My Little Corner of the World

"A Friend to All is a Friend to None." -- Aristotle

2012-01-28T15:54:00.000-08:00

Ah, Saturday! Though it's kinda pointless to mention what day it is as I'm writing this, since it could be Tuesday or Wednesday by the time you actually read this... and by then my thoughts on Saturday will be old... so, so old...

Hmm, I suppose I could lead in like this: Ahh, last Saturday!

But then, what if it's, like, a month or two before you read this?

OK, fine, here: Ah, the Saturday that is represented by the date at the top of this post! There, ya happy?

Got a lot done today, and it's just 2:45 pm! Are you proud of me? Vacuumed the whole house, picked bagfulls of lemons of our backyard tree, dismembered and trashcanned our Xmas tree, cleaned the inside of my computer with compressed air... hmm... now that I write it out, it doesn't seem like much...

Still, it's a beautiful day outside in San Diego... a perfect day to stay inside and play games and/or write a movie script! Or put stuff in the microwave!

So after reading Riddler's Gift, I decided to sample a couple other titles before beginning the sequel Second Sight. I got more than 70% through a book called Edge by Thomas Blackthorne, which is sort of a near-futuristic urban fantasy tale, but the author was too heavy-handed with his anti-global warming and anti-violence messages, and the tale lacked depth. Once I saw where the book would be going for the climax, I decided to bail on the book. No doubt it will be turned into a "made for TV" movie in the next five years or so. Seems like it was written with "optioning to TV" in mind. Bleh.

I then decided I wanted to learn more about snipers, so after nosing around online a bit, I settled on Marine Sniper, by Charles Henderson. It's a biography of the greatest sniper from the Vietnam era, a legend named Carlos Hathcock. It was mentioned by many reviewers as the best sniper-related book available. However, it seems to me like it was written for simpletons. It reminded me of the biography of Bill Watterson I read a year or two ago (review here). I can't stomach dumbed-down books that insult my ability to "get it"...

So I abandoned that book (cost me $8 dangit!), and moved onto one of the many samples I have in my digital library, a new book called Rook by Daniel O'Malley that is getting a lot of buzz. It's another sort of sci-fi urban fantasy type of book, which I may buy when it goes on sale for a few bucks, but I wasn't hooked enough to want to pay $13 at the moment.

So I'm reading Second Sight now, and it is very solid so far.

So my trainer Mark was destroying me last Monday during our workout, and I felt like I was pushed to my limit, out of breath, heart pounding, weak-kneed, etc. So I asked him how I'm supposed to know when I should "listen to my body" and take a break for a time, or forget how I feel and push through it. I didn't want to negate in any way the progress we had made during the workout thus far by stopping when I should keep pushing... but I also didn't want to keel over. He said that it all depends on the day - there is no formula to it. We took a break so I could recover, then modified the rest of the workout to avoid hitting that place again.

But I bring it up because I wonder if there's a spiritual parallel, as far as God testing us in certain areas. I know there's that verse that says we won't be tested beyond our ability to handle it (1 Cor 10:13). But I also know that many times I've worked with my trainer where, if I had been by myself, I would have stopped, thinking I'd hit my limit. But then he would make me do another set, and then sometimes yet another, and to my amazement, I could do it. I hadn't hit my limit after all. So when it comes to tests, etc., I wonder if there are times when we need to push through (so to speak) and times to take a break before we keel over.

Or is that forcing an analogy where one doesn't exist/belong?

Shifting gears, here, watch this full screen-high def.

I never even knew what a Teahupoo was before this video!!!

While you're in the mood to full-screen, high-def a video, here's another jaw-dropper...

Wowza, I says. Wowza indeed.

Go here to read about a Giant Tortoise named Adwaita that lived more than 250 years, plus other animals that lived way longer than they should have... and go here to watch Naader Reda eat a 12-pound pizza in one hour. No human being should have the capacity to eat that much food! I am stunned. And finally, Go Here to watch the infamous Camp Video that I've been working on for eons. Yes, it is done. Unlike the other videos, it doesn't look good full screen.

Those that went to the camp will be getting a DVD copy of it in the mail soon.

Well, I think that's it for today. If anything interesting happens, I'll mention it in the next post. I hope your week is a good one.

Dave

"Facts Are Stubborn Things." -- Ronald Reagan

2012-01-23T22:39:00.000-08:00

Yes.

Whatever you were about to ask, the answer is yes. There, that saves you the embarrassment of actually having to ask me. I was bitten by a radioactive hipster spider with left-leaning political views and it gave me mind-reading super-powers. I can see right into your brain! I know what you're thinking! MUAHAHAHAH!!!!! Run!!! Run for your lives!

OK, fine, I stretched the truth a wee bit there... I can't read minds. Not even my own.

So, yeah, today was, like, Monday or something, I don't know. I can't read calendars either. It was a rainy Monday, which always alters my mood and makes me want to lie about super-powers-related things, like, say, mind reading. Now, now, I know what you're thinking... you're thinking, "Dave, you are a babbling simpleton who suffers from bowel angst, caffeine addiction and spotty self esteem, so quit jabbering you toolbox, and actually say something of substance, or so help me I will never set foot inside the hallowed walls of this blog again."

That was what you were thinking? My super-power is real after all!

OK, here is a funny pic for you, to assuage your increasing disgust/frustration...

Did it work? Is your anger assuaged? No? OK, fine, more Star Wars stuff, coming up!

I don't know where I've been, when it comes to this next video, but I'm sorry I missed out on it. There was a project called Star Wars Uncut, spearheaded by a chap named Casey Pugh, that is ridiculously creative fun... his goal was to re-create the entire first Star Wars film, one "15-second segment" at a time, using scene snippets submitted from random people around the world, using any style they wanted. The results are amazing (to me) and completely engrossing. Here, skip to a random point in the video and watch for a few minutes...

Talk about diversity, I love it. There are a handful of segments that push the envelope, as far as "family friendly", and only one that I recall (The one referencing The Big Lebowski) that has any offensive language in it, but the vast bulk of it is entirely awesome. My favorite clip might be at 1:29:30, during the light saber fight between Obi Wan and Vader...

The run time for the whole vid is a shade over two hours, so unless you're Logan, I doubt you'll want to watch the entire thing, but you could watch it a bit and see how fun and creative it is. I only found out about it a few days ago, now that the project is complete. I would have loved loved LOVED to have filmed a 15-second segment or two for the project. I'm going to keep an eye out - perhaps after they've taken a break and regrouped, they'll start on Empire Strikes Back... and then I'll definitely sign up.

Speaking of film projects, I've had a couple creative meetings with my friend Todd F. recently, and it looks like we're beginning pre-production on our first legitimate film project. I won't go into too much detail about it at this point, but here's a hint...

Yep, it's about cats.

No, actually, it will be a detective story (no cats), and will be a (hopefully) fun mix of genres/eras. Sort of a modern detective tale, but heavily sprinkled with noir-style black-n-white scenes. It looks like it will be fun. I'll certainly keep you informed as it develops.

I'm kind of amazed at what Todd is capable of doing, as far as post-production special effects. We are going to be able to do A LOT with this script, in ways I've never even been able to consider before. Super stoked about it.

Yeah, I know what you're thinking (I can read minds, remember?) You're wondering why on earth I would start another big creative project when I have a whole plateful of half-finished projects already, crying out for my attention. Honestly, I don't have a good answer for that. I'd like to claim to be a victim of a particularly annoying strain of A.D.D., but that strikes me as a rather sizable cop-out. But I;d like to think there actually is a legitimate reason beyond the basic "I'm just lame, that's all".... the good news is that I'm almost finished with the Camp Video from last year! It's only a half a year behind schedule!!! Are you proud of me!?!?!

No? Well! I guess I'll have to try harder to impress you then!

How about this: Last post, I wrote a very positive review for a book I recently read, and the author left a comment on the post. While that isn't the first time an author has left a comment here, it is the first time that a review I wrote was mentioned on the author's website (in a positive way, I mean, lol)! Check this out! I've been quoted! I'm official now! An official what, you may ask? Heck, I don't know... but once I figure it out, I'll be sure to add "official" in front of it...

And now, two minutes of destruction...

Mixed feelings about real-world footage like that. Odd that I can watch movie violence and explosions and it doesn't phase me... but show me something "real" and I get a bit queasy... loved that train slamming into that barricade at 1:10, probably because it looked like a planned event, for test purposes or something. But the burning passenger plane at 1:28 was rather shocking...
OK, well I think that's enough nonsense for tonight. I'll hit you with more again in a couple days. I know what you're thinking... "Hurry back, Dave!"

Ok!

Dave the Nutter

The Riddler's Gift: An Effusive Book Review

2012-01-19T23:44:00.000-08:00

What!? Another week is ending?! What gives! Man, where does the time go? Oh, wait, nevermind... a weekend is a good thing, I forgot. Yeah, I'm forgetful like that. Sometimes it's hard to remember my own name. Umm...

[Dave checks his driver's license...]

Dave here! Time for another blog post, eh. Surprise surprise. Gee, I bet you never expected that. I mean, you don't normally go to a blog and see blog posts, right?

So, where to start?

Ah, a book review!

The Riddler's Gift, by Greg Hamerton
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Everyone knows I'm a sucker for a good fantasy tale. I've also been known to gush over novels that click with me, and recommend them forcefully to anyone that will listen. This has yielded mixed results over the years, for a variety of reasons. The obvious reason is that, hey, people are different, and like different things. What appeals to me strongly might be of little-to-no interest to you, and vice-versa. No big deal. But another reason for the mixed results might be my tendency to jump right onto this here blog in the immediate aftermath of finishing what I feel is a great book, and get caught up in the afterglow. I then break forth in a torrent of praise and adulation that might not have been so unrestrained had I taken a day or two to let the afterglow fade and look at things a bit more objectively. I cannonball in, hype things up, and, in some cases, the book can't live up to it. With the best of intentions, I inadvertently set the expectation bar too high.

So with this in mind, it is with a good, solid two days distance that I take keyboard in hand to write this review of a terrific book, The Riddler's Gift, by Greg Hamerton. If you haven't guessed yet by this build-up, I am a big fan of this book. I resisted the strong urge to immediately hop on here and fire both barrels of my praise gun, and chose instead to let my thoughts simmer. Here are my thoughts!

Other than The Heroes, by Joe Abercrombie, this book by Greg Hamerton is the most enjoyable fantasy book I've read in the past year. That includes all the noteworthy books listed in my 2011 Reads list over there on the right side of the blog page there. GRRM's entire series, Pat Rothfuss' latest, books by Brett, Parker, Scalzi, Sanderson, etc. All of them. I'm belaboring this to let you know that I am not saying this lightly, or off-the-cuff. (By the way, I don't consider Gates of Fire to be fantasy - that's still my favorite book of all time...)

The Riddler's Gift has many character types and fantasy tropes that one would expect from a (shall we say) "traditional" fantasy tale. A council of wizards, an "apprentice" over her head and swept up in an adventure, a noble master-swordsman, a wandering sage, an evil Lord and his unstable, cruel henchman, bent on world dominion, a magical trinket, and impending doom. Nothing too original here - so what's so special?

1) The Characters: The author does a fantastic job (pardon the pun) of crafting rich, complex characters. They lend themselves to shades of grey that are unexpected and yet feel oddly natural. You expect the heroine Tabitha Serannon to remain naive and good-at-heart, in spite of her trials, but as she accesses magic that is well-beyond her experience and expectation, it impacts her, changes her, in ways that catch you off guard. In fact, I can't think of a single main character, good or evil, that doesn't go through some level of transformation, or that isn't blind-sided by an unforeseen event (or series of events) that forces them to course-correct. It is all deftly handled, and thoroughly entertaining to read.

2) The Action: The story moves along at a brisk, occasionally break-neck speed. Let me qualify that for a moment: Once the storylines and characters are established, it takes off. It takes a bit to get rolling, but nowhere near as long as other books I've read in this genre. Give it a couple short chapters to hook you, and then buckle up.

3) The Dialog: Of course, on one hand I mean the spoken interactions between characters, but I'm also talking about the internal dialog that the characters have with themselves, as they wrestle with events and decisions that they've made, and assimilate the repercussions of their actions. The general themes of "good vs evil" and of "compromising with your moral code" are relatively-well worn paths, true, but that doesn't mean they can't be handled effectively anymore. Greg Hamerton wrings a lot of marrow out of those old bones, and I caught myself several times pausing while I was reading to contemplate what a character had just said. In fact, at the beginning of each chapter, there are these wonderful little proverbs (if you will) that are attributed to a certain character that always made me think -- and always ended up announcing what was to happen in the chapter, as though the chapter was the answer to the riddle that prefaced it. I loved those little touches.

4) The Craft: The book is well-crafted, solidly-written, and carries with it an intelligence and playfulness that was refreshing. Full of wonderful moments, unexpected events, humor and weight. Being the author's first book (in the series, anyway), I don't know whether this is the result of scads of polishing time and revising, or if it is a true indication of the talent and skill that will be evident in all of his books... you know how follow-up books can be. The first volume gets all of the blood, sweat, tears, polish, agonizing, tweaking, etc... and if/when it's a success, the second volume is expected quickly, and in order to hit some arbitrary deadline, subsequent volumes hit the shelves feeling unpolished and rushed and blah, lacking the spark that the initial volume was able to attain. Hey, I understand completely - the same can be said of music albums... a decade goes into a debut album, all the best songs from over the years sifted and hand-selected and polished to perfection in hopes that the album will take off and be a hit... then when it is, a new album is expected straight away, so dive back into the studio and crank something out!

All that to say, I have purchased the next book in the series, Second Sight, and will see for myself how it holds up.

Now, wait a minute, yes The Riddler's Gift is part of a planned trilogy. However, the story arc in the book is wonderfully complete, in and of itself. The blistering climax is thoroughly satisfying - and while there is an avenue left open to take things to the next level, by no means do you need to wait for the trilogy to finish before reading this book. It works very well as a stand-alone title, well worthy of your attention.

I have to be honest here - initially, I wasn't expecting much from this book. I mean, it was among the .99 cent fantasy books on holiday special on Amazon, with all the self-published and/or "unknown" authors - Kindle-stuffing, so to speak. When I bought the book in December, I saw that it had a few reviews, but that it's average rating was close to 5 stars, and figured, after skimming the reviews, I'd pull the trigger and buy it. Hey, for a buck, it was minimal risk. So I went into the read with an open mind, but not expecting to be blown away. But as I finished reading the book, and set it down, the first word that came to mind was "magnificent." And after having let it stew for a couple days, I believe I shall stand by my initial assessment. The Riddler's Gift is a magnificent book.

Summary: 5/5 A wonderful ride, terrifically-realized characters (if not wholly original), excellent dialog and action, and plenty of food for thought.

----------------------------------------------------

Wow, that took longer to write than I had anticipated. I still have work to get done before bedtime tonight, so I'm going to have to cut this post short.

I will, however, post a video for you to chuckle at - I'm in it! My trainer, Markshane, videotaped part of our workout on Wednesday, and then surprised me by sending me this edited video he put together, which he uploaded to his YouTube page. On the one hand, it's kind of embarrassing. On the other hand, it's pretty cool. Here, you decide.

Kinda cool that Markshane did that.

Well, I have other nonsense to share, but it will have to wait. Go buy The Riddler's Gift - it's only 3 bucks! Read it and let me know what you think.

Dave the Effusive

13 Shades of Ennui

2012-01-15T22:41:00.000-08:00

Well, hello there! You come around here often? You do? Why?! I mean, look at this place! It's a dump! And it smells funny in here. Doesn't it? Well, if it smells so funny in here, why ain't ya laughin'?

Greetings, and Happy St. Bryan's Day! Dang, 12 years since my brother Bryan died. That punk. Didn't he know we'd all miss him? What the heck! He'd be 38 this year, if he was still roaming the earth. I wonder what he would have accomplished in that time? Married, with children no doubt, traveling, playing golf with Johnny boy... who knows? Gah! The thought of Bryan as a dad, with a toddler son on his shoulders, big goofy smile on his face! That mental picture just took the wind out of me!

Made me think again of the idea of writing your own eulogy... write out what you want to have said at your own funeral, running down all the accomplishments you would like to think you'd do from today to that day... then start living that way now. Use it as a bucket list or something, I don't know. Personally, I'd like to have a couple novels finished, maybe a handful of movies. I'd like to understand, experience and be able to convey important spiritual lessons, and have it be said that God used me to impact people in unexpected and lasting ways. I don't want to be one of those annoying, hypocritical religious people, but one of those people that even skeptics and people hostile to religion would see and say, "that guy gets it. He's doing the God thing like it's supposed to be done."

I'd like to love my wife the way she deserves to be loved, as opposed to the hamstrung, nerfed, method-acting way that I'd been forced to limp along with for a pair of grueling decades. She deserves better.

I'd like to live, and quit hiding in my office.

I'd like to move onto a new topic.

Check out this hilarious Workplace Complaint...

Come on, that's funny.

Not as funny as my Youngest trying to pronounce "Martin Luther King Jr. Day." She says it like this: Marthin Lootner King Jr. Day. Yes, it's a riot. "Mom, do I have to do schoolwork on Marthin Lootner King Jr Day? It's a holiday!"

Yeah, like, you know how people with kids are always talking about all the "funny" little things their precious young ones do and say? And they're always those sort of "you had to be there" kind of things? And you just politely smile and nod and silently hope they move on to a more interesting subject?

Yeah, that sort of thing.

So the Golden Globes were tonight, which means the Oscars are not that far away. Frankly, I didn't see much this year, as far as new films. I believe I saw Thor 3D, 9MM, the new X-men flick, the latest Mission Impossible flick, and, if memory serves, I saw some movie with DeNiro/Statham in it, with my friend Carey... I *barely* remember it... lemme go track down the title... to tide you over, here's a mash-up of the movies of 2011...

Ah, it was called Killer Elite. Meh, must have been forgettable. Oh, and I have a vague, painful memory of taking the wife/kids to see the latest Transformers turd as well. I'm feeling waves of nausea at the recollection of it, so I will change the subject yet again. 6 movies in the theater, I saw! That might be a record for me for a year!

Actually, no, when I used to go on snowboarding trips with my step-dad, brother Johnny and pal Joseph, we'd see a buncha movies too... Bah, like it matters. Nevermind.

Lots of great images in that movie mash-up clip. Makes me want to get into film making! MUAHAHAHA!!!

Gah!!!! I'm almost done with the camp video! From July, yes, that one! It's taken me half my life! I'm finally at the "gathering music" stage, which is an art unto itself. Trying to find fitting music for each of the segments involves a lot of trial and error, but it really is the last step. I've already told Lloyd I won't be doing any more camp videos. All he keeps saying is "we'll see"... which, frankly, kind of angers me. I'm done with these. Let someone else take a stab at it.

Here, lemme dig something out of my archive. This song is still amazing, every time I see it.

Man, what talent. Love the look of intense focus...

Oh, that reminds me! They're building a new Target at the mall that I live by! How awesome is that? For some reason, I am inordinately excited about the idea of having a Target at the mall. Isn't that odd? Yeah, must be a sign that I don't have enough problems in my life... I better prepare for the worst...

Well, in any case, guess I better bring this meandering, snooze-inducing post to a swift and painful ending. Hope your St. Bryan's Day was a good one. Happy Marthin Lootner King Jr. Day.

Dave the Shlub

Prayers and Infatuations and Awesome People

2012-01-12T23:45:00.000-08:00

Odd mood tonight... not sure what that will mean, as far as this post goes. But, hey, life is exciting when it's unpredictable, eh?

I likely won't be my usual goofy self tonight - quite concerned for the sick daughter of a blog regular... quite serious; I've been praying much and much. Frankly, it's a tough prayer... of course, my immediate prayer is for mercy and healing... it is VERY hard for me to keep the idea that 'God knows what He's doing' in mind, so it doesn't taint my prayers. "Lord, what are you doing?!?! Heal this girl! Please!" Like I'm grabbing Him by the lapels and shaking Him or something... "Wake up! There's a dire need here! You have to DO SOMETHING!" As though He isn't perfectly aware of what's going on. So, making my (strong) request known to Him without inadvertently insulting Him in the process... feels like a fine line to walk. I don't know if it's my own insecurity talking, but I keep picturing Him glancing at me out of the corner of His eye, going, "Yeah, yeah, I hear you. Go away now. I'm doing something here that you can't understand; I need to focus."

So, that, plus praying for another friend who let me in on a little secret, which is actually very good news... but this person can't tell family about it, since, against all logic, they will interpret it as bad news, and will dish out crap for it. So when this person should be getting love and support (which is needed), it must instead stay a secret, and this person must press on, basically alone.

I know that's kind of cryptic, sorry. I was told in confidence, so I can't say more. It would make sense to you, if I could elaborate.

Other than that, I'm in good spirits That book I mentioned in the last post, The Riddler's Gift by Greg Hamerton, is VERY good. I'm about half-way through it, and it really has its hooks into me. In many ways, it's fairly traditional epic fantasy, but in many other ways, it is quite unique. But most of all, it is well written, with compelling, rich characters and some killer dialog/action. Expect a review soon.

So, I was thinking about 'celebrity crushes' the other day... do you think they're harmless or not?

Yeah, I know, odd topic, odd segue.

Well, what got me pondering it was this video, which some of you might have seen.

I watched it, and sat transfixed. It's a fun video, he's too cool, she's a dream, and the way they interact... wow. Don't get me wrong, I don't covet Zoe Whatshername... I mean, she's "pretty" and all, and hey, anyone who can play a ukulele scores extra points in my book. What blows me away is the way she looks at him. I found myself thinking, "Man, what I wouldn't give to be on the receiving end of a look like that." They just have ridiculous chemistry between them - something I've never experienced.

Or rather, the appearance of chemistry. Who knows what the "real life" aspect is (they are actors, after all). Pardon me while I delve into familiar waters here, as far as 'the idea of something vs the reality of it.' Trust me, it segues back into the topic nicely. Celebrity crushes. So, all the Wagner Women were in here, we were all watching this clip together. Eldest was pining away for the dude (Joe Levitt), saying, "O marry me! Marry me now!" or some such. It was a cute response, but it got me thinking. I was trying to think if I had any real celebrity crushes growing up... Paula Abdul maybe? Hey, don't laugh... back in the eighties, she was hot stuff! Of course, I was some dorky kid. Even if I met her back then, what would she say? "Hey, cool, a dorky kid! Let's go out to dinner, kid!" Yeah, no... I guess that's the nature of celebrity crushes... maybe they're safe and harmless because nothing could ever come of them...

Look at these Justin Bieber fans posing for a picture with him, trying hard to smile while simultaneously crying...

LOL, omg I laugh every time I see that picture. I'm sorry, it's cruel to laugh, I know... they probably all dreamed about the day when they might be able to meet him... probably daydreaming about how they'd meet, and something would click, and he'd see them and go, "this is the one for me!" and they'd live happily ever after, blah blah blah. The idea didn't quite match up to the reality, lol...

But was/is it harmless? I think people crush on what the celebrity represents, rather than the person themselves. Some place safe to hang your heart for a while, where it won't get destroyed (like "real people" tend to do). I guess all infatuations are based on ideas/symbols. I suppose when the object of the infatuation is a real person in your life, the time will come when you move on it, and get hurt when reality puts the lie to the image you've created. I can't tell you how many times back in high school I finally summoned the nerve to approach a girl - who I'd talked myself into believing liked me too... only to get the old "Uh, yeah, whadaya say we just be friends, m'kay?" speech... then they walk away laughing.... I'm sure you all had that experience as well...

But you'll never get to meet that celebrity, so that pain never comes... eventually, you lose interest and it fades away. So, was it harmless? Was it helpful? Does it serve a good purpose at all? Or is it dangerous/counter-productive at all? Or just childish? I know wifey thinks that Gerard Butler in Phantom of the Opera is a total dreamboat... doesn't bother me. It's not like she has posters of him on our bedroom wall or something. And I doubt seriously she'd like to meet him in real life (and even if she did, so what? What will happen? They run off together?). I know it's what he represents that she's drawn to. I disappoint/hurt her all the time, whether I want to or not... Gerard Butler will never disappoint/hurt her... the 'idea of him' is like a little safe corner for her heart, where it won't get stepped on... right? Or no?

Bah, I want to go too many places with this conversation, and it's starting to unravel. That's what happens when I don't outline! Anyway, what say you? Harmless? Helpful? Stupid? Childish?

I have to put a ton of money into car repairs soon. The car is paid off; has been for two years now... however, it seems every three of four months, I've got to put a few hundred bucks into some repair or another. And now I have about 1600 bucks worth of new stuff (axles, tires, brakes, CV joints, etc) to do soon. Makes me wonder if I should just put that toward a new car. I mean, if I'm averaging a hundred or two a month in upkeep on a paid-off car, why not just sign up for another set of car payments on a new car that doesn't need fixing? So that's my latest carnundrum.

Did I post this video already?

I mean in an earlier post. I don't think so. Anyway, even if I did, it's worth watching. Good stuff. Some people really are awesome. Others... well... not so much.

So I guess that's that for tonight. Sorry for the pensive/somber vibe. Once I know a certain someone's child is recovering and out of danger, I'll likely be back to my goofy self. Now if you'll pardon me, I have to go find a celebrity to crush on...

Dave the Pensive

Oooh! Nice "Transformers" Reference, Dave! Now Go To Bed.

2012-01-07T00:53:00.000-08:00

Aha! It has started!

The new year, I mean. Not my car. You really I thought I meant my car? No, my car has not started! It's still in my garage, silly! Sheesh!

I mean the new year has started. I only mention it in case you weren't paying attention to the seasons, or haven't looked at a calendar in a while. As I write this sentence, it is a few minutes past midnight, January 7th, Pacific time. You're welcome. Yeah, I'm helpful like that... like a sextant, guiding you through the night while you drift through life's vast ocean... OK, fine, I took it a bit far there, sorry. Hey, it's late, and I'm tired...

So, where to begin, eh? Ah, yes, with a needless apology. *ahem* So, yeah, sorry for waiting a week to update again... a lack of interesting happenings and other inanities have conspired against me. But I have prevailed! I have overcome the ennui-generated obstacles and have successfully summoned the inner resolve to hit the "New Post" button and free-associate my way to yet another blogging success!

Yes, I refer to this post. What, you don't think it's successful? You haven't even read all of it yet! How can you say that!?!?

OK, needless apology out of the way. Let's get down to business.

First things fourth (as I am wont to say). I got the video of the Christmas play uploaded to YouTube, and then followed it up by creating a page for it on my Wagnervana website. <-- Look! A convenient link! Why not click it, when you have, like, an hour or so with nothing to do! Then go watch it! [Dave travels forward in time 1 week, and checks the stats on the video... total views: zero! Doh! He returns to current time again]

Fine, be that way! Just because you have a life doesn't mean you can reject me like that! Don't you know I bruise emotionally very easily! Sheesh!

