As the title implies, last week was a pretty tough week for me. I won't go into details, but there was a family tragedy that was expected but still a shock to everyone. My entire weekend got thrown off by it and, even today, I'm still trying to recoup. It's one of the many reasons that I didn't get a chance to blog at all this past week.
However, you can expect some posts this weekend for sure. Friday afternoon I'll be going to see Guardians of the Galaxy, a movie I've been itching to see since before the first trailer. It seems like it took forever to come out, but I heard - as much as I could without revealing spoilers - that it was a great movie and worth the wait. Anyway, at some point this weekend (hopefully Friday while it's still fresh in my mind) I'll be composing a review of it.
I've also got plans to post my first set of fan art this weekend, too. I've been overloaded with school work (I have an extra class this term), so I'm limited on my free time recently. I'm only writing this tonight because I needed to take a break from studying for my quiz tomorrow and thought I would kill two birds with one stone, as they say. Even though I have an added class, my schedule is only four days - so tomorrow my weekend starts and I've been getting a jump on assignments to keep it as free as possible.
That's it for now. Just a quick update really. But stay tuned for my review Friday or Saturday and another post Sunday (maybe?). Ta-ta for now!
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Saturday, July 19, 2014
Art Pop?
One of the reasons I wanted to switch the direction of my blog was so that could show off all of the INCREDIBLE pieces of fan art I've commissioned over the years. However, I've been having second thoughts after getting into a discussion over on my DeviantArt page.
Last year, one of the artists I commissioned posted a picture of one of my original characters, which is fine. The artists and I have an understanding and we get the others' approval before posting (being sure that we give credit to the other). The incident happened on Tumblr when, while scrolling through my Dashboard, who should I see pop-up other than my OC. Now that in itself isn't what bothered me (some of the artists have Tumblrs, as I do, and we post as per our agreement). The issue was that neither of us posted this piece and the mystery man was: 1) claiming the art their own and 2) claiming the character, my character, as their own creation. It was a months-long process trying to fix the issue - and it is, like anything posted online, not completely fixed. However, the artist and I did get the original poster to admit that the work and character was not their own, which on the Internets is a win. He/she has subsequently disappeared under that Tumblr moniker.
After this discussion, the fellow with whom I was debating still didn't see a problem with what happened. "Art and stuff are borrowed all the time. You're never going to stop it." As a creative individual, I put a certain amount of my heart and soul into everything I design. To have have someone else claim your work as their own is infuriating! They put nothing into the creative process themselves and yet claim all of the success as their own. Another thing that irked me, was that when the picture was posted by the thief, it got twice as many likes and reblogs than when the original artist posted it.
There will most likely be some art posted here, especially the pieces that I've already posted elsewhere online. But this debate and the lack of understanding have left a bitter taste in my mouth. In the end, what I decide to do will most likely depend on the comments and support I receive from my followers.
Last year, one of the artists I commissioned posted a picture of one of my original characters, which is fine. The artists and I have an understanding and we get the others' approval before posting (being sure that we give credit to the other). The incident happened on Tumblr when, while scrolling through my Dashboard, who should I see pop-up other than my OC. Now that in itself isn't what bothered me (some of the artists have Tumblrs, as I do, and we post as per our agreement). The issue was that neither of us posted this piece and the mystery man was: 1) claiming the art their own and 2) claiming the character, my character, as their own creation. It was a months-long process trying to fix the issue - and it is, like anything posted online, not completely fixed. However, the artist and I did get the original poster to admit that the work and character was not their own, which on the Internets is a win. He/she has subsequently disappeared under that Tumblr moniker.
After this discussion, the fellow with whom I was debating still didn't see a problem with what happened. "Art and stuff are borrowed all the time. You're never going to stop it." As a creative individual, I put a certain amount of my heart and soul into everything I design. To have have someone else claim your work as their own is infuriating! They put nothing into the creative process themselves and yet claim all of the success as their own. Another thing that irked me, was that when the picture was posted by the thief, it got twice as many likes and reblogs than when the original artist posted it.
There will most likely be some art posted here, especially the pieces that I've already posted elsewhere online. But this debate and the lack of understanding have left a bitter taste in my mouth. In the end, what I decide to do will most likely depend on the comments and support I receive from my followers.
