Grasping at straws for inspiration, I reached back to the last time I was really active as an artist: my junior year of high school. I started a comic then that I abandoned because of my inability to draw anything of real substance or value, and I decided on Sunday that I would pick it up again, starting fresh with a new spin on an old idea.
It's more crap about hell, but that's where my mind goes most days so that's what I know best. It's not a furry-based comic, but I'll be posting it here ANYWAY because I AM A REBEL AND I DON'T NEED YOUR APPROVAL THOUGH I TEND TO SEEK IT AT EVERY AVAILABLE OPPORTUNITY ANYWAY BECAUSE MY EXISTENCE IS ONLY MADE VALID THROUGH THE ATTENTION AND LOVE OF OTHERS.
So yeah. Kurt Transem starring in "Descent." Coming soon, to an FA page near you.

I am now a waffle.

I keep seeing examples of busty robots (which makes little enough sense) and it always makes me think
How the hell do you fuck a piece of hardware?
I mean, apart from being either ice cold or molten hot, hard enough to break your dick, sharp enough to cut your dick off, and the painful and often fatal electrocution I guess it's kinda hot, but just what the fuck?

The world is NOT made of muffins.

That is all

I've actually been quite busy with sketches and crap, as well as churning out two or three comic pages a day, so my time has been spent, if not particularly well, at least on something that satisfies me.
Sadly, I can only upload on the weekends, when I may or may not be able to use Ash's scanner.
Still, one sketchdump a week is better than not updating for 6 months, right?


Right?

I've been a spriter for a few years now, off and on, mostly edits, but regardless.
I've been doing sprite comics about as long as I've been doing sprites. I'll admit, a vast majority of it has been gods-awful. But I think I've hit a reasonable balance lately.

http://tsf.sonicstrike.net/comix/nca
New Challenger Approaches is the most recent of all my attempts, and easily the best work I've done, for what that's worth.
It started as a filler comic, and ironically lasted longer than the comics it was meant to be filler for. If you care, everything is spelled out in the about and cast pages.

I just found out today that the computers here at the ASU library have Adobe Photoshop CS4. It's not the familiar CS3Extended I know and love from my own compy, but it's photoshop, and it should allow me to do some digital work. I've been dying to render some sprites for some time now, and it looks like i may finally have my opportunity.
I'll be making sprites from scratch. I have yet to decide on my 256 color palette.

It is not a person, it is a cat, why does it act like a person?
Unless..
IT AM MANCATS FROM THE PLANET MANCATTIA HERE TO ENSLAVE US ALL.

Now staying at the Hospitality House (a homeless shelter in Boone)
I'd like to say this isn't so bad. But, there's more to it. Ashley's mother wanted me out. Migraines or something, I dunno. Ashley tried coming with me, we got everything we absolutely needed, and left for the shelter.
They let me stay, but not Ash. We had called several times to make sure there was room, and there was: we were supposed to be sharing a bunk bed with the room to ourselves. But, because Ashley still had somewhere else she could go (her mother's apartment) they wouldn't let her stay. Which sent her into an emotional breakdown.
I've been suffering from these breakdowns since then, and even before we checked in (Ash's mother left a message on my phone saying that Ash was going to lose her job because of me, which set the whole tidal wave of bullshit in motion) and I can't handle it alone. To top it all off, New River, who I had been told could help me find a place to stay, informed me that because I had insurance, and not Medicaid, that they couldn't help me in that regard, which means either I need to find somewhere else that can, or I'm just plain fucked.
I'm so tired of the drama. I'm fed up with all this bullshit, I really am.

