Calling All Nanners!!!

I think there's something to say about propaganda artwork. Some are really soft and inspiring; they make you feel good to be upholding a cause. Others just feel gritty and mechanical, the way you might feel after watching an Otto Preminger movie with a small child in the room (Random side-note: I do suggest Trumbo's "Johnny's Got His Gun" for anyone who reads anti-war literature).

Anyway, whatever your take on art is, just wanted to share a piece of nanner-ganda that I made, enjoy!

Archetype: Gunslinger

“Have you any idea of what a man must endure who leads such a life? No, you cannot. No one can unless he lives it for himself." -- Frank James



When you think of a gunslinger, what comes to your mind first? Is it the lawman cleaning up “Random Gulch” from the sinister bad guys, a young inexperienced outlaw on the run, or perhaps the charlatan huckster with the ace up his sleeve? Any of these images might give you the impression that when I mean gunslinger, I mean the cliché western type of Deadwood/Wyatt Earp character. In a way, you are correct however, I want to convey a different image so hear me out.

Clear your preconceptions, blank your thoughts, and from the deepest recesses of your mind think…

Truth…Consequence…Justice…Mercy…Fortitude…Fury…Apprehension…

Anything different? Perhaps you get a flash of a lonely man walking down a street trying to figure out how his life ended up the way it did. You might hear the grinding cough of a wheel-man waiting for his signal before plowing through downtown traffic after picking up that next big score. What about the sigh of a single mom working at the all night greasy spoon to support her 3 month old son and a slight drinking habit?

My point here is that this classic persona can be more than just a cardboard cut-out character. Regardless of incarnation, The Gunslinger has one attribute that can never be denied or hidden; a purpose. Think about it. Driven by an urge to go on, not bound by the laws of men, or just upholding a pure idealism to its fullest extent.

Stick to your guns and keep your aim true…

(Stopping while I’m ahead because my thoughts are getting messy…)

Deus Ex Machina

I always knew that I had aspirations in life beyond what I was applying myself to. About 6 years ago I was simply content to let every day run into the next. No cares, no worries, NO aspirations and then everything started to fall apart. I finally began to loathe the life that I had constructed for myself and I felt absolutely powerless to correct it. I was a big boy and made my own mistakes but, found a new direction when I meet my wife. We saved each other from mutually horrible relationships and now here we are, married with a baby boy that will one day take over the world (Weapon X style).

When we first got together, about 5 years ago, we were both working paycheck to paycheck at a telemarketing firm as sales agents. I was also working for the School system as a Lunch Lady and part time janitor. It was a pretty fun time and yet there just felt like something was missing, a hole that no words could quantify. The telemarketing firm we worked for ended up closing and we were all laid off, which really sucked. I started working with my cousin at his pizza shop and that relationship ended after about 6 months. I was tired of his “chronic” bad habits (yes, pun intended) and the constant haranguing about being “too efficient” at what I did. I also, ended up leaving the school system after a prolonged illness and started working for another telemarketing firm called “Evergreen Sales”. This still make me laugh considering I DESPISE talking on the phone and, at the time, couldn't’t sell water to a man in the desert. Anyway, I’ve been at Evergreen ever since and have made a pretty good name for myself through my work ethic and determination. Right now I’m working under the Director of Training and Development and my duties as of right now are to overhaul the training program for our company (ya, it’s been a fun 3 weeks).

Still, no matter how much fulfillment I thought I had, there was always that hole. Through my “career” at Evergreen I’ve meet some pretty interesting, and derelict, people and very few have moved me in a personal way. I do have to say that when my friend Graeme moved away to finish his degree, I finally realized what that hole was; my education. I’d never finished going back to college and as good as Evergreen has been to me, I want more from my life than taking Supervisor calls from pissed off customers. I looked online for schooling and finally settled on Kaplan because they had a degree program that I was interested in: Nutritional Sciences. My goal is to be a registered dietitian at some point and hopefully, fulfill my lifelong dream of moving to Canada (different story for a different time).

