You Will Be Missed

Sis. Jessie, an elderly member of my church of 20 years passed away yesterday afternoon from strokes and heart attacks. She had been sick for a long while. I just found out about it this morning, I didn't even know she was in the hospital.

Ironically, my Papaw is currently at the same hospital suffering from similar problems, so it's a wonder we didn't run into someone we knew.

She was a very special lady. She would pray all the time for the church and for everyone in it. She was as kind as can be, never had a cross word to say. She was one of the truly genuine people in this world. Unfortunately I haven't seen her in quite some time, and now I'll never get a chance to. I will miss her a great deal, as will anyone and everyone who knew her. She was very special, and I know God will keep her.

God Bless you, Sister Jessie.

PC & Printer Woes

Man, just when I think things are going good. Ugh.

It's not really that bad, at least not compared to prior issues.

Recently I had to download and install Windows Service Pack 1 & 2 (against my better judgment because they had caused problems in the past) in order to get a trial version of a program my brother needed for school to work. The download ended up eating up 5GB of my hard drive prompting me to move stuff to discs and delete stuff just to have space on the hard drive (I'll be glad when I can afford a new one!).

Well, it turns out that he can't use this version of the program because it's not compatible with the older version the school has. Sigh.

So anyway, I had to reboot today and when I did everything stopped working. After messing with it for a minute I finally got everything to come up, but I'm very tempted to uninstall that service pack bundle.

On top of that yesterday and today my internet connection has kept going out. I have no clue why as my modem shows everything working properly. So it's been a battle staying online.

And to cap things off, I had to go out and blow $60 on ink cartridges today because I needed them for a project and my brother needed them for homework. Well, the black one doesn't work! ARGH. I have to go out tomorrow and see if they will exchange it. If they don't then I'm out $30. That's what I get for buying the Office Depot brand instead of the Epson brand I guess.

So that's been my day today basically. I've been unable to get very much done today or last night at all sadly, but I'm here now, or I should say for now with the internet doing whatever it's doing.

B-Out

Raining and Pouring

It's storming pretty bad here right now, fork lightning, scary house-shaking thunder and torrents of rain. The lights have already flickered, so if I go MIA today at all you know why. Just a heads up for all you out there.

B-Out

Mid-Week Medley

Sorry for the lack of updates, busy, busy as usual.

I'm wrapping up the lettering on Nocturnal Essence #1, though I still have a few tweaks to do.

I'm also finishing Pozers #2 tomorrow (with any luck). Then I'll have The Mantis and the Advent logo to work on before diving into bigger projects.

I am going to try my best to finish a first draft of the WBZ #0 script and new character bios by Friday or Saturday if all goes well.

SBC Reel was missed Monday, but will be back today (Wednesday technically) super-sized and with my review of the Battlestar Galactica season 3 finale!

Speaking of SBC, things are still going good over there. I'm still enjoying it and getting to talk to a lot of creators through it. Look for some great features upcoming including interviews with a Disney legend, Larry Hama, Jeph Loeb and more!

My cousin, Jay finally joined the MySpace craze and has a page up. He's listed as one of my friends, so you can find his profile there. Though it may be hard to spot him. We don't exactly look that much alike. :)

Got some books from Virgin Comics today to review. One of them is next week's Gamekeeper by Guy Ritchie, so I'm looking forward to checking that one out.

On TV, Prison Break is ending for the season next week, which just reminds me all my shows will be ending soon. BSG, now Prison Break, soon Lost and so forth. But at least Heroes is coming back in a couple of weeks!

I haven't read The Hobbit for several days now due to time. When I do have free time I'm usually not reading right now because a big part of my job requires reading, so sometimes I need a break!

As far as Small Press Idol goes, well the site is down pending money being raised to switch to a new server, so everything is stalled. Sigh. Looking at the bright side, it gives us all a little more time to prepare for round 2!

Speaking of which, finally saw some new stuff from Scott and let me tell ya it's looking good!

I guess that's about it. Everything else is pretty average around here.

