Author Archives: The Cyberwolfe

About The Cyberwolfe

The owner of dis 'ere blog.

More than meets the eye

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Back when I was 17 and in high school, I met this gal AH at an SCA event about a 2-hour drive from home – turned out she lived about 10 miles from me in the next township, and we ended up hanging out on weekends. (Yes, we dated too, but it went nowhere – we just were better friends.)

Anyway, up until this point I had been introduced to the idea of the Transformers only peripherally – I had seen commercials, but not the cartoons due to lack of cable. One or two of my friends may have had them, but it just never really came up, you know? Come to think of it, aside from Saturday morning cartoons on the Big 3 Networks, I hadn’t been exposed to decent animation either.

AH, on the other hand, was a huge fan of Anime in general and a BIG Transformers freak. she sat me down at her place one weekend and we went through her entire collection of video tapes – nothing huge by today’s standards, but remember I was just a hick kid who had never seen this stuff before. She didn’t have more than about 6 episodes of Transformers, but the ones she did have led directly up to the movie, which she also had. I was stunned, enthralled and completely taken with the genre, but the Big T got me the most. (I’ll admit it, I cried a little when Optimus died and again when Hot Rod became Rodimus Prime.)

That Sunday, we took several cans of Krylon black and grey primer and re-painted her classic 1970 Dodge Challenger. (Did I mention AH was a serious tomboy who had a rockin’ musclecar?). We painted the main body grey, but the hood and trunk lid were done in black. Then we put on the coup de grace – a two-foot wide Decepticon emblem in silver on the hood, with smaller matching emblazons in black on the doors.

That Challenger had been christened “Zioticon” for a couple of years, but now he had the badges to prove it, as well as a really good artist rendition of what he would have looked like transformed.

If you haven’t guessed it, AH was a huge Transformers geek too. :) She even had an original die-cast Japanese import Megatron that looked real enough to shoot in pistol form.

So, with that kind of history behind me, you can bet your britches I went and saw the new movie on the 4th.

I fucking loved it!

This is the only comic book / anime-turned-live-acting movie I have seen in … in … in FOREVER that not only didn’t suck out loud, I actually LIKED it!

Yes, there are a couple of scenes lifted directly out of other movies (the girl in the bedroom for one), but with a bajillion movies out there, it’s hard not too. The acting was good, the writing and dialog were good, and the effects were damn convincing.

Okay – there are those of us out there who still wonder how the hell a three-ton car can turn into a 50-foot tall robot heavy enough to leave footprints in pavement, but we can shut the brain up during the movie.

And yes, I cried a little during some of the combat scenes. Bite me. You go watch it and come out completely dry-eyed, then we’ll talk. Whatever you do, see this movie. It’s worth the money. (But sneak in your own drink – $4.00 for a soda is frickin’ robbery.)

The Amazing Disappearing Wolfe

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It’s amazing how getting a non-computer-related hobby will cut into your posting about nothings.

I have been making some pouches with a couple of different closures for practice out of that new leather. It is a little thin for pouches in the long run, but they look good. One goes to the Ratboy because it actually came out pretty good, but the second is more than likely going to be taken apart and used as a template – I got the belt loops in the wrong spot, and it can’t be fixed without leaving visible stitch lines.

I’ve got the skirt and mug frogs down pretty pat at this point. For those of you who don’t know, in the re-enactment world, a frog is anything that allows you to hang something else off of your belt. Originally used for swords and daggers that had scabbards without the means of attachment, we’ve been able to think of any number of things that you want with you but don’t necessarily want to carry in your hand.

A tankard or mug is a perfect example – once you’ve drunk it dry while wandering merchant’s row, where do you put it? Why, you hang it off of your belt via a mug frog. A skirt frog attaches a pair of D-rings to your belt which you can use to hold your skirts out of the mud.

At this point, I normally carry three knives, a belt pouch, a mug and my portable butt-can. Once we get into garb, some of us look like Batman with all the crap we hang off our belts. I want to put on anything else, I may have to make a bandolier.

