Fats, Vitamins and Minerals

This is an account of L.O.R.D. happenings at The Digiteer BBS (1997-2000). Art & story by Fats Lasay, 1998.

I remember seeing VenoM clad in the dirtiest thief’s garb ever, brandishing a frightening weapon, killing anyone who got in the way - be they women, children or dogs.”

Several days ago I had bested Turgon, the greatest warrior in the realm. I strolled the grounds and watched as lesser warriors bow low. Turgon’s last words were that I find and kill the Dragon, yet to this day my duels in the Forest have all been innards - mine - drying on the moss.

But through this journey, there had been interesting revelations: O2 Cool is H.O.T., Dark Soul is Saint of Killers and Blah is VenoM. The ceremony of self-unmasking as their experience mounts seems a tradition among the seasoned warriors, with the exception of one - LEGEND - who coverts as RANMA if only to add sensation to the arrival of his bethroted AKANE.

… My name is Zigzaggery…

To date, H.O.T.’s 1,079,857,806 experience tops RANMA, Joshi and myself. But as H.O.T. remains at the seventh level while RANMA and Joshi sit at the tenth, he has the option to slaughter them both with a power move - though it seems he does not need it - I saw him wielding a Death Sword and his body covered by an incredible armor.

…”He can drink a river of blood and not burst”… …”He can swallow a desert and never thirst”…

AKANE (aka Alanis) bethroted to RANMA (aka Legend)

I had once overheard RANMA at the Bar wishing for more money, waiting for magic to happen somewhere. Until that happens and for as long as “Long Live Legend”, H.O.T. will continue to make bloody little sand castles on his belly.

It is refreshng to see Silver Blood, Blue Silver’s prodigal son, fight his way to the sixth level. I never catch him in action, but his quick gain of experience tells he has inherited the skills of his father.

The precocious EnsoniQ; boyish looks mask his appetite for killing.

And talk once again about magic, that would be all that is needed to unleash the killing sprees of EnsoniQ and VenoM. What a merciless pair. I remember seeing VenoM clad in the dirtiest thief’s garb ever but brandishing a frightening weapon, killing anyone who got in the way - be they women, children or dogs. Everyday, that be all that they do, slaughter the innocents in the fields, bribing the sloppy tender at the tavern and drawing the blood of their enemies in their sleep. No one has the leisure to slay me, though - several of my parts are always in the Dragon’s belly. But I have two children who can make me smile.

…”The Gods have powers, the Gods are just”…
…”The Gods help us people, when they must”…
…”Gods can heal the sick, even the cancered”…
…”Pray to the Gods, and you will be answered”…

So it was god who first struck down the Dragon several weeks ago. He was then a Death Knight, but had converted to thievery the night he slew the beast. There at the bar he was praised for his good deed, but had not stayed long after a woman spotted a ring - predatory - on his finger. What an honorable thief… and ‘god is good’ he scribbles patiently in the dirt. I still receive divine invitations to his inn - perhaps one of my children, Rune Kleit Volrath, is his; Rune has the color of his eyes - pink. My next child would have brown eyes - Joshi’s.

What an honorable thief… ‘god is good’ he scribbles in the dirt. I still receive divine invitations to his inn - perhaps one of my children, Rune Kleit Volrath, is his; Rune has the color of his eyes - pink.

Legend of the Red Dragon (LORD) is a text-based role-playing game written in Pascal and run on Bulletin board systems as a third party door game. It was created by Seth Robinson of Robinson Technologies and is currently maintained by Michael Preslar. The player’s goal is to improve his or her skills in order to defeat the Red Dragon which has been attacking the village. The software is compatible with DOS, Microsoft Windows, and OS/2. See LORD’s official website and LORD creator Seth Able Robinson’s website.

Help spread the word about the many activities we have lined up for WEBSINING 2008!

A basic press kit is available thru http://websining.net/process/yon/press

And an FAQ and news/announcements FORUM is at  http://websining.net/forum/index.php#4
Maraming salamat!

Invitation to Participate:
WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON ON-LINE EVENT

To extend the WEBSINING experience to those who may not be able to participate in the physical Retreat-Workshops, Forums and/or Exhibitions, WEBSINING announces an on-line version of the PROCESS/YON Retreat-Workshops available through the PROCESS/YON website. This on-line initiative offers the opportunity for a broader audience to partake in the creative process of the WEBSINING experience of engaging digital technologies in art-making, while interrogating the implications of such processes on art and society in general.

