This is a series of videos I’ve been meaning to post about but it eventually slipped my mind with all the stuff going on right now. These videos are the first three documentaries featuring a backpacker’s journey through India. There are over 20 parts of these and MANY other documentaries that come afterwards.

They are produced by a highschool buddy, Emil Kaminski, who randomly ran into some of my Webtertainment.tv vids on YouTube back five years ago (at least that’s how I remember it)… so, a decade later I discover he’s been teaching in the east and traveling abroad for many years… and STILL going strong. The best part is that now he’s putting these beauties out and they are a much watch for fans of both video podcasting, traveling abroad, or indie documentary productions. These are amazing quality and deserve funding ASAP! I’m doing my part to support Emil’s efforts and wish him much luck!

You can follow his stuff on YouTube under “monkeetime” and make sure you have HOURS to put aside to keep up with his prolific creations!

I heard about this a few days ago and thout it was great but not enough to blog… even though it WAS a pug and it WAS it saying Batman. Now, someone taking the time to synch it to the old Batman intro = gold… and a surmounting desire that this could be my pug one day.

Mogwai (my 7-month old pug) was dead asleep on my lap when I started playing this video and he startled awake and was entirely transfixed on my large-screen tv for the video’s full run before falling back asleep. He was learning, I tell myself.

I love Threadless shirts. I love that here and there a design like the above is released and I must have one. Here are the X-Men represented as animal counterparts:

Professor X = Brain Mole
Wolverine = Wolverine
Emma Frost = Polar Bear
Shadowcat = Panther
Nightcrawler = Monkey
Storm = Horse
Beast = Gorilla
Jean Grey = Phoenix
Colossus = Elephant
Cyclops = Falcon (I think)

Okay so I’m not sure about Storm as a horse, and maybe there’s a pop culture reference in there I’m missing. Also not sure about Kitty Pride as a large wild cat, I think it’d have worked better if she was a house cat, personally. Finally I’m not sure about the bird for Cyclops… but what else would you do for him? I’m not sure “brain mole” is an actual animal… but it sure as hell was a monster in D&D back in the day if my memory serves me correctly (good chance it doesn’t).

It’s always hard to put into words what it is I believe about “belief” and what I believe about the world I exist in. This video does a bloody good job of capturing the beauty of the existence… at least for me.

From YouTube, the transcript:

Is there any value in spirituality? As an atheist you may expect me to say no; but if I’m being honest, I’d have to consider myself a spiritual person. Of course I’m not talking about some ghostly ethereal soul that lives inside my body. There’s no reason to think there’s anything like that. I’m talking about the essence of human. There aren’t many words in our language that capture what that is. at least for me. And so I use the word spirit, in the same way I use the phrase bless you. For rhetoric’s sake. I can only describe it as the action or ability to see beauty. to feel wonder. and to be in awe.

Religion and all groups faith of course serve only to prostitute the awe, and the mystery we all feel as humans. they bottle our essence and try putting lid on the wonder we naturally feel. They fail of course. Religion points to the man behind the curtain in an attempt answer the mystery. when in reality, there is no man. the mystery is just that. a mystery.

But even though I don’t believe in the supernatural, I try to be as honest as I can to myself, about my spirituality.

On my trip out west just a couple months ago I remember a moment standing in a field that looked up at the grand tetons. the tetons in wyoming are these massive glacier capped mountains that just cut into the sky. I remember thinking to myself. Something much greater than me must have caused this. I know it.

I also remember sleeping out underneath a cool and clear sky next to the dunes in white sands national park. Looking up all I could see was just a pile of stars. More than I’d ever understood to exist. Looking at them all, still and perfect, and vast beyond my ability to comprehend, I felt uncommonly humble. And grateful just to be alive.

There are moments when I’m with good friends, where it just feels good to breath. The taste of chilled apple butter on a warm buttermilk biscuit is often more than delicious, to me it feels enlightening. And a soft kiss to me can honestly stop time and space.

At times I can be so overwhelmed by the sensation of being alive, that I cry. or I laugh. or I scream. or I just breath deeply.

And no, I never once imagine that to be supernatural. I understand, that the thing that is so much greater than me, to have caused the Tetons has a name. and it’s called plate tectonics.

That being humble is simply the feeling of recognizing the reality of ones small significance to a universe so massive. And being grateful to be alive doesn’t require a person to be grateful toward.

I recognize that being happy in a comfortable social setting is a evolutionary trait of my species. That my body naturally craves specific foods for nutritional or maybe even psychological reasons. And that the intoxication of romance is most likely driven by the need to procreate.

But I am one with the universe. Not metaphysically, but physically. I am as much the universe as a supernova. made of the same particles, governed by the same forces. I am Genes that mutated randomly, then were selected naturally based on their success at survival.

And I love applebutter on a biscuit. I collapse in awe at the magnificence of this place. I crave romance. and I breath appreciation for it all..

I have to, with all my essence. with all my spirit. because imagine, in all the universe, we may be the only things that can, and that’s beautiful.

Music: Brooks was here
By: Thomas Newman

This third episode features Canadian music only! It’s a strange thing to admit, but it was really rare for me to come across a band I enjoyed listening to on Jamendo with a little Canadian flag near their album entry. Finally one day a few weeks ago I wondered why the heck I didn’t just search by “flag” and just try out as many albums as possible–trust me, one by one for many pages worth were listened too–and these 6 tracks won out over the rest.

I would have added Brad Sucks to this list but he was featured on the first episode so I culled him from the run but mention him here because his stuff is amongst the most famous “free music” on Jamendo–and possibly the internet–today. Those are my words, so even if they aren’t true, I’d be hard pressed to find a one-man-band of equal popular reach.

Let us not waste anymore time, eh? Serve the bacon please!

Podcast Breakdown:

00:00 – 00:49 - Intro
00:49 – 04:03 - “Grow” by Staggered Crossings (Album: Burgundy & Blue)
04:03 – 8:58 - “Devil’s Cauldron” by The Wind Whistles (Album: window sills)
8:58 – 10:03 - “First Introlude”
10:03 – 12:37 - “My Room” by Stephanie Bosch (Album: Departures)
12:37 – 15:32 - “Skeletons and Spirits” by Allison Crowe (Album: This Little Bird – Ce Petit Oiseau)
15:32 – 16:36 - “Second Introlude”
16:36 – 20:30 - “Immigrant man” by Elyes Landoulsi (Album: My Perception)
20:30 – 25:00 - “The Close Western” by The Rest (Album: Atlantis, Oh Our Saviour
25:00 – 26:17 - Extro

Ambient Track: Kevin MacLeod, “Fork and Spoon” (By-Attribution)

Download: Sneak Effect, Episode 003: Served with Bacon
Subscribe: With RSS | With iTunes

Aaron Schoenke, through his Bat in the Sun Productions, has floored me with 30 minutes of amazing. It baffles me how a fan can put together such a robust short film like this on a “small budget”. I say small in relation to the exuberant Hollywood $$$ figures. The plot in this film is very straight forward which keeps the production clean and easy to follow. The costumes, setting and actors do a great job as well–and come on… SCARFACE is in it? I friggin love Scarface, he’s easily one of my favorite rogues.

Considering the production team pretty much consisted of Aaron Schoenke and his brother, I’m simply going to be floored for years to come just as I was with the first Batman fan film I saw called Dead End. If you have 30 minutes free and wanna to come face to face with ultimate fan dedication, watch this! You won’t be disappointed!

So over a half year later and I finally came back to this! I knew I’d be back… I just didn’t know it’d take this long! But, alas, I bring you some new goodies and a goal to bring you at least 3 to 4 more episodes over the next month.

As you will likely discover this episode has a theme (maybe two of them even) and future shows will likely go this way as long as I can find new ways to collect 20 minutes worth of tracks. Maybe when I get used to cutting these together I’ll bump the tracks to closer to 30 minutes, but that then likely means a 40 minute show which I feel is a little long.

Enjoy the 2nd episode and have fun checking out the new bands!