I made it safely to Boone from Anderson. I won't lie, it was frustrating, and I suffered more than one nervous breakdown in transit (I thought for about 2 and a half hours that I had missed the shuttle to Indie and wouldn't be able to make it at all) but it went relatively smoothly despite it all. 12 hours between bus and terminal, and an hour long cab ride, and I arrived in Boone, where, oddly enough, it was cooler than it was in Anderson, roughly 200 miles farther North. Suppose it's because Boone is a mountain town.
Boone is a developing area, and on top of that a college town. It's relatively small, but there's opportunity here. I have an appointment with Vocational Rehabilitation services on the 11th, too, and hopefully they'll be able to help me find employment like they did for Ash.
Oh yes, Ashley. I'll be honest, she wasn't quite what I had expected, but I don't honestly know what I was expecting really. I knew she was a he, that doesn't bother me in the least. And so long as an emotional connection can be maintained, I don't honestly care what she looks like. Something I learned through building internet relationships: it's not the physical part that really matters, though it is necessary to be able to feel your loved one next to you.
We slept together last night. Not sex, we simply shared a bed. It was nice, feeling her warmth beside me, hearing her breathing as I lay in the dark. Insomnia or not, it was pleasant. It was different.
I think things will be quite different from now on. And, for better or worse, I welcome that.

Oh, what a beautiful morning! Oh what a beautiful daaaaaaaay! I've got a beautiful feeling, everything's going my way!

Well hello there neighbor. It's good to see you again. I'M MOVING, BITCH!
After a week of negotiations, the Anderson Township Trustees' office has come through and scored me a ticket on a Greyhound bus out of this city. I leave Anderson at 5 this evening, and the bus leaves Indianapolis at 8 tonight. I'll arrive in Johnson City, TN at 8 tomorrow morning, at which point, I'll catch a shuttle to Boone, NC, where I'll be moving in with  Tyler_the_Kitsune
She's been extremely supportive over the last few months, and I'm more than a little excited to be going to see her.
Truth of the matter is, I believe I'm in love. :3c

It's that time again: when I get to ask the OH SO MANY PEOPLE that pay attention to me to give me shit to draw.
Long story short, my inspiration/motivation have returned and I've been sketching more in the last few days. I'm looking to improve myself as an artist, so I figure what better way than by doing something beyond my comfort zone? I've always had issues with drawing other people's characters; hell I have a hard enough time drawing my own on-model. However, one cannot improve without effort, and practice makes perfect.
It's time to take my own advice and PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE.
I figure if I can even get 10 requests, that should keep me busy for a good stretch of time, and should provide the practice I so desperately need. I only ask that a reference (preferably an image, but a good textual description will do) be provided for any character you wish for me to draw.

I WANT TO WATCH MYSELF.
WHY IS THERE A +WATCH BUTTON IF I CAN'T WATCH MYSELF?

*is slapped for the Futurama reference*
AHEM
I think things may FINALLY be looking up *knocks on wood*
I went by the Trustees' office today after lunch (knocking off from the Christian Center's slave labor a good three hours early xD) and asked if there was any way they could help me make it out of state. "Ask and thou shall receive" I believe is the term, yes? Three or so days the city should be able to get me a bus ticket to Johnsonville, TN, from which I'll take a cab to Boone, NC where my good friend Ashley has graciously offered me refuge.
I intend to spend the rest of this week filling out applications online for things like McDonalds and Burger King, so that once I get there I don't have to start from absolute zero. I'm also going to look into whatever scholarships, grants, loans, whatever that I may be eligible for so that i can go back to school and try to make something of my life. I'm thinking Architectural major this time around..

I also wish to mention that I MAY have found an artist for Meridus. At the very least, she was willing to negotiate. I've worked out outlines for roughly 20 arcs, and more is being written, so I believe I should have enough to keep it going for a reasonably long run. I merely hope that things work out with this artist *crosses fingers and hopes beyond hope*

*heaves one heavily*
I've returned to the Christian Center.
My plan was to leave Anderson last weekend, but..
I simply couldn't afford a bus ticket.

Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful to have a roof over my head and a bed to sleep in while I iron out the details of what I'm going to do, but I'm so sick and tired of having Jesus for breakfast every day. I accept that different people have different faiths, but for fuck's sake, this shit gets crammed down my throat every five minutes! Get it through your skull: I'm not Christian, I will never be Christian, shut the fuck up and let me live my life. God forbid anybody knows I'm not fucking straight, I'll be strung up by the neck in my sleep.

Right now all I can do is a) beg anybody and everybody I know here in town for money and/or a ride or b) pick up every spot job I can while at the Christian Center so I can scrape together enough to get out of state.

