Tiki Ti with my brother Allan 7/28/11

Went to Tiki Ti with my brother on my birthday and got a drink on the house. Exceptionally rare for that place, which is a tiki institution. Photos below are by Jim (of the Tiki Ti drink "Jim's Special" fame)

This also marks the first time I went to Tiki Ti where I got something that wasn't on the menu. Since the night I met my wife Jesse, we both had "Adios Motherf--ers", I decided that would be a good drink to get for my 40th. From what I understood, an "Adios Motherf--er" is the same thing as an "Electric Lemonade". Not so says the Tiki Ti bartender brothers Mike and Mark!

Apparently an Electric Lemonade is Sweet and Sour, Vodka and Blue Curacao, while an Adios Motherf--er is actually vodka, gin, rum, and Blue Curacao. Nice to know the difference!

Mike made me the Tiki Ti Adios Motherf--er, which was different from the online recipies in that it didn't add Sprite or 7-Up to the mix. A very strong drink!

Ground Control Karaoke Book 3D Lenticular Cover #11

Here's the final image in a series of eleven 3D karaoke song-book covers I've made for Ground Control Karaoke.

There is no Secret List at Ground Control, but if there were, this would be the cover.

If you want to see a Flash simulation of what this would look like as a 3D lenticular, CLICK HERE

Today...

I'm now approximately 1,262,309,509 seconds old... 21,038,491 minutes old... 350,641 hours old... 14,610 days old... 2087 weeks old... 480 months old... 40 years old.

Ground Control Karaoke Book 3D Lenticular Cover #10

Here's the tenth in a series of eleven 3D karaoke song-book covers I've made for Ground Control Karaoke.

At Ground Control, when you don't know what you want to sing, you can write "Crap Shoot" on the song ticket and the staff will choose the song for you. In honor of this tradition, this lenticular has my pal Michael Coleman, a fixture at GC, contemplating which artist he will have to sing for his Crapshoot. His choices here include GG Allin, Miley Cyrus, Ice Cube, Thom Yorke, Weird Al, Stevie Nicks, Rick Astley, MC Hammer, Beyonce, Siouxsie Sioux, Motley Crue and Morrissey.

The style of this piece is modeled after the "Choose Your Own Adventure" books.

If you want to see a Flash simulation of what this would look like as a 3D lenticular, CLICK HERE

Ground Control Karaoke Book 3D Lenticular Cover #9

Here's the ninth in a series of eleven 3D karaoke song-book covers I've made for Ground Control Karaoke.

This one features the heads of a few of the Ground Control regulars composing the 11 heads of a Tibetan Buddhist deity. The deity's 6 hands hold a beer, a martini, a computer mouse, a cell phone,a microphone and a lunchbox with cat stickers on it.

If you want to see a Flash simulation of what this would look like as a 3D lenticular, CLICK HERE.

Ground Control Karaoke Book 3D Lenticular Cover #8

Here's the eighth in a series of eleven 3D karaoke song-book covers I've made for Ground Control Karaoke.

This one features a fake Ground Control cereal box design. Can you spot all the hidden phallic symbols in this image? The astronaut guy was obtained from Big Stock Photos and was used very briefly as the club's mascot.

If you want to see a Flash simulation of what this would look like as a 3D lenticular, CLICK HERE.

Ground Control Karaoke Book 3D Lenticular Cover #7

Here's the seventh in a series of eleven 3D karaoke song-book covers I've made for Ground Control Karaoke.

This one features a bunch of mash-up images I've appropriated from around the web. Credits include "Harry Stardust" by Evan Ferstenfeld and Enkel Dika, "Unknown Mickey" from Disney Couture, "Milhaus" by Patt Whelan, "Captain Jack Scissorhands" by Jeff Clark, "Beatles Tron" by GarO, "Muppet X-Men" by Rahzzah, "Alfred E. Neuman Misfits" by Love Is Lame, "Dexter Dexter" by Loldwell, "Vampirella Rio" by Cliff Chiang, "Dr. Who Peanuts" by Laughing Squid, "Goofy Galactus" by Adam Koford, and "Amazon" from Amalgam Comics. I don't remember where I found the Dude video game character.

If you want to see a Flash simulation of what this would look like as a 3D lenticular, CLICK HERE.

Thoughts

As I approach 40, I feel lucky and happy at what I've accomplished in my life, and also sad and disappointed at what I have not.

Ground Control Karaoke Book 3D Lenticular Cover #6

Here's the sixth in a series of eleven 3D karaoke song-book covers I've made for Ground Control Karaoke.

This one features my friend Jay Tando as a karaoke superspy.

If you want to see a Flash simulation of what this would look like as a 3D lenticular, CLICK HERE.

Ground Control Karaoke Book 3D Lenticular Cover #5

Here's the fifth in a series of eleven 3D karaoke song-book covers I've made for Ground Control Karaoke.

This one has the Ground Control astronaut flanked by 2 cartoon gothy girls amalgamated from some familiar animated characters.

If you want to see a Flash simulation of what this would look like as a 3D lenticular, CLICK HERE.

