https://3speak.tv/watch?v=kommienezuspadt/vbisvrfw
It finally happened! After disavowing ranked constructed play on Magic: The Gathering Arena, I was somehow lured back by my competitive nature. For months I’ve been playing Historic Brawl [Commander] which isn’t ranked. Honestly, a much better experience. I was enjoying my time spent on Arena, but earlier this month, I was seduced back to ranked Historic gameplay. I’ll blame it on being a Leo, but at least this time, I did emerge victorious. After weeks of slowly climbing the algorithmically corrupt ranks, being forced to lose games with the Wizards of the Coast thumb on the scale, I hit mythic this afternoon.

In this video, I I started recording during the last two games before reaching that milestone. I play with predominantly two decks; mono-black Liliana tribal and mono-red Torbran. Most of the time, Torban gets the job done, but again, I swear the algorithm knows when you’ve had a number of wins with one deck. I’ll usually switch to the other deck when I start amassing loses and the change seems to be effective. I tend to post pack opening videos here on Hive/@threespeak, so I thought some gameplay would be a nice addition to my video feed. Thanks for watching!

https://3speak.tv/watch?v=kommienezuspadt/cwbgiocv
Hey, Hive/@threespeak! Shadows Over Innistrad Remastered dropped this morning on Arena and I have just enough time to open about twenty mythic packs. I typically collect between 30K and 40K gold during each month of Arena play and when a new set comes out, I buy a ton of packs and do an opening video. One of the really nice things about Arena is that I’m able to build decks and play for free. The stupid amount of money I used to spend on physical cards was inexcusable. @tarotbyfergus and I just bringing out laptops to @caffetto now and play online across from one another. Much more practical.

Shadows Over Innistrad has a lot of nostalgia for me. It was released during a time that I was dying for some recreation in my life. All I did was work, shoot and travel. I’d always see @tarotbyfergus and @treigh-c playing at @caffetto and one day, I walked up and asked them if I bought a deck or two, could I join them. Shadows Over Innistrad was the set out during this era of my life. I didn’t open an Archangel Avacyn in these packs, but I had 20 mythic wildcards to craft one. Deck building is now under weigh. Thanks for watching!

https://3speak.tv/watch?v=kommienezuspadt/fprwqsqb
Hey, @threespeak / Hive! I almost went to sleep without making a post tonight but I’ve been sitting on a few dozen Brother’s War packs in Magic: The Gathering Arena and I’ve been eager to open them. I’m currently looking to build a mono-blue Historic Brawl deck with Padeem as a Commander; a deck that I’ve played in paper Magic in EDH for years. I thought that if I was going to open them, it made sense to record the festivities and post something here for all the nerds. Great new cards since Phyrexians are all about metal and mono-blue and artifacts are a deadly combination, especially with a Commander that makes them all hexproof! Enjoy!

https://3speak.tv/watch?v=kommienezuspadt/tvcartzg
What’s up, Hive and @threespeak! It’s been a little while since I’ve had video content to share on the platform. If you recall in 2020, I went to painful lengths to try and regularly VLOG while riding my EUC [electric unicycle]. With the wind, whether and complicated production and technology, it wasn’t a great way to try and talk about complicated blockchain issues while trying to not get smashed by oncoming traffic.

A few weeks ago, I finally received my Tesla Full Self Driving beta update, after months of playing the safety score game. I had to manage and negotiate every break and turn and keep a score above 90 and eventually, Tesla would bestow upon me the FSD beta that I paid an additional $10K for. It was a frustrating 9 months but I finally have it, so I bought a $70 ceiling mount rig and wanted to try this out for somewhat-regular Hive/@threespeak VLOGS.

This first one is just getting a sense of it all and if I like the footage. I ramble a lot […that likely isn’t going to change], but if you’re in to autonomous driving and AI, it’s quite impressive. I never touch the wheel in this video from home to my destination, and with more of these videos, you’ll see some very impressive moves like unprotected left hand turns with two lanes of oncoming traffic. I also chat a lot about Hive, NFTs and blockchain in general. Have a great day!

https://3speak.tv/watch?v=kommienezuspadt/pgljdvtp

Hey, Hive! Another wellness check on how we’re all doing with the market bleeding. I hope everyone is able to roll with the punches. I’ve been trying to stretch out the relaxation I experienced with @ghostfist at the North Shore this weekend, but between the market correction, @guthrie’s school orientation and a tornado that cut through Minneapolis tonight, I’m feeling the stress of every day life set in harder than I’d like. I thought it’d be a nice therapeutic exercise to collect some of the tranquil videos from the trip. Moments for the cabin that captured the nature

In my last blog post, I shared some photos of @ghostfist and I at Palisade Head. This wasn’t actually a planned part of our time up North. I had a quick lunch with @lovejoy and @roadscape and in my hurry to leave, forgot my contact solution and a tooth brush. With only the contacts in my eyes, I had to be careful with them. The following day, @ghostfish and I made a 45 minute drive to the nearest grocery story to buy those provisions and while there, we decided to make the 10 minute trip to the entrance to Palisade Head. I brought the Mavic Air 2 drone just in case, and it paid off.

