Shining On

It's finally that amazing time of year. Chilly. Autumn-y. Time for fires and hot tea. And of course Oktoberfest beer.

As for the art projects I mentioned in my last post, I did accomplish a bit. First is the wooden 20-sided die I bought my husband.

This, let me tell you, has been pretty meticulous work. But I'm pleased.

My first painting for my friend's hippie bar wasn't proceeding as hoped, so I took a different approach with my second canvas. Instead of sketching first, and being mindful of the lines, I loosened up and used nothing but paintbrush.

I think it worked out. My friend loves it.

Also did a quick Joan Jett sketch while I was stuck between projects. Nothing special, but kinda got me pointed in the right direction.

So now I need to finish the first painting I started, and start either a Poison Ivy or Catwoman to go with the Harley Quinn I have.

Speaking of Batman villains, Devon wants to go as the Riddler for Halloween this year, and he wants me to go as Ivy. Dude... I'm about 30 lbs over my "sexy" body, but... fine. If that's what you want.

I caught a documentary on tv the other day, and I loved it. It was Pink Floyd: The Making of Wish You Were Here. And it made me fall in love with the album. They broke down every song... The background, the meaning... It was fantastic. What's interesting is, maybe a week before I saw it, I was reading about the band, and the whole Syd Barrett story stuck with me. He was an original founder, and the first lead singer. But, that Syd disappeared and left behind a shell of his former self. Family claims it was mental issues, like schizophrenia, while his bandmates say it was an overuse of LSD. At any rate, Syd and the band separated, and a few years later they made Wish You Were Here. The first and last tracks -  the two-part Shine On You Crazy Diamond - is about, and dedicated to, him.

Anyway, it's actually available on YouTube, so... Give it a watch!

Blank Canvas

Happy mid-September. I suppose. Just, y'know, waiting for October, and everything that comes with it. Just get here already... And bring that chill to the air with you.

Finally got some art projects going. I'm painting a flat wooden 20-sided die for my husband, and working on the first of hopefully a few canvasses for a friend. She just opened up a bar close to where I work, and it's hippie-themed. I'm also hoping to finally do the Poison Ivy (from the Batman universe) canvas I've wanted to do for ages.

I'll share pics of them once they're done.

The new house is going nicely. Got it all unpacked, now just need to get a couple projects done. A dresser for the kid, an entertainment center. Deep freeze. This 'n that.

Apparently we moved into a nature preserve. Countless squirrels, rabbits, mourning doves, cardinals, other birds I can't identify, possums, a snake or three, and... two chipmunks. Yep. However, it's only when I keep the bird feeder filled. Leave it empty for a few days, and it's a ghost town.

One of the chipmunks, the one I see regularly, is my favorite. When I fill the hanging bird feeder, I'll lay some food out on the ground for him. He fills his cheeks and disappears for a while, then returns empty. Repeat. The other chipmunk I only saw once or twice, and I thought "oh, you brought family, awesome!..." then suddenly he chased the new guy away with great hostility. "Or... not... ok..."

Hopefully getting new ink soon. As in new tattoo. Again with the sharing of pics once it happens.

Our family "vacation" this summer (I'm really not considering it a vacation, for reasons) included a sightseeing trip to "castle ruins" in/near the Ozarks. If you're ever in the area, it's worth the time. Here's a pic to give you an idea...

After a couple of paragraphs, I realized that I really don't have much to say tonight... Just excited to be doing art again, I guess, and wanted to share. Don't really have a lot to get excited about these days.

Take care. Ta-ta.

Busy Be the Blogger

The trip by train to the city went alright. Not as well as I'd hoped, but hopefully still memorable. It's difficult to keep an autistic ad/hd kid entertained during 2 long train rides to a mostly-by-foot two day romp around the city. Where things he wants to do, like river boat tours, cost $40... for one of us. But that's not to say that fun wasn't had. He loved going up in one of the skyscapers to the skydeck. And we found a very interesting, imaginative and extensive playground. I just hope that he remembers it, and fondly. The fun stuff.

Just got back from a trip to see my mom's side of the family three states away a few days ago. Drove 14.5 hours one way with my son and mother. Stayed for 6 days. Once we got there, the time flew by. Suddenly we were leaving the next day to drive the 14.5 hours back.

What reeeaaalllyyy sucked was we didn't have the satellite radio I'm spoiled with in our car. AND of course, my media player was nowhere to be found. So no RoadTrip PlayList '18. Erg. And the further south we went, the more stations on the radio were... gospel, religious, etc. No thanks. And unfortunately, the radio signal was so damn rare that I found myself settling for country music.