Friday, July 18, 2014
Geekk Sale
Classes have started once more, and it's a very, very long day for me. I'm hoping that it doesn't interfere with me posting once or twice a week, if not more, but if it does, I hope you all understand: School first, Blog second.
Anyway, the last few days of my break I spent cleaning. Things have really piled-up since I started back at school; I mean literally there are piles of things everywhere. Neatly stacked and organized piles, but piles none the less. They haven't really bothered me until recently as I've been focused on schoolwork and freelance projects. Things changed when my cat decided to get frisky with a stack of DVDs and knocked them over in the dead of night scaring the bajeebers out of me.
That was the final straw, I suppose. I could no longer move anywhere without being suddenly conscious of the millions of piles of "stuff" everywhere. How have lived like this for so long and not realized it? I fear that I am perhaps turning into one of those weird Hoarders people that cry over throwing out old pizza boxes. I suddenly feel very claustrophobic and need to do something about it.
The answer is simple: I HAVE WAAAAAY TOO MUCH STUFF for my tiny place. Some of my old "fat" clothes I'll be donating to the local clothing drive as they are now too big on me (yipee!), but the larger problem is what to do with my vast geekk collection? I don't especially want to get rid of things as they all have some sentimental value, but I'll have to get rid of at least some of it. My comic collection alone is six boxes and counting. Not to mention the two huge totes of sealed Lego sets.
I've decided to give eBay a shot and maybe also try Craigslist and Amazon. I've given a lot of thought to what I want to sell first and hang onto for a bit longer. I think first up will my CCG cards. I use to be really into Marvel and DC VS System as well as Magic the Gathering. I haven't played either in years and most of the cards have been sitting neatly organized in their boxes and untouched since. I'm working on a list of everything that I have but if anyone out there is interested in making me bulk offer and saving me the trouble, I'll definitely consider it.
After the cards will be some toys. I have a bunch of the Series 1 Ben 10 toys that I bought when the original series started (which was one of my favorite series ever until they jumped the shark with those movies). There are also some sealed Lego sets that I have doubles of and want to sell, too. After that, I guess I'll see how much more room I need and go from there.
It's a little sad that it's come to this, but until school is over and I relocate (which is another year at least), I'm stuck in this place for now. At this point I really care less about the money and more about getting my space back...
Anyway, the last few days of my break I spent cleaning. Things have really piled-up since I started back at school; I mean literally there are piles of things everywhere. Neatly stacked and organized piles, but piles none the less. They haven't really bothered me until recently as I've been focused on schoolwork and freelance projects. Things changed when my cat decided to get frisky with a stack of DVDs and knocked them over in the dead of night scaring the bajeebers out of me.
That was the final straw, I suppose. I could no longer move anywhere without being suddenly conscious of the millions of piles of "stuff" everywhere. How have lived like this for so long and not realized it? I fear that I am perhaps turning into one of those weird Hoarders people that cry over throwing out old pizza boxes. I suddenly feel very claustrophobic and need to do something about it.
The answer is simple: I HAVE WAAAAAY TOO MUCH STUFF for my tiny place. Some of my old "fat" clothes I'll be donating to the local clothing drive as they are now too big on me (yipee!), but the larger problem is what to do with my vast geekk collection? I don't especially want to get rid of things as they all have some sentimental value, but I'll have to get rid of at least some of it. My comic collection alone is six boxes and counting. Not to mention the two huge totes of sealed Lego sets.
I've decided to give eBay a shot and maybe also try Craigslist and Amazon. I've given a lot of thought to what I want to sell first and hang onto for a bit longer. I think first up will my CCG cards. I use to be really into Marvel and DC VS System as well as Magic the Gathering. I haven't played either in years and most of the cards have been sitting neatly organized in their boxes and untouched since. I'm working on a list of everything that I have but if anyone out there is interested in making me bulk offer and saving me the trouble, I'll definitely consider it.
After the cards will be some toys. I have a bunch of the Series 1 Ben 10 toys that I bought when the original series started (which was one of my favorite series ever until they jumped the shark with those movies). There are also some sealed Lego sets that I have doubles of and want to sell, too. After that, I guess I'll see how much more room I need and go from there.
