Detective Comics #854
Batman and Robin #2
Dark X-Men: The Beginning #1
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
My Reviews: Week of July 17
I've been lax, so here's everything for the past couple of weeks.
Detective Comics #854
Batman and Robin #2
Dark X-Men: The Beginning #1
Detective Comics #854
Batman and Robin #2
Dark X-Men: The Beginning #1
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Mondo Marvel #7 is Live!
Yes, I know. But it's that time again, so bear with me.
It's time for Mondo Marvel #7 - December 1962!
It's all about Love, Money, and Revolution this week!
It's time for Mondo Marvel #7 - December 1962!
It's all about Love, Money, and Revolution this week!
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Mondo Marvel #6 is Live!
Hey everybody!
It's that time again!
Mondo Marvel #6 - November 1962 is up and running!
Go check it out and see why The Astonishing Ant-Man is really just a crap superhero!
It's that time again!
Mondo Marvel #6 - November 1962 is up and running!
Go check it out and see why The Astonishing Ant-Man is really just a crap superhero!
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Monday, June 22, 2009
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Mondo Marvel #5 is Live!
Well, it's been 2 weeks, so you know what that means!
You don't? Um. Er...
It's time for Mondo Marvel #5 you silly goose!
This week the Fantastic Four visit an alien world and Reed maybe sorta commits genocide, Ant-Man fights a Communist cross-dresser, The Human Torch gets his own series (apparently because there are just so many Commies to fight), and Thor gets a huge expansion in his cast of characters.
Enjoy!
You don't? Um. Er...
It's time for Mondo Marvel #5 you silly goose!
This week the Fantastic Four visit an alien world and Reed maybe sorta commits genocide, Ant-Man fights a Communist cross-dresser, The Human Torch gets his own series (apparently because there are just so many Commies to fight), and Thor gets a huge expansion in his cast of characters.Enjoy!
Friday, June 12, 2009
Tuesday, June 02, 2009
Mondo Marvel #4 is Live!
Hey gang! Guess what?
That's right!
Mondo Marvel #4 is up for your reading pleasure over at Comics Bulletin.
This week, we get the very first Marvel Super-Villain Team-Up (and it goes about how one might expect), plus the first real appearance of Dr. Henry Pym, The Ant-Man. Also, Hulk gets a personality make-over and Thor fights Commies!
Go 1962!
That's right!
Mondo Marvel #4 is up for your reading pleasure over at Comics Bulletin.
This week, we get the very first Marvel Super-Villain Team-Up (and it goes about how one might expect), plus the first real appearance of Dr. Henry Pym, The Ant-Man. Also, Hulk gets a personality make-over and Thor fights Commies!
Go 1962!
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Monday, May 25, 2009
Worth Reading 2
The science of voodoo: When mind attacks body - health - 13 May 2009 - New Scientist
The idea that believing you are ill can make you ill may seem far-fetched, yet rigorous trials have established beyond doubt that the converse is true - that the power of suggestion can improve health. This is the well-known placebo effect. Placebos cannot produce miracles, but they do produce measurable physical effects.
The placebo effect has an evil twin: the nocebo effect, in which dummy pills and negative expectations can produce harmful effects. The term "nocebo", which means "I will harm", was not coined until the 1960s, and the phenomenon has been far less studied than the placebo effect. It's not easy, after all, to get ethical approval for studies designed to make people feel worse.
Worth Reading 1
Why People Believe Invisible Agents Control the World: Scientific American
The problem is that we did not evolve a baloney-detection device in our brains to discriminate between true and false patterns. So we make two types of errors: a type I error, or false positive, is believing a pattern is real when it is not; a type II error, or false negative, is not believing a pattern is real when it is. If you believe that the rustle in the grass is a dangerous predator when it is just the wind (a type I error), you are more likely to survive than if you believe that the rustle in the grass is just the wind when it is a dangerous predator (a type II error). Because the cost of making a type I error is less than the cost of making a type II error and because there is no time for careful deliberation between patternicities in the split-second world of predator-prey interactions, natural selection would have favored those animals most likely to assume that all patterns are real.