In the meantime, I'm trying to be more "social" here on our magical interwebs during my downtime, drawing and writing a bit more, generally trying to keep up with my own inspiration and frequently failing to do so.
Also, tomorrow is my 'yote's birthday, unless I'm retarded and saved the wrong date into my calendar, so.. Well, here's hoping I hear SOMETHING from him. Wish I could afford to buy him a commission, but I have priorities right now.

Pardon me for the things I'm about to say, but frankly, I'm pissed off and I don't give a rat's ass.
On April 5th, I set up an account at Star Financial bank. I deposited $1785 directly into my savings the same day, which happens to be the insurance money from when my car got hit back in February. A week later, I deposited an additional $200 that my family had sent me on my birthday, and I transferred over $500 from my bank account with Magnolia Federal Credit Union to my checking account. I have never touched this fucking money since.
I went by Star today to pull some money so I could FINALLY get my gods damn computer fixed, and lo and behold, there's less than ten dollars between savings and checking remaining. The bank claims that my money was taken out via debit card over an ATM. I never received a debit card, never requested one, and have, in fact, never used an ATM before in my life. Which means that some asshole got a hold of my information and requested a card, then used it to completely clean me out.
I've absolutely fucking had it, people. The more of this damned life I experience, the more I come to hate everything around me. This year has been literally nothing but one low blow after another, leaving my goddamn ballsack black and blue and bleeding in the fucking street. I have no money, no family (that's willing to offer any help whatsoever) no home, no job, I haven't heard from the only other human being in the fucking world that I give a sh!t about in over 3 months, my car is fskd, and I am literally one step away from giving in to these constant homicidal urges and bathing this entire sh!thole of a city in its own blood.

This project has been going on for over a year. Meridus has been conceptualized, visualized, scripted (for the most part) and planned out to a reasonable point, still ongoing, and yet I have hit one major snag.
I cannot draw.
Let me rephrase that. I can't draw CONSISTANTLY. I lack the ability to consistantly portray a character, let alone in profile, action, or interacting with other characters. I've been practicing for gods only know how long, but my efforts are bearing little to no fruit.
And so, I seek an artist who is willing to work for little to no money, promising only the chance to bring a little fuzzy alien's dreams to life. I realize how selfish this sounds, but I honestly haven't the means to commission anyone for anything. I'm still not sure where I'm going to SLEEP in a week. But this, this is my baby, this is the thing that keeps me sane. If I don't pour my frustrations into literature, into SOMEthing productive, I won't survive.
I'm literally begging, I need someone to help me with this project.


...I'll be your bestest friend?

Putting all the ones I've managed to retrieve into my scraps, because I don't want to lose them a second time, and I suppose it may be helpful to give some idea what makes my characters.
A LOT OF THOUGHT.

Sooooo so so so sosososososo bad right now. I've actually been SKETCHING SHIT FOR ONCE, since I can't write to save my life without a computer.
Suffice it to say, I just want my computer; nay, my LIFE back. CURSE YOU INDIANA.

No. This has NOTHING AT ALL to do with Portal. Shut up. Shut up and HEY LISTEN!

Two months ago began a shitstorm that is only just now subsiding, but I honestly doubt that it will be over for a good long time.
To begin with, I lost my job. That in itself was difficult, but it came during a period where I was ALREADY facing imminent eviction. Not long after, my boyfriend, the man who quite literally changed my life, brought me hope through a year of suffering, dumped me, began dating someone else, and came out of the closet to his mother all on the same day. Not a week later, I was kicked out of my home, and this man for whom I harbored so much love told me that he hated me, and that he never wanted to hear from me again.
Don, if you're reading this FUCK YOU. You refused to talk to me, to even let me know something was wrong, no matter how many times I asked you. You will never find happiness, because you refuse to open yourself to anyone, to communicate with them and work through problems together. Burn in hell, you fucking prick.
Anyway.. The very next day (Valentine's day, or, as a friend of mine so cleverly phrased it "Singles Awareness Day") I set out for Ohio, because I know absolutely NOBODY in Jackson who is willing or able to help me, so I had to drive 933 miles to find somebody who WAS.
Sadly, he lives in BUTT-FUCKING NOWHERE, so there was no place for me to stay, no jobs to be had, and I had to leave without even seeing him. Which hurts, because after driving all that way and sleeping in my car in 20 degrees, I really needed somebody to cuddle up with. I ended up sleeping in my car AGAIN, and heading out in the morning for Indiana.
For several weeks, I stayed at a mission in Anderson, before I found someone who was willing to let me stay with them. There are no jobs in this city, but at least I have a place to live. Things are leveling out a little bit, and I've finally got my laptop working, and I can finally start "working" again, and hopefully I can find someone willing to publish my crap and maybe even pay me.
Anyway, I just wanted to let anyone interested know that I'm still here, still trudging my way through it. Peace out, you furfags.