The PROCESS/YON On-Line Retreat-Workshop involves a reflection on a number of conceptual and philosophical issues surrounding art and technology. The aim is to refocus artistic and cultural attitudes regarding digital technology towards an approach based on technology as an exploratory medium for traditional artistic reflection and research. Through the On-Line Retreat Workshops, we shall reflect upon “process” as the main conceptual context for the computer, and explore how such an approach changes our perspective of the world.

To participate, simply register as a new member through http://websining.net/websining08/

WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON invites all interested individuals to participate in the ON-LINE Retreat-Workshops. Organizations, learning institutions or groups (for example interest groups or formal classes in computer art, art history, philosophy, art theory, social studies, anthropology, computer science, engineering, education, among others) are all also encouraged to participate!

The PROCESS/YON On-Line Retreat-Workshop will begin on January 21, 2008 and will be in continuous development after the Philippine Arts Festival celebrations in February 2008.

ABOUT WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON:
WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON is a National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA) funded project, involving collaboration between the Foundation for Media Alternatives (FMA) and Korakora.org. It is part of the NCCA-Philippine Arts Festival celebration and is intended to expand and develop Philippine digital art practices within the continually evolving “WEBSINING” tradition initiated by the National Committee on Visual Arts (NCVA) in 2005.

FOR QUERIES AND MORE INFORMATION:

Inquiries about the ON-LINE Creative Retreat-Workshops may be sent to:

FATIMA LASAY
Project Director, PROCESS/YON
Email: processyon@websining.net
http://www.korakora.org/

TREVOR BATTEN
Assistant Project Director
Email: trevor@tebatt.net
http://www.tebatt.net/

ALAN G. ALEGRE
Project Coordinator
Email: alalegre@fma.ph
http://www.fma.ph/

More information at http://websining.net/process/yon/
And http://websining.net/websining08/

WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON
Creative Retreat-Workshops
CALL FOR PARTICIPATION:

As part of “WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON”, we are offering limited slots to a small group of 10 to 15 creative and inspired people the opportunity to come together for a three-day communal reflection on their current creative practices.

The “WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON Creative Retreat-Workshop” offers a sharing and learning experience for those willing to take the risk, to challenge their normal expectations and explore new ways of expressing themselves and understanding others through creative work. The Retreat-Workshop offers a chance to re-examine with others our thoughts and practices that may have become less relevant or exciting in the course of habitual practice. The Retreat-Workshop is also an opportunity to develop and explore our personal languages with others, and to reflect on how our communal and individual use of artistic language(s) affects our lives and our actions.

The “WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON Creative Retreat-Workshops” will take place February and March and will offer participants from each region the chance to reflect, discuss and explore with others the personal, professional and social implications of the interactions between material and immaterial worlds in a technological age.

PARTICIPATION:

The selected participants will be offered transport and accommodation for the duration of each of the three-day events in a conducive out-of-town venue. As experimental combinations of “workshop, retreat, ritual, collective artwork, artist in residence”, it will be the task of the participants, together with the local regional coordinators, to define the precise nature of each Retreat-Workshop.

As creative “performance” projects in their own right, all participants are expected to play an active role in the creative progression of the project by providing creative input on both an individual and a collective level.

Participants are also expected to assist in the documentation of the project through both individual and collective contributions, which may be in any form considered appropriate by each participant and the project leader.

PRESENTATION:

Participants of the Retreat-Workshops will also be requested to participate in local forums related to the “WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON” and the Philippine Arts Festival (PAF) celebrations in February 2008.

The creative outputs of the Retreat-Workshops will become part of the WEBSINING Exhibition. The results of the Retreat-Workshops will also be presented on the WEBSINING website and will be included in the WEBSINING CDROM-Catalog. All participants in the Retreat-Workshop will receive a copy of the WEBSINING CDROM-Catalog.

