Crimson Sundown

Maybe we can bring back the light

In a move that shocked the world, my wonderful wife Katie agreed to help me paint some figures.  Now I know, you are just as shocked as I was!  What is even more shocking is that, is the fact that Katie asked to paint some of my figures, I didn’t have to bribe her.

This is not the first time she has surprised me with Warhammer related activities.  It was a few months back where I needed a partner to play with as my Tyranids were going against a Tau / Space Wolves team, and Katie picked up my Orks and helped me to victory.  The more I have told her about the Orks, the more fun she had with the models and the fluff.

So of course when she wanted to paint last night, I gave her one of my Trukk’s and said, “Have fun!”  I think she’s doing a great job with it, especially considering my limited painting pot colors that I currently have.  With her painting my Orks I set back to work on finishing up my Tyranid Warriors and got 5 out of 6 finished.

Overall I am really happy with the fact that this nerdy little hobby of mine is something that I can share with the woman I love.  Have some fun as you take a look at some pictures from the event!

[View with PicLens]

Anyone who has followed my online career knows that I have periods of ludicrous updates and activity, and then I go away for a long time.  This situation, is somewhat of a middle ground as it really hasn’t been so long, but still long enough for people to question what the hell I have (or more appropriately haven’t) been doing.

It has been little over a month since my update on the RPG campaign, and I suppose I will start there because it requires the least amount of effort.  Things are going well in the adventure right now, as we are hitting a balance of extremely difficult encounters, but the characters are just on par to make it through.  For me, this is what I wanted.  The threat of death is real (we’ve had at least 2-3 close calls for PC’s), and the group is doing some really epic shit.  Kudos to them, it only gets better / worse from here on out … depending on your outlook of course.  =)

The first annual Diablo 2 Marathon weekend took place on the 13th and 14th and to say that it was a success would be an understatement.  Games started Friday night at about 9 PM with Josh, Corey, Luke, Dan, Katie and myself all going up against the minions of Diablo.  Friday night ended at 2:30 AM, with us half way through Act II.  We picked up right where we left off at about 11 AM on Saturday, minus Katie, and we kept going until 10:30 PM that night.  In that time we finished up all the acts, killed Diablo, dropped Luke off in Boonton, killed Baal, had a drinking game, took a shot at the end of each act, and did the Secret Cow Level.  Suffice to say, I still don’t think I’ve recovered after all of these days.  I have a feeling that this is not the last time we do a Diablo 2 fest, not to mention what we are going to do once Diablo 3 comes out.

Final gaming note, is that as you can see on the right, my Death Knight is doing fairly well for herself.  =)

With the geekiness out of the way, it is starting to finally hit Katie and I that the wedding is coming.  We are about 4 months away, and really there’s a lot that still needs to be taken care of and of course I feel like it could never get done in time.  I haven’t been hit by a wave of nerves or jitters yet, only a profound desire to just have the wedding already.  It’s shaping up to be one hell of a party, and really I just want to have it already.  Excitement is really starting to work it’s magic over me, and I’m fully embracing the big life change that I’m in store for.  Katie shares my sentiment.  If we could have the wedding in all of it’s glory tomorrow, we would do it.  But alas, we have some more things to finalize, and a more days to sit through, but in the end it will be worth it.

Other than that, things are quiet on this front.  I will promise you further updates to come, and in a more timely fashion.  I also promise you that there will be a lull.  Hopefully not immediately after I post this, but one can never be so sure.  Until that day then …

The Mission:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past – frequently simple goals such as New Year’s resolutions. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organizing and timing some tasks.

Some common goal setting tips:

1. Be decisive. Know exactly what you want, why you want it, and how you plan to achieve it.
2. Stay Focused. Any goal requires sustained focus from beginning to end. Constantly evaluate your progress.
3. Welcome Failure. Frequently, very little is learned from a venture that did not experience failure in some form. Failure presents the opportunity to learn and makes the success more worthy.
4. Write down your goals. It clarifies your thinking and reinforces your commitment.
5. Keep your goals in sight. Review them frequently, and ensure that they are always at the forefront of your thinking.

