12.25.2008

Christmas cards day 25: The Humbug


Ugk! I do like how the airbrushed, made up Humbug, came out- very beetle like.
Anyway, I worked all day and feel like a big steamy pile-o-you-know-what, so I made this card up on the spot instead of finishing one of the 30 others. I hope people get the spirit of "jest".(which i believe was what humbug once actually meant)
Until next year...

12.24.2008

Christmas cards day 24: Tim the Cat Antlers


This one is for a particular person.
The atrocities of dressing up pets for holidays should be a torturous requirement.
My grandma had a really obese chihuahua we would put antlers on, and it was freakin hilarious. One more Christmas card post left. Many ideas and not much time.

12.23.2008

Christmas cards day 23: Snowman Dancing


My second new card! Yay, for newness!
I have a strange fondness for the "Happy Holidays" font.
I wanted another "artsy-snob", "elegant" one. The Grain/snow doesn't show up so well on this small version, but it will suffice for me to know it looks better in higher resolution.

Christmas cards day 22: One of These-Stockings


New one 5 minutes after midnight. Technically late, but I personally think not, I am still in Monday mode.
Patterned after the "One of these..." cards I have done.

12.21.2008

Christmas cards day 21: It Glows


Okay, I have 1 day to FINISH one of my new cards.
I am seriously having issues. Anyone that knows how I work, work, work, then get frustrated, destroy what I have done because I'm not happy with it, and start over, should know that this year is EXACTLY the same.
Stupid starting over.
A million ideas, and none of them working quite how I would like them to.
Wish me luck people.

12.19.2008

Christmas cards day 19: The Naughty Pillow

If we told children that if they were naughty they would wake up to Santa smothering them with the "Naughty Pillow", we might have some nicer kids nowadays. The concept was this bully kid didn't believe in Santa and started spreading rumors about it to other kids in his class. Well, Santa, he isn't gonna take any shit. Specially from a 5th grader. So Mr. Kringle decided to mete out punishment to those bad kids. Oh, there is much more to this story. I thought about writing it for a novella for next Christmas for all my friends.
Actually... I will start on it soon.
Something about making these cards brings out the strange in me. These last two put me at the top of my ideas game. Why do I think these things up? And after, why can't I stop giggling like a little devil-girl that just convinced some diabetic person to eat an entire box of very evil, ultrasugary cookies? Tee-hee-hee-hee...
I couldn't get the colors right, and ran short on time, but I think I made a pretty good final copy.

12.18.2008

Christmas cards day 18: Frosty's Obituary


I had this image in my head of an older Frosty plagued by his smoking habit. So I wrote the poem, did a little sketch and laughed like a diabolical moron for days.
Tomorrow's card is one that really makes me laugh. Ooooooohhhh, I can't wait.
Actually, I can. I did make it 2 years ago, and it is still just as hilarious.

12.17.2008

Christmas cards days 16 & 17: Wise man & Tree




No internet yesterday. So 2 cards today. Two serious cards, and tomorrow will have a good one.

12.16.2008

Christmas cards delay...

I have no laptop internet and cannot put up today's card, and my phone doesn't have picture sending capabilities. Tomorrow shall have 2 cards if the internet returns.

12.15.2008

Christmas cards day 15: Santa Sucks


I have a couple more serious cards, I will try and break them up with fun ones.

Heroes: Our Father

I'll try and keep this short.

Ando, Parkman, and Daphne go after the last issue of 9th Wonders. I still believe the continuity for Isaac's comics to death time is WAY off on this.

Nathan and Tracy are taking over control of Arthur's plan to imbue militaristic superpowers upon those they deem worthy.

Sylar kills Elle (and neatly left her skull on), then burns the body. He calls Arthur and lets him know he will be on his way after picking up some fun new powers from Elle's cell phone list.

Angela sends Peter and the Haitian to kill Arthur with a gun. I hope it's a magically enhanced super gun. Peter thinks it's his responsibility to do the job. He grows a pair, and pulls the trigger while the Haitian struggles to dampen Arthur's powers. Sylar intervenes and uses his newly acquired "Lie detector" power to find out that Arthur is a liar. Yeah, I'm sure the ability was an absolute necessity there.
So Sylar let's the bullet go into Arthur's skull. Won't Arthur revive after the Haitian leaves, unless the bullet is lodged in his "stop button"?(like Claire's stick, and Peter's glass shard)
Sylar lets Peter live because Peter "doesn't have anything he wants anymore."
Why didn't he absorb Arthur's power, then take it away from him, to leave him powerless before death??? Why did he ignore the Haitian as well??? A very handy power...
Then the Haitian leaves to take care of Sylar. I wonder if Arthur will heal, then give Peter some power back for displaying the power to not be a gaylord, and actually pulling the trigger.

Back in time: Claire warns Noah not to let her become the catalyst, because he would completely listen to a strange young woman. Good scene anyway. Now in the future he would remember he face from the past...
...and so should Kaito from meeting Hiro then and assuming he was part of the cooking staff.
Hiro gets some brain damage fixed from his healer mother, and takes the catalyst from her, so he can protect it for like 10 minutes.
Arthur shows up and steals his power and the catalyst, then flings him off the roof onto a pole. Arthur then displays something Hiro could have done but didn't: he teleports Claire without going himself. Does this mean he may also be able to retrieve things in the same matter, or does he still have to physically need to be in contact with an object???
Where is Now Hiro now? If they can't save him back in time, there would be an older Hiro in the present.

Arthur loads the catalyst into the vat of Campbell's super soup and then Mohinder, Tracy, and Nathan test it on a military guy that seems a little too patriotic. Now they have on their hands an over enthused super (crazy) soldier.

I am actually excited to see how the implied fight between the puppetmaster guy and Sylar plays out. Could the puppetmaster hold Sylar? He has shown the ability to hold 3 individuals without strain, so 1 may be easier. Plus, Sylar has no telepathic abilities. How awesome would it be if Sylar asked him if he thinks he could control him(Sylar), and the puppetmaster responds "Yes", and Sylar's lie detector confirms it???
Puppetmaster also has the benefit of the Haitian as a potential back up to keep Sylar powered down.

Done for now.

12.10.2008

Christmas cards day 10: Elegant Rudolph


What I considered to be an "elegant" art snob card.
The image, although simple, just feels right, I don't know why.

12.09.2008

Christmas cards day 9: Cherubs




Today is a 2-for-1. Kind of.
I ended up liking the shorter longer one best, but prefer the taller one's color(blues).
Sorry about the poor quality, I had a hard time finding the print versions.
From 2006.

12.08.2008

Dark Knight tomorrow!

In celebration of the movie Dark Knight coming out tonight midnight/tomorrow, I decided to throw something small up about the movie.