I really enjoy going to school online. I’m usually a pretty laid back person so the fact that I can do the work in my PJ's is a BIG plus. My computer doesn’t judge me based on my hair and tats so I do like the fact that I don’t really have to have that much face to face contact however, I do enjoy the conversations with other people (how crazy is that). I’m a storyteller by nature so, talking and typing is more my style.

I’m really digging this whole “having to blog” thing for one of my classes. It gives me a creative outlet that I really don’t get anywhere else. I mean, playing the guitar and sewing sock monsters is one thing but, neither really interact with me (well the monsters….never mind ^_^). I also think that as people begin to express themselves more freely outside of a normal “classroom” atmosphere they can also begin to fully immerse themselves in what they’re doing. Am I awesome in a classroom? No. Can I entertain people and lead the new world order from the comforts of my living room? Absolutely.

Photoshop, Nannerpuss, and World Domination

I just recently got another working copy of Photoshop and have been going nuts ever since. Through extensive online tutorials and just playing around I learned how to use the program and have been enjoying photo manipulation ever since. One of my hobbies, in addition to everything else under the sun, is to chop and edit photos for my own sinister purposes.

It all started when I used to play an old school TSR card game called "Spellfire". It's a D&D based card game that is really fast paced and can be played by LOTS of people at the same time. Anyway, one of the things I noticed on the forums is that people were making their own cards and submitting them as "online expansions" and TSR was actually endorsing these player made sets at tournaments!
So I figured, what the heck let's give it a whirl. Mine weren't as flashy as some of the other expansions but, it got me going with Photoshop. Unfortunately, I seem to have misplaced the flash drive that had all of that information on it so, instead, here's a picture of a potato that looks like Cthulhu! RAWR!!!


Anyway, I though that I would go ahead and personalize this home for my inane blathering. As you can see, I changed the main display banner and in honor of my URL, I've created what will be the first in a line of "Nanner Banners". So look for them periodically for a quick giggle. Here's the first one just as a kick off. I plan on doing sort of like an "Adventures of Nannerpuss" comic at some point but, that's another idea for another time. For those of you who don't know who Nannerpuss is, check out the below video. Yes, it all started as a Denny's commercial but, my wife watched it about 10 times a day for a month and finally I just got fed up with it and made her a stuffed Nannerpuss to laugh at. It pretty much did the trick and now it stands in the baby's room waiting for the little guy to be old enough to play with him.



So now that I've shared the fact that I'm a techno geek and a Susie homemaker, I feel it only fair to warn you that since I'm maintaining a blog now, you'll probably see LOTS of posts about really silly things that involve fleece, yarn, and in some cases other sculpting mediums. By the way, I'm learning how to crochet now so, that should prove to be really interesting. Jesus, this post makes me realize how bad the movie, "Daredevil" must have felt when I made fun of it for having no cohesion...

Get Inspired

This is the Thrice song "Moving Mountains" that I mentioned in my previous post. I've been listening to the "Earth" album again today and really felt like sharing. Enjoy lyrics, dig the tunes, and get inspired.

Moving Mountains

I speak in many tongues of many men
Argue with angels and they always win
But I don’t know the first thing about love

I prophesize and know all mystery
All living things are opened up to me
But I don’t know the first thing about love
Know the first thing about love

I have the keys to open many doors
Give all my possessions to the poor
But I don’t know the first thing about love

I’m moving mountains and have faith in me
Have faith enough to caste them to the sea
But I don’t know the first thing about love
I don’t know the first thing about love

all other things shall fade away
Love stands alone and still holds sway
all other things shall fade away
Into the ground into the grave

I give my body up into the flames
And never once did I deny your name
But I don’t know the first thing about love
I don’t know the first thing about love

Sonic Alchemy

While I was at work today a thought occurred to me, I listen to vastly different styles of music and love ALL of it. This really isn't different from any other day but, it became much more apparent to me for some reason so I thought I’d share one of my play lists with you. As I was doing some paper work, I popped one of my mix CDs in my computer to pass the time. I'm usually the first person in the building but I still use a headset because some of the music I listen to is best enjoyed at very high volume.

