tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70066734864538331482024-03-14T03:11:39.689-04:00Sound, Mind, and Body.A blarg about music, my thoughts, and my health.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.comBlogger147125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-62380829837992930182012-03-08T05:30:00.003-05:002012-03-08T05:49:12.623-05:00A Blatant Ripoff.People are addicted to chocolate. I'm quite a fan myself. In fact I would say that I crave it more than hard candy, taffy, fruit snacks or the like. So one should be excited by the fairly new <a href="http://www.hersheys.com/pure-products/hersheys-air-delight-bar/air-delight.aspx">Hershey Air Delight</a> brand of chocolate right? Not even close. They charge the same price as a regular bar of the stuff and there's less chocolate content. <br /><br /> Not only is it a rip off, it is a cause for concern. You see, the world is running out of chocolate. Even though my source is rife with sarcasm and wit, I know they still take their research seriously. Take a look at Number 5: <a href="http://www.cracked.com/article_19048_6-important-things-you-didnt-know-were-running-out-of.html">6 Important Things You Didn't Know We're Running Out Of.</a> <br /><br />So it's time to stock up now I suppose, or just quit the stuff and be more healthy because of it. I don't care how full of antioxidants chocolate is. If you're not staying active, the stuff is bad for you.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-89531578263510950062011-03-05T22:15:00.003-05:002011-03-05T22:49:17.069-05:00Netflix.I've read a couple headlines here lately that seem to have the same sentiments about Netflix. Headlines such as the one by PC Magazine "Why There's Nothing Good to Stream on Amazon Prime or Netflix" and the statement made by Comcast CEO Brian Roberts "Netflix is the web equivalent of television reruns." I did read part of one of the articles and it makes a lot of sense. The article said that basically the reason there is so little current content is so that Netflix can keep their membership prices low. Well, I don't really agree with the current sentiments that are being made and in fact I would have to say that there is a <span style="font-weight:bold;">lot</span> of good content on Netflix. <br /><br /> Even when I had TV (I solely use the internet for my entertainment source now) I rarely was able to catch a show I would be interested in. I'm just not the type of person that bends my schedule because a certain show is on. So I missed out on a lot of great TV from the year 2003 to now. Now that I have Netflix, and occasionally watch Hulu, I get to see several of the shows I missed out on. <br /><br /> Right now I'm finishing up season 3 of <span style="font-style:italic;">24</span>, I'm smack in the middle of the first season of <span style="font-style:italic;">Lost</span> (somehow the big reveal has escaped me so far) and I keep current with <span style="font-style:italic;">The Office</span>, <span style="font-style:italic;">Parks and Recreation</span> and <span style="font-style:italic;">Outsourced</span> on Hulu. <br /><br /> I'm sure I'm missing out on <span style="font-weight:bold;">some</span> great television now but I don't really miss having to sit through <span style="font-weight:bold;">ten</span> out of <span style="font-weight:bold;">thirty</span> minutes worth of commercials and having to wade through all the crappy reality shows to find something worth watching. <br /><br /> I'm <span style="font-weight:bold;">glad</span> to have missed out on the train wreck known as <span style="font-style:italic;">Jersey Shore</span>. As entertaining as it may be, it's just not good television. With Netflix, Hulu, and the wide array of content on each individual channel's websites, I get to choose what I want to watch and don't get caught being force fed the throw away programming that VH1, TLC, and several other channels have to offer. Plus it's cheaper!Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-1709985094340421762010-03-08T02:29:00.000-05:002010-03-08T02:02:10.100-05:00Geocaching for Fitness.I have recently taken up geocaching as a new hobby. For those of you who don't know what that is, to paraphrase the "<a href="http://www.appalshop.org/ccc/?p=59">There's cache in them there hills!</a>" podcast, geocaching is using a multi-billion dollar satellite system to find a piece of tupperware in the woods. Although there is much more to the activity, that sums it up in a nutshell. For more information go to <a href="http://www.geocaching.com/">geocaching.com.</a><br /><br /><div align="center">GCPN7F<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/drayg0/3308851012/" title="High Towers by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3445/3308851012_100a941e33.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="High Towers" /></a></div><br /><br /> The main reason I enjoy geocaching is because it gives me a reason to get out of the house more often, enjoy nature, and see new places. When I started I figured that geocaching would be an activity that would help me to get some exercise. The truth of the matter is that geocaching is what you make of it. <br /><br /><div align="center">GCK8A7<br /><br /><img src="http://img.geocaching.com/cache/log/d9e12015-af89-4234-a874-a8f277f51200.jpg"/img></div><br /><br /> Geocaching involves looking at maps and using a GPS regularly, and getting excercise really is all in the planning. A park and grab which is a mainstay of urban caching is the least likely to ensure you get any excercise as it entails parking as close to a geocache as possible and may not involve getting out of your vehicle at all. The geocacher also has to be stealthy when retrieving a cache and so pulling up, quickly signing the log, and replacing the cache becomes the ideal way of geocaching in an urban setting, especially on busy days where there are a lot of people. So obviously riding around in a vehicle all day requires little to no effort. The way to maximize an urban geocaching day is to park and walk the town. <br /><br /><div align="center">GC1Y2TP<br /><br /><img src="http://img.geocaching.com/cache/log/7ec5620a-ddf6-48e8-a377-2f93a7a944ec.jpg"/img></div><br /><br /> Trails are really the way to go, although it is unlikely that one can make this a daily habit and still find new geocaches. Once you have found the first three along a trail, the distance can become too great to handle in a 3 - 5 hour outing. However one can try to push themselves further and reach the fourth or fifth geocache in the same amount of time. The plus to geocaching along trails is that you can also bike in addition to hiking many trails to add some variety to the experience.<br /><br /><div align="center">GCYYBT<br /><br /><img src="http://img.geocaching.com/cache/log/d6cd58e7-45ff-4cfa-8e18-a849a1d097fe.jpg"/img></div><br /><br /> My current geocaching habit consists of finding 1-3 geocaches during an outing. I like to find geocaches that have a hike involved, but to rely solely on geocaching as a form of exercise just isn't going to get many people in shape. I have found that hiding geocaches is just as fun and makes for a nice way to get some exercise as well. Scouting for a good location to hide a geocache takes time and quite a bit of effort. So the combination of scouting, and finding geocaches could be more productive toward a healthy life, and rewarding in many ways.