#larry’s journal’s art

[larrys-journal]

- Move out their way everyone, they’re here for the most, “best and slayed couple” award 🏆

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CW: Slightly Suggestive 👇

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[02nique02]

[vintagelasvegas]

Union Plaza Hotel & Casino, July 1971

The hotel was built on the site of the former Union Pacific depot and Greyhound bus terminal. Two companies financed the hotel: Upland Industries, a subsidiary of Union Pacific Corp, and Scott Corp. directed by Frank E. Scott. The Scott Corp. was the landlord, Scott was the CEO and president of the hotel, with partners Sen. Howard Cannon, and downtown casino stalwarts J.K. Houssels Jr, Jackie Gaughan, Sam Boyd, and Bill Boyd, who managed the “world’s largest casino.”

'70: Aug. 10, Groundbreaking. (LA Times 8/9/70, RJ 7/1/71)

'70: Nov., Union Station demolished. (RJ 11/24/70)

'71: May 2, Final UP train service. Amtrak was established, and passenger service through Las Vegas is suspended.

'71: Jul. 2, Union Plaza Hotel & Casino is opened. Architects: Zick & Sharp (Las Vegas) in association with Stanley J. How (Omaha). Contractor: Blount-Yoxen Construction Co. The hotel complex contained a bus station, 500-seat showroom, 2nd story pool in front of the hotel, and an adjacent parking garage. The 504-room hotel was roughly the same size as the Fremont Hotel and smaller than some on the Strip, but it boasted the largest casino floor in Las Vegas at 66,000 sq ft.

'75: Jul., Sports book addition. KDWN Radio 720 AM begins broadcasting from the hotel with a station on the 2nd floor.

'79: Oct. 28, Amtrak’s Desert Wind line through Las Vegas begins the first regularly scheduled service since ‘71. Small room and platform in the rear of the hotel is used as the depot.

'81: Apr., Rooftop sign and lights changed. Design by Charles Barnard, Ad Art. 

'82: Construction of 26-story south tower, parking garage, and conversion of the front pool to restaurant designed by Louis Pereira. (RJ 3/16/82, 9/19/82, 10/28/82)

'83: Center Stage restaurant opens in Jan. (RJ 1/23/83) Mural depicting the past, present, and future of passenger rail service created in the hotel between the lobby and depot area. Tower topped off in Apr. and opened in fall. Total rooms: 1030. (RJ 4/23/83, 10/20/83)

'90-'93: Jackie Gaughan acquires the holdings of Union Plaza founder Frank Scott, followed by Upland’s participation in '93, becoming the majority shareholder and ending the relationship with Union Pacific. The hotel is renamed “Jackie Gaughan’s Plaza” circa ’92, though the signs remain unchanged, with “Union” on the rooftop sign for several years.

2004: Mar. 26, Plaza is sold. Union Plaza Hotel & Casino Inc, Exber Inc and Gaughan South sell Plaza, Las Vegas Club, Gold Spike, Western Hotel, and 60 acres of land and non-gaming properties to Barrick Gaming and Tamares Real Estate for $82M. The Barrick group plans a "themed street behind the Plaza which will re-create the ambience of old downtown Las Vegas." (RJ 3/26/2004)

2005: Tamares buys Barrick’s interest in Plaza hotel and the Las Vegas properties; Larry Woolf managing.

2009: Firefly opens in the former Center Stage restaurant; Oscar's Steakhouse opens in its place in 2011.

2014: Jonathan Jossel takes over as the CEO of the Plaza, the youngest non-restricted gaming licensees in Las Vegas. 

Construction in 1971. The first photo is dated 1/12/1971, Nevada State Museum Las Vegas.

Fremont & Casino Center, Apr. 1971. Union Plaza construction past Main St.

Sal Sagev Hotel and Golden Gate Casino; Union Plaza; Las Vegas Club and the Dugout restaurant. 1971. Photo via Plaza Hotel.

Postcards circa 1971.

Timeline Sources: UP Hotel Plans Ready for Signing. Las Vegas Review-Journal, 10/3/69; Work on 22-story hotel to start soon. Review-Journal, 8/2/70 p1; No Parking Here. Review-Journal, 8/10/70; Union Plaza Magic Hour Near. Review-Journal, 7/1/71; Plaza celebrates LV ‘uptown’. Review-Journal, 8/13/71; Rod Smith. Four Gaughan casinos pass to Barrick. Review-Journal, 3/26/2004; Howard Stutz. Lady Luck. Review-Journal, 12/13/2005; Oliver Lovat. A Golden Age for Downtown. GGB Magazine, 2021.

[cyandreamzaceattorney]

✭ Orange and Yellow AA fanart ✭

Over the past few days I felt like doing some more scrapbook like pages in my art journal and decided to do some fanart of orange and yellow themed aa characters :D.

