Quick news flash! As of yesterday evening, author Pat McDermott now has a fully functional blog, which I suggest you read. Pat is the author of "A Band of Roses", and the upcoming "Fiery Roses", two action/adventure stories set in an alternate world in which Brian Boru survived the Battle of Clontarf and propagated the rule of Irish monarchy to the present day. Good stuff.

Her book can now be purchased as an e-book through Red Rose Publishing. It's very obvious after reading a single page that her novel is the result of a lot of hard work and research. The sequel, "Fiery Roses," is coming soon!

Labels: blogging, books, illustratology, work

Posted by Shag at 12:54 PM

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March of this year has definitely followed the old adage thus far, not only in terms of weather, but also the general climate of life and work.

Kicking the month off with a bit of turbulence was an excellent trip back up to Rainbow Ridge for a pleasant weekend with some old friends. A new addition to the group this time around was Jack, the 16-month-old son of Brian and Amy. (More on this trip in a future post...)

On the heels of that, there has been getting back to reality and back to work, to finish up the website that I have been working with Matt Harkins on since the end of January. Final changes were completed on Sunday, and the maiden voyage from my hard drive, through the tubes, and out into the Internets was completed Monday night. Here's the finished site if you'd like to check it out. This guy does some pretty fabulous work. Of course, I'm hoping he feels the same about me... ha ha.

Next on the agenda is finalizing the blog architecture and template for author Pat McDermott. She has just completed a publishing deal with a new publisher to redistribute her first novel as an e-book, and the second installment is ready to launch. She asked me to help her get into the world of blogging, and remarked that it seemed a little odd for so many people to write about stuff and expect everyone else to actually care. I agree, for the most part. I blog for my own enjoyment, I honestly don't care all that much who reads this or why. However, in Pat's case, I think it would be roughly the equivalent of a veteran actor doing standup comedy gigs on the weekends to stay on his toes.

In any case, I will certainly make the announcement when her blog is complete, because I am sure she will have a lot of interesting things to share and talk about, her numerous travels not being the least of them. The work on my end is about 95% completed, we have a meeting scheduled this weekend to finalize it and run through her preferences, tweaks on fonts, colors, etc. You can see a preview of the work-in-progress here.

Point is, after a hectic start to March, I think I'm over the hump, at least for the moment. I have a few odds and ends to attend to, and the recent frenzy at my 9 to 5 gig has died down considerably. It's nice to be busy once in a while, but with the lovely weather of Spring just around the corner, it's also nice to be able to relax and enjoy doing nothing, which is what I do best.

Labels: blogging, books, Popov Society, websites, work

Posted by Shag at 9:23 AM

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I am something of a grammar and spelling Nazi, and find myself ashamed beyond words when it's discovered that I've accidentally butchered the English language in some way. For the rest of you Nazis out there, have you ever seen a sign in a store, park, marquee, etc. that had unnecessary quotation marks around it? I have, far too often.

Looks like someone of like mind has created an entire blog dedicated to the discovered use of unnecessary quotation marks. After my difficulties with Jiffy Lube a couple of years ago, (yes Jiffy Lube, you suck shit and everybody knows it), one entry in particular caught my eye: A quick-lube place proclaiming, in gigantic plastic letters, to be The World's "Best" 10 Minute Oil Change. Killer.

Anyway, check it out, and think carefully about the unintentionally implied falsehoods contained in each example. They'll make you laugh.

Sorry for the whole Jiffy Lube tangent. I'm still pretty pissed about that whole mess.

Labels: blogging, humor, stupidity, websites

Posted by Shag at 8:50 PM

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Due to some incredibly frustrating coding problems with my blog template, I have opted to temporarily roll with one of the icky pre-fab Blogger templates (chosen more or less at random) to avoid potential glitches until I can figure out what the hell I'm doing.

Apologies, the Illustratology-style format will be back as soon as I can manage a rewrite.