The first batch of songs on the disc was by a group called, Sons Of Liberty.
Sons of Liberty is a band that was started by Iced Earth frontman John Schaffer. The music is of similar style to Iced Earth but the lyrics have more political undertones, very much like the groups Bad Religion and Rise Against. There's something both energizing and infuriating about a song that preaches how this country is being run by a non-government agency (The Fed). I must admit, the album pales in comparison to a live Iced Earth show but, then again, that’s like saying fresh orange juice and frozen orange juice just don’t really taste the same. However, the next song group of songs was a welcome tranquilizer to the soapbox style vocals that Schaffer puts out.


Next on the list were some songs by my favorite band, Thrice. Saying they are my favorite band is a gamble but I absolutely love their music and have followed the band since they formed, in 1998, and have watched them metamorphosis into what they are today. They started with a style that was a mesh of hardcore and alternative and they have now settled into more of an experimental/indy genre. The song I listed to that really stuck out is named, “Moving Mountains” from the album "The Alchemy Index Vol.II". The Alchemy Index is a set of 4 discs that all feature one of the four elements (fire, water, air, earth) and each song on the CD is influenced by that particular element. There were several different songs from the Earth and Water CDs on the play list so, I was pretty mellow for most of the morning.



This was followed by Abney Park’s "Herr Drosslmeyer's Doll" and the title track from a limited release of the new Vernian Process album “Behold The Machine”. Both of these bands are labeled as "Steampunk" and their sound is pretty eclectic. Think of what a Vaudevillian would sound like if you gave them electric guitars and a computer loaded with drums beats, synthesizer melodies, and sound effects. The also fuse their sound with more traditional instruments such as violins, harpsichords (which could just be a synthesizer but who cares, it sounds awesome), and orchestral brass. So, I was in a pretty good mood when the next cache of songs assaulted me.


When I say I was “assaulted” by the next group of songs I’m being very lenient. There is nothing tender, mild or soft about Trivium or Five Finger Death Punch. I found these guys by accident, thanks to my wife, and have been listening to them ever since. Probably one of the best hardcore groups I’ve heard, Trivium uses very hard thrash core guitar riffs and screaming vocals for the verses in their songs but, follow it up with melodic almost harmonic chorus lines and sweeping guitar solos to keep the songs moving. I was almost shocked the first time I heard the song “A Gunshot to the Head of Trepadition” but I’ve been hooked on the group ever since. Trivium falls into the same category as groups like Killswitch Engage, 36 Crazyfists, and Underoath (all bands that I still enjoy today).


To cap it off, the last few songs on the CD just made me laugh because I had forgotten that I put them there. All of us grew up listening to certain music and I must say that I thank my parents for exposing me to all forms of classical, jazz, and rock (yes, even Bryan Adams). The two songs that stuck out to me were Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer” and Jethro Tull’s “Aqualung”. I listened to these two again on the ride home just because they are really fun songs. I laugh every time I hear Peter Gabriel because I think of the dancing turkeys from the “Sledgehammer” video. Others songs at the end of the CD included, “A Fifth of Beethoven” by Walter Murphy and “Take 5” as performed by The Dave Brubeck Quartet. I know what you’re thinking, “How do you go from heavy metal to THAT?”. The simple answer is, as I stated at the beginning of the post, I love ALL styles of music (yes even some country...grumble grumble). Randomly, I’ve had that Reba McEntire song, “Fancy” going through my head for about a week now, talk about annoying...oh well.

I'll just blast it out with some Static-X later. Rock on people!

The Hour Draws Nigh...(BRAINS NOM NOM!)

From the deepest bowels they will come. From the tallest buildings they will rain down. From the stores, and the sewers, and the coffee shops they will shamble and crawl and drag their bulk. The worst part is, they will never stop...



Zombies, products of genetic mutation or life's ironic twisted step along the evolutionary path? No matter who you are, there is always the chance that one day you might find yourself huddled in the corner of a convenience store clutching your handbag or the nearest blunt object to your chest, trying to block out the droning sound of the living dead. Scary thought huh?


