Adding a Little Flare

Normally this would go into my blog over at IEFilms. But it’s resting in a state of Limbo, while I decide it’s fate. So, for now, here it is…

A "Submarine" that i hit toys in and slept in.

I used to make a lot of my toys. I could make just about anything out of cardboard and shipping tape (I have my parents to thank for supporting that creativity). Over the years that grew into prototypes for items I thought people could use. Objects for games like Paintball and airsoft.

I started collecting my own tools and building my own kit in college, coming up with increasingly difficult and time consuming projecting. And then I all but stopped. Maybe graduation gave me the sense that I have to spend money to be “legitimate.” That I can’t, or shouldn’t build props if I want to be taken seriously.

That’s a very expensive mentality.

I’ve been scrounging for props for a new video;

An old fashioned typewriter. Luckily, we had one in the garage.

A tweed jacket for my actor, Timmy… Done, $6 at Goodwill.

And finally, a flare gun. $68-75 on the internet. This was killer. I wanted to so bad. But I wasn’t going to be able to afford spending that kind of money.

I begged people whom I thought would have one. Nothing. I was searching online… Nil, at least without spending loads of money I don’t have. I was ready to rewrite the script.

And then FreddieW (A youtube group made up of Freddie Wong and Brandon Laatsch posted a video commentary on their video “Real Life Portal Gun” where they say “We didn’t have the real thing. So, we made do.” That might be me paraphrasing. :)

And I’m trying to reapply that mentality where I can. My girlfriend might shake her head at that, as she’s been saying that for months. Other friends have said it as well.

So there I am, grubbin’ on a burger at Red Robin’s when BAM! It hits me. I have a plastic toy revolver that I found from when I was little, Gorilla Glue, a PVC pipe that happens to be the size I need, and one can of obnoxious Safety Orange Spray Paint. This is what I need it to look like.

Real                                                                       

1.5 hours later, I’m holding a prop that I’m pretty satisfied with (keep in mind, a lot of that time was spent waiting for paint to dry.). Oh, and I saved $75. Booya.

Finished Piece

 

Would John Woo accept that in a close up? No. No, he would not.

Am I John Woo, or have a John Woo budget? No. A resounding no to both of those.

But I think this will do great. I’ll keep you informed as I can. Next post like this will be lighting (Inspired by Ryan Connolly of Triune Films and Film Riot.)

For now, Good Night. :)

3 Pull Ups, 2.5 months

What’s that you say? 3 whole pulls ups?

Well… it’s 2.5 months since I tore my bicep, and a week ago I couldn’t even start 1 pull up. So yeah. It’s a big deal to me.

I’ve also done 30 push ups with no rest, and 18 unassisted dips. (the last two exercises had been hard because they stretched the muscle, not because they directly used the muscle.)

The physical therapy is going well. It’s about an hour and a half now. 30 minutes Ultrasound and massage. Then 50 minutes of Endurance weightlifting. Then ice. Followed by a nap.

It feels more like my body is working through rust than it is anything else. The time spent waiting made me atrophy and each day my body feels more and more like it did.

My doctor says that based on the progress, it’ll be about 6 more weeks of PT before I’m at 90% what I was (I’m a little skeptical, but cool. I’ll keep trucking along then.). I’ll eventually get back to full use again. And I’m allowed to start top-roping at the gym in July.

So, here’s to continued progress, listening to my doctors, and learning everything I can during the process. Thanks for reading. :)

Muscle Carrs

I saw this guy (as he was in the process of cutting me off) pull a trailer with an old 60’s Mustang on it. It was covered in mold and moss and was in serious need of some Lovin’. The expired tags said 1995 on them, so we can assume it’s been unkept or abandoned for at least 17 years.

I’m not a car guy. It’s rare that I see a car and go, “Man, I want to cruise around in THAT.” But something I have wanted to do, maybe as a project with my father, was to restore a classic. Give it hours and hours of time. Sand blast the rust off, Degunk the engine. Do what needs to be done to make it purr.

I don’t know a lot about cars… so it would be a huge undertaking. But I think it would be fun to do that. Give it to my dad when it’s finished. Then start another.

Anyways, random thought.

Make Me a Pizza!

