Battle Rex

I have not posted in a great while, and I really should have! In the time that has come and went, we celebrated a birthday and a clear MRI scan! I have put my Zoids on hold, but I am happy to say that we will be buying another house soon and I will break the collection out once more to be proudly displayed. Now, I’m not saying that I haven’t been keeping my eye out for the Battle Rex, or that I wouldn’t still be ecstatic at the chance at one.

So what have I been up to? Well…. I have been back to my “roots” and working heavily with several reptile and invertebrate breeding projects! I have not decided if I will post progress and pictures here yet, but there are a plethora of them amassing on my FB. I also purchased www.newmexicoreptilerescue.com to work on in the future.

As always I enjoy all the email I receive and recently received a guide by Mr. Von St. James. It is with pride that I publish anything to help anyone in a similar situation to mine. I find his article to be very refreshing and a source of inspiration. Please give it a view.

The Hope in a Caregiver’s Heart

By: C. Von St. James

I will never forget November 21,2005 – the day my wife, Heather, was diagnosed with malignant pleural mesothelioma. In the time it takes to say those words, I became the caregiver of a cancer patient.

Only three months after the birth of our only child, Lily, I was facing the possibility of being left to raise her alone. As the news of Heather’s diagnosis sank in, the weight of being her caregiver crushed down upon me. The doctor listed various treatment options available, indicating that the nearby options didn’t have a mesothelioma specialist but a renowned mesothelioma doctor could be consulted in Boston. Heather’s face clearly indicated that she was too shocked and terrified to consider these options just yet, but I knew there was no time to lose. I blurted out, “Get us to Boston.”

Chaos reigned in our lives for the next two months as I continued working while also taking her to doctor appointments. I also had travel arrangements to make and childcare to arrange for our daughter. There was simply too much to do. At times, overwhelmed, I simply lay on the kitchen floor and sobbed, broken down under the fear and pressure of our situation. I never let Heather see my anguish, however. I needed to be strong for her and I knew that the last thing she needed was to see my fears.

Every time I thought I simply could not carry on, help would come from friends, family, and even strangers. The best advice I can give any caregiver is to take the help that is offered. Others care for you, and they will help to lighten the load if you let them.  I learned the hard way that there is no room for pride in a cancer battle.

Being a caregiver isn’t easy. You’ll likely experience chaos, stress and uncertainty just about everyday. While you must not give in to negative emotions such as fear and anger, allow yourself to experience bad days. This is inevitable and even necessary.  No one can be their best all the time.  The important thing is that, even through these bad days, you must never give up hope. Hope, coupled with the resources you have in friends and family, will get you through.

Today, Heather is cancer-free. She rejected the typical mesothelioma prognosis, defied the odds beat this terrible disease. While it took a long time for our life as a family to return to normal, we have learned to appreciate life and always remain hopeful. Now, our hope is to share our story with those who might benefit from it.  We hope to inspire those currently battling cancer today, to never give up hope and to never stop fighting for the ones they love.

I have felt the need to compose this post for awhile, but I wanted to wait for a firm outcome before

attempting to write it. Back in October of 2010 my entire life changed. See  the original post titled:
“The Evil Ependymoma “Bella’s Battle”

Bella and Dad

.

A little back story……

With Bella (my oldest daughter) being diagnosed with  Ependymoma which is an obscure type of cancer that usually effects the brain, my entire life changed.

To be a parent with a sick child is one of the worst situations anyone can possibly experience…. a literal hell on earth a psychological, and emotional nightmare. I experienced some extreme lows that included every aspect of life literally down to collecting and Zoids. (There is even a post lurking about here where I asked if anyone wanted to buy my entire collection.) We did make it through the experience with semi successful tumor resection, again documented here on this blog if your interested in the “first round”.

Little did I know but in February of this year our world would be rocked again by the evil beast known as Ependymoma. Life was good my normal (haha)

habits started to come back, my interest in collecting and seeking rare Zoids was re-ignited. I will never forget the day in I got the call.

I was standing in Azeroth (a virtual continent in the online game of World of Warcraft), speaking through VENT (An audio program that allows players to converse in real time akin to skype) to “Pulski” my long time friend and member of my guild (A group of players that band together in a virtual world, similar to a street gang) when the phone rang…..

