Placemarker

Wow, I have REALLY stepped away from the journal writing. I'm not really sure what did it. So many times during a week I will have ideas for a journal post but then, once I get the time to write them, they do not come. Even now it's sort of like pulling teeth as I sit here, stare at the screen, and try to come up with something to say that might somehow be humorous or entertaining.

It might have been moving to the more then full time job. It is no coincidence that I finally get a chance to rethink things (and actually post) while I am off a full week for the holidays. And now that I actually have the time, once again, I don't seem to have anything to say! It's rather maddening. Regardless, I am sitting here and hammering out a few more paragraphs in the hopes that some things will get kick-started. If not now, then perhaps down the line.

The past several days have been, well, peaceful. Semi-peaceful. We returned home after several days up at the in-laws homestead in Indy where model rockets were flown, old movies were watched, and gingerbread house was crushed. All very exciting! Once home, it's been a good mix of recharging and reorganizing.

As the new year comes steadily onward I'm finding myself doing what a lot of folks do this time of year which is review. You know, going through old piles of things that have sat unattended, sorting through old ideas that have floated in the corner waiting for their time to come, as well as looking what can be revamped and maybe brought back to the fore of things. Maybe my next post should be a review of my year past?

Heading to Atlanta

This morning -- 10:05 AM

I’m sitting in the Indianapolis airport trying to get to Atlanta. My adventure started at 4:30 this morning. The pick-up car couldn’t find my house, I nearly stranded my wife by taking the car keys with me, the driver then couldn’t find my co-workers place, and then, after getting to the airline gate with PERFECT timing, the flight was delayed four hours due to “electrical issues.”

And here I sit. We’ll be boarding soon on a flight switch-up and finally headed southward. I had the oddest thought when the driver mentioned that their company’s normally functional printer had stopped working and that when he called me, he couldn’t reach my home phone number. I had the thought, “Oh, I’m not supposed to get on this flight.”

I guess I was right!

When things like this start to happen, I’ve learned its better to just relax, kick back, and wait for an opening to clear for you. I watched as so many fellow travelers threw fits of frustration. Panic and anxiety do nothing for you. Also, it’s times like this that I am so thankful for my laptop. In the time sitting here I’ve been able to review what I need for the event, get some writing done, and worked on this blog post. It’s all in how you look at things

To add to the backdrop of this adventure, we are headed into Atlanta which is currently in a state of emergency (or close to it) in regards to the severe draught and water shortage. We’ve been told that the situation at the hotel is not too bad and that we should be fine through the totality of our visit there.

I wonder if the folks flying into New Orleans were told the same thing? I doubt it. Paranoid images of fighting for my life against crazed Atlanteans trying to survive without water are probably further off then my imagination would have me believe. Heh. Crazed Atlanteans looking for water…

That’s funny stuff.

My flight boards in fifteen minutes so I’m shutting things down and heading for the little travelers room. Then, I’m on a flight and airborne.

Hopefully.

Halloween Evening

Finally got a lunch break at work that didn't involve...uh... working. Quite happy about that fact! Last night saw me undertaking the annual trip to a nearby haunt for trick or treating. The place we go is loaded with kids, parents, and residents. The sidewalks are packed, the houses are made up, and some residents even go as far as to dress up and scare the kiddies with de-chained chain saws and bloody hatchets. It's typically thirty minutes of complete pandemonium.

With the horde in tow and a fifteen minute costume on, we ventured forth into the night. Some pics will be coming up shortly revealing the fun and candy bag filled craziness of it all. I was very pleased to find my brother suddenly filled with the Samhain spirit at the last minute and joining us dressed in his fantastic Gandalf outfit.

And now, it's November 1st and All Saints Day. And, I might add, finally feeling like Autumn!

Last night the wind whipped around our house causing the window frames to creak and the roof to woodenly pop. From the inside and after all had gone to their beds, I could hear the windchimes, twirling and banging. Through the windows I could see silvery clouds skimming by quickly overhead. In other words, it was perfect for late Halloween night.

I ventured out into it for a short while. The wind kept up its frantic pace, snapping about me and attempting to push me off balance. This continued for some time until I put out several plates of offerings in the form of candy, milk, coffee, scotch, and corn meal. Almost instantly, the wind stopped and moved away from our porch although it continued to twist and rush about elsewhere on our property. For the rest of the evening, the wind stopped its restless fury on or around our house. There are a myriad conclusions that could be reached as to how that happened but I prefer to stick to the more magical and esoteric reason.

