No Disintegrations

So I'm starting an online store, Pt. 1

2011-02-22T00:06:00.000-05:00

It's taking quite a bit longer than I'd hoped. Trying to find a brand name, and then getting all the pieces in place to utilize my new brand has been crazy. I'm trying to use as many free utilities as possible to get it up and going.

Step 1: Free myself from eBay - check!

If you've read this blog much, you know that eBay and I go way back to a time when it was actually a useful commerce site. It's still good for finding hard-to-find items, but the prices keep creeping up. I've mentioned my issues with eBay here and here, so I'm going to paraphrase now. Basically, they charge 3 fees for the same item, the selling window is too small, and charging for an unsuccessful listing is not cool. So after some experimentation and research, I'm going with Bonanza for my storefront. Reasonable fees, easy interfaces, and long term selling windows hooked me in fast. Granted, they don't do auctions, but they do allow best offers and have a great freebie feature.

Step 2: Create a brand - check!

I knew the types of items I wanted to sell, but trying to find a name to fit them that wasn't already taken was extremely difficult. After countless tries with Google research (read: searching for names I came up with on Google), I realized I was going to have to work this one out a different way. My long time blogging comrade Trevor Danger, had a great name for his blog that encompassed my interests (and inventory). "Pop Culture Panopticon" was it's moniker, and it's now Pop Culture Panopticon 3.0. I wanted to use the "pop culture" part, because I keep going to San Diego Comic-Con, which "celebrates the popular arts" and a lot of my inventory comes from that event. So, now I needed one word to describe my items. I tried several fancy, difficult-to-spell words, and settled on one people have heard of, but is still not too easy to spell - "memorabilia". So, my brand name is Pop Culture Memorabilia.

Now what?
Step 3: Create a logo and image for the brand
Step 4: Establish a social marketing structure
Step 5: Cross-pollinate
Step 6: Build the store

Read about these steps and more in my next post. Sorry, but this is the first time I've tried to launch a large-scale internet venture (beyond this blog), and there's only so many hours in a day.

As a bonus, here's a picture of the Pop Culture Memorabilia spokesperson:

Facebook Groups review Pt 1

2010-11-04T19:40:00.002-05:00

I decided to dive into using Facebook groups today. So far, I have created a few groups for family and friends. I wasn't sure what to expect. Something like the Old Groups? Or Friend Lists? No, it's like a private mini-Facebook.

When you make a post to a group, the post shows up in the Most Recent News Feed to other group members. People who aren't members of the group don't see the post. It seems like Facebook combined the best part of Friend Lists (privacy settings) and the best of Old Groups (messaging, sharing pics and video, private Wall) to make the New Groups. You can do a group chat or collaboratively edit documents. It will be interesting to see how this ends up working for my groups.

So far, I like what I'm seeing in terms of privacy and integration. Making the groups part of the main news stream will help keep them from getting stale. I'll post an update in a few months (after the holiday season) and give a review of how well my groups took off and which features are good and which ones are lacking.

P.S. I see that Apple is starting a social network based on music and iTunes. It will be interesting to see what happens with that venture.

AFP: US conservatives blast public radio in Muslim comment flap

2010-10-22T11:32:00.016-05:00

This guy, Juan Williams, got fired for doing something his boss felt violated the code of conduct established at his workplace. Not saying that's right, but that's what happens at any workplace. To shut down NPR entirely because of one judgement based on a conduct code? Sounds extremist to me.

So, NPR has chosen to be extremely politically correct in their slant on broadcasting (which befits a publicly-funded outlet). I don't like any slants on new info, but this one is a moderate slant. However, FOX has slanted their newscasts so far to the right that I can't tell fact from fiction anymore on the network. Case in point:

"While Republicans closed ranks around Williams, who quickly signed a Fox News Channel contract reportedly worth two million dollars over three years..."

Would dude be getting this offer if they didn't think he was going to continue broadcasting anti-Muslim sentiments disguised as news?

Oh yes, please! Put my taxes toward serving the bigotry, hatred, and stupidity of these so-called "White House contenders" instead. I strongly support the first amendment, but there is a difference between free speech and inflammatory speech. A government outlet should do its best to keep from offending any of its constituents.

Seriously people, this is why you shouldn't vote these morons into any position that involves decision-making. They are out for themselves, and if you aren't exactly like them, you will be branded a "threat". They are conformists at the highest level. (As in everyone should conform to what they want).

Our country needs to get over this revenge and retribution mindset and get back to the basics: capitalism. Apparently we forgot how to dominate the world market in that arena. How about focusing on that instead of who's building what where and this dude now making $2 mil in 3 years when he was probably making about $90 thousand or less in 3 years before? Sounds like he got the better end of the deal anyway to me.

Obama Takes Control of Arctic's Future Away from Oil Companies - National Wildlife Federation

2010-06-04T11:52:00.000-05:00

Obama Takes Control of Arctic's Future Away from Oil Companies - National Wildlife Federation

This is a good first step in the right direction concerning fragile ecosystems and oil speculation. Until some of those billions are spent on developing foolproof retrieval methods, they should stay away from land and water teaming with plants and animals.

eBay Drove Me Away, But Now They Are Caving To Small Seller Needs

2010-01-27T00:35:00.005-05:00

What you are about to read is based on my experience, some web research, and an email I received from eBay containing this link:

http://pages.ebay.com/sellerinformation/news/StandardFees.html

When eBay acquired PayPal, I feared the good times were over. I have occasionally been selling / reselling collectibles and comics on eBay to support my own collecting habits. I've been a member of the site for over 10 years now, and began selling 3-4 years ago. At that time, sellers could accept personal checks or money orders, insurance was optional, and listing fees were high.

In the last year or two, eBay changed their selling policies several times to help prevent fraudulent sellers and buyers from taking advantage of people. I was involved in at least two disputes with fraudulent sellers that I was able to resolve with PayPal prior to these changes, and I think eBay had the right intentions when it came to trying to protect its users. Unfortunately, good intentions often pave the road to someplace unpleasant.

The first convenience to go was the option to accept personal checks or money orders. This used to account for 40% of my sales. I saw a huge drop-off on low priced item sales. PayPal and pay at pick up are now basically the only options for small sellers. I have also heard horror stories for years about PayPal freezing accounts, but I have to say that I was lucky to never experience that. Other folks were not so lucky, and eBay's changes contributed to their disillusionment with the whole marketplace.

Then, eBay started requiring sellers to either offer insurance or not. It was no longer optional for buyers or sellers. I've also had to deal with USPS insurance claims as a buyer, and my issues were resolved successfully. I see the merit in this for idiots like me who occasionally forget to add insurance and then have a seller ship ceramics in thin newspaper. I learned that lesson the hard way as a buyer and changed my ways.

For sellers, this change bumped up shipping and handling charges if they required insurance (and any reputable seller dealing in collectibles usually does require it). These sellers were then subject to lower search rankings because their charges are inaccurately compared to sellers who don't offer insurance. I received the warning message several times while listing that my item seemed to have a shipping price higher than normal for the category. My internal response was "yes, because I pack my items securely, which adds weight, which adds money, and I require insurance". The number one question I have received as a seller is "can you ship it cheaper?" With postage increases and the current economic conditions, this also made being a seller a rough road to travel. Customs changes in the last two years by USPS have made international sales a living nightmare and driven me out of selling outside of the US.

Later, eBay tried to help small sellers like me by offering free listing incentives to increase listings. After reaching a predetermined number, or listing in an ineligible category, listings fees reverted to the normal pricing scheme. eBay also offered listing discounts. It really didn't help sellers much because they only took the risk of a "no-buy" listing fee away for a few items or categories. The changes did nothing for items that sold, because they also took a larger percentage of the sale on these listings out of the back-end of the transaction through their Final Value Fee.

My sales steadily declined. Listing items became a hassle for the small profits (losses in many cases) I was receiving. Disillusioned, I began searching for other selling options.

Amazon.com catered to a more financially sound clientele, but my products do not really fit in their successful seller schema (people with media to get rid of - consider Amazon your happy place). eBay had already burdened me with less options, more up-front decisions, and buyers became more aggressive in nasty emailing about shipping, timing, and changes as a result of eBay's changes. So, I found a new site to sell on called Bonanzle.

Last week, I set up a booth at Bonanzle because they have no listing fees or durations. They also provide the option to post items as freebies to entice buyers to purchase from your booth and select their own bonus gifts. The listing form is ridiculously easy to use, and they allow insurance to be optional, and they allow PayPal, money orders, and Google Checkout for payments.

Today, I receive an email from eBay with the link provided at the beginning of this post. eBay has decided to make listing less risky and costly for small sellers by allowing 100 free listings per month subject to terms and conditions on their site. Why would they do this? Well, Bonanzle has experienced remarkable growth over the last year and is being highly recommended by reviewers as a sound alternative to eBay.

I think Bonanzle's growth and the growth of other marketplace providers is directly contributing to eBay's sudden change in policy regarding listing fees. eBay has always been consistent since inception about getting money upfront whether your item sells or not. I think eBay is finally caving to seller demands due to small sellers flocking to alternative web solutions, like Bonanzle. Falling returns (check eBay's year end report), growth of alternative sites, and the trend of eBay becoming merely a resale site for items purchased directly from Asia is forcing eBay to give up on some of their founding principles and policies and seek new ways to lure sellers to their website.

As a small seller, I am not yet completely wooed. eBay still needs to up the ante to get completely back into my good graces. However, I think they might finally be headed in the right direction and I am looking forward to seeing what other changes lie ahead.

SDCC 2009 Updates

2009-07-25T00:28:00.002-05:00

Hey folks! It's been a fun and tiring 3 days so far. With spotty wi-fi and limited time, most of my updates are on my Twitter feed. I also just uploaded some pics to my Picasa Photostream. Both can be found on this blog, but you won't get any email updates when new things are posted. They will just magically be there. Keeping checking back throughout the day tomorrow because lots of new Tweets will be hitting my feed.

Boo for the Cleveland Indians

2009-07-18T19:03:00.002-05:00

Boo for the Cleveland Indians' no smoking and no re-entry policy. Take a lesson from the Cavs and learn to not discriminate against your own fans.

So I got an iPod Touch...

2009-04-02T22:20:00.008-05:00

for my birthday.

I ended up getting the 16 GB so I don't overload it and have to change things out more often. After playing with it for a few hours, I am already in love. I like the free apps I downloaded so far, and I think once I get the navigation down (it's hard for a shortcut-key mogul like me to switch to point and swipe) I'll be in heaven.

I went with the iPod Touch instead of the iPhone because they were identical in the features I wanted, except the Touch has wi-fi instead of 3G. I do need an excuse to be unplugged every now and again and I treat my phones like crap. Plus, with the $20/mo additional fee on the cell bill, this seemed like the best choice for now. The only thing it really lacks in my mind is an integrated camera, which the iPhone does have. However, I just got an awesome digi-cam for Christmas and I can hold back on uploading until I am in proximity of my laptop.

What this means for you readers - all two of you. I have decided to make this blog mobile-friendly by setting up a mobile mirror at http://nodisintegrations.mofuse.mobi/. You can get there by clicking the "Mobile Friendly" icon at the top of this blog. It also means that come Comic-Con this year, there will be nothing stopping me from posting mid-action. We'll have to see if this blog or Twitter wins out on that. I may have finally found a use for Twitter after all this time following others. I can already tell that some sort of stylus would be a benefit.

Here's a quick run down of my initial impressions:

Video: Much, much better than I expected. So far I've only tested with video purchased via iTunes, but the quality is extremely sharp.
Audio (built-in speakers): It's audible, but not loud enough to make out over a din of noise. Turning it up full blast sounds very distorted
Apps: So far, decent free ones and fairly easy to use
Navigation: Very difficult for keyboard addicts. I have small fingers too and found it hard to always hit the right spot, so I can't imagine what people with sausage fingers do. I think a soft stylus should fix that issue.
Safari web: Decent. Not anything super surprising, but again, the navigation is not intuitive.
Orientations: Okay. Many apps and other features don't support landscape when it would make them much easy to use.
Keying data: The keyboard is decent with a QWERTY structure and some shortcuts depending on what you are entering. Still, it's very easy to mistype.

Overall, I'm pleased and impressed with this device. This is my first Apple hardware purchase (I have been using iTunes at a novice level for a while), but so far I'm not seeing any issues - even with the proprietary data transfer, which the wi-fi helps resolve. As I learn more, I'll post more.

Brief Castle Review

2009-03-10T22:49:00.006-05:00

I'm going to keep this short and sweet. I DVR'd Castle last night and finally watched it tonight. I wasn't show how this new procedural would fair, especially since it's on ABC (which I haven't watched a show on for many, many years). The premise is that a mystery writer is questioned about his books and fan mail after two murders are committed that replicate murders that take place in his novels. It definitely sounded like a one show deal or a Murder She Wrote remake from that description.

The show stars Nathan Fillion as Rick Castle (the titular author) and Stana Katic as Kate Beckett (the strong female detective). Both characters were decently fleshed out in the series premiere, which is always a good sign. The actual crime and clues that served as the plot were okay. Mystery fans would find it a little predictable, while some might have been surprised at the few twists in plot. The first episode was definitely character-driven, and I was impressed at the snappy dialogue.

Fillion's character is very similar to his previous roles as Captain Hammer (Dr. Horrible's Sing-along Blog), Bill Pardy (Slither), Mal Reynolds (Firefly), and even Caleb on Buffy season 7. He's smarmy, arrogant, and womanizing, but also surprisingly observant and has very interesting relationship dynamics with his daughter and his mother. Katic's character is similar to Starbuck (BSG), but only in terms of inner strength and wit, and can also be very conservative and a touch obsessive. She's also a closet Castle fan.

Overall, I was very impressed by the pilot and will tune in for at least a few more episodes to see which way this show is going. I liked its pilot better than the Dollhouse pilot (which I am currently hoping is just due to network interference). So far, it looks like they are naming the episodes after Castle's book titles which could get interesting if the series get picked up for another season.

So take a chance and tune in on Saturday, March 14 at 10:00 pm on ABC to see the pilot when it's aired again, or skip ahead to the next new episode on Monday, March 16 at 10:02 pm on ABC.

'Battlestar Galactica' Items to Be Auctioned Off to Fans

2008-11-10T21:33:00.000-05:00

'Battlestar Galactica' Items to Be Auctioned Off to Fans

Start saving your Holiday pennies...

Five Reasons Why 'Smallville' is Better Than 'Heroes'

2008-11-10T21:31:00.000-05:00

Five Reasons Why 'Smallville' is Better Than 'Heroes'

All I can say is that I couldn't agree more with the turn Smallville has taken this season. It lives up to the 5 points illustrated in this article this season, and I can't wait to see where it goes next.

SDCC Posts at PCP

2008-07-30T21:52:00.002-05:00

I have been posting all my adventures at SDCC over on TD's PCP blog. I'm not syndicating these to ND because I'm lazy, so go over there and check them out!

To tide you over until you get the full reports, here's a link to SciFi.com's full video of the Battlestar Galactica panel I attended:

http://video.scifi.com/player/?id=279928

It was just as frakkin' awesome as the video makes it out to be.

This blog is still active!

2008-06-18T22:41:00.004-05:00

I am posting new content daily for all to enjoy. Some people post an entry full of links to other cool stuff around the web. Because I read so many feeds on a daily basis, I stumble across a lot of cool posts, articles, and sites. Instead of making a million posts that clutter up this site and make it hard to tell what actually contains something written by me, I've decided to make use of Google Reader and just display the 20 latest things I've seen that catch my interest. If you use Goggle Reader, let me know and I'll let you link directly to my shared items. For those of you who don't feed read, I've made it easy by linking to the web version of my shared tidbits. You can always click "Read more" at the bottom of the top stories feed to see older items or the next set listed. So please, keep stopping by and enjoy what I've linked up for you.

Indiana Jones and the KOTCS

2008-05-23T10:25:00.004-05:00

I'm not sure what to say about this movie except that I really, really enjoyed it. It's not groundbreaking, it's not different, and it's not another "Phantom Menace". It's familiar and strange and comforting all at the same time.

Harrison Ford is great as Indy (not like anyone else could ever fill those shoes, which should hit you over the head when you see it). Shia LaBeouf wasn't as bad as people will say he was. His character wasn't Short Round or Young Indy - he was a decently portrayed combo of Indy and Marion.

The plot was okay (the first half hour was great!), but there were some questionable scenes and some huge leaps in suspension of disbelief. I didn't mind it being a little askew to the older films though. It was nice to see something completely and totally unbelievable and in action during an Indy film. The expanded universe books always had better quests and artifacts than the three original movies (the artifacts were harder to obtain and carried graver consequences), so it was nice to see the film step away from Christianity and Hinduism (which for the unenlightened was the basis of the much loathed Temple of Doom) and turn to another religion we know even less about but couple it with something (aliens) that is familiar.

People will probably crush this movie down (most reviews I've read so far are reluctant to give a final rating until after a second viewing). I was so worried it would be another PM that I may have had really low expectations. Also, I am definitely a huge fan which biases me in its favor. However, for people who like the Indy movies and want to jump back into what Dr. Jones has been up to, this movie is awesome. If you can relax and enjoy it instead of analyzing it, it's a great movie: humor, adventure, wit, and a great cast. I definitely recommend seeing it.

Dollhouse Trailer

2008-05-18T17:21:00.001-05:00

3/4 Relief from the CW

2008-03-05T00:22:00.002-05:00

Well, the CW eased my mind today as it released its early series pick-ups. 3 out of the 4 shows I watch on the network have been picked up for another season next year. My picks that are getting another season include: Smallville (season 8), Supernatural (season 4), and Gossip Girl (season 2). I'm still holding out hope for Reaper and wondering if the execs are right about picking up new viewers by moving its reruns to Supernatural's normal Thursday night slot. Only time will tell.

For a full list of the CW's early bird picks, check out the CW Blog.

Put on your Jedi Robes...

2008-02-15T15:03:00.001-05:00

That's right Star Wars fans, there's a new animated movie and television show being released later this year. It's called Star Wars: The Clone Wars and takes place between episodes II and III.

Here's the official Lucasfilm release: http://www.starwars.com/theclonewars/news/announcement.html

This shouldn't be shocking news to most readers. It was announced last year at Celebration IV. This week tons of news syndicates have been picking up the story. I just didn't feel like I could get away with not posting about it and still call myself a Star Wars fan. Yes, I am excited for this, but not so excited that I'm wearing my Jedi Robe from now until the release or anything.

Anyway, the full-length motion picture will be released on Friday, August 15th, 2008. The show will follow as half hour episodes on Cartoon Network and then more airings on TNT. You can't say I didn't warn you...

Start biting your nails...

2008-02-11T07:52:00.000-05:00

While I'm sitting here dreading going out into the sub-arctic temperatures that have descended today, I thought I'd give you all something to ponder and obsess over until it's safe to go outside - the ramifications of the WGA strike on the rest of the TV season.

While the writers and networks are scrambling to figure out what to do now that a tentative agreement has been reached, TVGuide.com has a blog entry detailing what the future looks like for our favorite shows. For some fans, the news is good, as some episodes are slated to be written. filmed, and released before the end of the season. Many other fans will mourn as they find that their favorite shows are facing a fairly silent death as a result of the strike (or a future yet TBD). For the latest info on which shows are continuing and which are over now and forever (and which shows may need some saving in the next couple of months), check out this blog. Supposedly, it will be updated as more "official" announcements about these shows are released.

Personally, I lucked out because most of the shows I care about are all continuing until the renewal announcements that usually come in May. I'm still fearing for Reaper though, since it only has pre-strike episodes listed and an undetermined future. Of course, the strike is also going to affect the DVD sets of this season (many shows won't make it to the full 22 episodes before the season runs out). I'm just relieved that next season won't be entirely reality TV, at which point I would stop watching TV.

I'm going to crawl back under my rock now until I have something else worthy to report.

Amazon's New Wireless Reading Device: Kindle

2007-11-19T19:54:00.000-05:00

Amazon.com: Kindle: Amazon's New Wireless Reading Device: Kindle Store

You have to check this one out! Now you can condense your home library and get books really cheap - if you won't miss page turning and cover art. Do you know a bibliophile? This may be the perfect Holiday gift for them.

Gather Your Gamers

2007-11-13T21:55:00.000-05:00

During Origins this year, we decided to participate in some gaming events that required signing up for new gaming sites. One site sent out emails immediately after the convention, and i have to say it wasn't that impressive. Recently, I received another email from the other site we registered with, GatheringGamers.com. Strangely enough, their actual URL is : http://creativegamingevents.com/.

Now, I'm pretty well represented on several sites that my friends belong to and also sites that reward me for my time (although I occasionally take breaks from them). This seemed like another site among the heap until I read farther down their announcement. They offered new members the chance to become bloggers to win passes to GenCon. This seemed like a site that was ready to put up to get some folks enrolled. Now, writing as many blogs as I have (I know, not enough to have fresh posts regularly), I decided it might be worth a second look. The requirement for eligibility is to post 2 entries per week and receive at at three comments on them each until GenCon next year, basically. After the screening process I was accepted in and so far have been meeting the terms, or very close.

I have to say I'm impressed with the quality of the site for a new start-up. They had the initial glitches that most companies have the first run out the door. There are some typos some places, and their auto-enrolled profiles had some glitches at first. But now it seems like the major snags have been worked out and they're already asking for input. They offer a CCG marketplace, auctions with cash back on purchases, free advertising for retailers, networking to connect publishers to gamers, and social networking for gamers to help find other players in their area. This is a huge undertaking and i have to say they have a goal in mind and are absolutely working toward becoming the best networking site for gamers out there.

Now, don't get me wrong, I love boardgamegeek.com and what it offers to the gaming community, but it does have its own quirks that are daunting to new users. It's super easy to search for games, but everything else takes some getting used to. GatheringGamers.com has a fairly straightforward interface that is really similar to most social networking sites. It doesn't take long to figure out how to navigate the site, but hopefully a few design improvements will be made in that area so that it's even easier.

Anyway, this site is for gamers only, so if you don't like games of some sort this probably isn't the site for you. For those who do like to play, I definitely suggest checking it out. And if you do, be sure to look me up and read my game blog. With the 2-a-week commitment there, I may be slow posting here for a while.

"Reaper" Outlook Not So Grim

2007-11-02T15:02:00.000-05:00

I've been watching Reaper since the season premiere because it seemed like it had a decent premise (for a CW show). I love tales of dealing with the Devil, and an hour-long episode each week sounded great to me. After the last two episodes, I'm glad I tuned in.

The pilot was better than most new shows. It wasn't awkward or grasping, although it did have plenty of the "getting to know the show" scenes. The next three episodes (Charged, All Mine, and Magic) all followed the same format and made sure to ground the viewer in the premise. At this point, I began to wonder if the show would be able to transition enough to stay on the air. Episode 5, What About Blob, managed to pull that first transition step off by adding a darker and more sinister tone to the show, which was desperately needed. Hopefully, the sub-plot revealed will become a longer story arc that is revealed throughout the season.

This week was the Halloween episode, Leon, and while it lost most the darkness that was brewing in What About Blog, it managed to mix the framework up enough to show the show has real potential. In this episode, Ray Wise, AKA the Devil, was shown smoking a cigarette (rare these days) and acting really depressed about the commercialization of evil, while Sam, played by Bret Harrison, showed some real character growth by getting a backbone and feeling some sympathy for the Devil's emotions. Comedian Patton Oswalt's performance as a soul trapped in a snow-globe at the show's beginning also added some extra depth to the show's premise and gave viewers a chance to learn more about Sam and Sock's (played by Tyler Labine) friendship. This episode also brought up some philosophical points about the real meaning of forgiveness, repentance, and sin. Way heavier stuff than the previous episodes.

Reaper recently received an order for three new scripts, which may indicate that additional scripts will be requested to make it a full season. Hopefully, the writers can continue to add more depth to the characters and the scenarios they face, since that is definitely the show's main selling point. So far, the story-lines about the escaped souls and their new Earthly forms have been decent, but they could use some fine tuning and less attention. They should be the backdrop of the show and the focus should, like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Smallville, be turned to character development and relationships. If the show moves in that direction, it may be one of the best new shows this television season. If not, then it's still more believable and pleasurable to watch than some other now defunct shows with similar mythical premises.

If you've ignored this one until now, you can still catch up and watch old episodes at The CW website. Reaper airs Tuesdays at 9 pm EST on The CW.

Halloween Reflections

2007-10-31T18:27:00.000-05:00

Well, it looks like I managed to post on the first and last day of this month (since Blogger struggled on Blog Action Day and even though the post is there I don't count it), which is weird, but okay, I guess. It's Halloween today (for those living under a rock) and it's finally fall weather.

I remember back at the 'ole university that Halloween was the biggest weekend and the biggest event of the year. Since it's always been my favorite holiday, I was always up for the shenanigans during the big celebration. I guess the tradition rubbed off because I continue to want to celebrate Halloween by having costume parties.

This past weekend was the 2nd Annual Halloween Costume Party at our place and we had a great turnout. Everyone was willing to get dressed up and play along with our games and drink our free beer. It was great seeing old friends, and I hope they'll all come back next year when I've worked out the bugs and will have more time to spend with them. I honestly did make an effort to hang out with everyone, so I hope no one feels left out.

Other than a few rude and hurtful comments and scenes that I won't go into (but have been stewing on quite a bit), I think the party went pretty well. I'm already thinking about improvements for next year (which I need to do since I'll be de-decorating the house in the next couple of days). Right now, my biggest problem is what to do with the left-over food and beverages.

Anyway, thinking about Halloween always makes me think of the year I won best costume in my hometown parade. For years, I came up with ideas trying to win that stupid thing, and one of the last years I participated, I struck gold. My uncle has gone as Oscar the Grouch when he was younger and won first place and my grandma still had the silver trashcan he used in the basement. When I saw that, I thought, "Well, since I never win, I'll just go as trash". So I had my grandma help me attach a trash bag, paint my face brown, and staple real trash to the bag (banana peels, old milk cartons, and other not-so-gross objects). Lo and behold, the judges dug it and I won in my category. Technically I guess I went as recycling instead of trash, but no one really knew that, and to this day, I do not look at trash the same way. (Or the judges).

So, anyway, I hope you have enjoyed my Halloween ramblings and are having a Happy Halloween of your own.

Blog Action Day Post

2007-10-15T20:12:00.000-05:00

So, today is Blog Action Day, where tons of bloggers are all posting about the environment. Personally, I love the environment because it's part of where we all live. Think about it.

You come home to a dirty house after a long day. You're already tired and it seems like it's just too much effort to take a few minutes to pick up old dishes or throw your clothes in the wash. There are stacks of papers everywhere, and an unpleasant smell that appraently has no source you can find. Day after day, these kinds of nasty things build. One day you notice there are bugs everywhere and mold growing on the walls, but you still do nothing. Every day the house gets worse and worse. It makes you feel bad and also starts to make you feel sick. The next thing you know you've let it go so long there's no way it can be saved. Your house becomes condemmed and has to be torn down and you've got no place to live. Your body can't take the prolonged exposure, you get really sick and start to die.

This is a worst case scenario for someone's negelected house. Most people wouldn't let their house go this long without doing something about it. However, we all share the environment and the Earth as a home and each day we let things go until it's almost impossible to salvage it.

We don't have to do this. We have the knowledge and the means to stop a lot of the factors that are poisoning our collective home. Find a way to make a small change in your life that helps the environment. Once you're used to that change, make another and another until you are doing several small things that help. Go Green.

Winning the Lottery and Super Powers

2007-10-01T22:53:00.000-05:00

Not a day goes by that I don't win an international lottery. Hundreds of millions of dollars tempt me each day when I check my spam folder. If I actually cashed in on all of them, I could buy and sell the people sending them. Alas, it's only spam.

I've been watching a lot of Smallville the past couple of weeks, and it's been creating a huge internal dialogue in me about why I gravitate toward superheroes and other archetypes for entertainment. Let me preface this by discussing how I came to like certain super characters.

Spider-man and Batman are also up there with Superman for me. (I know, pick the three with the biggest following why don't I?) Spidey and Batman were first introduced to me through drugstore comics I would pick up and browse while I was waiting for the shopping trip to be over. Having suckled at the He-Man teat during my formative years, the concepts of super powers and secret identities were old familiar turf by this time. With comics being designated as a "guy" activity, I found out more about these two through animated series, which was an acceptable form of entertainment for a young girl. The original Batman live action series was also being run on Nick at Night at the same time, so I was able to see Adam West portray the characters through a myriad of "WHA-AM"s and "KA-POW"s. Then came the Michael Keaton movies, that rooted Batman as one of my favorite characters. The part I liked best about him was that he used devices rather than real powers.

A few years later, my family tuned into The Adventures of Lois and Clark. Dean Cain became Super-man and had to deal with human dilemmas and saving the world. Up to this point, I kind of thought Super-man was a tool (sorry original movie fans). Reeves did a good job of portraying the character he was given, but the character was weak. He was too plastic and alien to see any qualities that I myself might possess. He wasn't human and it felt alien. Then the live action series of Lois and Clark came along. Cain made Super-man human. The writers showed the turmoil and human emotion that the plastic Super-man of the movies lacked. I could finally relate to the character and I was sold.

Recently, there have been more movies depicting these characters. The Spider-man movies let me connect with Spidey on this same human level the cartoons lacked. The Batman prequel revived my interest in a character I gave up for dead when Kilmer took over. Then, thanks to the D-train, I was fully exposed to two great episodes of Smallville (season 5 finale, season six premiere). I was willing to go back and put up with the awkward first season freak-of-the-week episodes and thanks to DVD could ignore those plots in favor of the longer character-evolving story arcs. I could relate to this Super-man and was excited to see him Return in a movie. Unfortunately, the movie was another plastic caricature. A much better plastic man than the previous films thanks to more realistic special effects, but still an alien with which I could not empathize. So I decided to stick with the Super-man I liked - on TV.

I was rewarded when the Smallville sixth season DVD came out. I had missed the Oliver Queen story arc due to a lack of DVR and catching up in the series on DVD. Imagine my surprise when I found that of all the characters I'd known so far, the one I could relate to best was the Green Arrow because he lived in the real world, or at least a much realer and uglier world than the others. I've always had a penchant for gray characters.

This is when I discovered that my super power may be extreme empathy. I can only relate to characters that I can understand well. I need to be able to put myself in their position and see their motives for the actions they take.

At times, this power is also my weakness, especially when I leave the fantasy realm of entertainment and watch comedy or drama. Sometimes it's physically painful for me to see characters embarrassed or hurt. My mortification sets in before they even stumble into the situations that cause their pain.

I'm not sure why this is. I, like most people I know, had my own moments of awkwardness or embarrassment when I was younger, but nothing like the deep-seeded mortification or embarrassment I feel when I watch characters walk in to these situations completely unaware of what awaits them. Sometimes I find that my reaction is much stronger than their reaction, and I wonder why this is.

I also wonder why so many writers love to put people in these kinds of situations over and over again. Yes, some humiliation is good for character growth, but sometimes it's way over the top of what it needs to be - probably to heighten the viewer's reaction and emphasize the trauma of the event. I would love to see more scenes where the humiliation factor builds, but then, like many times in real life, the others who could laugh don't because they're too polite. Sure not seeing that on reality TV.

Now if only my super power could have been to cash in on those lottery winnings for real...

Crystal Skulls

2007-09-13T07:27:00.000-05:00

For once, I am syndicating back from PCP instead of to it:

After my brief sabbatical following the blog-a-thon (even with my "hit and miss" posts), I decided it was time to help post over here at PCP by talking about annoucement on every Lucas-fan's mind: the naming of the 4th installment in the Indiana Jones saga. Leave it to Lucas to try to grab a new fanbase by letting Shia annouce this at the MTV Awards Sunday night (it wasn't a slip either since Lucasfilm sent out a press release earlier that day). The next movie will be titled Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Already rumors about what this entails for the plot have started circulating. Previously, a casting call went out for extras to play football players and cheerleaders. Due to the outfits and haircuts glimpsed at some of the filming locations, the plot is rumored to be set during the 1950's (which makes Ford's 20 years of aging more beliveable in the saga). The news of the Crystal Skulls mentioned in the title has led to speculation that the archaeology piece of this movie will be set in Mexico or Central America where the majority of these skulls have been uncovered in real life. Unfortunately, a rumor has also stated that Indy will find the Crystal Skulls at the base of a Mayan pyramid which will then blast off and prove to be a mothership of the alien race that is responsible for the rise of civilization in this area and Egypt.

This guy does not appear to be buying this plot point.

I have to say that I don't either. The previous installments have focused on religious mythos: Christianity and Hinduism. Paganisam isn't much of a strectch, but aliens are.

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom was perhaps the strangest of the trilogy, yet it held true to Hindu stories of Kali (or Kali Ma, AKA the Dark Mother). In fact, the mantra chanted by the first guy to get his heart ripped out is actually a very popular mantra "om na shivaya" or "I bow to Shiva", and is considered by many to be the first mantra uttered by the Creative Source (which you may know as some sort of "Creator"), and thus the oldest. Shiva, often referred to as a consort of Kali, is said to eventually destroy the universe, but also to represent the inner self. It stands to reason that if anyone could calm Kali's fury, it would be Shiva (and it is mentioned in Hindu scripture that he has performed this task on several occasions). Also, Kali is often referred to as being "drunk on the blood of the slain" in battles, which could explain why when Indy drank the blood, he became her devotee.

Anyway, my point is, as weird as Temple of Doom may have seemed to some, those familiar with Hindu scripture stories (like myself) found it to be very well thought out and reasonable (as tales of fantasy archaeology go).

A popular theory is that the Crystal Skulls are alien in origin due to the Mithcell-Hedges Skull receiving a field hardness rating of 9 (a dimaond is a 10) and its being hard to fashion due to its 3 or 4 growth stages which each have their own axis, which means a false hit could shatter the entrie crystal. However, here are other origins myths surrounding these finds. One turns to the lost Altantis for its answer, and another turns to the "Creator" (who coincidentally had a hand in the Ark, the magic stones, and via his/her offsrping, the Grail). So should we bet on seeing extraterrestrials or more religious mythos? Knowing George and his penchant for consistency, I gotta go for something to do with religion. Or, maybe I just can't buy into a bunch of skull rocks lifting a Mayan pyramid.

Either way, we'll find out May 22, 2008.

And 1 (As the Cool B-Ballers Used to Say)

2007-08-31T00:00:00.000-05:00

Well, this post wraps up the ND blog-athon. In a way, I can't believe I made it to the end. Then again, people always tell me I'm full of it, so maybe now I'll be empty or half-full for a while. If you were able to keep up and slog through my ramblings, I want you to know that I appreciate your readership, hope you will leave some comments, and hope you will return. The one thing reading a blog written by a weirdo like me guarantees is that you'll never know what to expect or when to expect it. Thanks for stopping by!

And this blog does have time machine capabilities, but is in no-way affiliated with Back ot the Future, Michael J. Fox, or the Dolorean.

Sideshow Collectibles

2007-08-30T23:00:00.000-05:00

If you've read my previous entries, you'll notice that the name Sideshow Collectibles has been mentioned before. Until recently, I tried to avoid high end collectibles because of the cost. After making my first Sideshow purchase, I was sold on their products. The detailing is very intricate and well worth the price jump. Their customer service is unbeatable, timely, friendly, and great with communication. I have yet to have a problem with an order that they have not taken care of, and they have some of the best licenses around. If you've never checked out their site or their products I highly recommend you take a look. They are always running contests, so if you aren't sure about purchasing anything yet, enter one of those. Once you receive one product from them, you'll be hooked.

Adidas

2007-08-30T22:00:00.000-05:00

I know I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel here because when I've been trying to come up with the last few posts, I've almost been a victim of writer's block.

Anyway, Adidas without a doubt in my mind makes the best running shoes there are. I say this having been an avid runner in my earlier years. My freshman year of HS, I bought a pair of Adidas cross-trainers for track practice. Those suckers lasted until the end of my first year at OU (which any alum can tell you is a LOT of walking). Since then I have only bought 3 other pairs of tennis shoes and they have been Adidas. The second pair lasted the next 3 yrs at OU plus one more year and the 3rd pair lasted 4 years and counting (they are now my "work" tennis shoes). I just got my 4th pair for Christmas and I imagine I won't need another pair for 5 years or until they are too dingy to wear in public - whichever comes first. So if you're in the market for a pair of high quality shoes that will hold up, go with Adidas.

Rand McNally - Proven Winner

2007-08-30T21:00:00.000-05:00

I've always tried to convince people that Rand McNally will give you the best driving directions on the web. Basically they rule so much because they publish all the maps you can buy in gas stations. At first, I figured this was just my opinion, but now I have proof that they rock as much as I have said they do. They are the ONLY online direction provider that actually gives people the correct directions to our new place. Every other site sends them to Bailey Lakes and an identical address there. We have had all kinds of issues since we moved with packages being sent to the wrong location and everything else. Lately things seem to be going smoother with that, so hopefully it's in the past. Regardless, if you want to visit us, use Rand McNally to get you here.

Battlestar Galactica

2007-08-30T20:00:00.000-05:00

Battlestar Galactica is a great action-based drama with excellent character development. Thanks to TD, we were able to view this in one long stretch. Yes, it is sc-fi (and on the Sci-Fi Channel), but I think anyone who likes a good fast-paced story will enjoy this series. The other advantage it has is that they already know that the fourth season (airing in Jan. 2008) will end the series. A lot of TV shows push past their prime and become ridiculous before ending. With an end goal in mind, this coulde be one of the best series to date. If you haven't seen it yet, check it out.

Buffy and Angel enter the Afterlife

2007-08-30T19:00:00.000-05:00

Due to the smashing success of Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season 8 comics, IDW has announced that the Angel series will also continue in comic form. BtVS:S8 has been an enormous seller for Dark Horse, with the first issue already in its 4th printing and a TPB release scheduled for November of this year. The Angel continuation is title Angel: After the Fall in case you want to check it out. It just went up for pre-order at TFAW.com this week. The only possible setback for A:AtF is that it has a significantly higher pricing point ($3.99 per issue) than BtVS:S8 ($2.99 per issue). It will be interesting to see what happens in this series since many of the main characters on the show did not make it to the series finale.

Guitar Hero vs. Rock Band

2007-08-30T18:00:00.000-05:00

With the new game Rock Band coming out from MTV, I'm wondering how it will stack up to Guitar Hero. The base part of the game is being developed by Harmonix, who developed Guitar Hero. I feel like MTV is stepping in and cutting off the obvious expansions for Guitar Hero. Granted, Red Octane had no official plans to take the game to this level (and definitely not the revenue that MTV has), but the whole evolution of these games has shady roots to begin with so I don't feel too sorry for them. I do have to say that the song listing known to date definitely has a lot better selections (in my opinion) than the first two installments of GH had. The fact that this game is being developed for new platforms as well as PS2, and includes download-able songs and online interaction, bodes well for its perspective sales. With a US release estimated as being during November of 2007, this is sure to be a hot Christmas item. To date, no official pricing scheme has been released.

More Driving Pondering

2007-08-30T17:00:00.000-05:00

An odd thought occurred to me as I faced the onslaught of school-related traffic this afternoon. Why is it that the people picking up their children from school and the people educating them are the ones speeding through school zones? This seems like it defeats the purpose of the speed limits to protect their children, and "Hello!" it's their children they are putting in danger with this behavior.

Also, why do more and more people run pink lights (lights that are yellow and a micro-second away from turning red)? If I remember correctly the driving handbook you're testing on when getting your license advises you to slow to a stop when you approach and intersection with a yellow light.

I'm beginning to think that everyone (not just the elderly) should have to take the driving test over again every ten years to get their license renewed.

Croc Hunter looks for the Thylacine

2007-08-30T16:00:00.000-05:00

Breaking news... tonight at 6pm on Animal Planet, The Crocodile Hunter will be showing Steve Irwin's trip to Tasmania. The thylacine (see thylacine posts from Shawed) is mentioned in the episode summary. There have been rumors floating around since Irwin's death that he captured the thylacine on camera, while others denied the existence of this episode. I'll be tuning in later to see if there's anything noteworthy in the broadcast.

Thanks to Cryptomundo.com for the heads up!

Cat Person Living in a Dog World

2007-08-30T15:00:00.000-05:00

OK, I like cats, and yes, I will finally come out of the closet and say I do prefer them to dogs. I am a cat person. Don't get me wrong, I love dogs the same way I love all animals, especially if they are puppies or belong to other people. The truth is, I think cats are more mature. I equate cats with 2 yr olds whereas I'd age cats at possibly 5-8 yrs old mentally.

Our entire neighborhood seems to be composed of dog enthusiasts. All of our neighbors walk their dogs down our street and the neighbors next door just got a puppy. Sometimes I feel like I am surrounded by dogs, especially when I'm doing yard work and a neighbor stops to comment that our yard looks better than the previous owner, and "oh, we should get a dog so we can fit in".

Guess what? We have two cats. They provide all the benefits of dogs: greeting us at the door, wanting attention, hanging with us outside, guarding the house from intruders (especially the rodent variety), playing fetch, and just about anything else a dog can do. But, they do not provide us with massive piles of dung to be removed from our yard, slobber covered items, or puddles on the floor. They also do not require our constant attention (although they would enjoy it). The only drawback is that there aren't as many cool products for cats as there are for dogs (not talking clothes here either). I wish the pet industry would realize there are idiots like me who will spend just as much money to keep my kitties happy as there are dog owners who will do the same.

Sam and Gandalf are very sophisticated and purposeful in every single action they take. They learn from each other and try to tag team us to get their own way. Some examples are rolling on the floor. Gandalf has always done this to get our attention. Sam noticed this and began doing the same thing. Gandalf noticed that when Sam came over at sat on us he got attention, Gandalf modified himself to become a lap cat for the same reason. They both learn other things amazingly fast too. When we moved, the new house has dog doors. They are now cat doors. It took this dynamic duo approximately 3 days to fully master their workings and seek to use them whenever possible.

The only drawbacks of having cats are the litter box and the fact that they are really routine oriented. The big trick with the routine orientation is to throw them for loops or just plain be aware of this facet of their personality. For example I never feed the cats first thing in the morning and neither does Pregremlin. They know that they will not be fed until after we are awake, but they also know that waking us up does not result in instant food either.

There really isn't a point to this post other than to reveal which side I line up on in the great pet debate, and mention that not all non-dog-owners desire dogs, nor do we dislike them. I just don't feel that a dog is the right pet for me.

*Note: the 4 pm and/or 5 pm post may be slightly delayed due to my afternoon class and the busy work I have to complete to get ready for it.

Plugging Away

2007-08-30T14:00:00.000-05:00

Well, since I am not a repository for fact files on every subject in the world (contrary to Pregremlin's belief), I thought it was time to list some places I get inspiration or entertainment while I'm online.

The Cheap Student - this is run by my friend MT (who you may remember from such comments as most of the ones on ND) from OU, and he has a plethora of knowledge aimed at helping students. This is an ongoing effort as he makes his way through the maze of grad school. He's probably already saved my semester by linking to a bibliography generator as I face the evil foe MLA documentation style once again at my university that supposedly prefers and mandates my old friend APA. Currently the site is temporarily under construction, but it should be back up within the next couple of days.

Pop Culture Panopticon - this is run by my friend TD, and I am lucky enough to be an irregular contributor (I take full responsibility for my lack of posts there). A lot of my posts are syndications of this blog, but occasionally I make some that are only PCP relevant. TD and TS over there do a great job of expanding horizons through recommendations, reviews, stories and rants.

The rest of my places of note can be found in the ND links section, and I also post noteworthy articles from Google Reader in the Google Reader section. Usually the GR articles relate to emerging technology, various fandoms, health and science. All sure cures for internet boredom.

So take a minute and visit my pals' blogs and check out what I think everyone should be aware of. You might learn something, or just kill some time.

Campus Parking

2007-08-30T13:00:00.000-05:00

Just when I was starting to worry that my writing well was running low, Fate stepped in and handed my the perfect subject matter - Campus parking. Being an OU alum, I have experienced the trials and tribulations of finding parking on campus before. Let me say that while Athens was obsessively strict in their parking enforcement, at least they clearly defined which lots were meant for whom and under what conditions there were exceptions.

Ashland U, on the other hand, is a murky cesspool of parking violation exploitation. AU parking passes are significantly cheaper than OU passes - $30 per year at AU vs. $120 per quarter at OU (back in my day). Unfortunately, you are dependent upon a diagram that is too small and not clearly defined, as well as signs with 18 pt font that you are supposed to be able to read and comprehend from a moving vehicle. In fact, some of the signs do not even face vehicle entry ways to the lot. While the updated AU online campus map (which I just viewed for the first time while writing this post), does in fact distinguish between the lots, the map handed out with the passes does not. It's up to the employee working at the time to clearly make these distinctions. Being lazy, I only used the one I was handed (and did not cross-reference it with the one from the previous year, which clearly defined the separation, until later) and was rewarded with a $25 parking ticket this morning.

I confronted the Safety Services officer accompanying the parking attendant and demanded clarification. I was informed that I could file an appeal and I immediately set forth to do so, after he almost destroyed my evidence of misinformation (by adding a line to delimit the lots - don't worry I noted this and attached the diagram with his revision labeled as part of my appeal). I was granted access to knowledgeable individuals who were surprisingly helpful and understanding of my upset at these circumstances. I also had the honor to be the first AU student to file my appeal online. Apparently, Student Affairs wanted to test the new system to make the 72 hour appeal turn around time more fair to students. They were very excited that I was willing to be their guinea pig, so hopefully that and my detailed novella of the circumstances will help me get my appeal approved.

I try to play by the rules after being conditioned by OU parking to do so. Being misinformed or lacking the appropriate information to determine what the rules are understandably aggravates me, as does a ticket almost equal in cost to the pass I purchased. I was previously warned not to park in visitors' lots (only because I had a pass in my window, those who cheat by not buying one get a free pass all the time), so my paranoia at parking in a lot labeled "visitors and authorized vehicles" (notice there is no mention of commuters) landed me in an adjacent faculty/staff parking lot where the sign is only clearly visible to pedestrians. Anyway, I have filed my appeal and made a request in it that they update the parking map so these kinds of mistakes are impossible in the future. It may be a few weeks before I receive a decision, but I will update this post to reflect the outcome of my appeal.

As a warning to anyone trying to follow parking rules, I suggest you demand clarification even if they have to hand draw you a new map.

Horror Movies

2007-08-30T12:00:00.000-05:00

As a somewhat avid horror fan, I have to say that I have been disappointed lately with most of the horror offerings. Please realize that I am talking about straight up horror movies, not psychological thrillers (that later become classified as drama or action). While some violence and death is expected in all horror movies, there has been a recent turn toward self-indulged gore. A good example of this would be Hostel.

Where is the suspense? Where are the story lines that keep me awake at night because I can't get what I've just seen out of my head? Why do filmmakers assume that because I like to be scared, I want to see someone slowly disemboweled?

Give me more movies like Silver Bullet, Army of Darkness, Slither (which does unfortunately have some super gross parts), Kingdom of the Spiders, The Exorcist, or The Ring. You don't have to make me physically ill, just give me a good suspenseful scare. With the rise in TV shows about the supernatural, I think this shouldn't be too hard and there's obviously a market for it. It doesn't have to be "based on true events" or even show any blood. Just a decent plot with a believable Big Bad. With the new special effects available, this should be one genre that really takes off, but instead it's taking a turn for the worse.

Cheating

2007-08-30T11:00:00.000-05:00

Yes, as you may have realized I am cheating a bit on this blog-athon. Unfortunately I have other responsibilities that require me to be away from my PC at certain times of the day, such as work and classes. So, I am manipulating timestamps to honor my commitment of one blog per hour all day. But hey, you're still getting 24 posts aren't you?

Occasionally, cheating skills come in handy. Some examples are: cleaning, reading, and answering questions. While I am not encouraging you to cheat on your taxes, in your classes, or in any other way that may involve some sort of repercussions, the previous examples are good ways to cheat. You can save yourself time and money by learning to cut corners in how you clean. You can save your sanity and increase your reading comprehension by looking up words you don't understand or know the meaning of while reading. You can also become an indispensable employee by learning how to find answers to questions you don't know quickly when asked a question. The key to cheating is to know when and in what scenario it is appropriate.

Libraries - America's Greatest Treasures

2007-08-30T10:00:00.000-05:00

Everyone wants to get ahead in life. Luckily our forefathers had the foresight to establish a public library system where anyone has easy access to information to better themselves. Those crazy dudes believed that the only way to secure democracy was through well-educated citizens. So, they went the extra step and declared that public education alone was not enough. Today, libraries have had to adapt to technology and the demands of the public, but they have done so with amazing results considering their very limited budgets.

Unfortunately, as our government slips further down the slope from the awesome founding principles the country was established on, libraries often find their fate hanging in the balance. So show some support for the original GW (the one who had a brain), TJ, and all those other rebels by taking advantage of your local library whenever possible. The Information Age is not strictly about technology after all.

Turn Signals - The Wave of the Future

2007-08-30T09:00:00.000-05:00

I wish that the police, et. al., would write people tickets for lack of sufficient turn signal notice. Then these folks could be required to go to a remedial turn signal class, or be forced to ride a bike and use hand signals for a week or two. You should flip on your turn signal a minimum of 50ft before your turn. This gives the drivers behind you time to react and slow down. Likewise, when you see someone turn on a signal, it usually means that they intend to slow and turn. I notice every day that less people use them or pay attention when others do.

Maybe we should have them hooked into people's GPS devices in their autos so if the navigator says to make a turn, other drivers are forewarned. Anyone else have an idea for solving this problem?

Blog Action Day

2007-08-30T08:00:00.000-05:00

Blog Action Day takes place on October 15, 2007. If you have a blog, please sign up and join the fun. The goal is to get as many bloggers as possible to write a blog about the environment on that day. This is not a solicitation to become an activist or a hippie. Even if the environment is not a priority in your life, it does affect the quality of your life. So if you have a blog ( and a sense of self-preservation) take this day to reflect on the giant home we all share called Earth.

Smoking Bans

2007-08-30T07:00:00.000-05:00

After reading some comments on fitness blogs about smokers and smoking bans, such as "I should go up and spray perfume in their face and eyes and see how they like it" and "I can't wait for all of them to die. They deserve it," I thought it might be time to weigh in on the issue slightly. I have posted about this topic before on my MySpace blog, but here I'm going to take a different approach.

I'd like to thank the geniuses that passed the smoking bans for the following reasons:

I now completely understand discrimination and segregation from a personal perspective

You have made it possible for me to find time to fit short workouts into my day because I now have to travel far, far away from buildings, restaurants, etc for my break

I know that smoking is unhealthy (you've more than crammed that tidbit down everyone's throat)

I understand that lungs are worth more to the general public than livers

I understand now that bars are not meant to be abodes of debauchery, lechery, smoke and inebriation, but rather a family environment where folks go to feel healthy

I know that harassment is justified in the case of smoking

I realize that the true meaning of happiness is being able to eliminate everything you find slightly annoying or don't approve of because freedom is just a word

You have made me see that inconclusive research works just as well as proven research when it comes to inciting a mob to take action

Thank you, thank you anti-smokers for showing me that "live and let live" is the coward's way out.

The G-Spot of Gmail

2007-08-30T06:00:00.000-05:00

I'm not a frequent Gmail user, but the last few days I have been frequently using my account for something besides logging into Blogger and customizing my Google front end. I'm helping count votes for a club's election (no spoilers about that here), and I wanted to use a separate email account from my daily one so the votes didn't get lost in the mix of the flood of emails I receive everyday (because I have signed up for newsletters about special offers from almost every manufacturer and retailer of almost every item I have ever purchased).

Anyway, I was trying to figure out how to organize my emails so I could find them easier through folders and I discovered that there aren't really folders in Gmail. Instead, you get to use tags. I use tags on Blogger a lot (notice the giant label cloud on this blog made of tags), so this was familiar turf. I have to say I'm in love with the tags as a sorting mechanism. Cross-referencing is one of the most helpful and cumbersome tasks when it comes to organizing information, and in my regular AOL account I have about 30 folders. While this works for most of what I receive, I find myself constantly creating more specific folders so I can easily find what I need.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not switching my mail to all Gmail or anything drastic like that. I've become to accustomed to AOL over the years and love their Plaxo interface (when it's working), but I thought that the labeling feature of Gmail was too cool not to comment on. If you have a need for quick and easy email organization, Gmail is the ticket.

Music Surprises

2007-08-30T05:00:00.000-05:00

Aw yes, another post about music. This time I wanted to share a couple of the most surprising changes to me in the progress of two bands.

Bad Surprise: O.A.R.

When O.A.R. released their first two albums independently, they showed potential (at least for creating more catchy modern drinking songs). When they were picked up by a major label, their sound completely changed and became total crap. I thought getting a record deal normally improved a band's sound.

Good Surprise: Muse

When I first saw Muse, they were opening for the Red Hot Chilli Peppers because the Foo Fighters had to cancel out of the show (Dave Grohl apparently can't handle his own partying from time to time). They pretty much sucked that night (of course my FF anger may have helped bias my opinion). Imagine my surprise when I heard them again years later and actaully enjoyed their music.

Just goes to show that all bands deserve at least two listens during their career.

Foresight Can Save Your Fandom

2007-08-30T04:00:00.000-05:00

The biggest non-regret of my life is the fact that I did not see Star Wars: The Phantom Menace in theaters. Yes, that's right, me, one of the biggest Star Wars nerds around did not see Lucas's new film in theaters in 1999. My reasoning at the time was that I wanted to experience the beginning of the new trilogy in the same manner as I did the original trilogy, which was on a TV screen. I had seen two of the Special Editions of the OT in theaters when they were released in 1997, but it was not until 2002 that I saw a new Star Wars movie in the theater for the first time.

My quest for personal continuity forced me to wait an excruciating 6 months before seeing the next film. By then, I knew that it did not live up to its expectations. I knew that Jar-Jar was already classified as the biggest blight on the SW universe, and my expectations were reasonable. Perhaps that is why I am still a fan and did not totally reject it as many did. The optimist in me still enjoys the battle between Darth Maul, Obi-wan, and Qui-Gon. To me the biggest offense of TPM is not Jar-Jar, but instead is the evil "midi-cholrian" explanation. To take something as encompassing and encouraging and good as the Force and explain it away with a tale of divine conception and faux biology was an insult to fans and the Force. Luckily, this explanation was toned down later in Revenge of the Sith, as was the divine conception. I can only hope that one day the tale of Darth Plagueis will be told and the Force will be restored to its appropriate mystical proportions.

You Can be a Genius too

2007-08-30T03:00:00.000-05:00

I recently read an article talking about children with extremely high I.Q.'s. One point of interest was that an early sign of highly gifted children was their exhibition of autodidactism (self-learning). Basically most gifted children take an interest in learning for their own pleasure outside of the school environment.

While it may be too late to be tagged as gifted, the article does mentions that most people experience a period of autodidactism at some point in their lives. So, you can become a genius by deciding to learn something on your own. With the internet now at your fingertips, it shouldn't be too hard to find some topic of interest to you. Pick one and dive in.

3 Under-rated Albums

2007-08-30T02:00:00.000-05:00

Granted, there are many albums over the years that have been severely under-rated, but I'm picking 3 I think everyone should check out (if you like the artists' sound that is).

Up by R.E.M. - Definitely one of their darker albums over the years, but this is the one album besides Monster that is a complete listen-through. Every song is at the least bearable and many are great examples of musicians who know how to keep the hits coming.

12 Bar Blues by Scott Weiland - This album is another listen-through. STP had some great songs, but Weiland shines on his own with this album. Any person who enjoys the "grunge" sound will love this album.

Fire on the Mountain: Reggae Celebrates the Grateful Dead by Various - One of the best tribute albums I've heard. Most tribute albums manage to butcher the original songs. At first glance this seems like it could be a candidate for this category, but reggae and the Dead go surprisingly well together.

These albums won't appeal to everyone, but if you're looking for something new to listen to, give these a chance.

Death – “I’m Sorry”

2007-08-30T01:00:00.000-05:00

Someone close to someone you know dies. You feel bad, but what can you do? Well, here are the things people usually do today, and why they are or are not a good idea:

Flowers – No good. Yes, they look great at the visitation, and everyone can obviously judge how much a person was loved by the amount of roses or carnations present right? Wrong. What this actually does is create a giant mess for the survivors as they are trying to come to terms with their loss and now have to figure out how to get rid of a bunch of dead plants. An okay alternative is fake flowers (because they could at least be sold on eBay or something.)

Plants – No good. They function much like flowers in the ever-powerful need for visual representation of esteem, but unlike flowers, they are not as easy to dispose of because they are alive. This is just what someone wants, a living monument to remind them of their loved one’s death. Yes, the death, not the life. If the plant was in honor of the life, it would have been in the survivor’s possession before they became a survivor. What you have now blessed them with is another chore/responsibility during a time when they already feel overwhelmed. For years to come they will feel the need to keep this plant alive and when it finally meets its demise, they will feel some fresh or extra guilt about the passing of their loved one. An okay alternative is fake plants (because they could at least be sold on eBay or something.)
Giant statues, memorial plaques, etc – No good. The only sensible memorial at a time like this is the actual headstone for the dearly departed. No survivor wants a giant monument to the death of their loved one. (Read Plants). A headstone is a monument to the person’s life and is the only one necessary. An alternative would be to take up a collection to donate toward the purchase of a headstone because those puppies aren’t cheap.

Food – Good and no good. Making something for the survivor to eat is a good idea. Most likely they aren’t thinking about food or aren’t even hungry, but if the food is there and requires minimal effort, they will eat it. Here’s where it gets tricky though – food can also be a bad idea. To keep food in the good column, do these little extras:
- Use disposable food containers, or label your container well. The last thing a survivor is thinking about is who brought what or getting your dish back to you immediately. Don’t add any stress. Disposable containers are the best option because then the survivor doesn’t have to clean them or worry about returning them. They can toss them when they are finished. A good way is to label the container “Throw away” so that when they are finished and try to clean or return, they know just to toss it.
- Keep the food simple. Don’t fix something extravagant or exotic for the survivor. The stress and grief at the time may give them an upset stomach and plain, standard, or bland foods are the perfect option. The last thing you want to do is burn their tongue or make them sick. Some examples would be meat trays, cheese trays, bread, potato salad, cookies, chips, etc. Keep it simple and label what it is if it’s not simple.

Money – Good and the best. Money can’t buy happiness, but it can buy just about everything else. The expenses at this time for the survivor can be overwhelming and they all hit at once. Help alleviate some of the burden by collecting money for them. At the time, the survivor will say “I can’t think of anything” when you ask them what you can do. At the time, they are having trouble thinking at all. In about a week, the haze of the event clears and cash becomes extremely tight, or maybe their loved one used to perform certain tasks and now they have to hire someone else to do them. This is where your help can be most welcome. If children are involved, extra money NEVER hurts. Words of caution though, do not buy a pre-paid debit card for this. Give them a check, money order, or cash. That way they can use the entire amount and not be limited to what it can or cannot be used for.

Memorial funds / charities – Good. If the survivor requests that you make a donation to a fund or charity in the name of their departed loved one, then it’s a great way to show you care. However, do not take it upon yourself to establish such a fund or bring it up and not follow through on it. You may cause more pain than good.

Anyway, use these tips and keep them in mind the next time the office takes up a collection for a tragedy. They could really help the survivor during a stressful time.

* This post is dedicated to survivors and my friend who had to deal with idiots and their delusions of sympathy.

