Had a brief orientation this morning at the place that I'm going to be teaching at. Oh yeah, WHAT will I be teaching? Much like my last educatin' gig: teaching computer and Internet skills, but also things like basic keyboarding. Anyway, this place I'm going to be at is really great: I'm gonna be working alongside a lot of neat people, and one thing that I learned today that abounds at this place is a strong sense of humor. Also was delighted to learn that there's several other people who went to Elon there, including one who was there right when I was. Will be reporting on how this all goes down as the weeks and months (and years?) progress :-)
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
Monday, November 14, 2005
Did the original Christians worship the military?
Found a compelling piece by Laurence M. Vance at the LewRockwell.com site. Titled "The Early Christian Attitude to War", it's a look at how Christian believers toward the beginning of the church viewed military and political power. And, it's a pretty damning case against modern "Christian" virtues like worshipping our armed might or status in the world. Vance begins thusly...
Were the early Christians warmongers like too many Christians are today? Did they idolize the Caesars like some Christians idolize President Bush? Did they make signs that said "the emperor" similar to the ones we see on cars today that refer to Bush as "the president"? Did they make apologies for the Roman Empire like some Christian apologists make for the U.S. Empire? Did they venerate the institution of the military like many Christians do today?Mash down here for plenty more.C. John Cadoux would say no.
Remember: These guys are President Bush's very bestest friends
A teacher in Saudi Arabia will spend 40 months in prison and receive 750 lashes by public flogging... for talking about the Bible and saying good things about the Jewish people.
Lest we forget how close "Christian" President Bush is to those who rule Saudi Arabia...
The funniest graphic I've ever made
So last night I was talking to a friend on the phone about some things, and one thing was leading to another, a couple of crazy connections going on across the ol' synapses... and one of the funniest ideas I've ever thought of popped into my head.
I've been working on it for most of the night. This was just one of those things that once the notion of it possesses you, you're on fire for it. This was something like Forcery was, but it's a heckuva lot easier working with Photoshop than it is to make a film. So most of the past several hours I've spent hunched over the keyboard, scouring the 'net for certain visual elements (which were surprisingly hard to find, but the perfect one did turn up) and a new font or two, to match up with the ones used in the original. And apart from some very minor tweaking, I think I achieved the final form of the thing a short while ago. And it's really hilarious.
"So where is this thing?" Well, that's the bad news: I can't show it right now. Even though I'm dying to share this with the world. If I posted this graphic now it would - not "might" but "would" - cause a helluva lot of confusion that I would be scrambling to clarify. There would be wild rumors flying all over the place because of it. And it would just totally ruin the moment that this is really meant for.
So for the time being I'm going to sit on it. I've passed it along to a VERY few friends, just to see what their reaction is (so they'll tell me if this is going too far, but I think I'm pretty safe :-) But otherwise this is going to stay confined to my hard drive. I'm going to say that probably this time next year, or maybe a bit before then, is when the season will be ripe to share this with everyone. Gotta get a few other things lined up in the meantime. If/when I publish this I'll make a permanent link to it in the Recent Hightlights section on the right so nobody will miss it.
Trust me, I ain't joshin' y'all: this will probably make you honk with laughter. Find out what it is... sometime in 2006!
Sunday, November 13, 2005
Disney has gone to the dogs
Was doing a random traipse through the blogs and found this one-sheet posted at The Hollywood Blacklist:
BTW, the original The Shaggy Dog is a pretty funny movie. I saw it years ago, and not long afterward I happened to catch its sequel The Shaggy D.A.. The original stars Fred MacMurray, who played the scoutmaster in that movie Follow Me, Boys! that I wrote about awhile back. Good, classic Disney fare that doesn't need any mangling by Michael Eisner.
Hollywood Blacklist is also reporting that the trailer for The DaVinci Code is going to be attached to Peter Jackson's King Kong next month. That'll probably be the closest I ever get to anything relating to The DaVinci Code. For my thoughts on that - and some info on a MUCH more intriguing story regarding that kind of stuff - read this post from this past January.
Bill Gates gets DOOMed
What you are about to see has never before been witnessed by the general public. Until now.
Windows 95 had been out for barely two months when Microsoft held their Judgement Day event on October 30th, 1995. Hosted on the Microsoft campus in Redmond, Washington, it was a massive showcase of Windows 95 as a gaming platform, and an opportunity for third-party game developers to hawk the products they would soon be rolling out. Microsoft's garage and cafeteria were converted into a "haunted mansion", with each attendee given their own section to decorate. It sounds like it was a pretty wild time...
...Among the attendees were LucasArts, Activsion, and of course, iD Software. Outside, 12 massive guillotines were set around the exits. Activision created a small jungle section to promote the new Pitfall for Sega Genesis. A company called Zombie created a big metal sphere that shot out blue electricity. iD, however no to be outdone (much to Microsoft's dismay) hired the shock-rock band G.W.A.R. to create their set. It was an eight foot tall vagina with dildo teeth. Inside, two members of G.W.A.R. dressed in fur and raw meat attacked passerby's with rubber penises.Alex St. John - one of the creators of Microsoft's DirectX - had something that would upstage even the boys at iD. Here's what went down, as described in the book Masters of Doom:
As the lights fell, a video screen lowered above the stage; It was time for the main event. The crowd cheered as the Doom's familiar corridors began to roll. But it was not the Doom soldier chasing the demons, it was... Bill Gates! Microsoft's fearless leader was superimposed running inside the game in a long black trench coat and brandishing a shotgun. Gates stopped running and addressed the crowd about Windows 95 as a gaming platform: A platform that could deliver cutting-edge multimedia experiences like Doom. But no sooner that he begun that an Imp monster from the game jumped out, through voice over, asked Gates for an autograph [sic]. Gates responded by raising his shotgun and blowing the beast to gory chunks. 'Don't interrupt me while I'm speaking', he said, then finished his speech. At the end, the screen went black with blood, only to be replaced with the familiar Microsoft phrase 'Who do you want to execute today?'.
Saturday, November 12, 2005
About that Star Wars bonus DVD...
Chad Austin is asking about something that so far I don't think anyone else has hit on...
Hey Chris, I was watching "The Story of Star Wars" Bonus DVD that came with the Revenge of the Sith DVD from Wal-Mart and I was thinking....how could C-3PO narrate the story of Anakin Skywalker if he had his memory wiped at the end of Episode III?!?Chad's right. If anyone should be telling this story, it's Artoo, not that blabbermouth protocol droid. Guess that memory wipe didn't take too well huh?
Friday, November 11, 2005
All six Star Wars movies... simultaneously
Shades of William S. Burroughs: a Star Wars fan named WeirdHat is watching all six movies at the same time. Interesting experiment in media psychology, to be sure. This guy is picking out some interesting patterns in the chaos that is the saga. Thanks to Kyle Williams for spotting this one.
Dear President Bush: you're here to HONOR the fallen, not keep them coming
Bush took the occassion of Veterans Day to attack critics of his war in Iraq.