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-37674955292299554072010-02-13T16:00:00.010-05:002010-02-14T08:03:33.180-05:00A New Camera.Well, it has been a while since I last posted. I realize that I can only do so many things before something has to give, and unfortunately the Blog was dropped to the 'way-back burner'. I have been keeping people posted on my <a href="http://www.joshr3d.com">website</a> about my camera, but I haven't said anything about it here. A while ago I got the wild hair to buy a Nikon P6000 after pouring through several PDFS of the owners manual for each camera I had my eye on. Forget all the reviews, all the specs you can find on websites about each camera you're looking at, the guy behind the counter doesn't know what he's talking about, he's just trying to sell you a camera. Look at the Owners Manuals! You'll thank me later. My big thing about this camera is that it worked well with the equipment I already had. <br /><br /> I have a PClix that only works with Nikon IR sensors, at least as far as I know. The PClix, which I have <a href="http://draygo.blogspot.com/2008/07/timelapse-gear.html">covered</a> before is an intervalometer that allows me to take photos at set intervals. Well, the P6000 has an IR sensor that would allow me to use the PClix with it. The camera was more compact and had fewer moving parts to worry about than my aging Nikon D50. So I bought it at $360. <br /><br /> Man it was a thing of beauty, expensive, but cheaper than getting a D200, which was the other option. This camera had metal frame and shot great timelapse footage, barring a few issues that I'll label camera quirks. The P6000 also shoots video, has its own timelapse feature (the PClix allows many more options) and shoots Raw and Jpeg. <br /><br />The problem is, two and a half to three months later, it fell 6 feet to it's demise. <br /><br /> I was setting up to do a timelapse of my fiance and I working a puzzle together. My method was to attach the camera to tripod, the tripod to the wall. I did so with a screw-in hook that I tethered with a piece of string wrapped around the hook and the leg of the tripod several times. That method worked well with my much heavier Nikon D50 before. The issue was that the lens on the Nikon D50 was slowly jarring itself into nothing but a blur with each photo it took.<br /><br /><object width="500" height="333"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=3006419&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=ff9933&fullscreen=1" /><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=3006419&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=ff9933&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="500" height="333"></embed></object><br /><br />So once I had set up my p6000 to do a new shoot, I had to step away for a moment to do a couple things elsewhere in the house and when I went back to the room, there my camera lay, a circle where the lens had hit embedded in the wood floor, the lens, completely jammed up, and me. Angry as hell me. I blamed it all on myself. I thought the string had slipped loose, since I didn't tie it in a knot for security's sake and it killed me. I'm hard on myself. It's my way to self improve, although probably not the most healthy way. After several days and a bricked camera later, I investigated further. I found out that the hook actually pulled from the wall. It wasn't my fault after all! I felt somewhat better.<br /><br />So here's what the old camera looks like now: <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_vy-f0r-Ifc0/S3cwK6eAnXI/AAAAAAAAAN0/PbIzjI4aJ6s/s1600-h/P6000Destroid_sm.jpg"><img style="float:none; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_vy-f0r-Ifc0/S3cwK6eAnXI/AAAAAAAAAN0/PbIzjI4aJ6s/s400/P6000Destroid_sm.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437868039125114226" /></a><br /><br />I spent $8 on a .pdf download of a p6000 repair manual, so that's why it's splayed out in this box. I still have the intention of fixing it, if I can be allowed to order the lens assembly from Nikon at $80, but I managed to win a bid on a used one on ebay for a $200. I could hardly pass it up. The photo was taken with the new p6000.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-76008767091346759682010-01-03T16:57:00.008-05:002011-08-10T06:49:34.381-04:00A New GameI have come up with a new game. This game is similar to the <a href="http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=The%20Circle%20Game&defid=1422819">Circle Game</a>. The Circle Game engages the willing or most oft unwilling player's sense of sight and peripheral vision. The game I've created tests the sense of sound and centers on trickery of the mind.
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<br />I call it Sing n Lose. Well, at least that's what I've got to work with for now. The idea behind this game is to either sing, hum, or just play a song directly for people in earshot to hear and just see if they end up tapping the beat, singing, humming or whistling any bit of it after the song is over.
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<br />Now I've been playing this game for years without people knowing about it because I like to think that I've entered their minds and meddled with it, and therefore have the upper hand.
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<br />Like Ass Pennies only less gross.
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<br /><object width="480" height="400" classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" id="ordie_player_f7112b01fb"><param name="movie" value="http://player.ordienetworks.com/flash/fodplayer.swf" /><param name="flashvars" value="key=f7112b01fb" /><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed width="480" height="400" flashvars="key=f7112b01fb" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" quality="high" src="http://player.ordienetworks.com/flash/fodplayer.swf" name="ordie_player_f7112b01fb" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object><div style="text-align:left;font-size:x-small;margin-top:0;width:480px;"><a href="http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/f7112b01fb/ass-pennies-from-greatest-comedy-sketches" title="from Greatest Comedy Sketches">Ass Pennies</a> - watch more <a href="http://www.funnyordie.com/" title="on Funny or Die">funny videos</a></div>
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<br /> I admit that the game gets more fun when introducing it to others. I don't personally play in order to hit someone on the arm as one does with the 'Circle Game' or 'Punch Dub', formerly named 'Punch Bug' but one could integrate that in the game if they wish. Some of my co-workers refer to this game as getting 'Gooched' because once a person has fallen victim to another person's attempt at getting them to sing a particular song, the winner owes the loser one uppercut to the Perineum.
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<br />Luckily no one capitalizes on the opportunity to do so.
