Date:	2008-05-12 00:35
Subject:	10 Things
Security:	Public
Mood:	sleepy

1. Overtime at work for the last couple of weeks, twelve hours two days a week.  Fortunately the work is fun, the animation team is actually getting ahead, and unlike my last job, I get paid for OT.  Eats into comic-making time, but not as badly as being apathetic does.

2. Sculpture class at the studio, taught by some of our own guys.  Really fun and informative.  I may even finish my sculpture.

3. Attended friends Marek and Haidee's Victorian-themed wedding.  It was very nearly perfect.  I look pretty good in a waistcoat and cravat.  Top hat sends the look straight to undertaker, though.  Made this as a (ticket for a) present.

4. Visual storytelling class at the studio with Marshall Vandruff.  Awesome.  I have taken this class in the past but it is great to have the refresher.  High Point so far has been the film 12 Angry Men which I had not seen before.

5. Reading a really good collection of essays by Joseph Campbell.  Inspiring.  He is my hero.

6. New favorite beer, Gulden Drakk.  New favorite scotch, Dalwhinnie Distiller's Edition (15 years old).  A real find.

7. Iron Man was a remarkably good comic book movie.  Robert Downey Jr. walks away with the film.  Refreshing to see the origin story done in a way that did not put me to sleep.  Climactic fight could have been a little more exciting, but I'm not complaining.

8. Renaissance faire with SDSkuld in Irwindale yesterday.  Jousting, swordplay, boobs, and uh... Richard Hatch, for some reason.  I bought a cloak and a new flask.  Slight sunburn.

9. Spent the afternoon with an art school buddy from my sabbatical last year.  It was really great to just talk art all afternoon.

10. Otherwise, just hanging on...

Date:	2008-02-11 01:19
Subject:	New Persona Animus
Security:	Public
Mood:	sleepy

All right, we are back.  Thanks for your patience!  Pages will be straggling in again as often as I can complete them.

Date:	2008-01-31 23:44
Subject:	O Hai
Security:	Public
Mood:	aggravated
Music:	Molly Hatchet, 'Flirting With Disaster'

...long time no see.

Went to a painting workshop last weekend by Nathan Fowkes.  Wow.  Just... wow.  I still have so far to go.

Look!  Page 16 of the comic!  Well, no.  I have discovered that FTP access to the web site is not working just at the moment.  Serves me right for not trying to post anything there earlier.  Plus, the wireless card in my latptop, which contains the only local copy of my site, seems to be failing.  I'm taking the opportunity in the meantime to polish the art a bit more.  I've posted a teaser frame for you all.  The box does, indeed, contain Pain.

The last thing I wanted to give you after two months was more excuses, but I wanted to post something before January was out.  Still: progress.

Date:	2007-11-22 21:33
Subject:	Give Thanksing
Security:	Public
Mood:	thankful

Of the many things I am thankful for on this day-- health, home, job, family, books, parks, zoos, animation, internet, games, tiny RC tanks--  foremost I am thankful for my friends.  My long-suffering, patient, supportive friends.  Thank you for putting up with all my whining, and for helping to keep me on an even keel.

Date:	2007-10-31 22:42
Subject:	I Returneth.
Security:	Public
Mood:	drugged

I should have posted a week ago, I have had several inquiries as to whether I was on fire or in danger of being on fire.  The answer is no-- the Santiago fire was about eight miles away due north, I could see the glow at night from my balcony, but it is solidly urban between here and there, so there was never any danger to me.  If Laguna Canyon goes up, I could be in trouble-- my complex is surrounded on three sides by a 'wilderness park,' which is just a polite way of saying 'land no-one else wanted.'  Santa Anas are supposed to return on Friday, so here's hoping for no whammies.

Slooowly getting settled into the new place, which so far I love to death.  The new job is great, all of the positive things that my last job had, but (so far) fewer of the negatives.  Orange County itself, on the other hand... well it has the benefit of not having been as much on fire as San Diego.

