Its 2023 and DB2023 is live. Literally and Metaphorically.
James challenged the chat to raise a Desert Buck before the run starts and lo and behold you all did it. So you're getting an hour long vinyl set with DJ TurnLRR on Thursday during Dawnguard.
Great job everyone.
View post on imgur.comIt wouldn’t be Desert Bus for Hope without guests. We’ve got an action packed lineup this year. Our call ins this year are:
Teller
Teller will be calling in Saturday November 11th at 3:00 PM PST
Teller is one half of the world-famous American magicians and entertainment duo Penn and Teller. The two have performed together since the late 1970s, and are noted for their ongoing act that combines elements of comedy with magic. More importantly (to us, at least), they are a BIG part of how Desert Bus For Hope came to be. Penn & Teller’s Smoke and Mirrors for the Sega CD contains the Desert Bus mini game, without which Desert Bus literally would not exist!
Steven Dengler of Dracogen Inc (He/Him)
Dracogen.com on web, @Dracogen on most social media.
Steve will be calling in Sunday November 12 at 10:00 AM PST
Steven Dengler has been a steadfast friend and ally of Desert Bus since 2011. A familiar face to longtime viewers, his allyship has helped enkindle groundbreaking DB innovations such as HighDenglerVision and DBloons, along with heaps of high-spirited historical hijinx. Steven is a Canadian entrepreneur, investor, and mentor. Steven co-founded XE.com in 1993, serving as its CEO from inception until 2016. Through his company Dracogen Inc., he has financed numerous high-tech companies, new media projects, and video games. He appears in myriad shows, games, and movies — sometimes on screen, sometimes in voiceover. Steven is also a record-setting airplane and helicopter pilot. In 2017 Steven and his father flew the first Canadian helicopter circumnavigation of the world, setting several aviation records, including the Guinness World Record for First Father and Son to Circumnavigate the World by Aircraft. Steven is a dual Canadian-Italian citizen and resides in King, Ontario.
Liz Smith (She/Her) @dammit_liz
Liz will be calling in Tuesday November 14 at 10:00 AM PST
Liz is a creator of fun. You may have seen her at previous DBFHs, often as part of Dawnguard where she refined the art of The Kraken dance. While she considers this dance as her greatest legacy, she is also known for her work producing stage shows and making fun things for video game fans. Currently, Liz is a producer at Riot Games in Santa Monica, California.
And we have some people joining us live this year as well.
Rachel Weeks (she/her)
Rachel will be joining us live on nightwatch from November 11-13th.
Rachel Weeks is a Los Angeles-based podcaster, writer and comedian from the western suburbs of Chicago. She is the host of the "The Command Zone" podcast with Josh Lee Kwai and Jimmy Wong, former host of “Commander Sphere” with Dan Sheehan, and is a member of the Commander Advisory Group.
Outside of Magic, Rachel co-stars in “Better than Heroes,” an all-comedian, Spelljammer-inspired D&D livestream. She has performed stand-up comedy since 2014 and appeared on NBC’s First Look, Seeso’s Hidden America with Jonah Ray, and the RISK! podcast.
Angie Kelleher (she/her)
Angie is the Director of Philanthropy and Partner Experience at Child's Play Charity. She will be joining us November 14th and 15th.
Kristen Carlile, MA, CFRE (she/her)
Kristen will be joining us November 14th and 15th.
Serving as the Senior Director of Philanthropy and Partner Experiences for Child’s Play Charity, Kirsten Carlile oversees fundraising efforts and partner engagement that supports 190 hospitals worldwide. A proven, fearless fundraising leader she is responsible for leading the fundraising strategy for the organization. She has extensive experience in corporate and foundation fundraising. Working closely with the board of directors, she develops and steers corporate and foundation partners with managing the prospect pipeline securing more than 4.5 million dollars per year.
Kirsten’s professional career has been predominantly in the nonprofit sector with an emphasis on healthcare devoted to fundraising for children's health initiatives, air ambulance programs, and rehabilitation hospitals. Finding her passion early in her career allowed Kirsten to pursue her Master of Arts in Philanthropy and Development from St. Mary’s University of Minnesota.
