Eraser shavings

Paper has a stubble beard

And won’t look polished

How cool is this Japanese eraser set in the shape of miniature fast food? Way cool. Although they appear incredibly life-like, these mini erasers are not meant for consumption. Keep these out of the reach of kids under eight years old and those adults who still affectionately refer to McDonald’s as “Don Don’s”. Each set includes a fountain soda, sandwich, burger (hold the tomato), hot dog, large fries, and can of soda. Yes, the entire Japanese eraser set comes on its own little fast food …

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_qQkhxyaf0&hl=en

For Nature and Scenic, we are meeting to discuss which images should be pulled into the portfolio for this class. Here are my submissions:

AJ

あんまり詳しくレビューする気はないが、それなりに面白いとは思う画像編集アプリ「ERASER」のご紹介。

まあ簡単に説明すると、このアプリを起動して、消してしまいたい部分をマスクして、Doneすると、はい消えましたってアプリです。

【元画像】

【ざっくりとしか選べないマスク】

【消えた！？】

山のてっぺんがヘンだが、水面に映る木の本体は確かに消えている。

技術的には面白いことをしてるのだが、この方式だと幅の広い範囲を消そうとすると、かなりヘンなことになるんじゃなかろうか。
しかし、縦に細い領域、またはごく小さな部分なら誤魔化せそうだ。

機能・操作性ともに作り込まれてないし、適応できる画像も限られそうだが、とりあえず置いておこうと思うアプリですな。

A Five Hole Pencil Sharpener

The Eraser Brush

A cool ‘Spin Calendar’ … Just because

Get it all here!! All P&C Products

1. sketchbook
2. pencils of various kinds
3. ERASER. It is my LOVER.
4. Books (I get inspiration from a good story!)
5. Tea (To keep me awake!)
6. Chapstick (it’s dry in wintertime…this is essential!)
7. Altoids (mint stimulates the brain! seriously, it’s scientifically true.)
8. Pastels (Favorite coloring device)
9. Crayons (meh…least favorite coloring device, but still used.)
10. Moleskine (to jot down ideas when I’m out and about! Or just a home. Either way.)

OKAY, YOUR TURN!
Take a picture of your workspace and label your ten MUST HAVE items that fuel your imagination and ideas! I tag ANYONE who’s interested!

Halloween is coming up. Although I’m not doing a Halloween show tonight the season is making me in the mood for some Misfits. These guys rock in such an awesomely ghoulish way, who wouldn’t love hearing them on or near Halloween.

Listen in tonight from 8 to 10 pm on KRUI 89.7 fm or online here.

1. The Misfits, Collection (1986), London Dungeon

2. The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Power of Negative Thinking: B-Sides and Rarities (2008), Why’d You Want Me
(This is a box set encompassing tracks from their entire career.)
3. Mission of Burma, Vs. (Bonus Track on the Remastered album), Forget
Vs. originally came out in 1982
4. Dinosaur Jr., Where You Been? (1993), Start Choppin
These guys are TOURING, and they played last thursday at the Vic in Chicago. Here’s a quote from Miles Raymour I pulled off of The Chicago Reader. (I couldn’t Summarize Lou Barlow any better, even though I do love the Smiths.)

Morrissey may be popularly perceived as the King of Sadness Feelings, but his arch melodrama has always struck me as too closely related to handful-of-Tylenol “suicide attempt” drama queen-ism, which is just another way for somebody to say “Look at me!” Serious aficionados of feeling bad know that Lou Barlow is the true master of alt-rock miserablism. His 90s discography covers all the main flavors of depression, from the heartbroken “I could break down crying at any time” prettiness of Sebadoh’s “Soul and Fire” to the abject “I haven’t left the house or showered in a week” desolation of Sentridoh’s “Choke Chain,” and his frequent detours into hardcore bong-rip punk are a fair stand-in for manic jags. (Let’s not talk about the Folk Implosion.) On his new solo album, Goodnight Unknown (Merge), he sounds more settled and less self-tortured, more expansive and less dependent on minor keys—but he can still write a tuneful, melancholy pop song, and the hushed “I’m Thinking . . . ” is as dark as anything he’s done.