Last payday, I put in an order for a full side of 2-3 ounce leather for pouch making, as well as some additional tools. I figure I should be able to turn out three or four more pouches easy by the next event, along with a few other items I have been protoyping, like bondage bracelets and forearm bracers.

And don’t look at me like that – if you can buy it at the mall, it ain’t kinky anymore. Hell, these days bondage cuffs are pretty damn vanilla, as evidenced by this.

(Which would be useful for those geeks wishing to re-create the scene where Darth freezes Han in Empire. But I digress.)

And that digression has pretty much derailed my train. Where the hell was I? Nevermind, this is a good place to stop. Talk at ya later.

The internet is for…

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Some of you were probably paying attention like I was and saw a blurb somewhere that the Pirate Bay (of BitTorrent fame) has opened a sister site called BayImg, where they will host your pictures completely uncensored. Like me, you probably thought “yeah right – this means it will be nothing but pr0n.”

Well, we were right.

I went tripping through there a few minutes ago, and wow. Searching the site is a bit odd, since they don’t have a “search” box on the front page – click on “Tags” and that gets you in to the categories section – which is just one long list of tags people have applied to their content. There is some strange ranking algorithm at work though, because some tags are in larger type than others, apparently denoting popularity.

I thought it would take off, but I had no idea that so many thousands of pictures would be uploaded so quickly. It’s like half the geeks in the world went and uploaded their entire collections in one fell swoop. Maybe there is some sort of “perv cred” in having uploaded the most massive collection. *shrug*

Now, chances are there is some regular content in there… somewhere…, but I dare you to find two different “tags” that do not contain pr0n in the first two pages.

I double-dare you.

At least from a Techie standpoint, they have made part of my job easier: I can now block half the nekid pics on the entire Internet with the following rule – “if url=www.bayimg.com then redirect=www.you_are_fired_you_dumbass.com”

Ya ever just feel like a dolt?

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So I’ve taken up leatherworking, right? Well, Tolerant and I schlupped down to the supply depot Saturday and I managed to score a pretty decent half-side of 2-3 oz soft black leather that would make a pretty decent pouch. I also picked up 2 dozen d-rings for making skirt cinchers – but forgot to pick up some of the larger sized rivets I will need to make them. Duh.

So, Sunday finally rolls around and I’ve been itching to get to this new leather so bad I cut out of Guys Game Night an hour early so I can come down to the garage and play. I start in on a new scabbard for an old belt knife, but the new leather, while being the right thickness, is too soft. So, on to the next bit: the prototype belt pouch.

I measure carefully, I cut twice as carefully, I lay everything out and plan it in my head. I start small, by attaching the belt loops to the back, since two of the four seams will be inside the pouch if I do the side seams first.

Now remember, sewing with this grade of leather isn’t done with a machine. (Ok, it could be, but I don’t have THAT kind of money to throw at a hobby.) It is done by stabbing a very thick needle attached to a screwdriver handle through almost a 1/4 inch of leather, pulling it partway back out, feeding the loose end through the loop I just made and then pulling the needle and tightening the stitch. It takes about 15 seconds per stitch once I get rolling.

So, I get started on the side seam, which I am really interested in, because it is going to be a bitch on two places where I turn corners. I’m stitching merrily along and rounding that second corner, feeling pretty good about having actually followed a straight line when I stop for a moment to stretch out my neck a bit and admire my work. That’s when I notice it:

I’ve spent the last 45 minutes sewing the right-side of the insert to the wrong-side of the main piece.

In the immortal words of apprentices the world over as the realize their mistake:

“Awww, fuck.”

If you’ll excuse me, I have a seam to rip out now.

It is high-time, apparently.

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Today’s project: retire a wheezing Netware server and replace it with a new SBS 2003 server, and toss in some new XP workstations so we can recycle the Win98 boxen.

Yep. That’s what I said, too.

Thankfully, they don’t have tons and tons of data, because it took most of the day (somewhere around 4+ hours) just to copy the data off of the old server to a workstation. Let me say that again: 4+ hours to copy over 4 gigs of data.