I have caught a head cold (the office yesterday was overrun by small costumed pestilence monkeys) which hopefully will be gone tomorrow... nothing makes a good first impression like taking a day off from work in your first three weeks, except maybe taking two days off.

I have located the boxes with my comicking supplies, so Persona Animus will resume next week.  Hopefully I still have some readers left.

Date:	2007-10-14 08:39
Subject:	Moved if not Settled
Security:	Public
Mood:	exhausted
Music:	No Doubt, 'I'm Just A Girl'

Everything's into the new place, though mostly still in boxes.  No nasty surprises yet.  FIngers crossed!

The new job starts tomorrow.  I'll be doing video game animation again.  The work climate has been changing in the industry:  due to recent class action suits brought against Electronic Arts and other studios over uncompensated overtime for salaried employees, many studios (including mine) have shifted to an hourly wage for their workers.  The upshot is that unless we're in a crunch period, I actually get (figuratively) kicked out of the studio after eight hours; and during crunch, we get OT.  This makes both the normal schedule and crunch time much more palatable.

Today I've got to do a walkthrough of the old place, balance my books, and get my paperwork in order.  Hopefully some friends will be coming over this evening to see the new place and hang out for a couple of hours.

Starting work is going to seem like a vacation after this week.  Only eleven miles to the destination, no heavy lifting, and I can go home early.  If I can only manage to stay awake it will be perfect.

Date:	2007-10-06 19:53
Subject:	Now is the Time to Panic
Security:	Public
Mood:	anxious

The Burly Men arrive at my door at eight tomorrow morning, and I am so not ready for them.  Over seventy boxes at last count, and I still have the animation table to pack, the bathroom, and the entire kitchen.  Blargh!

So much for new PA pages.  I thought that maybe I was being too diligent all week with the packing, I mean, after all, how long could it take?  I felt guilty for not taking a couple of evenings to work on the comic.  Now I'm relieved that I didn't, I'm unprepared enough as it is.  At least I'll have as much time as I want to unpack, so it should be easier to get back on the comic.

As of tonight I'll be offline for two days before internet service is activated at the new place.  I can still check e-mail through the phone, but I might not be able to reply.  My cell number is staying the same, so I can be reached that way.

See you on the other side...

Date:	2007-09-25 20:46
Subject:	Change in the Air
Security:	Public
Mood:	nervous

Last week, I landed a new job doing animation at a game studio in Irvine, so in October I am moving to Orange County.  While I am not thrilled about that, I am excited about the job, and also at the prospect of finally upgrading to a larger apartment.

I start on October 15th.  I already have found an apartment, I have started packing and holy crap, so much stuff.  Fifteen boxes full and barely a dent in the remaining content.  I generally weed out stuff that I no longer use once every year or two, so what's left is pretty robust.  So far I've only found one book that I'm throwing out.  My consolation is that, first, it will have an additional two hundred square feet to live in, and second, that my employer is going to pay for me to hire burly men to move it all so that I don't have to.  (I'm sure my long-suffering friends are consoled by that too.)

My new neighborhood in Laguna Hills is rather flavorless-- huge malls separated by long, wide parkways lined with gated apartments and condos-- but I figured better too little flavor to start with than too much, since I have no idea about different communities in OC.  After a bit of consultation with the natives, I decided on a quiet area south of the Desolation of Smog.  It will be hard to leave Hillcrest, with the post office, the grocery, the DMV,  the hardware store, restaurants, museums, the zoo, all in walking distance.  On the other hand, I will be able to start riding my bike around again.

I'm very nervous.  I just this year became a San Diegan (20 years in San Diego, 19 in Riverside).  I haven't pulled up roots since I first went to college.  I think this sort of big change is something I need in my life right now, but still-- damn.  Scary.

I'm still committed to Persona Animus-- I am hoping to get two more pages done (which is the end of the current scene) before I start the job; and I will continue to post new pages as regularly as I am able.

Date:	2007-09-19 10:16
Subject:	Yosemite!
Security:	Public
Mood:	sore
Music:	DDR, 'Candy <3'

IMG_6006.JPG
Originally uploaded by RohanTM

About two weeks ago, jamespark kindly invited me to join him and some friends from the Bay Area in some car camping for four days at Yosemite National Park. So I semi-roughed it this past weekend.  Photos here!