Happy November and Happy New Year.

Congrats Sox

Just finished watching game 4 of the world series. I am pleased because I'm comfortable, I'm home, and one of my teams just won it all. Though my main team is the ever unpredictable Seattle Mariners, the Red Sox has been my back-up team for a few years now. Mainly, I'm a baseball fan. I love to watch all of it, the stories that develop, the rhythm of it, the rise and fall of teams and players. The other reason I'm happy is that back in June I looked at a friend who happened to make the mistake of engaging me in a baseball discussion. During that discussion I had said, "The Red Sox have a good chance of winning it all." Throughout the entire season I believed it because I saw a team which was not only balanced but incredibly deep with talent. However, my main reason was because I saw a team having intense fun with what they were doing.

It was odd to be in a World Series city while the event was going on. Unfortunately, it was during the first games in Boston and the town had that "away game" sort of feeling to it. We were out on the street and moving toward a sports bar to take in the first Series game when the Rockies hit their home run in the first game. I've never heard a city roar before but I'll never forget how that sound rolled along the streets, echoed around the towers, and lifted into the sky.

Finally, this may be a no-brainer but hang onto any Jacoby Ellsbury or Dustin Pedroia cards you have from this season. From the way those rookies came out of the box and performed in the past two games of the Series, it might be worth something one day.

Consolidation

I’ve really gotten away from doing this kind of writing. I’m not sure why exactly. Part of the reason is a very tight schedule. The other is that I’ve been suffering from a kind of paralysis. Even though I’ve re- imagined this journal several times, none of them seemed to really fit or work, none provided that “spark” that would keep me going.

On top of that, I would have ideas and then realize I had no journal to put them in. If I had one on a spiritual line, do I stick it it here? Does it belong here? What if I turned around and then had an idea for a sports themed post? Would it fit? Would it be alright to create a hodge-podge of different posts with different subjects all running about willy-nilly? With my new job, I had travel posts on top of that. And posts about nature, photography, gaming, kids, cooking, and the list goes on.

So, I reached the only logical conclusion. I'd do them all, right here. I've wanted a central home for things for some time now and this is it.

I'm currently wrapping up a week long stint in Denver, Colorado and fly home tomorrow. This afternoon, the conference wraps at noon and there are plans to go to the mountains. I'm looking forward to this a great deal and only wish I had brought my camera. Food for thought as I look into packing and traveling for not only Atlanta but Austin, Texas as well. And what are travel posts without pictures, right?

Day In The Sun, Part Two

I think I may just have to resign myself to only getting one of these posts up here every week or so. So busy.

As promised and in honor of the NCAA College Baseball World Series this weekend, here is the other half of the shots from the "Spring Day in the Sun." These are from an IU baseball game later that day. I'm particularly fond of these shots and my growing ability to see a situation on the field and prepare for it. Also, since I am an avid baseball scorekeeper whenever I go to games, I love Keeping Score which is at the very end.

The subject of the shot was a smiling older gentleman who very elegantly set up a folding bleacher seat, sat down in the front row directly behind home plate, and began keeping score with his pen and steno pad. He must have been a long time fan as he was treated with great respect by any IU baseball staff member that walked by him. He had an "old school baseball gentleman" air to him and it was just a pleasure watching him watch the game.

Enjoy.

Late From the Faire

Near the end of April I had the opportunity to take in the local Renn. Faire being held on campus here in Blooomington. Two things conspired to keep these shots from being put up for folks to enjoy. 1) I just didn't have the time to devote to working on them! 2) I've started shooting in RAW format which entails a few more steps as I take them through digital processing. I enjoy RAW format because it allows so much more flexibility with the image in regards to white balance, color balancing, etc.

I didn't shoot many shots but the ones I have I am incredibly pleased with. I'll start off with the one that gave me goosebumps when I saw it full size on my screen. Shooting very purposefully at a high shutter speed, it allowed me to capture the liquid igniting and the result which was a blossoming fireball.

Below are a handful of other shots that I think are the cream of the crop from the sunny day at the Faire.




