I Got Some Splainin' To Do.

     As promised, I have a new video for you from the YouTube channel. I managed to get it loaded about an hour and a half after completing the Sunday Night Post. I don't think that it is my best work, and that is because I'm having a hard time dealing with the fact that I am on camera in it, but that is something I'm going to have to get used to, if I'm going to do this whole Pepperoni Report. Which reminds me, I still have to film those extra video elements that are going to be a part of the video when we start doing the reviews. I'll let you judge for yourself on whether it's any good or not.



      Speaking of The Pepperoni Report, I went ahead an monetized the blog. All that means for you, is that when you go to the PR, you will see an advertisement on the side and below. It shouldn't change anything about the overall experience of it. It does appear that they are counting my time put in on this, towards that. You have to meet certain criteria in order to monetize, and I've already met all of them with this blog, but as I said before, I will never monetize this. You know what? I've never really explained why I won't monetize this one. Here is the reason, I really enjoy doing this blog, and it has helped me out in so many ways, since I started doing it back on Facebook as the 365. I have this fear, and it is definitely unfounded, but it is a fear non the less, and that fear is, that if I monetize this, then it becomes a job. This is a definite passion project for me, same as the vides, which has me rethinking the whole idea of monetizing them. I'm nowhere close to meeting the criteria for YouTube, and even less so, since the changed the criteria.

     Here is my reasoning behind not monetizing this blog. If you turn something into a job, you are no longer doing it because you want to, but because you have to. I don't want this to seem like something I have to do. I know that I've mentioned the effects that doing this has on my mentally. The part where I am able to let things go now. I write them down, and they leave me. I worry that if I do this for money, then this loses that power, and I don't want that to be lost to me. You could say that the videos are the same way, but they are more of a creative outlet for me. Yes, I hear your argument about The Patchwork Knight being that as well, but the videos still seem different and I am starting to think of that as something that I may take the monetizing away from. I'm not there yet, though. I have time to think about it. With the new changes, I have little hope of ever making a single penny off of the videos. The old standard was based on making it to 10,000 views. Daunting number, but not impossible. I'm currently sitting just under 2000 overall views. That would put me well on my way to the 10,000, but the new changes call for getting 1000 subscribers in a year, and having 4000 hours of watched content. A view is recorded whenever someone starts your video. The time didn't really matter, but now, that time is very key in what you are able to do with making money on there. My view time is still only in minutes, so hours are off the table for now. With that in mind, I'm rethinking the whole idea of why I'm doing the videos. They still remain as an addition to this blog, and I'm not changing that. I've never really tailored it towards what would be the typical motovlogger viewer. I wanted to be able to show you the things I talk about. I'll put more thought into what I want to do with the monetizing of the channel when I get closer to it really being a possibility. I still have to reach those numbers before they will even review my channel.

     Now, let's talk about the PR and why I'm able to monetize that without concern. The first reason, and the absolute biggest reason is, it's not my project. This is the project of my partner. Sure, I've did most of the groundwork in creating the blog, Instagram, and YouTube accounts, not to mention writing two of the there posts that are up, but this was all his idea. An idea that formed over year ago, but he didn't either have the ability or the know how to get it all started. I guess his mistake was telling me that he wanted me to do it with him. When something needs done, I usually hop to, and get things done. Because it is not my project, I feel no true passion for it. Sure there is some there, because I want this to be the best that it can be, but I see this as a real opportunity to maybe get a little something out of it. I absolutely sure that it is going to be nothing but chump change, but maybe that little bit can by a new camera, eventually, or more importantly, help him out. We will be splitting everything right down the middle, and this is where YouTube comes back into play. Since I created a whole other channel for the PR, I can maybe monetize that one, and leave the CS for all the fun.

     With my growth on the CS channel being what it is, I don't see getting a large number of people watching, but the PR, has potential. I think we can maybe hit those numbers that are needed with what we are going to be doing, and that is kind of exciting. We will see how it goes, and of course, you will be along for the ride on all of this.

     Oh, yeah, now it's time for the fun. It's Favorite Song of the Week time. That's another reason why I won't monetize, I wouldn't be able to do FSOTW anymore. Why is that you ask? Simple, even though these videos are capable of being shared on different media platforms and what not. One of the stipulations for monetizing on here, is that you can't put anything that has a copywrite on it. If I did that, then the whomever the copywrited material belonged to, would be eligible to any money that was made from advertisement on here. I would be making money off of their product. That reason alone is good enough for me not to ever do it on here. Back to the music. I have played a few songs by this band, and that is because I really like them. I've only seen them once in concert, and despite the venue having poor sound quality, it was a great show. I've already filled you in on where they came from, and who they are, so let's just get to their latest song. Here is Fall Out Boy with "Church".



     Well that should wrap up this edition of the good ol' CS. I'll see you Thursday for the Patchwork Knight. I know, I still didn't fulfill the full amount of action, but it is coming this week. The melee is in the cards, and there is going to be a pretty big thing that happens, tune in to see what it is. This is the first big moment I've been looking forward to writing since I started this. This is all part of the plan. I know it doesn't seem like I have one, but I do, and this is the first big piece of the puzzle. Until then, peace in and goodnight.

Getting Things Done.

     I just finished editing the new video for the Counterfeit Squirrel channel, so it won't be a part of today's post, but I do have a short video for you. I've been working on The Pepperoni Report all weekend, and I still haven't finished the things I need to get done. The good news is, that I have plenty of time to get the last thing completed for the video part of it.

     The video I have for you, is the channel trailer for the brand spanking new The Pepperoni Report YouTube channel. Yep, I went ahead and added the new channel, so that will be an entity all of it's own. I also created an Instagram for it. You can find it right here. I only have two pictures up right now but that will grow as we eat more pizzas. We are gonna get fat. Anyway, back to the video. I had to do some testing with the cameras in the car, and I'm ok with the audio, but it could be better. I'm not ready to pay for a new mic adaptor and a new mic just for the car, so for now it is what it is, and we will just have to speak up. You won't see any of that car stuff in the channel trailer. For the simple reason, that my partner wasn't in the car with me. He did however show up for some pizza eating while I was getting some shots for the trailer. Good thing too, because I was going to go out with him on Wednesday so that we could get the shots involving him. We got it all done yesterday.

     I did manage to kill two birds with one stone, and made the video for CS while I was doing the testing. I used the in car stuff to explain what was going on with the PR, so you will be looking at my ugly mug for this one. I know, I nearly broke the camera, but GoPros are pretty tough, so it managed to not explode. I added in some clips of the pizzas and use taking our first bites, so there is that awkwardness as well. I'm currently uploading it to YouTube right now, so it will be ready for Tuesday's blog post. In the meantime, enjoy the new channel trailer for The Pepperoni Report.



     I also wrote a little update blog piece on the PR as well, so if you want to check that out, just go right here. So far we have a list of places to visit in our very own county that sits at 79. That's a lot of places, and I'm sure that we don't have all of them yet, not to mention what might pop up while we are doing this whole thing. Right now, we are at one a month, but I think that is going to have to change in the near future.

     My partner already has visions of grandeur. He is already looking very far ahead, and how we will be traveling to a city near you, to try your favorite pizza places. If this ends up being somewhat successful, I can see that happening, but for right now, I just want to get the first review done and posted. I'll see where it goes from there.

     I had planned on putting together a little arts and crafts project that is going to be a port of the video element for the PR, but I started playing Horizon Zero Dawn and ended up playing it until 4 in the morning. I finally got past the part that I was stuck on, and yes, I had to break down and lower the difficulty in order to do it. It was still really hard. I was finally able to move forward and see more of the story, which is just wonderful. I thought that would be the end of the game as well, but it's beginning to look like I still have quite a ways to go. After that, I still had another crazy difficult part to get through, and then they tell me that I have another crazy difficult part to get through. This game is so fun, and the story is absolutely superb.

     Well, I have to get going. I have to go and write the description for the new video, and add all the links. I have a bunch of them too. Not only do I have the normal 3 that I put in for the CS stuff and Epidemic Sound, but I have to put in all the links for the PR as well. That includes the blog, YouTube channel, and Instagram page. Lots of fun. I'll have that video for you on Tuesday, but you can always go check it out tomorrow on the old YouTube if you want. No rule against seeing it early. Don't forget to go check out that channel at instagram and of course the blog as well. I'm still thinking about monetizing it, and haven't done it yet, but once I do, we can start bringing in that money for new gear, and charity. The YouTube channel is going to have further to go for that, as I said last week sometime, you need 1000 subscribers in a year, and 4000 hours of watched content. That is a lot of content. Wish us luck. Peace in and goodnight.

