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📎🖇 be like clippy 🖇📎
General | Posted 8 months agoRest in Peace, Scott Ruggles
General | Posted 2 years ago
Scott_Ruggels was not only a huge influence on me as a beginning artist, but he was always extremely generous with his time and energy. He was a master at constructive critique and he obviously cared very deeply about helping people develop their skill/ability without destroying their creativity. I'll never forget the time he critiqued a drawing I'd done of my sona at the time, saying she had "shoulders like a linebacker". I wasn't into sports so I had no idea what that meant. 😂 but yeah, even though he could sometimes come across as blunt in his critiques he was always careful to make sure to tell you what you were doing well, and not just how to "fix" that specific drawing but ways to tackle your art as a whole. His tutorials on inking and line weights are also something I remember referring back to frequently. His wolf Lady Asheru with her sword and her leg wraps (they're called PUTTEES!!!!) were such an influence on my character Trinny. Even one of the last things he posted to FA was a beautiful drawing of Asheru.Ruggels was a man who wanted you to succeed, and to excel, and he did his best, with time that he did not owe any of us, to do what he could to make that happen.
He will be severely missed.
Artists - How do you measure success?
General | Posted 2 years agoADHD made this a little disjointed but hopefully still coherent. :D
I see lots of people with reasonable anxiety about the future. Of art, of their income from art, of online community spaces, all the things.
A few times now I've made some simple suggestions on how to manage, move forward, or thrive --
keep making the art that YOU want to make
reach out and support other artists by sharing their art OUTSIDE of the platform you found them on
if they're livestreaming watch for a while, if you're busy just do a drive-by hello!
consider switching or adding payment options other than paypal, for the love of god. square, cashapp, paze, zelle, i don't even know. fuck paypal.
spread information. whether it's alt payments, new sites trying to get off the ground, art tutorials or your own personal tips and techniques.
it's great to have community of fans and clients around us and our socials, but the support of other artists is the only thing that's gonna keep us afloat, as individuals and as a community.
in the world of genAI and other tool-assisted artmaking, being on stream even if only from time to time is a simple way to communicate to the world that you are real, you exist, you make your own art, and you will not be replaced by machines. this applies whether you do commissions as your primary income or as a hobby, or if you just do personal work.
even if you don't stream your work (there's plenty of valid reasons not to!), being in stream chats with other artists can bring back more of a connection that's been missing for a long time around here. I feel like having company at my streams has been good for my emotional health, even on days when i'm kind of checked out from the chat itself. it goes from being a lonely hunched-over-at-my-desk time to a casual hangout with friends and we actively talk to eachother and give immediate feedback and art tips/suggestions and it just feels *good*. it's good for the isolated introvert artist soul, I promise.
i have a modest but sustainable and health income through self-employment as an artist. I have a small but close and reliable community around me of artists, writers, and fans who for the most part get along and are usually entertaining. and on the days when they're not, I am in other small artist discords and i get to hang out with different people in there, too. I have something resembling work-life balance (when life stops being a shit, y'
make art and be among your fellow artists. we are not machines. we are people. we are not content generators or wankoff dispensers. even if everything you make basically is fap material, it's by your own hand and that makes it meaningful. even if nobody wanks to it but you. 😂😂😂
the last 8 or 9 years have been full of turmoil, distress, dehumanization, and people forgetting what the whole point of community is, of what the point of art is. under the stress of fear and anger and broken trust a whole lot of us crawled into our cozy hideouts and waited for the storm to pass.
success! you're still here. we're still here.
time to come outside again. say hello.
I see lots of people with reasonable anxiety about the future. Of art, of their income from art, of online community spaces, all the things.
A few times now I've made some simple suggestions on how to manage, move forward, or thrive --
keep making the art that YOU want to make
reach out and support other artists by sharing their art OUTSIDE of the platform you found them on
if they're livestreaming watch for a while, if you're busy just do a drive-by hello!
consider switching or adding payment options other than paypal, for the love of god. square, cashapp, paze, zelle, i don't even know. fuck paypal.
spread information. whether it's alt payments, new sites trying to get off the ground, art tutorials or your own personal tips and techniques.
it's great to have community of fans and clients around us and our socials, but the support of other artists is the only thing that's gonna keep us afloat, as individuals and as a community.
in the world of genAI and other tool-assisted artmaking, being on stream even if only from time to time is a simple way to communicate to the world that you are real, you exist, you make your own art, and you will not be replaced by machines. this applies whether you do commissions as your primary income or as a hobby, or if you just do personal work.
