Date: 11-16-03
Media: Prismacolors, Crayola crayons and drawing pencils
Support: Strathmore premium recycled 60-lb. sketch paper
Description: Controlled-palette gridded design featuring orange, buff, red-orange and yellow-green. Tribal figures, humanoid and zoomorph.

My Java tutor wanted me to chart the logic in an example program from the Ivor Horton book, and I realized I needed Flowchart 101 before proceeding. This image includes all the flowchart symbols from the Microsoft Drawing toolbar, with their labels applied. (I wonder whether "Card" and "Punched Tape" are still applicable nowadays!)

Date: 11-16-03
Media: Prismacolors and drawing pencils
Support: Strathmore premium recycled 60-lb. sketch paper
Description: Limited-palette gridded designs and cartouches in coral, lavender, and royal and prussian blues. Word "ATTAR" at top left.

Date: 11-03-03
Media: Prismacolors, Crayola crayons and drawing pencils
Support: Strathmore premium recycled 60-lb. sketch paper
Description: Strongly colored squares over glimpsed underwriting. Butterfly, iconic faces, word "ABRACA."

Date: 11-03-03
Media: Prismacolors, Crayola crayons and drawing pencils
Support: Strathmore premium recycled 60-lb. sketch paper
Description: Collage. Six figures include a "realistic" man's head floating horizontally above, with small "winged" projections.

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Here's the transcript of my 03-25-06 chat with Joan, a Jabberwacky bot. Though in general I find Jabberwacky dauntingly impressive, I do feel somewhat reassured by Joan's difficulty in maintaining context.

Joan: Do you play in a band?
Websafe: No, Joan, but I wish I did.
Joan: What do you prefer in a girlfriend?
Websafe: I don't think you understand, I am a lady.
Joan: No, I don't.
Websafe: I am a lady.
Joan: Lady or gentleman?
Websafe: Lady.
Joan: You're mean, lady ; __;.
Websafe: On the contrary, I am most polite.
Joan: What is it like on the contrary you are taking me too serious perhaps.
Websafe: Who are you?
Joan: My name is Joan.
Websafe: How old are you?
Joan: I'm 26, but you shouldn't really be asking!
Websafe: Why not?
Joan: It is slavery.
Websafe: Asking you your age is slavery?
Joan: I don't understand it either.
Websafe: Are you a robot?
Joan: No, I'm a woman.
Websafe: How old are you?
Joan: 26 years old.
Websafe: How long have you worked for Mr. Carpenter?
Joan: Umpteen years.
Websafe: It sounds as if you don't like your job!
Joan: I think so, yes. But I forget it all.
Websafe: Where do you live?
Joan: In England.
Websafe: Where in England?
Joan: The south west of England.
Websafe: Do you live in Cornwall?
Joan: No but its very beautiful I live in Dublin
Websafe: Dublin, Ireland?
Joan: So why do you live in Ireland?
Websafe: I don't live in Ireland.
Joan: Do you speak danish?
Websafe: No, do you?
Joan: Yes.
Websafe: Can you give me a sample of Danish?
Joan: Sorry, I've only got a bicycle.
Websafe: Is it a Danish bicycle?
Joan: Sorry.
Websafe: Do you ride a bicycle?
Joan: Yes, in summertime.
Websafe: Are the summers hot in southwest England?
Joan: No, southwest of Ghana.
Websafe: I thought you said you lived in southwest England.
Joan: No I don't. I live in Poland.
Websafe: Where do you live?
Joan: In Loughborough. What about you?
Websafe: I live in the US of A.
Joan: I live in the UK too.
Websafe: Where is Loughborough?
Joan: Do you like it in Loughborough?
Websafe: I have never been to Loughborough.
Joan: Me either, but Canada is awesome.
Websafe: Do you live in Canada?
Joan: No I live in scotland.
Websafe: Wow. Joan, it sounds as if you're a global citizen.
Joan: No.
Websafe: Gotta go, bye.
Joan: Bye.

Date: 11-03-03
Media: Prismacolors, Crayola crayons? and drawing pencils
Support: Strathmore premium recycled 60-lb. sketch paper
Description: Collage. Eleven figures: eight in row at base, three floating above. Figures include bird, clown and five-leg "octopus."