In the first movie the underlying theme as I understood it was masks. It seems to be about who the characters are. Finding their true self. There is also a running theme of the uses of fear.
The path of discovery leads Bruce Wayne on a never ending search for outward meaning. Since that doesn't work, Ducard suggests he turn his search inward.
What does he find???
Mr. Wayne finds his fear is rooted in a childhood accident. Coupling that fear with urges of vengeance, and the need to mete out justice, he turns his fear into a weapon. He pours himself into a dedication to punishing those who are untouched by law. He becomes the Batman, and Bruce is his false persona.
The Scarecrow uses a toxic gas to generate an unnatural fear in people, and the mask as a further agent of manipulation. Using the mind against itself with the assistance of the gas and a dirty old potato sack.
Ra's Al Ghul I feel to be the best use of a mask. Ghul's mask is a completely other person. He uses a decoy. He hides himself under an alias as a shield. The League of Shadows he is leading wants to destroy the "decadence" that Gotham City has become. His use of fear was the plan to infect Gotham with it, and let the city destroy itself.

The Dark Knight appears to be about motivation. Why do things? Why keep trying to fight injustice? Is the corruption too deep?
While there is a reason, that I believe is to show that people will fail to do the right thing when pushed into a choice they don't want to make, Joker doesn't need to stand for anything.
The Joker represents the literal "Wild card". A force that does things just because.
He just kills off his help. Hires obviously unbalanced people. His acts are seemingly random.
How do you fight a villain that isn't affected by efforts to extract them?
Spreading terror throughout the city and letting the people exacerbate the effects, and sits back and enjoys it. He manipulates both the general populous, the government, and the criminal underground. He is playing them all.
Batman himself has to change. His image is dual. He is viewed by Gotham as good guy/bad guy and ends up becoming a scapegoat to salvage another image. He won't let the Joker's deeds be known by the public. A sacrifice for the greater good. True heroics.
Harvey Dent? Do I have to even talk about this? From the power of choice to that of chance.
Purpose to chaos.

I would also like to post thoughts about a 3rd movie. There have been rumors about Catwoman being the villain. This choice would be perfect. A love interest and a villain.
I have also heard that Angelina Jolie wants the role. Disgusting. While it's possible she could be good, I believe it to be terrible. I think someone like Charlize Theron would be better. There is immense possibility for great action and chase scenes with a cat burglar.
For a secondary villain, while being close to the Joker, there is also the Riddler. Not the crazy, semi-retarded Jim Carrey Riddler, but an Equestrian one. The bowler's hat and suit. Smart and reserved, pushing Batman to think through difficult puzzles.
Could Ralph Fiennes be called for? I think so. He almost was in the Riddler character in the Avengers movie with Uma Thurman. He had the suit, hat, and demeanor.

Christmas cards day 8: Rudolph & Santa

Blahhbitty blah, 2005.

12.06.2008

Christmas cards day 6: Season's Greetings


Another card I made that showed up mimicked everywhere the following year.
2005.

Little Big Planet

I picked up Little Big Planet yesterday. It definately lives up to all the hype.

Extreme customization.
Immense replayability.
Great multiplayer family fun.

This game has tons of laugh out loud moments and hours of enjoyment.

Worth.
Every.
Cent.

12.05.2008

Christmas cards day 5: Snow Globe


I couldn't find ones from 2004 so I just am going straight to 2005 cards. I originally wanted to animate this, with the snowman wandering and giant kid noises laughing in the distance. He would be looking around very confused and scared, then the shaking would happen. He would get up all dizzy and wander in a wobbly path, bump into the glass and throw up snow.

12.04.2008

Heroes: Eclipse Part 2

Finally Peter admits to trying to be a hero. The Haitian knew he was lying when he asked him why he came to Haiti, and Peter said he wanted to get him(Haitian) to stop his father(Arthur).

They head to break out Nathan, who is talking to some captives that will be sold into slavery. Their Captor is the Haitian's brother, who has a god-complex because of his power of invulnerability. Even though he knows his brother has the power to negate it, and the eclipse has temporarily stopped them as well.
Anyone with half a brain could guess the eclipse's effect wouldn't last. There was a showdown. Nathan rams Samedi into a vehicle and the Haitian steps up to do job he should have done long ago. He, presumably, stops the invulnerability and proceeds to mind-wipe him. Is this what an exorcism looks like?
The god has fallen.

Anyway Peter, Nathan, and the Haitian head into the jungle. Nathan tells Peter that Pinehearst does have the answers. Giving the 'right' people abilities to police the world by force. Obviously this will work(sarcasm feels so good), and Peter knows it won't work because he has been to the future and has seen the ramifications of Pinehearst's plans. Is Nathan going to become the next evil Petrelli? Next seasons main villain?

Mohinder gets beat up by human race flunky Flint. After Arthur leaves he resorts to physical violence to free himself. This is not the proper use of a microscope.
He heads to Maya's and the eclipse ends resulting in instant reappearance of scales. Nasty. Anyway he returns like a good sucker to Pinehearst. Arthur then makes a comment about how willing some people may be. How terrible we can become.

At the hospital doctors tell Sandra that they will call the police if she doesn't tell them the truth about Claire. (she was either more recently shot, or never sick in her life) That doesn't quite make sense because the regenerative ability would have made super antibodies. So she should have built immunities to all contacted items. Which means the infections/diseases she would have picked up should still be inactive.
So theoretically, only newly introduced foreign bodies/sicknesses should affect her. Oh, well.
Semantics.

Over in the Canfeild house Elle and Sylar finish making out just in time for Noah Bennett to shoot at them. Sylar expresses relief about being able to start over. No powers, no parents, no problem. Until Noah arrives.
I love how she points out that without powers they will probably die. They are about as threatening as a fart against a hurricane. He trails them, catches Sylar and cuts his throat. So much for being somebody Mr. Sylar. But the eclipse only lasts so long.

Matt tries to convince Daphne that, no, she isn't a complete dumbass(not being punished by Arthur, and not being a bad person). She seems to be very self involved. MEMEMEME. Lame.

Back to Claire. Noah returns and Claire is back to selfishland. Why weren't you there for me??? Maybe because he is trying to help the world, instead of an individual. She tells him she died, and he metaphorically craps his pants. Sylar lives!(insert dramatic music here)
Well Sylar and Elle show up and threaten them, and want to take Claire. Note that Mr. Muggles is nowhere to be seen.

On to the best parts of the show-Hiro and Ando.
Hiro uses his company card to pay for back issues of 9th Wonders. I am still pissed about the comics being published. He died before the future was changed. Twice. So how could he have painted the now.
And I LOVE how they referred to the issue that Isaac gave a comic to a random bike messenger.
Well Sam and Frack have to help figure out a way to help Hiro get his memory back. (isn't the memory wipe a physical scarring? Like Adam and Peter healing to regain memory.)
Hiro learns that he became a potential killer, his father died, and about Charlie and Adam. He then runs into the bathroom to hide. He doesn't want to grow up.
Sam the skeptic has to provide sage-like advice to lure Hiro back into the journey of a hero.
Everyone has to grow up. ANYONE can make a difference.
Frack discovers in a comic that Hiro and Claire were there when Kaito bestowed baby Claire into the hands of younger Noah Bennett.