OK, fine, I need a funny animal picture to cheer me up...

OK, fine, that works... though it does hit a little too close to home... I am part-retriever... I mean, I also don't know what I'm doing.

Lemme try again...

Ah, that'll work. Cats save the day (yet again!). Let's see if anyone notices that it's a parody of the "Most Interesting Man in the World/Dos Equis" commercials...

Come on, now, don't get upset... I realize you're patiently waiting for me to tell you which book I've been reading... I mean, it's a new year, time to start a new book list, right? Sheesh, you're so impatient! I should make you wait longer, for being so rude...

OK, fine, I'll tell you, since you'll never guess. I'm reading a book called The Riddler's Gift by author Greg Hamerton. Honestly, I don't recall where I heard of the book from... it might have been a fantasy website, or perhaps when I bought a book on Amazon, it was one of those "other people who bought this book also bought ___" type of things, who knows. All I know is that it was cheap (I bought it for a cool .99 cents), and I thought "why not"?

So how is it thus far? Well, I'm at the crucial 15% mark... this is where I usually abandon books that don't do much for me (I figure 15% is a good, healthy shot), but I won't be abandoning this one. Initially, there were too many characters introduced at once, which almost lost me. But then the story took off, focusing on a couple major players, and I am sufficiently hooked. Beyond that, there are several traditional fantasy tropes present (a magical ring! Run, Frodo!), but they are handled fairly well. Once I get further in, I'll spill a bit more. Then, perhaps, a legitimate review will magically appear! *Gasp*!

You know what I wish? I wish there was a way to return a hard-copy of a book to it's publisher, and exchange it straight-up for a digital copy of the same book.

Yep, of all the things I could wish for, I choose to mention that one. That's why they call me Dave the Mundane.

OK, a better question: Which superpower would you wish for?

Come on, you know you secretly wish you were a superhero, admit it. So spill it... which superpower would you want? Traditional (fly, Superman!) or non-traditional. Me? Well, I suppose mine would be a variation of a traditional one... mind reading. Only I'd just like to know what people think when they see me approach and/or talk to me. Do people enjoy my company or do they wish I'd just wander away and leave them be?

Not much of a superpower... I should have wished for an adamantium endoskeleton... Why? Well, because an adamantium exoskeleton would make it unpleasant to hug me! And Lord knows how much I like to be hugged...

And now, a video called 100 years in Ten Minutes. Do you have ten minutes for a quick history lesson?

So I went to a writer's club meeting the other night. A new group of fine folk... fellow writers! My people! At least I think they were my people... I didn't check their papers, so I don't know who they have listed under "Owner"... it might have been me... anyway, it was a big group, which was the only real downer of the event. "Gee, Dave, why do you start with a negative?" Well, because I just experienced a flash of pessimism, that's why. But it has passed; I've transformed back into an optimist again! I'm in my prime!

Yes, that was an Optimist Prime reference... sorry, it's late, remember? I'm operating on fumes here. And unfortunately, the fumes are mostly methane. [Dave cracks a window]

Where was I? Oh, yes, the writer's meeting. So, there were 16 people in attendance, and half of them (us?) had things to read to the group, which meant things needed to zip along fairly quickly, to avoid having the meeting run until midnight. I certainly understand. Still, I think 16 people is a few too many to make a meeting like that productive. I may look for a smaller group to join... one that's a bit closer to home as well, and hopefully on another night than Wednesday!

But again, great group of folks. Very interesting. I met a cool writer named Ed Coonce. Funny guy. I bought his book today. Here is his site. Check it out, eh! Eh! He's an actor and artist as well, like me! Only better, I'm sure...

Yeah, I know... looking at the clock as I write this sentence, it is almost 1am. Yes, it took me about an hour to write the post down to this point. A whole hour (almost)! See how much I love you? The devotion! The dedication! And here it only took you about 2 minutes to skim through it! That's all right... I know how much love a person can pack into two minutes... so I'll consider us even. (And I'll consider me odd)

I suppose I should stop now, and drag my sorry carcass off to bed. I'll think up some more nonsense for you soon, fret not! (By the way, never say "fret not" to a guitar player...)

Adios,

Dave the Odd

2011 is Done. What A Wild Ride.

2012-01-01T00:50:00.000-08:00

"And so the year draws to a close, yet again," Dave said with a sigh, adjusting the microphone on the desk in front of him. "It was, for me at least, a crazy year, filled with extreme highs and lows - more so than any year of my adult life, I think. Well, unless you consider 18 years old to be an adult. My 18th year was quite eventful as well."

Dave paused and leaned back in his desk chair, sliding his headphones down around his neck, running his fingers through his hair. True, his 18th year was pivotal, but there wasn't enough time in this half-hour episode to cover that in any detail. He needed to use the air time to run down 2011.

Not wanting there to be any more dead air, he re-positioned his headphones, leaned in toward the mike again, and spoke. "I'm not going to go into the world-wide events of 2011, though by all rights, the year was a crazy one in that regard as well. I mean, the tsunami in Japan, the tornadoes in the midwest, the killing of bin Laden, the economic turmoil in Europe, the Occupy movement, and, most importantly, the release of Skyrim... that and more, of course. But for the interest of this show, I want to bring things down to a purely narcissistic, self-absorbed level, and talk about me."

Dave smiled. As usual, he had no idea who, if anyone, was even listening to today's show. He figured he might as well talk about something of interest to himself... namely, himself...

"So, after deciding to kill my blog off in August of 2010, I revived it again at the very beginning of 2011. Apparently, the reports of its death were exaggerated. Starting at the first of the year, I blogged again, though nowhere near the daily posts of 2009. Just an occasional blast of hot air, that's all. Seemed right. I tinkered with the design, tried new banners and color schemes, etc. But as for content, I stuck with the usual: funny pics and videos, and barely-interesting personal anecdotes."

Dave decided he should re-post a clip or two, both as a trip down memory lane and also as a bit of fun filler for today's show... he decided on a cool stop-motion clip and Reading a Book by Julian Smith...

Dave drank the dregs of his caramel macchiato, his straw making that annoying rattling noise that drives parents crazy worldwide. But he was holding the "cough" button down, so his listeners wouldn't hear it. He chucked the now-empty cup into the rubbish bin, cleared his throat and continued.

"So, the first quarter of the year was extremely difficult for me. Having come off an abysmal December, and the extreme disappointment that was my 20th anniversary, I bottomed out. I did read some good books during that time, but basically it was a time of soul-searching. I spent many weeks writing a sort-of autobiographical "book" as a gift for my Eldest Daughter's 21st birthday, which focused a bit on my childhood, but primarily on the time around which I met her mother, and how she (my daughter) came into the world. It was a difficult, often-sobering and painful journey. Revisiting that time (when I was 18 to 20 years old), and looking my decisions in the face, with new eyes refined by distance, did nothing to boost my spirits. Yet I felt it needed to be done."

Dave decided not to mention the fact that, though he gave the book to his daughter on her 21st birthday in April, as planned, he still has no idea whether she ever read it or not, not having ever received any feedback from her.

"On the plus side, I wrote a review of GRRM's A Game of Thrones which has ended up being my most-viewed post ever in my blog's history. In fact, at one point I could Google "A Game of Thrones Book Review" and my blog would come up on the first page. Not sure how that happened, but no doubt that's where all the traffic came from. It doesn't do it anymore, but for a while it did. Not sure how Google crunched the numbers on things like that. And now, a quick break..."

Dave grabbed a couple new Funny Pictures to give his listeners a quick diversion while he regrouped...

Ahh, so warm! And delicious!

Hiii-YAH!

"Writing the book for my daughter led directly into another important event that happened in 2011. I was able to reconnect with an old friend from the high-school days and take care of some unfinished business (aka repent) that has been left hanging these many years. I was rather shocked at the impact it had on me, actually. It brought peace to a part of me that has been in a quiet, near-constant state of uproar for two decades. I can't go into detail here, but I will say, I wished I'd done it years earlier."

"Still, as Spring took hold in earnest, my overall mood was at what had to be an all-time low. My most important personal relationship had bottomed out, and the reading on my Hope Meter was in negative numbers. Then, thankfully, the changes began... first, I got a pleasant surprise - an email from the director of a documentary on competitive eating, and he wanted to film me for it, in reference to the 'scandal' I was involved in the previous year. Of course, I said yes - hey, it's a chance to be in a movie! A dream of mine! I ended up going up in early June to film my part. The film will be out soon. Here's the first teaser trailer for it."

Leaning back in his chair, Dave played the film trailer. The director had told him in an email that when the premiere was scheduled, Dave would be invited, which might be fun, Dave supposed. But the thought of sitting in a full theater waiting anxiously for his part to come up, petrified, really, wondering how he would come across (inside knowing that it didn't matter), made Dave want to forget the whole thing and just wait until it came out on video, to watch it at home, alone. But how often does a person get to go to a movie premiere? Or even be in a movie in the first place? True, a small-budget relatively-obscure documentary, but that counts, right? Dave leaned into the mike again.

"So right after filming, I went off to church camp, as I do every summer. That was the first real life-shaker. It would end up being the last-ever camp we will have with Dr. Diane McIntosh, who passed away this year as well (another huge event), but the things she taught on - and more specifically, the things she said to me personally, really shook me to the foundation. Then shortly thereafter, I attended another church-related seminar (if you will) that further rocked me. That was the transition time; from that point forward, things took a dramatic upswing. Hope was, shall we say, violently reinstated in my life. Plus, I started seeing a personal trainer twice a week, revamped my diet, and began to get in really good shape for the first time in my life. Big changes, within and without."

"And now, a word from our sponsors. This segment of the show is sponsored by The Law Firm of Vale and Bassmaster."

"Summer was unprecedented. Wifey and I took a birthday trip to Vegas which was beyond wonderful. My relationship with my wife had literally swung pendulum-opposite in extremes from earlier in the year. From 'never been worse' to 'never been better'. I cannot stress enough how unexpected that was. And how needed it was. But, alas, it could not last. Things mellowed out as school started up again in September. Then more mixed news arrived. I received word that one of my plays had been optioned, and I had a nice, beefy royalty check coming in the mail. And then we got word that Dr. Diane had died. The year of extremes was continuing."

Dave suddenly grew weary of his "Year In Review" show. It was surprisingly taxing to go over it all again. Really, the year was unique in it's extremes. But Dave felt that the dead horse had been beaten enough. He decided to wrap it up.

"So the final big positive of the year was the Christmas play, which was more work and more fun than any other year to date. I really enjoyed the ride this year. Christmas itself was mellow, and different in that we had a houseful of relatives staying here, which we've never had happen before. All things considered, a great Christmas season, and the end of a remarkable year."

Dave glanced at the clock. It neared midnight. New Year's Eve. He signed off the air, and went to spend the remaining minutes of 2011 with his wife. She was asleep in bed, Dave sitting beside her, watching her sleep. He quietly monitored the time on his iPad, waiting for midnight to strike. A kiss upon her sleeping forehead to ring in the new year. What fresh challenges and obstacles lay ahead for 2012? One way to find out. Take it a day at a time.

Thank you to everyone that has read this blog during the year, and left comments and encouraged me. It means more to me than I can say. Not sure what I would have done if I didn't have this creative outlet, and you wonderful people checking in on me. I hope the new year is a terrific one for you all.

Dave the Thankful
Dave the Long-Winded
Dave the Game Player
Dave the Goof

Mostly A Bunch of Book-Related Nonsense. Plus: Gorillas!

2011-12-27T20:32:00.000-08:00

It's almost the end of the year! Run! Run for your lives!!!!!

Oh, sorry... false alarm...

OK, so, where to start?

So I ripped the Christmas play to my computer and uploaded it to my Viddler account, but it's all wonky! The colors are stripped out (except for the blues) and the video picture is reversed, like I'm watching it in the mirror... extremely weird. None of the other videos In my Viddler archive are having any similar issues. I wrote the tech support, and they were great... they think it's a Flash-related problem, and their team is "working on it". In the interim, he said to save it as a higher resolution, and upload it again.

Sorry for the delay! I know all 2 of you want to watch some of it, so you can ask yourselves what all the hype was about, and then mock me behind my back. I don't want to rob you of your chance! Be patient, it shall happen!

While you wait, check out this Gorilla video... it's pretty cool... apologies for the dude with the glasses doing the talking intro... he's kind of a d-bag. The action starts at about the 1 minute mark.

That guy... has nerves of steel. Do you realize how completely I'd lose bladder control if I was in a similar situation? Sheesh! I've read The Murders in the Rue Morgue! I know how strong those primates are!

Yes, I know the Poe story featured an orangutan, not a gorilla... still. *shudder* That silverback could have popped that dude's head off like a bottlecap if it had wanted to!

Did you know that The Murders in the Rue Morgue (1841) is considered the first ever Detective Story? Yep, good ol' Edgar Poe pioneered the genre... he's also credited with co-pioneering the Science Fiction genre, too. Not bad, for someone as goofy-looking as he was! Reminds me of an Abraham Lincoln quote I read recently. It was during a debate when he was running for President (I don't recall against whom), but his opponent accused Lincoln of being two-faced. Lincoln said, "If I had two faces, do you think I'd choose to wear this one?"

See, he knew how goofy-looking he was, see? Get it? See, like, get it? See?

OK, fine. Here's another one, but from Winston Churchill this time...

Awesome.

So I finished reading Theft of Swords, by Michael Sullivan. All in all, it was a fun, though not especially deep, tale, very family-friendly (if you will). No swearing or adult stuff at all. The action was fun, the pace swift, and the main characters likable. Theft of Swords featured two main characters, named Royce and Hadrian. Royce is a thief, and is supposed to be a dark, dangerous, cold-blooded character. I say "supposed to be" because more often than not, he is kind and helps people out. Ultimately, he's a good guy, though his reputation that precedes him is infamous and villainous. He doesn't really display much to back that rep up, as far as viciousness and/or killer behavior. Still, he's enjoyable. And his partner is Hadrian, who is a peerless swordsman, and master of various forms of swordplay that most have not even heard of, much less been able to learn.

The two take jobs for (and against) nobles, ranging from thefts of valuables (in seemingly-impossible places) to escort missions, to beast-slaying, to rescue missions. As I said, the pace is swift, the action satisfying, and the "feel" of the writing positive. I suggest reading the tale if you like to keep things light and fun.

Theft of Swords is actually the first two volumes of the Riyria Chronicles (no idea how to properly pronounce that word, lol). There are two more volumes that complete the series. I'll definitely pick them up with a portion of my Christmas dough and see how it continues.

Not much of a traditional book review, sorry.

I went with brother-in-law Johnny and his son Jacob to see the new Mission Impossible movie, the day before Christmas. If you haven't seen it yet, I recommend it. Again, for light, fun fare that doesn't demand any heavy thinking. It had some great action scenes, some funny dialog, and was self-aware in a few places, sort of giving a wink and a nod to the audience, so we knew it didn't take itself too seriously. Yes, a lot of the stunts were outrageous and there were at least two occasions where I almost injured my eyes rolling them too suddenly, but all in all, it was fun. I don't get to the theater too often, so it's nice when I can leave and feel it was worth the time/money investment.

Saw some great previews, including this one... Act of Valor

Nicely-made trailer, methinks.

So, as some of you know, my addiction the past half-year or so has been to download free book sample chapters onto my Kindle app (for my iPad) so I can sample new books/authors... those I like, I add to a list; those I don't, I delete. I've gathered quite a list of worthwhile fantasy books I plan on getting/reading at some point in the future. It occurred to me today that such info might be of interest to a fellow reader or two out there, so I'm going to post a list here...

Fantasy Books On My Radar

The Etched City, by KJ Bishop
The Sword-Edged Blonde by Alex Bledsoe
Farlander, by Col Buchanon
Among Thieves, by Douglas Hulick
Under Heaven, by Guy Gavriel Kay
The Thief-Taker's Apprentice, by Stephen Daes
Acacia, by David Anthony Durham
Prince of Thorns, by Mark Lawrence
Tome of the Undergates, by Sam Sykes
The Ten Thousand, by Paul Kearney
The Whitefire Crossing, by Courtney Schafer
Knights of Dark Renown, by David Gemmell
Escaping Destiny, by Jeffrey Pierce
The Desert of Souls, by Howard Andrew Jones

I don't think you would go wrong with any of those titles. I've read the samples for all, and the writing is very solid in every case. Those last two are especially interesting to me. Escaping Destiny is truly unlike anything I've read before. Plus, the premise of Desert of Souls is extremely intriguing, and rife with possibility. I love an author who can quickly, effectively set the stage for an exciting adventure. Well done.

Speaking of great writing, I read the sample of a book by China Mieville called Perdido Street Station that is a marvel to read, crammed full of the coolest words, most-delicious descriptive language and tastiest sentence structure (to me, anyway). It's too bad the story itself is so gross and unappealing, I'd certainly recommend it here. I can give you an example, though...

The speaker is arriving in a big, dingy city, by boat on a disgusting river. That's all you need know...

The river twists and turns to face the city. It looms suddenly, massive, stamped on the landscape. Its light wells up around the surrounds, the rock hills, like bruise-blood. Its dirty towers glow. I am debased. I am compelled to worship this extraordinary presence that has silted itself into existence at the conjunction of two rivers. It is a vast pollutant, a stench, a klaxon sounding. Fat chimneys retch dirt into the sky even now in the deep night. It is not the current which pulls us but the city itself, its weight sucks us in. Faint shouts, here and there the calls of beasts, the obscene clash and pounding from the factories as huge machines rut. Railways trace urban anatomy like protruding veins. Red brick and dark walls, squat churches like troglodytic things, ragged awnings flickering, cobbled mazes in the old town, culs-de-sac, sewers riddling the earth like secular sepulchres, a new landscape of wasteground, crushed stone, libraries fat with forgotten volumes, old hospitals, towerblocks, ships and metal claws that lift cargoes from the water.

What do you think? You like it, or does it strike you as overdone? I think it's terrific. Again, too bad the story itself is such a downer. He uses other great words and phrases, like effluents, morbific, detumescing and pamphleteers... far too many others to mention here. And that's just in the first two chapters.

If I can stomach the story, I'll try to read more. I made it part-way into The City and The City before giving up on that as well (it's another Mieville book).

Hmm... I know I had other stuff to talk about. I really should keep a list of these things... my memory is failing me in my old age...

Well, I suppose I'll stop for now. I'm sure the other stuff I wanted to say will come to me later tonight, as I try to sleep...

I'll be back, fear not.

Dave the Goof

Merry Christmas, and All That

2011-12-24T21:36:00.001-08:00

A quick Christmas Drive-By.

I hope your Christmas Day is an awesome one.

Man, what a year. I'll have a full new post here in the next day or so.... a lot to say...

Adios

Dave the Festive

Somewhere Between the Sacred Silence and Sleep: Disorder

2011-12-20T19:35:00.000-08:00

Greetings! Man, what a week....

First things first. The play! Yay, it's over! And was it FUN. Can't say it was perfect - there were a couple dropped lines and some projection problems, and the video didn't turn out as well as I'd hoped... but the play itself was ridiculously well-received. I mean, immediate standing-O... not sure I've ever been involved in a play that was so immediately well-received. I talked to lots of folks, and everyone seemed to love it. In fact, everyone I talked to had a different part of the play that was their favorite - that seems to indicate to me that the play was pretty solid throughout.

Plus, it was just flat-out fun to perform. Man, I hope the other actors had a fraction of the fun I did in performing their roles. It was odd... I'd never attempted a role of this size and complexity before - I should have felt more overwhelmed than ever. But I didn't. Once I got into the opening monologue, something shifted, and I just had fun. I hate to sound redundant here, but as much as I enjoy acting, it always is stressful to me, and any fun I feel is always after the fact, upon reflection... but during the performance, I'm usually somewhere between extreme concentration and panic, until my final line, after which the sense of overwhelming relief will give way to a sense of ultimate satisfaction and enjoyment. This time it was just flat-out fun.

Due to technical difficulties upstairs, the opening monologue didn't make it onto the recording, so the DVD begins about 8 minutes in. Bummer. This will obviously make watching the play on disc a confusing mess - the opening monologue sets the whole story up. I was contemplating going back to the church by myself sometime, and setting the scene back up, and re-recording the opening, and editing it into the recording, while it's still fresh in my head.

But I have a disc, and I'll burn it to my computer tonight, and upload it to my Viddler account. I'll post it on my Wagnervana site and link to it, for the handful of you that might want to watch some of it. But keep in mind, most of the magic in a play is in seeing it live. A lot is lost in the translation to the screen. But I'll post it, link to it, and add the text for the opening monologue, so you can get the gist of what was missed.

Bottom line, this is how I felt after we were done...

Everyone in the cast was awesome. Great job.

This has been an incredible year. Full of the most extreme highs and lows. I can't (won't) go into all of it in this forum. I may write a summary of the year in my journal, just to document it. I'd say, other than the year after I graduated high school, this has been the most eventful, important year of my life. I mean, pendulum extremes, as far as highs and lows. Those that know me know some of them, I'm sure, but nowhere near all of them.

Yeah, I need to write a summary down somewhere.

But I can throw down a Best of 2011 List, as far as the more innocuous things...

Best Book I Read This Year (first time read): The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie
Best Book I Read This Year (re-read): Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield
Best Movie I Saw This Year: Pulling John
Best Music: Angels & Airwaves
Best Game: Skyrim
Best Blog: Rememorandum (Honorable Mention to 100-Fold Christianity)

In honor of my Best Game winner, here is some Skyrim humor that only Logan will find amusing. The rest of you, I dunno... like, skim down a bit or something...

Trust me... Logan will find those amusing... that alone should make posting them worthwhile...

So we have family here from out of town... we found places for everyone, believe it or not. They're good folks, so I'm sure all will be well.

On another note, I found a cool-looking writer's group that meets in Oceanside every week, called the Antisocial Writers and Social Misfits. They look like a fun bunch, so I signed up, hoping I could find a group of writers that could help me get my feet under me, as far as my big writing projects. Well, it turns out they meet Wednesday nights! Doh! The only night of the week that I have a prior obligation! I wish I'd noticed that beforehand! So now I'm torn. I think for January/February, I'll go to every other meeting, and see how/if I can fit in... Then I'll need to decide where to devote my Wednesday nights... I've been going to Stan's for the weekly prayer night for a couple years now... I don't want to just jettison it on a whim. But I really need the writing help, to get unstuck... so for the short term, I'll divide my team and see what happens...

Speaking of writing/reading, I have another blog post to recommend. Another eFriend who posted a piece on why guys should date a girl who reads. Very well done, worth your time. Click here to read it, eh! It'll just take a couple minutes!

Gotta scoot. Adios.

Dave

You Gonna Eat That Chair?

2011-12-15T00:08:00.000-08:00

Um, yeah... that is a cool picture. One of many I saw in this article. Don't worry if you don't wish to browse the gallery... I saved many of the best shots in my archive! You'll be seeing them here soon enough! MUAHAHAH!!! Yep, repost other people's stuff, that's what I do! I am nothing if not unoriginal! The only thing original around here are my lame puns! In fact, you could safely label this blog "nnuts"!

No, I don't mean crazy, and no, it isn't a typo... nnuts = nothing new under the sun...

I always wanted to start a T-shirt company and call it NNUTS... I even know what the logo would look like... in fact, here, lemme go whip up a mock-up for ya... brb...

There, that's the idea. Of course, it's a rough design (hey, what do you expect in 10 minutes?! Sheesh!) Anyway, I'm sure you see it... "nothing new under the sun" in a figure-8 shape, so it conforms to the rough shape of a peanut (which I ghosted around the whole logo). I got all absorbed in coming up with funny T-shirt designs at one time (few years back), actually worked out the designs on a few, and looked into starting a company. Then I lost all my brainstorm notes and art files for the T-shirt designs and ideas, got discouraged, and I let the idea die. I didn't want to start over from scratch. Gee, no surprise, to those that know me... yet another idea that slipped behind the glass wall...

Why was I reminded of that again? Oh, yeah... "lame puns", "nnuts", etc...

OK, well, moving right along...

I watched this mini-documentary last night, and thought it was great. I immediately thought my mom would enjoy it, so I'm posting it here for her. If the rest of y'all want to watch it, if you like music, you'll like the film as well, I'm sure. It's about a small town North Carolina barbershop that locals gather at on Saturdays to play music together in the back room... that likely sounds boring to you, but it really intrigued me. It weighs in at 20 minutes, so grab a snack...

Pickin' & Trimmin' from Matt Morris Films on Vimeo.

For those of you with shorter attention spans, I'll also post the trailer to the new Three Stooges movie coming out next year. I have to admit, I laughed hard (and continue to do so) when I watched it... WARNING: woman in bathing suit at the 1:00 mark. If that offends you, cover your eyes!

Looks like they nailed the casting on that one. Those guys are PERFECT. I'm not a fan of the Farrelly Brother's movies (with the exception of Dumb and Dumber), but I may go see that one. Good old fashioned screwball slapstick. That spot where the bell falls off the church roof and hits that person in the head with a big BONNGGG! gets me every time...

On a religious note, I've noticed a strange sort of fatalism creeping into my prayer life lately.

Wow, from Three Stooges right into prayer? Sure, why not? I make up the rules here, don't I?! Sheesh!

Anyway, I've found it harder to pray lately, since this idea keeps weaseling its way into my thoughts... "Why pray? What's the point? God's going to do what He wants to anyway! I mean, can I really sway what He will do, in any given situation?" Yeah, I know... either my cynicism is ripening to dangerous levels, or that thought has its origins "elsewhere"... anyway, I shall assume if I persevere, it shall dissipate, and leave me be. But for now, it's a bit of a struggle.

Hey, see how open I am with you? That just shows how much I love you! Yeah, I know, "Never talk about politics, religion or the Backyardigans," I get it... sorry, I'll move on...

"That's not funny; that's sad." - Sister Mary Cornelius

There, that brings us back in line with the spirit of this blog...

OK, fine, you want more theology? So I have a couple of "e-friends" who have recently made blog posts that blew me away. If that sort of thing interests you, the links are HERE and HERE.

So I was remembering something funny that happened between my brother Bryan and I one time, back when he still dwelt upon the earth. I was giving him a ride home from work one time (we worked together, at our family business here in San Diego), which was a rare occurrence for me. We each had our own cars, of course, and each drove alone, being on different schedules, etc. Anyway, for some reason, I needed to give him a ride, which I was happy to do. The freeway was packed, as was normal back then (before all the construction made the ride smoother), and Bryan reclined his chair to nap while we inched our way up the road.

Normally, as I said, I drive alone. One thing I did a lot (and still do) is while driving, sort-of subconsciously put my hand over on the back of the passenger-side chair back, up by the head-rest. I stretch my arm out, then back over the headrest, and lay my hand across it. I've done it so often, I do it without thinking, like a reflex.