But we do something other animals do not do. As large-brained hominids with a developed cortex and a theory of mind—the capacity to be aware of such mental states as desires and intentions in both ourselves and others—we infer agency behind the patterns we observe in a practice I call “agenticity”: the tendency to believe that the world is controlled by invisible intentional agents. We believe that these intentional agents control the world, sometimes invisibly from the top down (as opposed to bottom-up causal randomness). Together patternicity and agenticity form the cognitive basis of shamanism, paganism, animism, polytheism, monotheism, and all modes of Old and New Age spiritualisms.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Mondo Marvel #3 is Live!
Has it been two weeks already? Yes.
Did I wait until the last minute again? Yes.
Do I suck? Yes.
Mondo Marvel #3: July-August 1962
This installment brings us looks at Fantastic Four #5, The Incredible Hulk #2, Journey Into Mystery #83 (featuring the first appearance of Thor, God of Thunder), and Amazing Fantasy #15 (featuring the first appearance of Spider-Man).
Enjoy!
Did I wait until the last minute again? Yes.
Do I suck? Yes.
Mondo Marvel #3: July-August 1962
This installment brings us looks at Fantastic Four #5, The Incredible Hulk #2, Journey Into Mystery #83 (featuring the first appearance of Thor, God of Thunder), and Amazing Fantasy #15 (featuring the first appearance of Spider-Man).Enjoy!
Monday, May 18, 2009
Jesus Fucking Christ.
Bakersfield dad accused of biting out son's eye - Bakersfield.com
"My daddy ate my eyes."
A search warrant report said the father "was displaying symptoms of being under the influence of PCP."
Alas, SCC, We Hardly Knew Ye...
Looks like the critical combination of shitty timeslot, low ratings, and Fox not getting a big enough share of the profits has led to the demise of one of the best Science Fiction shows on television, just as it was hitting its stride.Seriously, the last month and a half of Season Two were as good as, if not, at times, a little better than Battlestar Galactica on its better days.
But Fox renews Dollhouse? Really, Fox? You're gonna play it like that?
Shameful.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Holy Crap! I Just Had a Dream Like This Last Night...
Toilet snake attack: urban legend comes true? - Yahoo!7 News
The director, who declined to be named, said. "A snake's mouth isn't always clean."
Especially that snake's mouth.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Gah! News I Didn't Need to Hear...
Man, 30, gives 'birth' to his twin | The Sun |News
Former firefighter Gavin, of Witney, Oxfordshire, said: “Four hospital doctors had previously examined me and were all puzzled by the lump.
“Some thought it was a cyst, others an in-grown hair.
“Then one said it could be my undeveloped identical twin that I absorbed at a very early stage. I feel absolutely fine now but it has not sunk in yet that I could have had a twin brother. I have him in a jar at home and I call him little Gav. I haven’t told many people. I feel like a bit of a freak.”
Friday, May 08, 2009
or at least the place where we decide to act...
Possible site of free will found in brain - life - 07 May 2009 - New Scientist
It's actually about the consciousness of movement - where the impulse to move apparently originates in the parietal cortex, signals to the premotor cortex which then initiates the movement and signals back to the parietal cortex that a movement was made.
Not exactly "Free Will," but then whether or not Free Will even exists is a question that hasn't been answered to everyone's satisfaction.
But interesting, nonetheless.
It's actually about the consciousness of movement - where the impulse to move apparently originates in the parietal cortex, signals to the premotor cortex which then initiates the movement and signals back to the parietal cortex that a movement was made.
Not exactly "Free Will," but then whether or not Free Will even exists is a question that hasn't been answered to everyone's satisfaction.
But interesting, nonetheless.
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
Mondo Marvel #2 is live!
Mondo Marvel #2: January-May 1962 is up and running. This week I cover Fantastic Four 2-4 and The Incredible Hulk #1.
The column is a little long, so pop some popcorn, pour yourself a tall one, settle in and enjoy!
The column is a little long, so pop some popcorn, pour yourself a tall one, settle in and enjoy!
Friday, May 01, 2009
Samurai Princess
Directed by the writer of Tokyo Gore Police. Produced and with gore effects by the director of Tokyo Gore Police.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Andrew Sullivan For The Win (or Suck It, Douchebags)
Reagan On Torture Prosecutions
The United States participated actively and effectively in the negotiation of the Convention . It marks a significant step in the development during this century of international measures against torture and other inhuman treatment or punishment. Ratification of the Convention by the United States will clearly express United States opposition to torture, an abhorrent practice unfortunately still prevalent in the world today.
The core provisions of the Convention establish a regime for international cooperation in the criminal prosecution of torturers relying on so-called 'universal jurisdiction.' Each State Party is required either to prosecute torturers who are found in its territory or to extradite them to other countries for prosecution.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Mondo Marvel #1 is Live!
Hey True Believers!
My very first Mondo Marvel column went live today over at Comics Bulletin, wherein I take a fresh look (as fresh as possible) at the birth of the Marvel Universe in November 1961's Fantastic Four #1.
Then look for new installments every other week as I make my way through every superhero comic that Marvel published from there to the end of December 1969! It'll be a long haul, but with your support, we can do it!
Come take a look and then check out the message boards to tell me what you think!
Thanks for your time!
Paul Brian McCoy
My very first Mondo Marvel column went live today over at Comics Bulletin, wherein I take a fresh look (as fresh as possible) at the birth of the Marvel Universe in November 1961's Fantastic Four #1.
Then look for new installments every other week as I make my way through every superhero comic that Marvel published from there to the end of December 1969! It'll be a long haul, but with your support, we can do it!Come take a look and then check out the message boards to tell me what you think!
Thanks for your time!
Paul Brian McCoy
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Too Sad...
BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Cult author JG Ballard dies at 78
Go here to read the short piece: "Why I Want to Fuck Ronald Reagan""If you look at the start of his career, he began writing science fiction stories and we was regarded as very avant garde.
"And there was a kind of violence lurking beneath the texture of these novels. And they've come to seem less and less futuristic and you know it's as if we're embodying, we're living in now a kind of Ballardian world."
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Fight Me, Cowards!
It's kind of silly and the only control you have is over who you choose to fight, but damn if I'm not getting addicted to My Brute. At least it only parcels out 3 fights a day. Otherwise, I'd be doing this all night.
I know. It's sad, really.
If any of you cowards want to fight my Brute, and want to continue on fighting and building your character's experience, weapons, and allies, be sure to create a password, otherwise it's apparently kind of easy to lose track of your Brute.
Like you haven't heard that enough.
I know. It's sad, really.
If any of you cowards want to fight my Brute, and want to continue on fighting and building your character's experience, weapons, and allies, be sure to create a password, otherwise it's apparently kind of easy to lose track of your Brute.
Like you haven't heard that enough.
Wednesday, April 08, 2009
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
Friday, March 27, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
More Proof the Japanese Cannot Be Out-Crazied...
Apparently this series, Cat Shit One, is based on a manga called Cat Shit One: Apocalypse Meow that was set during the Vietnam War.
I need to see this.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Why I Prefer Twitter to Texting...
Egypt tries to hang up on killer SMS rumours - Yahoo! News UK
The Egyptian government has sought to dispel rumours that a mobile phone text message "from unknown foreign quarters" is spreading around the country and killing those who receive it.
The extraordinary move by Egypt's health and interior ministries follows press reports that an SMS containing a special combination of numbers killed a man in the town of Mallawi south of Cairo.
"He died vomiting blood,followed by stroke, shortly after he received a message from an unknown phone number," the Egyptian Gazette reported on Wednesday.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Thursday, March 19, 2009
As Good an Excuse as Any, I Guess...
A mind dismembered: In search of the magical penis thieves—By Frank Bures (Harper's Magazine)
A few days after I arrived in Lagos, an article appeared in the newspaper. The headline read: court remands man over false alarm on genital organ disappearance. According to the paper, a young man named Wasiu Karimu was on a bus when he “was said to have let out a strident cry, claiming that his genital organ had disappeared. He immediately grabbed [Funmi] Bello, who was seated next to him, and shouted that the woman should restore his ‘stolen’ organ.” They got off the bus, and a crowd of “miscreants” swarmed around the woman, ready to kill her. But a passing police patrol intervened, stopped her from being lynched, and escorted them both to the police station, where Karimu told the commissioner “his organ was returning gradually.” The paper gave the exact address where Wasiu Karimu lived, so I decided to try and find out what exactly had transpired in his pants.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
What Looks Good to me...
I've stepped in and subbed for Michael once again, on the better late than never, What Looks Good #253: Irish I Were in Dublin...
It's St. Patrick's Day themed. :)
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Friday, March 06, 2009
Monday, March 02, 2009
I Am At a Loss For a Title...
'Radioactive' sex offender on the run - Telegraph
The 42-year-old was due to face trial for downloading indecent images of children but fled Britain after receiving large doses of radiotherapy treatment for a thyroid condition.
Southwark Crown Court heard that Mr Leopold could harm anyone he comes into contact, due to the radiation.
Judge John Price said: "Please warn officers that when he is arrested he might be radioactive."
He added: "This is not a joke."
Friday, February 27, 2009
I Hope You Don't Know Anyone Who's Died Around Cinci Lately...
Deters: 'This is off-the-charts weird'
On many nights over 16 years, Kenneth Douglas engaged in his own personal macabre workplace party.He often brought drugs or alcohol to work and sometimes had sex with women.
At least three of those women were dead, Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters said Thursday.
But if Douglas is to be believed, he could have had sex with as many as "over a hundred" bodies in the 16 years he worked as night attendant at the Hamilton County morgue.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Blast From the Past
The 12 year old version of me apparently thought that there was such a thing as "Heat Radiation" and "Freeze Radiation." Not to mention "Force Radiation" or whatever it was called, that could knock people down. Hmmmm.
It was kind of cool, though, that the character idea I submitted was made a villain. His diabolical plan was to blow the ozone layer wide open, flooding the Earth with, you guessed it, radiation, making him all-powerful. Or something like that.
And it would have worked, too, if it hadn't been for those damned Dial H for Hero kids. Well, the boy in particular, who just happened to transform into a Hindu god who could do anything imaginable. Seems like cheating, to me.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Your First Band and Album Cover
What would your own album look like if you were in a band? Follow the directions below and find out...
Here are the rules:
1 - Go to Wikipedia. Hit “random”
or click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
The first random Wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.
2 - Go to Quotations Page and select "random quotations"
or click http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3
The last four or five words of the very last quote on the page is the title of your first album.
3 - Go to Flickr and click on "explore the last seven days"
or click http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days
Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.
4 - Use Photoshop or similar to put it all together.
-----
And here's the result!
And now, for the credits...
I snagged this idea from Kelvin and wasn't going to actually post it, but when my band name popped up Scummy Man, I said what the hell.
Here's the Wikipedia link to Scummy Man, just to prove I didn't make that up.
The quote is from Ed Norton, which was almost enough for me to scrap the project, but I went with it.
The image is entitled Raspberry Splash #2, by someone named Zaukher and belongs to him. I make no claims of ownership. It was actually the second picture that came up for me, but I wasn't able to copy the third picture, so I used this one instead. I used Photoshop to trim it down to Album/CD size and I think it worked out just fine.
Here are the rules:
1 - Go to Wikipedia. Hit “random”
or click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
The first random Wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.
2 - Go to Quotations Page and select "random quotations"
or click http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3
The last four or five words of the very last quote on the page is the title of your first album.
3 - Go to Flickr and click on "explore the last seven days"
or click http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days
Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.
4 - Use Photoshop or similar to put it all together.
-----
And here's the result!
And now, for the credits...
I snagged this idea from Kelvin and wasn't going to actually post it, but when my band name popped up Scummy Man, I said what the hell.
Here's the Wikipedia link to Scummy Man, just to prove I didn't make that up.
The quote is from Ed Norton, which was almost enough for me to scrap the project, but I went with it.
The image is entitled Raspberry Splash #2, by someone named Zaukher and belongs to him. I make no claims of ownership. It was actually the second picture that came up for me, but I wasn't able to copy the third picture, so I used this one instead. I used Photoshop to trim it down to Album/CD size and I think it worked out just fine.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
I smell an invasion...
Evil Robert Mugabe hoards lost Doctor Who tapes | The Sun
BBC investigators believe the troubled nation holds some of the early episodes of the cult series which are still missing.
But tyrant President Mugabe has banned the Beeb from setting foot in his country. And diplomatic relations are also extremely tense — meaning researchers are unable to get into the nation’s TV vaults.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Um, huh?
Ex-police media chief Kevin Loomes masturbated in front of backpackers | The Australian
Defence lawyer Neil Lawler told Magistrate Sheryl Cornack that Loomes had received counselling since the incident and was extremely embarrassed.
"He is aware of the issues that he has to address," Mr Lawler said.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Bizarre...
Visions of 'little people': The eye disorder that leaves thousands of Britons fearing they've lost their senses | Mail Online
Following his wife's death six years ago, David Stannard has become accustomed to spending quiet evenings alone at his home in Walton-on-Thames, Surrey.
So it came as a surprise to the 73-year-old when he looked up from his television one evening to discover he was sharing his living room with two RAF pilots and a schoolboy.
'The pilots were standing next to the TV, watching it as if they were in the wings of a theatre,' he says.'The little boy was in a grey, Fifties-style school uniform. He just stood there in the hearth looking puzzled. He was 18 inches high at most.'
Mr Stannard's guests never said a word and vanished after 15 minutes. That night, he says, the walls of his house, which had always been white, looked as though they had been redecorated in patterned wallpaper with a brickwork effect.
The next morning he was caught off-guard again when he found a fair-haired girl standing on his sofa. She also appeared to be from the Fifties, but was life-size, wearing a short skirt and pink cardigan, with chubby knees, white ankle socks and ribbons in her hair.
'I watched her for a while,' he says. 'She didn't move much. Then she was gone.'
Wednesday, February 04, 2009
Bad News...
Cramps Singer Lux Interior Dead At 62
Over the course of more than 30 years, the Interior and Ivy surrounded themselves with an ever-changing lineup of drummers, guitarists and bassists, and released 13 studio albums (the last being 2003's Fiends of Dope Island). They also famously performed a concert for patients at the Napa State Mental Hospital in 1978 (which was recorded on grainy VHS and has since become a cult classic) and appeared on a Halloween episode of "Beverly Hills, 90210." Their video for the song "Bikini Girls With Machine Guns" also drew rave reviews from Beavis and Butt-head on a memorable episode of the show.
Tuesday, February 03, 2009
Sunday, February 01, 2009
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Huzzah! Um, wait. Define "moderate"...
Alcohol stops men being a flop in bed - health - 26 January 2009 - New Scientist
Huzzah! We've got erections!
Huzzah! We've got erections!
Men might want to remember a new rhyme: a drink a day keeps erectile dysfunction away.
Despite traditional views about the effects of booze on male performance, new research suggests that moderate drinking actually protects against impotence in the long term – perhaps for the same reason a glass or two of wine a day cuts the odds of suffering from heart disease.
There is good evidence that
excessive drinking can hinder sexual performance after a night out – a phenomenon sometimes called "brewer's droop". The effect has been noted for many years: "[Drink] provokes the desire, but it takes away the performance," Shakespeare reminds us in Macbeth.
But over longer periods, moderate drinking doesn't seem to be linked to erectile dysfunction, says Kew-Kim Chew, an epidemiologist at the University of West Australia in Nedlands, whose team conducted an anonymous postal survey of 1770 West Australian men.
After accounting for differences due to age, smoking and heart disease – all risk factors for ED – Chew and colleagues found that drinkers experienced rates of impotence 25% to 30% below those of teetotallers.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Well, fuck them. They're idiots.
Obama's Nonbeliever Nod Unsettles Some
By mentioning, for the first time in an inaugural address, the 16.1 percent of Americans who check "no"’ when asked about religion, Obama turned it into the most controversial line in his speech -- praised by The New York Times editorial board and cited by some Christians as evidence that he is a heretic, and in his well-spoken way, a serious threat.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Monday, January 19, 2009
Saturday, January 17, 2009
BSG is Back! Grab Your Hankies!
Could it get any bleaker?No spoilers, but damn. I'm glad I wasn't drinking during that or I might have killed myself when it was over. Definitely not a BSG Party kind of episode. Unless you're in a suicide cult, of course.
But it was good. It was very, very good.
One down, nine to go.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Goodbye, Khan. Goodbye No. 6
Dr. Girlfriend and I just spent the evening saying goodbye to two friends. To send off Patrick McGoohan, we watched "The Girl Who Was Death" episode 15 of The Prisoner. It was a nice little adventure, ultimately playing out as a bedtime story No. 6 was reading to some of the children of The Village. Then we decided to say goodbye to Ricardo Mantalban by watching "Space Seed" from the first season of Star Trek.
Then it was a choice between Scanners and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, and Khan won out. Goodbye, gentlemen. You will be missed.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
New Year's Resolutions
To be quite honest, I don't really have a lot of things that I want to resolve to do or not do this year. I'm pretty much on track with my life at the moment, and am enjoying where I'm at.
My "Suffer No Fools" resolution of a few years back has been successful, and there's not a whole lot more I think I need to worry about. We don't eat bad foods. We should probably exercise more, but I don't think that's something that's going get much attention for a while, given our work schedules.
Other than that, there are a couple of things that I do want to take care of.
RESOLUTION #1: Get Organized.
January is being devoted to getting my house in order. I've let things slide for quite a while and the clutter is almost overwhelming. Therefore, January is "Get Organized" Month.
In just the first week I've gotten my bookshelves organized, condensing, making space, and getting things shelved that have been lying around for months. That might not sound like much, but check out my library of books over in the sidebar. I've got way too many, but can't give any up.
Anyway, that's step one. Step two was getting my DVDs in order. That was done yesterday, and has also helped to clear out some of the shelving clutter.
Step three is the big one. Shredding. I've got years of old bills piled up (taking up shelf space) and they need to go. Which means hours of shredding. But once it's done, there's only minor straightening that will be left and I can move on to Resolution #2, while maintaining a certain level of order throughout the year.
RESOLUTION #2: Writing.
I write a lot of reviews. 133 last year, to be exact. That's more than 10 per month, which means at least 2 to 3 per week on average, if my math is right. But it could be wrong.
Regardless, that's a lot of reviews. Especially when you consider that each one is averaging around 800 words. That's approximately 106,000 words over the year. That's the equivalent of a big novel.
So, once the house is in order and Resolution #1 is complete (I've given myself until the end of January to do this, but I should be done before then), then I start cutting back on the reviews and start devoting that writing time to myself.
However, being a veteran of two 3 Day Novels and having tried (and failed) a NaNoWriMo attempt, I think I've gotten a good idea of my current limitations. If I put too big a demand on myself and fall behind, then I'll just quit. I know this.
So I'm going to make the ground rules fairly easy and undemanding.
I'm shooting for a 500 word minimum per day - non-cumulative. Meaning, that if I miss a day, I don't fee obligated to write 1000 words to make it up. That's doable. Very doable. And in six months, if I've kept up with the regimen, then that's around 90,000 words. Again, a good sized novel's worth of writing. It'll not be worth reading, most likely, but it'll be a start. And if the groundwork doesn't get established, then nothing will develop at all.
And really, 500 words is nothing. This post is already 550 words, so there's my daily output met. More than 500 should be a piece of cake once I get rolling.
So that's the plan.
I'm not worrying about my health, since I'm poor and have no insurance and already try to avoid doing anything too bad for my body. I should probably think about drinking less, too, but maybe next year. As it is, I think we'll be cutting back to more wine than beer, and trying to keep it to our weekends as much as possible. But I don't want to make a hard and fast Resolution that I've got to try and stick to and then fail.
I'd rather make these about accomplishing things rather than cutting back on things.
Like I said, maybe next year. We'll see.
My "Suffer No Fools" resolution of a few years back has been successful, and there's not a whole lot more I think I need to worry about. We don't eat bad foods. We should probably exercise more, but I don't think that's something that's going get much attention for a while, given our work schedules.
Other than that, there are a couple of things that I do want to take care of.
RESOLUTION #1: Get Organized.
January is being devoted to getting my house in order. I've let things slide for quite a while and the clutter is almost overwhelming. Therefore, January is "Get Organized" Month.
In just the first week I've gotten my bookshelves organized, condensing, making space, and getting things shelved that have been lying around for months. That might not sound like much, but check out my library of books over in the sidebar. I've got way too many, but can't give any up.
Anyway, that's step one. Step two was getting my DVDs in order. That was done yesterday, and has also helped to clear out some of the shelving clutter.