Provisional Time Budget:
Initialization, Day 1
(1 - 2 hours) -Personal Introductions
(1 - 2 hours) -Free Discussion
(2 - 4 hours) -Personal / Work Presentations

Procession, Day 2
(3 hours) -Creation of Personal Reflections
(1 hour ) -Presentation of Personal Reflections
(1 - 2 hours) -Discussion and Definition of Project Activity (evolving from the reflections)

Culmination, Day 3
(4 - 6 hours) -Creation of Project Activity
(1 - 2 hours) -Presentation and Assessment of Project Activity

Participants are advised to bring any personal equipment, which they believe essential to their own creative work and the production of individual and group presentations.

Themes for Exploration in the Workshop:

The Art of Ritual
Perhaps art and ritual have many common elements. They both involve:

Doing things properly
- Keeping things going
- Contemplating who does what, when, why,how

A state of inspirational (or ego transcending) grace
- Imaging and Imagining the universe
- Mental and Spiritual Rest and Recuperation (Rejuvenation)

A communal language for complex aesthetics and belief systems
- Mental and Spiritual Technology
- Aesthetics and Ethics
- Multiple interpretation of signs and symbols

Provisional Schedules:

Retreat-Workshop Schedules are tentatively as follows:

NCR Retreat-Workshop: February 15-17, 2008

Exhibition/Forum/Presentation at PAF 2008: February 29, 2008

Mindanao, Luzon and Visayas Retreat-Workshops: March 2008

SUBMISSION PROCESS:

1. Submissions from Candidates:
As part of the selection process, candidates are requested to submit a short statement (no more than 200 words) expressing their observations and concerns regarding contemporary digital practices from a personal and social perspective: what burning issues would you like to discuss and explore in the Retreat-Workshop?

2. Application Process:
Copy and fill-up the Application Form below, and send on or before:

January 25, 2008 (for NCR)
February 20, 2008 (for Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao)

to processyon@websining.net.

3. Selecting Workshop Participants:
The project leader will attempt to create an interesting mix of local participants for each of the Retreat-Workshops. The mix could be inter-disciplinary with practitioners from different fields of interests and experiences not limited to the arts.

Transportation and accommodation of selected Retreat-Workshop participants will be provided.

4. Notification of Acceptance:

Accepted candidates for the NCR Retreat-Workshop will be announced February 11, 2008, and March 1 for Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. Venues will be announced later.

THE ON-LINE CREATIVE RETREAT-WORKSHOP:

To extend the WEBSINING experience to those who may not be able to participate in the physical Retreat-Workshops, an on-line version of the Retreat-Workshops will be available through the PROCESS/YON website. This on-line initiative offers the opportunity for a broader audience to partake in the creative process of the WEBSINING experience of engaging digital technologies in art-making, while interrogating the implications of such processes on art and society in general.

To participate, simply register as a new member through http://websining.net/websining08/.

The On-Line Creative Retreat-Workshop will be in continuous development after the Philippine Arts Festival celebrations in February 2008.

PUBLIC DIALOGUE:

Public exhibitions and forums shall accompany the retreat-workshops to broaden the discourse upon the potential of understanding art, ritual, language, and human intelligence in terms of “formal systems”, which then places these on a more equal (and perhaps more historically familiar) footing with the computer (as a formal, physical, machine).

ABOUT WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON:
WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON is a National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA) funded project, involving collaboration between the Foundation for Media Alternatives (FMA) and Korakora.org. It is part of the NCCA-Philippine Arts Festival celebration and is intended to expand and develop Philippine digital art practices within the continually evolving “WEBSINING” tradition initiated by the National Committee on Visual Arts (NCVA) in 2005.

FOR QUERIES AND MORE INFORMATION:

Inquiries about the Creative Retreat-Workshops may be sent to:

FATIMA LASAY
Project Director, PROCESS/YON
Email: processyon@websining.net
http://www.korakora.org/

TREVOR BATTEN
Assistant Project Director
Email: trevor@tebatt.net
http://www.tebatt.net/

ALAN G. ALEGRE
Project Coordinator
Email: alalegre@fma.ph
http://www.fma.ph/

MINDANAO COORDINATORS:

ABE GARCIA, Jr.
University of the Philippines Mindanao
Office of Research, Administration Building
Mintal, Tugbok District, 8022 Davao City, Philippines
TeleFax: (63)(82) 293-1839
Email: abegarciajr@yahoo.com
http://www.upmin.edu.ph/or/

NORMAN NARCISO
Ateneo de Davao
Humanities Division
Email: noynarciso2004@yahoo.com 