To contrast: when replacing the workstations, I yanked the 4GB hard drives out of the old boxen, hooked ’em up to the new XP box with an IDE-to-USB converter, and copied the drive wholesale in under ten minutes.

If only I could have done that with the Netware drives.

So as they sit right now, the new workstations are in place, the server is in place, but I haven’t configured DHCP or anything so nothing is talking yet. That will be first step tomorrow.

The really fun part is the Line-of-Business software. Installation is apparently pretty easy, but getting a hold of the vendor to find this out took all day. I started calling him at 9 this morning, and he didn’t get around to returning my call until after 6pm – which was 9pm for him, he being on the East coast. Now it’s three hours later, and I am still waiting for him to email me with the download link so I can get the updated installer and instructions.

Yay.

New toys…er, I mean Tools!

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To expand upon what the WBGF gave me for starters, we went to the Oregon Leather Company on Saturday and I grabbed a big bag o’ tools for me to hurt myself with.

Because, really – what project is complete before the obligatory blood sacrifice? Mechanics, woodworkers – you all know what I mean. A barked knuckle on the head while removing a bolt, or that nasty splinter in your palm while prepping your latest shelving project? Yeah, there will be blood if there are tools involved.

Knowing this, I decided to prevent as much of that as possible by turning the first use of these new tools to making scabbards for said tools. The Skiving knife, with it’s bare razor blade was a must. The last thing I want to do is reach into the tool kit and take half the flesh off my hand on the way back out. That one was pretty simple, just a folded over swatch of leather with a rivet and a snap.

My new leather shears ran a distinct chance of bashing themselves against my miniature anvil, so that scabbard was more to protect them than me.Shears scabbard

This one was a good starter project, as it includes all of the basics: designing, cutting, sewing and rivets / fasteners. I tried two types of stitching, to get a feel for which one would be better in the long run. First, I tried with the Speedy Stitcher sewing awl, which was definitely the easier of the two, but I don’t like the look of the back-side of the stitch. This may be improved with experience, though. More experimentation is required.

The second method, a saddle stitch, looks the same both front and back so it will be the one to use if both sides are visible – but this method is slightly more difficult and more likely to lead to me sticking a needle into myself, which is exactly what I did. Twice. Unlike a regular cloth needle, leather needles have a triangular head, which is sharp for almost a centimeter. This means you bleed more when you stab yourself. So as usual, bandages in the toolkit.

Now to plan the next project…

How to solve a technical problem:

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Kill some Zombies!

Client emails us in a panic because his email server for their sub-company is down. He has no idea why, it was working fine the day before and he hasn’t been messing with it. I spend most of the day bashing away at it, can’t find the cause.

Serendipitously, Comcast finally comes through with the second feed and new IP address so we can move this project out from under the main business and onto a separate firewall. Mail is already dead, the users won’t know if we move stuff around so we go with it. I re-write all of the firewall rules in record time, (That CSSA course paid off!) and disable all the rules for this project in the main firewall. At the time, I notice something I think is a little odd, but move on. I make the changes to DNS at a quarter to five. Nothing to do now but wait and see.

Go home, scrounge some dinner, zone on some tv, splatter about 500 zombies and generally turn off. My subconscious percolates.

Just a few minutes ago, Bam! that oddness in the firewall comes back into focus and I realize one of the rules I had disabled in the main firewall was the killer. Check the mail server, and thar she blows! Email for all!

The question now is, was one of our guys mucking around in there, or was this a 1st Rule violation?

My money is on the fish.

Busy busy busy

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So, what with my birthday being last week, I’ve been a little distracted and not posting. There was also lots of work for us to catch up on after having had the long weekend, so what free time I have had has been going to other projects.