I picked it up and the moment I heard Kara (my wife) speak, I could tell something was amiss. When she managed to mutter the word’s “The Tumors are back”, my heart sank, my head started to ache, and I felt such a feeling of despair that it was almost incapacitating. Kara arrived home later, and in anguish and fear we began to formulate a battle plan.

After numerous meetings with the Dr.’s here in Albuquerque, several phone calls and conferences to St. Jude’s in Tennessee, and a trip to Houston Texas to meet with the MD Anderson group a plan was in place. A long, hard road lay ahead of all of us, and we had no choice but to fight the demon yet again. Bella had to have another tumor resection, which would be her second major back surgery. The first time was complex, and I feared the second time would really compromise her physical integrity.

The surgery took place and she recovered like a champ, it was time for more meetings. This time there was a piece of tumor that could NOT be removed due to it’s location (in the base of her spine) and it’s deep entanglement within a bundle of nerves. The surgeon did not feel confident in attempting to remove it as the percentage of Bella having severe motor impairment was immanent. Another extended stay in ICU, and the long recovery from major back surgery took place, alas this was only half the battle.

In meeting with the different groups of professionals mentioned above it was decided that the best course of action would be a “one two punch” type of approach. It has always been one of my worst fears, my daughter had to receive radiation treatment. Complex and scary, I attempted to deepen my knowledge of radiation treatment, which is a dual edged blade. Good on one side as knowledge and wisdom are power, bad on the other as there is so much conflicting and false

data. Keep in mind we are dealing with a VERY rare type of Ependymoma, as it usually strikes the brain. I thought (and still think) that the majority of the approach we took to treatment steps were a bit experimental.

Bella had to have a total of  33 treatments, the first 15 of which were full cranial spinal radiation, followed by 15 of the full spine and 3 “boost” treatments to the unresectable tumor.  It was (and still is) my worst nightmare. Thankfully we received a great amount of support from family and friends. Zoiders and my fellow War Craft players sent cards, and one awesome Warcraft friend Marakai would even send Bella a handmade gift. We made a chain to countdown her treatment days and started treatment.

This meant that everyday Bella would go to school, and Kara would pick her up a bit early and take her to treatment. Even after a full 12 hour night shift as a nurse Kara was unwavering in taking Bella each and every time. On top of the treatment were regular blood draws, which Bella (sadly) got “used to”.

Everyday we took a link off the chain, the first treatments were the hardest for me. As the Dad and “Almighty Protector” I felt utterly helpless. My psychological state was declining and it felt as if nothing held promise anymore. I didn’t touch Zoids nor Gundam, and it was a task just to wake up and care for my other two daughters. Towards the middle of the treatments Bella’s hair started to fall out. In a symbolic fashion several family members and Kara shaved their heads along with Bella. I took the remnants of Bella’s beautiful hair and managed to work it all into my dreadlocks.

I will never forget the day that school came, and Kara and I walked Bella to class with a bald head. Thankfully she was very well received by her teachers and friends, and her hair was never an issue, nor her sickness focused on which, for me personally, restored a little faith back into humanity.

Radiation treatment was completed and all seemed to be going well, until the radiation somnolence syndrome took ahold. This knocked Bella back for two weeks. She was sleeping 18-20 hours a day, and couldn’t get out of bed. To see a beautiful, young girl experience that level of depression was sickening. We were told there was nothing we could do but let her rest, and that time would heal her, which it eventfully did. I think one of the hardest aspects to deal with out of the whole ordeal with this disease is the MRI factor. MRI’s are needed on a consistent basis to  reflect regression or progression. It seems as if you are living you life waiting until the next MRI date, waiting for the next results and hoping….. praying they are clear.

It was two days ago that the time had come, we had waited enough time to get the MRI results. These results took extra long because of the post surgical swelling that could possibly skew the results. We entered the familiar room, and waited for what seemed like an eternity. Finally a knock on the door,
and not just the regular Oncologist but a second white coat also entered the room. Her regular doctor greeted us, and began to introduce the new doctor. He said “this is Dr (I cant even recall) he’s a brain tumor specialist.