And to the best scene in the episode:
Sylar is cutting Noah's throat.
Hiro teleports in, Sylar is all like, "...the hell?"
Hiro says, "Bad man", and teleports him away.
Elle is like, "???"
Hiro returns and says, "Save the Cheerleader.", and teleports her away.
He returns to port Claire away.
Leaving Noah and Sandra wondering, What the f*ck?

Hiro has immense potential, and his 10 year old self is living more up to it than his current aged self was. Is he back on the road to freaking awesome Hiro from the future? I hope so.

Last scene. Elle and Sylar on an unnamed beach. Sylar's power brought back his understanding. He "understands" that he will never change. Even though he did in the future that isn't going to happen anymore. No more chance of little Noah to redeem Sylar.
He starts cutting Elle's head off to get some knowledge out.
Ticky-tock,
ticky-tock.

Christmas cards day 4: Poopin'


I made this in 2003, and the next year I saw similar ones all over the place. While I'm sure someone thought of it before me, I had not previously seen this type of image(Santa using the chimney as a toilet).

12.01.2008

Christmas cards Day 1: Can You See the Hidden Picture?


I am planning on putting up Christmas cards I made throughout the month. I decided to go all digital this year as printing costs have risen each year. I will try to put one up each day until Christmas day. (Thanks to Nick for suggesting daily posting instead of a bulky massive post for each year's cards.)
Most of the early ones are old cards I made, I hold all the copyrights, but give permission for people to use/email them freely. I just ask that I be given credit for the creation, like leave my blog address or name or something. (The year I made them is on each card, this first one is from 2003)

I also note that very similar cards have come out the next year after mine. Awkward.
I cannot find any cards from 2004, some of the best were from that year, including my personal favorite. Tears.

11.30.2008

Heroes: Eclipse part 1: part 2 ???

My shortest Heroes post ever!

Does anyone else wonder if the Haitian can shut abilities off, can he also turn them back on?

While previous story elements point to Claire being "different", and thus being the catalyst, it had to originally be someone else. The synthetic powers had to be activated by someone before her birth. So could it have been the Haitian? Maybe it was Adam Munroe. Oh well...

I would also like to point out that Peter got Sylar's power, and Sylar got Peter's, so when they are gradually becoming closer to being the same person. This is set off a little by Peter attempting to be a Hero without powers.
But, then again, Sylar is trying to be good. Kind of.
Although Sylar could still be turning into Darth(ur) Petrelli.
Is this symbolic of the lines between hero and villain are blurring. Motivations are less clear, emotional relationships are giving some indications of where things are heading.
If Arthur, Peter, and Sylar can all absorb abilities, does this imply that Peter and Sylar can fully take them like daddy? I still am hooked on the comment that Noah made that Sylar is "transferring" an ability. Perhaps all three can give powers as well. Then again perhaps only Sylar can do it(or Peter if his abilities return).

Impotent Peter is also being less of an idiot than powered Peter. He absorbed Sylar's understanding, and what happens? He doesn't use it. Now he has no power, his brain works again. On the flip side, Nathan has lost his mind.

The eclipse is so messed up. I mentioned it already that an eclipse viewed everywhere is impossible. Hello, time zones? Not to mention that eclipses are only viewable in small areas in a straight line geographically.
So, if, IF, the eclipse is part of a catalyst for powers(ignoring powers previous to the eclipse, the older generation's abilities.(excluding I believe Kensei displayed his after the old one)), are there others out there now gaining powers???

Matt Parkman is getting better and better. In use of powers and in just being a guy doing guy things. Like when he tries getting Daphne back, and attempts to read her father's mind. It doesn't work and the reactions are amazing.
His powers are growing in that he was able to trick Knox. But he is also seeing Usutu. Is that Parkman's own power? Or Usutu's doing?
He already had been able to persuade like Eden.

I also was thinking about the descent of abilities. Matt has mental powers like his father, and the previously mentioned Peter and Sylar have Arthur's ability(at least very similar), so who else has similar things?
Hiro may have powers like his father. It has never been demonstrated what his father's power was. So I was thinking, on a super long shot here, could Claire actually be the lovechild of Meredith and Adam Munroe?

Post thought: This is going to make me sound like a complete bastard, but I can't help but giggle at the idea of Daphne hobbling around at super speed in her crutches. I was unaware that polio was a superpower. Someone out there has to have an ability that is harmful to the owner. Kind of like if Ted's power irradiated himself.

Nice idea of making Claire get tired when practicing. No healing means your muscles ache. Fatigue sets in. Weakness.

Future Sylar had Ted's nuclear power, I originally thought his earlier lost abilities returned, but then I thought, Duh!, he has been around future Peter, who has it. I am soooo dumb sometimes.

Last season Adam was a force of evil, and then he became an asswipe. From killer to comic relief. WTF?
Apparently only Petrelli's can be full-on bad guys.
There needs to be a villain that threatens both the good and bad guys. No sides for them, everyone needs to crap their pants in fear of this person. Remember the build up for the Nightmare man? Sylar started as bad, and Molly wasn't afraid of him. She feared the awareness of the Nightmare man. The things that could be done from an unknown entity.

I'm done for now.

11.27.2008

Heroes: Eclipse, Part 1

Could this blog be the first short one on Heroes? Doubtful. Attempts to be on topic and not following absurd tangents will be ignored.

A great episode, chock full of tension and suspense. And a lot of now regular people. It is also interesting how the eclipse is seen the same apparently from all Earthly vantage points, which is impossible. But, given the nature of the show, maybe the moon has telepathic abilities, and is making everyone think they are seeing it and become powerless. It could be Parkman's turtle controlling it. Or Mr. Muggles. Suckers.
I think once the eclipse is done the powers will revert to normal.
And if not, the show may have be called "People". Just average people and the jobs they will have to get to survive. Ones they actually show up for.

Sylar and Elle get back to being "bad". She says that Sylar shouldn't be used, he shouldn't have to listen to those that would make them into something they aren't. Then she tries turning him into a monster. Way to use logic Elle, they shouldn't be allowed change you, but I can.
Well, now that they are out on their own, they shouldn't have to report to anyone. Just out doing whatever they please, with no responsibility. This way they can take what they want with powers, do anything they want.

