rusty_armour | The Great Experiment

Current Mood: tired
Current Music: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Soundtrack

The Great Experiment

A couple of weeks ago, I did something truly radical: I got rid of the dead plants on my balcony and planted new ones -- impatiens, to be exact. I thought it would be a nice surprise if my mom found living plants when she comes to stay with me this month, especially as she loves spending time on the balcony.

Initially, I was afraid that I wouldn't be up for the challenge. I mean, I managed to kill my first set of plants despite the fact that my mom carefully grew and nurtured them and gave me explicit instructions on how to care for them. To be perfectly honest, I'd be thrilled if my latest batch of plants stays alive until after Mom's visit. In fact, I've begged and pleaded with them to do just that, telling them that they're free to die in messy horrible ways afterwards. However, so far I've been amazed and impressed by the stubbornness and sheer tenacity of these impatiens. They've survived and even flourished. Why, just a couple of days ago, a flower (an actual flower) bloomed on my Double White Impatiens. It's, like, this tiny perfect white rose, though obviously it's not a rose because it's an impatiens. Oh! And there are other itty bitty buds appearing on the Double White Impatiens and the other plants as well! It's a miracle! I haven't killed them yet! At this rate, I think they might actually live until September! Woo hoo! :-)

On a sadder note, despite my surprising success with impatiens (so far), I still have my share of problems. You see, I've developed an unhealthy and debilitating obsession…I can't stop making ANIMATED icons! It's gotten so bad that I was up till almost 4:00 in the morning designing this particular icon:

And I'm not even sure if I like it! I think it's the sombrero. I just can't seem to find one that suits (or even fits) McKay -- not even Barcelona McKay. What's truly pathetic is that I was struggling with this icon last year when I still had PSP 8 on a free trial basis. Back then, I found all the different layers didn't look good together, so this time I tried converting everything to sepia tones. Unfortunately, while the background and sombrero have some interesting coloured tints, McKay refused to be anything but black and white, no matter what I tried. Oh, well.

To date, I've made the following icons:

(I ended up giving this one to

bakerybard because she actually likes it. I'm happy it went to a good home.)

(I kept these for myself. I'm absurdly pleased with them -- probably because they're four-frame animations. Unfortunately, I think I'm the only one who thinks they're even remotely funny, so it's probably better that I did keep them for myself. *g*)

(This was basically just an experiment, and I told

dubghall she didn't have to use it, though it looks like she's planning to keep it. :-) )

(I forced these ones on poor

mytristan. I think she's beginning to wish she had never joined LJ! *g*)

Aaaarrrrgggghhh! This has got to stop! Just yesterday, I found myself trying to talk my brother into joining LJ just so I would have yet another excuse to design ANIMATED icons! This-this is a foul and perverse disease, and I must crush and destroy it! Well, at least until tomorrow. I promised myself that I couldn't make any more icons until then. *Looks longingly at the clock* Is it tomorrow yet?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I've never tried animated. Oh that would be just too dangerous.

I especially like the Bob and Doug and the 1812 ones.

I've never tried animated. Oh that would be just too dangerous.

I'm telling you: it is too dangerous! I thought making regular icons was addictive, but it's even more fun when they're ANIMATED! *g* It's actually absurdly simple to make ANIMATED icons -- at least if you have PSP Animation Shop (though I'm sure there are other programs that would work just as well).

I especially like the Bob and Doug and the 1812 ones.

Oh, good! I'm glad to hear that! :-) You're "Proudly Canadian" icon is awesome! You've obviously mastered layers! You don't need animation with an icon like that!

I love the 1812 icon. It is just so Canadian, eh. We whooped their butts and burned their house. And we'll do it again if they tick us off.

The references to Bob and Doug are appropriate tool; but the 1812 reference fits the actual episode so well.

I love the 1812 icon. It is just so Canadian, eh. We whooped their butts and burned their house. And we'll do it again if they tick us off.