I know that there are some people who are against this war strictly because its driving proponent happens to be of another political party, but those are too few and far between to justify attacking EVERYONE who is against this conflict. Some of us are against it because it has no clearly defined end-goal, because from the very beginning it has been based on dubious - and even non-existing - rationales, and simply because it has resulted in the MEANINGLESS deaths of more than two thousand American lives and still counting. Those precious men and women went off and died in another land and their sacrifice ultimately stood for NOTHING. They didn't die "protecting our liberty".
They died because a damaged little coward of a man - who has spent his life too scared to do any fighting on his own - decided that his own selfish ambitions weighed greater in the scales than did the greater good of the country that he swore an oath to serve.
He never had a real reason to instigate this war then, and he has no reason to continue it now. Instead he exploits what is supposed to be a solemn moment of reflection to make a political attack.
I don't know about you, but I have a lot of veterans in my family. Some of them have served in most of the conflicts of the past sixty years of American history. One fought at Iwo Jima. Two were in Korea. Serving this country is something that has a long history among my kin. And I'm mad as hell that the Coward-In-Chief would abuse a day consecrated to them for his own selfish reasons.
But then, this is just part of the pattern that's been his entire life, isn't it?
All of you who have supported him: I will be laughing at you ten years from now, when you'll be too ashamed to admit that you ever stood behind George W. Bush.
Pat Robertson is at it again
This time he's telling a town in Pennsylvania that it risks disaster because of how some election went there on Tuesday.
I've said this before and I'll say it again: Pat Robertson is a false prophet. He's not really much of a Christian at all. In the old days he would have been dragged outside of his headquarters in Virginia Beach and STONED to DEATH. Hey, it's how they treated false prophets in the Old Testament. You had to be right 100% of the time when speaking in the name of God. Pat has been wrong like 400% of the time. Heck, that's enough to almost have to "roll back" the period of grace that we are supposed to be in. If it weren't for that, Robertson would have been dead meat a long time ago.
But if you're the kind of person who can't get enough of this man's foolishness, click on the above link for more.
Thursday, November 10, 2005
"We are holding our own": Thirty years later, Edmund Fitzgerald still haunts
Sometime today the Rev. Richard Ingalls will have arrived at Mariner's Church, the Detroit congregation that he has faithfully served since 1965. And within the stone walls of the edifice, Rev. Ingalls will have tolled the church bells, letting the sound echo across the city. It is a ritual that Ingalls has done each November 10th for the past thirty years, ever since that first dawn in 1975 when Ingalls' moment of grief was forevermore put into the annals of American folklore...
Route of the Edmund Fitzgerald's final voyage(Some of this was adapted from a piece I wrote five years ago, but didn't have the opportunity to publish like I had wished. It's presented again here, on my own forum.)
It was thirty years ago tonight that the S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald - one of the largest and by far the most well-known of the bulk iron-ore freighters plying the Great Lakes, sank in a fierce November gale, taking with it the lives of all 29 crewmen aboard. It has since become one of the most famous shipwrecks in American history.
In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed
At the Maritime Sailors' Cathedral
The church bell chimed 'til it rang twenty-nine times
For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald
In 1957 the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company of Milwaukee, Wisconsin signed a contract with Great Lakes Engineering to build what was meant to be the first "maximum sized" Laker in existence. Hull 301's keel was laid that August, and a little over a year later the vessel was launched and delivered to her new owners. The ship was named after Edmund Fitzgerald, one of the CEOs of Northwestern Mutual, with his wife having the honors of christening the massive craft.
"The Pride of the American Flag", she was called, as well as "the Queen of the Great Lakes". At 729 feet long and 75 feet wide, the Edmund Fitzgerald held the title of largest ship on the lakes throughout most of her life. She had the capacity to carry more than 26,000 tons of iron pellets from mining operations on the western end of Lake Superior to the steel mills of Detroit, Toledo, and other ports in the east. Early in her career she broke cargo records, including that of carrying over a million tons of ore through the Soo Locks that separate upper Michigan from Ontario.
But as much as she owed it to her girth, the Edmund Fitzgerald became a fixture in the lives of those who lived along the lakes because of the antics of her crew also, especially those of longtime captain Peter Pulcer, who was ever eager to entertain those on shore. Good luck came when she steamed past some town or village on the shoreline: children, college students, steel-mill workers and homemakers ran onto beaches from Superior to Erie to wave at the ship. It was a part of life.
As the years progressed, the Fitzgerald garnered a storied history. Its crew was widely known to be a colorful, jovial lot, full of life and love for the lakefolk, and to serve on her was deemed a great honor around the Great Lakes. She was, by every account, the most beloved vessel sailing on the Great Lakes, and widely considered to be one of the most elegant ever put to water.
The lake, it is said, never gives up her deadOn November 9th, 1975, the Edmund Fitzgerald left Superior, Wisconsin, on the westernmost side of Lake Superior. In her hold was over 26 thousand tons of iron ore, bound for Detroit and the steel mills, in was to have been a straightforward route across the lake and into Huron. She had a crew of 29 and at her helm was Ernest McSorley, every bit the "good captain well-seasoned", with 44 years of piloting the lakes under his belt in a respected career.
when the skies of November turn gloomy.
And later that night when the ship's bell rang,There are few things, it is said, that are more fierce than a Great Lakes storm in November, such as the one of November 10th, 1975. A massive low-pressure cold front churned across the plains and headed north toward the lakes. On the 9th the Coast Guard issued a gale-force warning to all ships on Superior. Captain McSorley radioed the Coast Guard and the captain of another ship, the Arthur M. Anderson. Both the Fitzgerald and the Anderson headed further north, closer to Canada and away from the terrific waves that would be produced in open water.
could it be the north wind they'd been feelin'?
The wind in the wires made a tattle-tale soundEarly on the 10th the front arrived over Superior. The ship weathered a battering morning, but both the Fitzgerald and the Anderson were considered safe: the winds had thus far come from the northeast, affording the ships the buffering of nearby land.
and a wave broke over the railing.
And ev'ry man knew, as the captain did too
'twas the witch of November come stealin'.The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait
when the Gales of November came slashin'.
When afternoon came it was freezin' rain
in the face of a hurricane west wind.
But that changed as afternoon progressed, when the winds shifted to the northwest, robbing the ships of their protection. The Anderson later reported that the winds reached 43 knots, with 16 foot waves crashing against the hulls. When the Fitzgerald radioed in, it was listing to one side, had suffered vent damage and the loss of a rail. Later the ship lost both radar arrays, had listed even more, and the waves were getting higher, crashing onto the deck. Despite the damage, the Fitzgerald pressed on.
Later that evening the Anderson picked up the Fitzgerald on her radar. Radio contact was established. And at 7:10 pm came the final message ever heard from the Edmund Fitzgerald:
"We are holding our own."Shortly thereafter the Edmund Fitzgerald disappeared from radar, never to be seen above the surface again. All 29 crewmembers rode her down to the bottom of Superior.