This particular day was a good one since after leaving the Faire, I headed over to a IU baseball game. And, yes, I took my camera along. Those shots are up next!

Reset, Relaunch, Go

Well, I THOUGHT I was getting back on the horse. It ended up being one of those wooden rocking horses that, you know, doesn't really go anywhere but just rocks in place. Oh, sure, its fun! But, the scenery really doesn't change and not too much gets accomplished. It would seem the adjustment period between full time work, family, and creative interests took a bit longer then I had anticipated. By the date of my last post it 's been more then two months. However, I can happily report that things seem to be calming down.

*looks around nervously*

I went and cursed myself now, didn't I?

With the two month break, I'm taking the opportunity to change a few things here. Because of the lack of free time, I've had to really pull away from my journalistic adventures in Second Life over on Frontier's Horizon. It saddens me a bit but I do try to hop on from time to time and I'll keep things going as I can.

One of the biggest things you will see here is more of a concentration on my photography. The studio website which this journal is now linked to has undergone a slight overhaul and things will progress there as I have time. The focus has changed to my photography, writing (fiction and game related), and my family. Secret Hideout, my webcomic, will be back but I'm not sure when and my artwork is down to a commission only level. This will also be reflected in the content for this blog. Basically, more pretty pictures for all of you!


In a way, after coming out a fairly rough eight months, I'm trying to find my dreams again, the things that make me glow from the inside. When I enter a transformational phase of my life, I have an urge to write about it. Writing it down helps me process the transitions, navigate the shoals. I've nominated this blog to serve n this regard, as a way for me to narrate and navigate further towards my star, my dreams. As said by J.M. Barrie, "Second star to the right and straight on till morning," or by Vincent Van Gogh, "For my part, I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream."

Getting Back On The Horse

Woah, talk about stumbling...

I somehow got out of the swing of things with my regular posts. Gosh, I wonder how that could have happened? Well...

Life at the Studio as been in a bit of upheaval lately as I move between jobs. I just left my part-time gig and am getting ready to take on a full time week for the first time in a year. Now, I can hear some of you saying, "Oh, poooor you." A full time week is nothing new to me, not at all. However, a full time week with a wife also working full time, three kids, and one car is something else entirely different. I've been trying to get ready around here for the strain it will place on things during the week because its its unrealistic to think that it won't be stressful. I've also been reorganizing my work space, get sick, get well, and try to keep going with three kids.

Its a very odd experience to turn around and realize that two weeks have gone by. I don't like it, no sir.

One of the other things I have been trying to get organized is my affiliation to a color lab so I will be able to get prints of my work done. This led to me trying to organize my discs of photo collections and realizing that I need a DVD burner pretty badly. High rez digital images can eat up a lot of disc space real fast! Fortunately, I had the forethought of a decent organizational system. It will be odd to finally see my work on paper after spending so many hours looking at it on a monitor screen.

So, my apologies. Things appear to be getting back on track and I am sure you're salivating with the thought of all of my upcoming posts.

Embodiments, Part Two

Embodiments of Self is a series of posts begun in early February which feature a handful of avatars that, to me, have stood out from the crowd. Avatars in Second Life are a way to silently communicate certain aspects of yourself to others, whether you realize you are doing it or not. They are also an endless source of fun and entertainment.

I love collecting shots for the Embodiments posts. It forces me to really keep my eyes open to the amazing amount of work and thought that have gone into someone's avatar design. I also have to move pretty fast sometimes to get the shot I want since none of them, regardless of how they look, are intentionally posed. (A bit of my photojournalism days showing there.) Continuing the series of posts I started earlier this month, I present another small collection of cool avatars seen in my wanderings of Second Life.

First off, Coyote Momjii from some Caledonian wanderings. This avatar was one of the few that stunned me into absolute non-action for several minutes. I think I actually drooled a bit on the computer...

Following up that is Derry McTeague whom I saw at the "When Worlds Collide" show. I was struck by the beauty of her pale face and striking eyes.

And then, there was the avatar of Lady Smashcan. I loved the interplay of the name with the image of the punkish faery girl.

Enjoy!

What is "A Game?"

Just taking a quick moment to pass on a link.

Life of a Game

The article, coming off the Terra Nova site, continues commentary on the question, "Is it only a game?"

