Varia

I’m feeling somewhat under the weather today (and have been for the last 3-4 days). It’s the fourth time I’m sick since my surgeries back in February, and I used to never get sick. Well, maybe once a year. The flu once every four or five years. I got sick in March, July, October, and now, December. Something to bring up with my doctor, I suppose.

So, no attempts at depth today.

Coupla things worth mentioning, though.

First, I ran across an absolutely hilarious deconstruction of the awfulness that is The Pantom Menace. Some dude named Mike did a 70 minute video, in seven 10-minute chunks. I’ve watched four so far, and trust me, it’s well worth it if you’re into these sorts of things. Warning, though, it’s a little vulgar and sometimes creepy in an attempt to be funny. But it’s clever, and nails just about everything wrong with the Star Wars prequel, seen through the eyes of someone from my generation, someone who grew up on the original Star Wars trilogy.

You can see it here.



Second, while Christmas shopping, I randomly came across Purple by STP for a decent price, so I bought it. What a blast from the past! I constantly played this CD the summer of 1994 when it first came out. Vividly I recall listening to the deviant-titled tunes – Vaseline, Silver Gun Superman, Pretty Penny, Meat Plow – in the soaring July and August heat, in the sweltering sweat box that was my apartment. I associate smoking cigarettes and drinking beer out of a plastic cup with this CD, memories that flooded back into me listening to it. Oh, God, has it been 15 years already? Where does the time go? Have I lived my life? Was it a real one?



Wife and I watched The Hangover last night. Very funny movie. Slightly disappointing due to all the hoopla about it a few months ago. But very, very funny. Painfully funny. We’re now true-blue Ken Jeong fans (you know, Señor Chang).




Came across a beautiful couplet from George R. R. Martin’s A Clash of Kings during my last reading session: With two eyes you see my face. With three you could see my heart. Very magical in the context of the scene in which the character spoke it. Depressing, too, ’cause its something I wish I wrote.

Over on the left there, the Current Reads section, you’ll see I started a book called The Winds of Gath by E. C. Tubb. Why will come out in my full review in a few days, but doing some background research I found out that Tubb (awesome name!) is still alive, at age 90, and still writing! Something like over 140 books to his credit, and though its not quite Asimovian, it’s still an incredible accomplishment. That’s the ticket, to writing SF. Prolificity.

Finally, we’re just holing up here in the homestead, awaiting the snow. We have food and fuel, music and books and games and DVDs.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!