The captain wired in he had water comin' inNo one is certain what happened to make the Fitzgerald sank, but many experts believe that faulty cargo hatches, discovered a few days earlier, were a prime culprit. As the Fitzgerald continued in the storm, water from the rain and waves was saturating the iron ore: the ship becoming heavier the longer it was at sea. It is believed a wave overcame the overly-stressed vessel, sending it sinking without warning or a chance to recover. Expeditions to the Fitzgerald later found that the ship had snapped in two.
and the good ship and crew was in peril.
And later that night when 'is lights went outta sight
came the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
Route of the Edmund Fitzgerald's final voyage
The following day's newspapers screamed the loss of the "Fitz". Thousands came to Superior's shores to weep and pray for the lost. And on Jefferson Avenue in Detroit the Rev. Richard Ingalls peeled the church bell twenty-nine times - one for each man on the Fitzgerald - from the Old Mariners Church. He has done so each November 10th since, ringing the bell thirty times: one for each crewman and once more in memory of all those who have lost their lives in the Great Lakes.
All that was left of the Fitzgerald were some of the lifeboats found afterward and the ship's bell, later recovered and restored to rest in a museum in Whitefish Point, Michigan. The ship rests in over 500 feet of water 17 miles from Whitefish Bay.
The following year Canadian singer Gordon Lightfoot released a six and a half minute song. It has become one of the most haunting ballads in history: "The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald"...
The legend lives on from the Chippewa on downThirty years ago... it only seems like a long time. I was a year and a half old when the Fitzgerald foundered. A very young man still, but we look far across and above how we were thirty years ago. Above losing a mighty ship to the elements, certainly. And then we remember that the Fitzgerald is still a living memory in the hearts of the wives, sons, and daughters of her crew. We stand reminded that we are not masters, but come into each new day by the grace of God. And it's only by the grace of God that we can end the day warm in our homes.
Of the big lake they called "Gitche Gumee"
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of November turn gloomyWith a load of iron ore twenty-six thousand tons more
Than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty
That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed
When the "Gales of November" came earlyThe ship was the pride of the American side
Coming back from some mill in Wisconsin
As the big freighters go, it was bigger then most
With a crew and good captain well seasonedConcluding some terms with a couple of steel firms
When they left fully loaded for Cleveland
And later that night when the ship's bell rang
Could it be the north wind they been feelin'?The wind in the wires made a tattle-tale sound
And a wave broke over the railing
And ev'ry man knew, as the captain did too
'twas the witch of November come stealin'The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait
When the Gales of November came slashin'
When afternoon came it was freezin' rain
in the face of a hurricane west windWhen suppertime came the old cook came on deck sayin'
"Fellas, it's been too rough to feed ya"
At seven P.M. a main hatchway caved in, he said,
"Fellas, it's been good t'know ya"The captain wired in he had water comin' in
And the good ship and crew was in peril
And later that night when 'is lights went outta sight
Came the wreck of the Edmund FitzgeraldDoes anyone know where the love of God goes
When the waves turn the minutes to hours?
The searchers all say they'd have made Whitefish Bay
If they put fifteen more miles behind 'erThey might have split up or they might have capsized
They may have broke deep and took water
And all that remains is the faces and the names
Of the wives and the sons and the daughtersLake Huron rolls, Superior sings
In the rooms for her ice-water mansion
Old Michigan steams like a young man's dreams
The islands and bays are for sportsmenAnd farther below Lake Ontario
Takes in what Lake Erie can send her
And the iron boats go as the mariners all know
With the Gales of November rememberedIn a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed
at the Maritime Sailors' Cathedral
The church bell chimed 'til it rang twenty-nine times
For each man on the Edmund FitzgeraldThe legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call "Gitche Gumee"
"Superior" they said, "never gives up her dead
When the gales of November come early!"
Shipwrecks have gained new romanticism in the past few years with the interest in the Titanic. There have been times when the Fitzgerald has been compared to the doomed ocean liner, but that's wrong. The Fitzgerald wasn't a symbol of extravagance and opulence. She wasn't some far-removed spectacle beyond the dreams of the children who saw her. The "Fitz" was a component of their lives, something to take pride in. The Fitzgerald wasn't an exercise in vanity, but a good ship with a good crew, doing the best job it could.
Which would have been something to boast of more in the years to follow: to have ridden in comfort above the Titanic had she survived her maiden voyage, or to have worked hard alongside such men as on the Fitzgerald? I don't know about you, but my life would have been far richer to have been aboard the "Fitz", if only just once.
Anyway, since it will be thirty years ago tonight that the Edmund Fitzgerald was lost, I thought that a tribute was appropriate, in the best way that I know how. Gordon Lightfoot's ballad is the very first song that I can remember hearing, so this story has some kind of special meaning to me. This could be considered the last great shipwreck in American history: there has to be a sobering respect for that.
Here's to a good ship and crew...
Wednesday, November 09, 2005
I thought Republicans were supposed to be the party of fiscal responsibility
President Bush has borrowed MORE money from foreign sources than the previous 42 Presidents combined!!
I hope all of you who voted for this damaged little man are happy now: thanks to you, your children and your grandchildren - and probably THEIR grandchildren - will be in hoc to overseas governments and banks until the new moon turns to gold.
See, it's times like this that the evil little "id" part of me thinks that the grown-ups in America should denounce as subhuman all the "elites": the hard-line Democrats and Republicans, everyone who's gotten us into this mess. Then there should be a signal given like in that movie Hotel Rwanda: "Squash the cockroaches! Cut the tall trees!" Upon which we kill every single one of them to a man (and when necessary to a woman). There's no rehabilitation possible for them. Exterminate them all. Let the streets flow red with the blood of politicians and sycophants.
You tell me if that idea doesn't at least have some merit.
Once again, I am a teacher
Well, THIS is ironic, considering that a day and a half ago I wrote about being a student again. Earlier today I accepted a teaching position. I'll be doing that in addition to the freelance work I've been doing for the past year or so. I taught computers and Internet skills to middle-school students at a private school about three years ago and really enjoyed it. I'm really looking forward to getting back into the classroom as an instructor.
Tuesday, November 08, 2005
Just finished watching National Treasure
The latest to come in from Netflix. I really liked this movie. Enough that I may have to spring for the DVD to add to my personal collection. For a history buff like me, National Treasure is like hardcore porno. Benjamin Franklin Gates (Nicholas Cage) has spent his entire life pursuing the family obsession: a treasure stash beyond imagination, hidden away by George Washington and the other Founding Fathers. It's an insane romp to just about every major location of colonial America, with everything from the Freemasons to a treasure map hidden on the back of the Declaration of Independence thrown into the mix. It also stars Sean Bean and Harvey Keitel. Definitely worth checking out if you haven't already.
EDIT: I should make note of something that I happened to notice about National Treasure. There is not one word of profanity to be found anywhere in this film. Nor were there any situations showing or even hinting at lewdness. Other than Star Wars Episode III this is about the most wholesome blockbuster movie that I can think of that's come out recently. If you want some solid entertainment that's suitable for the entire family, without having to worry about what the kiddies see or hear, you can't go wrong with National Treasure.