Labels: blogging, illustratology

Posted by Shag at 10:29 AM

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Wow. Haven't blogged since last Spring, but I'm hoping to get back into the swing of things. I have spent a significant amount of time since March/April reorganizing my entire life, from finances to bookshelves to digital photos. I also found a box of old sketchbooks, which was a weird trip down memory lane. I'll post a few pages when I get around to scanning them in. In the meantime, enjoy this photo of me, approximately age 4, dressed as Superman for what I believe was my first "official" Halloween outing, back in Braintree.

At any rate, recent events, travels, opportunities, projects, and relationships have inspired me to get back into the habit of blogging on the regular. After a mind-boggingly frustrating series of edits and modifications to my homemade blog template (I refuse to use any of the pre-packaged stuff that Blogger provides...ewww), I think I'm ready to begin. All I need now is the spare time, which lately has been a most precious commodity, but I feel it is necessary to make the commitment.

So-- Check back for more soon, my friends.

Labels: blogging, fear, photos, sketches, time

Posted by Shag at 8:52 PM

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After some constructive criticism, a too-long hiatus from blogging, and an in-progress effort to organize my life and career somewhat, I wanted to announce some forthcoming changes to the site.

Effective immediately, or as soon as I get to it, the Blog will most likely be split into two separate blogs, and all unnecessary posts removed temporarily, until I can find a new home for them. Due to the lack of any apparent relevance between my social and political rantings and my graphic design/illustration efforts, I have decided to rein in this portion of the Blog to act as a self-serving promotional tool. Keep an eye out for posts including sketchbook pages and journal entries, info on projects in progress, and announcements of new clients, completed work, and general scuttlebutt about life in general.

Other changes to the site will be somewhat more subtle, but my aim is to increase the fluidity and navigability of the site overall, clean up outdated links and remove old and unimpressive projects, and make the experience of visiting Illustratology more interesting for any who dare to enter.

Thanks! Check back soon, changes will be ongoing for the next couple of weeks.

Labels: blogging, illustratology

Posted by Shag at 9:15 PM

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I'll warn you right off the bat--there's really no point to this post. I have just been thinking about bacon a lot lately, due to some pretty hilarious bacon-oriented events and discoveries in the last few months.

Anyone who knows me as more than a casual acquaintance knows that one of my primary functions as a living being is to CONSUME BACON, and I'm really good at it. Yes, I realize it's probably not the best habit in the world. Add cigarettes and coffee to the equation, subtract exercise, and I'm basically enjoying the ride on the high-speed train to Death City. However, unlike smoking, I have successfully (and sadly) curbed my bacon consumption to a mere shadow of what it once was.

During my last two years of college, it was well known to roommates and close friends that I would spend the majority of every Saturday and Sunday morning frying me up anywhere from a half-pound to a pound of delicious bacon and a big pot of coffee, and spend two or three hours eating bacon, watching cartoons on TV, drinking coffee, and smoking cigarettes. Man... what a way to enjoy a day off. It was the perfect combination of childhood and adulthood: Complete disregard for my adult-ish responsibilities, my health, and any motivation to be productive, coupled with the adults-only pleasantries of coffee, smokes, and the ability to cook something hot and greasy without ending up in a Shriner's Hospital packed in ice.

Later, as my employment with University Food Services progressed from a simple lunchlady position up the dining-hall food chain to Student Supervisor, I realized that although I rarely used the employment benefit of free dining hall meals, it was an ideal way to score tons of free bacon. I stopped buying it at the grocery store, and made the mile-or-so walk from Euclid Avenue to Sadler Dining Center on the weekends, and took full advantage of the facility's all-you-can-eat policy, walking to the cafeteria table with a nice big plate piled high with greasy, delicious bacon. Mmmm....

Nowadays, bacon does not take quite as high of a priority for me, although I still love it as much as ever. I find that the stomach cramps I get from eating a pound of bacon in one sitting tend to outweigh the sensory pleasures of bacon's oily, crunchy deliciousness.

