2025, y'all

Ha. Ha ha ha. Man, that 2020 post was something, eh? It is really good that things have chang... er, cha... uh... oh. OH. Nope, things did not improve. Well, maybe for a brief spell, but then they went sideways again. And here we are in spring 2025.

So I wanted to post about a couple of things. The first one being that comment about social media (corporate social media) being one of those not-so-good things in 2020. That has only gotten worse. The site I used to, dare I say, adore has gone hellish into racism and conspiracy and garbage. It won't even get a mention here. YouTube is pushing the algorithm harder, if my feed is any indication. My subscriptions seem to be less of a priority than ads and shorts (man, they want you to watch shorts). But there is a bright spot and its name is Mastodon. Which is not new, it just has started to finally catch on with people who have also realized they are sick of the algorithm and it works and it feels good. Yay, Mastodon. Yay, ActivityPub. Yay, federated content. You can find me here: @tweak@ohai.social and also on BookWyrm (like GoodReads, but algorithm-free and open source and federated).

The second thing is that after many decades of life, I've been diagnosed as ADHD. Shocking? No, not really, I mean, my kids have it, so it did seem like it had to come from somewhere. But eye-opening, would be a good take on it. F*CK. How much time of my life has been spent fighting against my natural inclinations? It explains so many things. The thrill of new projects, the struggle to sometimes finish or start things, the lack of experiencing time, the fierce independence. Turns out I'm just a hunter in a farmer's world. Not sure where that takes me next, but it would explain why I feel energized and alive on a film set -- so many things to notice and keep track of! But, man, the things I've learned (self-induced in some cases, society-induced in others) in tempering and managing myself to fit in and be 'normal' are voluminous.

link: 07:21 PM | On This Day: 2006 2003 2002

Halloween '20
After receiving 6-8 inches of snow last week, it warmed up today and will be in the mid 60s next week. Ok. Wee Wilker 2 got the idea to request a new costume for the season and how could I resist the creative challenge? Could we (ie: me) create a costume based on a video game character with stuff we had around the house and in just a few days? Yes, just barely. The character is from the video game of the same name: Hollow Knight (does the main character have another name?). Using some EVA foam (ie: floor mats) and contact cement and hot glue and paint and caulk and mesh and plasti-dip and paint... just barely got it done but the kid was super thrilled to have it done just in time. Lessons were learned - although I'm still confused about how some cosplayers use a dremel-type tool to "sand" down their EVA smooth when mine just made it a different kind of undesirable texture. Maybe I'm using the wrong grit of sanding disks? link: 09:00 PM | On This Day: 2003 2002

2020, y'all

ok, who knows if this software that runs this blog even works any longer after eleven or so years away from it (thanks for making blogs blasé, big social media), but I got the urge to log in and see what would happen if I tried to make a post. it took some random tinkering around to make it work since the server software had certainly been updated a couple times since 2009 and I was surprised to see that some of the site was updated (apparently some of the back-end must link out to external servers).
I felt the urge to suddenly blog again because, well, it's 2020 and if you know anything about 2020 you know that it got decidedly eff-ed up this year. we've been in quarantine for almost eight months now with no firm end in sight due to COVID-19. we don't have a good national plan in place, I've been largely unemployed during this stretch, and its just exhausting dealing with it all (and all the people who do not take it seriously - since when did doctors and scientists become lower-regarded than cartoon witches?). I'm not sure what I'm going to be posting on here, probably just more random notes from life, like I used to do. we'll see. but it just felt like an itch I needed to scratch again. and really, blogs should come back in style. social media needs re-evaluated as its replacement.

link: 09:31 PM | On This Day: 2002

Feature Film Shoot

So I've been a little busy... no doubt that is one phrase bloggers everywhere overuse but hey, it is true because I just finished my first feature film shoot! The project, Triumph67, has been in the works for many many months and finally I was selected as the Director of Photography (cinematographer (camera guy)) and we commenced shooting the film on July 17, 2009!

I got involved with the project based on the phenomenal script -- I loved it immediately upon reading. It was a three-week shoot at various locations around the Twin Cities area and the local cast and crew were amazingly talented and dedicated. Now that we have it in the can (or, on the drives, rather), we will start the rough cut editing process and see how well we really did through this mostly first-time feature filmmaking process.

Local filmmaking Rule #1: Never shoot a feature film in South Minneapolis. The airplane noise is inundating!

link: 09:54 AM | On This Day: 2003

As an Alternative to Wine, Think Cider

Jason Wilson at the Washington Post urges you to consider cider instead of a wine or beer and I'm all for it. Cider is quite nice and I highly recommend it. I'll have to see if I can find some of his recommended "fancy" ciders as around here I've only got the choices of Strongbow, Woodchuck, Hornsby, Ace and Woodpecker. Make yourself a note to stay away from Crispin with ice — it's crap. Leave out the ice.

(Via washingtonpost.com.)

link: 11:55 AM

Netflix Watch Instantly for Mac Report
Netflix just allowed Mac users to finally join in the "Watch Instantly" fun with a beta release of their player for Safari and Firefox. I instantly jumped on the chance to check it out. Although I was dismayed that it utilizes Microsoft's Silverlight (I just try to use as little MS software as possible), the reality of the beta is that it works darn near seamlessly and very well. I watched a full length movie last night through our Mac Mini entertainment center (through a projector) and I'd say the quality is better than Hulu's movies and, of course, has no interruptions or advertisements. I even did this test using the wireless home network, so I expect that with gigabit ethernet the quality would improve. I enjoyed the experience completely and look forward to more on-demand entertainment from Netflix besides the DVD rentals we've already been enjoying for years. Bravo, Netflix! link: 10:21 AM | On This Day: 2001

Affordable Luxuries: Viewville Prints
I just saw the October issue of MSP magazine and their cover story is "Frugal Chic" and inside they have some great examples of affordable artwork to decorate your home. Sadly, Viewville wasn't included in the article as it would have been a perfect fit. We're new to the whole PR game and we're working hard at it (with two people out in NYC and two here to assist) but we missed out on this one. Hopefully next time! In the meantime, we'd love to hear your favorite frugal finds from the fine art photo collection at Viewville! link: 04:14 PM | On This Day: 2001

"Skating" at Bryant-Lake Bowl
The long-running Cinema Lounge monthly event at the Bryant-Lake Bowl is screening my award-winning short film "Skating The Pacific to Europe" on Wednesday night, June 18th. 7:00pm is when the movies start rolling and this is a free event. Come on down and check out the documentary about an amazing local speed skater. link: 08:30 PM

Obama rally in St. Paul

Obama rally in St. Paul, June '08
Originally uploaded by moonpost

I got a call yesterday afternoon to videotape the Barack Obama nomination rally in St. Paul and I eagerly accepted. I got downtown about 6:30pm and the line, oh the line! it went on forever down every street, around every corner, masses of cheerful happy people. I was very glad I had a press pass waiting for me so I could go right in! I was supposed to be up on the press risers, but by the time I got there it was full so I had floor access, which was just fine. I recorded the event and conducted several interviews and had a very cool (and historic, I suppose) experience. It would not have been possible without some help from Victor and Jesse, though. Thanks, guys.

link: 11:06 PM | On This Day: 2002

Viewville.com is beta launched!
Just a quick note to say that I have been working for the past many months on a new site/business concept and we finally got into soft-launch this week: Viewville.com is your destination for fine art photo prints! Take a look and test it out and send some feedback if so desired. The site is live so feel free to make a purchase if you see something you love. Much more to come in the next few days/weeks as we ramp up to full capacity... So, here's to the second business in the first two years of quitting my corporate job! What's next? link: 06:59 PM