CaelynTek Blog

This is the ladies standard Moonbase uniform:

Stalker is one cool cat:

This is the ladies standard submarine service uniform:

There’s even something FOR the ladies:

Come on, do I have to say more than this?:

Ok how about this:

More for the ladies of course:

You don’t want to piss this guy off:

The aliens are wicked cool (humans in alien suits) but really, we’re not watching it for the aliens, we’re watching it for the cool cats and lovely ladies:

Oh the suspense is killing me:

OK…. so who of you in Cincinati thinks a UFO series watch party would be cool? Some martinis, some snacks, some late 1960s retro future fashion? I have the whole series on DVD…

Once this blog post hit’s to facebook, comment on it and let me know if your interested, and I’ll see about putting it on the calendar.

No I am not talking about women’s oversize bums seen prancing around a flea market. I’m talking the spoils of flea market treasure hunting, the fantastic items found while walking the aisles of Ceasar Creek Flea Market this Sunday afternoon. These descriptives would be better suited had we instead visited “Treasure Aisles” flea market (owned by the same company), but I don’t care. We were flea market Pirates damnit, and we found a pirate booty. (no not Keira Knightly’s buttocks)

Ok, so we spent about three and a half hours there, and here is what we found…. this time around:

I bought:

$7.00 – A pair of antique copper candle holders, the kind meant to be carried around, not the kind you hang oon the wall.

$1.50 – An empty corked glass bottle of Dr. W B Caldwells Syrup Pepsin from sometime before 1941 but after 1889. Syrup Pepsin was “prescribed” by Dr. Caldwell for upset stomach, until he was forced by the Federal Trade Commission in 1939 to stop advertising it as such.

$5.00 each – Two pairs of plastic welding goggles, for use in maker activities for future sale on Etsy.

$2.00 – Brass “Lupee” magnifier – Not sure what I’ll use it for yet.

$5.00 – Fancy brass flip top mug. Will make for a great personal drinking utensil to hang from my belt when in costume.

$5.00 – A walking cane with a brass/copper like handle. The guy was asking 8.00 for it, I asked if he would take 6.00. He mumbled a bit then said yes. I handed him a 10 dollar bill and he gave me back 5 dollars……….

$2.00 – A set of small needle nose pliers.

$8.00 – various specialty Dremel tool bits/grinders.

$30.00 – Digital micrometer

Anna’s Purchases:

$2.00 – a candle heated glass tea kettle.

$2.00 – Gothy boots.

$4.00 – A rice paper parasol

$3.00 – Suede kid gloves (She saw a tutorial on the proper way to take off such gloves when we were at World Steam Expo)

$1.00 – an “umbrella hat”

$3.00 – AS SEEN ON TV a “Total Hair Makeover” kit.

$7.00 – Lots and lots and lots of candy

$1.00 – Ear Plugs

$2.00 – mini sewing scissors

$2.00 – 6X Magnifier with tweezers

$6.00 – Vintage jewelry

$10.00 – 7 fantasy novels

$5.00 – 2 sets of paper dolls.

Total spent…about 113 dollars.

Evidence of Nerd activities for Caelyn Nagle:

Article one: An Advanced Dungeons & Dragons hand made photocopied character sheet circa 1989. Made before computers and printers were readily available. Created with a typewriter, a ruler and a pen.

I just found this in a folder of my old school artwork. This wasn’t my flagship character, I wish I still had my Cleric “Cornelius Agrippa”.

March is a busy month.

So last Friday (March 4) was the League of Cincinnati Steampunks Salon where we walked in the Bockfest Parade in downtown Cincinnati.

This weekend we have my In-Laws coming for a visit and we’ll be going folk dancing with the International Folk Dancers of Cincinnati (Which Anna does much more often than I do)

Next weekend is Millenicon which I think we’re going to, but I also half remember Anna telling me there was something else we were going to do that weekend too.

Then we’re flying to Orlando for a few days to go to Disney Hollywood Studios Theme Park and Universal Orlando (To visit Wizarding World of Harry Potter).

We fly back from Orlando only to immediately go to The Pigtown Fling here in Northern Kentucky.

All of these things are what people might consider fun vacationy type things but I need a an all inclusive week or two on a beach in Mexico with nothing to do but sip fruity cocktails and listen to the ocean.

Last week I purchased a Scorpion USA EXO-900 Solid TransFormerHelmet and now that I’ve had a few chances to ride with it I figured I’d give a little review.

