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Djartistknight,Breaks in the HouseWe're trying something new here today...we're trying to stop a war before it starts... August 11 Summer Breaks...Time flies when you're having fun...doesn't it?
And once again,i take a break from MSN Spaces...and when i return to it,it's all changed!
Do i like it? Hmm...i don't know,although this new thing of different backround and text colour is kinda fun...artistic almost!
But there,i've amused myself enough,back to normality
 As Master Aaron commented on,its been since June that i last updated 'Breaks'...and i seriously had no idea that that amount of time had flown past. Have i filled the time constructively...probably not,although that should have been the case lol. Bugger it,roll on the list,see what's been going on...
1) Me,myself and Irene...well,not Irene,but as in 'How am i?',im pretty good. I've been off work for the last 2 weeks,summer shutdown! For all the faults i could pick i the company,this is one of the saving graces,a good break in the middle of the year. I kinda feel like i've earned it,getting into my new role as Forktruck driver was taxing at times,a lot to keep an eye on,so i have loved waking up in the morning,and thinking "what do i have to do today? hmm...nothing,lay in!" And so,i have...
But,i've also been pretty active,i've been out most days,visiting people,catching up,and its been great. A highlight was visiting some people i haven't seen in about 4 odd years! I used to work with the guy,John,and as these things happen,we lost contact. But,he saw my miniatures in White dwarf the other month,left a message with the Cambridge store,and then,for a weekend,i spent some time with him,another mate i hadn't seen for the same amount of time,Phil,and his budding family. I thought it'd be a bit weird at first,but we took off like we hadn't been apart really,was great! It was John's little lads 5th birthday on the sunday,so was invited to a BBQ for that,generally chilling and watching people break one another on the bouncy castle! Good food,good people,good time. In exchange,i did a few painting tutorials,they are both hobbyists getting back into it,and i kick started his girlfriend into the hobby also,so i like to think i was inspiring...
2) Another thing i've started quite earnestly,is playing Pool. I've dabbled a few times when out with mates before,but we're all as useless as one another,and i never thought about it seriously as something i'd like to do. till the other Thursday night,i went out with some of the older crew from the store,and i didnt realise that Scott used to play in a team,and is damned good. He went about the table like he was ronnie o' Sullivan,and it was good to watch...not so good to get 7 balled by him,but inspiring nonetheless.He started giving my pointers,and suddenly,i was potting balls! I have this knack of hitting difficult ones and good safety shots (watching all that Snooker paying off there!) but if the ball was right over the pocket,i'd miss it ..and i had no idea why...probably complacency or something,thinking it was an easy shot etc...but,now i rather like the game. We played again this week,and i think i will enjoy improving.It's better with good mates and a beer!
3) Finally started a new sculpting project!! It's been nearly a year since i picked up tool and putty on a serious intention,and i was dubious about how it would go... i assumed the long break would mean i'd have to brush up on a few bits,but,i started well...and carried on well! I surprised myself,i didn't have any concept art drawn up,just a vague idea in my head,so i just went with that.So far,so good! Had a good response,and even a pretty exciting 'project' mentioned to me,although that's way off in the future.Does make me think i can do something with this skill though! I used an armature from Reaper Miniatures as a base,the pre-sculpted basic human dolly is very iseful,but other than that,i've done everything from scratch,and features my first face at the 30mm scale,and i think it's ok! If i can finish him,and paint him,i may well enter him in the Golden Demon competition in September,i think i could get a Finalist with him at the least,and that would be great in the hard fought category that is Fantasy Single Miniature.I still have to get seriously into the painting side of things for golden Demon..which is slightly worrying,i've had time and not used it as constructively as i might have...too much going out..whoops. Still,it wouldn't be Games Day without the last minute painting before the event!! Haha...