Would rather it be the energy sword or fuel-rod cannon
New Scientist has a story about a new weapon the U.S. military has developed: a "non-lethal" laser based device called PHASR. I think it looks too much like many of the Covenant weapons in the Halo games, particularly the carbine from Halo 2:
Monday, November 07, 2005
Once again, I am a student
Tonight marked the first time I've been a student in a classroom in over six years. I started taking a class on creative writing that I'm hoping will help me tap into my creative impulse more. See, people have told me for years that I'm a good writer, and I like to think that I am... at non-fiction stuff. It's fiction that I've never been able to really master. Whatever you want to call it: writer's block, thoughts scattered all over the place, even a bit of fear... I've gotten it. I really want to be able to cross genres with my writing: nonfiction, fiction, screenwriting, heck maybe even a little poetry or songwriting.
So, for really the first time in my life, I'm examining what it really means to cultivate my creativity, and in the very first class tonight I learned a lot of things that are probably going to help me. One thing I'm gonna try sometime - even though this is gonna absolutely drive me crazy news junkie that I am - is spend a week in media deprivation: no television, books, or Internet. Will report on how that goes if/when I undertake that.
I'm quite impressed with the instructor we've got: on her website there's a picture of her wielding a rapier. She's only the second teacher I've had in my life who apparently possesses a personal arsenal of swords :-)
Weird medicine: "Bio-printing"
I'm still trying to figure out how this works exactly. Here, read it for yourself and see if it makes sense to you. Sounds hella cool though.
Pat Buchanan: How empires end
Pat Buchanan - who I've always thought of as one of America's most fascinating thinkers - has published a fascinating essay at Human Events Online. In "Paris Burning: How Empires End", he makes an analogy of what is happening right now in France and the gradual fall of the Roman Empire to barbarian tribes. A somewhat unnerving read, but well worth it.
Why no more Star Wars movies is a good thing...
The Ultimate Star Trek Collection: a 212 DVD monstrosity, collecting EVERYTHING done with Star Trek in either television or film (except for the Star Trek animated series which hasn't hit DVD yet). Yours for only $2,499.99 (with Amazon.com savings from the list price of $3908.99).Neil Armstrong on last night's 60 Minutes
In case you missed it, Neil Armstrong gave a very rare interview with Ed Bradley on last night's edition of 60 Minutes. It came soon after the release of a new biographical book out about Armstrong. It was a pretty good interview, covering his life from growing up in Ohio to getting his pilot's license at age 16, to flying in Korea and then into a career at NASA, where at age 38 he was named mission commander for Apollo 11. It's been fairly well known for years that Armstrong has shyed away from much publicity: I've heard that he's VERY reluctant to give out autographs. And now I think I know why: he came across in the interview as being a very humble guy, who didn't want his one step on the lunar surface to overshadow the fact that he was just one of about 400,000 people who worked for eight years to make that happen. Armstrong is 75 now, looking really good and toward the end of the segment it had how he gets his flying kicks now: soaring in gliders. One of the highlights of the segment was a reunion between Armstrong and former CBS anchor Walter Cronkite, who if nothing else will always be remembered for his commentary during the early years of NASA's space exploration. Anyway, it was a pretty good story and well worth catching if/when 60 Minutes ever broadcasts it again.
Sunday, November 06, 2005
FINALLY, a LIGHTSABER of my VERY OWN!!
Last year I gave Chad and Melody - the two leads in Forcery - real lightsaber effects. But I never did that for myself, even though I've had a Jedi costume for two years now. So this past week I put on the costume and did some antics in front of the video camera. I "premiered" this tonight to my two little cousins who are visiting from Florida, and they thought it was pretty funny. So here it is, Chris "Jedi" Knight cuttin' loose with his lightsaber...
8.3 MB Quicktime Video
They don't do television like this anymore
Yesterday Lisa was flicking across stations on the TV and came across the Hallmark Channel, which all day yesterday up 'til 11 PM was showing the entire miniseries The Thorn Birds. I'd heard about it but until now have never seen it before. Well, it came as big a surprise to me as it probably will anyone else that I started watching it with her and found myself thoroughly captivated by this series. Guess it's because I'm a big fan of the multi-generational genre (hence my love of the Star Wars saga). The Thorn Birds covers about 60 years history of a family in Australia. The story centers on this lady who falls in love with a priest, who obviously is forbidden from returning her love. The priest is played by Richard Chamberlain, who back in the day was in just about every miniseries being made.
It's a powerful, moving story. And it made me think about how it is that for the most part, there is no more television of this caliber being made anymore. I'm talking about the mini-series, which actually should have been called "mega-series" because most of them racked up running times of 8 to 10 hours... or more. I think The Winds of War was 12 hours, and its sequel War and Remembrance something like 24 hours. Two decades ago this kind of television was considered a high art form. Now, the most recent one that really springs to mind is Lonesome Dove, and that was all the way back in 1989.
I have to wonder if today's television programmers would have the patience to allow for something so sweeping and grandiose. Could something like Shogun, or The Winds of War, or The Blue and the Gray or even Lonesome Dove be broadcast nowadays? Unless it's on a specialty channel like Hallmark, or perhaps HBO, I don't think so. Today's television is like most everything else: it caters to fleeting attention spans. Modern entertainment allows for the convenience of not having to be patient, and that's a real shame because for those who do have the patience, these way-long movies provide a great deal of entertainment and enlightenment. Today it's get-it-shown then get-it-done: fercryingoutloud CBS not long ago took Helter Skelter (which thirty years later is still THE most shocking true-life crime story ever done for television) and boiled it down into a two-hour remake that was... well, mediocre to put it mildly. What would they do with The Thorn Birds, or The Winds of War: probably show about two minutes of the Germans bombing Pearl Harbor out of two-hours running time tops.
Anyway, I enjoyed The Thorn Birds, or what I was able to see of it (prior engagements made us miss quite a bit of it). Enough that I'll probably find a DVD of it sometime soon and watch the entire thing at my leisure. Wonder if I could fill out the bookshelf with any more good movies like that...
Blog keeps the dream of Carolina Circle alive
One of the best stories (and they're all great) in Neil Gaiman's epic The Sandman comic series is the one taking place in ancient Baghdad, the most glorious city in the world. The city's ruler knows that such beauty will not last forever. He makes a deal with Morpheus, the series' protagonist: he will give Morpheus the city of Baghdad, if Morpheus will forever preserve the city in dreams. Thus, the Baghdad that once was will always exist despite whatever ruin might (and would) come to it.
That story came to mind when I found a blog this morning, run by a young man who's also dedicated to keeping alive a place that once was and now is not. About three months ago I posted a lil' essay about the Carolina Circle Mall here in Greensboro. At the time demolition was well underway but you could still see where most of the stores used to be. We drove past the site yesterday and there's now nothing but an empty lot with just a little debris left, and piles of material that are going to be used to build the new Wal-Mart Supercenter there. It was a great mall in its heyday though. Well, a 15-year old blogger named Billy has set up Carolina Circle City, an online chronicle of Carolina Circle Mall's life and times. It's a pretty neat place to check out if you're someone (like me) who has fond memories of the place, or if you're just interested in things like urban design and architecture. Billy has plenty of pictures of the site both pre-destruction and afterward, and he documents a lot of the stories associated with the place.
