The first travels since the before times

 This is going to be one long string of pics and comments about my first travels further than Tacoma in 580 days.  Yes, it was 580 days from my return from Chicago to taking off on this trip.  It was then 585 days between this sort of work, although I did do a local con with different work recently.

Wing check and off we go

Chicago change planes and pizza for lunch

2nd wing check heading south and east

A glorious day at the beach for the best layover ever

While waiting for the train

The train up the coast followed

Rolling through places

A Soho doorway and work tour with someone I finally met in person I work with

Just wow

The EMPIRE State Building

Street breakfast

Got to help Anthrax with a thing

Friedman's in Hell's Kitchen

The apt in NJ

Got to at least once

Best traffic sign ever during the week

The Team

Wing check as we approached home

For an upcoming music video

 

There will be a music video that the footage shot along with this will be in.

The instructions were to basically be a really nerdy scientist making a clock from a potato.  

This is the result.

Won a MtG draft

 

Draft pool from an actual IRL at PAX West recently. No one was in white so I got good early and then got fliers. Went 3-0 at 2-0 three times and won.

Just get it done

 tis the season

 got it done yesterday

Congrats to Puget Sound Collective

When someone you know and are happy for does something cool, let the world know.

Congrats to new label Puget Sound Collective on the release of their first limited edition of 100 cassette for Voyager - and in selling out of said release in under two weeks.

Cool stuff.

New Suit

 

New from Ruby Suits, now I just need a place to wear it.

Painting process and future

 My process has evolved the past few years to take plain cloth, primer it, then paint it.  These are for future RPG tabletop maps and grids.

Prepping fabric with primer.

Paint them into playable game settings.

Perhaps commissions and sales to follow.

Sensory Overload

 I work huge conventions.

The mosh pit and front of the stage at metal shows many times have I waded in.

Working with lots of kids is never a claustrophobic feeling.

During the past year and a half I worked PT in a grocery store so I was often around people.

But, but on campus for a full day, Monday through Friday, with a commute, was sensory overload.  

This is going to take a while to get back to.

It's hot here

 It's hot here.

Not any hotter than many places often get to, but really effing hot for this region.

And our civilization crumbles very quickly when this happens for more than one day around here.

Sort of like when it gets frozen for more than a day and our transportation becomes terrible.

This is an amazing region to live in, but we only really function well in a 40 degree window of 38F to 78F and that really is a 25 degree window of 43F to 68F.

When it goes out of range, we cannot deal.

The cold is bad here because everything is a slope and a hill and graded so a little ice is really bad.

The heat here is bad because we do not have fans and air conditioners, and by the time we think to get them we just plan for it for the next time and don't actually get those things before the next summer or two down then road when it happens again.

Temperate climates rock, changes to that making these things happen more often suck.

Distance media work 2021 edition

 

Coverage continues at 

prostamerika.com

goalkeeperguys.net

@goalieguys

Even when not there in person all the time.

Mushkin

 I will always miss you.  Mushkin. Rest in peace, tiny one.

Pop for the business

 

I was a target

It was a lovely weekend morning. We went to the beach down the hill for some breakfast.

 For the first time in my life, I truly felt targeted by a bird.

Splat, missing my elbow by a whole lot of not much.  

The crows wanted the crumbs and scraps, or the entire thing, and we were not sharing fast enough.

The crow that targeted me flew right up onto a branch overhead and shot at me while I was finishing.  It was only possibly intentional.

Effing crows.

IRL after a while

It has been a challenge to stay home and be safe and smart in the sense of just how much out in the world we typically do. I will not regret being safe and smart and getting to the point where the bubble has doses, and we are there.  For us, that means, with still some limits, being a bit out in the world again. 

And that meant getting to volunteer for a few hours today, busting ass working to clean up and revive a green belt in town.  

The reward, a food truck lunch at a truck we love to go to in the old stomping grounds.

To be able to do this; outdoors yes, and with smart restrictions yes, was still an emotional and positive boost.

We are live for sale and all rewards shipped

This is the update to backers I sent out re The DM Favor Kickstarter this evening. 

All physical rewards shipped and were dropped off on Thursday and Friday.  I have already started hearing that they are in mail boxes.  All US domestic backers should have a USPS tracking code in their messages on this site. 
Canada, UK, and Australia backers.  The rewards all shipped away to you all on Thursday.  Once they leave us US the tracking changes, but look for them soon.  I was happy to fill out those customs forms.
Today is late Saturday and the cards are now for sale online print on demand at The Game Crafter.  The Game Crafter has done a great job with this and the 52 Geek Pickup project.  They are great to work with.
https://www.thegamecrafter.com/games/the-dm-favor
There are a few sessions of games that we are coordinating to schedule in these times, but it looks like that is all sorting out. From a Kickstarter rewards standpoint, that is all there is left to do.  
In the end, the point of a campaign was to get some printed, get it for sale, and get it going.  We did that.
I hope these cards add magical moments to your stories and campaigns.

Finally 40

 

Realized I was close so I cracked an egg when I got a remote raid request.  Then I cracked an incense and just started catching them all.  Evolved a Wurmple and it kicked over to 40.

The DM Favor Kickstarter was a success

 As I planned this campaign, the notion of setting a higher goal first or the actual minimum needed with a stretch goal was a real issue for me.

In some ways, setting the bar higher can bring in more money, as people see the number go up and get closer, maybe there are more who toss in 10 or 25 dollars that do not because it has funded lower and is a stretch goal and not really needed.

I am glad I chose the real goal and stretch goal, even not hitting the stretch goal.  

The cards are set to be printed soon, rewards will be sent out on time.  Life is good.

Under. Ten. Hours.

Kickstarter Link 

Was all set to start obsessing on the Kickstarter for The DM Favor (TM) cards.

I went with the lower initial goal, thinking the two grand goal was better served as a stretch goal.

And ... 

It hit the minimum funding goal in under ten hours.  Three people used the higher tier and pushed it over when I really thought the ten buck one would be what was the main choice.

Time to get the stretch goal ready then, since I have all the extra time.

Once you POP

Pop me.

 

Order error?

 What if this is what the emperor meant and the clones got it wrong and then he just sort of went with it and the universe far far away was overthrown on accident?

Baby, I was born to meme

Had to get in on this. 

A quick sketch and then onto some prepped fabric.

With some ink to set the image.

Black ink to set it permanent.

With some tones (and maybe some future additional colors).

Palindrome week

 

Since this is very much palindrome week.  

This is the screen cap I sent with a message at 21:21 on the 21st day of the 21st year of the 21st century.

Ten days of palindrome dates.

11 years to the day later I finally top that meal

 On January 17, 2010 I blogged about the cheese souffle I decided to challenge myself with.

When I made the braised lamb with finger potatoes and some caramelized onions today I was like, finally I have bested myself.  When I looked up the blog post, it was the date that caught me. It took 11 years and apparently I cook best on January 17.

2021 and forward

For 2021.

Kickstarter for The DM Favor launching soon.  Moving forward with Well Dressed Gandalf.

Looking at new and different - and some of the old ways as they come back - ways to make a living.

Also, a Kickstarter for the soccer fandom book could launch this year if all goes well.

I missed only three things; people, places, and (doing) things last year.  Hopefully, a shot in the arm and the world getting back will make for a chance at some sort of recovery on all of the fronts.

I remain lucky at the start of the year that I am able to do anything and know who I know.

Be well.