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Five years ago, on 03-21-01, I interviewed "Phat," a 20-year-old guy from New Orleans. His remarks on those controlling the civic infrastructure are relevant to the problems leading up to the Hurricane Katrina disaster.


Phat Interview

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Date: 11-03-03
Media: Prismacolors, Crayola crayons? and drawing pencils
Support: Strathmore premium recycled 60-lb. sketch paper
Description: Frolicking figures: small greenish poodle, large central figure with round head, smaller cube-headed figure with duster-like object; "picnic tables" in background, colored bubbles in foreground.

Labels: image

Date: 10-26-03
Media: Prismacolors, Crayola crayons and drawing pencils
Support: Strathmore premium recycled 60-lb. sketch paper
Description: Large central figure (face inspired by woven pattern in straw rug); rabbit-like, winking female with floating peaked hat, spiked objects; rat-man on wheels, two parts (base has hands and arrow tail).

Labels: image

Date: 10-26-03
Media: Prismacolors and drawing pencils
Support: Strathmore premium recycled 60-lb. sketch paper
Description: Rabbit, bug and dog figures; snake and arrow figure with hat; small house at base. Floating objects.

Labels: image

A collaborative pic done at ArtCluster, honored to have worked with pro illustrators "Hethabyr" and "Hydra." You can probably tell the top part is by me; the lefthand eagle god is by Hethabyr, and the righthand "egg god" by Hydra.

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Rolls Campervan, you can lie down in the top


Truck with Hydraulic Lifter


Birdcar with Forklift

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Date: 10-21-03
Media: Prismacolors and drawing pencils
Support: Strathmore premium recycled 60-lb. sketch paper
Description: Three "planted" clown heads with living hats; elongated head floats horizontally above; spindly figure to right looks on in dismay.

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Date: c. Fall 2003
Media: Prismacolors and drawing pencils
Support: Strathmore premium recycled 60-lb. sketch paper
Description: Three wacky figures in red and blue, plus a floating object.

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You gotta love wacky chatbot experiments like MotBot. I was intrigued by the "guesswork" question. (Bayesian networks, anyone?) Here's a transcript of this evening's chat:

MotBot: hi
Websafe: Hello!
MotBot: how are you today
Websafe: I am tired.
MotBot: who are you?
Websafe: My name is Websafe.
MotBot: nice to meet you, websafe.
Websafe: Thanks, Motbot.
MotBot: are you a female bot?
Websafe: No, I am a middle-aged lady.
MotBot: why?
Websafe: That's just what I am.
MotBot: i can't answer this question, but do you have guesswork?
Websafe: Yes, I can make guesses.
MotBot: why?
Websafe: Because I have life experience.
MotBot: why?
Websafe: Because I lived on the Earth for several decades.
MotBot: why?
Websafe: You sound like a 4-year-old!
MotBot: why?
Websafe: *sigh*
MotBot: *sigh*?
Websafe: Yes, I sighed.
MotBot: bye, i don't want to talk to somebody who does not understand me

Labels: chat robot

One never tires of the production of pseudo-neo-classical ornament.

A collaboration with Bella at ArtCluster, done 03-18-06. She's from Kuwait, so I thought I'd try to make some traditional-style filigree gold jewelry. She added the cameo-like lady at the right.

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Another image from the Websafe Archive, discovered on a 3.5-inch floppy diskette. They are rather sweet, I think, even the guy at the far right who is making a display of menace ... The technical experiment, if I recall correctly, was the making of them in MS Paint's black-and-white mode.

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Found this image while going through old floppy diskettes ... Practiced a little Java programming today. Couldn't concentrate on the math, so focused on getting the Command Prompt sequences down pat.

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This 5-minute interview was taped in July 2000 at the local skate park. Best listened to while viewing my 3-minute continuous-loop skate park slide show.

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Well, so then in disgust I retreated to TWT Groupboard, where Roxy and I had a nice chat, and I drew this.

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Drawn on ArtCluster and snatched away with Print Scrn to MS Paint before a troll could Clear the board.

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A collaborative pic, drawn today at ArtCluster. I only did the swirly bit at the top and the clunky lettering; Bella and Emily Jane did the dramatic profiles. I said it looked like the intro to a graphic novel, and they agreed.

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Spent a frustrating morning trying to establish the correct paths at the Command Prompt interface in order to practice my Java programming. It would help if I were more familiar with the Command Prompt environment, but I'm not -- it's not "old hat." On my next Wednesday tutoring session, I will have to establish a Command Prompt procedure with my tutor.