And here’s my list! I’ll keep you updated whenever I can, and please feel free to try and make your own list. Thanks to Liv for the idea!

Red – Completed tasks!
Blue – In progress tasks …

Start Date: Saturday, December 13, 2008
End Date: Friday, September 9, 2011

1. Take a trip to New Orleans
2. Lose 20 pounds (10/20)
3. Post on my Blog at least once a week (16/142)
4. Record a non-RPG related Podcast at least once a month (16/32)
5. Follow through and actually have CosWatch at an Anime Convention, with live coverage on Crimson Sundown *May 22, Anime Boston!*
   
6. Organize a game of 5-on-5 basketball with my friends
7. Plan out a Fantasy Football live draft BBQ with 10 teams
8. Go see The Living End, and Ben Folds live (1/2) *Update* Going to see Ben Folds on February 14!
   
9. Travel to Japan
10. Completely fill up my 80gb Zune with only music (48/80)
11. Go see at least 6 basketball games (6/6)
12. Fully paint my Tyranid 40k Army
13. Get 100% Xbox 360 achievements for at least 5 major game releases (1/5)
14. Go out drinking with Chris & KFJ and whoever else wants to come, at least once a month (15/32)
15. At some point go to Penny Arcade Expo (PAX)
16. Compile and print out the history of Jimmy Jackal
17. Have a Diablo 2 LAN Party Weekend with a full team of 4 people *Completed March 13-14!  Amazing time*
    
18. Have a personalized jersey with my last name and number (Valenti / 57) for Football, Basketball, and Hockey … Baseball blows =)
19. Take an Olde Time Photo with Katie (lots of cleavage) and the rest of the group
20. Bring my World of Darkness Adventure to a conclusion
21. Draw a badass picture of Anime Joey V, without anyone else helping me and frame it
22. Get my third tattoo of a scarab
23. Go over 100 mph in my Mustang *Completed on July 18, 2009 on the way to KFJs!  105 mph!*
    
24. Take up some sort of gym workout schedule or a martial art *Bally’s for the win!*
    
25. Tell Katie that I love her in some fashion, every day
26. Buy no more than one video game a month
27. Have sex outside under a full moon (hawwwwwwwwwwwt)
28. Go out more, and see at least 10 movies in the theater … make sure Katie picks 5 of them. (10/10) | (5/5)
29. Own at least two nice suits (1/2)
30. Keep my beard / goatee trimmed and under control … don’t get lazy!
31. Create a new RPG adventure, D&D or any other system that is not WoD
32. Have to stimulate the mind, so read 10 full books that are not RPG related (1/10)
33. Only eat out for lunch once a week when at work at the very most
34. Create another Anime Music Video and enter it into a contest
35. Create an online catalog of my music, movies, and video games
36. Make a Harry Potter cosplay at some point, Slyverian ftw
37. Own a Johnny Utah and Shane Falco jersey
38. Host at least two themed movie marathons each year for a new tradition *Russelathon & Halloween in one year, tradition it is!*
    
39. Play paintball *it nearly killed me!*
    
40. Make it part of my routine to take the recyclables out each week
41. Keep my Mustang clean: Wash the windows more, and take it to the car wash more, about once every three months, and throw out the trash
42. Play with Nerf Guns more, go play Nerf with KFJ
43. Don’t always have to come to me, so go out to everyone else’s house more
44. Create a full folder of music, stories and podcasts for everyone in the nWoD adventure
45. Buy a house
46. Once I have enough room, get a dog
47. Visit my Central & South Jersey friends more, at least 5 times each. KFJ (3/5) Paul (5/5) Josh (5/5)
48. Finally get a chance to try absinthe *Yay, thanks Liv and Dan!*
    