even if you don't stream your work (there's plenty of valid reasons not to!), being in stream chats with other artists can bring back more of a connection that's been missing for a long time around here. I feel like having company at my streams has been good for my emotional health, even on days when i'm kind of checked out from the chat itself. it goes from being a lonely hunched-over-at-my-desk time to a casual hangout with friends and we actively talk to eachother and give immediate feedback and art tips/suggestions and it just feels *good*. it's good for the isolated introvert artist soul, I promise.
i have a modest but sustainable and health income through self-employment as an artist. I have a small but close and reliable community around me of artists, writers, and fans who for the most part get along and are usually entertaining. and on the days when they're not, I am in other small artist discords and i get to hang out with different people in there, too. I have something resembling work-life balance (when life stops being a shit, y'
make art and be among your fellow artists. we are not machines. we are people. we are not content generators or wankoff dispensers. even if everything you make basically is fap material, it's by your own hand and that makes it meaningful. even if nobody wanks to it but you. 😂😂😂
the last 8 or 9 years have been full of turmoil, distress, dehumanization, and people forgetting what the whole point of community is, of what the point of art is. under the stress of fear and anger and broken trust a whole lot of us crawled into our cozy hideouts and waited for the storm to pass.
success! you're still here. we're still here.
time to come outside again. say hello.
Growth Drive has ended!
General | Posted 2 years agoThank you to everyone who donated or otherwise supported the drive; it went above and beyond my expectations and I appreciate all of you <3
You can see the drive starting with part one here: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/55323945/
thank you for reading, sharing, and just being awesome <3
You can see the drive starting with part one here: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/55323945/
thank you for reading, sharing, and just being awesome <3
The Man, the Boy, and the Donkey
General | Posted 3 years agoA MAN and his son were once going with their Donkey to market. As they were walking along by its side a countryman passed them and said: “You fools, what is a Donkey for but to ride upon?”
So the Man put the Boy on the Donkey and they went on their way. But soon they passed a group of men, one of whom said: “See that lazy youngster, he lets his father walk while he rides.”
So the Man ordered his Boy to get off, and got on himself. But they hadn’t gone far when they passed two women, one of whom said to the other: “Shame on that lazy lout to let his poor little son trudge along.”
Well, the Man didn’t know what to do, but at last he took his Boy up before him on the Donkey. By this time they had come to the town, and the passers-by began to jeer and point at them. The Man stopped and asked what they were scoffing at. The men said: “Aren’t you ashamed of yourself for overloading that poor Donkey of yours—you and your hulking son?”
The Man and Boy got off and tried to think what to do. They thought and they thought, till at last they cut down a pole, tied the Donkey’s feet to it, and raised the pole and the Donkey to their shoulders. They went along amid the laughter of all who met them till they came to Market Bridge, when the Donkey, getting one of his feet loose, kicked out and caused the Boy to drop his end of the pole. In the struggle the Donkey fell over the bridge, and his fore-feet being tied together he was drowned.
“That will teach you,” said an old man who had followed them:
---Æsop. (Sixth century B.C.) Fables. rn The Harvard Classics. 1909–14.
So the Man put the Boy on the Donkey and they went on their way. But soon they passed a group of men, one of whom said: “See that lazy youngster, he lets his father walk while he rides.”
So the Man ordered his Boy to get off, and got on himself. But they hadn’t gone far when they passed two women, one of whom said to the other: “Shame on that lazy lout to let his poor little son trudge along.”
Well, the Man didn’t know what to do, but at last he took his Boy up before him on the Donkey. By this time they had come to the town, and the passers-by began to jeer and point at them. The Man stopped and asked what they were scoffing at. The men said: “Aren’t you ashamed of yourself for overloading that poor Donkey of yours—you and your hulking son?”
The Man and Boy got off and tried to think what to do. They thought and they thought, till at last they cut down a pole, tied the Donkey’s feet to it, and raised the pole and the Donkey to their shoulders. They went along amid the laughter of all who met them till they came to Market Bridge, when the Donkey, getting one of his feet loose, kicked out and caused the Boy to drop his end of the pole. In the struggle the Donkey fell over the bridge, and his fore-feet being tied together he was drowned.
“That will teach you,” said an old man who had followed them:
“PLEASE ALL, AND YOU WILL PLEASE NONE.”
---Æsop. (Sixth century B.C.) Fables. rn The Harvard Classics. 1909–14.
Rest in Peace, Kythra.
