Muffin Mumblings

Kids? no thank you

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 01:25:54 -0500

Ugh, I don't look forward to be a mother of any sort. I really don't like children, and I especially don't like babies. To me they are little parasites that wreak havoc on your body and then your wallet. It's just not for me. All of the expenses of a child too, it's all too much. Having to pay for anything for a kid that'll just grow out of it in a year is quite daunting. I mean, I don't want to have to buy baby bedding, clothes, or toys and then realise that in a year or less, I'll have to rebuy all of it again because it's just not what the child will fit into or want to play with.

God, I don't like babies. In fact, I think I loathe them.

Free comics!

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 01:21:51 -0500

I'm working on getting rid of a bunch of free comic books that I've aquired from summer. So far I've been able to give them to a fair number of people, but I still have over 100 copies left to give. I'm considering just leaving them in my major building, where I know they'll find a good home with other sequential students, or perhaps create lovely gift baskets where I can slip in a few issues to friends/neighbours/professors/well-wishers. It's hard to decide what to do with this plethora of comics, but I'm sure I'll find a solution.

Stressed? Not really, no

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 01:08:02 -0500

Part of my worries about stress and all when it comes to school probably affects a bit of my health. Though, in all honesty, if it does it's hard to tell. I mean, I don't break out, I don't get acne and I don't tend to over/under eat in times of stress. So really, when I'm feeling any sort of stress what happens to my body? Nothing.

It always just affects my mind. But I like being busy, and I like some element of stress to be a part of it. That way I really feel like I'm working.

Keeping at it

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 01:04:36 -0500

So I'm still working towards my goal of losing weight without any real diet or use of weight loss pills. It's going slowly, and I'm skeptical about the results. There's not much I can do than just keep at it, I suppose. I mean, I'm trying to do this, but I'm also getting swept up in school/art work. This being my last year, I really feel like I should focus on doing as well as possible and creating as much work as I can to add to my lifetime portfolio.

Snuh

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 01:27:01 -0500

Whoo boy, so how 'bout this here final year eh? Catching up on me a bit faster than usual, I'd say. I've been so distracted from making and updating blog posts, sorry guys. I'm going to make a real effort to get back into this, post some recent art, and keep on truckin'.

In about 2 more weeks, it will already be mid-terms here. Glory be the quickness of the quarter passed through.

Futures

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 23:39:12 -0500

The subject of graduation came up again recently, because I had to go to a meeting to find out all the requirements needed to get my degree. It's just another moment where I realize how much next year will differ from this. I'm going to have to think about a lot of things when I leave school this spring. Including, but not limited to, where I'll live, if/what kind of job I'll have right after I leave. How I'll pay for things like medical or car insurance. When will I have time to devote to artwork itself, and not feel bogged down in everyday issues. What will I need to bring with me when I finally find a place. What will I actually do with this new degree.

It's tough to seriously think that far ahead without getting bogged down in the details and feeling pessimistic. That's why I can't do it. I have to just focus on the here and now, put my all into finishing this last year with an awesome portfolio, and fling myself in the world after school.

No More Eye Rituals!

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Sat, 20 Sep 2008 14:01:39 -0500

Man, I'm so happy I don't have to wear glasses or contact lenses any more. It's such a lovely experience to be able to wake up, see the clock, see my room and not think about putting anything on or in my eyes. Then, I can just go to sleep when I want without even thinking about any sort of "ritual". Whether it be having to remove lenses from my eyes and be ever so careful not to destroy/lose them, or just making sure I remembered to take off my glasses and put them in their safe little case. It's just, wonderful. Another little thing I don't have to worry about since getting surgery.

...And We're Back!

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 23:34:12 -0500

Back in this wretched southern town ready to finish my last year and move on to years of odd jobs and living in boxes.

Really though, I'm on the precipice of adulthood. While I'm excited, I'm also quite afraid of what will happen next. The drive down wasn't too bad though, no major hangups or anything. It's nice to be back, but it also sucks. Savannah air hasn't shown its ugly head yet and thrown the ubiquitous stink at us, but it is quite hot and muggy. Not really pleasant when you walk to class everyday like I do.

Oh well, I knew what I was getting into 4 years ago, and I'm glad to be moving on from it in 9 months.