Well, in the spirit of making life's most serious situations pretty funny, since 2001Twilight Creations Inc. has given us just the tool to make a zombie invasion a fun filled evening with the family. Zombies!!! This is probably one of the most fun games that I have played to date. The premise is simple, be the first person to kill 25 zombies (which is a LOT harder than you might think) or, in the spirit of Hollywood, be the first person to get to the helipad and take off with the chopper. For those of you who may be saying, "wow, this guy sounds whacked!", I challenge you. Play one game with a few of your close friends and you will see how quickly the limbs start flying and I'm not talking about the zombies. Several games I'v played have gone from friendly to cutthroat in a matter of seconds. The game comes complete with zombie figures, bullet and heart tokens and the lovely deck of event cards. The event cards are what make this game awesome! Very quickly the game goes from, "Hey, let me help you out." to "Oh, you are SO boned!" The event cards can either do really cool things like help you kill zombies easier and move faster or really dark things like let you put up to 10 zombies on the map tile where your friend is . I'm not going to go into the full details but, hopefully I'll be putting up a blow by blow of the big zombipocalypse me and my brother are having pretty soon. It should prove to be really fun.

So, until next time, keep the batteries in the flashlight and the crowbar within arms reach. Just remember, that sudden thump in the middle of the night might not be the cat jumping off of the table...

Feeling Nostalgic

The other day I was chatting with my good friend Tony and we were talking about what we used to do as children to entertain ourselves. No, not that, get your mind out of the gutter. His son is constantly playing World of Warcraft (as both of us do) as well as X-box 360 and several other electronically powered forms of entertainment. This made us realize that 20 years ago when we were children we didn't have any cool stuff like that to play with. Hell, the regular old Nintendo Entertainment System didn't come out until 1985 and even then, you had to be one of the rich kids to get one. Needless to say we started passing the time talking about some of the old games we used to play so I realized that we actually had some bad ass stuff that we used to play with. It made you think and also helped us pass hours upon hours of time.

So I've compiled a short list of items to share with everyone to see if anyone else played these growing up.


1. Crossbows and Catapults

HOW COOL WAS THIS GAME?!?!? For those who didn't play it, there were two teams, blue and red (very basic), and the object was to capture the other's castle. "How would you capture the castle?" some may ask, BY SHOOTING THINGS AT IT!! Not only was this game the basis for hand eye coordination but, it provided lots of lessons in what "not" to capture. Like you could not capture the couch by shooting the discs at dad (found that out the hard way. Either way, this game was awesome.




2. The Uncle Wiggily Game

Uncle Wiggily is an elderly rabbit with rheumatism. How can that be fun? Think of the coyote and roadrunner but, make them British and a rabbit and a rhino. The whole point behind the game was to get Uncle Wiggily and the other characters to Dr. Possum's house. I don't remember anything about the game other than the fact that I used to play it for hours and I always liked it better than Candy Land.



3. Hungry Hungry Hippos

Now here's a game for everyone. The rules are simple and they haven't changed since the game came out in 1978. Hit the lever on your hippo the fastest and be eat the most marbles before they're all gone. No matter how many times I played this game it was never any less fun. Most of the times we would play this game like "Rock, Paper, Scissors". The games were over so fast that it was always the best of 2 out of 3 or 3 out of 5. Even today when I play it with my brothers, now 18 and 22, it is still as fun as it was when I was 5 playing it with my sister.

There were plenty of other games like Candyland, Chutes and Ladders, and Connect 4 that used to eat away days of our lives. However, these were what we had and they did the job that they were supposed to do. I was lucky enough to receive a new copy of the old Uncle Wiggily game as a Christmas gift a few years ago and I plan on playing it with my son once he's old enough. There are several new games that have hit my shelves over the past few years and I pride myself on the collection that I've assembled. In the next installment of this blog we'll go over one of my favorites. For now, just think, what did you do for fun when you couldn't plug yourself into an electrical outlet?