#also more examples of work and my fuckin contact info

[hexquestt-art]

Updated my commission sheet cause why not ya know?

#My art #Commissions #put it it in $ this time cause I feel like more people use $ #also more examples of work and my fuckin contact info

[leupagus]

Who’s your County Executive? and other steps to becoming a valuable pain in the ass

I fired off a tweet thread this morning, but I feel like a lot of folks here might benefit from this info, too. Which is: if you want anything to change, from police abolition to getting statues removed to passing local ordinances requiring masks to removing local legislation putting limits on abortion (just for some random examples), you need to get real familiar with your local reps. As in, you need to know who they are, what they do, how they’re elected/appointed, how long they’ve been doing that job, what their history is and how you can pressure them into doing what you want. Using hashtags and sharing links and signal boosting can only do so much. Talking to the people who are actually able to implement the change you want is a huge part that I don’t think gets discussed enough; and although it requires some preliminary work, once you get into the groove it’s surprisingly easy.

First, find out where you live! Which you may think is a stupid step, but —do you live in a city? Are you sure? I live in a city, for example, but I actually live in a township/suburb of that city, not the city proper. (Fortunately due to what I suspect is some white flight-related weirdness, I can still hassle the city proper.) There are entire towns inside of some cities, like West Hollywood and Los Angeles. Double-check; you might be surprised.

Then, find out who’s in charge of said place. There are quite a few people, actually. You probably have a mayor — but they might be called a supervisor. Or you may have a city manager, or executive, or clerk, or all three, or someone else entirely, who’s actually doing the day-to-day running of the place — for instance, while Austin has a mayor, it also has a city manager, and the city manager does WAY more than the mayor does. You also have people at the county/parish level — a county executive is I think the most common term, although sometimes it’s the county clerk, who can have entirely different duties depending on the county. Whatever way it works where you live, find out. While you’re at it, find out who’s in charge of your local elections. Sometimes that’s the county clerk (actually I think it’s almost always the country clerk, but sometimes it’s the county auditor or something weird like that); sometimes they’re elected and sometimes they’re appointed. Find out. Get names, put their contact info in your phone. (More on that later.)

Then, find out who represents you on the city/town council and the county legislature, or whatever they’re called where you are. Finding out what district you’re in can sometimes be hellaciously frustrating; when in doubt, an email to the county or city council can often get you an answer if you provide your address. Also bear in mind that different places have different ways of apportioning council members; sometimes they’re all “at large,” sometimes they’re elected according to districts, sometimes it’s a combination of both. Sometimes (not often I don’t think) they’re not elected at all but appointed by someone. Find out who! And don’t leave out things like school boards and zoning boards and community college boards and anything else you happen upon that has a representative you didn’t know existed. They exist, and I guarantee they’ve got power.

Note: find out who represents you state-wide, too. Often calling the governor isn’t that effective (at least for me, calling Cuomo ain’t gonna do much; if you live in Delaware or Montana or Iowa or somewhere relatively less populous, definitely get your governor’s information), but your state reps are usually pretty eager to talk to constituents, even — and this is really important these days — ones who aren’t of the same party. I’m represented by a GOP state senator, for example, but he ended up voting for this bill that just got signed into law. Most states are bicameral (except Nebraska, heyooo), so you likely have a state senator and a state rep/assemblyman/whatever. Make sure to get info for both. (Unless you live in Nebraska, in which case tell Ernie I said hi.)

Next, find out what the court system looks like where you are. Are your state/county/district/etc judges appointed? Elected? What are their terms? Who’s your District Attorney? Who’s in charge of your Public Defender’s office? (I actually haven’t bothered to look up that myself until today!) What courts handle which offenses in your area? Collect that information.

And what do you do with this info? You put it into your phone contacts, or whatever you use to keep your contacts organized, I dunno, maybe you still use your Wizard from 1992. No judgement. However you do it, put all of these contacts somewhere they’re all together — for example, if you have a letter in your directory that isn’t used much. I have a kind of weird method of organizing my contacts, which is that I put their first and last names (and their handles, if I know them online) in the Firstname field, then the Lastname field I use to say how I know them. So all of my New York-based friends are listed as “NYC, Holly Golightly/moonrivergoddess” or whatever. So for me personally, I just put all my political contacts under “Y” as in “Y do I have to keep pestering you to make you do the right thing.” So a county clerk would be listed like so:

Y, County Clerk Horace Vandergelder

In the “Company” field, I usually put their party and when/if they’re up for election next as well as term length, so Horace would be “Dem, 2020/2024.″ And then I might add any links I thought were helpful as well as notes about, say, what staffer I may’ve talked to or if there’s an important bill coming up etc.

And now you’ve got that information, it’s time to fuckin’ use it. Was there a protest that happened in your area that ended in arrests or violence? Call your mayor, register your displeasure. Call your DA, ask if anyone’s being charged. Call your city council member, ask them what legislation they’d support to end police violence. What do you know that you want them to know? Alternatively, was there a protest in your area that was really great and positive? Call these people; ask if they attended. If they did, offer support for them and say that you want them to follow up with actionable steps. If they didn’t, ask why. (BTW, it’s election season — look at the candidates, too! That state senator I mentioned earlier is retiring this year, and a pretty awesome Democrat is in a good position to get his seat; I’ve started volunteering for him in part because he’s got a history of agitating for police reform and has been regularly attending the protests here.) You can email, too; you’re welcome to c&p form emails, but once you have all these people’s contact info at your fingertips you’d be amazed how easy it’ll be to write something from you, that will be far more effective.

It’s also important to keep a record for yourself of who you’ve talked to, when you talked to them, what they said, if you want to follow up etc. I’ve got a little section of my planner for this; it has dates, names, topics, the works. It’s been really helpful to me over the past few weeks making sure I’m exerting pressure to a variety of people in a variety of positions, not just repeatedly calling one office and leaving the same message over and over again.

But if you really want to, as I put it on twitter, tighten the sphincter of local government, nothing beats face-to-face (or, these days, facetime-to-facetime). And here you’ve got a shitton of options. You can see if a particular politician/government office is taking virtual one-on-one meetings, where you can lobby either your politician or (more likely) one of their staffers to support legislation or policies or whatnot. This is, and I cannot stress it enough, HUGELY EFFECTIVE, especially if you are a demo they don’t often see (aka if you’re not a white Boomer). Local politicians are both desperate for and terrified of an engaged constituency; they want you to care but they’re very much aware that anyone showing up to an office (or a zoom meeting) could make their lives very, very difficult.

If one-on-one isn’t your style, there are also committee meetings, which... holy shit, you would not believe the number of committees there are. Committees for art festivals, committees for transportation, committees for public safety, committees for pretty much everything you can think of and a few I’ll bet you can’t. Noodle around on your councils’ and county’s websites, including their facebook page (nine times out of ten there will be more — and more up-to-date — info on the facebook page) to find out what committees meet when. And here is where your specific priorities will be important, because usually you can attend and in some cases even become part of these committees. Do you want to advocate for better public transportation? Find out when the transportation committee meets. Go to that meeting. If they have a Q&A, get some fuckin’ Qs ready and demand some fuckin’ As.

And then there’s the big kahunas of council meetings and state legislature sessions. Most city/town councils have a segment of their weekly/monthly meetings to hear from the public (this is different from a public hearing, FYI, although they too are really important and you should find out if there are any going on where you live and when). Do you have something you want to get in front of the whole council? Get your ass on the list! In Austin I think you had to call or email the council’s office by the day before; in my town you just roll up and get in line when it comes time. Then for state legislatures, often there will be specific bills on which they ask for “citizen input” or however else they describe it. This is less practical because we don’t all live in easy distance of our state capital, but if you do, consider getting involved there. (And right now with the pandemic, your state legislatures may have new rules about citizen participation that actually make it easier for you to get involved, for once.)

Mostly, though, this is about local involvement — find out who’s in control of your city, your county, your precinct and district and all the other ways your home is demarcated. Talk to these people, even if it makes you nervous; their power to make effective change comes with their responsibility to listen, and your power to make them listen comes with your responsibility to speak.

#you want your city to follow in camden and minneapolis's footsteps? #then CALL THEM UP #protesting sometimes works #advocating sometimes works #if you are only doing one of them that's fine #but doing both is more effective #and if what you want is change then you will want to be at your most effective #ergo this post #politics!

[lostgirlrewatch]

1x08 - Vexed

Original Air Date: November 7, 2010

Written by: Michelle Lovretta

Directed by: John Fawcett

Okay, so. Vexed.

This is the original pilot. I don’t think they necessarily presented it as the first episode chronologically—more like, this is what you can expect from our show. Showcase picked it up and it went to series. Vexed became episode 1x08. You can find more info about it in this interview with Michelle Lovretta and Jay Firestone.

Anyway, this episode was shot earlier than the rest, and you can tell. Makeup and styling is different, and they hadn’t quite settled on the tone they eventually went with. As such, this episode is a bit grittier than normal. I find it interesting both for its different tone and for the fact that many of the decisions they made for the episode were made in the interest of selling the concept to Showcase.

This fucking article is great and is a much better review of this episode and why it’s so god damn good than my shit below. It also provides an extremely detailed look into...exactly what I just described above. All of the behind-the-scenes production stuff. Check it out.

The premise: Bo finds a lead on someone who might know about her mother--a falsely accused death row inmate named Lou Ann. Bo vows to prove her innocence in exchange for answers, but her quest leads her into contact with a vicious Dark Fae named Vex.

I do wonder if they wrote this episode without really knowing where it was going to fit into the first season, assuming they had an outline. It works as a standalone and in some ways it feels a little disjointed from what came before in episode 1x07, right from the beginning. Dyson coming right out and saying something so blunt as, “She’s never gonna love you,” feels a bit off to me. But then again, all the characters in this episode are a bit “off,” which is understandable. This episode is like…the prototype. The beta.

“No offense to my own kind, but humans are a little pedestrian now.” *awkwardly laughs* Right... “your kind”…haha you’re enslaved. Lauren are you okay.

“Once you go Fae you never go back, huh?”

“So I hear.”

Me:

Bo feels a little bit more aggressive to me in this episode, like when Siegfried mentions her mother and she wigs out. It’s her normal desperation plus a bit of added homicidal urges. She’s a slightly grittier Bo.

As we can observe from the opening sex scene between Bo and Dyson, this episode is a bit more sexually explicit than we’re used to. This, I am not super a fan of on a personal level. However, the episode is also more violent than usual and incorporates horror elements. This, I am super a fan of because that’s kind of my shit, and it’s something I wish they would have leaned a little bit more into in the rest of the series.

There is nothing I don’t love about this scene. The creepy opera music that sets the stage, the gourmet meal prep (those gourmet meals always end in murder).

(Am I the only one who loves this random little detail they plopped into the background?)

Vex’s entrance—not overly dramatic, just, boop, there he is. 

The tense build-up as we’re drawn to the knife, not sure where it’s gonna go—

--oh, oop, there it goes. 

We know what’s going to happen now, but we build up to it, agonizingly, anyway. Surely we’re not actually going to sit here and watch as he shoves his hand into the disposal and then keep watching as he turns it on and it grinds his hand up. Oh, but we are.

Some scenes have a way of sticking with ya.

So I guess even the Lost Girl universe isn’t all camp and games. People are still people. Especially when they’re ancient as fuck and have all that time to stew in the cesspool of their fucked up emotional and psychological issues. So divorced are they from the concept of mortality, growing up and growing old, that their maturity level laps itself and becomes immaturity—they tend to to behave like children. 

Not all Dark Fae are curmudgeonly, innocuous old grandpas who own restaurants or absolute Queens like the Morrigan. Some of them are like Vex. And just like, fuckin murder people—and each other. Vex’s world is different than Bo’s world. Vex lives in a world where violence is mundane. Empathy is nonexistent and pointless anyhow. Sometimes I wonder if immortal characters are drawn to violence and death because it’s as close as they can get to experiencing a sort of vicarious mortality.

I love Vex’s character throughout the series—up to a certain point—but I love him best in this, his original episode. In later episodes, Vex is portrayed as a sort of morally ambiguous anti-hero, or anti-villain, whichever you prefer. I have mixed feelings on how well the transition from villain to anti-hero is handled. The farther along you get in the series, the more he becomes reduced to a shell of his former self, purely comic relief, and just…sucks.

But in 1x08, Vex is a villain. Straight up. The things that he does are horrifying and the show does not bother trying to get you to empathize with him. And to be clear, this does not mean that he is not a multi-dimensional character, that he isn’t worthy of empathy, or that he is pure evil. What it does mean is the show does something I wish more shows would do. It creates a genuinely threatening and reprehensible villain that is both worthy of your analysis, even your stanning (I stan), and yet whose actions are still inexcusable.

In that interest, let’s talk about him. At this point, his most defining characteristic, the simplest way we can begin to understand his motives, is that he utterly lacks empathy. Vex is the kind of person who would puppeteer a woman and force her to drown her own children. 

He is ordered to kill this woman’s family as punishment for betraying the Dark Fae’s rules. And in this episode, Vex is shown to be someone who rigidly follows the Dark Fae’s orders without question, and without any particular investment in them either. But he doesn’t just kill the kids—he uses his powers to force the mother to do it. To drown them. For no real reason other than his own amusement. That’s another level of sadistic. For a less intense example, in his introduction scene, he gruesomely tortures Siegfried before killing him. Just for funsies. (Well, okay, and to get information.) Vex lacks empathy, clearly, and may scan as a sociopath, but he’s not a stoic one. He gets enjoyment out of tormenting his victims.

Is this the kind of guy the writers are going to try to later convince us is a harmless comic relief mascot? Surely n—

Yes. Yes he is.

I am not at all opposed to the idea of Vex slowly becoming a morally ambiguous anti-villain, even a member of the gang. In fact, I think that premise is interesting as hell. But what I feel like happens later is that the show kind of forgets that Vex did all this horrible shit in the past. Kinda brushes it under the rug. Not only does this make it a lot harder for me to get behind him becoming one of the gang, it also does the character himself a great disservice. I’ll probably get into this more once Vex starts showing up more frequently, and why I feel the writers mishandle him.