4) Quiet on the tune front,i've contented myself with buying albums,listening to what A-List Djs are playing,seeing what i like and dont. I do this quite often,thinking "if it's good enough for sasha,its good enough for me". I listen to quite a few different styles,so end up with a eclectic collection,and then enjoy finding ways to put them together. It's something i've recently passed onto Padawan Chris,he was visiting a couple of weeks ago,and he had his first go! He likes his tunes,so i thought he'd find it interesting...he did,has had another go since,and is now on about getting his own equipment and so on,which i think is awesome! Me,inspiring? Never... Still,will be fun i think!
5) Drawing continues to go well,ive had a few more to do over the holiday,so a steady stream of things to do.Still quite surprising to me,but also happy for the opportunities..never know where it might end up. There's also a drawing competition at Games Day,and apparently,no title,meaning i can draw anything from the backrounds of Games Workshop....that should be fun,will give that a go too i think!
6) New 'Tune of the Moment' up,excellent selection,if i do say so myself... and yes,im still reading 'Faith and Fire'!! I started it a while ago,but kinda ground to a halt with it...then got distracted,i read the awesome autobiography of Mick Foley AGAIN,and that kept me amused for a while...now,im back onto the Battle Sisters book,and i have a new leash of life on it,has got very interesting,so guess i needed the break from the slow start! Bit of a bugger,is tempting me to start a new army of the 'Nuns with guns'...they are awesome...but have other ideas elsewhere too,which isn't helping! Curse my imagination and the people that fuel it... Actually,no,i love it,cheers peeps! I should curse my amazing (ly crap) willpower...need to learn to stick with one thing at a time!
This will never happen.
But worth a thought.
That's it for now i think,a reasonable update,i hope to keep on top of things a bit better from now on!
Love,Peace and Grease
 June 23 Gently Shifting People...WOW..By the Gods (yes,all of them,no discriminating)...it's been over a month since i updated 'Breaks'...Time flies and all that malarky!
I'm very surprised it has to be said. I didn't realise i'd filled my time so constructively,so as to not get round to filling this here Blog box with what can only be described as 'drivel'. There again,i say that,and people still read it...at least it's in coherent English...
Now..a recent visitor ( hey Kev ) suggested i get back to writing along the lines of something sensible,a collection of my thoughts and feelings based on a particular subject,rather then my usual ( and highly original..not ) 'list' idea,a simple and easy way for me to relate recent activities.Why did i start doing it...well,i thought it would be a nice way to lay things out,and it would help me also,as,when i read it all back,i might remember something else. It would then be far easier to type 'Number...( whichever ) on the end of what i'd already written,rather than,remember something when i'm almost done with the biggest essay in the world,and then trying to find a relative spot for said item. MSN would then happily lose all my hard work anyway! Sounds sad i know,but i am a rambler in my thoughts,it's rare i don't get distracted half way through any project,be it housework,or painting a new figure. I am,as they say,rather random.
This isn't to say i can't talk for England on a given subject! Oh no,get me on something i know about,and am passionate about,then i can stand all day with like minded people,till the cows have come home,seen me STILL loitering,talking,and walked off again,moo-ing with despair...
Now,when i went back to reply to Mr Kevin's Blog ( a superb read i must add ),i noticed one of the main themes in his writing was about friends,both people he knew in person,and ones from the Internet. This got my attention,it's an extremely interesting concept,bearing in mind how many of us have the Internet these days,and all these chat rooms,forums and messenger services mean that we're constantly meeting new people on all sorts of levels. It got me musing on the people i knew,the hows,whys,wheres and whens of our meetings,be it on the many computer related stuffs,or in actual contact.
My thoughts took me right back to school,Secondary school in particular.I see this time and place as where the most growing up is done,you're all at that certain age,you all think you know everything,and,rather harshly,its probably the place where the most stereotyping happens. You know what i mean,the 'labelling' of people. For example,me.I was fairly short. I wore glasses. My mother took measures to make sure i always looked smart. I saw school as somewhere to learn,so did the work i was meant to. I was fairly quiet. So naturally,i was labelled a 'swot' or geek' by most people at the school. It didn't bother me really,it amused me that the people who called these names out in the halls were people who'd never even spoken to me properly,they had no clue who i was,what i was about..they simply heard it off of one of their friends,and decided that was me,a 'geek'. It's the old cliche,judged without a hearing.