Imagine that you had a magic carpet. There's no denying that however often you use it, it's pretty damn awesome. But let's say riding on the magic carpet gives you motion sickness. Would you stop using it forever? No way dude, because it's a fucking magic carpet. So, in keeping with that analogy, however lame, I will sadly report that my bacon-eating has been reduced to an occasional luxury rather than a dietary staple.

When I saw an ingenious skit about bacon on my once-favorite show, The State, I felt like I may have been the only person on this Earth to completely relate to the feelings of a man (Ben Garant, probably better known for his role on "Reno 911!", and as director of the new flick "Balls of Fury") who adores bacon enough to make a dress out of it and tell it (bacon) his troubles when he feels mopey. I was also insanely jealous for not having been the first one to write a song singing the praises of bacon.

Take a look, and tell me this isn't some hardcore bacon-love:

In other bacon-related news:

Bacon-themed gifts from friends and family have become something of a tradition in my life. My good friends Lura and Dan bought me some Gummi Bacon for Christmas last year. I kind of doubt I'll ever eat it, it just seems a little too weird. But it is proudly displayed on my kitchen wall as a sort of trophy attesting to my love of fried strips of pig fat. My sister and her boyfriend have followed suit, giving me the magical gift of a Bacon Wallet for my birthday last month. I carry it proudly, and although it is a mere vinyl synthesis of what an actual bacon-crafted wallet would look like, it somehow manages to coat my credit cards and money with some sort of sticky film, almost as if it were emulating the effects of the real thing. I even received Christmas gifts thoughtfully wrapped with presumably expensive and hard-to-find bacon wrapping paper last year. You'd be surprised how many bacon-themed gifts, gags, and novelties there are out there. I, on the other hand, would not. I know I'm not the only baconophile out there.

As for the real catalyst which prompted me to blog an utterly insane tribute to my favorite foodstuff-- it all happened during a drive up to New Hampshire for a cigarette run two nights ago. After attempting a shortcut back to Massachusetts and getting lost, I eventually found my way back to Route 101 in Bedford. By this time, my bladder was screaming in agony due to the 2 huge cups of coffee that had accompanied me on my travels. I pulled into a gas station and asked if I could use their restroom.

While washing my hands and then cursing God after finding only a hot-air dryer to dry them with, I noticed what may well be the funniest thing I have ever seen. It looked something like this:

Sigh... if only there was a way to make this a reality instead of a cruel joke. While bacon may be less than useful when drying one's hands, the benefits of some sort of bacon-dispensing machine in every public restroom would transform America into my own personal paradise.

In any case, a quick Google search the next day revealed that this was hardly an isolated incident. In fact, the whole "Push Button -- Receive Bacon" gag had, unbeknownst to me, become something of an internet and pop culture meme, as evidenced by my search results.

Once again, I was kicking myself for not being the person who thought of this. So whoever you are out there, you have won my admiration and respect for being a comic genius on the topic of the most delicious of fried pork products. Thank you from the bottom of my cholesterol-polluted heart.

Labels: blogging, food, smoking

Posted by Shag at 11:47 AM

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Coming in February 2007 (or sooner)!

Yes, I am becoming one of those "blog people". If you'd like to know what the blog is going to be about (eww.. I hate the word "blog"... I wish it was called something else. It sounds like some kind of gross combination of "blood" and "egg") I really don't know quite yet.

This blog is mostly inspired by sheer laziness, please note the irony of that statement, since the actual mechanics of putting the blogging tags into my own web format were a living hell that drove me to the brink of insanity. I just decided months ago that I wanted an extremely simple and fast way to post any random thoughts, ideas, or news that I had onto my site without having to go through the whole hassle of republishing a page every time.

Anyway, hope you enjoy it when it actually begins to accumulate some substance.

-Rick

Labels: blogging, illustratology, technology

Posted by Shag at 8:18 AM

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