If you're interested in online game worlds and their interaction with the real world, I highly recommend the site Terra Nova. There is a lot of good level-headed thought going on there as well as many different forms of research aimed at the virtual world experience currently happening.

Intersections

My good friend and mentor in the real world was interviewed in Second Life last night as part of a real world/Second Life radio show called "When Worlds Collide." I took time off from the expedition to cheer Jesa Li on and give her my support through an hour long interview which touched on her large scale landscaping projects within Second Life, her writing, her in-world store, and the fact that she is 70 years old and in-world. (The last one being a bit of a rarity in the realm of virtual worlds but perhaps not as much as you might initially think.) Another thing the interview did was touch on a very important angle and opinion which Jesa and I share. This is that Second Life can be just as powerful as the real one, that your experiences in one world can encourage and empower the other.

The radio show is hosted by a real life and Second Life musician and entertainer, Cypress Rosewood, who played two tracks of his beautiful works with native american flute before the interview. "When Worlds Collide" is a weekly show, every Monday evening, which features a personal angle on what is happening within Second Life and is located in a large studio on the Land of the Masters in Jarag sim. It's sponsored by RadioFreeNashville.org. The show carried an audience of around twenty folks in-world and I am unsure of the audience out in real radio land. I was glad to find out about it and will be trying to take in more shows because I think it pinpoints the personal experience, the interaction and mixing point of real and virtual. Good stuff.


Jesa was a bit nervous at first but seemed to relax about half way through. She did great. In her words, "I've been interviewed on radio and television but that, that was a very odd experience." After talking with folks for awhile, she retired to her An Lios garden where I was able to see what she and friend, Whizbang Corleone, had been up to.

It was good to take a break from the Frontier's Horizon expedition. After a few hours of trudging along the ground and trying to navigate invisible walls, it was nice to sit in one place and take in a social event. I also got some good shots for another Emobidiments post which should be up tonight or tomorrow. I also want to encourage more folks to check out the "When Worlds Collide" show if possible.

Far In The Background

Can you hear it, sense it? I suppose you have to be a fan to know what I am talking about and it's hard to do with all the frost, snow, and windchill. It helps if you're someplace warm but I got a whiff even while walking in the negative windchill yesterday. It's like hearing voices on the wind or a whispered conversation in the other part of the house. Its there, a warm full buzz of activity, but you can't make out the details.

If you close your eyes and get real quiet you might be able to pick it up, feel it. Can you?

It's a warm summer day with big white clouds that race over a brilliant green and well lined field. It's a distant crack of a bat. The solid feel of impact as a ball hits the pocket of your glove. It's chatter from the dugout, quick bits of infield communication, the dust rising up from a second base slide. Is it a bunt? A swing away? Fastball? Curveball? Will he go for the steal?

The sound or smell of it lasts only a second and then it's taken away by a wash of cold air, a snowflake on the cheek, or the crunching of snow underneath your shoes. You're brought back to February and trying to undig your car from the snow, trying to build a fire in the fireplace.

But, if you listen, if you look for it, it's there. It makes the cold a little more bearable.

Of course, if you're not a fan, I understand.

You're just going to have to trust me that it's there.

Country in The Winter

The past few days have been a bit hectic. A winter storm came creeping through a few days ago and pretty much turned everything on its side. I say creep because that is exactly what it did. Slithering in with some spitting sleet, then rain, and then when it had everyone lulled into a false sense of safety, it froze everything solid and placed just enough snow on top of it to cause numerous problems. It also killed electricity to somewhere in the number of 30,000 people in the area, one of which was me and mine.

As the entire house is powered by electricity, we spent an afternoon getting candles and supplies out and available. We then spent an interesting evening huddled in the living room around the fireplace which, by luck, we do have. Though I expected the power to not be on for a day or so, the electrical workers were able to get powered restored to us sometime in the middle of the night. Many thanks to them and their efforts!


Morning was spent digging out and turning our attention from staying warm to playtime. I grabbed the camera while the kids took advantage of the snow and took in the large hill in our front yard. This delighted them because it takes a major snowfall to make the hill sled worthy and it has not happened in awhile.

The roads were still bad and the hills we have to take to get out were covered in ice which led to no one really going anywhere for a second day. Time was spent with the kids and taking advantage of the extra day thrown at us to get housework done. We also had to take some time and reorganize everything that was moved while trying to shelter up the living room and the fireplace.