It's something that can't be stopped,despite what anyone says. It's how things go,and for me,i found it an important lesson. See,it obviously wasn't just me that got picked on,there were others...i remember them all well,we were the group that formed due to not being 'in' with those considered popular. Pathetic but there you are. At the time,i could have been considered pretty bitter about it all,but,as i look back,i see what happened,and smile. Why? Because in those times of feeling left out,i met some amazing people,people i may never have spoken to otherwise,and,10 years on from school,i STILL talk to a lot of them. It's bullshit to say "oh,i'd never judge people by how they look " etc,i always thought i was pretty easy going,but when i look back at some of my mates,i do think if i'd been left to my own devices,i would never have said 'hi' to them.One girl was a Goth,one lad seemed a bit feminine in his ways,another lad's family had some real issues at home...you get the idea..we were all pretty individual for whatever reason.We all ended up as our own little group,and i tell you something,those 5 years in Secondary education were a lot of fun due to these people,and,whilst they might not read this,i'm saying it now,thankyou!
So..that's some history there.Already,at that point in my life,i'd met some long term friends. I say 'friends',because thats what they are...for the last 10 years,a few of them have stayed in contact,we've been out,helped each other through some times. I actually have 3 'groups' of people i know..in my head at least. 'Friends',those people that are really special,the ones that have helped you through those bad times,they've stuck around regardless. Then you have 'Mates',its almost like the collection of current people you hang around with,sounds a bit harsh maybe,but you may see my point.As you move home,or jobs,your setting and surroundings change,and so do the people you know...Finally,'Acquaintances',those people you do talk to,but are just sort of in the backround. That's just me of course,call me strange if you will...it's happened before!
I read once that in the average human life,you meet around 12,000 different people,and yet,only 10 or so of them will be around you for the duration. Strange to think isn't it? Already i have names in my head of people i knew,and havent seen or spoken to in a long time.Some for reasons we couldn't control,others because...well...we just didn't.
When school was over..it was time to make it on my own. College first,then employment. College was a real eye opener,away from the area i knew,the people i knew...and perhaps more significantly,away from my parents! True,i always went home every night,but i felt that whole 'different post code,they won't ever find out' feeling.It made me more daring i think,and therefore,perhaps made the real me come out more.It was a new start,no-one knows anyone else,no-one knows backrounds. So,you have the nervous silences at first,then after a little while,you all get comfortable,and then...the good times roll. My 2 years at college,i loved. I think i really developed as a person,and i realised i had this astute sense of humour,i could twist people's words well,and make the whole room erupt in laughter. It made me feel popular i suppose. A different kind of 'popular' though,i never went round telling people they were 'geeks'...
Still,that was the beginning i think. Then i got a job in a Games Workshop after leaving college,and again,new setting,new things learnt. New people in the store every day,then you had your regular hobbyists. It was brilliant for me. I'd learnt at college the old saying of "Everyone can be a friend,until proven otherwise" and i used that to my advantage.I was there a year,and in that time,i made a few more Friends,and had a lot of fun.
Then...i discovered the Internet. One of my best friends showed me Yahoo Messenger, how i used chat rooms,and how i could add people to a list so i could talk to them again if i wished. I was hooked. It was like magic when i talked to my first 'foreign' chatter. I remember some of that first conversation;
"Where are you from?"
"Germany"
"Get away!!"
Yeah,i spent some time in disbelief as people announced they were in America,Australia and even one girl from Bahrain.
This leads me onto current times i think. The girl in Bahrain,after initial chats,we realised we got on so well,and every weekend,i would hot foot it round to Edd's to steal his computer for a bit,and she was one i always talked to.Never a silence,the conversations just flowed like we'd met or something.We talked about serious issues and silly things.After 2 or so years of this,i came to the conclusion that here was someone in my 'Friends' list,she became like a little sister to me,and when we did eventually meet,we had a great time,and we still do.It's something i never dreamed of at school. Some say the Internet can be a dangerous way to meet people,and i would agree,you never know who's on the other end...but,if you both deal with it sensibly,it can work out.It means you both have to be genuine,you can't make things up,because obviously,if and when you do actually meet,theres a lot of explaining to do...
