... oftime are still impudent.

In last week's post, I announced that I would be simocasting my blog on both this page and my face book account. But who would guess that Disney wouldn't support Universal's programs??? Go figure!!! Further set backs ... Problems with our dulcimer web site has put me on a deadline to reaacess the account before they change the operating system. So now instead of just trying to learn Flash, I am trying to learn Dreamweaver as well. Yoko bought me a book aka the missing mannuel ... Oh My! The book is like 5 inches thick and is it ... thorough. It is a lot to absorb. But the good news is that my week produced a web page and my very first flash progam. They are not perfect. But I learned a great deal. The next will be better. I remember I always use to drive my Mother crazy ... I would finish a drawing and she would look at it with such pride. I, on the other hand would say, "There was just one thing wrong." and then proceed to pronounce a list of about 5 things. I always wanted to do better. Still do. Want to hear my list? :)

Okay, So I 've gone over to the darkside. As mentioned in last week's post I've opened a face book page. So I'm going to try and sinc it with this my myspace blog.

First off ... Thank you Ernie, greatist of computer gurus. He illiminated all of my computer issues so that my software issues are so last week. I've got the beast up and rolling and am working on my very first  "L.E. Font" cartoons. I've done some before ... mostly on marker board at work. And suprizingly I've had a few of the old guys ask me if I ever did anything with him. One problem was that the jokes always were single frame format, but the dialogue was a bit rambley even for my standards. This new format will allow me to fix that and take advange of the flexability of the web. Voice overs and limited animation is going to make this quite a bit interesting ... at least for me.

I have started my sound track and have done my title cards. I had a montage that I was working on and discovered it was 5 times as long as I thought. This required quite a few more pictures ... like 5 times. So thats wat I accomplished today. And yesterday I did my final rough drawing. Think I will work ..ing the sound track and then move on from there.

Recieved a  request that would of been simple enough. But as mentioned in the last post, I made a little extra work for myself. I got a program and an idea to use the it to make a film. I have about half the animation done and hope to have it done by next week. Yestereday I was working on the song for the film and playing around.  Really like the direction it is taking. Still these two projects have pushed back my deadlines and I haven't even started the LE Font video cartoon.

Plus I have an opertunity to get the Flash program. I had tried Flash before. A bit quirkey and at that time a bit limited for my needs. The new version is EXACTLY what  I need. It would solve alot of problems. It would require some experimenting and has a definate learning curve. More wabbish to push things back.  Oh well ! Nose to the grindstone.  

Okay not even close ... I did some cartoon work for Dan Landrum of Dulcimer Player's News. He has been nice enough to give me an introduction to the readers. He asked for a short bio (about 50 words) and a picture. I sent Yoko's choice (me in my hat suit and dulcimer in front of a picture of Johnny Lee Hooker)  a shot of me at Sun Studios. ( a candid shot) But I made things a little interesting by drawing myself and taking a shot of it with pen in hand  and my drawing tablet. Sent him that and the actual picture. Will be interested in which he chooses. It's sort of funny because I've been working on a parody of Cover. Well I won't be on the cover but I will be somewhere in the pages. And that will make me proud.

Okay, here I go again. I've been down this road before ... full of dreams and plans ... that somehow always seem to fizzle out. But finally things a seemingly coming together. Ideas are flowing. I have the technology to do what I need. I keep hoping I can follow through this time.

I do admit to the problem of having WAY too many irons in the fire. Hell, I may have too many fires. My lovely wife has suggested I prioritize. Smart woman.

So here goes. Small bites. I have 3 months for my next contribution for the DPN. So the next thing on the plate is the logo for Coyote Pups.

I got this job from not reading close enough. There was a request for an artist on ED, for doing a logo for $100. Cheap but I could of used the $100. The only thing is that it was a $100 in "products" ... Soaps air sprays and such ... things that are pretty much worthless to me. But a promise is a promise. The task was to do a logo with a coyote pup that would promote their baby product line. I found a real good image of a pup to base my drawing on and did my first drawing on my new Wacom tablet. I was pretty prould of what I did. I increased the eyes of the dog to make him cuter. Apparently not enough.

They didn't  think he was cute enough. The problem is trying to keep the coyote integrity and cute factor balenced. will increase the eyes one more time and add a tongue. I have done a sketch at work of a simple line drawing that is cute, reads baby but doesn't screem coyote. I have another that is half way in between. Those will fill my obligation.

I hope to get the drawings inked and colored for the 1st LE Font cartoon this weekend. I promise to report on my progress.