This trip was a writer’s retreat; a do over after our disastrous attempt to the same cabin in December during a blizzard and subzero temperatures. Writing was most of what we did, but both of us had a short list of things we wanted to see and do while deep in the woods. For @ghostfish, I think it was mostly nature. For me, I wanted to ride my EUC through back trails. I didn’t think that was going to happen, but during our last day there, I did manage to unload the S20 from the Tesla frunk and rip through some trails. @ghostfish tried to capture me hitting a sweet jump, but I crashed, which was hilarious.

The secret to the success of this retreat was the timing. I think during the summer, the heat and bugs would have been unbearable [...we already learned how bad things could get during the harsh winter]. This was the sweet spot at the end of winter and just the beginning of spring. That window is getting smaller and smaller these days, but we managed to spend plenty of time outside […even in the dead of night, as you’ll see in the VLOG]. We saw beavers, ducks, deer and even trumpet swans! Reviewing the photos and videos, this was one of, if not the best trips of my life. Thanks for reading and for following.

https://3speak.tv/watch?v=kommienezuspadt/wwlozsfb
What’s up, Hive and @threespeak? Just passing time with the last few days of COVID quarantine. After two years of this shit, even 10 days inside feels like a lifetime. One of the silver linings of when I tested positive is that Magic: The Gathering just released a new expansion set for Standard called Streets of Capenna. I’ve been trying to learn about the set because I’ve been desperately trying to get back in to playing. The last few expansions have been weak, in my opinion. Streets of Capenna has a cool theme. The card design is all Art Deco.

Over the last few months, I’ve been playing Arena enough that I’ve accrued around 45K gold coins so when this set came out, I cashed in and picked up these fancy mythic packs of both Kamigawa and Streets of Capenna. I guess the deal is almost every pack has a rare or mythic. I thought it would be cool to just make a video of pack rips. Quite a few great cards inside, and a look at the new set overall. I’m hoping I can convince @tarotbyfergus to pick up some paper cards now that we can finally play at @caffetto again.

https://3speak.tv/watch?v=kommienezuspadt/pfpcdgbt
What’s up, Hive? Day three of COVID quarantine and I can at least say, I do finally feel sick. Bitter sweet because I don’t enjoy feeling running down but with all the dramatics over this pandemic, I would be enraged to know two years of my life were upended because of something that barely gave me a cough. I still wouldn’t rank this even close to my top 10 worst ailments, but I am sneezing and dealing with some symptoms. I was hoping for a productive day to help pass this quarantine but I sent myself in to a manic spiral last night and watched the sun come up from my couch. Naturally, napping one and off all day.

So, no new photography to share this evening but a much different display or expression of the work I featured in Dark Pinup Act One and Two on WAX. A couple of weeks ago, I was altered that there would be a feature of my work in the Second Life metaverse. Because of friends like @felblob, I’ve been caught up with these crazy notions like Vox and Blankos. I always think of @eveuncovered and her apathy when I suggested we do a distance virtual shoot when COVID first began. I explained it and she was like, “Let’s just not do that and wait until you can shoot me for real.”. It makes me laugh imaging trying to get her to come to an art gallery in a metaverse!

That’s what this is, though. A podcast team and pinup photography enthusiasts got together and built and entire Dark Pinup cathedral club style gallery in Second Life. I joined the @facingsoffical team and the creators of the virtual space on Twitter for a live audio stream to talk about how they found the work and why they were inspired to built it. After the stream, I created an account and downloaded Second Life. As a dad, I’ve seen the amount of time @guthrie has spent building Minecraft worlds, so I can imagine the work that went in to this Dark Pinup feature. Very humbling.

If you want to visit the gallery in Second Life, you can follow this link or Teleport.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Ixunda/122/29/22

The photography that featured in the gallery is all from Act One and Act Two of Dark Pinup on WAX. You can see more from Scotch and Soda, their site is http://scotchandsoda.art.

For the rest of the night, I’ll be working on some illustration. I started on a fun @mirrorpool project that was really turning out well but put it down to get lost in home decor shopping. I’ll be attempting to finish that tonight without the distraction. Have a great night and thanks for reading!

https://3speak.tv/watch?v=kommienezuspadt/luduzrvw
Alright, Hive! I don’t care if this post does terrible from a post rewards point of view. I said I was going to share some of the video and my thoughts from the Circle Jerks / 7 Seconds show at First Ave in Minneapolis this week, and here we are. First, a word on punk. Like many old punks, young @kommienezuspadt found my way through my teenage years because of it. I grew up in Scranton, PA and the scene was all that area had going for it. I discovered zines, DIY, bands, movements, friends, community, dissent and the will and need to resist!