Nice work Billy: thanks to you, there will always be a Carolina Circle Mall, if only in our dreams...
Paris riots a harbinger of what might happen here
What's happening in France right now has its roots in something that's already taking place here in America: a MASSIVE, uncontrolled influx of immigrants from outside the country, who are put on the government dole but for all intents and purposes are told they do not have to assimilate to the culture.
Doesn't that sound like our own situation with wild out-of-control illegal immigration that sees millions of people streaming across the border each year?
Listen to the rhetoric coming out of groups like La Raza: they sound pretty much like what's coming out of the Muslim rioters in and around Paris right now. They just haven't had the right spark to light their fuse yet is all. But it's coming, someday.
And when it does you can thank people like your President George W. Bush and members of both parties in Congress and insane "multicultural" proponents and too many of corporate America's leadership for not only letting this happen, but eagerly promoting it. Take a good look at Paris right now, folks: we're being led down that same road too.
Saturday, November 05, 2005
Lisa's review of Children of Eden
Last night we caught Greensboro Day School's production of Children of Eden. If you've missed it so far you can still see it tonight at 7:30 and tomorrow afternoon at 2. Anyway, I was going to write a review of it but Lisa wanted to do the honors, since she now has a blog all her very own now. Read her review of Children of Eden here. 'Twas a REALLY good show by the way :-)
"Remember, remember, the Fifth of November..."
Today our Brittish brethren (props to whoever recognizes the origin of that misspelling) are celebrating the 400th anniversary of Guy Fawkes' "Gunpowder Plot". It was on this day in 1605 that Fawkes and some other conspirators were caught trying to blow up Parliament - killing the king and everybody else - by placing dozens of kegs of gunpowder beneath the building. If they'd gotten away with it they would have perpetrated one of the most legendary acts of terrorism ever. But they didn't, so Fawkes is now burned in effigy and fireworks go off all over the English countryside every year on this day. Happy Guy Fawkes Day all y'all on the other side of the pond. Now, if we could only have the release of the Wachowski Brothers' V for Vendetta to coincide with today's celebrations, that would have been perfect. But it's been pushed back to March! Ahh well...
Friday, November 04, 2005
The latest on Honey, the hero cocker spaniel pup
Two days ago I posted about Honey, a cocker spaniel puppy who saved her owner's life when he was pinned inside a vehicle for several hours. Well there's an update to that story: Honey was reunited with Michael Bosch at the hospital yesterday. Here's the story from the Marin Independent Journal...
What can ya say: Every dog has his (or her) day :-)Hero, victim reunited A Nicasio man and his cocker spaniel puppy were reunited yesterday in a hospital room at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in San Rafael just days after she saved his life after a car crash.After being placed on the bed, Honey licked Michael Bosch, 63, on the face and roamed around the bedding, satisfied to be the center of attention. Bosch, for his part, couldn't have been happier.
"All my pain went away," he said.
Bosch, a real-estate broker, was backing down his driveway off Nicasio Valley Road on Monday morning when his car slipped 50 feet down an 80-degree slope, pinning him in the overturned vehicle. Honey, whom Bosch had adopted only two weeks earlier, escaped the vehicle, climbed up the slope and alerted a neighbor to the crash when the neighbor arrived home that night.
After more than eight hours inside the car, Bosch was extricated by firefighters, who had to cut away part of the vehicle to get to him. He was flown via helicopter to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital to be treated for five broken ribs and leg injuries he suffered in the accident before being transferred Wednesday to Kaiser.
Bosch has scratches on his arms and face and remains in bed due to swelling in his left leg, but otherwise he is happy to be alive. He suffered a heart attack just two months ago.
John Bennett, 27, who works with Bosch at Coldwell Banker, brought in Honey yesterday along with Godiva chocolates, some dog biscuits - and a stuffed toy superhero dog complete with an eye mask and cape for Honey to play with. Between the heart attack and amazing rescue, he said Bosch is the talk of the office.
"Everyone is shocked," he said. "No one could believe it."
Bosch said he'd been in touch with the Marin Humane Society for more than a year about adopting a dog before going there to look at a Labrador retriever rescued from Hurricane Katrina. The Lab was nice, but Honey had his heart from the moment he laid eyes on her.
Bosch admits Honey still needs potty training, but he couldn't resist the urge to gloat about how smart and beautiful his dog is.
"She was the most popular dog at the humane society," he said.
Review of the Revenge of the Sith DVD
I've had a few days to play around with the Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith DVD. Well, the REAL one anyway, not the unlabelled DVD that wound up arriving here back in June that turned out to contain Episode III, in surprisingly good quality too. It even had a crude menu system. That one is forever going to be a curious item in my collection: I've never had a bootleg copy of a movie before. It ain't the one that's going to be shown and shared with my children someday though. That honor belongs to the real DVD, which is now sitting nicely between Episodes II and IV of the complete collection on my shelf.
So, how is it? I'd give the Revenge of the Sith DVD a score of 8 out of 10, with a few things keeping it from being totally perfect in my opinion. The first has nothing to do with the DVD itself: it's where I purchased it from. Wal-Mart is packaging Episode III with a "bonus" disc, "The Story of Star Wars". What's NOT being said very much is that this isn't a freebie: the extra disc tacks on an extra four or five bucks to the cost of Episode III. I watched this disc and though it does a fairly good job of synopsizing the stories of Anakin and Luke Skywalker, I was rather disappointed in it. The details from the third prequel are prominently absent: Threepio mumbles something about not being allowed to talk about the REAL details of what made Anakin turn into Darth Vader. If you're a completist collector you'll probably want this disc, but in retrospect I would have been perfectly happy to buy Revenge of the Sith by itself from somewhere else like Target, which packages a nice collector's coin in with its DVD. "The Story of Star Wars" just wasn't worth the extra money, I have to say.
Disc 1 of the set contains the actual movie, and it's a beautiful and vivid transfer (easily two or three times that of the bootleg I received months ago). English Dolby 5.1 Surround and Dolby Surround 2.0 are available, as is the option to watch it with French and Spanish audio. You can select to watch Episode III with commentary by George Lucas and a few other Episode III production notables. Ever since The Phantom Menace came out on DVD there's been a pretty high bar set so far as the the quality of these discs go, and Episode III meets or exceeds that easily.
What I really like about Disc 1 though is its DVD-ROM capabilities. If you have a DVD drive in your computer, you can access a special section of the StarWars.com website that will display either the script as the movie plays, or various production notes and bits of lore from the movie. Ever since first doing this with the Attack of the Clones disc a few years ago, I've really liked this feature. If you ever wanted to know what kind of ship that Obi-Wan flees Utapau in or who that blue-skinned guy in the hat at the opera house is (it's George Lucas by the way) or who built what miniature set, this feature is for you.