Step three is the big one. Shredding. I've got years of old bills piled up (taking up shelf space) and they need to go. Which means hours of shredding. But once it's done, there's only minor straightening that will be left and I can move on to Resolution #2, while maintaining a certain level of order throughout the year.
RESOLUTION #2: Writing.
I write a lot of reviews. 133 last year, to be exact. That's more than 10 per month, which means at least 2 to 3 per week on average, if my math is right. But it could be wrong.
Regardless, that's a lot of reviews. Especially when you consider that each one is averaging around 800 words. That's approximately 106,000 words over the year. That's the equivalent of a big novel.
So, once the house is in order and Resolution #1 is complete (I've given myself until the end of January to do this, but I should be done before then), then I start cutting back on the reviews and start devoting that writing time to myself.
However, being a veteran of two 3 Day Novels and having tried (and failed) a NaNoWriMo attempt, I think I've gotten a good idea of my current limitations. If I put too big a demand on myself and fall behind, then I'll just quit. I know this.
So I'm going to make the ground rules fairly easy and undemanding.
I'm shooting for a 500 word minimum per day - non-cumulative. Meaning, that if I miss a day, I don't fee obligated to write 1000 words to make it up. That's doable. Very doable. And in six months, if I've kept up with the regimen, then that's around 90,000 words. Again, a good sized novel's worth of writing. It'll not be worth reading, most likely, but it'll be a start. And if the groundwork doesn't get established, then nothing will develop at all.
And really, 500 words is nothing. This post is already 550 words, so there's my daily output met. More than 500 should be a piece of cake once I get rolling.
So that's the plan.
I'm not worrying about my health, since I'm poor and have no insurance and already try to avoid doing anything too bad for my body. I should probably think about drinking less, too, but maybe next year. As it is, I think we'll be cutting back to more wine than beer, and trying to keep it to our weekends as much as possible. But I don't want to make a hard and fast Resolution that I've got to try and stick to and then fail.
I'd rather make these about accomplishing things rather than cutting back on things.
Like I said, maybe next year. We'll see.
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Saturday, January 03, 2009
The New Doctor
He looks like the face you'd expect to see on the other side of a Glory Hole. I am not impressed.
Thursday, January 01, 2009
Top 10 Movies of 2008 I Haven't Seen Yet
1. Slumdog Millionaire
2. Let the Right One In
3. The Wrestler
4. Quantum of Solace
5. Burn After Reading
6. Tokyo Gore Police
7. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
8. Synecdoche, NY
9. In Bruges
10. Che
BONUS 11. Repo: The Genetic Opera
2. Let the Right One In
3. The Wrestler
4. Quantum of Solace
5. Burn After Reading
6. Tokyo Gore Police
7. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
8. Synecdoche, NY
9. In Bruges
10. Che
BONUS 11. Repo: The Genetic Opera
Top 10 Movies of 2008 (in no particular order)
1. The Fall
2. Iron Man
3. Hellboy II: The Golden Army
4. Machine Girl
5. Sukiyaki Western Django
6. Cloverfield
7. Tropic Thunder
8. Red Belt
9. The Mist
10. The Dark Knight
2. Iron Man
3. Hellboy II: The Golden Army
4. Machine Girl
5. Sukiyaki Western Django
6. Cloverfield
7. Tropic Thunder
8. Red Belt
9. The Mist
10. The Dark Knight
Top 5 TV Shows I've Never Watched, But Probably Should
1. Breaking Bad
2. Mad Men
3. The Shield
4. Pushing Daisies
5. Damages
2. Mad Men
3. The Shield
4. Pushing Daisies
5. Damages
Top 15 TV Shows of 2008 (in no particular order)
1. Battlestar Galactica
2. Sons of Anarchy
3. Dexter
4. Lost
5. Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
6. The Wire
7. Doctor Who
8. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
9. The Office
10. The Sarah Silverman Program
11. Eureka
12. Fringe
13. 10 Items or Less
14. Mentalist
15. IT Crowd
2. Sons of Anarchy
3. Dexter
4. Lost
5. Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
6. The Wire
7. Doctor Who
8. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
9. The Office
10. The Sarah Silverman Program
11. Eureka
12. Fringe
13. 10 Items or Less
14. Mentalist
15. IT Crowd
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Patton Scoring Crank 2!?!