General | Posted 3 years agoThe outpouring of love and support I have seen from the community already tells me you were greatly loved and will be deeply missed. By myself, as well.
Say hello to your wife for me, I'm sure she's happy to have you back.
RIP Kythra
Say hello to your wife for me, I'm sure she's happy to have you back.
RIP Kythra
music to dwell on
General | Posted 4 years ago"Fools," said I, "You do not know
Silence like a cancer grows
Hear my words that I might teach you
Take my arms that I might reach you"
But my words, like silent raindrops, fell
And echoed in the wells of silence
And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made
And the sign flashed out its warning
In the words that it was forming
And the sign said, "The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls and tenement halls
And whispered in the sound of silence"
https://youtu.be/nwP3vPQi0nI
--
Holding onto fury is that all we ever know
Ignorance our judge and jury, all we've got to show
From Hollywood to Babylon, holy war to kingdom come
On a trail of dust and ashes when the burning sky is done
A tide of change is coming and that is what you fear
The earthquake is a-coming, but you don't want to hear
You're just too blind to see
Have you seen the writing on the wall?
Have you seen that writing?
Can you see the riders on the storm?
Can you see them riding?
Can you see them riding?
Riding next to you
https://youtu.be/FhBnW7bZHEE
--
And when the brokenhearted people living in the world agree
There will be an answer, let it be
For though they may be parted, there is still a chance that they will see
There will be an answer, let it be
Yeah, there will be an answer, let it be
Whisper words of wisdom, let it be
And when the night is cloudy, there is still a light that shines on me
Shine on 'til tomorrow, let it be
I wake up to the sound of music, Mother Mary comes to me
Speaking words of wisdom, "Let it be"
https://youtu.be/QDYfEBY9NM4
Silence like a cancer grows
Hear my words that I might teach you
Take my arms that I might reach you"
But my words, like silent raindrops, fell
And echoed in the wells of silence
And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made
And the sign flashed out its warning
In the words that it was forming
And the sign said, "The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls and tenement halls
And whispered in the sound of silence"
https://youtu.be/nwP3vPQi0nI
--
Holding onto fury is that all we ever know
Ignorance our judge and jury, all we've got to show
From Hollywood to Babylon, holy war to kingdom come
On a trail of dust and ashes when the burning sky is done
A tide of change is coming and that is what you fear
The earthquake is a-coming, but you don't want to hear
You're just too blind to see
Have you seen the writing on the wall?
Have you seen that writing?
Can you see the riders on the storm?
Can you see them riding?
Can you see them riding?
Riding next to you
https://youtu.be/FhBnW7bZHEE
--
And when the brokenhearted people living in the world agree
There will be an answer, let it be
For though they may be parted, there is still a chance that they will see
There will be an answer, let it be
Yeah, there will be an answer, let it be
Whisper words of wisdom, let it be
And when the night is cloudy, there is still a light that shines on me
Shine on 'til tomorrow, let it be
I wake up to the sound of music, Mother Mary comes to me
Speaking words of wisdom, "Let it be"
https://youtu.be/QDYfEBY9NM4
My Birthday + Where to find me :)
General | Posted 5 years ago"Another year older, another year wiser" feels extra true this year, having survived the previous one. Here's to many more less dramatic and less stressful ones in the future, though 🥂
These days, I don't upload art actively outside of Discord, mostly due to being lazy to be completely honest. My very loosely sorted "to be uploaded" folder has over 700 files in it, give or take some that have alternates that could be left out. I do, however, upload absolutely everything (other than the rare private commission) to my Discord server as I complete them.
Discord link: https://discord.gg/Rm8whayC86
(the discord invites on my profile/journal footer/etc should work as well, this one just points to the correct landing channel)
I also continue to stream regularly on Picarto! https://picarto.tv/Hanazawa usually Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays starting around 3-4pm Arizona time (GMT -7) and running until anywhere from 10pm to midnight, usually. I miss days here and there and do an occasional Tuesday or Saturday if I need to catch up, but the best way to be notified of when I'm streaming or if a stream is canceled for the day is also my Discord server, which has a role option just for stream notifications for anyone who's not interested in the rest of the chat n such otherwise. it's a pretty friendly community though. :)
I think that covers what I wanted to say here. I've been meaning to post the reminder about discord and picarto for a while, so my birthday is as good a reason as any 😅
how've you all been doing?
These days, I don't upload art actively outside of Discord, mostly due to being lazy to be completely honest. My very loosely sorted "to be uploaded" folder has over 700 files in it, give or take some that have alternates that could be left out. I do, however, upload absolutely everything (other than the rare private commission) to my Discord server as I complete them.
Discord link: https://discord.gg/Rm8whayC86
(the discord invites on my profile/journal footer/etc should work as well, this one just points to the correct landing channel)
I also continue to stream regularly on Picarto! https://picarto.tv/Hanazawa usually Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays starting around 3-4pm Arizona time (GMT -7) and running until anywhere from 10pm to midnight, usually. I miss days here and there and do an occasional Tuesday or Saturday if I need to catch up, but the best way to be notified of when I'm streaming or if a stream is canceled for the day is also my Discord server, which has a role option just for stream notifications for anyone who's not interested in the rest of the chat n such otherwise. it's a pretty friendly community though. :)
I think that covers what I wanted to say here. I've been meaning to post the reminder about discord and picarto for a while, so my birthday is as good a reason as any 😅
how've you all been doing?
Prices going up Jan 15th
General | Posted 5 years agoOfficial pricing will be posted later this week, but yeah o/ Discord and Picarto have gotten the heads-up, time to announce here too :V
Average price per tier will only go up about $5 or $10 from what they currently are, pricing for multiple characters is likely to be the area most affected but I haven't finalized the numbers yet so I'll not specify beyond that :V
Average price per tier will only go up about $5 or $10 from what they currently are, pricing for multiple characters is likely to be the area most affected but I haven't finalized the numbers yet so I'll not specify beyond that :V
Learning to Fly
General | Posted 5 years agohttps://youtu.be/4p_f7Df2-oM
always makes me feel calmer & inspired. RIP Tom Petty, hard to believe it's been almost three years now. you left us with so many beautiful things xx
always makes me feel calmer & inspired. RIP Tom Petty, hard to believe it's been almost three years now. you left us with so many beautiful things xx
Updates / Uploads / Keeping Up!
General | Posted 6 years agoAs always, a big thank you to my recent watchers! I haven't been keeping up with my uploads lately, so I'm guessing many of you are finding your way in through my commissioners' uploads these days :)
The most time consuming part of uploading stuff is filling in all the tags and meta stuff for each image - I am finally going against my better judgement/instincts and just saying to hell with it, and just using postybirb to make barebones uploads - I figure it's better to have them up here without tags then to have them not up here at all, right? :)
For anyone who's only following me here on FA, you're missing out! I post everything I draw during streams directly to my Discord as they're completed or at the end of the night. Discord participation is completely free; I don't have a Patreon or anything like that :)
If Discord's not your thing but you still like to catch my streams, you really need to follow my Picarto!
I stream around 2-3 times per week, usually MWF. I stopped posting announcements here because between Picarto itself and Discord, I've been getting good traffic! But of course we'd love to see more of you there, too. So follow up!
I am still open for regular commissions outside of streams (though I may work on them during streams), but the best/fastest way to get art from me is to hit up a Picarto stream. I am able to pre-schedule/pre-fill slots for those who regularly attend streams or hang out on Discord as that gives me a good idea of if/when our schedules will match up :)
But, to reiterate: I AM open for commissions outside of streams! Drop me a note any time. :)
Thank you, and I hope to catch you around!
The most time consuming part of uploading stuff is filling in all the tags and meta stuff for each image - I am finally going against my better judgement/instincts and just saying to hell with it, and just using postybirb to make barebones uploads - I figure it's better to have them up here without tags then to have them not up here at all, right? :)
For anyone who's only following me here on FA, you're missing out! I post everything I draw during streams directly to my Discord as they're completed or at the end of the night. Discord participation is completely free; I don't have a Patreon or anything like that :)
DISCORD LINK: https://discord.gg/6T7KXKVIf Discord's not your thing but you still like to catch my streams, you really need to follow my Picarto!
PICARTO LINK: https://picarto.tv/HanazawaI stream around 2-3 times per week, usually MWF. I stopped posting announcements here because between Picarto itself and Discord, I've been getting good traffic! But of course we'd love to see more of you there, too. So follow up!
I am still open for regular commissions outside of streams (though I may work on them during streams), but the best/fastest way to get art from me is to hit up a Picarto stream. I am able to pre-schedule/pre-fill slots for those who regularly attend streams or hang out on Discord as that gives me a good idea of if/when our schedules will match up :)
But, to reiterate: I AM open for commissions outside of streams! Drop me a note any time. :)
Thank you, and I hope to catch you around!
Thank you to new watchers!