The Patchwork Knight (Chapter 14)

     The entire troop of all 15 contestants made their way to the far end of the arena led by Sir Wallace.  There were three other Knights waiting there, two dressed exactly as Sir Wallace and one much smaller one, dressed in a full suit of plate mail armor that gleamed in the sunlight.

     "Contestants, line up on this wall. When I point to you, you will run to the far end of the arena at a sprint and pick up your log. Once your log is upon your shoulders, you will begin to run around the outer edge. The contestant with the most laps complete will win this stage."

     I looked across the arena and saw the logs all lined up on the wall across from us. They appeared to be about 3 feet in width and a foot around. These were much smaller than what I carried back at the village. I had no doubt that I could run with these for half the day. Sir Wallace pointed at the first boy and to my surprise it was the Knight in plate mail armor. The boy took off in a sprint. How was he going to run in that heavy armor? It took nearly a ten count for him to reach the far side and pick up his log, then the next boy was sent. The line slowly dwindled until it was my turn. The first boy was just finishing his first lap when I was sent. I took off in a blur, picked up the log and began making my way around the arena.

     I passed the boy that was sent before me by the time I hit the half way mark around the arena. The log was uncomfortable on my shoulders, but I could deal with it easily. I saw one boy titter and fall when he reached the starting point. He had only done one lap, he didn't bother to get up, he just laid there, chest heaving.

     As I ran past the fallen boy, I looked across the arena to see the plate armor still running at a good pace. I quickly passed three more boys, as they began to slow and buckle under the weight of their logs. I even heard one drop behind me. Only 14 more left with only 1 full lap down.

     Three more laps had passed with several more boys taking their leave of the field. After 10 laps, it was just me and plate mail still running. He managed to stay in front of me, but I was still gaining on him. 15 laps and I had finally caught him. We began running side by side for the next 3 laps. I took the lead after that, and he began to slow his pace. I was on my 21st lap when I looked across the arena to see him placing his log on the starting point. He had only done 20 laps. I could hear the crowd roar with a cheer. The race was over, but I still wanted to finish that last lap, so I sprinted the rest of the way around the arena and placed my log next to the one that plate mail had just put down. Sir Wallace came over to me, and patted me on the shoulder.

     "Good job lad. You ran farther than anyone has ever done in these tournaments. The old record was 18 laps. You could definitely be knight material. Can you ride as well as you run?"

     "I can ride, but I'm not sure it's as good as I can run, and thank you Sir."

     "Ah, a humble young man to boot. I'm going to keep my eye on you lad."

     With that Sir Wallace raised my hand above my head and the crowd roared to life again. I looked over at the other contestants, and all of them were still sitting or leaning on the wall panting, with the exception of one. Plate mail looked back at me and nodded his head, I nodded back. The King stood up and raised both hands in the air, and the crowd silenced.

     "We have our first winner of the day. No one in the history of this tournament has ever run more than 18 laps, this young man did 21 and it appeared that he could have ran more. It appears we have an extraordinary field of contestants this tournament." The crowd roared again, and the King took his seat again.

     Sir Wallace motioned for me to join the other boys on the wall, and he walked to the center of the arena.

     "That is the end of the first event. We will take a moment to set up the course for horsemanship and then we commence the second contest. Please feel free to get up and move about. The trumpeters will announce the start of the next contest." With that Sir Wallace spun on his heal, and walked back over to us. "Alright, let's get back in the waiting area. There is water and bread waiting for you if you want it. I will lead you all out again when the next contest is ready."

     We all walked back into the tunnel under the stands, except plate mail. He walked back over to the two Knights that were across the arena.

     "Excuse me, Sir Wallace." He was following me back into the tunnel.

     "Yes, lad.

     "Why is that boy going back over to those Knights over there." I pointed to plate mail as he crossed the pitch.

     "No need for you to worry about that lad. Just hurry on now, and get some water. Although you don't look like you need it, you should get some in you."

     I just nodded and went through the tunnel. I wasn't going to find out the answer and I suppose I didn't need to.

     My father and Galdren were waiting for me in the corner we had stood in when we first arrived. The both had large smiles on their faces.

     "You did it boy. You don't even look like you broke a sweat out there."

     "I guess I didn't. That log was far less than what I carry up to the base of the mountain every day. I carry at least 4 times that much when I cut the trees down for you and the village."

     "You got the lad carrying trees up a mountain? No wonder he can run like a plow horse with and empty cart.

      My father handed me a tanker with water in it. I drank it down and then sat quietly waiting for the next event. I knew how to ride a horse, but I was still worried about this. I'd never ran a horse through a course before. I'd only ridden from the village to here, and then back again. Occasionally I would go out with my father for a ride along the tree line near the village, but that was it.

     "Pitre, I can tell by looking at ya, that you are getting worried again. You know how to ride a horse, so you will have no trouble with this. There is only one thing you may need to know. If they want you to jump over something, just lead your horse to the obstacle and don't hesitate to keep it going forward. If you lack confidence in what you are doing, the horse will sense it, and lose confidence itself, ya got it?"

     "Yes, papa." I began to relax again. It wasn't soon after that that Sir Wallace announced that we would be going back out very soon. A few minutes later and the trumpets began to blare. We all lined up and began walking out.

     "Remember lad, be confident."

     My father's words washed over me, like a calming wave. I could do this. I would have no trouble with whatever mount they gave me to ride.

     After sitting in the dark waiting area, the sunlight seemed brighter as we entered the arena again. The floor of the arena now had logs and barrels placed in a large course all over. On the far wall was the two Knights with plate mail. They were standing near three very large horses. These were like the warhorses that the Knights of Targen rode. Were we going to compete in the next event on actual warhorses?

     I began to shake, but this time it wasn't out of worry, it was out of excitement. I was going to ride and actual warhorse that very well could have ridden into battle with a Targen Knight on it's back. They were beautiful and their body rippled with thick muscles. These Horses were meant for action, not just a casual ride through the realm. The pawed at the ground and huffed in anticipation of being ridden. Sir Wallace directed us to stand where we had originally stood earlier against the wall. As we all gathered there, plate mail came over and stood with us.

     "The second contest is now to begin. This will test how well our contestants do an on unfamiliar horse. It is no easy task, especially with these trained warhorses. If they waiver, theses horses will know it, and buck them the first chance they get."

     That's why my father told me to be confident. He must have known that they would be warhorses. I felt even better now.

     "Each contestant will be assigned a mount. Once they are aloft their assigned mount they will be led to the opening of the course. Only one rider will be allowed on the course at a time. That rider will be timed through the course. The rider with the best time will win. Good luck to all our contestants. The winner of the first contest will be up first."

     The crowd rose an applauded, and I began to sink. I was up first. I was hoping to see someone run the course first. Sir Wallace walked towards me and waved me over to him. I jogged to his side and then a new fear came into existence. The horses were even bigger than I first thought. I had no idea how I was going to climb on top of them.

     "Beautiful creatures aren't they?"

     "Ye-ye-yes sir." I couldn't help but let my nerves be heard.

     "Ah, don't worry lad, they won't bite you. They'll buck ya, but they won't bite you."

     "I've never seen a horse so big. I've ridden plow horses and farm ponies, but never anything that big. How do I get on it?"

     "Don't worry about that, we aren't going to make you figure that out, besides, us Knights have a bitter time with climbing on ourselves, especially when we are in full armor."

     As we approached the horses, two stable boys ran out with a large set of steps and placed them in front of the horses. Sir Wallace pointed to the horse in the middle and one of the stable boys ran over to him and led him to the steps.

     "There ya go lad. Just climb up those steps and have fun. Not everyday that just anyone can ride a Targen warhorse. Once you are on, I'll lead you to the entrance, then it is all up to you."

     I climbed the steps and I could feel the heat coming off the horse. It was impressive. I began to swing my leg over, but then I stopped. I stepped back, and then I reached over and pet the horse on it's muzzle. The beast let out a loud huff that was almost like a sigh, and it shook it's head up and down several times as if it approved of my friendly gesture. I swung my leg over and placed my feet in the stirrups. Sir Wallace took the leader and we went to the entrance of the course.

     "Just because you are going to be timed, doesn't mean you should hurry through the course. Take your time and make sure you see the path in front of you. If you don't finish, you don't get a time."

     I gathered up the reigns, and coaxed the horse into a trot. The first lengths of the course were a series of turns, that were followed by what my father expected, jumps. I kept his words in mind and didn't hesitate, the horse followed through and jumped each barrel with ease. I could feel the power fo the animal as he leapt through the air and come gently down to the ground. There was a final straightaway that ended with a jump that was double anything to that point. We picked up speed and a gathered my courage, with out hesitation I led the horse forward and we flew into the air and over the stacked barrels. The landing wasn't as gentle and I nearly bounced off the back, but I stayed on and reigned the horse to a stop. A stable boy ran up and grabbed the leader and took me back over to near the steps. I dismounted and walked over to the wall with my heart pounding in my chest from the exhilarating experience I just had. I stood and watched each contestant.

     A few more boys had gone and made it through the course with little trouble. It was about half way through the line that the first rider went down. As they approached the first jump, you could see the look of fear in the boys eyes, and sure enough, the horse stopped short, sending the boy flying over it's head. He crashed to the ground the a crunching thud. He screamed in pain and all the nights ran to him while a stable boy ran to the horse. When they finally stood the boy up, you could see that his shoulder was badly misshapen. His face was contorted in pain and the two Knights that had stood next to plate mail had walked him into another tunnel that wasn't where the waiting area was. You could hear screams from that tunnel. I don't know what was going on, but it couldn't be good.

     Every other contestant made it through the course. The last rider was plate mail. He rode like he had done it before. There was no hesitation at all, as he sped through the course. His mount kicked up a dust cloud as it slid around corners and sped down straightaways. When he was over the final jump and led back to the steps, he dismounted with a flourish and slid down the back of the horse. I'd never seen anything like it. Now it was my turn to nod, so when I caught his eye, nod I did.

     The horses were led out of the arena and Sir Wallace walked over to an area where the crowd was nearly on the pitch of the arena. He talked with 3 men there for a couple of minutes. When he was done, he walked back to the center of the arena, and called all the remaining boys over.

     "This is the first time that we have only lost one contestant in horsemanship. These truly are fine contestants. Sadly though, only one can win this event, and we do have a winner. For a second time in a row, we have set a record. The fastest time to run the course. It was down in 45 seconds."

     Sir Wallace stepped away from the center and walked down the line of boys. He stopped at plate mail and raised his hand above his head.

     "Our winner." The crowd once again, roared to life, and plate mail took a bow. Once again the king stood with his hands in the air, quieting the crowd.

     "Who could have imagined that we would see to records set here today. This only proves what I said earlier. We truly do have an exceptional field of contestants" The King bowed his head towards us all, and we quickly bowed back, then he took his seat.

     "The next contest will begin as soon as we clear the pitch. I'm sure that this is the event that you have all been waiting for. The melee. The horns will signal when it is about to begin. As you know, it is winner takes all. Whoever wins the melee wins the acceptance into the Academy of Knights. The top 8 contestants are the only ones eligible for the melee. You will meet them all after the horns have sounded." Sir Wallace then did his customary spin and waved us to follow him back into the tunnel.

     The melee would begin soon. This was the final step to becoming a Knight. I had to win this. I was going to win this. I was going to be a Knight.

I Don't Even Know Where To Start To Come Up With A Title For This One.

Bailey Holt

Preston Cope

     I'm sure by now, you know what those two names above mean. Another mass shooting in America. This time in a High School in Kentucky. Two dead and 17 injured. When is enough enough? I know how this will go, everyone will begin their posturing and nothing will get done. For years now, the people of this country have been in favor of a universal background check, but our government has done nothing about it, except line their pockets with the money of lobbyists. The midterm elections are coming up this fall, if you want to see change, then make it happen with your vote. Look into how your Senators and Congresspeople vote, and if they don't line up with your ideals, find someone who does. Make change happen.

     Let's get out of the politics, I've been there too much lately. I got some updates on The Pepperoni Report. I finally got my partner to get off his butt and sign up for the blog as an author. He even wrote a post, but didn't publish it. I did proofread it, and made a few changes to small things, but I didn't change the voice of the writing. Our styles are definitely different, and I want his voice to be as much a part of it as mine. After all, this was his idea. He is a little rough around the edges and will need a little guidance, but I'm not sure he will take it. He is a bit headstrong in that way. I'm working on a time that we can get together and discuss a few things, most importantly, the music for the video elements that I have to put together before we even start. The longer the delay in that, the less likely we will be able to get the first review up within a couple of days of doing the actual tasting.

     I'm going to be doing some testing with the cameras in the car, to check for angles of the shot, and how the audio comes out. I'm hoping the camera mic will be good enough, because I really don't want to buy a mic just for that. I think it should be fine, but I'll no more by this weekend. Still thinking about what the next motovlog will be. Oh, that reminds me. I got a new subscriber to my channel on Sunday. This is kind of a big deal for me, because it is a motovlogger that I really enjoy and respect. His name is That Guy Ken, and he puts out some really funny and entertaining videos, and he works hard to make them unique each time. Here is link to his channel if you want to check out some of his stuff That Guy Ken. That also reminds me, that YouTube changed their policy on how you can get to a point to have your videos monetized. You need to gain 1000 subscribers in a year period, and have 4000 hours of watch time. What that means it that each one of those subscribers needs to watch 4 hours worth of your videos in a year for you to make any kind of money from YouTube, and let me tell you, it isn't a large amount of money. Here is the rundown of what you can expect to make from YouTube. They pay based on 1000 views (that could have changed with the new policy). For each 1000 views that you get, you can expect to receive either $1.25-$2.25. Not a whole lot. I'm guessing that since they went to this 4000 hours thing, that they are probably going to base the payout on a time rather than a view. I haven't seen anything on that yet, but if I find it out, I will pass it on to you.

     Speaking of monetizing. I've always said that I won't monetize this blog, and I'm sticking to that. I want this experience to be as pure as possible. That doesn't hold true for The Pepperoni Report though. As soon as I can, I'm going to monetize that and see what we can make off of it. I will of course split the money evenly with my partner, but I am thinking of what to do with my half. I will of course use some of it to upgrade equipment, in the way of cameras and such. I'm also thinking I should stick with my plan for the YouTube channel as well, and donate half of what I earn to a charity. With the YouTube channel I was thinking of picking a new charity each time I hit a certain amount of money. A kind of spread the wealth sort of thing, but with this, I'm toying with the idea of just picking one charity. What do you think? Should I stick with my original idea and spread the wealth, or should I choose just one charity? Here is the catch though. If I go with one, I have to find a charity that is worthy. I will do all sorts of background research on them on how they spend the money they receive, and I'm always willing to listen to you about who you think it should be, so what I'm say is, give me some ideas.

     On here, the policy is that you have to be a consistent blogger for 6 months before you can monetize, but when I looked at it today, on the PR, it didn't mention that. I'm wondering if it is taking this blog into account for that. I guess I could always try to monetize it and see what happens. Never hurts right?

     Let's get down to the Favorite Song of the Week. I keep meaning to post some of this bands videos, but they post them on Thursdays, and that is of course Patchwork Knight night, so I don't remember when I get around to Sunday. Anyway, what I'm talking about is, that they put out a series of videos on YouTube called Matt & Kim Show You Stuff, and it's really good. The took about half a year off from it, because Kim destroyed her knee during a show in Mexico early last year. It was brutal, she jumped off her drum kit over to the side of the stage, and her leg landed funny and she tore the ACL, I think in her right knee. She was a trooper about it, and joked as much as she could, but it put her through some really rough stuff. She lives for playing live on stage, and she is known for the way she dances. She even has a thing when they are playing live, that she walks out onto the crowd and dances on top of them. I know this, because she did it right above me when I saw them live. That show still goes down as one of the funnest shows I've ever been too. Kim even pointed me out in the crowd, I was blown away when she did it. How the hell did she pick me out of a crowd of thousands of people? Back to their video series though. The videos came back recently and they are just as fun as they ever were. Matt & Kim are the couple that you wish you were, maybe that's just me, but if you watch their videos, you will see what I mean. I'm guessing that you already figured out that this is going to be a Matt & Kim song. Here's the thing, click on the video and go to their channel and check out some of that series. The run the field of emotions, form funny to touching. So here is Matt & Kim with "Forever".

     Here is a little bit of trivia. The reason I got to see Matt & Kim live, were because they were playing a free homecoming show for Florida Institute of Technology, and the reason they did that, is because Matt's grandmother used to live in Melbourne, so he grew up visiting her every summer. Did I mention that it was a fun show?

     Alright, it's getting late and I think I've said enough tonight, so I'll let you get on with your life. Peace in and goodnight.

An Apology And A Preview.

     Although I didn't really do much of anything this weekend, I have a few things to talk about. First up is an apology to you about Thursday Knights chapter of The Patchwork Knight. I promised you a lot of action in this one, but as I was writing it, it was playing out a little differently than I had planned. The action is coming, but as I was getting to where the action was going to start, I became aware that this chapter was going quite long. I know that if this was a book that wouldn't be a problem, but since this is online, I like to keep the chapters somewhat short, so that you don't have to stare at a screen for long periods of time. I found a spot to wrap things up for that chapter and prepared for the next one. The next one is going to be full of action and will probably be just as long if not a little longer than this most recent chapter. That is why I cut it when I did. If I had continued on, it would have been double the size it is now, at a minimum. The action is coming, and I think you will enjoy it.