I was me. Jenan was herself,we met...and i think we'll be friends for the rest of our lives. I think she'd agree with me there too.
Now of course,i have an MSN Space,i've met people through this,they've been added to my Messenger..and so it goes again. I've met some truly astounding human beings because of MSN. I look at my list now,theres only 28 or so people on it,but i talk to each and every one of them. I don't just add people for the fun of it,i stick to my ethics,i will chat to them if i know we can get on,simple as. It works for me in life,so why not on the computer? It may be great to say "yeah,i got 100 people on my list",but when the conversaton goes along the lines of;
"hay,wot u uptoo?"
"not much"
"kool me eiver".. what is the point??
So,goes back to being genuine i think,be yourself. You get a far better group like that,as i realised some 10 years ago.What's even more superb,they're all fantastically different! I love it,and goes to show,doesnt matter where you're from,what age you are,what you do,if theres that spark,ANYBODY can be a friend. And if you meet them in person,so much the better.
All that ramble...guess it can be summarised by saying,however you meet people,be it at a mate's party,or in your favourite store,or on the Internet,be yourself. You'll reap the rewards of it sooner or later,i know i have,and i think it can be the same for everybody who thinks what i've just written out wasn't a load of boring old tosh.
As this is my MSN Space,and i've talked about people i know online,i'd like to say 'cheers' to my MSN crew,which consists entirely of at least 'Mates' ranked peeps,and a few 'Friends'...although,to be honest,i would say most are in between!
So,in no particular order,Tony,Ian,Abby,Alex,Nicola,Tabs,Becca,Caroline,Charlie,Cindy,Dan,John P,Grant,Jenan,Jon T,Alex M,Tammy,Chris P,Edd,Steve,Jon B,Rory,Amy,Stacey,Tracy and not least,Chris C...you're all amazing people,dont let anyone else tell you otherwise.
Essay over...I have no idea what i've just written,but if it strikes a chord,feel free to comment.
Love,Peace and Grease
Ben
 P.S. - 'Breaks' is one year old!! May 17 Come What May...Blimey...has taken me a record time to get round to updating this thing properly...you'd think that maybe,just maybe,i've been spending my time wisely and getting all sorts of useful things done,as an excuse not to have attended to 'Breaks' properly....but alas,this is probably not the case...although,as usual,a list of things going on will be following this introduction,so i will let you good peeps decide this one!
And so,we continue (sorry Mr Tong,im stealing that,but tough luck!)
1) Ok,first things first,the title..means diddly squat! I just noticed we're in May you see,and thought "how can i use that in a title"....trying to be clever and so on...although,it may indirectly link into something i say later,which WILL make me look a genius...if i hadn't already written that i've written it purely because i had no other ideas of note..doh..i will shut up...now!
2) What? No new facts??! No..Tis true...I deleted this feature,as i think i need something new with which to 'entertain' peeps (and myself!) .Not sure what yet,but i will get there eventually im sure,slow and steady and all that!
3) New 'Tune of the Moment' though,a right corker! I picked this up Saturday,and its wicked,will definately be taking it with me when i play that Barn Party (later this month woo).It's called "Cold Drink,Hot Girl",by one half of one of my favourite producers,Way Out West,Jody Wisternoff.Actually,another one i have been playing a lot has been "Shorty The Pimp" by Tayo and the Acid Rockers,not only a genius title (lol) but a fantastic Breaks track,will no doubt be taking 'Shorty' with me too!
