Vampire Wombat

Cowboys vs Aliens

2012-02-04T13:26:00.002-06:00

So, this week I finally rented Cowboys vs Aliens from Netflix. I no longer really cared about seeing it at this point and hadn't actually expected it at this point since it had said Long Wait the last I had checked. On the day that I received it, I decided to re-watch the trailer before actually watching the movie. After watching the trailer, my expectations were lowered. So I decided to watch it the next day.

Which is why I'm writing this. I had promised to let a couple of friends know how I liked it since I generally have a higher tolerance for movies than they do. Also they said my explanations of the movies is funny and that people may actually want to read them.

After starting the movie, I had the realization: I don't like westerns. Some people might find that strange since I live in Texas, but it's true. Sure, there's exceptions like Brisco County Jr. and Back To The Future 3 (that counts as a western, right?), but generally I can't stand them. Perhaps it's the horrible accents which don't actually exist in Texas unless you happen to live in a small town or perhaps it's the fact that I just dislike all that stuff. Oh right, tangents, yes there will be tangents. Oh so many tangents...

Back to the movie, the realization that I dislike westerns plus the runtime of the movie made me decide that since I was watching on my computer, I may was well speed it up. So, I started at 1.3x speed. It's a nice viewing choice when you want to shave off 10-15 minutes from a movie which should only have been an hour and a half, but it's not fast enough to distort voices noticeably. Eventually it ended up going as high as 2x and even 3x for awhile. I cared nothing about what any of the people were saying or doing, it was just boring stuff which honestly didn't make the build up of the alien stuff any better. I should have been able to like the stuff, I really like Clancy Brown and Harrison Ford. But no...

Finally I made it to the point where the aliens were. And what did they give us? A mixture of one of the aliens from X-Com mixed with a tick, which means that they'll be called Space Ticks from now on. The alien was kind of silly, but the effects were decent (despite the fact I prefer practical effects over CGI). So more happened and finally the best part of the movie. The female from House partially nude.

Eventually James Bond and crew fought the Space Ticks and it was completely unsatisfying. The fact they were Space Ticks and exploded like ticks wasn't awesome, it just made it extermination.

In the end, there was nothing memorable about this movie. As I said to my friends, this movie should have been Men In Black meets Wild Wild West (complete with Will Smith) or even a movie with a Brisco County Jr. type bounty hunter going after aliens. But no, it was just a boring cowboy movie with Space Ticks at times. I recommend watching 1 hr of Wild Wild West and 30 minutes of Independence Day instead. In fact, I even suggest watching Pluto Nash over this.

Back again

2010-09-02T11:35:00.002-05:00

I don't know why, but I seem to have trouble keeping up a blog. But I'm going to try to do it again. I'm going to make no commitments to how often I'll do an entry, except that I plan to do it more than once a year.

This year's Project Puppet Contest will be in a couple of weeks. I've started my puppet and am over halfway finished with it. The theme this year is superheroes/villains. Despite my preference for villains, I'm making a superhero. The reasoning is that I have over 4 gallons of mask latex left and I can make a really cool costume using it. I will post pictures of it after the contest has ended. This will probably include making of pictures too.

This month will also be when I'll finally make things to attempt selling on Etsy. I will try to have information and pictures of these items on here from time to time. The first thing I'm going to make will probably either be a zombie puppet or a werewolf puppet. Anything I make to attempt to sell in the next 6-7 weeks will be Halloween or horror themed in order to take advantage of the holiday.

The Percy Jackson Movie

2009-11-20T14:43:00.003-06:00

I completely forgot about watching the trailer for the upcoming Percy Jackson movie about an hour ago.
While the movie looks like it will be good, I couldn't help being distracted by a few things. The female teacher from the start of the book (no, I can't remember her name) is dressed all wrong. She's wearing a librarian/English teacher sweater instead of a leather jacket as the book mentions. While this could be taken as nitpicking, I think the choice of the leather jacket made sense. The jacket was her wings. And then when it showed her changing, it just looked odd. She looked like a cross between the Mothman and a Dementor from Harry Potter.
Then there's Grover. Or I'm assuming it's Grover since he's shown several times and I can't think of any other character he could be. Yeah, he didn't speak in the trailer at all, but there's just something about him that didn't seem right. But hopefully I'll be wrong and he'll actually be really good in the part.