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<br />The key to this game is that players must adhere the honor system like in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Contest">The Contest</a> since getting someone could take several hours for the person to react to the song. If you end up singing the song that someone sang near you a couple days before and it can be directly attributed to that moment. Count yourself gooched.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-33042710782681769932009-09-20T01:27:00.004-04:002009-09-20T01:34:08.613-04:00More Comparative Picture Fun!<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/drayg0/3935724427/" title="Cassy Olay_w by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2625/3935724427_4b58be0f55.jpg" width="500" height="332" alt="Cassy Olay_w" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/drayg0/3935724625/" title="DocTeeth by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3234/3935724625_be8ae40c9a.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="DocTeeth" /></a><br /><br />I don't care that they're not famous.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-32363530875645664592009-08-15T15:23:00.002-04:002009-08-15T15:44:03.250-04:00Joshuar Update.Wow, I really haven't been keeping up with this blog like I should. I apologize to anyone who gives a crap about that. But I'll go through some of the things that have happened recently. I finally got a job working in a call center whereby I have a obtained a couple new nicknames. The one I'm particularly fond of is JOSHUAR. Part Josh part jaguar, all Awesome! And the other I'm not as fond of is Peaches... <a href="http://www.pacdudegames.com/fail/">Fail</a><br /><br />But at least I have a job, which is spectacular. I'm really getting into <a href="http://www.geocaching.com">geocaching</a>, and other outdoor entertainment such as mountain biking, hiking and I'm considering getting into kayaking as well. Oh and I'm trying to learn to juggle too. <br /><br />I also have an idea for an experiment. I try to live as cheaply as I can. I put water in my shampoo, have bought shaving soap to shave with, I buy the cheap contact solution, etc... But I was wonder how far I could take this. What would it be like to simply use dish washing liquid for washing everything for a month? I'd using it for showering; hair, face, and body. But then I'd also use it to shave with by lathering up and perhaps even for washing my clothes? Keep an eye out for the announcement if I decide to do this.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-17194648380355880022009-04-07T04:06:00.004-04:002009-05-06T01:27:59.565-04:00Thirth AnniversaryI try to keep my blog semi-professional and keep my personal life just that. Sure the reader can get an unhealthy dose of my personal opinions, but to read of what is happening in my life is more rare. This is one of those rare moments that I just have to share, because it was an awesome day. I went to visit my girlfriend for the weekend, which is usual, but the difference was that this was the 3th Anniversary weekend. <br /><br /> Considering my current status I have to be careful with money, so I stopped in and got a rose to give to my gal. When I arrived, she acted funny, and told me to wait downstairs. She then hopped up the steps and came back down soon after and told me to follow. So I go up with her, sensing that there was a surprise awaiting me up there. <br /><br /> My girlfriend never ceases to amaze me with her talent. She is a sculptor, <a href="http://honeypunch.etsy.com">jewelry maker</a>, <a href="http://honeypunchstudios.blogspot.com"> cake artist</a>, and designer. So awaiting me in the kitchen was this awesome cake! <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/honeypunchstudios/3423376424/" title="Sushi Cake by Honey Punch Studios, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3198/3423376424_527e018532.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Sushi Cake" /></a><br /><br />She definitely outdid me this anniversary for gifts. Once I saw this cake it was decided that we would parttake in some Asian cuisine. So we went to Fuji House and had a Yaki Maki Maki Maki. I even said it to the waitress that way because I got such a kick out of it. Of course once I said it, I made myself more clear. It was actually a Japanese Yakiniku and Chicken platter, Maki Spicy Roll (Tuna), Maki Green River (Eel), and Maki California Roll (Crab). It was delicious.<br /><br />Having used chopsticks with a little cartoon panda on the paper sleeve, I began to think about a geocache that had been placed outside the restaurant that I had previously found called <a href="http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=50a2ae89-a2b3-4973-872d-6e6185a7bd1d">Happy Panda</a>. My girlfriend's fortune cookie had a great message that fit well in the context of geocaching. The fortune said "You will discover an unexpected treasure." This inspired me to revisit the cache. <br /><br />So I neatly tore the little happy panda from the bottom of the sleeve and folded the fortune in half then placed the fortune inside the sleeve and placed it in the cache. I had the whole theme going too because I was wearing my <a href="http://www.threadless.com/product/1450/When_Pandas_Attack">When Pandas Attack</a> threadless tee as well. Such a good day.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-46434203918855181882009-02-17T01:51:00.004-05:002009-02-17T03:57:05.366-05:00The Eye-Fi Wireless SD Card.Before I get to the nitty gritty, I have to brag about how cheap my eye-fi card was. I went to Circuit City on Valentine's Day '09 and they were all but wiped out. The store was so empty that a stranger came up to me and just gave me a gift card because she couldn't find anything for herself. I was kind enough to accept her offer and so I was +$24. The Eye-fi card was discounted 50% bringing it down to $50. So I ended up with an Eye-fi card at the cost of about $28 after tax!<br /><br />Setup of the Eye-Fi is fairly simple. Upon inserting the card into the USB port using the adapter that comes with the package the card is automatically recognized and the installation process is completed quickly since the install files come preloaded on the card. Since Eye-fi is a wireless SD card, when I first saw that they included an adapter I thought it somewhat contradictory. Although funny at first, for the card to properly connect to wireless, one has to use the adapter to set it up first, so it's not really that strange. The user must have the card, a camera (which powers the card), and a wi-fi router in order for the card to work properly.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3286610825/" title="Eye-fi Adapter by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3399/3286610825_7ecc1f799f.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Eye-fi Adapter" /></a><br /><br />Once installed, my first impression of the Eye-Fi was one of restriction. The card works through an internet application called the Eye-Fi Manager which proves to be a sort of middleman. The reasons this is implemented are to promote the Hotspot Access Service (H.A.S.) at $15 a year, which allows the user access to more than 10,000 hotspots in the U.S., to allow the user to automatically upload photos to the a wide selection of photo-hosting sites and to keep things more secure. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3286601815/" title="Eye-fi Front by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3180/3286601815_5a16c6b855.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Eye-fi Front" /></a><br /><br />The problem with uploading directly to photo-hosting sites is that not every photo I take is a masterpiece. It also eats away at a weekly limit quickly on <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/">Flickr</a>. It is still an interesting feature that would be really nice with a subscription to the H.A.S. if you're on vacation and a lot of your friends and family want to see how the vacation is going with little lag time before the photos are posted. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3286606655/" title="Eye-fi Back by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3251/3286606655_4a8424b62b.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Eye-fi Back" /></a><br /><br />The biggest reason I wanted this card is for time lapse photography. I want to transfer files directly to a laptop that's in range while shooting in remote locations. Since the card requires access to the internet in order for it to work, that feature isn't an immediately obvious option. <br /><br />I have found a couple work-arounds to this major flaw of the card. <a href="http://photojojo.com/uncut/2007/11/07/how-to-download-photos-with-eye-fi-without-an-internet-connection/">Photojojo</a> tells about how it could be possible to upload wirelessly to a laptop by connecting a wifi router to the laptop, whether there is internet or not. The other method as detailed by <a href="http://dave-hansen.blogspot.com/2009/01/working-standalone-server.html">Dave Hansen</a> would be to host a stand-alone server of which seems to prove difficult to do. I have yet to test either method but I think the latter would tailor to my needs. I will post an update when I test out these different methods.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-84694766513249467292009-01-22T20:00:00.002-05:002009-01-22T22:18:04.878-05:00EWJ Mighty Mugg IVFail.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3143941578/" title="EWJheadnbody_w by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3217/3143941578_f0b0bf4d31.jpg" width="500" height="332" alt="EWJheadnbody_w" /></a><br /><br />I'm going to sculpt a new head and make a new mold. The proportions are wacked so I plan to make a shorter fatter sculpt with less detail. The paint should take care of what I subtract from the detail on the sculpt. I think that by going light on detail it will be more true to the the style of a Mighty Mugg. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3143941668/" title="Attacherminus_w by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3217/3143941668_aed127ff8e.jpg" width="500" height="332" alt="Attacherminus_w" /></a><br /><br />I removed the black piece that attaches the head to the body of the Mighty Mugg. The piece is well housed in the shoulders of the body. So there is <span style="font-style:italic;">no way</span> to pry the neck piece off with pliers without destroying the Mugg body in the process. I recommend carefully removing it with a small rotary tool such as the Dremel. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3216657171/" title="Mugg Neck by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3532/3216657171_0e4f09acb2.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Mugg Neck" /></a><br /><br />Once I removed the neck piece I decided to sand the shoulders down so that the octagonal lip was no longer visible. I then used the Dremel tool to shape the plastic into the neck hole of the Earthworm Jim suit. In addition to the dremel tool for finer work I used an X-acto knife and sand paper in order to get the shape I wanted. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3217509152/" title="Mugg Body Primed by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3132/3217509152_4fa660063d.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Mugg Body Primed" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3217510570/" title="Mugg Feet by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3336/3217510570_08393ec3d2.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="Mugg Feet" /></a><br /><br />I left the Mighty Mugg logo on the foot for authenticity's sake. The next step is to sculpt a head, backpack, and crow zapper. Then I'll cast them, attach, and paint the parts and I should be done! I'll have to show what the casts look like but I'll try to have it done in two more posts.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-49673635010085416212009-01-06T17:27:00.004-05:002009-01-15T04:08:42.454-05:00My Most Memorable Gaming Experience.Half-Life 2, LAN Parties, DOD Source, Final Fantasy 11, I've spent a fair amount time with each of these games and I've had a lot of fun on each of them. But my most memorable experience was none of them. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 for NES takes the cake since it is a cooperative game which are by far the most fun. I was about 11 years old and I was at my friends house for the weekend. When we started we didn't have in mind to beat the game exactly but we sure did turn into a great gaming duo. <br /><br />We battled the Foot Soldiers with brute force, Mousers stood no chance against us, the bosses were a bit of a challenge but we had them beat pretty easily. Krang proved difficult too since it had two mode, body mode and floaty mode. Still yet we powered through, in a mode of concentration like no other. We made it all the way to Shredder, the final boss. Shell shocked and hungering for more pizza we battled every hologram, and beat Shredder to within an inch of his life but we both died and the game was over.<br /><br />Even today I struggle with losing in games. I get angry, curse, hit the desk, and just act ridiculous. Mom used to always say "It's just a game." Yeah? Well tell that to all the soccer fans of the world. I am passionate about video games. While I am playing a video game, in that moment, it feels like the ultimate accomplishment, or failure of my life depending on how I do. I vividly remember shouting a curse word while playing the NES, which was usual when Mom wasn't home, but Mom was home this time. I got the worst hot sinking feeling I think I have ever had that day. The punishment wasn't grand, but that feeling alone was enough.<br /><br />The peculiar thing was that -- instead of trashing the place out of so much blinding anger we had this incredible rush of energy. It was like we had reached the peak of our lives. So since we were still brimming with energy, we walked -- no we floated through his cow field for over an hour blurting out our excitement to one another, talking of the intricacies of how we played and how we in many ways had triumphed, and yet ultimately failed. As we dodged cow patties we were truly elated. We wished of course that we had beat the game, which I had done a few times playing the game alone, but never in cooperative mode. We really enjoyed the experience.<br /><br />I suppose that looking back on this experience, even though I'm not a huge fan of sports, I do understand why sports are so important to so many people. The passion for gaming and camaraderie I felt that day was almost an out of body experience. Which seems kind of dangerous when I think about it now. I think it would have been if that happiness had been replaced with the rage that I would normally have had. The absence of which baffles me to this day.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-66920959555021501832009-01-03T04:18:00.006-05:002009-01-06T00:45:54.439-05:00The Results.I didn't spend time counting how many of each type of coin I found, but here are the results for how much I found in 2008!<br /><br /><object width="600" height="400"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=2703688&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=ff9933&fullscreen=1" /><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=2703688&server=vimeo.com&show_title=0&show_byline=0&show_portrait=0&color=ff9933&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="600" height="400"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://vimeo.com/2703688">Change 2008.</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/drayg0">Josh Rose</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.<br /><br />Happy new year! Now it's time to collect 5 bucks from everybody. Oh and in case you were wondering.. this animation was the surprise, I know it isn't much, but it's something.