joe randel's art dump

It’s been hurting on and off now for a week or so.  It starts to hurt when I’m on the computer mostly, and it’s always my right arm.  it really sucks because I’m on the computer from about 8am till 5pm and then I goof around on my lap top at home in the evening.  This is the first time I’ve had this pain in all the time I’ve been using computers.  It really sucks T_T  I’m guessing it’s because I’m tensing up when I’m doing stuff at work (my project has a deadline coming up).  But only on my right side for some reason, probably because it’s my drawing arm.

I wonder if I can get workers comp for this ^_^

I find that when I get aches and pains now I think “man… getting old sucks”.  Which is funny I know because I’m only 31.  But with my chest hurting earlier this year and my arm ache now, just past 30, it really feels like old is creeping up.  My wife said that I really shouldn’t complain because if I where in primal man days… I’d probably be in old age by now…  if not dead.

So I guess if I had to pick between the two.  I’ll take my arm ache ^_^

Okay, so the gallery test is over.  I looked at a bunch and decided to go with the one that I had up as a test a few days ago.  I like it.  It’s simple and nicely done.  It doesn’t have all the options that I looked for.  I still have to upload via and FTP program and I have to input my new info in an xml.  But other gallery options I that did have what I wanted had bad layout or image viewer.  Also, people can’t leave a comment on the pictures, but who am I kidding.  I don’t think my site gets the foot traffic that I’d like it to get.  So it’s more of a collection of all my art and here at the communities is where I’ll get most of my feedback.

Now, I still need to put back up all the captions I had in my old gallery.  But the pics are all there.  I even dropped a few.  Looking back over all my art I’ve seen my style wander this way and that.  Some pics I’m still a fan of and some I’d sooner forget.  But over all it’s neat to see progression and in this new lay out people can see that too.

In a way it’s sad I wasn’t able to maintain the old one but I just wasn’t feeling it any more and I don’t know enough html, php or flash to make my own.  Plus with so many free, well built galleries there, why not try a different route.

So it’s up now with all my most current art up in it too.  Yay for change!  ^_^  Some times it’s not so bad.

Well, I never would have guessed this would happen.  A Japanese shoot’em up called Cho Aniki is making it’s way to Virtual Console. So… you might say.  Big deal.  Well, this game features big, shiny, bulging men…  Yup, all kinds of homoerotic stuff in these games and you shoot past giant half naked muscle men in an attempt to… uh… to… Okay I’m not sure what the main goal of the games are, but the series has developed a cult following since 1992!  It’s been on the PC Engine, Super Famicom, WonderSwan, PS and PS2.  Crazy @_@

But now… we here in North America can download the original Cho Aniki this coming Monday.  So get all oiled up for a hot, rippling all guy shoot’em up.

That sounds way dirtier then I would ever imagined.

I need a new gallery.

I can’t remember when I updated my gallery on my site.  It’s been… a while to say the least.  Why don’t I update it?  It’s become tedious.  Sure at one point going in and working around in html and all was cool but in today’s user generated web it’s so easy to have a gallery where you just upload your art from a browser and add a caption.  BAM!  Instant gallery.  I need that.  I’m too lazy to make thumb nails and such now.

I’ve decided to start looking for a flash based or a wordpress gallery that I can use.  I want it to be easy to use and easy to upload my junk.  I don’t want some server side thing where I have to go and bug James to turn dials and push buttons for me.  I want this to be easy peasy…  and maybe allow people to leave comments…

Anyone have any suggestions?  Once I find a good one I’ll be able to keep a better handle on my gallery.  I should have done this a while ago but I guess my brain was sleeping.

When I have one to test I’ll let you guys know so you can go kick the tires. ^_^

So my daughter has started to watch a show called “Get Squiggling”.

It’s a drawing show where the kids can draw along with the main character.  It’s cute and she really likes it and draws right along with the show.  It reminds me of me when I was young and I would draw along with Commander Mark and the Secret City.  It was my favorite show ever, at the time.  I drew hundreds of pictures of those little robots, spaceships and uniteddies.  It was great and the first time I learned to draw with depth and shading in my pictures.  Does anyone else remember that show?

Ahhh what great memories.

I also used to watch Bob Ross when I was 5 or so.  I thought he was awesome ^_^ although I never painted along with him.

I am currently STILL playing Boktai 2.

Oh, I’ve beat the game already.  I’m actually trying to get everything in the game.  I’ve done all the library quests, leveled up my character to level 99 and maxed out my weapon skills.  I still need to collect all the character photos and forge all the weapons.  It’s proving to be quite a challenge.  As I was playing on the bus today I got thinking about the last time I spent this much time on acquiring everything in a game.  Sure I unlocked everything in Cooking Mama, got triple stars on all the tracks in Mario Kart DS and was able to get all the elves and extra goodies in all the Mega Man Zero titles, but those achievements came about as I played the game on the first run through.  But here I am, months after I beat the game and I’m still trying to get and see everything.  I think I’ve put over 50 hours in to this title.

Amazing.

I can’t remember the last time I’ve put so much time in to a game trying to get everything.  I was actually level grinding my character trying to max out my exp.  I would say that’s an achievement in design if the game keeps you playing way after you beat it.

What was the last game you played where you found yourself dedicated to finding and getting everything in the game?