Friday it seems

2009-11-20T14:26:00.002-06:00

Yeah, it appears today is Friday. Neutral for more, but some people find comfort in it.

Wednesday I started work on a maquette (even though there's a red underline, I know it's a word) of a creature from a monster manual I have. I'm simply doing it for practice and not to sell. It's actually coming out quite well. It was originally going to be sculpted out of super Sculpey/Sculpey 3 mix, but I found that to be too brittle and heavy for the design. So I'm finishing it with paper mache.

I'm still writing for NaNoWrimo, despite being behind. I have all plans of catching up on Sunday and to even be able to finish next Friday/Saturday morning.

The magazine is still going as planned. Hopefully once there has been an issue made people will be more interested. I need to work on logo designs some more today since I'm not quite happy with any of the ones I have so far.

And finally I received my Advance Reader Copy of R. W. Ridley's Lost Days.

Status of stuff

2009-11-17T02:50:00.002-06:00

Well, it's now the 17th and I'm quite behind on writing for NaNoWriMo. If not for the fact I joined the site the 14th or 15th my first year and succeeded, I'd fear I have no hope of finishing. But I have a schedule and plan for how to finish and even finish early.

And the magazine... Well, I worked on some logo ideas for the cover as well as having a few open source programs for making it. Now if only I can get more people involved.

Online Magazine and such

2009-11-03T14:53:00.001-06:00

Well, I'm working on doing an online magazine. Wish me luck. Hopefully this one will go better than my last attempt.
And it's day 3 of NaNoWriMo and I'm quite uninspired.

NaNoWriMo

2009-10-13T15:15:00.001-05:00

Just thought I'd mention I'll be doing NaNoWriMo again this year. Last year I didn't really get to do it because I hurt my back. This year I have all plans of finishing.

October

2009-10-02T03:12:00.002-05:00

For the month of October I will be Eyegore for doing movie reviews. The plan is to have one review for every day of the month. I can't and I won't promise that a review will be uploaded every day, but by Halloween there will be 31 videos up. The reviews are going to be published in a format like Linkara from Atop the Fourth Wall does. I will create a blog entry for each one at Eyegore's blog and each one will have the video embedded.
On top of doing reviews, I am making some puppets which will make appearances in the reviews and will be posted to be sold.

Project Puppet Contest

2009-08-27T16:54:00.004-05:00

Project Puppet's newest contest just ended on Sunday. Here's my entry, Kamal the Malaysian Tapir.

Dr. Wundor's Lab

2009-08-27T16:52:00.003-05:00

A few weeks ago I started a show on Blogtv called Doctor Wundor's Lab. Despite the name, Dr. Wundor doesn't exist yet. I am working on him, though.
So far the show has been hosted by his assistant, Eyegore. Here's some pictures of Eyegore for you to hide from.

Failure

2009-07-21T03:51:00.003-05:00

Alright. I'm just going to give in and say that this go of a puppet a day has failed. I made placement for several days planning to finish something I had started that day and then uploading later. But I have yet to finish any of them. But I will still be doing puppets at times and uploading pictures.
In fact I do have a project I'm planning to work on this week. But I can't give any info about it until some time after the fact.

Day 7 month 2

2009-07-14T23:01:00.001-05:00

Was going to make a nicer one today. Got distracted by other things.
Instead I bring you something based on a puppet I have from the 80s. But mine doesn't squeak. And is more like a mouse than squirrel... But the size, shape, and arm parts are based on it.
Made using part of a toilet paper roll for the body, masking tape, scraps of material, two pom poms, 1 pony bead, fun foam, and hot glue.

Day 6 month 2

2009-07-14T00:20:00.002-05:00

A finger puppet thing. Masking tape. Kind of Lemonhead from Monkey Island. Kind of.

Day 5 month 2

2009-07-13T00:23:00.002-05:00

Yeah... It's a box cut in half and turned inside out. Then covered with masking tape and give eyes. Also has a plastic glove taped to the inside for one's hand to go inside for controlling it.

Day 4 month 2

2009-07-12T00:33:00.001-05:00

Basically the same as yesterday. Using the bear parts leftover. Plus a few additions.

Day 3 month 2

2009-07-11T00:44:00.003-05:00

Yeah. It may only barely (pardon the pun) count as a puppet. Made from 2 stuffed bears from Dollar Tree, part of a pool noodle, dowel rod, plastic spoon handle, straw, and of course thread. Its head moves. And that's it.

