Wedding favors and case mods

by Matt | Jul 14, 2003 | Imported Entry

I’ve spent most of today in front of the computer. It was my job today to look up ideas for wedding favors for November. I found a few interesting things (cd cases, nifty wine glasses, etc) and a few cool things I’m thinking about getting for my groomsmen. I’ll probably get something a little different for everyone since I’m sure Chip wouldn’t like a cigar case that I would get for Nagle and Jason wouldn’t like a techy-screwdriver-pocketknife geek toy that I would get for Chris. You can all rest assured that you’ll all get some cool little trinket.

During my web surfing I of course made my way around to my daily reads in order to catch up. While reading HardOCP I noticed perhaps the coolest case mod I’ve ever seem. Here is a link to the forum thread. He updated the post daily to show everyone his progress so the 20+ pages are worth a read for the pictures if nothing else. Here is the finished project (about half way down).

This got me interested in the project I was talking to chip about before I left. I was dreaming up a really cool WWII inspired case. I’d like it army-green with bullet holes instead of a case window, red LEDs and bomber/pinup-girl nose art on the side. Following a link or two I came across this guy who specializes in cartoons of that variety. They’re pretty cool. What’s cooler is the gallery section of his website… which in turn inspired me to do something with Docholoday.com… which I will do as soon as I have my computer back.

So, now I’m inspired with two new projects… which I won’t really have time to do with a new job and without an apartment to work on them in… but I’ll keep the ideas on the back burner until September or so. Anyway, just thought I’d share.

Later.

Texas… damn its hot.

by Matt | Jul 14, 2003 | Imported Entry

Well, there’s been a little bit of everything going on. After getting the job officially last week I’ve had a few days to sort of adjust and prepare and figure out what the basic plan is for the next few months. I think I already mentioned that I’d be coming back up in August but now I actually have vague dates. I start work tomorrow, work all week up until next Monday when Paul (the photographer) and I leave for the Miss Texas pageant. We’ll be shooting the pageant the 21st-29th and then returning. I work the rest of that week and the next weekend I’ll get my first opportunity (and commission) to shoot on my own. There’s a body building competition on Saturday that I’ll probably get to shoot. I wonder who will be more retarded, the texan pageant girls or the oily muscle guys? I have even money on both. The following weekend, the 7th through the 11th-ish I’m going to try and come home. At least, that’s the plan. Ladd Photo is giving me time to go get my things per our agreement and Lauren is going to ask for a few days off to come up with me. So… mark you calendars and clear some space. I’m going to want to see as many people as I can in that short time. I also possibly need someone to drive back with me (I’ll have both the car and a uhaul). If you’d like to volunteer let me know.

There’s also a long list of things that need to get done before then as well. I need to open a TX bank account, get a TX cell phone plan and number, find a temporary storage place for my stuff until we find an apartment, which is also on the list. Also, in terms of wedding planning, we have to pick out our invitations, Lauren has to pick the flowers and I have to pick a tux style and make sure you guys get measured. You’ll all be picking up your tuxes here so don’t worry about getting them where you are, you’ll just need to go to some place local and get measured, they do it for free and it should only take a minute or two. Write down the numbers they give you and send’em to me so I can put in a big order here. If we all get them at the same place it’s usually cheaper.

That’s about it in terms of plans, but you’re probably curious as to what I’ve been doing the past week or so. We’ll, I’ve been all over the place. I went to get some shorts the other day so that I’d have more than my one pair to wear to work (it’s very casual). We’ve been out to eat a few times, we’ve gone to visit Lauren’s grandparents, we went to a family-friend’s wedding and I met more of the family there and last night we went to see Pirates of the Caribbean. For a Disney flick, it wasn’t half bad. Perhaps it was because we got there late and had to sit in the front row and I couldn’t see things properly that I enjoyed it. I’d have to see it again from a normal seating arrangement to tell you if it was truly enjoyable but from what I could see it wasn’t half bad. There were pirates, and sword fights and all that good stuff. It certainly wasn’t Shakespeare but it was a “fun” movie. The kind of action movie that I wanted both T3 and Hulk to be. They were disappointing, this was not. Like I said, it could have just been because I practically couldn’t see the screen. I’ll let you know when the DVD comes out.

Speaking of movies, Lauren’s brother Chris works at the local multiplex and is able, at quite a frequent level, to get uncut 35mm trailer footage from whatever movie he feels like. Apparently they have to splice in the trailers at the beginning of each movies and then cut them out when the movie is done it’s run. And because you could see a trailer in front of more then one movie, they have a lot of copies of these sitting around. He already snagged me authentic 35mm trailers for both 28 Days Later and Kill Bill. He promises more. I assume that these are rare things for the public to have and that eventually they’re just destroyed by the theaters or movie companies. I plan on holding on to a few. Who knows, they could have eBay potential someday.

That’s pretty much it. I have a ton of stuff to do and plan over the next few weeks and a road trip in the middle. I’ll let everyone know about the tuxes when I pick one and I’ll probably need the permanent addresses of a few of you (since you’ve moved or changed rooms in O-House) to send invitations to in the coming months. I’ll let you know how the job goes once I get started. It should be interesting if nothing else. And a good opportunity.

And, sorry as always for the lack of daily updates, this will unfortunately continue until we have an apartment and I get my computer down here.

Matt out.

On the Road

by Matt | Jul 6, 2003 | Imported Entry

And so, my journey begins…

“So, in America, when the sun goes down and I sit on the old broken-down river pier watching the long skies over New Hampshire and sense all that raw land that rolls in one unbelievable huge bulge over to the west coast, and all that road going, all the people dreaming in the immensity of it, and in Iowa I know how the children must be crying in the land where they let children cry, and tonight the sparkler dims on the prairie, which is just before the coming of complete night that blesses the earth, darkens all rivers, cups the peaks and folds the final shore in, and nobody, nobody knows what’s going to happen to anybody besides the forlorn rags of growing old…”

Jack Kerouac – “On the Road”