My CafePress Dexter snafu

I write this to the distant sound of hysterical laughter as Meridee watches 'Elf' in the living room.
A top notch movie I must confess.
Oh, don't expect any cute fluffy bunnies in this post: There aren't any.
So anyway, CafePress, the site where you load your genius designs onto all manner of merchandise and just wait for the public to discover you, has had me a bit hooked lately.
I couldn't resist doing a macabre bumper sticker or two tapping into our miserable current state of affairs, so this is what I came up with...
And since I was on a roll, I bashed out this one too...

What do you mean, 'similar'?
Ha, I told you it was macabre. Must be all those horror movies I watched with the covers over my head as a kid.
Anyhow, after doing those, and having enjoyed the third season of one of my favorite shows, Dexter, about America's favorite serial killer, I couldn't resist incorporating the two. Dexter, and fixing Wall Street. I wondered if it might be a bit naughty, but since I didn't use the actual logo, and also I noticed bucket loads of other Dexter stuff on CafePress I thought (and hoped) I might be OK.
Here's what I did on a button...
I did loads more than buttons.
Like T-shirts, a bag, hat, mugs, stickers, you name it.
Then I posted a pic of this button on some Dexter fan sites to see if anyone else would get a kick out of it, and before I could say 'knife', I had an email from CafePress announcing that due to possible trademark infringement my Dexter handiwork was being pulled from the site.
I think it must have existed, unseen, for about an hour before it got noticed, then yanked down.
I'm not complaining, and I'm not really surprised.
But I cried and cried and cried.
Bummer, I really kind of liked that one!
Oh well, as the French would say.
Or words (probably in French) to that effect.

Oh, if there's any corporate or Wall Street fat cats NOT in my other car's trunk who are eager to re-distribute the wealth, I'd be more than happy to help!

WIN your own SPRIGHTLY MOUSE!

Time for a new post, and this time I'm going to GIVE AWAY a Sprightly mouse in my first ever competition. He sells for $250 in numerous galleries and on my website.
If you email in the winning photo by January 15, 2009 you will get a FREE solid bronze Sprightly mouse mailed to you, I'll even pick up the shipping so it's totally FREE to you.

Q. OK, who can enter?
A. Anyone, any age, anywhere - get the whole family involved!

Q. How?
A. It's EASY.
Since Sprightly has turned out to be a bit of a crowd pleaser, here's how you enter.
Just take a picture of as many people as you can get to hold up SPRIGHTLY WANTED posters all at once.
One poster per person, and as many people in the photo as you can get.
Here's how you get your posters...Save to your computer then print out the WANTED poster of Sprightly and photocopy it to fit nice and big on a letter size sheet of paper (you mustn't cut off any of the words).
Make more photocopies and get your bunch of people to hold them up (ONE copy only must be held up by each person).

I will disqualify anything that looks fishy (I'm pretty photoshop savvy, so don't cheat!).
If you say there are ten people in the picture (no image manipulation allowed), I need to be able to see them all, and that they are holding up ONE copy of the picture each.
The WINNER will be the person who sends the picture which shows the most people participating as described. So if someone else sends a pic with eleven people holding up the posters, your ten won't cut it!
Also, I won't post any results until the contest is over, so no one else will know what number they have to beat!
You can enter more than once. Let's say you find yourself surrounded by more willing participants at New Year than you had in your entry picture from Thanksgiving. Just re-enter!
So you might as well have a go ASAP, in case you forget later. You've got nothing to lose!

Send an email to me from the CONTACT PAGE of my website, subject header 'Sprightly mouse contest # people'.
Replace '#' in the subject line with the number of people who were holding up the picture of Sprightly when the photo was taken.

For instance, 'Sprightly mouse contest, 11 people'.

Don't try and attach your picture yet, because you can't.
I'll reply to you with my direct email address so you can then attach your picture when you reply back to that.
You mustn't mind if I use your entry picture on my website or blog (so you should make sure everyone in the pic knows that too).
Remember I won't post anything until after Jan 15, the closing date of the contest. Your photo with only three participants might end up the winner, who knows?