B-Out

Myth Conceptions

The latest is up! It's not what I promised last week, but I think you'll get a kick out of it anyway.

Click the title as always.

B-Out

Segue

Scott D. M. Simmons, artist of WBZ, gave me a birthday present, and what a present it was. He found an image of one of my characters from my first and beloved superhero team and drew up a sketch of her for me! You can see his artistry below. Segue of the Night Riders!

Thanks, Scott!

B-Out

Myth Conceptions

The new one's up! This week Scott D. M. Simmons, artist of Wannabez, joins me to talk about art from concept to print. Click the post title to read the column.

B-Out

20s No More

Well, it's official. This is the day. I am no longer in my 20s, having crossed the threshold into a new stage. For today I am 30.

Though there is some debate over which day it is, the 20th or the 21st (I've heard both), I'm considering today also the first day of Spring. I am told the year I was born the 21st was the first day of Spring, and it's a story I'm sticking to. How awesome of an idea is it to be born on the first day of Spring, when new life is thought to begin? It symbolizes a fresh start and a new beginning, a new chapter in life. So what could be more fitting than that, I say.

Purely coincidentally this day, and technically this post marks my 500th post on this blog! It wasn't planned or premeditated, it just sort of happened that way. No big announcements to share per se, but isn't being my 30th birthday and the first day of Spring enough cause for celebration? I say it is.

And yes, you read that right. I said celebration. Not necessarily for turning 30, but for it marking a new era and fresh start, and beginning the rest of my life, as of course every day should and does whether we want it to or not.

Contrary to what you may have derived from previous posts, turning 30 never bothered me. It's a number, and it means one more year older. That doesn't bother me. My whole ordeal was being where I'm at by this age, not being this age. There are goals I have not yet met that I certainly thought would have been met by now. And there are things I was hoping would have changed for me by now, but haven't.

But this is not a day to think on those things. Those details are concerned with the past and what could have been, whereas today is a day of looking forward and opening oneself to the possibilities of what lies ahead. So it is with that that I embark on a new journey to discover not what could be, but what can be, at least for the day putting aside concerns over what lies in the path blocking those things, but concentrating on those things themselves. Those goals, dreams and aspirations that lie just over the horizon, just beyond the obstacles, just a few steps away, however large those steps may be.

This is a day of rejoicing for the good and positive things that have come to pass in my life thus far. For the people who truly stood by me, for the accomplishments I did achieve, for the steps that were taken, and for the love I have received.

Fifteen years ago, half my life ago, my brother was born. He has been the greatest thing to ever happen to me in my natural life thus far. I helped raise him and we formed such a bond between us that I had never experienced with another human being. Now he is in those teenage years, soon to be 15 and is into his own things and somewhat distant like all teenagers can be. But that bond still holds strong, and he is still the best thing to happen to me yet aside from God being in my life of course.

At 16 I had my first girlfriend, first serious relationship and first kiss (I was a late bloomer in the looks department - kind of awkward before then). It was an experience I will forever cherish regardless of how it all turned out.

I also had my first job at that age at Chuck E. Cheese's. Yes, I even donned the suit and danced a jig once or twice.

And I graduated high school this year as well. Long story, and I did end up having to go back for three months the following year to make up some tests.

At 18 I got my license (long story), which opened up an entirely new world to me. I could now take myself wherever I wanted to go. And I mostly went alone as everyone was too scared to ride with me!

18 is also when I accepted the call to preach, a call that has been sidetracked a few times over the years, but one that has not been forgotten by any stretch of the imagination.

