Lucha VaVoom Card Deck COMPLETE!

I did it!  It's actually done!  All 52 cards done as well as two Crazy Chicken jokers.  This deck looks great and I can't wait to see what it's like when it comes back from the publisher.
I'll admit that there was a huge gap between the start of this project and the conclusion.  I completed about 80% of the cards within a month, but the remaining face cards just took forever to get the motivation back.  This was a problem because some of the techniques that I used for the illustrations were complex and by the time I'd returned to this project I'd forgotten the exact steps.  This was critical to get right because a complete deck needs to have a united look between cards.  It didn't take me that long to replicate some of the effects, but it was touch and go there for awhile.
The hardest cards were the jokers, because those were almost completely freehand.  Even though I'm going for a slick 'poster' style for the face cards, I wanted the characters to be instantly recognizable to anyone who has seen a VaVoom match in person.

Nailed it.

The cards have been uploaded to the Game Crafter and I'm just waiting around by the mailbox for the delivery.  I'll post pix when they arrive.

South Pacific Meets the High Desert

This year I appeared in the VVC projection of South Pacific!  Suddenly I've got a few plays under my belt so when I say that this projection was the most elaborate, I'm speaking with a bit of experience.  The sets were massive and beautiful, the costumes were authentic and visual spectacles on their own, and the music was exceptional.  This was a play which featured live music.  I've done Music Man and Pirates which both features a full orchestra in the pit and many of the musicians were appearing again for this performance.  They really went all out to give the audience a treat and performed perfectly.  I still am amazed with how well they can play when they are in such cramped quarters.
Kirstie had the lead for a show and without question it was the best performance of the run.  She is extremely talented and not only nailed all the musical numbers (which I knew she could do) but was the best actress on stage by far.  I'll say it right now, she brought me to tears.  That isn't easy to do, especially with this play.
The story is dated and doesn't hold up that well.  It really doesn't.  There is a train of thought which dictates that stories which are considered classics are above scrutiny.  I can understand where this mentality comes from but when performing the play it's impossible not to read it with a critical eye.  The actor is tasked with developing and portraying characters and so it falls to reason that they will read the scrip to find out what drives their characters.  What is the character's core?  In the case of South Pacific, the core of many characters isn't that deep.
They are happy to be together, working quietly and docily, dying when ordered and otherwise not thinking too much.  This keeps the story skipping along, but doesn't provide many hooks for empathy, at least for anyone with discernment.  Kirstie somehow manages to infuse her character with emotional weight that she carried the story past some tedious points, and did it with ease and grace.  It was awesome!

Hopeful in the City of Hope

  Yes, it does sort of take me down a peg when I see that my last entry was from last year.  But one thing I've found from doing this online journal is that everything should be looked at from a long term perspective.  Months between entries is a drag, but at the same time the blog does have updates.   And that alone makes it worth while.
  Right now I'm at the City of Hope.  Not for me, thankfully, but for a friend.  A couple I know are unable to do much driving and long trips like the one encountered between Victorville and City of Hope are out of the question.  But because of a medical condition (cancer, yuck), my friend requires weekly trips down the pass to be checked out.  I'm more than happy to do this because I personally like driving and he's a heck of a guy in his own right.  There is something about driving that I find soothing and trips at night or early morning are very relaxing experiences for me.  So this is a match that is working out well.  I get to mess around in the medical library while he gets poked and prodded.  I think that everyone would agree that I'm getting the better end of this deal.
As far as art projects are concerned, I'm cranking through the Lucha deck.  I still have about two suits of face cards to complete before I send the artwork to the publishers.  This project worked out well and although it did take longer than I'd expected it was still something that I'm proud of.  I'm looking for two types of models.  Beefcake for the Kings and Jacks, acrobatic gymnasts for Queens and Aces.   What I didn't anticipate was that Lucha VaVoom rotates their roster quickly and so there are some new faces that I can draw from.  This also means that in all likelihood there are going to be cards I create which feature people no longer on the wrestling circuit.  This made me concerned at first, but I think it is going to be alright.
  Some Lucha wrestlers are more iconic than tied to an individual.  No matter who the actual wrestler under the title "Dr. Maldad" is, everyone will recognize "Dr. Maldad".  The women are another story.  Most of the dancers and performers who are women will appear under their own name, which means that some cards will have women who are long gone from the show.  However if I know guys, and at this point I think I have a solid grasp on the subject, they won't care.  A card depicting a cute woman will be popular no matter if the subject is currently on the venue.

Quick Year End Update

Well, where to begin?  Lots of good things happening here but nothing that comes to a quick and tidy conclusion, which makes documenting them a messy chore.  I love to type into the blog to give a sense of permanence to fleeting events and thoughts but when they are ongoing affiairs they don't lend themselves to the format without a little work. 
First off, we had a house catch fire in the neighborhood.  This is the house which is behind the house I'm living in and it went up around midnight.  I was in bed reading a very good book and heard what I took to be the sound of plastic garbage can lids being slammed.  Since this is a good neighborhood with some sketchy elements I didn't think anything of the sound.  I figured it was someone going up and down the street getting cans before they could be recycled.  True, they were going about the activity in a more obnixious way than usual, but still it wasn't enough to insite my interest.  Still, the sound went on for about 10 minutes and I could tell there was something bad going on.  It turns out the bangs were the sounds of the neighbor's windows being blown out by the heat from the fire.
Now of course there isn't enough information to make sure one way or the other what started the fire.  No one was hurt, thankfully, and everyone got out of the house safely including the family dog.  The house is still standing right now, but blackened on one side and looking miserable in the winter chill.  I don't blame it in the slightest.
In a few days I'll be going to Ontario for the Episcopal Church convention, and I'll be going as a vendor. I've got the Squaresoft register device adapted to the phone so I'll be able to take sales for the game St. Benedict RULEZ!  Yes, I'm being realistic about the chances of sales.  I doubt we will make enough to retire on, but it would be nice if we could fill the coffers of the Benedictine Study group a bit.  They have gone out of their way to make sure I have everything I need to design and create the game, and it would be wonderful if we could make some sales to justify their faith in the project.
Caiaphas Cain is a wonderful series of books to get into, the Lucha VaVoom cards are still an ongoing project, getting an online-only bank account set up and Scrat is still 90% feral despite having spent 90% of her life indoors with people.  And now the roundup of events is complete!