John Holdun

Snout and Shoulders

Our Percy figure, now with segmented arms
Our Percy figure, now with segmented arms

I took our big Percy figure, whose arms were previously stiff and shooting straight out to the sides, reinforced those limbs around where the joints would be, then cut them apart. I refined some of those new openings (e.g. adding shoulders to the upper arms) and will next be adding some wire armatures into each segment with loops at either end, where the segments will all connect and flex. I also added a layer of papier-mâché and let the figure dry upside down, in an attempt to round out some of those shapes. Remember that this was the first figure and is also one of the biggest, so this didn’t turn out super well. That’s part of why I’m taking just one piece of this project all the way through its production process—so I can avoid repeating too many mistakes. (The wire loops should have been one of the very first steps.)

I mentioned last week that I’m going to write a book about dark rides, and I didn’t think much of the intention at the time, but now my manuscript is up to almost 5000 words? I’m projecting a first draft just shy of 10,000 which I hope to punch up to 30,000, to be (self) published by October and for sale on a little table at Graveyard Swing 2.

To supplement my writing, I’ve also been reading more. I’ve finally almost gotten all the way through the textbook I bought back in July (it’s still fantastic and I’m so excited to read it all a second time), I’m maybe halfway through this thesis upon which I am withholding judgement, and I’ve been furiously adding books to my Amazon wishlist (and checking those books’ availabilities at the NYPL). I’m super intrigued by Immersive Worlds Handbook, especially because of how evocative that title is.

About half the words in my book so far are new, based on musings from this very series and conversations it has inspired, while some are words directly from past articles, like this essay on gags that just turned a year old. Happy first birthday, essay!

Speaking of birthdays, Pirates of the Caribbean opened at Disneyland 50 years ago on Saturday. That ride remains my favorite artwork ever created by humans and I’m so glad it’s still around.