49. Be able to order a fish dish that is not sushi, out at a restaurant and actually enjoy it *Chilean Sea Bass rules*
50. Successfully keep a Betta fish that will survive for longer than two weeks
51. I love Anime, but I’ve been lazy. Watch some new series or finish up the ones that I started (0/5)
52. Keep the apartment clean, so clean at least one thing every day *Respect the chore chart!*
    
53. Learn enough Japanese so that I can make my way around Tokyo with little issues if I had to
54. See a Cirque show live *Completed, saw Beatles Love in Las Vegas!*
    
55. Add Photo Gallery capabilities to Crimson Sundown.com
56. I’ve got a camera, so I need to use it! Take at the very least take one picture a week, no matter what!
57. Wear a bright pink item of clothing in public
58. Donate blood
59. Have a candlelit dinner with Katie
60. Have a professional massage
61. Learn to play craps *Now just time to go out and play!*
    
62. Go skinny dipping
63. Compile a list of 50 favorite films
64. Compile a list of 50 favorite songs
65. Compile a list of 50 favorite albums
66. Play poker in a Las Vegas poker room
67. Fire a real gun at a shooting range
68. Sell off my physical CD collection, whether all together or in piece meal *Pawned it off on my Brother-in-Law!*
    
69. Go sledding! *Went during PBL session #2!  We nearly died!*
    
70. Take Katie to a Hockey game
71. See a baseball game at Fenway Park
72. Go to the West Chester, PA Food Festival
73. Go to a place that is advertised as being haunted
74. Do 100 sit-ups without taking a break (best: 30/100)
75. Do 50 push-ups without taking a break (best: 25/50)
76. Get a good kite and fly it
77. Host and podcast a beer tasting night
78. Starting right now, play 10 different board games that I haven’t played before (10/10) *Red Dragon Inn, Candyland Crap fest, Lord of the Fries, Bang!, Hunter: Deadly Prey, Settlers of Catan,  Fury of Dracula, Betrayal at House on the Hill, Once Upon A Time, Two random games at Anime Boston*
79. Hand write a blog entry and scan it to the blog
80. Attend a comedy show
81. Document a “day in my life” with photos
82. Write ten short stories that lead into my eventual new RPG adventure (0/10)
83. Slowly build up a better work wardrobe
84. See 50 of the top 100 moves on Bravo’s Top 100 Horror Movie Moments (34/50)
    
85. Hit golf balls at a driving range and see how far I can hit it
86. Get rid of all the clothes I don’t like or can’t fit into
87. Use a teeth whitening kit, because it couldn’t hurt
88. Go to a murder mystery dinner or B&B
89. Sing “Bizarre Love Triangle” at a Karaoke bar somewhere
90. Donate $100 to Child’s Play Charity
91. Grow out the Obi-Wan beard again and dress up for Halloween *Did it for Kenny’s party!*
    
92. Go see my very first professional football game
93. Paint a picture!
94. Complete a 26-Things Photo Scavenger Hunt
95. Be able to complete 25 different “6-Degrees of Separation” , just by  memory, no IMDB! (14/25)
    *Liv*
    Sandra Bullock to Tobey Maguire
    • Sandra Bullock in Speed with Keanu Reeves
    • Keanu Reeves in Devil’s Advocate with Al Pacino
    • Al Pacino in Ocean’s Thirteen with Brad Pitt
    • Brad Pitt in Interview with a Vampire with Kirstin Dunst
    • Kirstin Dunst in Spider Man with Tobey Maguire

    Sandra Bullock to Michael Duncan Clarke

    • Sandra Bullock in Forces of Nature with Ben Affleck
    • Ben Affleck in Armageddon with Michael Duncan Clark

    Tobey Maguire to Richard Gere

    • Tobey Maguire in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas with Benecio Del Toro
    • Benecio Del Toro in Snatch with Brad Pitt
    • Brad Pitt in Ocean’s Twevel with Catherine Zeta Jones
    • Catherine Zeta Jones in Chicago with Richard Gere

    Tobey Maguire to Gary Oldman

    • Tobey Maguire in Cider House Rules with Michael Caine
    • Michael Caine in Batman Begins with Gary Oldman