Date:	2007-09-06 22:57
Subject:	Page 15!
Security:	Public
Mood:	sleepy

New page here!  I blame the heat wave for the delay.  I was useless for four or five days, lying around like a clubbed seal because my brain does not work when I can't escape heat.  Yes I know I'm a wimp.  I did make progress on the story itself, by fleeing to the local Round Table pizza and doing scripting and thumbnailing there.  The next two pages do not have complicated wreckage on them, so they should be much easier to draw and color.

Date:	2007-09-01 19:51
Subject:	Hippo Birdy Two Ewes
Security:	Public
Mood:	grateful
Music:	Suzanne Vega, 'Luka'

Birthday/Fan Art Luv for alexds1!  It's the cast of her spiffy comic The Meek... and a couple of party crashers.  =)

Thanks for being so inspirational and so entertaining, DS!  Reading your journal is usually the high point of my day.  I wish you many happy returns!  (Hopefully better than this one.  ^^U)

Date:	2007-08-17 22:32
Subject:	Can you feel the fanart tonight
Security:	Public
Mood:	thankful
Music:	The Lion King

Fan art Luv for rufftoon and gear_halo below the cut.  Thanks for being so inspirational and supportive, guys!

Date:	2007-08-15 23:58
Subject:	Persona Animus Page 14
Security:	Public
Mood:	content

Page 14 is live!

I probably need to simplify my coloring process, but I really wanted the dappled sunlight for this scene to lighten the mood.

Date:	2007-08-12 22:40
Subject:	In Which Uber-Dot is Played.
Security:	Public
Mood:	content
Music:	Deltron 3030, '3030'

I returned from Orange County this evening to find a kitten in the courtyard.  This pleased me.  Unfortunately the kitten was standoffish and did not allow me sufficiently to Bother it.

So I went inside and got the Dot.

I suppose every cat owner knows what the Dot is, but for the rest of you, laser pointers were not created for business presentations.  They were created to drive felines mad by chasing around a little red Dot that they cannot catch. 

Normally, this is played inside where the cat can leap up the walls and skid on the floors.  Standing on the second-floor balcony outside my front door to do it was a rare treat:  I had the entire courtyard at my disposal.

Even better, when I started running the Dot around, a second cat leapt out at it.  So for about ten minutes I Bothered cats by remote control.

Days don't often end this well.  Flawless victory.

Date:	2007-08-02 09:46
Subject:	In... Hold... Release
Security:	Public
Mood:	relieved
Music:	David Lanz, 'A Whiter Shade of Pale'

Four days after the Convention I finally got some rest.  The animation test is done except for some small revisions and I can finally get back to actual drawing.

Today, back to PA!  ...after chiropractic.  And a brake job for my car.  (That sounds dirty.)

To celebrate not having to touch Maya for a few days I relaxed last night and drew some Fan Art for alexds3, of her half-naked character Angora.  Attempts to draw Luca ended in miserable failure.

Date:	2007-08-01 07:46
Subject:	Threedee is Not the Same as Twodee
Security:	Public
Mood:	frustrated

The last two days have been consumed with another test animation for a potential job.  Someone asked me last week why I get so frustrated with threedee animation.  After all, isn't animation what I have always wanted to do?  It's not that different from doing the old hand-drawn stuff right?

Well, sort of.  While the principles are the same, the paths to the result could not be more different.

So, imagine that you have a box of crayons and a pad of paper.  Someone asks you to draw a pretty flower.  You pull out your green and blue and yellow crayons, you open the pad, and you draw a flower on the paper.