On my 21st birthday there was a church outing - a get together at a gym where there was food, basketball, skating and other fun stuff. I didn't go instead opting to sleep in. It was my day after all, and the church I had been at since I was 8 had only remembered one of my birthdays up to that point, that being my 16th. So I decided I wouldn't be missed and would have more fun being by myself. Turns out I was missed as my pastor's daughter, a girl I had previously been crazy about for a number of years, but hadn't for a couple went all out. She made me a cake and dressed up in one of her best outfits at the time and made a big deal out of it. I hear she was pretty ticked I didn't show up, but she never let me know it. I still grin about that when I think about it. :)

One week later I started college (struggled for several years figuring out what I was going to do). I should have went to a more specialized college, maybe art or maybe a college that offered degrees in English or graphic design, but I went to a business-centric school where I studied Computer Science and ultimately Business Administration. I hated both and still do to this day, but it was not a waste. While I didn't go hog wild and party I did meet a few very special friends in those days. I've lost touch with them now, but they were great friends at the time and I couldn't have made it through without them.

At age 24 I got my first real job making more money an hour than I had ever made, and that's stayed pretty consistent since only with a couple of deviations. I absolutely hated the job with a passion, but I met some of the best friends of my life there. Again, I've fallen out of touch with them for a number of reasons, but they are the ones I miss the most. They showed me the kind of friendship I had shown others but had never really received myself. They were very special to me.

It was also this year that I went to Florida looking at apartments heavily considering moving there, both for work and because there were opportunities there, creative opportunities, that I wanted to explore. Ultimately reasons kept me where I'm at, but that was the funnest year of my life.

I also dated a girl this year that started off as a hangout buddy, and while we parted ways she was the best girl I have had the pleasure to have a relationship with to date. She was one of the kindest and sweetest persons I've ever met, and she thought the world of me. Sadly we were at different places and it didn't work out, but I'll always cherish the time we spent together.

At 26 I "preached" a benediction for a graduation service. Two of my Sunday School students were graduating high school, one who I'd known since she was a year old. It was a very moving moment for me to be able to deliver this. I choked a little, but all in all it went pretty well.

At 27 or 28 I did a video in one of those booths to a soundtrack at Kings Island (an amusement park in Ohio) and it was played for everyone there to see. I got some amazing feedback from it and even dropped the jaws of some family members. I had only previously sang in church, and mostly not alone. So they hadn't really heard me sing before that point. It's a moment in my life I'll never forget.

Nothing really significant or memorable has happened past that point that I immediately recall, though I'm sure there's at least one or two things I'm forgetting. But there were good times then as well.

Today is a new day to explore new things, to move on and move up and stop looking back. Those mentioned are the kinds of moments I wish to remember on days like this, and the countless little moments that happened in between.

So again I say, this is a day of celebration. To celebrate life, to celebrate opportunity, to celebrate change, hope, love, passion, dreams, desire, faith and so much more. For those reasons I rejoice in this day that the Lord hath made. I embrace the newness of life and a fresh beginning. I accept the challenge to go above and beyond, and to cling to the same hope that has brought me this far.

Today is my birthday.

B-Out

Last Day

Well, here it is, the very last day of my twenties. I can't believe it still. Tomorrow I cross over into a whole new era in my life. Not much to say about it and I don't feel up to waxing philosophical this morning. I don't really feel anything at the moment.

I'm not going to talk about it anymore, at least until tomorrow. :) It just is what it is, for better or for worse, or for the same as it was it is, I don't know. lol. All I know is that while I'll feel no different physically or even mentally, psychologically it registers with me that there is a significant change, and I'll leave it at that.

So, I wish I could say I was going out with a bang, but truth be told I'm just chillin' at the house, working, lettering, watching TV (American Idol, woo!) and just the same ol'. Tomorrow will most likely be the same. And I'm fine with that for now. It's no big deal and I don't really want it to be a big deal. :)

And with that I leave you all until tomorrow when I have to start putting a 3 in front of my age instead of the 2 I have become accustomed to over the last ten years.

So long, twenties, we had good times and bad times, we made friends and lost friends, we took opportunities and missed opportunities, we won some and lost some. And such is life.

B-Out

Quick Update

Sorry for the lack of updates the past few days, been busy. Yesterday I finished up a preview issue of 3rd System (lettering), which is one I completely forgot about. That one's now just pending any possible corrections needed and applying the letters to the final colors when they're done.