Intervention Mondays

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 15:36:57 -0500

My roommate rather enjoys watching t.v., which is one of the reasons why I'm glad I got her instead of a person who can't stand television. We also like a lot of the same shows, which makes it even better. One of those shows is Intervention. Watching that on Monday nights is practically mandatory with us. It's such a fascinating peek into human psychology and I think it's a pretty fair show, not really biased against people. It's also interesting to see just how many drug treatment centers exist in America. I've got to wonder though, how much these rehabs charge and if the producers of Intervention have some sort of deal where the people profiled on the show get to stay for free or for a discount. Also, how do they decide what rehab is right for the individual?

Whatever the case, there's always the constant that the chosen drug treatment center is far away from the person's home. Whether it be in another state or 100 miles away, the show never needs to tell us why they do that. It's obvious that to heal a major addiction, you need to remove the person from their comfortable element, their home.

Intervention may be dramatic, but it's great t.v. and a lovely glimpse into a lifestyle I'll most likely never experience.

And away we go!

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 22:26:21 -0500

Whoo. I'm done packing, finished a few hours ago I suppose. Tomorrow we leave for that familiar trek down to Georgia again. I'm hoping this coming school brings a few new changes. I'm really going to work on finding a good fat burner method, whether it be exercise or food portioning we'll have to see. Whatever works successfully I hope. I'll be getting a new toy, an Xbox 360, and will be quite enthralled with that I imagine. This year I really need to find myself a signature style and work my best to impress editors and find a job. I'll also be continuing with VisArts, working while I can at school which is great news.

This new year brings about promise, excitement, and dread. I can only see what's in store and not make any great predictions.

The last week is always the busiest

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 18:37:28 -0500

I've been pretty out of it blog-wise recently. Sorry about that. My last week here is coming to and end before I go back to school, so of course it happens to be the week that one of our biggest shows open.

Glass: Evolving is opening tomorrow and I've been crazy busy with working on that as well as side VisArts projects. I'll have to update with some graphic design work I've been doing soon. But for now, I must pack, shower, and find some time to make some awesome nametags.

Random Thought Time

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 14:51:55 -0500

You know what's weird to me? Blackheads. They're these icky little things that create horrid bumps and spots on your face but are easy to get rid of. So we end up with thousands of commercials and products about the subject, targeted mainly towards teens and women, which means this is a rich subject to market.

I honestly have to wonder how much revinue is made in blackheads
remover sales.

Just a thought.

Meme!

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 16:05:50 -0500

Well, I've been tagged by the lovely RJ Flamingo to complete this meme! It's been quite a while since I've done a meme, even moreso on this blog. So, without further ado, here we go:

1. Link to the person who tagged you *points up*.

2. Post the rules on your blog (this thing here).

3. Write 6 random things about yourself (see below).

4. Tag 6 people at the end of your post and link to them

5. Let each person know they have been tagged and leave a comment on their blog

6. Let the tagger know when your entry is up

Six Things About Me

1. I'm more bendy than you'd expect.

2. I'm a baking and cooking fiend. If I ever have the finances/time, I'd love to go to culinary school.

3. I was assistant stage manager of my high school theatre, and rocked that place.

4. I'm addicted to True Life. *is watching a marathon right now*

5. I wear sandals/open toed shoes almost exclusively year-round. I own one pair of sneakers, and I haven't actually worn those in years. My socks collect dust in the drawer.

6. I'm earning a degree in sequential art (comics), but have more work experience in graphic design/illustration.

Tag, you’re it: Amie, Ashton, Teresa, Helen, Kate, Skeet

On a side note, I've got a secret plan going that I'll inform you all of in a few months.

Directory Searching

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 19:57:51 -0500

So, let's say I'm living in North Carolina and need to look for a raleigh moving company. There's a lot of places I'd look, right? The newspaper and yellow pages would be a good place to start, but it would probably be far easier to just do a search online. It's not hard to do, and with the trend that's happening right now, I would most likely get better/more diverse results. Same deal if I want to search for Raleigh landscaping companies. Clicksmart.com is a good place to search for companies in your hometown, just like the yellow pages. This little directory is growing by the day, so if your own company isn't listed you can easily add it. Even if you don't use clicksmart, it's good to know there's another good directory site out there.

Who Watches the Watchmen

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 22:54:46 -0500

WHOO! I got my copy of Watchmen today and I'm quite excited about reading it. Finally, I won't feel like a loser in my own major. Jeez, how much of a geek am I to think that?

So this will finally be one of those few times when I actually read the book before seeing the movie. Fantastic! Now, onto the reading!