I may have wiped blood from my ears once or twice.

(No insult meant for gospel & country music fans. It's just really, truly not for me. You all say the same about Ozzy, Manson, Ramones, and Eminem.)

So since my return, I've resumed work on the new-- wait! You nonexistent readers don't know yet! We bought a house! Our first! Moved in about a month ago. Right before the trip to the city. Anyhow, I've been working on the new place, but it's slow going. So effing busy with stuff this summer, and unsure of how I want things. Like stuff hung on the walls. And what to put in storage (now that we have sooo much more storage, thanks to the attic & basement space!). It's a process, but I've done things here and there. We'll get there.

One fairly recent occurence that hit me hard... Anthony Bourdain's death. I deeply admired him. He's inspired me to find the lesser-known eateries in the places I travel to. To find out what said places are known for, and the history and culture. When we vacationed last year and ended up going to Nashville, I watched the N'ville Parts Unknown episode a few days before. While I didn't end up going to any of the places he went, it did introduce me to two bands, The Dead Weather and The Kills. I absolutely love the album Blood Pressures by The Kills. You may think Nashville is nothing but country, but there are a few hidden gems.

Anyway... it still stings. And will for time to come.

I remember the first ep I watched... It was at my mom's house, after she came home around midnight after work. We watched his Okinawa episode. I loved it, and had to see more. I loved the way it was written and filmed. It wasn't just food, it was as I said a bit ago, culture and history. And food. And adventure. I just started reading the book that got his stardom started, Kitchen Confidential. It emanates the same spirit you see in his show. Humorous, carefree, rebellious.

Since I've been back from the south, I've started watching a new show: Orphan Black. Damn good! I'm hooked. They do a fantastic job with it. Making each "sister" her own character... and very believable, at that. Tatiana Maslany is phenomenal.

Ta.

Gifts, Glitches, and Gour- er, Journeys

Yours truly is now 31. Had a very low-key birthday this year. But a good one. Spent with the two main guys in my life. Received some pretty awesome pirate-y gifts. Sextant, spyglass, and ship (Queen Anne's Revenge, which was Blackbeard's) in a bottle.

The Glitch Mob just dropped a new album! Their third, not including their remix releases. "See Without Eyes" is its name. I fell in love with their first album, Drink The Sea, but their second - Love Death Immortality - didn't catch on like its predecessor. Unfortunately. Even with my girl Aja Volkman from Nico Vega on a track! But alas... Anyway, giving the new my first listen now.

I like how they use Braille. And the image kinda reminds me of the opening credits of the American version of Girl With the Dragon Tattoo movie.

Summer vacation nears. The 35 hours a week I have to myself will decrease significantly... by about 35 hours.

Yeah I'm on track 5 and it's still not catching me like Drink The Sea did. Shame.

Taking the kid on a overnight trip this summer. One I've wanted to do for a while now. Get on the train, ride to the city, let him see what the urban atmosphere is like. I think he'll love it.

Since the kid's currently watching Loony Tunes in the other room, I'll leave you with the classic...

Spring Reigns

At work, there's a song I hear quite often. It starts with bagpipes, so every time it begins, I think it's Dropkick Murphys. Or Flogging Molly. But no, it's Copperhead Road by Steve Earle. Which isn't a terrible song, and by terrible, I mean it isn't that effing Tennessee Whiskey song. But still... every time it plays, I think it's an awesome Celtic punk band... and... it's definitely not.

The other morning I had my last wisdom tooth pulled, upper right side. Immediately after getting a filling put in a lower right molar. Never had that much dental work done at once. Never been so numbed in my life. No solid food til lunch... the next day.

About two days later, I discover that I can't properly yawn. My jaw doesn't let me anymore. Awesome.

Currently listening to the Blurryface album by Twenty One Pilots.

The husband and I went to see Ready Player One the other night. Pretty good. Don't expect to catch all the pulp/pop culture references in one viewing. From Iron Giant to the Batmobile to Freddy Kreuger to Hello Kitty. And everything in between/beyond.

I've started playing Fallout Shelter. I'd gotten burnt out on Diablo 3 and needed something that required building, something to just pass some time here & there. So we found FS for free and got it. I'm enjoying it. Even the kid gets into it, especially when the ominous piano sounds, signalling the appearance of what looks like the guy from the Neighborhood Watch signs & stickers. Or maybe he has a trenchcoat that he reveals is full of watches he's selling... Anyway, he appears somewhere in your shelter, and if you find him in time and click on him, you get "caps" which is equivalent to money.