Later tonight I'll be continuing lettering Pozers #2. Right now I'm prepping DC solicitations for www.silverbulletcomics.com tomorrow as well as several other solicitations I've yet to post. These are pretty time-consuming to format and every one that comes in is different. Even though they are the biggest, the Marvel and DC ones are actually the easiest to format, but still take a while (especially since I have to convert all the images to RGB for web). The indies usually send high res images and very strangely formatted text, so those take a while to get just right.

Tomorrow I start on Nocturnal Essence #1 (lettering). And sometime this week it'll be AOH #2 and 6 pages and a logo for The Mantis. That's as far ahead as I'm looking at the moment so as not to overwhelm myself.

Tomorrow I have the usual postings on the site as well as any news that trickles in from WWLA (we didn't have anyone there doing coverage sadly) and then I have to help my cousin with a Civics project tomorrow afternoon. So it'll be a busy, busy day tomorrow.

I've yet to write that WBZ #0 script, and I HAVE to make some time to do that in the next couple of days. Round 1 is coming to a close in the contest and we need to get that script ironed out for round 3. I'm told our round 2 stuff is coming along, but Scott hasn't had a chance to show me anything yet.

And that's about it I guess. I'm still reading The Hobbit, about 125 pages in or so and still enjoying it.

Anyway, back to it...

B-Out

Wannabez Interview!

Click the title post to read our first interview! And be sure to keep checking the WBZ blog (linked in the sidebar) for periodical updates!

B-Out

One Week Away

It's exactly one week until my 30th birthday, and depending on who you ask until the first day of Spring (some say it's the 20th, some say it's the 21st, who knows for sure?).

Contrary to popular belief, I'm not really down about turning 30 as far as the age is concerned. Yes, it saddens me a little to be leaving my 20s behind, mainly because I didn't really take the opportunity to really live during them and be nearly as reckless as I should have been. Not in the terms of partying and that sort, but more on the level of traveling and pursuing interests that I wanted to pursue.

That said, I realize I'm still young and still have my life ahead of me, and that it's never too late to do a lot of the things I want to do. If anything, turning 30 has woken up something in me that says "it's now or never". So hopefully this entire experience will turn out to be a positive one in the respect that I do actually get out there and live.

--------------------------------

I believe in the significance of numbers mainly because Biblically God used numbers a lot. The chief ones He used were 3, 5, 7, 10 and 12. Seven has always been my favorite number for some odd reason, and not for the Biblical aspects of it. Maybe it's because of my birth year. Regardless, I just think it's kind of cool that I was born in '77, and my birthday, 3-21 is a multiple of 7, and here it is seven days before my birthday. Coincidence? Most likely, but it's still cool. ")

It's 5:37am as I type this, and for some reason I can't sleep. I dozed off for about two hours around 1:15, but I just can't get back to sleep. I am so tempted to take some nyquil or something just to sleep, but I've never been one to use many medications unless absolutely necessary. So here I am typing a more or less meaningless post just to pass the time and hopefully make myself tired. It's not working, just so you know.

--------------------------------

You know what bugs me about the promos to the movie Number 23? In them there's a line about 666 being the number of the devil. Evidently the screenwriters didn't read their Bibles properly, because 666 is not the number of the devil. It is the number of the Beast, yes, but it is also referred to in Revelations as the number of man.

I'm not going to get into all that here and now, it just bugs me whenever I hear that. Yes, it's still a significant number referring to unsavory events, but it's a number that is far closer to home than people realize. It's not a voodoo number, or some magical number endowed with evil powers. It represents something that will be clear enough soon enough.

End rant.

--------------------------------

What good are these labels for in this new blogger? Do they just link to all posts I've made that contain those particular labels, or do they link to various blogs that contain those labels? If it's the former then it's useless as far as I'm concerned. The latter could be useful. And even though I'm not sure still I play along adding labels away. Why do we do the things we do?

--------------------------------

I'm getting bored with this and don't really have anything else to talk about. I wish I had some updates for you all, but I got nada. So I guess I'll bring this post to a close and maybe try to get a few hours of sleep before getting back up and hitting it all over again. Doubt I'll get a wink.

B-Out

Myth Conceptions

This week I had the pleasure to speak with some of the team behind new Shadowline (Image) series After the Cape!

I've known Howard for a while, and I couldn't be happier for him. And Jim Valentino and Kris Simon are so pleasant to speak with, let me tell ya. It was a great interview if I do say so myself, and I do! ")

Check it out by clicking the title link of course.


B-Out

New Reviews

Here are two new reviews by yours truly:

Purity #2

Civil War #7

Speaking of reviews, when I finish it I'll be reviewing The Hobbit. I know the story well and I've read the old graphic novel, but I am just now getting around to reading the actual book. I'm about four chapters in, and so far so good! Tolkien definitely has a voice all his own, and I enjoy it immensely.

B-Out

Catwoman

While lettering last night I got to finally watch Catwoman. With all the bad things I heard about the movie I wasn't about to pay to see it at the theatres or by rental, so I'm glad I saw it on cable. It came on AMC (American Movie Classics) of all channels, which was just bizarre. Maybe because it had Halle Berry in it? I don't know.

Anyway, I have to say it wasn't nearly as bad as everyone claimed it to be. It wasn't particularly good either, but it certainly was better than say, oh, Spawn or even the last Batman movie before Batman Begins. That's not really saying much I realize, but it wasn't really that bad. It definitely felt more like a made for TV film rather than a big screen production though. The visual effects reminded me a lot of such TV shows as Mutant X and Night Man and so forth, though a little more advanced. And the fight scenes and cat movements were really good to be honest. Berry really studied Capoeira and really knew how to move.

I will say that for the first time I saw in this film why everyone's so down on her acting. I didn't think she was that bad as Storm in the X-Men films, and I like her acting in general. But man, there were some scenes in this film that were just awful! Especially the scenes where the cat in her speaks out of turn then she jumps back to being Patience. It was just awkward b-acting at its worst!

The plot wasn't all that bad, though I half expected Sharon Stone to turn into Clayface as the similarities of the storyline were present, at least from the Batman Animated Series version.

All in all I'd probably give it a C to C+. I've seen much better, but I've seen much worse. I still think the costume was ridiculous, and the close-ups of the cats in the death scene was just corny, but it wasn't that bad of a film. I still wouldn't pay for it though.

B-Out

T-Minus 10

And counting. Only ten days until I leave my precious twenties behind forever. Ah, the memories.

Just thought I'd share.

B-Out

Reviews - The Summons, The Departed

My brother and I finally finished The Departed last night, and let me tell you that was a great movie. What made it great, though, was the ending.

I'll be honest with you, the movie itself was going a little slow for me. The story itself had the potential to be just like every other undercover cop story out there. With the wrong director or slight alterations in the script it could have even been on par with Lucky Number Slevin, which would not have been good. But the way it played out made it all worthwhile, and the acting was top notch. Filled with an all star cast (DiCaprio, Damon, Nicholson, Sheen, Wahlberg, Baldwin) and some intense and emotional drama, the movie, for me, lived up to the hype. It was gritty, the direction was excellent, the plot gave us several shockers and the ending was just classic.

Here's the spoilers...


Everybody dies! Well, everybody except Baldwin and Wahlberg, who both had relatively small roles in the film compared to the other big players. It's not often in a film that both lead actors bite the big one, but that's exactly what happened here. And if it hadn't happened that way it would have made it into just another movie. That ending, in my opinion, landed it the Oscars it received. Great storytelling.


Now onto the book I've been reading, The Summons by John Grisham. While I was into it towards the middle, overall it was not his greatest work by far. As I mentioned before, I have not read his other books, but I have seen several (Rainmaker, The Client, A Time to Kill, The Pelican Brief, The Firm, Runaway Jury) of the film adaptations. If the books of A Time to Kill and Rainmaker are better than their film versions, which is usually the case, then The Summons far pales in comparison, but it was still enjoyable... until the end.