Needless to say, with three kids home from school, it's been a hectic couple of days.

Enough for now, enjoy the pics!

The Experiment

I thought I'd take a series of posts to discuss things involving the expedition, my dear Rusty Buchanan, and Second Life in general. Treat it as the first behind the scenes episode on the imaginary director's cut DVD that gives you a look back through the monitor window. The images seen in ths series of posts are random shots from my SL wanderings with no real context attached to them. Gives me a chance to show off some screenshots that were gathering virtual dust.

I first encountered Second Life back in 2004 and was amazed. Unfortunately, I got distracted by other virtual amusement parks like Asheron's Call, WOW, and City of Heroes. I drifted away from SL. Late last year, a dear friend of mine on the west coast discovered SL and invited me back as a way to stay in contact. We had been using Yahoo messenger up to that point and that was, indeed, an intense change.

From that point forward, I wanted to treat Mr. Buchanan and that account carefully. Given my financial situation, I thought it would be fine to run without a credit card number and an unconfirmed account. It was not that I did not WANT to spend the subscription fee every month, it was that I simply did not have it. In fact, I had to give up both WOW and COH for the same financial reason.

I also saw the opportunity to try an experiment. Would it be possible to take an unconfirmed account and get enough going either through a SL business, contacts, or something similiar to justify spending the monthly fee? Would it be possible for a newb to get that far and what sort of prejudices might I have to deal with along the way? The goal was to eventually acquire a subscription account and own my own land.

A brief moment of explanation for those unsure what I am talking about. SL veterans reading this feel free to jump a few paragraphs forward. *grin* First off, its true, Second Life is free to play. Its one of its largest draws. However, once you decide to actually pay the monthly fee, your account become confirmed with a credit card number and several options open up to you. One, you begin to receive a weekly allowance from within the game of Linden dollars. Two, you are given the option to own land. Three, you are allowed into areas that some folks may have cordoned off from folks without a solid account. That's it, really. Otherwise, you are not penalized in any other way to run with a free account.

Of course, that's how it appears at first.

The other angle that is not readily apparent is that the griefer situation on Second Life has become a large problem since I was around in 04/05. What's a griefer? A griefer is someone that comes into world with a free account and then proceeds to be a pain-in-the-ass by purposefully doing things that ruin the experience for other folks. It could be as simple as leaving a bunch of complex items about your storefront to induce lag or as complex as an actual attack on the grid itself which causes the whole system to be shut down. Since they are using a free account, there is little that can be done to track the troublemaker. They're not anonymous, of course, due to IP addresses and such things, but its pretty darn close.

Also, to put it simply, someone with an unconfirmed account is not taken seriously. I understand this view perhaps the best because why should they be taken seriously? Someone with an unconfirmed account is effectively anonymous and not interested in paying their fair share, their dues that other account holders have been paying for months or years. Like I said, I understand this one.

Regardless, I decided to see what I could do by patiently climbing against the obstacles. I've treated it a bit like a personal quest to see how far a SL account could get after starting with no money and the simple basics. For now, as I look back over the past four months, it's not been without its low points but things seem to be working just fine.

Next Episode -- You Want To Start a What?

Winter!

My good friend over at Saturn 5 Photography has been doing something called "Come Out Shooting" for several weeks now. Its a weekly theme where a random word or concept is pulled out at, well, random and offered out for inspiration among us artistic types. Whether you are a photographer, writer, or any kind of artist, he encourages folks to send in something regarding the weekly theme. I've not been able to submit anything until just today! Finally!

The theme last week was Winter and so I took it upon myself to venture out into the results of yesterday's snowstorm to grab some quick shots. Unable to decide between my two favorites, the two images on this post are what I came up with.

Enjoy!

Rasum Frassum

Frustrations seem to abound this week which has, by default, led to all sorts of delays in keeping with the creative schedule I am trying to maintain. To name not all but a few; car's dying, hectic schedules, internet connection going bad for 24 hours, and now a winter storm. All seem to be conspiring to have me pull my hair out.