100th Post

2007-08-30T00:00:00.000-05:00

It's here. The moment you've all been waiting for - ND's 100th post. This little post here kicks off our mini-blog-a-thon. Some of the following posts may be short, but they will be entertaining.

For this post I thought I'd reminisce about how this blog came to be. Shawed, the original blog was inspired by Trevor Danger's old blog H8FUELED. After reading his crazy ranting and ravings (which were very educational) I decided that I too needed an outlet to inform the masses about the crazy and depressing predicaments caused by the state of the world today. My friend MisHou, used a fun word called "shawed" to proclaim she was both shocked and awed by something. At the time, with the anger behind my posts, this was the perfect nomenclature for this blog.

As time passed and I decided to branch away from anger, I decided it was time to revamp the blog and rename it to something more reflective of my personality, and thus No Disintegrations was born. At the time TD had discontinued H8FUELED (but now he's back with PCP), and I was feeling the burden of lashing out at society resting squarely on my shoulders. If you know me, you know I like Star Wars (okay, understatement of the year). So I tried Googling some great catch phrases from The Empire Strikes Back to see what was available. No one had latched onto Vader's direct order to Boba Fett, "I want them alive. No disintegrations," so I staked my claim and the revamp (prompted by Blogger's code update) proceeded.

Over the past almost 2 years, I feel I've covered quite a range of topics. Usually, I don't feel that I have enough material to create an entire post about certain topics. So, in celebration of the 100th post to this blog, I decided to create some mini (some mega) posts about topics I didn't feel I had enough material to cover in my usual posts. Thus, today's blog-athon. Love it or hate it, or be ambivalent. Just read and comment, or at least take the new poll.

To those who have been dedicated readers over the years (TD, MT, and maybe LT?) I thank you for continuing to wade through my crazy hodgepodge of writing. Thank you for your support and feedback over the years. To anyone else who has ever visited this blog or read it infrequently, I also thank you. Without random people, I would have no one to write for or mock. To my contributors I thank you for your contributions and hope that you will continue to occasionally add something. You guys have a lot of talent and I hope you will continue to share it. Special thanks to Dtrain for the DCN posts. I hope to see more of them as they are some of my favorites on this blog. And finally, I'd like to thank Pregremlin, Sam, and Gandalf for providing un-ending excitement in my life and for curling up next to my laptop (it's really funny to see Pregremlin do that).

Keep reading, keep writing, and keep hoping for a better future.

Your blog host,
dre222

Lessons Learned - Pregremlin's BBQ Ultimate Classic

2007-08-29T12:09:00.000-05:00

Face removed to protect identity

A few weeks ago, we hosted several people for Pregremlin's BBQ Ultimate Classic. This all-encompassing event involved ultimate frisbee, a cookout, and ultimate Flip Cup. For those of you who have never played Flip Cup, look up some rules online and get started. It is by far one of the best party drinking games ever.

As with most events, there are always a few incidents that happen to make them totally memorable. I won't bore you with those details, but instead I'm going to offer some party tips based on lessons I learned from this event.

Candles and Drunks Don't Mix - In an effort to curtail the amount of bugs present for the Flip Cup Tournament, I placed several large citronella candles across the entrance created by the garage door being open. This worked wonders on the bugs, but I made the fatal mistake of mixing drunks and candles. We now have several large pools of wax created by stumbling. Luckily, we're not picky about those kinds of things, but learn from us and avoid using candles when people are drinking as much as possible. It could save you a flame engorged home.
The Host Must Oversee Sleeping Arrangements - Even if your party is only being attended by adults, you should still make sure everyone has a place to sleep and the materials necessary to do so. I made the mistake of placing blankets and pillows in a central location figuring folks would grab what they need and share the rest. The next day, I was enlightened by tales of blankets thieves, squatters, nests, and people sleeping it off in cars. Apparently material distribution and space claims were the biggest problem, along with lights being turned off before everyone was settled in. If you are the host, take a few minutes at the begining of the night to makes ure that everyone has an assigned spot to crash and the materials needed to do so.
Close Your Bedroom Door - People do strange things when they pass out. We could have had a very awkward momnet had we been awake at a certain time. The "Consular", as I will call him, somehow ventured into our bedroom during the night and passed out on the floor at the foot of our bed. He woke in this position and sheepishly removed himself while we were still safely asleep. Had he decided to climb in our bed, or if we had to amke a late night restroom visit, this could have been very awkward indeed.
Don't Make a Beer Run - If you have a keg, do not make a beer run when it's cashed. We cashed ours around midnight and because folks were still lively and playing games, we decided we could use beverage reinforcements. Being in no state to make those kinds of decisions, I erroneously purchased too many replacement libations and they are still residing in our fridge. Our goal is to now consume them before the next gathering.
Hide Your Cell Phone Charger - I placed my cell phone charger in a very safe place while cleaning for this event. In fact, it was so safe that I have not been able to locate it since and was forced to order a new one. I'm assuming that I am at fault in this instance, but it got me thinking. Everyone has cell phones now, so it could be easy for anyone to grab a charger thinking it belongs to them without checking to be sure. (If this happened in this case, please mail it to me). The best plan is to put it somewhere where no one else will be.
Things Happen When You Aren't Looking - As you can see in the picture above, anything that could possibly happen might at your event. Keep some emergency phone numbers handy in several locations in case your guests aren't as flexible as that guy. (Who rules for being able to perform this contortionist feat.)

Use these tips for your next event, and maybe you can be the host/hostess with the most/mostess. (Although the day after tales may not be as interesting).

*This is post 99. Check out post 100 and the mini-blog-athon starting at midnight.*

Origins 2007 Games Round-up

2007-08-29T11:50:00.000-05:00

(Because every post should start with a picture of Neil Gaiman cuddling a panda)

Better late than never I (apparently) always say (because I’m always behind). Last month I attended the Origins International Game Expo, in scenic Columbus, Ohio. Here is where the gaming geeks get a first look at the Spiel des Jahres winners and runners-up, as well as the new releases of many, many gaming companies. Four fun-filled days of board games and non-CCG card games were on the agenda for my group. During this pilgrimage, I had the opportunity to play several new games, and I thought for your reading pleasure I’d review them. I’m not going to give you the details such as how many players, etc., but I will tell you what I thought of them and give you the gist of what the premise for each is.

Megastar

A non-CCG where you are a radio exec trying to promote a band by spinning their CD on your station. The more times you play the band, the more popular they become. This game basically has you drawing cards, choosing cards, playing cards, and then switching the bands’ rankings at intervals. At the end, if you score the cards you kept. This game is quick, easy, and only requires light strategy. I’m designating this as a “filler” game.

Rating:

Amazonas

This is a Euro-game where your goal is to connect two villages in the Amazon together while scoring points along the way. Very reminiscent of Ticket to Ride and other such destination based games. This one incorporates events that limit your options each turn. While this keeps the game play fresh (for the one sitting I played) it also means that there can be many rounds where you do nothing during your turn. This makes the game slow and boring. The artwork is very good and it looks like it’s a fun game, however, I’m designating this as a “pass” game.

Rating:

Stack Market

This is a manipulative game in the American style. Your goal is to create corporations by rolling and stacking special die. To be honest the theme didn’t make much sense when I demoed it and after careful reflection it still doesn’t make sense. The game is fun because it involves bidding on your stacking abilities, and stacking wood blocks. This is definitely one to take a look at if you like manipulatives, so I’m designating this as a “try, then buy”.

Rating:

Fishing for Terrorists

This is a non-CCG based on the staple Go Fish. Fishing for Terrorists has you doing exactly what the title says, and don’t worry, they took into account the current NSA practices. This game isn’t as boring as Go Fish because like most Slugfest Games, the cards tell you how to play as you’re playing. These games are very theme heavy, so if you aren’t playing with a good sport who’ll go along with enjoying the theme, you may find it disappointing. Personally, I enjoyed playing cards like “We’ll take it from here,” which lets you steal a terrorist someone else is in the process of capturing. I’m designating this as a “filler” game.

Rating:

Zooloretto

This is a tile-laying game based on the non-CCG game Coloretto (which is also a great filler game). This game involves some strategy as you plan which animals you want to add to your zoo and how to get them in the enclosures so you can score the most points. As an added twist, some animals are male or female (the others are neutered apparently) and when you place them in a field, they immediately have a baby. (If only endangered species breeding were just that easy). This is a great game for any audience and is this year’s Spiel des Jahres winner.

Rating:

If Wishes Were Fishes

This is a standard Euro-style board game. In this game you are fishing. You can either keep your wish or use the wish the fish is thinking. Your goal is to have the most money from selling fish at the end of the game. This game has great pieces including rubber worms and wooden fish. The illustrations are great and very comical. I recommend this game for any audience that wants to have fun.

Rating:

Thebes

This is another great Euro-style board game. Finally, a game that shows that education can pay you off later in life. In Thebes, you are excavating treasures from several different destinations – however, your knowledge of the area and the time you spend excavating determine how well you’ll do. This game has amazing pieces, plus a fully detailed insert telling you the back-story of all the treasures you might excavate. The treasures are based on actual archaeological finds at these locations. This is a great game for adults and is this year’s Spiel des Jahres runner-up.

Rating:

As a side note, No Disintegrations is approaching its 100th post (including the posts under the former name Shawed), and this is the 98th post. The 100th post will kick off a mini-blog-athon, 1 blog post every hour on the hour for 24 hours, starting at 12 AM on 8/30/07. Come celebrate two years of blogging nonsense with us at No Disintegrations.

ND Updates

2007-07-25T12:47:00.000-05:00

Well, in an effort to try to keep you informed on what you might be missing by not fully absorbing the ND site and layout, I thought it was time for a features update. So here's a list of new site features since February:

Labels - find posts related to topics you want to read by clicking on the text labels on the right
Subscriptions - now handled by FeedBlitz.com and are much better/ more reliable than our previous provider
Text Message updates - get ND update notices sent to your cell via Zap TXT
New Affiliate! - check out Save the Annietees!
Old Affiliates - check out Pop Culture Panopticon from the creator of H8FUELED (I occasionally post there, haha), and Like You Do to Shoes has been buzzing with help web tech tips the last week or so.
Improved links - sorted better and now more
The Force-Cast - catch up on all the latest Star Wars news with Jason and Pete right here on ND using the Force-Cast player
ND Google Reader - experience the awesome articles that spark a lot of ND posts by checking out the ND reader where I share the best articles I read each day with you

Hopefully, this will make your blog-reading experience much more enjoyable. Be sure to keep an eye out for ND's 100th post coming soon. You may remember mention of a mini-blog-a-thon, and I think the 100 spot is a great place to try it out.

Just for fun, here's another insert of the ND Reader so you do not have to scroll!

Sideshow does Indy and more

2007-07-25T11:37:00.000-05:00

Sideshow Collectibles (SSC) just announced that they have been granted the Indiana Jones license by Lucasfilm. Sideshow's line-up will feature 12 inch (1:6 scale) figures, premium format figures, and life-sized busts. They're gone to span the range of all four films in the Indy series. Sideshow always does an excellent job with its products and figures, and the Indiana Jones line should be no exception (Unless they use the Han sculpts of Harrison. Hopefully, they won't and we'll get some better looking Hans in the future as a result). Anyway, click the title of this post to see SSC's official press release.

Also, if you're a Harry Potter or DC Comics fan, you might want to check out SSC's announcement about their new print licensing agreement with Clampett Studio Collections here.

This is just the beginning of the SSC San Diego Comic-con announcements. With SDCC starting in a few hours, it's hard to tell what other cool news will come from this company and others.

New Fable: The ? and the Hare

2007-07-24T11:07:00.000-05:00

It's sad to say, but it looks like tortoises and turtles are getting the cut from the race all over the world. Why? To feed the hungry in southeast Asia (such as the Chinese). At the same time, the hare is getting a leg up as the Chinese clone the first rabbit from fibroblast cells (the French cloned their rabbits from adult cells in 2002).

Here are the articles I'm talking about in this post in case you want to be informed (and to spare me the efforts of explaining them fully):

http://news.aol.com/story/_a/texas-turtles-ending-up-in-china-soup/n20070722195909990008?ecid=RSS0001

http://news.aol.com/story/_a/two-indians-caught-trying-to-smuggle-870/n20070724085509990024?ecid=RSS0001

http://news.aol.com/story/_a/china-claims-a-first-with-cloned-rabbit/n20070723233609990088?ecid=RSS0001

Basically, the first article is about trappers in Texas overharvesting the local turtle varieties. The big main points are that turtles are disappearing from former habitats, they're ending up on a plane to Asia, and the justification is that people think they are a nuisance.

The second article is about two Indian men trying to smuggle 870 endangered star tortoises onto a plane also headed for southeast Asia.

The third article is about the Chinese finally trying something of their own in a lab instead of just reproducing results from other laboratories. Randomly, they chose a rabbit for this.

So here's my thoughts on this. Turtles, while they may occasionally be grumpy, smelly, and slow crossing the road, deserve a better fate than extinction in a soup bowl. Why Americans in Texas are contributing to this (besides the obvious $) is beyond me. Do not assist the Chinese by making the same mistakes they have. If they had worried more about preserving their resources in the past, they would have their own turtles and would not need to import them. Why were the two Indian men shipping tortoises to Malayasia? Because of the profits they can bring the in black market in China. For years, China has been a hot bed of illegal trading of body parts from endangered species. While they joined CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) in 1980, they just passed their own endangered species laws last September. That's right! It took them 26 YEARS to get with the program. Don't get me wrong, China just saved 270 crocodiles, which deserves recognition and commendation, but personally it feels like they're really late getting on the boat here.

[Appologies, for this is a tangent rant] For the first time ever, a country (China) is admitting that they are struggling to come up with their own scientific discoveries. As I have always surmised, they primarily sit back and watch other countries labor through the discovery process and then reap the benefits by skipping the mistakes along the way which allows them (along with low-wage labor) to undercut the original developers of the product or technology. Japan did this until they became so efficient (and of course they have a work ethic like no other) that they are now years ahead in the technology industry. Their close neighbors (like China) having been reaping the benfits of that for quite some time. [end tangent]

Anyway, today China's cloning rabbits. Hey China, here's a thought: why not clone some damn turtles for your precious soups?

Remake Causes Memory Lapse

2007-07-21T12:09:00.000-05:00

Apparently the recent release of the remake of Hairspray has caused a memory lapse for the general populace. This movie is getting outstanding reviews and accolades, and has even been declared by reviewers "the best translation from Broadway in years".

I find all of this hubbub highly amusing due to the fact that a perfectly great version was released in 1988. In this version, a real transvestite played the mom. Are our memories so short that 19 years is long enough to completely forget the original version of the film? Hmm... considering that the 1933 version of King Kong is often referenced when talking about the recent Jackson flick, I dare say not. This is just another example of how Hollywood feeds us the same porridge with a different spoon and expects us to believe it's something new. And now, they've recruited reviewers to join the hype (or else our modern reviewers are just plain too lazy to think about what they're spouting).

Guess what? Today is the information age, IMDB.com is only a click away, and we're not impressed.

Sam the Deer Hunter - Video

2007-07-12T15:39:00.000-05:00

While I'm working on the Origins game reviews, I thought I'd take a break from serious blogging to bring you a funny incident that occurred in my backyard two nights past.

I have a bold Siamese cat named Sam who recently ran away for a couple of weeks into the woods after an altercation with the neighborhood devil cat. Since his return after 13 days of exposure and almost starving, he has become an adept hunter. In the time since, he's brought us two mice with one confirmed kill. Of course it could have been the same mouse twice since the first one he brought was the one that got away.

On Tuesday night, Pregremlin happens to look in our backyard and spies a deer. He tells me about the deer and then says that Sam is sitting right next to it. By the time I get to the window, the cat has begun to stalk the deer. When I see him run up to the deer until they are almost nose-to-nose, I know it's time to grab the new video camera and try to capture this moment for posterity. What I caught was the tail end of the confrontation.

In the video below, you will see Sam on the left and a deer on the right. I haven't mastered the various camcorder functions yet or the editing software, so the video is fairly dark and uncropped. Watch what happens:

After chasing the deer off, Sam stood guard for another hour and then returned to the abode. I asked him what he thought he, an 8 pound cat, was going to do if he caught the 260 lb deer. Of course in the mysterious way of cats everywhere, the only reply I received was a blank look.

Recycling Power + an update

2007-06-29T12:13:00.000-05:00

They've finally found a way to recover our petroleum based resources through recycling plastic. Basically, they nuke the plastic at various microwave wavelengths until it returns to oil and gasoline. You can read the full article by clicking the title of this post. I'm hoping that this brings some value back to recycling plastic to make that effort more worthwhile.

Also, due to some other projects, this blog has temporarily fallen to the wayside. Hence today's post to let you know that this is still actively updated. I have had tons of ideas and incidents that would make great post fodder, but nothing long enough to merit it's own post. So, I have decided to stage a blog-a-thon of mini-posts. The time and date of this event is still TBD, but should take place sometime in the next 2 weeks. Please keep an eye out for it.

For my other contributors, I'll give you some advance notice, so if you want in on the action you're welcome to do so. These are just random posts and don't need to be full-fledged rants, stories, or articles. I'd love to see some non-dre action on here, so gear up!

A Sad Day for Science...

2007-06-13T22:37:00.000-05:00

Today is a sad day for science as we mourn the passing of a pop culture legend for the field and deny funding necessary to keep millions of people safe from severe weather.

Mr. Wizard, Don Herbert, passed away yesterday at age 89. I remember watching his show on Nickelodeon when I was young, and one show in particular sticks in my mind. This was the show where he told everyone how to inflate their marshmallows by putting them in the microwave. You could also make them explode this way. His biggest trick was showing generation after generation how to conduct science experiemnets using things they had around the house. It's hard to tell how many science fair projects were based off of one of his episodes. The best thing about him and his show was that he instilled the belief that anything you wanted to do or make was possible as long as you had the supplies and the knowledge. Since much of my childhood daydreaming involved schemes to build my own inventions and much of my last few years has been spent studying ways to recapture his enthusiasm and showmanship in the science classroom, this seems to be an enormous loss for science and teaching to me. Hopefully, his show will be released on DVD so future generations can experience the hope and possibilities his show generated.

The NOAA chief said in a letter that the QuikScat satellite, which is the primary source of information for predicting hurricane intensity and paths, is limping along in space. Due to a failed transmitter, the QuikScat has been working off the backup transmitter. If that transmitter goes, the error rate could go up 16%. Plans to replace the satellite first launched in 1999 have been pushed back to 2016. This is due to the minimum 4 years and $400 million dollars it takes to get one of these babies built. It's funny how we can continue to throw money at pointless posturing, but something crucial to people's safety and lives can be delayed and delayed. This is another instance of having the science and technology available, but not pursuing it even though it could benefit many, many people. But you can be blasted sure that if this thing could be hooked into an iPod, we'd have one by Christmas.

Ghost Hunters + TV Tidbits

2007-06-12T21:58:00.000-05:00

Last week was the first episode in the second half of season 3 of Ghost Hunters. The team returned in style with another abroad (Ireland/England) hunt. I won't ruin the findings for those who are fans, but let's just say they did capture some eery and impressive footage. Late breaking news on the show's cast is that Brian Harnois has announced via his MySpace blog that he and TAPS have parted ways.

This was also confirmed on Jason Hawes' MySpace blog. The likely culprit is a couple of new additions to the Harnois family, which is totally understandable. Both sides are being very respectful about the circumstances surrounding the split. Fans will have to make due without his random comments, like "Dude run!", and will need to come to grips with saying goodbye to the only Ghost Hunter to actually run from a ghost so far. Also departing are Donna LaCroix, Lisa Dowaliby, and Paula Donovan. Who they're going to have working for them now, I have no clue.

In other news, Robot Chicken has released a new video trailer for their upcoming Star Wars special. This trailer features a portion of the George Lucas in therapy segemnt that was also aired during their panel at CIV. You can view the trailer here: http://www.myspace.com/robotchickensweetj.