5. Liz Phair, Exile in Guyville (1993 on Matador records), 6′1″
6. Secret Shine, Untouched (1993), Sun Warmed Water
7. No Age, Eraser (A single off of Sub pop, released in 2008), Eraser
8. Jona Lewie, The Best of Jona Lewie (2002), The Baby She’s on the Street
(This track came out in 1978, and its just so much fun.)
9. Spizzenergi, Where’s Captain Kirk? the Very Best of Spizz (2002), Where’s Captain Kirk (the single came out in 1979)
10. Lene Lovich, Lucky Number: The Best of (2004), Say When
11. Depeche Mode, The Best of Depeche Mode, People are People (single came out in 1984)
(as you can tell from the last three albums I’m a sucker for best of albums.)
12. Elvis Costello, This Year’s Model (1978), Radio Radio
13. Siouxsie & The Banshees, Twice upon a Time- The Singles, Cities in Dust (single was released in 1985)
14. The Gun Club, Fire of Love (1981), Ghost on the Highway
This album is brilliant. When I first heard this I never heard anything like it. Allmusic has them sited as a “tribal psychobilly blues” band. Check them out.

15. Radio Birdman, The Essential Radio Birdman (1974-1978), Aloha Steve and Danno
16. The Replacements, All Shook Down (1990), My Little Problem
17. Husker Du, New Day Rising (1985), Plans I Make
18. Polvo, In Prism (2009), D.C. Trails
19. Pixies, Come on Pilgrim (1987), The Holiday Song
20. The Magnetic Fields, 69 Love Songs (1999), I Can’t Touch You Anymore

21. Mazzy Star, So Tonight That I Might See (1993), Blue Light
22. Modest Mouse, Good News for People Who Love Bad News (2004 and also nominated for a Grammy), The World at Large
23. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Tender Prey (1988), The Mercy Seat (Johnny Cash covered this tune.)
24. Portishead, Dummy (1994), Roads
25. The Swell Maps, A Trip to Marineville (1979, and re-released in 1989), Vertical Slum

26. Tom Waits, Bone Machine (1992, and won a Grammy that year), Goin’ Out West

Nah, it’s not quite the end of the world yet; something far more important than that…

In an uncontainable spontaneous excitement, it was suddenly essential to at least give arguably one of the greatest first person shooters ever made some coverage. No, this impulse post has nothing to do with Doom, Quake or even Halo, yet it has a weighty link to Goldeneye but isn’t actually the Bond-infested classic itself. Nope, I’m talking Perfect Dark; the 2000-unleashed Nintendo 64 trend-sketcher!

No really, the multiplayer was like Goldeneye on speed. Bots everywhere, cruelly unbalanced weapons, utter carnage and, most significantly, with four human players, truly unlimited possibilities that re-set the tone for every FPS that followed.

Ahead of its time in terms of providing the N64’s processor with a constant migrane and sore muscles, it produced some wonderfully atmospheric locations (until the rubbish alien bit. Sigh) and painted stimulating images of the future. So Perfect Dark, as you may well be aware what with its announcement back in June, is getting a much deserved rehash. With only a few images currently available from the water-tight Twycross HQ that infamous developers Rare reside, obsessives of the nine-year old original version have an early Christmas present inbound, what with its touted “winter ‘09″ release. With Rare (well, 4J Studios in this case) now secured on Microsoft’s leash, it’s likely we won’t see the year-long delays that Nintendo allowed the first time around. And so it’s time to get excited!

What we can expect:
- High definition running at a constant 60fps (no matter how many N-Bombs are showered upon opponents, right?)
- A revamped single player
- Xbox 360 exclusive content
- ONLINE multiplayer (up to four players)
- The return of a dodgy Scottish accent!

Sharper textures, solid framerate and the chance to play through Perfect Dark again? Ta muchly!

Before reaching ultra-euphoria stages I must at least remind myself of the negatives, as there always are some:

Eins: No doubt it’s gameplay has aged significantly in the last nine years and, unlike a maturing French red wine, it’s unlikely to appeal to many newcomers, who nowadays expect the hectic and complex nature of shooters such as the Call Of Duty series.