Here’s a photo of it:

So you can see that I got it in Hi-Vis neon green. What you see here isn’t fully representative of exactly how bright this color is. In the daylight it’s so bright and visible no one is gonna miss me going by.

So it’s got 3 differnt “modes”

Full Face, Flip up Modular and 3/4. The flip up face is removable and can be replaced with an included 3/4 visor.

The helmet is comm friendly and has a port in the side and channels in the lining that allows for easy installation of 2 specific 3rd party wired cell phone comm systems. IMC MotorComm and J&M Comms. I don’t have a comm yet, but I want one.

The helmet also has an “Airfit” pump that allows you to adjust the fit around the head and neck by pumping air into the padding. It has a rubber button at the base of the neck that when pressed, inflates the helmet, then a smaller button to release stored air.

The helmet is quite a larger outside diameter than my old full face helmet, so much so that it doesn’t fit inside my Buddy 125 seat compartment like my old helmet does. That’s been the only negative I’ve had since buying it.

The fit is snug, the padding in the helmet is tight and doesn’t move around at all. The release tab on the chin is easy to use (to flip up the face) but it can’t be accidentally activated either. It has adequate air venting that can be opened and closed on the chin, top of the head and back of the head. They are very durable vents and there’s no chance that I can see of them getting jammed up (like happened almost immediately on my last helmet)

Wind noise is minimal considering the seams in the face portion. The seal at the joint seems to do a good job.

Then there is the integrated flip up/down sun shade. There is a lever on the left side just behind the joint that when activated, pops down a sun shade, just slightly larger than a pair of  wrap around sunglasses. It comes down in front of my glasses with no problem and it can be activated on and off easily while riding.

I’ve only owned 5 helmets in my life, but this is by far the best of them. Coming in around 170 dollars, well worth the price.

Now I just have to find paint to match it so I can re-paint my scooter in this outrageously bright color

So earlier today a friend posted a video on Facebook of the intro to the live action Spider Man series from the late 70′s -

Intro on Youtube – The Amazing Spiderman

Wikipedia – The Amazing Spiderman (1977)

There was some discussion between him, some other and I about it being such a bad show, but I still have fond memories of it. I know it was bad, especially when I see it now, but I loved it as a kid and I would probably like it now if it were on retro TV or something.

And there is the thing. There are a LOT of shows I loved watching back in the day (Most of them were Sci Fi or fantasy related) and back then I didn’t know how bad they were, either because I was a little kid or because the bar was very low on TV show writing and production quality. And even now with shows like Fringe, CSI, Stargate and the like, I still love watching those old crappy shows when I can find them. It’s true that there are some that were SO bad I couldn’t handle watching the whole series all over again, but I do like to see episodes once in a while.

Below I’m going to list some of the best bad (and good) TV shows I loved watching as a kid, and tell you a little bit about how I remember them.

I’ll start of with the first old school TV show that I ever bought on pirate DVD (because it wasn’t available otherwise)

Otherworld (1985)

On Wikipedia

On Youtube

I remembered this show since I first saw it in 1985 but I could never remember the name of it. Then one day in the early 2000′s it hit me and I went online and found it for sale at a “we make pirate dvds of old tv shows until they become available in licensed form” website. I ordered it instantly. I was 14 when it was originally on the air and I didn’t remember how many episodes there were (there weren’t many) but when I got it and watched them all, everything I had remembered about it was there. Specific scenes, storylines etc. If you want to borrow it let me know.

Ark II (1976)

On Wikipedia

On Youtube

This one I was only FIVE years old when it first aired. And I had short recollections of it ever since. The only thing I could remember for the past 35 or so years was the Jet Pack and the Ark itself. I didn’t even remember the name, then one day by accident I saw the title of the show online and quickly looked to see it was available on DVD and IT WAS. I got it from Netflix right away. Let me tell you. It’s REALLY bad…in a “OMG is that so corny” kind of way. I watched the 4 episodes on the DVD and that was enough.. for now anyway. I’ll want to see the rest some day I’m sure.

Logan’s Run (1977)

On Wikipedia

On Youtube

This is another one that I barely remembered the details of. I had actually not seen the MOVIE Logan’s Run when I was a kid and this series came on TV. I had vague recollections of the story and the visuals and when I finally saw Logan’s Run the movie on Video years later I had assumed that the movie and my memory of the TV show were the same. I just discounted the differences to bad memory. Then much later…15 or so years and the internet came around and I found out that there was a TV series. One day at a Convnetion I found it on “pirate” DVD and bought it. The TV sereis came out almost immediately after the Movie was in theaters, and it rewrites the last few minutes of the movie. Instead of Logan coming back to the domes and leading everyone out, instead he gets stopped by the sandmen and has to run back out. He finds out that there ARE OLD people in the dome, hidden away running everything, keeping everything going and keeping the secret that the world is livable again. The series has Logan and Jessica adventuring in the post apocalyptic world with Sandmen chasing them.

UFO (1970)

On Wikipedia

On Youtube

Now I must admit, I don’t think I ever saw this as a kid. It aired in the US some time between 1970 and 1972. I actually found this one while looking for another series in the past several years (that I’ll list next). This series was created by the same guy that does all those marionette shows called “Thunderbirds” which I had seen in syndication on Cable, and of which I had a few toys. UFO is a must see. It really is. I’ve actually made a full long blog post about it last year I think when I got the whole series on DVD.

Project UFO (1978)

On Wikipedia

On Youtube

This is the series I saw as a child that I was looking for when I found the one above. It’s a series based on the de-classified portions of the government’s actual Project Blue Book on UFO sightings. It was the X-Files 15 years before The X-Files aired. I still have yet to see this series again. So I don’t know if it was bad or not, but based on the stuff I’ve seen on youtube, it probably was.

Tales of the Gold Monkey (1982)

On Wikipedia

On Youtube

This is another one I’ve blogged about before..I think. In 1982 and 83 I watched this show every week (or so I remember doing). In the void that was left by end of Battlestar Galactica and Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, and in the wake of Raiders of the Lost Ark (of which I saw in the Theater and LOVED) there was this. Tales of the Gold Monkey. Made specifically to take advantage of the popularity of Raiders, it had everything you could want: A boat plane, A one eyed dog, Japanese zeros and fighter pilots, the same actress that played a villain in buck rogers playing a similar villain, nazi spies, fedoras etc. And it’s available on DVD. If you don’t live near me and can’t come over to see it here, you should buy it at Amazon

Salvage 1 (1979)

On Wikipedia

On Youtube

This is one my dad really liked and I would often watch it with him. It goes like this. A guy that runs a junk yard build a rocket ship that can take off and land in one piece, and salvages the junk left on the moon by the Apollo missions. Well in the pilot episode anyway, the rest of the series is just various unique, funny and dangerous salvage missions. If I remember right one episode NASA needs them to go save one of their astronauts or something too. It was neat back then. I haven’t seen it since 1979 or 80. One of these days I’ll have to find it and watch it again.

Solid Gold (1980-1988)

On Wikipedia

On Youtube

I know this one doesn’t fit the rest of the shows I’ve listed, but I LOVED this show. Before we had MTV..hell before we even had Friday Night Videos, we had Solid Gold. Great music, hot dancers…what’s not to like?

I think that’s enough for tonight. I might post another one and list some more if enough people liked this one.

I’m wanting to create another look for my steampunk persona, maybe even a new character, maybe the same character, but in a normal, non post apocalyptic timeline. Basically I want something more “gentlemanly” and less adventurous.

I’m going to post some links to some full outfits that you can get at Gentleman’s Emporium (where I bought SOME of my current costume), and I’d like you all (on facebook) to reply and let me know which “look” you like more. I won’t be BUYING one of these particular outfits, I just want feedback on the style of each of these. I might be getting SOME pieces for my new costume from this website, but I’ll be trying my best to make my final look cost a LOT less then they want for the whole outfits.

OK here goes:

Barnaby Clifton, Intrepid Motorist

Professor Babcock, Man of Science

Horace Woodman, Gentleman Merchant (I really dig the brown top hat, but I like the one HERE better (#HT24-15B))

Or another top hat look Randolph Pickwick, Financier

Really I suppose it all boils down to the coat and the hat I guess. Anna seems to be more into the derby than the top hat, but I really like top hats. The sporting cap is intriguing too though. If I opt to go for the top hat look I actually will likely be trying to work in my existing replica priest coat from my goth days, cause I don’t want to have to spend a lot on a new coat or jacket, and trying to find a nice victorian looking dress longcoat at goodwill will be a hard task.

Anyway, let me know what you think!

Thanks

Anna and I have both been Borders Rewards Club members for a while now. They give you a little membership card and a keychain card and based on what you buy in their store they will sometime send you targeted ads and often they’ll send you great coupons for various store items. Around holidays they will often send you GREAT coupons, like the one we got yesterday morning.