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-36582351687375888162008-12-29T20:00:00.000-05:002008-12-30T03:37:38.448-05:00The Map of Your Life.They say that smell triggers the memory the best of any stimulation. I can think of a few memorable smells, but nothing reminds me more of very specific memories than sorting receipts. I remember the period in time, the group of friends I was hanging around at the time, so many different memories and emotions are brought up when sorting receipts. Like the time a friend and I went to the mall (a big thing to do when you live two hours away from the closest one) and were so crazy about Metal Gear Solid 2 that we each picked up a Solid Snake action figure from Software Etc... That's right Software Etc. not Gamestop. There was also the time that another friend and I went to Norde's Games and each bought a box of Magic the Gathering cards and took them back to his place and just tore through them, reading cards, rummaging through each other's spoils, being a bit disappointed by the condition of the brand new cards because a third of them were misaligned to the point to where you could nearly see the name of the next card on some of them. <br /><br />With every bag of miscellaneous old receipts come the check stubs as well. I was able to piece together a comprehensive history of my grossly underpaid days at Pizza Hut. I was able to easily map my employment history through looking at my check stubs, even though I still don't know what happened to the ones from my days at Blockbuster. I even found my very first pay check, which totaled eight dollars and seventy cents. $8.70! For a person just starting out in the work force, that's a huge blow to the morale, having worked a week before receiving the paycheck, I remember muttering to the person next to me that I should just quit if the pay is gonna be like that. Then there are the random bits of memories that make their way into the bag as well. Such as a part of a label from an art piece that was submitted to the club I used to be a part of, a scribble on this receipt, a calculation on another, a warning of violation a friend I worked with wrote against me in jest that threatened to have my hands severed off as punishment. <br /><br />To sort through receipts is really a sort of map of what a person's life is like. I will usually pick a receipt up off of the ground just to see what a person bought. They're never profound purchases though; gum, a bag of combos, a soft drink... I suppose that, in itself, shows something about the people who throw their receipts on the ground. The discarded receipts show me that they're horrible people for littering the ground and that they only throw down the small stuff. I'll probably never see a receipt for a 46" LCD Television lying on the ground. Maybe they feel that they're doing a service to the curious folks like me by doing it. I could live without it. <br /><br />Seeing this history in a bag shows me how frivolous I seem to have been with my money. What if I hadn't bought that speaker system for my car that my neighbor helped me install or that collection of Magic the Gathering cards that I played regularly with a group of friends in college? Maybe I would be richer, but I wouldn't have all the memories.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-36621923498258999582008-12-22T20:00:00.001-05:002008-12-26T13:56:03.200-05:00The Rote Goodbye.I have worked at a few different places in my life. I started out as a short cook for Pizza Hut. One of the things they teach you is to be friendly by sending the customers out of the restaurant with a friendly good bye. A lot of my coworkers would send people off with the same line all of the time "Have a good day" whether it was day or night. This is how you can tell if your server is just going through the motions. <br /><br /> I didn't go with the same rote memory line and tried to pay attention to the time of day and even what season it was. Especially if it was near Christmas, I would wish the the customer a Merry Christmas on their way out, which in itself could spark a debate, but I did it simply as a friendly gesture. <br /><br /> For those of you who work in the service industry or in retail, if you do send people off with the "Have a good day" line every time an easy way around all this is to just say "Have a goodn" which is especially effective the south. But at least try to be more personable, people know when you're faking it.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-76385485460204314422008-12-18T20:00:00.000-05:002008-12-18T20:00:00.630-05:00Merry Christmas!<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3116999429/" title="Santa Sportin' by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3255/3116999429_d6e759ba8f.jpg" width="500" height="332" alt="Santa Sportin'" /></a>Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-39289861615328124922008-12-17T20:00:00.003-05:002008-12-18T01:47:31.377-05:00EWJ Mighty Mugg IIII decided to split the mold down the side as opposed to cutting it into pieces as indicated with the yellow on the left.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3076584060/" title="EWJ_Cuts by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3145/3076584060_889eb0ab65.jpg" width="372" height="500" alt="EWJ_Cuts" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3112955270/" title="EWJ_Moldcut_W by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3148/3112955270_c079cd16d5.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="EWJ_Moldcut_W" /></a><br /><br />Here is a photo of the sculpt after I extracted it from the mold. The latex seemed to soak up some of the oils in the clay slightly drying it out. It would still mold like clay, but I thought this a peculiar effect. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3112955430/" title="EWJ_Sculptcut_w by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3154/3112955430_b799dc9500.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="EWJ_Sculptcut_w" /></a><br /><br />I then taped up the side and painted a layer of latex over the tape and the seam so resin wouldn't leak out. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3112123121/" title="EWJ_Taped_w by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3218/3112123121_89e69a80ac.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="EWJ_Taped_w" /></a><br /><br />Tada! Here is the cast I'll be using for my Mighty Mugg Custom.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3117258740/" title="EWJ_beautyshot_w by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3047/3117258740_2abb3e42c3.jpg" width="332" height="500" alt="EWJ_beautyshot_w" /></a><br /><br />Here is the first attempt at making a cast of the mold. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3117259632/" title="EWJ_Uglyshot by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3143/3117259632_479706eea0.jpg" width="357" height="500" alt="EWJ_Uglyshot" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3117259632/sizes/l/in/photostream/">Detail.</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3117256806/" title="EWJ_backneck by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3154/3117256806_b685d13458.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="EWJ_backneck" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3117256806/sizes/l/in/photostream/">Detailed detail.</a><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3116425371/" title="EWJ_backofhead by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3220/3116425371_b395b15bb9.jpg" width="333" height="500" alt="EWJ_backofhead" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3116425371/sizes/l/in/photostream/">Details.</a> <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3117258590/" title="EWJ_castcompare by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3118/3117258590_1bd902d8e4.