Most recently Kirsten received the most important promotion and title to date, Lolli. She and her husband Kevin go by Lolli & Pop (Lollipop) to their grandson Jaxon.
Garrett Goody (he/him)
Garret will be joining us November 16th and 17th.
My name is Garrett Goody, and I am the Pediatric Gaming Technology Manager at Child’s Play. I was previously the Therapeutic Gaming and Technology Specialist at Seattle Children’s hospital for 5 years. While at Seattle Children’s I started the now thriving program and helped expand it (with help from Child’s Play) from just myself to two full time FTE positions. I learned a lot about what’s important in the role during this time, coming up with a training, onboard, and hiring system for expanding a solo job into a team. Other than program expansion, during my time I engaged in large scale collaborations with Microsoft, Nintendo, and Bungie. This included on site demonstrations of therapeutic gaming as well as cross company collaborations to help the hospital program. The entirety of my time there I was also commonly the public face of our program, from panels at PAX, presentations at the Pediatric Gaming Symposium, and calls to action at smaller gatherings such as XBOX MVP events. I'm also an avid gamer and would love to challenge anyone at Smash Bros.
Ken “Value Added” Steacy (he/him)
Ken will be joining us live November 15th at 5:00 PM PST
You thought he was gone but he’s back. Ken decided at age eleven to become a professional comic book author/illustrator, a dream he realized in 1974. Since then he has worked in the industry as writer, artist, art director, editor, and publisher, having chronicled the exploits of Astro Boy, Iron Man, Harry Potter, and the Star Wars gang. In addition to creating his own intellectual property, he has collaborated with other authors, including Douglas Coupland, Harlan Ellison, and Trina Robbins. With Margaret Atwood he created the graphic novel WAR BEARS, a bittersweet story of the rise and demise of a fictional Canadian comic-book publisher during WWII, which has been optioned as an animated series. The recipient of an Eisner and an Inkpot award, in 2009 Ken was inducted into the Joe Shuster Canadian Comic Book Hall of Fame, a lifetime achievement award for contributions to the industry. From 2012-2021 he taught Comics & Graphic Novels, a program he co-created with his wife, visual storyteller Joan Steacy, at Camosun College in Victoria, BC. His father was a fighter pilot in the Royal Canadian Air Force, and Ken is currently working on a graphic novel that explores the invisible subculture of military brats. For many years Ken has appeared on Desert Bus for Hope, an online fundraiser for Child’s Play, a registered charity dedicated to improving the lives of children in hospitals worldwide. For his contribution of collectibles, commissions, and original artwork, he is very proud to have been dubbed Ken “Value Added” Steacy.
We have both familiar and new faces this year. Come check them out.
Today’s prize preview has its eye on you… or eyes… eleven eyes, for that matter. Behold, who hovers before you but the great lord of the Sword Coast underworld, Xanathar the Beholder! Of course, Xanathar has never looked so stylish before when compared to this needle-felted fluffy recreation of the famous Dungeons & Dragons character. It looks huggable, but don’t do that… it has sharp teeth. (And it’s a sculpture, not a plushie. I almost called it a plushie, but it’s not.)
Johanna Iles Art donated this crafty creation to us. In Johanna’s own words…
This infamous crime lord is made from ethical wool fibres which are needle felted by hand to create a firm, 3D art sculpture.
The 10 eyestalks are internally wired enabling slight adjustments when shooting Xanathar's disintegration ray.
The large eye is painted in watercolour, overlaid with a glass cabochon then coated in resin creating the creepy ability to follow you around the room.
The teeth are made from apoxie clay, acrylic paint and coated in resin saliva.
This is normally where we’d say check back in later for more prize previews, but there’s nothing else to preview… because they’re all live now! Check out the Live Auctions, Silent Auctions, and Giveaways pages for all the details on the wonderful creations donated to us this year by our craft-along community and prize sponsors. And, while you’re perusing, make sure you’ve got your Donor Account set up and ready to go since you’ll need one to participate in auctions and giveaways.
If you want a shot at winning this prize during its live auction, tune in to Desert Bus for Hope 2023 on Friday, November 17th at 7:00pm PST. And don’t miss the start of this year’s run in… oh geez… five days?!? When did that happen? Anyway, the run kicks off on Saturday, November 11th at 2:00pm PST on twitch.tv/desertbus.
For our last official shift preview, we have the sleep-deprived and ready to jock jam it out Zeta crew. After the other shift trundle off to bed, Zeta is left to their own devices to entertain the insomniacs and Australians. Whether that be through lego, songs, or ridiculous bits, we keep it going all night long. Here's who you'll be seeing bathed in purple light this year:
Entertainment! The folks who keep the chuckles and goofs coming in the wee hours of the morning
Brendan "Beej" Dery: OG Zeta shift in every way. He's steering the ship... Sorry, bus, and keeping the rest of us on track. Also, he performs rad covers of the Barenaked Ladies. We wouldn't be Zeta without him.
Coriander Dickenson: When not in a banana costume wreaking havok, Cori can be found either on the Zeta couch, or failing at drawing horses. We're glad to have her back for another year!
Paul Saunders: Zeta got their claws into Paul and won't let him go. He brings the shanties, and the truly astounding beard power to our shift.
Broadcast! The folks that make sure you can actually see the chuckles and goofs!
Alania Boomer: Boomer returns to Zeta with a unique brand of chaos and baking prowess that we're thrilled to have back! They also bring yarn art that is almost magically cozy.
Shawn Morford: Another returning to Zeta, Shawn brings professionalism, and excellent visual gags. He also helped create the dance party button with Ian, so we can thank him for getting us uncoordinated nerds to flail around for your amusement!
Comms! The chuckles and goofs were coming from inside the house!
PJ Martin: Our man of social media, PJ handpicks only the ripest gifs and memes to make sure everyone is up to date on everything happening on Zeta. He can often be found figuring out what nonsense "X" is up to now.
Matthews: Hello, it me. I'm that. I'm the blog person for Zeta shift, and currently writing these words. Long form posts are my bread and butter.
“But eventually, I learned that all they really need is a kind word and a friendly face.”
This cross stitch portrait features Death from the Sandman TV show as she has a heart-to-heart with her brother Dream. It aims to capture the warmth of the character rather than portray her as primarily stern and serious. Embroidered on hand-dyed fabric, it measures approximately 18" x 14" and took 285 hours to complete. The piece is framed in masterwork acrylic, which is lightweight, shatterproof, and protects it from UV rays.
This beautiful piece was made by master crafter and lovely chat moderator Sarah Serinde. She is back with another stunning and intricate cross stitch for you to try and get your hands on!
If there's one thing we've learned in all these years of driving a bus through the desert, it's that the night's darn well not gonna watch itself. Therefore, with the aid of a few arcane rituals*, we have summoned the observers, the witnesses, the not-so-innocent not-so-bystanders foretold in ancient legend. THE NIGHT WATCH COMETH.
*No animals and especially no Maples were harmed in the making of these rituals.
Entertainers
They make you laugh, they make you cry with laughter, and they make your real life neighbors question why you keep laughing and crying from dinner to midnight. What are you getting up to over there? Is it even sanitary? And the answer, of course, is no.
Broadcast
Our Broadcast team employs high-tech equipment/software and a meticulously crafted stage set up to bring you crisp, hi-res, and tastefully directed views of Night Watch trying and failing to do somersaults for a $5 pledge. You're welcome.
Site Volunteer and Stage Friend
If Night Watch were a swan floating serenely on the surface of a lake, then our stagefriend and site volunteers would be the two little feet paddling like mad to sustain the graceful illusion. It's not the feet's fault if the top side of the swan keeps honking and slapping its wings into stuff.
Shipping and Comms
Shipping and Comms perform the sacred alchemies that fuel our endless traversal of the desert. Shipping carefully retrieves the prizes from the nest of a watchful mother roc whom we bribe to guard them and enwraps those prizes in the teleportation runes that will see them safely to their new forever homes. Meanwhile, Comms takes the latest Desert Bus antics and distills them into liquid vials that, when activated with a special catalyst known as busposting, coalesce into social and blog posts in the ethereal "internet" realm.
May your lungs taste the air of time, and this prize preview... ⌛ In true desert theme, the world of Dune meets Desert Bus with this hand crafted Wall Clock.