To be clear, in spite of how sadistic he is, Vex is not a malicious person. He doesn’t have any enmity for the people he’s ordered to kill. He’s not angry, not hateful, not spiteful. He just doesn’t really care. He’s almost a kind of nihilist. None of it really matters. Somebody who thinks like that would have a fairly breezy time killing people.

Because I like when in-universe politics make things complicated, I like that the in-universe politics of the Light and Dark Fae makes things complicated. Bo wants to free Lou Ann, and she wants the Light Fae’s help, but they can’t help her because it would mean basically declaring war on the Dark Fae. MAJOR no-no. Likewise, they can’t go after Vex because all of his actions are sanctioned by the Dark Fae’s government. Bo’s unalignment gives her freedom, but it’s not without its downsides. She has no influence and no resources when things get too big for her to handle.

“Smells like fried bitch.” An icon. If I remember correctly from one of the behind-the-scenes features, they brainstormed and tested out a bunch of different one-liners to use for this moment, until Ksenia Solo ad-libbed this.

Lol. Kenzi is just so done with Bo and Dyson’s drama.

Lou Ann, the Fae woman who is on death row for killing her kids, obviously strikes a nerve with Bo. 

It’s kinda weird, because when we first meet her, Bo’s main motivation is that she wants to be able to live her life without being forced to kill others and stay on the run to do so. Those problems kinda get solved in the first episode. 

Since then, her motivation has been to live her life without these big mysterious Fae governments telling her what to do. In the first episode, Bo, like Lou Ann, says that she chooses humans. Bo was raised human and wants a normal human life, or as normal as she can get. At the same time, most of the other characters on the show, including her friends, spend a lot of time trying to convince her to embrace her Fae identity and a Fae lifestyle, because it’s “who she is” and she has no choice but to embrace that. “Choice” is a keyword that gets thrown around a lot in this show. But what is the show really trying to say about it? There’s some kind of nature vs. nurture conflict going on here, and I don’t feel like either Bo or the show itself has really decided on which side of the line they fall. On another note, this show has huge Fuck the System vibes. Which I appreciate. We stan an icon who chooses to reject a static, repressive, harmful system even at great personal cost.

A few episodes ago, Bo and Lauren went on a mission together and cemented their bond of trust. In this scene, Lauren breaks that trust. 

She sleeps with Bo to distract her from going after Vex, under the pretense that it is simply the culmination of them both being attracted to one another. The next morning, it doesn’t take long for Bo to figure this out. She is appropriately hurt. She has feelings for Lauren, there was an intimacy there, and she trusted her in a way that she doesn’t normally trust other people, because of her past. Lauren took advantage of her feelings and used her. Whether Lauren wanted to do it or not, whether she had any way of refusing, isn’t relevant in this moment; it was cruel regardless.

But what does Lauren say?

“I haven’t done anything wrong.”

Oop. There it is. There’s the Lauren I remember.

She hasn’t done anything wrong, y’all. Well, I’ll be damned. Lauren never did anything wrong ever in her life. *Lauren did nothing wrong meme*

The way Lauren says this line, with so much conviction, makes me feel like she genuinely believes it. She believes that she did nothing wrong. She is legitimately deluded about what just happened.

This is only the first in what I remember to be a very long string of instances where Lauren pushes blame onto others and denies any culpability in her shitty actions. At least, in this case, Bo isn’t buying it.

Waiting for Bo in the most extra-ass, goth, flamboyant setup possible is exactly the kind of quality villainy I expect from Vex.

It’s criminal that Bo never gets to use this awesome sword.

And…I love that Vex just gets to walk out of there, laughing. Because the system. And he’s not even really evil. He’s just a sadistic asshole. With a job. It’s. *chef’s kiss*

#lost girl #bo dennis #kenzi malikov #lauren lewis #vex #doccubus #dybo #dyson #1x08

[sailolive93-blog]

The best Guide to Reddit Marketing around 2019

"Yep, i do all my modelling in C4D as I just know the tools so well there. I do minimal retopology in Zbrush on organic shapes but any hard surfaces I make in C4D. I'd recommend the "Introduction to Subdivision modelling in C4D" by Shane Benson on Vimeo (he goes by Sheppard O'Neill on YouTube if you prefer that) and it was his tuts that got me into box and subdiv modelling.

I'm also releasing a modelling workshop in C4D and models from the kitchen scene that these belong to will be in there to learn. Just not these two as they belong to marketing for the workshop. very well "Brand new Reddit account with two extensive comments defending Boa Vista Orchards huh...? We joked earlier about spotting the Boa Vista account in here but it looks like we actually have lol! > I just talked to the dude who does the marketing for Apple Hill and he sent me this So you just randomly talked to the guy and he emailed over his entire statement...? " "I too wonder why they didn’t just create a new line and call it the mach-e instead of mustang, I believe it has something to do with the marketing department since they knew it’ll stir a lot of discussion" "Precedent suggests it depends on the marketing around the product being sold and the implied purpose. " "Wow, ha. The fact that you think that it’s ok for the government to strip away my personal health insurance so that I HAVE to be on the same shitty plan on everybody else is crazy. If healthcare is “free” and universal, the quality of healthcare is bound to decrease. I can choose to pay for whatever the fuck I want and whatever healthcare I want. I give to charity and I have plans on giving a lot more to charity as I get further in my career and start making more money. Believe it or not, you aren’t the only one that cares about people just because you want “free” healthcare for everybody. And there is also no such thing as free healthcare. It has to be paid somehow and middle class taxes will go up no matter how complicated you try to make the source of payment sound. And regarding free college, that will also raise middle class taxes. You keep bringing up this. 02% of financial transactions bullshit as if that’s going to cover all costs. Have you done studies on this yourself? Do you even know that? You act like all these things can be magically paid for without anybody in the middle class being negatively affected. I have a bachelor’s degree and I didn’t feel like college was very challenging. It was more like a series of annoying classes I didn’t need when all of college could have been boiled down into one year of the core classes of my major of marketing. College is a fuckin scam and it’s only truly necessary for a very limited amount of majors. You’re just another minion that kisses the feet of big-government Democrats that try to make us feel like horrible people for not allowing them to sucks insane amounts of money out of the economy and spend it how they would like to. inch "That's including the localization teams for every language though, as well as PR and marketing. >! Some of them might even be legacy accreditation for the Gen 6 models they're *still* using.! < " "Time is a cost and you should track where that cost is going. That said, if you are working on general administrative/nonbillable stuff within your own department, it's pretty easy to have that time automatically go to the right cost bucket, so generic entries for that sort of thing are fine imo. The stuff that really has to be tracked is anything for clients or for departments that are outside your default (e. g. engineer writes a blog post, that's marketing time etc). micron "I believe there are some lessons on Google Academy for Adss (now called Skillshop) but hands-on experience is tricky. Two ways are possible, 1) is for you to have your own website and use Google Ad Sense, but this is more from the advertiser side rather than publisher or technical side 2) ask a digital or marketing agency that is near you if you can shadow/assist/internship/work experience for a week or so. This may be difficult depending on where you live and agency people are always very busy, so if you do ask tell them how you could help THEM not the other way around. To be honest, start with Analytics and Paid Search as they are arguable more accessible and have more out there for you to learn" "We are in the same boat, but different industry. Here's my approach, starting this week: I'm joining business groups that my target clients are a part of, for example, manufacturer groups. Then I'm going to target that organization with our services. I'm then going to offer to speak about the service I offer and how it helps businesses. Not a marketing spiel, an educational talk. Good luck" "One might consider a lawsuit if a car or alcohol company advocated or implied the action of drinking and driving in their marketing" "This post has been removed for breaking Rule 1. No Spammy Titles. Do not mention anything about selling anything in the title. Absolutely ZERO marketing in the title. Do not even ask for people to contact you for more. Be enticing. Post quality pics with quality titles. Read the rules for info on how to market yourself here. If your posts keep getting removed then you will be banned. READ THE RULES! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Remember to[contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/? to=/r/feetpics) if you have any questions or concerns. *" "I came of grew up and came of age in Chicago during Jordan's time with the Bulls and the shortest answer is that it's almost incomparable because the level of fame basketball players before Michael Jordan was laughably lower than now. Even today MJ has a logo that might be more identifiable than the company that created it. I would argue no athlete in any sport has surpassed MJ's level of fame. MJ pioneered so many avenues of endorsements, its like comparing planes in the era of propeller planes with jet planes. Jordan like most greats, stood on the shoulders of giants, specifically Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. Those two spent the better part of the late 70's and early to late 80's dominating the sport of basketball. Also add in Isiah Thomas of the Pistons and arguably "Dr. J" Julius Erving of the 76ers and those four were the superstars of the four teams that won EVERY NBA championship of the decade. Before Michael Jordan won his FIRST NBA Championship in 1991, he was arguably bigger than all of them. Before MJ, being a big name athlete meant getting your name on a breakfast cereal box called Wheaties, and doing the commercial saying the plug line "Gotta eat your Wheaties! " That's not a joke. Check 'em out on youtube, they're cringe worthy. MJ's meteoric rise in my opinion was helped by a few special advertising campaigns. I think first would have been his Nike commercials with Spike Lee, another pioneer. He just made "Do the right thing" at a time when black people making movies with black people in the movies wasn't really a thing. Spike Lee also happens to like playing characters in his own movies and Mars Blackmon was a character in that movie that Spike Lee chose to portray in a series of commericals with Michael Jordan. Again, pardon me for repeating, but I have to say it again for context. You have a supremely talented and charismatic young athlete being marketed by a young shoe company (Converse Chuck Taylors were still THE basketball shoe) hiring a visionary and ground breaking director to do something that had not been done before. And they crushed it. Again, at this time Michael Jordan wasn't winning NBA championships. He was having savant level performances, but get bounced out of the first round by the Celtics, or getting manhandled in the playoffs by the Pistons. By the time he did win it all in 91, MJ was doing things that no one had done in fields well outside basketball. Michael Jordan in Flight is one of the first videogames to have 3D. He had already supplanted Dr J in the one on one basketball video game with Larry Bird. Gatorade put out a marketing campaign with the song "Be Like Mike" and that song was the top song for the summer of 92 in Chicago on most radio stations regardless of genre. You're already familiar with Space Jam, but before Space Jam, the Looney Toons were relegated to afternoon after school syndicated (rerun) television stations. Michael Jordan made Bugs Bunny cool again to a whole new generation that knows of them only through MJ. I hope that helps. inches "Yeah I don't want to turn it around and criticize Musk over this or anything, but Tesla is great at PR and marketing while convincing people they don't actually try to be. inches "No, you dont need more parties, you need to ban all parties and establish government funded elections where everyone with a certain amount of support by the people can run using government money and marketing channels. Equal funding, equal marketing, equal candidacy, by the people, for the people. Sounds too good to be true? Well fuck you, because parties are corrupt barbaric cavemen shit. " " Funny Cartoon Images for website content - Family Funny Images and illustrations, Ultimate single panel funny cartoons used for websites, social media and emails https://www.freecartoonsdaily.com https://www.cartoons.cafe   www.cartoons.cafe www.acmeblanks.com sign up now! Funny Cartoons, Funny family cartoon images, Custom Cartoons, Niche Cartoons, Humorous Illustration Services, Business Cartoons, Medical Cartoons, Custom Comic Strips, Book Illustration Services, Political Cartoons, funny hospital cartoons, cartoons for marketing, corporate cartoons, work cartoons, business cartoons, Computer Cartoons, farmer cartoons, farm cartoons, tractor cartoons, Pig cartoons, pig farmer cartoons, cor farmer cartoons, wheat farmer cartoons, soybean farmer cartoons.... inch "That's including people associated with the marketing and promotion of Sword and Shield, which means people at Nintendo and the Pokemon Company rather than actual programmers at Game Freak working on the game itself. The same article you're looking at gives 200 at Game Freak - which is likely wrong since Game Freak had 143 employees, and Game Freak openly stated most were working on Town. You could include the modelers from Creatures Inc, but given that the models are the same as those developed for X and Y by Creatures Inc years ago, they are likely still being credited for "work" on this game that was actually done quite some time ago. " "Imagine what a lucky break JonTron was for FlexSeal. Their products are actually pretty decent, but their marketing was almost typical infomercial stuff that no-one over fifty would've seen. Next, out of nowhere, some YouTuber makes them famous amongst younger customers. People make "that's a lotta damage, " and "I sawed this boat in half, " memes. Everyone knows who they are. Chances are, when you need some stuff like this you'll at the very least know about their existence and you might buy their stuff because at least you know they're legit. Some people will buy it when they need something like that, literally for the meme. All they have to do is keep the ball rolling with tweets like these (because, of course, people actually follow them on Twitter now). " "That's my point. The pub you linked to is disney land. I'm looking for somewhere that recreates the  a more authentic historical experience. I think these places have got their marketing wrong which is why they are closing. They should be trying to recreate an experience closer to that in the Pathe news reel. If you just sold fresh baked bread, potted Hare, a variety of local ales you could heat with a poker while smoking a hilarious pipe you could capture a huge slice of the real ale / hipster / foodie market. " "No game in the genre had been competition for the Diablo franchise since it's inception. D3 no matter how you look at it was a huge commercial success being in the top 10 video games sold of all time at one point. Diablo now has become what WoW was before, tons of games saying they are a WoW killer and none of them doing it. So now we looming at Diablo killers but they all end up falling off somewhere because they don't get the same $$$ support / marketing. inch "8M opening weekend bad = bad marketing. Bad quality movie would be revealed in the multiplier (word of mouth and no rewatches). In this case I don’t think there was anything compelling from the movie they could focus the marketing around which led to the 8M OW. " "I’m in the same boat. I have to get 14 credits by may2020. In the last 2 weeks I did principle of marketing 3 credits score 66 and principal of management 3 credits score 62. This week I’ll take precalculas which is 5 credits and calculus which is 4 credits. I did not pay the $89 for the test because I did modernstates which pays the testing fee. It also reimburses me for the $20 testing fee" "Marketing. McAf€€ gets money from users, Micro$oft gets money from McAfee. They beget the green, motherfuckers that they are. Sometimes  http://tipofmytongue.topreddit.info  who install 3^^rd party stuff tho, it's not only Microsoft. Anyway, it's a motherfuckery of bloatware if not malware. "McAfee antivirus is one of the worst products on the planet" -John McAfee" "You're arguing entirely from marketing hype instead of actual quality, which is entirely stupid and comes down entirely to Sont having far greater of a userbase and them having less games to pump more money behind. Besides, let's not pretend Sony has an actual library of games here. Both Xbox and Sony have completely shit the bed this console generation in terms of exclusive libraries. Sony has had like, 8 good games this entire generation as exclusives. You have Death Stranding, Uncharted 4, Horizon, Until Dawn, Bloodborne, God of War, MLB The Show... That's about it? I guess you also have Detroit and Last Guardian depending on who you ask, but I defo don't wanna throw Days Gone on that list. But in any case, you could lump all of those games into loke 3-4 genres. Am I missing anything? But yeah, stop saying dumb shit like "Well its not a household name so its irrelevant" because you're entirely missing the point and reducing the entire industry to what can or can't be marketed. As well, its telling that Sony has stated their goal next-gen is to have less games release but have them be bigger, where Microsoft is going the opposite direction. Keep the the big titles, bur also have a little something for everyone. Diversity is important. Your Battletoads reboot might not sell as well, but its important to folks who like it. Games shouldn't be live or die based on how well they fit in established and marketable trends. Its absurdly reductive" "I actually never had injected one, whats the main difference? And is it really a big improvement or rather a marketing bait" "It’s all part of his NYC persona. Marketing. inches

#tag #statics

[disease-danger-darkness-silence]

Crowdfunding Fort Kickass

This is two parts - a fundraiser for basic living expenses and a crowdfunding action for something that hopefully can be self-sustaining and bring in some income because we have yet to have seized the means of production and taken down capitalism.