Cell Freedom

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 22:51:40 -0500

When I was researching new cell phones a few months back, I did take the time to look at phones not offered by my chosen cell company, Verizon. Unlocked cell phones are a huge market, but I don't especially want to bother with them. I know officially there are a few companies that allow their phones to be unlocked and used with any cell company and plan, like Motorola. But the phone I wanted, and ultimately got, was a Samsung, and I couldn't find it for an especially good price outside of Verizon, or unlocked for that matter.

Teenage Woes

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 22:41:27 -0500

Man I'm happy I'm no longer a teenager. Even though I never personally had a problem with it, I knew several kids who had trouble with acne. No matter what acne cream, or wash, or patch, my friends' faces were still blotchy. Of course, as time wore on and they grew up, their skin cleared up more and their acne troubles almost completely went away. I'm sure they're happy they're no long teenagers too.

ZooToo

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 18:49:12 -0500

I love my cat. He means the world to me and I always feel pangs of sadness when I'm away at school. At 15, he's an old fart, but he's my old fart of a cat. I'm really a cat person, I don't like dogs as much and I really never want to own one, but I still support animal shelters and all that they do. Any non-profit organization that rescues pets is okay in my book. I really enjoy watching Animal Cops on Animal Planet, it's a sad show but also uplifting in that you get to see these poor animals either find good homes, or get put down humanely and thus ending their pain.

Really, I support the ASPCA and the Humane Society which is prominently featured on Animal Cops. We adopted my cat from a Denver Human Society outpost in a Petsmart, and I'm so glad we did. I'm not alone in wanting to support my pet shelter of choice, and it's easier than ever to do so. Zootoo is a great go-to site for pet lovers. You can create a profile, that includes your pet of choice, and gain points to support your local pet shelter and rescue center. It's free, and easy, and the site itself is a great resource for anything pet related. It's got classifieds, individual shelter pages with reviews, and a great help-out section with tips and opportunities to assist your favourite animal sanctuary. Really, it's a fantastic website and I'm glad to see a large community of animal lovers out there supporting such a good cause.

The ASPCA and Humane Society along with smaller shelters need all the help they can get. Non-profit ogranizations such as these need our support so they can continue to provide a great service to the local animal population. I've adopted from a shelter and I plan to do so again. But in the meantime, I'll assist from online.

Waiting for Guest

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 22:17:11 -0500

I'm a big Christopher Guest fan. I love his films, and he's a fantastic actor. From seeing him as the 6-fingered man in The Princess Bride when I was just a wee one, to Nigel Tuffnel in what was to become one of my favourite films, This is Spinal Tap. His group of actors that he uses for a lot of his films work perfectly together, and all classic comedians.

I'm watching Waiting for Guffman at the moment, hence this post. Also, I need an excuse to post Corky St. Clair's dance:

Yeahhh, this film is gold. I don't own it yet, and I know it's part of the Christopher Guest Collection, but well...I already have A Mighty Wind, and Best in Show is somewhere on DVD. Also, I want to wait until there's a mega-super-ultra collection to get. Oh, I do have plans. And I plan to see every Guest and company film he creates.

BANZAI!

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 18:32:37 -0500

Do you remember that weird Japanese (by way of England) betting show on Fox called, Banzai?

No?

Really?

Because it was quite the unique show. Perhaps this clip will jog your memory:

Yeah, looking a bit more familiar now, isn't it? Banzai was quite the odd show to be viewed by American audiences, shown on FOX but not for very long. I think it only lasted a season or so. It didn't catch on in quite the same way as it did in Britain. Unfortunately, most American audiences just didn't get it. But that's not stopping Channel 4 and Screenlife games from releasing a DVD game!
ScreenLife Games is at it again. They launched a new Banzai game. Check it out:

I liked Banzai when it was on t.v., it was just weird enough for me. However, I think the major issue with the show was that it had a betting theme, but you couldn't actually bet. It's far better designed for an interactive game rather than a television show. I had the chance to play it too, and it is crazy.

J and I decided to spend a lovely Sunday night cozying up and settling in for some hardcore sushi betting. J had never seen the show before so he had no idea what to expect. Which, might I say, is an excellent way to play Banzai. The game itself is pretty easy to learn, and after a practise round you're ready to start betting!

I've never played a DVD game before, but the controls were quite easy for this. If you watched the video above you'll see how to play so I won't go into that here. I will say that the hardest part of the game is using the chopsticks to effectivly shovel in many sushi pieces.