It's a little sad that it's come to this, but until school is over and I relocate (which is another year at least), I'm stuck in this place for now. At this point I really care less about the money and more about getting my space back...
Sunday, July 13, 2014
A Quick Trip To Forbidden Planet
I know my trip was nearly a week ago (that long already?), but I wanted to post a few other things before this one. It was only my second trip to New York ever and there was a lot on my list that I wanted to see. The first one was a bit of a bust since most of what I saw of the city was from a seat on a bus.The bulk of our day was spent at the Museum of Natural History. It was incredible and we never even finished it. There were even a few areas I felt "rushed" because there was so much I wanted to see before we went to lunch. That turned out to be an event in itself. After trips to three different pizza shops with no luck finding "the right kind of pizza," we settled on going to Chipotle, another first for me.
The final highlight for me was a visit to the Forbidden Planet comic shop. I thought it was a great store, one of the best comic shops I've ever visited. Granted, there's nothing around here quite like it, but it was still an experience. We spent quite a while browsing, longer than I had planned given the group I was with. In fact, we would have been there even longer had my friend not gotten ill from the heat, forcing us to leave.
I didn't leave empty-handed, either. I at least had a chance to pick up a new addition to my collection:
Saturday, July 12, 2014
The Flash Pilot Spoilers
Warning: there are SPOILERS below. Do not read this if you have not seen the pilot and want to be surprised. The opinions and theories made are my own based on what I have seen and the conclusions I've drawn.
I had heard about the leak of The Flash pilot about 2 weeks ago and have been taking drastic measures to avoid reading anything about it until the premiere this fall. However, I happened to stumble across the pilot online and just couldn't resist watching it! So here is my opinion of the series as well as few spoilers/surprises/theories about what I think we'll see in the series.
First, let me say that I love Grant Gustin as an actor. Granted, I'm most familiar with him from his Glee roll as Sebastian. That boy has a serious set of pipes and I really wish that they would have featured him more both as a singer and foil to the Kurt/Blaine dynamic. However, Glee's loss is The Flash's gain. He's not who I would have chosen as Barry Allen, but after seeing him on Arrow, I quickly changed my mind. I've always been of the mindset that the Flash should be more lean than muscular and I think Grant has the frame for the role.
I love that we are also getting the 90's Flash actor, John Wesley Shipp, as Barry's dad. For the slightly older kids (ie - my generation) this is a nice homage to the old, if campy series. (I just pray that Mark Hamill doesn't return as the Trickster in that horrific costume). Of the rest of the cast we have Iris West and her dad who act as Barry's surrogate family after his mother's death and father's incarceration. At the moment, there is the predictable love triangle preventing Barry and Iris from hooking-up at the start. Understandable since she is practically his sister... Outside of the West family we also have a cast who, unlike DC's past CW series Arrow and Smallville, are in the know about Barry's secret identity from day one.
This is where things get interesting. Of our three STAR Labs cast members, two of them have roots grounded in the cannon universe. Cisco Ramon, better known as Vibe, and Caitlin Snow, the latest incarnation of Killer Frost, are both directly involved with Barry and his Flash activities. Will we see them in their superhero/villain personas later in the series? My guess would be yes, otherwise why use such obvious names? The real mystery for me is the identity of Harrison Wells, played by Tom Cavanagh. The wheelchair-bound owner of STAR Labs reveals at the end that he 1) is fully capable of walking and 2) is in possession of future tech and info. My original thought after seeing the extended trailer was that he'd be revealed to be the "yellow blur" (aka- Professor Zoom) that Barry saw in his youth. However, in the pilot we meet Detective West's newest partner Eddie Thawne (and Professor Zoom's name in comics is Eobard Thawne) making me think that I'm wrong. So could Harrison be a time-traveling villain like Chronos, with an surname like Wells (who wrote the Time Machine if you're not aware) it's a possibility.