One last bit of info I ran across in the last couple of days concerns MTV's The Hills. For those who don't know, Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt recently got engaged in real life and apparently Heidi has been crashing scene shootings with Lauren Conrad. According to TMZ.com, Heidi apparently thinks that her best chance for screen time in season 3 is to be in as many scenes with Lauren as possible. Supposedly Lauren threw a fit after the last few shootings were crashed. Looks like season 3 will be interesting just to see how Lauren reacts to the engagement news.

DCN!!!!!

2007-06-11T01:50:00.000-05:00

Well, well, well. Look who it is. That’s right. It’s D-train with Dorky Comic News, your one stop shop for useless news about comics and pop culture, with some witty banter mixed in. Well, at least I hope it’s witty. Otherwise why am I wasting my time? That’s right. Because like the title says, I’m a DORK. Deal with it.

I know I said this edition was going to be about TV on DVD. That will wait until next time. My BEAUTIFUL wife Rebecca suggested that I go off the beaten path this week and talk about my transition from Ohio, which I’ve lived almost all my life, to the other side of the country, Seattle WA. Now, seeing as how I like to make my wife happy (I forced her to start liking comics. I guess I owe her.), Here goes. J

The pros of being here in Washington as opposed to Ohio are first and foremost, the scenery. You can’t beat it. I can look out my back window and see the Cascade Mountains whenever I want. When we go running, we have a great view of Mt. Rainier. People in Ohio don’t know what a mountain is until they’ve been out here, that’s for sure. Ohio isn’t really known for mountains. Got a shit ton of malls though. Let’s just say that if I am ever driving in Ohio and I have the urge for a t-shirt from Hot Topic, regardless of where I am, it’s only 15 minutes away. Damn malls.

The other thing I like is the lack of humidity. When it gets hot here, you can actually bear it. My house doesn’t even have central air. All we do is crack a window and that’s all it takes. I know longer need to sit in front of the air vent and pray to the gods (that’s for Galactica fans) that winter comes.

Now I realize that Washington isn’t a perfect place. Here’s why. The traffic. It’s REALLY bad. We are lucky that we have a reverse commute and that when Rebecca starts her new job, they will pay for her transit pass. Rush Hour here sucks. If I wanted to make the 20 minute drive from my house to downtown Seattle and get there by 8, I would have to leave by 6:30 just to be 10 minutes late. That and the drivers. I would always complain about Ohio drivers being stupid. They are, no question. But I can at least handle that. When your excuse is being stupid, that means you don’t know what you are doing. That can be fixed. Washington drivers? They’re just dicks. They see you need to merge, and they will do everything they can to NOT let you over. I guess being the newbie out here, I am the only one that can’t get to where he needs to be when he needs to be there. Everyone else has first dibs.

Those are some of the changes I either get to enjoy, or have to endure. I could go over every single one, but hell, I’m boring myself.

Next time I will answer the TV DVD question and comment on your responses. If you haven’t done it yet, go ahead. It’s fun. For those that missed out, I asked last time what TV shows on DVD do you watch? I want to know, as well as the American People.

P.S. The Watchmen. It came out in 1986 and forever changed the way we read comics. Trust me.

P.P.S. I am going to SDCC next year if anyone wants to plan a trip.

Star Wars Celebration IV: An Epic Blog

2007-06-07T21:39:00.000-05:00

WARNING: The following post strictly focuses on Star Wars related news and a summary of my trip to Star Wars Celebration IV in Los Angeles. If you are not a Star Wars fan, but like Family Guy or Robot Chicken, you may want to keep reading to find out about the creators and their upcoming Star Wars specials. If you’ve already lost interest: “We don’t need to see your identification. Move along, move along.”

For those who have never been to a Star Wars Celebration or any other convention, let me start by giving you the gist of what one of these events entail. Basically a group of people who are all interested in one thing or a bunch of related things (movie franchises, games, comics, etc) all pay to go to a big event/show about a topic they like. During this convention, there are exhibits, panel discussions, presentations, exhibitors, manufacturers, and vendors. All of these offerings are meant to drawn in fans and generate a ton of revenue.

The first convention I ever attended was Star Wars Celebration III in Indianapolis. Over the next 2 years leading up to Star Wars Celebration IV, I attended GenCon Indy twice (gaming), Origins (gaming), and MARCON (science fiction/fantasy). So, I have some experience with the three basic sizes of conventions: mega, standard, and micro. The SW Celebrations fall under the mega category. CIII had an estimated attendance of 30,000 people and CIV is estimated at 40,000 people in attendance. As you can see, this is like the Super Bowl event for Star Wars geeks.

Planning for these events begins about a year before the event actually happens. Once the venue and dates are announced, people begin booking rooms, flights, requesting off work and saving money to go to these Celebrations and conventions. Once you get there, you never know what to expect. CIV definitely had a lot of interesting and sometimes surprising events. I’m just going to go through what I saw and not try to cover everything since this post is already behind. Please note that a lot of my pictures may seem to be of poor quality, but this is because I followed the rules and used no flash during the panels and many of my shots are actually shots of the huge projector screens so that you, the reader, can see what we were seeing. For more behind the scenes information and pictures, check out these links:

List of official Celebration IV announcements

GenCon’s CIV Information page

Rebelscum.com’s Insider Guides

The Official Fan Club’s blog on CIV

Thursday, May 24

Thursday was Fan Club Day at the convention. Anyone who bought a 4-day badge and was a member of Hyperspace (the official Star Wars Fan Club) could enter a day early and check out the convention. We used this day to stand in line for exclusives.

Let me tell all of you who aren’t big into collecting that the line races and lengths are amazing. One booth in particular, Gentle Giant Ltd., was an impossible line. Fire marshals were regulating the line length and people were getting very angry and confrontational after a few hours of trying to get in the line and being denied. Then GG announced that pre-order pick-ups would have to wait until the next day because they ran out of the one of the exclusives. Now these pre-orders were pre-paid, so they should not have run out under any circumstances. We were some of the lucky customers that had to come back the next day. Not that I minded because we never made it into the purchase line to get the one exclusive I got shut out of pre-ordering.

Some of the purchasing had special fan club deals. The official store allowed fan club members to buy 5 action figures instead of 4 like everyone else with 4-day badges was allotted if they purchased them on Thursday. Hasbro increased their figure limit from 5 to 6 on that day. There were tons of great exclusives, artwork, and deals and it was hard to stay on budget.

I ended up misplacing my backpack at the official store when the volunteers shamed me into trying on a shirt and I almost didn’t get it back from security. First they denied having it when it was in plain sight, and then they demanded that I had to know the brand of the bag even though I told them there were documents with my name and address all over them inside that would match my ID. Finally I told them it was a cheap Wal*mart bag, so I didn’t know the brand, and began to hastily list every item inside. They finally backed off and let me sign for it.

We also had to mail a bunch of packages home since I knew we’d never get them all of them on the plane. Due to some misunderstandings about mailing labels and the watchful eye of the postal workers, we were forced to ship everything Priority mail which meant that cost us a bundle. This was before I was able to retrieve my backpack, so I wasn’t in the mood to do the labeling over again.

Friday, May 25

This day was the official 30 year anniversary of the opening day of Star Wars. My friend Winch joined us for this day’s activities. He’d never been to a convention before so I think it took him a while to take it all in. We didn’t get to do the one thing he was hoping which was to take his picture with a Slave Leia, but we did get to do some other fun things. We got shut out of the GG line again, but were able to get our pre-orders. Then Winch showed up and we decided to show him around the exhibitor hall (which is where all the merchandising and sales take place). He grabbed a bite and then we got in line to see the free Carrie Fisher panel.

The host for this stage was Jay Laga’aia (Captain Typho). Basically they just talked about the fans and what it was like making the original movies. Seemed like Carrie’s answer for everything was, “Well, I was on drugs so it’s all a bit fuzzy”. Here are some pics of this panel:

Carrie and Jay

Carrie

We tried to see the Fanboys special screening and panel, but due to going to the wrong line at first, we got shut out. Pregremlin was lucky enough to run into Kristen Bell (AKA Veronica Mars, who plays one of the leads in the movie) on his way out of the bathroom, so he tailed her and took a pic with his camera phone. (Sorry, but I don’t have that one).

The opening ceremonies for CIV were that night, so we decided to get in line about 2 hours before they started. (This is the last minute for something like this). I was afraid we would get shut out again, but we didn’t. We made it in and there were plenty of empty seats when the ceremonies began which I found strange since the line we were in was 4 abreast and strung out around most of the convention center outside. We settled in and enjoyed the show. Here’s a pictorial rundown of the opening ceremonies:

The L.A. mayor welcoming us and proclaiming 5/25 as Star Wars Day in L.A. He also asked us to spend a lot of money, which was answered with a lot of laughing from the crowd.

Another random person raving about how big Star Wars is in pop culture – as if we had no clue.

USC marching band

Stormtrooper color guard

A random ewok appears

Indiana Jones whips the ewok

Wait! That ewok was Steve Sansweet, head of Fan Relations (or some such) at Lucasfilm and our MC

Video of Uncle George welcoming us and apologizing for dissing us at this celebration

The supposedly live feed of Uncle George from London. Glad to see that even Lucasfilm realized his lack of being there was a little shady.

Treats during the ceremonies were these pieces of cake that were passed out to everyone in attendance. Sure they’re small, but it was a nice 7,000-piece gesture.

Lucasfilm head of licensing talking about how fun it is to decide which toys we get.

The Post Office talking about the new Star Wars stamps. I find it hard to take speakers seriously when someone is signing right beside them.

Unveiling and dedicating the stamp sheet

Unveiling the winning stamp – Jedi Master Yoda.

Steve sans ewok suit

Charles Ross, writer/performer of the One Man Star Wars Trilogy. This guy is hilarious, and you can see a clip at his site.

Jay singing “Celebration” and asking the crowd to get up and dance with him.

Scott Chernoff talks about his events. This is where we left.

You can see another fan’s blow-by-blow account of the ceremonies here: Beat-by-beat.

After the ceremonies we visited the CIV store again so Winch could see if he wanted a keepsake. When we tried to return to our car through the convention center, we were informed that we had to exit that door as everything else was being shut down. Security was very closed-mouth about it, and we were forced onto the dark streets of L.A. to walk back and hope we could get into the garage to retrieve the car. The next day I had my first hint of why the ceremonies weren’t as packed as I had thought they would be and why we had to take our night hike. Rumors of a bomb scare were being passed among the crowd and security seemed extra tight.

When I got back from the trip, I found out what had happened that night from several sites (links below) and found out why many fans weren’t able to join the fun. Someone had left a suitcase of clothing on a sidewalk next to the convention center. Obviously terrorists or Trekkies would target 40,000 Star Wars fans, so the L.A. bomb squad was called in to secure the area. Many fans were shut out of the ceremonies or forced to watch wistfully through the doors until they were ejected for crowd control and safety reasons. Those of us enjoying the show never had an inkling that this was going on outside. No one said anything and no one tried to get us out. Nice to know that if it hadn’t been a harmless bag of clothes a bunch of celebrities and us would have been toast.

Bomb scare links:

How Star Wars Celebration IV Blew Up Opening Ceremonies Statement by Lucasfilm

Are you still reading this? Great! Now onto the BIG day…

Saturday, May 26

Saturday was a HUGE pop culture day for Star Wars fans. This was lucky for us as our other friends Warren and Rocks were joining us for that day’s fun. Neither of them had ever been to a convention either, so I’m not sure what they expected. We were running just about on time when we got there, so we immediately searched and found the Star Wars Robot Chicken panel line. After waiting about an hour, we were in and ready to hear what Seth Green had to say.

Robot Chicken decided to do a Star Wars special when Lucasfilm called to ask them if they could host the clip of Vader calling the Emperor about the destruction of the first Death Star on their site. Seth and crew said “yes” and asked them if they could do a half hour Star Wars special. Lucasfilm agreed, and the next thing you know, Seth is getting a tour of Skywalker Ranch from Uncle George. The special airs 6/17/07. Here are my pics from the panel and a trailer for the upcoming special:

Panel ID picture

Scene from the special

Seth Green

Supposedly Seth as a Stormtrooper at a previous Celebration

Matthew Senreich and Keith Crofford: co-creator and exec. prod.

Breckin Meyer who also worked on the special

Link: adult swim SWRC trailer

Seth, Matt, and Breckin are HUGE Star Wars geeks. Seth said he knows all of the characters because he bought all of the action figures when he was young. He also said that he remembers really obscure characters like Elan Sleazebaggano (the guy who tries to sell Obi-wan death sticks in AoTC) if there was a mail-in figure offer. Matt used to be the editor of Toy Fare magazine (the premiere magazine for toy collectors), so he knows his Star Wars figures. The whole panel was very funny and liked sharing stories about making RC and about trying out for parts in movies, like X-men.

After this panel, we did a circuit of the exhibitor’s hall so W&R could get a taste of the other side of CIV. While touring the hall, we captured these photos:

Next up was the Fanboys panel. This movie is about 5 friends who go to steal Phantom Menace before it’s released. The panel included director Kyle Newman, two of the writers, three of the producers, and three of the actors: Sam Huntington, Jay Baruchel, and of course, Pregremlin favorite, Kristen Bell. They basically talked about how so many people had agreed to do the script and then dropped it, what it was like making the movie, and what kind of Star Wars fans they were. Here are a couple of pics I took:

The Panel

Kristen Bell as Slave Leia

The next event was Star Wars Family Guy. Seth Macfarlane was there to answer questions and show us some clips form the upcoming special. He walked out onto the stage carrying a beer and a mint Dagobah playset from around 1980 sealed in a glass case. Here’s a pic of him with the fig:

Seth and the playset

The playset was awarded to a kid who answered a Family Guy trivia question (with help from the audience). Of course as soon as the kid got it shouts of “don’t open it” and “open it” broke out in the crowd. The special will air as the season premiere and will be a full hour. Here’s the rest of the panel in pics:

Peter as Han

Chris as Luke and Lois as Leia

Peter as Stormtrooper Han

Peter as Han and Brian as Chewbacca

Stewie as Vader

Seth enjoying the panel

Seth signing autographs

This was definitely my favorite panel of the trip. Seth was obviously a big Star Wars fan and he seemed really down to earth and funny. He made fun of a guy who got up to ask a question and stumbled all over the word "unceremoniously”. He said, "How come you’re the one slurring when I’m the one drinking… Diet Pepsi?”

Well, I’m going to end this blog here. I know I left things out – either to cut down on the length of this post or because I simply forgot. I have to say that this entry is definitely the biggest post I’ve made, and with all of the hand-coding for syndication, it’s been one of the most difficult pieces to write. I hope anyone reading enjoys it, and please feel free to ask me questions.

DCN!!!!!!!!

2007-05-23T15:57:00.001-05:00

As always, I am the Dtrain with your latest fix of Dorky Comic News. (Disclaimer: by saying “latest fix,” Dtrain may or may not promote drug use.) This edition was going to be about one of the comics I read, and why you should too. However, a lot of stuff happened as it pertains to TV and movies, that my propaganda to get you to rush to the nearest comic shop will have to wait. Let’s get to it.

Last Thursday was the season finale of Smallville. I wish I could go into more detail about it, but I am not sure whoever is reading this is a fan of the show, and has not seen it yet. (Although, if you are a true fan, you’d have seen it. You jerks.) All that I can say is that is was a very BIZZARE ending. For those of you that get what that meant, leave me a message telling me what it is and your free DCN T-shirt will be in the mail.

On Saturday, those of you that frequent superherohype.com got to see the first picture of Heath Ledger as the Joker from next summers The Dark Knight. That’s Batman Begins 2 for those of you that need to catch up. From the looks of it, this version is going to shy away from the cartoony and campiness that the Joker has brought to the comics, as well as the first movie. Nolan (director) is going for a more realistic, sadistic version. He did not do the fans wrong with the first movie, and I can’t see him doing wrong here.

Last but not least, the finale of the best show on television that is not Smallville also ended this past Monday. (For those of you that thought The Bachelor, you are no longer allowed to DCN. Please leave. NOW. I’m serious. Get out of here. Not kidding here, guys. Ummm, other random comment to make the joke last too long and get tired. OUT!!) For the rest of you, I am talking about Heroes. This show was 23 episodes this season, and every one of them ruled. Each ending was a cliffhanger, and the finale gave resolution to the story. It left you with questions, but not enough to feel unsatisfied with the ending. And the epilogue, with Hiro, doesn’t act as a cliffhanger for the current story, but as a great starting point for next year. If only the writers of Lost could have done a show that well, they might have kept me as a fan, instead of boring me to death last season that I had no other choice but file the show in my “wait for the show to end, then watch it on DVD” file.

That brings me to both the end of the column, as well as a question: What shows on DVD do you watch? I want to know, because I want to write about them. Please realize that some of you might get made fun of, but c’mon. DCN isn’t known for its seriousness. (Actually, it’s not known for anything. I put it on myspace. Whoopee.) Anyway, write me a message with what TV shows on DVD you are currently watching, and that’s what DCN will be about next time. Well, that, or it’ll be a rant about none of you responded and that you all suck. We’ll have to see.

P.S. Can’t deny you what I promised: The Ultimates. Get the Graphic Novels. You’ll be glad you did.

Master Replicas Poops on Celebration IV

2007-05-22T11:44:00.000-05:00

Well, after the Lucasfilm licensing fell through for Corgi/Master Replicas, they have done everything in their power to poop on Star Wars Celebration IV, which is Lucasfilm's biggest US event this year.

First came the annoucement that the licensing for Lucasfilm properties was not renewed due to a dispute between Corgi/MR and Lucasfilm concerning licensing fees and other provisions. Now, I do applaud Corgi/MR for standing up to Lucasfilm, but at the same time, they had to realize that Uncle George has been licensing his way since the beginning. Personally I think Corgi/MR must not have a clue when it comes to the Star Wars franchise. Yes, they have other licensing properties, but none as wide-spread and successful as the Star Wars licensing. While Master Replicas did create one of the coolest pieces of Star Wars merchandise out there, the Force FX sabers, I think they may be having delusions of granduer if they think that no one else can step in and produce the same kinds of products as well as they do.

After all of this drama and turmoil went to press, MR announced that they would not be having a booth at CIV. Understandable, but definitely a poop. They were scheduled to be selling 2 convention exclusives and announced that those would not be available. They were also planning a huge Force FX combat trial event, which has now been moved to Henson Studios in conjunction with their Collector's Society party. This combination means that what was once going to be a fun event for all to witness will now be seen by a select few and their chosen 1 guest a piece. Don't even get me started on these manufacturers who have fee-based guilds. (Sorry, but paying extra to buy more stuff is the biggest shaft up the hole since Fast Passes were invented at amusement parks).

Now this brings us to the question of when these items formerly listed as "Celebration IV exclusives" are going to be sold. Today MR released this information and I'm sure that many collectors are not happy about it. The are selling to Collector's Society members on Tuesday and everyone else can try to log on at 9 PST on the Fan Club day for CIV. Brilliant poop. Make sure you make it nearly impossible for the most hardcore fans to buy these collectibles. Shame on you Master Replicas for taking your petty revenge out on the wrong people!

Master Replicas and Lucasfilm part ways

2007-05-16T13:16:00.000-05:00

It appears that Master Replicas have lost the Lucasfilm license to produce Star Wars related props and products. Lucasfilm assures fans that they are working to find a new licensee, and Corgi assures customers they'll still be producing products, just not Star Wars related products. If you were waiting to get that Force FX saber, now's the time folks.

Dorky Comic News with Dtrain

2007-05-14T06:18:00.000-05:00

Well, folks, after a small sabbatical (two postings and already a sabbatical? Man, am I an elitist), I am back with more of your friendly neighborhood Dorky comic news.

Hmmmm, I guess with the Spidey reference in the previous sentence, you all should have a good guess as to my topic of discussion, and that being the lack of political structure in Iraq. HAHAHAHAHA whoa, *phew,* sigh to indicate that it wasn’t that funny, okay, continue.

Spider-Man 3. I liked it. A lot of people didn’t. You know what? Don’t care. Here’s why: Venom. I’ve wanted to see Venom as the villain since May 3rd, 2002. That’s the day after the first movie came out. (and for all of you who were wondering, yes, I did in fact take the day off work and saw it twice). I got Venom in this one. The rest of it to me is pretty inconsequential. Sure, they may have tried to put too much into this movie. But here’s the thing that most non-comic fans don’t understand. If you pick up a comic and read it, that’s what it is. The writers and artists try there damndest to get as much action and decent dialogue in as possible to get the reader hooked. That’s what they did with this movie. Could it have been done a little better, possibly. Could I have done a better job? Heck no. I leave that to the professionals. My last note on Spidey 3 for all the naysayers: Imagine if the black Spidey suit had nipples on it. Hmmm? The movie doesn’t seem so bad now, does it?

Still wishing Joel Schumacher dies a slow painful death for almost ruining the Batman movie franchise, this has been the D-train with your Dorky Comic News. Next Time, I will give you a profile on what I buy, and why you all should start. Laters!

Spider-man 3 Review (Spoiler-free)

2007-05-10T11:42:00.000-05:00

Friday night I went to see Spider-man 3. It was opening night at an off show time, but the theater was still packed with fans. Spidey's got his work cut out for him in this one as he faces three enemies: Venom, Sandman, and New Goblin. The movie is very fast paced, almost too fast at times to fully absorb what's happening.

Coming in with a budget of approximately $500 million, you expect to see where the money went and you do. It was definitely poured into the special effects portion of the film - and it's worth every penny. The effects required to make Sandman believable had to cost a fortune by themselves. They didn't waste anything when it came to the symbiote suit or Venom either.

The plot is complex and familiar at the same time as themes from the previous films are revisited and recalled. One of the neatest things about the film is that they recap the highlights of the first two in the opening credit sequence. Symbiote Spidey is a total bad ass, as is Symbiote Peter Parker. Topher Grace is believable as a character other than Eric Foreman. Kirsten Dunst does her usual sneering and sniveling, some of which is more grating than the first two films, but there is one scene in there that Kirsten haters will LOVE. Bruce Campbell has some decent screen time and provides some great comic relief. I'm glad to see his old buddy Sam managed to use him a lot more this time. Stan Lee makes his usual appearance with a small bit of advice for our hero.

There's one scene near the end where a background character plays an unnecessary major role in the plot that ruins a character redemption. Other than that, the movie flows fairly well. There's a good balance of action, drama, and comedy. You get occasional slow spots, but due to the fast pace of most of the film, you almost welcome them. Overall, I thought it was a solid effort from Raimi and crew. It's open enough for another sequel, but resolved enough that you aren't hanging.

If you liked the first two films, you'll love this one. If you thought the first two were okay, I'm not sure where you'll fall on this one - although I think it lives up to its predecessors. My advice is go see it - it'll probably be the best comic-related offering we have this summer, and definitely the best sequel.

May the Fourth be with you

2007-05-04T15:27:00.000-05:00

For those of you who don’t know, today is Star Wars Day. Something that started with a horrible pun and has now continued year after year for true Star Wars fans (I belong to this category). On this auspicious day, I thought I would post some info I know non-Star Wars fans are just dying to hear…

First, I’d like to tell you briefly how this all began for me. I was lucky to be introduced to Star Wars in my 8th grade English class by reading excerpts from the screenplay for The Empire Strikes Back. I was selected to read the role of Luke Skywalker (since there were only two people in my class who could read aloud without struggling – the other guy read Yoda). While I had seen bits and pieces of the movie as a child, I had never seen one all the way through. After class I went to the local video store and rented The Empire Strikes Back. I was immediately hooked and had to rent Return of the Jedi for obvious reasons (if it’s not obvious to you, stop reading now). I finished off the trilogy by watching A New Hope. USA decided to choose that exact year to run all three films in order during Christmas. I bought an 8-hour VHS and captured them for my own viewing pleasure. I can’t say how many times I watched that tape, other than daily for at least a month. To this day, while watching the originals (not Uncle George’s 2004 DVD monstrosity) I can still tell you where the commercial breaks from the tape were. Needless to say, some figures called Bend’ems turned up in Odd Lots not long after that and I began buying anything Star Wars I could get my hands on (which wasn’t much at the time). Then came the release of the THX editions with associated merchandise and then the big 20th anniversary release of the special editions in theaters - by this time, I had moved up the ranks to full-fledged Star Wars collector. When The Phantom Menace was released, I didn’t see it open in theaters because I wanted to experience the way I experienced the first three for the first time – on TV. After watching it, I’m glad I waited since it would have been one of the biggest disappointments ever for me. Well, now you have the gist of my personal Star Wars saga, and I’d like to give you a quick preview of the next installment.

To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Star Wars: A New Hope, Lucasfilm has decided to host another Star Wars Celebration cleverly named “Celebration IV”. This huge geekfest will take place in Los Angeles, and I’m going. I’m only planning on being there a couple of days due to finances and work, but I’m going to live it up while I’m there. Not only will there be tons of exclusive merchandise for collectors like me, but there will also be some interesting and perhaps unexpected celebrities in attendance. Two of these famous folks I’m really looking forward to seeing are Seth McFarlane (Family Guy) and Seth Green (Robot Chicken, Buffy the Vampire Slayer). Both Family Guy and Robot Chicken have Star Wars specials planned in honor of the 30th anniversary and both have permission from Uncle George to create them. Star Wars celebrities of course will be attending, and right now the confirmed big names are Carrie Fisher, Anthony Daniels, and Jake Lloyd. Two major “guests of honor” from the SW universe have yet to be confirmed. With so much to see and do I’m sure it will be a short and fast couple of days. Wednesday May 23rd kicks the celebration off with a 6-movie marathon in the order of storyline. While I won’t be spending 17 hours watching the films, I would at least like to try to catch one of the films from the original trilogy. I’m hoping to take a lot of pictures and take plenty of recorded notes so I can give a full report on my return. Until then, celebrate May Fourth the Star Wars way.

WWF April News

2007-04-21T10:12:00.000-05:00

The April newsletter from the WWF is now available. This month's stories of interest include your last chance to submit your commitment to change before Earth Day tomorrow, and a story about the the release of endangered Humphead Wrasse back into the wild.

With Earth Day upon us, WWF is pushing to get more people to commit to change their habits and help save our habitat. There are many suggestions and personal anecdotes available at their their site. My suggestion is an easy one that will save you money and pay for itself. Replace your standard light bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs. CF bulbs are available almost everywhere now (they look like regular bulbs that have been twisted). They cost a little more than regular bulbs, but they last longer and use less energy. The money you save on your electric bill will pay for the extra cost of the bulbs at the time of purchase. These bulbs use less than half the electricity of normal bulbs and provide the same illumination. An easy way to make this change is to simply buy CF bulbs when your regular bulbs need replaced.

More than 1,000 endangered Humphead Wrasse are en route home after being rescued from poachers in the Philippines this past December. The poachers were apprehended inside Tubbataha Reef Natural Park, a national marine protected area, carrying the Wrasse along with 400 other fish. In East Asia, the giant lips of these Humphead Wrasse are considered a delicacy, which helps drive the incentive for poachers of this crazy-looking fish.

Dorky Comic News with Dtrain

2007-04-19T22:03:00.000-05:00

Fantastic Four Update

Once again it's time for Dorky Comic News with your party host, the Dtrain.

The new Fantastic Four movie comes out June 15. The first one was okay except for the last 20 minutes, which made no sense whatsoever (if you'd like to find out why, send me a message and I will tell you). I've seen the trailer for the second one, called the Rise of the Silver Surfer. It looks pretty cool. (But so did Ocean's 12. Man, was I fooled) Anyway, I am hoping this movies lives up to the trailer.

The big news of the day is that the voice of the Silver Surfer, who if you've seen the trailer, is the silvery guy on the surf board. (Betcha the name makes a lot more sense now. What would you guys do without me?) Sorry, back on track. Laurence Fishburne (Cowboy Curtis from Pee-Wee's Playhouse. NO JOKE) will be providing the voice talent. I am not sure why they always have another actor do voices for characters that are cgi'd. The guy that is "acting" as the Silver Surfer is named Doug Jones. I guess he must sound like a 7 year old girl.

Well, that's about it. I'm looking forward to Spider-Man 3, as you all should. If you see it, let me know your thoughts.

P.S. Dorky Comic News is the name of my new segment. Screw [MySpace] blogs.

"Dorky Comic News. News you don't care about, news you don't need."

Wood-n't it be nice?

2007-04-17T11:18:00.000-05:00

So you’ve broken some wood during your latest gaming adventure… well, not like this. LucasArts is introducing two new gaming technologies with the release of The Force Unleashed. These technologies are Digital Molecular Matter (DMM) by Pixelux Entertainment and euphoria by NaturalMotion Ltd. When these two technologies are combined with the Havok physics engine, gaming gets real. How real do you ask? Well, let me ask you to sit back and imagine this…

If you can remember playing Paper Boy on NES, you might recall this scenario. Even though your throws could be perfectly timed, the game would only have the windows break or that crazy lady with the hoop stop if you released the paper at the exact instant in the game that was tagged to register a successful shot. Thankfully gaming has come a long way since then and it seems that now the room for human error is built-in. No longer do you have to be as precise as you used to be when attacking something to register a hit.

But, did you ever notice that no matter where you shoot from or how hard you punch something, the object always reacts the same way? For example, I could shoot at a door and after enough shots, the door would break away. I could do this from across the street, from the porch, or from the neighbor’s yard. No matter where I shoot from, the door breaks the same way every time. The angle and velocity have no impact on how the door breaks, unless it’s a pivotal moment or object in the game. Programmers only spend extra time on these things when it really counts or the games would cost $200 a piece. Additionally, it’s almost impossible to animate every object and every scenario by hand because by the time the design was finished, a new platform or three would be released.

Now, starting with The Force Unleashed, the laws of the real world will really start to apply. When I shoot from the neighbor’s porch, the shots react with the door differently than when I shoot from the porch or across the street. Maybe I hit the knob and it explodes. Maybe I only scratch the door because it’s a bad angle. Maybe I take out a support beam by mistake and the porch collapses. Now I have to think about where and how I’m shooting because it does make a difference.

I know at this point many reading this will probably say, “So what? So the stupid game looks better. What’s the big deal?” The big deal is that this improvement requires no further coding on the designers part. Not one single additional frame of animation to make these effects happen. Textures, life forms, and other materials will now have “real” substance. They will look, behave, and act as they should in the environment, according to how similar objects act in reality. All the objects are defined, and then “presto” they behave as they should. This means that designers can spend less time worrying about how material reacts and more time on developing cool versatile scenarios.

So what does this mean for you, the gamer? Well, you’ll have a more realistic experience in games using this new technology. In fact, the games may be so realistic that every time you play the game, it’s completely different because this time you accidentally collapsed the porch instead of just shooting down the door. This means an extended life for your games. Now they may actually start to be worth the $60-70 they cost.

LucasArts has a demo up to show off this amazing new feat in gaming design. And what better way to showcase it than to have the demo show R2-D2 being thrown at a piece of wood repeatedly? You can check out the demo here and learn more about these gaming advances and other gaming trends through the links in this post or in another great article here.

Not being much of a consumer of video games (I like to rent), I have to say thankfully this won’t affect my budget any. But I do have to say this new move toward a better gaming “reality” is really cool. I also have to wonder why new, great, “feel-good” news like this is only available on the internet. Anyone?

Dorky Comic News with Dtrain

2007-04-17T10:39:00.000-05:00

Spider-Man 2.1

Don't forget to gather your pennies and get to your nearest Best Buy to get Spider-Man 2.1 with 8 (YES, 8!!) minutes of extended footage. Wet your whistle before May 4th!!!

Dorky Comic News with Dtrain

2007-04-16T00:14:00.000-05:00

Our good friend Dtrain has agreed to allow me to syndicate his Dorky Comic News on No Disintegrations. I thank Dtrain for allowing me to provide a wider audience for his updates.

Incredible Hulk

Apparently Marvel was so impressed with Edward Norton's ability to transform into Brad Pitt in Fight Club, that they decided to see how well he can change into the Hulk. For you geeks out there, what I am trying to say is that Edward Norton will play Bruce Banner in the new Incredible Hulk movie, which comes out next year. They are redoing the origin story, because let's face it, that first movies sucked.

P.S. Spider-Man 3 is in 19 days.

The Force-Cast on No Disintegrations

2007-04-06T12:52:00.000-05:00

No Disintegrations readers can tune in to the Force-Cast right on this page. If you enjoy Star Wars, or just good quality podcasts, you'll like this one. Sometimes you can't always download a podcast (like when you're at work), Now, with the new standalone player in our sidebar, you can listen to the Force-Cast without the need to download the episode.

The Force-Cast reviews Star Wars news, rumors and updates. This is the official podacast of www.rebelscum.com and www.theforce.net - two of the best Star Wars news sites out there.

I recently began tuning into the Force-Cast in order to stay on top of Celebration IV news. Now I'm hooked and listening to back episodes. Jason and Peter are great hosts and they don't take themselves or this show too seriously. It's a good choice for folks with a long commute. Check it out now by using the player located in our sidebar.

Sink your Vampire Teeth into Buffy Season 8

2007-03-29T11:33:00.000-05:00

Well, it seems some Buffy fans are becoming comic fans with the release of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 in comic form. Include me in this category. I'm been familiar with comics for a while and understand the different formats well enough. I used to peruse Spider-man comics as a kid, but Buffy marks my first foray into actually buying comics. Until this venture, I have only purchased Neil Gaiman's Absolute Sandman volume one. Now I get to explore the wonders of bagging and boarding, subscription services, variant covers, and debates on the best method of storage and preservation.

As a long time collector of Star Wars paraphernalia, I joined the Ohio Star Wars Collector's Club about 2 years ago to help create contacts and improve my knowledge of the collecting hobby. This amazing group of people are great at discussing the various available items and commenting on what actually makes a collection valuable to actual collectors. Through this club, I've learned a lot about the hobby and about building value into a collection. Now I am hoping to take this knowledge, plus knowledge gained from conversations with D-train, and apply it to the Buffy Season 8 series.

Currently, I have acquired all the essential pieces to make this a very valuable collection, including promotional posters and the limited 1 of 1,000 sketch variant cover of the 1st printing of issue 1. I decided to pay an additional $0.25 to have the comics bagged and boarded before they even reached me so that the ones I don't read will be as near to mint as possible. For some fans, this paragraph probably doesn't make much sense and may sound like a bunch of comic book jargon. It still kind of does to me too. I've decided to chronicle my foray into this new direction of collecting and share my information and assumptions with fellow fans. For folks knowledgeable in comics reading these posts, please feel free to comment with suggestions, etc to help me with my collection or correct something I am misunderstanding.

Here is the gist of this collection:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 continues the TV series in comic form. The series is reportedly up to being scheduled for 52 issues (unconfirmed). Joss Whedon is overseeing the entire story arc and actually writing several issues himself. The other issues will be written by other alums of the Buffy TV series writing staff.

The collection will contain a variant cover for each issue. These variants are being offered in a 1/4 ratio to merchants. This mean that for every 4 copies the merchant orders, one variant will be included.

Issue 1 also has a limited edition sketch variant cover. This LE variant is 1/1000 and was only provided to Dark Horse retailers that entered the Buffy contest. Each retailer who won in this contest received ten copies of this LE variant. Also of note, Issue 1 has already run its first printing and is now on its second printing to accommodate the large number of orders Dark Horse is receiving. That makes any Issue 1 first print a LE of 1/100,000. So currently, that brings Issue 1 up to 4 covers in the first week of release. To promote this series, Dark Horse released two promotional posters. The first was given away at recent conventions and is a 11" x 7" poster featuring the regular cover of Issue 1. The second was released in Buffy and Angel magazine #29 and was also given away at recent conventions. This poster is 36" x 24" and features the regular cover for Issue 2. Both posters were factory folded. The following is the current offerings:

Issue 1:

Regular Cover, 1st print

Variant Cover, 1/4, 1st print

Sketch Variant Cover, 1/1000, 1st print

Expanded Cover, 2nd print

Promotional Poster, Convention

Issue 2:

Regular Cover, 1st print

Variant Cover, 1/4, 1st print

Promotional Poster, Convention/Magazine

Issue 3:

Regular Cover, 1st print

Variant Cover, 1/4, 1st print

Issue 4:

Regular Cover, 1st print

Variant Cover, 1/4, 1st print

Pictures Courtesy of Dark Horse comics.

WWF March News

2007-03-22T06:00:00.000-05:00

The March newsletter from the WWF is now available. This month's stories of interest include the discovery that the clouded leopard of Borneo is actually a different species from the clouded leopard in mainland Southeast Asia.

There is also news about the recent trend of rivers starting to dry up. They compiled a Top 10 List of rivers at risk, and in the U.S., the Rio Grande made the list. Of the 10 rivers listed, only 3 are at risk due to natural causes, such as climate change and invasive species. The other 7 rivers are all at risk due to man-made causes, such as infrastructure, water over-extraction, over-fishing, and pollution.

Also, Earth Day is a month from today (April 22), and WWF is trying to get people to make a commitment to change. They are asking everyone to go to here and share what they are doing to make a change. You can also see what changes others have pledged to make and donate directly to WWF.

For more on these stories, go to: http://wwf.worldwildlife.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=5861.1&dlv_id=8723&JServSessionIdr004=y3zkuj7dn1.app5b

Hasbro to Continue Using "Spud" Licensing

2007-03-21T23:44:00.000-05:00

Hasbro is continuing their quest to tuber-ize movie greats through its "spud" licensing. You may already be familiar with these Mr. Potato Heads:

L to R: Spud Trooper, Artoo-Potato, and Darth Tater

Now meet the newest super spud:

Spider Spud

Pre-orders for this great Spider-man 3 collectible start Saturday, March 24 at www.hasbrotoyshop.com.

To see previews of other Hasbro Spider-man 3 collectibles, visit: http://www.e-directlogic.com/Hasbro/H017218.asp?q=hbc2g2pH017219107374&src=GENEMHT89987

WWF February News

2007-03-05T16:40:00.000-05:00

As part of a new feature here at No Disintegrations, I'd like to pass on a brief synopsis of interesting stories in the monthly WWF newsletter. WWF is one of the strongest allies our endangered species have and by promoting their efforts a little here, I'm hoping maybe some of you reading this will be inspired to send them a donation, or at least keep them in mind when thinking about making one.

Two interesting stories from this month's newsletter are the biggest smuggling bust in a decade and counting the Amur leopard.

In the smuggling bust, they managed to seize Siberian tiger skins, paws and bones, as well as Saiga antelope horns and Asiatic black bear paws, near the Russia/China border. WWF has photos of the bust on their site and while it doesn't seem like a lot of stuff fom the pictures, it is when you consider how endangered these animals are.

Conservationists are counting the Amur leopards in hopes of discovering the first increase in population in the past 5 years. When the Amur leopards were counted in 2003, only about 30 individuals were found.

For these stories and more, check out: http://wwf.worldwildlife.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=5381.1&dlv_id=8421

Mythical Creatures

2007-02-27T14:01:00.000-05:00

Apparently, there is a Pegasus in my vicinity. On my way to work this morning, I found myself staring at a Deer Crossing sign that had been converted to a Pegasus Crossing sign. The artist even took care to label it as "Pegasus", so as not to be confused with other winged ungulates in the area. While the sign above does not do justice to the original I saw this morning, it is a very similar sign. Apparently the artist had no clue that Pegasus is actually a winged horse rather than a winged deer. I must say that I do think Pegasus would look dashing with a set of antlers, almost regal in fact.

My main concern is that this sign was only about a half mile from where I live. If Pegasus is known to frequent the area, should I be watching for him out my sliding glass doors? Should I make preparations to profit off this unnatural stroke of good fortune? You know, Pegasus T-shirts, stickers, and other crap. Should I be concerned that Pegasus may be establishing a breeding colony and we will soon be overrun with winged terrors? Are mythical creatures considered endangered species? Would I go to prison for killing Pegasus if he started attacking me and my car? That one sign would suddenly make me fear such things and such a tiny stretch of road is an amazing testament to pictures being worth a thousand words (or in this case maybe 100).

JTT Revealed, Foreign Cars, Trans-fat, The State

2007-02-27T00:34:00.000-05:00

NO DISINTEGRATIONS

Well, I think I've finally finished copying code and fixing links and making all the upgraded changes (at least for a bit). If anyone notices anything else missing, let me know.

CHRISITAN SLATER AND JTT?

If you're still on the edge of your seat about Christian Slater from a few posts ago, my theory is that Jonathan Taylor Thomas is his illegitimate child or something. Check out Jon (he hates being referred to as "JTT", the pompous ass) in Smallville or Veronica Mars if you have no clue what I'm rambling about. He's like a mini-CS, including smug facial expressions and phrasing.

STUPID BUMPER STICKER

Today I saw a car with a bumper sticker that read, "Please don't put my flag on your foreign car." The sentiment is obviously trying to support American automotive manufacturers, but the truth behind the statement is pretty outdated. Considering we are now moving toward a global economy, people should take a few minutes and do some research about where and how things, such as vehicles, are actually being made. While many automobile companies could be considered foreign at first glance due to their corporate headquarters being in a foreign country, most are actually multinational so that we, the consumer, can get a better deal on a new ride. I used to work for a company that manufacturer automotive parts. While most of our business was supplying the Big Three, we also made parts for several "foreign" companies as well. So just remember that even though the name may be that of a "foreign" car, there's a good chance that many of the actual parts were manufactured right here in the good ole USA.

EATING AGAINST THE LAW

Another thing that has been bothering me for the last decade and continues to escalate is the trend in "fixing" our countries problems by introducing more laws. We are now legislating what people can and cannot eat. In the past these types of laws were disguised by saying that certain foods were banned due to health concerns (contamination by illness inducing organisms). Now we're just saying, "Hey, the country's fat and stupid. We'll never be able to take care of the stupid, so let's try to make it impossible for people to be fat." Since when did trans-fat instantly kill the population? Sure it's not great for you, but it's not a psycho killer lurking to get you the minute you put a fry in your mouth. This basically comes down to personal choice. There are SO many ways to acquire food in the country it's ridiculous, but we have to legislate to make sure that people are making "healthy" choices. Let people eat what they want and quit minimizing personal freedoms and choice.

RANT:
Will people ever learn that democracy is actually just a tyranny of the majority? Will someone finally point out to all of our citizens that our country is not based on democracy anyway, but rather capitalism? Will all this cause the US to lose its moniker as "Home of the Free" and instead become "Home of Legislated Choices"? Will the Preamble change to "We the consumers, of the United States of America..."?

Find out next time. Same blog time, same blog channel.

P.S. TV/DVD

Amazon is now offering downloads of 5 episodes of The State. Anyone who remembers enjoying this show should be excited because this probably means a DVD is in the works at some point.

Welcome to No Disintegrations!

2007-02-20T02:52:00.000-05:00

After much consideration, I have decided to change the name and location of this blog. It will now be known as "No Disintegrations" and can be found by going to http://nodisintegrations.blogspot.com. I've been doing a lot of site updates under the new Blogger and have finally got the favorite icon working for most browsers.

This was a hard decision since I know many loyal readers (all 3 of you) have been checking this site constantly for updates. I think the new name and location is a better fit. I hope everyone realizes that I know nothing of bounty hunting, other than in a galaxy far far away, and that these references are to The Empire Strikes Back. While I am neither a bounty hunter, nor an empire, I am a big believer in striking back (whatever that means). I hope you will enjoy the new updates and approve of the new nomenclature.

If you don't, well then you're a scruffy looking nerf-herder!

Read No Disintegrations Safely

2007-02-15T23:11:00.000-05:00

In my quest to continually improve this blog and make it better for readers, I've decided to create an escape route in case anyone is reading the blog at work. You now have a fast way to turn No Disintegrations into an acceptable site. In fact, I liked this feature so much that I updated the entire catalog of No Disintegrations Blogs (dre222's Short Stories, Black Beard of the Salt Sea's Travel Logue and Tales, and the GRRM DB) to include this feature. Just look for the following at the upper right hand corner of each blog:

Clicking this link will redirect you to the home page of your browser if you're using IE. I'm not sure if it works for other browsers, so feel free to test it for me if you're using something different.

I also decided to share this code snippet with other bloggers and folks who maintain other sites (yes, the code should work on your MySpace). Just copy and paste the following code:

Now when the boss or co-worker snoops up on you, you're a click away from stealth mode.

New Enhancement Feature

2007-02-02T07:03:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to let everyone know that I've added a new feature to No Disintegrations (and the GRRM DB in the No Disintegrations catalog). Now when you put your cursor on a link outside Shawed, you will get a pop-up preview of the website the link is pointing to. This way you can get an idea of what kind of site you're going to be visiting if you click a link. For anyone wanting to add this to their website (must be able to edit and add "head" attributes), visit snap.com.

What Happened?

2007-01-16T14:54:00.000-05:00

Well, I realized today that I haven't updated Shawed in over a month now. There are many reasons for this including, but not limited to, the holiday season. Basically, I've been having some major writing block. Each time I try to pen an epic or witty post for this sucker I get stuck before the first sentence is over. Usually I write about things that bother or amuse me. With my creative muse H8FUELED out of commission and a plethera of things bothering and amusing me that it wouldn't be appropriate to write about, I have let this precious blog fall into stagnation.

No fear folks! I have been amassing a collection of tidbits that may prove very entertaining in the next few weeks. First, I need to meet some deadlines so I can continue to pay bills. Yeah, I tricked you. This post is more of a "coming soon" than a "it's finally here" post. I just didn't want any loyal readers (all 3 of you) to think that Shawed had met its demise. In the spirit of making you click and wait anxiously, I will reveal a tidbit for a blog in the works:

I've located a person who must be Christian Slater's offspring in the most unlikely of places - movies and TV. Many people mistake this person as a separate entity, but I have a feeling they are of the same bloodline.

Until next time...

Upgrades, Loyalty Programs, and Imperial Fascists

2006-12-14T11:34:00.000-05:00

Well, Blogger finally decided that it was time to make Shawed eligible for their Beta/Google upgrade. So, as of today, Shawed and all of the Shawed Family blogs are now running on the new platform. I not sure what will happen with this. Right now I'm still using the old template interface and don't see any widget options because of how Blogger converted the blog. That's good in one respect because I'm using the same interface (mostly) that I have been since this blog started and the tiny changes I'm seeing are pretty self-explanatory. On the other hand, I'm going to have to experiment with the new features and find out if there is a way to bring them into Shawed. I'm also not sure how this conversion will affect my contributors, so Super Fat Head, Anarchy and Mishou, you may want to log on and see if you can still post things. If they make you sign up for a gmail account (I had to to convert), there will be one grumpy blogger here.

I don't know about anyone else, but I'm really getting sick of this "loyalty" trend going on everywhere. Groceries, gasoline stations, and internet interface service providers are making people's lives hell.

Just yesterday I was out on my distribution route and I overheard a cashier trying to get someone to sign up for a loyalty card for the store. This poor guy had a huge bag of cat food and a bucket of litter. He'd already been standing in line for several minutes holding the items (this store is notorious for disappearing cashiers and empty checkouts) while the cashier gabbed with someone in front of him. He had a look on his face that told me he just wanted to buy the stuff and get out of there. So, the cashier looks at him and asks if he has a loyalty card. The guy says know and starts shuffling in his wallet (clear nonverbal that he's not interested). The cashier of course has a goal each month telling her how many loyalty sign-ups she should achieve. She begins telling him about all the money he'll save by signing up for this plastic card (and junk mail and email ads), and then uses a tone of voice that indicates he's an idiot if he doesn't do it since the membership is free. The poor dude was finally defeated by her peer pressure (there were other customers behind him and this was the only open line) and signed up for the card.

While many places do have good loyalty programs with decent rewards for frequent shoppers, most places that offer these cards just use them to be able to charge folks who don't want ads more for the same products. Also, every card can only be used at one franchise. So if you shop multiple places like I do, you end up carrying around tons of bits of plastic. I always use the keyring-sized cards and put them on the ring on my wallet. Apparently most cashiers aren't too fond of that. Well, too bad for them. I don't want to pay more than loyalty members, I'm not going to have room for that many full-sized cards, and the safest way to remember to take them with me when shopping is to physically attach them to my money source so they are not forgotten. I have an enormous amount of them too, so finding a specific one usually takes at least a few minutes.

Here's my idea for all the people who started these blasted things and want to continue using them:

Give everyone a UPC code (Universal Person Code). They can go online or somewhere else that's designated and sign up for this card. Then, all of their mailing information and everything is stored in one database. When a person wants to sign up for a store loyalty card, the store scans their master UPC card and pulls their info in from this database. The store then inputs their customer identification code into the master UPC system. Now the store can track the person's purchases or whatever they get out of it, and the person only has to carry one card and not fill out 3,000 forms. Basically the master UPC would be cross-referenced with the customer ID housed by the store loyalty database. Consumers could then sign up for more loyalty programs faster, only have to carry one card for all stores, and be able to receive the "special benefits" granted to loyalty shoppers. If a person doesn't want to join the program, they can decline. If the person isn't sure they are a loyalty member, a quick scan of their master UPC will let them know.

The government would also benefit because then they could track every store and purchase you make. That way they can stop people when they begin exhibiting terrorist behaviors such as buying vinegar and baking soda in the same purchase or whatever other advanced algorithms they use to decide to turn someone's life upside down. I know that many have given up on the dreams of ultimate mailing lists and a 1984-esque society, but I think if we all pull together and use some common sense, we can finally achieve total loss of individual freedoms and attain absolute fascism. That or the Bush family can finally form the Empire they've been working on for the last 18 years. Now, who's with me?

An interesting side note dear readers - please take a look at the statements below concerning a particular type of government philosophy (copied form the ever erroneous Wikipedia) and see if they remind you of anything. Click "What's this from?" to see the source.

1. a sense of overwhelming crisis beyond reach of traditional solutions;
2. belief one’s group is the victim, justifying any action without legal or moral limits;
3. need for authority by a natural leader above the law, relying on the superiority of his instincts;
4. right of the chosen people to dominate others without legal or moral restraint;
5. fear of foreign `contamination.'

What's this from?

Make Your Giving Count

2006-12-11T11:23:00.000-05:00

Every year, I buy a bunch of people who are special to me gifts. I buy gifts for my micro kitties, even though they've never heard of Jesus and have no clue about any holidays anyway. This year I decided to try to make sure that my gifting benefitted others as much as the folks I actually will be giving items to.

There are a lot of great companies out there that try to give back to other organziations so that they can also benefit from the seasonal inflow of cash. One such company is The GreaterGood Site. They contribute to fighting breast cancer, stopping world hunger, promoting health care for children, saving rainforests, feeding rescue animals, and promoting literacy. All of these causes are good reasons to make some of your purchases if you can through their shop sites. They also contribute funds based on people just going and clicking a button on their sites (some of these links are at the bottom right panel of this blog).

The purchases I've made at this site so far have already funded 74 bowls of food for rescue animals. 74 bowls of food is at least $20-30 worth. All by buying my gifts through their site (which has very affordable and unique items), and these are gifts I would be buying anyway. I'm not trying to tell anyone where to shop, but I am trying to let everyone know that you can expand your holiday giving by taking advantage of sites like these that work to support important causes.

Happy Holidays!

Sad Times: Blogs, Raccoons, Lions, and Sea Lions

2006-12-04T11:08:00.000-05:00

Well, I meant to do this sometime last week, but time just kind of slipped away like it often does when projects, papers, and other crap gets in the way. Lately I've been reading some very sad and at times terrifying news.

GOODBYE H8FUELED

First, the inspiration for this blog, H8FUELED, has announced that it is ceasing publication indefinitely. The reasons are laid out pretty clearly, so I'll let you read them for yourself. What I'd like to do instead is pay tribute to this masterpiece by listing my top three favorite excerpts:

"This is going to be another short post, since Happy Fun Ball Hyphen Danger is taking a nap and I FINALLY have some time away from the "aaeeeuuugghh"'s and "eeeeeeeEEEEE!"s that she uses to communicate to the other woodland animals (or velociraptors, I haven't quite figured that out yet). But I loves her."

I loved this one because I know HFB-D and she does make woodland sounds. The part that had me ROFLMFAO was the aside about velociraptors. The worst part was I was at work and I'm sure people thought I was having a seizure because I was shaking so hard.

"To try and squeeze SOME kind of enjoyment out of this arduous process, I engage the stripper in some deep, meaningful conversation.
FILTHY STRIPPER: Hey, sexy. What's your name?
ME: Leopold, but you can call me Barry.
WHORE: Hello, Barry. I'm Roxanne. How are you feeling tonight?
ME: Pretty down. I really hope we don't go to war with Iran.
WHORE: Yeah. That would suck. Are you in the military?
ME: No, I just really like Iran as a country.
WHORE: Oh. So, do you want...
ME: I think it all goes back to the time I read the Koran from cover to cover. Fascinating book. Have you ever read it?
WHORE: Um, no. Say, do you want to...
ME: It's really informative, even if the ending is pretty cliche..."

Anytime you're browsing the site and see the drama set up, you know you're in for a treat. If TD doesn't ever blog again, he should at least look into a career as a sitcom writer. His skits are a lot better than most of the crap being shoveled right now (excluding The Office as awesome, which may have also opened the door for TD's style).

"Enjoy your drunkeness, for you've earned it. Nevermind the reasons WHY you drink: You could simply fear sobriety and the constant paranoia you face thinking about the government; you could just want the numb embrace of liquor to save you from realizing how fucking stupid our world is; or, you could just be a miserable sumbitch who's only solace comes with a bottle of scotch. Remember, though, that no matter how bad life is, you've always got a way of coping. Healthy or not, drinking is still cooler than listening to Linkin Park."

If the sitcom thing doesn't work out, maybe he should consider a career in lobbying for alcohol. The passion is definitely there as well as ample justifications.

While this doesn't give you the whole picture of the blog - so much of it is so damn good and so well-written - it at least gives you a taste of what we're now all missing out on. Just remember TD, you always have an open invitation to Shawed any time you feel the urge to post. H8FUELED and its contribution to the blogosphere will be sorely missed by many, many non-commenting bastards.

RACCOONS

Apparently raccoons have been forming gangs in California so they can now participate in gang violence. These little scavengers have been attacking dogs and shredded one up pretty bad. People are beginning to get scared. They can't let their dogs out unsupervised or enjoy sitting on their porches. California laws prohibit removal of the clever fiends due to the living with wildlife policy. What do you want to bet there suddenly becomes a high demand for coonhounds in Cali?

I feel sorry for the people and their dogs, but I also feel bad for the little critters. Food must be pretty scarce or the population is getting too big because it takes some big fuzzy balls to face down people and their dogs when you're only about 18" high.

LIONS

Rare Abyssinian lion cubs are being poisoned at a zoo in Ethiopia because the staff cannot afford to keep them. Their solution? The dead cubs are sold to taxidermists for $170 each to be stuffed and sold as decorations - even though they are the national symbol and there's only about 1,000 left in the wild. Hmm... seems to me that if I were running a zoo and couldn't afford to keep an endangered species I would try to find another zoo somewhere to take them. No let's kill them and stuff them so one day when they're all gone somebody will discover a stuffed one in an attic somewhere and that's closest anyone in the future will ever get to seeing a real one. I know the zoo officials have a budget to maintain, but there has to be some other way to handle this situation. I know, how about if someone poisons the genius behind this plan and stuffs them?

SEA LIONS

It's another attack story. Sea lions are apparently becoming very vicious off the Californian coast. Attacking swimmers and fisherman and such. Of course weighing in at approximately 1,000 lbs and being so strong in numbers makes them a big threat. The sad part is there's a big suspicion that the sea lions have turned so ferocious from eating fish that are contaminated by a toxic algae bloom caused by agricultural pollution. A food shortage further down the coast and the habit of fisherman feeding them seafood scraps hasn't helped the situation any. In fact, a group of sea lions managed to take out a yacht. Of course once the sea lions form the ultimate alliance with the raccoons, we can kiss Cali goodbye.

WWF

If you're feeling in a giving mood this holiday season, why not give something to the World Wildlife Fund? They work to try to find and support habitats for wildlife to protect the humans and animals from each other. 83% of the funds they receive go directly to the local programs they support. For a worldwide program of their size, that's really, really good. Right now you can adopt a variety of wildlife for as little as a $25 donation. Of course they'll be grateful for any amount you're willing to send their way.

OSU vs. Michigan… Meh.

2006-11-17T16:04:00.000-05:00

Let me preface this diatribe by saying that I have never and will never attend Ohio State University. I attended Ohio, the state university, and attained my first degree there. If I were to support any college team, then it would have to be Ohio University or the college I am currently attending. That said, begin diatribe.

I’m sure the OSU/Michigan game is big for alumni, current students, and other fans. Due to OSU’s Big Ten status, its size, and its recent national championship victory, it has many fans throughout the state of Ohio and beyond. Today is even OSU vs. Michigan day at my workplace, where employees are encouraged to dress in school colors to show support for their favorite team. I’m not wearing either team’s apparel. Even the appeal of wearing jeans and tennis shoes could not persuade me to swear devotion to one of these teams - the reason being that I couldn’t care less about this game or any other OSU game.

From the time I was born up until the present, I have had OSU and their trials and tribulations forced upon me at every turn. Something about OSU turns some fans into obsessive monsters during the academic year. Fires are set when the team loses, and people still whine and complain about every slight when the team wins. I have had to live with these people inundating me with their feelings and views about how wonderful OSU is my entire life. Even at my other job where we have no central location other than the Midwest, I have received snippets at the bottom of emails about this upcoming game.

At one time when I was younger, I actually supported OSU because my brother attended the university. I was young then and didn’t know any better. When I started to be more “in the know” about what was going on after games and with the athletic program, I decided to start supporting Michigan just because the fans and their madness made me sick. I watched the news and saw all of the scandals and arrests. Some of my friends began attending OSU and I heard about the class sizes and lack of academic strength provided by the university. I began to realize that the sole focus of this establishment might be their athletic program due to the enormous revenues it generates. Please know that I am not knocking the quality of education alumni of this institute have received. If you graduated from OSU, then you should be applauded, because more than likely you had to work really hard to do so. This opinion I am basing on the fact that they do not spend enough money on academics to keep class ratios at a size that is manageable or academically productive.

By the time I reached OU, I wasn’t supporting either team. I supported my alma mater’s athletic program instead. When OSU tried to cancel OU’s trademark on the word “Ohio”, that was the last straw for me. We were OHIO University. They were Ohio STATE University. OU was founded in 1804 by the statues present in the 1787 Northwest Ordinance. OU is the first school in the Northwest Territory. OSU was not founded until some 66 years later. OU had already acquired the trademark “Ohio” which would prevent its use on all of OSU’s athletic uniforms. This was a very similar trademark to OSU’s trade marking the word “Buckeyes” for use on their athletic forms. For more info, see this article: http://www.ohiou.edu/news/months/DEC97/112.HTML

So, between my own negative perceptions of OSU and this attack on OU, I decided to once and for all conscientiously object to any active or passive participation on my part related to OSU.

Anyway, to all of you Buckeye fans: I’m completely apathetic to anything related to OSU and would appreciate it if you all just respected this and didn’t try to force me to care about it or discriminate against me for my apathy. I think my apathy is well-deserved. So the big game this weekend – meh.

GO BOBCATS!

The Neighbors' Cats

2006-11-16T16:58:00.000-05:00

This is what a cat-friendly neighborhood looks like on a typical day.

Plaxo.com - The Ultimate Address Book

2006-11-14T12:57:00.000-05:00

Finally, there’s an online source for storing all of your important addresses, phone numbers, etc. It’s called Plaxo. Plaxo.com allows you to import your contacts from all of your email accounts and synchronize them. You can use it for Outlook, Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo Mail, and even AOL (requires AIM). Basically, you import all of your contacts into Plaxo online and then you can export them for use in other email applications or mailing lists. You can choose what information each of your contacts can view about you through the use of business and home contact cards. You can register multiple email addresses, so no matter what email someone has for you, they will be able to find your other contact information if you want them too. You can also just say that your info is up-to-date when someone requests your contact info. This lets you eliminate invalid email addresses from your contacts and manage how you view information.