Thanks! I'm glad you like the 1812 icon! :-) Uh, we might not want to resort to arson again unless the situation is really extreme. Bush declaring himself the President of Canada springs to mind. *g*

The references to Bob and Doug are appropriate tool; but the 1812 reference fits the actual episode so well.

I can't remember how the idea came to me, but "The Game" works out perfectly for a jokey 1812 reference. I mean, you've got an American and a Canadian playing a role-playing game that ends up applying to real countries and causing a war! I couldn't have asked for a better fit!

Sweetie, I don't like the icon. I love the icon. And it's mine, all mine! *does giddy icon dance*

Glad to hear the horticulture's going so well! The jade plant I got as a flatwarming gift is still alive, so I can empathize with your notdead!plant joy.

Ah, thank you! I'm very happy that you love YOUR icon! :-) Let me know if you want any more icons -- with or without references to the War of 1812. *g*

It's wonderful that your jade plant is still alive, though I'm sure you're probably a much better horticulturalist than I am. I think a large section of the planet (though obviously not

dubghall's neighbour) are better horticulturalists than I am. Still, we're talking about several months of life so far for that jade plant, so it's quite a feat even if you are Super Green Thumb. Maybe I'll get a jade plant next year...whether or not I'm trying to impress my mom again.

Congratulations on the continued life of your plants! Don't be like my neighbor. She put an aloe vera plant on the edge of her balcony this summer, and proceeded to not water it at all. I almost left her a note asking what the plant did to merit public execution, but I don't want her boyfriend to flick even more cigarette butts onto our side of the driveway.

Yikes! Your neighbour obviously isn't aware of the healing properties of the aloe vera. Although I'm pretty plant dumb, even I know that you use aloe vera for burns. Probably helps that my family is pretty accident prone, so my mom used it when we were growing up. She'd cut an actual piece of the plant and everything. Now, I think she just uses gel...but I digress. Whether the aloe vera has a useful purpose or not, it's still cruel to subject it to public execution. The only good thing about the situation is that it makes me look good -- not that a plant should have to sacrifice its life just for that purpose. I mean, I'm not that selfish. Not quite. *g*

At least you don't get slugs on a balcony right? Little b*&%$£"s ate all my laboriously nurtured plants when I was away in Wales. Why can't someone breed slugs that like weeds? Seems like that would be a win-win scenario!

Ah, man! That sucks! :-( No, thankfully I don't get slugs on my balcony. I don't think they've learned how to climb to the 8th floor yet, though I wouldn't put it past them. In fact, I saw a squirrel climbing down the wall of my parents' house on Saturday and thought it might have been bitten by a radioactive spider, but my mom explained to me that squirrels do that. Anywaaaaay, I'm very sorry to hear about your laboriously nurtured plants being ruthlessly slaughtered by slugs.

I think your idea about breeding weed-loving slugs is brilliant! It would definitely be a win-win situation! It's even environmentally friendly! No chemicals or pesticides!

We did have caterpillars that ate all of our parsley last year. Just the parsley. Maybe it was to cleanse their palates.

Huh. That's strange. I didn't know caterpillars were so particular when it came to their greens. Well, at least they just stuck to the one plant and didn't eat anything else.

Don't ya just love it? Congrats! There is something deeply satisfying about it. You should take pictures!

My sunflowers are blossoming! Hard to beat them for drama; however, I love the doubles. They are just adorable.

I'm not sure if I've reached the "love" stage. I think I'm afraid of growing too attached in case they die suddenly. However, there is something deeply satisfying about seeing plants that aren't dead and actually growing as opposed to rotting. *g*

I'm glad your sunflowers are blossoming. I always liked sunflowers, though I think they might be a bit ambitious for me -- not to mention the fact that I just don't have the space for them. However, I'm sure they must look awesome in your outdoor garden. Maybe I'll get a chance to see them next time I pay you a visit. :-)

Hee hee hee. You caught my bug! The icon making bug! Nice.

Yes, I'm afraid I have caught the icon making bug! However, I'm nowhere near your level of sophistication! Still, it's a fun (if sometimes frustrating) hobby. *g*

I love that icon! But I'm choosing not to take it personally ;).