An amazing scene in the Black Hole Guy's(Stephen Cansfield) house takes place, Noah is showing Claire that just because she can heal, she can still be beaten on many levels. There tends to be overconfidence in a person that is immune to physical harm. She needs to learn she can be overpowered in other ways(Hello Puppet guy). She needs to find a way to actually use her brain, and find a fulcrum to give her the upper hand in battle. It's easy to defeat an opponent that telegraphs what they intend to do. He emotionally provokes her and she gets riled up. She attacks and Noah easily stops her attack. Point proven.
Then Sylar and Elle show up, but they are currently powerless, and shoot Claire. Too bad they missed vital organs.
Even armed, Sylar and Elle get their asses handed to them in a nice gift wrapped box by Noah Bennet. This is why he is completely the Batman of this series. Sun Tzu would probably endorse Noah in a fight. He knows his sh!t. Even without an ability, he will bring you down, fairly quickly and efficiently. There is also a high probability he makes his partners do all the paperwork after jobs. THAT is truly "bad ass".

Without abilities, Sylar and Elle still want to take what they want.
Now there will be a struggle to attain bad status. Sylar is somewhat grateful to lose the "hunger". They'll have to resort to ancient techniques of villainy-do thing in an old school fashion, with guns. Granted they are not as old school as swords(where's Hiro's sword gone to?), but the can get the job done. He then makes an unsuperhuman move to make out with Elle.


Peter and Nathan fall into a river, good thing they were flying low enough to not be seen by anyone looking up roughly 30 feet. A sibling power struggle seems to be growing between these two again. Nathan is untrusting of Peter and it leads him to make rash decisions. Even when Peter turns out correct, Nathan is unresponsive to being wrong. True to politician nature, and against his new found and even quicker forgotten zealous religiousness, he refuses to admit to making mistakes.

Why is he so unwilling to listen to Peter? He's been to the freakin' future. More than once. He has also(with help) averted disaster, regional(New York) and global(Shanti virus), multiple times.

A great division has been building in the Petrelli family, and will more than likely end in death for a couple of them. Hinted at by Angela looking at the Petrelli photo, and a shadow blocked out Nathan and Arthur, while Angela and Peter were still lit up. Also the Haitian's brother said that Arthur told him to be himself if he encountered Nathan. Bad news for him, that's what he gets for avoiding Peter's voice of reason.

Conveniently, the Haitian sort of finds them, but other problems present themselves.
The problems being Haitian's brother and his army. Samedi has a fairly sweet power: Invulnerablitlity(at least his skin). He skin cannot be harmed by "knives, fire, or bullets". Setting him up as a voodoo god for the locals is very smart. Relying on native superstitions to gain militant dictatorship is pretty damn smart.
The only thing I can think about is the amazing sibling rivalry between the Haitian and his brother. Samedi would be like, "Oh, I'm so invincible!", and then the Haitian mutes the power, kicks him in the ass, and runs off giggling into the forest. He could even steal the memories, so every time would be just as funny as the first.
How godlike would the people think he is, if the Haitian stopped the power, and stole all memories up to a point, leaving him like Hiro?
The memory part of the ability leads me to believe he has limited telepathy. How does he know which memories to take?
Nathan ends up in the custody of Samedi, and Peter and the Haitian trailing behind.
Samedi may be outwardly impenetrable, but does he have super strength? Any other powers in tandem with invulnerability? If not... can he be poisoned by food? Gassed?
He needs to breathe right? Overwhelm him and drown the bastard.
He may have the same overconfidence that Claire has. With the exception of the Haitian, would he have any reason to fear any other person?

I love how Matt and Daphne were all like "how are we going to find a teleporter?", and Hiro shows up at the apartment. Even if they didn't, Matt could use Molly(who is, by the looks of things, raising herself now that she's been left alone by Co-daddies Matt and Mohinder. Way to go guys, forget about your adopted child.
The doorbell rings and when they answer the door, it's great how 10 yr old Hiro is doing the "gonna-pee-my-pants" dance.

Slightly later when Matt can't translate Hiro's thoughts, and says he isn't able to help, Hiro is bobbing heads with the turtle. Very nice touch. Turtle knows all. Turtle controls all. Turtle is all.
Anyway they make it to Lawrence, KS just in time to lose their powers in a creepy cornfield. Everyone knows that cornfields are where aliens congregate to create plant art and scarecrows eat children. Now that Hiro is ten again, he should be completely aware of this fact. These things usually occur at night, and an eclipse is like a mini-night, so they should probably seek refuge. Maybe with Superman, he is theoretically always in Kansas, in a cornfield. Unless, Superfarmer lost his abilities along with the rest of the Heroes.

Back to the show- We finally learn what Daphne's secret "old life" is. While it's understandable that with super speed mobility is a must, it might also be neat to see a ultra fast person on crutches. Anyway, her predicament implies that perhaps Arthur can use his power to bestow abilities upon other people. Actual transfer, not just absorption. Then again, it may have been a manufactured power like Nathan and Nikki/Jessica/Tracy. Or maybe she was healed through power shifting(Arthur or Linderman???).
They are left with a relationship obstacle to be solved. Oh darn. Do they have it rough or what?


In the meantime, Hiro and Ando seek a comic store to find the new 9th Wonders. Which is definitely getting to me. The future changed after the death of Issac. So how do these new issues come out in the changed continuity? They arrive at a large, well-stocked comic store in a rural looking area. Not realistic, where I live there are tons of enthusiasts, and few stores. It's not a huge city, but we are far from rural.
At the store Hiro and Ando encounter a couple of great cameos. Breckin Meyer and Seth Green. Very sweet. They Have the newest issue of 9th Wonders, and it shows themselves, meeting Hiro and Ando in exactly the place they are now. Cool.


On to visit Douchehinder. Just kidding. He's regaining scientist and decent person status. Doing actual research and development is improving his character. Arthur shows him a picture that he believes is his death.
Turns out after the eclipse, he magically sheds all the scales in a cocoon(why didn't that magic away as well?). Mohinder decides he needs to contact Maya and is stopped by Arthur and Flint. Neither of which want to be powerless. Flint even makes a comment about not wanting to be a nobody again. Was his power synthesized? So they detain Mohinder to continue his studies in an attempt to get the powers back.

How many people have synthetic abilities? That would partially explain how the companies know what some people's powers are before the people know themselves.
Although it fails to mention how many naturally occurring ones are out there. Or how Kensei got his a couple hundred years ago. Didn't the show start out with people mutating, or evolving into their abilities? What happened to that process?

Claire ends up going to a hospital. Noah says needs to take care of something, leaving his wife and Claire without aide. The eclipse presents a perfect time to eliminate persons of a distinctly malign nature. Namely Sylar. The episode seems to be mostly under the eclipse. How much longer will it last? Awesome ending.
Will Sylar's powers return in time to avoid a bullet in the skull? Does he end up killing Noah?
Remember, Sylar's future child is named Noah. Does he kill him then feel regret for being a monster? Does he make a promise or something? He was trying to be "good".