In the event of a draw I will use a coin toss to determine the winner.
Since it's my mouse and my contest, my decision is final.
Anyone I disqualify for a seemingly 'fishy' looking entry (any kind of doctored photo, not using real live people to hold up the pictures, etc/whatever) won't be allowed to protest. I'm the judge and jury on this one, so there! My decision is final!
So, get stuck in!
HAVE FUN!
And GOOD LUCK!

My greatest achievement (and how it helps you!)

Time for another post.
This time it's a two parter.
Part the first involves my recent discovery which will no doubt win me the Nobel prize in thirty years or so (the best ideas always take a while to become generally acknowledged by academia-fortunately the arts are not so lumbering).
You, beloved reader, will however be able to take full advantages of its practical applications more or less immediately.
You won't be disappointed.

Part the second is merely me blowing my own horn once again. So I might as well start with that.
My big (24" tall) sumo wrestling toads (weighing in at a hefty 110 lbs) have been selected for the National Sculpture Society's 76 annual show where they will be on display in New York for a bunch of months, and then Brookgreen Gardens in South Carolina. I am of course extremely chuffed at this news.

Now for my life changing discovery. It has the potential to improve human existence the world over, starting with yours right now, so get ready for a raise in your standard of living.
Next time (and after you try it, every time) you take a nice hot bath, fill up a hot water bottle with the same hot water you are running the bath with. This rubber bladder can now be used as a very comfortable cushion behind your head or betwixt blades of shoulder.
Perfect for a bit of extended book reading, but it gets better...
Once you have finished your gripping adventure and returned with a thud to reality, you realize that your bathwater is just about stone cold. Hardly the perfect end to any great story.
Aha, simply retrieve and uncork your water bottle.
The water inside is still nice and piping hot, perfect for a last minute dousing before you emerge from the tub, all shiny, warm and clean.
Life will rarely feel better.
You and me can appreciate this at once, but it will still be 2038 before that Nobel prize shows up on my doorstep.
Where's Winston Churchill when you need him? (he did all his best thinking in the bath, so he'd have sped up the process a bit)
Luckily in the meantime I have little Binky's prizewinning achievements for consolation.

Tiny Binky wins a prize!

I just got back from opening the mail. I'm delighted to learn of an award for tiny Binky, one of my very small bronze rabbits in an upcoming exhibition.
Apparently the other sculpture of mine in the show, an extremely tiny turtle, sold during the jurying-in process!

The Miniature Painters, Sculptors and Gravers Society of Washington, D.C. awarded Tiny Binky the Second place winner for sculpture in the 75th Annual International Exhibition of Fine Arts Miniatures.
At the Strathmore Mansion, North Bethesda, Maryland.
Find out about the show here, and see more tiny bunnies on the rabbits page of SteveWorthingtonArt.com here.

My blog won an award! Brilliant!

Not just any old award, but one from a reader.
The Brillante weblog award!
Thanks Liz for my award, and now, in true reciprocal fashion and according to the rules, I name 7 more blogs I like to also receive this award (is this an award pyramid scheme?).
The rules are as follows:
You are allowed to display the Brillante Weblog Award on your blog - Link to the person you received your award from - Nominate at least seven other blogs - put links to those blogs on yours: Leave a message on the blogs of those you have nominated.
So here goes...
elephantart.blogspot
'I like drawing Z00 animals...90% elephants, 10% of the rest.'
Science blog
'Science news straight from the source'
eatchocolateeveryday.blogspot.com
'This is not a diary. This is an attempt to develop a philosophy of life.'
gapingvoid.com
'Cartoons drawn on the back of business cards.'
JohnWatkiss.blogspot.com
Taught me a lot about drawing, and I love his painting too.
deborahparis-apaintinglife.blogspot.com
'I am an artist- a landscape painter working in oil and pastel. I'll be posting small paintings for sale as well as showing work I am doing for shows and galleries.'
Wired Science blog
More sciency stuff. What could be more interesting than the world around us?

Unrelated, the Horseman's Haven truckstop style cafe near our house shares its parking with a Phillips 66 gas station (just park around the edges of the gas station basically).
Inside the eatery there is a sign stating that under no circumstances can you bring your firearms inside while you eat.
Outside I spotted a spent 9mm shell casing where we just parked.
That would be just feet away from the gas station.
Mmm. I'm picturing a wild west style shootout where the combatants are hiding behind either gas pumps or newspaper dispensers.
Fun!