As some of you may know, I'm 20, about to turn 21, I live with my father, and I've failed out of college twice in the last three years.
My father has, in the past year, cut off my internet and begun charging me 200 dollars a month to live in the house I grew up in.
Two months AFTER my father started syphoning off every cent I ever saved, I finally got a job. Working 16 hours and earning 300 dollars a month. That leaves me with enough to NOT STARVE, because my father doesn't feed me.
Now, come January 2010, I'm a hair's width from turning 21, and my father's imposing yet more sh!t on me. Starting today I'm taking several online classes, and my father is paying the WHOPPING SUM of 600 dollars for the semester. If I don't maintain a C Average or above, he'll cut me off completely, kicking me out into the street and essentially ignoring the fact that I even exist for the rest of my undoubtedly short life. On top of this, I have to be working 20 hours minimum, or he'll kick me out and cut me off. As I mentioned, I work 16 hours a week. I've ASKED for more hours, but they don't NEED me working more. Which means I HAVE to find a second job, or I'm homeless. All this time, he's STILL draining me for everything I make, so I can't even save up to move out.
To top all of it off, in April, when I turn 21, he's giving me the boot REGARDLESS of what I'm doing.
This is as much a vent of frustration as it is a cry for help. I literally cannot survive on the street, ESPECIALLY not the streets of Jackson. I have a friend who's willing to put me up after he gets his own place, but the earliest this could happen is in August, and I sincerely doubt I'll last that long. Please, if you're reading this and you have some extra space, I'm desperate and I'm running out of time.

Fornication with underage hitch-hikers wandering across the wind-torn plains of Savanna, Georgia waving a massive flag proclaiming that gays are human.
I hate every last one of you, DIE IN A FIRE YOU COCK-SNIFFING FURRIES I AM NOT LIKE YOU I AM TOTALLY STRAIGHT
*searches for more pictures of dicks*

I have returned. To bo precise, I returned one week ago today, and I have fallen straight back into my evil lazy ways. HOORAY.
I'm working now, as I mentioned. My neighbor runs a sleep lab. I had a sleep study done in said lab last year. I was called in for a follow-up visit in October, and I just sat down and talked to the doc, and he was kind enough to give me a job. I'm an office assistant, working enough hours to keep me busy, and making enough money to support my current lifestyle. It's not much, but it's enough.

It's been so fucking long, my eyes are bleeding with emotion.
I GOT A JOB!
But as of yet, I have not been reconnected to the network. I hope to be within the next month, but I can make no promises as it is entirely up to my father.
I'm just happy to be working, and finally pulling in a damn paycheck.
I WILL CATCH YOU FAGGOTS LATER, I REALLY HOPE TO BOTHER YOU SOON

I know this place! It's where the people with the things... shit, I don't know.

So my laptop got a virus. Actually, it got 9 viruses, because my antivirus subscription ran out 4 years ago and I didn't bother to renew it because I have a new computer and never use my laptop. Except now my PC's IP has been banned from the network, so only my laptop can connect. Shit pickle, I calls it.
But there is good news! The father of a friend of mine has agreed to take a look at it, and hopefully I can have my lappy back within the week.


In other news, I met a semi-famous fur who happens to live within 15 miles of me (but I can't, for the life of me remember her screen-name, because I'm an idiot) and it felt FUCKING GREAT to finally have some contact with furries again.