The traditional Close-Enough-To-My-Birthday BBQ went off pretty well, and a good time was had in general. Didn’t burn the house down, nobody called the cops, and nobody puked on the carpet. I’d say it was a success – even though nobody RSVP’d. You all suck :)

One of the things I thought about out loud in front of the WBGF was that the cost of leather goods on merchant row at the last event was getting pretty ridiculous. Merchants were asking up to $45 for a simple pouch! Having done leatherwork before, I know it is not terribly difficult, so I thought I might take it up again as a hobby – something I could take with me to do at events to while away those long daylight hours when nothing interesting is going on.

She being the Best, she was of course listening to me ramble on and did something about it by gifting me some leather tools and practice material to help me get back my mad skillz. So, I’ve spent some of my free time over the weekend playing with new toys and remembered more than I thought I would have. The first project was just a simple mug-hanger (a loop of leather that goes around your belt and hooks through your mug’s handle), but it was enough to get me back in the mindset and tell me what tools I need to finish out the workshop.

Since payday isn’t until tomorrow, I spent the rest of my time mentally dis-assembling the rest of my leather accoutrements and making patterns for when I do have the right tools. So far, I have a better mug-hanger (because Tolerant needs one), a pair of basic pouches (these too!) and a new sheath for my right-hand knife (which I have wanted to replace for years).

The trick, however, will be in waiting until I get the rest of those tools before I start any more projects ;)

It figures, doesn’t it?

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I take a nice, long 5-day weekend, get to bed early on a couple of those nights, take long afternoon naps on two of those days, and what happens when I get home?

Insomnia.

Fuck.

So, a bit of a weekend re-cap:

Thursday: retail therapy! Spent most of the performance bonus I got from work on a new tent, queen-sized tall air mattress and camping heater, as well as a number of miscellaneous sundry otems. Sorted above and all other camping gear and prepared for the event.

Friday: packed our stuff and off we went to The Gathering, a basically-SCA event that isn’t sanctioned by the SCA. Not a bad event, but it shares a weekend with Eggil’s, which is a long-standing event that has gone downhill in years past (which is why The Gathering cropped up). This means that instead of one large event, you end up with two medium-sized events, and neither one will ever be truly exceptional. Had some fun reveling with old friends, but kept it pretty mellow.

Our lovely Illyana performed with her Fire and Steel fire-dancing troupe, but the show was closed early due to noise restrictions. It seems a group of other campers were permitted to share the site, and they were complaining about us being noisy bastards. (Okay, we knew ahead of time about the 10:pm noise curfew, but it’s hard to deal with.)

Saturday: wandered merchant’s row and managed to find a new ceramic mug for Tolerant, whose metal mug was making everything taste funny. Discovered that the park Ranger had decreed “no live steel”, which I thought was pretty rude of him, consdiering that us SCA types have been carrying lots of the same for years without issue. But, this being a non-SCA event probably had a lot to do with that. Watched an extended fire show (Illyana was really good that night) and played (and lost) a game of Tablero (a variant of checkers played with shot glasses) and wandered around until I got sober again before heading to bed. (Tolerant wasn’t feeling well for most of the day, and I thought it would be rude to go to bed drunk.)

Sunday: it rained. Tolerant felt bad enough combined with a general “meh” feeling from both of us about staying another night led us to pack up and head back to civilization. Unpacked the gear and spent some time toying around with the computer before a late bedtime.

Monday: went to see Pirates of the Caribbean III. I thought it was pretty good. Dropped Tolerant back at her place and then grabbed some lunch while I did laundry and general cleanup around the house. Da Roomie couldn’t remember the exact date of my birthday, so he gave me the present he and Kyla got for me early: Steve Jackson’s “Munchkins”, along with the “Unnatural Axe” expansion. Yay! More gamage!

Monday evening: sat around with the Ratboy (who wasn’t impressed by PotC when he saw it later this afternoon) and discussed the possibility of him joining the Air Force as a means to get college money and job training. They want you to have a diploma to enlist, so this won’t be a critical issue for some time yet, as he’s still about ten credits shy of getting one. (Military life may just give him the kick in the ass he needs, much like his uncle J. Air Force means he won’t be a front-line grunt.)

WAY too late Monday: insomnia.