More information at http://websining.net/process/yon/

PROCESS/YON
websining.net/process/yon

=================================
RETREAT-WORKSHOP APPLICATION FORM
=================================
Fill-up and email to: processyon@websining.net
DEADLINE: JANUARY 25, 2008 (NCR)
DEADLINE: FEBRUARY 20, 2008 (LUZON, VISAYAS, MINDANAO)

PERSONAL INFORMATION
Full Name:
Nickname:
Date of Birth:
Occupation:

CONTACT
Address:
Landline:
Mobile:
Email:
Website:

STATEMENT:
In no more than 200 words, what are your observations and concerns regarding contemporary digital practices from a personal and social perspective: what burning issues would you like to discuss and explore in the Retreat-Workshop?

When we arrived in Thailand Friday, we noticed that many of the people were dressed in black and airport personnel wore black ribbons on their sleeves. Just two days earlier, Princess Galyani, the only sister of Thailand’s revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej, died of abdominal cancer at the age of 84.

The government declared a 15-day mourning, and thus coalition talks of political parties and political announcements have been ceased the following day, even at such a politically critical period as the elections just December 23, after the coup that ousted Thai premier Thaksin Shinawtra in September 2006.

When we got home, we learned that Dick, Trevor’s 98-year old stepfather, passed away in Wales on the day after our arrival in Bangkok. In retrospect, it felt as if Thailand was mourning this death too.

Around the time that Dick passed away, I believe we have just visited the first Buddhist temple for the morning tour - and there I took a photo of a lonely black cat contemplating a long row of scattered yellow saffron flowers on the temple floor.

Dick probably would find such a scene familiar, having stayed in Burma for many years during the latter years of the British occupation of Burma (1886 to 1948) where temples (or pagodas) not very unlike those in Bangkok abound. We will miss old Dick …

Thai Princess Galyani dies of abdominal cancer: royal household
Posted: 02 January 2008 0929 hrs.

BANGKOK: The only sister of Thailand’s revered King Bhumibol Adulyadej died of abdominal cancer on Wednesday at the age of 84, the royal household said.

Princess Galyani “passed away at 2:54 am (1954 GMT) on January 2, 2008,” the household said in an announcement. The king’s elder sister had been undergoing treatment at Bangkok’s Siriraj Hospital since June last year.

Princess Galyani, an lifelong French language and literature academic, was awarded the Grand Officer of the Legion of Honour, France’s highest civilian distinction, in late December.

The king was close to his sister, and visited the hospital almost daily.

She began her career as a French professor at Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University, the kingdom’s most prestigious academic institution.

After a 10-year break from teaching, she took over as head of the French department at Thammasat University in 1969 and later headed the Association of French Professors in Thailand, working to promote the French language.

Later in life, the princess devoted her energies to rural development and education, particularly in Thailand’s impoverished northeast.

She also chaired several charities, including the Kidney Foundation, and helped secure funding for the construction of rural schools.

She married twice and had one daughter.

The 80-year-old king was taken to the same hospital in October last year after experiencing weakness on the right side of his body.

When he left hospital in early November, cheering crowds of well-wishers shouted “Long live the king.”

King Bhumibol, the world’s longest-reigning monarch, is treated with an almost religious devotion in Thailand and his health is a subject of great national concern. - AFP/ac

From Channelnewsasia …

NCCA PHILIPPINE ARTS FESTIVAL
(PAF2008) / WEBSINING 2008
OPEN CALL FOR COMPUTER/DIGITAL ART

• Have you created computer/digital art and would like to share your unique, innovative and courageous work with others doing similar work?
• Would you like to exhibit your work together with other digital artists creating works beyond competition or commercial motivation?
• Would you like your work to converse and interact with other works in a curated national traveling exhibition?

As part of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts-PAF2008 celebration, WEBSINING announces the Open Call for Computer/Digital Art!

The general rule on submission formats is for the work to be transmissible, executable and viewable through the Internet. Thus for static images, for example, these should be optimized for web-based viewing and not for printing. For software art, these should be executable/accessible via a browser. For animation, video and sound, these should be in formats suited to streaming. In principle, the works should take into consideration the Internet and the computer as creative mediums.

If you are an artist using FOSS and/or create art that is distributed under GPL or Creative Commons licenses, we encourage you to participate. Your work will be presented in a special category.