Anyway, so we were crawling up the freeway, and I was bored, listening to the radio (softly), my mind drifting. Of course, I forgot Bryan was in the car with me, since he was reclined (and out of my peripheral vision), and normally I drove alone. So out goes the arm, and I place it on the now-missing chair back... when I let my arm drop, instead of resting where it normally does, my hand plummeted and smacked Bryan in the face...

He wakes up, of course, looking at me like I was insane, saying "What the heck?" In that split second, I imagined trying to explain what just happened to him in a way that would make sense, especially seeing as how he was just asleep. I mean, look at how many paragraphs it is taking me to tell this to you, and you're all awake (I think)! So I just said, "sorry", and looked forward again. He went back to sleep. Perhaps he thought he'd dreamed it, I don't know. I've never been smacked in my sleep before... must not have seemed funny to him at the time.

Not sure why I recalled that today. Sorry, Bryan, wherever you are!

Hmm... well, I suppose I should leave things here for now. Don't worry, I'll be back soon with more hot air! Don't cry yourself to sleep over it! No, stay awake and brood instead.

Adios for now,

Dave the Gump

PS 21st Anniversary today. 21 down, 75 more to go...

I Might Have Nothing To Say Today... Let's See, Shall We?

2011-12-09T23:46:00.000-08:00

Dang... you know I'm down to the dregs in my picture archive when I open with a picture like that... Time to lurk around PhotoSIG some more, and replenish my landscapey-photo supplies.

Although that is a pretty cool art installation... From what I understand, it's supposed to honor the inventor of the clothes pin, but perhaps that was spontaneous nonsense, who knows... kinda clever, in any case...

OK, so, just so you know, I have nothing to say tonight. Nope, absolutely nothing. Not a word.

Well, I do have this picture of a funny sign modification...

... but that's it. Nothing else to share. Nope. Nothing.

Well, I mean, I am reading a really good fantasy book, called Theft of Swords, by Michael Sullivan. I mentioned it a post or two ago. Good, solid characters, a swiftly-unfolding plot, nice action, some humor, clean, easy to read and follow, shows great promise.

By the way, in case you were wondering, I failed miserably at the NaNoWriMo challenge this year. I made a good start, then fell a day behind, then two... once I was three days behind my pace, the whole thing fell apart. I was sunk by a combination of competing projects, an amazing game, and in-home turmoil. Those are my excuses. Valid, but still excuses nonetheless. Plus, the play, of course. I took on too much this year again... I really need to learn to delegate better. We had practice tonight. It was a good one, though certain key people were missing. We are officially 8 days away from performance time, as I write this. I go back and forth between sheer panic and total confidence. I plan on spending most of Saturday going over my monologues like a fiend. If I can really nail my part, it will anchor the play solidly, and hold the entire thing together, shoring up any weak areas. If I spend the rest of the time focusing on the weaker areas, but fail to nail my part, the whole thing could dissolve in my hands, and I can't have that.

There, see? I told you. I have nothing to say tonight. Nope, not a word.

But I do have this drawing...

So, we are now a "Two-Kindle Fire" family. I bought one for Katie for Christmas, and once everyone got a look at it, I ordered another one for Wifey (who will be "sharing" it with our Youngest). Eldest decided she didn't want one, otherwise we'd be a Three-Kindle Family. It finally dawned on me two days ago, the play-on-words with that gadget's name. Believe it or not, I never associated the word "kindle" with "fire" before that... as in "kindling a fire"... well, I certainly hope none of the Wagner Women decide to use their kindle as kindling...

But beyond that, absolutely nothing to talk about tonight, as I said.

Except we are having in-laws coming for the holidays, and I'm not sure how we are going to fit everyone under our roof. My brother-in-law John is coming, with his wife and three kids, plus they are bringing Wifey's mother along as well. They will be here from about Dec 20 through the New Year. Don't get me wrong, I love them, and always enjoy their company... it's just going to be a madhouse around here... it galls me to have to have people I love sleeping on the floor, but we don't have enough beds/couches to accommodate everyone comfortably... I'm trying not to get stressed about it, but rather look at it like it will be an adventure...

Nope, nothing to say tonight.

Dang... looks like a school-yard rumble about to begin... my money's on Hobbes...

I'd post a video, but I've been having Flash-related crashes lately with Chrome, so I can't browse like I usually do... I do have a couple good ones slotted, once I get the problem fixed... but until then, nope, I have absolutely nothing to say. Mum's the word tonight. Yep, complete silence...

By the way, I am SUCH the dragonslayer, you know... yes, that's a Skyrim reference... if you aren't playing Skyrim, shame on you. Don't you want to be a hero and kill dragons and explore stuff and save the world? DON'T YOU!? Well, what's wrong with you, then!? Not the heroic type, eh? Well, then why are you wearing that necktie, then? Yeah, those are heroic colors for a necktie, you must have it in you to be a hero! You MUST! There, it's been decided then. Buy Skyrim, play it, slay dragons, live. LIVE!

But beyond that, I have nothing at all to say.

Except one question... Why on earth does Yogurtland only serve Eggnog Yogurt ONE DAY PER YEAR!? Don't they know I'd buy it every day if they only had it?! Is there anything better in the world than Eggnog Yogurt, with graham cracker crumbs, some shredded coconut and a few dark chocolate flakes on it? I mean other than Jesus, of course... come on, you don't really think I'd rank Eggnog Yogurt higher than Jesus on The List of Best Things in Life, do you? Sheesh, come on! The list is this: Jesus, then Eggnog Yogurt, then listening to Toxicity by System of a Down REALLY loud on your car radio as you drive, followed by a baby's laugh, Skyrim, Steam Sales, a good book, the LOTR Extended Trilogy DVD set, getting a fat paycheck, and finally a nice, healthy bowel movement. Yes, that is the complete Top Ten. If you beg to differ, post your own list in the comments!

Man, I'm so sorry I have nothing to say tonight...

I do have another picture though...

Come on, admit it... that's pretty funny...

Quick, say this out loud: "So, you sold your soldier's soul?"

Yeah, like that. Cool, eh?

Suddenly, Dave was very tired. He glanced up from his monitor to the clock. It read 11:40 pm. He yawned and contemplated the weekend that stretched out before him. He wondered if the weekend would prove to be productive. Much there was for him to do, and strong was the impulse to flee it all. But flee he could not do, for that is not the way of the hero. A hero owns up to his responsibilities and shoulders them like a champ. Would that describe Dave by the time Monday appeared? Or will his weekend be characterized by game-playing, book-reading, responsibility-shirking and copious amounts of flatulence? Dave supposed only time would tell.

Until that time (Dave typed), farewell!

Dave the Tired

I've Been Down This Road Before, Methinks...

2011-12-05T22:46:00.000-08:00

Greetings all y'all.

That includes all of the "real" people checking in, as well as most of my imaginary ones... a few of my imaginary visitors deserve no greetings. They've secretly formed a subversive counter-blog movement and have somehow blamed me for their angst over a supposed lack of quality updates lately, on this and a few other tangentially-related blogs... what they don't know is that I've purposely fostered such a false perception for the sole purpose of flushing out the rebellion and identifying the key players, with an eye toward capture and swift, painful eradication. Which is tricky, seeing as how they are imaginary to begin with. So far, the most successful methods of identification involve sacks of unbleached flour, lasers and bad puns. Plus, as you can see, I've installed infrared surveillance cameras in corners of the blog room, since they mostly read this blog at night, after I've left the blog and turned off the lights (well, except for the Christmas Tree in the corner over there (next to the bidet)).

That reminds me, the surveillance cameras have captured some of my more "normal" readers doing some odd things as well. It's fun to see what you guys do while lurking around in this blog, when you think no one else is watching... MUAHAHAH!!! Look for the highlight reel to be posted soon....

And now, Words of Wisdom by Will Smith...

My sister posted a link to this video the other day on her Facebook... it intrigues me, because I'm torn. On the one hand, it's very inspiring. On the other hand, not sure how it squares with a Biblical world-view. Will Smith is an intense person! Something about him seems very sincere - like he actually tries to follow what he's talking about, rather than just saying it because it sounds good, or because he's trying to impress people or some such.

Anyways, a few of the more theologically-minded among you might want to post some thoughts in the comments about it; I will covet such comments accordingly (in a good way).

That's an image snapped of an erupting volcano in Chile earlier this year. It is among many images in a photo gallery on Buzzfeed, under the header of "The Most Powerful Images of 2011"... here is a link to said gallery - a very worthwhile browse, if you have two minutes to spare...

Sadly, this image was not featured in the gallery...

Nicolas Cage as Gandalf... it doesn't get much more powerful than that...

My personal trainer destroyed me today. I took it personally. See, because he's a "personal" trainer, see? (Don't groan - it's another attempt to flush out the subversives! Bad puns, remember?). We did "drop sets" focusing on chest and back. "Drop sets" loosely translates into "make you feel like a complete, yammering weakling." At least, that's how it worked out for me. (Get it? "Worked out"? I'm on a roll!) How bad was it, you may ask? Well, my post-workout shower was delayed ten minutes while I tried in vain to remove my sweaty T-shirt... I lacked the requisite upper-body strength needed to lift a t-shirt up over my head... I was eventually successful, meaning I didn't have to shower with my shirt on...

All that to say, it was awesome, and I can't "weight" to do it again! BUAHAHAHA!!

There! A malcontent! In the top hat, with the metallic naru jacket! Grab him!

Excellent. I'll clean up this blog audience yet...

GAAHHH!!!! The Christmas play is two weeks away! Help! Defend me, friends! What if I mess the whole thing up!? What if I forget something important!? What if I accidentally pass wind during one of my monologues?! Heck, what if I purposely do it?! What then?!

OK, good, the panic attack is over. Good thing it was a quiet one... I might have awakened the baby!

Well, I've procrastinated on the January Piranha Newsletters long enough... gotta get back to work. I trust you all shall have a terrific week, and are enjoying the build-up to Christmas. For gift ideas, remember to check my Amazon Wishlist. I want every item on that list this year, and I mean it! Do your part already, as a grateful blog reader should! Otherwise, you'll be broken on the rack in front of a large, raucous crowd dressed in medieval garb, howling for blood n guts!

OK, sorry, got a little carried away there. My apologies.

Adios for now,

Dave the Well-Traveled

Retrospection, Offensive Vegetables and the Epic Bidet Sketch

2011-11-30T22:56:00.000-08:00

Have I used this picture before? Or merely one very similar? Come on, you all keep track of these things, right? Being connoisseurs of fine blogging in general, and this blog specifically, I'm sure you know right away if/when I reuse intro landscapey pictures, eh? Eh?

What? You know not! Well, harrumph, I say! See how offended and indignant I am? SEE?

OK, it passed, never mind...

I found that sketch quite amusing, and hey, I figured I'd share! You didn't have to watch it all small like that, silly; you could have clicked the "full screen" button in the corner! Sheesh! Although I believe if you are joining me tonight from outside the US, then Hulu will not let you watch it! And you'll just have to wonder what you missed. I'll give you a hint: it involves a bidet, and a world-class beard...

So, as per usual, I have about a half-dozen projects that are demanding my full attention... needless to say, they are all disappointed in me... since I am having to dole out a bit of time each day to each of them, slowly moving them all forward to completion... at the moment, it's hard to tell which will finish first... the Christmas play or the Camp Video... after that, my sister's mailing list, and then pastor's mammoth Kindle book cover project. And then there's total Skyrim domination and both of my novels... and then Easter looms large in the distance...

Yeah, that all likely means nothing to you, so I shall move on, and entertain you with a scathing editorial comment against a certain vegetable...

Well said... still, broccoli is better than brussell sprouts...[shudder]... brussell sprouts are so offensive, I won't even take the time to look up how to properly spell them!

So our DVD player died. I bought a new one. WOW! HOW EXCITING, DAVE!!! I'M SOOOOO GONNA PASS OUT FROM EXCITEMENT RIGHT NOW!!!!1!!!! So the new DVD player plays Blu-Ray discs as well. Which means our pathetically, repulsively mammoth DVD collection is about to evolve further. Ah, the glories of retarded chick flicks, now seen in stunning high-def! Katherine Heigl, make yourself at home! Anyway, the player also has a feature where it wirelessly accesses the internet, so we can stream NetFlix Watch Instantly to our TV. The girls have been watching Psyche nonstop since we figured out how to get it to work. Well, the good news is that now I can downgrade our cable package to basic cable only, to save $$$. Which is good, since my rent is increasing yet again.

Is there an unwritten, understood law that says rent must always increase every year? It's a bummer. They raise it just enough to be painful, but not enough to force us to move out in a huff. The last thing I want to do is move; I like it here. Still, it's like we're being punished for each year we stay here.

Ah, first world problems! All things considered, I still have an over-abundance of things to be thankful for.

Christmas shopping.... [shudder]

So I found an awesome blog... well, it's awesome to me, but I'm just a big softy... it's called Dear Photograph, and features people submitting pictures of pictures... like this...

People hold up old family photos and re-photograph them in the same setting that the original picture was snapped in. They then write a little bit about the photo and/or the people in the photo. Makes for fascinating browsing, if your bent leans toward reflection... a little window back in time. Very cool. Click this link to go to the blog, eh!

OK, well, I think I've given you enough text to skim through for one night. Give me another day or three and I'll dredge up some more.

I hope your holidays are/will be good ones.

Dave the Old Softy

PS I have 61 Followers now! I'm famous!

Pumpkin Heads, Frozen Earths and Bitter Antelopes

2011-11-26T00:27:00.000-08:00

Greetings halflings! And, what the heck, hello to the wholelings checking in as well... if my voice sounds funny, it's because I'm in the middle of my annual bout with sinus-related head-stuffiness. Yes, it affects my singing voice... here, I'll demonstrate... "He was once a little green slab of clay... Gumby!"

See? Yeah, it just doesn't sound right, eh? I do like the effect, though... it adds depth and gravel to the bad accents I annoy everyone with. And yes, I mean everyone! Even you! If you get an anonymous call on your celly in the next day or two, with someone on the other end doing a bad, but wonderfully deep and gravelly Russian or British accent... well, it could be me. Don't call the cops... I have to keep practicing my accents, or they'll never get better! We actors are annoying like that....

So I'm buying games and books like they're going out of style. There's just so much good stuff out there! I'll never catch up. Here I am, fully absorbed in Skyrim, and Steam goes ahead and has a great Thanksgiving sale, forcing me (yes, forcing, I say!) to buy even more games for my overloaded library! And don't get me started on my digital book collection... sheesh! I'm tearing through more samples of late, just to clean out the clutter in my Kindle App. Mostly fantasy, but some sci-fi.

I did buy Theft of Swords, which is the first volume of Michael Sullivan's Riyria Revelations series, which just came out. I read the sample and was very impressed. His is a cool story... he decided to write an entire six-volume series completely, before publishing any of them. Now, that's confidence for you. I like the reasoning he gives - that it makes going back and strengthening/tweaking earlier volumes possible. If book one and two (for example) are published and locked in stone, and you're writing away on book 5 (for example!) and stumble upon a story element that would require tweaking volume one to get the best effect, you can't do it if Vol one is on the shelves already!

Anyways, he acknowledges that it was a risky strategy, but it seems to have paid off. He's getting a lot of love in the fantasy blogs, etc. of late. When I finish the book, I may send some love his way as well...

This video is currently making the rounds, and it's quite amazing...

What an amazingly clear video image... I'd love to see it in HD some time... it's from a BBC nature series called Frozen Earth. Here is the link, in case the YouTube embed gets taken down (because of copyright nonsense).

So I got a Jury Summons in the mail today! What gives!? I thought if you've served on a jury, you get a reprieve of 3 years before you have to serve again? I did that city trial in 2009 and the Federal one downtown last year. Ah well, part of me wants to complain, while the other part of me wants to show up and see if I can get selected for a third trial in a row. They don't call me "Hanging Judge Wagner" for nothing! String 'em all up, I says!

OK, I don't really says that... except about Christmas lights...

If I do get on another criminal trial, I will post about it every day here on this blog, with polls based on that day's evidence, so you can all tell me how to vote! That is, until I get caught and kicked off the jury. Then I can claim my rights have been violated, and I'll have to Occupy the courthouse. Or maybe I'll just Occupy the nearest Starbucks instead. "This Pumpkin Spice Latte is not hot enough! Equal coffee rights now! Heck no, we won't go! Without a free refill, anyway..."

Wrong movie, Leo!

It's after midnight. I'm eating Smart Food (thus begrunging my keyboard) and drinking tea. Among the items on my desk are the following: An empty Sam Adams bottle (from Thursday), a sharpee pen, a box of Kleenex, my jury summons (along with the rest of today's mail), a set of headphones (with retractable mic) and my daughter's big, goofy sunglasses. How the glasses got here, I'm not sure. I'd try them on, but I'm not feeling it right now. Oh, what the heck, here, I'll try them on.

If I die tonight, that will be the last picture ever taken of me! Yes, I'm as tired as I look. But at least I'm fashionable and stuff. Because nothing says "trendy and fashionable" like a pair of ridiculous glasses! I saw a pair of sunglasses for $25,000 at the Crystal Mall in Vegas last summer. What, may I ask, the heck?

Here, I have one more video clip for you...

And that is why you don't go mountain biking in Africa! Well, that, and malaria. Although that might be a myth, for all I know. That antelope was just bitter because it rhymes with "cantaloupe"... If my name rhymed with "cantaloupe" I'd want to run people over as well...

OK, fine, I'll stop for tonight. My head feels like (and likely looks like) a pumpkin at the moment, so I'm going to pound some Ni-Quil and go the heck to bed.

Adios for now,

Dave the Semi-Lucid

PS I used "heck" six times in this post... well, seven, if you count the "heck" in the PS. Make that eight...

Comments, Collateral, Cats and Crispin

2011-11-21T22:14:00.000-08:00

I've noticed an ugly trend of late... only 3 comments on each of the last three posts! That is wrong on so many levels! You guys are just not cutting it.... you have to make up for it on this post... you have to drop ALL KINDS of comments on this one... otherwise the reading on my Happiness Meter could dip into dangerous levels, and I'll have to resort to posting old Pooter videos and dropping poorly-thought-through theological rants in here... or I could go on and on about Skyrim... heaven forbid!

But to get things rolling, you can see that beautiful Tuscany photo at the top of the post there... come on, that's a great photo! And it's Tuscany! Doesn't it make you want to leave a comment, eh? Or at least make you want to eat at Olive Garden?

Here's a video clip... maybe this will prompt a comment...

There. That should be good for two comments at least.

Plus, if I get enough comments, I'll win a free set of steak knives! Come on, you have to help me win those knives! They can cut through a shoe and everything! Think of it! If society devolves into a post-apocalyptic zombie-infested dystopian wasteland and I'm forced to eat old shoes to survive, then I'll be golden! And it will all be because of you and your comments!

Hmm... maybe a funny picture will work...

That's both funny and cute! That has GOT to work! If not, I'll throw a funny/cute cat picture in here, just to up the ante a bit...

Go get him, kitty! Get that bug!

I had to post this one nice and big, so you'll see the bug... otherwise the effect is lost... and so will any comments be that might have been lavished upon me!

You see, if I get enough comments, I'll also win a voucher for a free Emergency Tonsillectomy. That will come in handy some day, I'm sure. Of course, I'd also like to win the Elective Tonsillectomy Voucher as well, so I could just have it done some weekend when there was nothing good on TV... but to qualify for that voucher, I'd need at least 120 Followers as well... *sigh*...

Hmm... how about if I entertain and enlighten you with a little This Dave In History?

Todayve In History: November 22
-------------------------------------

11/22/1963, JFK was assassinated in Dallas. (I always thought there was a second bunman on the gassy knoll...)
11/22/1986: Mike Tyson beats Trevor Berbick to become the youngest heavyweight champ EVAR!!! (Here is a cool clip of a bunch of his early knock-outs... the guy could bring the hammer, for certain... he does a great Herman Cain impression as well...)
11/22/1995: Toy Story is released, the first feature-length, fully computer-animated movie! (Ad infinitum et ultra!)
Among those born Nov 22 are: Rodney Dangerfield (1921), Terry Gilliam (1940), Billie Jean King (1943), Mark Ruffalo (1967) and Scarlet Johansson (1984).

In honor of Mark Ruffalo's birthday, here's the Club Shootout scene from Collateral...

When I see scenes like this, the first thing I think is "when they filmed this scene, there was no music! All those extras are dancing in silence!" Yeah, I know, sorry... that's the way my mind works. Mark Ruffalo is awesome in that movie. Too cool. I need facial hair like his... then I can be cool, too. Actually Jamie Foxx and Tom Cruise are awesome in that film, too... too bad the movie itself wasn't all that red hot...

That reminds me, the trailer for Snow White & the Huntsman looks surprisingly good. I'm looking forward to it. It has another awesomely-cool actor in it... that dude from Thor, whatever his name is. I'd look it up, but I'm feeling lazy right now...

Then again, maybe if I don't look the name up, I'll lose out on a few comments! BRB... his name is Chris Hemsworth. Shoot, I shouldn't have looked it up! Now I see that Kenneth Branagh was the director of Thor... I can't like that movie anymore now... anyone who would enact such a lame Hamlet, and then run roughshod over Sleuth like he did deserves no kudos from me, in any manner.... unless, of course, he leaves a comment on today's post! Then I will love him! I'll even acknowledge that his 1989 performance of Henry V was quite good!

Hmmm... when is St. Crispin's Day, I wonder? I'd look it up, but I'm feeling laz-- gah! Caught myself again! BRB... nertz! It was October 25th! I missed it! And that's Maggie's birthday! I'll remember it forever, now...

Well, if this post doesn't yield a bumper-crop of comments, nothing will. Remember, if I get enough comments, I'll win free foot massages for a year!

And now, soldiers, march away, and how thou pleasest God, dispose the day.

Dave the Scattered

Heroes, Adventurers and Lackwits, Oh My!

2011-11-16T21:51:00.000-08:00

No, that's not a screenshot from Skyrim... pretty close, though. But not on my system. Sadly, in order to keep the game playable, I've had to lower both my graphics settings and my resolution. Ah, First World Problems! Some people don't have a place to live or food to eat... my biggest problem is not being able to play a $60 game with all the bells and whistles turned up to 11...

Actually, that's not my biggest problem; I have plenty of others. I just don't feel like whining tonight, so I'm going to stay light (aka "vapid") tonight.

And, actually, even though Skyrim is a $60 game, I paid exactly $0 for it. See, with Citibank, I earn these things called "Thank You Points"... for every buck I spend using my bank card, I get a point. I've been accumulating these points for a couple years. Well, I just converted $150 worth of Thank You Points over to Amazon credit, and so BOOM, free game, plus lots left over for more Kindle Books.

Ah, livin' the dream.

But back to Skyrim for a minute... for those that don't understand the appeal of a fake life lived on a computer screen, let me (try to) explain. Picture a large (vast, really), open expanse of terrain, all mountainous and beautiful, with rocks and trees and snow and animals and villages and castles, etc. You can wander anywhere and explore anything and talk to anyone. You can go into caves and fight beasts or bandits, looking for treasure. You can fight baddies, get killed in the attempt, and then just reload the game from your previous "save point" and try again, or run away, or sneak around in the shadows. You can take on the Main Quest to save the world from peril, or you can ditch the Main Quest and do any number of other Side Quests, for little trinkets or treasures, or just out of the goodness of your heart. You can be a good guy or a bad guy. Or both. You can hike to the top of a mountain peak, stand at the very edge of a sheer cliff face, marvel at the view, save the game, and then leap off to your doom... then reload that last save game spot to the edge of the cliff again, and just walk away.

In other words, you can do all the stuff you wish you could do in real life, but can't. Shoot a bad guy with a bow and arrow? Check. Run a bad guy through with a sword, or cleave him with an axe? Check. Shoot magical fireballs or ice blasts out of your hands? Check. Pick locks and pick pockets? Check. Steal stuff and cause havoc? Check. Get arrested and then break out of jail? Check. Or be a hero of renown, winning the love and adoration of the masses? Check. Fight dragons? Check!!!!

There's just something about it that I find almost unfathomably appealing. I think in every guy (and maybe most of the women) there lives a strong desire to be courageous/heroic. To make a difference in the world. To cut loose and dive headlong into danger, knowing that if it doesn't work out, just rewind a bit and try again. To explore. To create. To love. TO LIVE.

There's probably negative theological ramifications to such an attitude, I don't know. But what I do know is that I love love love wandering around that game world, and soaking it all in. If I could somehow transfer that same awe and fascination to "real life," I'd be golden.

So speaking of heroes, I finished reading White Wolf, by David Gemmell. A story featuring two heroes, and some full-throttle villains.

Skilgannon The Damned and Druss the Legend make quite a pair. Both are impossibly good (and completely unalike) warriors, who use enchanted weapons. Druss has his battle ax, called Snaga, and he's built like a tank. A tank with a big bushy beard. Skilgannon is tall, handsome, clean-shaven, with piercing blue eyes (lol), and is a master swordsman, wielding two swords, called The Swords of Night and Day. Their paths cross, and they join forces to embark upon an Impossible Quest, each with different motives.

If it seems pretty formulaic, that's because it is. But in this case, it didn't matter to me, because dangit, I enjoyed the ride thoroughly. Enough so that I'll soon embark on my own Impossible Quest... that of trying to read all of Gemmell's 20+ books. His characters are complex creatures, and he writes great action scenes for them. In fact, both this book and the other Gemmell book I read last year (Legend) each have many "main" characters, as opposed to just one, and in many ways, they are all unique and work well as the focus of the tale, and even better when combined with the others. If that makes sense.

I don't want to get too far into White Wolf (the book), since it doesn't really matter at this point. If fantasy does anything for you, I recommend the book. If not, then no amount of elaboration on the story will convince you otherwise. Gemmell is solid; let me leave it at that. Grab a free sample or two of his stuff and try him out yourself, eh! That's an order!

What will I read next? Well, at the moment, it's more Free Samples. When I land on a full book and it hooks me, I'll let you know.

And now, the latest Damien Walters highlight video...

Awesome. Yet another thing I wish I could do.

I think I'll bring tonight's blast of hot air to an end. If it continues, it may raise the temperature in here so high, it will activate the blog air conditioner, and I can't afford that...

Adios for now,

Dave the Gemmellite

Blue Moods, Amazing Hats, and Perfect Saturdays

2011-11-11T23:59:00.000-08:00

Dang, get a load of the smooth gradient in that lake picture. Tasty. Obviously quite-heavily modified in Photoshop, but you can't argue with the results. Cool, mellow minimalist vibe. Nice and blue... like my mood. And my knee-high Uggs.

I'm kidding. My mood is fine.

Actually, I was torn about which picture to lead with tonight. I've found some great ones of late. Here, check this one out...

