Autographed Tom Servo Replica
Created and donated by Darian Glover
Forget about Echo, Siri, and that Roomba that’s gathering dust. Now you can have your own personal robot. Er, puppet. This fully functioning replica Tom Servo has been autographed by the cast of Cinematic Titanic: Joel Hodgson, Trace Beaulieu, J. Elvis Weinstein, Frank Conniff, and Mary Jo Pehl. It is so exact and well-made that Mary Jo was stunned to see Tom in the flesh (or in the plastic?) and Joel attempted to goad J. Elvis into operating Tom. Tom’s mouth, head, and arms are fully operable to a level of authenticity that allows you to experience the “fun” of his operators and ‘bot wranglers (see Poopie! tapes). Simply repeat to yourself “It’s just a show, I should just really relax.” Bid high to keep this advanced sarcasm sequencing technology from falling into the wrongs hands.
Tom Servo is a special snowflake, a complicated being, and as such involves a lot of parts. Materials include: replica cast resin Money Lover Barrel Bank, toy engine block, and ventriloquist’s dummy hands. Vacuformed Eveready lantern bezels and Tyco Turbo Trains. Replica hoverskirt (bowl) with foam trim (spare unpainted trim included, not pictured). Genuine Carousel Executive Snack Dispenser and C’More Bunz arms with air bladder. PVC pipe and other special parts formerly used to control a private screening room’s projection booth.
Tom measures approximately 12.5″ diameter by 23″ tall (31.75 cm diameter by 58.4 cm).
About the artist:
Tom’s maker, Darian, comes from a long line of craftsmen, but makes his living as a contractor cobbling together e-mails, meetings, and occasionally strings of code to make information technology work for the U.S. Federal Government in Washington, DC. On occasion he will take on a personal project to stretch his creative muscle.
Wyrmwood Gaming Lava Bears Set
Donated by Wyrmwood Gaming
This lot is on fire! It’s a stunning one-of-a-kind set of Wyrmwood Gaming’s dice-care products, carefully engraved with the ferocious logo of the Temple of the Lava Bears D&D campaign we came to love so well last year. The set includes the following:
- Dice Tower (engraved with twin lava bears)
- Tabletop Dice Tray (whose leather surface is engraved with 6″ lava bear)
- Deck Box (engraved with lava bear)
- Dice Vault (engraved with Desert Bus 9)
- Personal Dice Tray
All the items are made – most appropriately – from Flame Box Elder wood. Flame Box Elder, a subspecies of Maple tree, owes its brilliant coloration to invading beetles and fungus. First the beetles attack, boring holes throughout the tree. These wounds become avenues for a fungal invasion. As a defense, the tree releases powerful and colorful chemicals around each wound to fend off the fungus. Eventually the tree falls and we are able to appreciate the beauty of nature in action. The red coloration will become more muted over time, but will never fade away, and battle between the tree and the invaders can stand at your game table.
We also now expect giant invading Flame Box Elder beetles to be a feature of Jer’s next D&D campaign…
Wyrmwood Gaming is also donating some of their brand new, only-available-here-and-via-Kickstarter Hero Vaults! These beautiful boxes are the perfect way to carry your painstakingly painted miniature or your favourite set of lucky dice to the gaming table. The box closes firmly with rare earth magnets, and its interior features foam to pad your valuable contents, so your dice will not rattle and your miniatures will not chip!
You can also visit their Kickstarter for more glorious details on these gaming beauties. But don’t wait too long – it wraps up on November 5th!
Many thanks to Wyrmwood Gaming for these donations! Wyrmwood is a master of craftsmanship in the gaming community, offering fine wood accessories for the D&D scene, Magic players and more.
DT-6000
Created & Donated by Brendan Tang
Forged in the most East of Vancouver, fashioned from refined Bone white Clay and hand crafted using the ways of the ancient ones, this device can withstand the collisions of Multiverses and the bending of Space Time. Designed and executed by Canada’s own amateur alchemist and Master of Fine Art, Brendan Tang. We are so proud to present The DT-6000! It collides Heavens and controls the fates. Unleashing the raw power once found only in pimped out DeLoreans and Police Boxes, the DT-6000 transcribes 4th dimensional space and quantum algorithms into single or double digits, that can send its user into fits of agony, or blissful ecstasy. Create Chaos and Embrace Entropy with your very own DT-6000 today! (does not include dice).