Okay, now imagine that the crayons and paper are inside of a sealed room, and the only way to get at them is with a big robot arm that is operated by two levers outside of the room.  The only way you can see is with a video camera installed in the room, which is operated by another set of levers.  Using the controls, you must point the camera at the paper, then use the robot arm to open the pad and to grab each crayon from the box to draw your pretty flower.  Every time you want to work on a different part of the picture, you have to switch controls and move the camera to point at it.  The paper can be very delicate, and is sometimes damaged by the robot arm, ruining the picture.  Sometimes the robot arm will not go where you want it to.  While you are coloring with the green crayon, it suddenly turns orange, so you have to somehow figure out how to add blue and subtract red in order to make it green again.  All of this is in addition to all the same problems you'd have drawing the flower by hand.  You spend most of your time thinking about how to get the robot arm to behave properly, instead of what you would like the pretty flower to look like.

Eventually you may become very adept at drawing a pretty flower using the robot arm.  Then, if someone hands you an actual box of crayons and a pad of paper, you know how to... operate a big robot arm using a set of levers.

Crayon.  Paper.  Touch crayon to paper.  This is how I enjoy working.

I'm actually okay with digital painting and drawing.  Using a digital tablet is more akin to using gloves to reach into the room to use the crayons-- a little bit clumsy but essentially the same as doing it by hand.  It's threedee work that puts so much wasted effort and frustration between the result that I imagine and the one I can achieve.

Date:	2007-07-31 09:21
Subject:	Comic-Con '07
Security:	Public
Mood:	exhausted

I don't think my brain is up to a full Comic-Con report, it's all just a contented blur.  So I'll see if I can just pluck some memories.

In recent years I have found that I don't even care if I actually do anything at a convention, I am just happy to be there.  The noise, the vendors, the displays, the artwork, the endless stream of interesting people, from the most impeccable pro to the most impecunious geek, I love just taking it all in.  I get to see my friends; I get to talk to really interesting people; and I get spectacle.  What more could I want?

That said, I spent way too much money this weekend, mostly on sketchbooks.

Favorite comic:  Tony Cliff's Delilah Dirk and the Treasure of Constantinople. It's the most perfect single issue of anything I have seen in quite some time.  Pricey, but worth it.

Favorite comment:  Carla Speed McNeil when I told her I wanted to go back and fix some pages of my comic-- "You're gonna punch the tar baby eh?"

Favorite musical featuring muppet sex:  Avenue Q, which I went to see on preview night, rather than going to preview night.  Worth it, as it turns out.

Favorite meal: The Field on 5th Avenue in the gaslamp, before the show on wednesday.  Boxty, scotch, Bailey's chocolate cheesecake, and potcheen!

Favorite costume:  Drunken Lounge Boba Fett.  Enough said.

Date:	2007-07-28 10:17
Subject:	Delilah Dirk
Security:	Public
Mood:	tired
Music:	Numa Numa

If you are attending the San Diego Comic-Con, run, do not walk, to the Flight 1128 booth and buy Tony Cliff's Delilah Dirk and the Treasure of Constantinople.  Best find of the convention.  Get him to sign it!  Tell him he's awesome!

That is all.  The convention is fun.  More stuff when I've got some breathin' room.

Date:	2007-07-23 19:31
Subject:	New Persona Animus! Persona... what now?
Security:	Public
Mood:	depressed
Music:	Thin Lizzy, 'The Boys are Back in Town'

Page 13!

Yes, okay, it's been six weeks. Sorry about that. I've been looking for a job, but that's only partially an excuse.

Date:	2007-07-19 11:05
Subject:	Not Exactly Definitive, but
Security:	Public
Mood:	giggly

Yay!

Your results:
You are Kaylee Frye (Ship Mechanic)

Kaylee Frye (Ship Mechanic) 60% Derrial Book (Shepherd) 55% Dr. Simon Tam (Ship Medic) 50% Zoe Washburne (Second-in-command) 40% Wash (Ship Pilot) 40% Inara Serra (Companion) 35% Malcolm Reynolds (Captain) 35% Jayne Cobb (Mercenary) 30% A Reaver (Cannibal) 20% Alliance 20% River (Stowaway) 10%

You are good at fixing things. You are usually cheerful. You appreciate being treated with delicacy and specialness.

Click here to take the Serenity Firefly Personality Test