TLDR: TRYING TO MAKE A COOL WEBCOMIC/GRAPHIC NOVEL AND GAMING MULTIMEDIA GROUP TO BRING IN INCOME, NEED HELP WITH THAT AND ALSO GENERAL LIVING EXPENSES. Basically you’d be helping three queer neuroatypical people out immensely, and helping two of them hopefully get an at-home business up and running so they can bring in some money while continuing their education.

Ways you can help:

Reblog this post.

Commission Tasha or Raven to do one of the things they’re best at, including writing and art! Examples of Raven’s art can be found below the cut, or on the commissions page. Examples of my fiction writing can be found on my AO3 page (I can write fiction and nonfiction; if you need an example of my nonfiction work please contact me as none of that is published publicly, as it’s mostly research papers, unarchived newspaper articles, or press releases. Email is tashabot at gmail dot com). Other items on offer: spellcrafting, tarot readings, resume and cover letter help, editing, etc.

Household Wish List on Amazon. This will be updated regularly as Raven is going to need new clothes fairly soon. Also the pets will need things so those will be added as we remember them.

Cat-Thulu, Inc.’s Wish List on Amazon, in order of need. This will also be updated regularly as we figure out what we do and don’t need.

Follow or subscribe to Cat-Thulu, Inc. on Twitch, YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. ESPECIALLY on Twitch, where we stream twice a week like clockwork, because if we can get 50 followers (subscriptions are paid for, but if you have a Twitch Prime account -- comes with an Amazon Prime account -- you get one free paid subscription per month. If you care to spend it on us, we’d appreciate it), we can monetize our channel and use the money to buy more/better equipment and new games to stream. THIS IS PROBABLY THE MOST EFFECTIVE AND EASIEST WAY TO HELP US, outside of reblogging.

Donate at GoFundMe. I cannot emphasize how much this would help us get equipment and much-needed household items.

Donate with PayPal (or send direct to tashabot at gmail dot com).

Send Tasha, Cally, and Raven a Ko-Fi (it pays for our awful Rockstar addiction, which we need to sustain our sanity. We’ll quit when we aren’t all constantly worrying about the goddamn bills, I promise).

More info (long post) available under the cut.

THE CAST OF FORT KICKASS (the two-bedroom apartment we all share):

Cally - My sister, amazing, terrifying, wields knives professionally for a living (she’s a meat cutter). She’s the only one in the house with a job and is currently supporting three (3) adults, four (4) cats, two (2) ferrets, and one (1) dog. She constantly needs a nap, and is the best person on the planet (although she’s likely to kick my ass for that statement). Mentally, we don’t know what’s wrong with her because she refuses to go to therapy because she’s from New England and that’s just how they fuckin’ roll there, apparently, but she ain’t neurotypical.

Me - Me! Fanfiction writer (AO3); former journalist, stagehand, customer service peon, crisis worker; and current professional hot mess. Going to college to learn a trade (machinist), as well as to eventually study sociolinguistics. I’m the only person in the house with a drivers’ license so my contribution to the general household is transpo. My car currently needs either a new starter or a new ignition switch, and I haven’t had the money to replace it, so I’m driving my sister’s sedan, but I need to fix it like...this week. I’m autistic as well as potentially having ADHD, among other mental health issues. Full-time school as well as those mental health issues and a pain issue that I’m in physical therapy for means that taking on a full-time or part-time job is almost impossible. Side-gigs it is! I can write (school papers, fiction, press releases, whatever), do minor graphic editing, clean up resumes and cover letters, help design spells, and do tarot readings. I’m also pretty good at adulting, oddly enough, so I mean, if you need help fixing a toilet at 3 a.m. I can send you at least one reference because I’ve done that.

Raven - Aspiring professional gamer, snarky lil’ bitch, basically a cat turned human. There’s not a word in the English language for how Raven fits into the household, so I’ll borrow a fandom one - she’s my T’hy’la and kinda-but-not girlfriend (we’re not fond of labels here). She doesn’t like Star Trek so she won’t get that reference, but otherwise she IS a huge nerd. She’s currently transitioning and it's doing a number on her body, as well as her ability to attempt to get a job (also complicated by her mental and physical issues; having been in the military, her body is all fuckered). Side-gigs as well! Raven is a FANTASTIC artist, and is willing to do prompt sketches (you give her a prompt of some sort and she draws what comes to mind, taking no more than 15 minutes) for $15, or $25 if you want them inked. I am also willing to record the process for an additional $5 if you want to see the competence porn that IS Raven drawing something. She also takes custom commissions, and you can find the base rates for those on our commissions page.

Some examples follow of her more recent work in the form of character designs: My cat Kono as Cat-Thulu, my dog Ziva as Dog-Saggoth, and me in two forms as Nyarlatho-Tah. She drew these from memory, incidentally.

The pets - Ziva (dog), Kono, Mouse, Fatty (cats), Sylvie and Bonzai (ferrets). They are all adorable and if you donate and want pictures of any of them, I will send them. Cat pictures are internet currency, right?

To commission Raven or Tasha, please visit the commission page and get some more in-depth information. If you have questions, PLEASE feel free to contact me (Raven doesn’t have a public tumblr that she uses much, but she is a willing participant in this nonsense).

Fort Kickass, like all households in this capitalist society, has a running cost. We can’t get caught up on that cost because it keeps adding up and it’s slightly more than we make, even though most of it is necessary. We’re talking bare bones minimum, constantly shopping for cheaper options, fixing everything (usually myself) instead of buying new or used, often going without, going to food banks, etc. Three adults living hand-to-mouth is expensive. (There’s a joke in Fort Kickass that between the three of us we make up one functional adult, and honestly the astonishment that yes, this month’s electric bill DID just get added to last month’s is just proof of that.)

Rent - $675 a month. Doesn’t seem like a lot, but we need to make payment arrangements almost every month. Thank God our landlord is amazing. We are, amazingly, currently caught up on Rent, but as of July 1 that won’t be the case.

Power - Usually runs about $100 a month, but we also don’t have gas so that’s powering EVERYTHING. We are currently $235 behind with NV Energy.

Internet - We have an internet monopoly in the area for decent Internet. It’s Spectrum. It’s $75 a month. I hate it, but if we’re trying to do streaming we need it. We’re currently $75 behind with Spectrum.

Car Insurance - $71 a month with Progressive. Currently caught up with them, and can’t afford to lose it because then I have to pay to re-register my (CURRENTLY! NOT! WORKING!) car and an additional $200 fine.

Cell phones - Cally has Project Fi, which runs about $50 a month. I have T-Mobile, and I have Raven and Alyssa on my plan as well (Hanners is on the plan, but she also pays her cost every month). My plan, INCLUDING Hanners, is $226 (this includes some EIP’s, and $70 of that is Hanners’). They won’t let Raven use her military discount because she’s not the primary account holder, which is bullshit, T-Mobile, get on this. I’m currently only behind $226 with them, because I try to stay on that because in order to take side-gigs and make appointments with doctors, we need our phones.

Food and sundries - Varies between $400 to $900 per month. Two of us menstruate, sometimes Medicaid drops the ball and one of us has to pay for their medication out of pocket, we all smoke cigarettes (we know we should quit but have you ever tried quitting an addiction mid-crisis? I dare you. I just tried last week and it was awful), we all have to shower and wash our clothes. Which reminds me, the washer in my stacking washer-dryer unit is broken and I need to fix that which is most likely a broken belt which could run anywhere from $10 to $100. D:

NEXT UP: THE CROWDFUNDING

Why are we trying to raise money?

Cat-Thulu, Inc. is a thing Raven and I are trying to do to generate revenue and have fun doing what we love - playing games, analyzing media, and telling stories. We'll do livestreams, YouTube videos, Let's Plays, and podcasts. But the big thing is, we want to write (me) and draw (Raven) a webcomic/graphic novel. We have a lot of it mapped out and I got some tips from Warren Ellis (!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!! OMFG!!!!???) on writing for comics, so I think we actually have a shot at taking a very interesting story and making it come to life for all of you guys. But the basic concept? Cosmic horror, inverted tropes, Exposing Lovecraft’s Racism, and generally trying to make cosmic horror interesting again since it’s basically the norm at this point. This is a comic that is going to be made by two queer women on the trans and autism spectrums, featuring POC, queer people, cosmic entities that are based on my pets, and generally trying to make people sit back and think about shit - while also pondering why dick-monsters are a thing.

(Raven has already designed them and I’ve already had one nightmare about them.)

So what do we need to get started? Money, mostly, although we do have an Amazon wishlist - linked above. Here’s a list of what we need money for, outside of the wishlist (or on top of? I’ll probably repeat myself a lot).

I have most of the audio equipment we need to get started -- I inherited a lot of it from my dad when he died. We will need the occasional cable or mic stand, but we have a basic setup running as I type. We would LIKE to get another cardioid lavalier mic to help with eliminating ambient noise, however, and that runs anywhere from $30 to $100.

It’s the video shit that’s hard to come by (and keeping the power and internet on so we can Do The Thing).

My friend Candice over at Loot Crate’s The Daily Crate is awesome and loaned me the video capture device I need to stream through my computer instead of via Cally’s PlayStation 4. We need one of these of our own eventually, because Candice is going to need hers back. On Amazon these run about $250 for the older version that Candice loaned me. The newer version is actually cheaper - around $150. What I’d LIKE, however, is to get one I can simply install in my computer, and those run about $400. Unfortunately, I also need a copy of Windows 10 for that, which runs like $150 I think. I hate Windows 10 but I’ll deal with it if it means we can stream without me having to fuck around with an external capture device. 

I currently have a computer, thankfully, and I’m alrightish at Photoshop. What we DO need is money for Raven and I to take video editing classes for our planned Let’s Plays. This next semester we plan on streaming only as we get into the hang of me going to school and streaming twice a week, as well as working on the graphic novel and slowly acquiring equipment. But while I’ve been editing video for literally over half my life, I am behind the times. Unfortunately, my in-town school does not offer these courses so we’d have to drive to Reno to take them, or find good online equivalents. 

We also need legal versions of all of the software we need for A/V editing, and at some point, a decent digital drawing pad for Raven, as she’s doing things by hand or trying to use Tasha’s shitty eight-year-old one.

We need art supplies, which are a thing I continually forget need to be purchased instead of just appearing. I am not an artist, can you tell?

We have a plan. We have goals and we want to achieve these goals.

We just need a little help getting there. Until Tasha graduates with her AAS in MTT, she can’t get a decent-paying job, and getting a low-paying job won’t allow her to get the degree.

Raven can’t do anything until she’s further along in her transition, thanks society.

So we’re trying to do what we can. A little help would be appreciated, but honestly, if you’ve read this far? We’re just pleased you might read the webcomic.

#fundraiser #crowdfunding #signal boost

[itskatsukii-blog]

HOW TO NOT FUCK UP YOUR RESUME

I’m fucking sick and tired of looking at garbage resumes all goddamn day long, and I know there’s a fuck-ton of people on this site who really struggle with shit like writing resumes so here’s a bullet pointed list of shit you should and shouldn’t fucking do when you’re writing a resume. 

My source is that I’m a college graduate who’s had a million fucking jobs, and 50% of my work day at my current job is spent proofing resumes.

Some of this shit is personal preference, but some of it is fucking important.  I’ll try and differentiate.

NAME AND CONTACT INFO

This should be the FIRST fucking thing on your resume.  Preferably in your header, so that if your resume is a few pages long, it’s on every page.  It should contain at least your full name, phone number, and an e-mail that you ACTUALLY check.  You don’t need to put your address, that’s just over kill imo.

OVERVIEW / SUMMARY / OBJECTIVE

All of these are the same fucking thing.  It’s basically just an “intro” section for your resume.  I personally think this part of a resume is bullshit fluff, but it’s a pretty standard practice to include it, so I wouldn’t risk leaving it out.

DON’T make it super long.  3 sentences max.  Something like “I’m interested in pursuing X goal in the work place / my career, and here’s another bullshit sentence about how I’m a people person who works well in a team”.

Lying is okay as long as you can kind of maintain the facade for long enough after you get hired that they stop caring once they figure out you’re good at the job.

SKILLS

Just list shit that you’re not bad at if its relevant to the job you’re applying for.

DON’T list shit that’s not relevant.  For example, if you’re applying for a job as an editor somewhere, don’t be like, “I’m great at computer programming and code in my free time!”  Like that’s cool but it’s got nothing to do with editing, leave it out, or if you HAVE to include it, put it in a hobbies section at the end of the resume (tbh I fuckin hate hobbies sections, I wouldn’t recommend including one).

WORK HISTORY

List your work history.  If you don’t have any, list volunteering shit that you’ve done, or anything that can be remotely described as a job, even if you weren’t being paid for it.  Try and make it seem like it wasn’t something your parents asked you to do, though.