I first drew Athena and unfortunately I'm not super happy with the outfit I drew for her. I tried to make it both sporty and girly (as she's an active character but also very feminine) but I think I failed at both, I also feel like I should've incorporated more blue into the outfit, especially the shorts and maybe also jacket. At least I had fun doing some parts of the drawing with ink (instead of using just crayons for all the colours like I normally do), especially the hair!

Then I drew Larry for the first time and gave him a pretty basic but kinda fashionable outfit that I think suits him well. To be honest, he turned out a lot better then expected as I thought I wouldn't enjoy drawing him, especially since I'm not a Larry fan. I don't hate him but, he has a lot of annoying character "quirks" that I'm just not into. I do agree that he is treated too harshly in the games and I especially dislike everyone crapping on his art when it's not bad! Especially his watercolour paintings.

Then I drew another character for first time, Juniper! I had fun drawing her in a cute yellow cottagecoreish dress with gumboots (cuz I associate those with gardening) and I definitely want to draw her more. She's one of the few AA5 characters that aren't from the DLC case that I love (unfortunately most AA5 characters I'm not a fan of, expect for the DLC case cuz I like almost every character in that are in the DLC case). I already have ideas for drawing Verity Gavèlle mentoring her as that's definitely a hc of mine :-D.

And last, but definitely not least, I had to draw Shi-Long. In my mind he is the yellow aa character! I won't lie, his outfit was the hardest for me to come up with. Trying to draw an outfit I think looks cool but is masculine is a major weak point for me (⁠´⁠-⁠﹏⁠-⁠`⁠；⁠), still I did my best and I like the results. Especially the shoes, as I wanted to give him cool boots to make up for his hideous canon boots, still don't feel like I'm great at drawing shoes but, I am definitely trying to get actively better and I think I am :P.

I also make custom scrapbook paper for both page bgs due to not having a lot of orange/yellow paper which helped use white paper I don't like drawing on :-)

I hope you all enjoy these drawings ✧⁠◝⁠(⁠⁰⁠▿⁠⁰⁠)⁠◜⁠✧

[jamlessjj]

Hey team (I say as I make prolonged eye contact with my U2 mutuals) so while I was on a road trip a few weeks ago I chanced upon a record store that had an absolute treasure trove of old magazines and managed to find these gems. Would you all like me to post some scans of the articles and/or covers? Here is a list of what's pictured. If any of these strike your fancy, lemme know:

U2's Propaganda, Issue 15, Winter 1991/2: A special edition that focuses on the release and making of Achtung Baby. Its contents are very campy design-wise with a cool arts and crafts type of vibe. Lots of photos from the late 80s and early 90s, at least half of which I hadn't seen before. Contents include an Achtung Baby scrapbook, an article detailing the making of "The Fly" music video, and an article about the process behind designing the Achtung Baby album cover.

U2's Propaganda, Issue 16, Spring 1992: A pretty text-heavy issue with a well-rounded bunch of articles in terms of topics. The entire first half of the issue is dedicated to coverage of preparation for the Zoo TV tour, focuses on the band as well as artists and others involved in various aspects of the tour. This article's look is giving "graphic design is my passion" in the best way possible. There's also an interview with Brain Eno, an article on the spoof tribute band "The Joshua Trio," and a report on the Negativland thing that happened.

U2's Propaganda, Issue 17, Winter 1992/3: Its cover story, "Sixty Nine Things You May Not Have Known About Life in the Zoo," is a rapid-fire and visually immersive list of happenings from the Zoo TV tour. Big photos of the band and the staging, including some of Bono in the foregone but never forgotten red version of The Fly costume. This issue also focuses on fan content, with a mailbag section and some stuff about various fanzines.

Rolling Stone, Issue 761, May 29, 1997: Pop-era U2 on the cover, looking extra cool. The article is titled "The Wizards of Pop." I haven't read all the way through this article, but this is the premise we're given: "Who are those men behind the curtain? It's Bono! The Edge! Adam Clayton! Larry Mullen Jr.! On the eve of their supergiant '97 world tour, U2 reveal the heart inside their consumer-nightmare machine." A couple of neat photos, too.

Rolling Stone, Issue 986, November 3, 2005: Bono on the cover, and a suuuuuper long interview with him, like, including photos, this thing is about 16 pages long with a teeny tiny font size. I've only skimmed the text but the whole thing seems to have a relatively down-to-earth vibe, which the photographs compliment well. Pretty biographical, based on what I've seen it vaguely reminds me of Bono's Surrender. Found this quote while skimming and I like it a lot: "I've always had these melodies in my head. If I'm beside a piano, I put my finger on a key. I hear a rhyme."