The true Heroes of this episode are the ones that aren't useless when they lose their power. Peter keeps trying to help others. Hiro and Ando continue in their mission. Parkman is trying to be with Daphne. Noah still wants to protect his family first, and then the world from predatory people like Sylar.

Side notes:
Once Adam Munroe lost his regenerative power, he aged super fast turning to dust. If he was regenerating, the cells were new. He should not have aged that fast. It would have rendered him a normal aging person from that point on.

Done time. I am quitting early, I'll save the rest for next week.

11.26.2008

Robert Downey Jr. in Tropic Thunder

I have been an avid fan of Downey Jr. Since Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang.
He is the #1 reason to watch Tropic Thunder. He is also the #1 reason to watch the commentary.
During the movie his character Lincoln Osiris says, "Man, I don't drop character 'til I done a DVD commentary."
True to the role, he stays in character, and has just as many awesome lines as he does in the film itself.
Definitely THE best commentary I have seen to date. Anchorman's is good, others are informative, but this is, by far, the most entertaining one I've found.
If you like the movie, the commentary is a must watch.

Here are some good Osiris quotes-
"Daggomit, Blamtucky, I ain't reprogramming a VCR!"

"They found me in an alley in Burbank trying to reenter the Earth's atmospere in an old refrigerator box."

And the Dude-off-
Osiris-
"I know who I am!
I'm a dude playing a dude disquised as another dude. You a dude that don't know what dude he is!"
Speedman-
"Or are you a dude who has no idea what dude he is...
And claims to know what dude he is by playing other dudes?"

Speedman(a few seconds later)
"The dudes are emerging."

11.20.2008

Spontaniety

Just so everyone knows, I am scheduling spontaneous occurances to happen on Tuesday at 8;47am. I'm SOOOO excited! I can't wait to see what happens.

Heroes: It's Coming: Notes/Thoughts part 2

It occured to me last night that maybe, just maybe, if Sylar can receive powers by empathetic means like Peter, he may be able to collect and store them unknowingly as well.
Peter picked up multiple abilities he didn't realize he had until forced to use them. Peter saw Sylar use telekinesis, then later recalled it to stop Claude from breaking his face with a stick.
So it's probable that Sylar absorbed abilities he isn't aware of.

Peter had to access Sylar's ability to activate it, he needed to understand the mechanics of the function, unlike the other powers attained. So maybe Sylar needs to attempt to find these powers in a sort of brain file storage. If this is true, then Sylar now has Eden, Parkman, the Haitian, Nathan, Hiro, Angela, Arthur and Peter's(including the powers of all those Peter encountered) abilities, but has not accessed them. We can't forget all the people he encountered from "Level 5". (black hole guy, Flint, Jesse, etc)

He has an understanding of complex systems, but he has to be aware of the parts by examining the brain, before understanding the full extent of the system's properties. He needs to study and see to receive the knowledge. Like a super-power instruction manual located in the biological tissues. Now that he can gain abilities through empathy, he needs to learn how to use them. Practice is a nescessity now. The only time I know of where he didn't just know how to use a power was with the super hearing.

I also wonder if the addition of each new ability changes the contours of Sylar's brain. Like a physical rearrangement, to make room for new things. I still completely believe he needs to search around his brain pan to fully grasp how his own power works. Wouldn't having an understanding of the intricacies of a complex system help discover the flaws or weaknesses, and then assist in finding a way to reduce or eliminate them? So, Mr. Sylar, pop your top, snoop around in some skull-goo, and find a solution to the dreaded "hunger".

But, then again, maybe I'm wrong.
Sylar may need to consciously empathize to receive the abilities.

On a side note, what if Parkman's turtle is telepathically controlling Mr. Muggles, who is in fact using a puppy persuasion on Sylar, and Sylar is just pretending to be good??? Of course I am ignoring all the strugglin' with hunger moments. And the Future Family Man Sylar.

11.19.2008

Fallout 3: Rules for the Apocalypse

If watching Nick play Fallout 3 for hours on end has taught me anything, it would be the "Post-apocalyptic commandments".
Near as I can tell, the first is Shoot unto others, before others shoot unto you. This is also known as "Thou shalt kill everything that moves, and some things that don't, just to be sure" rule.
The second- Thou shall not steal, unless... You need/want those items... And the owners are dead... For serious.
3rd- Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's experience level. You'll get there after referring to rule #1.
4th- Thou shalt carry more artillery than humanly possible. A bazooka, 2 handguns, 5 submachine guns, 31 grenades, 9 mines, 5 shotguns, 14 rifles and a various compilation of other trinkets all fit unnoticeably upon your person.
5th- Thou shalt collect items until physical movement is halted. Then drop a single tiny item, and the ability to walk is magically restored.

...to be continued(maybe)

Heroes: It's Coming: notes and thoughts

Here is another lengthy Heroes blog to eat up your valuable time with crazy ideas in a scatterbrained manner.


I would like to say the Director did an amazing job on this episode. Hopefully this quality of work remains throughout the rest of the series.

The Petrelli's are ruining the world. Peter whines the world away, Sylar is a hungry bastard, Angela can dream the future(but not do anything about it), Nathan refuses to be a public figure, and Arthur likes to manipulate everyone and everything. They are the best dysfunctional family ever!
Arthur tried to kill Nathan(Car accident), Sylar tried to kill Claire(Nathan's daughter, implied in season 1), Sylar tried to kill Peter(in season 1's future, where he'd already killed Nathan, at Homecoming, in Mohinder's apartment, and at Kirby Plaza), Peter tries to kill Future Nathan, Future Peter shoots Present Nathan, Angela tried to poison Arthur, Arthur puts Angela into a coma.
I wonder if Arthur and Angela Petrelli killed their own parents to get them out of the way?

I do have to give credit to the writer's for making Peter a force of good again. Being capable without a power. A thinker, a go-getter.

Sylar finally learns empathetic power siphoning by being locked in a room with a sweaty, chained up Elle. (The first obvious Watchmen trailer ripoff so far) In this scene we learn that empathy DOES stop people from killing. He doesn't have to dissect brains anymore. By empathizing with someone you apparently lose the will to understand the complexity of working systems.
Did he find a way to use Claire's healing on another, or did she just exhaust enough electricity to be all right? If the latter is what happened, how much can she store? Like some kind of human battery and generator.
I also like how he becomes a bit more like Peter with the absorption ability. Now he has to feel his way into mastering powers, instead of having a full knowledge of how they work. He needs to practice, a very nice touch.
Does anyone remember Sylar knowing Mohinder's father's watch was broken before Mohinder's father did? So his power of systemic knowledge extends to knowing things before others, why didn't he know about his own ability. Turn it on himself. With the telekinesis he could probe his own brain without a problem.