General | Posted 6 years agoI seem to have a little influx in the past week, thank you all 🐺❤
I will be taking some time this week to upload some of the backlog... peace ☮
I will be taking some time this week to upload some of the backlog... peace ☮
Testing Postybirb + Upload Frequency Question for Y'all
General | Posted 7 years agoDecided to try and use PostyBirb to get through my backlog of unposted submissions, starting with this series I did for Skylor a while back. Ten images set to upload 10-15 minutes apart, I'll edit this part of the journal if/when it seems like all was successful. :D EDIT: looks like it all went well :V
QUESTION:
Since I'm not sure even how many pictures I have to clear from my log at this moment (cough cough), I was just wondering about post frequency and what my watchers would prefer as far as upload volume. A handful per day until they're done seems pretty reasonable to me? But if nobody cares if I just dump a whole bunch of submissions all at once, I don't have a problem doing that either. :P PostyBirb's scheduling feature means I only have to sit down and set it up once, so it's no big deal to me either way. I just don't wanna flood/spam anybody's inbox, either :)
Thanks!
QUESTION:
Since I'm not sure even how many pictures I have to clear from my log at this moment (cough cough), I was just wondering about post frequency and what my watchers would prefer as far as upload volume. A handful per day until they're done seems pretty reasonable to me? But if nobody cares if I just dump a whole bunch of submissions all at once, I don't have a problem doing that either. :P PostyBirb's scheduling feature means I only have to sit down and set it up once, so it's no big deal to me either way. I just don't wanna flood/spam anybody's inbox, either :)
Thanks!
my telegram account got eaten.
General | Posted 7 years agocompletely deleted, it looks like!
I much prefer to use discord to keep track of stuff, but I'm putting this up here so anyone who has/had me on telegram knows what's up. I made a new account, but it looks like any previous messages from me are showing up as "deleted user" for folks, so. the more you k n o wwww
I much prefer to use discord to keep track of stuff, but I'm putting this up here so anyone who has/had me on telegram knows what's up. I made a new account, but it looks like any previous messages from me are showing up as "deleted user" for folks, so. the more you k n o wwww
I got stung by a scorpion.
General | Posted 7 years agoI don't recommend it.
I'm doing better now, though, but that was a week I don't want to relive -_-;;
here's the tl;dr i gave discord:
I was standing in my kitchen, felt some stabby stingy pain on my left shoulder, a few minutes later it started itching. Asked hubby to take a look at it and his eyes fell out of his head lol
Mere minutes after the sting(s), i had a red swollen lump the size of a c-cup hanging off my shoulder
I didn't actually see the scorpion, but based on the symptoms and differential/ compared with photos of various other stings and bites, bark scorpion was the most likely candidate.
Poison control ranks four levels of sting reaction, I'd rate mine on a 2. With 3 and 4 you have severe anaphylaxis and nerve reaction. In my case i just had some tingling and numbness in a few places, including my face and tongue (briefly), but i think that had more to do with the swelling pressing against a shoulder or neck nerve than a result of the envenomation.
The lump has continued to shrink every day, is about an a cup now. Rip backtitty lol
Arizona bark scorpions are the only scorp in north America known to have problematic effects on humans. Makes it easier to figure out what it was lol
now, back to the grind...
I'm doing better now, though, but that was a week I don't want to relive -_-;;
here's the tl;dr i gave discord:
I was standing in my kitchen, felt some stabby stingy pain on my left shoulder, a few minutes later it started itching. Asked hubby to take a look at it and his eyes fell out of his head lol
Mere minutes after the sting(s), i had a red swollen lump the size of a c-cup hanging off my shoulder
I didn't actually see the scorpion, but based on the symptoms and differential/ compared with photos of various other stings and bites, bark scorpion was the most likely candidate.
Poison control ranks four levels of sting reaction, I'd rate mine on a 2. With 3 and 4 you have severe anaphylaxis and nerve reaction. In my case i just had some tingling and numbness in a few places, including my face and tongue (briefly), but i think that had more to do with the swelling pressing against a shoulder or neck nerve than a result of the envenomation.
The lump has continued to shrink every day, is about an a cup now. Rip backtitty lol
Arizona bark scorpions are the only scorp in north America known to have problematic effects on humans. Makes it easier to figure out what it was lol
now, back to the grind...
~ Status Update ~
General | Posted 7 years agoHi folks! I'm alive!
If you are on my discord you know I've been kind of scarce lately there too, but I have been checking in <3
I think this summer boils down to a bad case of the seasonal affectives, as I'm beginning to slowly crawl out of the pit I dug myself into as the weather becomes more amenable to.... living in.