Disc 2 contains the special features, including the much-anticipated deleted scenes. The one everyone wanted to see has got to be the stunning (albeit short) scene of Yoda arriving on Dagobah for his self-imposed exile. I can kinda understand why Lucas left this out of the final cut, because we do know where Yoda winds up later on in The Empire Strikes Back. What I can't understand being left on the cutting room floor are a couple of scenes that show some of the political backstory of Episode III, including one that has Bail Organa, Mon Mothma, Padme and a few others (including one of my favorite characters, Fang Zar) forming what would later become the Rebel Alliance. Establishing Mon Mothma here as the Rebellion's founder would have been a perfect set-up for when she reappears in Return of the Jedi. Why this was left out, I've no idea... but it's still nice to see it here.
The documentaries make up the bulk of Disc 2. My favorite was "Within A Minute": taking one minute from the Obi-Wan/Anakin duel on Mustafar and dissecting it apart to discover EVERYTHING that went into making that one minute of film possible, from the script stage to concept art, to stunt training and filming, and finally post-production putting it all together. What I especially like about "Within A Minute" is that it credits EVERYONE that worked to make this minute of action - and the rest of the film - come together. "The Chosen One" is a shorter work that delves into the mythos of Anakin's transformation into Vader and his ultimate redemption. "It's All For Real" focuses on the stuntwork of Episode III. The disc also includes all of the online video documentaries that had previously been made available during Episode III's production to members of the StarWars.com paid Hyperspace service. All of the movie's promotional trailers and TV spots are also collected here.
If you have an Xbox you can insert Disc 2 and play a demo for the new Star Wars Battlefront II game. It took several minutes for the disc to load up some info into the system, after which play could begin. I controlled a clonetrooper during a battle on Utapau. I never played the original Battlefront so I don't know how this compares to that, but I thought it was okay.
I found this to be a good 2-disc set, but there were some things lacking with this release of Revenge of the Sith, in my opinion. You've probably heard of the "dancing Yoda" easter egg already, but otherwise this DVD seems terribly bereft of any hidden features. The DVDS of The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones had hilarious outtake reels that you could watch, along with some of the visual gags that the ILM crew came up with during production (remember the 200 MPH sandcrawler on the Episode I disc?). There's none of that here that I've been able to find, and the REALLY upsetting thing about it is that I know that there were some hilarious gags that were done for Episode III: the DVD-ROM content makes mention of several, and I've seen a few myself, like the clonetrooper holding Jar Jar's severed head. Unless you happened to catch that at Star Wars Celebration III, you might never get to laugh at seeing that. Things like that would have been perfect on the Revenge of the Sith DVD, but they're not there, apparently. Maybe someday Lucasfilm will release a DVD containing ALL the crazy things that have happened during the production of the Star Wars movies, and those jokes will get their day in the sun. I'd sure be the first one with cash in hand at the local Best Buy to get that.
All in all though, I'm pretty happy with the DVD release of Revenge of the Sith. It's wonderful to have all six films lined up in sequential order, to be enjoyed with family and friends for years to come. There was no better way to have ended the run of Star Wars movies that we've had for going on thirty years now than how George Lucas did it here, and apart from some minor qualms this was a good way to finish the DVD collection.
Behold the Eighth Wonder of the World: New King Kong trailer is glorious
Thursday, November 03, 2005
Children of Eden at Greensboro Day School this weekend
This is, hands-down, the sweetest little musical I've ever had the pleasure of watching. Elon's drama department performed this seven years ago and I've been enchanted with it ever since. Heck, I even own the 2-disc soundtrack CD of it. I've been waiting years to take Lisa to see this and lo and behold this weekend it'll be playing less than five minutes away down the street! Children of Eden by Stephen Schwartz (Godspell, Pippin and more recently Wicked) and John Caird (Les Misérables) is a musical about the first eight chapters of the Book of Genesis, from the moment of creation to the Great Deluge. It's a moving, touching, and very often funny examination of the eternal conflict between children and their parents, as seen through the stories of Adam and Eve and then Noah and his family. If you liked Schwartz's work in the movie Prince of Egypt, you will utterly adore Children of Eden. The story is spellbinding and the music is phenomenal: I'd have to say my favorite song from the show is "Generations" at the beginning of Act II ("Oh Noah, you go-a, ALL THE WAY BACK TO THE PROTOZOA!"). There's plenty more great music in this, covering every style from reggae to gospel to lounge crooning. The effects are terrific: just wait 'til you see how the gathering of the animals aboard the ark is done.Anyway, if you want to see it and you're in Greensboro this weekend, Children of Eden is playing at the Greensboro Day School on north Lawndale Drive, 7:30 PM from tonight (Thursday) through Saturday, and then 2:00 PM on Sunday. Tickets are $8 for adults. Click here for more information at Greensboro Day School's website.
Wednesday, November 02, 2005
BLOG FREE OR DIE! The Knight Shift heads into outlaw territory
Well, it was a good run of "fun" stories there. But now something serious has to be said...
Earlier today the U.S. House of Representatives defeated a bill that would have excluded blogs and other Internet communications from government regulation by the Federal Election Commission. Meaning that as of now, blogging is an activity that falls under the purview of McCain-Feingold: that wretched, EVIL piece of legislation passed in 2002 as "campaign finance reform". For that alone, President Bush is damned as a betrayer of America. He signed this stupid thing, telling us "oh but it'll SURELY get overturned by the Supreme Court, trust me!" Instead the justices upheld McCain-Feingold. And now it's hanging over the one venue of ideas that until now has remained free and clear of government regulation: the blogosphere.
As a result of this bill's defeat today in Congress, The Knight Shift - and every other blog out there - is legally bound to adhere to whatever the #&$@ the courts decree is or is not "free speech".
Well, to hell with the courts. To hell with McCain-Feingold. To hell with Congress. To hell with Bush.
I'm almost tempted to say "to hell with anyone who actually voted for these clowns" too.
This is the kind of squelching of public discussion that happened under Joe Stalin, or the Nazi regime. Maybe not muzzled by force but certainly muzzled by the very laws that we are told are there to uphold and protect our freedoms.
I'm drawing the line here. And making a public declaration...
This blog is a virtual reflection of my persona. No one - and no government - makes the determination of who I am, or what I believe in. My writings here are an expression of my soul... and my soul yields to no man.
So I'm choosing to ignore any "regulation" by the federal government as to what I can and cannot say with my blog. If I endorse a candidate, that's my business. If I condemn a candidate, that's perfectly within my rights, for whatever reason I happen to believe. If I choose to use this site to actively campaign for someone (which hasn't happened yet, but it'll probably happen someday) then I'll do so, without regard to the Federal Election Commission.
This all probably sounds pretty reactionary. Maybe even paranoid. But bank on it: you will see a crackdown on political speech on personal blogs at some point in the future. I'm choosing to say something about this now, before it gets to that point.
I'll be sure to post any "cease and desist" notices that this blog receives for flaunting McCain-Feingold, if it happens. In the meantime, back to posting the usual...
(P.S.: I'm far from the only one who feels this way. Take a looksee at the growing insurrection.)
Cocker Spaniel pup saves owner's life
From the "Awwwww how cute!" file (and KATU.com):
I just had to post this, dog lover that I am :-)Man saves puppy, then puppy saves man
By KATU Web Staff
MARIN COUNTY, Ca. - The neighbor of a California man who brought home a pound puppy says the young dog led her to an accident scene where the man was pinned for hours in a wrecked vehicle.