Rolling Stone, Issue 1074, March 19, 2009: U2 on the cover, shot in a way that seems to call back to their cover on the aforementioned 1997 issue. Published around the release of No Line on the Horizon, this is definitely more of a journalism piece as far as I can tell, rather than an interview piece. I like how this article is laid out visually. Focuses on the process of creating and recording NLOTH, and includes some photos of the band working on the album. Also, eyeliner Bono. Dude absolutely dominates one of the pages.

Spin, Volume 4 Number 10, January 1989: A brooding and melancholic Bono on the cover. I enjoy the cover's visual and emotional drama, and its mythical quality definitely goes hand in hand with the corresponding article. After getting past three ads for a multitude of cigarette brands, including one with a pop-up fish holding up a supposedly irresistible offer for a pack of Salems, you'll find an article titled, "Hating U2," with the premise, "U2 set out to become the biggest band in the world. Now they're fighting to avoid being crushed by their own myth." The magazine's overall minimalistic look matches well with how U2 was publicly perceived at the time. Again, haven't read the article in depth, but I think it's the one I look forward to reading to most. Seems to deliver a considerate/compassionate and entertaining look at celebrity, and the tensions between fame and music making, all in relation to Rattle and Hum. Includes some photos that when viewed in the article's context, totally showcase a tension between the mythicism of celebrity and ordinary personhood. Three out of the four photos were new to me.

I'm sure digital versions exist for some of these articles already. I at least know you can find some past Rolling Stone articles and interviews online. But still, I think there's something to be said about the original physical versions with all the photos, design choices, and whatnot. As a younger person, I find these physical copies especially valuable, as they're like primary sources that allow me to better connect with a time I didn't get to live through personally.

I'll probably have lots more to say about each of these at some point in the future, but in the meantime, I'd be happy to post scans if anyone so desires!

[bluestriips]

⊹₊࿐ creatures ୨୧

resident creature outcasts of baudelaire.

— matthew sturniolo 🕸️

📚 freshman — vampire

silver jewelry. glasses. indie music. poetry.

english literature major, middle triplet, resident guitarist, quiet nerdy kid (unless he’s with his brothers), on the hockey team, loves the library.

“don’t— don’t! fuckin’ touch my journal, dickhead.”

— christopher sturniolo 🕸️

🥍 freshman - vampire

slutty bracelets. redbull. drumsticks. graffiti.

sports scholarship, business major, youngest triplet, resident drummer, lacrosse captain, has a collection of art awards on his dorm room wall.

“$20 an’ i’ll sketch that deer right now. in under 5 minutes— look! look at it run!”

— nicolas sturniolo 🕸️

📷 freshman — vampire

polaroids. cuffed jeans. doc martens. stars.

film major, oldest triplet, go-to photographer for school music events and drama productions, loves to lurk on the 3rd floor with larri and quen and make fun of the “old fucks” in all the oil paintings.

“i have too many school fight videos on my phone. like, so many. it’s a problem.”

— jake webber 🕸️

🛹 junior — werewolf

cigarettes. offensive fashion. stickers. tattoos.

music major, turned down a slot on the lacrosse team because it’s “not his jam”, was totally involved with tara until they broke up, never seen without his skateboard, everyone’s favorite upperclassman.

“fuck professor thelxiope! she thinks guys can’t sing cause she’s biased to sirens. don’t worry, everyone hates her.”

— tara mirshokraei 🕸️

🐆 sophomore — siren

leopard print. flip phones. nail polish. confetti.

fashion major, baudelaire’s “it girl”, started the school’s kesha club (alongside nick), throws the best parties on campus, part of the choir, jake’s ex girlfriend (they’re still friends, so all is good).

“oh for sure. that’s gonna be, like, 25 bags of confetti— oh. you’re out? well shit. um…”

— larri merritt 🕸️

🌵 junior — serpent

venus flytraps. slutty waist. silver chains. curls.

communications major, head of debate team (he has a lot of opinions), always wearing the flyest outfits, loves the greenhouse, likes to garden with matt.

“oh— oh! bitch, what the fuck is that! that is not one of my flytraps. she looks a bit… rusty.”

[harrisonarchive]

The Beatles and Fats Domino in New Orleans, September 16, 1964; photo by Curt Gunther, @ Curt Gunther/mptvimages.com.