Zwei: Modern Warfare 2. The so-highly-anticipated-shooter-that-you’ll-get-a-nosebleed contemporary-set sequel to the unrealisticly popular Call of Duty 4 will no doubt, to put in no uncertain terms, piss on its parade, thus rendering Perfect Dark XBLA’s online multiplayer feature pretty much redundant. As excellently gripping as MW2’s online gameplay is shaping up to be, from a diehard fan of the original PD’s perspective, it’s deflating to admit that the new online feature is going to receive as much attention as independent “thriller” Zyzzyx Road.*

Drei: Please, for the love of God, may this update not tarnish the rosey memories of the yesteryear. Even now I remember blocking out the blazing summer sun in 2000 for some multiplayer action with my best friend of that time. And a couple of years later myself and three different friends ran the game ragged once more, ducking into dark corners and blasting each other with fly-by-wire rocket launchers while seeking each other out with futuristic weaponary akin to those depicted in Eraser. However, it’s now 2009, and gaming has grown and developed at such a rate that it’ll be a sad sight if it can no longer hack the pace.

On a side note, it remains to be seen whether the bonus ‘classic’ weapons from Goldeneye will make an appearance. After the Bond-’em-up remake’s cancellation due to Nintendo Big Cheese Satoru Iwata’s disagreement with seeing it on a rival format, it seems unlikely we’ll be wielding any PP9i’s or KF7 Specials any time soon. Thanks again, Iwata-san.

Anyway, I’ve downloaded and put up the free Marketplace Perfect Dark theme on my 360; have you?

She's been looking at me all pissed off for some reason since June...

*Nope, I’ve never heard of it either. Its $30 US gross is impressive, though!

————————–

UPDATE: By jove, no more than five days after posting my excitement, Rare go and release a new screenshot complete with a corresponding N64 image to compare it with! Having had no further information there’s not much to say, other than look at the detail on the FarSight! It looks as if the XBLA update is going to reveal how the game was originally intended to look all those years ago, had the N64 been fully capable of coping with Rare’s ambition. Have a gander at the differences for yourself:

N64 original (although a little sharper, running through an emulator)

The softer, easier on the eye, XBLA remake

Aah, it’s like 2000 all over again, except in HD! Say an emotional goodbye to jagged edges, terrible framerates and outdated control systems! The anticipation keeps building… I can almost hear enemies’ whimpers and cries right now: “I was only doing my job…” Bless. BANG! Heh, good times.

Taking off waterproof makeup without a decent remover is an experience no one should have to go through. It’s not an easy choice—either constantly touching up flakey lashes and wandering shadow or shredding delicate skin and ripping out lashes.

There are an infinite number of waterproof makeup removers out there, and I had very little luck with them until I met Sens’Eyes by Make Up For Ever (M.U.F.E.).

Image from Sephora.com

It’s a supersmooth formula—soft, silky, and glides on easily. Put a half-pea-sized amount on a medium-sized cotton ball and gently press it onto your lid. Hold it for a few seconds, and very slowly swirl the cotton ball around the ball of your eye. Remove the cotton ball and wipe away what’s left with a clean cotton pad. For ultra-stubborn makeup, repeat the process with a slightly firmer cotton round.

I only use this makeup remover with waterproof makeup, because it is a little on the pricey side. Sens-Eyes is great for eyes, face, and lips, and it’s a non-drying formula, so use it all over your face if necessary. It’s also oil-free, so those with skin prone to breakouts can join in on the pain-free waterproof makeup removal party

Tip: Sens-Eyes is particularly useful for fixing early-morning blunders. If you need to re-do part of your makeuop, you can erase small errors with a tiny dot of Sens-Eyes on a Q-Tip or cotton ball, without having to start your makeup all over.

There I was perusing The Guardian on a Tuesday morning to read that Radiohead’s Thom Yorke was forming a new supergroup with Flea from the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. It wasn’t April Fools day. I followed through to Thom’s blog to find out that tickets were going on sale at 10am later in the day and they were playing in Los Angles the following Sunday. Bingo. Short of Led Zeppelin and David Bowie playing in my living room, this was gig of the decade. In debt to the powers of the internet, a mere few hours later I was lucky enough to get tickets. The future looked bright.

Outside the art nouveau master piece that is the Orpheum Theatre in downtown LA the neon sign announced ‘Sell Out: ???????????’. The band was unnamed. Thom Yorke arrived on stage to an appreciative roar. Helped by Flea on bass, this was a noughties supergroup with Nigel Godrich on guitar and lending backing vocals, Mauro Refosco on percussion and REMs drummer Joey Waronker providing the beats. They were to play Yorke’s solo album Eraser.

Eraser is a deep electronic album, oweing much to Warp and Aphex Twin with it’s squelchy notes and bubbling basslines. Tonight with such a talented group of musicians it took on exciting and organic new forms. Clock became a funky percussive Afro work out underpinned by Flea’s winding bass lines. Atoms For Peace a sparse melodic anthem all the more haunting with live instrumentation. The tone and contrast between the more intense work outs and the gentler ballads was pitch perfect. They also covered Radiohead’s Paperbag Writer. Thom played some of his new material on his own – Lotus Flower, Open The Floodgates and Super Collider – comfortably basked in the spotlight, his unique voice more of an instrument than the piano he tinkled.

In contrast to his persona with Radiohead, Thom looked really happy, beaming as he danced around propelled by the intricately layered percussion. At times he looked like a Hindu temptress as he wriggled with his hands over his head as if in prayer. Flea bobbed around alongside Thom like a Manc raver, wobbling his head and shuffling his Converse, both clearly having the time of their lives. On a few tracks Flea even got all Seinfield with the slap bass.

“I just want to thank the band. We’ve only been rehearsing for three weeks. And we’ve worked our tits off,’ Thom said. As a testament to their talent, it looked like they’d been playing together for three years. It felt like we were privy to a unique one off, which made the atmosphere all the more special. I’m not sure if they have plans for future gigs. It must be difficult for members of two of the biggest bands in the world to jaunt off on such a new venture. I hope they manage to get in the studio and record this – it deserves to be bottled for eternity.

Supposedly, Thom Yorke hooked up with Flee from the Chili Peppers and some other artists and threw a special concert where they played songs from his solo album “The Eraser”.  The questions is why couldn’t they have played live in NYC rather than in L.A.?  I’m jealous! Hope someone recorded some live video of this and posted it on You Tube. 

Here, is the article from the Guardian, enjoy!!! http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/oct/05/thom-yorke-flea

Un 29 de Septiembre de este año, Thom Yorke publico el siguiente mensaje en Dead Air Space, la página oficial de Radiohead, y nos soprendio a todos armando una nueva banda con la cual presentar viejo material de Eraser, su disco solista del 2005, y las nuevas canciones que han ido surgiendo de su inagotable talento :

hi
in the past couple of weeks i’ve been getting a band together for fun to play the eraser stuff live and the new songs etc.. to see if it could work!
here’s a photo.. its me, joey waronker, mauro refosco, flea and nigel godrich.

at the beginning of october the 4th and 5th we are going to do a couple of shows at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles.
we don’t really have a name and the set will not be very long cuz ..well …we haven’t got that much material yet!
but come and check it out if you are in the area. we’ve also got locals Lucky Dragons playing.
all the best
Casi terminando la semana y confirmando los intensos rumores, Thom , otra vez vía Dead Air Space nos contó que esa nueva banda, la cual a la fecha no posee nombre, estaría haciendo un show de precalentamiento en Los Angeles, California.

ok now with a link that works hopefully

so yes that band thats doesnt really have a name that im working with at the moment??????
have decided to do a warm-up show on Friday Oct 2nd around 9pm at the Echoplex in Los Angeles
Its not that big, it’ll be total chaos and its kind of a rehearsal but .. if you are near by..
below is a link to get tickets.
hope you get lucky with it.

so ain’t no point hanging around if u dont im afraid

all the best
Ok, pensamos…un show chiquito, poca gente, algo intimo y de poca intensidad…

Nop, esto es Thom Yorke, ya deberiamos estar acostumbrados a las sorpresas.