At that moment my chest felt tight, the room began to move, my vision became cloudy, I felt as if I was going to pass out. Thus far we were SO lucky that the Ependymoma was confined to the lower spine. I cannot describe how I felt. It was one of those “slow motion” moments, very Matrix like. It couldn’t have been more than a couple seconds before her regular Doctor continued by saying “He’s just joining us to get a feel for the patient base”. I felt as if another bullet had been dodged and was now focused on what he would say about the current scans.

It turns out that the radiation worked. The tumor that could not be touched via conventional surgery fell victim to the radiation. Her spine is clear, her blood count numbers are going up, and life can resume. I can breathe again. So if you have sent me a email wanting to trade, sell, or buy Zoids and have not received a reply I do apologize.

In closing I would like to thank all of our friends real (and virtual) and family, and in particular Kara. We have been together for about 20 years now, and I could not get through any of this without you. With fierce motherly and family instincts, and your medical prowess I love you. To Zoe and Ivee thanks for standing behind and close to your sister, much love………..

-Seth (WIKD)

P.S. Now let’s see if I cant land those Zoids on eBay I have been drooling over all week!

Still fighting with the Perfect Grade Wing Zero, I thought I would bore you with one of my recent “finds”.

At first I was highly surprised with the weight of this thing. I thought I could lift it with ease, and when I tried

it took a noticeable amount of effort to throw it into my cart.

I managed to get it home and did a little research noting that this was the first tricycles to actually be distributed

as a “school supply” starting in 1978 and ending in 1984.

I’ll say it again this thing is a beast weighing in at 25lbs. It stands approx. 26″ tall, is 28″ in length,
and about 21″ wide. The front wheel has a diameter of 14″. While we’re on the subject of wheels, this
thing has WHEELS. Thick solid rubber firestore tires adorn this monster..

Alas, the front label is rubbed so I cannot identify the specific series this one is, it is also missing
a front grip but none of this effects the function. The original peddles are present and not cracked,
and it rides like a champ.

Thinking this would bring back some nostalgia and/or make a wicked restore project I picked it up,
and it remains here at www.ZOID.us. I am asking $100.00 in cash, but would actually prefer to trade
for some robot related toys or vintage action figures.

I can be email at zoid@zoid.us or you can TEXT me at 505-400-1563 Thanks!

Its been a little while since I have updated, no fears though I am plugging away. So far the arms, feet and 3/4 the torso are completed. I found the arms to be the most difficult. There is one piece that is not clearly represented and if you fuck it up the whole arm is bunk.

The leg were an absolute joy, and its a damn shame that so much of the beauty is covered up. I tried to make this clear in the round of pictures, circuits, hoses, springs, transistors, resistors, they are all present but end up getting covered up by the leg plates.

I also found a minor annoyance searching for the batteries. Note that the LR35 as requested by the manual is not an “American Standard” so you will have to look on the back for compatible pieces. You will want to purchase the #386 pack by energizer.

I did part of the LED wiring and found myself having to use small drops of superglue to ensure contact on the torso.

I decided to sap all I could out of the perfect grade, with the exoskeleton parts having so many options for nice detail that it has taken massive amounts of time. I am very pleased with how the “footplates” which have “WING GUNDAM” imprinted on them. I used the silver leaf again and was successful in wiping it leaving it just in the imprints.

Tomorrow I will begin actual assembly. I also decided to panel line all the blue with silver chrome and I think the subtle detail will be outstanding on the finished product!

With everything sprayed  (multiple airbrush coats) it’s time to think about wing color. Wing color can (in my mind) either make or break this Gundam.

The Wing Gundam can be a tricky customer due to what make it so special in the first place, the wings. Now from browsing online  have seen two major schools of thought on the wing issue, both of which I totally understand.

The first idea is basically no panel lining, while I can see this totally I still think it leaves the wings a bit lack-luster. It does lend to the ethereal aspect of the Gundam, but also makes it look unfinished. I went for a mix of panel lining and no panel lining and did a silver leaf on the major slots, and followed up with traditional panel lining for the two smaller lines.  I think this is the best of both worlds as it’s not as overwhelming as a  big black display, and still gives it a spirit like quality. Besides who doesn’t like their clouds without a silver lining?

As promised on post #1 I am making good on my chrome revelations. The liquid leaf by Plaid.

