Scene From A Protest.

Me and Kelly, obviously mad as hell and not going to take it any more. In my coming of age years I worshiped the 60's, which I now understand was a normal thing to do in the 80's. I wore tie dye and bell bottoms, grew my hair long (well it still is), listened to all of that music, and when I dance I still "Do the Hippie". One thing I never thought I would do is attend a civil rights protest, because that's over with, we have won all of the major victories, RIGHT? Today I marched around our state capitol shouting about equality and carrying a sign. I went because I think it's important and because I really, really needed to vent my frustration, my deep disappointment at finding myself living in a land of bigots. This year we took a huge step forward in electing the first blatantly in-your-face-smart guy to the presidential office since Carter. Of course it wasn't just a step forward for smart people, but for people in general, as no one is free until we are all equal. Yeah I'm still kind of euphoric about the fact that he's also of African-American descent. Black. Whatever, it all sounds good to me. On the same night my state took a huge step back in denying me my right to marry anyone I love. Now I am a hetero male and wasn't planning on marrying anyone, certainly not a man, but on Tuesday it was my right to do so, protected by my freedom of religion. On Wednesday 52% of California declared their bigotry by denying that right in a majority vote. Okay: something about that bothers me; maybe it's the bigotry (I do hate that) or the idea that any weird notion can be foisted on us in this way. It could also be the idea that it interferes with my rights to do things I didn't necessarily intend to do. I don't intend to own a gun, either, but I'm fond of that right, too. In fact I would like to keep all of my rights. Maybe what bothers me is that if the guys who live three doors down from me can have a whole set of rights taken away from them as the result of an election I am sad and angry for them but afraid for myself. I'm pretty sure that this is one of those things that we have courts for, and that is in fact the next recourse. This sort of thing (as I understand) is why we have three branches of government, after all. Oh, and now that we are putting a smart guy in charge for a change, they may start running like three separate branches, too. Two of them are dominated by Democrats now, but the other party believes that government doesn't work, so it's for the best that they keep out of it. I suppose that that's a positive enough note on which to end this season's screed. About my Teacher's classes: Sifu Michelle Dwyer has devoted her life to the martial arts, she's won and JUDGED Tai Chi contests, and the class which I take is free. Now you want to know: you only have to have Mondays and Wednsdays free either from 9:45am to noon or 1pm to 3 beginning the first Wednesday after Labor Day Her other classes include Monday and Wednesday evenings in Berkeley and another arrangement with an existing school (she teaches Tai Chi to Nuns at Holy Names College, is the impression that I get). Her Berkeley class and the Jing Mo Association are both a regular Communion Of Saints. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it. Here to please my self-indulgence and to allow me to click my IBM Model M keyboard (born January third, 1989) some more is a list of sets I've learned so far:

Tai Chi: Tai Chi (Dragon Tiger Mountain (Yang) style) Two Person Tai Chi (both sides) Tai Chi Sword Four Corners, Four Directions Tai Chi Sword (almost unheard of, very flowery) Tai Chi Saber Gung Fu: Warm Up Sets: Lien Bo Chuan (Continuous Step Fist) Tam Tuei (Tan T'ui)(Springy Legs)(see animated image above) Bung Bo (Praying Mantis style) Siu Wan Chuan (Small Circles) Hunan (Northern) Shaolin Style: Set One (Hoy Moon) Open The Door Set Two (Leng Low) Pointing The Way Set Three (Jo Ma) Sit on the Horse Set Four (Chuen Sum) Piercing Heart Strikes Set Five (Mo Ngai) Martial Skill. An excellent book on this one is available from my second Sifu Rick L. Wing (Bucky). Set Six (Duan Da) Short Strikes Set Seven (Moi Fah) Plum Flower Fist Set Eight (Bot Bo) Uprooting Step Set Nine (Lien Wan) Continuous Links Set Ten (Sik Fat) Posture Applications Two Person Gung Fu Gung Fu Weapons: Gung Fu Staff Gung Fu Spear (Tai Lan Jing Mo) (Lifting Block) Dragon Phoenix Gung Fu Sword Two Person Gung Fu Sword (Six Harmonies) Double Dragon Plum Blossom Swords. BaGua Saber Spear Vs. Saber (both sides) Spear Vs. Double Daggers (spear side) Two Person Saber (Short and lovely, more like a drill, really) Plum Blossom Rolls On The Ground (insane double saber action) Shing Yi: Open Hand: Five Elements Twelve Animals Five Elements Linking Form Eight Movements Linking Movements Sword (Katana): Five Elements Sword (katana) Sword Linking Form

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OLD NEWS: I have published a web site. This was made for a friend who used to enjoy disturbing and angering people, among other things. I miss him dearly. Consider yourself warned. DAVID MAUTNER.COM I finally digitized a flip book a that I made somewhere around age 11 (1.6Mb). I have passed the halfway point in my latest work, based on Thomas Dolby's "Weightless" from the The Golden Age Of Wireless album. I love every song from the first three albums, each one is special to me, but this one is my favourite. I had expected to have it done by now but hit one of those stalls wherein one is dead set against doing the only thing one can think of doing, but then you sit down and, yes, once begin and the work is completed, or at least becomes something which can possibly be completed... You'll get to see it after another couple of such stalls, no doubt. I also have a cartoon done in Flash to a song by The Gluey Brothers: "The Stabbing Trilogy (in five parts)". It is the first art I've done for it's own sake in a few seasons, and it felt really good to do it. The group in question has seen fit to post it to their front page: www.glueybrothers.com "The Stabbing Trilogy" surprised me by jumping on me and driving me like a stolen car, seriously. I'd stay up late working on it, which is nothing new, but then I'd get up early to work on it, too, which is kind of spooky. It was a lot of fun, and has distinguished itself among my work as something which people I don't even know recommend to each other; I found it linked from bulletin boards I'd never heard of before. This experience helped me to finalize my decision to give up on working to show off my skills. In fact I've sworn off of doing any art that I don't enjoy: no more freelancing, no demo reels, even. I'm sick of it, and if it doesn't make a living wage I'm not doing it unless it's for the right reason. The next cartoon is coming along even better *knocks head*, and is based on a song I'll never get permission to, but all rules are off again on the art: fun only. Like the day I did the cartoon about the drowning guy.

Elder News: DECEMBER '00 VISITING FAMILY UP NORTH

The Sleeper Yawns! Here is my first effort, featuring The Great Cthulhu: an Alien cursed with aeons-long slumber (this is a curse?) beneath our oceans. Capable of some influence over the dreams of the sensitive, this semi-material nightmare's awakening will signal the end of the age of man. While I live to make the film that finally does justice to H.P. Lovecraft's vision, this cartoon is in a lighter vein. Screenshot from the finished cartoon: Click HERE for the 41 second masterpeice (11.9Mb) IF YOU HAVEN'T GOT QUICKTIME, AND WOULD LIKE TO GO GET IT FOR FREE: CLICK HERE My deepest apologies are due to the memory of H.P. Lovecraft. Here are some highly recommended links to counter some of the harm possibly done: Dan Clore's Necronomicon Site Everything You Never Wanted To Know About The Necronomicon But Weren't Afraid Enough To Know Better Than To Ask Amazing Studies of the man, his environs; drink it in!