That... is incredible. Works well with the blue from the previous picture... kinda scroll so you can see them both on the screen at the same time... yeah, like that. Cool eh?

Weird week. But it ended well. Had another great play rehearsal tonight. I won't go into detail, but I will re-state how much I'm enjoying the ride this year. Plus, I got my copy of Skyrim tonight (It's out, after all these years!). It plays pretty well on my system, unlike Battlefield 3. Looking forward to saving the world. Even if it isn't my world. For those that care, I decided to roll a Redguard. Great all-around fighters and totally tough-looking. Unlike me. I'm pretty lame. Redguard, cool; me, lame. Remember that - there will be a quiz later...

I read a book this week... I'm hesitant to admit it. I'm torn, because it was a really good book, but I don't know if I should recommend it, and the book was quite gritty and out of my normal element. Aw, what the heck, I'll tell you...

It was called Sandman Slim, by Richard Kadrey, and it's about a magician who is back on earth (in present day L.A.) after having spent the past decade in Hell. He's back, though he doesn't know how he got back, and he's eager to track down his "friends" that betrayed him a decade earlier, to exact a little tasty revenge for sending him down into Hell (alive, no less). While in Hell, he's learned new magics, and has become very proficient at killing things. They never thought they'd see him again, obviously. But he's back, with a vengeance. The story behind what he did while in Hell, who he really is, and why he was sent back to earth, is really quite fascinating, and written like a noir detective tale.

I won't go into it any further here. Most of you, I'm sure, would be thoroughly uninterested in such a tale, and in fact are possibly wondering why I would read such a thing. Honestly, I don't know. It is darkly funny, well-written, memorable, witty, gritty, and really describes demons and angels in a fascinating way. But make no mistake, the protagonist (Sandman Slim) is a thoroughly unsavory character. I downloaded the free sample chapters from Amazon, along with a ton of other book samples, based on a recommendation from one blog or another... anyway, I wasn't many pages into the free sample before I just knew I had to buy and read the whole book. Sometimes writing just grabs you, regardless the topic. This was one of those times.

If you want to know more about the tale, here's a quick review I found. Or Google it, it won't be hard to find. It is actually the first in a series, but I'm not sure I want to pursue the series any further.

I'm currently reading White Wolf, by David Gemmell. Another winner. I'll probably do a legit review of it when I finish.

It's supposed to rain all day Saturday (11/12). Let's just say, I am completely set: Rain + Saturday + Skyrim + White Wolf. I may even try to squeeze in a little actual work, though most of my work-related obligations are done. Looks like it's shaping up to be a perfect Saturday. We'll see if it lives up to the potential.

Cat in a Hat Stalking You: Your Argument is Invalid.

Well, I'm sitting here in front of my computer, tapping my fingers on my desk, searching my mind for something else to talk about here. And I'm coming up dry. So, I'm going to pull the plug on this post. All is well in my little corner of the world. We'll see what this week holds.

Adios for now,

Dave, On A Roll

PS Condolences to fellow blogger Logan, on his dad's passing.

A Snack-Sized Serving of Stuff

2011-11-06T23:22:00.000-08:00

Been holding this picture in my archive since last winter. Figured today was the day to finally post it. I'm not very political, nor will I drop a political rant in here to go with the photo... I just really like the shot.

The weekend strolls to a close. A great weekend. Rainy, sure, but I don't mind the rain. I think what made it great was the pair of great play rehearsals we had on Friday and Sunday... I am having more fun with this play than any other production we've done, any year, period. Not sure why this one is different, but it is. It's going really, really well. Everyone seems into it, and it's very enjoyable. I hope it lasts.

"The play's the thing, wherein we'll capture the conscience of the King!"

A little Hamlet for ya there. Modified slightly with a capital K, to alter the meaning rather substantially (all due respect to the long-dead bard)...

OK, let's see if anyone else thinks this is funny...

Well, whadaya think? I have to admit, I laughed pretty hard at some of those falls. I know, I know... nothing new under the sun. Pratfalls have been getting laughs since vaudeville and silent films... still... I enjoyed it, for the most part...

First World Problems: Super bummed that Battlefield 3 doesn't work on my machine. The online play is unplayable, and the single-player game limps along and crashes every few minutes. I'll just shelve it and come back to it in six months, hoping they've worked out the bugs. Hopefully, Skyrim won't have similar problems... if it does, then I'll just have to pay Vye to upgrade my system... or buy me a new one! MUAHAHAHAH!!!! We'll see this coming up weekend... Skyrim comes out 11/11...

Still, it's good that BF3 isn't working, in a way... I have several things on my plate that could/should be commanding my full attention. The play, of course. My novel (this being NaNoWriMo and all!). The camp video, crawling toward completion. Plus, some work-related items (the rug shop, free-lance, and stuff for sister). In a way, the last thing I need is an absorbing distraction...

And now, the strangest video you've seen all year thus far...

Something oddly mesmerizing about that video. I wonder which program the artist used to animate that? I also wonder if he/she created that in his/her right mind, or were certain, shall we say, "substances" involved?

I don't!!!

Well, I'm gonna hit the road for now. Lots to do before bedtime - and it's already almost midnight. Squish me luck.

Adios,

Dave the Dave

Lonely Trees, Toxicity and Weird Mental Imagery

2011-11-02T21:17:00.000-07:00

If there was ever a sure thing in life, it is that a nice photograph of a tree in a big, open field will be called "Alone" or "Lonely" by whoever submits it online... gee, how clever! O_o Watch for it now, you'll see what I'm talking about... next time you're browsing a photo gallery, see for yourself. It's almost as sure a thing as the fact that you'll hear the word "corazon" in any Spanish song you hear...

Greetings to everyone and their brother. In fact, send your brother a link to this post when you get a chance. That way he can get my greeting himself, and he'll be happy. Hey, tis the season! Yes, tis!

For those of you that love the sound of rain and rolling thunder massaging your ears and calming your nerves, through a nearby open window, I have a gift for you. I found a website that does nothing but play wonderful, high-quality ambient rain sound on an endless loop. CLICK HERE. Then turn your speakers up to a comfortable level, minimize the browser window, and enjoy. Oh, and bookmark the site for future use. I've had it on practically nonstop for the past few days.

Of course, I've been listening to some odd music lately as well. You will not believe the song that has been looping through my brain lately... I will post the video here, and I will say ahead of time, if you can survive listening to it through to the end, you will earn 25 bonus Dave Dollars, for you to spend at the Dave Store, buying high-demand Dave merchandise for your collection. Be warned: This song will have the exact opposite effect as the rain sounds... Think you're strong enough? MUAHAHAHAH!!!

I cannot explain why I find that song appealing. Everything about it militates against my liking it. The lead singer cannot sing. His voice like rubbing a cheese grater on my ears. Yet, it has relentlessly squirreled into my brain, and has taken up residence. I even bought the song on iTunes for my library!

I guess it's just one of those mysteries of life... Don't worry: this too shall pass.

And now, R2-D2-shaped ice cubes.

Makes every drink feel like you're drinking it in a space cantina! "These are not the cubes you are looking for..."

So I was thinking again today about the totally bizarre way I've always viewed the months of the year in my brain. I mean, from my earliest memory, I've always immediately conjured up this image in my head when someone mentions a month, and I try to place it in reference to the rest of the year. Here, I created this graphic to post here as I talk about it. And yes, it kind of weirded me out.

So, picture a clock, with months instead of numbers. And picture that clock's only "hand" rotating counter-clockwise. Now picture each of the sections of the clock all different sizes, where the "hand" of the clock goes faster through some segments, and slower through others. Hey, you don't have to picture it, just look at the graphic!

Yes, that's how my mind pictures the year. The "hand" for me (at this moment) is just barely into November, as pictured there. And the colors aren't random - those are the colors my mind assigns to each month, some for obvious reasons (oct/orange/halloween; march/green/st pat's), but others for reasons I know not.

In fact, the whole thing is a mystery to me. Why are some month segments much bigger, and others smaller? Why does the hand go counter-clockwise? Why the colors? And most of all, where on earth did this way of looking at the year come from? Frankly, I don't even know what "normal" people do when they think of different months. If someone says, "next April we're planning a trip", does your mind picture a calender? An hour-glass? An abacus? My mind immediately pictures this clock, and the hand swings around down to the bottom, stopping in the yellow, and now I have the time frame fixed in my head as the conversation continues.

Yeah, I don't know why I'm sharing this here. It kind of dawned on me a while ago that my brain did this. And the more I pondered it, the weirder I thought it was.

I guess I'm in the Lord's hands now...

Yeah, that's not a position I'd like to be stuck in. Then again, I doubt I'd ever skydive to begin with. I'd like to think I would do it... but I know I won't. Especially after reading this article about US Marine Corps pilot William Rankin, whose jet failed him while cruising at 47,000 feet, and he had to eject directly over a huge thunderstorm. Let's just say the trip from 47K feet to the ground was not fun. His chute trapped him in the thunderstorm for forty minutes before finally letting him out so he could land. Go read that article, if you want to see a man who's lucky to be alive...

So I signed up for NaNoWriMo again this year. I succeeded in 2009, and failed miserably in 2010. I'm off to a good start this year. In fact, when I finish this post, I'm going to open MSWord and throw some more words on the screen. Once I'm assured I'm on a roll, I'll let you know more about what I'm writing. Good thing I found this article on 14 punctuation marks that I never knew existed. It's a good read, if you want to give it a quick skim.

Well, I don't know what else to write about here, so I will end this nonsense.

Adios,

Dave the Nonsensical

Halloween Nonsense and Other Important Stuff

2011-10-29T21:47:00.000-07:00

That... is an incredible picture. Saw that yesterday (as I'm sure many of you did as well; it was everywhere) and knew I had to post it here. Click it to see a nice high-res version. Mt Ranier casting a sunrise shadow on the clouds.

Anyways, hello, y'all. Wasn't going to post today, but I've collected a good amount of Halloween-related nonsense and I'm running out of time to post it! The day is almost upon us! What's a Dave to do!? You know how flighty we Daves are... but we have our redeeming qualities as well. We may be unreliable, and smell odd, and often take forever making camp videos, but hey, at least we think farts are funny, and we stop at every Starbucks we see! So, Dave's are cool. In fact, maybe you should dress up as a Dave for Halloween this year... the costume is easy. Just carry an iPad in one hand, a Caramel macchiato in the other, and wear the same pair of jeans 10 days in a row. You'll be great.

Anyway, here's a couple jack-o-lantern related items for you...

Um... yeah... it's a little weird, admittedly... but you can't second-guess the carving skills. Pretty cool...

Here's another funny one...

Yes, I really did just post a lolcat photo on my blog. Some might consider that a new low for this blog, but I don't care. You need the lows every now and then, so you can better appreciate the highs. I realize that this week's blog donations will likely take a hit because of it... but I shall assume your previous generosity will see me through the post-lolcat lull. The holidays approach, so I'm sure that will reinvigorate your giving.

Here's a video of pumpkins being smashed in both slow-motion and reverse slow-motion. What more can one ask for in a Halloween-theme blog post?

It's pretty cool full screen, you know... you could have clicked it full screen, if you wanted to... you could have, you know.

OK, fine, here's a cool Haunted House made of legos I saw on Geekology...

It took the creator 600 hours to build. 600 hours!?!?! Holy mackerel! That's almost as long as it takes me to finally get around to working on my novel! Cleck here to see the article. Or you could click it even. Click or cleck, whatever. We Daves sometimes leave typos, just to be hip and trendy...

OK, fine, enough Halloween nonsense...

The memorial service for Dr. Diane McIntosh was today. As usual, I was ensconced in the Upper Room, video-recording the proceedings. It was moving, as was to be expected. I was especially moved by what was shared by Diane's husband, Wayne. He was so open and raw, I was amazed. It struck me that what he shared was the type of unfettered emotional reality that one usually reserves for those closest to you, safely squirreled away in the confines of one's home... not in front of a church-full of people that range from family to acquaintance to stranger. It was like he shared treasure with us; I was humbled and touched. I told him so afterwards; he seemed legitimately surprised to hear such a thing.

Anyway, I better change the subject before I get all weepy. Yeah, we Daves are soft like that. We want to be stronger (which is why we read books like Gates of Fire), but really, we're just big teddy bears. Yes, I said "big"! Hey, look at these biceps! (Dave flexes his guns) See?

Yay! There's a new video out from World Order!

There's something undeniably cool about these chaps.

On an unrelated note: HELP! I keep buying games from Steam! What is wrong with me! HEEELPP!! Their Christmas sales haven't even started yet, and already I'm adding games to my library at an alarming pace! Want to know how I justify it? I say, "Hey, if I can get 4 full games for $5, then it should be no problem getting $5 worth of enjoyment out of at least one of them! It's cheaper than going to a movie! And I could end up playing each game for many hours! It's not like I'm spending $50 or $60 each game!"

Yeah, I know, weak argument. There's an embarrassingly large number of games in my library that I have still not played.

Yeah, I've discussed this before, I know. I'll stop talking about it and move on...

I watched a Japanese movie the other night called 13 Assassins on NetFlix. Not sure why I'm bringing it up, since I know none of you will ever see it, or have even heard of it, nor did I even particularly like it, or would I recommend it! So why did I bring it up!?!?! Well, to be difficult, that's why! (Holy crap! It got 95% on Rotten Tomatoes! I guess a lot of people dug it!)

I did finally watch Life In A Day last night... for free, on YouTube! Yes, it was cool. The film is the result of a worldwide project, whereby random people from all over the world recorded what they did on a certain day (July 24, 2009) and posted the footage to YouTube, submitting the link to the filmmakers. They collected 4,500 hours of footage, culled through it, and made a documentary of the results. It is quite inspiring and fascinating, actually, as I'd hoped it would be. CLICK HERE to go to the YouTube page and watch it. If you have 90 minutes to kill, that is...

Well, what can I say? I started a new post and this is what came out! If you made it this far, you have both my appreciation and my congratulations. I'll have more nonsense for you soon. My archive is busting at the seams.

Dave the Common

Gates of Fire, by Steven Pressfield: A Review

2011-10-27T23:28:00.000-07:00

I have read many great books in my time, in many genres. Trying to define "great" is not as easy as it sounds, since many of the books I feel are truly great are quite different -- in content, in presentation, in style, in delivery, in feel. I'd like to think my ability to recognize and appreciate great writing transcends my own unique set of preferences... meaning, I may not like the story or the subject matter, but that should take nothing away from my ability to acknowledge the author's skill set. Contrariwise, I'd also like to think that just because I connect with the story/subject matter as thoroughly as a person can possibly do such, it still wouldn't color my ability to objectively comment on the writing, the story, the author's ability to navigate the page and/or the reader's heart.

All that to say, prepare for a glowing review. How objective it is remains to be seen.

I'll summarize this review now, for those that lack the patience to wade through this post. This book is the best book I've ever read, period, for many reasons, which I will attempt to elucidate upon in the following paragraphs. This is technically the third time I've read this book, and it is an example I can, with clear conscience and without exaggeration, point to as that rare book that truly does improve with subsequent readings.

Gates of Fire, by the amazing Steven Pressfield, is a dramatic re-telling of the Spartan stand against the Persian invaders of King Xerxes in the Battle of Thermopylae in about 480 BC. Spartan King Leonidas, along with 300 hand-picked Spartan warriors and their squires and helots, were joined by a mix of Greek warriors from different surrounding regions, coming together to try and plug the narrow mountain pass called Thermopylae (aka, The Hot Gates or Gates of Fire), which was the only road Xerxes could use to move his armies into Greece, to conquer and enslave the country (as he had everywhere else he went).

At this point, if you could do me a favor and drive all thought of the 2006 comic-book movie "300" from your mind, it would help. Though this book tells the same basic tale, the hyper-stylized, heavily-embellished and outright odd movie should not color your willingness to pick up this book. Different beast altogether. I placed a screenshot from the movie at the top of this post only because I could not find a better shot of a Spartan phalanx.

In the book, a single man, named Xeones, has barely survived the famous last stand, being pulled from the rubble in the immediate aftermath, with grievous wounds. King Xerxes immediately orders his best surgeons to tend to him, in the hopes that this man could survive and satiate the King's thirst for knowledge about these men who withstood his innumerable forces for three full days, specifically this core of Spartans that proved so impossibly resilient. Who were these warriors? The Persian King, who had witnessed the entirety of the three-day battle from a safe nearby vantage point, initially supremely confident that his forces would roll through the pass without much problem, was stunned to see his forces, including some of his very best, decimated by such a small force, to the tune of 20,000+ men. When all was said and done, the narrow mountain pass was a hellish slaughterhouse, the rock-hard earth transformed into knee-deep mud by the spilled blood.

Xeones, himself a helot (slave, if you will) to a Spartan captain named Dienekes, survives long enough to relay to King Xerxes' chief historian the tale of the 300 and their suicide mission. This book is that story, as though we have picked up that historian's record from an ancient archive and sat down to give it a reading.

The book works first as a character story. Xeones is merely the first of many people the reader meets, and, if the reader is anything like me, will form a deep bond with - a bond made more bittersweet by the fact that the final outcome for most of these characters is known to us before we even crack the book open. You know these 300 will die - it hangs over your head each page, like a guillotine blade. If the characters were shallow and/or poorly drawn, their sacrifice would mean little. But because they were crafted with such expert care, their imminent demise manifests itself, as the book progresses, in an increasing tightness in the belly. This is especially nefarious, since the book is so hard to put down. You are hooked and drawn forward.

The book works as a history lesson. Some people (like me) are fascinated by certain segments of history. My fascination seems to orbit around military history - odd, since I was never in the military, though I hold in highest respect those that are/were. World War II is a big topic with me, but wars more modern and more ancient also snag both my attention and my imagination. What fascinates me about ancient warfare, as much as anything else, are the weapons/armor and tactics/strategies employed. Shooting someone from distance with a rifle is one thing; gutting someone with a xiphos or overhand-thrusting an eight-foot spear into somebody's chest is something else entirely. Or is it?

The history lesson goes beyond merely the in-depth study of the Spartan lifestyle and training. It drives home, albeit with subtlety, the fact that the ultimate triumph of Greece over the invading Persian King led directly to the birth of democracy, which has direct implications on our (U.S.) society today, for obvious reasons.

The book works as an action-adventure. The inexorable pace of the tale is constant, even with the frequent trips back in time to Xeones' childhood, and the road he took in his early years that led him to Lakedaemon, into the often-brutal service of the Spartan army. It builds like a juggernaut, until all you can do is grab hold of the book covers and hold on for dear life, clinging to the impossible hope that at least one of these incredible characters will somehow miraculously survive, knowing that they won't. The ridiculously vivid battle descriptions are a wonder to read, especially seeing the way the Spartans trained (and why), and how it translated onto the battlefield. But the interactions between the characters as they move towards their destinies are equally captivating and, surprisingly, in many places, very funny.

The book works as literature. To me, this book is art. The vocabulary and sentence construction in this book represent the best of my experience. To say Pressfield "has a way with words" would be to so understate as to be insulting. His sentences are a joy to eat - so much so that one could pull entire monologues out of his pages, as is, and perform them onstage, to great effect. In fact, I believe an example is in order.

King Leonidas stands before his assembled 300 Spartans as they are about to depart on the hard march to Thermopylae. Assembled around them are not only the rest of the Spartan forces, wishing with everything inside them that they could have been selected to go as well, but also the wives, families, the whole town, gathered to see these heroes off, knowing they will never return. King Leonidas addresses these words to his men.

Death stands close upon us now. Can you feel him, brothers? I do. I am human and I fear him. My eyes cast about for a sight to fortify the heart for that moment when I come to look him in the face.
            Shall I tell you where I find this strength, Friends? In the eyes of our sons in scarlet before us, yes. And in the countenance of their comrades who will follow in battles to come. But more than that, my heart finds courage from these, our women, who watch in tearless silence as we go.
            How many times have these twain stood here in the chill shade of Parnon and watched those they love march out to war? Pyrrho, you have seen grandfathers and father troop away down the Aphetaid, never to return. Alkemene, your eyes have held themselves unweeping as husband and brothers have departed to their deaths. Now here you stand again, with no few others who have borne as much and more, watching sons and grandsons march off to hell.
            Men’s pain is lightly borne and swiftly over. Our wounds are of the flesh, which is nothing; women’s is of the heart – sorrow unending, far more bitter to bear. Learn from them, brothers, from their pain in childbirth which the gods have ordained immutable. Bear witness to that lesson they teach: nothing good in life comes but at a price. Sweetest of all is liberty. This we have chosen and this we pay for. We have embraced the laws of Lykurgus, and they are stern laws. They have schooled us to scorn the life of leisure, which this rich land of ours would bestow upon us if we wished, and instead to enroll ourselves in the academy of discipline and sacrifice. Guided by these laws, our fathers for twenty generations have breathed the blessed air of freedom and have paid the bill in full when it was presented. We, their sons, can do no less.
            In six hundred years, so the poets say, no Spartan woman has beheld the smoke of the enemy’s fires. By Zeus and Eros, by Athena Protectress and Artemis Upright, by the Muses and all the gods and heroes who defend Lakedaemon and by the blood of my own flesh, I swear that our wives and daughters, our sisters and mothers, will not behold those fires now.

How I would love to perform that piece onstage. And it is one of a dozen or more examples I could insert here.

Lastly, the book works as an unshakable source of inspiration. I cannot help but wonder, as I tasted the final words of this book (for this third reading), whether I have ever had - or will ever have - even a fraction of the steel within me required to stand among such men. And I don't mean the Spartans - I mean all men of this caliber, even today. Men willing to sacrifice everything for what they believe in. Men willing to endure brutal training, to learn hard lessons, to take life's best shot to the teeth, to endure hardness as a good soldier of Christ (if I may wax Biblical for a moment). How can I find and apply this strength, this dedication, this resolve to my own situation? To my own walk with God? To what I believe in and hold most valuable? At the risk of being corny, this book makes me want to be a man, in every sense of that word. The camaraderie on display here is something I wish I could experience, and know I likely never will.

Even though I have gone on at such lengths, espousing a few of what I feel are many legitimate virtues of this book and its author, I must qualify (and risk cheapening) it with this question: Will this book strike you the same way? Will it captivate and decimate, inspire and entertain you the same way? I have no clue. But as for me, it has solidified its place at the top of my Best Books list, and I don't anticipate it being moved for a very long time.

Summary: 5/5 The language and writing alone make this a book worth reading. If the subject matter connects with you as it does for me, you will be exponentially rewarded. My only regret is that I will never again be able to read this book for the first time.

Beware! Uninspired Torpor Ahead!

2011-10-22T01:07:00.000-07:00

So a week or so ago, I was returning to work from lunch, as is my custom. I opened the car door, and as usual, had too much stuff to grab up and stand up with... so I grabbed my beloved iPad and reached up, placing it on the roof of my car, thereby freeing up a hand to grab up more of the stuff I needed to take into work with me. I've done this before - I get out, snatch the iPad from the roof, stick it under my arm, and walk in, heavy laden with my stuff...

Only this time, yes, I forgot to grab the iPad. About 90 minutes later, I found myself looking for the thing, and realized, in a flash-fit of sheer panic, that I didn't grab it off my car! I ran outside, stomach in a knot, and there it was, still sitting on my car, in a packed parking lot. It seems nobody wanted to help themselves to a free iPad. Ah, well, their loss, I suppose.

To say I was relieved is an understatement.

Of course, the level of panic I felt over the potential loss of my iPad certainly got me wondering if maybe, perhaps, I'm a bit too attached to the thing... I hesitate to call it an idol, since, in a way, that's admitting sin... but I found I "didn't even want to THINK about" what it would have been like to lose the thing. That also was a red flag. I mean, it's not like there's anything on my iPad that is irreplaceable. I can re-download and re-install all the games, apps, music, books, etc. that are on there, if I needed to, easy peasy. Maybe that wasn't the real issue... perhaps I would merely have been overwhelmed by the feeling of sheer stupidity I would have felt by having been so moronic as to leave an $800 gadget on top of my car for any wandering shmoe to help him/herself to.

I would have felt like this guy...

I wonder what the story is behind this picture..?

OK, enough nonsense. Bottom line, I still have my iDol, so all is well.

Or is it? MUAHAHAHAH!!!!!

So, my Youngest has been losing more teeth. She lost one of her front-top teeth, making a big hole in her smile. The other front-top one was loose as well, so she had great fun for a few days pushing on it with her tongue, slowly forcing it over toward the very middle, so that it looked like she just had one center-top tooth. She called it her "uni-tooth", and she and her sisters had many giggles over it. I was surprised that there seemed so much wiggle room that she could do that with her tooth.

Well, Wednesday night, I came home from work to a very upset 5 year old. Thursday, it turned out, was going to be "school picture day". She was frantically trying to pull the now-stubborn loose uni-tooth out, so she wouldn't look "like a freak" for her school pictures, thus being forever immortalized in the yearbook. We tried to show her how to smile with her mouth closed, but she couldn't seem to smile without flashing that one front tooth. Sure enough, Thursday came, and she came home with her new school ID card. There's the unitooth...

As I write this, it is the next day (Friday). Yep, her unitooth came out tonight. A day late.

Ah, well... makes for a cute story...

Her 6th birthday party is Saturday. It's a costume party, remember. No, I still don't have a costume. At this point, I'll either need to make something that is ridiculously lame and homemade-looking, or dart to the mall and drop $40-$60 on a pre-made costume, which will be equally lame. Neither option is palatable to me. Well, there are certainly far worse problems to have. So I won't sweat it too badly.

We tried to make Mags a wearable cardboard Transformer costume, but without success. Good thing I bought that pre-fabbed one off Amazon. That reminds me, I found out (the hard way) that "2-Day Shipping" is really 4-5 day shipping. Apparently, buying something on the 17th and having it arrive on the 21st still counts as "2-days", because of a nebulous concept called "processing time"... I don't recall the "3 to 5-Day" option taking any longer than 3-to-5 days before... makes me wonder why I paid through the nose for 2-Day...

Man, I am a rambling fool tonight...

We had our first Christmas Play rehearsal tonight at church. Enthusiasm and excitement are high. Hope it lasts. I like the script. We'll see how well I still like it a month from now...

I'm sorry, but you MUST watch this video, hi-res, full screen.

Landscapes: Volume Two from Dustin Farrell on Vimeo.

Breath-taking.

See? See what happens when I don't have anything hilarious and/or interesting to share? See what you get? Tales of teeth, of costumes, of shipping foibles, of play rehearsals... I need to get out more... at least I've still been working out with my wonderfully-sadistic personal trainer. He destroys me. I love it.

See Left Handed Toons for more hilarity.

OK, well, I guess I'll go now. If anything similarly exciting happens, like, say, I find an unmatched sock, or I sweep the front sidewalk, why I'll be sure to post it up here straight away!

Dave the Boring

A Post Full of This and That... (Well, More "This" Than "That", Really)...