Pictured above is the gold flavor which overrides even the gold chrome Gundam marker, and totally kicks the little glass bottle ass. Again, please see my rant on post #1.

As seen above I did the yellow sprues in the gold chrome. This is about five coats, and if you “work it right” you can get a mirrored reflection as pictured below:

Let’s talk a little bit about the application process. In my arsenal I keep a plethora of the cheap Wal Mart brushes but when it comes to fine detail and panel lining “upper level” model kits there’s nothing quite like a Kafka pinstriping brush. Check them out here. They are a bit expensive, but are well worth it if taken care of.

I was also lucky enough to land a couple of display racks from a hobby store that was closing, I paid a total of $15.00 for the two units below:

I have no idea what I’m going to do with the Sharpie shelf, but I did have something in mind for the heavy wire rack, which worked out quite well to support the heavy 1/60 sprues of the perfect grade.

Another tip I thought I would offer up is my method of holding pieces for hand painting. I find that angled hemostats work wonders. They allow for the piece to be rotated with ease making it easier to get a consistent coat.  Also, the angle allows the hemostat be be laid down and not allow the piece to come into contact with any surface, preventing the paint from getting marred.

Also worth a mention is that not all nippers are equal. For the longest time I used non hobby specific nippers. These are more like wire cutters and leave a good amount of “nub” still on the sprue. A tip I wished I would have picked up earlier is using flat edge trimmers. Don’t be fooled into thinking you need a $40.00 pair either, these can be picked up at Wal Mart for under $10.00. The difference is illustrated below:

At this point I am finished with the initial airbrushing, below are some progress pictures of the white sprues with the silver leaf accent. Next I will tackle the skeleton, and am debating how much detail to put into such beautiful pieces that will just end up being covered up. Look for update #3 soon, thanks for reading!

I am so grooving on these wings:

Thanks for reading. Post #3 coming soon!

Instead of making one huge entry, I am going to break this build up into several smaller entries in this new link. This will be a progressive category with several different post on the same topic, I hope you enjoy.

For Father’s Day of 2012, I was honored to receive the legendary Wing Zero Gundam. Not just any scale, this the 1/60 “Perfect Grade” Gundam, literally the stuff that wet Gunpla dreams are made of. Produced by Bandai in November of 2000 with an initial price tag of 15,000 yen ($188.88) this is THE mobile suit from the anime OVA Gundam Wing Endless Waltz.

When the box arrived, I was amazed to see a Gundam box nearly the same size as a small dog. This beast measures just under 24″ in length, stands 13″ tall, and is approx. 4.75″ wide. So expect to spend a little on shipping with this one. The front of the box is adorned with art from the best anime artist to ever live.: Yuji Kaida. For a bit more on him please see the following small biography over at the Mother Site. The box is a perfect balance of negative space with a trinity of images the “Neo Bird” mode suit in the center, the pilot to the left, and the Endless Waltz text on the right. It reads:

W-GUNDAM Zero Custom
NEW MOBILE REPORT GUNDAM WING Endless Waltz

PERFECT GRADE

Model number: XXXG-00W0
Pilot: Heero Yuy
Height: 16.7m Weight: 8.0t Material: Gundanium Alloy
Armaments: Twin Buster Rifle x 1 Beam Saber x 2 Machine Cannon x 2

The top side panel features more detailed tech specs, along with the typical bar-code and copyright information.
Opening the lid you are taunted with a massive pile of LARGE sprues, an amount that can literally give you either a overwhelming gundanium orgasm, or leave you thinking: “Man, I hope I don’t fuck up a $200.00 model kit”.
Although not required, I recommend having a copy of the Endless Waltz on hand for both inspiration and reference.

Residing in the box are a total of 23 sprues:

The construction manual and instruction manual, and a “materials” box.

Before digging in I made a trip to the hobby store, and purchased a fresh batch of airbrush paints specifically for this build.
I use an Iwata airbrush along with Spektra Tek airbursh paints. These are water based acrylic paints that reduce nicely with distilled water. I prefer “Micheals” and would rather spend my cash there than at Hobby Lobby for a couple of reasons… The first being the people here at the Albuquerque Hobby Lobby stores are dicks, and have been dicks for years. Micheal’s is more “low key” and they ALWAYS have a substantial discount accessible here, and never give you shit about using it. (Hell, they even let you bring the page up on your phone and scan the code directly from there, well at least here they do anyway.) 15-50% off your supplies is always nice, and in my opinion, if you’re working with a perfect grade you should be able to pull off a decent paint job.