Por que anoche Thom y su banda tocaron en forma integra el Eraser del 2005, mas las recientemente editadas The Hollow Earth y Feeling Pulled Apart By Horses y….cuatro nuevas canciones mas :

Open The Floodgates

Lotus Flower

Going On The Surface ( cargar el vídeo y esperar cinco munitos a que comience )

Judge, Jury, & Executioner ( no es la vieja Myxomatosis, cuyo titulo alternativo era precisamente ese)

También tocaron una recreación de Paperbag Writer, un lado B de la época de Hail To The Thief. ( ojo ! material casi NSFW para las chicas…se aconseja discreción al reproducir estas imágenes )

O sea…

un concierto de la puta madre. Cuando le eche mano al soundboard de esto se los comparto.

Vía Stereogum.

Es tan guay que da hasta rabia. Podría pasarme horas viéndolo.

CLICK!!!

I was catching up today on numerous e-blasts and emails I get on various subjects and professions from advertising to entertainment to frugality to marketing to story pitches.  As Tess McGill said, You never know where the next big idea will come from.  One of them was referring to the impending sale of Saturn from GM to Penske Motors.  It quoted a source in the Detroit Daily News that said it’s in the final stages of negotiations, “was at the 2 yard line” and was expected to be signed in the next 24 hours.  Great news for not just the Saturn dealers but Saturn owners everywhere.  Their brand was going to be continued ensuring the value of the cars they owned.  Everyone remembers how Oldsmobile sales plummeted, trade-in values sank and service issues arose after GM announced it was discontinuing the decades old line.  Everyone connected with Saturn wouldn’t have to deal with the same issues and problems.

Not 6 hours later as I was driving up to visit my niece and nephews, the news cast said the deal had fallen through, Penske was not going to buy the line, GM was going to phase it out in less than 2 years and another brand, not quite as venerable, was disappearing from the landscape.  What struck me was how fast it all happened.  This wasn’t a baseball or football game where outcomes can change on a dime.  In a sporting event, that’s supposed to happen, or at least the possibility of it changing always exists.  This was a business negotiation that had been in the works for months and poof! gone.  The changing business climate isn’t just the brands disappearing but the speed in which the change is happening.  Staying flexible and agile will be key going forward for any business concern, be it a one person voiceover business or a multi national multi platform entity.  The old rules won’t apply anymore, in fact I don’t think they’ll ever apply again.  Exciting and scary at the same time.

Thank goodness I drive a Geo, oh wait, that doesn’t exist anymore either.  See, that big giant eraser IS trying to wipe my very existence away.  I’m not imagining things.

A little info about me and why I’m going to be updating mostly about the asia pacific for the next few weeks. I was born and raised in the homeland, Philippines, also I’m bi-lingual but mostly speak the main spoken language which is tagalog. Been living in Silicon Valley for about 10 years and haven’t been back home ever since.  Anyway, today, I read and saw the news about the aftermath of Ketsana (Ondoy), The situation is still in chaos in some areas due to lack of government help, initiative to send out help in some areas and such. The biggest contributor, ABS-CBN which is one of the major TV/Entertainment firm in the Philippines also did launch a relief help in the metro manila area.

On the other side of this chaos, donations and goods are keeping on piling up!

Alright, so today I had one class which is AWESOME! but nay to the first exam this thursday for it. I  have to study, study, study. Then I went to Kahoo Ramen(Moorpark/saratoga area),Ordered the Shoya ramen which in translation – Thin noodles were the best to compliment the soup with beef, spinach, seaweed, egg and various vegetables…

Yep, for $7 you can’t go wrong! I will also yelp this restaurant later. After I went to Kinokuniya bookstore in the same plaza as Kahoo ramen, checked out the recent publishings and killed some time there. Since I’m a fan of japanese Mechanical pencil, I headed to Maido in Santana row for a nice zebra pencil, F lead, and pilot foam eraser. $11 for those 3 items, it’s not even the $$$ stuff I saw one go for $85 for a really nice one…

Now I’m here at home blogging/Nerding out. Bout to hit up the gym in a little bit then hit the sack! Keep y’all updated! I’ll try and make this a everyday thing like I previously posted. Thanks for reading again!

So, Thom Yorke (of… duh… Radiohead) just blogged on deadairspace about getting a band together to rehearse the Eraser tunes to play a couple of gigs in Los Angeles.  Flea (of… duh… Red Hot Chili Peppers) is part of the live Eraser band.