I miss my PS2 games. The Sims, Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3, Shinobi, Kingdom Hearts 2. Pro Skater 3 was a good one for passing time.

It finally feels like spring. It's nice. We really didn't get a fall, maybe less than a full week, and of course that's NOT a consecutive week. The two in-between seasons are my favorite. That transition from cold to warm, and from hot to cool.

Those seasons spawn some good thunderstorm too, which is always a win.

Latest art project: making my sister a Deadpool mug.

I think I'll put the Deadpool logo on the other side.

Battles

I've been fighting the PARCC testing for the past couple weeks. I found out that I couldn't opt my son out of the testing, but he had the option of refusing the test. However, put an AD/HD technology-loving kid in front of a computer, he's not going to say no. Even though he has no understanding of what he's seeing, cannot comprehend any of it, due to his academic knowledge being less than the "average" third grader's. So I spoke to the teacher extensively, and after making a few phone calls herself, she informed me that the school had no control in the testing and its rules. Because PARCC is issued by the state. So basically the the regions/districts are mooks that are doing what they're told. So! I took her advice and went to the state board of education about it. Typed out a nice long letter, in which I provided several heart-felt reasons why my son, and others like him, should not be made to take the PARCC assessments. It took a day for me to type this out, diplomatically. If there's one thing I can do, it's writing up something I have extensive knowledge, or feel deeply, about. So I did. And I sent it. Sent the letter I put significant time, thought, and effort into. Couple days later, received a reply. One that was basically automated, explaining PARCC from the BoE's point of view. Not once were any of the points I made specifically explored. They didn't even say "he" or "him." No questions about my child, his testing conditions, or likewise.

After reading that reply, I had to set my tablet & phone aside - far aside - so as not to send a reply through angry blurry-eyed vision during high emotions. Because there would have been a lot of cynicism and anger.

In other news... househunting is both awesome and terrible. Thought it might be a bit easier than this to get out of our duplex and into our first house as homeowners. But turns out, as you're going from house to house, not just anything will suffice for your getaway. Sometimes amazing pictures are taken of a really, ree-HEE-lly crappy place. And always, ALWAYS, expect the rooms to be smaller than the pictures show.

Yeah I'm new at this. Obviously. But it's still kinda fun. We're finally ready to have a home of our own. It's out there.

Got my bartending license! Booyah. I can add it to my Certificate of Ordination and basically be half a wedding. Unless you count camera phone pics as photography, then... grab some witnesses and you're set.

So the other night while I'm working, at the bar of course, I hear one of those stupid gambling machines playing a partial tune while someone's playing it. And it sounds familiar. Later, I hear it again. I definitely know what it is. So when I play "Battle Without Honor or Humanity" in its entirety on the jukebox, the machine players are all sorts of confused. Which leads to my thorough amusement.

("Battle Without Honor or Humanity" is the song that plays during a certain O-Ren Ishii scene from Kill Bill Vol 1, or, *sigh*, a scene with Bumblebee in the first live-action Transformers movie.)

Cue the Tunes

Happy New Year. A month and 20 days later... but hey, since when am I consistent and on point for holiday posts? Right, hardly ever.

My 2-days-a-week bartending job continues. Still enjoying it, other than hearing that goddamn Tennessee Whiskey song waaaaay too often. (Sometimes I counter it with Marilyn Manson or Sex Pistols.) We recently got a pool table, which translates to: Pool Table=Pool League=More Money For Linds On Mondays That League Nights Are At Her Bar. Yay!

Alright, got a few songs for you. The first is in the opening credits of the Justice League movie. I love it, has a good build-up.

This next one is from the latest Queens of the Stone Age album, Villains. After listening to its entirety several times, I discovered this was my favorite.

Sooo good. The band went a different direction with this album, with a producer who did a lot in the pop genre. Lily Allen, Christina Aguilera, Amy Winehouse, etc. It was a different sound from their previous records, but it still ended up being a great album.

Next is one I heard on a SiriusXM station, and fell in love with. They seem to be a lesser-known, independent group, and I can't find their music easily. Though I did find this song's album on vinyl, and am planning to purchase it soon. I can't explain why, I just love this song.

I've also recently discovered Fozzy, a heavy metal band fronted by WWE dude Chris Jericho. Yeah, I know, they've been around for a while. Shut up. Here's the song I heard the other day, I guess it's a new release.

Fozzy - Painless

Guess that's it f'now. Ta!