2011-10-17T23:47:00.000-07:00

It's Fall! Get it? I opened today's post with a seasonal, visual pun-hybrid type of thing! You know, like "don't fall for falling over the falls during Fall!"

OK, fine, that was a stretch. I lean upon your propensity toward quick forgiveness, and I boldly move forward!

Yes, I finished writing the Christmas play. And it turned out well, methinks. I don't want to toot my own horn too loudly here, but I think it's pretty dang funny. Still working on casting - some roles up in the air until I get the "yay/nay" from everyone. Hope to get it soon - our first rehearsal/read-through is this Friday! Yikes! If you want to read the script, let me know and I'll email it to you! Then you can tell me how off my rocker I am. I mean, what other Christmas play in history has ever had Elizabeth putting Mary into a sleeper hold? Sheesh!

(you think I'm kidding...)

Moving right along... here is a Boba Fett viking helmet for you to enjoy...

I get a nerd rush just thinking about something so awesome... if you want to buy one for your Star Wars Memorabilia collection, it will set you back about $250. Click this link to read the Geekology article.

So I finished reading that Brandon Sanderson novella I mentioned in the previous post (called Infinity Blade). It had some nice (funny) dialog, some cool ideas and some great fights. But it didn't really have much depth. I can forgive that. It was a quick, fun read, and is only a couple bucks. Grab it if you can, or if you have an eReader of some kind, email me and I'll loan you the file. Not all eBooks are loanable, but this one is.

It was good enough to inspire me to actually play the Infinity Blade game again on my iPad (after tinkering with it many moons ago). Only the game crashes to iPad desktop now. It won't even launch. Bummer. Hope the next update fixes it. I remember the game being visually impressive. I wanna try it again.

And now, a dude playing "Hall of the Mountain King" on a custom-made 27-string guitar thing. Give it a minute, it starts off slow...

I think it takes a special kind of crazy to bring an idea to fruition like that. Good on ya, mate!

We're trying to make Maggie a "transformers" costume for her party this weekend. Out of painted cardboard. So that when she curls up on the floor, she turns into a truck, like this. Why? Because we are crazy. Her favorite Transformer? Nope, not Octopus Prime... not Bumblebee... her favorite is a GMC truck called Iron Hide ("He's the weapons guy, dad!"). I thought we should just buy her this costume and be done with it ($25 well spent, I think), but she wants a home-made one that will turn into a GMC. I predict it will last about 10 minutes before she removes it and runs off to play. We are going to have oodles of people at her party this Saturday... dang. Better start psyching myself up now. I don't do well with crowds... and crowds in my castle? Hmm...

And now, Mona Lisa with a rocket launcher...

Thanksy Banksy!

I've been getting the creative itch lately. I hope first to funnel it into finishing the camp video (no, it isn't done yet! Sheesh!), and then into the play (as far as acting), but I also want to work on my novels, plus maybe another Wagnervana webcomic. If anything comes of it, I'll let you know here first, since I just KNOW you're dying to see more of my work! Right?

By the way, I bought Titan Quest Gold the other day on Steam for $5 (what a deal!) and have been playing it again. I say that for Dry's sake... Hey Dry, I made it all the way to level 11 on my new Conqueror toon before installing the latest TQVault and dusting all my archived gear off. Then I twinked the heck out of her, and now she's an unstoppable beast. I know, I should have tried to play with just the gear that dropped (or that I could buy from vendors), but I lack the inner resolve to be that disciplined. I like to obliterate my enemies...

I don't know if I've posted this video before (if I have, I apologize), but it's amazing...

Yeah, yet another activity I'd love to be able to do, if I could ever conquer my fear of heights.

OK, fine, I'll stop for now. I have a bunch of other random stuff to unload on you all soon. Oh, you love it and you know it! Quit complaining!

Adios

Dave the Crazed

PS I'm reading Gates of Fire again! Best book ever.

Street Urchins, Old Windbags and Infinity Blades

2011-10-13T20:33:00.000-07:00

Nice clouds... reminds me of those warm Summer nights growing up in Bangkok, studying underwater calligraphy with the rest of the orphans and street urchins. Ah, that amazing mix of heady aromas down by the wharf: the smells of hot onion soup, rotting fish and unbridled religious ambition... those were the days...

They weren't my days, but they were somebody's days, perhaps...

My days were spent sorting baseball cards and reading comics, if memory serves. But that's another story... There were a few heady aromas involved as well, but I won't go there...

Greetings, y'all. Dave the Perpetually Scattered here, with another quick blast of literary hot air. One day I'll write something of substance here... one day...

I've been wrestling with this year's Christmas script the past few nights. I came up with (what I believe to be) a fitting sub-plot to weave into the play, plus some (hopefully) good ideas for a few additional scenes. At first, I was actually fearful that it wouldn't come together right, but I've got some good momentum going now, and I'm feeling good about it. Of course, it remains to be seen whether the script will be too ambitious to produce in the time we have between now and Christmas Sunday. If we can pull it off, it might be our best play yet. And that's saying a lot - we've put on a number of great plays...

I'm just glad Skyrim doesn't come out for another month! Man, if I had that game to distract me right now, I'd never get the script done... the more I see of that game, the more amazed I am by it, and the more I want it, want it, want it.

Does this guy look bored to you?

So, my youngest will be having her 6th birthday party soon. Since it's so close to Halloween, we're making it a costume party again this year. That will likely become the annual tradition. She wanted to make it a Transformers dress-up theme, but we felt that would be a bit too constricting (not all kids are obsessed with Transformers like she is), so we broadened it to include superheroes as well. Still not sure what I'll dress up as, if anything. I was thinking about going as Hancock (from the Will Smith movie of the same name), but I doubt anyone will "get it". Any ideas?

I was watching Rugby on the television the other day when we were at On The Border (for Taco Tuesday). That game is impossible to understand. It's one of the great mysteries of life, like the stock market, the tax code, love, and how they get the bubbles into carbonated water.

I'm not sure how I feel about this new Jack Vale video clip. He has on an ultra-realistic "old man" mask, and does some serious pooting in a Target store somewhere...

I admit, I laughed quite hard, but I felt guilty about it. Shall we take some time to try and analyze why I'm so conflicted about it?

Yeah, I don't think we should, either...

One of my favorite photoshops from my archive... no sense letting it languish there!

So, after spending a few weeks reading "book samples", I finally read a full book this past week! Just finished reading Spellwright, by Blake Charlton on Wednesday. I wish I could summon the inner "whatever" necessary to write a full book review, but I think I'll just summarize. Gotta save my creativity for tonight's attempt at finishing the script!

The story centers around a dyslexic wizard, who may or may not be some "chosen world hero" type of character. The magic system is quite cool and well-developed. Magicians study certain magical "languages", and cast spells by writing sentences (if you will), forming the letters within their very forearms, arranging them into sentence-spells, and casting them out of their fingertips. It sounds wacky, but the effect is quite cool. Picture the Emperor from Return of the Jedi, casting that lightning out of his hands to sizzle Luke Skywalker, before Darth Daddy chucked him over the rails. Now picture words streaming out of his fingers instead of lightning. You get the idea.

Only a curse has been placed on the main character, which causes him to misspell the spells (lol), often with devastating negative effects. As you can imagine, the story deals at first with his disillusionment over his disability, and then his quest to have the curse removed so he can fulfill his destiny (which may or may not actually apply to him).

It's a good book, with some good ideas. The magic system is good, the action and local settings are good, and the writing solid. Yet the story itself had issues for me. A lot of the plot developments and "twists" seemed very forced to me, and the world-building was quite ham-fisted in places. Granted, this is the author's debut novel, so a certain amount of leeway should be granted, so he can develop and mature. Still, the ride was enjoyable (if tedious in places). And though I enjoyed it, I'm not sure I enjoyed it enough to move on to the next book in the series.

So, yes, yet another series starter that I won't likely pursue further. I should go back over my book list from the past two years and check it out. I bet there are very few series that I pursued past book one. Odd. I don't feel like I'm that particularly hard to please.

I've begun a new novella by Brandon Sanderson called Infinity Blade. Believe it or not, it's a tie-in story for a video game of the same name that is available for iPad. I have the game, actually, but (surprise surprise!) I haven't really played it much yet. Sanderson was apparently paid a tidy sum to crank out the novella, and it was only $3, so I popped for it. It's quite good, actually (as expected from anything by Sanderson). I'll let you know my thoughts in the next post I make.

Did you know that among the latest trends in Japan is a dental procedure to make your teeth crooked? The anti-braces, I guess. Apparently, the thinking is that girls with perfect teeth are unapproachable, but girls with crooked teeth are more down-to-earth and less intimidating. Crazy. Don't know if it applies to guys or just the females. Check this article out for more info, if you don't believe me..

OK, well, I think I'm done for tonight. Off to try and finish the Christmas script. Squish me luck.

Dave the Daunted

A Quick-Hit, Drive-By, Near-Substance-less Post

2011-10-07T00:15:00.000-07:00

Here's the funny part... lots of stuff going on, in just about every facet of my life... and NONE of it even remotely interesting enough to warrant some text time in a blog post. Books, movies, music, work, church, drama, personal creative junk, personal training junk... all of it eminently yawn-worthy.

Still, a whole week, and no update from Dave. I mean... how will you survive? I know, I'm cruel! But what can I say... boring update, or no update at all?

Can't write it off to the "Fall Blahs"... because, frankly, I enjoy the Fall. I love it when the weather turns chilly... then I can bust out my hoodies for sleeping! Ah, I love sleeping in a hoodie, the hood pulled up and drawstring pulled tight. Snug, warm, comfy... never want to wake up! Too cozy! In fact, I'm getting sleepy just thinking about it!

Ah, well. Lemme just post a Funny Picture and hit the road...

I'll keep hoping for something interesting to happen, to make your next stop-by worth while.

Until then, adios.

Dave the Boring

PS Hey, you could do the work for me this time, and post something interesting in the comments! Then I can live vicariously through you! Think of it!

Death, Distraction and the Christmas Juggernaut

2011-09-30T23:38:00.000-07:00

Sailing away, up into Heaven...

Well, it appears this past TNT church camp we had in July 2011 will be the last one we have with Dr. Diane, who passed away on Thursday 9/29. I can't describe how huge a bummer that is to me. On the one hand, yeah, she's "in a better place" and all, I get it. I'm happy for her in that regard. Still, she kind of held a unique position in my heart as perhaps the only person I could safely rely upon to hear and know what God was up to. There's a void there now for me; it will be interesting to see if/how God chooses to fill that.

Regardless, it was quite unexpected. Certain people you just assume will live forever. I hate that "sucker punch to the stomach" feeling you get when someone is just suddenly not there anymore. I learned a ton from that lady. And the fact the last time I saw her she looked me in the eye and told me that she considered me one of her "sons" just makes it that much more difficult to swallow.

I could go on at length here, but I won't. I'll just post a couple pictures in her memory, and then move on like all was well in the world. My life is richer because I knew her. I guess that's all a person can hope for, in the end; to make a lasting impact while there is time. She won't be forgotten any time soon.

That's her, in the middle, bottom row, in the pink hat. That's from this past camp, three months ago.

I don't have any good pictures of her smiling, in my archive.

Which is odd, since it seemed to me she was always smiling.

She carried a ton of wisdom in that frail frame.

Anyway, God speed, Dr. Diane, wherever you are.

----------------------------------------

So, the Christmas season approacheth. That means Christmas Drama Time! That usually signifies the beginning of about 12 weeks of stress and teeth-pulling, to get a Christmas play/pageant going. We're going to do something a bit different this year, and I'm actually pretty stoked about it. We're going to take one of the sunday school Christmas plays in my archive and redo it... but I'm going to re-write and flesh out the script more, adding more scenes and making it so that adult actors can also participate. The script (called The Beginning) was originally intended for the youth, and when we performed it (10 years ago) the cast was all kids, high school and younger. I love the idea of adding more meat to it, perhaps doubling the length, and strengthening the cast. I already have a bunch of ideas. And the fact that it's been 10 years since we did the play is pretty cool as well. It will sort of be like a 10th Anniversary Director's Cut version or something. It also happens to be the one play that I posted online that gets the most use, as far as emails I get each year from people who produce the play.

Bah, sorry, I'm bummed. Lemme dig out a funny video clip from my archive. See if it cheers me up.

Hmm... almost worked. Lemme try again...

Ah, the classic Wooden Spoon prank...

Hmm... still didn't work. Maybe posting something funny isn't what I'm supposed to do...

Here, this seems more fitting... High Def, full screen, please...

Yeah, that works...

And now, for the random link of the day, CLICK HERE to see an article that shows what happens when one weird fellow decides to apply a layer of paint to the same baseball every day for 34 years. I'll give you a hint: it currently weighs about 1,300 pounds... it's a pretty cool article, really. It shows pictures throughout the years as the size slowly grows... currently over 22,000 layers of paint... I guess it takes a strange, quirky sort of fellow to do such a thing...

I'd post a picture of it, but when I right-click on one to "save as", a scary copyright notices pops up. And you know how timid and spineless I am... of course, I could easily circumvent it by merely taking a screen cap, pasting into photoshop, cropping it and saving it to my hard drive... but I'm not going to risk prison time for it! I mean, I doubt you'd come and visit me in jail. I know how busy you are! And here I thought we were friends... *sigh*

Well, speaking of copyright violations, lemme see if I have any funny comics to post...

There, that's from the webcomic Left Handed Toons (By Right Handed People). It's a funny strip. CLICK HERE if you want to read more... maybe since I linked back to their site, they won't send me to prison...

I think I've sufficiently traveled all over the map in this post. I might as well end it. It's so quiet in here all alone! If you happen to be reading this, by all means, leave a comment! All the cool people leave comments. And you're cool, right?

Adios,

Dave the Uncool

Music, Plays, Books, Movies and Other Vacuous Forms of Entertainment...

2011-09-28T00:18:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know waterside photos are kinda cliched, but there's something about the clouds and the dash of sun that captures me in this shot. And no, I don't think there's too much mud in the foreground... I kinda like the balance and mood.

Wow, when did you become so critical of my choice in opening landscape shots!? Geez, settle down! Or I'll say "Geez" again!

OK, I have to start with Marc Martel. Just caught this guy tonight while scrolling through Bits and Pieces... this guy has incredible talent. He basically just recently went viral with this particular clip, but he has quite a collection of great clips already in his YouTube Channel...

In this clip, he is auditioning for a live Queen Homage tour being put together by one of the members of the original band. This guy channels Freddy Mercury like you can't believe...

There are other clips, as I said. One where he plays Asleep In The Light by Kieth Green, and still another where he sings Nessun Dorma, to show he can belt out Opera as well. He's actually in a Christian band called Downhere. Anyway, I figured I'd plug him here, since no doubt he's going to be big, likely soon...

So yet again, I had a crazy-awesome blessing fall out of the sky onto my head Monday night... as many of you know, years ago, I posted a bunch of the Christmas plays I've written over the years to a website online called Dramatix, a site which I heard of through a friend on the Faithwriter's forum named Glenn Hascall. The site has assembled lots of free scripts for churches to use for various occasions. Anyway, since posting them online for free about a decade ago, I get emails each year from around the globe, from churches and groups that are using one of the scripts. That's the only stipulation I include for use, just to let me know if you're using it, and say a quick hello, that sort of thing. Getting those emails always cheers me up, no matter what. It's nice to know I'm making an impact somewhere, no matter how small.

So I get an email from the guy that runs Dramatix and (long story short) he tells me that an American group (possibly educational in nature) had found one of my scripts on the Dramatix site and included it in a printed publication. They then forwarded the royalty payments for using the script to the organization in New Zealand that oversees the distribution of said monies to the authors in question (the Dramatix site is based in New Zealand). That group then forwarded the check to the gentleman that runs Dramatix, with instructions to please forward the money to the author of the script -- meaning me! So he contacted me, and now I have a rather substantial check coming to me in the mail, all out of the blue.

To say I'm blown away is an understatement. I certainly never thought the scripts would ever result in any sort of financial gain. I just wanted to share what I felt were fun, meaningful scripts with others, instead of just letting them gather dust in my archive. My sister thinks I should gather my scripts up into an eBook and offer them for sale on Amazon. Not sure if I'll do that, but it's food for thought. Anyway, I thought it was a way-cool thing to have happen (kind of like getting filmed for that documentary last spring).

So I've been reading a lot of free sample chapters of new books/authors lately, and I've found a few gems...

The Alloy of Law, by Brandon Sanderson
Prince of Thorns, by Mark Lawrence
Acacia, by David Anthony Durham
Under Heaven, by Guy Gavriel Kay
Farlander, by Col Buchanon
The Thief-Taker's Apprentice, by Stephen Daes

I've read some turd samples as well, but these I've listed are among the winners. If/When I buy the full books and give them a thorough read, I'll be sure to drop some reviews on y'all. It's been a while since my last book review, I'm sure that fact is trying your patience. Take heart! If you need good book reviews, go over to Logan's blog. He's posted a few good ones of late... and you know the old saying: "Always Trust A Man Named Logan."

Skip to 0:38 to get to the Darth Vader part... the first half-minute, the guy just draws a lame Yoda for some reason. But the Vader artwork is really good.

So, I went to see a movie with my good pal Carey the Rapidly-Shrinking Man last Friday, called Killer Elite, starring Jason Statham, Clive Owen and Robert DeNiro. I'm glad I didn't wait to check reviews before seeing it, since right now it's cruising at a cool 25% on Rotten Tomatoes, very firmly in the "rotten" category. I actually must have been in the right mood to see it, since I really enjoyed it. It was much better than I thought it would be (the last couple Statham movies have been pretty bad). Anyway, I won't do a full review, since I'm feeling lazy right now, but I will say, if you dig action flicks and you get a chance to see it, I recommend it.

I will admit that every time I saw Jason Statham's arms, I felt a pang of envy. I want arms like that. I'm still greatly enjoying my new-found workout kick. I'm loving the way it makes me feel/look. I'm now starting to look into supplements and cleansing regimens and vitamins etc, to see if I can maximize the results. I can still stand to lose a few pounds, and I want to bulk up some more. My narcissism is shifting from mostly-internal to external now... I'm becoming one of those oddly-amusing older, funny-looking dudes who try to recapture some of their youth. You know the ones... they think they're going to tone up a bit and suddenly everyone will think they're handsome or something, lol. Whatever. Yeah, I know the Bible says "bodily exercise profiteth little" (1 Tim 4:8), but hey... at least it profits a little!

Well, I think that's enough nonsense for now.

Adios for now,

Dave the Famous Author (lol)

Elitists, Memories and Poorly-Drawn Comics

2011-09-23T01:10:00.000-07:00

Plug, plug, pluggin' along...

What's the latest, you ask? Well, nothin' much, as it turns out. Hence the full week between updates. Yeah, I know... you're heart-broken. I can feel it. Because I am strong in The Force. In fact, I find your lack of faith disturbing... don't make me have to come over there! So help me, if I have to pull this Tie fighter over right here on the freeway, I will!

OK, fine, I'll start with a couple funny pictures. We'll see where it goes from there... first, some literary elitist humor...

OK, that should amuse those of us who have read Harry Potter and the Song of Ice and Fire... all 2 of us... OK, let's see, what else? How about a little humor for the video game elitists among us?

OK, that works.... let's see, what shall we finish up this Elitist Photo Trilogy with? Hmm...

How about...

LOL, omg, I laugh every time I see that picture... yeah, I know, nothing elitist about that photoshop job... I blew the theme with that one. Oh well, at least I found an excuse to post it. LOL, dang, that's a funny picture...

Speaking of funny pictures, I saw that photo the other day, where the President (all due respect) posed in the center of a group photo (some "open government" society or such nonsense) and he waved, his right hand effectively blocking the face of the guy just to his right. I laughed, and of course immediately thought of Mike Wazowski in Monsters, Inc (my favorite Pixar movie). So I had to make the following pic...

I guess that comic is for the Elitist Pixar Fans among us... I uploaded it to Memebase; we'll see if they find it amusing enough to post on their front page...

OK, shifting gears...

Here's the latest "50 People, 1 Question" video. I love these videos...

The question is, "What is your favorite memory?"

Interesting question. Of course, since watching this clip, I've wondered about my own favorite memory... it's a hard question. It would be easier for me to narrow it down to the specific times of my life. Like, break it down by decade or something...

It's always tricky picking a favorite anything, really. Books, games, movies, songs, food, color... it always seems to be changing. For me, anyway.

Favorite memory? Well, I suppose a strong contender would be the one I detailed in this blog post, about delivering that monologue in my method acting class many moons ago. Being in the delivery room for Maggie's birth is a contender as well. Doing an absolutely perfect layback grind on my skateboard at Webb Park in RB in front of other skaters (who acknowledged how awesome it was) and riding off as though I meant to do it like that... that was a great memory.

I'll have to chew on it some more...

And now, a VERY cool tilt-shift video of Crete. For best results, click full screen!

Not sure if I'd like to visit there in person or not. In fact, I was contemplating the other day just how long my list is of Places In The World I Would Not Want To Visit. For someone who claims he'd like to travel more, I certainly don't want to go to very many places... yeah, I'm contradictory like that...

No I'm not!

I'm still tearing through free chapter samples of various fantasy books. Tonight, I was reading the Prologue and first six chapters of Brandon Sanderson's upcoming Mistborn book The Alloy of Law. Let's just say, I'll likely buy the full book the moment it is available. Good stuff.

Probably other stuff I wanted to talk about, but I'm tired. Here, I'll end with a comic, and call it a night...

Adios for now.

Dave the Goof

Poetry, Vanity and Acrophobia

2011-09-16T20:00:00.000-07:00

Ah, the wonder of photo effects! The world never looked so good before Photoshop...

Hey... it's Dave... you know.... "Dave"....

And now, a poem

I'm tired, my feet are ripe.
I need a shower.

I guess it's more of a failed haiku than a poem, in the traditional sense. Here, I better add another verse...

I gave up coffee!
Wait, what is this in my hand?
Coffee.

There, that should hold you poetry fans for a while...

OK, so I've been working out steadily for a couple months now. I am ready to post a picture of my progress thus far...

Yep, that's me! It is! After just two-point-five months! Yep!

OK, fine, that's Ronnie Coleman, not me... but I'm close...

What, you didn't think I was really going to post a pic of myself, do you? lol, yeah... right... I'm vain, but I'm not THAT vain... yet...

I have to admit, it does feel good to be able to see myself in the bathroom mirror without my shirt on and not want to throw up...

While I won't post a vanity pic, I will post a pic of some dude that painted his propane tank to look like a giant Lego head...

That's about the same thing, isn't it?

Oh, wait, lemme go get an amazing Vimeo video for you. Brb... OK, full-screen, high-def, get ready for your jaw to drop...

O... M... G... you know those dreams you have where you're falling, but you're above yourself, outside your body, watching yourself fall? Yeah, that. I wish, I wish, I wish... I wish I wasn't afraid of heights!

Things I Wish For: A Partial List, by David Wagner
-------------------------------------
* That I wasn't afraid of heights
* That I was out of debt
* That Skyrim was out already
* That my PC speakers weren't broken
* A shiny new BMW. Make it two.
* A happy home
* That I was a better friend
* Beef Jerky. And lots of it.

Speaking of being afraid of heights...

Yeah, I don't think I could have that job... I wouldn't even want the job of editing that video! I like the part at 1:22 where it called him a 'tool bag'....

My mom got rear-ended today in her new Camry on the way to work. Bummer. Her car seems ok -- just a marred bumper, so far as the eye can tell. But the truck that hit her apparently was messed up pretty good. I hope she's not too sore tomorrow.

Well, thisssss jussssst ssssssuckssss....

I think I'm going to stop now... no! I won't tell you what I'm currently reading! You'll just have to wait until next post to find out! But I will tell you that I tinkered with my Wagnervana website a bit... I added some work examples FINALLY, after all these years. Not much, but it's a start...

Oh, forget it, I'm out of steam. Adios for now. Going to go save the world from the Nazi menace in Call of Duty 2.

Dave the Daring

Appliances, Animals and the Quest for the Perfect Book

2011-09-10T19:32:00.000-07:00

Did a whole week go by? Sheesh!

What a week! We have been experiencing what can only be referred to as an Appliance Apocalypse. We have no less than 4 appliances that have decided to either act up or break down completely: dishwasher, oven, dryer and refrigerator. After a relatively expensive (but wonderful) summer, it looks like the fall is starting out with an attack on my wallet as well...

Plus, we had that blackout the other night, which was actually not bad... kinda fun, actually. Of course, it sort of served to point out that most prominent flaw in our current Emergency Plan... namely, that we don't have a plan, lol. Time to do some research and stock up on necessities. Man, people freak out over the power being out for a dozen hours, what would happen in a real crisis situation? Time to be better prepared.

Of course, the most amusing part of the whole blackout affair was the rumor-mongering on the radio, as people called in with their "I heard a friend of a friend say this" type of thing... then it gets spread as "unconfirmed reports of" this that and the other. At one point, it was said that two big power plants simultaneously blew up, lol, and because the caller referenced a friend with a ham radio that used to work for Homeland Security, it was repeated with the news updates, lol... crazy. Turns out it was a simple case of employee error. Nothing blew up. Ah, well...

It's funny how people's minds immediately jump to terrorism. Might be because of the proximity of 9/11 Anniversary, but I don't think so. I think perhaps people want a crisis situation to be as interesting as possible, I don't know... people talk about "the terrorists winning"... maybe they don't even need to attack us anymore. Whenever something crazy happens, we seem to automatically think it was terrorism, and so we think of their "message" by association. They get the same effect, perhaps?

Went to the Wild Animal Park with the family today. Of course, it's now called Safari Park or some such, for some reason. Why rename it? Anyway, I made a quick note on my Facebook status about the vast, unruly herd of shrieking kids terrorizing the place (buncha little terrorists!). It's a pretty place, though. I like it better than the zoo, actually. What I liked most about it is that I didn't have to spend a dime, woot! And my family loved it. Not that I wouldn't have spent $$$ on them... it was just nice not to have to.

The Wagner Women love takin pictures there (well, they love taking them everywhere, but especially at the zoo/animal park). I've been known to snap a pic or two in my day... but I normally just line up a shot, snap it, and that's it. My girls, however, do not seem to be satisfied until they've snapped at least a half-dozen shots every time they take a pic. Eldest Daughter has a nice new camera - one with a detachable lens and everything! Nice! We took the tram ride today, and her rapid-fire picture taking left me wondering... why? 8 identical shots! Why not just one!? Sounded like a machine gun going off!

I finished reading Empire in Black and Gold, by Adrian Tchaikovsky. It ended up being a good read, I'm glad I persevered. However, I don't know if I'll continue the series or not. It has some good concepts, and solid characters, and a unique world-building schematic... I just don't feel like I connected with either the story or the characters enough to want to pursue it further.