Don’t include the address or phone # of the place you worked unless its relevant for some reason.  At most you can give city and state, but like... your potential employer knows how to use google and if they don’t you probably don’t want to work for them anyway.

Try not to get too verbose when you’re listing responsibilities. There’s a happy medium between describing in detail a full novel of your standard work week and saying some shit like, “Worked in softlines.  Hung up clothes in dressing room & greeted customers.”  Both are not great. 

EDUCATION

List your fucking education.  If you have a degree, just list the degree/major and your school.  Don’t include a graduation date.  People are fucking shitty and if you graduated too recently they’ll think you’re young and stupid and if you graduated too long ago they’ll think you’re old and stupid.  Just let them fucking guess.

If you’re still in college, put that in there.  Include the degree you’re working towards and your expected graduation date.  This is the only time I really recommend putting a date in your education section.

If you have not started college AT ALL, list your high school diploma / GED here.  Otherwise, if you’re in college or graduated, don’t put your fucking high school in this section.  Its pretty fucking obvious that if you got into a college you graduated high school.

ONLY include your GPA if its above 3.5.  Anything below that is not super eye-catching and it honestly doesn’t matter.  Including it is just flavor if you happen to be good at school.

Please for the love of god don’t put your fucking sorority or frat house in this section, nobody fucking cares, sorry.

REFERENCES

I don’t see references listed on resume’s very often, but that’s because my work usually encourages them be sent in separately, but I don’t think it’s a bad idea to include them.

What I see a lot is something like, “references available upon request,” which is fucking obnoxious, imo.  If I want references I’ll ask you for them whether you told me I could on your resume or not, and if you say no you probably just won’t get the job.

WARN your references that someone is probably going to be calling them when you put them on your resume.  Its fucking okay if its your mom or some shit, just make sure she pretends to be your boss and doesn’t give the same last name as you (my mom literally did this for me the first few times I applied for jobs and I got the fuckin jobs).

When you leave a job, if you had anything more than a less-than-shitty relationship with your boss, ASK them if they would be willing to be a reference for you.  Most of them will say yes if they’re not an asshole and will give you contact information that you can give to future employers.

If your boss IS an ass, ask a co-worker you got along well with instead.

OTHER GENERAL ADVICE AND SHIT

Don’t over-state things or be redundant.  If you listed something in your skills section already, don’t list it again in your work history.  (I cannot tell you how many fucking IT people will list all the programs they’re familiar with 20 fucking times throughout their resume.  Its a huge turn off.)

If you’re applying for a customer service position, you don’t need a resume at all unless you’re asked for one. Don’t even worry about it.

On that note, if you’re applying for a customer service position and they DO ask for one, its a minor red flag.  If they do other weird stuff like make you take timed math tests or ask for really weirdly formal stuff from you, RUN.

Writing a resume is always going to be you walking a really fine line between making yourself look good and sounding like a fucking self-obsessed prick.  My general advice is avoid using “I” sentences like “I set the standard for ___ work practices,” and avoid words like “accomplished” or “perfected” or “achieved”.  If you accomplished, perfected, or achieved something, let that something speak for itself.  Just describe what you did and why it was successful and be blunt, but not self-congratulatory.

NEVER use self-deprecating language.  I know that’s a fucking knee-jerk instinct for people on this website, but DON’T.  Don’t even APPROACH self-deprecation in your resume. If you really struggle with this, practice, or pretend you’re writing your resume about someone else.  You can also ask other people around you what your skills are / what you’re good at if you can’t come up with anything (I promise you, you’re fucking good at something.)

Please I’m fucking BEGGING you, don’t brag about the companies you used to work for.  You’re writing this resume to get YOURSELF a job, not General Mills.  General Mills doesn’t need a fucking job.  I don’t want to know about what General Mills has accomplished.  I don’t care. If you weren’t directly involved in it, don’t fucking bring it up.

EVERY section of your resume should be updated whenever you apply for a new job, especially if its in a different field.  You always want your resume to cater specifically to the job you’re applying for.  If you’re applying for 3 different jobs, unless they’re literally EXACTLY the same job at 3 different companies, you better have 3 different fucking resumes. I’ve seen people applying for desk / day jobs to pay the rent get turned down because they put too much emphasis on the fact that they are pursuing their creative ventures on the side in their resume.  Even if they had every intention of keeping the job for a long ass time and would have been GREAT at said job, the employer was too concerned about the fact that their “passion” was in another field, and so they got turned down.

Depending on WHAT field you’re going into, there may be other shit you should put in your resume.  If you went to college for the thing you’re applying for, ask your professors about what sort of shit you should put on your resume/CV.  Some professors (good ones) will give you info about this before you graduate, WRITE IT THE FUCK DOWN.  Every profession is slightly different and will want to see different shit on a resume, its important to know what that shit is, and worst case scenario, google can probably help you with that.

Don’t listen to anything your high school told you about getting a job.  Don’t listen to anything your high school told you about anything in general, tbh.  Their information is at least 10 years out of date, if not more.

#long post #resume #advice #resource #reference #???? #what do i fuckn tag this #bkg.txt #i spent an hour writing this instead of proofing ACTUAL resumes #and i mostly wrote this because i just got done proofing a resume that was like 6 pages long #and hit every single one of the donts on this list #it sent me into a spiraling rage #and now #here we are

[investigatingregionalscenes]

story about music #8

Winter-Spring, 2013: In order to graduate, I needed a capstone. I chose to do deep reporting project I’d been threatening to do since 2009, and looked into the noise and experimental scene of New England. I recorded seven interview with experimental artists about their lives and work. These are five of them. They were taken in a variety of locales in the Boston area: Cambridge, Somerville, Lowell, and Salem.

In the last year, I’ve been thinking a lot about this period and these conversations as I ask myself, why keep doing this?

above: Ron Lessard, as Emil Beaulieau, performs in someone’s basement in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Music

Music for this episode was created using the following household objects: a desk lamp, a can of beer, a record player, a radiator, and a vacuum cleaner.

With the exceptions of “Fog in the Ravine” by Lejsovka and Freund as well samples from their songs “From Royal Ave” and “Nothing, Just Looking at the Moon” and the song “Blue Line Homicide” by Twodeadsluts Onegoodfuck.

The soundtrack was created with advice from musician Jacob Rosati. It will be made available for download later in the summer. For more info please subscribe to the podcast, tumblr, or follow us on twitter.

Links

Crank Sturgeon still performs and tours regularly. He also builds contact microphones and other circuit bent sundries, one of which was used in the production of this episode. A full recording of his set used in this episode is available here.

Crank Sturgeon, 2012, from Wikimedia.

Shane Broderick spent most of his twenties making music with his friend Ted (and later, their friend Josh Hydeman) under the name Twodeadsluts Onegoodfuck. Their music is a good example of the subgenres Grindcore and Power Electronics. The name is also exemplary of those subgenres. The performance video which is referenced in the documentary, taken in the mid-00s, has been removed from Youtube. A video from that period is visible here, uploaded by the band’s Ted Sweeney. (contains nudity)

Shane Broderick, from Existence Establishment

Ron Lessard still runs RRRecords in Lowell, Massachusetts. He previously performed under the name Emil Beaulieau. A collection of performances, including the one used in the documentary, can be seen in the video compilation below. 

Emil Beaulieau: America’s Greatest Living Noise Artist, from Youtube

Andrea Pensado still makes music and performs live. She composes in Max/MSP. Her most recent release is a pair of live collaborations with Id M Theft Able. Her former project, with Greg Kowalski, is QFWFQ. 

Andrea Pensado live performance, 10-13-13, from Youtube

Angela Sawyer owned Weirdo Records until it closed in 2015. She now performs comedy and experimental music around Boston. 

Angela Sawyer, from her personal website.

The interview with Andrea Pensado was recorded along with my friend Samira, who was producing her own documentary of Boston’s experimental music scene, below. It includes footage from the Andrea interview as well as her own separate interview with Angela Sawyer. 

“The Noise” by Samira Winter, from Youtube

Luigi Russolo’s manifesto is The Art of Noises

Luigi Russolo and the Intonarumori, with his asst. Uglo Piatti, from Wikimedia

Transcript

Brendan: Would you mind telling me about the show at [withheld] , from six years ago, down the street?

Shane: Yeah, um, I was setting up a show with some old-school Detroit noise dudes. When we showed up, the owner was there instead of the doorman, and he was just upset cause he was there on, like, a Tuesday night. 

So what ended up happening was is, uhh, two bands played and he came up to me a said, “show’s over.” “Well there’s still two bands to play,” and he’s like, “I don’t care, the show’s over.” I’m like, “the show’s been booked for two months.” Just because you want to go home and, like, jerk off into a kleenex or whatever it is that you fuckin’ do. It has nothing to do with me. And he got upset, and I was like, well listen dude, how about the last two bands play at the exact same time.” So that’s what we did. Warmth and Twodeadsluts collaborated. It lasted about fifteen seconds, and the owner came over and kicked a table with everyone’s gear on it. So the only logical thing for me to do as a Bostonian–– and I have pride being a Bostonian–– is I just looked at this guy and I was like, “I don’t care how big he is, or how Italian he is, I’m gonna wind up, and I’m gonna punch this guy right in the fucking face.”

Brendan: And what happened?

Shane: That guy hit me back––I-I lost a little bit of time there. He’s a lot bigger than me. Uh, clocks went still. I kinda woke up, I was on the ground, and he was smashing everyone’s gear. Cops came in, they put me in a car, they, y’know told me to leave and blah blah blah.

Brendan: Is that the only time cops have been called on you?

Shane: No. Not even close.

music: “Blue Line Homicide” | Twodeadsluts Onegoodfuck

You’re listening to Stories About Music, a podcast on the subjects of music, journalism, and memories, and how the line between those three things is often not as clear as I’d hoped.

My name is Brendan Mattox, and this is story about music number eight, “Who’s Afraid of the Art of Noise?”.

Room 1 (Crank Sturgeon)

Cars pass by on Massachusetts Avenue, seen out the front window of Weirdo Records in Cambridge. It’s night time. A few young men in their twenties sit on the floor of the small storefront, waiting as Crank Sturgeon sets up in a corner.

Crank: Cool. So, do you think this is our show? Shall we wait, or?

Angela: I think…What time is it? It’s not eight-thirty, that’s probably most of our show. Let me turn that off.

Crank: Not that uh, four’s a wonderful audience, I’ve played for two. One of them was my brother who never saw me before that point…and Id Em Thft Able and I had some very bizarre sexual ritual in front of my brother, involving instant powdered milk and a plastic poster from 1970 of this naked woman holding a stuffed animal…And I had a penis helmet at the time… but alright, well I will perform for you hello, my name is Crank Sturgeon everybody… (6:37) We could do a performance where I have everyone sing introductions of themselves to each other. Everyone up on your feet. 

Crank: Hello! My name is Craaaaaaannnk Sturrrgeon!

Angela: Hello! My name is Angela Sawyyyyyeerrrrrr!

Crank: All at once now!

Brendan: And I am Brendan Mattox!

Crank: Hi Brendan Mattox, my name is Crank, it’s a pleasure to meet you, you have a really firm handshake. And this man in the corner, what’s your name? Andrew, another Andrew, Brendan, Angela.

Angela: Wow, we’re nearly phonemes.

Crank: Ahh, phonies…

Crank Sturgeon sits down behind his instruments: a few tape recorders, a sharpie, and a loudspeaker full of tacks and jelly beans.

Crank: First Piece, oh, wait. My brand new fish helmet, so I can lose even more water to my body. There we go. First piece is improvisations with the letter D. Delirious, Delightful, Delicious, Dumb, Dumbfounded, Dimwit, Diplodocus, Dinosaur, Diana, Dagnasty, Dagnabbit, Diddling, Dawdling, Doodling, Dude Ranch (buzzing noise) Dick, Doofus, Dammit, Darn, Dangle, Drink, Drunk, Dank, Dork, Dusty, Dunce, Distinguished! Development! Duplicitous.

Crank is wearing a black garbage bag over his head, adjusted so his face and white goatee peek through the hole he’s cut in it for air. On either side of the bag are two enormous fish eyes, drawn on card stock, with marker. 

I’m here tonight reporting a story about a couple of loosely associated experimental musicians from Boston, a story whose meaning is starting to exceed my grasp.

Brendan: How would you describe Crank Sturgeon?

Crank: In uhh, a sentence? Brendan: I have no idea. How would you describe the experience of being Crank Sturgeon?

Crank: Well it’s, uh, it’s not a party.

Angela: It is so.

Crank: It is a party. It’s funny because, I’ve survived for awhile, through the many phases of experimental music.

Brendan: What do you mean the many phases?

Crank: The many phases. You’d go to a show in 1996 in a basement in Allston and it was like, a tough guy scene. 

Angela: People sitting on the floor, like indian style, and a dude looking at his belly button going “doonk-doonk-doonk.”

Crank: (laughs) Very true…

Angela Sawyer, the owner of Weirdo, jumps in. She and Crank know each other going back to the nineties, when they were at the beginning of the path that has led to the three of us standing in a circle in her record store.

Brendan:  what’s the trick to growing old with grace within the experimental community?

Crank: Oh that’s a really fun question, because I’m still figuring it out. I think…did you want to say something?

Angela: Well I feel like no one– when I was twenty, or eighteen, and I met people who were much older than me, it never occurred to me to look at myself from their point of view, ever. So I only ever thought, “oh, that person is as old as my mom and my dad, but they’re doing what I want instead of what my parents are doing. Once you get to be–– I’m in my forties…then is when you’re like, oh, I have been there so many times and they have no idea where I am. So that’s when you start to feel marginalized a little bit

Room 2 (Shane Broderick)

The TV in Shane Broderick’s living room is on mute. A weather man gestures in to a map of New England in shades of blue and purple. At the top of the screen is a red banner with the words “Blizzard Warning.” It’s mid-afternoon. Shane and I are drinking cans of beer that Shane brought out of the fridge.

Shane: I was always playin’ music and stuff since I was a little kid. Even when I was, like, twelve years old I’d be up late smokin’ weed and messing with drum machines and stuff like that.

Brendan: Where’d you get your hands on a drum machine at age twelve.