Of the thousands of shows I’ve been to in my life, I’ve always missed Keith Morris. Co-founder of Black Flag, I feel like when you hung up your leather jacket as an old man, you’d somehow be a bit, less, if you hadn’t seen him perform. I joked that Keith was my white whale of punk and finally, post-pandemic of all times, the stars aligned and the Circle Jerks 40th anniversary tour came to Minneapolis. Negative Approach and 7 Seconds played as well. I bought tickets the morning of because, until then, I didn’t realize Keith would be there for the reunion.

It was a great show, even for a 66 year old that wrote songs about not wanting to live to see 34. “Live fast, die young!”, not so much, which I think we’re all grateful for. For me, this was bitter sweet. A huge circle pit, crowd surfing, spit and sweat in a cramped venue in direct contrast to the vivid reminder of COVID and a vaccine passport check at the front door. I even read an article that morning where Keith’s opinion on such mandates was, and I quote, "The mask mandates and the vax cards. It's just for protection. It's just, it's what you do for your fellow man.”.

During the show, I even heard someone behind me yellow, “FUCK PUTIN!”, between songs. What…the…fuck?! What kind of Twilight Zone are we in when the oldest punk rocker in America is pro vaccine mandates and the misfits in the crowd are apparently so suburbanized in their 40’s and 50’s, they’re openly yelling pro NATO bullshit. So, after four decades on this world, I did finally get my white whale. “Wild in the Streets”, was especially touching after witnessing the 3rd precinct burn down in 2020, but otherwise, I went home somewhat apathetic.

https://3speak.tv/watch?v=kommienezuspadt/psxtdeue
What’s up @threespeak and @hiveio! I’m back from a 10 day throughout the Mid and Southerwestern United States. It’s a weird time to be traveling but I had photography commitments in Grand Junction, CO, Vegas and Los Angeles. 27 hours on the road and several stops, but I got it all done and just flew back to Minnesota yesterday. During that time, Magic: The Gathering Arena released Kaladesh Remastered. This is a set I’ve been looking forward to since the games creation!

I played MTG in the 90’s, but then took a 20 year hiatus after high school. It wasn’t until I met @tarotbyfergus at @caffetto that I finally asked him if I bought a few packs, if I could play with him and @treigh-c. This set is where I picked up and I have an emotional connection to many of the cards within. One of my favorite EDH decks has Padeem as the Commander. The Gearhulks, energy and servos makes it so fun. I wanted to share a short pack opening session to see what we get. Enjoy!

https://3speak.tv/watch?v=kommienezuspadt/jjzpxuvi
What’s good, @hiveio?! How are you? I’m in an unexpectedly exuberant mood this evening. I am a unapologetic optimist for opportunities. I like to think of every opportunity that comes my way as a potential new chapter. I’ve seen it happen. My first shoot in Los Angeles was with a model that briefly lived in Minneapolis. It was TF, which means she didn’t get paid, and I didn’t get paid. Once my first photos of her hit the internet, an endless stream of bookings began pouring in to my inbox and hasn’t stopped since. 7 years later.

I don’t think I have to keep this a secret, but I’ll be writing for Cryptowriter beginning next month. A conversation that started about doing some illustration work for the brand has turned in to an opportunity to also contribute as a writer. I’ll still be posting regularly on Hive, of course. I do like the idea of reaching even further as an ambassador, of sorts, having an chance to add my voice to the conversation in regards to our role as artists’ shaping the economy, culture, communities and future of blockchain through narratives, NFT’s, etc.

Speaking of NFT’s, I feel I have to give thanks to everyone that’s picked up one of my Justin Sun Steemit Hostile takeover NFT’s on @nftshowroom. I can’t think of a better use of our blockchain’s resources than issuing digital assets, especially considering that Hive is so art-centric. I listed a few over the past few weeks, but I woke up to 6 of the assets I issued being purchased. Thank you to everyone who bought one. This particular piece is very personal as I did the illustration at the darkest time when Sun convinced his proxy exchanges to install his witnesses. It was coping art for me.

Lastly, I just wanted to share a video I turned out this afternoon while experimenting with LumaFusion on the iPad Pro. My EUC pursuits continue and I was curious just how serious of a transportation means this PEV could be. That meant I had to take it out during the first [early] Minnesota snowfall. I dumped it once or twice, but overall, it held up. The following day, after the roads were cleared, I was able to get to @caffetto and back […about 6 miles] with no problem, but while the snow was falling, this did make a beautiful autumn visual.