Storms without, stores inside
Mood:  crushed out
Now Playing: KOTV weather
Topic: the usual insanity
   
Well the VT shirt never made it because the colors messed up. Also, VT made one for themselves so the one I made would have been pointless. I will make the one I said, just not now.
The SL store is opening soon. I actually have products ready to go up; Unique sculptie ties and shoes as well shirts.
On the college front, I am onto Avionics 3 in 4 weeks (2 weeks of class then 2 week summer break). This will give me enough time to actually get the CLEP test for english and get the shop running.
Beyond that everything is good. There are things I would like to talk about but no one understands so I can discuss it. Just be thankful for your mercy and grace. Be blessed. Thanks for reading.
Until tommorrow, Live the journey.

Hokie Hope
Mood:  sad
Now Playing: Wish you were here - Mark Harris
Topic: commentary

  This is a quick update.  In light of the VT tragedy, I will add a VT support shirt, that celebrates the spirit of Virginia Tech.
It'll be a split orange/red shirt with the school motto on the front:Ut Prosim 
  On the back will be "Hokies forever, 4/16/07"   I will try to have this up on Slexchange before friday with is "Hokie Hope" day where everyone who supports VT is encouraged to wear Burnt Orange and Chicago Maroon.
  caLLie cline also has shirts at her shop with the sale price goes to the Hokie memorial fund. Her kiosk in at her shop in Plush Lambda/169/179/2/. If the store was opened I would have a kiosk too. Anyway,on hotel news, it looks like the hotel's demolition order will be lifted. Architects have been there and drawings are being made. Its moving slowly. I am shooting for a summer shop opening. It is coming together. 

Until the forthnight, Shalom. 

It has come down to this...
Mood:  lucky
Topic: commentary
 So, I took my final for Avaionics one and passed the class. Well, I have 4 days to get everything together. I have actually 28 t-shirts done. However, I havent started on the shoes or the ties or any of the other clothes because I have been bogged down with school and work.
 So this is what I am doing. I am selling the bulk of my T-shirts on SLexchange and SLboutique. In store I will have 8 to 10 max at any one time. And hopefully Apez will rotate them through. They will be L$25 to L$50 depending on the logo. I will never charge more than L$50 for a t-shirt. I will have several freebie t-shirts as well.
I plan on making suits as well but I plan on making them more unique than the current crop. From what I have seen in reality, the basic suits are black, blue or grey. They can have pinstripes of white. I see no need to make these unless wants a custom suit. Mushashi do and others do just as well. I will be making white and other colors.
 So what am I specializing on? Prim sneakers, office wear, prim ties, T-shirts, western wear and uniforms.
 I have currently 50 sneaker textures and will be making a sneaker template prim. Yes this means that the textures will be different but the shoe the same. I am actually sorry about that but I paying 50K for my classes and this can't take priority over that. If I do it right you wont be able to tell. (I went to addidas and looked that their prim shoes, nice but I want to be under ten. (I am thinking three or four.) The sneakers will be at least L$100 but no more than L$300, based on the texture. Their will be freebie sneakers but at this time I dont plan on tintable ones.But they will be modifiable so you can tint it yourself.
 Ties will be prim because a prim tie stands out. And I will make both flexi and non flexi because some poeple dont like flexi flapping everywhere. Ties will be L$10. I have the template made already. I have no textures for them yet. I hope to have some by weeks end.
 Office wear! Thats polos and long sleeve shirts. L$50. Modifiable.
  The rest will vary. I will make sweaters, jackets and belts of varying types. I dont plain on charging more than L$300 for any of it. I am shooting for the sweet shot of L$50 to 200.
 I am doing some dress and other womens wear. It will be awhile but I will have some demos out. Mostly gowns and dresses. Some lingere, some prim shoes. No promises.
  As for custom work, it depends. I did the ajax amsterdam uniforms(Unless someone else did them simlutaneously. I have a complete one to prove it.) If you want something let know, I can tell you if I can do it, and how long. However, it will cost for time as well as texture. So custom shoes or clothes will because about 100% more expensive because of uniqueness. ( I wont sell them)Except T-shirts. I have a tshirt template of which I can spit out a viable tshirt in 35 to 40 minutes. So it will still cost you L$50 they are non transferable do the uniqueness.
 Only everything eklse I talk about on this blog its all good for now. I am fine, the hotel is still there and everything else is moving.
 Its all good.
 Next update in hopefully a week.

Building a store
Mood:  down
Now Playing: silence
Topic: commentary

Well, I know now why I didnt get the bulk of the refund. IRS blames Jackson Hewitt and they raise their hands.  So this shall remain as it has for the last 10 years. Free with ads.

On to the store. Thunderburst is slowly developing. Buildings up with Slex terminal inside and the logo up. Couches are appearing with the required coffee tables. All Items clickable and copyable (on the coffee table). Hopefully I will get a SLB atm too. Anyway, at this point I have: An Avastar kiosk, an Metaverse Messenger newsstand. An Aspire kiosk, Second style kiosk (delivered today not yet installed), Pixel pinup kiosk(outside), I IMed Haver Cole for Pwned. A functioning Coke and RedBull machines that give out RedBull and Coke are in the Chapel.
  And that brings me to the clothes themselves. Its appears we have a glut of Tuxes, suits and t-shirts. I had planned to make these too. But I also have planned to make alot of business casual. So It appears that will go first along with jackets sweaters, polos etc.
I got sneaker textures out the butt. Had planned to sl shoes on them but it distorts the textures and while that isnt too bad, prim sneakers are better. They will be a bit bigger (we have muffin feet I know, but these will look good.)than normal but you want them. They will be my highest priced item, do to the detail and work. L$ 200 to 300. Everything else will be L$50 to 150. I will do some freebies (excluding the obvious demo shoes) But mine will be more samples. Finally, I will rarely do sets. Guys dont buy clothes in sets. Metro guys maybe. But average Joe doesn't. So unless its a uniform. It will be alone.  Cheap for you , easy for me.
  Still working out whether I want the vendor system or box. It truly depends on the primmage after I fill the shop. I might go Vendor to save prims inside so The Coffee kiosk can go up (I plan on that too. Selling bags of Coffee. I have 3084 m2) also, I want a horse. So I am probably getting one. 
    Good news for you folks is I will make western wear as well.
So by the numbers,
  Casual wear,
  Sweaters, jackets, slacks and polos
  Prim ties, shoes, and belts.
  Suits and T-shirts
  Uniforms including BSG all duties (command and officers complete at Slex and SLB)  NBA (pending approval, seriously) and some Fifa teams (same), and for now Claire Bennett's cheerleading uniform.
  I will also make outfits and gowns for the ladies, but that is a while away. 
  I will hope to be open by the summer.
    Onto the hotel, nothing new. he's fighting the demolition order. Work will stop shortly to await either demolition or its lifting.  With $100000 already invested in a new roof for the east building, he'snot about to see it wasted due to fear over events 10 years ago. or the fear that it could happen again.
  Almost done with avionic 1. I will pass. I have 1 year to go about now.

  I will try to keep you updated and as I said earlier this will be the official blog for the store. But it wont cease being the Thunderclap blog either. 

 

Issues and not the magazine kind
Mood:  irritated
Now Playing: ludicris in the background *sigh*
Topic: stupidity

I said I would moving this to paid, among many things I had planned to do when I got my income tax refund. Sadly, That isn't happening yet.
  For a reason, I dont yet know, I didn't get the bulk of what I was told I would get. I have mine professionally prepared so this isnt a me mistake. A letter addressed to me was sent to the place informing them and me that they rejected the deduction. So I have to figure why and fix this.
  On the hotel, The demolition order stands for now. A group of business men/women filled with past fear and selfishness fought against the vacation of the order. You see without the order, The new order can get a second round of financing to continue with the renovations. He has no issues with getting the financing, they wont give it to him if the building is scheduled for demolition still.
  On the Thunderburst front, I have the new logo and will go up on the building this weekend. Hoepfully, the Slex atm is out there (i havent logged in since wednesday.) I should also start the stocking of the store too.

Until the morrow,

Mike 

 

New lands to occupy
Mood:  energetic
Now Playing: AD camp 'sufficent'
Topic: the usual insanity

Well, in the midst of this Ten year celebration. I have two more things to celebrate.

But before that, I need to say, sorry. I haven't been blogging and this gives the impression that after the collaspe of the myspace (it became a fest of pron folks, rock artist and others I knownot *sigh*)page whcih i finally deleted, I gave up on blogging. I didnt. I just had nothing to say on the blog. The vlog also died swiftly as it relied on others.

So there was nothing but ther usual year update to 2007 and the add of the 10 year celebration images. That had all changed now.

Yes I am still in college. That hasnt changed. But as you will see thing around here will. The site itself won't. But Thunderclap itself is moving into Second Life.

You know that 3d environment that has buzz and if you do anything involved in computing have heard about. http://www.secondlife.com

 Really simply, I built a chapel there for prayer and praise, thanksgiving and thoughts and reading.  If you are interested, come check it out.

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Xentilx/78/130/39/?img=http://farm1.static.flickr.com/163/394606344_c00a9089e7_o.jpg&title=Thunderclap%20Chapel&msg=Come%20for%20the%20peace%2C%20stay%20for%20the%20shopping%20up%20the%20hill 

 That url will give you the chapels location on the main grid and everything around it.

 Paste this into your browser if you have installed Second life and want to go straight after you have went into orientation island and help island.

Second life://Xentilx/78/130/39

I am also making clothes and other items for sale so there will be shop up the hill to buy stuff from and a wishing well and hopefully a functional phone as well as newspaper vendors (from the major newspapers in world) So it will be a sort of extension to the website. However, links to Ministries will not be there unless they enter the world as well.

Also, if you are still a reader of this blog, you will notice that it will become a  announcement platform for my clothes that I have successfully finished and are available. A new page will be created to help point people to the chapel as well.

 Finally, I am financially well off enough to move out of the its free all the time state that the site has been in. As of March 2007, I am moving to Tripod pro. This means that ugly ad at the top and all the annoying popups, pop unders and annoying stuff will vanish.

All that will remain is the popups I use on the one paper buried in lessons and the ads on the banners and buttons papers (of which I rarely update because I gre out of that silliness ages ago)

I am shooting for the url thunderclap back but since it was stolen by longmont colorado in 2000 I dont know. I might simply be supreme_thunder.com. If it is the second life stuff would be sl.supreme_thunder.com 

 Finally for all of you read the blog and come back occasionally to see if it has updated and are curious about the National inn. It has survived the winter. It is currently undergoing major renovations. I was told it will return to being a normal mid range hotel fully up to code in mid 2008. I will post pics when it is. I might even have some on build it in world.

Thanks for ten years. I could not have done this without you or the Lord. 

 

Happy New year!
Now Playing: You know, that song everyone sings at midnight
Updating the site. Just wanted to say happy new year!

Sorry!
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: silence
Topic: commentary

Hey, I want to apologize to anyone who is reading this. You probably thought I quit writing. I almost did. College is so busy, I barely have time for anything else these days. I am writing this because I baled on the the times I had planned on doing today to sleep.

So here is a update.

The Hotel featuring in this blog, well at the last minute right before demolition, it got bought by a Michael Cummings. He is renovating it and returning it back to a functional hotel. The roof was done first and saved it from collapse during our nasty snow and ice storm. Currently, the faces (the front door and window area you traditionally see when you arrive at a hotel) are being replaced as are the sheetrock and carpeting. Its a shell right now but it will be a new hotel in 2008! It will still be the National Inn though!

I am halfway through Spartan. Hopefully, I can get communciations as well as avionics but I don't know. I will see. I am writing still and doing some stuff in Second Life so if you are using it, look up Thunderclap Morgride. that would be me. 

 Isn't this crazy. Well, at least I don't look like anyone else evil. Thanks to Tripod refusing the code, the link is dead.

http://www.myheritage.com. You will have to log in and give an email address. Cut and paste this into your address window to work. Links are off now.

http://10minutemail.com/10MinuteMail/index.html works great this way. No spam, no marketing in and you still get to use the service. R

And what of next year? Think on this, with the advent of virtual worlds, we are to the point that Jesus spoke of when he said that even the elect would fall. We are this close. Will the aliyah (the rapture) come next year? Or in 2012? Hmm. Don't know. We will see. 

I will try to blog again soon. I got to get that '10 years old' button up!

Mike 

 

still here!
Mood:  a-ok
Now Playing: typing
Topic: commentary
I am still here. Just busy. Still in school. Hotel is still toast. I am back on my feet with connections and help. Its all good. Oh we are celebrating Ten years Of Thunderclap beginning in Oct. Thanks to all of you who read this and come to the site!

Thoughts in time of turmoil
Mood:  blue
Now Playing: silence
Topic: commentary

Before I get into the insanity that surrounds us and is leading to a swift end of this age we are in, I want ot discuss prayer. I got this yesterday from C-faith. It is their G-pan (global prayer Action network) that tey email daily.

Prayer Summary For August 8, 2006

Notice: The following information was taught and prayed about during Lynne Hammond's and Ray Kelly's early morning prayer session this morning. Daily Prayer And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. (Rev. 12:11 KJV) That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all. (Eph. 1:17-23 KJV) Scripture Focus… And He died for all, so that all those who live might live no longer to and for themselves, but to and for Him Who died and was raised again for their sake. (2 Cor. 5:15 AMP) Shared… We as Christians were never meant to live to or for ourselves. We are to live to Him and as a result of that, we can live for Him. Jesus said to her, Woman, believe Me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither [merely] in this mountain nor [merely] in Jerusalem. You [Samaritans] do not know what you are worshiping [you worship what you do not comprehend]. We do know what we are worshiping [we worship what we have knowledge of and understand], for [after all] salvation comes from [among] the Jews. A time will come, however, indeed it is already here, when the true (genuine) worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth (reality); for the Father is seeking just such people as these as His worshipers. God is a Spirit (a spiritual Being) and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth (reality). ( John 4:21-24 AMP) To worship in truth is that God would inspire us in our heart by what He did for us causing us to truly worship Him. We are not to put ourselves on automatic pilot and go through the motions, "praise, praise." We have to be very careful not to do this. There should be something that He has done for us personally that inspires us to worship Him. Prayer too can become very routine. We resort to tongues or how we did things yesterday. Prayer can also become religious. The one thing we have in common with all religions is prayer. All over the world, especially outside of the U.S., you will see people faithfully praying to their god. A while back, the Lord began to move on me to begin to ask Him how to seek Him. To do this I would first go into my heart (for that is where He lives) and see what He would want me to do. Remember, Jesus never did anything without going to the Father. We must always be growing and developing in God or we start to stagnate for it is not in our doings that brings results, it's being led of His Spirit. Psalm 84:5 says, "Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) is the man whose strength is in You, in whose heart are the highways to Zion." The pathway to God is in our heart. If we try to follow someone else's direction on how they got to God, we become more aware of the directions than the destination. We must know that this map we have to follow is in our heart and we have the Holy Ghost living inside of us to reveal the way we are to go. As people of prayer, we are going to have to believe God for the supernatural. Even when we don't understand what we are praying, we can ask God in faith for the supernatural. Prayer plus the supernatural power of God is a combination that can release revelation, wisdom, or whatever it is that is needed. Our point of contact to change the world is prayer. But it cannot be prayer that is routine. It must be from our heart. Prayed… We believe You for change in our own lives We seek You earnestly For all the evangelists to spearhead this move for every culture, every tribe in this nation Raise them up for every people group So many to be saved The souls in America Assistance in Chicago! An alert! Alert the pastors! Apprehend them! The mantle All those in that territory in Chicago So many Tentacles that have spread out from that region All the names, we lift them He will know Alert those in authority In the center Like a compass You are pointing to this place Operations of the Spirit And in Seattle All of those that are keys in the city Angels you are loosed there! A Word from the Lord came forth… Many in this room need to spend more time in the Word. Not necessarily getting messages or something to feed someone else, but your own personal time in the Word. That the light that is in that Word can begin to penetrate your spirit and cause you to rise up to another degree. Make you taller. Make you greater. Make you more stalwart and make you (tongues) stronger in things for these things are about to break upon the whole world. For in your spending time in the Word, you will be like an athlete and that athlete would be exercising himself to become stronger and stronger. So I hear the Word of the Lord saying, "Exercise yourself more in the Word and you shall build spiritual muscle that in the time to come that reservoirs can flow through you by the Spirit of God. You will be ready. You will be transformed. You will be transparent of the Spirit. And He can see and you too by your eyes, He will make your eyes to see. (tongues) He will make you more alert. He will make your eyes more penetrating into realms that you need to read by the Spirit." (tongues) "So more. More and more time with Him. Not just only praying in other tongues. Not just only worshipping Him. But time in the Word of God where the Holy Spirit can speak to your spirit (tongues). In doing so, light, more light will begin to flow to you. More light from the Word so then you will begin to pray by revelation and inspiration rather than what someone has already told you or something of the past or what is already written in the Word. You know those things already. I am wanting to release you," saith God "to a higher flow. To a greater knowing. To a greater of the spirit of seeing and knowing." "That there would flow out of you rivers of living water. Rivers. Not one river. Not just the same river. Not that you would even stagnate in the pull that you were in but there would be rivers that would flow out of you." "So there are new places. There are new tributaries by the Spirit of God that you are to (tongues)… new tributaries. There is a flow. There is a flow and flow until rivers flow out of you. Not anemic trickling from dried up creek beds but rivers of living water to flow out of you in prayer. In other realms too, but in the realm of prayer." Say this right now, "Rivers are going to flow out of me! Rivers of living water!"

 

And if you are wondering, we have a lot to pray about.

 

Security measures taken Thursday:

•Almost no liquids or gels (drinks, toothpaste, perfume, shampoo, hair gel, sunscreen or lotions) can go past security checkpoints or onto airplanes in carry-on bags.

•Baby formula and medicines must be presented for inspection at security checkpoints.

•More carry-on bags to be searched by hand at checkpoints. Shoes must be X-rayed. Some passengers will be searched again at the gate.

•Passengers asked to arrive at least two hours early for extra screening.

“This is a new approach to destroying our aviation system using what I call clean bombs or explosive components to take down multiple aircraft,” Mica says. “We face a very serious challenge in that regard. If they get to the checkpoint, our chances of detecting them are limited.”

U.S. and British authorities have refused to identify the specific components that the suspects arrested Thursday planned to carry aboard planes. A senior U.S. intelligence official with knowledge of the investigation said the explosive they had chosen is called hexamethylene triperoxide diamine (HMDT) and is based on hydrogen peroxide.

Common liquids found in the home, including hair bleach and food preservatives, could be processed, then combined on board a plane after takeoff to make HMDT.

The typical methods used to detect explosives at airports — swabs that test the exterior of luggage and explosive detection machines — would largely be useless against such ingredients.

Dogs are often the last line of defense against bombs, but they can only detect chemicals they have been trained to recognize. They may not be able to detect chemical components of a bomb.

“An almost limitless list” of compounds can be used to create explosives, says Ronay, now at the Institute of Makers of Explosives, a Washington, D.C.-based safety group. “Terrorists know this stuff. It's in their training.”

Intentional bombings have occurred aboard civilian aircraft since at least 1955, he says. An incident that year involved an Illinois man who placed a bomb made of dynamite in a relative's suitcase to collect insurance money.

While all checked bags bound for a jet's cargo hold are screened for explosives, the vast majority of carry-on bags are not. Carry-ons pass through X-ray machines, which may be able to detect the wires in a bomb's detonator but can't show whether a bag contains explosives.

Passengers also must pass through metal detectors before boarding a plane, and their shoes are X-rayed. Virtually no one is checked for explosives.

“This is the greatest vulnerability that we have,” says Rep. Peter Defazio, D-Ore., a leading expert in aviation security.

Defazio has been calling for greater explosive detection at checkpoints for years because of several successful attempts to take bombs aboard planes.

more on planes from Greta:

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If you watched the show on Thursday night, you know we made our flight to London.

I arrived at the airport about 8:30 a.m. ET for a 9:30 a.m. ET international flight (I might add, with wet hair too, since I could not take the time to dry it.) Two of my colleagues arrived at 9:05 a.m. and thanks to United Airlines employee Lois Brock, they made the flight. This was no easy feat: they had no ticket, had to get through security, ride a shuttle bus to the United tier and then run down to our gate. Both approached the gate gasping for air from running and promising to get in shape when we return (don't count on it!)

I have taken a bunch of pictures for the blog, but have no way to post them. So the pics will get posted when I get back to the USA.

Security was tight at Dulles Airport — items such as toothpaste and shampoo were taken from passengers. Despite the tight security it all went quite smoothly.

Incidentally, on my plane was former Pentagon spokesperson Torrie Clark. She was headed to Europe with her family for a vacation.

I am not sure when we are coming back. I do know Friday night's show will air from the London airport. Our return depends on the story, if we can learn more and do a better job by staying, we will. If we can do the story just as well from USA, we will return.