It's been fun, but very challenging. Ears take FOR-EVER!

What the hey??

2006-08-21T21:51:00.000-07:00

EarthQuaker
Originally uploaded by Eric And Michelle.

Some friends and I are going to attempt a cartoon/live action short over the next month for submission to a contest. At one point, we need an earthquake, and this machine generates them by stomping its feet. The green button's OK, but don't play with the red one.

It's not nearly finished. It will probably look less real -- textured more like the legs than the body -- as we're going for a cartoon look and feel, but I find it funny nonetheless.

Snakes On A Plane

2006-08-19T22:07:00.000-07:00

Why would you have snakes on a plane? Well, they don't have wings, silly! OK, now that's the cheesiest way I can think of to lead into a review of a total gore-fest horror film.

This film is precisely what it claims to be. Snakes on a plane. If that sounds good to you, you'll enjoy it, but if it sounds stupid, pointless, gratuitously violent, you're totally right. I laughed through the whole thing. As a kid, I loved Troma films. They were so low-budget and campy, and it became a trademark of the genre. Snakes on a plane was kind of like Troma all grown up. Serious special effects, moderately better dialogue, and Samuel L. Jackson are not trademarks of Troma, but it otherwise fits.

The required cast were all there... the stuck up starlet, Mercedes, and her dog, Mary-Kate; R&B star 3 G's and his body-guards (one played by Keenan of "Keenan and Kel"); a mother and an infant; two young kids flying alone for the first time; the honeymoon couple where the hubby was afraid to fly; the Eurotrash snob; and the incredibly horny young couple. The flight crew was also properly represented... the cavalier pilot; the likeable co-pilot; the ambiguously gay male flight attendant; the sexy blonde flight attendant; the matronly mature flight attendant; and finally the lead role, Julianne Margulies (sp?) as the intelligent brunette flight attendant.

SLJ was FBI agent Flynn, flying his witness from Hawaii to LA. What the witness saw is part of the fun, so I'll leave that out. The witness becomes the desire of the blonde flight attendant, making for an interesting pre-flight safety demo. Flynn and the brunette flight attendant become allies through the film once she gets over the FBI intrusion on the flight (predictable outcome included). Oh yeah, then there's the snakes. I won't give spoilers about the snakes, but let's just say they're an angry bunch for a mildly plausible reason. And if it's an "R" rated part they spot first, it's gonna get bit!

Here's everyone's questions as we start:
- Is Mary Kate (the purse dog) gonna bite it? I answered a definitive yes on this one, leaving only "how?" to be answered.
- As a parent, I have a hard time watching kids die in movies, so I immediately went to "how about the boys? Or the baby?
- That male flight attendant... he's gonna bite it, right? Or will there be some joke about him and "taking a big snake"?

I will answer vaguely at best (with only one spoiler you'll have to highlight to see). Not everyone we like lives. Not everyone we don't like dies. Not everyone who dies does so by snakebite. A gun gets fired. Eyes get bitten. Faces get venomously spit. One guy gets killed in a way that makes you totally cringe -- no snakes or guns involved. Some gore was spared, but rest assured, you'll get your share! I thought the depressurization scene was too overdone, even for this level of writing. The spoiler is for other parents like me, for whome watching kids die is disturbing -- in case you want to know what to expect.

SPOILER - START HIGHLIGHTING HERE TO READ
No kids die... they're all threatened and one gets bitten, but he survives.
END OF SPOILER - HIGHLIGHT TO HERE

So, the humor is absolutely sick to the Nth degree, but if you like that stuff, you HAVE to see Snakes On A Plane.

Edit: Fixed spoiler text to hopefully be hidden in RSS readers as well as directly on the blog.

Blogging On Blogging On Blogging

2006-08-17T21:33:00.000-07:00

I think I'm done now -- well soon, at least. I realized that my blog has been affected in two ways recently...

First, when I joined animation school, the total random nature of it (which I miss and hope to recover somewhat) faded quickly into classroom status reports. This is not bad, but the total lack of subjects like "Why do we perceive a color circle when light wavelengths increase in a straight line?" indicates a lack of balance. When did I last post a disocvered "42"???

Second, when MSN put its blog sites into a deep freeze (which I know some of you can't see... it doesn't happen on my fastest computer), I came over here and started blogging on blogging, putting all else on hold. Subject matter went to discussing photo sites and storage sites (storage is a carryover from MSN, too). All the tech talk was boring to regular users but not techy enough to attract the tech geeks.

So, I'm here and settled. The last virtual box has been unpacked -- I have storage for video and pictures and the ability to blog as I had before (if not a bit better due to HTML access). I'm going to be careful not to clutter up my page with all the lists I have on MSN. They weren't changing much, and were probably only interesting to first-time readers anyway. I'm in a conundrum over the floating head. It worked so well over there and generated a protest when I removed it, but this site looks better in sleek black with the 6 random images from Flickr on top.

Hopefully, I can come up with some more "off the top of my head" things again and also really keep the family stuff going (since we're backing up and printing our pictures through Flickr, I have more incentive to get them uploaded). I'll also keep you fully up to date on the animation front. The projects are getting bigger and don't require as frequent updates. A structure growing to completion through a series of 30K JPG's is interesting. 20MB animation files in an incomplete state are a bit of a burden. You'll still get the updates, though.

Time and other obligations permitting, I want more of my mind in this blog. More balance. I hope you notice some subject matter improvements soon.

No more blogging on blogging!

Abstract Art?

2006-08-16T16:26:00.000-07:00

Abstract Art?

As we build our zombie heads, this odd gap forms. When I was looking to generate a picture of the progress, it begged for something strange. The desert is from the superhero walk cycle, and the steel bar was created just for this moment. Kind of Dali-esque, isn't it?