Navigation Guide

The mobile version of this blog has no sidebar, so let this post serve as a navigational aid.

ABOUT "Save the World"

Ways to browse:

2020s         California         Scrapbook       Nacho 

2010s         Vegas               Childhood       RLB

2000s         Alaska              Work                Rock & Roll

1990s         Van Log           Found Items     Art

1980s         Indiana             Family              Products

1970s         Gilliomville       Gill Bros           Reviews

  A.I.           Cats                                          Bookshelf                      

Kilbuck Blog: The Quotable Kilbuck

1,000 Years of Dracula

 A.I. image inspired by a spontaneous prophecy uttered by a child in a public library: "1,000 Years of Dracula." Horror!

Found Note: Fuck You and Fuck Love

Note found in a public library:

Fuck you and fuck love.

Live Forever!

Official logo of my 50th birthday, 2019. 

Drawing by Kate. 

How Now?

One of many treasures Ericka has collected over the years is her set of "Colonial Cats," a set of cat dolls released when she was a little girl. Each cat doll represents one of the original 13 American colonies. 

 RE: post title - “How Now?” is one way colonial Americans greeted each other.

I'm Awesome

Ericka got me this awesome card. I love it.

Text inside reads, "You're Awesome!"

Yes!

Shriner Autograph Collection

In 1988, I attended the annual Tarzan Zerbini Circus in Fort Wayne, Indiana, an event hosted by the Mizpah Indiana Shriners. Upon entering the arena, each attendee received a program filled with advertisements and information about the circus. The opening pages featured yearbook-style photographs of various Shriner officials, many of whom were present at the event that evening.

After the circus ended, I decided to stick around, program in hand, hoping to collect their autographs:

As esoteric as they may appear, the Shriners were all pretty down to earth guys...not very mysterious or confounding at all.

 

The only autograph missing from my collection is Mick Ulmer, "Oriental Guide;" so if anybody knows him, hook me up.

Comments from original post on I'm Nacho Steppinstone:

"And they really DO look all mysterious and oriental!!! Absolutely NOT like average office guys only with stupid hats on,nooooo." - Sandra

"Hey, Jonnie- Mick Ulmer lives right here in Bluffton, Indiana. That is, he used to." - Andi

"WOW!!! I should've called him while I was down there! Does he live in a castle?" - Jonnie

Bonus:  A few more photos from that evening:

1. Jon Sr. in the parking lot, braving the sub-zero cold.

2. Me trying to hang with the Shriners.

3. Me and Sylvia Zerbini, accomplished aerialist & acrobat; daughter of Tarzan Zerbini himself.

4. The fantastically robust-looking fish sandwich Laura purchased at Azar's afterward.

Jonnie Leggings

I bought these leggings for Ericka with my face on them and was a little bit surprised she actually wore them out in public, but she is cool like that. 

It got chilly later, so she wore my Misfits hoody too. Looking Good!

Locked Out

The time I locked myself out of the house while sweeping and raking the back patio.

Midwestern Working Class Badasses

This was taken in a restaurant/bar where I used to work in the late 1980s, I was taking a picture of something and the guy in the middle goes, "Hey - take a picture of me and my brothers."

Midwestern Working Class Badasses.

I don't know why he directed me to take their photo. This was before digital cameras and email. There was no photographic instant gratification. Film had to be developed before you could see the pictures. So there was no way the photo was intended for their personal viewing. I guess he just wanted a record of their "brotherhood."  So, I'm posting it here for posterity.  

This is kind of how I imagine everybody looking in the old west. Then, they may have been heroes, or would have at least had a lot more influence, good or bad, in a less civilized era.

Note: The guy on the right is flipping the bird with both hands. "Fuck the World." haha

Jah Love

Wall art in Los Angeles, CA.

The Plaid Brothers

 Jonnie and Todd Gilliom: The Plaid Brothers.

“We’re on a mission from mom.”

Willow Weaving

When you're making rustic furniture, it's a fine line between looking really good and looking really crappy.

                                                           - Rustic willow-weaving instructor 

Ours both looked really good.

Glorious Green Urinals

Breathtaking green urinals at the Los Angeles Theater. 

They don’t make them like this anymore. 

Bozeman Radiator Disaster

Here's a good radiator disaster pic:

Catching our antifreeze leakage in cooking pans.

It was in Bozeman, Montana, during our 1994 drive from Indiana to Alaska, when we sprang a radiator leak. We managed to limp into a Napa auto parts parking lot just before the engine overheated completely. We parked and let everything cool down, catching the leaking antifreeze in pans because we were afraid Napa might kick us off their lot if we flooded it with coolant.

As bad as that seemed, things only got worse from there. Among other disasters, our camp stove decided to give up on us too.

Laura with our faulty camp stove.

Things escalated fast after that. I was trying to help Laura with the stove when I managed to set a can of kerosene on fire. I looked down and saw the fluid around the spout starting to ignite. Without thinking, I hurled the can—straight at the Napa store building. It exploded almost immediately on impact.

Here's the result:

Fire at the Napa store.

I guess I was just thinking in terms of throwing it AWAY from the van and opposite of the van was Napa.