     Next is my ongoing adventure with online dating on Match.com. I received my update email from them today, explaining how much of a failure I am at this. It was a little better than last week though. I sent out 3 less emails than those that are successful and I have received 3 less emails. Her is the rub on that one. I haven't received any emails. I've sent out a total of 7 emails to women, with three of them unread. Like I said before, I'm more about quality than quantity, so I won't play the numbers game, and will continue to only email women that seem interesting to me.

     There is a new dilemma in my life, and it revolves around The Pepperoni Report. I'm putting things together to try and make it as successful as I can when we finally get the first review up. Here is the dilemma. I am the only one doing the work. My partner in this still hasn't signed up to be able to add his 2 cents in the blog, and time is running out. I know that the actual tasting is 3 weeks away, but there is a lot to get done to be able to pull this off. I know there are going to be things that trip us up, and I'm trying to keep those things to a minimum. I found out that I can create a new YouTube channel for it and simply add it to my account with the music service I use, but I'm not doing any of that until I see more of a commitment from my partner. He had a place picked out for our first visit, and now he has changed his mind on that. I told him that he needs to pick a place and I gave him two towns to pick it from. He has to do something. If he doesn't show more of a commitment, I will simply do everything on the Counterfeit Squirrel channel and reap whatever benefits I can from it. No need in making another channel when I can just make it a series on my channel. I'm going all in on this, I am even creating an outfit that I will wear for each tasting. You will get a little preview of it here.

     I'm going for the cheese factor on this one. There is more to come, but I haven't received that last piece of the puzzle yet. If you guessed a shirt, you would be right. I may try and look for some pizza themed shoes, but I'll wait on that. That could be a neat little segment in one of the videos, where I unveil my new footwear. If it comes down to it, I will still do the blog and the videos, but I will be the only one doing them. I'm sure he will show up for his part of that tasting, but I'm starting to think that I won't be able to count on him for any of the writing or coming up with any of the creative content for the videos. He is supposed to come by one day this week to help pick out music for one tiny element of the review. It is all for an idea of the rating system. I don't know how to do any glossy add ins with graphics, so I have an idea for filing something that will take the cheese factor to extra cheese, (yes enjoy the puniness of that one). It's probably going to take almost as much work as figuring out how to add in some graphics, but I think this will be much more fun. I'll keep you updated on how things go.

     I got a chance to watch David Letterman's new show on Netflix last night, and it is very good. They are going to roll out an episode a month I think. I'm not quite sure of the schedule yet. I think there are goin to be 6 episodes in total. The first was with President Barrack Obama. You see a slightly different side of the former President and it is a drastic contrast to what is in the White House right now. Ok, I better get away from this fast before it becomes political again. Anyway if you want to give it a watch, it's on Netflix and it is called My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman.

     I also watched the two latest specials from Dave Chappelle. They were both outstanding. The first one I watched was in Washington D.C. and it was non stop laughing on my part. I almost couldn't breath. The second one was in a club in L.A., sorry I can't remember the name of the club. It is more intimate and a little more though provoking. Although  both of them are thought provoking. Chappelle's has always made you think, but these last two, you can see Dave moving towards more of  a George Carlin type of vibe, and I like where he is going with it. Look for those on Netflix too, you won't be disappointed.

     I just got an email from Match, saying that someone is interested in me. I've gotten a few of these and every time I go to check them out, the profile is no longer available. It goes through Match, but it is from something called TalkMatch.com, I have no idea what that is, but they seem to be scam accounts or something. I should go check it out right now and see if the profile is still there. Hold on a  second. As I thought, it's some sort of a scam. In the about me section there is mention of getting ahold of the person through email. I'm not doing that. It's more than likely some email set up to fish for you information and steal you identity of something. I'll pass.

     That's it for me tonight. I will try to get a motovlog up this weekend. Oh, that reminds me. I wanted to share this with you. Elie made a video about her love and time with riding, and I think it should be seen. It's very good, and full of fun, tragedy, and overcoming adversity. Give it a view and see what you think. Don't forget to leave her a thumbs up if you go on YouTube to watch it.



     Remember, she was able to put this together only 6 months after a near death accident, where she nearly lost her dominant hand. Ok, I have clothes to wash so I'm out of here. Peace in and goodnight.

The Patchwork Knight (Chapter 13)

     I awoke on the morning of the tournament feeling eager. In a few hours I would be in the middle of the arena accepting whatever challenge was placed in front of me. I dressed myself in my old clothes and my new armor. I wondered if this was the feeling my father had on the morning he was going into battle. I was anxious, nauseous, and a bit giddy. I was prepared for this, I had trained for this, I would succeed in this.

     "Break your fast boy, but don't break it too hard. A full stomach will slow you down, and an empty one will leave you stranded."

     "Yes papa." I followed him out of our room and went to the dining hall of the inn. There was a large table in the center that had many different breads, meats, cheeses, and fruits. There was only one choice of drink and that was a sour old ale. I made a modest plate of sausage, biscuits, and fruit, and found a table and waited for my father to finish piling food on his plate.  He walked over with his plate in one hand and two tankards of ale.

     "Here boy, it's not the best you'll ever drink, but it will calm your nerves. I know what it's like when you are going into battle."

     I guess what I was feeling is how he felt in those days so long ago.

     "This isn't battle papa."

     "Don't fool yourself lad. Your sword may be blunted, but there is just as much risk as going into a real battle. Especially if someone doesn't know what they are doing, and there's a good chance of that happening with a bunch of 10 year olds running around with sharp pointy metal sticks."

     I hadn't thought of that. I just assumed that blunted swords and armor meant that no one would get hurt. Maybe a bruise here or there, but nothing more.

     "Can someone really get hurt badly papa?"

     "Indeed they can. There are rules about the type of strikes that you can use. You are only supposed to stay to slashing type cuts. You can only thrust a point when you are in absolute control and you wish your opponent to yield, but when you are caught in the throws of battle, mistakes happen. You don't always think with your head when your pot is on the fire."

     I began to worry that I would be the one that would make a mistake. I would hurt someone and be thrown from the tournament. It must have showed on my face, because my father reached across the table and put his hand on my arm.

     "Don't worry boy. I have faith in you. All you have to do is stick to your training. If you do that you won't be able to make a mistake. You will be focused and calm. Just remember that night by the river."

     I slowly started to relax, and I thought back on that night. The first night that I experienced the Swordsman's Euphoria. Then I remembered that I had something else to help me. I checked my pocket for the smooth stone. It was still there. I could feel a warmth radiating from it, and that calmed me even more. We finished our plates and made our way to Galdren's forge. I still felt hungry but my father told me that is exactly how I wanted to feel. "If you're hungry, then you will fight better so that you can get to your next meal" is what he said. He also said that if I had a full belly, that I would more than likely empty it on the field of battle. That was something I didn't want to do.

     Galdren was once again standing outside of his forge with his arms crossed in front of him. I began to wonder if that was how he stood all day. If we weren't there, would he just stand there and look brooding for everyone that passes by, or was that just for us? He couldn't hold the look of malice long enough today though. A broad smile crossed his face when he saw us.

     "Come in gentlemen, we have much to discuss."

     My father and I both stopped in our tracks and looked at each other. "Gentlemen?" we both said with our faces contorted in a look of confusion. Then we both nearly fell over laughing.

     "You two are rather relaxed considering what is going to be happening in a little over an hour."

     "Aye. that we are. You didn't let anything happen to that sword did you?"

     "Do ya think I would be the blacksmith to the king if I misplaced a sword?"

     "I guess you wouldn't."

     "Get in here now, we really do have a lot to discuss." Galdren turned and marched into the small booth and went straight to the back. We followed. I could see the burlap bundle with the sword in it on his table. It was still wrapped up. I wanted to go and get it, but knew that I had to wait until it was presented to me in the arena.

     "Boy, I don't know how much your father told you about the tournament, so I'm going to let you know what is in store for you. The tournament is made up of three events. The first is a test of strength and endurance. You will have to carry a log on your shoulders as your run around the arena. The one who complete the most laps wins that event. The second is going to be horsemanship. This is going to test your riding skills. The final event will be a melee. It will be a last man standing fight. You will be awarded points for making contact, and you will lose points for being hit. You will start the melee with 5 points each. If your point total drops below zero, you will be out. I was worried about the horsemanship event. I knew how to ride a horse, but that was all.

     "Horsemanship? I asked sheepishly.

     "Don't worry lad, they only want to see how well you are able to control a horse that you've never been on. You only need to be able to guide your mount through a course that they set up. You would be surprised at how many can't do that simple task. That last bit didn't ease my mind.

     "What are you doing Galdren? You just stirred him up again. Listen lad, this is nothing you haven't done before. I know you don't have much riding experience, but I've never seen you have a problem on the back of a horse. Just treat it as you do whenever we have to ride out of the village."

