Cyberpunk city diorama

By the way, how was the trip to California?

It was great except for the part where we broke down in the middle if the no where out in Arizona. Basically in the desert. We were stuck for close to 7 hours, including a few hours after sun set. We were waiting for a tow truck, but they kept pushing the ETA back and eventually just said he would not be there until the next day! I eventually got the car started again and we were able to make it 20 miles to the next town. Checked into a hotel and had to tow truck driver pick it up there. Turned out the fuel pump had gone bad. And this was in a 2020 Toyota Rav 4 :mad:.

This was the view from where we broke down
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at any rate, my daughter loved the trip besides that part.

You will probably get a kick out of this one.
We did see one place in Amarillo Texas called "Cadillac Ranch" It was an art installation that was "a tribute to the evolution of the Cadillac tail fin. Ten Caddies were driven into one of Stanley Marsh 3's fields, then half-buried, nose-down, in the dirt (supposedly at the same angle as the Great Pyramid of Giza). They faced west in a line, from the 1949 Club Sedan to the 1963 Sedan de Ville, their tail fins held high for all to see on the empty Texas panhandle."

They encourage visitors to spray paint on them
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From over the years and how many visitors stop by, you can see how many layers of paint there are here
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And if you are familiar with The Eagles song "Take it Easy", there is a standing on the corner park on a corner in Winslow Arizona complete with a flat bed Ford and Glenn Frey statue as well as a statue of Jackson Browne (who mostly wrote the song with Glenn Frey)

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The Grand Canyon was fun, great sunset there
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Not meaning to go crazy with the pics, but since you asked :lol:

And if you ever make it to the southwest, you now have a few items on the to see list
 

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Thank you very much for those beautiful pictures and for telling me about many events! No long trek without any unexpected events. I guess that trouble will make your travel even deeper in your memory, and later you all will remember it with a smile. Oh, I will complain about your Rav 4 on the Akio Toyota CEO for you! Those pictures a very beautiful. Just like a scene from a road movie in the '70s Vanishing Point. That Cadillac Ranch is even known here in Japan. It is really an art of Surréalisme. I love every song by The Eagles. It must be really fit for the scenery along the way. It's a pity that Glenn Frey passed away.
Your daughter has grown into a very fine-looking woman. You should proud of her. I'm so glad to hear that she had a happy time with you.
 
That car looks awesome. Very stylish design! Hard to believe it was scratch built. Very impressive and love the way you made those mirrors
Oh, I will complain about your Rav 4 on the Akio Toyota CEO for you!
Ah an inside man

It is funny because Toyota's are normally very reliable and well made cars. He would would probably blame it on this one being made in US/Mexico instead of Japan :lol:
 
Those side mirrors are works of Art Katsu-san:cool::cool:(y)(y):notworthy::notworthy: Looking at your technique to shape them is fantastic!
I sometime used staplers for car door handles. Some are fairly large in width (industrial ones).;)

Thank you, joberg-san! And thanks for the good tip! I will try it! Look, we modelers are surrounded by a lot of materials!

I remember that future...

Nice word, Doc!

Katsu-san, you’re simply the best. Thank you for sharing this with us

Thank you, George-san! Just because of your strong support!

That car looks awesome. Very stylish design! Hard to believe it was scratch built. Very impressive and love the way you made those mirrors

Ah an inside man

It is funny because Toyota's are normally very reliable and well made cars. He would would probably blame it on this one being made in US/Mexico instead of Japan :lol:

Rav-4 is a good car. Here in Japan, it's so admirable car for everyone.
If you buy it, you have to wait at least 4 months for delivery.
I heard an interesting story recently.
Mr. Akio Toyoda looks, like a typical Japanese company man. And he is producing many environment-friendly vehicles. But he said in an interview. 'In fact, I love cars as they roar wildly and smell of gasoline when you kick on a gas pedal. I always love brutal cars.'

OK, My Vanity GTO has been finished.

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I may have to build a few more vehicles but for now, I will get back to build figures or additional structures.

Thank you for watching!

katsu
 
I just finished editing this years firework show and used a ton of movie clips. A lot that had model work. Funny how when going frame by frame on scenes, you can see issues, areas where something was cut out, and stuff like that, but also the fantastic work they did back in the day.
Katsu would have fit right in with ILM....a lot of the guys here would have honestly.

On Ghostbusters 2, when they are riding around in the Statue of Liberty, theres the close up of her giant foot crushing a cop car.
Going frame by frame, you can see where it goes from real car, to model car, with just one frame where they blended the two.
I love seeing stuff like that. Played at normal speed, it looks really good.
But their model cop car really reminded me of how these two cars look.
 
Congratulations July the 4th Independence day. It's been a year passed since you struggled and finished the last firework project. This year, looks like you already make it right. I'm so happy to hear that. I remember Ghost busters 1 and 2 and the scene you mentioned. That was a good era.
Big full sized cop cars, taxis. Miniature work made by Hollywood craft man ship.
Those two cars I made. Maybe it's my homage to the miniature craft men of that era.
Oh, I just knew. You know the movie 'Battle Beyond the Stars' 1980 by Roger Corman? Not really a impressive movie but only thing I remember was a scene of landing starship. There was a close up shot of the very well designed landing gear. That was made by James Cameron when he was working there as a miniature maker. What a multiple talented guy!
 
Sci-fy cooking
'Sushi' That's what my ex-wife called me, 'Cold fish'

There's a tax reduction advantage program here in this country.
A kind of donation for any local municipality and the payback is various local products. My daughter Yuki is self-employed and she will have a better tax advantage with this program. She donates from time to time, and this time she did it for Ishinomaki-city, Sendai pref.
The payback product was fresh sea urchin.

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One of the best ways to enjoy this is to make sushi.
Today I will show you making sushi.

Sea urchin Battleship Roll. Gun-kan-maki.









And Maguro Toro Nigiri. Tuna.







A fresh sea urchin tastes like a mellow brandy-flavored soft whipped peanut butter.

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This is rolled with a thinly sliced cucumber.

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Thanks for looking!
 
Great to see the technique of using sea-urchins to make sushi(y)(y):notworthy::notworthy:...before putting the rice in the nori sheet, did you use a little wasabi?
Thank you so much!
Yes, a little bit this time. Basically, wasabi is effective for antibacterial antiparasitic besides its taste. If you want to enjoy the delicate taste of the material, and if you can eat freshly made sushi like this time, wasabi is not mandatory. Wasabi has a very stimulating taste and is popular with Westerners these days, but adding too much wasabi is unfashionable here. ;)

Delicious

Looks like everyone is enjoying them including the cat

Thanks!
Philadelphia is near by the sea, I guess you are enjoying sushi with fresh seafood there.
 
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