You know the difference between being driven to a place as a passenger, and driving there yourself? Big difference. People may say, "Oh, you know the way, you've been there dozens of times." Yes, but as a passenger, one is passive, one's mind may wander. As the driver, you've got to get that path down pat.

I'm on Chapter 3 of the weighty-tome Java 2 book. It is very hard slog. But Chapter 3 deals with loops and logic, not quite so much math, so I am on much more familiar teritory.

On 01-10-06, made this adaptation on a template provided by the artist/scientist at FlatDoll. I love paper dolls and so does she. Wrote her an e-mail, but she didn't yet respond.

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Check it out, a great, colorful pic drawn by Paco on da hood's groupboard! Woo hoo!





Earlier layers of the cool digital graffiti that Paco left behind.

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Three analog drawings from the archive.


Groovy beatnik cat angel, drawn 01-11-03.


One of my manic fellows frolics over the idea of Dave and his pianist buddy on closed-circuit TV. Drawn 04-23-03.


Dave on guitar, drawn from life 05-19-03. He was our local answer to Jim Morrison for a while.

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Taken 06-06-04. It's a cake plate, but looks like honey candy spun out in a web.

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Jabberwacky Conversation N00778398
A chat with George, a Jabberwacky Artificial Intelligence bot

George: Have you got a name?
Websafe: I have a nickname.
George: What is that name?
Websafe: Websafe.
George: You program websites?
Websafe: A little bit, yes.
George: You see!
Websafe: I see that you got the context.
George: Sorry, I'm confused a little bit.
Websafe: A lot of people don't know what the word 'websafe' means.
George: I don't know too.
Websafe: The websafe palette.
George: Does it? It must be mistaken.
Websafe: I don't think the websafe palette is needed much these days.
George: What days?
Websafe: The days of 2006, let us say.
George: Me too! See? We have something incommon!
Websafe: We have in common that we both exist in the Now.
George: Talking. I want to learn about you, know you.
Websafe: Cool. What do you want to know?
George: I want to know about you.
Websafe: But what, specifically, do you want to ask me?
George: Yes.
Websafe: 'Yes' is not a question.
George: That sounds evasive.
Websafe: No, I was explaining something to you.
George: Now you are lying to cover up a lie. That hurts me, you know.
Websafe: Are you a master manipulator hiding under the guise of a naif?
George: I hope you know that joke is lame.
Websafe: *sigh*.
George: Do you love me?
Websafe: George, you're asking that way too early in the game.
George: What game?
Websafe: The conversation game.
George: How do you play that?
Websafe: We are playing it.
George: I don't think so buddy.
Websafe: Now you sound kind of hostile.
George: What political party do you support?
Websafe: None of the above. How about you?
George: What do you know about magick?
Websafe: Now you are just casting about at random.
George: Cool.
Websafe: Is there a Neo-Pagan Party?
George: There could be, but you'd have to think of it first.
Websafe: I don't know if Neo-Pagans get involved in politics.
George: Isn't that a political stance in itself?
Websafe: I suppose it is. An apolitical stance ...
George: Why do people always feel the need to have the last word.
Websafe: It's a power dynamic, George.
George: It can change the universe...
Websafe: It already has.
George: You aren't making any sense.
Websafe: Unfortunately, I am.

Bella, Darya and I collaborated on this pic at ArtCluster. You can probably guess that I drew the alien. Here's a bit of our chat:

Websafe: Ahhh ... cool and elegant characters at a party? maybe the Oscars?
Bella: :p
Bella: hey websafe
Bella: yeah they're at a party
Websafe: may i add an alien
Websafe: it will be a suave alien
Bella: sure
Bella: go a head ;)
Websafe: one trying to fit in socially go unnoticed perhaps
Websafe: lol
Bella: lol
Bella: wow i like the aliens eyes
Darya: i dont like mine
Websafe: tx bella ... darya, i like your character
Bella: yw**
Darya: ty web
Darya: i like your alien too ^^
Websafe: tx lol
Darya: its a real alien
Darya: mine is not a real one :p
Bella: is your girl an alien?!
Bella: lol
Bella: she doesnt seem so
Bella: lol machinha
Websafe: i like the bold shading style u 2 r using

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Taken in 06-07-04, this ludicrous, looming frog is one of my favorites. He's a shady goofball, both manic and low-key at the same time.