What am I reading now, you ask? Why, how inquisitive of you! I read a few free samples (The Etched City, Farlander, Leviathan Wakes), re-read a couple things I've enjoyed before (The Blade Itself sample, a Ted Chiang story) and started a pair of books (Jonathan Strange & Mr Norell, Night of Wolves), before settling into Night of Wolves by an author named David Dalglish. It's a fantasy story with Paladins and Werewolves in it! It reads well so far, so I'll stick with it. I'll let you all know how it proceeds, since I know how highly you hold my opinions of such things!

I also did something else I haven't done in a long time... I beat a game! I played Medal of Honor: Airborne (which I picked up on Steam for like $5 or something), and played it through. I was surprised when it ended, since it only took me about 10 hours total play time to beat it. I guess gone are the days when you need to sink a good 40 hours into a game to reach it's conclusion... Now I'm playing Call of Duty 2... but I also bought Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit when it was on sale the other day, so I'll scratch that one off my wish list...

Games I'm Looking Forward To, by David Wagner
-----------------------------------------------------

Torchlight 2
Diablo 3
Skyrim
Battlefield 3
Serious Sam 3
Deus Ex: Human Revolution
Portal 2
Dead Island
Rage
Red Orchestra 2
The Witcher 2

There are others, but these are on my radar... bring on the Steam Christmas sales! WOOHOOOO!!!!! Steam = My Fave!

This Summer was wonderful beyond words, and could not have come at a better time. However, as much as I'd love it to last, it is clear to me that Summer is most definitely over. Well, I'll always be able to say, "At least we had the Summer of '11!"

I'm gonna run. Got some more work-related nonsense to catch up on. I know you're heart-broken that I must leave you thus, but buck up! Be strong! I shall return, and then all will be well in your world again! Fear not!

Adios for now,

Dave the Circumspect

"When You Are Hungry, You Change Your Morality." -- Arnost Lustig

2011-09-03T14:48:00.000-07:00

The weekend is here, woot, woot!

Just wanted to hop on here and drop a quick, drive-by post while I'm working on the newsletters and some video-edits for my sister. I can multitask like a boss! Sometimes...

Not much to say, really. Guess I'll just start and see where it goes...

Last post, I mentioned I had given up on Empire in Black and Gold, by Adrian Tchaikovsky, since I wasn't really clicking with the books' premise. Well, I decided before deleting it, I'd give it one last try... and I'm glad I did, since that seemed to be the point where the story really took off. I'll definitely finish it now. Wondering if I should do that for some of the other books I've abandoned.

By the way, that group of books I was giving away has been thinned out, but several are still available. The current list is:

* The Lion of Senet, by Jennifer Fallon
* The Lies of Locke LaMora, by Scott Lynch
* Empire in Black and Gold, by Adrian Tchaikovsky
* The Sword of Angels and The Jackal of Nar, by John Marco
* Storm Front, by Jim Butcher
* A Clash of Kings, by GRRM
* Lavondyss, by Robert Holdstock
* Hawkwood's Voyage, by Paul Kearney

I'm also adding a couple more books, in case you'd like these...

* The Folding Knife, by KJ Parker
* The Red Wolfe Conspiracy, by Robert Redick
* Black Sun Rising, by CS Friedman
* Gardens of the Moon, by Steven Erikson

Say the word, and they're yours.

Yes, really...

I watched a movie called Source Code last night, which stars Jake Gyllenhall, and I was very surprised at how good it was. Perhaps I was in just the right mood to watch an action flick, I don't know... either way, I recommend it if you haven't seen it yet. I'd write a review, but I'm feeling lazy at the moment. Instead, I'll link to the Rotten Tomatoes summary page for it... 91%! Not bad at all! Looks like I wasn't alone in liking the film...

Laythe sent me the link to this video, and it is awesome.

Love the feel of it. The acting is good, the dialog works, the sentiments strong. I'd love to make short films like that.

Speaking of things that have moved me lately, the kids played this song by Adele for me recently (Someone Like You), and I think it's sublime... yeah, I know it's been out for a while, but hey, I'd never heard it before, okay!? Sheesh!

Bought myself some new shirts the other night at the mall, eh. If you had any idea how rare that is, you'd be congratulating me! Yeah, I'm feeling better about myself and the shape I'm getting in, so I'm starting to rework my wardrobe. Feels good.

And on that note, I'm out for now. Thanks to everyone who's taking books out of my hands. Let me know if you want anymore.

Dave

On Bugs, Books and Blessings

2011-08-28T22:20:00.000-07:00

Aw, look at the pretty flowers!

So, there was this one time I was eating a bag of sunflower seeds at work (I used to work for a sculptor many years ago, as a sander/polisher). I ate some of the seeds, and the day ended, so I left the bag there with the rest of my supplies. I had torn off the corner of the bag to access them - just tilt the bag and dump some in my mouth, eating them as I worked. You get the idea...

So I come back the next day to work, set up my work area, start working, and resumed eating the seeds. After about a half-dozen mouthfuls of seeds, I tilt the bag up to my mouth, take a big pull, filling my mouth with seeds... and I feel something go into my mouth that is definitely not a seed. It is way too big, and not salty, and actually kind of cold. And it is wiggling.

Like a machine gun, I spit the seeds out of my mouth all across my work bench, wide-eyed. When I spit out the great big, black water bug, it hits the floor and starts to waddle away. I let out an incoherent gasp/cry and stomp on the bug. I spit on the floor, repeatedly, panting, thoroughly disturbed. The sculptor I worked for heard the commotion and came in my workroom to find me pale-faced and speechless, pointing a trembling finger at the squished bug on the floor. I tried to explain to my boss what had happened, mostly using hand signals and miming, since I was still too freaked out.

Of course, the bug must have crawled into the bag sometime in the middle of the night. I picture it struggling in the shifting bag of seeds as I took repeated mouthfuls that morning, the bug wondering (the way bugs do, I'm sure) what on earth was happening. Finally, the time came when it slid out of the bag and into legend. I was so undone, my boss sent me home for the day.

And now, the famous Cadbury Eyebrow Commercial...

I have never seen a video that stunned me to this extent, so funny I couldn't even laugh. I stood there watching it yesterday (when Eldest Daughter played it for me), mouth open, doing a strange, slow-motion double-take, laughing on the inside, motionless on the outside, in some sort of disconnected limbo. I am (as many of you know) a huge fan of absurdity, and that video has to be the new benchmark. When the girl busts out the balloon at 0:48, I thought my head was going to explode, as I did a world-record "Wait... what?"

I must have been in just the right mood and frame of mind to see that... my first coherent thought after watching it was "I HAVE to put that on my blog!"

So I started and abandoned yet another book. This time, the first book in another highly-acclaimed series, one by author Adrian Tchaikovsky called Shadows of the Apt. The book is called Empire in Black and Gold, and has been heralded as one of the great fantasy series currently available. It is well-written -- the author certainly knows his way around a page. I just can't seem to click with the whole vibe of the book. The races of people are all sort of a magical hybrid of people and insects... there are Beetle-people who are short, strong and stocky; there are Mantis-kind, who are ferocious fighters, with barbs growing along their forearms (like mantids); there are ant-kind, who can all communicate through thoughts and act as one, like ants in a ant colony; there are fly-kind, who are small and can fly; etc. There are about a dozen different races/nations, and they act like people (basically) but with bug-like traits that are magic based. The militaristic Wasp-kind are cast in the role of "barbaric hoard out for world-domination" and a rag-tag group of other insect-based "people" are tasked with trying the thwart the eminent invasion.

As you might imagine from my opening story, the bug-thing just doesn't work for me. Ironically, I'm abandoning the book at 18% through, as I did with The City & The City (my previous book attempt). Coincidence, I'm sure.

Speaking of books, I want to do a little house-cleaning in my office, and I'm getting rid of books. I wanted to give you all first crack at some of them before I donate them to a garage sale. If you live in the US and would like one (or more) of these titles, email me (or Facebook message me) and I'll send the book(s) to you as a gift.

The Lies of Locke LaMora, by Scott Lynch

Storm Front, by Jim Butcher

A Storm of Swords, by GRRMartin

Warriors, by Various Authors

Empire in Black and Gold, by Adrian Tchaikovsky

A Feast for Crows, by GRRMartin

Warbreaker, by Brandon Sanderson

Lavodyss, by Robert Holdstock

Assassin's Apprentice, by Robin Hobb

The Talisman, by Stephen King & Peter Straub

Hawkwood's Voyage. by Paul Kearney

A Shadow in Summer, by Daniel Abraham

Across the Face of the World, by Russell Kirkpatrick

The Night Angel Trilogy. by Brent Weeks

The Sword of Angels, by John Marco

The Jackal of Nar, by John Marco

Odd Thomas, by Dean Koontz

The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss

A Clash of Kings, by GRRMartin

The Lion of Senet, by Jennifer Fallon

Point of Impact, by Stephen Hunter

All up for grabs! In a week or so, whatever is not requested will be donated to some garage sale of some kind. I'm working on my digital library now... takes up far less shelf space! I already have digital copies of several of these books, and those that I may want to read again at some point in the future, I'll just buy digital copies of when the time comes.

And now, a couple funny animal pics...

Splat!

OK, fine, it's "cute", not "funny"...

I wonder if they shift with the sunbeam as it moves across the floor?

So, school is starting again. That means I get to be stay-at-home dad one day a week, to school Youngest Daughter in the fine art of being a first-grader. She lost her first tooth tonight; one of the bottom-front ones. She was so excited. She's going to take it to school to share with her class, when the time comes. I'm glad she lost it -- she has one more bottom-front to lose. Her adult teeth were already coming in behind her loose baby teeth (like a shark!). I'm going to take her to the dentist on Tuesday to get her teeth evaluated. We'll see what he says. I'm sure whatever the good Dentist decides, it will be expensive...

It was a terrific summer. Perhaps my best ever. Wifey and I are in uncharted territory. We are doing very well; I feel closer to her now BY FAR than I have the entire time I've known her (20+ years). I have my theories on why this quantum shift has occurred, but the theories are still half-baked, so I don't want to toss them out here just yet. One things is certain: it is wholly unexpected, and could not have come at a more opportune time. I was broken, spent, done. Then, the world changed.

And on that note, I am done for tonight. Let me know if you want any books.

Dave the Intrepid

There and Back Yet Again, By Davebo Baggins

2011-08-25T21:35:00.000-07:00

Greetings! Back from Vegas, and what a trip!

First, apologies for not posting before or during the trip. As I thought about it, I considered the wisdom in announcing to who-knows-whom that wifey and I would be out of town, when I'd already established that our kids were staying home. Yeah, not smart. "Hey, I'll be away from home for the next week or so, and my sweet little girls will be home, all alone!" I don't know who reads this blog... but I found out recently how easy it is to get my contact info (phone, address, etc) right there in my Facebook profile (I've since hidden it). Yeah, not cool. Anyway, I decided to stay mum about it all, and wait until I returned to announce that we'd officially gone.

So, yeah.

We started out vacation by taking the family to the San Diego Zoo last Saturday. I hadn't been for a long time -- and now I remember why. Yeah, me and crowds don't mix. The sun cooked me, and every adult there was accompanied by a child or children, of varying degrees of loud and/or obnoxious. But the girls love it, so we put the admission price ($$!!) toward year-long passes, so they can run off to the zoo and/or Wild Animal Park for the next year, to their hearts' content.

The Wagner Girls + Rhino

We bid farewell to the girls Saturday night, left them in Grandma's care, and spent a night home alone. Sunday around midday, Sister dropped wifey and I off in downtown San Diego with luggage and high expectations. We checked into the Hilton Bayside, grabbed a quick bite to eat at a gaslamp eatery, then hit Petco Park for an afternoon Padre game. They were starting off with a "number retirement ceremony" for the great Trevor Hoffman. We had really good seats...

Sorry for the shoddy photo-stitching job. I didn't feel like making it perfect. Anyway, Petco is a terrific park. It was hot, so we left after 6 innings. Padres ended up winning the game, but I didn't really care either way. It was fun to soak up the atmosphere. And apparently, Trevor Hoffman retired a few years back, with a staggering 601 career saves, which is the highest number of career saves in Major League Baseball. Kudos to him. He's a shoo-in for Cooperstown, apparently.

Here's the Hilton, eh. Nice! Coronado bridge in the background. Just out of view to the right is the waters' edge.

Here I am, on the cool walking bridge between the Hilton and Petco Park.

The little woman and I, enjoying the game. She has a kids' head growing from her shoulder! Runnn!

We enjoyed another meal downtown after the game, and then retired to the hotel, to work out in the fitness center, and go to sleep. The next day (Monday), we packed up our luggage, checked out, and took a nice, leisurely 3.5 mile stroll to the airport! Yes, we walked to the airport (luggage in tow). I didn't think I could do it, but we made it! Yeah, I'm, like, in good shape and stuff.

We flew out to Vegas (boy, were our arms tired!), and took a shuttle to the Vdara. Here is a pic of it I found online...

It is in the heart of the Vegas strip, in a massively expensive new zone called City Center, which includes three high-end hotels, a large, high-end shopping/dining center, and some high-end residences/towers. Only the Aria (the largest hotel) has a casino... the rest (including Vdara) are just really nice, low-stress places to stay, away from the uproar, while right in the center of it (if that makes sense). Here's our view from the 51st floor...

Click to enlarge. It was really nice. Sorry again about the poor photo-stitch job.

I found a video clip on YouTube by a guy that did a quick tour of his room at Vdara, which is identical to the one we stayed in, if you're interested. Again, it's not me, it's some other guy!

The view of the pool 50 floors below, from our room.

And here's a very strange, large sculpture made out of canoes, right in the heart of the Vdara-Aria plaza. Some yahoo probably got paid millions of dollars to design and build that sculpture. It's probably called "Canoe Believe I Got Paid For This?"

And so evidently there is a new side of Vegas that shuns the traditional drunk college crowd and chain-smoking middle-aged slot-playing crowd, and instead caters to people (like wifey and I) that just want to stay in a really nice room, and eat really great food. We ate twice at Mesa Grill at Caesar's Palace (owned by Bobby Flay), and I have to say, it ranks among the very best food I've ever eaten. We ate at a place called Olives, overlooking the huge fountain at the Bellagio hotel. Also very good. And we ate at one of Wolfgang Puck's Pizzeria's, which was also exceptionally good. Here's the appetizer we ate...

I'm not normally one of those people that takes pictures of their food (to post on Facebook, usually), but in this case, it was too beautiful to pass up. The fact that it tasted even better than it looked was an added bonus.

We also each ate a Pink's hotdog, but we were not impressed...

Beyond that, we walked all over the place, roamed through countless shopping centers, ate great food, and relaxed. We even hit up the fitness center, and laid out at the pool (in 110 degree heat!). It was a terrific trip, in nearly every regard. It was romantic as well, but there's no need to go there... :)

All in all, I am super-glad we went, and I look forward to going back. We may try and stay at the Wynn Encore next trip.

An interesting side-note: I was asked today (now that we are back) if it was supposed to be a secret that wifey and I went to Las Vegas, as though people at church were not supposed to know that we were going there. That question, asked in all seriousness, sort of baffled me. The idea being that good Christians aren't supposed to go to Vegas or something. For the record, I have absolutely no problem with going to Vegas, or with letting anyone and everyone know I went there. "Sin City"? Sure, if you look for it. But our time there was enjoyable, and untainted. I had a wonderful time with my wife, had great food, unwound, loved it. The junk was easy to avoid/ignore. Maybe it isn't that way for others, but for wifey and I, it was. I'm not ashamed in the least, nor do I feel I should be.

I guess that's grist for another day. Bottom line, I'm glad we went, and I'm glad we are back. I don't know if I could have afforded another day. It was terrific, but man, was it not cheap. Now, back to my diet and workout regimen. I'll join my wife in great shape soon... I'm making great progress, vacation notwithstanding.

Other stuff to talk about, but it will have to be another time.

Onward and Upward.

Dave the Traveler.

Content In Southern California... Long May It Last!

2011-08-17T11:07:00.000-07:00

Cool picture, eh? I like it. It's a city called Dubrovnik, in Croatia, and is, according to Wikipedia: "...one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic Sea."

So, next time you're touring the Adriatic, drop by, eh!

Had a great birthday yesterday. Thank you to everyone that wished me a great day on Facebook... I went to work on my birthday for the first time in longer than I can recall, which was just fine for me. I had a workout with my trainer, then after work, we all went out to eat at BJ's (great food), and then I came home to spend time with my lovely wife. All in all, it was a very good day.

I even had a healthy cake!

So, in my search for something good to read, I decided I'd finally give China Mieville a try, and dive into The City & The City - a book which has garnered tremendous accolades over the past couple years. Check out this list of awards: 2010 Arthur C Clark Award winner (his third time winning), 2010 Hugo Award winner (Best Novel), 2010 World Fantasy Award winner (Best Novel), 2009 BSFA Award (Best Novel), 2010 Nebula Award nominee (Best Novel). As well as countless gushing reviews by people comparing him to every great name in literature.

Plus, it has a unique premise. So, I figured it would be a sure bet.

I was wrong. I am officially giving up, 18% through the book. I just couldn't follow well. Plus, crime novels don't really do much for me. And the "literary" style was at times impossible for me to figure out what he was trying to say. Quit trying to impress me with flowery, oddly-structured sentences! Get out of my way and let me read your story! Sheesh! I'm certainly not opposed to "real writing"... I just don't think it was done right in this case. There's a difference between saying what you want to with style, and rewriting sentences so that you have to really work at understanding what is being said.

All that to say, it wasn't my cup of tea, long list of accolades notwithstanding. If it was a physical copy, I'd offer to send to to whoever wanted it, but alas, it is digital. Sorry, your loss! MUAHAHAH!!!

I pick the dog on my team!

It's almost Fall... Summer draws to a close. That means, back to school time. No biggie. Transitioning from one season to another is easier when you have something(s) to look forward to! Of course, I'm talking about Skyrim, which comes out November 11th. But there's also Serious Sam 3 and Torchlight 2 (which both were supposed to come out during the summer...). Plus, I believe Brandon Sanderson's new Mistborn novel is releasing soon. Lemme check... yep, November 8. So, yeah, I've got plenty to look forward to. Once Skyrim releases, I may be missing for the rest of the year!

Well, I'm gonna hit the road for now. The guy will be here any minute to discuss new carpet with me, and I have to hunt down an appliance repairman to fix our dryer.

Adios

Dave the Content

A Quick Post, In Passing...

2011-08-12T10:19:00.000-07:00

This picture is contrary to my current mood/life condition... fear not, things aren't gloomy and/or storm-tossed. Things are still wonderful - in sort of an unprecedented way. I just liked the picture, that's all...

In fact, this is quite a time of transition for me, in many ways. Changes are afoot. I've mentioned in the past couple posts about how I've been spending less and less time on the computer... this blog has been paying the price for that. Less frequent posts are trending toward still-less frequency. I know that, ultimately, it won't be that big a deal for the handful of you that still read this. I mean, if this blog fizzled to a stop, I'm sure you'll shrug your shoulders and move on, no biggie. For me, I'm torn. I enjoy this blog tremendously, and have, over the years. But for the first time ever, I'm enjoying spending time with my wife more. I'm sure you all understand that. However, I cannot stress strongly enough how different, unexpected and heretofore thought IMPOSSIBLE this is. Wifey and I have always seemed to be counter-posed magnets repelling one-another... and now somehow we have been re-configured so that we've snapped together... it is wonderful, unexpected, unexplainable... and I don't want it to end... ever... I have half a mind to just move forward and not look back.

But this blog has been a great journey for me, and I likely won't just cut it off. But for the time being, it looks like my activity here will be tapering off.

Just thought I'd let you know....

I like the view from up here!

Now, on to today's business...

I've been reading things lately... I finished reading Hunter's Run, which was a great bit of sci-fi story-telling. However, I can't really talk about it, even in the most general of terms, with spoiling the story in ways that will ruin the discovery, should you wish to read it yourself. I will, however, post a quick summary for those of you that won't ever read it, in case it tickles your interest... but if you plan on reading it at some point (Logan!), then skip down to the Adrenaline Video below...

Hunter's Run, by G. Dozois, GRRM and D. Abraham: A Summary
---------------------------------------------------------------
Ramon Espejo is a prospector on a planet called Sao Paolo, and is not a very savory character. Violent, foul-mouthed, stubborn, given to drinking and fits of anger, he kills a man in a street fight that ends up being someone important, so he must flee the city for a while, so things can blow over. Out into the great unknown wilderness he goes, to hopefully find mineral deposits that will bring him the fortune he has forever been pursuing. Once way out beyond civilization, he accidentally uncovers a hiding alien race... and they want to remain hidden. Now he must flee, on foot, and hope to escape the aliens who are hunting him... and they are using a very unique tool to track him...

This story is part adventure, part self-discovery tale, part buddy tale, and all grit. If profanity bothers you, pass on this one, since it is loaded with it. But if watching a bad man transform into someone honorable and redeem himself in satisfying ways is your cup o' tea, then give it a go. The book is well-written, and reads fast, and hooked me solidly, keeping me for the duration of the tale, until the satisfying conclusion.

Summary of the summary: Solid sci-fi adventure, well written and fun to read. 4.25 out of 5 stars.

Another great adrenaline video is HERE. It has Frenchies in it!

I've read two other short titles lately (which I picked up for my Kindle App for .99cents each). A post-apocalyptic tale called The Old Man and the Wasteland by Nick Cole, which is patterned after (and full of references to) the classic Hemingway book The Old Man and the Sea. And I also read a sci-fi piece called The Frozen Sky by Jeff Carlson. Both were quite good, though each had little things that bugged me. I won't review them here, since I'm running out of time for writing this post. But both were worth reading. I also grabbed a butt-load of free samples. I'll let you know if I find anything terrific..

Now go out there and conduct yourselves accordingly!

I'll try to check back in soon. I had other stuff to say, but I'm out of time...

Adios,

Dave the Late

PS Dave O has updated his blog, after all this time... go check it out, if you get a minute. Dave-O is The Man.

On This August Occasion...

2011-08-05T19:07:00.000-07:00

Is it August yet? It is? Schweet!

Still riding high, as far as life in general, and life around the house. I'll leave it at that, out of fear of sounding like I'm gloating. Bottom line, it feels great to feel great.

On the other hand... O, come on, you knew there was going to be an "on the other hand"!

On the other hand, my To-Do List has taken on monstrous proportions.

That's me, on the left. My To-Do List is on the right...

In part because, as I said in my previous post, I have been spending far less time in front of this computer. I've even been going to bed much earlier than normal (no more 2am nights... or even 1am nights... ah, sleep, I missed you...) As a result, all the stuff I used to get done as I whiled away the hours in front of this glowing box is not getting done. Work-related, church-related, personal-related... it is forming into a perfect storm of pressure. I want to get as much of it done as I can before my birthday trip.

Wow, that was boring. Sorry.

Here's a video showcasing examples of the special effects that were done on the recent season of A Game of Thrones.

And here is a cool travel video... as usual with Vimeo, for best results, High Def, full screen.

There, that should tide you over while I ramble about more boring personal nonsense.

Actually, I should fire off a quick book review, before the unfortunate book completely evaporates from my brainpan.

The Hundred-Thousand Kingdoms, by NK Jemisin: A Review
-----------------------------------------------------------------

So, after this debut fantasy novel received award nominations and accolades last year, I decided to skip over my normal routine of downloading a free sample of a book (to see if I liked it enough to buy it) and went straight to purchase. I mean, any novel that is nomination for a Gemmell award in the Best Debut Novel category has got to be good, right? Right. (Of course, I only downloaded the free samples of the other nominees, so that theory holds no water... I think I was taken in by the cool cover).

So I made the purchase, and filed the book away in my virtual library, for future reading. Well, after finishing A Dance With Dragons (yay!), I decided Ms. Jemisin's title needed a good, honest look, so I dove in.

It is told in first-person, retrospective form, which usually bugs me. But when this form is done *just right*, I can normally hang on long enough to make it through a substantial portion of the book, if not all of it. I made it through this one to its conclusion, not only because it was done *just right*, but because of its quirky, almost schizophrenic delivery. By that, I mean the narrator would stop and start and back up and say, "hold on, something else happened before that..." and backtrack, and overlap the telling. She would also appear to have conversations with herself while telling the story, which was unique.

In spite of the unique delivery, the fact that I made it half-way through the book without being able to recall the main character's name (or any other's) was not a good sign.

Yeine is from a ruling family in the far north of the continent featured in the book - the name of which I don't recall. She has been called south, to the capital city of Sky, for reasons beyond her, simply because her grandfather (the supreme ruler of all Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, whom she had never met, and whose name I also can't recall...) had sent for her. Being a dutiful subject, she made the long journey. Upon arrival, she finds out that her grandfather is getting ready to retire (so to speak), and that his heir will need to be chosen. Yiene's two cousins (one cut-throat, the other a drunkard) thought they would be the only potential heirs... but grandfather has sent for Yiene, to mix things up a bit.

Yiene finds out soon enough that she's being used, as a pawn - a sacrificial one at that. Not just by her grandfather, but by the captive Gods who live in Sky's palace as well.

Many centuries before, the Three Gods went to war. One God ruled the day, the other the Night, and the third ruled the transitional times (dusk and dawn). One God was victorious, another was killed, and the third enslaved. The Gods had children before this, who had picked sides in the God's War... those that chose the losing side were also enslaved. These defeated Gods are held captive in Sky, serving the ruling class.

These captive Gods want their freedom again. They put a plan into motion decades before. A plan that involves Yiene.

That should set the stage for the tale, without spoiling much.

Regardless of what you may feel about the potential in the premise, the story is really a tale about relationships. Almost all of the action takes place inside the palace at Sky. There are no grand quests or great battles or Dark Lords here. It's all about a rather naive Yiene trying to survive the treacherous palace politics between Gods and man. There is plenty of magic. But not much action, in the traditional fantasy sense. And as relationship-centric as the tale is, it was a loooong time before I could remember who was whom, based on names. The characters just weren't very distinct. In fact even now, a few days after reading it, almost all of the names have fled me. I only retain vague impressions of various people in the tale.

It might be because the pace was so swift in the first half of the tale. Events that I knew were supposed to be impactful simply lacked any punch, because I hadn't had time to make many meaningful observations about the characters (or even remember who was who). Fresh revelations and twists were wasted on me. "Wait, who was he/she again?"

I'm beating a dead horse here.

Bottom line, I think there were enough unique traits and characteristics of the novel to warrant a single read-through, but I won't enthusiastically recommend it, as a "drop what you're doing and read this book" type of thing. It had some good ideas, but they weren't allowed to develop well enough, in my opinion. I don't regret reading it, but I have no doubt that, before summer is over, I won't be able to recall much, if anything, of what I read. And I have no interest in reading the sequel.

Summary: 3/5 stars. A good effort, but needed more time to cook.