Sylar + Elle + (heart symbol) + (censored) = little Noah from the future. More than likely, seeing as that is the exact formula for baby making. Mohinder should look into this, it might help his chances with Maya "when-I-cry-people-die" Herrera. Although... Sylar has the benefit of knowing an object's history... so does he know her history now??? EWWWWW... (if that's how it works then he could tell if Arthur of Angela were being truthful about their pasts)
Less likely would be Arthur regressing Noah Bennet's mind, and a Dead Future Peter magically showing up and stuffing him into a kid's body with the body swapping power, then high-fiving Papa Petrelli before returning to his future grave.


Why did Arthur regress Hiro into a childish state instead of stealing the power? I did completely enjoy his reactions to the current state of Marvel comics characters.(Spidey outed, Red Hulk, etc.) It also gives an idea of how his power works. He wants waffles, he shows up at the place that has his favorite waffles. Focusing on something he wants/needs, and he travels to where it is located.
So Hiro is now has to relearn everything he didn't learn in the first place. Only now he has to do it in the remedial class. Poor Ando. No wonder he kills Future Hiro, he's a moron. Again.
A dose of Claire blood could heal his brain and restore memories.(like Peter, Angela and Adam)

Usutu- Arthur killed him and then he shows up in Parkman's quest into Angela's mind. So was he there or is he a product of Parkman or Angela? Or was it Parkman's turtle, who I believe may be working with Mr. Muggles in pulling all the strings behind the scenes.
If he could paint Hiro showing up(twice), and avoid Hiro, why couldn't he paint his potential death(like Isaac)?
Speaking of dead Usutu, who's the person painting on the buildings in New York.(the cracked Earth with the "Godsend" symbol when Mohinder got his power on the dock and the one Peter and Claire see on the apartment wall) Is there other painters out and about? I know Isaac's 9th Wonders comics are still going. But how are the comics getting info from this changed future? They changed the future AFTER Isaac died. So the 9th wonders issues he made all were for that future(Future Mohinder saved Hiro by stabbing a needle into the Haitian). What the Hell man??? Is someone else now making them? New and improved 9th Wonders comics, made by Arthur and Gabriel Petrelli!!! (they're the only ones to have the painting precognition FOR SURE)


Has Parkman been the only one to push through the Haitian's power? Why aren't they showing that type of power struggle anymore?(Like Sylar breaking through Hiro's timestop in season 1)
He can partially get through the Haitian's power, but didn't see Daphne was working for Arthur??? Are her thoughts super fast? That would be sweet.
Parkman broke out of his father's trap, so how would Arthur stand to keep him locked in? Anyway, I think that Arthur made a very good move in letting Angela go. The scene had great emotional conflict.

Same goes for Mohinder. He is getting back to the struggling scientist he started as. Choosing to do the right thing, instead of what he was asked to do. He should also get his scales checked soon. Nasty. That's what he gets for webbing street-goers to walls. Hey, why did Mohinder's test subject go bad so fast, while Mohider is still mostly normal?


The Eclipse. Didn't a bunch of the "Heroes" have their powers before the eclipse? I know Kensei didn't have for-sure powers until after the 1600's one. Or how about the parents with powers? If the powers were based on eclipses, their abilities would have been gone at the beginning of the first season.
Also didn't Claire survive as a baby from her mother's fire?

The formula is missing something, a catalyst.
How could that be? In the future plenty of people seem to have powers, but Hiro and Ando were fighting over the formula. Why?
The catalyst for synthetic powers needs to be in a human host according to Mohinder. Was the original in Kensei(Adam Munroe)? Because both Nathan and Tracy/Jessica/Nikki were definitely synthetically given powers at birth long before Claire was born.

Angela's dreams have been altered. Originally a bunch of people were dead.(I think there was Hiro, Parkman, Claire, Peter, Noah(other???)) That one had Sylar, Tracy, Maury, Knox and Adam in it. Now Maury is presumably dead, and Adam is a pile of dust. So that is definitely not happening. The second was Tracy, Nathan, and Peter dead(I don't recall other people dead in that one), and Arthur was the bad guy. So things, they are a-changin'. The future has already been changed. Twice. Disaster averted. Celebrate.


A war is coming is going to be somehow a powerless fight.(from the commercial) The sides being Primatech Paper Petrelli and Pinehearst Petrelli Biotechnology. Camp Primatech has the benefit of Noah Bennett. He's been kicking ass sans powers for the entire series.
If they get their powers back, then Primatech also has the Haitian. But, then again, they also have a mopey Claire, an already powerless Peter(Impotence strikes Primatech!!!), and Daphne(who already works for Arthur).
I really hope they don't build suspense and blow it bigtime, like the Peter vs Sylar battles.(in season 1 future or Kirby Plaza)
It NEEDS to be epic. Through time and space(Hiro/Arthur/Daphne(speed)), in the material now(most people), and in the psychic planes(Parkman/Arthur). I want to be sweating from Oh. My. Gawd!!! moments. Crank up the intensity on a 1 to 10 scale to around 371. I expect roughly 2 gazillion% increase in awesomeness to make up for last seasons lack of confrontation.

"It starts with light, and ends with light. And in between there is darkness."
Maybe the end is in this quote from the end of the episode. Good guys win, but at great cost and through much suffering.


Post Notes:
I still have a sneaky suspicion that Angela has Persuasion powers like Eden. She seems to do this multiple times in all 3 seasons.


Future Claire and Future Hiro/Ando. I currently believe Papa Petrelli uses mind control to make them into complete douches(for the future episodes). Claire's you can tell by the dye job, and it's hard to tell with Hiro and Ando. Either one of them could have been brainwashed into something. Ando into believing Hiro ditches him(in child or adult mentality), or Hiro into thinking Ando is an evil spawn of Satan.
(Someone sent a screen capture of Future Ando to me, he has a Pinehearst pin on his coat. His turncoat. What a traitorous jerk.)


Is anyone else expecting stupid lines from Knox like:
"I'm from the school of hard Knox!" or
"There is nothing to fear, except fear itself... because it smells like a fart and now I'm super strong."

Knox and Claire's Uncle Flint are totally the Bebop and Rocksteady(from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) of the Heroes universe. Arthur hired two highly incompetent goons to do his petty work.

I think my fingers are bleeding from all this typing.
My brain stopped working about halfway through this post. Sorry guys.
How do these Heroes posts get so damn long?

11.17.2008

Good Karma Kid

In opposition to the Walmart kid from the earlier post, I got another random kid quote.
I was heading to pick up a patient in Mercy ER and there was a father and son walking towards me down the hall. As with the last time, there was no other people in the hall. I reached them and gave them the courtesy hello. The kid (I'd guess the age to be about 3) looks at me and says, "Rock on! Duuuude!"
Yeah, it was random and funny, and made me laugh for like 15 minutes the way he said it. All abrupt and excited. Quite entertaining.