Man, Oh Man! This was a shocker and I wish I didn't have this to report:

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Kurt A. Simerman
KURT A. SIMERMAN, 45, of Leo, died Wednes day, Nov. 7, 2007, at home. He was a member of Messiah Lutheran Church, Fort Wayne. He was a Luthier and Ordained Minister for the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. He was known and respected world wide for his art and expertise in creating what many knew as Simerman Dulcimers. "The world so desperately needs, yet does not deserve, such a kind and gentle soul to walk among us." He is survived by his wife, Anne of Leo; children, Logan and Lauren Simerman, both at home; mother and stepfather, Suzanne and Joe Ireland of Auburn; father and companion, Keith Simerman and Martha Connell of Columbia City; brother, Steven Simerman of Phoenix, Ariz.; sister and partner, Kelly Simerman and Darlene Sabo of Columbus, Ohio; grandmother, Leota Hubbard of Fort Wayne; sister-in-law, Kathy (Stephen) Adair of Fort Wayne; mother-in-law, Katherine "Betty" Jordan of Fort Wayne. Memorial service is 4 p.m. Sunday at Messiah Lutheran Church, 7211 Stellhorn Road, Fort Wayne, where calling will be one hour prior. Calling also from 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday at E. Harper & Son Funeral Home, 740 Indiana Hwy 930 E., New Haven. Preferred memorials to Trinity Lutheran Seminary for Scholarships.

Kurt was a talented man who left behind a legacy of music. His dulcimers were not only beautiful to look at but had a voice unique to him. He was a innovator in design, adding a hand rest that is perfect for finger picking.

The first dulcimer I ever brought into this house was the one I ordered from Kurt. He was a pleasure to do business with, a real gentleman. I remember getting a call from Yoko the night it had arrived at he house. They actually let me off work to go over and pick it up. I can close my eyes and see the two of us opening the box and sitting on the orange couch gazing at this thing of beauty. It is the first dulcimer I ever seranaded my future wife with. It made me sound better than I was. It let me say to her, "I love you," in another way.

Thank you Kurt for the beauty you made and making this world a better place.You were taken from us far too soon.

 God rest your soul.

I have been working on a project for a while. I got slowed down by the computer crash. It is a video version of a comic strip. The idea is to be dulcimer themed entertainment. I plan to host it on Youtube. and call it "Dulci-toons." Been writing ideas in my journal and working out a few things in my head. So I took the first step, by taking a cartoon I did about 7 years ago. Retooled it. and added a soundtrack. It worked pretty well. It was alot of work. Yoko says I make my life more complicted than it needs to be. She says I must like it that way. What can I say ... she's always right! :)

The end product. Bedtime Story.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9vWUo5oaOA

Hope to do some more projects soon. I have experianced some problems with the Black Mountain Rag video. Am working on a video of Wildwood Flower. Got 3 free lance jobs. And of course I would like to get my Dulci-toons up and running by the new year.

Went looking on Ben Seymore's Kudzu Patch Dulcimer site and found this on the ordering page:

Note:  If you are ordering a Kudzu Patch instrument...

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Ben Seymour makes his instruments carefully by hand, with attention to the beauty and integrity of the structure and the resulting excellence of the instrument's sound, and he takes great pride in the quality and value of his creations.  Ben does not employ others to assist him in a factory setting; his instruments are made one at a time by his own hand.  In addition, he takes care of the house and the cooking while his wife works full-time as a librarian.  In today's fast food world, many of us are conditioned to expect "quick service;" however, Ben's work cannot be "hurried up" by full payment or other means.  Patience is a small trade-off for the acquisition of a top-notch, beautifully handmade Kudzu Patch instrument.  Please be aware that an order placed now can be expected to be filled in six to nine months.   Thank you for your patience!

Okay ... so I bought a Galax dulcimer from Ben a couple of months ago. And for the record, I am quite happy with Ben and the dulcimer he made me. It is a ton of fun and I am hoping to use it on a project this weekend.

When I placed my order with Ben, he gave me a time line. It put it real close to Memorial Day ... the time of the Boy and Geezer project. I had hoped to play the song "Oh Suzzana" with the Boy on the Galax.(as mentioned in a previous post.) This deadline was missed ... no problem ... I understand in was a close timeline. ... Delivery was reset and was again missed due to personal problems ... I understand personal problems. It happens.

I hoped I hadn't been too anoying by e-mailing Ben about my dulcimer. But for the record ... while the house has had a better record than my old apartment there have been a few concerns.I just imagined some one swiping my package and after opening it saying, "What the *^% is this thing??!!" I did pay the full amount upfront because that's what I do. I want to make sure there is no problem with my funds ... which as a bellman can be a bit fluid at times. So I did this ... not to try and rush the completion of my dulcimer but to make sure payments were made and I didn't have to rob Peter to pay Paul and come up short.

If I was a bother ... and I guess I was ... I apologize Ben. Thank you for a great dulcimer