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="EWJ_castcompare" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3117258590/sizes/l/">Deets.</a><br /><br />As you can see the result was less than spectacular. After discussing with my assistant what could have caused such catastrophe, we decided that not allowing time for the mold release agent to dry made the bubbles form. Had I properly used the agent, I probably wouldn't have had such a difficult time getting the cast out of the mold on the second try, but after some struggle I was able to get it out without destroying the mold.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3117261246/" title="EWJ_castcompare34 by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3273/3117261246_53ed289237.jpg" width="500" height="333" alt="EWJ_castcompare34" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3117261246/sizes/l/in/photostream/"><br />Detail.</a><br /><br />This was a great learning experience. This job is best done with help from another person if the mold isn't easy to work with. Since I had such an odd shape, and I did not take the time to make a brace that would allow me to properly pour the resin myself, my assistant held it while I poured and then we placed the mold in a cup stuffed with gift tissue to let it cure. <br /><br /> I was a bit sloppy with pouring the resin and I accidentally got resin all over my assistant's hands while she held the mold upright. She then waited for me to finish pouring (it starts to set in about 3 minutes) and the resin started to set on her hands. She spent the next hour washing her hands with dish detergent, lava soap, and nail polish remover to get the stuff off her hands and then another half an hour filing her nails. <br /><br /> Use rubber gloves! On the next try I used quite a bit less of the resin and my assistant wore gloves which she highly recommends as well. Because the resin cures so quickly it generates a lot of heat, which is another reason to wear gloves. After careful consideration my assistant and I decided it would be best to snip off the other end of EWJs head so that we could pour the resin in both sides, ensuring no bubbles would form in the narrow tip. <br /><br />Now on to work on the Mighty Mugg's body, sanding the head, spraying with primer, and painting.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-10756644626470892272008-12-15T20:00:00.001-05:002008-12-15T20:00:00.709-05:00Gift BoxI'm nothing like Martha Stewart, and I'm not one to tell someone how to wrap their gifts because I'm horrible at it. However I did discover a trick that allows you to use the boxes from gifts given the past Christmas without any confusion. <br /><br />When I open a box and find that I got the same gift as last year, my mind immediately rattles off scenarios on what could have gone wrong, and then I open the box to find something completely different and I calm down. You would think that I would learn to expect seeing old boxes, but for some reason I haven't. <br /><br />"What!? Another lamp!? Oh wait, cool." <br /><br />Anyway, I feel that opening a gift to find a brightly colored and somewhat familiar looking box with something else inside is slightly unpleasant and can be remedied with the trick I'm about to show. <br /><br />The trick is to simply turn the old box inside out so that the graphics of the old product are hidden inside the box and the brown inside of the box becomes the outside so that there is no possibility of confusion. As illustrated below:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3099475450/" title="Gift Box Size Comp_w by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3234/3099475450_8a3761d886.jpg" width="500" height="332" alt="Gift Box Size Comp_w" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3098642251/" title="Gift Box Unfold_w by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3165/3098642251_fca035e0e8_o.jpg" width="722" height="480" alt="Gift Box Unfold_w" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3099476696/" title="Gift Box Graphics Inside_w by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3254/3099476696_ecceafcffd.jpg" width="500" height="332" alt="Gift Box Graphics Inside_w" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3099476298/" title="Gift Box Invert_w by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3077/3099476298_53fe7242d7.jpg" width="500" height="332" alt="Gift Box Invert_w" /></a><br /><br />Probalo solved.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-2993386478286399972008-12-08T20:00:00.003-05:002008-12-09T23:13:47.754-05:00Comparative Picture Fun!This is simply a light hearted look at the likenesses of people next to their cartoon counterparts. I mean no harm to anyone by posting these comparisons.<br /><br />A Gelfling from The Dark Crystal.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3082929397/" title="Gelflings by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3244/3082929397_991edcf596_o.jpg" width="457" height="331" alt="Gelflings" /></a><br /><br />Nitz from Undergrads.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3082929337/" title="Undergrads by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3075/3082929337_c2165550a5_o.jpg" width="460" height="420" alt="Undergrads" /></a><br /><br />A Doozer from Fraggle Rock.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3082929245/" title="Doozers by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3089/3082929245_f516bf2731_o.jpg" width="305" height="281" alt="Doozers" /></a><br /><br />Meg from Family Guy.<br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3093534750/" title="Meg. by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3120/3093534750_3e28c4c84e.jpg" width="500" height="326" alt="Meg." /></a><br /><br />These just happen, I don't put any effort into searching for these, they just fall into my lap. In fact, I started them around 2001, so it will be a while before I have more. There was this one man in my home town that looked just like the G-Man from the Half-Life series but I was never able to get a photo of him, but maybe one day by happenstance I will get lucky enough to meet him again.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-5658511661207146142008-12-04T04:40:00.009-05:002008-12-05T04:11:36.503-05:00Timelapse and Geocaching Videos.Bear with the ads on the videos, Revver.com pays me according to the number of views and how much the video spreads to host my video on their site and the money comes from the ads. Anyway, I hope you enjoy. <br /><br />Timelapse video of the county fair.<br /><br /><object width="480" height="392" data="http://flash.revver.com/player/1.0/player.swf?mediaId=1352699&affiliateId=245107" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" id="revvervideoa17743d6aebf486ece24053f35e1aa23"><param name="Movie" value="http://flash.revver.com/player/1.0/player.swf?mediaId=1352699&affiliateId=245107"></param><param name="FlashVars" value="allowFullScreen=true&backColor=#000000&frontColor=#ffffff&gradColor=#000000&shareUrl=revver"></param><param name="AllowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="AllowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://flash.revver.com/player/1.0/player.swf?mediaId=1352699&affiliateId=245107" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" allowScriptAccess="always" flashvars="allowFullScreen=true&backColor=#000000&frontColor=#ffffff&gradColor=#000000&shareUrl=revver" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="392"></embed></object><br /><br />A video about geocaching.<br /><br /><object width="480" height="392" data="http://flash.revver.com/player/1.0/player.swf?mediaId=1357027&affiliateId=245107" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" id="revvervideoa17743d6aebf486ece24053f35e1aa23"><param name="Movie" value="http://flash.revver.com/player/1.0/player.swf?mediaId=1357027&affiliateId=245107"></param><param name="FlashVars" value="allowFullScreen=true&backColor=#000000&frontColor=#ffffff&gradColor=#000000&shareUrl=revver"></param><param name="AllowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="AllowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://flash.revver.com/player/1.0/player.swf?mediaId=1357027&affiliateId=245107" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" allowScriptAccess="always" flashvars="allowFullScreen=true&backColor=#000000&frontColor=#ffffff&gradColor=#000000&shareUrl=revver" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="392"></embed></object><br /><br />Timelapse video of a lobster grow toy.<br /><br /><object width="480" height="392" data="http://flash.revver.com/player/1.0/player.swf?mediaId=1350767&affiliateId=245107" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" id="revvervideoa17743d6aebf486ece24053f35e1aa23"><param name="Movie" value="http://flash.revver.com/player/1.0/player.swf?mediaId=1350767&affiliateId=245107"></param><param name="FlashVars" value="allowFullScreen=true&backColor=#000000&frontColor=#ffffff&gradColor=#000000&shareUrl=revver"></param><param name="AllowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="AllowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="http://flash.revver.com/player/1.0/player.swf?mediaId=1350767&affiliateId=245107" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" allowScriptAccess="always" flashvars="allowFullScreen=true&backColor=#000000&frontColor=#ffffff&gradColor=#000000&shareUrl=revver" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="392"></embed></object><br /><br />Ratings are a pretty important factor in getting the most views, the more good ratings the better so go to the links below and rate em would ya? There is a whole slew of ways to share the videos above by clicking on 'menu' in the video window. If you dig it, Digg it. I put the geocaching video on Digg myself. <br /><br />You have to visit my <a href="http://www.revver.com/u/draygo/">Revver</a> page to digg the videos.<br /><br />In addition to the embedded videos above <a href="http://vimeo.com/drayg0">Vimeo</a> is my favorite video site that I have uploaded these videos to. I just think it plays more smoothly and looks better. I also put them on <a href="http://www.youtube.com/Drayg0">youtube</a> and <a href="http://www.metacafe.com/f/channels/Drayg0/">metacafe.</a>Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-91976041423306828082008-12-01T20:08:00.005-05:002008-12-02T01:29:53.338-05:00EWJ Mighty Mugg IIAs promised here are some photos of the Earth Worm Jim sculpt I did for the Mighty Mugg Custom. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3076382068/" title="DSC00552 by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3216/3076382068_9596531a86.jpg" width="375" height="500" alt="DSC00552" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3076382048/" title="DSC00551 by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3271/3076382048_07ee244910.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="DSC00551" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3076382034/" title="DSC00549 by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3143/3076382034_9c06ff86e8.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="DSC00549" /></a><br /><br />The clay I used is a wax-based clay which means that it won't dry out. This particular batch was made by a fellow artist, but is very similar to Castilene in that you have to use a heating lamp in order to soften up the material enough to work with it. Once you get to the later stages of the sculpting process the cooled clay makes for a firmer surface that makes it easier to do fine detail work.<br /><br />Some people use polymer clays, which are desirable because the clay doesn't dry out and can be baked on low heat to harden it solid when the sculpture is finished. However, baking the clay can make for a difficult time, depending on the intricacy of the sculpt, if planning to do molds and casts of the sculpture. When doing casting and molding, the clay is then no longer the finished product and is often destroyed when releasing it from the mold.<br /><br />I decided to try the Castin' Craft Mold Builder and Mold Release, and Amazing Casting Resin on my first try with molding and casting a sculpture. The process is fairly straight forward. Mold Builder is basically a viscous liquid latex rubber that once painted on a sculpture dries to a yellow rubber coating. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3075497185/" title="Castin Craft by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3212/3075497185_566e13e82d.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Castin Craft" /></a><br /><br />The directions suggest doing ten coats of the Mold Builder and also suggests using Castin' Craft Resin spray on the clay to coat the sculpture before using the Mold Builder. I did not before I started using the Mold Builder but I think it will be alright anyway since I partially peeled the mold off with no trouble.<br /><br />Here is what the EWJ sculpt looks like with the Mold Builder applied.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3075497491/" title="EWJ_Rubrd by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3278/3075497491_40ebfdbe58.jpg" width="372" height="500" alt="EWJ_Rubrd" /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/3075498137/" title="EWJ_Close_Rubrd by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3200/3075498137_1137a3b444.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="EWJ_Close_Rubrd" /></a><br /><br />So the next question is which method would be best to extract the clay from the mold? Cut down the side? Or cut the mold in half and do two casts that I would have to glue together? Yet another question that I'll have to figure out later is, how do I attach the head to the mighty mugg body and to where it is sturdy and still does not touch the rim of the neck?Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-64055310466576533832008-11-25T04:42:00.004-05:002008-11-25T04:50:35.251-05:00The Aliens Have Landed.<a href="http://www.hulu.com/watch/46184/nbc-nightly-news-with-brian-williams-meteor-landing-leaves-many-stunned">Meteor Landing Leaves Many Stunned.</a><br /><br />I have been reading War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells. This video seems appropriate. Just to be clear, I don't believe this is an alien spacecraft but this video <span style="font-weight:bold;">does</span> spark the imagination. This video makes me want to fly up to find the meteor myself! How often does a man find a real meteor? <br /><br />I never have.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-56409022188909657362008-11-10T20:00:00.005-05:002008-11-10T21:43:09.695-05:00EWJ Mighty MuggSince I am such a fan of Earthworm Jim I wanted to pay homage to him somehow. So I decided I would immortalize him in Mighty Mugg form, another thing I'm a huge fan of. Hasbro does sell <a href="http://www.hasbro.com/default.cfm?page=browse&brand=880">blank Mighty Muggs</a> but it's more expensive to get than buying a painted Mugg at a mega-mart because of shipping.<br /><br />For the Earthworm Jim Mugg one thing was certain, I was going to have to take the head off of a Mighty Mugg in order to do a proper EWJ version. So I bought Mace Windu (Samuel L. Jackson).<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/2997008043/" title="Headless SLJackson by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3201/2997008043_0b2b83f338.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Headless SLJackson " /></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/2997849372/" title="Grievious_Mugg by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3194/2997849372_af29298be6.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Grievious_Mugg" /></a><br /><br />Since I wanted to do a Gordon Freeman Mighty Mugg I bought a General Grievus figure since he comes with two light sabers, which could prove useful later on. After examining each of the muggs I found something unfavorable with the Gen. Grievus Mugg.