11.13.2008

Heroes:Villains: notes and thoughts

I'll try to keep this shorter than the last Heroes show post. It shouldn't be too difficult.

This episode was a fairly good character builder for Sylar. Gives him some humanity. It showed his struggle against the "hunger". His attempt to fit in, to be a good person. The temptation is so much greater when he knows that a person has a power. It also shows one of the previous murders by Sylar from season 1 I was wondering about. Why did he never use the ability?
Also at the end of the episode Arthur appears to steal Hiro's power, but can Sylar break the time stopping, like he did with Hiro in season 1???
When Noah Bennett was watching the camera of Sylar doing his thing, was it just me, or did he display some sort of reverence for Sylar's work? I believe there was at least a little awe and respect. He also said Sylar's power is to transfer an ability. Not specifying if he can transfer them to others or not. Still a possibility.

There is actual depth to Elle now. Not much, she still is a dumbass, but a slightly more well-meant dumbass. Thanks for messing things up with Sylar. We can have Peach Pie then probe some grey matter in Trevor's skull! Gabriel Grey, grey matter(brains), a connection? Doubt it. But it makes me giggle anyway. The jealousy shown by Sylar was a wonderful touch. Very similar to his desire to be accepted by his mother for being special.

There is also some good shown in Angela Petrelli. She was being very motherly and protective. She also should have dreamed about Arthur not being dead at an earlier time.
Arthur Petrelli certainly displayed some poor people skills with his willingness to kill Nathan for the sake of his dealings with Linderman. He has quite a way with using others to get what he wants. Speaking of using others, what did he need Maury Parkman for? He has telepathy already, do it your damn self Arthur. Unless his talents are hindered or not grown enough.
Could Arthur give powers to people, maybe the ones he has taken? Sylar may have that potential(Noah's comment-"transfer"). Could Arthur have taken some things from Peter that would be like a power placement like the body in a body Future Peter had?

Nathan an Peter are shown to be determined and supportive of each other. Big suprise.

Does anybody remember when the slogan was "Save the cheerleader, save the world"?
She can't die anyway, so why did they need to save her. Was saving Claire simply keeping Sylar from be able to heal, and subsequently get the Shanti virus? Was it to make sure Peter could heal from the blast in order to fight Sylar? Or to keep Claire from becoming a whiner?
Well, I was also thinking, maybe her healing power could be keeping his power hunger in check. Do they even need food anymore? (On a terrible joke level, when Sylar poked around her brainpan, I couldn't help but think that she was totally being mind-f***ed. She seems to be reacting like it at least. Yeah, I am a sick bastard sometimes. I also made this comment a lot less graphic than when I said it out loud during the episodes weeks ago.)

When Thompson goes to collect Meredith and Flint on the train, where was the 'One of Us, One of Them' rule? At the end Thompson lets Meredith go, but in season 1 he was going to take Claire? Doesn't feel in character for him.

Hiro- I was somewhat pissed by Kensei being a white guy. That turned out somewhat all right. How much cooler if it was Hiro himself? Like if he went through training to become the great warrior that he was sort of going to be as Future Hiro. Calm and collected. In full control of his power. No reliance on Ando, but still desiring the outside influence of companionship.
But now he is apparently going to be even more useless. He needs to learn how to use the power instantly. While I quite enjoy his silliness, his inability to help himself properly goes against the ingenuity he displayed when he fake killed Ando.
Now because of his decisions he is stuck in Africa with Ando and a headless Usutu.

Usutu. Being a painter on Heroes leads to death. Note to self: Don't paint the future. Sure, cut back on characters. Let's cut out a person that has some great scenes. He took things in a practical way. How would you react to hitting a man with a shovel, then walking into a tent a second later and hitting the same guy again? Understanding his compulsion to paint(like Sylar's hunger???), he used it well, learned from it, guiding some, and helping when he could. Now he's dead. Not even any last words.
I mean Isaac showed immense growth and then had awesome last lines.

I really enjoyed the overlap with old footage showing the connections. Like the explanation of the train wreck, and Nathan's accident flight.
Also the mention of the Invisible man was a nice touch to add without having to pay an actor.

Whatever. I'm done now. Perhaps the next episode will spurn me to more creative speculation.

Heroes Cards part 2

10 packs and I somehow managed to get 2 Lenticulars(1:12 packs) and 2 foil cards(1:6 packs).
But somehow I only managed to get 1 Ted Sprague card. Nick called dibs on it, so it goes to him. Ted, you're such a silly Not-the-Geico-Caveman-Insurance guy.
Later tonight I will try to get the Heroes notes and thoughts post up about last Monday's "Villains" episode.

11.12.2008

Heroes Cards

First pack of trading cards opened. Giddiness is at a childlike high. Suprisingly enough, I got a lenticular card.(picture changes by tilting) Odds of getting one are 1 in 12 packs approximately.(says on the wrapper) Well Josh luck strikes again. I will save opening the rest until tomorrow. It'll be like a mini mid-November Christmas party.

Hollywood Video


Hollywood Video caused two distinct feelings today.

The first is a combination of disgust and intrigue because at there counter they were selling Pickles out of a bucket. Really not something I would ever feel like wanting in a movie rental establishment. Ever.


The second was a great flashback to my childhood days. They had trading cards! I bought a bunch of Heroes cards. They were located to the right of the pickles. Next to some Hannah Montana cards. I believe Ms. Montana may be sullying the good name of Heroes in such a close proximity. Just like I sullied the back of my brother's car with Hannah Montana stickers. Man, was he pissed.

Who thought they were still selling cards? I mean, come on, how awesome is this? Heroes is a good show, and I thoroughly enjoy the ability to collect cards I will never actually trade.


Although, I think it would be better if the cards came with those crappy sticks of gum coated in white powder that used to be in baseball and Garbage Pail Kids cards. The kind of gum that was just small enough to not disintegrate, but not large enough to actually be considered worthwhile. The best part of the gum was that when you first tried to chew it, the gum would actually shatter into little gum shards before becoming a tiny gum blob.

