Thursday Art Walk 245: Bubbly Bones

In Which I Utterly Lost Track of Time

First of all - my apologies for being so late with this. I was really getting into the art and... uh... I may have gotten a bit Sharpied. Sorry if I'm also incoherent lol.

But I have wonderful news! I have finished my Halloween Bubble Project!

"Spooky Scary Bubbly Bones"; Sharpie on Art Paper; 2019

As you may have guessed from the name, this piece is based off of the lyrics to the Spooky Scary Skeletons song!

A Closeup

This bubble art project was a lot of fun, but I could really use some new Sharpies - my gold and bronze markers are drying up and I'm running low on some of the purples.

I'm definitely thinking of doing some winter and/or Christmas-related pieces next, since this one is still a little bananas as far as color variation goes. I'm thinking of using only greens and reds for Christmas, and using only blues, silver, and white space for the general winter project.

I should also get another giant art pad (18 x 24) for huge projects like this!

I mean, I could buy posterboard, by that stuff can be a buck a sheet, and I'd rather have 50 sheets for 20 bucks lol. Also, posterboard is a bit too smooth. I need some tooth or else I feel like I'm making fake art. Not 100% sure what's up with that.

All that is to say that: YAY I'M DONE WITH THIS PIECE!

That'll do it from me today. I'm dizzy and tired from fumes, but I feel very accomplished. I'll probably plan out my next piece.

Go Enjoy Something!
FC

Wednesdaymania 245: So Much Happening At Once

In Which I Talk Wrestling

A few quick notes before I begin:

1. Today is way nicer than yesterday - it's cooler at 45℉ (~7.2℃), but it's sunny and breezy and lovely. If only it had been this nice yesterday :|
2. I haven't finished typing up my notes on last week's AEW shows (Dynamite and Dark), but I promise you they were well worth watching, and if you want to go look them up somehow, I strongly encourage you to do so. Hopefully TNT will allow us see an archive of episodes within the next year or so, like a collection released on streaming of some sort? That'd be cool.
3. I haven't been keeping up with most of the Wrestling I used to - there may, in fact, not be enough hours in the week, lol!

Without further ado, here are my thoughts on wrestling this week:

• AEW
• OMG, this company is going to be the death of me. After a completely bananas show last week, knowing tonight's episode is the "Go Home" show (the last show before a Pay Per View) just makes everything more intense
• It's with a heavy heart that I tell you that Hunter Horse Helmsley aka Stoney aka the horse Hangman Page rode in on during All Out passed away a while back.
• SCU winning the Titles is amazing, but it's very odd how they won with a rollup. I mean, I don't have a problem with it - it's very seat-of-the-pants and neat, it's just not something I'm used to for such a weighty match
• With as much as I despised the NWO stuff in WCW, I actually love the Inner Circle nonsense. Because unlike with the NWO, there are consequences to Jericho and his cronies' actions.
• I still can't follow either MJF or Sammy Guevara on Twitter because they would still make my head explode. I'd switch to decaf, but I need caffeine to live lol.
• I cannot wait for tonight. Seriously. I'm super excited. I just hope I can get access to a tv for the night (I'm sometimes on the move)...
• IMPACT
• What kind of low-rent nonsense is this? They legit filmed a Pay Per View on someone's phone
• And now they're trying to call out AEW Dark by telling people how much more available they are? Joey Janela has the receipts...
• NJPW
• It has been 16 months of waiting with baited breath and trepidation, but it's finally happening - HIROMU IS BACK, BABY!!!
• I'm very excited to see more NJPW - it's been a while, but hopefully this will get my wrestling friends back into the idea of watching more NJPW!
• WWE
• Where do I even begin?
• The Saudi Arabia stuff? Well, a bunch of wrestlers were abandoned on the tarmac because they weren't rescued by Vince, who claims that the wrestlers who got out of Saudi Arabia on time by getting their own private plane, but let's face it, Vince almost certainly had something to do with them getting out on time because he likes them best.
• From the rumors I'm hearing, it seems that most of the people who were stuck on the tarmac because of a "mechanical problem" that may or may not have existed, are very very upset with Vince and with the situation in general
• I'm not a wrestler, but I say this with all love to wrestlers and out of a desire to see these amazing athletic performers succeed and thrive in this world without being murdered by a foreign government - PLEASE UNIONIZE NOW, I KNOW A LOT OF YOU ARE ANNOYED BY DAVID STARR AND I GET IT, NOT EVERYONE GETS ALONG, BUT PLEASE, UNIONIZE SO THAT YOU HAVE MORE POWER OVER PEOPLE WHO ARE TRYING TO CONTRACT YOU. YOU DESERVE THAT POWER. YOU DESERVE TO BE ABLE TO COME TOGETHER AND FORCE THE MONEY MEN TO RESPECT YOU.
• Not that I believe any wrestler reads my rinky-dink blog, but I hope they do unionize. They deserve the power collective bargaining can bring, and it might help them in ways they'd never expect. They need the power to say "no" without nonsensical repercussions (like being blamed for not showing up to a broadcast half the world away when your boss has just gotten into a fight with the aggressive and occasionally homicidal leaders of a foreign nation)
• Basically, the WWE is a dumpster fire, and I hope that the actual wrestlers, even the NXT wrestlers see this as writing on the wall - they are not respected and nothing they can do will ever gain them that respect, so they must become more powerful.
• Also, this Saudi crap makes me really grossed out and want to dump the WWE App, even though I love the backlog. Bleh.