Displaying many figures from the glorious world of Dune: In the center is the planet Arakkis - "Dune" - the source of the mystic orange spice melange, above and below are the two moons with the shape of a hand on the larger and the smaller bearing the shadow of the desert mouse muad'dib, and even a coded Fremen prayer in the surrounding ring.
Made from materials including myrtle, rosewood, and hand-torched red oak, this clock has been meticulously finished and sealed to last perhaps even to the year 10,191. You don’t need desert power to make this clock go either, just a simple AA Battery. Click here to watch a video of the clock from the creator!
Revving up the engine, listen to it honk and roll. The Crew of Alpha Flight is prepped for launch. As the afternoon shift, we are kicking things off this year, and we couldn’t be more excited.
We’ve had a few changes in our lineup this year, so let’s meet the Alpha Flight Crew.
Entertainers:
Andrew Cownden: You may remember him from such hits as Tuscon or Bust, At least you’re not dead, and a rousing performance of “They’re made of Meat”, its Andrew Cownden.
Erika Cole: Erika is Desert Bus for Hope's intrepid Prize Coordinator, and is here to make sure Alpha Flight does not go too far off the rails.
Jacob Burgess: Here to fight in the next kindness war, Jacob Burgess.
Mikey Neumann: Creator of FilmJoy and long time supporter, Mikey Neumann is back to entertain us all.
Kathleen De Vere: The True Power Behind the Throne. Also sitting in the Throne. Some form of ruler. Its Kathleen.
Comms
Taylor “TQ” Quinn: Rescuer of animals, probably a creature of fae, and loves a good farming sim, it's TQ.
Dan Wu: I’m the one writing this. I think that makes me the new Tim. I will abuse this power.
Stage Friend
Tim Lindvall: Now across the room as the new Stage Friend Tim has escaped from Comms. We are sad to see him go, but happy that it’s not too far.
Broadcast
Martin “Map” Pittenauer: When he isn’t busy making apps for Apple devices, learning Japanese or practicing Iaido, he’s trying to be the best cat dad ever.
Joe Trollo: Lover of dogs, baking wizard, and someone you should never challenge to a Kindness War, its Joe Trollo.
Shipping and Prizes
Meg Hogg: This is Meg. Their spice rack is organized alphabetically, because of course it is.
Site
Logan Wiltse: Punk rock goon, scribbles on pavement for a living; Committed to the bit once, it's been so long, I miss my family.
We are a fun bunch here at Alpha Flight. Come join us.
Yooooou’re reading the Desert Bus blog, brought to you by Qwerpline, live on QWRP FM in Nsburg and all over the world by the power of the Wee-Fees! We’re getting word in of a new prize coming in for this year’s Desert Bus for Hope, a miniature diorama of the QWRP FM studios, featuring the lively characters of the town of Nsburg shrunk down to a not-quite-travel-but-still-relatively-small size.
We go now to Richter Hammockslam for more. Richter?
“Hello Desert Bus! I am excited to report on the latest fad… Extreme Helicopter Sports! You see, flying a copter requires skill, daring, and just a hint of panache, the perfect set of skills for doing what the kids these days call “memeable tricks.” For my first trick, I will be doing a 50-50 handstand on the antenna atop our very own QWRP studios. Let me just bring the copter in a little closer….”
That… uhmm… has nothing to do with this prize. Err… we’ll check back in later. In the meantime, maybe Carrie Emmerich, renowned crafter, can tell us more about this giveaway prize:
"You're listening to QWERPline here on QWRP FM! QWERPline this week is brought to you by Tiny Fauna Radio Drama Dioramas! Experience all the excitement of a raccoon-infested broadcast building in only one square foot of space. You gotta see the 'Rama!"
Based on Qwerpline, the popular Desert Bus and Loading Ready Run show, this model shows a cross section of the titular radio station and surrounds. A-Train and G-Money man the broadcast booth while Joan looms. From Richter's "traffic" reports to Lorna's bees, Rum Tunnels to Old Country jam, it's all here!
