Black Friday Shopping

After building pine cone turkeys and eating the real thing we turned back to reality ...

We've been running low on supplies. Paints specifically, the bulk of which got finished off during the inauspicious backdrop bonanza (though in a silver lining the backdrops dried spectacularly). Fortunately the Trouble and Strife is a big shopper and today offered many specials.

Alien Two was, however, stumped when it came to finding the requisite bright green.

Stumped until Alien One pointed out that some cardboard furniture comes already painted.

Returning home, she sketched her own designs.


And me, I returned to lion's claws for Robin's papier mache shower.

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

PS I found the following clip on Youtube and have been inspired to incorporate the ideas into a night-time squirrel drive-by:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyU0pe6EFBQ

I love the Japanese!

And in the Distance ...

There must be mountains, trees and, most of all, blue sky.

No, not the background of the photo on the left, the background on which that bundle of energy is running! That's right, today we painted impressionistic mountains and skies of our own (something which will likely prove necessary for the forest shoot a few weeks from now - more on that soon).

And for a while everything proceeded swimmingly; the groundwork had been laid, the workers had dispersed and I was adding the finishing touches.


Then the Trouble and Strife wandered out to inspect the progress ... but nothing escapes the Trouble and Strife!

Her purview took in much more than scenic backdrops, indeed it fell to my feet where something was clearly afoot.

Or under foot as the case happened to be.

And worse, all over our dear friends' balcony!

In short order, efforts to apply turned to efforts to erase. The local residents rallied, the Trouble and Strife took out a rag and we all went to work.

But the work was slow. Hard and slow.




I did all I could, including physically throwing myself into it!



Two hours later, and working by flares (check the reflected light on the left of the last photo) the last bucket of soapy water was brought out to yours truly.


I only hope the light of day does not necessitate the complete repaint the Trouble and Strife immediately volunteered me for.

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

Lost in the woods

Today's sustenance: raw banana bread mix, sans sugar (but with chocolate chips and nicely browned bananas).

The Trouble and Strife's recipe. A total winner according to Alien Two.




Today's task: build a forest.

Our progress: Alien One contemplates the limbs without leaves, while Alien Two contemplates her next move ...




... an all-out assault on Alien One's jar of battery-recharging home-made apple-sauce.




And the result: Alien Two, the deer!








Extra-terrestrial help aside, conjuring up a wooded forest takes more time than I'd bargained for, but with a quick field trip to reexamine nature, our inspirational subject, everything became clear. We need more workers ... more aliens! And I know just the place to find them :)

Stay tuned, very shortly we shall emerge from the woods.

Chin chin Ruthless Whims

Between Takes ...

Our fabulous cinematographer, Tom, stokes the fire in the center of the console before pausing to gaze at the galaxy, wondering which speck our Alien Interlopers originated from.




Little does he realize, the Aliens are lounging in what will later become Robin's studio apartment ...














dosing
up
on
sugar!





Meanwhile, unbeknownst to everyone, a squirrel escaped Vivian's studio, snuck into my office and absconded with an acorn.

So many mischievous characters to keep tabs on!

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

The Spaceship has landed

It started with the Trouble and Strife cleaning the alien's bunk bed ...



Then someone threw in some drawbridge doors ...


Then a mysterious man, shrouded in darkness that did little hide his receding hairline, climbed in ...


Pretty soon there were chains and an ominous tally board!

What does it all mean? And where are the aliens?




More soon.

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

A Star Arrives

After much anticipation, I bring you ... a squirrel!

Vivian has been hard at work, and the fruits are showing! Our, as yet unnamed, friend has detachable arms and legs and though the tail is still unfinished he is awesome! Why the Aliens might want to rid the town of these little guys is beyond all reason.

Then I found her, Alien Two with glee in her eyes, at work painting papier mache acorns.

And so, for a moment, it seemed that perhaps the Aliens were being misjudged.

There are many mysteries in life, and the inscrutable nature of foreign cultures is certainly one of them.


And then I realized that sometimes things can be not-what-they-seem and still be exactly what they seem.





What if those acorns were little more than lures, and the painting of the power box, little more than an excuse to raid my pom-pom collection.




Suddenly with the illusion of peace shattered in my mind, tangible reality came rushing to catch up as I stumbled upon subtitles into the Aliens' minds' eye.

Exactly what it all means only time will tell. Until then I vow to keep a close eye on the Aliens.

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims

PS There's now a Squirrel King Facebook page. Go Friend us there!

Last week ...

.. was a little topsy-turvy ...


So I left the Aliens breakdancing on the ceiling and went off casting.

As luck would have it I was in for one of those auditioning treats you dream of; the character simply walked into the room. We now have Bob, aka Mike Mahaffey. Mike is the bungling would-be catburglar. Well he didn't actually take anything from us, nor to the best of my knowledge did he try, but boy did we laugh!

On my return, Alien One's mind was still a little addled, enough so that I took the opportunity to remove the training wheels from her bike. And the outcome of the grandiose play that could have gone either way?

Alien One has mastered another earthbound skill! With excitement brimming over, and having learnt from the best, she hugged the nearest tree (fortunately, her brain-bucket kept her at a sensible distance).

Later, while snooping into their spaceship, I made an ominous discovery that reminded me of the true ruthless instincts our extra-terrestrial friends possess. Despite the felt aesthetic, the tally-board cannot auger well for the squirrels ...

Stay on your toes dear reader!

Chin chin
Ruthless Whims