Ground Control Karaoke Book 3D Lenticular Cover #4

Here's the fourth in a series of eleven 3D karaoke song-book covers I've made for Ground Control Karaoke.

This one features a number of Ground Control regulars (including Dan "Now Man" Niswander) in a tribute to the comic cover for Marvel's Avengers #16.

If you want to see a Flash simulation of what this would look like as a 3D lenticular, CLICK HERE.

 

And here's the original cover to the comic book so you can compare the two:

Thoughts

Floating is rarely unpleasant.

Ground Control Karaoke Book 3D Lenticular Cover #3

Here's the third in a series of eleven 3D karaoke song-book covers I've made for Ground Control Karaoke.

This is a drawing of a karaoke club full of animated characters including Triana Orpheus and her friend Kim (from The Venture Bros), Cthulhu (from The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy), Dream and Death (from The Sandman), Dr. Strange and Clea (from Marvel), Gothbot, Davey Jones (from Pirates of The Caribbean 2), and Marvin The Robot (from Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy) all in front of posters of John Coltrane, Billie Holiday and "Hello Cthulhu".

If you want to see a Flash simulation of what this would look like as a 3D lenticular, CLICK HERE.

Ground Control Karaoke Book 3D Lenticular Cover #2

Here's the second in a series of eleven 3D karaoke song-book covers I've made for Ground Control Karaoke.

This parody of the classic Star Wars poster was made using some Photoshopped heads of a few Ground Control regulars. No idea why I put myself on Chewbacca.

If you want to see a Flash simulation of what this would look like as a 3D lenticular, CLICK HERE.

10 years ago today...

...my father Sidney Hallis passed away.

Rest in peace, Dad.

Ground Control Karaoke Book 3D Lenticular Cover #1

Many folks know that I've been a fixture at Ground Control Karaoke every Monday since it began back in 2004. This year I'm making 11 unique 3D lenticular covers for the club's karaoke books and will present the designs right here on this blog over the next few days.

First up is a homage to the Atari 2600 Basic Programming cartridge cover. I think an Atari 2600 karaoke game would be pretty lame, but the box art would kick ass.

If you want to see a Flash simulation of what this would look like as a 3D lenticular, CLICK HERE.

Marvel Universe 2011 Clear Doctor Strange figure

How long will it take me to find the full color version of this toy? Stay tuned!

Angry Birds Three Star Victory!

On March 18 in this blog, I was bemoaning the fact that I had to get a new phone and start Angry Birds over from scratch when I had almost completed the game. Almost 4 months later, I have done it. Three stars on every level!

Thoughts

Nothing for today.

Thoughts

If people could kill other people telepathically, everyone would be dead.

Thoughts

Back in the 20th century, I really thought music would be better by 2011. Maybe I've just gotten too old to appreciate the new stuff, but a part of me really feels like the vast majority of what you hear is inferior to the stuff that came out when I was growing up.

AND YOU KIDS BETTER GET OFF MY FRIKKIN LAWN!

Thoughts

The Meaning of Life =  To exist as a self aware individual form of consciousness in a particular circumstance of genetics and environment for as long as you can while experiencing a wide range of emotions and sensations that build a specifically unique frame of reference over the course of a lifetime.

Thoughts

My name spelled backwards sounds like "Silly Drawer".

Thoughts

Homonyms always intrigued me. Especially the words pray and prey and meet and meat.

Thoughts

There will be more. Much more.

Thoughts

There are so many more places I would go if cheap, reliable teleportation was made available.

Audiobook Review: The Hunger Games Trilogy

The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins is the American version of Battle Royale. What makes it utterly original is the fact that the series is written in the voice of the heroine, Katniss Everdeen. She's not a helpless victim of circumstance like Bella Swan. Her bravery and resourcefulness is more akin to a Hermione Granger, or better yet to Lyra Silvertongue from the His Dark Materials trilogy. She insists at every point in the books to be an active participant in her own fate. This specific trait makes her one of the strongest and most interesting women in recent fiction. She has her love triangle, of course, which appeals to the Twihards, but she never apologizes for it. Never relies on her men to make her whole or sees one as more worthy than the other. She is able to recognize both of their strengths and weaknesses, as well as her own. Katniss is unapologetically indecisive, and both her love interests are noble characters that reluctantly accept her for it. The gore and death traps mix well with descriptions of media prep teams, stylists, and costume changes, making the books appealing to both the boys who like the comic book violence and to the girls who will see themselves relating to the lethal (yet beautiful) protagonist. It's brilliant commentary on the media and celebrity merged with unflinching brutality that makes us contemplate the hypocrisy of war and politics. The first two books end on cliffhangers, so you can't help but make your way through the entire trilogy at a rapid rate. The only critique I have is in the last book, "Mockingjay". It features one uncharacteristic vote made by Katniss toward the end of the story that I could never see her making. Nevertheless, this is not a deal breaker, since it doesn't end up becoming a plot point that sticks. (If you want specifics on this one point of contention (with major SPOILERS), read the first comment to this post below.) Overall, the books are well worth reading or listening to and are on their way to becoming classic young adult fiction. Check 'em out before the first movie comes out next year!