My goal is to get back into twice-weekly streams. Not sure on specific days, yet, but I'm thinking something like alternating or rotating weeks of M/W and M/F or W/Sat might work. this would keep me busy and focused without overloading while trying to accommodate the different schedules I was lining up with on the MWF schedule. not really seeking input; just a heads-up :)
As far as outstanding/owed commissions; I'll be working on those and have them done by the end of September. I may have a night or two of streams with the explicit purpose in mind of clearing up the queue. I appreciate everyone's patience on that, even if it's only a handful of you. I love you all. <3
that's... basically it. summer weather kicked my ass, and now it's cooling off and I feel more like myself again. I hope everyone reading this is doing well; feel free to chat me up in the comments :)
If you are on my discord you know I've been kind of scarce lately there too, but I have been checking in <3
I think this summer boils down to a bad case of the seasonal affectives, as I'm beginning to slowly crawl out of the pit I dug myself into as the weather becomes more amenable to.... living in.
My goal is to get back into twice-weekly streams. Not sure on specific days, yet, but I'm thinking something like alternating or rotating weeks of M/W and M/F or W/Sat might work. this would keep me busy and focused without overloading while trying to accommodate the different schedules I was lining up with on the MWF schedule. not really seeking input; just a heads-up :)
As far as outstanding/owed commissions; I'll be working on those and have them done by the end of September. I may have a night or two of streams with the explicit purpose in mind of clearing up the queue. I appreciate everyone's patience on that, even if it's only a handful of you. I love you all. <3
that's... basically it. summer weather kicked my ass, and now it's cooling off and I feel more like myself again. I hope everyone reading this is doing well; feel free to chat me up in the comments :)
It is my birthday.
General | Posted 8 years agoHappy birthday to me 🍰🍷
Update
General | Posted 8 years agohey folks, sorry for disappearing for a while :)
i'm doing some off-stream work tonight, hopefully back on regular schedule by wednesday. thanks for your patience!
i'm doing some off-stream work tonight, hopefully back on regular schedule by wednesday. thanks for your patience!
TMI Tuesday / ask me or my characters anything!
General | Posted 8 years agoHaven't done one of these in a little while :)
Ask me anything! Or if you have any questions for or about any of my characters, "they" can answer as well.
Have fun :v
Ask me anything! Or if you have any questions for or about any of my characters, "they" can answer as well.
Have fun :v
GOOD NEWS! *joyful screams*
General | Posted 8 years agoMy gas problem is resolved, I have hot water and a stove etc again!
This was one of the most WTF weeks of my life, but it's over now *falls on face*
The tl;dr is that we received a brand new faulty meter. The gas company has a raging hard-on because the Arizona Corporation Commission DEMANDS that eventually all of these underground gas lines get moved or replaced, so the tech who came out and replaced the meter just followed a kind of standard "there's a leak? call the line replacement guys" script that threw us into a whooooooole bunch of chaos and what-ifs and freaking out about plumbing costs, permit processes, possibly buying new electric appliances instead, etc etc
but we called the gas company today, the guy they sent out was super nice and awesome (I'm not used to this, the gas company is notoriously bad about having assholes on the job) and he helped us through a series of tests figure out it was a bad meter. brand new and broken. he couldn't even source the leak on the damn thing, but when he tested just the house line it came up no leaks.
so now my gas is back on and i am no longer in a deeply demoralized state.
THANK CTHULHU, I CAN SHOWER AGAIN \o/
This was one of the most WTF weeks of my life, but it's over now *falls on face*
The tl;dr is that we received a brand new faulty meter. The gas company has a raging hard-on because the Arizona Corporation Commission DEMANDS that eventually all of these underground gas lines get moved or replaced, so the tech who came out and replaced the meter just followed a kind of standard "there's a leak? call the line replacement guys" script that threw us into a whooooooole bunch of chaos and what-ifs and freaking out about plumbing costs, permit processes, possibly buying new electric appliances instead, etc etc
but we called the gas company today, the guy they sent out was super nice and awesome (I'm not used to this, the gas company is notoriously bad about having assholes on the job) and he helped us through a series of tests figure out it was a bad meter. brand new and broken. he couldn't even source the leak on the damn thing, but when he tested just the house line it came up no leaks.
so now my gas is back on and i am no longer in a deeply demoralized state.
THANK CTHULHU, I CAN SHOWER AGAIN \o/
Personal Update
General | Posted 8 years agotl;dr version: I have no gas service at my house (most notably means no heating and no hot water). could be resolved as early as tomorrow, could be much longer and possibly at significant expense to me. #firstworldproblems
longer version: i woke up on wednesday feb 28 in a pretty good mood despite the fact it was raining/hailing like crazy; shortly thereafter a neighbor came to my gate and said they thought i had a gas leak. i went to check the meter in the alley and sure enough, there was a faint smell of gas and a LOUD hissing noise. we called the gas company. the guy runs a little meter thing and perimeter check of my property, says there's no leak on my side of the meter, and he'll be replacing the meter to resolve the leak that is on their side at the meter. I leave the house and come back about an hour or so later, thinking this crap would resolve while i was gone, but noooooo, all of a sudden there's magically now a "minuscule" or "minute" leak on my side that supposedly wasn't there before.
bull. shit.
so now my gas is shut off. the guy says the gas company has a program to replace/move the meter and all the gas lines up to my house for free, yadda yadda. I don't want to get into it, but for a number of various reasons (privacy and convenience are two big ones) my husband and i have decided not to go with this option. the guy from the company who does this relocation actually came to my house today and though he'd sounded like an asshole on the phone, he was actually pretty cool in person. he completely agreed with my husband and i that the "new" issue almost definitely came from the fact that the guy replaced the meter in the middle of a muddy mucky rainy fucking mess in the alley and that the new "leak" is probably at the exact point the meter was connected to the piping or shortly thereafter, and the gas company should re-inspect and re-install. I cannot imagine this would not fix the problem.
So, the next course of action for us is to call the gas company back out here to check their new install. They may decide not to do so, and/or that there's still a leak and/or it's still our problem. My fingers are crossed as fuck that someone does come out and look at it and that's the problem and they can fix it. That would get my gas turned back on and my life back to normal ASAP. If that doesn't happen, we'll be beginning the process to switch all of our appliances over to electric. We need some electrical work done on our house anyway (and already had it planned before this crap happened) and that part isn't going to be too costly; hubby believes we'll be "down" for a day or less. The most expensive appliance to replace after that would be a hot water heater, which we've been able to find decent ones for around $300. an electric stove we can usually find on craigslist for under $75; we already have an electric clothes dryer, it just needs a new belt (cheap). because we know how to install this shit ourselves, fortunately, there's no massive installation costs to deal with. but this is obviously burdensome in terms of lifestyle and ... living.
so again I'm really keeping my fingers crossed someone from the gas company comes soon and can re-check the meter for leaks and we can get on with life. but expecting the worse is not beyond me either. for now, we have a hot plate we're using for cooking and to warm up water for washing/cleaning, and a clothesline for laundry.
outside of that I'm having some personal (offline/IRL) drama that's basically been a long time coming but also feels like a severe and deep betrayal anyway. I'm... trying to deal with that. I may not be very friendly/talkative in the meantime, with everything going on.
If you read all of that, I love you <3
longer version: i woke up on wednesday feb 28 in a pretty good mood despite the fact it was raining/hailing like crazy; shortly thereafter a neighbor came to my gate and said they thought i had a gas leak. i went to check the meter in the alley and sure enough, there was a faint smell of gas and a LOUD hissing noise. we called the gas company. the guy runs a little meter thing and perimeter check of my property, says there's no leak on my side of the meter, and he'll be replacing the meter to resolve the leak that is on their side at the meter. I leave the house and come back about an hour or so later, thinking this crap would resolve while i was gone, but noooooo, all of a sudden there's magically now a "minuscule" or "minute" leak on my side that supposedly wasn't there before.
bull. shit.
so now my gas is shut off. the guy says the gas company has a program to replace/move the meter and all the gas lines up to my house for free, yadda yadda. I don't want to get into it, but for a number of various reasons (privacy and convenience are two big ones) my husband and i have decided not to go with this option. the guy from the company who does this relocation actually came to my house today and though he'd sounded like an asshole on the phone, he was actually pretty cool in person. he completely agreed with my husband and i that the "new" issue almost definitely came from the fact that the guy replaced the meter in the middle of a muddy mucky rainy fucking mess in the alley and that the new "leak" is probably at the exact point the meter was connected to the piping or shortly thereafter, and the gas company should re-inspect and re-install. I cannot imagine this would not fix the problem.
So, the next course of action for us is to call the gas company back out here to check their new install. They may decide not to do so, and/or that there's still a leak and/or it's still our problem. My fingers are crossed as fuck that someone does come out and look at it and that's the problem and they can fix it. That would get my gas turned back on and my life back to normal ASAP. If that doesn't happen, we'll be beginning the process to switch all of our appliances over to electric. We need some electrical work done on our house anyway (and already had it planned before this crap happened) and that part isn't going to be too costly; hubby believes we'll be "down" for a day or less. The most expensive appliance to replace after that would be a hot water heater, which we've been able to find decent ones for around $300. an electric stove we can usually find on craigslist for under $75; we already have an electric clothes dryer, it just needs a new belt (cheap). because we know how to install this shit ourselves, fortunately, there's no massive installation costs to deal with. but this is obviously burdensome in terms of lifestyle and ... living.
so again I'm really keeping my fingers crossed someone from the gas company comes soon and can re-check the meter for leaks and we can get on with life. but expecting the worse is not beyond me either. for now, we have a hot plate we're using for cooking and to warm up water for washing/cleaning, and a clothesline for laundry.
outside of that I'm having some personal (offline/IRL) drama that's basically been a long time coming but also feels like a severe and deep betrayal anyway. I'm... trying to deal with that. I may not be very friendly/talkative in the meantime, with everything going on.
If you read all of that, I love you <3
What do you like about my art? What can be improved?
General | Posted 8 years agoIt's that time of the whenever again: seeking general watcher feedback!
Seeking feedback on everything about what I'm doing, from style to technique to upload frequency etc. Feel free to comment in general, or use these questions as a guide:
1. What do you like about my art?
2. What do you feel like I do really well?
3. Is there anything you DON'T like about my art?
4. Is there anything you'd like to see more of?
5. Is there anything you'd like to see less of?
6. For longer-time watchers, is there anything I USED to do that you miss?
7. Anything you feel I could improve on in general?
Of course, I've got my own ideas and answers to these questions, but I want to know what YOU think, dear watchers :) Thank you!
Seeking feedback on everything about what I'm doing, from style to technique to upload frequency etc. Feel free to comment in general, or use these questions as a guide:
1. What do you like about my art?
2. What do you feel like I do really well?
3. Is there anything you DON'T like about my art?
4. Is there anything you'd like to see more of?
5. Is there anything you'd like to see less of?
6. For longer-time watchers, is there anything I USED to do that you miss?
7. Anything you feel I could improve on in general?
Of course, I've got my own ideas and answers to these questions, but I want to know what YOU think, dear watchers :) Thank you!
Google Wallet is now Google Pay
General | Posted 8 years agoJust a heads-up for anyone who uses Google Wallet and/or was curious about trying it out; Google is now absorbing Wallet into its Google Pay program. Their official announcement is here. The Wallet app is technically called Google Pay Send, but y'all get the idea.
Not real fond of the name being so close to Google Play (yes please, give vastly different products very similar names) but otherwise nothing to complain about as far as I can see. If you live in the US or UK and haven't already, I recommend checking it out as another alternative to PayPal :)
Not real fond of the name being so close to Google Play (yes please, give vastly different products very similar names) but otherwise nothing to complain about as far as I can see. If you live in the US or UK and haven't already, I recommend checking it out as another alternative to PayPal :)
Quick Update
General | Posted 8 years agoHey everyone! I disappeared for a few days and just wanted to let folks know I'm doing alright :)
Various things have been screwing with my sleep schedule the past month or so, but especially the last week, and so I've been trying to not inflict my "poor sleep mood" on anyone, for better or worse...
bad sleep and weird dreams makes Hana something-something.
Not sure exactly when my next stream will be, POSSIBLY friday or saturday, but I've updated my art queue (I keep it pretty current in general) so rest assured I haven't missed or forgotten anyone :) next stream's slots are probably going to be completely taken up by stuff on my queue.
thank you!
Various things have been screwing with my sleep schedule the past month or so, but especially the last week, and so I've been trying to not inflict my "poor sleep mood" on anyone, for better or worse...
bad sleep and weird dreams makes Hana something-something.
Not sure exactly when my next stream will be, POSSIBLY friday or saturday, but I've updated my art queue (I keep it pretty current in general) so rest assured I haven't missed or forgotten anyone :) next stream's slots are probably going to be completely taken up by stuff on my queue.
thank you!
Reminder: Commissions Are Open!
General | Posted 8 years agoJust a quick note to remind folks that I am always open for general commission inquiries, even outside of streams! You do not need to attend a stream to get arts from me :) My Terms of Service and general commission pricing/rates are linked in the footer of this journal!
Thank you!
Thank you!