This exquisite dice tower is crafted from clay, with foam inserts to move the dice gently but powerfully through its innards and onto the felt lined tray where the DT-6000’s numeric decrees are made known. It stands 9″ tall by 5″ wide at its top and 7″ long at the foot.
About the Artist:
Brendan Tang was born in Dublin, Ireland of Trinidadian parents and is a naturalized citizen of Canada. He earned his formal art education on both Canadian coasts and the American Midwest, where he learned to appreciate the ceramic medium. Tang has lectured at conferences and academic institutions across North America and Europe, and his professional practice has also taken him to India, Trinidad and Japan. He has been a resident artist at the Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts (Helena, MT) and has participated in an international residency at the European Ceramic Work Centre (‘s-Hertogenbosch, NL). Tang’s work has been showcased at galleries and in printed and online media. He has been exhibited at the Museum of Fine Art in Boston, the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal in QB, and Art Labor in Shanghai, as well being a recipient of the 2012 RBC Emerging Artist Award at the Gardiner Museum in Toronto. He has been profiled by The Knowledge Network, and featured in printed publications including The National Post, Wired (UK and Italy), and ELLE (Canada). The broad appeal of his work is evident online, where he has received attention from prominent blogs around the globe, including Boing Boing, NotCot and Design Boom. Tang dedicates his full attention to his professional art practice in Vancouver BC, where he continues to explore the interface between culture and material.
We are pleased to announce that this year we will be streaming from the beautiful, new Alacrity Foundation space in downtown Victoria!
Due to the extreme success of Desert Bus 8 (or so we tell ourselves), the popularity of the Lunar Module sky-rocketed (hehe) and we were unable to secure the space for a second year. We were thrilled when the Alacrity Foundation stepped up and offered us their newly renovated space.
It boasts plenty of space for our on camera shenanigans, kitchen facilities, and can host the prize mines on the same floor as our on-camera space. No longer will “thighs of steel” be a requirement for our prize miners.
Check out the Lunar Module Mk.2!
It may look like a boardroom now, but we promise it will styled in true Desert Bus fashion in time for November 14th. College dorm chic is our specialty.
In case you are not yet convinced of the awesomeness of this space, please see this photo of the HELICOPTER IN THEIR LOBBY.
“Get to the chopper!” ~Every person who comes to Desert Bus this year
The building is called the Summit and to round out the mountain chalet theme there are gondolas and trees in the lobby. The Summit is tenanted by local tech companies and has a cafe out front for when we need a power up.
The Alacrity Foundation has two mandates: teaching entrepreneurship, and recruiting investment. They have two programs – Entrepreneurship@Alacrity, which prepares graduates for entrepreneurship in the tech sector, and their Investor Readiness Program, which finds venture capital funding to support Western Canadian start-ups. We think they’re pretty cool.
We are so very grateful for the Alacrity Foundation’s generosity in opening up their new space to us.
This morning Desert Bus for Hope lost a vibrant member of our community. Daniel Davis was released from his long battle with cancer this morning at his family home in Jacksonville, Alabama.
We met Daniel in 2011 when he was granted a wish from the Make a Wish Foundation. He chose, much to our surprise, to use his opportunity to join us at the Moonbase for Desert Bus for Hope 5. Of all the things he could have received, he chose to be with us. We were terrified that we would be a disappointment. What could we possibly give to this teenager who had already been through so much and faced such an uncertain future?
What we didn’t realize is that *he* would give *us* something. He didn’t need anything from us. Instead, he saw an opportunity to give back to his community, to turn his personal situation into a force for good, and to raise money to benefit others in situations similar to his. We had a fantastic time with Daniel and his absence is deeply felt.
We are grateful to Daniel’s family and the Make a Wish Foundation, for enabling his trip to Desert Bus for Hope 5. We are better off for having had him as a part of our lives and he will forever remain a part of our community.
Our thoughts and heartfelt sympathies are with Daniel’s wonderful family and his many friends who provided such love, support, and laughter during his all-too-brief life.
Love,
The Desert Bus Team
Personal notes shared by the Desert Bus crew: Jeremy Petter and Alex Steacy.
Some fun moments with Daniel at Desert Bus 5:
- We learn a little bit about Daniel while Daniel pretends to be James
- Thigh-ending Crabcore with Alex and Jer
- Daniel plays D&D-style Desert Bus
- Scenes from the Chat: “Say Bus one more time!”