“‘The main thing that really buzzed me, even before I heard Elvis, was ‪Fats Domino‬’s “I’m In Love Again,”’ says Harrison. ‘I can even see exactly where I was when I heard that. There was this little place near where I was born called Wavertree, a district. And right at that point there’s a thing called the Picton Clock Tower, this tower in the middle of the road with this clock on it, and then nearby there used to be this old art-deco cinema called the Abbey. I was just walking across the road there when I heard ‪Fats Domino‬: Yes it’s me and I’m in love again! It must have been on a radio or a record player somewhere. And it touched somewhere deep in me.’” - Billboard, December 5, 1992

“I still prefer the music I liked as a teenager — Little Richard, Larry Williams and Buddy Holly. That’s classical music to me. But I like all kinds of music, Hawaiian, Spanish, Cab Calloway, Jorge Negrete... I like music that is not ego music. Real music doesn’t make you think of cash registers. It should transport you somewhere nice.” - George Harrison, Herald-Journal, July 1, 1997

“George loved Mexican music, he watched some of these films with me, he even had Jorge Negrete on the jukebox. My father used to sing with his brothers, around 1938, and like every musician he used to go around with his guitar. So George actually took my dad into the studio and recorded him. And my dad and my mother sang like four full songs. [...] We used to have to call him Jorge. Sometimes if he wanted to use another name, he would use Jorge Arias, because that is my maiden name.” - Olivia Harrison, Morelia Film Festival interview, November 3, 2016

“My mother’s father, Esquiel Arias, was a singer, and dad recorded him singing these great Mexican songs. My mother’s mother was related to Jorge Negrete, who was a film star and singer, I guess at the same level as Elvis or Bing Crosby in Mexico. Dad was a huge fan and had him on the jukebox at home. There’s a long line of musicians on both sides.” - Dhani Harrison, Mojo, November 2017 (x)

[asydicsydney]

WTNV 240 LIVE REACTION

(Title and art) YESSSSSS!!! Also "He is holding a cat" reference real

:0 John! Hiiii

I need my ears to listen to Night Vale, Cecil! >:T

Music still weird

(Pause) Tamika is housing the boy, yet she was the one most against Kevin

There's other places you can get knives, Cecil 🙄

Acting like a damn therapist

This isn't an "on to the news" moment!!

I WAS JUST TALKING ABOUT HOW U-VIEW IS THE ONLY FILLER DEC. 15TH EP WTF???

Please let this connect to Cecil's dad in It Doesn't Hold Up

Lee Marvin mention <3 (please bring back dad lore)

Cecil... Are you jealous they have records of their family?

Kevin used to journal... (I sound like a widow)

TRYING OUT DIFFERENT VERSIONS OF THE PERSON HE COULD BE?? IS IT NOT OBVIOUS??

The post office... That closed in year one?

I am a roleplayer in the year 1980 so this is helpful thank you

That's not.. y'know what, you do you Larry

INTERTWINING STORIES OH FUCK

He's educating himself on corrupt businesses, awww

Night Vale movie when? /j

That.. conversation is very Kevin coded

WHATTTT NONONONONONO (FULL NMAE MENTION AS WELL WTF)

Earl Harla- no it's Gino's, first date reference :)

The same names, double bar, vultures... How very doubles of you

Oh.. okay

Real

So Cecil has the knife now?

NOOOOO

AHHHHHHHHHH

Highly advanced techniques 🧐

"The secret of science is: so much of it is beautiful"

Anymore?? He's gathering information to return home...

I'll take vaguely menacing sentences for 200, Alex!

FAMILIAR TO YOU HUH? MAYBE CAUSE IT'S YOU IN ANOTHER TIMELINE, BITCH??

This weekend's weather? You've never said it like that. The weather for All Smiles Day, perhaps?

This weather is a helluva vibe

Vaguely menacing sentences...

"Past performance is not a predictor of future results" I swear to Smiling God that was in a Strex ad

🙂

MY SIDE OF THE STORY? THIS IS FUCKING SANDSTORM I CALLED IT

He's never gotten to live his story :(

Oh that's a hell of a line "please don't make *me* make this difficult"

He wants to KNOW

BE NOT AFRAID

HOLY HELL

Cecil wants to know nothing. Kevin wants to know everything

YESSSSSSSSSS HIIIII MY SWEET BOY

:O

END OF EPISODE WOW

YOU'RE TELLING ME WE HAVE TO WAIT TILL FEBRUARY YOU ASS

"THE VOICE OF THE BOY"

Actual advice? Oh, okay

The "From PRX" voice is different? Probably nothing to do with them

What if this Kevin story and Cecil dad lore intersected? We do know Kevin's dad.. and that he was a bad person

[dross-the-fish]

Actually, rather than just reblog the old art, I think I'm going to go through and re-write a few of those drabbles and redraw some of the art, looking back at posts from april and may I think I might actually have improved some since then and I've made changes to some of the designs.