     That helped. I began to settle down and relax again. Running with a log would be easy. I did that everyday, and it was with two trees, uphill. I could run around an arena with a log on my back. If the horsemanship was what they said, I should be fine there as well, and the melee is what I've been training the whole time for.

     "Now, all the events are important, but the only there is really only one that matters. The top four in each of the first two events are allowed to proceed to the melee, and that is the one that determines your fate. You win that, you win it all, and only one can win. Oh, there is one way that you can lose without losing all of your points."

     "How?"

     "If ya yield to another fighter. That will end your day as easily as dropping below zero."

     "I will never yield." Yield, I would never have to yield. I will beat everyone in that arena.

     "That's the spirit lad."

     We made our way to the arena early. It was the same arena that we had watched the young knights training the year before. As I walked through a tunnel that led to the floor of the arena I realized it seemed much bigger from down here than it did from up in the stands. I stepped out of the tunnel onto the floor and looked up at the rows of seats that would soon be filled with cheering people. The sand on the floor was soft. I could feel myself sink in a little with each step. Running wouldn't be as easy as I thought it would be.

     Galdren lead us across the floor of the arena to another tunnel, this one lead to a waiting area for all the contestants. There was a man and boy already there. They were talking quietly in the corner and turned towards us as we walked in. They smiled, waved and then went back to their discussion. We went to the opposite corner and sat on a bench.

      The room filled quickly after a few more minutes. It looked like there were 15 boys including myself. They all seemed to have jitters, with the exception of the first boy that I saw. He was still talking quietly with his father. After a short time, I stopped looking around the room. I was feeling myself get anxious again by looking at all the other boys being anxious. I just focused on my breathing as if I was going to start practicing one of the movements. In no time, I was off in another world that was silent. I could feel my body relax and calm. I went through each movement in my head, the sword whirling in empty space, waiting to strike an actual opponent. I began to hear a bell ringing. I looked around and saw nothing but my sword and the surrounding darkness. I heard it again, and it slowly pulled me back to reality.

     "Hello, I am Sir Wallace and I'm here to go over a few rules for this tournament." Sir Wallace was the biggest man I had ever seen. He stood a head taller than anyone else in the room. His shoulders were broad and I wondered how he got through the door without turning sideways. He had chainmail armor on under a white tunic. On his chest was a blue lions head, the symbol of the Targen Knights. "The first rule is, well, it's to have fun. Yes this is a tournament to get a coveted invite into the Knights academy, but you should still have fun. The second rule has to do with the melee. Stabbing strikes are not permitted. If you are caught performing a stabbing strike, you will receive a deduction of 5 points. If that causes your points total to fall below zero, than you are out. There are no exceptions to this rule. Remember this is a fun friendly tournament, we don't need you killing anyone just yet."

     Everyone had a light chuckle at that, but you could see a few boys got even more nervous. I wan't sure if it was that they were worried they would stab, or that they would be stabbed.

     "The third rule pertains to the yield. If you have control of an opponent and they cannot safely recover, you may ask them to yield. If they yield, they are out of the tournament. There is a second part of this rule, if you yield, you must place your sword on the ground and leave the arena. Your weapon will be returned to you after the melee is over, so that you can return it to your sponsor."

     Sponsor? Was that what I was to consider Galdren? Did you need a sponsor to get in the tournament? I thought it was open to anyone 10 years of age. If it weren't for my father knowing Galdren, I wouldn't have a sponsor. I looked up at my father questioning.

     "Later lad, I'll explain later."

     "Finally, you are going to line up in here. When you hear the trumpets salute, you will walk with your sponsor to the center of the arena. You will hear one more salute of the trumpets, and the King will come through a curtain into this box. You will take a knee to show your respect for the king. You will see all other Knights in the arena do the same. Sponsors, you do not need to take a knee. When the King sits, you will rise back to your feet. Your sponsor will then present your weapon to you, and they will then leave the arena. After that, the tournament will begin. I will have you all follow me to the far side of the arena, and then you will listen to what you are told from there. Remember, to have fun out there today, and good luck to you all." With that, Sir Wallace spun on his heal and walked out of the small waiting room and through the tunnel.

     Everyone began lining up in pairs when he left. My father held me back. "I know you want to now about the sponsor. Every entrant must have a  sponsor to provide them with a weapon. The sponsor either has to be a noble of good standing, or a blacksmith of the kingdom."

     "If that is the case, then not everyone can enter this tournament. You said anyone can enter."

     "I did, and that is true. Anyone can enter, but you have to be able to find a sponsor. We are lucky to know Galdren. Good luck son. I know you will do your best." My father hugged me and smiled.

     I was perplexed by this information. The tournament wasn't truly fair to everyone. Even though you didn't need to be a noble to enter, you still had to know one, and how could a common person know a noble. That wasn't important now. I saw Galdren was motioning to me to get in line with him. We were the very last ones to exit the tunnel.

      The trumpets blared and a roar went up from the crowd as the first participant walked out of the darkness and into the sunlit arena. Galdren and I waited out turn to make our debut in front of the crowd. I stepped into the bright sunlit and it caused my eyes to squint. When I could finally see, I looked up and saw the crowd. I had never seen so many people in one area. Maybe I had, in the market, but you are amongst them then, and they aren't all looking at you.

     We lined up in the center of the arena. Trumpets blared again and the King made his appearance. He was younger than I thought he would be. I don't know why I thought that, but I always pictured him with a long white beard, with a large polished crown, and a oversized fur-lined cape. He was quite the opposite. He was thin, but he looked tough, maybe wiry is a better way to put it. He had long dark hair, and he wore similar armor to what the Targen Knights were wearing. the only difference was that his tunic was a bright blue with a blossomed flower on it in white. Atop his head was a thin gold band. He waved to everyone in the crowd, and gave the participants a nod of his head, and then sat. We all stood and receive our weapons.

     "I know you are going to do fine, and you don't need my saying this, but good luck to ya lad, and give'em hell." Galdren then clapped me on the shoulder as he walked back to the tunnel.

Yep, I Went There.

     I have said in the past, that I try my best to keep this politic free, but sometimes, it just has to be. Considering most of the things I want to talk about our going to have a political swing to them, I may as well start off with something that has been talked about quite a bit lately.

    Over the last week or so, there has been a lot of talk about celebrities running for President.  Although I appreciate the words celebrities like Oprah and Dwayne Johnson have been saying, I ask one question. Haven't we learned our lesson from voting someone in office that has no experience what so ever serving the public in a position of politics? I think both of those two are very smart, but if they really want to serve the public, then they should start out at a local level. The area Oprah lives in was just devastated by mudslides, and earlier this year by wildfires. Why doesn't she run for Mayor of that town, or even State Senator or Congressperson? Same goes for The Rock.

     This has been my longstanding problem with the Green Party. You always see them show up for Presidential elections, but you never see a Green Party candidate running for local office. I like what they stand for, but until they start supporting candidates in local elections, I have no belief in them. It seems to me, that they only want the notoriety of a big election, and forget about people in the grassroots areas. It has been proven time and time again, that you can do more to help your community in a local election than you can in one that is nationwide. Start from the ground up, learn what the people really need. Get your hands dirty. I don't know of any person on this planet that learned to run before they learned to walk, and our current President proves that on a daily basis. Sentiment and words are nice, but they don't get things done. Actions based on knowledge of what is going on in the areas that are overlooked get things done. That is what this President ran on, and instead of doing something in then black community on MLK Day like former Presidents before him, he played golf. That should tell you everything about the job that he is doing. Celebrities should only be political figures, after they have been an actual political figure.

     Enough of that rant, and on to something a little less of a rant, but still a little bit of one. I watched the premier of Black Lightening tonight. First, I have been looking forward to this show, and I wasn't disappointed. It was great. Ok, here comes the rant, but more of a history lesson for you. The show had me hooked at the start, when they played Strange Fruit in the opening. Sadly it wasn't Billie Holiday's original version, but it was by the incomparable Nina Simone. Fantastic version, bur for my money, I want Billie. Billie was the first to record it, and quite frankly, the best. it was originally a poem written by teacher named Abel Meeropol. If you've never heard it, you are missing out on a bone chilling song. It is a song in protest of lynchings, in particular lynchings by the klu klux klan. Yes, it was intentional that I didn't capitalize the name of that group. Anyway, I have posted that Billie Holiday's version as a FSOTW, but instead of posting a video for you to listen to it, I want to give you the first few lines of the song to read.

Southern trees bear strange fruit

Blood on the leaves and blood at the root

Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze

Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees

     Like I said, bone chilling, and when Billie sings it, you feel pain and agony in her voice. I might be a little jaded, since I am a big Billie fan, but if you didn't catch when I posted it, and you've never heard it, please go look it up.

     Back to Black Lightening. As I said earlier, it was great. It was everything I wanted Luke Cage to be. I enjoyed Luke Cage, but it lacked a bit of grittiness to me, and BL had it. When I think of the superhero TV shows, Netflix reigns supreme, and everything else is good, but lacking a little bit. This show, on the first episode, well, it could be a Netflix production. It is good. It doesn't just deal with a hero versus a villain, it deals with all the ugliness that is going on in this country right now. It deals with price brutality, gang violence, drugs, sexual assault, and everything else that is vile in this world. It is the grittiest superhero show I have seen on a network cable show, and I am already in love with it. I can't wait until next week. It writing is spectacular, the acting is superb and the action is extreme. It is all a part of the CW list of superheroes, and I hope that it is here to stay. I don't know how they will spin him into their crossovers (they have done a yearly crossover that gets all the shows involved for the past two seasons) or if they will even want to. I kind of want it to be stand alone from the rest. As dark as the others shows will go from time to time, this one is darker and looks like it is going to stay dark for the whole run. It's like Gotham in that aspect. Gotham has been dark since day one, and just stays on the edge of the shadows. Give it a watch and see what you think.

     Dolores Mary Eileen O'Riordan is swirling in the ether tonight. She died suddenly in London on Monday, while there to record a new album with The Cranberries. She is known for her angelic voice with a little touch of Irish yodeling. The band burst onto the scene in the early to mid 90's with Linger. The song was quickly followed by Dreams. I can remember stories about how Dolores had terrible stage freight and would have her back faced towards the audience when they played live. I remember seeing this on a televised performance once. It was incredible to watch, but she found a way to over come that and by the time their biggest hit, Zombie was released she was facing the audience. Zombie was a protest song against the IRA. At the time the set bombs in trash bins outside of businesses in England that took the lives of two small children and wounded many more. I don't know for sure if the IRA still exists, but it is believed that they disbanded in the late 90's. That attack along with another one, were the beginning of their end. Their public perception had gone from a group that was fighting for freedom, to one that killed children. Dolores was at the forefront of that. She wrote all the lyrics to their songs, and was a co-writer on the music. She set a fashion trend with her pixie cut hair and also began a yodeling fad. No one could really do it like her though.

     When I think back to 90's music, I'm not a big fan, but The Cranberries and Dolores always stood out. They had a creative sound that was all their own. A bit pop with Irish melodies. For me, the 90's was dismal for music, but there were some bright spots, and none shown brighter than them. In honor of Dolores, I'm dedicating the Favorite Song of the Week to her and those close to her. I know you are thinking that Zombie is the song coming up, but you would be wrong. I love that song, but the first one I heard is still the best on, so here is The Cranberries with "Linger".

     If you stuck through all of the political talk, you made it to a little bit of fun. That song above, as said as it is, is fun. Beautiful and somber, but brings hope.

     I did a little playing around with the old blog here, and I almost had a way to group The Patchwork Knight in one area, but I failed. I did however come up with the next best thing. I added a search window for the blog, so that you can find it that way. Here is the catch though, if you want a specific thing, you have to type it exactly as I did. So, if you are looking for chapter 1 of The Patchwork Knight, you would have to type in The Patchwork Knight (Chapter 1). Exactly like that, if there is anything slightly amiss, you will either get nothing, or you will get every blog post that mentions The Patchwork Knight. That means that this post was just added to that list, since I have mentioned a few times now. I tried it out myself, and it works. I typed it in exact, and it was the only thing that popped up. That could change now, since I've written it here so many times, but you can still find it.

     Speaking of The Patchwork Knight. This weeks chapter is going to be a big one, full of action. This is the one I've been waiting to write, and I'm really looking forward to it. I may start writing early in the evening instead of my normal just before bed. I'm going to need time for this one. I'm really excited about this one, and I hope you like it. That being said, it is getting late, and I have work tomorrow, so you know what that means. Peace in and goodnight.

I Got Some News For You.

     I got some news for you, but let's start at the beginning. It was a short week as I thought it would be, and Friday was dreary, so I didn't get to ride much, or shoot any video, but there is a video for today, but that will come with the news I have for you. A few updates are in order first.

     I did stretch or restretch my ear up to a half an inch, and it already looks like it's ready to go up to the next step. I'm going to keep this half inch tunnel in far another week or so though, just to get it good and loose for when I get the next one ready. I've really been blown away at how fast this process has come along.

     Update #2: This would be the Match update. I'm a week in and I'm already thinking that this is a bad idea on my part. I don't think there is anything wrong with the site, I think what is wrong is me. I got an email today from the Match team or whatever it is, saying that "successful members" have sent 14 more emails than I have. I guess when it comes to success in this whole online dating thing, I'm off to a miserable start. I'm not a fan of the so called "numbers" game. Quantity doesn't not overcome quality, so I'll just take my time and do it my way. I don't spend a lot of time on there, I might go on once a day for a few minutes. I have sent out 2 emails to women, and last I checked only 1 of them had been read, with no reply. That doesn't mean that she doesn't want to message back. It could be that she isn't a member and doesn't have the ability to message back. That is the catch with theses kinds of sites, you have to pay to play, or you wait until they do a fee weekend and hope that your chances weren't blown by the fact that you took several weeks or months to get back to someone. I think this is my problem with these sites in general. They are a business, and they have to make money, but they really aren't in it for making people come together. That is just a happy side affect of them making money. If you find happiness, then they look good and they can make more money. If you don't find it, then they still make money regardless. I'll keep you updated on the haps as they happen.

     Now for that news. I was relaxing on Friday evening when a friend of mine contacted me about an idea he has had for a blog. I'm not sure if he started out as joking, but I got a bug in me and took it seriously. He has been wanting to do a pizza blog for some time now, and he casually mentioned to me that it was going to be called Two Guys and a Pie, and that he and I would do it together. I liked the name, but I had to do a quick search to find out if that name was already in use. It was in a couple of versions. One is a pizza place in New York and the other is a pie shop in China. He bounced a few other names off of me, but none of them had that same ring to it. I really liked that name, so I found a way to use it. A new blog is coming and it's going to be called The Pepperoni Report w/ Two Guys and a Pie. We are going to go around the area once a month and review a different pizza place. I really think that this is going to be a lot of fun. I already have the blog live, and am waiting to get him connected to it as a writer. That way we can check each other and add our individual touch to it. When you have a chance, check it out, you can find it here. Click on that little link and you will be taken to what will soon be the review of all reviews when it comes to pizza. 

     With that in mind, that brings us to the video. I had an idea I was going to do, but then this idea came to me from him, and I made the video about that. I also used it as a kind of test run of what you might see in the videos we are going to do. Oh, I didn't mention that we are going to do videos with it as well. I promise that I won't get my fingers in the picture when I film for the pizza places. You'll know what I mean when you watch the video. In my defense, I was using the GoPro Session when I filmed the food, and there is no way of seeing what you are filming unless you are connected to the app, which I wasn't. Enjoy the video.

     Despite the fingertip in the picture, I really liked the way it turned out. I do plan on doing more filming when we do the review. I want to make it real stylized with slo-mo and maybe different filters on the screens and what not. This is going to be a lot of fun and I really hope that you come along for this ride. I did add the subscription button on The Pepperoni Report, so you can get it sent to your mailbox as soon as it is sent out. Our first visit will be on February 9th and we will have the review up either that night or within the next few days. I will have to get all the editing done on the video for the blog done before we can publish, so It's going to be delayed because of me. It will not go live until the video is up and running. We haven't decided if we are going to keep it on my channel or if we are going to make a new channel for it. I think for now, we will keep it on my channel, and see if we need to make a new channel.

     In the process of setting up this new blog, I learned a few things, and added them in on this one, so  you might notice a couple of small changes as far as the appearance goes. I changed the way the Title of the blog itself appears, by making Counterfeit Squirrel in script as opposed to the original Arial font. That is really the way I wanted it in the first place, I only just learned how to do that. I think the new little touches look good, let me know what you think. Oh, I even increased the width of the blog area itself, so that it is more enjoyable to read. It's a little more spread out, and the background is a little less harsh on the eyes. I think anyway, once again, let me know what you think. I can always change things around if you think something might make it better for you. You will only see this if you are on the site itself. I have no idea how this will change the email subscription look. I guess I'll find out tomorrow morning when it comes in.

     I'm really excited about this, because it will be another reason to write and to also make a different kind of video for you to watch. I really hope you like what we do when it comes out. I'm going to try to make sure the first one is as good as we can get it, and then I want to improve on each one after that. Peace in and goodnight.

The Patchwork Knight (Chapter 12)

     After a good nights rest, things seemed normal. The kingdom was full of activity with the King's birthday celebration in full tilt. The market streets were full of people from all over the realm selling and buying trinkets. My father and I made our way to the large stall near the castle that belonged to his old friend Galdren.

     He stood in front of his market forge with his large arms crossed in front of his chest. He was shaking his head from side to side with a sour look on his face as we walked up.

     "What's this I hear about you two bringing Raiders into the realm?"

     "We thought it would be a nice gift for the King."

     Galdren had a disapproving look on his face, and then he burst into laughter and embraced my father.

     "Why is it always you that finds trouble Falren? Boy, did I tell you about how your father saved my life?"

     "Don't listen to him boy, I told you he only had one story that he told. You know me and trouble. If there is any out there, I'll find it."

     "Aye, that you do. Come in here, I have something to show you."

      Galdren led us into the small forge and to the back. This is where he had given me the plate mail gauntlet the year before. He cleared an area on his workbench, and then went to the far side and opened a large chest. He flung a blanket up from the top and pulled out a strange looking tunic. He placed that on the bench and then went back to the chest and pulled out two tapered cylinders with buckles on them.

     "Your father sent word to me that you were going to compete in the Tournament of Knighthood. He wanted me to get this for you."

      "What is it?"

     "What have you been teaching the lad? This is armor boy."

     I had never seen armor like this. In fact, the only armor I had ever seen was on the Targen Knights, and what was in the hidden room in my father's forge, and non of it looked like this.

     "It's boiled leather lad. It will protect you during the tournament. I know it's not flashy like the armor you see here or what was in my forge, but this is all you will need."

     "He's right boy. I've watched these tournaments for years now, and there are always some noble prats that don heavy plate mail thinking that it will give them and advantage, and all it does is slow them down and makes them tired. This will keep you nimble and agile, and it has enough hide on it to keep you from getting bruised up too badly."

     I walked up to it in shock. I was going to have my own armor? As I got closer to it, I could see that the strange tunic was more of a vest with leather belts on the side with a large hole in the top for my head to go through.

     "Can I try it on? I was excited.

     "I insist on it. If it doesn't fit, we won't have any other time to get it changed before tomorrow."

     With the help of my father I slid the breastplate over my head, and my father buckled the belts to give it a firm fit. It was stiff, but fit my body well.

     "Move around a bit lad. You need to see if it rubs anywhere on you."

     "In fact, practice the first movement in it."

     "I don't have a sword with me papa. How can I practice the movement?"

     "You don't need a sword to practice. Just go through the motion as if you had a sword in you hand."

      There wasn't a lot of room in the booth. My father and Galdren took a few step back to clear what little area there was for me. I took a deep breath and began. I brought my hand up from my side sweeping across my belt line and acted as though I was holding sword upright in front of me. I lunged forward pointing my imaginary sword at my mysterious opponent. I stepped back and blocked, first low and then high. I slashed diagonally across my foes chest, planting my front foot and then brining my rear foot behind me causing my to spin backwards. As I made my 360 turn I slashed again, this time at neck height. I brought the sword around low and then back up in a diagonal slash from stomach to shoulder. I dropped down and spun throwing my rear leg out to sweep my opponents leg, quickly standing up to go for the fatal blow. One more spin and then I brought the sword point down into and exposed throat.

     I kneeled there with and invisible sword planted firmly through my enemies throat and into the earth below. From a distance I heard a small round of applause. Even though we were in the back of the small market booth, we could still be seen from the open area of the market in front. A crowd had formed with delighted eyes.

      "I might have to keep you around boy. You could be very good for business if you can draw people like this. Take a bow for your fans Pitre. You can see this young lad in the Tournament of Knighthood tomorrow, and don't forget where you saw him first."

     I stood up a little bewildered. I took a small bow and waved to the crowd, and then promptly hid behind the small forge in the center of the booth.

     "Don't be shy lad, that was impressive. It seems your father has been teaching you well. Did I see what I think I saw Falren?"

     "You did. He found the Swordsman's Euphoria early on."

     "There is no mistaking that look. It was the same one that you got when you went into battle. Well, you're looked a little like you had eaten a bad piece of meat, and the privy was full." Galdren released a laugh like it could be his last. It was more like a battlecry than a laugh. Maybe it was a victory cry. he had defeated his enemy and left them in tatters on the field of battle. My father just shook his head.

     "Here boy, put the gauntlets on. I have no worries about them nor do I have any doubts that Galdren chose the right armor for you. You didn't feel any rubbing did you?

     "No papa. It felt." I couldn't find the words for how it felt. I barely even noticed that it was there. "It felt like I didn't even have it on." I put the gauntlets on and my father buckled them up as well. A feeling came over me, a feeling like nothing I've experience before. It was confidence. I felt like I could do no wrong, and no one would best me in this tournament.

     "I see that look in your eyes boy, and don't believe what you are feeling right now. Gauntlets and a breastplate don't make you a victor. Skill makes you a victor. Rely on that and only that. There is always someone out there who is faster, stronger, smarter, and better than you. Your only hope, is to never find that person, and if you do, hope that they are on your side. Remember that boy, it will save you more than any piece of armor, or fancy sword can."

     My father's face was serious. It wasn't mean or angry, it was just serious. He wanted me to hear what he was saying, and I began to step down from that platform that I was standing on. There was someone better. I saw them myself when I saw my father kill that Raider on horseback."

     "Do you understand me boy?'

     "Yes papa."

     "Good, I have one more thing for you." My father took his pack off and pulled a bundle out of it. It was about 3 feet or so long. He placed it on the bench where the armor had been and unwrapped it. With the burlap warp open a brilliant sword laid on top. It was a thin blade with a standard guard. The handle was wrapped with leather and had a brass inlay. On the end of the hilt was another large piece of brass but it was shaped to look like the head of a ram." I made this for you to use in the tournament. The edge is blunted right now, you can't have sharpened blades in the tournament. When we get home we can sharpen it."

     "Aye, when did ya learn how to forge like that? I taught you well, but I didn't teach you that well. That is beautiful man, and it's a good thing you kept that under wraps. The guards would have had a fit with that one, dead Raider or not."

     The sword was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. I picked it up, and the balance was perfect, not like that lumpy old practice sword. It felt good in my hands. I gave the point a little twirl and it almost sung as it cut the open air. As I was doing that, the sun broke the clouds and a single ray found it's way through the rafters of the small forge. It almost shimmered in the small ray of light. I spun the handle in my hand to spin the blade, and it seemed to fleck with sparkles from the light. It didn't matter how it fell in my hand the sword was always at the ready with it's double edged blade.

     "Alright boy, we need to put it up for now. It had to be left here and Galdren will present you with it tomorrow at the tournament. Remember, only royal blacksmiths are allowed to forge weapons."

     "I don't know my friend, I'm good, but I don't know if anyone is going to believe that I forged that blade, and if they do, they are all going to want one."

     "Are you telling me, that the student has surpassed the master?" My father had a sly grin on his face, and I watched Galdren's face contort into something reminiscent of a knotted up tree trunk.

     "So you have. You know what this means though don't ya? I'm going to ask you to join my forge again, and become a royal blacksmith."

     "Is there ever a time that you don't ask me?"

     "You got me there old friend. One of these times you are going to cave in and come work with me."

     "Wait, did I just hear you correctly? Did you say 'with me'? Now that is something new. I don't think I've heard those particular words come from you. It's always, 'you need to come work for me.'".

     "Well, up until know, your work was always just good, not exceptional." Both men began laughing again as I placed the sword in the burlap and folded it back up. I would see it again tomorrow, and then soon after, I would begin my journey as a Knight.

   



 

The Hole Just Keeps Getting Bigger.

     There are two things I've been wanting to talk to you about, but I keep forgetting. Keeping with that theme, I forgot one of the the things, so I'll just stick with the one I remember right now, and hope the other one comes to me during the writing of this.

     The first thing is an update on my ear, that I had repierced. It has advanced much quicker than I thought it would. I originally went from the 6 gauge barbell hoop to a 00 gauge plug. That is almost double the size of the original 6. I am currently at 7/16th of an inch plug and pretty sure I'm ready to move up to a half inch. I have to wait on that one, because I couldn't seem to find any of my old half inch plugs, so 1 is on the way. I have had no trouble at all moving up the scale on this. Every time I put a larger size plug in, within a few days, the lobe has stretched enough for the next size up. It seems that my ear is remembering how much it was stretched before and is just going through the paces of opening itself back up. Think of it like this. If you could do a complete straddle stretch when you were younger, you still have that potential but you can't just drop into it. You have to slowly work up to it. That is what is going on with my ear, but it is without any coaxing on my part. If it keeps going at this pace, I should be back to the last complete stretch I had in about a month. That was 3/4 inch. That is only one step below where the blowout occurred. That is when I will have to do a little work to get it to open up. I have a plan though, and I'll detail that when I get closer to that time.

      Still can't think of the other thing I wanted to talk about. And it just came to me. Last week an artist that I am a big fan of, posted on Instagram. He was thanking all of his fans for sticking by him and helping him get through a difficult year. He suffered a few losses this year, and it was rough for him. To show his appreciation he had initially posted that he was going to give away a free print to the first 200 people who ordered from the link in his bio. The only catch was, that you had to cover shipping. He soon left another post after that, amazed at the response, and upped the number of free prints, and added that he would allow people who didn't get in on the free ones, to purchase the print for a single dollar. Once again, you had cover shipping. I as asleep when he posted the earlier ones, and didn't get in on the free prints, but I did get in on the limited time $1 print. There was no way I was passing up the opportunity to get one of his prints for a $1. Well, $12 when all is said and done. $12 for a print from my favorite modern artist. His name is Kevin Llewellyn and if you follow this link http://llewellyn.bigcartel.com you can see his artwork. The painting listed as White Widow is the one that he offered for the free/$1 print. I already own one of his prints, and feel lucky to have it. It, like all of his prints, are limited, so they are rare and hard to get a hold of. The print I own isn't even listed in his archive of work anymore. I paid a pretty fair amount of money for it, and still haven't hung it, since I can't find the right frame for it. It is tucked away still in it's protective tube. I couldn't be more thrilled to be adding another once of his prints to my collection.

     I'll let you know when I get it, but he is only one man and relies on the help of volunteers to help him ship these prints out. The other one I got took nearly a year to get to me, but it was worth it. I would show you a picture of it, but I don't dare touch it until I'm ready to frame it. Maybe when the new one comes in, I'll get on the ball of getting them framed and hung. Then I'll get a picture for you.

     It's looking like another short work week, so I'm hoping to have a video ready for you by this Sunday. I have two ideas, but I'm leaning heavily to one that came to me after watching another motovloggers videos. I'm pretty sure that is the plan I'm going with. Oh, I do have to tell you, I got my knee down coming home from a ride the other day. It scared the hell out of me. I was going around a turn at my normal pace, but then I just relaxed a little more than normal, and the bike just dropped over, and I felt my knee scrape the ground. I almost panicked, but kept my composure, and stood the bike up pretty quick. I wasn't ready for it, otherwise I would have gone with it a bit, except that that would have been a bad idea. I was only wearing jeans and not my riding jeans. The big differences is, that the riding jeans have knee pads and they are reinforced with kevlar. Makes for a less bloody knee. I only felt a touch and my jeans remained intact, so I was good with only a slight raspberry on my knee. Weird how that can happen. Jeans stay good, but skin has a slight abrasion.
I don't know if I'lll be able to repeat that again right away, but I've been working towards that for a while now, I just wasn't expecting to do it then, since I wasn't even trying. I was just doing a normal slightly faster than normal turn. It felt scary but good. When I can finally do it, I'll find some way to set up the cameras to get shots of it for you. I have a great idea to get a really cool shot if I can pull it all together.

     It is time for Favorite Song of the Week. I first learned of this artist when I saw her live opening up for Twenty One Pilots. It was the first time I was seeing them at the House of Blues, and she was the middle act. I was an immediate fan. She's a spunky little woman that took no prisoners in her live show. If I remember right, she only stands at 5 feet, but she is a powerhouse when it comes to spitting lyrics. Yes she is a rapper, and a damn good one at that. While she was performing that show, she mentioned another artist named Skrillex, and how she was on one of his songs. I knew that song, It was one of m favorite ones on that particular album. Turns out, I was a fan of hers for a while now. That is what she mostly does, collaborations with other artists, but from time to time, she puts out her owns songs. That is where FSOTW comes in. This is her latest song, and I'm not sure if she is putting together an album or just releasing solo songs. This is the second one in a couple of months, and both of them have been great, but this is the latest that I've heard, and it came out about 4 weeks ago. Her is Sirah with "Zoloft".



     I love how it has that slow jam vibe to it. I think it fits in well with the title. Please look her up and listen to some of her other stuff, I think you will enjoy it.

    Alrighty then, I'm getting tired faster than normal, and I need to get to bed. More action is coming in The Patchwork Knight, so look for that on Thursday Knight. I gave you but a taste in the last chapter. There is more to come. Peace in and goodnight.

The Laziest Of Weekends.

     This weekend has been a complete and total wash. I have done nothing, and I think I needed it. I was off on Friday so I got all my bills paid, and then I sat back and reveled in the thought that my financial responsibility was done for the month. I was even so exhausted from doing that, that I went to sleep around 9 o'clock. It was exhilarating. Morty did however see fit to wake me up at 3 in the morning to go outside, and then he didn't want to come it. It was in the 30's with me standing out there in thin pajamas. It kind of sucked.

     I probably could have rode Saki. It was clear skies all weekend, but with the temperature being so low for this area, it was way more comfortable to just lounge around the house. I did take care of a few small things in the garage, and that made me realize that I need to also think about a heating element in their as well as an air conditioning unit. It was frigid in that garage.

     I got a new hat from Ride Apparel Co. That is a company that was created by a motovlogger that I follow. and he puts out pretty cool stuff. He has been wearing this hat in his most recent videos and I've been looking for it on the Ride website. In his last video he finally said it was on the website and I went directly there and ordered it.

     

     One of the few pictures I will post of myself. I really dig the hat. I did do one thing this weekend, I signed up on Match.com. It's probably against my better judgement, but I'm giving the online thing a try again. I made that picture up there the one on my profile, so i'm sure I'm going to get no matches. I'll keep you updated on how things go, good or bad. Oh, I also got tickets for a Prince Tribute concert. If you are in the Orlando area and want to go, let me know, I have an extra ticket, it should be a fun time. It's going to be on a Saturday night in Orlando at the House of Blues. I really like that venue for shows.

     I forgot to share this picture with you last week. I got it during the filming of my last video, which by the way, not a single person has watched. You are missing out on what I think might be one of my best ones, and I'm not just saying that to get you to go watch it. Anyway, here is the picture I got of Saki in the parking lot after sunrise.

     I was squatting down to get this shot at a slightly different angle, and then I realized that I mainly take pictures of Saki at the same angle each time, so I moved to more of a 3/4 angle, and I really liked it, so I'm going to start incorporating different angle for my shots from now on, and I also started thinking about the next mod on Saki. I'm thinking of getting rid of the stock mirrors, and going to some bar end mirrors. It will streamline things a bit, and I think it will give it a better aesthetic look to it. I'm going to shop around for the right ones. I'll let you know when I finally get them. I'm also going to have to get some block off plates for the area the stock mirrors are bolted. If I don't, there are going to be holes in the fairing where the mirrors were. I found some already, but they are just black plastic, and they don't look that good. I'm going to search around for something a little more sharp looking. If I don't find anything, black will do the job, but they will get painted when I finally learn how to paint Saki. That is still in the future plans. I have a lot of equipment to get for that, and that is going to be quite a ways off. It will happen though. I also started thinking more about finally getting that under lighting kit to put on as well. I think I might do the mirrors and that at the same time. Make for a big change with little things.

     Finally with it being such a nice day, I spent a little time in the backyard with Morty. He was just hanging out and having a great time out there. The temperature was up in the upper 50's and maybe low 60's this afternoon, so it was real pleasant out there. This is what Morty looks like in full on chill mode.

     I nearly forgot. I finally got the new case for my phone. I have always been a fan of Lifeproof cases, and this new one is fantastic. I do have one concern though. I have always gone for their full coverage case in the past, I think it is called the fré. It is a great case. It covered the phone entirely, to the point that when I took my 7+ out of the case to ship it back to Apple for my trade in, it looked like a brand new phone. This new case is a little different. Since the new iPhones are water resistant, there wasn't really a need for a full coverage case, so I went for their cheapest one, and it covers most of the phone perfectly, but there is nothing on the screen. One of the downfalls of the fré is that the screen protector that was part of the phone, left the screen a bit dull, not so much that you would care, but it was there. That isn't an issue with this new case, but the screen is completely unprotected with this case. It is more like a bumper case. It protects the sides from drops, and the screen from flat surface direct drops, but if I dropped it on some stones or something like that, it may damage the screen. I'll have to be a little more careful with this phone than the last. I don't have a picture of it, but I will make sure I point it out in the next video I do. Oh, it does have a hard clear plastic back to the case, so the back of the phone is well protected. You won't be able to see that in the video, because more than likely I will show it to you while it is in the mount on the bike. 

     Speaking of the next video, I need to come up with an idea. I have a few, but I haven't buttoned it down to one particular thing yet. I'll make sure I finalize a plan by the weekend and get it shot and edited. Peace in and goodnight.