Back in this post, I talked about pizza. Since then, I’ve been working on making my own homemade pizzas (I buy the dough… I’d make WAY too much mess making dough.). It’s still not mind blowingly healthy. But I’m enjoying  experimenting in the kitchen. I’m really wanting to spend more time cooking. :)

Also to help change my eating habits, I’m saying no fast food for the month of June. I did this for two months last year, and I not only had more energy, more money and slept better… but I felt I looked better. I lost some weight during that time. So here’s to that. Let’s see what happens.

Ok. We’re half way through June, and not drinking soda is a bust. In fact, I’m drinking some right now. And fast food, I’ve done well with. Parents got Arby’s and brought me some. And I’ve had subway twice.

So, yeah. There you go. Still playing with different meal ideas. I’ll keep experimenting. :p

The Season's End 5/26/2012

As I’m sitting here, sun kissed and sleepy, I realize this day marked the end of a very long 9 months. It was about that time I started working at best buy. And coaching the college kids, and continued to bite off more than I could chew by getting another job. By working upwards of 70-80 hours a week and making around $1000 a month after taxes (do the math… something is wrong here.).

here's me trapped in the coaches box. They caught me mid pacing during the men's vault.

I said to myself “after Christmas, it will slow down.” It didn’t. I left best buy at the end of February. When I gave them my 3 weeks notice, they gave me 1. Track picked up as the season rolled on and so did work. And despite losing one job, I was still running myself ragged.

But now I’m sitting here. In a chair. Thinking about the lack of sleep and personal time, the health issues I’ve had, and the amount of stress I was under… I can’t help also thinking about the amazing time I had. The people who came into my life and made me smile. I’m thinking about the changes in my financial situation and the stability I’ve found.

Sure, I’m a bit weathered. But I’ve got a big ol’ smile on my face. One of my highschoolers had a personal best jump of 9’6, adding almost a foot to her PR. And she narrowly missed being on the podium . three of my six college kids made it in the top 8.

Bogdan attempting 15'3" He finished 2nd overall.

Here I am, in my cave of wonders. 

It will take me a bit to recuperate and want to do anything other than sleep. But I’m very happy with where the last 9 months have left me. and I’m stoked for the months to come.

This is my 2012 Pole Vault crew. :)

Rain in May (and June) 5/24/2012

I meant to write this sooner, but the weather has been so nice, I haven’t wanted too.

Well… now our couple days of monsoons have been causing some light flooding streets and homes. And it’s been some of the most awesome thunderstorms I’ve seen in a while. All of this has reminded me that… we’re still in the Pacific Northwest.

So yeah. This picture made me laugh. The beautiful evergreen state. We’ll get our loads of sunshine after a couple more weeks of rain. :)

The Source 5/23/2012

I happened to be having dinner with the family downtown and realized I hadn’t been back to the gym since my accident. So I ran in to say hi.

I was greeted by such warm and amazing people. Friends who wanted to know how I’ve been and how I was healing.

I love promoting the Source Climbing Gym, wearing their gear, getting people interested and in their door. They really are friendly and they care for their climbers. Personally, it felt like home. Or a home I haven’t seen lately.

Between catching up, I perused the routes. Felt chalky holds. Mentally read routes and mimed my way through it from the ground.

I just started physical therapy, so it will still be a while before I’m on the wall. But I think sport climbing will be good to get me back into it. Or at least more gentle than bouldering would be.

So until then, I’ll be patient. My new shoes will collect a bit more dust and I’ll keep thinking about getting that green light.

If you haven’t checked out the Source Climbing Center, you should. They offer a lot of classes to teach you how to use the climbing equipment safely and their staff are top of the line and some of the most amazing people I know.

Fortune Cookie 5/20/2012

Who doesn’t like these? Who doesn’t have some superstition or ritual to eating these little treats? My cousins add “In Bed” to the end of theirs. Me, I won’t read my fortune until the cookie is eaten.

But I’ve noticed a trend with FC’s (That’s fortune cookie for those in the know.) that don’t really have fortune’s in them. Like this one…

 

Did they run out of Chinese proverbs, and wishful thinking statements? I bet the lucky numbers on the back don’t mean anything either.

Well, today, an athlete of mine named Tonja gave me a fortune cookie and said “Because I’m nice, I’m giving you a fortune cookie. And hopefully it’s better than the one’s you’ve been getting lately.” There was no fortune inside.

So either the FC makers have given up all pretense of this tradition. Or I’m not long for this world. :(