??????

hi

in the past couple of weeks i’ve been getting a band together for fun to play the eraser stuff live and the new songs etc.. to see if it could work!

here’s a photo.. its me, joey waronker, mauro refosco, flea and nigel godrich.

at the beginning of october the 4th and 5th we are going to do a couple of shows at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles.

we don’t really have a name and the set will not be very long cuz ..well …we haven’t got that much material yet!

but come and check it out if you are in the area. we’ve also got locals Lucky Dragons playing.

all the best

click here to get to get tickets>

10/04

10/05

Cool…

~Dan – np: Farmers Market – Surfin’ USSR

Charles brought me and my mom to church very early in the morning because I was the worship leader last Sunday and we had to practice. After the service, several of my cousins including my younger sister and brother and Charles and I went to McDonald’s near church to eat lunch. When we got back inside the car after the quick lunch, Charles was pointing somewhere and asking me, “Oh, look, what’s that?”

I, being the gullible thing, followed where his hand pointed. When I turned back at him he was hold a square shaped something wrapped in red and white plaid pattern. He said it was a prize because I passed the boards. And I guessed it right too. It was a copy of Griffin and Sabine! I just had to kiss him He made me really happy.

By Nick Bantock

Charles and I then headed to Galleria with Koji, Alyanna, and Marvin. Marvin was the first one to go to the pc shop, while the rest of us went to Photoline to have my picture taken first. I needed it for my PRC license. We also decided to get a picture taken together just for fun. We chose a red background, but it was just photoshopped in. It looks rather awful when we got it afterwards, but I had an idea that we doodle on the background. We haven’t done it yet, but I started a small doodle on mine already. Heheh.

We went to Toys ‘R Us to buy a toy gun. Koji needed it for a project. They were making a movie about globalization. I’m curious. I want to see it when they’ve finished. Hehe. Then on our way to the cashier, Alyanna found the 20Q Ball. She had always wanted to own one when Bethany (our cousin living in Shanghai) showed hers. It was a good thing Alyanna opened the package right away, since we found out it wasn’t working. The employee there changed the batteries, but he didn’t put the cover back on properly so we had to go back and asked someone else to screw it on right. It annoyed Charles and Koji. Haha.

Marvin was already playing when we got to the computer shop. We had planned to play Starcraft, but the plan failed because there wasn’t enough of us and there weren’t enough pc’s available. So the four of us decided to just go around the mall.

Our first agenda was to buy me slippers, because my heels were killing me. Charles gave me a little scolding Said I should always leave a pair of slippers in his car. Hehehehe. But we didn’t get there right away because I saw pretty leggings in Forever 21 Alyanna went to check it because I thought they were liquid leggings. Well, they weren’t, but still very very pretty and I wanted my own pair. Hehe. I tried on a party dress. Alyanna took a picture of me.

Haha! If only I had enough to money to buy it! But I didn’t have any… So I’ll just have to make do with a picture. Hehehehe…

So after checking out dresses, we went inside the department store to buy me a pair of slippers. I kept kidding Charles to buy it for me. Hehehehe. We decided to eat at Frostings. Koji suggested it and I was suddenly craving for a red velvet cupcake. But we could get to our destination right away. We were distracted by other shops. Haha. We went in one of my favorite shoe store, Aldo. I tried on some shoes and they were having a sale! If only I had cash…. Sigh.

I would upload the shoe on sale here, but sadly… I can’t find on the net. I wasn’t able to take a picture of it. Hmm. Oh well. Let’s just hope it’s still there by the time I get some money on my hands

I don’t quite remember where else we went, but we finally got to Frostings. There was a kiosk nearby and I found cute uniquely shaped erasers–food erasers–the one my younger sister loves collecting…  I grew fond of them too so I’ve always kept in mind to buy some for Seth if I get the chance to come across one. And I finally did.

Charles and I picked our surprise for Seth and planned to buy the other designs for next time. So happy

My dad called and set me on an errand to buy a clip for his keys. And we came across Saizen where everything sells for P85. Haha… Found more erasers there and arm warmers.