    Sandra Bullock to Luke Wilson

    • Sandra Bullock in Practical Magic with Dianne Wiest
    • Dianne Wiest in Birdcage with Gene Hackman
    • Gene Hackman in Royal Tenenbaums with Luke Wilson

    *Katie*
    Liam Neeson to Kevin Bacon

    • Liam Neeson in Star Wars: The Phantom Menance with Samuel L. Jackson
    • Samuel L. Jackson in Pulp Fiction with Bruce Willis
    • Bruce Willis in Charlie’s Angels 2 with Demi Moore
    • Demi Moore in A Few Good Men with Kevin Bacon

    Nicole Kidman to Anne Hathaway

    • Nicole Kidman in Days of Thunder with Tom Cruise
    • Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible 3 with Phillip Seymore Hoffman
    • Phillip Seymore Hoffman in Doubt with Meryl Streep
    • Meryl Stree in The Devil Wears Prada with Anne Hathaway

    Tom Welling to Rosario Daweson

    • Tom Welling in Cheaper by the Dozen II with Eugene Levey
    • Eugene Levey in The Man with Samuel L. Jackson
    • Samuel L. Jackson in Pulp Fiction with Bruce Willis
    • Bruce Willis in Sin City with Rosario Daweson

    Kevin Bacon to Tom Greene

    • Kevin Bacon in A Few Good Men with Demi Moore
    • Demi Moore in Charlie’s Angels 2 with Drew Barrymore
    • Drew Barrymore in Charle’s Angels with Tom Greene

    Rosie Perez to John Malkavich

    • Rose Perez in White Man Can’t Jump with Woody Harleson
    • Woody Harleson in Natural Born Killers with Robert Downey, Jr.
    • Robert Downey Jr. in Iron Man with Samuel L. Jackson
    • Samuel L. Jackson in 1408 with John Cusak
    • John Cusak in ConAir with John Malkavich

    Madonna to Rhea Pearlman

    • Madonna in A League of Their Own with Tom Hanks
    • Tom Hanks in Catch Me If You Can with Christopher Walken
    • Christopher Walken in Batman Returns with Danny Devito
    • Danny Devito in Matilda with Rhea Pearlman

    Helen Hunt to Keenen Ivory Waynes

    • Helen Hunt in Twister with Bill Paxton
    • Bill Paxton in Titanic with Leonardo DiCaprio
    • Leonardo DiCraprio in Man in the Iron Mask with Jeremy Irons
    • Jeremy Irons in Dungeon & Dragons with Marlon Waynes
    • Marylon Waynes in Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood with Keenen Ivory Waynes

    Lindsey Lohen to Sean Connery

    • Lindsey Lohen in Freaky Friday with Jamie Lee Curtis
    • Jamie Lee Curtis in True Lies with Bill Paxton
    • Bill Paxton in Tombstone with Kurt Russel
    • Kurt Russel in Grindhouse with Nicolas Cage
    • Nicolas Cage in The Rock with Sean Connery

    John Stamos to Kenneth Branagh

    • John Stamos in Party Monster with Seth Green
    • Seth Green in Old Dogs with John Travolta
    • John Travolta in The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 with Denzel Washington
    • Denzel Washington in Much Adu About Nothing with Kenneth Branagh
96. Own season tickets to the Nets or Knicks
97. Create and document an awesome dickerdoodle
98. Be able to actually suffer through and complete any one game in the Metal Gear Solid franchise
99. Own a Blu-Ray player and a TV that will make it worthwhile, immediately playing “Shoot ‘Em Up” *Woo, looks amazing!*
    
100. Sell something on E-Bay
101. At the end of the allotted time, take one booze shot for each item that is not completed

G-d be with me, because this is going to be crazy!

As of yesterday, Katie and I have our wedding reception hall, and our church all set.  Official date is August 1st, 2009.  Mark it down!

Also if you could be so kind as to keep me posted on what your official mailing addresses are, that would be a huge help for the purposes of mailing out invitations.  Thank you.  =)