There are a few other nods to the series that people have been hyping over. There's the "Grodd" sign on a destroyed cage meaning we'll possibly see a visit from the notorious gorilla villain. There's also the bevy of hints mentioned in the future newspaper from a Wayne-Queen merger (hinting at a Batman appearance), the Flash's disappearance during a "Crisis," and the mysterious "red skies" (a possible hint at Darkseid or Apokalypse).
I think that this is going to be a great series and, since it will be running in tandem with Arrow, we have the potential for some amazing arcs and crossovers. This is a series I'll be sure to tune in for each and every week.
First, let me say that I love Grant Gustin as an actor. Granted, I'm most familiar with him from his Glee roll as Sebastian. That boy has a serious set of pipes and I really wish that they would have featured him more both as a singer and foil to the Kurt/Blaine dynamic. However, Glee's loss is The Flash's gain. He's not who I would have chosen as Barry Allen, but after seeing him on Arrow, I quickly changed my mind. I've always been of the mindset that the Flash should be more lean than muscular and I think Grant has the frame for the role.
I love that we are also getting the 90's Flash actor, John Wesley Shipp, as Barry's dad. For the slightly older kids (ie - my generation) this is a nice homage to the old, if campy series. (I just pray that Mark Hamill doesn't return as the Trickster in that horrific costume). Of the rest of the cast we have Iris West and her dad who act as Barry's surrogate family after his mother's death and father's incarceration. At the moment, there is the predictable love triangle preventing Barry and Iris from hooking-up at the start. Understandable since she is practically his sister... Outside of the West family we also have a cast who, unlike DC's past CW series Arrow and Smallville, are in the know about Barry's secret identity from day one.
This is where things get interesting. Of our three STAR Labs cast members, two of them have roots grounded in the cannon universe. Cisco Ramon, better known as Vibe, and Caitlin Snow, the latest incarnation of Killer Frost, are both directly involved with Barry and his Flash activities. Will we see them in their superhero/villain personas later in the series? My guess would be yes, otherwise why use such obvious names? The real mystery for me is the identity of Harrison Wells, played by Tom Cavanagh. The wheelchair-bound owner of STAR Labs reveals at the end that he 1) is fully capable of walking and 2) is in possession of future tech and info. My original thought after seeing the extended trailer was that he'd be revealed to be the "yellow blur" (aka- Professor Zoom) that Barry saw in his youth. However, in the pilot we meet Detective West's newest partner Eddie Thawne (and Professor Zoom's name in comics is Eobard Thawne) making me think that I'm wrong. So could Harrison be a time-traveling villain like Chronos, with an surname like Wells (who wrote the Time Machine if you're not aware) it's a possibility.
There are a few other nods to the series that people have been hyping over. There's the "Grodd" sign on a destroyed cage meaning we'll possibly see a visit from the notorious gorilla villain. There's also the bevy of hints mentioned in the future newspaper from a Wayne-Queen merger (hinting at a Batman appearance), the Flash's disappearance during a "Crisis," and the mysterious "red skies" (a possible hint at Darkseid or Apokalypse).
I think that this is going to be a great series and, since it will be running in tandem with Arrow, we have the potential for some amazing arcs and crossovers. This is a series I'll be sure to tune in for each and every week.
Friday, July 11, 2014
Why Do I Do This?
I had planned to write a bunch more posts while I was on break, but I had a last minute offer to go to New York with a friend. As I've only been there once before, I jumped at the chance to spend another day in the RL Metropolis. This post was originally going to be about my trip, but something happened that I feel more inclined to write about.
So, I recently got a Twitter message about buying followers. Specifically the message said that I can buy 5000 followers for a mere $15.00 sent via Paypal. It sounds like an amazing offer because, of course, everyone involved in social media knows that numbers matter. Popularity through views, likes, favorites, followers - no matter how you classify them, quantity matters. The more you have have, the better you are, right?
Maybe that's true. There are amazing content producers out there like Tyler Oakly and Shane Dawson who make their living through social media. Their livelihood depends on their creativity: keeping their fans entertained so that they don't unsubscribe while simultaneously drawing in new followers. Yes, for them and thousands of others, things like YouTube, Twitter, and Tumblr are perhaps a game of numbers and trying to stay on top.
For me, having something like a Twitter or this blog was never about trying to become a social media superstar. This is my chance to have my voice and my opinion heard; a way to express myself and find others with similar interests who want to comment or debate. I'm not set on building a vast empire of followers who worship me - that kind of power and celebrity is scary. Look at the recent Nash Grier debacle as an example. Yes he is young and what he did was meant as a joke, but in today's socially-charged climate what he did has cost him dearly. It means the loss of fans, the loss of his respectability, and (from what I've read) the possible loss of a movie deal.
This very blog, as a matter of point, is the perfect example of why I do this. The Interwebs is the modern day soapbox where I can voice my opinion and, if you are so inclined by my rant, you can stop and listen. In fact, join in and debate or comment if you agree/disagree with me. Ahhh, it feels good to get that off my chest. Stay tuned for something more light-hearted and fun next post!
So, I recently got a Twitter message about buying followers. Specifically the message said that I can buy 5000 followers for a mere $15.00 sent via Paypal. It sounds like an amazing offer because, of course, everyone involved in social media knows that numbers matter. Popularity through views, likes, favorites, followers - no matter how you classify them, quantity matters. The more you have have, the better you are, right?
Maybe that's true. There are amazing content producers out there like Tyler Oakly and Shane Dawson who make their living through social media. Their livelihood depends on their creativity: keeping their fans entertained so that they don't unsubscribe while simultaneously drawing in new followers. Yes, for them and thousands of others, things like YouTube, Twitter, and Tumblr are perhaps a game of numbers and trying to stay on top.
For me, having something like a Twitter or this blog was never about trying to become a social media superstar. This is my chance to have my voice and my opinion heard; a way to express myself and find others with similar interests who want to comment or debate. I'm not set on building a vast empire of followers who worship me - that kind of power and celebrity is scary. Look at the recent Nash Grier debacle as an example. Yes he is young and what he did was meant as a joke, but in today's socially-charged climate what he did has cost him dearly. It means the loss of fans, the loss of his respectability, and (from what I've read) the possible loss of a movie deal.
This very blog, as a matter of point, is the perfect example of why I do this. The Interwebs is the modern day soapbox where I can voice my opinion and, if you are so inclined by my rant, you can stop and listen. In fact, join in and debate or comment if you agree/disagree with me. Ahhh, it feels good to get that off my chest. Stay tuned for something more light-hearted and fun next post!
Friday, July 4, 2014
Summer Reading List
Finals are finally over and I managed to pull out another 4.0 this semester. Now that all of that is over with, I have two weeks to relax before my next term. Other than a few day trips, including my second ever trip to NYC, I have nothing major planned. So, what to do...? Well, after a trip to BAM last weekend, I took advantage of their BOGO and built up a summer reading list.
Here's what I'll be reading over the next 2+ weeks:
Saga, Vol. 3 the latest graphic novel by Brian K. Vaughn, I loved the first two.
Stardust by Neil Gaiman, loved the movie and I hear the book is even better.
The Last Days of Krypton by Kevin J. Anderson, never heard of it, but I love the Superman mythos.
The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson, another customer actually recommended it to me. I started this one first and I'm already blazing through it. America's first serial killer? Heck yeah I wanna read it!
So this is how I'll be spending my summer break, I'd love to hear how you'll be spending yours. Any other books that you recommend for my next break? Let me know in the comments below. I'm also still tweeking the site, but it's pretty well completed. I'm trying to decide if I want to keep the background or change it... Comment on that, too!
Here's what I'll be reading over the next 2+ weeks:
Saga, Vol. 3 the latest graphic novel by Brian K. Vaughn, I loved the first two.
Stardust by Neil Gaiman, loved the movie and I hear the book is even better.
The Last Days of Krypton by Kevin J. Anderson, never heard of it, but I love the Superman mythos.
The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson, another customer actually recommended it to me. I started this one first and I'm already blazing through it. America's first serial killer? Heck yeah I wanna read it!
So this is how I'll be spending my summer break, I'd love to hear how you'll be spending yours. Any other books that you recommend for my next break? Let me know in the comments below. I'm also still tweeking the site, but it's pretty well completed. I'm trying to decide if I want to keep the background or change it... Comment on that, too!
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