Looking a Beast in the Mouth: An Interview with Mike Patton | The Reticule
TR: Of course you are primarily a musician, but have you ever considered doing a score for a game?
MP: Yes, I have spoken to some people about it and started one that was aborted. I’m sure it will happen at some point, but that takes quite a bit more of a time commitment. I’m scoring a film right now. Crank 2. It is almost like a videogame!
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Is Santa Claus Really Thor? Is Thor Really Satan?
SANTA CLAUS: The Great Imposter
Mythologist Helene Adeline Guerber presents a very convincing case tracing Santa to the Norse god Thor in Myths of Northern Lands:
Thor was the god of the peasants and the common people. He was represented as an elderly man, jovial and friendly, of heavy build, with a long white beard. His element was the fire, his color red.
The rumble and roar of thunder were said to be caused by the rolling of his chariot, for he alone among the gods never rode on horseback but drove in a chariot drawn by two white goats (called Cracker and Gnasher). He was fighting the giants of ice and snow, and thus became the Yule-god.
He was said to live in the "Northland" where he had his palace among icebergs.
By our pagan forefathers he was considered as the cheerful and friendly god, never harming the humans but rather helping and protecting them. The fireplace in every home was especially sacred to him, and he was said to come down through the chimney into his element, the fire. (Guerber, H.A. Myths of Northern Lands. New York: American Book Company, 1895, p. 61)The unusual and common characteristics of Santa and Thor are too close to ignore.
- An elderly man, jovial and friendly and of heavy build.
- With a long white beard.
- His element was the fire and his color red.
- Drove a chariot drawn by two white goats, named called Cracker and Gnasher.
- He was the Yule-god. (Yule is Christmas time).
- He lived in the Northland (North Pole).
- He was considered the cheerful and friendly god.
- He was benevolent to humans.
- The fireplace was especially sacred to him.
- He came down through the chimney into his element, the fire.
Even today in Sweden, Thor represents Santa Claus. The book, The Story of the Christmas Symbols, records:
Swedish children wait eagerly for Jultomten, a gnome whose sleigh is drawn by the Julbocker, the goats of the thunder god Thor. With his red suit and cap, and a bulging sack on his back, he looks much like the American Santa Claus. (Barth, Edna. Holly, Reindeer, and Colored Lights, The Story of the Christmas Symbols. New York: Clarion Books, 1971, p. 49)Thor was probably history’s most celebrated and worshipped pagan god. His widespread influence is particularly obvious in the fifth day of the week, which is named after him – Thursday (a.k.a. Thor’s Day).
It is ironic that Thor’s symbol was a hammer. A hammer is also the symbolic tool of the carpenter – Santa Claus. It is also worth mentioning that Thor’s helpers were elves and like Santa’s elves, Thor’s elves were skilled craftsman. It was the elves who created Thor’s magic hammer.
In the Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs, author Francis Weiser traces the origin of Santa to Thor: "Behind the name Santa Claus actually stands the figure of the pagan Germanic god Thor." (Weiser, Francis X. Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, Inc., 1952, p. 113)
After listing some the common attributes of Thor and Santa, Weiser concludes:
Here, [Thor] then, is the true origin of our "Santa Claus." . . . With the Christian saint whose name he still bears, however, this Santa Claus has really nothing to do. (Weiser, Francis X. Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, Inc., 1952, p. 114)Another interesting trait of Thor is recorded by H.R. Ellis Davidson in Scandinavian Mythology, "It was Thor who in the last days of heathenism was regarded as the chief antagonist of Christ." (Davidson, H.R. Ellis. Scandinavian Mythology. New York: Peter Bedrick Books, 1982, p. 133) In case you are not aware, an "antagonist" is an
enemy, adversary or replacement.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Friday, December 12, 2008
I am Sad Now...
Bettie Page dies at 85; pinup queen played a key role in the sexual revolution of the 1960s and later became a cult figure - Los Angeles Times
Bettie Page, the brunet pinup queen with a shoulder-length pageboy hairdo and kitschy bangs whose saucy photos helped usher in the sexual revolution of the 1960s, has died. She was 85.
Sunday, December 07, 2008
Friday, December 05, 2008
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