- An Iron Stomach Challenge
- An improvised a capella dubstep remix of the Carmen San Diego theme song. Maybe?
- Goodbye and a group hug
Steven Universe Cheeseburger Backpack
Created & Donated by briedoof
CHEESEBURGER BACKPACK! CHEESEBURGER BACKPACK! CHEESEBURGER BACKPACK!
Are you going on an awesome adventure? Then you absolutely need the packing power that this cheeseburger backpack provides. Who knows when you’ll need a dozen sandwiches, an inflatable raft, a giant sweater, comforting plushies, board games, or anything else you can possibly shove into this giant cheeseburger backpack before you leave. As long as you don’t forget that one important thing you absolutely need, cheeseburger backpack can provide you with the space for everything you might find useful on your adventures. It’s just up to your spine whether you can handle everything it can hold.
The backpack was made using thick plastic lined upholstery nylon, cotton duck cloth, thick faux micro suede, zippers, batting, bias tape, thread. It measures approximately 19 inches in diameter at the bun, with a varying height depending on fullness. Strap length is adjustable.
Welcome DB9 Volunteers!
Every year it becomes more and more apparent that it takes a small army to run an event as large as Desert Bus for Hope. As it turns out, there happens to be a small army of people willing to donate a week or more of their lives to doing nothing but Desert Bus! It’s astounding and we couldn’t be more grateful.
We have a ton of returning volunteers, some new faces, and some people flying in from 8 time zones away. We’re so pleased to be working with each and every one of you. Thank you for your time, skill, and above all your incredible sense of humour as we set out on this crazy sand-filled adventure together.
If you’re interested in volunteering for Desert Bus 10, email volunteers@desertbus.org. Your interest will be noted and you will receive an email when we open for DB10 volunteer applications.
Broadcast Team
Communications Team
Infrastructure & Software
Photographer
Public Relations
Shipping Team
Site Volunteers
Best of Games Quilt
Created & Donated by Tara Heilke
In those 11 and a half bleak, quiet months between one Desert Bus and the next, you can cozy up under this colourful commemorative quilt, consoling yourself by playing games with actual plots, mechanics, characters and even scenery. This quilt will remind you that Desert Bus, while the best of games, is really also the worst of games. While sadly not watching it, you can rest content in the fact that you are also not playing it. The quilt’s detailed stitching shows off the bug splat, the road, the pine tree air freshener, the steering wheel, and the Sega controller. And if you flip the quilt over… surprise! It’s reversible and the back displays a video game that a mildly sane person might actually want to spend time playing. Just don’t let that Tetris song get stuck in your head…
This is a cotton quilt with polyester filling measuring approximately 45″ wide x 66″ long (approx. 113 cm x165 cm).
About the artist:
Tara Heilke (the mother of Desert Bus’ very own Tally Heilke) is a longtime seamstress who’s especially fond of appliqué. In between making monster hoodies for baby gifts and duck-embellished slippers for her son-in-law, Tara enjoys doing side projects like making masks and tea cozies and whatever else she can think of. She generally feels that the world needs a little more colour and pizzaz in it.
Pokémon Legendary Bird Trio Cross-Stitch
Created & Donated by Kayla Riddle
Are you on your way to becoming a Pokémon master, but still haven’t caught the Gen 1 legendary birds? Well put down your Poké balls (or perhaps Ultra balls) and spend another night at the Pokémon Center because now you can have the legendary trio delivered to you! You no longer have to go on a long cruise to a cave filled with ice puzzles, make a special trip to your local power plant, or take a detour through a Zubat-infested Victory Road on the way to the Elite 4. Beautifully (and humanely!) captured in a black wooden frame, this legendary trio cross-stitch will be an excellent addition to your home décor! *Wire hanging kit included*
The piece is housed in a wooden frame with plexiglass. It is stitched with 14 ct Aida embroidery floss. Measurements of the full framed piece are 30″ by 10″.
About the artist:
Kayla, the crafter behind this item, has always been dabbling in different arts and crafts. One Christmas season, she found herself in need of gifts for friends, so picked up cross-stitching. However, she didn’t finish any in time and quit. Then one winter later, she craved the craft again, and has been cross-stitching ever since. She has even spread this fun to a friend.
