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ursulav

Bark Like A Fish, Damnit!

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breeden
ursulav

Can’t Sleep, Con Will Eat Me

January 8th, 16:45

I’m in frantic con-prep mode, which is why I’m not saying anything much of interest here. Prints. God, I hate running prints. (Actually, I don’t mind the printing so much as FIGHTING WITH THE PRINTER GRAH KILL SMASH INK!)

But in theory I will be ready for Further Confusion. If the printer holds out. I have about fifteen paintings/LE prints to go to the art show, and while I’d like to do one or two more small pieces, that’s not a bad sized show for me.

I am alternating printing with building a large raised bed in the back yard (the last of the main beds! After this it’s all carving out little chunks from the woods and along the fence line!) This involves moving rather heavy concrete blocks, so I try only to move ten or fifteen before taking a break so my back doesn’t a-splode.

This bed is for veggies. Only for veggies. No interesting other plants. Except maybe a spleenwort tucked in the cracks near the bottom on the shady side. That would be okay. And I could do a trailing partridgeberry. But only veggies on top. Seriously. I MEAN IT.

Originally published at Tea with the Squash God. You can comment here or there.

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( 31 comments — Leave a comment )

neowolf2

2013-01-08 05:24 pm (UTC)

I like the name "spleenwort".
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saribou

2013-01-08 06:17 pm (UTC)

I shall see you there! I too live the dream of humming printers and the dreaded matcutter.
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shatterstripes

2013-01-08 08:18 pm (UTC)

Oh hey thanks for reminding me it's time for FC prep. One box of twenty Tarot decks and sixteen copies of Rita (it's what fit in the space of four decks), and I think I'm ready to ship the bulk of my stuff to the hotel because hauling 30 pounds of stuff to the airport on the bus is a terrible idea.

Total sympathy on fighting with the printer. How many emergency trips to get more ink have you had to make so far?

See you at the con!
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cynara_linnaea

2013-01-08 11:06 pm (UTC)

If I may ask, what kind of printer do you use? I'm making tentative forays into selling my art and printing at home sounds much more economical than taking things to a printer.
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ursulav

2013-01-09 06:29 pm (UTC)

Epson r1900. It's a workhorse of a printer. Ink costs as much as blood, but the printer's rock solid.
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abb3w

2013-01-10 05:42 am (UTC)

Blood is probably much cheaper. Even basic black for any inkjet tends to run to well past vintage Dom Pérignon price ranges, last I checked. Chanel #5 tends to be about the same order of magnitude as printer ink; which substitution might be intriguing for an insane experimentalist type of performance artist, but less so for one actually working for a living.

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talyxsaunt

2013-01-10 10:00 pm (UTC)

As I understand it, there are two major kinds of printers: those where the print heads are part of the printer and those where the print heads are part of the ink cartridge. The latter kind last much better, but the cartridges are more expensive. So there you go.
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zrath

2013-01-08 11:24 pm (UTC)



I finally made up my mind and I'm going to FC.
Oh, I got a hotel reservation back in June, but I was laid off from my nifty job at the advertising agency in July, so I was unsure about going.
I missed FC last year, so I missed seeing all the people I never get to see otherwise. Plus, you're gonna be there and I want to meet you in person. :)
You will know me by my excessive height and aouuutrageous French accent.
(And by the badge that says "Zrath" on it)


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talyxsaunt

2013-01-08 11:35 pm (UTC)

We don't criticize because we love you, but we don't believe that bed will have only vegetables. On another paw, we will all laugh ourselves sick when you tell us about it.

Edited at 2013-01-08 11:35 pm (UTC)
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bloodsong1

2013-01-09 12:46 am (UTC)

Will you be able to grow carrots and daikons now? Don't forget, you need to make that altar for the Daikon Spirit.
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sheherazahde

2013-01-09 01:01 am (UTC)

I envy you being able to garden in January. Up here in the Frozen North we have to wait for the spring thaw.
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maggock

2013-01-09 02:00 am (UTC)

Yeah, I had a minor heart attack last week when I went out and tried to find a place to cut some mats for me for the show and I got quoted nearly $50 for a single mat. So I now somehow have a mat cutter and will be trying to cut them myself!
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kevinbunny

2013-01-09 09:47 am (UTC)

Speaking as someone who used to do custom framing for a living... that's about right.

The secret is to make your prints standard sizes. 8x10, 11x14, 16x20. Pre-cut mats are a LOT cheaper than custom. Frames are that size too, and the mats will usually conveniently 'size up' to the next standard size. Most mats are acid-free these days, so that's not a worry (good to check, though)

Custom-cut mats and frames should be done only for when you want a piece to be absolutely the best it can be. In those cases, the price of the matting and framing is added to the price of the piece.

Oh, and whatever you do, do NOT let someone sell you 'museum' glass, unless it is literally a museum piece. 'Conservation clear' is just as good, and will not be destroyed if someone touches it. Which someone will.
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maggock

2013-01-09 06:01 pm (UTC)

Welllll I used to get my stuff cut online and shipped, and I got the exact same sized mat for about $9 (and this was just a cheapo single cut mat on the $5 Crescent board.) So it was a bit of a sticker shock to me!
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lissa_quon

2013-01-11 07:11 am (UTC)

Can I ask what the issue with museum glass is?
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duskwuff

2013-01-11 09:35 pm (UTC)

It has crazy anti-reflective, anti-UV coatings on it, which will conveniently go to hell if you touch the surface.
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ursulav

2013-01-09 06:30 pm (UTC)

Yowch! The only place that charges that around here is AC Moore. If you can find a frame shop or a real art supply store, they tend to run cheaper (although in California, who knows?)
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kevinbunny

2013-01-09 07:25 pm (UTC)

Well, to be fair, it depends on the size of the mat. If it's one the shop keeps in stock, isn't the fancy-pants types like silk-wrapped or textured leather, then the price should be about $20. That's for JUST the mat. Not the additional work in hanging your art, etc. If you have a non-standard or especially large request, then the price goes up quickly. If you have them attach the artwork, and have a second mat as backing.. yeah, it adds up.
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raindropreverie

2013-01-09 03:09 am (UTC)

Good luck! You can do it! @ veggies (mostly) only!
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laughingbadger

2013-01-09 04:55 am (UTC)

Bloodwort. It's kinda a vegetable... it's edible, anyway. And it's cool looking.
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ursulav

2013-01-10 04:22 am (UTC)

It's a rampaging thug down here, alas.
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laughingbadger

2013-01-10 04:25 am (UTC)

really? Yeah, I guess I can see that - it barely holds its own in my yard, in the shade.
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lowe4

2013-01-09 06:14 am (UTC)

Go to Audible. Look up Jenny Lawson's book "Let's pretend this never happened". Download and listen to the story of a Childhood filled with taxidermy, poisonous well water, and all the gracious absurdity of a poor west texas family that is frankly bat shit insane. Let the gentle strains of the authors voice carry you above the con prep and into a land of dead squirrel puppets and high school cow impregnation trauma.

Ok so possibly not comforting but certainly removed from your current kurfluffle.
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(Anonymous)

2013-01-10 06:24 am (UTC)

My West Texas upbringing is clearly missing something incredibly amusing. I must buy this book.
~Jessica
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kevinbunny

2013-01-09 09:54 am (UTC)

Yay! Hope to see you there!

Hmmm... I may have to drag you to the Klingon Party. I shall be bringing my YuJ again this year.
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padparadscha

2013-01-09 04:30 pm (UTC)

I find veggies to be the most interesting, anyway! I pay a lot more attention to things I can stuff in my mouth, apparently.
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SQUEE!

bloodsong1

2013-01-09 11:43 pm (UTC)

I so heart your icon. Phineas and Ferb rock so hard.
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Re: SQUEE!

padparadscha

2013-01-10 06:32 am (UTC)

Hee! It is an excellent show. I'm especially a fan of Norm the Robot--I tend to blurt out Norm lines when I have no idea what to say.
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Once you see the con...

doodlesthegreat

2013-01-09 05:02 pm (UTC)

YOU HAVE SEVEN DAYS

Looking forward to the trip. I'm at the St. Claire, since the Marriott filled so fast and fuck Hilton. Hoping to hit a couple of the museums while I'm there for variety. And the IMAX at The Tech Museum is showing "The Hobbit," so that's another option.
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lenora_rose

2013-01-09 05:07 pm (UTC)

I do so loathe fighting with a printer. That was what led to my hurling (my brother's) pile of empty Coke cans from sheer frustration the day before my wedding social (Er, local custom. Not to be confused with the wedding. The wedding was less stressful, and I didn't have to fight much with the printer at all.) And I do mean that Colin had to quietly wash the wall opposite the room with the printer (Since empties invariably have dregs) after I was through.
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drpaisley

2013-01-13 02:31 am (UTC)

See you there! KC in 2016 will be throwing a party Friday night.
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( 31 comments — Leave a comment )
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