Podcast Breakdown:

00:00 – 00:43 - Intro
00:43 – 04:22 - “Baby, Oh Baby” by Degrees (Album: Pt.1)
04:22 – 7:56 - “Paramour” by bert jerred (Album: EP: Paramour)
7:56 – 8:39 - “First Introlude”
8:39 – 12:42 - “Just Imagine” by Hungry Lucy (Album: Pulse of Earth)
12:42 – 15:49 - “I’m Letting Go” by Josh Woodward (Album: The Simple Life)
15:49 – 16:33 - “Second Introlude”
16:33 – 20:19 - “Life in a Cave” by Ben’s Imaginary Band (Album: Nocturnal Fables and Illusions (2008 Rerelease))
20:19 – 22:22 - “Without You” by Julandrew (Album: Sings Your Favorite Songs)
23:22 – 24:47 - Extro

Download: Sneak Effect, Episode 002: A One and a Two
Subscribe: With RSS | With iTunes

I found an artist via the web–I think on ConceptArt.com after seeing his portfolio–and reached out to him because I loved his dynamic line work and felt it’d be perfect for a new project of some sort… even though I had no idea what. His name is Giannis Milonogiannis, an artist from Greece, with a style I just had to have on SOMEthing. he has both a DeviantArt site and  Flickr gallery worth checking out. You can say that his art somehow influenced my brainstorm since I was back-and-forthing with him to iron out what HE would be interested in taking on before “Tyr Wyrmwood” was even figured out as a title and name of the main character.

He is an extremely quick artist due to his loose linework, very responsive and creative with design requests, and most importantly a positive joy to work with! The first issue was done in just over 2 weeks, maybe 3. It’s a 22-page black and white comic and I will likely letter this one.

I’m very certain I’ll be releasing this one free on the web somehow–not sure yet, but I’ll keep you informed! In the mean time, Giannis finished the cover and I tweaked it and did layout for what might be a final version… also, no idea yet as it’s still early on.

I just know I am eager to keep this one going. It’s a fun departure from the intensive “high concept” story threading that exists in Raven Nevermore.

PS: The above image is the SECOND design I tweaked after saving over the first one by accident with another file then closing Photoshop. Ya… noob mistake, but in the end I kinda like the second round better anyways. I’ll post the first as it exists only in jpg form now for kicks below.

Holy crap… this is the best use of space I’ve ever seen! Hong Kong is known for its extremely tight spaces. Here’s an example of pure architect genius at work maximizing the living space he’s used to in his culture.

I’ll be converting the trunk space of a Honda Odyssey over the next month and can’t hope to be THIS efficient… but this sure is an inspiration! I can’t put sliding walls into a car’s cargo area, but I plan on using many hinge setups.

I’m amazed at how stuff like this goes on long enough to make a profit. It’s worth being said that IF the quality was ACTUALLY up to par with DC Unlimited World of Warcraft figures I may consider it still worth picking up. But seriously… how could this even pass for something not meant as a 4-6 year-old play toy? And a crappy one even at that. The model is less than heroic in any way, the painting is abysmal to say it kindly, and the fact that a company (or group of individuals) would take the time and effort to hawk it as official is blatantly embarrassing to them, to Blizzard, and to collectors who have to lay eyes on this monstrosity.

(Licensed by Blizzard… really?!)

(Why does this face look like it’s made out of Play-Doh?)

(A grandma lost her necklace making this figure’s accessories.)

Some would say that I’m being harsh about this, and that a sculptor out there spend a lot of time to mold this and paint it, etc, sure… that’s fine. IF this was presented as a fan’s homage it’d get a totally different reaction from me. I might even congratulate the effort and support that artist’s skills. But like the saying goes: “Cover a turd with gold-leaf… and it’s still a turd”… errr… well something along those lines anyways…

Call me a monkey if this is actually LICENSED by DC Unlimited… I ask then: What company pitched this to Blizzard Entertainment as a offshore venture opportunity? How would something of this quality HELP what’s already branded as superbly awesome by DC Unlimited? I tried my Google-fu on this and only got rewarded with yet ANOTHER resin model of Blade Master, in all his unglorious non-glory. Congratulations China.