Shane: Uhh, Christmas present.

Brendan: Christmas present?

Shane: Yeah.

Brendan: That’s pretty cool.

Shane: Yeah, I had my beginner guitar and a drum machine. Y’know once I was like, fifteen and stuff I got a job, started collecting equipment…I thought I’d make a career out of it but I ended up just being, like, a lifelong mailroom guy.

When he was 19 years-old, Shane dropped out of college in Florida and moved back to Massachusetts. He started making abrasive music with a friend he knew while working at a gas station in high school. 

Shane: We worked together and every time we finished a shift it would be like a hundred and something dollars under, and I was like, what the fuck this kid man.

They called themselves Twodeadsluts Onegoodfuck.

Shane: We joked around on the internet about how we were going to start the most extreme band ever and how the first record we’d just put a bunch of contact mics in a blender and throw a rabbit in it and whatever it sounded like, that was the first LP. Which we never did. [music in]

Brendan: But what instead came out of it was…

Shane: I stuck my boner in a blender. Which was a demo that we did which was me and him coaching eleven of our friends, we were just trying to make circus music with grindcore parts.

Shane: We got reviewed in something like Metal Maniacs, that was like a magazine that when I was ten years old and my mother would drag me to CVS to grab things, I would sit in the aisle and look at, like, pictures of like, Slayer looking sexy and stuff like that, so I was like “oh shit, I’m in this magazine now.” After that, me and him decided to keep the name and go forward with it.

Shane is in his early thirties and he still makes music, although Twodeadsluts hasn’t been active for awhile. He also still plays shows sometimes, though he doesn’t really enjoy it.

Shane: I don’t know I think it’s just, like, nerves. It was easier with the other guys because we were more like a wrecking crew. Y’know, get blind stinkin’ drunk and it didn’t really matter what happened.

Brendan: What would one night at a TDS show end up being like?

Shane: It would start off sloppy and then I wouldn’t remember then end of it. 

(Indiscriminate yelling)

Shane: We’re Twodeadsluts Onegoodfuck from Boston, and we need the drum machine way fucking louder. Get that shit way the fuck up.

Brendan: When you guys got onstage, there seems to be sort of a pattern. You start off with some harsh feedback, and then it progresses into stuff getting knocked over.

Shane: There was definitely a lot of feedback and definitely a lot of things knocked over.

They were also usually naked. 

Shane: I think we were probably more performative over substance, to be quite honest. In those early shows we were just using five or six microphones, a bunch of fx pedals running back into each other, and just whatever sounds were happening, were happening

[music]

Shane: Either people really liked it or found it very entertaining, and on the flipside– we’d have people picket our shows, feminists thinking that we were, like, um, promoting sexism… Just that band name wipes off at least 70% of the population from even giving you a chance. It’s probably a higher percentage than that…

Brendan: So the choice of the band name then, was it to…

Shane: It was kind of like, a filtering mechanism and also it was like an inside joke that just kept going and going, and no one was really in on it but us. The band wasn’t supposed to last ten years either.

Shane: I can’t even give you any rationale behind it…it really might look pretty forced, but it was actually pretty natural for the people involved in the band.

Brendan: Why was it so natural?

Shane: I don’t know. That’s a question for a therapist. I don’t know.

I sip from my can of beer even though it’s empty. Shane plays with the pull tab on his. On the television, the weatherman predicts a foot of snow is going to cover Boston over the next two days. Shane, still dressed in scrubs from the hospital where he works, says,“I got to work tomorrow no matter what.”

There’s a half-open ironing board against a wall. In the bathroom, the sink is plastered with shavings. Next to the un-flushed toilet sits a stack of musical notation paper. I stare at it, because it says something specific about the person I’m speaking to. I can’t figure out what, or why.

Brendan: If you could maybe, like, point me in the right direction of some people in the area to talk to…

Shane: I think you should definitely talk to Ron in Lowell. He runs triple-R records. He’s kind of, America’s greatest living noise artist. Like a godfather type…

Room 3 (RRRon)

I walk out Shane’s front door and into Ray Robinson’s café in downtown Lowell. Ron Lessard waits for me in a yellow booth along the window. Through the rain on the glass, the world outside is a blur of different shades of gray.

Brendan: Where should we begin?

Ron: (chewing noises) So. Today is Wednesday. I’m eating lunch. I’m almost through with my fries, soon I’ll be starting on my burgers. Fuckin’ awesome.

Ron is the noise expert, one of the engines driving America’s experimental music scene since the 80s. Ron has released about 1000 recordings on Triple-R’s in-house label.

Ron: I was the source. And everybody who ever learned how to play a tape backwards or make feedback decided to send me a demo. And man, I heard so much crap like you wouldn’t believe…I mean, how many Rock’n’roll bands are awesome, and how many suck beyond belief?

Ron first got into noise music around 1981, after he left the Air Force and came home to Lowell.  

Ron: There was a mail-order outlet out of Colorado called Aeon A-E-O-N. When I got their catalog, I couldn’t believe the stuff they had listed. They had, like, Whitehouse albums, New Blockaders, Maurizio Bianchi, and it’s like who the fuck are these guys? So I started buying that stuff  and I was like, woah, this is what I’ve been looking for all these years. The guy that ran it became a survivalist kind of guy, y’know, living out in the woods with his gun type of thing and, actually, he eventually sold me his entire inventory, I bought him out.

Ron: When I first opened I tried to specialize in all the really weird imports, bizarre bands and that kind of stuff, y’know. But at the same time, I knew enough to know that pedestrians, your average everyday person, has no freakin’ clue. They just want to listen to a Barry Manilow or whatever the fuck they like, y’know.  

His store, RRRecords, opened in 1984.

Ron: After Aeon, I was the guy that was thoroughly obsessed, and I just devoted myself to it…Day in day out noise, morning, noon, and night. Listening to tapes, checking out bands all day every day. At that time Heavy metal wasn’t heavy enough, punk rock wasn’t extreme enough, Noise did it for me, it really did.

Ron started performing noise music himself under the name Emil Beaulieau. Footage from from the nineties, like this, show him using vinyl records and their accessories as instruments. 

This is another way to look at noise music: instead of using something like a trombone, or a tuba, a guitar, or a piano, you take whatever you can find, whatever objects appeal to you, and you refashion them into something expressive. The screeching noise you hear is coming from a modified turntable, which Ron stands behind with a goofy look on his face, pretending to polish record.

Ron: Remember to always, always use the circular motion when cleaning your records.

From that perspective, noise is a positive, creative philosophy, and I can see how people get so obsessed with it.

Ron:A lot of people, y’know, they can’t play guitar, they can’t play the drums–– but twisting knobs and screaming your brains out, getting out that primal scream, whatever it is…it’s inside everybody.

Brendan: And speaking of which, what’s your personal experience with it.

Ron: (Darkly) What do you mean?

Brendan: I mean with Emil Beaulieau.

Ron: Yeah.

Brendan: Well you just said that Noise music was this personal experience. How did you get stuff out through Emil Beaulieau?

Ron: I–I’m not sure where your leading, as far as recording or getting the name out?

Brendan: Why did you start Emil Beaulieau?

Ron: ––you know, I just wasn’t any good at sports (laughter).

The uncomfortable moment sticks in the back of mind for the rest of our interview. Though Ron’s eloquent and energetic, as I was warned he would be, he’s also a little guarded. Maybe that’s because I showed up looking for someone to answer the criticisms of noise music or its culture, which he brushes off with a simple:

Ron: Lately? Lately I’m out of it.

Brendan: When was the last time you were in it?

Ron: Seven years ago (laughs)

Brendan: So let’s go back seven years, because this is something that keeps coming up in interviews with people. Seven years ago, things were very…

Ron: Active.

Brendan: Active.

Ron: Wicked, wicked, wicked active.

Brendan: What’s happened?

Ron: The bands that are making noise today sound like the bands that were making noise ten years ago, that sound like the bands making noise twenty years ago, y’know they sound exactly the same, they’re doing the same freakin’ feedback, they’re still screaming the same lyrics, y’know, it’s just the same thing over and over and over and over again. Which is fine, y’know, punk rock exists for a reason, y’know. The young people, they’re totally into it because it’s new for them. It’s like wow this is freakin awesome these guys are screaming their brains out! They’re talking about killing people! But then ten years later it’s the same thing all over again…I mean do you want to listen to that same band for freaking ten years in a row? I mean do you still want to hear Aerosmith? No you don’t (laughs).

He seems tired in a way that I’ve not seen before. As we talk, I get the sense that what Ron and I are doing has become an exit interview.

Ron: I did what I had to do. I did what I had to do and just to keep doing it because somebody else wants me to? Wrong freakin reason. That’s how bands start to suck. So fuck that y’know.

Y’know there was a time when I couldn’t wait to get on stage and scream my brains out. It’s like, well I mean y’know, you ever had a girlfriend? You make out with her it’s like the best! And then one day, you don’t want to make out with her anymore. It’s no different.

I mean, it’s been seven years. I stopped performing seven years ago, March of ’06. It’s now March ’13. It’s seven freaking years that I’ve stopped. Chances are you’re not doing the same thing you were doing seven years ago. And I’m willing to bet, seven years from now, you’re not going to be doing the exact same thing you’re doing now. People change, they move on. Been there, done that, why do it again?

music: “Fog in the Ravine” | Lejsovka & Freund

The scene dissolves. In the darkness, I think of the question that I wish I’d asked. This isn’t just some thing Ron was doing, it was the thing – what can you do when you lose touch with the something that was core to your identity?

Room 4 (Andrea Pensado)

Andrea: I think it’s very important to not to be scared of being in a place of not knowing. To be in a place of uncertainty, is excellent! Even if it is uncomfortable. Honestly, I don’t want a comfortable life. 

I’m sitting in a cozy loft apartment in Salem, while my friend Samira chats with a small, owlish woman in her late 40s named Andrea Pensado.

Andrea: Well if you feel it at twenty than you cannot imagine in your forties.

Samira: I just taste it and I’m like, ‘wow, I’m just feeling all the sugar.’

Andrea: I ate a lot of chips, it was a bad idea. With beer, y’know, not good.

Samira is working on her own documentary about experimental music.

Andrea first got interested in music when she was a little girl, growing up in Buenos Aires.

Andrea: Eh, I was living in an apartment building, and a friend of mine, she started taking piano lessons. She showed me her music and I saw the notation, ehh, and I was fascinated. Honestly I was not aware of such a rich experimental music background until when I was in Poland… 

She left Argentina to study composition in Krakow as an adult. But the music she composed on paper was so complex, that she often had trouble finding people to play it. Andrea likes to think about timbre–– the color of sound, what differentiates one instrument from another.  To wring out some really interesting timbre with traditional instruments, you’ve got to do some out there stuff.

Andrea: Like, I don’t want to be just writing for the drawer.

And then, Andrea went to the Audio Art Festival, a meeting of the minds held in Krakow every November. The festival focuses on objects used to produce sound: musical instruments, but also computers. 

Inspired, Andrea taught herself to program and began using electronics in her work.

Andrea: So I create a wifi for myself just to avoid latency, you can work with any wife…So my controllers are! An iPod–– I say, I look like an apple merchandise stand, which is quite depressing, but you know, what can I do? So this is an iPod with a special application I use to… [iPod click]. Well, first I have to set up the wifi, I show you…

Andrea is wearing a a headset like the kind people use to play video games. She’s sitting at her computer with an iPod Touch in her right hand. 

Andrea: This is a simple wave, just a simple low tone. So if I move it like this, I change the pitch. And then if I do like this, the distortion is the direct result of– 

She twists and bends her arm manipulating the sine wave into a complex pattern.

Andrea: And I can do the same if I had my voice…

Then she flicks on her mic.

Andrea: Hey, hah, that’s my voice! (noise) hello! Hah! (pause, noise ends). So you know it’s quite dramatic.

Andrea: Maybe for somebody who is not a lot in music, this seems harsh. I don’t think this is harsh at all, this is just the way new music is going. I do believe that, even though I don’t think what we do now is better than what was done in the Renaissance, ok, I do believe that there is constant change, and that artistic languages keep having a need of refreshing themselves, ok?…yeah?

Brendan: (18:49) Why do you think music is shifting in that direction?

Andrea: To explore timbre…Because now, thanks to the technology, we have access to it. It’s easier to manipulate. We are like kids, we are, like, playing. (12:26) I compare it to the beginning of the baroque, where they became aware of chords, of verticality, and then for 300 years, they explore that.

Andrea’s grandiosity reminds me of the document that first inspired me to pursue this project. In 1913, a young painter named Luigi Russolo wrote a letter to a composer he admired. The two of them were part of an Italian movement known as Futurism. Russolo’s letter ended up as one of the movement’s major manifestoes, The Art of Noises. 

In The Art of Noises, Russolo laid out a framework for the music of the new industrial world, in which the city itself is both the inspiration and the instrument. 

For centuries life went by in silence, at most in muted tones…Amidst this dearth of noises, the first sounds that man drew from a pieced reed or stretched string were regarded with amazement…and the result was music, a fantastic world superimposed on the real one…

We Futurists have deeply loved and enjoyed the harmonies of the great masters. Now, we are satiated and find far more enjoyment in the combination of the noises of trams, backfiring motors, carriages and bawling crowds than in rehearsing the “er-O-i-ca” or the “Pastorale”.

We cannot much longer restrain our desire to create finally a new musical reality, with a generous distribution of resonant slaps in the face. Discard violins, pianos, double-basses and plaintive organs…

I am not a musician, I have therefore no acoustical predilections, nor any works to defend. I am a Futurist painter using a much loved art to project my determination to renew everything. And so, bolder than a professional musician could be, unconcerned by my apparent incompetence and convinced that all rights and possibilities open up to daring, I am able to initiate the great renewal of music by means of the Art of Noises.

It is, and I am one to talk, very pretentious. And yet, I kind of sympathize with the guy. When I started making a podcast, I was intent on remaking a whole sector of journalism with my own bold incompetence.

A man of his word, Luigi built these giant boxes called the Intonarumori, whose purpose was to make a bunch of noise. A photo of them often accompanies The Art of Noises, and you can see Russolo standing behind one, this thin guy with a mustache, a hand placed on the crank handle at its back. 

Like most manifestoes, The Art of Noises says very little about its writer, except what he wanted to be: a great destroyer come to remake the world in his image. If you’re a certain type of young person, that idea is very attractive, and you can embrace it without really thinking about what other things you might put to the side to achieve that.

Samira: What’s your, I know you’ve done a lot of work with visual, audio and visual.

Andrea: Well that’s with my ex-husband (laughter). Greg, whom I met in Poland, he comes from video, from cinema. We had a duo, eventually, I stopped doing my own to work for our duo, which we worked together for ten years. Greg did the images and I did the sound. And we work on interactivity. Then we split, so now I work just with sound.

Brendan: How is your music different working with your ex-husband, than after?

Andrea: The main goal of our duo was to have real time interaction between images and the sound. So if there was something onstage like a movement or, whatever, it had simultaneously a result in both. It gave some rigidity. So now that the interaction isn’t so important, I have much more freedom to just to improvise. It’s like much, much more freedom.

Room 6 (Angela Sawyer)

Angela: One of the first people I ever met who was interested in experimental music was Ron Lessard. 

I’m standing at the counter in Weirdo Records one afternoon, talking with Angela Sawyer again She’s telling me how she first got involved with the experimental scene, just after she started at U-MASS LOWELL in the early 90s.

I had never been to New England at all, I just flew here on a plane from Denver and I wanted to meet some people, and I didn’t really know what to do, and I heard some other kids saying that they wanted to join the college radio station. They said at the meeting to join up, you have to show up and volunteer…I went back the next day, and there no one was there.

Brendan: How long were you there for?

Angela: Probably an hour (laughs). Finally someone came by…I was just like, “hey, hey, I’m here to volunteer, what should I do?” And they just looked at me like I had three heads. They were like, “why don’t you clean something?” So I found a vacuum and I just started vacuuming…

And I went through all the rooms, and finally I got to a room that I hadn’t been in yet, and there was a person in there, and it was kind of dark in there…So I waited for him to notice me. I said hi, I’m trying to vacuum. I had no idea that it was the air studio and, um, Ron, of course, he’s like a firecracker going off. So he’s like, “OH YES COME ON IN,” he was mic-ing the vacuum cleaner, and I’m just like “oh hi,” and he’s like tell me about yourself, who are you? And uhh, he was really awesome to me

As we walk down memory lane, Angela starts talking about a world that I was once very interested in, the network of noise and experimental artists who connected in the early days of the internet, after decades of being little feudal kingdoms.

Angela: There was definitely a feeling at one point of there being a first-world wide, at least, community, if not worldwide, of people who were listening to the same releases, and they were seeing the same bands, they’d heard some Throbbing Gristle records, and they had a common language and finding out about cool stuff and figuring out how it worked, and they knew what happened when you stuck a clarinet underwater and put delay on it. 

I’ve been thinking a lot about what Angela said at the Crank Sturgeon show, about choosing to live on the Island of Misfit toys without thinking about it very hard. Because I feel, in a lot of ways, that that’s become my life. I’m more devoted now than ever to completing the work I set out for myself, but I’m also deeply unhappy, and more isolated.

Angela: Every town has the person who is like, I’ll become the nun, I’ll sacrifice myself and do all this work and…y’know, I have a store, that’s what I do.

Brendan: Can you talk a bit about sacrificing–– about becoming a martyr for the scene?

Angela: I’m not trying to do that, I actually really dislike that. 

Brendan: How did you fall into the role?

Angela: If you have some job related to underground music, that’s what you’re doing. ‘Cause there’s no money. But that’s one of the only ways you can spend your whole life surrounded by it. 

music: “Fog in the Ravine” | Lejsovka and Freund

Angela: Everything I know about politics and geography and sociology and psychology, and how to sort of figure out how to deal with the world at large, I mostly learned them from records. It’s been a very long time since I’ve had a conversation about anything else. I’m a very narrow person outside of records. Basically, records are sort of my defense system and or window for everything, I think of every record as like a pair of of tinted glasses, and you can look at the whole world through that and see it in a new way, and each good record has a slightly different shade on it, so you never get done figuring out how things work and enjoying new wrinkles in how things are. The bad news is that if you take the glasses off things look terrible, then you have to function like a regular person. And that’s not something I’m very good at.

If I’m being honest, neither am I. I’ve agonized over these interviews for a long time, afraid of saying the wrong thing about the people in them. To call it a “cautionary tale of loving something– an idea– that cannot love you back,” sounded unkind, both to them and to myself. I can’t help but feel at the end that that’s exactly what it is.

I avoided revisiting these interviews for almost five years because they held up a mirror to the shaky logic I built ambitions on. They pointed out, in no uncertain terms, that art cannot save me. It can help me find a way to save myself, by learning to communicate things that I feel deeply in a way that’s truthful, accurate, and honest. But that’s all that it can do. 

And it took losing someone I loved very much to understand that. 

Room 7 (Somerville Ave)

Shane Broderick and I stand on the sidewalk of Somerville Avenue on a cool spring evening. Shane’s arm is in a cast. He’s just finished telling me a story about the time he punched a club owner at a venue up the block. As we’re talking about the reputation that Twodeadsluts Onegoodfuck had amongst Boston’s club owners, some of Shane’s friends emerge from the bar where he’s just finished a gig.

Shane: it’s funny because we never actually gave any of the venues our actual performances, it was more like basement parties and shit like that that they were scared of, that they’d heard about.

Brendan: I can’t remember if I got this on tape last time, would you mind describing what the actual performances were?

Shane: Can’t really do that, I don’t know, you can ask these guys.

Friend 1: What’s that?

Friend 2: You gotta lighter? I just realized I left my backpack down there, I got good beer in there but whatever fuck that shit.

Brendan: Would you guys mind describing to me what a normal show by Twodeadsluts Onegoodfuck was like?

Friend 2: Is this an interview? I wasn’t ready for an interview man I can’t do that! My voice cannot be heard on tape.

Friend 1: (makes jerk-off motion) It’s like this.

Friend 2: Can I get a lighter from somebody?

Shane: (shouting) It’s like looking at something, and gettin’ so excited and just BAM! And then it’s kind of like aww fuck.

Friend 1: I don’t have a lighter!

Friend 2: Do you have a lighter?

Shane: We need to go home. Need to hide under a blanket.

Friend 2: Do you have a lighter buddy?

Brendan: Nah, I’m sorry.

Friend 2: Motherfucker! How can you do an interview without a lighter? (distant) Fuck! Amateur!

Brendan: So, just so I don’t take up the rest of your time, there was something you said during the last interview. You said that, for TDS, there was this joke that you guys…when the joke stopped being funny, you guys were like, ‘alright, I’m gonna do something else.’

Friend 1: The joke didn’t stop being funny.

Shane: Well ok I’m not sure the joke ever stopped being funny but…

Brendan: So, what, in your opinion what was the joke?

Friend 1: The band was the joke.

Brendan: What specifically about the band was the joke?

Friend 1: I don’t know…

Friend 2: (strike lamppost) Do a funny voice c’mon what the fuck! We’re supposed to be entertained by this shit.

Shane: Alright, you can cut my voice here.

Friend 2: It doesn’t matter what you say so long as it’s in a funny voice it’s cool.

Shane: There are a lot of Boston noise bands and people from Jamaica Plain and Allston and they want everyone to be like, onboard with, ‘hey, we’re all friends, this is a scene! come down to our house play a show blah blah blah.’ And what Twodeadsluts was more like, was just like, ‘We’re not even invited. We’re playing a show, we’re trashing your fuckin’ house.’

Brendan: Do you ever miss it?

Shane: Yeah, of course I do. It is what it is.

Brendan: I feel like that’s a pretty good place to end.

Shane: There you go.

I walk off into the night. A block away, I come to a stop on a concrete island in the middle of Somerville Avenue and look back at Shane and his friends. They were still down by the bench we were sitting on, drunk, being loud, but their noise is drowned out by the cars flying past me, headed for the outskirts of Boston.

Standing here, it occurs to me that need room tone, the sound of the place I’m in. Room tone helps smooth out transitions in editing, makes a radio documentary sound more natural. I’ve forgotten to get it for almost every other interview with the noise artists. But that I remember now seems significant to me, an promise to myself that someday I’ll figure what made this experience worth telling.

Credits

Today’s episode was produced with help from Wes Boudreau and Samira Winter. Editing help by Kyna Doles and Jon Davies. Special thanks today to Lejsovka & Freund, Jacob Rosati, Sean Coleman, Elissa Freeden, Brittany Rizzo, Tyler Carmody, and Birgit from Denmark. 

Visit our website, investigating regional scenes dot org, for more episodes and, this summer, some bonus materials. You can find Stories About Music on your local podcast provider. Please leave a review to helps us find new listeners.

From Philadelphia, I’m Brendan Mattox, back soon with more stories about music.

#stories about music #noise music #experimental art #radio documentary #podcast

[cantcheckthatoff-yet]

012. Stay Tuned for Danger | Mattie Jensen’s Apartment pt. 5 & Dwayne Powers’ Office

We head back to Mattie’s after all that sneaking in the Worldwide Broadcasting building, and Nancy gets a good night’s rest. Then, we call up Bess, George, and Ned. While George and Ned have very little to say, Bess gives us the idea to sneak into Dwayne’s office that night so we can see about some files on Owen Spayder. Good call, Bess... more sneaking.......

But before I do that, I wanna watch that surveillance tape! 

The tape shows a guy in shades and a big beard (walking suspiciously similarly to that famous Bigfoot footage) but then he comes out later on a different camera and is clean shaven. Hmmmm. Now we know what we already knew: fake facial hair was involved.

Later that night, we show up at Dwayne’s office building.

It’s definitely humble.

It takes me awhile to find someone who will let me in, but Hess Grumbly has been waiting 45 minutes for a pizza and buzzes the door for me. He’ll have to wait a bit longer for that pizza.

I use my ID card to break into yet another door. Dwayne’s office is dingy and run-down. Right next to me is a jacket and fedora on a coat rack, and I spy with Nancy’s little eye something brown in the pocket.

Who leaves their wallet at work like this?? Dwayne apparently.

He and Mattie are definitely close. I don’t personally have a picture of anyone in my wallet, yet here they are, with Lillian and Rick conveniently cut out. Poor guy. He definitely is holding a candle.

Within the wallet is his business card and a little code written on the corner (4377-6630). Probably for something in here. The people in this game do not know how to hide their passwords.

I start looking around and find a number of interesting things. For example, I find a ticket for a musical called The Angry Man for Saturday, October 25 at 8pm. I find a paper with an article about Rick possibly leaving WWB. I even find an angry letter from Mattie’s mom about Dwayne not getting Mattie a great opportunity to talk to girls as a role model.

The real gem, though, is Dwayne’s desk.

Spirit gum adhesive (for fake facial hair??) and a one way ticket to Rio de Janeiro! Suspicious as fuck.

On Dwayne’s calendar are a number of cancelled meetings. Calendars reveal so much about people in this world.

In one drawer, I find a doorknob.

Now, this might seem strange and irrelevant, but it is actually very telling! Millie takes the doorknob from the prop room entrance at night, so if you’re planning on doing any sneaking in to, say, put your ID and ripped up shirt back there, you’ll need a knob of your very own. I’m onto you, Dwayne.

Did I mention how ONTO YOU I AM? Pictured above is a sketch that looks eerily similar to a certain cassette tape bomb one Nancy Drew defused in Rick Arlen’s dressing room the other day. Hmm. HMMM.

Atop the desk is a fortune cookie next to a briefcase.

Ev enth oughr even gesho uldbes we et jea lou sa ctsw illen dind efe at. (Even though revenge should be sweet jealous acts will end in defeat.)

That’s always true with Nancy on the case! Dwayne should heed this cookie’s advice.

I use that code from the business card on the briefcase and viola!

Not pictured: a set of keys that Nancy immediately pocketed.

Pictured: an eviction notice, two letters about late bills (one over 120 days late), and a check for $5,000 dollars to Dwayne from Mattie. Dude is fuckin’ broke.

Ya hate to see it.

Now, to find a use for these keys - which never takes long. The filing cabinet is easily found, and it has info I need on Owen W. Spayder. I use the keys and find a buncha files.

I, Nancy Drew, cannot resist reading not only Owen’s but also anyone else’s I know. My own file has only an empty piece of paperwork with a note that says, “Have Nancy fill out ASAP!” Sorry, Dwayne, but based on that diagram of a bomb, I don’t think you’ll be representing me from prison.

I check out Mattie’s file.

Her emergency contact is her mom. She’s been in a lot of plays. And her special skills include: Elizabethan drama, dialects, aerobics, gymnastics, stage fighting, fire arms, skin diving (???????), kick boxing, ninja throwing stars, good with children and animals, kite flying, lizard wrangling.

A woman of many hats.

Next, I check out Rick’s.

CANCELLED in big, red letters... Frankly, though, I can’t judge Dwayne for keeping the file. I keep files that I don’t need anymore, too.

Also apparently Rick Arlen’s real last name is Aburtuski. Lol. His emergency contact is “Doctor - What’s my mother going to do!?” and... he has a point, for once.

Finally, I look at Owen’s. There isn’t much to see. No picture. He has some credentials but they’re all crew, no acting. Not sure why he’d need an agent, then. Also? His home is on Bamboozle Street.

Nice one, Dwayne. Very clever. My suspicion is that Dwayne is, in fact, Owen Spayder.

There are just a few more things to look at in Dwayne’s office. That French love letter in Mattie’s dressing room seems suspiciously similar to a book I found in Dwayne’s bookcase, with a bookmark in the French love expressions.

After another final scan of the office, I feel safe heading out, having learned a shit ton honestly!

Next up, I wanna go have a chat with some people about this Owen Spayder guy.

#nancy drew #nancy drew pc games #her interactive #stay tuned for danger #stfd #stfd012

[meggannn]

more for lydia (of course): 21, 24, 45, 49

i am the worst person for taking like a day to respond to this omg

21)   Best Friend(s)?

it’s hard to categorize her best “friends” because for a while she doesn’t really consider them friends, she considers them “acquaintances she has varying degrees of closeness and unique relationships with” while not realizing that like… that is the definition of a friend? lmao (like for example, she only really let herself think of garrus and tali as ‘friends’ instead of ‘crewmembers i’m fond and protective of’ until the shore leave after the battle of the citadel. though while she was close with her me1 crew, i do think me2 is the first time she realizes she’s allowed to think of her team as friends too.

me1: kaidan and ashley at least in the beginning. by the end of the game i think she’s closer to tali as well

me2: at first, garrus and kasumi, and later when they join, tali and samara. i say this with like, knowing she has fondness for all of her crew

me3: garrus and, after renewing their relationship, ashley

24)   Do they have a love/hate relationship with any of them?

not with any of those mentioned above, though i think her relationships with miranda and jack in 2 are a little… not adversarial, but shepard is wary of them as much as she likes them. miranda for obvious reasons, and jack because she genuinely likes her after a while but being around her for so long is a bit of a drain on her energy, since she kind of reminds her of the kids from her old gangs. zaeed she definitely has a love/hate relationship with in 2, in that she appreciates his talks and advice but doesn’t appreciate his attitude and volatile unpredictability.

45)   Do they use social media?

lmfao I HAVE A LOT OF THOUGHTS ABOUT SHEPARD ON SOCIAL MEDIA OKAY YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE ASKED ME THIS, it’s not that she’s very tech savvy (though there’s some proficiency with hacking) just growing up as a teenager on earth who stole/resold a lot of omnitools and translators and laptops, she had very few other pasttimes when cash wasn’t coming in. i think she was really into social media during ict training with other candidates, as a way of bonding and non-physical de-stressing. and she obviously knows a lot of online slang and shitty corners of the internet from her teenage days. in the alliance she goes through periods of activity followed by periods of forgetting about the internet at all, like when she’s on missions.

by me1, she’s established enough that i think she’s convinced herself a commander shouldn’t post on social media, that’s not appropriate, blah blah. so for a while she’s mostly quiet with only occasional funny but nonoffensive comments on things like pop culture or whatever. then after the battle of the citadel she gets a huuuuge influx of followers, and she’s like ??? cause she doesn’t use her space twitter much, so she kinda posts once like "hey thanks for the support, look out for my album coming out next spring” and everybody loves it, until she starts talking about the reapers publicly and preparing for war, then everybody’s like “god shut up i thought you were cool” so she gets angry when it becomes apparent that most people just want a figurehead, not her to actually say anything, but she can’t go back to making jokes and pretending things are normal, so she stops posting altogether. maybe like, once or twice more about something irrelevant, and then three weeks later she’s dead. (and then her crew like garrus and tali in particular waste so much time on the internet looking at her online profiles, rereading her last posts, hunting through years worth of her feed far back enough to see she was a different person once, both of them in mourning but garrus denying it)

and then me2 happens, and she’s obviously not thinking about social media for a while. when she does, it’s like maybe midway through the game, like maybe on illium kasumi drags her out to dinner cause she found authentic thai in the markets, and shepard’s just content enough to think “this is the kind of meal you post a picture about and share on social media” and she considers it before remembering oh yeah i was dead……. is my account even still there? how weird would it be to suddenly post out of nowhere again? i know the rumor is i was just under cover, but would it help or hurt the war to treat this like normal? and she basically overanalyzes and decides not to say anything at all. (in reality i think after she died her account was given the space equivalent of a twitter verification, like Yes This Was The Real Shepard’s Account, Tweets Might Be Recorded, which she only discovers after she logs in on a whim back on the ship). i don’t think she breaks this social media fast until she either uses it one day because she 1) completely forgets she was avoiding it, like she just wakes up randomly and types “i had the weirdest fuckin dream let me tell yall about it” because she’s still half asleep and convinces herself it’s a good idea, then goes back to sleep and wakes up to a million notifications like “i KNEW YOU WERE BACK!!” and “SOMEONE HACKED SHEPARD’S ACCOUNT THAT’S DISGRACEFUL” and she’s like oh boy. OR 2) she gets so heated over something stupid (that is definitely about human pop culture) that she completely forgets/doesnt give a rat’s ass anymore about maintaining silence online. like “I JUST HEARD SPACE BEYONCE WASN’T NOMINATED FOR A GRAMMY LAST YEAR. WHAT THE FUCK?” after the collector base, she feels a little more freedom to be funny and has the time to engage and post about pop culture again, so she gains some attention back for that

by me3, coming out of alliance-imposed isolation, i think she takes back to the internet whenever she can, for better or worse, but because most of the news she swallows is so awful, she tries to be positive and reach out to people who @ her, like she doesn’t want to lie to them, but she tries to signal boost official evacuation and relocation efforts and stuff. when the alliance starts gaining allies, there’s a little bit of expectation for her to use her accounts as a political “so honored the turian hierarchy is joining us” blah blah kind of tweet, so she’s kind of like…. well people deserve to know we’ve made an accord, but i’m gonna do it my way, and she essentially starts sharing all the stuff that’s happening on the citadel that might get easily lost in translation, like

“i can confirm councilor udina was just killed by spectre williams after a standoff on the presidum, after he threatened the life of another councilor. we have confirmed that he was compromised by cerberus after his participation in a failed coup. please see the official statement for more details. the death of a high profile politician is always a shock, but to those feeling betrayed, i want every human and alien to be reminded that spectres are chosen to protect the galaxy from both foreign and internal threats. ashley williams takes her role seriously, as do i, and her actions saved lives yesterday. in light of the recent citadel attack, the alliance would also like me to encourage people to remain vigilant against cerberus cyberwarfare and contact with reaper tech. stay safe, everyone.”

just like, very honest, frank statements or clarifications that might not otherwise get out there, with an emphasis on trying to keep morale as high as reasonably possible. it’s not classified info, but she wants people to stay informed, like she wants people across the galaxy being bombarded who think they’ve been abandoned to know that she’s still fighting for them everywhere she can. even though she’s feeling really dejected and pessimistic sometimes i think she’s determined to make other people believe they can win even when she isn’t sure herself.

post-war (AHHA YOU THOUGHT I WAS DONE AFTER ME3, DIDNT YOU) as soon as she can travel, she kind of shoves her way into politics via reconstruction efforts despite her unstable health because she’s terrified everything will just go back to normal and the underprivileged people in slums and terminus colonies will be ignored. i think she keeps up the informative trend of letting people know what’s going on, like explaining what this or that emergency bill that was just passed by the council means, ‘cause she’s still new to politics and honesty all this dense language would’ve definitely confused her too. eventually as things start getting more settled she feels less guilty posting about how her day’s going. and then at one point, there is definitely a collective internet freakout when shepard acknowledges/makes a joke about one of the memes about her, and she’s like “what, you guys think i never go online or something?? i was a teenager once, i know how the internet works!” (she actually doesn’t spend that much time in forums or the like, she just learned about the meme from garrus and vega.)

(and then at some point post-war garrus, who used to have a dumbass video game let’s play account that gained a ton of popularity after me1 when shepard found out about it and asked to play turian call of duty with him on it (the vid was entitled “i play turian call of duty with commander shepard (my co)” and was mostly just them horsing around and then it went viral, but he took it down after she died and then purged the whole account/his entire online presence when he went to omega. but anyway a while post-war garrus comes to her like “hey you remember that video we made” “i remember the jokes about it” “well uh, i just managed to fix this old console i found at a flea market, do you want to do it again? yknow just kill time and lift people’s spirits?” so he makes a new account and introduces her to a lot of other games, she’s good at space overwatch but then when she gets cocky he makes her play like turian dark souls or some shit, and they record and post it online for kicks too)

fuck, i still have one more question left to answer???? i spent a fucking lifetime writing up this, I TOLD YOU ASKING ME QUESTIONS ABOUT LYDIA WAS A MISTAKE

49)   Would they consider themselves as a good person, bad person, or morally grey?

mostly i dont think she lets herself think about whether she’s a “good” person because emotionally, and morally, she doesn’t feel much different than she was when she was committing crimes for a living (though she knows logically she’s grown a lot, she convinced herself back then that she was justified in doing bad things by just trying to survive, which is… not entirely too different from now). anyway she still feels like she’s trying to make up for who she used to be, like she wants to put more good into the world than the harm she once contributed to, or failing that, she can at least remove as much of the evil in the galaxy as she can. (i keep forgetting to clarify, she didn’t just do petty theft and break-ins and lookouts and illegal reselling, she was occasionally a debt collector and beat people near to the point of death with biotics, and she hated it but it was mostly out of sympathy that she insisted on going instead of another gangster because if it were anyone else she knows they might’ve dismembered or tortured the person too.)

god i still haven’t answered your question. ive been writing for a full hour, keely. the long and short of it is that i think she’s morally gray. i call her paragade for a reason. she tries really hard to be a good person to make up for who she was (who she “had” to be), so she fights to save every life she can, but against enemies that show no remorse or whatnot, some of her old habits of ruthlessness and reluctance to forgive die hard. 

ASK ME QUESTIONS ABOUT MY OCS IF YOU FEEL LIKE SCROLLING PAST MORE LONG PARAGRAPHS ON YOUR DASH, YO

#lydia shepard #keelificent

[zedrin-maybe]

HELP ME GET TOON BOOM HARMONY PREMIUM

The goal is $2000!

UPDATE: Goal has been met! Thank you to those who commissioned me. Commissions (aside from the YCH commissions) are now closed.

Stuff available:

Images

Character Designs

Comics

Animations

YCH-Animations

I also have discounts for special cases! Click below the break and find the appropriate section for details!

Contact info’s and important info’s at the bottom!

~Art Commissions~

Lineart / Sketches: $20

Flat Color: $40

Basic Shading (simple lighting, Gurren Lagann style, etc.): $50

Adv Shaded w/ Highlights / blending / etc.: $70

Backgrounds: Add 50% of the base cost.

Additional characters / sequence portions: Add 50% of base, max of 3 characters in a scene Adding in an ‘anon’ (vague character to interact with the other person in the picture): Add 25% Alt versions (e.g. one clothed, one nude): Add 25% (might be cheaper/forgone if an edit is super simple) If doing just an upper-body image: Take of 25% of the base

If you want a character interacting with someone non-specific, you can also request a 'generic' (example, an anon). This can be any super barebones character with minimal description. Instead of costing +50% of the base cost to add, they are only +25%.

Extra costs might be incurred if a character has a complicated design. (Usually up to 25%)

If you want a shaded style, it can help to specify a style you want.

~Character Designs~

Need a reference for a character that you don't have any pics of? I'm willing to help forge your ideas visually!

Reference images are often 1 to 4 pictures. You'll need to decide how many you want. They’re typically simple enough to demonstrate the features of the character.

-First image- Lineart: $40 Flat color: $60

-Extra Images- Lineart: $20 Flat Color: $30 Sketches: $10 for one full view, or two 'configuration' / 'bust' shot views.

Sketches are useful for detailing parts that aren't normally seen. They can't be a primary for a character reference.

If requesting a character reference, you'll need to submit a write-up for them. Be sure to tell me what you want done in a specific way, and what is flexible or open to interpretation.

While mentioning elements such as short descriptors of their personality can help, avoid providing information that doesn't have any bearing on their design. E.g. a character described as 'edgy and brooding' would be more likely to have sharp corners, but I don't need to know about his quest to avenge his ninja clan because his father was brutally murdered by demons when he was just 3 years old.

Reference images that show things like body type, species, clothing, hairstyle, theme inspirations, etc. are very useful. (Just try not to spam too many for the same category.)

~Comics~

B/W: $20 per panel (lineart or two-tone) Color: $30 per panel (may contain some shading where appropriate)

Low-detail panels are 50% the cost of a full detail one.

These prices aren’t set in stone either, I might adjust them depending on the complexity of your request. Though they typically will account for things like backgrounds, multiple characters, etc., there may be extra costs if some panels are deemed more complex, or less if something is repeated / simplified. These are not eligible for character discounts (e.g. if they're featuring my own character).

~Animations~

Up to 6 seconds. Animations are typically at 24 fps and are flat color or limited shading. They can be nearly any resolution--let me know in advance if a specific size is important.

Simple: no major angle changes. Examples might be expressions, gentle movements, or lipsynching $60 to $150 depending on length and complexity. Can contain multiple characters at +50% cost, max of 2 in a scene.

Dynamic: dynamic movement. Frame by frame stuff, motions requring turns or smearing $100 to $300 depending on length and complexity. Limited to one character.

YCHs: I also have a list of Your-Character-Here animations I'm building! This will update as I prepare more templates. These are considerably cheaper than unique animations outright. Usually between $25 and $40.

LINK TO CURRENT SFW YCHs

LINK TO CURRENT NSFW YCHs

~The Good, the Bad, the Ugly~

NSFW IS ABSOLUTELY OKAY

Payments are done through paypal invoice! Don’t send money separately unless it’s just a donation or a tip.

Work beyond the sketch level will begin once payment’s received.

Character commissions require a reference! If you do not have a reference available, I have character designs as an available commission option.

If you don’t want me to publish a work publicly, let me know in advance.

You’re free to publish a commission yourself when you receive it. Just please credit me via @zedrin-maybe​ or @zedrin-butts​

Stuff I definitely will not do (including but not necessarily limited to):

No MLP or FNAF. No ‘modifications’ of these things to make them something else either.

Nothing illegal (no lolicon)

No body waste fetishes, extreme gore, vore, etc.

No foot fetishes (I'm fine with drawing feet but I really just don't like footjobs or closeups on them)

If commissioning one of my OCs, it’s fine as long a they aren't wildly out of character. And if commissioning NSFW of them, don't fuckin' make it weird and try to roleplay with me. (Yes this has happened.)

~DISCOUNTS~

A: If you’re commissioning something including one of my own characters, take 50% off the extra character fee for including them, or 30% off overall if it’s a solo image.

B: If a patreon supporter, take 5% off the total cost if a patron, or 25% off if in the $10 or higher tiers! This is applied AFTER discount A if applicable.

~Contact Info~

You can contact me via messenger, via ask, or via email at [email protected] (ideally email helps me keep everything in one place)

I’ll need your email address to send you the invoice as well.

Turnaround time is usually gonna be about 2 days or less, though it may be longer if I have people in front of you.

#zedarts #commissions

[burakispirus-blog]

Hocus Pocus, Hide Your Applications, Anti Boss Style

Hocus Pocus 0.6 User Manual / Help Documentation

Ferruh Mavituna( http://ferruh.mavituna.com )

What Is Hocus Pocus?