April vs August

I also want to take another shot at this scene. I really like it but the art is severely outdated and the writing could use some expanding

[ericdeggans]

The Peabody Awards 2024: Learning how "Stories That Matter" is so much more than a catchy slogan

(The author with Reservation Dogs executive producer Taika Waititi, Peabody judges Hannah Giorgis and Lorraine Ali, Peabody staffer Maggie Stephens and, below, Rita Ora and Kali Reis)

Midway through the ceremony, a thunderbolt struck in the form of a passionate speech from Sir Patrick Stewart, reminding me exactly why the George Foster Peabody Awards are such a special experience for judges, winners, staffers who works on the honors and media itself.

As a former judge and chair of the board of jurors, I had traveled to Los Angeles for the first Peabody awards held in person since the COVID lockdowns of 2020. It was also the awards’ first time taking place in Los Angeles, signaling a shift from the news-centered operation of old to a more Hollywood friendly production. And it happened to be the first awards ceremony since I stepped down as chair of the jurors in 2019, rotated off the panel – as is customary - after six years of service. (I was the first African American to hold the chair's job, in fact.)

It is tough to describe what a special experience it is to be among the judges helping hand out such a prestigious honor. The first time I served, among the projects we gave prizes to were House of Cards and Scandal – two shows which heralded the rise of streaming and the impact of diversity on television. I was part of the panel which decided to hand special honors to Jon Stewart, Rita Moreno and Carol Burnett at various times, recognizing the world-shaking impact of legendary performers and satirists.

Deliberations take place over three separate weeks in different locations, with our debates centered on impact, originality, scope, quality, substance and diversity — among other considerations — always with an eye on what the bright light of a Peabody win might accomplish when trained on a deserving project.

(The Peabody judging panel during my last year in the group.)

At the end, judges must have watched/consumed every entry under consideration and we must agree unanimously. With a judging panel that ranged from world class academics to high achievers in media, expert journalists and critics and more, we bonded like rowdy siblings at a media nerd’s ideal summer camp.

(Chilling with Tony Goldwyn and Jeff Perry from Scandal during my very first Peabody awards ceremony in 2014.)

But when Sir Patrick rose in the middle of Sunday’s ceremony to speak eloquently of the amazing work on display in the acceptance speeches of winners, I realized why the Peabodys were truly special. Conceived as the electronic/broadcasting/TV equivalent of the Pulitzer Prizes, the Peabodys this evening united Hollywood favorites like FX’s The Bear and HBO’s The Last of Us with searing journalism, like the PBS NewsHour’s coverage of war in Gaza or Tennessee investigative reporter Phil Williams’ dogged exposure of a mayoral candidate’s ties to white supremacists in a tony Nashville suburb.

Ravish Kumar, the news anchor in India who serves as the centerpiece for the POV documentary While We Watched, gave a passionate speech criticizing mainstream news outlets in his home country for enabling Hindu nationalism by spreading misinformation. Ron Nyswaner, creator and showrunner for Showtime’s LGBTQ-focused limited series Fellow Travelers, talked on how “art is about trying to make people think and feel.”

And Larry Wilmore, co-creator of Black-ish and host of the late, lamented Comedy Central news satire The Nightly Show, cracked a joke on how supremely compromised Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is kind of a dick. (Hey, everything can’t be highbrow during a three-hour show).

It occurred to me, that too many Hollywood awards shows are mostly about the star power and glamour of supremely acclaimed stars. Don’t get me wrong: it was gratifying and heartwarming to see the entire place leap to their feet for enduring icon and Career Achievement awards winner Mel Brooks, or Donald Glover presenting the Trailblazer award to his good friend Abbott Elementary star/creator Quinta Brunson or – for this Star Trek nerd anyway – the astonishing sight of watching castmembers/producers from Picard, Discovery, Enterprise and other corners of Trek gather onstage for the Institutional Award.

(The Star Trek crew, including LeVar Burton, Rebecca Romijin and Jeri Ryan, at the Peabody awards Sunday.)

But the secret sauce of the Peabodys is the way it utilizes Hollywood glamour to shine a light on quality journalism and public service programming like the micro-documentary series The Hidden Racism in New York City or PBS Frontline’s reporting on America and the Taliban or Dallas-Fort Worth NBC station KXAS’ look at how an organization of sheriffs were quietly radicalizing law enforcement officers across the state.

So, even though I’m no longer taking part in the long hours of viewing and debate required to pick these standout honorees – and it is part of the deal that every judge has to agree on every winner and finalist – I couldn’t be prouder of the selections my successors have assembled. We are all now part of a family dedicated to upholding the best in media, highlighting important work in a way almost no other modern awards ceremony can do.

(Me at this year's Peabody awards.)

See the list of Peabody winners HERE.

[larrys-journal]

I love them sm!!🤍

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[hawkinssongbird]

@devildungeondm // continued from here.