--------------------------

There, that's out of the way. Now I can let it go. Free up some room in my brainpan...

I'm reading a sci-fi tale now, called Hunter's Run. It has three names listed as author(s), so I assume it's a collaboration of some sort. All that I've read thus far (about 30% through at the moment) is by an author named Gardner Dozois, and is a solid, interesting tale. The other authors are Daniel Abraham and George RR Martin. I assume they each take over at some point.

Anyway, I think I figured out the big ending twist early on in the book. It will be interesting to see if the twist was really that obvious, or if it is a red herring. I hope it's the latter. I'd hate to think they were so inept as to project their ending that obviously. I don't normally go for Sci-Fi, but this is a good, gritty, easy-to-read tale.

Good doggie...

Well, I'm not sure what else there is to say at this point. I really should be working on the perpetually-late newsletters for my clients. Maybe I can finish them tonight, and take joy in scratching that item off of my To-Do List.

Squish me luck.

Dave the Goof

Oh, All Kinds of Good, Great and Best.

2011-07-31T21:27:00.000-07:00

Thus endeth the... uh... weekend... and all that...

So, once upon a time, there was a happy man named Dave, who believed he had, against all logic and hope, stumbled into a new phase of his life, whereby things that he thought he understood were shown to be incontrovertibly untrue and, quite unexpectedly, a phase shift had occurred. He felt he was in an extended dream that he hoped he wouldn't wake up from for a good, long while.

A man sits in a dark, empty, windowless, door-less room, with only a single candle, burning lower and lower. He sits watching the flame, hugging his knees to his chest, with the full awareness that at any moment, the candle would flicker out and extinguish, leaving him in complete darkness. Alas, the moment comes. But in that split second between the death of the flame and the birth of the darkness, the roof rips off and disappears, flooding the room with sunlight.

Houston, we have liftoff...

So, life is wonderful. And all that.

I've been spending less and less time on the computer the past couple weeks, which is something I never thought I'd live to see. I thought I'd be married to this thing forever. Then I discovered I was already married, and now I have a new hobby. :) Of course, I still have free-lance work commitments that demand my attention, requiring me to spend time with this computer, so I can't just walk away. Plus, there's that little matter of the camp video to edit, and all that will require. But still, it feels good to sense the cords to this thing cut. Plus, it feels good to be getting into better shape (re: personal trainer). I wonder if they're connected somehow..?

So, our plans have been locked in (at somewhat substantial cost) for my upcoming birthday week of travel and fun. We're going with the combo of time in San Diego and time in Vegas. I have plenty of time to plan all the entertainment and dining activities, and am looking forward to it greatly. It's quite surreal to actually look forward to my birthday for once. My good friends Dread and Angst will have to take a year off.

Things are coming into view!

I've been reading The Hundred-Thousand Kingdoms - almost finished. I'm having problems with it, but none sufficient enough to make me want to stop reading it. I'm about 80% through it as we speak. I'll try to finish it tonight, and fire out a review soon. My main beef is that events and developments happen so quickly through the first half of the book, it's hard to track and absorb. Revelations that I know are supposed to carry significant weight simply don't, because they didn't really have sufficient time to develop and simmer. It's like under-cooked food, I guess, where you get the idea of what is supposed to happen, but nowhere near the true potential. It just evolves too quickly. I'm barely recalling which name belongs to which character, and I'm expected to appreciate the gravity of connections and twists, etc.

I hope that makes sense. It's probably not a good sign that, halfway through the book, I couldn't recall the name of the main character... and it's written from her perspective!

But from about halfway up to my current point (80%), it is going along much better.

If you're a fantasy fan, there has been a wealth of interesting videos to watch of late, including:
- A 40 minute panel discussion from Comicon with members of the cast of the HBO show A Game of Thrones, moderated by GRRM himself.
- An interesting interview with Brandon Sanderson.
- A panel discussion called "Putting the Epic Into Epic Fantasy", with such fantasy heavyweights as GRRM, Sanderson and Pat Rothfuss (among others).
- A couple great interviews with Joe Abercrombie are floating around as well.
- Melissa has an interesting post with her Top Ten Fantasy Reads, as well as the Top Ten list from a fellow blogger friend of hers. Definitely worth a look.

In fact, just keep an eye on Pat's Fantasy Hotlist for all the latest. Wertzone is also a good resource. Ah, it's a good time to be a Fantasy Fan...

I am amused by mash-ups like this. You know, for someone who isn't really that into Sci-Fi in general, and Star Wars specifically, I do tend to post more than my fair share of Star Wars-related funny pictures. I wonder why that is? Anyway, here's one more, then I'm out.

OK, I'm done for tonight. Who knows when I'll post again, eh? MUAHAHAHA! We may never know!

Dave the Uncertain

The Latest! The Very Latest!

2011-07-27T18:40:00.000-07:00

Wow, what a week....

OK, yes, I know, I haven't updated in a week, I'm sorry. I realize that the trauma caused by separation anxiety has likely left you in an addled, discombobulated state for which the only remedy is fast food, chocolate, coffee and foot rubs. I'm sorry. It's nothing personal... I have just been otherwise occupied, in a very positive way. Let's just say, homelife has been at an all-time high these past couple weeks. Whoever has been praying for us, thank you, and please continue....

You'd think with a whole week going by that I'd have tons to talk about. But really, not much...

Work has been going great. Homelife is great. Church is great. My spiritual walk is great. My finances are... well, if not great, then at least good. My hobbies and interests are interesting (you could say great, I suppose). I'm riding high, and trying to enjoy it while it lasts. I hope it lasts forever, but I'm not pollyannish enough to actually think that it will. But until then!

I feel like that...

So, I bet you're just dyin' to know where the plans stand, as far as what I'm gonna do for my birthday, right? I mean, you need to know, right? That's why you checked in, yes? Well, let me enlighten you...

We initially were going to do Vegas in late August. Then I contemplated just staying in San Diego, like in a downtown hotel, and doing stuff here that I've either never done, or haven't done in a long while. You know, Padre game, harbor cruise, nice restaurants, ferry to Coronado, the Zoo, etc. But hotel prices downtown are really high, especially in August, compared to Vegas. But really, we're not interested in gambling, just staying someplace nice and eating great food. Staying local would save on airfare, and keep us nearby in case of emergency, but that's about it.

So at the moment, I'm leaning toward a combination of the two. Spend the weekend here in San Diego, and fly out to Vegas for two nights, and stay at a nice place out there (I'm thinking Vdara). When we're in San Diego, we'll just sleep at home each night, and run around during the days. Maybe involve the kids, too. We'll see. All that to say, it's looking like this year's birthday will be what I'd hoped last years was going to be (but wasn't).

Funny, the highs and lows. I think I've experience the extreme examples of both this year so far.

So I'm still reading The Hundred-Thousand Kingdoms, by NK Jemisin. It's quirky, almost schizophrenic in its presentation, which is a style I haven't encountered in Fantasy before. I don't mean to say that in a negative way. At the moment, it's still moving along well. Though, again, I can't help but think stories written in the first person perspective are limited in what they can accomplish.

That reminds me, I've had another (what I feel is a) brilliant idea for another novel. What the heck is wrong with me!?!?! The good thing about this idea is that, by it's nature, the story/novel would be small in scope, so the odds of finishing it once I started it would be much higher than my two current lost loves.

I also picked up a couple new books for my Kindle App the other day. Amazon was having a nice sale, with tons of books between $1 and $3. I bought Elfsorrow by James Barclay ($1), Hunter's Run by GRRM, G. Dozois and D. Abraham ($2), and Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clark ($2). That last one was well-reviewed by Logan, so that was the deciding factor for me in that case. The other two just looked good.

Reminds me of a video series I saw one time, where this guy who worked at a music store recorded examples of the aggravating, tedious nonsense he had to put up with each day while working, just so he could show his friends and family who always said, "You work at a music store? That must be so awesome!"

In fact, lemme see if I can find one of those vids... BRB...

Here's a couple more...

I have nothing else to say. Nothing. Nothing at all.

Wait, I don't think I've ever posted this "building mapping" clip before. It's from Vimeo, so as usual, full-screen, high-def for best results. Oh, and crank up the speakers a bit more, eh?

The 600 Years from the macula on Vimeo.

I admit, I'm a sucker for a nice building-mapping video. Here's another cool one...

Adios for now.

Dave the Sucker

What? Why, Yes, I Am Hard of Hearing Today...

2011-07-21T15:49:00.000-07:00

What? You like that shot? Yeah, me too... oddly, I feel if the fence wasn't there, the shot would fall apart for some reason. Something about that fence makes the picture work...

What? How was A Dance With Dragons? Well, I thought it was terrific. I felt it could have spent a little more quality time in the editing phase, but beyond that, it was everything I'd hoped it would be. I rate it 4.5 out of 5 stars. I would dearly love to discuss one of the ending cliffhangers, and go over possible directions that GRRM could take that particular storyline, but I couldn't be that cruel to you. If any of you read it and want to discuss it in email or on Facebook, let me know...

What? What am I reading now? Well, I've started The Hundred-Thousand Kingdoms, by NK Jemisin, and I'm pleasantly surprised by the first 5 chapters. It's written in first person, which you know I usually have a problem with, but in this case it's done right, it's written clearly and is quirky and fun. It had a great opening hook, great atmosphere, and a fun premise. Once I get farther into it, I'll likely review it, and then, O happy day for you, eh! Since, Lord knows, I realize how highly you value my opinion on things!

What? You want to see a random, cool video? OK, here's one..

I find it fascinating when sewer lines erupt like that. What a ridiculous amount of force it must take to do that. I believe when last I posted a clip like this, Logan tried to explain to us how and why it occurs, but I sadly didn't retain it. Sorry, my brain is full...

By the way, Jack Vale finally got punched in the face for "pooting" on people in Walmart. I'm surprised it has taken this long. I find his antics funny, of course, but only because he's never done it to me. He posted the footage of the face-punching, like a good sport...

What? Have I seen any movies lately? Well, I'm glad you didn't ask if I'd seen any "good" movies, since I then would have said no. I did take the family out on Monday night to see the latest Transformers movie. I knew it would be a turd, but it was the one film we could all see in the time frame we had allotted. I wanted to see it in 3D, but no one else did. 3D would have made it worth watching, perhaps. It featured a completely incoherent script, retarded acting, embarrassing cameos, and the film was endless. 2 hrs 40 minutes long. I'm glad we had the family time, but man, I would never inflict that cinematic offal upon myself again...

What? You want me to post something tasteless? OK... how about this...

What? Not tasteless enough? Hmm... well, OK, how about this newspaper clipping...

There, you can't complain now. That was quite thoroughly tasteless. And hilarious. I bet Dave-O would enjoy that story...

Anything else?

What? One more nice, mellow landscape picture to refresh your pure brains after the previous tastless article? OK...

Ahh, beautiful!

I'm going to call this post done. I'll update again soon, fear not!

What? O, I know you love me, even though you won't leave a comment. It's ok, I love you too...

More Stuff and Nonsense...

2011-07-17T23:09:00.000-07:00

The days are flying by. What, may I ask, the heck?

Tonight's lead story: I am 83% through A Dance With Dragons, and loving every page of it. I will not be writing a review, so fear not. For those that aren't planning on reading the series, it is pointless to review Book 5 of a series you won't read! And for those that plan on reading it, it will be enough for me to say, you will not be disappointed.

I made the mistake of hopping in on the Martin Amazon forum I frequent, which has discussed this book as it has developed over the years, and some complete moron posted two threads with spoilers in the thread titles. "Is _____ Really Dead?" Whether he was a troll making things up, or really that lame as to drop a spoiler on everyone before they could read the book, I don't know. But needless to say, I was extremely angry, and have not been back to that forum since. Who would do something like that? For ten years, we have waited for this part of the story! And for someone to spoil it like that! Sheesh!

It makes a guy contemplate inflicting bodily harm!

OK, no it doesn't. Still... lame...

OK, enough of that... I need to mellow out...

I know! Lemme dig a mellow video out of my blog archive... be right back...

Ahh! Much better! As usual, full screen - high-definition for best results.

Well, while I'm in the archive, I might as well post a couple more of my past faves...

Remember, that one loops twice... once you hit the 4:10 mark, it will start over. No need to watch it twice...

And here's my favorite "Wooden Spoon Prank" video...

I wonder if anyone falls for that anymore?

And the "Doberman With Taped Ears Chasing A Laser" video...

Ouch...

So, Wifey and I are planning a trip to Vegas for my birthday. Not much of a Vegas fan, but the alternatives are slim at this point. We can fly in for cheap, stay near the strip, walk around, hopefully eat good food and lounge around poolside... we'll see. Might be fun for a few days... it won't kill me to get away for a few days....

Speaking of killing me, my new personal trainer is whipping me into shape. I thought the "calf muscle cramping session" I had last Tuesday was hard... until I went on Thursday! Everything below my armpits was sore for 48 hours afterwards... but it's a good sort of pain, I think. I'll dive back in on Tuesday and let him wallop me again.

I would call this shot "Before and After", but the literalists among us would claim I'd need to be on the left, and my trainer on the right... or call it "After and Before"... in any case, that's Markshane, my trainer. He's encouraging and highly capable and great to work with. If I look dazed, it's because that was after my workout on Thursday, after the shower. I had Gumby legs at the time...

So I suppose that's that. Another week begins. I'm going to go read more Dance With Dragons until the wee hours.

Adios

Dave the Goof

Music, Blindness and Endless Patience

2011-07-13T22:46:00.000-07:00

Why do I think of Johnny Cash when I see this picture...

Hello, y'all. It's been almost a week since my last post. What a week. Too bad I can't talk about it...

Events and developments have conspired to keep me from updating -- but in this case, that's not a bad thing. Things are showing great promise, in just about every facet of my life, which is surprisingly encouraging. Well, while at sea during a storm, the waves go way up, and the waves go way down. I like the view from up here. Now if I could only get rid of this seasickness...

I almost made it through Steam's big summer sale without buying any computer games. I was all set to be so proud of myself for resisting temptation. But, alas, the very last day, when they brought back some of the best-selling items from the previous week for one last chance to snag, I bit. But I didn't bite very deep... I spent $6 on the two DLC packs for Fallout: New Vegas (saved myself $14), so that's not bad...

No, I don't expect any of you but Logan to know what I'm talking about, but you get the general idea, in any case, I'm sure...

Hey, remember that one time that Joshua Bell - arguably the greatest violinist in the world -- decided to set up and play at an entrance to the D.C. Metro, and play for spare change?

That was a cool experiment. People that know music normally pay a small fortune to go hear this guy play... But even though the common person (like me) would likely not know who this guy was, you'd think they'd at least recognize amazing talent when they hear it and stop for a quick listen instead of blithely rushing by...

Ah, well. Some people just can't see what's in front of them!

Hidden in plain view!

There's an artist named Mark Nixon who turned a walking bridge in Denmark into a huge wind chime by hanging a bunch of aluminum pipes of various lengths underneath it...

People walking the bridge don't know it's there unless the wind is blowing... Pretty cool. Go here for more info. There's a short video of it - but it doesn't really do it justice...

So I bought A Dance With Dragons, as I threatened to so many times this year, and I've waded in. It's so nice to catch up on what Tyrion, Dany and Jon Snow have been up to. I'm resisting the urge to tear through it... I want to go slow and enjoy it. I know it will be a good, long time before another installment is ready for consumption...

Gimme battle scenes! I need battle scenes!

Ok, that will suffice...

Wifey wants to plan a trip for my birthday next month. Southwest was having a sale on cheap tickets, so I just checked how much a trip to NYC would run... let's just say, it ain't cheap. I guess NYC ain't on the list of cut-rate tickets. Too bad I can't just scan us and attach us to emails and send us out to someone in NYC. Then they could download us, print us out, and BAM! We'd be in the Big Apple!

OK, I guess not...

So, I've done a couple workouts with my new personal trainer. On Tuesday I was doing great, until the end, when both of my calf muscles cramped up, turning into rock-hard fists of pain and fire. I guess they aren't used to doing squats and lunges, eh! I don't normally do too many squats and lunges while sitting on my rear in front of a computer all day, eh! Wow, what pain. Yeah, I know, I'm a whiny little baby, I get it. Still... ouch. I'd rather that not happen again. But if that's what it takes to get into good shape, I suppose it's a price I'll pay! I'll be a man yet!

I'm going to end this mindless ramble here.

More later.

Dave the Patient

Lakes, Skies, Winters and Work.

2011-07-08T20:56:00.000-07:00

I wonder if that lake really is that blue? Or if it's just dirty rotten photoshop tricks! Either way, it's certainly nice to look at... here, I have another, from a different angle...

Actually, that isn't the same lake, is it... Is it? The features are similar, but I'm having a hard time matching exact features. Must be a different lake in the same general area...

Greetings, y'all! How's life treatin' ya? Good, I hope. Things are mellow here. That'll change once I pick the rest of the Wagner Women up at the airport on Saturday. Then it'll be back to normal (read: crazy) around here. It's been nice and quiet here this week, for which I am grateful. But it will be nice to have the fam back again.

Kind of uneventful, really. Wish I had some fascinating tidbit to share with you. Just normal life stuff. I've been able to sleep in my own bed this week, which is terrific. Implementing new systems at work, which looks promising. Getting a (difficult) hold on my freelance graphics responsibilities, which is rather grueling. And just chilling.

I better dip into my go-to bag of goodies and see what I have for you tonight...

Everything I'm reading about this next video is in a language I don't understand, lol. It's pretty self-explanatory. A few thousand people all releasing these little paper lanterns into the air at the same time.

Must be amazing to see in person. Must not be fire season in that part of the world.

Here's another "sky event" video, this time in reverse. Looks like a couple gliders release a few thousand LED lights attached to streamers over what looks like a big music festival of some kind, to very cool effect.

Also one of those things that likely is amazing to see in person, but only so-so in film. Like anything, I suppose. Take the pics of that lake up at the top of this post. Such is the nature of pictures, I suppose, that only a limited glimpse is available. I remember the first time I went snowboarding up at Lake Tahoe, at Heavenly, and when we went down the main lift toward the parking area... as we started the long descent down the face of the mountain, the whole lake just appeared in front of me, literally filling my vision to the edges of my peripheral sight on both sides, and the ground dropped away beneath me. It was stunning - I felt like I was floating in another realm or something. I tried taking pictures the next day, but that sense of overwhelming awe couldn't possibly come through in a photo.

Anyway, those two video clips are like that, I'm sure. Way cooler in person.

There's a similar distinction, I think, between watching film and watching a live play. Two different beasts entirely, I know... but there's something about seeing something performed live that is impossible to convey in video form.

Theater acting and film acting are completely different arts. You can be infinitely more subtle on film. You have to be full intensity on stage, or else you'll appeal to no one beyond the first few rows. If you want to see an incredible study of this, watch a movie called The Dresser, with Albert Finney and Tom Courteney. Two amazing, Oscar-nominated performances.

Let's see... what else have I got? Lemme check my drawer...

Oops, wrong drawer...

Speaking of animals in strange places, check out this X-ray...

I thought they normally bury their heads in the sand...

I'm still not reading anything substantial lately. I've casually read numerous "free samples" that I've downloaded for my Kindle app (fantasy/sci-fi stuff) but nothing that really wowed me enough to buy the full book yet. But that's a problem I won't have for much longer... A Dance With Dragons will be messily devoured by me, very soon. I've purposely tried to avoid reading any reviews on blogs to this point, except to try and get an over-all sense of whether the book is good or not. So far, from what I've carefully gleaned, the consensus is very positive, and apparently there are several bombshells I can look forward to (woot!)... Can't wait!

Figures... I finally take down the sidebar link to the TV Legends YouTube site on the right side of my blog over there, and then I find an interview to link to! If you're a fan of Jonathan Winters, you will definitely find his interview series fascinating. Here's a sample clip, and here is the site with the full interview, if you've got a couple hours to kill... He's traveled quite a road.

Well, I suppose that's enough for now. I better get back to work...

Wish me luck!

Adios,

Dave the Luckless

Shoes, Food, and Star Wars... Everything A Person Needs...

2011-07-05T21:27:00.000-07:00

Be sure to click that panorama shot and see it bigger. That's a pretty stunning view, methinks. I don't mind the people further back the trail (to give it a sense of scale) but I find the person up close distracting for some reason... anyway, certain pictures like this I label with the word "novel" as I archive them, since they inspire me, as far as potential places I want to put in my fantasy novel... I see a pic like that, and I just "see" stuff happening there. Now if I could just make sense of it and get it on paper...

So I spent a long weekend in Albuquerque visiting the in-laws. Wifey and two-thirds of the Wagner Kiddos were out there already, and they will remain through the ninth. Eldest stayed here throughout.

Had a good time; I'm glad I went. (Nice semi-colon use there, eh? Eh?) The highlight of the trip I cannot share with you (MUAHAHAHAHA!!!!) and, sadly, the rest was not blog-worthy enough to elaborate upon. Bottom line, it was cool to see Wifey's siblings and mum... and Uncle James' shoe collection...

I know he looks sad and/or bummed, but I snapped the pic before he was ready, so it's my fault. There aren't many people I know that smile more than James. He's a good egg. AND he's a manager at a Foot Locker in ABQ... and a bit of a shoe collector... makes Wifey's collection look small (almost). I guess you could say shoe collecting "runs" in the family! BUAHAHAHA!!!!

And now, Furious Pete eating a 750g jar of Nutella in 2.5 minutes...

4,000 calories, 200g fat, 400g sugar. I've never tasted the stuff; looks kinda gross to me. (There's another semi-colon for ya, woohoo!) Furious Pete has some other great videos, if you like that sort of thing. He's rapidly becoming my favorite competitive eater...

I tell ya, the more I lurk around the competitive eating world, the more amazed I am by the sheer volume of drama - and I mean the eaters as well as the fans. I'm enjoying it immensely, actually. There seem to be some genuinely insane people in the CE world - both fans and competitors. I love it. Of course, I grew up a wrestling fan, so I suppose I'm pre-conditioned to enjoy the sport of CE... something about the equal parts of "disgusting" and "amazing"...

I watched the big Nathan's Hot Dog Eating event on ESPN on the fourth, as it unfolded, which was cool. And of course, the event itself was overshadowed (for me) by all of the accompanying drama. I won't get into it here. If you want to catch a glimpse, check out EatFeats (not just the stories/articles, but the comments as well! That's the best part!)

Hey! A Funny Pic that ties together the last two topics! Yeah, I'm clever like that...

OK, shifting gears a bit...

I met with my new personal trainer today. Yep, it's time to get in shape. You know, I hate to beat a dead horse here, but there really is something to this whole "midlife crisis" thing. Of all the near-overwhelming urges I've felt over the past year (buy a new car, get teeth fixed, get a tattoo, run screaming down the street pulling out my hair, etc.) I think the one that makes the most long-term sense is to try and get in better shape. It may seem odd to pay for a personal trainer when Wifey could easily fill that role with the knowledge and experience she has, but the fact that I basically live with a personal trainer has never really helped motivate me to act on that. Too much between us, I suppose...

So, I like this guy, and the facility is terrific, and best of all, it's right by the rug shop. I can walk there, work out for an hour, clean up, walk back, and leave the shop at the time I normally would. I'll work with him twice a week, at least through the end of the year. Then maybe I'll look better on the outside.

The inside is another matter altogether. But I have a plan of attack for that as well. I'll elaborate on that another time...

And now, turn up your speakers and enter the "music time-machine"...

Ah, I love it.... I think the music and sound effects made Star Wars the movie it was, as much as anything else.

Here's a couple Star Wars-related pictures that have been languishing in my archive. Might as well drop them in here...

Would you wear that? You would earn the admiration of nerds everywhere! Geek Chic...

That kid's dad = Dad of the Year...

It's almost July 11th! You know what that means! I know, I know... it's Middle Daughter's 16th birthday, but I mean, other than that! YES! The 10-year wait will be over! A Dance with Dragons will be released! Woohoo! I will get it the day it comes out, and dive straight in. I hope I remember to stop to sleep and eat... and breathe...

OK, well, I suppose I should get back to work on the newsletters for my clients, which are late again. Dangit. One more goofy picture and I'm out...

Adios for now;

Dave the Semicolon

Don't July To Me!

2011-07-01T10:00:00.000-07:00

Well, a series of odd technical difficulties have prevented me from updating the blog before I left town. I won't bore (either of) you with the details. Had some stuff to share, guess I'll save it for when I return on the 4th. I'm writing this from my iPad in Albuquerque! Gee, aren't I tricky? If I can get a chance to fire up the laptop and get a decent connection, maybe I'll update sooner.

Have a great weekend, y'all.

Stomping Grounds, Accent on the Stomping...

2011-06-25T00:00:00.000-07:00

Greetings, eh. Back from camp; back into the real world. 5 days away from civilization, in extreme isolation... of course, that's not the full truth. I had my iPad, which proved to be very useful in distracting myself from the compounded weight of the camp sub-plot that involved me. And I had my cell phone, and laptop... about the only aspect of civilization that I lacked was Starbucks, so really, it wasn't much different from my normal routine...

Camp was a positive experience. I alternately filmed and napped. A highlight was, of course, setting the camera aside and tromping around the paintball course, though I only have two and a half battle wounds to show for it. It was only 5v5, among which were a couple timid squatters, so the action was unfortunately rather light. Sounds semi-masochistic, but I wanted to get pummeled. There's something indescribably satisfying about strolling up on a crouching teammate who's hunkered behind a barricade, walking full upright and steady up to his position, in full view, with poorly-aimed paintballs flying around me, while I ask "where is he?" about the enemy, and then moving forward inexorably, firing at (and pinning down) the enemy gunmen as I methodically close the distance, to destroy them, flush them out, or get pummeled in the attempt. I simply cannot hide, or stop moving. Just stomp forward, onward, moving, shooting, slowly, relentlessly... I savor it.

And now, as much as I would love to shift this line of thought skillfully into a personal parallel and elaborate upon the far more important battle I waged (and still wage) inside, I will instead, with great restraint, leave it at that.

Camp is over for the year. Now all that remains is steeling myself for the hours that will need to go into this year's camp video.

Too bad I didn't have one of these cameras with me...

That's kind of creepy, actually. Creepy-cool. Has kind of a sci-fi feel to it, in my opinion... like that machine in Bladerunner that could examine a photo, moving around in the background of the pic, zooming WAY in, around corners, to reveal what was unseen in the original picture...

Now THAT is funny...

Lemme see, what else do I have saved up here to show you?

Three guesses as to what the caption to this picture should be...

I'm not really feeling it tonight. I've run out of steam. Let me regroup and hit up a new post after the weekend. Just wanted to hop on and check in, really.

Dave Moot

Taking Off, Eh!

2011-06-20T13:53:00.000-07:00

Off to camp for a week, so I won't post again until next weekend. Wish me luck - I got a lot of stuff to get my head together about.