I had hoped to get some Frontier Horizon's items caught up yesterday but was only able to get the underwater cave post up. On the good side, a particular project happening at Caledon is moving along nicely. More on that later... My only regret is that due to said frustrations I was not able to give it the time I had intended. Hopefully, the coming storm won't interfere too much with connections this evening. But before that, I will need to get home from work safely. *grin* And, the other goal is to not be so tired that I cannot work on a short story that I wanted to have finished by now.

Storms happen and its the captain's job to find the best way through them or, if necessary, to find a good port for shelter. The goal is to not let the frustrations force a mistake out of you. Management of pressure.

Wish us luck!

Embodiment of Self

One of the other things I get to do with this blog is show off shots of things I think are cool within the digital world of Second Life but may not be able to post them over on Frontier's Horizon. Well, at least until the Great Expedition is over.

I love the artwork and skill that goes into avatars. Some folks take the chance to design the image of themselves they want to present to the digital world. I love people's choices and how creative they can be. I'll leave the psycho analysis as to why one presentational choice might differ and what personality traits might be evidenced by a person's choice firmly on the couch, in the shed, out back, in the woods. The bottom line about avatar choice is that its fun and, yes, sometimes it can tell you something about yourself.

And I love to take pics of all the creative and beautiful ones I've seen. With this post, I'm starting a series of cool and interesting avatars I see in-world. My apologies if I do not publish a name with them. Some times I don't even get a person's name because I am so busy operating the in-world camera. I'm clicking away and *poof* they're gone. Such is the case with the two presented here. I hope you enjoy them!

Abeam the Wind

I seem to have stumbled upon a schedule that works. It's not the schedule I was looking for or would have guessed upon but its funny what happens when you decide to just go with the flow instead of cramming your life into the boxes that you or others believe they should be in.

With my family of five, one car, and living in the country away from our places of employment, our schedule is not a friendly one conducive to relaxed creative ventures. Allow me to lay the normal gameplan out on the table. On days we both work, I am up by 6:30 a.m., out the door by 7:15 a.m., and to work by 8 where I manage to get in a little bit of creative time as I do not actually go on shift until a little before 10. Once done with work and sometimes being on our feet all day, its a fast-paced race home, dinner, deal with homework, and the assorted and random things that three children can come up with within 6 to 8 hours. You'd be amazed. Oh, I hear you out there saying, "No, we understand." And I'm telling you, unless you have three or more kids in school, you just don't understand. Children are an odd gift in my life that I treasure deeply. They make you smile, fill you with magic, and then, two minutes later, you're looking for something to throw at them. *grin* However, the magic they share with you is beyond compare

Once dinner is done then its time for either laundry, dishwashing, house-cleaning, and you-cleaning in either some random combination or a frenzied dash through all the stages. Squeeze in an hour of family time and then its bedtime for the little ones. We are fortunate that, in this, they are quite angelic. With the children asleep one would think, "Ah-ha! Time for creativity!" And to this I would say, "Ah-ha, you are right!" except for the fact that you're bone tired and the only real creative action you can perform is to pick the brightly colored mug instead of the black one in which to catch the drool leaking from the corner of your mouth. Or your ears...

No, it's usually at this time that my absent-minded brain goes on automatic and unless on fire with a creative project, I will begin to fade. Now, for many months I have pushed myself at this point. Snuck a bit of coffee in with some milk and jumped online to hash around in Second Life, opened the word processor, or grabbed Photoshop to work on a painting. Nights where I would stay up until 2 in the morning, bleary-eyed, falling asleep at my work desk only to get up and do it all again the next day. I do have the fortunate gift of only needing about six hours of sleep a night and, occasionally, much less. Yet, I was aware that I was pushing too hard and the schedule was wearing me down.

A few days ago, I gave up. I was exhausted, drained. I went to bed at 8:30 and, of course, woke up at 2:45 in the morning. Staggering out into the peaceful silence of the house, I flipped through some notes, flipped on the computer, and had the most amazing two and half hours before "the real world" kicked in. Curious, I tried it again the next night and the next morning it worked again. I was a bit stunned. Because I had been able to get the creative work done, I had a much better day and carried none of that creative pressure that can build up within like a volcano if you don't get it out. It makes for odd hours and puts a bit of a damper on the social life. With the Second Life expedition, it puts me in-world a little after midnight and exploring during the odd morning hours. This is good for lag and for my wee computer but hinders me a bit with contacts. Fortunately, Second Life is very international and I get to meet folks that I normally would not meet. When I meet them, that is. Regardless, I've been running on this schedule for several days now and, frankly, I'm amazed.

