Up, Up and Away

Ever since man has looked toward the heavens, he's dreamed of being amongst the clouds. Our dreams are there.. our imaginations.. our gods.. Even now, with jet and propellor propelled vehicle transportation (fancy shmancy for airplanes), we still dream of unfettered access to the heavens. Feeling the wind on our faces, seeing with unrestricted access, the world below. Romantics have often used this analogy in terms of endearment, whether it be for close friends or lovers entanglements; giving our hearts wing, our eyes to the stars, our souls to the heavens.

Since 1783, when the Montgolfier brothers (Joseph Michel and Jacques-Etienne) successfully managed to fly a manned balloon 80 feet (tethered.. that was as long as the tether was), hot air balloons have captured our imaginations. Even though the technology might be considered outdated, people have enthusiastically and passionately still pursued it (as evidenced by Per Lindstrand and Richard Branson setting world records with their trans-Pacific flight in 1991).

My imagination is no different. I dream of the smell of the air so high, the creak of a basket as it shifts; It seems to me to be terribly exciting to see the world from that perspective, having no barrier between myself and the wind. And I cannot imagine not wanting to share that with someone I care about.

With that in mind, I've created a very special couple's vehicle for Second Life. Now, I'm not the best vehicle creator, so it's taken me some time to release this special object, just simply because I wanted to do it right. I started with a simple balloon shape, made a frame.. and made it in the colors I find the most pleasing. Beautiful shaded ivory tones and a copper metal basket.. with copper highlights. As I was showing it to my cousin, Kembri.. she mentioned it would look lovely with a more colorful balloon. I stepped back and thought about it, so I decided to give it some different options. Then I thought, well, not everybody loves copper and brass the way I do, so I gave it the options for two wicker baskets. This gives the owner the option to customize the balloon up to 15 combinations.



As I pondered what kind of animations to make for it, I had a fair idea of what I wanted. I wanted a personal, intimate vehicle. Something two friends could feel like they were sharing secrets in.. something you could float on the wind and idly chat as you looked over the landscape. So, I made two custom set of synched animations (4 animations) for just.. friends. I also wanted some very intimate animations, so I made a kiss.. just a standing kiss, that seemed very sweet. In case the two passengers are more than friends, this vehicle carries 3 "cuddle" positions. These positions are adjustable, as every avatar is completely different.



Lastly, I've experimented with so many different vehicle engines. There are balloons that go quickly, bank, fly by at the speed of an airship. This is a hot air balloon. I wanted it to feel like a hot air balloon. You have control over the up and down.. and some moderate control over turning the balloon and moving in a direction (and this was done deliberately) but nothing is fast. No movement is that of propulsion. When you rise, a burner with a flame kicks on at the base of the bladder.. when you stop rising, it kicks off. I've even given you a "drift" option, so.. you can rise above the city, or the sea.. and just drift, while conversing or.. sharing an intimate moment.




And should someone want to tag along, there is a sit option for a 3rd passenger: Hanging off the side of the balloon by one hand. Chuckles Can be purchased at XstreetSL for $500.00L.

Special thanks to Elfod Nemeth for the .. generous use of his avatar for the photos.

Tick Tock, The Mice Went Up the Clock

When I was a child.. I had a fascination with my grandfather and his cuckoo clock. It wasn't terribly fancy, but you had to pull the chains to pull the weights back up, and the bird would quickly spring out and cuckoo. When he died, no kidding, so did his clock. My parents left it hanging on the wall, though it no longer kept time.
This started a lifetime love of clocks and a fascination with the more eclectic versions. Somewhere in my mind, that cuckoo clock became imbued with my grandfather's spirit.. thusly to me, ALL clocks have a bit of that, Whether it be their owners, the creators, or just Father Time himself.