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/2997009045/" title="Grievious Seam by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3073/2997009045_3a501be044.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Grievious Seam" /></a> <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/2997306959/" title="Grievious Seam by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3144/2997306959_222f08410a.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Grievious Seam" /></a><br /><br />The head for this mugg seems to be made out of something similar to ping pong ball plastic. This would prove very difficult to take off since there's no give to such a hard plastic. Vinyl has plenty of give to it however and luckily Samuel L. Jackson's head is made out of Vinyl plastic. There is a way to tell the difference between the plastics each Mugg head is made out of although it may not be easy to do in the store. Please don't open the boxes in the store, there are collectors out there that like their boxes in pristine condition. If you look at the head closely you will probably be able to see a hint of a seam as highlighted above. <br /><br /> This should be a pretty good indicator that the mugg in question has a ping pong head. The other clue is that if you look closely enough, and I mean <span style="font-weight:bold;">close</span>, there is a little bit more texture to a vinyl head than a ping pong head. If you are lucky enough to happen across some loose Muggs at a flea market or someone's house, the easiest way to tell the difference is to peck on the head with a finger nail. The vinyl head has a duller sound to the harder plastic which has a sharper 'tick' sound to it.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/2997008509/" title="SL Jackson Headflip by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3023/2997008509_5b85b55681.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="SL Jackson Headflip" /></a><br /><br />Although there may be a few people out there who just long for a hernia, I would suggest not trying to pull it off straight out of the box. I was able to get the head off by pre-heating my kitchen oven to 150 degrees fahrenheit and then putting the figure in the oven on a pan for about 5-10 minutes. One has to be very careful in dealing with a kitchen oven, but by heating the Mighty Mugg up, the vinyl of the head is more malleable and so the head is easier to pry off. I feel that no more warning is due since people should know the Mighty Mugg will be hot when it comes out of the oven.<br /><br />The head is hollow and fits very snugly on the torso.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/2997007065/" title="Head of SL Jackson by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3140/2997007065_a8e26a1649.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Head of SL Jackson" /></a><br /><br />The piece that fits in the head of the mighty mugg is hard plastic, and for this project will need to come off.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/2997006527/" title="Beheaded_SLJackson by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3029/2997006527_0ed3f915a1.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Beheaded_SLJackson" /></a><br /><br />I'll post photos of my sculpture of EWJ's head next post so keep an eye out for that. My next task is to saw off the plastic piece seen above without damaging the torso, wish me luck.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-32954204755129507842008-11-04T13:22:00.007-05:002008-11-04T19:33:11.859-05:00Sucky Polls.I have never had a comfortable experience when I have voted. The first votes I cast were in a windowless one room building behind a windowless door. I generally like to know what's inside a building before I go into it. Sure, there were smiling ladies sitting behind a table, but the building could have been filled with bees for all I knew.<br /><br />Luckily the building was bee free. When I walk up to such a foreboding building, I feel like I should be ready to defend myself against whatever is behind the door. The least they could have done was leave the door open so that people walking up to the place knew what to expect when they walked in.<br /><br />Perhaps the buildings chosen to hold the polls are the only ones available but they sure pick the worst possible ones to make voters feel welcome to vote. Since I moved I had to change my address so that I could vote more locally. So I had a new location where I had to go to cast my vote. This time it was a school that was fenced in with rusty fence and once again the place designated to be the polls was windowless.<br /><br />This time however on the windowless door a poster had been posted with duct tape scrawled around the entire border that said at the very top "PROHIBITED AREA AND ACTIVITIES" which can be read from the parking lot. Then in smaller font it stated the laws of the polling area which can be read when about 5 feet from the door.<br /><br />Upon asking someone where I was supposed to go they said "behind that door up there", the same door that seemed to prohibit anyone to enter. Once I entered the forbidden door, I was received once again by smiling ladies, in a very poorly lit gym. If we are to encourage people to vote, there should be a much better atmosphere at the places where we are to cast our votes. What I experienced was ridiculous.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-31537916521774130162008-11-02T20:06:00.011-05:002008-11-02T23:37:15.776-05:00Custom Mighty MuggsBefore Hasbro introduced the public to the Mighty Mugg there was <a href="http://www.kidrobot.com">Kidrobot.</a> Believe me, Hasbro is not the first to produce "blank-canvas" figures. One thing Hasbro did right was selling an affordable version of a blank-canvas figure. I am new to doing custom toys but I really like the idea of it so my first two ideas were to do Earthworm Jim and Gordon Freeman.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/2998217282/" title="Earthworm Jim Mugg_web by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3196/2998217282_58fc9c7d4b.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Earthworm Jim Mugg_web" /></a><br /><br />I've always been a huge fan of Earthworm Jim. He is in fact my favorite video game character of all time. I find it difficult to believe that none of the major video game console producers have ever picked up this character as their mascot like Sega did with Sonic the Hedgehog, Sony with Crash Bandicoot, and Nintendo did with Mario Mario. That's right "Mario Mario". My girlfriend pointed out the fact that since they are "The Mario Brothers", Mario's last name is Mario and Luigi is "Luigi Mario". Heh.<br /><br />Gordon Freeman is from the Half-life series of games by Valve Software which won critical acclaim and a multitude of awards for the original and sequel games. Hey, if I have to explain who Gordon Freeman is, then you've sorely missed out on one of the greatest series of games to date. <br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28441589@N04/2998216996/" title="Gordon Freeman Mugg_Web by Drayg0, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3199/2998216996_af424e1e79.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Gordon Freeman Mugg_Web" /></a><br /><br />I will be documenting the process I go through to get the finished product, so expect to see more.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7006673486453833148.post-56466216095999784012008-10-22T12:21:00.002-04:002008-10-22T12:24:28.391-04:00ASPCA Promotes Cruelty to Animals.<a href="http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=asdm_photocontest"> Animal Cruelty</a><br /><br />Seriously people, stop this from happening.Josh Rhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07004771845937994349noreply@blogger.com0