See ya in a week.

Dave the Gone

Post-Filming Recap

2011-06-19T01:14:00.000-07:00

OK, so I promised I'd recap how the filming went today, so here it is... though I have to admit, at this point, my feelings are mixed about it.

The drive up was about 2 hours, and gave me plenty of time to go over things in my head. I'm glad I did, since it gave me a chance to get my story together. I wasn't sure what was going to be covered, really, or if I'd be asked for the quick version and rushed out after ten minutes... so I pondered a lot of different possible questions and directions the conversation could go - and I'm glad I did, since we covered all of it, and more. We sat outside of the directors' home in this small, pretty walkway between two quiet rows of apartments, with the camera man, and, after setting the gear up, getting good sound going, fixing the white balance, and applying the right filters, we just chatted for about an hour. It was surprisingly relaxing.

He asked a bit about my background and my day job, then segued into how/why I started this blog, and then smoothly transitioned into the events surrounding the day I went to the mall to film that hot dog eating qualifier. I tried my best to be pleasant, interesting, entertaining, well-spoken, etc., when I thought of it, but really, most of the time we just chatted in a friendly, relaxed manner... which is where the mixed feelings start to come in.

Frankly, I don't remember everything I said. Not that it matters much, since through the magic of clever editing, I can be made to say just about anything. They seemed trustworthy and professional, I'm not saying I don't trust them. Yet as we chatted, it became clear that the tone of the film will be rather critical of the organization that runs competitive eating, and that made me a bit nervous. I am about as casual a fan as one can be, when you boil it down... and I really don't want to be presented in any way that makes it seem like I have any sort of legitimate opinion about the industry in general, or the governing body specifically. I'm just a random, detail-ignorant fan who happened to capture video of one of the industry "stars" cheating. That doesn't make me anything at all, beyond a curiosity, really.

So, I'm kind of nervous about how I'll be presented. There are a lot of passionate people in this realm of competitive eating, and I don't want to be used as a tool to further stir the pot, so to speak. That's all.

Again, I trust these guys, so far as one can trust people one has just met. Still, it's clear that they are privy to far more detail about the behind-the-scenes stuff, and the players and politics than I, and so I just don't know what to expect. They seemed very pleased with the footage they got, and the way I presented myself, and were grateful for my participation (just as I was very grateful for the opportunity). And likely, this is just me worrying too much, and making a lot out of nothing.

Still, part of me hopes you all forget about it for now, and that I could get a quiet chance to view the movie first before you all get to see it, just in case I've inadvertently embarrassed myself by stepping into the middle of something that I had no business messing with.

We finished up by going inside and watching the footage that I shot, and they filmed me doing some running commentary as the footage played. It was a bit awkward, but I see why they'd want to do it.

He said they were aiming for a late-August release, and that it will be in festivals, and hopefully in theaters for people to see. Apparently, it is going to be a big deal. Which makes me doubly-nervous. I don't want to come across as anything but a casual fan who happened to catch something controversial on tape, and not someone slamming the industry or particular people, as though I had a clue about any of it. That's why I wish I could better remember everything I said. I think I'm good. As a rule, I try not to say anything about a person that I wouldn't also say if the person was before me in the flesh.

In all, I was done in about 90 minutes or so. And in all the excitement, I didn't remember to take any pictures to post here. I had my camera in my pocket the whole time. I was just caught up in it all. It really was fun, and I'm glad I did it... I'm just concerned about how things will play out, and how I will be perceived when it's all edited together. If I come across poorly, I will be grossly embarrassed... so I don't want to hype it all up here, have you all run out to see it, and then have you be puzzled/disappointed... I'd rather make sure I'm happy with it, and then "remind" you about it... "Oh, yeah, guys, remember that movie? Yeah, it's cool, go see it, eh!"

Anyway, what's done is done. All that remains now is trust (in the director/producer) and patience. We'll see how it plays out.

Dave the Ambivalent

A Typical Wandering Mishmash

2011-06-17T21:59:00.000-07:00

Short post tonight. Hope you don't mind. Both of you, I mean...

So, I played hookie from work again on Thursday, and went to see Super8 in the theater. It's good, mindless popcorn-chomping summer movie fare, I recommend it. Don't think too hard about the script, though, or you could easily get sucked into one of the gaping plot holes...

But before I went to see it, I sat in Panera with my mini-laptop and made an interesting discovery. I was going to fire it up so I could journal for a while, just to get some stuff off my chest, that I can't write about here in this blog. I went to create a new file, but inadvertently hit "open" instead, and the window that popped up had some of my journal files from last year in it. So, I clicked one from last May (2010) and started reading it. I kid you not... everything I was going to unload into a new journal entry was already written in the one from last year...

I'm stuck in the same stuff.

I only started writing in the webbook last year, so I couldn't go back further into the archived journals... but I bet if I pulled up some of my files from my desktop, from two, three, four years ago, I might make a similar discovery. I'm afraid to look. So I didn't write anything at Panera. In a mild fit of anger mixed with disappointment, I shut the thing off and went to a movie. I bought a $6 matinee ticket, then thought I could use some water, so I went up to the concession stand and bought a bottle... for $5.25! Are you kidding me? $5.25 for a bottle of water? I figured for that price, it must make me younger, stronger and better looking, so I took a chance...

I should have bought two...

So, yeah, I'm a bit bummed. As usual, trying to find that balance between being grateful for the wonderful blessings in my life, and deciding how (and if) it's possible to change the things about me and my life that grate on my soul. But I know you've heard this song before, so I shall shift gears...

So, I'm going up Saturday to LA to do the filming for that documentary on competitive eating. No idea how it will play out, but I'll go up with an open mind and try and stoke up my lackluster sense of adventure. I'll try to get a picture or two of the proceedings, and make a post Saturday night. Hopefully, it will be memorable and/or interesting enough to write about here in some detail. Then I'm off to camp with Middle Daughter for a week.

You'll survive without me somehow, I'm sure... both of you...

Check out these cool fold-down bookshelves...

Honestly, I have mixed feelings about them. Aside from the novelty of the idea and the apparently nice execution, not sure, not sure...

I may like this idea better...

A custom-built staircase/bookshelf combo. It's a nice way to make use of normally-unused space, and a good solution for storing all those books that get bought with the best of intentions, but never end up being read.

That reminds me, I was in the tub last night, with iPad on, and wanted to watch something using my NetFlix app while I soaked away my angst. I have 126 titles in my Watch Instantly queue that I could have watched. I swear, I spent ten minutes slowly scrolling through, contemplating, and dismissing every single title on that list, before finally picking a kung-fu flick at random to watch ten minutes of. Every one of those titles I added to the queue at some point, like that bookshelf reference above, with every intention of watching them with great interest. Some of those have been in my queue for YEARS.

I wonder what the dynamics are, behind that? I wonder if it's just me that does that (or if both of you do it also). I do it with games as well. Buy them with every intention of playing them... then promptly file them away and forget about them... then when I see them, I shrug my shoulders and say, "someday... but not now."

Speaking of games...

This is called "Democratic Chess"...

As you capture an enemy piece, you assimilate it, combining it (and it's attributes) with the piece that captured it. So if a rook captures a bishop (for example) it is now a hybrid piece that moves like a rook and a bishop. As you can see, the pieces are stack-able. A pawn-knight combo would be an interesting piece...

Here's a video of a polar bear going ninja on a seal... it's worth the watch, stay with it, it's cool...

I love the moment at 2:13.... classic... that film crew either had camera equipment with ridiculous zoom levels, or they got right up on the action... how they avoided becoming lunch instead of the seal is beyond me...

Ah, well, so much for a short post tonight... guess I just needed to wander. Thanks for reading it, if you got this far.

Dave Meander

Artless Dodging, Acting and More Acting...

2011-06-14T23:29:00.000-07:00

Greetings, everyone! Wow, look at that sky! And that ocean! And those cool red flowers, eh? I'm trying to deceive you all! Will it work?

I am now going to attempt an experiment. I shall pretend all is normal and well in my world, and make a blog post as though the world is right, and everything is in its place... that rumbling you hear? It is not a volcano threatening to erupt...

A quick diversion! Like a PRO!

Logan and his wife had their baby! Woohoo! First a wedding (V&R) and now a new baby. Most excellent. Babies are treasures and miracles, all rolled up into a wonderful little bundle of love and diapers. I am happy for Logan... go over to his blog, eh, and check out the pictures of little Avonlea Brynn Stewart.

Being a dad is the accomplishment on my 'life resume' that I am most proud of. I'm lucky to have my kids!

Of course, not everyone likes little kids...

I think they need to feed those lions more frequently at that zoo, eh?

So there will be a flurry of activity around the ol' Wagner Household in the coming weeks... school officially ends on Wednesday for the Wagner Women, which means beach season will be kicking off poste haste. Although, from what I understand, their favorite spot at the beach has been eroded away, so they'll have to find a new place to go, eh? Mags is bummed, but they'll manage.

Sister-in-law is coming for a long weekend as well, so we'll have a house guest, which is always good for a mild uproar, a few laughs and some familial angst. Then it's Father's Day on Sunday, with all the weirdness that will bring this year (for reasons I won't elaborate on... see "volcano reference"), and then the next day, Middle Daughter and I leave for Church Camp. Then the Wagner Women are off to ALBQ for a couple weeks. Then we get the house recarpeted (downstairs), Middle Daughter has a birthday, and finally, we see the ortho about getting braces started.

Was just going to get Middle Daughter braces, but I think I might look into getting them as well. I'm tired of being a snaggletooth. It's from all that coffee I drink... I mean, coffee cake I eat... I mean...

... well... both!

Not sure if I'll be able to squeeze in a LAN party while the Wagner Women are gone, like last time. The last LAN wasn't really all that successful. Yanni wasn't able to attend, and neither was Vye, so we lacked a strong choleric personality to drive the LAN through to completion. There was too much, "So, what should we play, eh?" "I don't know, what do you want to play?" "Whatever you want."

It fizzled. But at least the sandwiches were good!

It was my mom's birthday today! Happy Birthday, Mom! She does so much for me and the Wagner Chicks, it boggles my mind. I know a lot of great, generous, loving people (some of whom read this blog!), but I'm sorry, as wonderful as they are, no one can come close to matching my mom. She's my fave.

And now, ladies and gentlemen, a moment I have been waiting months and months for. In fact... since Feb 18th, to be exact.... I found the following picture, saved it to my archive, knowing that someday, I would be able to use it... and today is that day. OK, ready?

So, yeah, like, I saw a film recently that really blew my mind...

Thank you! Thank you, ladies and gentlemen! That has been so long in waiting to make it's appearance here, it has lost all pretense of cleverness and humor, and was stale from the outset! Woohoo!

Anyway, I saw an amazing movie that I got from Netflix, called "Biutiful" starring Javier Bardem. His performance was really incredible. It's a foreign film (Spanish), with subtitles. I would do a full-on review of it, were it not for the fact that there are a couple scenes that are best fast forwarded. I hate that! When a scene or two prevents me from fully recommending a movie! But again, the writing and the acting are truly top-notch. I was extremely moved.

Javier's character plays a man in a shady line of work, who is divorced, and a single dad... and finds out he has cancer and a couple months to live. The film is basically his character trying to come to grips with that, and make certain things right before he goes, with decidedly mixed results. For a variety of reasons best left un-elaborated upon (because they'd be tedious for you to read), I wept like a schoolgirl. Very moving.

In fact, here's the trailer. Not too crazy about the trailer, since the first 49 seconds of it is just rapid-fire montage imagery, but after that, the trailer settles down and gives a good idea of what the film is like.

Incredible acting. There's nothing like a great performance to remind me of why I love acting.

So, yeah, that film blew my mind!

OK, well, lemme post a comic strip, and then leave this "epic dodge" of a post behind...

That's from the webcomic "Left-Handed Toons (by Right-Handed People)". Yes, it's absurd... but you should know by now that I have a thing for absurdity.

OH, where I could take THAT topic right now!!!

But I won't.

Adios

Dave the Artless Dodger

A Wedding, Angels and the Whole World.

2011-06-11T21:52:00.000-07:00

Nice waterfall, eh?

Great... now I have to use the restroom. brb...

Ah, the middle of the weekend, with all the mixed emotions that come with it. I certainly enjoy a good weekend, but even while it's happening, in the back of my mind, I realize it will be over before I want it to be, and it will be a loooong wait before it happens again... I could draw an apt parallel to that, but it might offend everyone reading who is not a married male...

Speaking of "married", there was a wedding yesterday. Oh, it's the talk of the town. It's all over the newspapers and gossip columns today. There hasn't been a wedding of this magnitude since the royal wedding. Of course, I'm talking about my good friends Vye and Rebekah.

You know, these guys...

You might recognize Vye from my web comics. Rebekah is the one on the right, in the dress...

Yay!

It was a nice, outdoor ceremony, and surprisingly brief. And yes, I cried, I admit it. I *really* want them to be happy together and stay married forever and all that. I wish them only the best.

Here's some more pics, just because it's my blog, and I wanna postem!

Here's Abbie and Shannon, looking like they just floated down from Heaven...

Here's Joseph walking his sister Rebekah down the aisle, so she can swap her last name for a new one.

Here's Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, when they were still the future Mr. and Mrs. Wilson...

And here are two very happy people. The Happy Couple!

All in all, it was an afternoon/early evening extremely well spent. I'm not usually much for being social, but I wouldn't have missed this for anything.

Guess who caught the bouquet? Yep, Middle Daughter. I told her to throw it back. Then I grounded her...

And here's the... uh... other Happy Couple. O_O Plus, as an added bonus, a hideous goatee!

So that's that.

I'm going to keep this post brief tonight. In fact, I'm wearing briefs, just to maintain internal consistency. I will post one video, but you can't watch it unless you make a solemn promise, before God and man. That you will click "Play", then change the 360p to 1080p, then pause it and let it load completely. Then hit the full screen icon, and enjoy the heck out of this...

Remember, you promised. Unless it's full screen and high-def, it won't be anywhere near as amazing.

Adios for now. More stuff soon.

Dave the Middle-Aged

I Was Assaulted By A Snowman!

2011-06-09T00:50:00.000-07:00

You see, every now and then, I like to lead a blog post with a nice, cliched seaside picture in "portrait" orientation. You know, just to keep things fresh, and to keep you on your toes. Yeah, I'm clever like that. Although it does look painful for you to read my blog on your toes like that... good thing you're wearing your point shoes... oh, the irony of posting a landscape photo in "portrait" orientation! O, the blessed, chill-inducing irony!!!1!

So, of course, the big, earth-shattering news I have to lead with tonight is this: My big, bushy, beautiful, beastly beard has been ... uh... um, yeah, a synonym for "shaving it off my goofy face" that starts with B. Sorry, forced alliteration has never been my strong suit.

Where was I?

Oh, the beard. Yeah, it's gone. In its place is a sad, furry goatee. So sad, I will not post a picture of it, since it will depress me... and the last time I got depressed, I drank a venti iced caramel macchiato from Starbucks.

Wait... I do that every day... hmm...

Ah, well, depression is all the rage nowadays with hipsters like me. And argyle socks. And chewed-up gum stuck in my armpit hair...

Where was I?

Oh, yeah, the goatee... yeah, it's ridiculous. But the only thing more ridiculous to me than a bushy, unkempt salt-n-pepper goatee is a clean-shaven face. I need facial hair to break up the monotony of my face. Although it really shouldn't matter much, since it's not like I look at my face, other than an occasional wince as I catch a glimpse while washing my hands and/or socks at the sink. And also when I catch my reflection in the mirrored sunglasses of the policeman ticketing me. Usually I cry until they let me off with a warning. And a wedgie.

Where was I?

Oh, yeah... a funny dog picture...

Ah, gets me every time... dogs are awesome. So are hippos. Wish I could get one for the kids. A dog, I mean, not a hippo. It would be a hyperactive terrier and I'd call it Divot. But no! We can't! No pets aloud! Or allowed, for that matter! See, a serious writer would have gone back and deleted "aloud" and merely typed in the correct word... but no, I'm too lazy for that! Sorry, Divot, you'll have to settle for living as a minor character in my fantasy novel.

Yes, I'm still writing it! Sheesh! Quit hounding me about it!

Sorry, that was addressed to the voices in my head, not to you.

See more White Ninja comics by clicking THIS OMINOUS ALL-CAPS LINK!

Yeah, I wouldn't click it either. You know how untrustworthy I am. It's the goatee. Makes me look shifty. That reminds me... my transmission is grinding going into second gear again. I'll have to get that looked at. Any auto mechanics in the house? How about any acrobats? Anyone play a ukulele? Anyone that can teach a beagle to catch a ball?

Yes, you there, in the front row. Go ahead.

O_O

Dang. You're good...

So Vye and Rebekah are getting married on Friday. Maybe I can sneak my camera into the ceremony (past security) and grab a picture or two to post in the next blog. Two of my favorite people! Vye is so awesome, one title is not good enough for him... he's the Groom, sure... but, actually, he's also the Best Man, in the strict, literal sense. And Rebekah's amazing as well... I *sincerely* hope they live happily ever after. Heck, someone has to be the first to do so! Might as well be them!

And now, more geeky, comicky humor...

Yeah, I know. It's a reach. Still, it made me smile. So it has that going for it, at least...

Finally, it's almost Youth Camp time! You know what that means! Yep, I'll be gone for a week, filming it and taking pictures, and then will come home, full of enthusiasm, ready to edit this year's camp video together... only to watch the weeks tick by, as it sits, partially finished, as I spend more time in blog posts lamenting the fact that it is undone than I will spend actually working on it... the problem is, it's the same basic group of people, at the same camp site, doing the same activities that we do every year! How am I to make that fresh and interesting!? :O - AAAAA!!!!!

Fine, I'll stop whining... here, we'll have a little cake, and then we'll end this mess...

A tetris cake! You can play it by making the lines disappear... down the hatch!

That's enough nonsense.

Dave the Goof

Is This To Be Endured? It Shall Not Be!

2011-06-06T01:03:00.000-07:00

It is with no small amount of trepidation that I take keyboard in hand to pound out this post... o, what I would write if only I could set aside the limits of appropriateness and unpack my heart unedited and unrestrained. But I shall trust that the parts of me that still retain a shred of self control shall prevail, and I shall instead resort to my usual tack of vacuous nonsense. It's just life, that's all. It's easy to tell others to keep things in an eternal perspective, but it's another thing entirely to try to tell oneself such things, while caught in life's teeth, listening to your own bones crunch and your insides scream.

Dang. How emo is that? Sheesh.

I guess I could just use a friend. Volunteers? The only qualification is a willingness to have a metric ton of my unsolvable problems/dilemmas tactlessly dumped in one giant, boiling, haphazard mess upon your head, and remain standing afterwards, telling me what I already know to be true but need to hear anyway...

Yeah, didn't think so, lol.

Ah, well, the "Turning 40 Wagon" trundles onward. This too shall pass...

You know what they say! When life gives you lemons...

... make lemon 'nades.

So, I went with my friend Carey to the Indian Casino on Saturday night, as I threatened, to help him celebrate his 41st birthday. He's an old man. 41. Dang, that's ancient. Anyway, it was fun to see Carey enjoying himself, playing inscrutable slot machines for an hour or two. I dumped a cool $20 into a machine at one point, just to fit in. Haven't been in a casino in forever -- whatever happened to good old fashioned "three bar/lucky 7" slot machines? All the slots they had at the casino the other night had about a dozen different buttons to push, and you could set any number of different types of bets, varying the amount depending on whim, from a penny up to several bucks, all on the same machine! It was crazy. Gone are the penny slots, the nickel slots, the quarter slots, etc. It's all one machine now. And there are up to 30 different ways to win, depending on the type of bet you place. It's impossible to figure out - I just placed a random bet, and assumed the machine would let me know if I won anything or not. It was like an arcade game on crack.

So, yeah, not really my scene. But as I said, I wasn't there for me, but for my good pal, Carey, the old man. And he had fun, so that's what counts. The buffet we ate was yummy.

I know I've posted a similar video to this one before, but these guys that fly these "wingsuits" never cease to blow my mind.

I wish I had the wherewithal (both internally and financially) to attempt such a thing. Talk about living life on the edge. Leave absolutely every single "everyday" worry and concern behind, and live as "right now" as humanly possible... gliding down a mountainside, sometimes only feet off the ground or over the treetops.

WOW. A hundred times, wow.

Dangit, I want to live.

So, my good pal Rebecca is moving out to New York City this summer, to pursue her dream of becoming an editor. Talk about radical change, I'm super happy for her. And no, it's not just because if she becomes an editor, I can hire her to help me with my books. That too, of course...

Mostly, I'm happy that she's busting loose and jumping out there with both feet. Can't wait to see how it plays out for her. How cool is that? No small amount of envy on my part, of course. Ah, well, just more stuff to overcome...

What a pleasant surprise! I have my window open, and it just started raining. I love that sound. Let it rain, Lord, let it rain.

Wifey was watching the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice tonight (the one with Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy), and I snuck in and watched the ending. Now, I'm definitely someone that loves actions movies, and things that go boom (like a good, healthy, red-blooded American male), but I kid you not, that version of Pride and Prejudice is solidly on my Top 10 favorite movies of all-time. Yeah, I'm getting sappy and maudlin in my old age, I know. I can't help it. It gets me every time. So many terrific characters and performances. That scene with Elizabeth and Lady Catherine, squaring off in the garden there at Longbourne toward the end... love it.

Dangit, I have to go find it on YouTube, be right back...

I could only find it in 360p, sorry.

You gotta love Mr. Bennett. I feel a certain kinship with him, that shall remain unelaborated-upon for the time being... *ahem*... anyway, Jennifer Ehle was originally cast as Catelyn Stark in the HBO series A Game of Thrones, but was recast. She would have been great, methinks.

I better post these clips while I can... new copyright laws may get passed which would make it a violation to post clips in a blog like this. Sorry, it's not worth risking massive fines and jail time to entertain you... forgive me? I still love you, fear not...

Anyway, I'm gonna skedaddle off to bed, regroup, and hit the ground running tomorrow. Let's see what this week brings, eh? Hopefully, I'll be able to look at life a bit differently...

Well, maybe not that differently... but close...

Dave the Unsettled

Little Trees, Big Plays and Hobbitses

2011-06-02T19:39:00.000-07:00

Yet another random place I'd like to visit someday. I tell ya, pictures like that really do something for me...

The sun is slowly dipping toward the horizon as I type this; in about a half-hour, I shall walk the hill, as I have for the past couple days. I'm going to see how many times up and down the hill it will take to listen to the whole book of Psalms on my iPod. I'm at Psalm 50 after two trips (about an hour total).

Gee, ain't that fascinating!?!?!

Have you ever been typing something, say in Facebook, or in, like, a blog post, and you realize as you're typing just how boring what you're saying is? Wow! Dave's going to get off his duff and actually see if his legs will work! Wowza! Soooo captivating!

Moving right along...

Thanks for all the positive feedback on the last comic strip I posted. On a whim, I sent a link and a quick note to Pat Rothfuss, about his cameo in the strip, and he wrote back to me today, saying thanks for the nod, and that his beard is a lot bushier now than it was in that picture of him I used.

Yeah, I interact with famous people like that all the time, see...

And now, a bonsai Apple tree...

A Bonsai Apple Tree! Are you kidding me!?!?

Those little apples are edible - so says the tree's creator, a gentleman named Walter Pall, from Colorado. Apparently, Mr. Pall is quite a big deal in the world of Bonsai... he even has a bonsai Sycamore Maple whose leaves change color with the seasons...

Here's a couple more killer trees from this article.

There are more cool pictures in the linked article. Hey Abbie, your dad might get a kick out of seeing those trees, since he's into bonsai as well...

Ah, I almost forgot... hang on, you're not going to believe this... brb...

OK, so I was playing a game of Scrabble against the computer the other day on my iPad, and I was getting creamed, as usual... the CPU routinely plays ridiculous, obscure words that no one in their right mind would know, and usually has its way with me. I have to play it on the hardest setting, since the other settings are not challenging to me, and I easily beat them all the time. Part of me doesn't mind losing to the computer, since I try to use it as an opportunity to learn new words...

Anyway, the only way I can beat the CPU is through a series of power moves, which rely on luck as much as skill. HOWEVER, I destroyed the CPU in one play, dropping a bingo, not just across two Triple Word spots, but one of the Triple Word spots I hooked it so I could use it a third time...

Ironically, I spelled the word FORTIETH, and scored an amazing 173 points on the play. Check it out.

All those weird words on the board? Yeah, that's the CPU. VIDEOTEX? Are you kidding me? So OTALGY and ACHOLIA were already there. I just hooked onto them... like a boss! 173 points baybay! BOOM!

Oddly, that's not my biggest play ever. I played BLOOMIER one time for a staggering 198 points. That's my all-time high. But 173 is certainly impressive... to my invisible friends, I mean...

And now, a kid with crazy skills at... uh... whatever this thing is called...

Um, yeah.

I have more to cover, but I have to go on that walk that I captivated you about earlier, so I'll end here, and jump back in once I return. Oh, the anticipation! If I don't return, assume I got hit by a bus or something...

Dave the Pedestrian

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EDIT

There and Back Again; A Hermit's Tale, by Davebo Baggins...

Yeah, I'm back. I didn't get hit by a bus, or any other vehicular variation. And I can't even tell you how many more Psalms I listened to, since I discovered the tracks aren't in order. Yeah, when it went from Psalm 51 to 59 and then to 62, I knew something was up...

So I failed to get hit by a bus. I failed to accurately track the Psalms. And the air was clear, so I failed to encounter Smaug... I mean, smog...

OK, the Hobbit references aren't working, so I'll stop the nonsense now...

Well, actually... speaking of The Hobbit, they announced the names of the two Hobbit films that Peter Jackson and crew are making. The first is called An Unexpected Journey (Dec 2012), and the second is called There and Back Again (Dec 2013). According to this article, they seem to be finding a way to bring back most of the cast from the LOTR films, for better of worse. I mean, I understand Gandalf, Elrond, Galadriel, and Gollum... but Sauroman? Frodo? Legolas? And "old" Bilbo? Come on... it's bad enough we have to watch them in 3D, but to have to see these guys shoe-horned in where they don't belong?

Ah, well, worse problems to have, I suppose...

My good pal Carey D is celebrating his birthday this weekend, and so I'm joining him Saturday for an evening at the Barona Indian Casino, for better or worse. Not much for gambling, personally, but he assures me he always wins, so maybe some of his luck will transfer to me through some bizarre form of vice-related osmosis or something. Well, at least I'll get a good buffet out of it. Can't beat a good buffet...

If you didn't see Logan's or Josh's posts from today, you might check them out when you get a moment. Both well worth reading, for entirely different reasons.

I suppose that's it for now. I trust your week has been a good one. Have a fun weekend! That's an order!

Dave the Whatever