The move to Hawkins, Indiana was crucial to the Lance family to better enrich their daughter's special abilities. Her father, Larry, became familiar of a scientist in the small town who went by the name of Martin Brenner, who learned of young Dinah's talent through another scientist in her birthplace of Gotham - Hugo Strange. It was strongly suggested they move out of Gotham, which was closing in to become poisoned with injustice and horrific corruption.

Word of what their daughter was capable of ended up in the wrong hands shortly after, and they had no choice but to leave the city in the dead of night, as raids for others like her left the city ablaze. Dinah could only pack what was necessary - all of her journals containing her artwork, and the other who she shared an unusual connection with, were the first things she packed away.

Midway into the first week of settling into Hawkins, Dinah had grown increasingly frustrated with how silent the other end of her connection became. Making her more alone than she had ever felt before. What if it only worked back home? What if her soulmate had been there the whole time, and they were too far apart?

By the end of the week, Dinah's first visit with Dr. Brenner provided some comfort. She hadn't lost her abilities, but they were suffering from the increased amount of stress, according to the test results. He was understanding and kind.

You'll sing again, Little Bird.

And sing she did. It was on the very morning when the smiley face she drew on her palm, came back with two others appearing right beside it. One sad face and one smiley face in return. She felt like she could fly knowing she still had her soulmate, and it was the first peaceful sleep she had that night, feeling like she was home again.

The following day, she was looking more like herself, singing softly away as she made her way out of the apartment and down the stairs of the building, art supplies in her arms. Her mother had been too busy with contractors to see her slip past the doors of the still being built flower shop. Her mother always dreamed of owning her own shop, and hadn't been achieved until this move.

It wasn't that she couldn't go outside per say, but she was not allowed to socialize until Dr. Brenner completed his research. Besides, everyone kept to themselves, and Dinah only ever communicated with one person these days. The only one who mattered, and it seemed like she mattered to them as well.

Immersed in her own little world, she hyper focused on tiny details to the latest edition of butterflies and bats. Over time, she learned on how to place each drawing on a specific part of her soulmate's body, and with how long they went without any contact - this was her way of apologizing. After all, the symbolism between a butterfly and bat shared a connection just like them - new beginnings.

Nice art.

The voice out of nowhere didn't startle her, but it did cause her to briefly freeze up. Tearing her gaze away from her work, to the hands resting on the table. Curious, at first, taking note of the rings on his fingers until - no. Was that? No way! It was her artwork on the inside of his arm! While the other - her pack of bats! It made her drawing hand twitch, like a spark of electricity. Fully aware of the ink style being a tattoo, causing her to beam. That was when her eyes finally looked into the ones of her soulmate, a soft smile taking over her lips, before chuckling with a shake of her head at his bewitching comment with a smirk of her own.

That wasn't her way of saying no, because she was well aware of his love for DnD. So much to the point where she reached for something that resembled a portfolio, and upon opening it up, she stood from the bench and started to read aloud with a dramatic walk around it, starting behind him as though it would cast the spell. "A witch can be a pariah in their town, cast out to fend for themselves. Other times, a witch is haunted by another spirit and they wish to be rid of it."

With that, she placed the portfolio down on the table, an invite for him to take a seat as she slid it over to him. Each of his characters for his campaigns were drawn exactly like the ones he shared with her, with additional information on the other page. He would find a date and time stamp on each corner, information and stats for each drawing, with personal blurbs of what she got out of their art. "I hope you don't find it too weird. It took me a long time to figure out that you didn't actually reign from another realm."

She was positively ready to burst at the seams to fire a million questions, but all she could do was smile as she sat back down, reaching for her journal without ever taking her eyes off of him. "I suppose that's still up for debate. If you're from another realm, or real at all. I could have made you up."

[comfortableinthesilence]

Mind Dump #293

Feeling a bit lost within myself tonight. These 12 hour office days just kill me out (I say 12 hours because I'm up at 5am, out by 6:30am and then not back home till 6/6:30pm). All that just to do the same thing I can do at home but what the bosses want, the bosses get.

To add to it, I closed my Etsy shop while I moved over a week ago and I've yet to reopen it and part of me feels like I shouldn’t. Sales had been slowing down mainly due to my crappy marketing skills, I've not created any new art in about 2 months. I have ideas and carry my ideas notebook everywhere I go but when it comes to actually creating said idea I just struggle to start. I've stopped creating art for me, wondering if what I create is good enough and would people like it and buy it. Creating art shouldn’t be like that, it’s about bringing the weird and wonderful ideas to life, regardless if others like it. That’s the attitude I need to find in my creativity and once I do I know I can create again.  

Also weighing on my mind is my grandad, I've not said much on here of late but he’s finally been discharged from hospital and is now in a new Carehome as of the other day. The stress part is due to his attitude and the way he’s acting with my mum, his daughter. When I speak to him he’s happy as larry but when my mum does he’s rude and ungrateful. My mum has bent over backwards to be there for him and he doesn’t thank her or anything. I know he’s been through a lot and he’s old, stressed and tired but I don’t like the fact he’s upsetting my mum when we are all just trying to do our best for him. I sense we’ll have a heated discussion sometime soon with him but I just wish he would be appreciative and understanding. 

As for living on my own, so far it’s been okay. It’s strange on days when I work from home as apart from talking to people through a headset, I can go all day seeing no one and speaking to no one in person. I’m an introvert and while it doesn’t bother me 90% of the time, there have been moments of loneliness. The thoughts creep in and I have to admit it’s taking some getting used to but we all have those moments I guess. Hopefully over time I can adapt to it and perhaps join some social club or go back to the gym to have social interaction. I guess in some ways working in the office for 2/3 days in the week is a blessing in that sense but think I would rather feel lonely then have to get up at 5am ha. 

So yeah, that’s where my head is at. I don’t expect anyone to have read all of this but if you have I apologise for rambling. I see my Tumblr as my online journal at times and it’s just nice to empty out my thoughts. I’ll share some pic updates of my place soon as I've made progress on my lounge, office and bedroom. 

Peace

[texasobserver]

From “The Who Behind ‘Where Wolf’” by culture correspondent Nguyên Lê:

Sorry, Waldo, but folks won’t ask for your whereabouts this time around.

In Robert Saucedo’s horror-comedy graphic novel Where Wolf, a lycanthrope is racking up quite the body count in College Station, prompting journalist Larry Chaney to track it down. The hunt also provides Chaney relief from the occupational “ennui” he’s experiencing. His search soon puts him in touch with the local furry community, where the part-man, part-canis lupus assailant has gone to blend in—and to feast.

A real life furry emailed Saucedo when the first chapter (of the 12 in his book) went live as a webcomic on the horror publication Fangoria. This furry reader asked if his inclusion of that subculture stemmed from hatred. 

The reaction had him recalling when he was the features editor of the Battalion, Texas A&M University’s student newspaper: “I assigned a story to one of the reporters about the local furry population. That was one of the most controversial stories in the paper—we had hate mail coming in for months!”

He countered the assumption by sending a link to Where Wolf’s first four chapters and earned an admirer who would also give him self-created fan art and that from others. He added, “I never thought I would get erotic fan art of something I wrote, but I’ll take it!”

The graphic novel is Saucedo’s first—and a self-financed—leap into the world of sequential art, one that also features illustrations and coloring from Debora Lancianese plus lettering from former Marvel staffer Jack Morelli.

To the latter, Saucedo has captured lightning in a bottle. Over email, he wrote that “The body language and facial expressions are flawless, as is the storytelling, all moving seamlessly from horror to humor to pathos to gore and back again.”

Saucedo, a Port Arthur native who has spent time in McAllen, Bryan/College Station, and now lives in Houston, said three figures served as inspirations for Where Wolf’s Larry Chaney: the protagonist and the actor playing him in the 1941 film The Wolf Man, the namesake of Gregory Mcdonald’s Fletch series, and the author’s own experience. 

Indeed, Saucedo worked for a Bryan–College Station Eagle as a reporter for about a year until dissatisfaction reared its head. He wasn’t confident enough in his writing. The switch to copy editing also didn’t work out. He added, “Larry is kind of like an avatar of where I thought I might be, professionally and emotionally, had I stayed in journalism, which is, to say, also not happy.”

His initial vision for the project was, in fact, a tribute to the journalism profession. 

“When Larry finds out that there’s a werewolf attacking the town,” Saucedo said, “he sees this as a big chance to get all the fame and glory he has been chasing his entire life. That’s where I was at in my life—I spent most of my 20s and 30s chasing that ‘fame and glory’ before realizing you kind of have to work for what you want to get.”

Saucedo found plenty of time to work on Where Wolf in 2020 when COVID hit and the Alamo Drafthouse, where he had programmed films, furloughed him. He applied the “a chapter a day” mantra and finished a full draft in less than two weeks. At this stage, his work was an online novel. (“No one was reading it—I could see the traffic on my website”). He briefly considered turning it into a podcast, but plans were scrapped after he realized he would need a sound editor (and an industry pro he met quoted him $10,000).

A graphic novel, then, became the best medium for Where Wolf.  He could invest in artists and nourish his love for cinema. 

“Having watched as many movies as I have, you kind of think in a very cinematic way when you’re trying to tell a story,” Saucedo said. “The rule of thumb I basically had when I talked to Deb was, ‘Even if you take out all the dialogue, the page still needs to look funny.’”

Read more on the Texas Observer.