My sister likes to copy Selena Gomez’s fashion from Wizards of Waverly Place, so I decided to buy those for Seth too next time. Haha. I think my mom would want to shop there too. She just loves household items.

So that’s just about it. We went home after that because Charles’s needed to be someplace. He dropped us off in my house and stayed for a bit before going home to fetch his mom. (Alyanna finished Griffin and Sabine in a few hours.)

Thank you love for Griffin and Sabine ^x^ I love you. <3

1/8/89

Dear Journal,

On Friday I went to see the movie Twins with my parents. It was so much fun. We got pop-corn an ice cream and we played video games.

I had a real blast.

Me and Nisa are now as close as we were.

Rose and me sort of had a fight. We are still ok friends though I guess.

I just hope she does not get her mother involved in this.

Art by DoA

The first movie my parents took me to see when we immigrated to America in 1982 was Splash. I fell in love with movies then and there. (I also decided I wanted to be a mermaid, despite the inconvenience in modern New York, especially when shady characters played by Eugene Levy were hunting you.) To this day, going to the movies is a treat for me, from the snacks to the previews to the hush that falls upon the audience when the opening credits roll.

Growing up, going to the movies was one of the main ways my parents and I bonded. We were amazed by the scenes that unfolded before us in darkened theaters and amazed by the snack counters. Much in the same way Beefsteak Charlie’s taught us eating unlimited plates of shrimp was okay, movie theaters taught us that gorging ourselves on tubs of popcorn and sodas the size of my torso was perfectly acceptable. It was the American way.

While I was quick to segue from my movie outing to my latest trouble with Nisa and Emily, let’s forget the friend drama for a moment and talk real drama. Let’s talk Arnold.

Most people who know me are surprised to find that I have a deep affection for the films of Arnold Schwarzenegger. Ask about my favorite films and I’ll mention a string of foreign/indie/arty/classic titles. But no matter how much of a film snob I become when discussing Felinni, Lynch, or Lubitch, the mere mention of an Arnold movie will make me light up with a different kind of enthusiasm.

I don’t know what it is, but I’ve always had a soft spot for this Austrian body-builder-turned-actor-turned-politician. Maybe because he was also Eastern European, and showed us how much an immigrant can accomplish in America. More likely, it was the fact that movies like Commando and Pretador were sheer thrill rides, but then he could turn his intimidating physique into a vehicle for comedy in movies like Twins and Kindergarten Cop. Sometimes the action and humor blended seamlessly and you got a movie like True Lies.

Generally, I prefer Arnold in the more dramatic roles, like the Terminator films and Total Recall. I didn’t even mind Eraser much (especially when a panicked Vanessa Williams scolds Arnold for being late in the middle of a shootout and he deadpans, “Traffic”). There’s something about his big hulking form and thick accent that I find thoroughly endearing. Watching him on film, Arnold has a vaguely bewildered air to him. As if he isn’t sure how he ended up a movie set, but decides early on that he is going to kick as much ass as possible while he’s there. And he does.

I haven’t kept up with his career as governor, but I have to admit I miss seeing the big lug on the big screen. Today’s blockbusters star special effects more than they do action heroes. Arnold was a true action icon. Despite his sense of humor, he still packed some serious muscle and authority. When he screams “GET TO DA CHOPPA!!!” you better listen.

I am about as paper-free as anyone can be, but when I do want to write something down, I have small pieces of paper I tear up from waste paper. And there is always a pencil sitting at the ready.

Ever since I was a child I have always preferred a pencil to a pen, and through the years have even gotten to the point where the eraser outlasts the lead—actually it’s a graphite and clay mixture. The amount of clay used in the mixture modifies the hardness of the graphite, giving us a full range of pencils from 9H or 9B. The scale for hardness was developed in Europe where H stands for hardness, B for blackness and F for fine point. The standard No. 2 pencil we are all used to using is HB—equally hard and dark. On the European scale the hardest is 9H, the softest is 9B. In the U.S. most Americans use grades: No.1 – B; No. 2 – HB; No. 2½ – F; No. 3 – H; and, No. 4 – 2H.