50 Percent off any one item! Exclusions applied of course, but there were plenty of things I would have wanted when you get that big a deal on it. I was perusing through their board games section and I remembered that I had seen the Games Workshop game “Talisman” there before and I found it, they had one copy left.

Now here is the deal… it is VERY VERY unlikely that at a GAME store, you would ever find any games workshop game ON SALE. Games Workshop rarely if ever puts thier products on sale, and they don’t allow game store owners to put their products on sale either without specific permission. (which rarely happens).

I used to play Talisman back in the day (the early to mid 90′s) when I was a hardcore gamer geek. It was one of those games that often could bridge the gap between gamer geeks and non-gamer friends and family members because it is more or less just an advanced board game. It has a short rule book and much of the game explains itself as you go. I hadn’t played Talisman since 1995 or 96 and with my recent resurgance in gaming I had looked at buying the latest edition, until I saw its hefty 60 DOLLAR price tag. 60 DOLLARS?… for a BOARD game?

So yeah, I decided it wasn’t worth it.

So now here I was at Borders books, with a Talisman board game in front of me, and a %50 off coupon. CHA CHING!

Click the thumbnails to see full size photos. If your viewing this on facebook these thumbnails may not work and you’ll have to click through to my blog)

I spent last night and this morning re-familiarizing myself with the rules, they’ve changed a bit from when I used to play but they are basically the same. Very different from when I played before though, is the board’s size. It’s substantially larger than it used to be. And it comes with miniatures for each character instead of just a folding card with a picture on it.

I hear now that there are also several expansion sets to the game, with more add on game boards and charactes, we’ll see first if I can get any of my friends to play it before I go looking for those though.

Can’t wait to play, if your one of my local friends and think you might like to play it, let me know ASAP.

Here is Talisman at Wikipedia

Yesterday Anna and I were out shopping and we stopped at Chilis for an early dinner. I hadn’t been to a Chilis for a long time so their menu was different than I remembered it.

I ended up choosing “Crispy Chicken Tacos”

Three flour tortillas with applewood smoked bacon, tomatoes, cheese, lettuce, honey-chipotle drizzle and ranch dressing.

………….

That was the best tasting thing I’ve had to eat in a long time. I’ve eaten at a lot of really nice places in the past few months too, but man these “tacos” were fantastic. Now the rice and beans on the side that came with it were ok, but nothing to write blog about. Then I’ve never been too excited over rice and beans anyway.

But if your out some time in the future doing some shopping or whatever, and you pass a Chilis restaurant or if you are a Chilis regular and haven’t yet tried the Crispy Chicken Tacos, you should try them.

As a side note, last night I shaved off my facial hair for the first time in 6 years:

Look at that baby face, that’s a face you can trust for great food reviews right?

Peace.

Caelyn

So a long time ago, when I first created my airsoft web site “Airsoft Specialists” I put Google Adsense ads on the site hoping to make a little money off it. Since I first did that nearly 2 and a half years ago, the ads have made me a grand total of 82 dollars, which I can’t access because at Google Adsense, they don’t waste time sending you a check until you’ve made 100 dollars or more. I don’t even use the site much any more, since I stopped playing airsoft, but I have an archive of it (linked above) that still generates views for me once in a while.

Now some time ago, Google bought Youtube, and since that time, if your videos met certain requirements, including copyright rules and a popularity requirement, you could link your videos to your Google Adsense account, and they would put ads with your youtube video(s)

For as long as I’ve had my Youtube accounts (I have 3) I’ve never had any videos popular enough to get ads on.

Well this morning, one of my videos on my battlepriest Youtube channel crossed that popularity threshold, and youtube sent me an invitation to ad Google ads to it. The funny thing is, I had no idea this particular video had gotten so many views. It’s not even one that I’m proud of in any way shape or form. It’s just a video of me in my apartment, practicing speed reloads with my Airsoft pistol This is the video:

They still have to review the video. (The invitation is automatic, they will have a person review the video directly to make sure it meets other requirements) The only problem might be the sound coming from the TV in the background. It’s not really recognizable, but if it is, they’ll probably say the video is breaking copyright rules and take it down. Which I don’t care if it is, cause like I said, I’m not proud of it anyway. But if it has the chance to make me some money, why not give it a shot?

So yeah, wish me luck that I can make a few cents a week with my video.