[rustbeltjessie]

Rust Belt Jessie’s NaPoWriMo 2023 Prompts: #11

field guide

Ever since I first read Rebecca Solnit’s essay-memoir, A Field Guide to Getting Lost, in March 2006, I’ve been sort of obsessed with the idea of creating field guides for things that one wouldn’t normally find (or create) field guides for. I’ve titled both an issue of my zine and my ongoing sketchbook/art journal A Field Guide to Vanished Things (inspired by the aforementioned book, and by something Mark Doty wrote in Still Life With Oysters and Lemon: The heart is a repository of vanished things…). I have written a taxonomy-inspired poem, which is somewhat related—but I have never actually written a field guide-inspired poem. And I want to. I guess I’m creating this prompt as much for me as for you, dear reader.

The prompt is thus: write a field guide-inspired poem, or poem-as-field-guide for something which would not otherwise have a field guide. Be that because it’s too abstract (i.e., getting lost, heartbreak, unemployment, etc.); too small/niche (your backyard, the items on your nightstand, the punks of southeastern Wisconsin, that vacant lot behind the gas station where you and your friends used to skateboard…); not ‘natural’ (which can mean either manmade or supernatural; i.e., your ex-boyfriend’s apartment, angels, fairy tales); some other reason; or some combination thereof.* **

Since traditional field guides have illustrations and/or photographs, and this is a poem and probably won’t have those, make sure to include plenty of pertinent sensory details on what your thing/topic looks, sounds, feels, and smells like.

Once you’ve gotten the poem to a point you feel like it’s ready to be out in the world, I’ve got a couple bonus ideas for what you could do with it:

Submit it to The Field Guide poetry magazine! Or:

Put it together, complete with illustrations and/or photographs, and print it/bind it up as a mini field guide-cum-chapbook.

Recommended reading:

Field Guide (by Larry Lanier)

—

*It strikes me now that you could get hella meta and write a poem that’s a field guide to poetry. God damn.

**You do not have to include the words “field guide” anywhere in your poem or title, but you can if you like.

[jcmarchi]

Comprehensive Review: OWC Thunderbay 4 RAID – High-Performance Storage Solution

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/comprehensive-review-owc-thunderbay-4-raid-high-performance-storage-solution/

Comprehensive Review: OWC Thunderbay 4 RAID – High-Performance Storage Solution

Larry Jordan recently reviewed the OWC Thunderbay 4 RAID, a powerful four-drive enclosure designed for professionals needing high-capacity, reliable, and fast data management. Pairing it with Seagate Iron Wolf Pro 16 TB drives, Jordan tested this state-of-the-art solution to modernize his workflow and leverage the speed of Thunderbolt 3 technology. Here’s a closer look at its features, performance, and why it’s an ideal choice for upgrading your storage setup.

Exceptional Build Quality and VersatilityThe Thunderbay 4 RAID is meticulously crafted, featuring an aluminum chassis and durable drive sleds that ensure longevity. Supporting up to 96 TB of storage, it accommodates both 3.5″ and 2.5″ HDDs and SSDs. Its flexibility extends to multiple RAID configurations, including RAID 0, 1, 4, 5, 1+0, and JBOD (Just a Bunch of Drives), catering to diverse professional needs such as video editing and data archiving.

Buyers can choose between a pre-configured model or an empty enclosure to customize their setup. With Thunderbolt 3/4 connectivity, the unit delivers exceptional speed and features a pass-through port for daisy-chaining up to five devices.

Outstanding PerformanceDuring testing, the Thunderbay 4 exceeded expectations, achieving speeds over 1 GB/second in RAID 0. Jordan praised its straightforward setup process, which takes under ten minutes to mount drives, secure them, and prepare the system for use. Its direct wall plug eliminates the need for bulky power bricks, and it operates quietly aside from the typical hum of spinning drives.

When paired with Seagate Iron Wolf Pro drives, the system demonstrated reliability and efficiency. While one drive arrived defective—a situation quickly resolved by the retailer—all four drives performed flawlessly during extensive testing.

A Trusted Choice for ProfessionalsFor those upgrading from Thunderbolt 2 technology, the Thunderbay 4 offers a noticeable performance boost. Jordan recommends configuring the system with SoftRAID as RAID 5 using macOS Extended (Journaled) to optimize both speed and data protection.

With a long-standing reputation for quality, OWC continues to impress with the Thunderbay 4. Jordan’s personal experience with multiple OWC RAID systems underscores their reliability, even prompting him to pass down an older model for archiving purposes.

Final Thoughts: A Smart Investment in Reliable StorageThe OWC Thunderbay 4 RAID is an exceptional storage solution for professionals requiring high capacity and speed. Whether managing complex video projects or safeguarding important data, this enclosure—when paired with dependable drives like the Seagate Iron Wolf Pro series—offers the performance and reliability needed for demanding workflows.

Read the full review from Larry Jordan HERE