It's a dream of mine to actually own a grandfather clock. As heirloom pieces and specialized clocks, they can be rather expensive, but I do love them and just the feeling they cast on a house. There are many myths and legends surrounding them.. including the one where they gained their name:

Previous to the 1870's, they were known as Floor Clocks. During the 19th century, two brothers named Jenkins worked as managers at the George Hotel in Piercebridge, County Durham, England. One of the brothers died and, according to the story told to Henry Clay Work in 1875, the clock (made by James Thompson) began to lose time. Repair attempts were made by the hotel staff and local clockmakers, but failed. When the other brother died at the age of 90, the clock broke down altogether, and was never repaired in remembrance of the brothers.

H. C. Work decided to write a song about the story of this clock in 1876, which he called My Grandfather's Clock. The song became popular, and it is from this song that the current usage derives.
-Wikipedia

They're also heavily noted in many nostalgic short stories, many whimiscal tales, and horror stories. (I'll cite the example of the huge clock in "The Last Unicorn" because that's what immediately comes to mind.

I wanted to make a Grandfather Clock, and really wanted to emulate the cabinet maker, Jake Cress (he's an artist, he truly truly is). Hopefully my Grandfather Clock outwardly shows that "spirit" that I see in all clocks.

Hickory Dickory Dock
The mouse ran up the clock
The clock struck one and down he ran
Hickory Dickory Dock

Getting tired of mice continually running up him, this Grandfather Clock has "caught" these two unlucky mice. With his merry winking face, the sculpted hands keep the time to whatever timezone you wish.. and chimes "Hickory Dickory Dock".
I took special care with this item. Each bit is custom sculpted and textured by me. These are my own sounds, and I really wanted to give you a story. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did making it.

Because this item is so specialized, it is available as copy only, and may be purchased off Xstreet: CFF - Grandfather Clock - Hickory Dickory Dock for $750.00 Lindens.

A Summery Edition

A few weeks ago, I was perusing pictures of the Winchester Mansion out in California. This eclectic house was built by Sarah Winchester who, for her own reasons, kept the house in a constant state of construction. She believed that ghosts of the people killed by the firearms created by her family roamed the house. Thus, it's become a tourist stop (I'd love to go there), a place of peculiar interest, and a semi-mecca for people who have a love of the occult. The house has stairs leading nowhere, doors that open to nothing, rooms askew.. it's an architectural oddity. And in the midst of these pictures of spider webs in stained glass, stairs being where they have no business being, etc.. I saw pictures of the greenhouse attached to the mansion.

Every victorian mansion had one, either attached to the main house or stand alone.. but they had one. In comparison to the rest of the house, the Greenhouse looked.. normal. I sat back, and thought.. something should be different. It's so, bright.. and normal looking.

So, I set out to create the greenhouse that in my mind's eye, should have been the Winchester greenhouse. It's solid looking, highly detailed.. and was created to be the focal point of a build.
Everything from the baked shadows on the floor to the door creaking open and closed is designed to give a feeling of ambiance. As you walk up the stained concrete steps, a broken hasp lies on the stoop, part of the broken lock still hanging next to the door. Vines, breaking free from the crates that brought them, have taken over a full end of the greenhouse (custom plants, designed by me)while a planter of vines sits further in. Unused trellises are leaned up against the glass and a work table is set with bags of potting soil left on the shelf below. Strange and unusual diagrams and drawings are scattered about the table where a gramophone/victrola and a potted plant sit. Touch the gramophone, it cranks.. then you hear the hiss of the wax record before Chopin's Waltz in A minor begins. A few steps toward the fountain.. and the door slams shut. The fountain sits at the very back in a round brick centerpiece, the whole greenhouse drawing you toward it. It bubbles serenely along as you sit at the edge of the cistern and dabble your fingers in the water.

This piece is primmy.. but I really wanted to give it the detail it had in my mind's eye. The individual objects may be removed.. but it's to be taken as a whole. It's not the Winchester Greenhouse.. but it is, to my mind.. what should have been there.


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Addendum: Many thanks to the Primgraph for kindly mentioning CFF in their coverage of the Home Expo 2010.
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