4) Drawing wise,been a bit slow,i really ought to get on with some more,but motivation and energy have been spread elsewhere in other activities,so..woops there.No doubt i'll get a telling off by my new 'Art Manager'! Yes,i have a manager now...officially,or unofficially,im not totally sure,she says she is,so i'll take her word for it.'She' being a girl,who works in the canteen at work,called Suzie.Long term readers may remember i did some drawings just before Christmas for some people.Suzie was one of these people,and has recently took it upon herself to spread the word about my work! Bless her.I imagine she really liked what i had done for her.Anyway,not only had i got a few more drawings to do myself,Suzie has also secured me a few more.Seeing as shes in the canteen,its like the hub of the workplace,and so she has a greater reach than i do. Im all for it,and i thank her so much,but i wish sometimes she'd tell me whos shes spoken to!! The other morning,on the walk into work,i got stopped by the security guard at the gate,and there was me thinking "crap,i got those bits and pieces in my bag"...turns out,Suzie had told him about me and my doodles,and he was interested...phew! The idea of buying a diary and noting down all the jobs,deadlines and monies owed was mentioned by my 'manager',which i think is an awesome idea...i would have got there eventually on my own im sure,but,then again,maybe not...Im not sure wether its a joke or not,but Suzie keeps mentioning about 'wages'...i smile and nod back...i really ought to learn to read women better. Anyway,for now,thanks to Suzie,i have quite a list of drawings to do,mostly protraits,and i have also been asked to draw a fantasy piece by my mate Grant,who saw a recent doodle of mine,and thought it was good.He wants something similar for a tattoo design,and has basically given me free reign on details...if i apply myself,i could use this as a 'boredom' buster amongst all these other drawings.Speaking of which...this leads me nicely onto...
5) Painting...things were going so well! And then,i hit a wall...well,not an actual wall,but i do seem to have slowed to the sort of pace that,if i were racing a snail,he might now be thinking "hang on a minute,i could win this".Not good.So,in an effort to get going again with things,i recently tackled a random figure,a conversion made of some pieces i had lying around.I actually made it whilst watching the Snooker World Championship final (Congrats here (belated admittedly) to Graeme Dott,awesome to watch,deservedly Champion,and also Peter Ebdon,one of my favourite players,good fightback !!). I recently finished painting him,and i have to say,im quite pleased with him.In fact,if i dont have something for the category he can go in for the Golden Demons in September,i may well spruce him up a bit and enter him,just for shits and giggles..never know! Finalist maybe at least would be great,although i wont hold my breath...that category is one of the toughest to place in! Ahhh..Golden Demon,really ought to get back onto the 'Entries Bandwagon'! The ideas are good,just need to apply myself...I will get a picture up on here (via Photobucket) soon hopefully.
6) The Fantasy Football league at work draws to a close this week,and,after leading for MONTHS,im gutted to have dropped to third place.I blame Thierry Henry.Or,just to be annoying,Terry Hen-ry (sod the accent!).See,all was going well,then he didn't play so well,so me,not knowing anything about football (much anyway),decided to play the averages game,and dropped him in favour of a couple of other moderately well scoring players.Sounded like a plan,but then the GIT played really well,and got a few hat-tricks..and those that were in the know and had kept him,finally caught and overtook me..SODS! Ahhh well,tis only a game,and its why they call it gambling...£40 in,£100 out,so im up on the deal,but could have been £320 in winnings!! *Sigh* Oh well,theres next season i suppose..theres ALWAYS the next season...
7) Hmm..its my brother Matts birthday on Friday.
Right,i think thats me all done and dusted,i cant,at the moment,think of anything else i'd like to declare,so,i leave you with a couple of Blackadder quotes (seeing as i missed a few recently!).
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Blackadder: Let's try again. If I have two beans and then I add two more beans, what does that make?
Baldrick: Umm... a very small casserole? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Blackadder: To you, Baldrick, the Renaissance was just something that happened to other people, wasn't it?
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Take care,
Love,Peace and Grease
 *Update*
OK,i have a picture of the boredom buster,as mentioned above!
See what you think...
Dirty big hammer...lol
Ben x May 08 Bloody MSN...I'm seriously considering putting 'Breaks' to sleep....
Not because i don't enjoy laying down some writing,or updating it etc...
Just,i'm STILL not allowed to add pictures...and its doing my head in lol
So im pondering deleting the ever faithful 'Breaks' and starting a new one,in the hope that i can add pictures,and who know,other new things too...
I'd still keep the other Space addy's though,dont wanna lose me pals !! And then i could go tell them the plan if they don't read this...
I will think on it some more.
Hope all is well,
Ben x
{Love,Peace and Grease} April 28 Art Adept...Ok,a proper update...as promised...im a good boy,me!
And a reasonably busy boy at that.
So...without further ado (do do),here's a round up of what i've been up to! You lucky people...
1) New 'Facts' are up,hmm,i know,very interesting lol
2) New 'Tune of the Mo' also,still experimenting away happily with tunes,old and new.Found this gem by DJ Nukem,will really fit into my idea of what im going to play at that barn party,so in the box it goes! Going to be a heavy box by the sounds of things ...
3) I finished that Ian Irvine book pretty quickly,as i thought i might! Great book,although a really vague sort of ending!! It kinda tailed off,and left me wondering what the hell happens next,or what the characters do in the situations they were left in...Of course,the sign of a good book,leaving you wanting more,but it can also be annoying !! Grrr...im hoping/assuming he's working away at something to take over from the loose ends.Until then,i'll fill my time reading random books,this time,a Black Library publication,about my favourite army GW do,the Sisters of Battle.I love the fluff and artwork,amazing,and i've been a huge fan since they first came about years and years ago.So,will see what interesting backround this yields...better not sully my impression of the girls !
4) Speaking of reading(and girls) ,i read this week that Kiera Knightley has been voted World's Sexiest Woman by FHM readers...Discuss.
5) TV watching next.The World Snooker Championship has been on the last week,now into the Semi Finals,and i've been pretty much glued to it.Sad you might think,and im not even totally sure how i started watching it,although i do remember it was some years ago now.Anyway,there has been some cracking matches,and now down to just 4 players,one i expected,3 i didn't! Ronnie O'Sullivan is there,(although no easy route!),one of my faves,Peter Ebdon (surprising as he's had a crap season),Marco Fu (new territory for him,playing damned well at the moment though!)and Scotland's Graeme Dott (surprise outsider,though he did reach finals a couple of years ago).Ok,so no-one's that bothered i bet,but,this IS an update of what i've been up to...lol. Not sure who's going to win...but i think i'll cheer Ebdon on,the way he's played all tournament,he's on a roll,and although Ronnie's not looking on form at the moment,you can't ever count him out! Ok...so you cant count any of them out...bugger...lol All playing well,good to watch this tactical game being played by top peeps!
6) Now,the good stuff...i completed the first of the commission pieces this week! A guy at work asked me to draw his little girl (5 or 6 i think),and it was definately a challenge.As i've said before,i've not really had much truck drawing children,they have less facial lines to look at,and generally rounded features,so was tough to try and get her right.Add to that a cheeky little smile complete with dimples and i was bang in trouble lol.Still,gave it my best shot,and today was the showing...and he really liked it!! Seemed very impressed,and appreciative of the effort,so that was both of us happy.I showed him during t-break,and as you'd imagine,there was quite a few people in there..and as a result of the breaktime viewing,i think i've secured another commission piece!! WOO...so far,appear to be no shortage of pictures to do for people...but this is good!! Just to top that off,one of the drawings i have lined up,i previously thought he wanted it A3 (so about £50)..but turns out he meant A2!! so thats 2 big ones to do,but easily £200!! Maybe more,maybe less,i'll see how long it takes me etc!
7) SO..the BIGGER news...and also accounts for today's title! Regular readers may remember that last October,i went to Games Workshop's headquarters,for an interview,and photos of my work. Well,in the May edition of White Dwarf (Issue number 317!),its finally been printed up!! 3 pages of my miniatures,plus a written piece based on the interview...and i have to say,the lads at the studio have done an awesome job! The models photographed really well,and theres some close ups of bits too,which,although initially worrying, shows my painting is actually pretty smooth..so score there too!! Im so pleased with it all,and is an amazing achievement i think! Ok,so i don't like to blow my own trumpet,i know theres always better people,and things i can improve..but..i made it,and if i can only improve,im hoping it wont be the last time!
Thanks to all the peeps that have ever supported me in the hobby,wether they ever read this or not..just felt i ought to say something!
Next achievement would obviously be some sort of placing at the Golden Demons in September...which im working on!!
So,if you're in WH Smiths (or similar) at the weekend,wander to the hobby section,find the mag,(has a floating dude in green robes on the front) and flick to near the back...the article is entitled 'Art Adept' and have a quick flick!! Go on,you know you want to...
Enjoy the Bank Holiday,i know i will!
Love,Peace and Grease April 23 Short And Sweet...Hmm,busy busy at the moment...
Commission drawing.
Golden Demon ideas and painting.
Berating BT for being rubbish.
Being proud of 'padawan's recent endevours.
Work.
Consuming too many Digestive biscuits.
You know how it goes sometimes...
I'll update properly soon,promise!
Ben x April 13 New Paths...Greetings and salutations.
I have returned...not that i actually went anywhere,but has been a while since i updated this...indeed!
But,here i am,it's the Easter holidays peeps,and i for one am glad of the break from work,im off till tuesday now,which is a big score in my books,i just hope i can use the time reasonably creatively...
So...what have i been doing...i will relate this information...now.
1) New 'Facts of the week' ( or fortnight,however you wish to look at this!) done and dusted,so remember kids,being chased by an enraged Gorilla? Head for the water...
2) Current reading...finished the quite frankly awesome 'Grumpy Old Men' book,loved it,and agreed with most of its raised points,thus proving im probably somewhat older than my years...well,i can moan alot at least lol.I'm now on the final book in the Irvine series i started some time ago.So far,awesome reading,i like his style of writing alot,and the characters are nicely done...shouldn't last me too long i imagine! Speaking of Grumps,2 things,i will go more in depth about A.G.A at some point (at several peoples request) and also,new series starts Good Friday!! SCORE!
3) Another new tune up and being played everytime i have a bash! Im practising a lot at the moment,i really want to play a good set in May at my pal Charlie's birthday night.Have been pondering the set for a while,i know what Edd and Pooks play,mostly Breakbeat,and,whilst i love my Breaks,i think a whole night may be a bit boring...so im digging out some older stuff,and so currently looking at a dark Progressive mix,with an added smattering of dirty Breaks.Currently,experiments have been most rewarding,im finding out some great combo's,and realising some older stuff still sounds amazing mixed up in amongst the newer stuff...of course,i knew this i guess,but it's not until you actually play them that you realise...
4) Drawing...drawing...hmm,made a start on the first commission piece,a guy at work's little girl,aged 5 or so i think.Never attempted a child's portrait properly (there was a reasonable bash just before Christmas mind) and she's got a cheeky smile in the photo that i may struggle with,but at the moment,so far so good.There's no deadline,but i may try to finish it over this holiday...although,i can see this being a struggle...for 2 reasons...
5) Reason one...the current model im painting with regards to the Golden Demon's in September...at first,thought it was too ambitious and 'what the hell am i actually doing??' crept into my mind,and i genuinely thought this would be yet another model confined to the 'will get finished eventually' table/pile...but,one afternoon,i thought 'sod it,i'll give it a bash'...bearing in mind the awesome Tracy had sent me some thinners to use for such a project (on white undercoat eeek!) i thought it'd be rude not to carry on.So,i picked up a brush,stuck on an amzing CD,and off i went...i showed a select few the WIP pictures im taking,and comments ranged from 'sexy','Godly' and 'OMG YOU GIT'...all of which i consider good,and means maybe im not so far off the track as i thought! So i continued on,and it's now turned into one of those all consuming things,and quite frankly,im loving working on it now,which i think is possibly most important,as then i'll do a better job,and hopefully wow those judges come September.This is the plan,as im not pretty enough to seduce any of them,and im bang outta Chloroform...
6) Reason 2...Tracy again...aaah the legend that Tracy is...i will explain! Some time ago we were discussing models we liked the look of to paint up,and i mentioned that i had my eye on a load from a company called Reaper,a US based miniature company,in particular,the rather tasty female sculpts by ace German sculptor Werner Klocke.As it happens,Tracy knows the Reaper bunch very well,and said she'd sort me out a few off my list...turns out,she got me all of them!! Some 30 odd!! I was so amazed by this,pretty overwhelmed in fact.Im obviously paying for them,but the whole 'pay back as and when you can' thing is awesome,and i can't thank her enough for the trouble she went to,and the trust she has showed in me...Not only did she sort me out some beautiful models to paint,but also a decent varnish for the competition entries,AND some pre-made 'dollies',which are ace! For the uninitiated,'dollies' are the wire armatures that miniatures start out as,which is used to build the figure up around using the modeling putty.Having these very basic human anatomies will be excellent for my trying to learn more advanced sculpting techniques,and hopefully some sweet one off models by moi! Very exciting,as i may know some people (that i met at my parents anniversary party) that may be able to cast me some up,so who knows,my own miniature line anyone?!?! Who knows...
Once again,Tracy,thankyou so much,from me and 'Padawan' Chris!
7) On the 29th and 30th of May,i will heading off to Milton Keynes (Satan's layby!! For the Bailey fans!) for a huge convention thing called 'Collectamania'...I've never heard of this,but this is the 9th one apparently! Anything collectable,it will be there,so i can see this being extrememly expensive for the impulse buyer that i am...Also,random 'celebs' will be there,woo...lucky me...i can meet 'Josh' from 'Lost' if i really really want to...lol.Anyway,im meeting up with a guy called Chris (another one!) down there,met him here on the 'Net,and this will be a first time meeting,but i don't see any problems,a weekend of toys,beer and painting sounds damned good to me! Speaking of 'Mainia's'....
8) Wrestlemania 22 was amazing!! The 3rd i've ever watched,and so perhaps easy for it to be my favourite ever,but still,them people put on one hell of a show,and was well woth my staying up and the £14.95! And most of my predictions were right too,which was amusing lol.I wont go into it all,but my favourite 3 matches were
III) At number 3,Kane and Big Show beating Carlito and Chris Masters,this was the first match of the night,but classic Tag Team match.The young'uns tried,but got outwitted by the giants,and Kane chokeslammed Carlito to hell for the win.Sad i know,but i smiled all the way through this one,job's a good 'un.
II) Number 2,Shawn Michaels absolutely whooping the Chairman Vince McMahon! This one turned nasty quick,Vince trying everything that a chairman of multimillion dollar company can,but to no avail,told ya Michaels would win lol. Classic image of this match,Vince,metal dustbin over his head,lying on a table,Shawn leaping off a good 20 foot ladder with an elbow...i was like "Oh..My...goodness..." !! Crazy stuff,but,at Number ONE;
I) Edge and Mick Foley...wow...what a match!! Hardcore rules,meaning weapons allowed,no DQ...and with Foley's history,you knew it was going to be nasty.And it was! Edge really stepped up in this one,im not a fan of his,but i got a lot of respect for the way he went into this,and took everything Foley threw at him,and vice versa,Mick has been out of the game a while,but pulled out some amazing stuff.Funnily enough,this was a prediction i got wrong,Edge won this,but after the finishing sequence they went through,hats off to the pair of them...the bloody nutters that they are!!
You may be thinking "But Ben,you're such a Undertaker fan,im surprised this didn't win it for you!" and well,true,im AM a huge fan of the guy,but..his match weren't the best there that night,being honest.It had some great moments,like the "Air Deadman" moment of him leaping the top rope,clearing the casket and still hitting Mark Henry on the outside,and the fact he won the match meaning he's now 14 wins at Wrestlemaina to zero losses,which is incredible...But it wasn't the best of the evening,just my view!
Honourable mentions to the participants of the 6 man ladder match and Trish and Mickey in the Women's Championship match too,both on my 'good' list also.
I think this is me all updated for now,can't think of anything else at the moment...maybe something else during the holiday!
Have a good one peeps.
Love,Peace and Grease
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