I improved my new Viking table this weekend, with the help of my friend Shawn. Because we couldn’t find the kind of screw-in legs I wanted, we bought some closet poles and some hanger bolts, and with drills and epoxy made our own. The result looks like this:

Yes, I know it looks pretty much like it did before, especially in a photograph. But trust me. The legs are un-tapered now, and I’m much happier with it. Someday I hope to drill out my fake joinery plugs and replace them with larger ones, better aligned. But for now this is essentially what I aimed for.

I’m gearing up for my big trip to the Viking encampment in Missouri this weekend. My big acquisition has been a Sony Handycam (used), which I acquired on eBay. The guy who sold it to me got sick the day we closed the deal, so delivery was delayed and I chafed a bit, but the thing finally arrived on Saturday. All in all I love it. It’s a sweet device.

My purpose is to produce a book trailer, because they’re all the rage right now and my publisher has been hinting broadly that I ought to make one or get one made. I’ve done some reading on film making, and I think (I suppose hubristically) that I have a fair grasp of the essentials. Long shots, tight shots, inserts. Rhythm. Increasing tension. (It’s not entirely unlike writing a story.) Background music makes a huge difference (I’ve already downloaded a free track I like very much.)

Now to see how well I handle the actual shooting. I want to enlist some people to deliver a couple lines of dialogue. Will I have the boldness to ask them to help me?

Also it’s supposed to be rainy down there on Friday, the set-up day. I was hoping to get some filming done that day, but that may not happen. At least I should be able to shoot some interiors in the hall.

I am an artist! I cannot work under these conditions!

No, Gloria, you are not ready for your close-up.