Monday night, rescue crews were able to extract Michael Bosch, 63, from his mangled SUV and transport him to the hospital, where he is expected to survive.
The story began some weeks earlier when Bosch picked up Honey, a cocker spaniel puppy who had been brought to the pound by an owner who could no longer afford to care for her.
Bosch and the dog became fast friends, and Honey frequently rode with Bosch while he was driving his white SUV.
But on Monday, Bosch was backing the vehicle up on his property and went too far, and it tumbled down into a steep ravine, landing on its roof.
The car ended up out of view, and Bosch was tightly pinned against the steering wheel, unable to escape, and badly injured.
Honey, unhurt, was able to eventually escape the vehicle after Bosch was able to get a window open. He reportedly told the small dog to go for help.
Half a mile away, Robin Allen was at home when the dog suddenly appeared, and according to Allen, the dog lead her to the crash site.
When Allen discovered the scene, she immediately called for help.
At last report, Honey was waiting for Bosch to come home.
Man saves puppy, then puppy saves manMy lovely spousal overunit has entered the blogosphere
Lisa finally decided that I was having way too much fun for my own good without her, so tonight she set up a blog of her very own. Notes From Lisa will be her online chronicle of her life as a musician, a teacher, and as wife to a very oddball man. Expect her to post musings on various subjects, reviews of movies and music, maybe even a recipe every now and then. In her first post she writes about disc golf, which I'd never heard of until she told me about it this afternoon. We're gonna fix her up with some custom graphics sometime too. Make it a pretty blog for a pretty lady :-)
Strike a pose!
While wearing my Jedi costume a couple days ago I visited my wife's school just when the kids were all having their Halloween parties. A photographer from the Reidsville Review newspaper was there and he took a pic of me wielding my lightsaber. This was one of the photos that appeared on the front page of yesterday's edition:
Pssst... Hey you, wanna laptop computer for $398?
Somehow a lot of Wal-Mart's secret day-after-Thanksgiving sales prices have slipped out, according to CNN. Among the deals: a 12-cup coffee maker for $4.24 and a Hewlett-Packard laptop computer for $398. Here's praying that the slashed prices will extend to the Star Wars action figures :-)
While we're talking about Wal-Mart, you might recall that I reported my original hometown of Reidsville, North Carolina got a Wal-Mart Supercenter last week. Well I need to make note of something that's happened since then: previously the average price of gasoline in Reidsville had been around $2.45 a gallon. Then Wal-Mart opened and started selling gas for $2.29. Ever since last Wednesday the average gas price has plummeted all over town: it's now around $2.25 in most places, with the Wal-Mart itself selling it for $2.15 per gallon as of yesterday. That's thirty cents cheaper than the average price here in neighboring Greensboro. Lisa has been telling me that Wal-Mart coming to Reidsville would bring economic benefits with it but I hadn't been sure about that (you gotta know Reidsville to understand what I mean by that), especially considering that Rockingham County will have three Wal-Mart Supercenters in a few months' time, in one of the most rural counties in the state. But right now, it's hard to argue about that with her. If its arrival to Reidsville will continue holding gas prices at bay, I'm all for it being there now :-)
Tuesday, November 01, 2005
The Last Midnight Madness: Revenge of the Sith DVD at the local Wal-Mart
I spent practically all day yesterday in my Jedi garb (even wearing it to the dentist office). So I was already set when Darth Larry swung by the apartment last night for what was possibly the final time we'll ever do a midnight run for new Star Wars goodness. This time it was the Episode III: Revenge of the Sith DVD that went on sale at 12:01 am this morning. Since I've chronicled all the other midnight madnesses on this blog, I brought my camera along to capture the fleeting moments for posterity...
Yeah it wasn't as crazy as it was back in April when we hit Toys R Us and Wallyworld and Target for a joyous Starwargasm of merchandise, but it was still a lot of fun. We had to do this, if for no other reason than to be able to tell our children what it was like to be out at an insane hour for sake of a saga. Anyhoo, I'll try and post a review of the DVD soon. And Darth Larry, it was great to do this one last time with you effendi :-)
Monday, October 31, 2005
Don't fear Halloween... laugh at it
There were at least two or three church signs that I saw while driving around earlier this evening, that had something negative to say about Halloween. Now, to be sure, Halloween used to be a time when the Druids sacrificed virgins to their heathen gods. How we went from that to giving out a bar of Snickers to kiddies is a whole nother discussion. But let's face it: Halloween as it's practiced today is not evil. It has nothing to do with evil. In fact, I think that celebrating Halloween is actually a very much Christian thing to do: we aren't supposed to be in fear of darkness. We're supposed to be triumphant over it. When we cringe in fear over a thing, we're letting that thing have power over us when it has no right to. So put on a costume (I've been wearing my Jedi getup all day) and get in the spirit. Have some fun with Halloween, instead of cowering in fear of it.
We watched Coach Carter and Fat Albert over the weekend
Coach Carter came via Netflix. Samuel L. Jackson plays Ken Carter, who took a basketball coaching job at Richmond High School in California, then benched the entire team - that boasted an undefeated winning streak - because of poor grades. One of Jackson's best roles, I thought. Really good movie for you to check out if you haven't already.
Then last night Lisa and I watched Fat Albert on HBO. And it's a surprisingly good movie. It's a "cute" lil' flick: maybe not Coach Carter calibre but still worth catching at least once. The premise is that Fat Albert and his gang escape from their cartoon world and come into the real one to help a girl solve some problems. There's a nice twist regarding the girl and the grandfather she often mentions, and the final scene is really touching. Kenan Thompson pulls off a great Fat Albert, as do the rest of the cast. If there's anything to complain about, it's that the animated segments aren't done in the style of the classic 70's tv show, but instead that "fake 3D" style that's been around since the mid-90's or so. The Russell of the movie sounds nothing like the Russell of the original series. But these are really minor quibbles. Watch it sometime if you want something light and entertaining.
Sunday, October 30, 2005
Biking the Virginia Creeper
Yesterday Lisa and I joined some friends for a bike trip on the Virginia Creeper Trail in southwestern Virginia. It was a seventeen-mile ride from the top of Whitetop Mountain on the North Carolina border, then west along the Tennessee state line to the half-way point of the trail in Damascus, Virginia. It was a good trip through some beautiful countryside, made all the more epic because my MP3 player was going through the entire soundtrack of The Lord of the Rings. I was sure the trip was going to end somewhere deep inside Return of the King's music but we ended up rolling into the bike rental place with "Isengard Unleashed" from The Two Towers, much shorter trip than I expected. We may go back and do the lower half of the trail sometime this coming spring.
Saturday, October 29, 2005
Kyle Williams weighs in on Plamegate
Young master Kyle Williams continues to wield his considerable grasp of things with his essay this week, this one on the CIA leak inquiry.
Friday, October 28, 2005
Hollywood gets exorcism all wrong
Well, AMC just had a show about the impact that The Exorcist has had in the three decades since it first came out. I first saw this movie back in 1999 and... well, how should I put this...?