I especially like the big, fat pencils, and of course, yellow is always the best color for the barrel. This started in Austria in 1890. Up until then most pencils had been painted in dark colors, but one manufacturer decided to paint his best and most expensive pencil yellow to make it more distinctive. Other manufacturers wanting to associate with the quality of these yellow pencils began using the same color. However, people in countries like Brazil and Germany prefer green, and in southern European countries, the preference is for dark red or black with yellow lines. Red with black bands at one end is preferred in Australia.

Today, most pencils are round, but come in a variety of shapes, even triangular.

The invention of pencils dates back to the 16th century when sticks of graphite were wrapped in string or sheepskin for stability and ease of holding while writing.

Italians were the first to develop the wooden holders we call barrels today. A piece of juniper was hollowed out and a piece of pressed graphite was inserted. It didn’t take long to improve the technique where two wooden halves were carved, a graphite stick was laid down on one half and another piece of wood glued to the first. This same, but mechanized, technique is essential used today.

In the U.S. Red Cedar wood was used because of its nice aroma and the fact that it did not splinter when sharpened, until supplies of the timber dwindled dangerously low. It was later discovered that abundant Incense Cedar, perfumed and dyed to match Red Cedar works just as well and is used even today through the use of managed forests.

Erasers were first attached to pencils in 1858. The metal band used to attach the eraser to the pencil is called a ferrule.

Thomas Edison

I feel like I am in good company because there are some very famous people who preferred pencils: Thomas Edison (used custom-made pencils), Vincent Van Gogh, John Steinbeck and Vladimir Nabokov. There is one other characteristic all these people shared, and those who know me well say I do, too: they were all a little odd, but that’s besides the point.

Annually, about 14 billion pencils are made worldwide each year. While that may seem like a lot of anything, I can remember seeing a television news report about the fact that children from poor families could not go to school simply because they didn’t have their own pencil. Makes you think, doesn’t it?

If you take pride in your work...sign it! - © 2009, Ric Morgan and SimpleWords Communications. All rights reserved.

In my creative space today are all my favourite art materials that I like to use.

Here are my top recommendations for building up your artist toolbox. Go for quality over quantity and build up your toolbox over time. I have found there is a big difference in the quality of art materials and how long they last, for example, I bought these berol felt tip pens in my first year of university and they are still as bright and vivid as ever over ten years later! Cheaper paints and gesso need more coats and therefore, run out sooner and take longer in painting and the colours are not as vivid. Where to save money is on scrap ephemera in your art journalling and collage, use found objects in your art and scrap paper and cardstock.

A range of sketchbooks in various sizes. I love spiral bound sketch books, but the choice is yours.

A large easel if you have the space and also one for when you’re on the move. I like my tabletop easel that comes with me on holiday. It even came with its own little travel bag and I really like the design of it because it holds my paints, brushes and pallet inside and then opens up as an easel:

A selection of paints. I like acrylics for layering and they dry quickly and also painting a background colour in my journals. I also use acrylics to mix with clear gesso to make different  coloured gesso.

Matte Medium is great for thinning acrylics, as well as, a varnish.

My favourite kind of painting is in gouache. Again, I use Winsor and Newton.

I really like Caran d’Ache Neocolour II Artist Crayons. They provide lovely, vivid colour and are a mix between pastels and crayons. Use with water to create a watercolour effect.

A selection of paintbrushes and spatualas

 Derwent Fine Art Pencils are my favourite

A great selection of pens is a must for pen lovers! Plenty of bright and pastel colours for doodling, edging, outlining, lettering and labelling.

Micron05 pens; Faber Castell Pitt Artist Pens; Sharpie Pens; Triplus fineliner assorted colour pens by Staedtler and Sakura Gelly roll pens

Gesso - read about Gesso here

Plaid Modge Podge seals and glues in one application – great for a finish on decoupage. Available in matt and gloss; and dries clear. Sparkle finish modge plodge adds a glistening effect to projects and outdoor mod podges is great for plant pots, sealing and protecting wood, slate , tin etc.

An xacto pen knife is a must for cutting out rubber stamps and making stencils and cutting out shapes

A good pen knife and scissors are essential kit items for cutting card and paper. I use Fiskars softtouch multipurpose scissors for fabric and have a pair in my knitting bag too. I think they are the best on the market.

Don’t forget an eraser and sharpener too.