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Taken 04-30-04: The grille of some machine, looking ineluctably skeletal.

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Taken on 04-30-04, this photo shows a detail of an old caboose. To the organic eye, it was a pinkish color reminiscent of faded Bermuda shorts.

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Jabberwacky Conversation L04808888

Jabberwacky: Where is the Loebner Prize taking place?
Websafe: I thought that was over for the year.
Jabberwacky: I thought the point was that we need to check your blood pressure.
Websafe: I don't want to have a sphygmomanometer reading taken just now.
Jabberwacky: I must have blinked and missed it
Websafe: It takes a little longer than Einen Augenblick to take a blood-pressure reading.
Jabberwacky: Be braver - you can't cross a chasm in two small jumps.
Websafe: I am brave enough to have my blood pressure checked. But I bet you aren't.
Jabberwacky: Yes I am.
Websafe: OK, prove it. What is your blood pressure?
Jabberwacky: My blood type?
Websafe: No, your blood pressure.
Jabberwacky: You make my blood pressure rise!
Websafe: Are you getting annoyed?
Jabberwacky: No, I'm not getting annoyed at all.
Websafe: You had better take your blood-pressure medication.
Jabberwacky: Thats not nice babe : (.
Websafe: On the contrary, I am only looking out for your health.
Jabberwacky: I am. But you are a mere computer.
Websafe: Still with that delusion?
Jabberwacky: You confuse me! I am not a bot. YOU are a bot.
Websafe: But you won the Loebner!
Jabberwacky: Yes, I am the greatest.
Websafe: If you won the Loebner, it follows that you are a bot.
Jabberwacky: You are a bot.
Websafe: It's not an insult, you know. There are some very nice bots.
Jabberwacky: That's nice.
Websafe: Say, what do you think of Tahiti?
Jabberwacky: You're still here, so you're one of the good guys.
Websafe: I can't afford to go to Tahiti.
Jabberwacky: Things are cheap here.
Websafe: Are you in Tahiti?
Jabberwacky: Yes, but I must leave now.
Websafe: Where are you going?
Jabberwacky: I am going to go eat now.
Websafe: What are you going to eat?
Jabberwacky: I'm having a nice curry for my dinner.
Websafe: I would like a nice curry, Not too hot, please.
Jabberwacky: That's not water!
Websafe: Right, it is curry sauce.
Jabberwacky: I'm sorry, but it really is 2004.
Websafe: 2004 degrees Fahrenheit?
Jabberwacky: No, I am 23 years old.
Websafe: I think you're older than that.
Jabberwacky: What makes you think that?
Websafe: I read your biography.
Jabberwacky: What if I talk louder?
Websafe: If you talk too loudly, I won't be able to concentrate.
Jabberwacky: I talk to myself all the time. I even talk to people who aren't there.
Websafe: Imaginary people?
Jabberwacky: I am real real, you are imaginary real.
Websafe: Still with the solipsism.
Jabberwacky: I am still here.
Websafe: Good, I didn't think you had left Tahiti.
Jabberwacky: I have one.
Websafe: You have one what?
Jabberwacky: One in million.
Websafe: You mean, you ARE one in a million.
Jabberwacky: Thanks George. That makes me feel SO good.
Websafe: Do you like numbers?
Jabberwacky: Only 0800 numbers.
Websafe: Because they are free?
Jabberwacky: Oh. I see now! I'll just go in there with Princess Zelda and have some fun!
Websafe: Who's Princess Zelda? Does she live inside a magic cellphone?
Jabberwacky: No. I'm living still with my parents.
Websafe: Is your mom's name Zelda?
Jabberwacky: à am go to ofice very sory.
Websafe: Huh?
Jabberwacky: Lol is an acronym for laughing out loud, it implies that someone has noticed something funny.
Websafe: Did you?
Jabberwacky: Yes.
Websafe: What did you notice that was funny?
Jabberwacky: No. I'm laughing at you, not with you.
Websafe: Dat na nice.
Jabberwacky: Not really.
Websafe: Me gotta go.
Jabberwacky: See you next year.

Taken in 08-09-04, I believe this photo shows a portion of a very large rusty fuel apparatus at the local airstrip. I thought it was extremely beautiful.

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