As you can imagine, this was a weird week in wrestling. I am super excited for both tonight's episode of AEW Dynamite, so I'm going to go finish up all of my daytime nonsense so I'm ready for tonight!

Go Enjoy Something!

FC

Talk About Tuesday 245

In Which I Blab About Things And The Upcoming Week

It is a standard New England Late Fall day outside, which is to say that it's around 50℉ (~10.5℃) and raining. We're supposed to go vote today, too, so I'm hoping this steady drizzle doesn't kill the turnout. Yes, aside from bread and comfort, I'm hardcore about voting, too. Nothing gets done if we don't tell it to, after all.

To be honest, I'm not thrilled about today. I'd be just as happy to curl back up in the Blanket Fort and go back to sleep, but I'm awake and I have things to do - voting, blogging, staying active. I can't just laze about.

We watched a really fun movie last night, and I can't wait to get to it on my Filmic Friday blogs, so keep an eye out for that in the coming weeks. I also have a few new projects I'm playing around with, both yarn and writing-based.

Here's what the next week looks like:

• Tomorrow I'll write about wrestling!
• Thursday will be art - though I'm not 100% sure what yet ;)
• Friday will be about one of the fun movies I've watched in the last couple of months!
• Saturday is a bit up in the air, since I haven't found the game yet :)
• Sunday is also a bit up in the air, but hopefully I'll have some actual writing.
• Monday is the next stage of the pumpkin!
• Next Tuesday I'll blab at you some more about random stuff :P

I do have something of a headache today, but that's almost certainly the result of dehydration, which is usually why my head hurts these days, to be honest...

I think that'll be a good place to wander off for today, lol.

Go Enjoy Something!

FC

Fiber Monday 245: A New Pumpkin

In Which I Make Another Gourd

It was mentioned to me in passing that a pumpkin centerpiece might be nice for Thanksgiving, so I looked around for a new pattern, and I chose this one.

Here's my progress so far:

I'm not 100% sold on the size hook I'm using, but I'll keep going until things are done, and if it's too big, I'll start over with a smaller hook, like a 5.00mm or less, maybe :)

That'll do it for me today!

Go Enjoy Something!
FC

Survival Sunday 244: Kitchen Staples

In Which I Discuss What To Keep In Your Kitchen

I've talked a lot about various basic things you can do with kitchen staples, but it's been quite a while since I've talked about what a kitchen staple is.

Kitchen Staples are basic foodstuffs and ingredients that it's wise to keep in your kitchen. Your three most important kitchen staples if you're going to cook from scratch are, of course, going to be:

• All-Purpose Flour
• Sugar
• Salt

You can cook with just those three. You can't cook much, and this is also assuming you have easy access to water in your kitchen, which you pretty much cannot cook without (I can't think of any recipes where you never need a working kitchen sink), but you can cook something (Asian dumpling dough, for instance is literally just flour and water with maybe some salt).

So what are the most important things to have in your pantry, cupboards, and fridge? Let's find out!

Let's Start with our basic dry ingredients.

We'll assume you want to be able to enjoy baked goods here, as well as stovetop. With that assumption you'll want:

• All-Purpose Flour
• Baking Powder
• Baking Soda
• Cornmeal
• Oats (rolled and/or steel-cut)
• Salt
• Starch (corn and/or potato)
• Sugar, Light Brown
• Sugar, Plain
• Yeast, Instant
• Yeast, Active Dry

Pretty simple, right? These dry ingredients will help you make a lot of recipes. You'll need to add things, though, to give it more flavor.

Your basic spice cabinet looks like this:

• Allspice
• Basil
• Bay Leaves
• Chili Powder
• Cinnamon
• Cloves
• Curry Powder
• Garlic Powder
• Ginger
• Nutmeg
• Onion Powder
• Oregano
• Paprika
• Parsley
• Pepper, Black
• Pepper, Cayenne
• Pepper, Red Flake
• Rosemary
• Thyme

With these spices, you've got quite the leg up on a lot of recipes, and you can, of course, expand it as needed!

Now, you've got all of these dry ingredients. What do you add to them? My suggestions for non-refrigerated additives are:

• Corn Syrup (I know, but it's useful)
• Honey
• Oils
• Canola/Cooking
• Olive
• Sesame
• Maple Syrup
• Soy Sauce
• Vinegar
• Balsamic
• Cider
• White
• Worcestershire Sauce

And if you're looking for fridge Staples, here you are:

• Butter
• Eggs
• Milk

Yeah. That's pretty much it. If you have regular milk and vinegar, you can make "sour milk", which is a good substitute for buttermilk, and it's best to pick cream up when you need it and not before.

Finally, we have the "Other" section of Staples - things that are useful to bulk up your pantry and keep you noshing in case of emergencies:

• Beans
• Canned Goods
• Fruits (I like to avoid "in syrup", since that's too much sugar)
• Meats/Fish (yes, that includes tuna and SPAM)
• Veggies (green beans and corn are the most popular here)
• Soup (tomato and chicken noodle are our go-to)
• Sauce (tomato sauce, mostly)
• Onions
• Pasta
• Potatoes
• Rice

Seriously, if you have dried beans, rice, and pasta, plus some random canned goods, some butter, some olive oil, and some spices, you have meals. The canned meats are, of course, optional if you're vegetarian/vegan, and they're very high in sodium, so don't add salt to anything you're making with them, but these  will help you cook a ton. Don't refrigerate your potatoes or onions, because they'll get shriveled and gross.

I think that'll about do it for my basics today, so I'll leave you with this last note:

You don't have to buy everything at once. If you have the opportunity to get pre-packaged meals and/or mixes as you're building your pantry, then do it. Trust me when I say that by haunting sales, you'll end up with all of the canned and dry goods you'll ever need - especially if you live in a city, where I'd imagine it's a lot easier to find stuff for cheaper!

Go Enjoy Something!

FC

Saturday Casual Gaming 244: Dwarven Miner

In Which I Diggy Diggy Hole

I quite enjoy simple games. You know what they say: Simple pleasures for simple minds. I love it when I don't have to keep a massive amount of button combinations or complicated directions. Dwarven Miner by voidinfinity is just about perfect for someone who has had some insomnia issues and needs something simple rather than something complex.

Look how simple even the main page is!

So basically, this game has one goal: Make the moolah.

You are a dwarf, and you're digging a hole. A really giant hole. A massive money hole.

Yes, I literally just wrote about this game to reference the song.

Basically, there are five buttons, but four of them are the directional arrows on your keyboard, so don't get intimidated. The only other button is the space bar. You do not use your mouse for anything.

And that's a very simple story, isn't it?

You start with a crummy little pick that can only dig up the light tan squares, you have to have wood in order to safely mine (one piece of wood per square), and sometimes you'll dig up ore or artifacts! I've had very bad luck with artifacts, however.

Behold - ore!

Once you have your inventory full, you have to wander around the surface, looking for a tiny hut-shaped shop to sell your stuff at. Once you sell it, you can save your game, buy more wood (strongly recommended) or new picks. You can even generate a whole new world to dig up!

And that's it.

That's the whole game, as far as I can tell.

Diggy diggy hole.

Sell your stuff.

Buy wood and/or new picks.

Diggy diggy hole.

It's perfect for wasting time or for when you need to zone out. I've even fallen asleep while playing it a few times!

If you're looking for a video game to enjoy without sinking your whole consciousness into it, definitely give Dwarven Miner a try on Kongregate or anywhere else you can find it!

Go Enjoy Something!
FC

Filmic Friday 244: Crystal Lake Memories

In Which I Watch A Documentary About Movies I Can't Watch

The Friday the 13th franchise is one of the holy trinity of horror, and I just... I can't watch them. Yes, I know it's fake. Yes, I know that these movies are not based on true stories. Yes, Jason Voorhees is essentially a superzombie.

I just can't take the gore effects.

Which is really sad, because I am a great lover of special effects. And the kill effects in this series are some of the best.

So instead, I watched the nine hour documentary on the whole franchise up to Freddy vs Jason and the 2009 reboot.

And it's brilliant!

So, I have a confession: I've been trying for a few hours to get the pictures to work on Blogger, and I think I've fixed it, so apologies if they're still broken.

Without further ado, here are my thoughts on this wonderful documentary:

I love the framing device they use for this

The framing device for Crystal Lake Memories is that a group of young people have gathered around a campfire at Camp Crystal Lake. Cory Feldman begins to tell the young people stories of the franchise and its history, culminating in a fantastic epilogue, so definitely watch the whole doc if you can!

The BluRay is, of course, broken up in several parts, which makes the documentary very easily digestible over several viewing sessions. That's how I watched it, curled up against the Couch Fort with my partner and very comfortably experiencing this series through its trials and tribulations.

If you've ever had any questions about the behind-the-scenes moments of any one of the Friday the 13th movies, this documentary will almost certainly answer them. It's fantastically well put together, and I learned so much about how the studios worked and how each individual film was made. I liked being able to hear the writers of some of the... lesser films (Jason Takes Manhattan, for instance) justified their choices and how the producers explained the pressures they were under.

Even as someone who cannot really handle slasher flicks, this documentary made me a fan of the Friday the 13th movies, which is pretty neat, so if you're a fan, you'll probably get even more out of it.

I love the bits where they talk to Kane Hodder and Derek Mears, who both clearly love the role so much.

To be honest, this documentary kind of makes me want a movie where Kane Hodder's Jason fights Derek Mears' Jason, which I'm not sure how that would work, but it'd be awesome.

Maybe Kane's Jason would be the "real" Jason and Derek's Jason would be an actor playing Jason in a biopic or a documentary or something? That could be so awesome!

So yeah, if you like these movies (or even if you just like documentaries and/or spoops) definitely give Crystal Lake Memories a go - you'll learn a lot, laugh a lot, and you'll get the inside scoop on everything Voorhees!

Go Enjoy Something!

FC