Blather

Strangest Conversation of the Night

Posted on December 21, 2008 by Blather IM 8

I was just sitting on the couch, minding my own business when an IM popped up on my screen from a username I didn’t recognize. It said simply, “Hi.” Naturally, I responded with a hello in the hopes that the person would explain themselves within the next minute or so with all the vitals, like who they were and what the hell they wanted. Instead, the person asked who I was. I said my name and returned the question in a rather curt manner, pointing out that it was them who messaged me first. “I never sent you any message,” he or she said, “and just responded to yours.” Some back and forth between us and I closed the IM window, bothered. How does one not message me, yet still message me?

Some More Creative Commons Music I Enjoy

Posted on December 15, 2008 by Blather Internets Music 0

I was wandering around Jamendo, an interesting music site where you can download free music under the creative commons license, and found this interesting band: The Wind Whistles. Their sound has got a lot of folk to it, which is what really drew me to them. If you haven’t given this band a look-see (or listen-see??) I suggest you do so immediately and enjoy! That’s all for now. I promise better, more in-depth posts soon! Also: Hilarious Henry will be returning from a very lengthy hiatus soon. Over the holiday break I’m going to be drawing up strips and building a buffer. So keep an eye out.

[audio:GoldFever.mp3]

A Thanksgiving List, Of Sorts

Posted on November 27, 2008 by Blather Internets My Life 0

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope at some point you’re able to enjoy copious amounts of food and drink and are able to celebrate the season with your families. Next to Christmas, Thanksgiving has to be one of my most favorite of holidays. So, to celebrate I thought I’d give you a somewhat half-baked (get it?) top ten list about the things I’m thankful I can spend my money on.

10. Reeses Puffs – Back in the day, when I was about half my size and age, the cereal choices weren’t all that exciting. They were good, don’t get me wrong, but nothing was quite unhealthy enough to be awesome. And then one day Reeses decided to make a cereal. I’m so thankful I can go out and spend $5 on a box of Reeses balls.

9. Belt Buckles – Have you seen all the different kinds of belt buckles that exist? There’s one you can open beer bottles with. I am so thankful I can spend money on this.

8. Someone’s Grandpa’s Shirt – It brings a smile to my face and puts a skip in my step whenever I remember that I can go to the local Salvation Army or Brown Elephant and buy some western shirt that was worn by somebody’s Grandpa. They probably died in it too, which makes the $3 purchase even more awesome. I am so thankful for this.

7. $4 Coffee – I like mochas, cappucinos, and various “froofy” coffee drinks. I’m glad I can get them for roughly $4 at Starbucks or it’s step-brother, Caribou Coffee. I’m also glad I can feel cool walking to school holding a cup of said “froofiness.” Check it out folks, I’m a writer and I’m drinking COFFEE!! WOO! So yeah, I’m thankful.

6. HD TVs – I’m glad that I can go out and buy TV as big as my wall to compensate for my…lack of personality.

5. Grand Theft Auto – First of all, I’m thankful that video games exist and that there are so many choices. I’m also thankful that I can go out and get them whenever I want. But I’m most thankful for a game like GTA where it’s open ended and you can buy the services of a hooker, beat her over the head with a golf club, and then take your money back. It’s this kind of freedom to satisfy my “sexually frustrated high school” fantasies that has me ever so thankful. Here’s hoping the next one is even freer.

4. Bobby Flay Cookware – I’m thankful I can buy a bunch of cheap cookware with this guy’s mug plastered on the front of the box. I’m thankful that people can grow up to one day be the face of a pressure cooker…and Kitchen Stadium.

3. Hip Tees – There are a lot of places to buy “hip” t-shirts these days. Threadless, Snorg Tees, Jinx, Thinkgeek, every webcomic, etc. This overabundance of “witty” t-shirts makes my year! The other day I saw a shirt that had bacon coming out of a toaster. I’m so thankful I can buy that.

2. Alcohol – I’m thankful that I can have a beverage that lowers my inhibitions and my perception of the world. I also appreciate waking up the next morning in an unfamiliar place, wondering where my pants are. Isn’t booze fun? Oh yeah, it also helps with the writing process, for which I am most grateful.

1. Boobs – I could buy them for myself if I wanted, or had the money. So. Thankful.

A Thought On Method

Posted on November 21, 2008 by Blather Film Internets My Life Screenwriting 10

As a writer for any medium, you often get asked (or are made to ask yourself), “What’s your method?” Some people respond with a very complex list of how they get into the mood to write and then how they go about building their magnum opus while others go at great lengths to explain how they just do things in bursts. I tend to fall into that latter category. My writing inspiration seems to come and go, usually without much warning. I could be sitting in the classroom arguing the semantics of storytelling when this “need” will rise to the surface and eat away at me until I scribble something down. Or, I could be sitting at the local Starbucks drinking a Grande White Mocha when this happens, oftentimes in mid-sip. If I’m lucky, I’ll have a pen nearby. If not, I resort to my laptop.

There was a period of time where I tried to maintain a more organized writing method, what some might call a regimen if you will. I put this into practice during the summer, since I chose not to take any classes, and went to a coffee shop to spend a few hours a day writing. I would ask for a real “froofy” drink and then sit down and write until the battery died. I was able to get a decent amount of work done in around two to three hours (I need a new battery for the ole macbook pro). After about a week or so of this, though, I stopped and went back to my more sporadic method of writing every couple of days or whenever I felt like it.

And then I had a conversation with the Chair of the Film and Video Department at Columbia College. I (alongside a producer from our Practicum class) had pitched a story I was working on and he gave some excellent advice on how to go about fixing the then incomplete story. Later on, we bumped into each other in the hall and talked about the process of writing. I explained my exasperation at the process and he chuckled. He told me that it was a day to day process, and that in this business you need to continually write. It’s a competitive business and if you aren’t writing, you won’t make it. That hit home with me, and I decided to work on my method some. Now, I try to write something every day, whether it be my scripts, Twitter, Friendfeed, this site, or for Generation Tech. But I don’t force myself, either. If I don’t have anything, I don’t write anything.

That’s pretty much my method, explained in a bunch of barely strung together paragraphs. Hopefully the insight was helpful, and gave you something to take away. So, I turn the question to you. “What’s your method?”

Thanks goes out to Kent Nichols for making me think. :)

All The Best Problems Are My Fault

Posted on November 19, 2008 by Blather Internets 6

If you follow me on twitter, or if you just live within the vicinity, I’ve no doubt told you that I was trying to attach my domain name to a specific folder within http://www.hilarioushenry.com . You probably also caught my copious frustration as attempt after attempt to get the darned thing to work failed. I called up GoDaddy support and they were very helpful, and were even very patient with me, but the problem persisted. So, then I get a call from @godaddyguy and we went over the problem again. As it turns out, it was something I had failed to change in my WordPress settings. When I changed that, the domain latched onto the folder instantly.

Do you realize how exciting it is to know that the problem is on your end? When things go to shit, it’s a comfort to realize that you are to blame and that it’s not something on the other end, something that you can’t control. Take my past relationship with Comcast for example. All of my problems with them stemmed from something that only they could fix on their end or come over to my end and fix. Waiting on them was hell. Waiting to see where the problem existed was hell. Here, it was just a simple tweak on my end and everything was as right as rain.

That, my friends, is exciting.

And now I’ll stop rambling like a buffoon and go make some lunch.

New Site Up and Running

Posted on August 21, 2008 by Blather 0

Well, I’ve gone ahead and turned my website into a functioning wordpress blog, complete with the promise of awesomeness to come. I’m still tweaking things here and there, so you’ll see some changes as the days progress. I have more video projects to add to the video section of the site, and I will no doubt be modifying the theme to fit my personality just a little bit better. Sorry, but grey and white just AREN’T my colors. Anyhoo, that’s all for now. Be sure and bookmark this son of a bitch now and come back often!

Jonathan Hardesty
Video editor, graphic designer, producer, podcaster, and dungeon master. I do a lot of things.