Filipinos working and residing outside the country, especially the large community of OFW creative workers: visual artists, graphic designers, digital animators, programmers, and entertainers - are also encouraged to participate.

Works submitted to the Open Call will be exhibited on the WEBSINING website. The works will also be shown at the Philippine Arts Festival celebration in February 2008 and will be included in the WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON CDROM-Catalog. All participating artists will receive a copy of the CDROM-Catalog.

Queries about the Open Call may be sent to processyon@websining.net.

Submission duration is from January 15 to February 15, 2008.

SUBMISSION PROCESS:

Copy and fill-up the Submission Form below, and send on or before February 15, 2008 to processyon@gmail.com.

THE WEBSINING TRADITION:

An important aspect of the WEBSINING tradition is to encourage new developments in the use of modern technology in the creation and distribution of art. The Open Call for Computer/Digital Art opens WEBSINING and the public to a broader range of digital art formats that do not easily conform to the mechanics of a contest. WEBSINING is also hosting experimental workshops and forums to encourage and support artists in their development of a wider approach to art and technology within a local cultural context.

ABOUT WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON:

WEBSINING: PROCESS/YON is a National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA) funded project, involving collaboration between the Foundation for Media Alternatives (FMA) and Korakora.org. It is part of the NCCA-Philippine Arts Festival celebration and is intended to expand and develop Philippine digital art practices within the continually evolving WEBSINING tradition initiated by the National Committee on Visual Arts (NCVA) in 2005.

FOR QUERIES AND MORE INFORMATION:

Inquiries about the Open Call for Computer/Digital Art may be sent to:

FATIMA LASAY
Project Director, PROCESS/YON
Email: processyon@websining.net
http://www.korakora.org/

TREVOR BATTEN
Assistant Project Director
Email: trevor@tebatt.net
http://www.tebatt.net/

ALAN G. ALEGRE
Project Coordinator
Email: alalegre@fma.ph
http://www.fma.ph/

More information at http://websining.net/process/yon/

OPEN CALL FOR COMPUTER/DIGITAL ART SUBMISSION FORM

PROCESS/YON
websining.net/process/yon

=================================
OPEN CALL: COMPUTER/DIGITAL ART
=================================
Fill-up and email with your work to: processyon@gmail.com
OR send to:

PERSONAL INFORMATION

Full Name:
Nickname:
Date of Birth:
Occupation:

CONTACT

Address:
Landline:
Mobile:
Email:
Website:

ART WORK:

Title:
Software/Programs/Languages used:
Description of Work:
Special instructions (if any):

Declaration:

By submitting an entry to the “WebSining 2008: PROCESS/YON”, I declare that the above-mentioned artwork was conceived and executed exclusively by myself. I allow the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) free use of my artwork for purposes of publicity/and or marketing. I shall abide by all rules and regulations imposed by the NCCA in the pursuit of the project. Any violation due to technical deficiencies and/or copyright infringement in my artwork, as stipulated in the rules and regulations, shall be grounds for the disqualification of my artwork.

Name
Date

After getting our registry number from City Hall, and a nice lunch, we visited my mom who was quite happy to see Trevor. We had a bit of chance to play with Alwin too, who was then trying to build a house, then later an airplane, with cardboard pieces. I thought it would be good to give him such ideas about constructing interlocking pieces instead of using glue which took an awfully long time to dry and often easily comes off.

I took Edward, Maria and Mandy with me (quite a crowd in my bag), and since it was Mandy’s first time to be at my mom’s house, I took a photo of her playing with a coconut, below.

The other day, my mom came over to see us - it was so nice to see her being happy to see us. She gave us some of the spaghetti she just made, and I was so surprised that it was exactly like the spaghetti I made for Trevor on New Year’s Eve: the Filipino-style spaghetti that will make any Italian go crazy, it’s sweet, has hotdogs and is loaded with “processed cheese.” However, my spaghetti did have a bit of special twist because I added Pampanga longganisa in it.

And, over the New Year holidays I managed to knock together the PROCES/SYON website so that at least some info about the project is out before we leave for Thailand. Hopefully, there will be positive responses when we return. We did quite a great deal of work on the concept of the project, I hope it all will be worth it …

In the meantime, priority now is a real holiday!