What peeves me is that I'll make a really nice icon and then have absolutely no idea how to replicate it.

I love that icon! But I'm choosing not to take it personally ;).

LOL! I only used the "You're an idiot" icon because it was the one I had originally used for this post -- in which I was calling myself an idiot. *g* BTW the icon is meant to be a kind of Canadian in-joke. Because Canada is bilingual, everything is written in English and French, so you'll get things like cereal boxes with English on one side and French on the other.

What peeves me is that I'll make a really nice icon and then have absolutely no idea how to replicate it.

I ran into that exact problem last night, though in my case I was trying to re-do my Barcelona McKay icon (which I'm now subjecting you to) because there were (and still are) some areas I'd like to fix. However, no matter what I tried, I only seemed to make it worse. In the end, I decided to leave it faults and all. And I know this probably doesn't sound like the same problem, but there were many parts of the first version that I did want to keep but couldn't replicate.

*Sigh* I think I'm going to have to start taking notes when I work on icons, even if it's just to record things like the kind of font I'm using for the text!

ran into that exact problem last night, though in my case I was trying to re-do my Barcelona McKay icon (which I'm now subjecting you to)....

That's alright, I like it. ... because there were (and still are) some areas I'd like to fix. However, no matter what I tried, I only seemed to make it worse. In the end, I decided to leave it faults and all. And I know this probably doesn't sound like the same problem, but there were many parts of the first version that I did want to keep but couldn't replicate.

Pretty similar.

I think I'm going to have to start taking notes when I work on icons, even if it's just to record things like the kind of font I'm using for the text!

Same! I'm always doing weird stuff like adjusting hue/saturation, playing with layers, then I'll save it as a .png or whatever and then do more to it at that stage.

Good luck with the note taking :)

First of all, I think the icon you're currently sporting (it looks like a temple) is beeeeautiful! All the details and colours really pop out at you! I assume it's a picture you took on your trip.

Same! I'm always doing weird stuff like adjusting hue/saturation, playing with layers, then I'll save it as a .png or whatever and then do more to it at that stage.

Yeah, I'm notorious for adjusting hue/saturation and colour levels. My favourite adjustment layer to play with is probably brightness/contrast. I find it particularly useful if I've got a screencap I like, but it's really dark and it's hard to make out details. Usually, I try to save things as .psp files until I'm pretty sure I'm finished with them. Still, it's hard to leave icons alone even then. Like you, I've gone back to fix things, though I usually just locate the .psp file and work from that.

Good luck with the note taking :)

Thank you muchly! :-) It will be interesting to see if I actually remember to do it. I'll let you if the note taking is successful.

Yep. Made a few more icons from my trip. That one is Cape Sounio, about an hour out of Athens (I think it was an hour, I slept the whole way there and back). It's the Temple of Poseidon.
I've also got a lantern from the Kamarimonon Gate, some from Vegas, and a couple of the shuttles.

I was actually complimenting you on your Tokyo lantern icon, though the Temple of Poseidon icon is beautiful too! I was in Greece last year, though I didn't make it to the Temple of Poseidon. Anyway, I didn't even notice the blurred people until you pointed them out. Very clever! :-)

Oh, and the icon you're using in your "re: icon" comment (the Hawaiian beach) is AWESOME! The water looks gorgeous! I just want to find a way to climb into the icon and dive in!

Sometimes I come back to that, but usually I keep playing around with actual pic. I do always save them in a similar format to .psp. I just have a super old program. I really should buy one with my tax money.

You may be using a super old program, but it's obviously doing the trick! :-) I was actually lucky enough to get my copy of PSP 7 for free...And I probably shouldn't say anything else in case I incriminate myself! *g*

I will add re: icon. It was that beautiful that day. The only thing I did to the icon was crop it and blur the people in the corner.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

The Great Experiment

Animated, huh?

Re: Animated, huh?

1812

Re: 1812

no subject

no subject

Green grow the...impatiens

Re: Green grow the...impatiens

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

Are they not awesome?

Re: Are they not awesome?

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject