Fragments of Life

Dante's Inferno - The Video Game (What The!?)

2009-11-16T11:30:00.001-05:00

I'm not a big video game player, other than the occasional game of Star Wars Lego (that is just FUN) so I was surprised when I saw an announcement for a new video game--Dante's Inferno.

Now I'm pretty sure it's NOT like the book... playing Dante and just following Virgil around for nine levels of peaking in on the Las Vegas party-style that is Hell and ending up with the "I went to Hell and all I got was this t-shirt" t-shirt.

I have no details on what's actually in the game, but I'd be more inclined to play it, if everyone's favorite Middle Ages poet strapped on a pair (of guns) and laid waste to the hellish wasteland that is... well, Hell.

But this got me thinking about what other novels could be turned into video games...

The Lord of the Flies: Play as Ralph, Jack, or Piggy. Defeat the other kids on the island, grab the pig head for extra power and take on the the Beast with a laser gun made from Piggy's glasses.

Hamlet: Why suffer the "slings and arrows of outrageous fortune" when you can make others suffer? Start off by driving your girlfriend to suicide, and then eliminate everyone in your Friends and Family calling circle. In the final boss level, take on Fortinbras and his army in classic first person shooter style.

Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: Wander around the streets of London as Edward Hyde beating up Bobbies and Harlots and stealing nearby carriages for transportation, all the while earning money and Hyde potions, until you can take on Queen Elizabeth herself in a Mortal-Combat style fight (I just wonder what the Queen's finishing move would be?)

Apparently great literature is for more than just reading, you can also play it!

P.S. If you get to the final level of Inferno, remember your thermal jammies.

GodTube?

2009-01-27T07:56:00.000-05:00

Seems the Vatican is getting a channel on the popular video sharing site YouTube. Details are sparse on what content the Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church has in mind, but a quick look around YouTube should give him a few ideas...

* A video blog... wouldn't you like seeing the Pope hunched over in a chair, trying to stay in the frame of the web camera on his laptop lamenting about everything from the last movie he saw (probably Slumdog Millionaire, seems like everyone's seen that one but me) or just something that happened at work that day... I know I would be glued to the screen.

* Mashups... mix some pope videos with popular, but lyrically empty pop songs and watch the view counts soar... and I can't imagine ANY record company sending a cease and desist order against the Holy See. But be prepared for the unauthorized mashup of the Pope and Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl".

* Clips and Trailers... "This Week in Church..." a quick cut video (but without those goofy 80s style tilted angles) of some snippets of a reading, part of the sermon, and the happy faces of all those who just received communion...

Just a few ideas, and I'm sure the Vatican has even farther reaching plans, like a church in Second Life, or a Twitter account...

My 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon

2009-01-09T00:20:00.007-05:00

Ok, you should all know the premise by now, if not, check the 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon page on Wikipedia.

I hadn't thought about my own degree number, till a friend of my on Facebook talked about hers. So that got me thinking and I was surprised to find it was easier to figure out than I thought. See a few years ago I was taking theater classes at the local community college. While there...

I performed in The Crucible with John Esteban
Who appeared (as an extra) in The New World with Colin Farrell
Who appeared in Minority Report with Tom Cruise
Who appeared in A Few Good Men with... Kevin Bacon

so that put me at 4 degrees from Keven Bacon... who knew.

Speaking of Bacon (Kevin, not the pork food), the Oracle of Bacon is a great site for finding the shortest distance between two actors (it defaults to Kevin Bacon as one of the two, but you can substitute any two names). What's really impressive is putting in silent film stars like Charlie Chaplin or Fatty Arbuckle and finding out they are both within 3 degrees of Kevin.

When Real Life and Second Life Collide

2008-11-16T15:15:00.003-05:00

Seems in the new techno-world of the 21st century, fidelity isn't just limited to the real world...

Case in point, a British couple are divorcing after 3 years of marriage when the wife repeatedly caught her husband's Second Life avatar having sex with various women (including prostitutes).

My question... in the divorce settlement, who gets the computer?

http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSTRE4AD39U20081114?feedType=nl&feedName=ustechnology&sp=true

(Reposted from my other blog, One Viewpoint)

Me And Murry

2008-11-01T01:07:00.000-04:00

I recently went on a trip, involving several long flights. As I've done over the past few years, I brought along a book, an old collection of even older sci-fi stories (from the "golden age of the pulps") by Murray Leinster.

I first "met" Murray when I was in college. I was working on a paper and needed to use one of the computers in the 24 hour lab (this was before the days of affordable laptops). Since it was around Finals, I wasn't the only one in need of word processing and a printer; there was a line out the door of other people in the same predicament as me (and which further reinforced my theory that we ALL wait to the last minute to get things done).

To pass the time, I borrowed one of my roommate's books ("The Best of Murray Leinster" edited by J J Pierce), which just so happened to be a collection of his short stories. I enjoy sci-fi, but I wouldn't call myself a big fan; I haven't read any of the great authors like Card, Asimov, or Heinlein, and other than a few cyberpunk books by William Gibson, most of my exposure has been through TV and movies.

Anyway, I enjoyed the stories, even if some of the writing felt a little dated; his stories are populated with spaceships and computers using vacuum tube technology. But details aside, the plots are engaging, the themes still relevant, and the science well-rooted in some basis of fact.

Years later I was looking though a used book store and found a copy of the book I had been reading in college. I picked it up and let in sit on a bookshelf...

Later still, I was getting ready for my first trip to New Orleans, to meet up with some friends for a bachelor party. Looking for something to fill the time at the terminal and on the plane (and since I'm a dreadfully slow reader), I picked up this book again.

Over the years as I've gone on trips to San Francisco, San Diego, and even London, Murray has always been along for the ride. This year, Murry came along again (all the way out to Hawaii), but on the return flight home, I finished the last story of the book. Now it sits on the shelf as another finished novel, which I may glance at from time to time, but unlikely to read again; in spite of, or maybe because of the fact that I'm such a slow reader, my "to read" pile grows faster than I can read them.

So now as this old book takes a place on the shelf, I'm on the search for a new collection of his work... since I have no planned trips coming up, so I have a little time.

If you're interested in checking out some of his work, here are a couple of places to look:
* Free ebooks from Project Gutenberg.
* Books available on Amazon.
* Books available from eBay.

Hey! Know What Day It Is? It's National Punctuation Day

2008-09-24T14:49:00.000-04:00

I kid you not... for more on the story, check on their website:

http://www.nationalpunctuationday.com/

I'm particularly fond of their guidelines on how to celebrate the day.

Geek Spotting

2008-09-14T15:41:00.004-04:00

Yesterday I had quite a shock in the parking lot of the apartment building I've been living at for the last two years. As I was parking the car, I saw an unmistakable geek walking toward and then into the main door for my apartment floor (there are several buildings in the complex, and each floor of each building has it's own main door).

I was thoroughly shocked, since as I mentioned previously, I have been living there for a few years and had no idea. You may be wondering how I knew this person was a geek. Simple, said person matched practically every geek criteria, including:

male (between 20-25)
slightly overweight
wore a slightly worn out t-shirt (that was not very flattering)
pale skin
glasses
and long, stringy, unkempt hair

At first I wondered if he lived on my floor, but a second look helped me determine that he was probably just visiting. He had what looked like some notebooks, along with some other unidentifiable supplies. The clincher was that he carried a 12-pack of orange soda and a 12-pack of Mountain Dew. Clearly he was a visiting gamer-geek and courteous enough to bring supplies.

But what game? He didn't have a laptop, so I doubt it was a LAN party. I didn't see boxes of miniatures, so he wasn't a wargammer (those dudes NEVER travel light), thanks to online play, there's no point to physically get together for any console gaming. He may have been an RPG gamer (D&D and the like) or a CCG gamer, I can't be sure...

Before anyone thinks that I'm making fun of/looking down on the guy I saw, let me say with full disclosure, earlier that day, during running my errands, I also made a stop at the local comic book/hobby store, and later that night I played some Guitar Hero (Rockin' the 80's) and had my own best-of season 5 Buffy the Vampire Slayer mini-marathon thanks to the complete Buffy DVD collection I own.

So to that geek I saw in the parking lot, I say: I hope you had a good time... and do you have room for another player? :-)

The Lesser of Two Evils

2008-06-20T21:50:00.002-04:00

Even though he serviced as the mayor of his Romanian village for over two decades, it was a bit of a surprise when Neculai Ivascu was recently re-elected to said same post. What made this re-election unusual was the fact that he was DEAD!

One voter was quoted: "I know he died, but I don't want change."

Sadly the opponent, the still-breathing Gheorghe Dobrescu, had to endure the humiliation of being mentioned in the article as the candidate who lost to a dead man.

Original Reuters article

The Sum of All Internet...

2008-06-18T16:32:00.006-04:00

It sometimes seems like there's so much information overload on the Internet, it's nice to see one site do one thing great. I present...

The Rimshot

If you need it, it's the only place to be!

"Bless me father for I am sinning..."

2008-06-16T21:40:00.004-04:00

While the story of a couple getting caught having "relations" (wink, wink) in public might not be all that noteworthy, it does get more notice when said "public" turns out to be a church confessional box (in Rome no less) DURING mass... unconfirmed reports claim that fellow parishioners assumed the couple were merely "filled with the spirit" before being discovered.

Original article from Reuters

Get the Flock Outta Here

2008-06-13T01:22:00.001-04:00

This is a test post of the Flock browser... remember when apps were only written for PCs and then, MAYBE, if you were lucky, a less than stellar Mac version would come out later. And by later, I mean "much later".

Well as a long time Mac user, I'm glad to see more and more things being supported across several platforms. It definitely makes me feel like I'm just as much a cyber-citizen as some one running the lastest version of Windows.

Blogged with the Flock Browser

The Long Good Night

2008-06-10T13:37:00.000-04:00

Seems the McMurdo research base in Antarctica just received a shipment of over
16 thousand condoms, for a base that currently only has 125 people during the upcoming winter months.

While that might sound pretty impressive (that's 132 condoms per person), their winter night will last till Aug 20, so they've got the time, and hopefully the stamina. The sad part to this story is hidden in the math... with 125 people on base, that comes out to 62 couples and one odd man out... poor guy

For more info: http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSN0943167020080609

Japanese Woman Comes Out of the Closet

2008-05-30T19:30:00.007-04:00

Choose Your Own Preface:

1) The next time you hear a strange noise coming from your closet, you might want to double check before you dismiss it as just your imagination...

2) So you think your apartment is small!

in the closet

2008-05-20T13:41:00.002-04:00

I'm callous enough to appreciate a little "gallows humor" from time to time, but this headline about Sen. Kennedy may have gone a bit too far, even for my taste.

What a long strange trip it's been...

2008-04-30T13:49:00.002-04:00

Albert Hofmann, the inventor of LSD passed away today... at the age of 102!

Good for you Al...

For more information, check out the full story here on Yahoo!
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080430/ap_on_re_eu/obit_hofmann

Are You $#!%ing Me!

2008-04-25T10:03:00.001-04:00

Seems like crazy news is on a roll, and I'm along for the ride.

Here's a BBC News article about... The Hitler Doll, on sale soon in a Ukrainian store near you!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/7362161.stm

At what point did this sound like a good idea. And what's next? Press a button and he does the Reich salute, or pull a string and he spews out hate and bigotry?

Strange but... Strange!

2008-04-24T13:34:00.003-04:00

I know it's been a while since I've written, but I got a doozie this time...

Here's an article that makes Reuters look like The Midnight Star...

Article (if you're easily shocked or offended, be warned)

"Famous" For a Day

2008-03-20T13:30:00.003-04:00

Hey,

I understand that you don't actually have to be talented to be famous (thank you Paris Hilton for proving that to a new generation of people), but now you don't even have to be famous to be treated like you are...

Celebrity for a Day news article

Seems if you can scrape up $1,500 you can get hounded by your own stable of photographers... and for even more money, get a bodyguard and publicist.

Publicist!?!... Who are they going to publicize you to? Fake reporters and imaginary newspapers??

It's a strange world, and it just got a bit stranger...

Nothing Ever Dies

2008-02-20T08:06:00.000-05:00

Thanks to sites like YouTube, things that you might have thought were long gone and never to be seen again live on...

Case in point... the opening video for this (not so) classic Saturday morning TV show Kidd Video!

And for more info, check out their Wikipedia page (wait! they have a page and I don't?!?).

Time Travelin'

2008-01-23T23:30:00.000-05:00

Some people say that Time Travel may be impossible, based on the current understanding of the laws of physics.

I tend to disagree with them. I say this because I have already time traveled, and no, I don't have a portable fusion reaction in my basement, or some other science-fiction-y device at my command, but I do travel in time. In fact I did it just the other day...

I was outside last night and it was dark and cold. There was something in the air, a mix of the bitting cold of winter and the dark of night. As I inhaled deeply on the pungent air, for a moment it was a decade ago and I was back in college (Penn State main campus). It was a Friday night (instead of the Monday night I started out in 2008) before the end of the semester (early January) and I was heading over to my fraternity house (I lived on campus, not in the house). I would have been smoking a cigarette back then -- I wasn't now, but I could almost taste it on my lips as if I had finished it just a few minutes ago. Those nights, at school, on the weekends were so filled with options... it's a shame I didn't take too many of the ones that were available, but that's another post for another day...

This trip only lasted a few moments before I was pulled back into 2008, but sometimes you can hold on a little longer, for whatever it's worth, though you can never stay.

Next time you smell something familiar, or think you see someone from a long time ago, take the time to appreciate your own little time travel... and enjoy!

Filed Under EWW!

2008-01-21T03:13:00.002-05:00

Seems like twins, given up for adoption at an early age married each other in England recently.

For me, all I could think about was the line from Eurotrip:

"They really are the worst twins ever!"

World's Largest TV

2008-01-08T15:53:00.000-05:00

All I can say is... wow

http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSN0740737820080107?feedType=nl&feedName=ustechnology

ok...

1) so who has the room for a 150 inch tv?
2) what's the cost?
3) if I have to ask, I can't afford it
4) what's the cost of the juice to run this (again, see number 3 above)

"Let 'em eat cake"

2008-01-07T15:00:00.001-05:00

I don't think this is what Marie Antoinette thought when she made her famous statement.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/01/07/cake.irpt/index.html

A life size wedding cake that looks like the bride... creepy! Especially when you think of the wedding tradition of keeping the top piece of the cake for a year and then eating it on the first anniversary of the wedding.

So next year do they eat her head?

No more words...

2008-01-03T20:51:00.000-05:00

I guess Berlin had it right when Terri sang:

Remember when the words were new
They carried a meaning, a feeling so true

(from the song No More Words)

The following article lists this years winners for overused phrases, or "19 affronts to the English language":

http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSN0160393320080101?pageNumber=2&virtualBrandChannel=0&sp=true

As for next year, who knows what verbal "low hanging fruit" will "make the grade" or "fall through the cracks" :)

Bamboo PC...

2007-12-13T19:33:00.001-05:00

Some hi-tech company just came out with an eco-friendly PC, partly made out of Bamboo...

http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSN1041987920071213?feedType=nl&feedName=ustechnology

... but just remember, don't leave it around your Panda Bear

Wii-hab

2007-12-11T22:11:00.000-05:00

From commercial to real life, it seems people are using the Wii for physical therapy.

I can hear it now... "will you START playing that video game!"

Dexter or Serial Killer by Proxy?

2007-12-10T00:03:00.000-05:00

Ok... I know I'm behind the curve on some things... the rise and fall of boy bands, SPAM, and now Dexter.

For the last few people who didn't know, it's a series about a serial killer who hunts people who escape the the law (like serial killers or serial drunk drivers).

It's a dark show. You see in detail as the lead character captures and tortures his victims, but since we already know the victims are, themselves, horrible killers, we can take a perverse pleasure in watching these monsters meet their vicious ends at the hand of another monster.

But the most interesting question... since we continue to watch the show, and viewers are what guarantee new episodes, aren't we just as responsible for the crimes Dexter gets to commit?

... A Little Scarier

2007-11-30T12:58:00.001-05:00

This just in from the "World Just Got a Little Scarier" file:

all about a new strain of Ebola

http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSL2990582220071129?pageNumber=2&virtualBrandChannel=0&sp=true

No offense, but I think the four strains we have are more than enough...

<old guy voice> I remember when there were only three strains of Ebola </old guy voice>

This is starting to feel like an iPod, with a new version coming out every year!

Thanksgiving

2007-11-22T19:36:00.000-05:00

Just got done the T'day meal and I'm taking a moment to reflect on what the day means to me...

A couple of years ago, Thanksgiving was a very different day for me. I've always had plenty to be thankful for and have always been aware of the blessings in my life, but for a couple years, Thanksgiving was always a personal day... I didn't go have a big meal with a bunch of friends or family, instead, I'd have a turkey hoagie by myself and just enjoy the day that way.

Now I don't want the image of me eating a sandwich alone to seem like a sad thing. It was the opposite, it was enjoyable not having to rush around here or there. It was my day, and spent in a very personal, reflective way...

Now adays things are different. I'm engaged and most years T'day is about rushing here and there, and all the other hectic commitments that I guess make up a life. This year Patty and I didn't go home for the holiday, we stayed local, and did Thanksgiving just by ourselves... and it was wonderful.

The Rise and Fall of a Dessert

2007-11-20T01:44:00.000-05:00

I read this article recently about the recent awardee (is that even a word?) of Guiness Book of World's Record holder for Most Expensive Dessert.

It was created by a NY restaurant called Serendipity 3, and the recipe includes edible gold and chocolate that retails for $2600 a pound (yes, you read that right... that's about five times the cost of my first car, and about 2 times the cost of my second car, btw).

Here's a link to the article:
http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSN0753679220071107

but the real kicker to the story, is the follow up a week later:
http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSN1531592620071115

Seems maybe they should have cut back on the cost of the dessert and spent a little for fumigation!

A Geek Out Moment

2007-11-16T01:00:00.000-05:00

Wow... here's how much of a geek I am... I ran across the following article about the new Star Trek movie (set during the early days of Kirk, Spock, etc):

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071108/film_nm/startrek_dc

I was way too happy to hear that the Pike character was in the film, and I'm sure I'm not the only Star Trek geek to feel that way.

Now to show my true geek-ness... any chance they may mention Robert April?

Two Great Tastes...

2007-11-09T22:33:00.000-05:00

Much like the life altering development of the Reese's peanut butter cup, as seen in this historical document:

(BTW, what is this woman doing walking around town with an open crock of peanut butter? Is it BYOP to the deviant sex party?)

Back to topic... I have found the next great pairing of two things I love... I present Apple (as in the computer, not the food group or the record company) and Lego (as in those wonderful plastic bricks for kids of all ages!):

http://www.switched.com/photos/apple-podbrix-toys/

Enjoy :)

Great Weekend with Old Friends

2007-11-07T23:13:00.000-05:00

I moved down here to VA about 7 years ago (around Aug of 1999) and I saw it as a chance of starting a new kind of life, moving in to a career I had wanted to be in since high school, even though I earned a college degree in a totally different area. It was also a chance to explore my life in a different direction than it had been.

In many ways I'm glad I did it. I know I'm a different and better person for the experience. The one way that still makes me sad is the friends I left behind. I didn't think it would bother me as much as it did at first, and though I eventually got used to the change, it's never been something I completely accepted.

That's why I was glad to go up to Philly this past weekend and see some of those people that I was closest to and just hang out BSing, playing a game and just enjoying each other's company (at least I hope everyone was feeling the love).

I miss you guys every week, sometimes daily, but it's good to know that I can still come home from time to time.

A Poem

2007-11-01T00:15:00.000-04:00

I don't write poetry as much as I used to (this was the first one I've written in a year and a half), but I was writing a journal (ok, diary) entry and I used a phrase that immediately inspired me to write this poem. The poem has a title, but it's much to personal for me, so on here, it's untitled.

If only everything was different
and you were still here with us
Would you have remained in the circle
Or drifted away like a lost ballon

Would you visit on weekends and
Call each other during the week
Or would it be a card, an email
And empty promises to keep in touch

Sadly I would take any outcome
The good, the bad, the bright or the dark
Whatever you'd chose to offer
If only everything was different

Darth Vader vs Jesus

2007-10-26T00:55:00.000-04:00

I just noticed an audio book at my local Borders the other day:

James Earl Jones Reads the Bible

let me repeat that... Darth Vader Reads the Bible

On the surface, I sure everyone thought it was a great idea. He's a well respected actor with a powerful commanding voice that would seem right for the material, but I'm sure I wasn't the only person to see that book and wondered... I don't recall, but is there any point in the scripture where God says, "Jesus, I am your father"... cause that would just seal the deal for me :-)

One Good Turn - The Temptation of Evil

2007-10-22T22:14:00.000-04:00

Interesting thing happened at the gym the other day... and NO, I don't mean the fact that I was there. I found someone had forgotten a personal item after using a piece of equipment. It had been minutes since I'd seen anyone on that device so I picked it up.

Turned out to be an iPod, a little old, but one of the large video iPods. My first thought was to turn it in to the main desk. Then something inside me said keep it. Keeping it felt wrong, and not just because I already have an iPod (in fact I have two, a Nano and Shuffle), and not because I thought I was going to be found out. Something inside me said that if the tables were reversed, I would want someone to turn it in. I know it's not likely to happen (my sister-in-law lost a camera at the National Museum and no one there bothered to turn it in) but I don't want to live my live based on the philosophy of "that's what some people would do"... well guess what, some people eat other people, doesn't mean it's something I want to try.

Call it Christian upbring, call it karma, but in the end I had to turn in the lost item. It was the right thing to do; it was the right thing for me to do.

PA Ninjas

2007-10-19T00:00:00.000-04:00

Hey, everyone knows about asian ninjas from all manner of tv, movies and books, but apparently Mr Miagi's been training more than just Daniel-son (and Julie -- bonus points if you know who Julie is)...

Apparently Richmond township (PA) lived through the onslaught of a horde of ninja recently. And by "horde" I mean 2, and by "ninja" I mean NINJA. In days of yore they would fight for coin and do the dark bidding of oriential lords (at least that's what we thought at the D&D table), but nowadays, it seems their goals are a bit more common... smokes, cash, and some scratchers. All I can say is... hum.

For more on the story... http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/09/25/ninja_blag/

Cupid Returns

2007-10-15T00:32:00.000-04:00

In the last few years it's been more common for failed TV shows to come back after being canceled. Usually a successful write-in campaign from the show's most loyal fans can help sway a decision to cancel a show (such as Jericho, Touched by an Angel, and Cagney & Lacey -- to name a few). Others jumped networks to avoid cancellation (such as Taxi, Family Matters, and JAG). But rarely has a show been off the air for more than a decade before being revived... Star Trek (with the TNG series), and the new Doctor Who are the only two examples... that was until early Oct.

Now there's another one to add to the list, and in many ways stands above both ST and Who... Cupid.

What's Cupid? Well here's some info from Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cupid_%28TV_series%29

In short (if you didn't read the link)... it was about a "man" who claimed to be the Greek god Cupid bound to earth for not properly doing his job and forced to match 100 couples without the benefit of his magic bow and arrow.

He's locked up as a nut and convinces a psychiatrist that he is sane long enough to get out of the hospital, where he goes about trying to complete his mission. The doctor, tries to find out who he really is and uses him as the subject of her next book on relationships. Week in and week out, Trevor Hale (NOT his real name) tries putting together couples and is confronted with romance in the modern age. More often than not, he fails in getting his matches.

The show lasted 15 eps (only 14 shown in the US) and disappeared forever. It stared Jeremy Piven, who went on to STEAL the show on Entourage, as well as Paula Marshal, Jeffery Sams, and Paul Adelstein (Private Practice). Ever since cancellation, the show has been on several "Canceled Too Soon" lists and lamented about by numerous TV critics, but has never been shown in reruns or has had a DVD set released (unlike ST and Who, which have had both)

Now, word comes out that the show will be remade for the 2008 season, with all new actors in the key rolls... will it be the same? I don't know if lightening can strike twice... there was a special charm in the show (ask any fan of the show) and it came to help lift me up at a low point in my life personally. I'm rooting for Trevor and Clair, even if they look a little different from what I originally remember them... Here's to believing in a little magic...

Recycling

2007-10-11T21:41:00.000-04:00

First off, I'm not one of those "green" folks who's all in to recycling everything from milk cartons to shoe laces, unless you make it convenient for me. It's not much effort for me to separate a few bottle, cans and paper from the rest of the trash. In fact I wish curb side recycling was expanded to include things like recyclable steel cans and those milk cartons I mentioned earlier. But one thing that really gets me is electronics.

I one had an old TV break down (as far as I could tell, it may have just needed a new picture tube) but the guy at the repair shop (and believe me, just finding a repair shop was the first hurdle) told me that it would be cheaper to replace it than repair it. Needless to say, I ended up getting ride of it, but it always bothered me that a very decent tv was trashed for no other reason than the economics of contemporary appliances valued disposability over longevity. And I know I'm not alone in this story.

Recently I was getting rid of some old computers, and I didn't want to have to just throw everything in the trash. I looked in to some of the reuse programs, where they refurbish them and donate them to schools or other places in need. I couldn't find anything in the area (plus they were older Mac computers). I looked into recycling on the Apple website and they WILL recycle an old computer with the purchase of a new one. While I don't need an excuse to buy a new Apple, I decided to look on.

I found some places that did recycle programs for free, but that was for a limited time and also a few years ago. The only place I found in the area doing a computer recycling program at the present time was Staples... yeap, your local office supply store had been doing a program where you can recycle old cell phones, pages, and rechargeable batteries for some time and has now expanded it to include computers.

The catch... there's a $10 dollar charge per computer (computer, keyboard, mouse), and a $10 charge for a monitor. It would be nice if it was free (like the rest of the program), but it was convenient, and I could believe that at least some of it was going to be reused, instead of the whole thing lying in a trash heap for a millennium. I paid the dough and dropped off the old equipment and I feel at least a little better for trying to do my part...

If you're interested in more info, here's the press release...
http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=96244&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1004542

Geek Update

2007-10-11T15:31:00.000-04:00

For more info on the story, here's an update:

http://forum.newsarama.com/showpost.php?p=4541443&postcount=1

Geeks with Spare Cash... Take Notice!

2007-10-10T01:19:00.000-04:00

First off, no offense is meant by the use of the G-word. I'm one, so I'm allowed to use it... anyone else better step off or feel the fury of my pimp hand :)

If you or anyone you know has some spare cash hanging around, you might want to make a call and find out about getting your own copy of Detective Comics #27. If you didn't already know that it's the FIRST appearance of Batman, all I can say is... HEATHEN!!

Apparently there are a few (maybe as few as 5) copies of the book floating around in the world, and I think Nick Cage had a copy at one time (he's a big comic fan, taking his stage name "Cage" from the comic character Luke Cage and naming his some Jor-El, the kryptonian name for Superman... and I thought Kevin Smith was bad!!)

For more on the story, check out:
http://forum.newsarama.com/showpost.php?p=4540754&postcount=1

Afraid of the Dark

2007-10-06T13:31:00.000-04:00

When I was little I used to be afraid of the dark. It's a common fear, since the dark seems to hold so much that we can't see, lurking outside the periphery of our vision, and everyone else seems otherwise unreachable (asleep) that there's a sense of loneliness that can add to the fear, but now as a grown up, I'm finding a new, different reason to be afraid of the dark...

I've always had problems sleeping, or more to the point, sleeping on a "normal"/regular schedule. As a very small child, my mother tells me, she would let me stay awake and sleep as I felt like. Later as a youngster I did have pretty strict curfews since I had school in the morning during most of the year.

As a young teen I still recall regular sleeping habits during the school year, but in the summer, I know I would stay up later and later and get myself all out of whack. And as an adult, that seems to be the norm and not the exception. In college I'd pull alnighters routinely and for no significant reason. After college I worked evening jobs that allowed me to have reason to be up late and sleep late into the morning or more often, the afternoon.

But the last year has been different, I'm still up late most nights, but I need to be up and at work early in the morning. No one's said anything to me about being late, I've been able to early almost as much as I'm late so I've stayed off some people's radar and I'm always willing to work late, so it seems to balance out. But I don't want that anymore... I want to go to bed at a reasonable hour, wake up refreshed, and not be tired at work. Or fall asleep while driving to (and sometimes from) work...

Things need to change and I've been trying... I've used OTC sleep aids (and I've been cautious not to use them too consistency for fear of developing a dependency) and have been able to start a regular schedule, or at least a different schedule. By different schedule, I mean that instead of staying up to 3am, I end up going to bed at 8 or 9pm for a few days. And once I get a few days going then I start getting worried about losing that momentum; the new fear of the dark begins, the fear that I won't get to bed early, that I'll be up late, late into the night and that the dark will have me once again...

Fakes on a Plane

2007-09-28T02:13:00.000-04:00

Ok... so I finally got around to seeing Snakes on a Plane. What a dreadfully awful movie!

The specially effects were pretty bad (all the CGI snakes looked so fake) and the attack sequences were pretty ridiculous (everone one was bit in the most extreme places, including eyeball, breast, an penis).

About the only two things I liked in the move were Samuel's line... and this song (which also has his line). Warning, this is the uncensored version.

So Much for Consistency...

2007-09-25T01:21:00.000-04:00

So much for writing this blog with anything bordering on consistency... but the other day I had a strange thought as I was getting a cup of coffee for myself in the morning.

I opened the cabinet and looked at all the coffee mugs I had to choose from for holding my hot bitter beverage and thought to myself... it's just the two of us in our apartment, why do we have over 20 coffee mugs? We could each use a different mug a day and still have enough to last us a fortnight--whatever that is :)

Insomnia

2007-04-04T22:47:00.000-04:00

Don't know why I can't sleep...

It's not a new problem, I've been like this for a large part of my life. Something about the end of the day comes along and all I can see are the undone; the unachieved; the unfinished, and I find myself trying to squeeze out some sense of completion like wringing the last drop out of a damp rag. There's so much effort in the squeezing and so little result...

Maybe the solution is to put down the pen (or keyboard in this case), turn out the light and let tomorrow take care of it.

Goldilocks and the Three Stooges

2007-03-29T09:00:00.000-04:00

I have a lot of interests. A lot of varied interests. Geek stuff like comics and D&D; "normal" stuff like jogging, mystery novels, and the Foo Fighters; and things just plain outside any realm of understanding (Barry Manilow and "Ace of Cakes").

I also like a certain soap opera, General Hospital. As I was growing up, after coming home from school, me and my older brother and sister had to share the living room TV. And somehow my sister got to watch General Hospital (I think it was because my mom also liked the show). Eventually I watched it. Now I come back to it like an old friend that I haven't seen in years.

Some of the faces are gone (Lila and Steve Hardy) as those actors passed on in real life, some faces are much older (Luke, Laura, Alan, Scotty, Robert, and Noah) and some are all together new (Lulu, Dillion, and Spinelli). And right now it's these new faces that have caught my interest.

Right now Lulu, a freshman college student, finds herself with several would-be suitors. Here's how the competition looks:

Dillion is a young, good looking guy that Lulu had a crush on after she's put her feelings behind her, it seems he now has deeper feelings for her. These two have been friends (with tension) for a long time and the actor's have great chemistry together. He's probably the front runner.
Milo is a goof (and I think the actor playing him isn't that good either). Nothing else I want to say about him (hey, I don't need to be objective here... no illusion of "fair and balanced reporting")
Spinelli is a goofy looking, cyber-nerd. A combination of Spicolli from Fast Times and Willow (with a Y chromosome) from Buffy. He's hilariously written and is deeply smitten with "the blonde one" as he calls her (he typically refers to EVERYONE by these self-made descriptors as opposed to real names). He would be the "underdog" character and I know a lot of people on-line are rooting for him to win Lulu's heart.

I don't know who I'm rooting for (either Dillion or Spinelli) as either character is a "nice guy". I'm really enjoying the comical situations that they put all these characters in and I've always been a sucker for a love story. I know real life is never this cut and dry and happy endings really are sometimes just stories that haven't finished, so it's always nice to see one of these illusions played out on TV.

No matter what happens, as long as "love wins" I'll be happy with the outcome.

Comics and Captain America

2007-03-27T18:44:00.000-04:00

I'm a geek... there's no denying that. One look at the "computer room" (read: my room) versus the "craft room" (read: her room) and you can see all manor of toys, D&D paraphernalia, and comic book strewn about. And while this is an accurate picture of me, it is not the complete picture (and therefore maybe not totally accurate).

But it's the comic books I'm thinking about right now. There's all this buzz in the mass media about the recent death of the comic book character Captain America and what a shocking thing this was (like a real person died). Anyone who doesn't think he'll be back ain't never watched a soap opera, read a comic book before or watched a TV show (Bobby Ewing, anyone?). He's as fictitious as Wily E. Coyote and just as likely to return.

Maybe it's important in a metaphysical sense, as Captain America is supposed to symbolize all that is good in America, that he is a symbol of a forgotten age (he was frozen in the 40s battling Nazi's and awoke to find a world no longer as black and white as it was back then). But in this day and age do those ideals still apply to America? Notice how in the recent Superman movie they humorously avoid the ending to the old motto "Truth, justice, and the American way".

Is there a place for Captain America in today's world? Is he an archaic reminder of the past, or could he be a beacon that might help in some small way to lead us out of the darkness that the modern age has cast about us.

I miss you Cap... and I hope to be around when you return, 'cause I think we really need you, now more than ever.

"October Road" Not Taken

2007-03-24T23:39:00.000-04:00

Just watched 45 minutes of the first (1 hr) episode of a new show called October Road. It's been on for two weeks and I was planning on watching the first two eps in one sitting. Now, thanks to a really bad show, I just got 1:15 of my life back (and I'd still like the other 45 min).

I wanted to like the show, and I have no problem with the idea of man returns home to confront those left behind, but I didn't feel for any of the characters and as it progressed, I just got more and more upset with how disjointed everything seemed.

1) The music was ALL wrong. The opening takes place in 1997 but everyone is lip syncing to an old Boston song ("Don't Look Back"), which was a hit in the 70s (I think). And one of the guys is playing air guitar with a WOODEN tennis racket... quick, get that out of his hands and put it in a museum, 'cause it's gotta be the last wooden racket out there!
The music issues continue through out what I saw of the first ep. There's Gin Blossoms and early Collective Soul in what is supposed to be modern day. Please was the music budget so small they had to get rights to old one-hit wonder songs. I know the songs were lyrically relevant but it just disoriented the setting of the show.
I also didn't like the Kurt Cobain poster in 1997... seemed a little out of time as he died in 94 and a fifteen year old girl (in 94) may have moved on to someone else by the time she was 18 (in 97).

2) The dialog. Mostly sucked, but the stuff from the little kid was downright laughable... even Dawson and Joey would have done a double-take on this kid.

3) Plot... predictable. If the characters were more interesting, I might not have minded seeing them in these situations.

There were other issues, but I don't care anymore... one less show to watch, just leaves more time for writing this blog :)

Fragments of Life

2007-03-22T12:29:00.000-04:00

Titles, names, tag, summations, are important to me. A way of trying to sum up everything in as neat and tidy a package as possible.

Titles can also be a guidance to the future.

The danger is in letting titles be limiting, instead of enabling...

So, why "Fragments of Life"... it seemed the best way to state that this is basically a diary (of my Life) but that it's also not inclusive of every detail (Fragments)

I've tried blogs before, never with much success... hopefully this will be different.