Could it be I've found the correct point off the wind where this ship sails the best? I suppose it's true.

And.... GO!

First post. How exciting is that? For me, pretty exciting. I've been wanting to get this up and running for several months and now, here we are!

For old friends joining me from my Livejournal, welcome! Make yourself at home and feel free to let the witticism fly.

For those joining me from the Frontier's Horizon blog, welcome aboard and I hope you enjoy the peeks backstage. Hopefully, the glances behind the curtain at the dusty prop room and cluttered stage wings will not dampen the glow you might have for the adventurous Rusty Buchanan.

For anyone else, climb aboard and grab a bit of railing. There's enough room here for everyone.

I think its almost mandatory that a first post be an overview of what you'll be reading on the blog. Its good to set guidelines, right? I think they provide anchors for those days or weeks where you feel like you've lost your way with a project.

If you know me you might be saying, "Dude, you've got two blogs as it is. Why do you need a third?" What is this blog all about? Well, its been in the works for awhile, stewing away in my brainpan. Its also a way for me to break away and have a journal that specifically features my articles, commentary, and art.

To answer this a bit more completely here is a small list of what I am looking to provide for myself as well as my audience.

1. Mature and professional commentary on creativity, art, and writing.

2. An area to talk about what is going on with my "ship" or otherwise known as my Studio. (More about that, below.) This includes a place to pimp a photograph or two as well as anything else that I've done which I think is cool.

3. Commentary on the very fascinating virtual world of Second Life as well as other MMORPG's as I can afford to play them. (Which is nill right now since I am broke! *lol*) Though I may talk about the progress I am making with Mr. Buchanan or technical "behind the scenes" things with him, alot of what will be here will be commentray about the SL world in general. Basically, opinions and articles on things that the good Mr. Buchanan might not talk about in character. I'm fascinated by the whole concept, Second Life in particular, and I find myself ranting about it on a daily level. I plan to subject you to those rants.

4. And finally, general blogging, writing, or op-ed commentary, maybe some small fiction pieces. Its my hope to keep most of this very light-hearted and amusing. However, you never know, seriousness has a way of growing like mold in a bread bag. If it shows up, I promise to scrape it off the crust as soon as possible.

5. At least three posts a week, if not more, for the foreseeable future.

A bit of explanation for when I use the term "ship." My ship is an imaginary one called the O.S.S. Renaissance. It's symbolic to my career as a creative individual, as a writer, a photographer, an artist, and my quest to become self-supporting with those skills. I am also not ashamed to admit that I was inspired to do it after my love of the television show "Firefly" and, in particulary, the episode, "Out of Gas." I've spent quite a bit of time on her and, in time, I will go into the concept. For now, let me provide the following...

An example: The aerial sailing ship The Renaissance launched last year under beautiful summer skies. The initial tour around the harbor was good and I started running her fairly hard late in the summer. The actual use of the aetherwind sails was barely tested and unfortunately, sometime around early Winter she started developing some serious leaks. I brought her into dock and she's been in the process of refitting since sometime around November. Since then the winter winds have been very very hard on her but I'm still hoping to have her re-rigged and crewed as soon as possible.

Translation: I started an official business called Renaissance Way Studio last summer and began not only doing photography but artwork both commission and personal. A few problems surfaced and since then I have also rediscovered my love of writing. I've turned my focus that direction and to submitting material for publication. Over the past month or so I've been under some terrible financial stress but I refuse to allow the Renaissance to be scuttled without even one good voyage under her belt! Again, I am reminded of the episode "Out of Gas." If you know it, you know what I am talking about... If you don't know it, you should see it sometime.

So, when I speak of my "ship" that's what I am talking about. A symbolic vehicle made up of dreamstuff and what Joseph Cambell might call my own mythical and heroic imagery. If nothing else its very entertaining to think about when I'm bored in line at the grocery store.

As said by Mark Twain, "Don't part with your illusions. When they are gone you may still exist, but you have ceased to live."

With that being said, let me restate, "Welcome aboard!" From here, we shall see where the winds take us and whether the weather be sunny or foul.

The image above is entitled "What No Fence Can Hold" and is © Bryan Roberts, 2006.