The story, in short, is about a Law Professor, Ray Atlee, who finds his father, a well-respected Mississippi judge, but a poor father, dead in his home. Shortly after Ray finds $3 million stashed behind the sofa, and thus the real story begins. Someone else knows about the money, and the ensuing journey sees Ray scramble to protect his life and the money while trying to solve the mystery of who's after him and where the money came from, and in the meantime lying to everyone close to him.

As I said, the middle of the story, which made up the bulk of it was interesting. There were people following Ray leaving cryptic clues for him no matter where he went. He drove and flew through and to several states, and they were always there, watching him. Meanwhile he was dealing with his father's estate, a drug addict brother and a number of other problems besides the money issue.

The ending is what made this book drop in quality. First, though, being a smart man as Atlee is, there are some things he should have figured out or thought of, like checking to see how these people knew where he was at all times. You'd think he'd check to see if his car was being tracked. Then he just becomes a total wuss at the end of the book and runs for his life, landing himself in jail for speeding and carrying a weapon.

Without giving anything away, in the last few chapters of the book it became painfully obvious who was behind it all and how it had all played out. Early on I had a hint of this as well, and was thoroughly disappointed that the plot was that thin.

Overall, it was a decent read, but the ending ruined it for me. Oh well.

And that's it for the reviews today.

B-Out

Lettering Update

I finished up Lightning Squirrel #2 yesterday, I just have to make some minor adjustments to the cover and then send the high res files off.

I'm actually starting on Pozers #2 today instead of AOH #2, which isn't quite ready yet.

I'm also finishing up those two small logos today.

So to make a few minor adjustments to the last post, next up will be Kord & Harley #2 (Epsilon Realm #2 I haven't received yet) then I'm guessing AOH #2. I may jump around between the two actually, depending on how it works out.

After that the list is pretty much the same as last post, plus one small gig I might have left out called The Mantis.

More soon...

B-Out

Back in Business!

The computer is finally back in working order!

To be perfectly honest it's been up for two weeks as of 6pm today. There are several reasons I haven't notified everyone yet. First, I was playing catch-up like crazy to get to a place where I could handle everyone contacting me all at once, though I still haven't caught up as much as I would have liked. Second, I've had a touch of the flu since this past weekend, and it's gotten worse today, but I'm still here. And thirdly, I have just been so busy I haven't had time to email everyone or post here. With the computer fixed my workload increased, so that's that. There were other reasons also, but I won't go into them.

In the wide world of lettering...

Today I will be finishing up Lightning Squirrel #2, then starting on AOH #2, and doing a couple of small logos.

Tomorrow and Saturday I will be finishing AOH #2.

Sunday I'll be starting on and probably finishing a short with logo.

Over the next couple of weeks I'll have the following on my plate:

Epsilon Realm #2
Pozers #2
Kord & Harley #2
Advent logo
Scott's Web Comic
A few Approbation shorts
MSC logos

And I think that's everything currently on my plate. If I've left anything out EMAIL ME!

It sounds like a lot, I know, but a few of those I am really into a groove on and can finish them rather fast.

As for beyond all this, I know I have three projects to letter in the Small Press Idol contest, but that won't come for a while. I'll be doing some lettering on the character designs in about three weeks, but that's not too intrusive.

As soon as I feel I'm caught up to a point I can take on more I will be contacting people who have previously contacted me and go from there.

Aside from writing I am obviously doing a lot of work for SBC right now, and soon I'll be doing a lot of work for MSC (more details on that soon). Then of course there's writing. I still have to write up my script for Small Press Idol, do my weekly column, I have at least two interviews lined up, a few reviews I have to do this week, a couple of scripts I really need to buckle down on, and so forth.

It really does sound like a lot, huh? I'll manage, always do. And I'll do my best to keep you all updated better now that the PC is back up and I'm able to concentrate on it more. Thanks!

B-Out

Myth Conceptions

The latest is up, though it's not at all what I intended for this week. I'm not sure what it is exactly. I was REALLY late with it, so I just started writing. So what came of it, you be the judge!

Click the title link to read.

B-Out