Okay, The Exorcist is a good movie but it gets some things wrong. Like, I mean ALL wrong.
Real confrontation with demons isn't some ritual you follow from a book. Ceremonial prayer doesn't really do anything. Neither can you just throw "holy water" at it and think it's gonna burn the thing like battery acid. In fact you will probably make it laugh at you for trying that.
You never tell it your name. You don't even ask IT for its name. Yes, it has one but you are not interested in what its name is, period. You don't answer anything it asks of you. You close your ears to it no matter what it tells you. You DO NOT dwell upon any kind of knowledge or prophecy it screams at you. I can't emphasize that point nearly enough. It can tell you how you're going to die but you have to deafen your ears and mind to that. Else you obsess with that and then you’re no good to anyone who’s involved in this with you.
Now, some things the movies do get right, like when it's talking in some other language, but don't expect to be able to translate it. I'm just saying it can do that is all. But do not expect for it to make someone's head turn a full 360 degrees like Linda Blair's did. The inhabited person will sometimes display feats of strength not in proportion to sex or physical size, though.
A drop in ambient temperature has been reported in some cases, but in general this doesn't seem to happen very often.
Oh yeah and it does sometimes produce vomiting, so be ready for that.
There aren't too many people really strong enough to handle this sort of thing. If you aren't that strong, be somewhere else, okay?
I wonder if anyone in the film industry will ever make a movie about what fighting a demon is really like.
Where da heck is the KWerky website??
It occured to me this afternoon that we still don't have our website back up. There's a reason for that: both Ed and I have been pretty busy with other real-life things. Heck, Ed is getting married in a few months: I've been there, done that, know all about the stuff that goes into wedding planning. The website was previously on his own server, but since recently moving he hasn't had time to set it back up.
This doesn't mean that we haven't been working on KWerky Productions-related stuff though. So far my lil' "experimental filmmaking" project is going pretty well: we should have something to show for it by February. On the lighter side of things I'm thinking about filming EVERYTHING that goes into the fine art of deep-frying a turkey, and make a "how-to" video on that around Thanksgiving. It's the second most dangerous form of cooking known to man (after fugu preparation). We'll see if I can both run a camera and play with 350-degree boiling peanut oil simultaneously.
Wednesday, October 26, 2005
20 years of Nintendo Entertainment System
This month marks the 20th anniversary of the launch of the Nintendo Entertainment System. I remember seeing one for the first time in a Service Merchandise store not long after that, just before Christmas 1985. So many classic games that were played on that lil' unit. This deserves a fitting salute in the best way I know how...
To the NES UP-UP-DOWN-DOWN-LEFT-RIGHT-LEFT-RIGHT-B-A-START
My old hometown got a Wal-Mart Supercenter of its very own today
Reidsville - the benighted armpit of North Carolina - got a Wal-Mart Supercenter at 7 a.m. this morning. If you know anything about Reidsville, you're probably scratching your head about what it is exactly that makes this 'burg deserve a Wal-Mart, much less a Supercenter. This is considered such a big deal that there were high school bands brought in to play at the opening, in addition to most of the local politicians and whatever else showing up. Celebrating a Wal-Mart opening? That should tell you something.
Tuesday, October 25, 2005
William Hootkins passes away
William Hootkins - forever known as Rebel pilot Porkins in the very first Star Wars movie - has died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 58. In addition to his legendary role as Porkins, Hootkins did a lot of other good stuff: he was one of the U.S. intelligence agents that met Dr. Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark. You might also remember him as playing that corrupt police lieutenant in Tim Burton's first Batman movie. Interesting trivia: the Rebel pilot costumes were one-size-fits-all, but Hootkins was WAY too big to fit into the outfit. His costume had to be cut in the back to accommodate for his enormous girth. He also happened to be wearing an R. Crumb "Keep On Trucking" t-shirt under the Rebel gear. And when he first heard that his character was named "Porkins" he thought that George Lucas was going to put a pig nose prosthetic on his face. A super nice guy who was taken much too soon. Thoughts and prayers going out to his family.Monday, October 24, 2005
I met Nicholas Sparks yesterday
Can't believe I forgot about this already. Sparks was at the local Barnes & Noble yesterday afternoon. Lisa has a copy of The Wedding that I took for him to sign. The store was packed with fans (mostly female). I've never read anything by Nicholas Sparks but I have seen the movies of A Walk to Remember and The Notebook. Anyway, he did a fifteen minute Q&A session then started signing copies of his newest book (the name of it escape me at the moment). I stood in line for two hours before getting to where he was sitting. We shook hands and he signed the book. He strikes me as being a super nice guy. He said this was a really "sweet" thing to do to get this for my wife :-) Anyway, just thought I'd make a mention of that, that I met Nicholas Sparks yesterday afternoon.
Sunday, October 23, 2005
"Anointed by God": The REAL reason why neo-conservatives want to attack Syria
I'm going to go ahead and speak the obvious...
The real reason why the neo-conservatives running the White House want to do something militarily with Syria has nothing to do with the United Nations investigative report implicating Syrian officials in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. That just happens to be a very convenient excuse.
You will never hear it mentioned in a presidential speech, but here it is...
There are too many people in this administration who want to attack Syria because they see themselves as fulfillers of biblical prophecy.
According to most adherents of the "pre-tribulation rapture" scenario, the next prophetic event that must happen before "Daniel's seventieth week" - AKA the Great Tribulation - begins is the coming to pass of Isaiah 17. The chapter that begins "An oracle concerning Damascus: 'See, Damascus will no longer be a city but will become a heap of ruins...'". So long as Damascus is still standing, the tribulation cannot come. It has to be knocked-over first.
I find it quite serious to believe that there are some in our government who believe they are "anointed" by God to be the agents that cause this to happen. Or perhaps that prophecy isn't unfolding as fast as it should so it needs a good "kick-start" to get it rolling.
Don't think for an instant that people like Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell and James Dobson have not contemplated that this might happen. They are probably even feverishly praying for it. Maybe even slyly encouraging their friends in the White House to consider doing this.
Believe me, I know what kind of mindset this is that we're talking about. I've dealt with them for most of my life. They have a really unhealthy obsession with the rapture. They focus on THAT more than they focus on God, if that makes any sense. Trust me: somewhere out there are people licking their chops at the possibility of the U.S. acting against Damascus. They want nothing less than the end of the world... and maybe a little credit for "helping" it come about.
There you have it: the true rationale for why Bush and his administration are wanting to go after Syria next. If no one else will say it, then I will.
Saturday, October 22, 2005
Saw a pretty good movie today
We caught Just Like Heaven, with Reese Witherspoon, Mark Ruffalo and Jon Heder (the guy who played Napoleon Dynamite). From a guy's perspective, for a chick-flick it's a darned good movie. It has a nice twist to it that makes it NOT be the story you think it's about after watching it for awhile. I won't post any spoilers here though, go check it out for yourself, now or later when it hits DVD.
Speaking of DVD, we got Army of Darkness via Netflix today and finished watching it a little while ago. I think that Lisa much more preferred Just Like Heaven though: that movie made a little more sense to her than Ash's shenanigans :-)