Unlike other social networking sites, Plaxo doesn’t need you to create a page or find people you want to be able to contact. All it does is store information you may have in your cell phone, email accounts, and address book in one place. It also allows you to access this information online from anywhere.

If you haven’t tried Plaxo yet, you should check it out. Anyone who wants to get my contact info can use the address ellidnn at gmail.com (no spaces, replace "at" with @. Listed in this format to prevent email harvesting). I hope to get your info soon if I don’t already have it.

It’s All Fun and Games…

2006-11-09T14:31:00.000-05:00

This post may be boring for some, but I wanted to give you all some info on games and things that could come in handy during the holiday season - either as gifts or as ways to spend time with your loved ones without wanting to strangle them.

Until someone makes an unlicensed third-party controller.

Recently, Red Octane and Activision (its parent company, abbrv ROA) have been facing off with The Ant Commandos (TAC) over controller sales for the popular game Guitar Hero. Basically ROA don’t want TAC cashing in on their game series. Fingers have been pointed and designs have been shifted.

TAC began making controllers in the flying “V” style which attracted many GH enthusiasts. ROA were not pleased about TAC splitting their customer base. Guitar Hero II was just released, and many TAC customers found themselves with controller incompatibility issues. TAC had developed a sweet wireless version of their controller too, which made the incompatibility sting. ROA came back with an announcement that they will be releasing their own wireless controller. The funny part of this is that both companies are guilty of making unlicensed third-party controllers for game systems. ROA still sells their knock-off pad for the Dance, Dance Revolution series. Also, Konami (TAC’s parent company) has been selling a game similar to Guitar Hero, called Guitar Freaks, for a few years now. After suits were filed by both companies, a court judge has granted them a delay to try to iron out their problems.

While they’re working on their problems, fans of the game and Strong Bad can at least look forward to one special unlockable track on GH2: Trogdor the Burninator. Yes, Trogdor and Strong Bad will finally get the rock fame they deserve! Along with some great tracks by popular artists, this game should deliver. You can purchase Guitar Hero II and other components for the game here.

At North Star Games.

Having personally met Dominic Crapuchettes and Satish Pillalamarri on two separate occasions (I have pictures to prove it!), I can tell you that these guys are all about fun and games. Right now, North Star Games only has two offerings: Wits & Wagers and Cluzzle. Both games have received many awards and accolades from industry professionals and consumers.

Wits & Wagers combines trivia and gambling in a format that makes it easy, fun, and fair for all players. It’s a trivia game where you don’t have to know the correct answer to win. Cluzzle is all about sculpting poorly. When was the last time being bad at something made you a winner? I look forward to seeing other offerings from this company in the future.

Both games are currently on sale at Fair Play Games for 50% or more off the MSRP. If you’re looking for a game to buy as a Christmas present, either of these games is an excellent choice.

At Mayfair Games.

Ever played Settlers of Catan? It’s a very addicting euro-game from Mayfair Games. Ever wanted to make your food look like a board game? Well, now Mayfair has an incentive for you to do that also. It’s the Catan Food Contest. From now through December, everyone is encouraged to create a Catan-themed culinary masterpiece and submit pictures of it. The best part is that every participant receives a small souvenir and for each submission Mayfair will donate one dollar a charity which specializes in food drives for the homeless nationwide (donation maximum will be $1000). Find more details here. If you don’t own the game and would still like to submit a dish, you can find tons of photos of the game and components at Board Game Geek. Check out Mayfair’s offerings here.

At Days of Wonder.

Ticket to Ride is one of the best euro-games on the market. It’s a fast and fun train game. The original addition includes a map of the US and features tracks between major cities. Days of Wonder has recently released an expansion for this game that refreshes the original without too many new mechanics. Check out these games here.

At Z-man Games.

Fairy Tale is quickly becoming one of my favorite games. It’s a non-collectible card game featuring a card draft. It’s a quick game to play once you understand how the cards work together and what the symbols mean. For $15.00 MSRP, it’s a steal. Check out Fairy Tale and Z-man’s other games here.

At Rio Grande Games.

Rio Grande is one of my favorite game companies. I didn’t realize it until I looked at a full list of their games today and noticed that most of the games we have from this company are my favorites to play. My top three picks from their offerings are Carcassonne (Meeples are so cool!), Elfenland (AKA “Puff of Cloud”), and Niagara. The have excellent components and great mechanics. Rio Grande re-publishes a lot of German games for the American audience. Check out their offerings here.

At MeeplePeople.com.

I just can’t get enough of the meeples. Power to the Meeple! It’s good to know there are other folks as crazy about meeples and euro-games as we are. For meeple and other game-themed merchandise, check out MeeplePeople.com. I’ve ordered some of their products already and have been impressed with the quality of the items. I’m proud to be an affiliate and send some more people their way. Check them out here.

At Fantasy Flight Games.

Last but not least, I have to include Fantasy Flight Games. Their games include some of the best fantasy artwork in the industry. Two of their games are spectacular: The Lord of the Rings Board game and the Game of Thrones Board Game (which I wish we could get more people to play). The Lord of the Rings Board Game is a cooperative board game where the players work together to defeat Sauron. The strategy is similar to Shadows Over Camelot. The Game of Thrones board game is based on the best-selling A Song of Fire and Ice a series by George R. R. Martin. In this game, players battle each other to gain control of the Seven Kingdoms. Both games closely follow the literature their based on (Game of Thrones features expansion packs to include each novel) and feature spectacular artwork. Check out FFG’s games here.

8 Days Late and a Few Brain Cells Short

2006-10-26T13:32:00.000-05:00

October 18th was the official 1-year anniversary of Shawed’s existence.

Many of you may be wondering how such an important event could be overlooked. I’ll tell you it’s easy when the real life becomes more interesting than internet life. I’ll leave it at that for an explanation. So what’s on tap for the commemorative blog post? How about this:

Vampires a Mathematical Impossibility

An idiot tries to debunk the existence of vampires without knowing any vampire lore. This article definitely interested me when I read the title. Here’s the main excerpt:

Efthimiou's debunking logic: On Jan 1, 1600, the human population was 536,870,911. If the first vampire came into existence that day and bit one person a month, there would have been two vampires by Feb. 1, 1600. A month later there would have been four, and so on. In just two-and-a-half years the original human population would all have become vampires with nobody left to feed on.

Obviously Efthy (my nickname for him) doesn’t know his vampire info very well. His calculation would be correct if a bite turned people into vampires. Being very vampire-interested myself, I can say with full confidence that this is not how vampires make other vampires. In order for a person to become a vampire, the vampire must drink the person’s blood and the person must drink the vampire’s blood. Another popular theory is that the vamp could just open both sets of veins and let the blood mingle. Either way, the blood of a vamp is required for this transformation. Bites only work with werewolves. It’s amazing that people can research these “myths” in the name of “science” and still confuse vamp and wolfie birth mechanisms. Where is my proof of the vamp blood being required? Check out the following resources:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Seasons 1-7

Angel, Seasons 1-5

Bram Stoker’s Dracula

Anne Rice’s Interview with a Vampire

Christopher Pike’s Season of Passage and The Last Vampire Series

Stoker’s Dracula is the most influential tale of vampirism to exist in this world. His book has sold millions of copies in dozens of languages. You think Efthy could have bothered to pick up a copy before proving that vamps “don’t exist” by using math.

Wal-Mart Scaling Back

Wal-Mart has finally decided to scale back building so many new stores in the next fiscal year. Apparently building a new store 10 miles from an existing one cannibalizes sales. Who would have guessed that?

Hmm, maybe McDonald’s? Their original strategy (and as current as the 1995 publication, McDonald’s: Behind the Arches) was to build a McDonald’s every five minutes apart. That way if you forgot to order something you could pull right through another drive-thru. I’m sorry Wal-Mart, but if McDonald’s can’t do it successfully, what makes you think you can? McD’s is one of the original franchising pioneers, and one of the few still to remain in business all this time.

Wal-Mart apparently has been cautioned and warned by analysts for a few years now that they need to reduce capital spending, but did they listen? No. They are only changing their business strategy now that they have reached their credit borrowing limit. Also, they are starting to feel the heat from their better quality competitors, like Target.

I’m going to go out on a limb and predict that this may be the first stone to fall out of place in the Wal-Mart empire. They won’t cease to exist entirely, but they may start to feel the backlash for some of their business practices. Manufacturers may start pushing back on them, as W-M as pushed them to the bare minimum price points and sometimes below, which has caused many to lower their quality standards. W-M employees may find other similar franchises a better fit for employment. W-M is already feeling the heat in some new areas in which it would like to expand its operations for its treatment of employees. Anyway, it will be interesting to see what happens to the retail giant.

Bush Builds a Fence

This time the idiot is really pushing hard for his backyard fence project. What are we? Childish neighbors? Yes, immigration, especially illegal, is cause for concerns for many - but a fence to protect our nation’s border? I thought he was crazy when he was claiming that God was guiding him, but now it sounds like he’s in conference with Wile E. Coyote.

If anyone sees them together at the ACME store picking out TNT and wire, please alert Bush's responsible adult.

H8FUELED Continues

After a call to readers to help decide H8FUELED’s new direction, the results have been posted. Most readers wanted the blog to continue to be the hodgepodge of entertainment it’s been for the last few months. Since this blog inspired Shawed, I’d like to give a shout out to Trevor Danger for finally realizing that randomness should be his true direction. (The posts are way more entertaining when they aren’t contrived).

Late and Live Halloween Fun

You have several chances for some last minute Halloween thrills this weekend and early next week. Here are my recommendations for TV scares:

Ghost Hunters

LIVE broadcast of an investigation. 10/31 starts at 11 pm and last for 6 hours, Sci-Fi channel. Record this one! Ghost Hunters is the most scientific paranormal investigation show on the air. TAPS does an excellent job of trying to disprove evidence.

Scariest Places on Earth

MARATHON of old shows leading up to 2 new episodes. 10/29 starts at 12 pm and runs to 12 am on ABC Family. New episodes at 8 pm, 9 pm. If you like the stories and don’t care whether they are fact or fiction, record it.

Most Haunted

LIVE broadcast of an investigation. 10/29 starts at 4 pm runs to 7 pm on the Travel Channel. 10/30, 10/31 – rebroadcast at 4 pm, 8 pm, and 11 pm. Sort of like a British Ghost Hunters except they are the exact opposite of TAPS. No science here. Séances, possessions, and people being creeped out in the dark. My money is on Derek for at least one possession before the night is over.

Snow Way! Ghost Hunting and the Scariest Places

2006-10-12T13:49:00.000-05:00

The first snow of the season made an appearance today. It's not sticking, but it's really cold with the wind.

The Ghost Hunters season premiere was last night. They investigated the Birdcage Theater in Tombstone, AZ. They caught a good EVP and some footage of an extension cord lifting in the sir by itself. Jason and Grant saw a full-bodied apparition, but they weren't able to catch it on film. If the season keeps going like this, it's going to be a good one.

Last night during the show, I saw an ad that asked folks to tell TAPS where they'd like them to investigate next. I went to the SciFi website today to throw in my two cents on that, but I couldn't find the place to tell them. Anyway, my vote is for Athens, OH - specifically the Ridges and West Green. I've heard a lot of stories about that place, and after living there for four years and getting the creepies occasionally, I'd like to see what they could find. After ABC's Scariest Places on Earth upset so many folks down there, it may be hard for them to get permission to investigate.

SciFi has a pretty awesome new header graphic for the Ghost Hunters you can see below (You might have to refresh the page to get the full effect):

On a side note, ABC will be showing Scariest Places on Earth again on October 29, 2006 starting at noon. They're running an all day marathon and then premiering a new episode at 8 pm. If you haven't seen this show, it's kinda cool. They just tell the legends and have Linda Blair read in a creepy voice. This show is not about proving the existence of the hauntings, but more about scaring viewers. It's not even close to the scientific quality of the Ghost Hunters, but it's a fun show to watch.

Last but not least, a new photo of an alleged thylacine has surfaced. You can check it out at Cryptomundo, read the comments and decide for yourself. Comment, please?

Real Hobbits, Werewolves, and Demonites

2006-10-05T15:33:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year again... Halloween! For many Ohioans, this means a trip to the Halloween bash at Ohio University in Athens. In fact, I've heard several people in my classes in Ashland U talking about it. For me, it's a "been there, done that" kind of feeling to hear the micros raving about it.

So how do I plan to keep myself entertained this holiday season? By providing some weird and interesting info for the thousand (minus 999) people who read this blog. This week, I have some exciting news:

Hobbits were real - sort of. A couple of years ago, an interesting discovery was made on the island of Flores - a skeleton of a species of human that grew no larger than a 3 year old child. These little people, dubbed "hobbits" by their discoverers, lived about 18,000 years ago. The first skeleton was of a 3.3 feet tall female that was approximately 30 years old at the time of her death. Since many pygmy species have evolved on islands, this shouldn't be too hard to believe possible. Google "Homo floresiensis" and see what you find. I also highly recommend reading the information available at Cryptomundo.

Werewolves are real - sort of. A couple hundred people in the world have hypertrichosis or cutaneous erythropoietic porphyria, which are both referred to as "werewolf syndrome". This results in excessive hairiness. Apparently any kind of condition that causes you to be abnormally hairy will get you labeled a "werewolf", and possibly a part on prime-time TV.

Demonites... still not proven to be real. Luckily for us, the Ghost Hunters, aka TAPS, will be back on the air investigating the haunts on October 11, 2006 at 9 pm on the Sci-Fi Channel. According to their MySpace blogs, they found some cool evidence filming for this season. Of course the question fans want answered is: Will Steve kill Brian before season 3 ends? You'll have to tune in to find out.

Well, that's all I have for now. If you need some entertainment, check out www.cryptomundo.com. They could be considered the Ghost Hunters of cryptozoology (Cryptozoology is the study of evidence concerning creatures whose existence is uncertain, like the Loch Ness monster or the Abominable Snowman - I had to look up a good definition myself).

2 Kinds of Hope For the Thylacine

2006-09-26T10:45:00.000-05:00

Found 2 articles in the last 24 hours that show there may be some hope left for recovering the thylacine. The first form of hope comes from the realm of genome science.

Popular Science published the article "Resurrecting Extinct Animals" by Sharon Guynup, February 2006 that centered on using genome mapping to reconstruct partially deteriorated DNA from a preserved specimen. By using this repaired DNA, cloning, and the womb of a Tasmanian Devil (closest living relative), the thylacine could have a shot at being resurrected. Unfortunately, current cloning research has shown that many cloned offspring exhibit genetic abnormalities or health problems more frequently than normal members of the population. This means that any cloned thylacines would not be the best, strongest thylacines ever and might pass these problems onto new offspring. This method also counts on instinct to train the new members of the population how to survive in the wild.

The next form of hope comes from the recent discoveries of animals believed to be extinct or missing. Toronto Star reporter, Rick Sznajder, compiled the following list of animals (9/26/06) that have been [fairly] recently re-discovered:

Northern bald ibis rediscovered in Syria in 2002.
Giant Palouse earthworm, last seen in 1987, rediscovered 2006. Found along the Washington-Idaho border.
Laotian rock rat, believed extinct for 11 million years, first seen by a western scientist in 2005:
Chinese crested tern, thought extinct from 1937 to 2000:
Slater's skink, a type of lizard, rediscovered in 2004 in Australia.
Coelacanth, thought extinct for 80 million years, first seen in 1938 off South Africa:
Black-footed ferret, believed extinct by 1978, rediscovered 1981 in Wyoming:
New Zealand storm petrel, last seen in 19th century, rediscovered in 2003.
Long-legged warbler, last seen in 1894, rediscovered in Fiji in 2003.
Rusty-throated wren-babbler, not seen for 60 years, rediscovered in the Himalayas in 2004.
Takahe, a bird believed extinct for 50 years, rediscovered in 1948 in New Zealand:
North Pacific right whale, thought extinct until the mid- '90s. Lives in the waters around Alaska:
High Range dwarf cattle, rediscovered in India in 2004.
Asian grey whale, believed extinct since the turn of the century, rediscovered in 1973 near Russia's far east coast.
White-winged guan, believed extinct for 100 years, rediscovered in 1977 in Peru:
Southern white rhino, thought extinct throughout 19th century, rediscovered in South Africa in 1895:

Tolkien Fans Can Now Live Like a Hobbitt

2006-09-21T10:06:00.000-05:00

Die-hard Tolkien fans can now choose to live in their very own Hobbitt-tat*. It will require a move to Bend, Oregon, but that may not pose a challenge for enthusiasts.

The new property development uses modern materials to create an authentic “Tolkien” look. The homes feature period appropriate cottages, townhouses built to look like a Hobbitt Village, and maintenance storage that resembles Hobbit homes complete with round doors.

Obviously, the LOTR trilogy still has untapped cash cow potential. In fact...

Real Estate Devlopment Opportunity!

Get in on the ground floor of a new lucrative development project. Death Star and Minas Tirith condos already have a large market. All that is needed is a few architects, designers, investors, contractors, Lords of the Sith, and Kings of Gondor to get this project off the ground. If you might be interested in joining our project, please visit us here.

Flying Cars, Business Bibs, and Biting Pandas

2006-09-20T14:13:00.000-05:00

Rick's Johnsdale is on vacation, so I thought I'd give you a news briefing instead. Here's the best news I could find today:

Flying Cars
Apparently, there have been some new ideas concerning flying and driving. How about a car that transform into a plane and back to a car? This makes me want to get a sports pilot license.

Read the full article here: http://autos.aol.com/article/general/v2/_a/flying-cars/20060914090009990001

Business Bibs
If you telecommute to work, you need to be up on the latest in work-from-home wear - especially if you video conference. This just shows that it takes a lot of work and cold hard cash ($135 to $150) to be extremely lazy.

Read the full article here: http://www.luxist.com/2006/09/17/the-business-bib/

Biting Pandas

GU GU VS. ZHANG (far right)

In this case, it was a person biting a panda after the panda bit him. My favorite part of the article was this quote:

The Beijing Youth Daily quoted Zhang as saying that he had seen pandas on television and "they seemed to get along well with people."

Apparently this guy has been watching cartoons or pandas and their trusted keepers. You would have thought the fact that he was jumping into an enclosure with a 600 pound bear would have tipped him off, even if he didn't notice the signs saying "For safety please do not jump over the railing".

Read the full article here: http://articles.news.aol.com/news/_a/man-bites-panda-at-beijing-zoo/20060920030409990001?_mpc=news%2e10%2e3&cid=936

Trannie Travolta

2006-09-14T11:26:00.000-05:00

John Travolta will be cross-dressing for a remake of the 1988 classic Hairspray. Travolta will be playing the mother (Edna) in the 2007 version.

I think he makes a very convincing woman, don't you? Except for the manly hands that is.

Are You Hungry for Shawed? (Site Feed)

2006-09-13T13:35:00.000-05:00

If you can't get enough of Shawed and want to be informed as soon as a post hits, try the Shawed Feed: http://shawedblog.blogspot.com/atom.xml

Mmmm! Delicious!
What is this post rambling about? You can get Shawed delivered to your screen. Find a delivery program at: http://www.atomenabled.org/everyone/atomenabled/index.php?c=5

Remembering the Thylacine

2006-09-06T15:01:00.000-05:00

70 years ago today, the last living thylacine in captivity passed away. "Benjamin" was housed at the Hobart Zoo in Australia. 20 years ago, the species was declared extinct. Let's take a moment to remember the thylacine:

Some still believe the thylacine may be alive in the wilds of mainland Australia. Some good sources for thylacine information:

Species information at http://www.parks.tas.gov.au/wildlife/mammals/thylacin.html

Living thylacine information and updates at http://www.cryptomundo.com/cryptozoo-news/70yrsthylacines/