That got the store staff riled up more than antifreeze in their parking lot ever could have. Multiple staff members immediately came pouring out of the building wielding fire extinguishers. My first thought was to take a picture (above).

When brother Todd saw the explosion in his rear-view mirror, he just threw the van in neutral - coasted right over all those pans of antifreeze.

Laura fell down and peed her pants from laughing so hard.

It was freaking hilarious.

[Originally posted on I'm Nacho Steppinstone, Feb. 10, 2004]

Life, Jim Thompson

 “Life is a bucket of shit with a barbed wire handle.”

– Jim Thompson, Texas By The Tail

Jonnie the Clever Child

In 1970, I got my hand stuck in a chair and couldn't figure out how to pull it out. Instead of helping me, my parents took a picture and captioned it, “Jonnie the clever child." wtf.

Jonnie the clever child.

Nuclear Explosion or Ice Cream?

I ai-generated some images that were both nuclear explosions and ice cream cones. I also had chatgpt write some text for a blog post about them:

Introducing "Nuclear Explosion or Ice Cream," a mesmerizing series of images that will have you doing a double take. The series features a diverse range of images, from swirling, colorful clouds to billowing smoke to luscious scoops of ice cream. At first glance, it's hard to tell whether you're looking at the aftermath of a catastrophic event or a delicious dessert. Some of the images are more obviously one or the other, while others will leave you scratching your head.

What makes this series so captivating is the way it blurs the line between two seemingly opposite things. On the one hand, nuclear explosions are destructive, dangerous, and frightening. On the other hand, ice cream is sweet, delightful, and comforting. By combining these two disparate elements, the images force us to confront the tension between fear and pleasure, destruction and creation.

Of course, it's worth noting that these images were created by a machine, not a human artist. While the algorithms used to generate them are incredibly sophisticated, they are still based on mathematical calculations and rules, not the nuanced and intuitive decision-making of a human mind. This raises questions about the role of AI in art and creativity, and whether machines can truly replace human artists.

Regardless of these philosophical debates, "Nuclear Explosion or Ice Cream" is a stunning series that will leave you marveling at the possibilities of AI-generated art. Each image is a testament to the power of technology to create something that is both beautiful and thought-provoking. Whether you're a fan of nuclear explosions, ice cream, or both, you won't want to miss this series.

Happy New Year, 2018

 Out with the old, in with the new. 

First Santa

Anikka’s first visit with Santa Claus; Dec 2021. 

Santa wasn’t actually being scary immediately. Anikka just started crying like crazy when he welcomed her. He did the scary pose real quickly and on the fly for the benefit of a photo when her back was turned to him. He just did that for a second and I’m glad Ericka was ready with the camera.

Pyramid of Force

I found this carved into the road; I think in Laguna Beach in 2013.

I used to call it the pyramid of death, but I think it is actually the pyramid of force.

Pyramid of Force.

Force

Kill All Police.

Kill All the people. All seven billion.

Death all Police.

wtf?

Mesa Verde

With Ericka at awe-inspiring Mesa Verde National Park, home of the cliff dwellers; May, 2015.

Trash Talk: A Wallet's Misadventure at Panda Express

Once, in Panda Express, while I was enjoying a meal brimming with flavor, I noticed a teenage couple sitting nearby. One of them had laid their wallet on their food tray and apparently forgot about it because when they left and proceeded to tidy up their table, the wallet was dumped into the trash along with the rest of their meal debris. The pair then exited the restaurant.

My friend exclaimed, “Hey! He just threw his wallet in the trash!”  

Soon after, the teenage duo raced back into the restaurant, panic etched across their faces. The boy, in a moment of brilliant deduction, glanced at the trash can but decided he wasn't the wallet-in-the-trash kind of guy.

A.I. recreation.

Looking back, maybe I should have told them their wallet was in the trash, but, in the moment, I let fate take its course.

The moral of the story? Life's got a twisted sense of humor, and sometimes, wallets just need a little adventure in the trash can.

A.I. recreation.

Supplement to "My Experience Falling Through a Bathroom Ceiling"

Referring back to my earlier post, My Experience Falling Through a Bathroom Ceiling, I’ve always wished someone had taken a photo of the moment. Thanks to the magic of A.I., I’ve now created a rough approximation of what it might have looked like to see me crashing through the ceiling of a high school restroom.

First try:

I thought this image suffered from the lack of  accompanying ceiling debris, it also didn't include the detail that I was wearing a suit jacket and looked like Gary Neuman.

This one is more like it. It included the broken ceiling and showed me coming down on top of a toilet. Also, I look like Ryan.

I look like Brother Todd in this one - kick open the door!

This one captures my confusion pretty well, though the toilet is halfway up the wall.

Anyway, I guess you would have had to have been there.

Dreaming of a Plaid Christmas

 Jonnie and Todd, the Gilliom Bros. - Christmas in the 1970s.

Birth Announcements

Baby announcements for Anikka and Llyr, posted on social media:

Anikka Kathalyn.

Llyr Liev.

Good Morning, Pokemon

While I was catching pokemon on the beach before work, I looked up from my phone and saw this: