Viewing Category: This rocks!
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In July I was browsing the server logs, and noticed an incoming link from a website affiliated with the 9rules network. I was impressed by the sheer quality of the member sites--all of them beautiful, well-written, and highly personable. In short, they possessed all the qualities I wanted my site to have!
But what really got me excited were the founding principles of the network:
The 9rules Network is about building a community of high quality websites as well as a community of highly discerning readers. Content is king and looking good helps. We add sites that meet these rigorous standards and leave bribe money under our keyboards.
[...]
The network is here for both experienced writers and bloggers, for newer authors trying to gain a foothold, and for the millions of readers who flock to sites in our network everyday. Site authors can join the network and boost their audience, newer authors can get some help from more experienced members, and web users now have a place to find great content on the web. 9rules is for everyone.
I liked the vibe of what they said...wouldn't it be cool to be part of a network like that?
As luck would have it, 9rules.com had just started their 2nd Round of Submissions, which was to last for only 24 hours. I was able to submit this website before the deadline, and crossed my fingers.
Over the next few weeks several sites were added to the 9rules roster, but not mine. That was ok with me...I was grateful that I had gotten a chance to hear about 9rules in the first place, and vowed I would build my own network! With the new career direction building momentum, I was feeling good about the future.
Yesterday, I got a confirmation email that my site had, indeed, not made the cut. I felt a twinge of sadness, but I had been expected this. This was just more incentive to refocus the site, which was in the works anyway, and take things to a higher level on my own.
Then two minutes later, I got another email:
"Scratch that last email. Welcome to the network."
This is the largest group of talented, quality-conscious, independently-minded people I have ever been affiliated with. It's both daunting and exciting to be in their presence, and I'm happy to be a part of this organization (never thought I'd say that about ANY organization, but there it is).
This feels like the right thing to do. Awesome!
So I've been showing my cousin Jason all the tricks I know about ActionScripting in Flash MX 2004. What's in it for me? Why free guitar lessons, of course!
Jason brought over cousin Ben's old electric guitar too, which I have on indefinite loan until Sylvie (Ben and Diana's toddler) is old enough to demand it for herself. So I got to buy a little Danelectric portable practice amp for $19. I got it mostly because it looked cool. I also have a portable Korg digital four-track with guitar effects built-into it, so alltogether I have something I can play wailing guitar solos on...someday!
I never got around to taking guitar lessons, so I didn't know a damn thing about how they worked. The last epiphanous moment I had with the guitar was when someone told me that you didn't have to play all the strings to play chords. AH! That made some sense!
One cool detail about the practice amp: it came with a Danelectric branded 9V Battery! It's very cool, so I'm saving it. I have never seen such a cool battery before.
My biggest problem to date has been learning how to use my left hand. It didn't feel natural and I have big stubby fingers. They are good for giving deep back massages, but are a liability on a narrow fretboard. Jason showed me the basic G, C, and D chords, and told me not to worry about playing the notes clean. I have been practicing a bit every day, just trying to remember them and build up callouses in my fingers and also the muscle strength and memory in my wrists. Today, I noticed I was playing the chords a little cleaner and my fingers are starting to remember the positions on their own. Amazing!
On a side note, I've been pretty fascinated by how the body learns things rapidly with just a bit of practice and sleep. The initial ramp-up, if you push through and do it 10 or so times, is enough to get your brain and body learning. Even with exercise, I've noticed a tangible increase in energy level and stamina from just a couple weeks of repetition. The big insight for me, which will be old hat for everyone else, is that the physical sensation of discomfort is actually a sign that things are going well...keep it up! That means it's working! Pain is something else entirely, so you just have to monitor yourself to make sure you don't get to that point.
The avoidance of discomfort has been actually pretty good for me in some respects; while I had not previously done a lot of exercise, it did teach me how to touch-type in a non-standard hand position. The wrist-destroying technique they teach you in school is to hold both your hands pointing straight-forward. The way I learned to type was to avoid that stress, and type with arms relaxed at my side and middle fingers pointing at the F5 key. This is remarkably similar to those angled ergonomic keyboards. The net result: no carpal tunnel despite spending hours everyday typing at relatively high WPM. Wrists are straight and in good shape!
I never realized that those stippled portraits in the Wall Street Journal where actually made by someone; I thought they were made through some kind of photographic halftoning process. My apologies to Noli Novak, the real-live human artist that creates them through meticulous pen and ink work. She literally rocks.
There's a brief audio interview with her on NPR's All Things Considered. It takes about 3 hours to her to do one 3 x 5 portrait. She trains new artists at the WSJ to keep the style uniform in addition to daily visual problem solving, For example, drawing George W. Bush is a challenge:
Everyone hates to draw Bush, including me, because he has a slight, very slight cross-eyedness and so, sometimes, moving eyes are just required because it would look like you made a mistake. With Bush you can't do that...you have to stay as close as possible. Like, if you like at this drawing here, you can see that...something is just a little off...
Hee hee. Via BoingBoing.
I caught an interview with Marcel Marceau on The Connection. He's still kickin' at 81 years old, and it's a treat to hear him talk on the radio. I started listening at first for the sheer novelty of it, but I quickly became drawn in. I didn't know he was part of the French Resistance fighting Nazis in World War II. And to listen to him speak about his art, his experiences, and what it is to be alive...just incredible. I came to understand that this man has really touched millions over a career than spans 60 years.
The audio interview is, unfortunately, in RealAudio format, but you can download Real Alternative and Tara's Real Audio Plugin for Winamp and avoid all that spyware crap.
I was browsing Penny Arcade and came upon a link to 10K Commotion, a graphic novel illustrated by artist Yukon Makoto.
So what's it about? Here's the fictional backstory:
The 10K Commotion is a Dance Dance Revolution™ Tournament held in Honolulu, Hawaii. Sponsored by the creators of the original game, this promises to be the biggest tournament ever in the USA.
Thousands of players will register and hundreds will win prizes ranging from cash & in-store prizes, modeling contracts and music video agent consultations, to endorsement agreements with clothing and merchandise sponsors and prizes from local sponsors.
The watercolory, sketchy style lends itself to the story: a bunch of kids in their late teens / early twenties share a passion for the video game Dance Dance Revolution. They've come together from all over the world to compete against each other, but instead of becoming enemies they find comfort in knowing that they are truly among their peers. Flirtation and friendship is inevitable. I can't think of an analogous comic...maybe it's a little like those competition manga like Yakitate! Japan, except it takes place in an urban Asian-American anime-influenced college setting in Hawaii. Also, unlike Yakitate! Japan, we never see the actual competition; instead, we see the reactions of the characters to what's going on. We infer what has happened through the slang that is centered around the game. The theme really seems to be that of relationships, dreams, and being on the cusp of making major life choices.
I also find the depiction of this particular subculture fascinating; having once been in the game industry, I can identify with the vibe though I never did quite live it fully like this. I still miss being among people who just had that vibe about games, games culture, and the desire to kick ass at it.
Some may find the dialog hard to follow, but I'm convinced that the people in this scene talk this way. From that perspective, 10K Commotion is quite believable.
The entire comic is not yet done, but it's up to the very part. Makoto has another project in the works that I'm looking forward to seeing...she's one to watch. The combination of writing and artwork create an authentic, compelling whole. Bravo!