Day 2 month 2

2009-07-09T22:41:00.002-05:00

Just a finger puppet made using scraps from a pool noodle, black felt, masking tape, pipe cleaner, thread, and permanent marker.

Day 1 the second month

2009-07-08T23:51:00.003-05:00

Today's is actually be two puppets. Made during watching Creaturiste making demos for a workshop. I lacked bungee cords so I used ponytail rubber bands.

Puppet a day again

2009-07-06T13:49:00.002-05:00

Wow... It's not even been a full month since I finished? It feels longer.
Since finishing, I haven't been nearly as inspired or motivated. So... That means I'm going to be trying it again. It may only be for a month. It may be for a full year. I'll take it month by month.

No, I won't be starting today. I will be waiting until the anniversary day to be more consistent. The rules will be a bit different this time. I will try to do one "good" puppet a week which will take more than one day to make. And most of the rest will be ones that take two hours or less to make. Another thing is that what I consider a day will be the time I wake up until the time I go to sleep. So, I might not post between 11 pm and 12:30 am like I did before. There may even be some posted at 3 am.

I had problems with the sewing machine I had and had to return it. I do have another sewing machine, but I have no clue how to use it. The manual is poorly written and I've seen reviews saying people who know what they're doing have taken 3 hrs to learn how to thread it. Which means it would take me more like 30 hrs. So, don't expect any machine sewn puppets for awhile.

Am I forgetting anything? Well, nothing comes to mind at least. So... I'll return you to your regularly scheduled... Whatever.

An updated puppet

2009-06-09T12:36:00.002-05:00

I decided to add some details to the puppet I made for my niece the other day. I added braces and glasses to make it look more like her. Here's a picture of her with it when I gave it to her yesterday. Cropped to avoid showing her face.

Final day

2009-06-08T23:41:00.001-05:00

A chupacabra puppet. Yeah, it looks like one of three or four other green monsters too...

Day 31

2009-06-07T23:57:00.001-05:00

Was meant to be a zombie. The foam skull kind of messed up one side and I went with the shape it created and made the other side match.

Day 30

2009-06-06T23:41:00.001-05:00

Well, I can stick my fingers in the back and make the mouth open and close at least.

Day 29

2009-06-05T23:52:00.003-05:00

Another using the pattern from the last two days and sewn on my new sewing machine. This one is a present for my niece.
Though the picture doesn't really show it, it does have a nose.

Day 28

2009-06-04T23:58:00.001-05:00

Same pattern as the last 2 days. Sewn on my new sewing machine. Definite improvement in how it was sewn.

Day 27

2009-06-03T23:55:00.002-05:00

Sewn with my new sewing machine. And this is the most I've sewn successfully with one. And well... It sucks. Had to fix some spots by hand and sew the arms on.
Modified version of the pattern from yesterday. Note how bad the hands look.

Day 26

2009-06-03T00:01:00.002-05:00

Was trying a new pattern for a smaller puppet. Was going to have some foam, but other than its head... none. Took longer than planned because things didn't work right. But, future ones will be pretty simple to make. So, no eyes or nose or anything.

Day 25

2009-06-02T00:00:00.002-05:00

A full body puppet using patterns based from the one I made the other day. Trying to refine some things and was testing mitt type hands and a few other things.
The face doesn't really matter. It's more about the processes and learning.
Clothes are from Dollar Tree, so it cost under $2.50 to dress him.

Day 24

2009-05-31T23:55:00.002-05:00

Ok, so I was going to make a foam and fleece one. But I tried new foam which I didn't like at all. Then was going to make a ghost with a moving mouth. The mechanism won't work for it, though. So... Ghost made of a paper towel, a bit of foam, googly eyes, and a styrofoam ball. Stiqman kept on telling me to do a ghost.

Day 23

2009-05-30T22:43:00.001-05:00

A sock puppet on another puppet. Except you can't see the main puppet. I'll try to take another picture tomorrow. Every effort I tried to take a picture tonight, it kept falling over.

Day 22

2009-05-29T23:49:00.000-05:00

Styrofoam cups. Yay.

Day 21

2009-05-28T23:44:00.002-05:00

I have no idea.

Day 20

2009-05-28T00:07:00.001-05:00

Sorry, didn't get it finished. I wanted to. I really did. Had to redo the hands because the original size was way too big. Then I felt like I was moving through Jello while working. I will make it up somehow.
The pants are using a pattern I drew myself and made out of some old scrap shorts and hair bands. The legs are detachable via sew on snaps. The arms are removable using bolts. The idea came from Stiqman from Puppets And Stuff, but he used keychains instead. I made the patterns for everything else (didn't use one for the arms or legs} today, except for the head. I will be making a shirt for him and hopefully some shoes.
This is my first full body puppet by the way.

Day 19

2009-05-26T23:26:00.001-05:00

Fun noodle, craft sticks, and a clothespin. Unfortunately the clothespin didn't work out as well as hoped.

Day 18

2009-05-26T00:04:00.000-05:00

Made from a hamburger helper box, spoons, felt dots, $1 baby blanket, felt, and some foam to pad the head.
Accidentally looks kind of like Uno Die. But the maker of Uno Die said it was ok.

Day 17

2009-05-24T23:23:00.003-05:00

Paper chupacabra finger puppet.

Day 16

2009-05-23T23:22:00.000-05:00

I believe this one speaks for itself.

Day 15

2009-05-23T00:01:00.002-05:00

Made from a toilet paper roll. Has part of a hairband in the back to make the head go back up.

Day 14

2009-05-21T23:56:00.004-05:00

Ok, so this one may not appear complete. I guess technically it isn't. I have no plans of adding a face or clothes, though. I have the control made, I just have to learn how to properly string it. So, I guess this is only 90% complete.

Day 13

2009-05-21T00:48:00.002-05:00

An hour later than I've been posting, but here it is. A Jason glove puppet. The bottle it's on distorted the neck a bit, sorry.

Day 12

2009-05-20T00:04:00.003-05:00

I wanted to make a more horror type clown, but I was uninspired. Testing out a foam pattern I got online.

Day 11

2009-05-18T21:37:00.001-05:00

Sock puppet made during a competition using limited supplies.

Day 10

2009-05-17T23:53:00.002-05:00

A glove puppet. Hand sewn. Body from a cheap baby blanket. Head and hands are fun noodle pool toy. Had to redo the head so it could be bald.

Day 9

2009-05-16T23:43:00.002-05:00

Day 8

2009-05-15T20:46:00.001-05:00

Made some last minute plans. I'll make it up later.

Day 7

2009-05-14T23:29:00.003-05:00

Well, the sock puppet didn't happen tonight. Was going to be part of a competition. So, instead I have a spoon puppe thing. Yay...

Day 6

2009-05-13T23:59:00.000-05:00

Sorry, I kind of copped out. Will have a sock puppet tomorrow.

Day 5

2009-05-12T23:56:00.002-05:00

Made this one in about 35 minutes. You can kind of tell too.

Day 4

2009-05-11T20:46:00.001-05:00

A continuation from the baked potato. This time a raw potato.

Day 3

2009-05-11T11:32:00.002-05:00

Internet died last night, so I couldn't update then.
Generic blue thing mostly using technique from Expert Village videos.

Day 2

2009-05-09T23:17:00.002-05:00

Have a headache today. Another simple puppet.

Day 1

2009-05-08T23:14:00.002-05:00

Today's puppet is rather simple since I had other things to do. It's a baked potato. Well... Sort of. The concept seemed better than the result. Aluminum foil isn't suited for such things.

Puppet a day

2009-05-08T14:48:00.002-05:00

The other day there was talk about a website where someone is doing a puppet a day. In fact, it may even be on this website. I've decided that it may be a good idea of something to do. I think the other person is doing it for a full year, but I'll only do it for a month. So, starting today I will attempt to finish a puppet every day until June 8th.
To clarify the rules I'll be going under:
I won't always be starting and finishing the same puppet every day. Just finishing one every day. The types of puppets will vary. One day I may finish a nice full body fleece and foam puppet. Another day it may be mostly made using a sewing machine. Another it may be from "found objects". Basically, anything that can be classified as a puppet will be fair game.

Changes (again)

2009-04-16T23:06:00.001-05:00

In my continued search for a niche, I've become more focused on puppet making. So, I have decided to change the focus on this to follow. How often will I post? Who knows? It could be daily. It could be weekly. Or I could forget and only post once a month.