The little animated characters and sushi bits are fantastically cute. Tako, the game's red octopus mascot, is adorable! He even has his own myspace page, what a talented octopus indeed. My favourite sushi piece is the New Jersey Squirrel Roll, even though he looks more like a hamster.

So, on to the gameplay itself. The DVD randomly picks a clip to show you, so it's harder to view one that you already bet on. We saw a lot of weird clips indeed. Recurring characters are always fun, and my favourite is Lady One Question, who I showed in the first clip above. I love her interaction with Graham Norton, (also shown above) which we bet on. She actually cracks up, so it makes the bet all the better. Perhaps the craziest dare we saw was one where to children had to pull out metal skewers from a guy's face. Whichever child pulled out the skewer attached to the pickled onion won. Yeah, that was an odd one to watch...

We played for about 2 hours before we had to resort to sudden death to finish the game. J and I were just so in tune with each other that we kept betting exactly the same over and over! We even lasted 3 sudden death rounds because of that. I'm sure if we play with a larger group, that will be less of a problem. Banzai is a silly game, but quite fun. However, it is a bit more adult so I'd say nobody under the age of 14 should play it, but otherwise it looks like a great party game. Hopefully this will become a bigger hit than the t.v. show!

BLLAARGH

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 14:04:50 -0500

The Wii has been gifted unto my mother and has now blessed our house with hours of exquisite remotetainment. My arms and legs are actually hurting a bit. The family played for several hours. Yep, a good video game workout indeed

J and I spent some time playing Raving Rabbids II. You may recall I rather enjoy the Rayman: Raving Rabbids game, as I got the second one for DS. While the DS version was just a lot of mini-games, the Wii version appears to have a little bit more of a plot. Just a teensy bit though, so far it's been one hell of a round of mini-games.

When I finish I'll probably post a review, but so far I'm having fun!

Editing Made Easy

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 23:04:23 -0500

So, I've been having to do a bit of video editing lately. Nothing big, just transferring video from a DVD, editing it, and reformatting it for web. I also occasionally have to reformat video for my own, personal, ventures. While I wish it was just as simple as renaming the file fromAVI to MPEG, it's not. You can't trick video into a format it isn't predestined for. But, there are a fair amount of programs to make it easier.

Blaze Media Pro is one of those programs. It's a pretty good competitor to software like Nero or Roxio. Worth a look if you're trying to do something as simple as burning your own home video to DVD, or something a bit more complicated like reformatting and editing films for the internet or Ipods.

I just had to convert some audio files from one format to the other. Look at all of the options Blaze offers just for audio:

Reading the watchmen on red koi.

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 22:47:37 -0500

Well, I did it. I finally ordered two things I should have had a long while ago.

Watchmen and a yoga mat. I know, I know, I'm super late for both. I should have bought a mat months ago when I started this new yoga-sizing thing, but I just kept dragging my feet about it. Hoping I would be fine just doing yoga on the carpet. No such luck though, as I tend to slip a bit and I'm sure that's not good for my joints and makes it more difficult to get into poses.

The other...I know I should have bought this amazing comic book a long while ago, but I'm really such a newbie when it comes to owning English comics. I did want to buy it before the movie comes out, so at least I met that goal. I don't want to be met with a huge sudden rush of Watchmen fans, like what happened with The Dark Knight. While it's an excellent movie, which I enjoyed immensely, the giant and sudden "hipness" of Batman just hit too quickly. Yes, yes Batman is angsty and cool. Indeed, the Joker is a fabulous foe who represents what all of us would be like if we just let go of modern day ethos.

Anyhoo, I'm hoping Watchmen will be just as bloody amazing. The trailer at least brings hope:

Transfer Importance

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 14:41:06 -0500

So I keep my account at one bank, but my parent's have their primary checking account at another bank. This is because I needed a bank that would be in the same place as my school, it just makes it easier. But since I'm not at the same bank as my parents, they need a way to transfer money without a fee. So it's quite important to find a bank that offers no balance transfer fee. I'm glad we were able to.

a pool/skating rink would be lovely

noreply@blogger.com (Gally) — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 14:26:48 -0500

I think if I ever own a pool I'm going to have to have some great pool floats lying around so it's not terribly boring. Then again, I probably wouldn't want to use the pool too much in the first place, unless it was shady or I could freeze it and double it as an ice skating rink. But I'm sure if I had kids or other children came over, I'm sure they'd want pool toys to pass the time with.

...I'd rather have an ice skating rink than children coming over though...