It took me a bit to decide if I was going to do an absolutely off the wall color scheme, or just retain the original color scheme. In the end I decided to go with the original color scheme, and spice it up a bit with shadowing and chrome effects. “Perfect/Master Grade Gundams yellow sprues should never remain yellow.” I have went through nearly every chroming paint available from classic “little glass bottle” Testors, to the high powered airbrush chrome paint companies that promise a mirror like reflection but miserably fail to deliver (while charging a huge premium). Hell, I have even tried to electroplate parts myself.

So what’s the secret? While experimenting with different products gold leaf came to mind, and worked wonders on small surfaces. Getting the foil just right on angular pieces is a fucking nightmare, especially with OCD. I am proud to share the alternative I have found. Costing a little more than the classic Testors, and a lot less than the high powered chrome airbrush paint it’s called liquid leaf and IT WILL save your ass. Produced by Plaid, the same company that makes high quality commercial gold leaf, this is literally leaf in a bottle. More on this when I get to the yellow sprues…..

On the subject of airbrushing, another tip I have to offer is changing out your nozzle and needle. These 1/60 scale Gundams are big and covering more area means a cleaner, much more “finished” look. This is a better alternative to purchasing a different airbrush, and can be done as long as you know your airbrush specs.

Staying close to the original color scheme,  I decided to tackle all the white, black, and gunmetal pieces. For the white I used 100% white (as suggested by the manual), I used 100% black for the Buster and Cannon Sprues, and made my endoskeleton gun metal gray with a 60% white and 40% black. I thin or reduce everything with distilled water.

I don’t bother to prime when I am going so close to the original scheme, I think it’s a waste. I will finish part one with another tip. Before you paint have a spool of thread ready and attach a length to the corner of the sprue. As illustrated below: When painting rotate the sprue four times, once on each side to ensure an even coat and then touch up the back and front as needed.

First Rotation:

Second Rotation:

Third Rotation:

Fourth Rotation:

Touching up:

Remember the thread? I use the thread to hang the sprues to dry out. A window frame works well when you take the curtain rod down and replace it with rope allowing for a sort of “laundry line” of Gundam sprues.

This concludes part one of the series, and my progress on perfecting the perfect grade. It’s truly an experience and a time consuming one at that. Thanks for checking it out, I hoped you picked up a tip or two that you can put to use in your own Gunpla building time.

I wanted to pay tribute to my latest Elegua, a pure warrior aspect. I think he turned out truly unique and I am quite happy to share space with him. I am also resurrecting an old online shrine to Elegua that features many of the aspects of Elegua that I have had the honor of keeping as well as adding a new category to this ever growing non specific blog. I will start with the old page:

He waits at the Cross Roads. He goes by many names. In Santeria he is known as

Elegua. Crafted with the secrets of the ages, dust from the cemetery, silver, gold, and Earth.

He watches, he protects, generous yet harsh.

Elegua’s archetype can be confusing. There are 256 variations of Elegua each with different

attributes. Elegua is considered the opener of doors, and it is he who is honored

before anyone. Elegua is the ultimate messenger and carries messages to and from each world.

Elegua is usually represented in the form of a concrete or clay head. He resides within an earthen vessel,

his features are represented with cowrie shells.

Elegua’s color’s are red and black. Elegua has a special spot for children,

and his behavior is sometimes child like. Elegua’s colors are red and black and he is

honored on Monday with special gifts including but not limited to honey, rum, toys,

and palm oil.

My latest and (I feel) strongest Elegua crossed path’s with me just after my eldests’ recent surgery, which I will be posting about shorty. As an Urban Santero I feel this Elegua reflects a more “Modern and Fierce” form.

Not all of the warriors are present here, but this is a glimpse of my space, obviously with some active work going on.

I hope all enjoyed the new category, thanks for reading. As always, should you have any question email me:

Santero at Zoid dot US

PS:
I would like to see pictures of your Elegua, and perhaps get a nice gallery going. So take a couple pics and send them in I will publish them and to whom they belong on this page.