Packed full of detail, the piece rises over 20" (50cm) tall, at ~1:56 scale. The lights work and can be powered from the wall or computer, over a provided USB cable. Wood, foam, styrene plastic, and more comprise this mixed media piece. Figure is painted with bright acrylic paints and sealed.
Diorama has been designed for durability, but should be handled by its outer sides or bottom whenever possible. The tower gently separates for safer shipping and storage. Package includes a care and repair note.
Many months of planning, work, and love were poured into this project. Give it a good home, and welcome a bit of Nsburg into your life!
Tune in to Desert Bus for Hope 2023 beginning Saturday November 11th at 2pm PST where this and other great giveaways & auctions are to be had!
And, please, someone take this diorama off our hands before the tiny raccoons take over the Moonbase.
In the beautiful city of Victoria, BC, where the gentle Pacific breeze whispers through the trees and a tight-knit community gathers with shared purpose, there exists a marathon like no other. It's a marathon that doesn't involve sprinting, long-distance running, or really any physical prowess at all. Instead, it's a test of endurance, camaraderie, and the ability to function on very little sleep.
Hello there and welcome to Desert Bus for Hope!
As the sun rises, we take our places, steering a bus and drinking our coffee. While most people are still tucked in their beds, we, the Dawn Guard, are gearing up for our shift. And we are just one of four teams that ensure Desert Bus for Hope keeps rolling 24 hours a day. But they come later, for I'm here to tell you about us. From 6am till high noon, we keep the virtual wheels turning, and it's a journey you won't want to miss.
Now! Join us as we shine a light on the dedicated members of the Dawn Guard.
Now, you may notice immediately there's a missing member of our usual crew. Our past site manager and organizer Serge has decided to step down and take the year off. So for now, my dears, you're stuck with all the C H A O S!!!!!!
Entertainers:
• James Turner is a long standing Desert Busian as well as one of the first Dawn Guard members. His love of Minecraft, game shows, and antagonizing Serge has built the shift into what it is today.
• Ashton Cummings is our silent killer of an entertainer. Originally behind the scenes as the web tech and all knowing admin of systems, he's made him way into our hearts and in front of your eyeballs.
• Kate Watt has been around for a long time, not just with Desert Bus itself but with LoadingReadyRun and the people who made it. Once known only as "Bill's Mom", she has been a mainstay and a beacon for all.
• Carrie Floyd is one half of the Youtube channel PlayFrame alongside her husband, Dan. With the humble beginnings of a guest who created quiet chaos, to a driver who created quiet chaos, and now to entertainer who is basically just chaos incarnate filled with coffee, her beautiful face is always ready to ruin your day, but like in a good way.
Broadcast:
• Sarah Mendiola has been with our Broadcast team for many years, and she's here as director to overwatch the shift, and be a real daredevil in the broadcast booth.
• Jen Carling is an amazing producer with super human graphic skills. She loves to fill people with random trivia and Star Trek.
Comms:
• Az Martin is on the comms team for blog, and they are currently writing this. I also do art stuff, and I'm a spooky witch who likes the moon a little too much. Please do not perceive me.
• Kelly Voorhaar is also on comms, but on social media. They are a long standing face at DB and very good at their job. Sometimes they like to dress up in kigarumis and spread chaos into their general surroundings.
Stagefriend:
• Matt Griffiths is our new stagefriend, and he's here to help keep the show rolling and organized. From picking challenges to reminding us that there’s another giveaway ready to go, the stagefriend keeps everything running smoothly.
Prizes and Shipping:
• Ashley Turner is a cool person with a weird husband. She works in shipping and has previously been our beloved Prize Mines Mistress. She has a cute dog name Jade, and loves to scream "AAAAAAFRICAAAAA" at the top of her lungs.
Site:
• Pete Smit is a newer addition to the DB team, joining us in 2019 as a site volunteer. Unfortunately a bunch of....stuff...happened, and we weren't able to have a "site" to have "volunteers" in! But we're happy he's joining us on Dawn Guard to take care of us when we clearly refuse to do it ourselves. Mostly making coffee, probably.
So prepare yourselves for a journey with us, and stay tuned! We'll be bringing you previews of the other three shifts that make Desert Bus for Hope the cozy place for us all.