Category: Uncategorized

Drawing Pad for Christmas

​My favorite Christmas gift from Mary has to be this drawing pad that for me is a real game changer as it allows me to hand illustrate without actual canvas, paper, pencils, brushes and so on to produce art at a faster pace without restrictions.

Yet it is very much the same thing as I have always done with those listed materials. You still have brushes and pencils but they are all digital. It is not AI which I do not like, it’s my art drawn or painted by hand.

I did this charcoal drawing of a grey in just a few minutes and this water color which was my first attempt with the pad I think turned out well.

I still need to finish this water color one but you’ll get the idea.

The pad also allows me to create animations of my art by hand without AI that is truly genuine. It also will enable me to do illustrations on the fly for articles, writings, secret stories and shows. These are characters I’m working on for my first animated short.

With this pod I draw directly on the screen like paper or canvas so it’s very natural.

Can’t wait to do more.

The Breath in the Trees

A short film I made using Unreal Engine, Blender and my personal CGI animation and wire frame mesh creating skills. This is not AI.

I don’t approve of AI at all. I have myself been accused of being AI because and I quote, “no one my age would have such tech and know how to use it” when in fact it was our generation that created all this tech from back engineered sources we are all familiar with.
Enjoy

You have choose life

Arrival the film you‘ve never seen

Mary and I watched the film, “Arrival” for the second time since we first watched it in 2016. It would be the next year we started “But Something is There.” 
Although I remembered the film I had only seen it once. Since then my experience with the Visitors has evolved and have I. In watching the film again I felt the presence of something in the film quite real. Not just a movie. As though the visitors were channeling through the author of the book, 

Ted Chiang.

Whether he is aware of it or not doesn’t matter. As I write stories myself I really don’t understand where they are coming from. They seemed channeled at times and maybe they are. They are always stories of hope.

The bottom line with “Arrival” is there is a message and the gift the Heptapods offered to the human race which changes everything about who we thought we were.

I was talking to a famous author friend of mine last night and he agreed. What happens in this film is going to happen to us. It’s a question of when not if.

Who we are presently is not sustainable. We have no hope or future if we don’t evolve. 

I have chosen life.

Please watch this film. In my opinion it is the most significant film ever made about contact with non-human intelligence and the nature of the humanity.

The two sentences of symbols I posted are very important. Those of you that know what the symbols will know their meaning.

The first one is “ You have choose Life”

The second is “ There is no linear time”

That other thing that occupies my life and brings me joy…a hobby  

Enjoy the saga of my efforts to do something I have never done with my beloved radio controlled aircraft career in 40 years. And that is to fly an 11 foot wingspan scale glider.

Originally I had planned to build and fly a large scale glider some years back. The idea was to have it towed into flight just like the full scale gliders. I set up a large scale Ka-8 glider and it was set up for aerotow.​ The closest place to do this was a 4 hour drive, the other a 5 hour drive which made it impractical and after a couple of years I reluctantly sold the Ka8.


Watching the internet and dreaming of flying a large scale glider I became aware that people were starting to motorise the gliders with electric power. Even full scale pilots were doing this. With slopes being closed and fields lacking pilots that would tow you up it was an obvious choice. The only problem with some gliders like my recently purchased and built. The Bergfalke ground clearance from the prop.

The solution I found was a bit scary but people seemed to have constant success with the method which is to make a dolly the glider sits on and rolls along under power down the runway until it reaches enough speed to achieve lift and it magically floats off the dolly into flight.


I spent a month researching, reading and watching many many videos of people using this method to get airborne. I looked at all the different variations of dollies and soon understood what works best and built one from scratch.

The end result was what I had hoped for but in my first efforts to get airborne I learned there is a bit more to it than just throttling up and rolling down the runway and these videos will take you through that until the final success.

The first flights were made without wing spoilers. I have since ordered them and will be installing them next week. These are brakes that pop up out of the top of the wing to slow you down on approach to landing.


I’m already planning to build another large scale glider this time with a 179 inch span. I’m getting another Ka8.

These videos show you the progression and the final video is all about the maiden flight.
Enjoy

Steve Neill’s garage Ep 8

This is raw video compared to the work I do on “Breaking the Silence”. Edited yes but very live and real person. I show the successes as well as the failures. Without failures you don’t learn. So enjoy this crazy unscripted folly through all my various hobbies and adventures. Without my hobbies I wouldn’t have lived as long as I have or stayed in touch with my inner child which for me is the fountain of youth if there is one.

Hobbies and passion bring you joy, keep moving you forward and keep the wonder and fun alive at any age.

Enjoy!