Download

Screen Shots

Other Features

Using Hocus Pocus?

Menu Reference

Right Click Menu Reference

FAQ

Known Issues & To-Do

License & Donate

Feature Request, Bug Report & Contact

Team & Credits

What is Hocus Pocus?

Hocus Pocus is small and free program which helps you to hide & show your running applications by simple shortcuts and user friendly interface. In fact this is a "Boss is coming !" style application.

Main idea behind this application is hiding applications in public areas. For example you can use this tool to hide your IM (Instant Messaging) application or Download Manager . So no one can detect what are you doing? Because this is your privacy and this is your computer.

Other Features;

Beside of this, Hocus Pocus offers you several other good features. You can see all running applications in a usable GUI interface and manage them ( kill / hide / show / maximize etc.).

If you open “ Show Process Details ” option you can see running applications File Name , Company Info and Start Time .

Download

.NET Framework should be installed. Otherwise setup application will guide you to download .NET Framework.

Free Download Hocus Pocus hocuspocus-setup.exe (148 Kb.)

MD5 Sum : 007e3d35d048f6c243cb402a629ddbf1

Screen Shots

Using Hocus Pocus?

It's easy to use Hocus Pocus. First fire it up “default location: Program Files > Ferruh Mavituna > Hocus Pocus”.

Now, you should see default GUI of Hocus Pocus. In this screen you should see all running applications on your computer which are have GUI width checkboxes besides them.

Select applications which you want to hide and click “ Hide / Show ” button. It's enough to hide application(s).

OK, Now your first, big and important question! “ How can I hide Hocus Pocus? ” It's very easy just press Ctrl+F10 to hide and show all checked applications and Hocus Pocus. It's enough for start.

You can read more instructions and advanced options.

Menu Reference;

In some menu options include (Global) term. This means these shortcuts can be used while Hocus Pocus is not active applications. So you can use this Hocus Pocus features while Hocus Pocus is not active or hidden.

File

Hide Hocus Pocus (Global) Ctrl+F8

Hide / Show Hocus Pocus

Exit

View

List

List view

Detailed View Detailed view, Include PID (Process ID) and Main Window Title. Also you can order applications.

Small Icons Similar list view, order is different.

Large Icons You can see big icons of running programs.

Quick Access

Refresh F5 Refresh Running Processes

Kill Process(es) F12 Kill checked Process(es) / Application(s)

Hide All (Global) Ctrl+F10 Hide All Checked applications, shortcut can use while Hocus Pocus is not active or hidden.

Hide / Show Applications (Global) Ctrl+F9 Hide / Show all checked applications, shortcut can use while Hocus Pocus is not active or hidden.

Hide Hocus Pocus (Global) Ctrl+F8 Hide / Show all checked applications, shortcut can use while Hocus Pocus is not active or hidden.

Close All Immediately! (Global) Ctrl+F12 Kill all checked process (es) / application(s) include Hocus Pocus.

Options

Always On Top

Don't Show Non-GUI Apps. Hide applications which have don't GUI like svchost.exe, spoolsv.exe etc.

Doesn't Include Hocus Pocus Don't show Hocus Pocus in list.

Show Process Details Show selected application details (Include start time , responding , file name , Company )

Refresh Every Minute Refresh list every minute

Reset to Default Options This will reset your current settings. After reset do not forget restart application.

Help

About

User Manual Open this manual offline

Go to Web site Opens Hocus Pocus web page ( http://ferruh.mavituna.com/hocus-pocus )

Right Click Menu Reference;

Right Click menu is not for checked applications, it's just for selected application(s).

Select All Select All applications

Reverse Selection Reverse Checked Items (check and select)

Hide Show (Default double click action) Hide / Show selected application(s)

Force to Show If an application can't shown by “ Right Click > Hide / Show ” you can try “ Force to Show “ menu.

Restore Restore selected application Window.

Normal Set selected application window to normal.

Maximized Set selected application window to maximize.

Minimized Set selected application window to minimize.

Kill Process (es) Kill selected process(es).

FAQ;

How can I hide all applications? Right Click “ Select All ” and click “ Hide / Show ”

What is difference between selected items and checked items? Selected items it's not important for “ Hide / Show ” and “ Kill ” buttons on the right. These buttons just working with checked applications and “Right Click” is just working for selected items. This is just a small feature for different situations.

When I try to select applications performance is slowing down! It should be related with “ Options > Show Process Details ” uncheck it and try again. This option is trying to access process file and try to extract program information. So this could be slower in some systems.

How can I show all running processes? Sure to un-check “ Options > Don't Show Process Details ” option.

What about Kill? Killing a process / Application is not a great idea; some application can fail if they killed. This is just like ending an application from task manager.

Hiding Winamp Close playlist editor and equalizer, then hide it.

Hiding Kazaa (P2P) If you hide some versions of Kazaa, it put itself into tray. Instead of use Hocus Pocus you can use a hacker version of Kazaa, Kazaa Lite Resurrection. It includes an advanced option to hide Kazaa (I'm not responsible about this action and not related with this program).

What about .NET Framework, Why should I need it? Hocus Pocus developed by .NET Technology. So you should have to .NET Framework 1.1 for running Hocus Pocus properly. Installer should tell and download .NET Framework for you –if you don't have already-

Known Issues & To-Do;

Current Version ( 0.6 ) of Hocus Pocus can't hide applications sub windows. Next version probably will support this.

Some applications put themselves into tray automatically when hidden. Currently there is no well-known solution for this problem.

If you're using Opera as default browser you may have some problems while using “Go to Website”,”Online Help” and similar actions)

License & Donate;

Hocus Pocus is completely free but if you want to help / donate you can order a book from Amazon for me.

My Amazon Wishlist;

- Amazon Wishlist

Boss is coming, Anti-Boss, Boss Protection, Hide application from co-workers etc.

Most of us are working on public places with our computers like small offices, large offices etc. WE have privacy and we should protect it !

I'm playing games like Dopewars and surfing while working, It's fun for me. It's a motivation and my programming style. But generally your boss or co-workers can't understand this. So I decided to write Hocus Pocus.

My second favorite reason for Hocus Pocus is hiding downloads (Download managers, P2P applications). Most of companies have better bandwidth than our home connections. So as a worker we have enough rights to suck their bandwidth while working. Burn it to CD and go home.

Personally I don't use IM applications so much but generally people want use ICQ while working and I think it must be acceptable. You can hide your IM application also but don't forget about enterprise companies special proxy systems.

Most of the companies can track your traffic and much more they can deny any traffic other than POP3 (mail) and HTTP (web). In this you can always try httptunnel or similar applications to bypass this kind of protections. But do not forget you have a serious risk by doing this. Some companies absolutely don't allow this kind of applications.

Also do not forget to use PGP for your e-mail traffic and IM messaging, So your IT department can not track you. One final note you can remove "Program Files" shortcuts for stealthy and you can install program anywhere you want.

For a secure P2P experience you always can try Mute. You have two good reason for this RIAA and your fuckin' boss ! It's not perfect but it's future.

One Final Note; As you think/know I don't take any responsibility about your actions with this small application.

Feature Request, Bug Report & Contact;

You can contact about feature request, bug report, business, comments;

E-mail : ferruh[at]mavituna.com PGP Key : http://ferruh.mavituna.com/pgpkey.asc

Web : http://ferruh.mavituna.com Web Interface : http://ferruh.mavituna.com/contact/ (also https available)

Team & Credits;

Developer & Designer

Ferruh Mavituna ( http://ferruh.mavituna.com )

Name Father

Baris Mavituna ( http://akvaryum.mavituna.com )

Beta Testers

Vedat Yigitoglu ( http://www.yigitoglu.org )

Cemal Dalar (http://www.dalar.net )

Alper Savasci

Özgür Mavituna

[harderstateofmind]

friends

when you can finally recognize who and what a friend is, you’ll be happy in life

that is the major problem. that’s the essence of considering someone a friend, or not. let me explain...

friends should be people who you completely connect with and that you know that they won’t leave you unattended, helpless or out to dry in a difficult situation

taking that into account, I’ve never really had anyone I could call my friend.

as you grow older you kind of star having the option. you can choose to get along with more or less people, and choose the kind of people you want to get along with.

when you’re a child you just get along with whoever’s there.

when you get to your adolescence, there’s more people you can get along with. pretty much my whole life I’ve chosen to try and get along with everyone, because I didn’t really fit anywhere

in my adolescence I thought I had quite a few friends. everyone got along at school, and it was nice, but nobody remembered me in special occasions, such as birthdays. they I had my mom tell me things like “hey, why didn’t you go to person X’s birthday? I heard from your friend’s mom that your friend went” to which I’d reply something along the lines of “I wasn’t invited at all, neither was I aware that there would be a birthday party”. unsurprisingly, I basically stopped having contact with everyone from this period.

as time went by, and I finished adolescence, I actually found people I more or less connected with and managed to have a deeper connection with a couple of people. but again, neither of these had any big common interests with me, so that ended there.

university had a bigger variety of people and here I finally managed to have a group with which I actually related. but my biggest interests do not match theirs... I never really felt comfortable going out with them, for example. I was always on high alert. I liked them and I kinda trusted them. I mean, they’re trustworthy for sure. and I have a great connection with a few of them... but they’re not exactly the people that are moved by the same things I am or that work towards achieving the same things I want. it is weird to explain, but that’s how I feel. thus I rarely meet them (but do enjoy it a lot when I do!)

after this I started meeting way less people. you have kind of a “social peak” at 21/22. and then it is just full steam ahead down a steep mountain.

at 24 years old I was completely messed up due to my ex leaving me and when I got back up again I met this group of amazing people that had the exact same tastes and goals as me. and the big problem starts here.

these people, whom I trusted with all I had, with whom I felt comfortable going out for the first time in my life, were probably never really my friends, and the signs were there from the beginning

I’m not saying it is entirely their fault. I do not believe it is. I’m just saying that whatever I brought to the table isn’t reciprocal. I loved them all as friends, but they didn’t really love me back.

I know part of the issue was my attitude. I had attitudes so extreme that they thought I was only there because I just wanted to meet the person in the group that I fell in love with. but that just wasn’t true. I truly cherished their company.

but then there was their attitudes towards me, which to this day I am still unaware if they were, somehow, in response to my own attitudes.

-one of them humiliated me constantly due to me trying to make myself noticeable to this girl I was after, and did not stop after me speaking with him privately on 2 occasions. this exhausted me mentally. I ignored it because I am thick skinned - but you cannot ignore negative pressure indefinitely, and it got to me once they’ve put me out of the group.

-another one was in contention with her boyfriend (now ex) at the time and was pissed that I got along with him, thinking I was betraying her trust and passing info on her life, and eventually spread lies about me, which may or may not have had anything to do with me being forcefully removed from the group.

-another one tried to play nice with me but last time we crossed paths he literally seemed to want to kill me (I am not joking)

-another one, well... doesn’t give a fuck, because why would he

-there’s another person that’s 100% right because I wasn’t fully upfront with him when I should have been, so that’s fine

-and another one is the hardest problem. this person is one I got along with from very early in this period of my life and that was instrumental in helping me getting back up after an extremely difficult period. I will come back to this person later on

bottom line here, I've given all I could to these people. my friendship, my good will, smiles, anything they’d need, and even a few car rides. I wasn’t really expecting these people to give me presents back, or to pay for the gas. I just wanted some friendship, some connection, something to get me back up after the rough period I’ve had, and to spend some good times with good music. and almost all of them just weren’t having it. I thought they cared about that, but they really didn’t. otherwise they wouldn’t have left.

I really started noticing that after being forcefully put out of circulation. I feel they didn’t really want it to be known that they were hanging out with me. after I was removed/replaced/repurposed (whatever you want to call it) they appeared everywhere together on socials, something they never really did when I was around. or maybe I didn’t notice they did since I was simply busy living the moment with them? to this day I question myself on this.

now I look back and I think, “they were never really my friends”. and I think, what would have happened if I felt bad or got ill in the numerous times we went out together? would they just leave me without helping? I don’t know. it’s possible at least some would. but then again, is that question even relevant nowadays? probably not - they show no intentions in getting along with me anymore. when I tried to reach out to most of them, I’ve only seen closed doors as if I had completely ruined their lives.

then there’s that person I truly connect with. he enjoys Hardstyle as much as I do, and being a musician is his life. our paths are extremely entwined. we both want to push the harder styles up in our country. this music flows in our veins. but we diverged in the moment I went after that girl. he advised me to stop doing so (an advice that, in hindsight, was probably great), but I didn’t hear because that girl is my dream and I will never stop fighting for my dreams. but that’s not the point I want to make. the point I want to make is, I believe that me going after this girl was basically the source of all issues. I’ve thought on this COUNTLESS times for months without end and it all goes back to her.

so this girl cost me someone I truly respect, that I connect with on a deep level. 

was it worth it? I don’t know, but that was a big price to pay, maybe too big.

was he ever really my friend? yeah, probably.

is he still my friend? no, not one tiny bit

will he ever be my friend again? I don’t know...

can you call someone who you got along really well with, but don’t anymore, your friend? that’s something I wish I had a reply for, but I don’t

all this causes me to be quite unhappy. and it is my biggest source of unhappiness now. even more than women honestly, because... I mean, I have my priorities switched up. I should have focused on these people. so I kind of cannot blame them for anything but at the same time I wish this relationship was reciprocal, and they’ve never given this back to me.

I wish I could sit on the table with these people and solve all pending issues. I don’t even know anymore why people don’t even want to speak with me. I've felt many things about that. betrayal was one of them. nowadays I simply don’t understand what’s up

I still think a lot about these things, but I don’t let them take up my day. writing about them helps regarding that. but I’m fuckin tired of people not giving you a closure. I was my ex gave me the chance to speak with her one more time instead of breaking up with me by phone. and I wish these people also gave me one last chance. I wish I could sit on the table with them and have them tell me what is their problem with me, or what’s the problem that I have. and close this chapter once and for all. but the human nature is cruel at its core... and we often make other suffer without realizing it.

so to finish this off, here’s something to occupy your mind: are your friends... really your friends? why do you call them friends? do you connect with them on a deeper level?

think about this, and avoid disappointment, heartaches and loneliness