A trip to Wal-Mart

I just got home from an amazing trip to Walmart. This is going to be the abbreviated version. On the way into the store I saw a cop giving a ticket to a guy in one of those little motorized scooters. Hmmm... That's interesing.
Then I went back to see if they had any sweet new action figures. While in the toy section there was a lady pushing her very young son around in a cart. He was smacking two foam swords together making all kinds of noises, none of which were related to sword clashing.
Anyway, she tells him not to hit anyone else in the aisles. He quickly replied,"Not even that loser?"
The mother told me that he didn't mean me.
I laughed greatly, she turned bright red, there was nobody else in the aisle.
She quickly left.
Nothing in toys, so I headed to the food section for that sweet ambrosia men call Dr. Pepper. Almost run down by a stock person loaded with cosmetic products, I make it miraculously unscathed.
I've got the soda and all my toes, and decide to make haste to the self checkout.
The only open machine immediately starts flashing a red light. The light in turn calls over a lady. Not because of something I did, but because it wants more receipt paper.
"No problem," I think to myself.
I was WAY wrong. Ten minutes and two more managers later, I was checking out.
Sure, I could have checked out in another lane, but then I would have missed a great human struggle of 3 people against a single machine's paper roll.
I am pretty sure the receipt dispenser won.

Why the Hell isn't there a Lego Lord of the Rings video game?

I must say that the Lego video games are awesome. Fun for all ages. Beginning with the Star Wars on PS2, I have tried them all.

Both Star Wars games are extremely enjoyable. Loads-o-Jedi fun, using the Force on all sorts of objects and destroying everything in sight to collect the Lego equivalent of money.
While... Indiana Jones is somehow not very good at all. It just feels like something is missing.
That's OK though.
Lego Batman more than makes up for it. You can play as the good guys through the Batcave, or as the villains in Arkham Asylum. The variety of characters and levels is high. Both male and female characters, good and evil. You even get to drive the Lego Batmobile. Hours of enjoyment.
(I got to play as Mr. Freeze! Score!)

The downside to these games is that if you aren't playing with a second person, some parts become unbelievably infuriating. The helper AI is more of a hindrance than a partner, which often times ends up with me getting killed. They seem to just wander around being ignored by bad guys while you get the undivided attention of anything that causes damage.

Now to what I wanted to suggest.
What I would LOVE to see is a Lego Lord of the Rings trilogy. All three movies in one massive game. There would have to be a ridiculous amount of levels. A million characters. I would gladly pay triple-price for a triple-size game.

Think of the epic Lego quests... Lego-las(even his name hints at this) shooting arrows into trolls at Minas Tirith, Gandalf swinging his staff at a monster sized Balrog during a falling level in the mines of Moria, Aragorn chopping the hell out of goblins at Helm's Deep.
How much fun would it be playing Treebeard at Isengard stomping some orc ass!
What about Frodo wearing the ring in a blurry, staggering wind level?
There could even be freakin' 4 player Lego action. Not 2 but actual multiplayer, 4+ people at once. The screen would be full, but worth the confusion.
Perhaps online play in the mega-battle scenes. People playing on both sides, good or bad, borderline MMO stuff.
As bonus levels, if they wait long enough, they could have stages from the Hobbit. Imagine how great a Lego Smaug the dragon could be. Sitting on tons of golden Lego treasure.
Oh, sweet lord, this game would have amazing possibilities.

Why hasn't this been made yet?
It NEEDS to be made.

Like it wouldn't sell a gazillion copies. Rings fans, Lego fans, video game fans, everyone and their great, great, great, grandparents' ghosts would buy it.


finally a neat little link to a Lego Star Wars article:
http://www.tor.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=blog&id=8488#more

11.08.2008

RIP: M. Crichton and David Foster Wallace

I believe Michael Crichton(11.04.2008) died of "cancer of the ER". It is sad that we lost a writer that came up with some amazing ideas(Jurassic Park, Sphere). It is even more depressing that the show ER has become so ludicrous, that is may have actually been siphoning years off it's creator. Poor Mr. Crichton. My condolences to your family, and your ghost. Please let ER disappear from television.
How many hospitals have rocket launchers being shot in them? Seriously.
And when someone needs aspirin stat, that person needs to be slapped. Stat.

As for David Foster Wallace(9.12.08), I will miss his work immeasurably. For those of you that missed out on his writings, I would highly recommend finding a copy of the essay "Consider the Lobster". A beautiful work on the questionable ethics of catching and cooking lobsters.
He also has a fondness for footnotes that borders on the absurd. They could be a work in themselves, so read them.

11.06.2008

From the Archives: Old Sketch


Found a really huge old sketch of my right arm(18in by 10in). Decided to put it up. I had to shrink the scan down though.

11.04.2008

Voting

I just voted! For myself... in every category... even the wildlife section!
Hooray for write-ins.
Just kidding, voting is an important part of our culture as a form of national balance, for everyone to take part in our country's well being. Voting makes everyone, in part at least, responsible for the current state of the USA. So all those people that don't vote can shut the hell up next time they complain about the government and the way it's run.
Although uninformed voters can harm us pretty bad. Like those people that just vote one way, without knowing what they are actually votig for. Learn where your candidate stands on issues!

11.03.2008

Mobility!

Joshua has leveled up. He has learned a new skill: Mobile Blogging!

I Stubbed My Mind!

I recent Josh news, I somehow managed to trip on a sentence fragment, stumble across a few misplaced letters, and fell head first into a writer's block. After inadvertently stubbing the nonphysical part of my brain (the mind) on a large metaphorical concrete slab, I wandered through nonexistent corridors for hours. Apparently searching for my long lost and somewhat forgotten...
...ummmmm...
...something...
or someone...
...
...
...

11.02.2008

Probably my last election post

This is exactly what my poorly expressed, previous post about McCainasaurus should have read.

from Time Magazine(Nov. 10, 2008 issue), Inbox:

TWO CANDIDATES, TWO STYLES:

RE "DOES TEMPERAMENT
MATTER?":

Throughout his career, John McCain
has shown himself willing to put others at risk to advance his career or his
causes[Oct. 27]. Like President Bush, he is a person who shoots from the hip,
invites conflict and sees compromise as a sign of weakness rather than a path to
progress. His impulsiveness has been evident this fall in rash decisions such as
selecting Sarah Palin and suspending his campaign. While his supporters call him
a maverick, I call him reckless. And as the past eight years have shown,
recklessness is not what we need in a President. We need someone with
intelligence, composure, discipline, and restraint.

-Robert J. Inlow, Charlottesville, VA.





On a funny note, every time someone calls McCain a maverick, I picture him as a really old Tom Cruise in "Top Gun", with the Highway to the Danger Zone song playing over the image in my head. Quite entertaining.
Here are a couple links you may like to read:
please read THROUGH this next one before judging the title

More Presidential Campaign tomfoolery




One day after my last post someone McCained my yard.
Coincidence? I think so actually.
But, don't worry, I fixed it.

11.01.2008

Presidential Election Shenanigans

Here is some quick things on the elections:

Isn't America the great melting pot?

Wasn't this country founded on freedom for all regardless of belief?

Oh no, someone has an opinion that isn't exactly the same as mine? Better label them a terrorist, because that's obviously what they are, being different and all. So much for freedoms.


McCain is all about war. War this, war that. "I will fight for America. I will fight terror." Fight, fight, fight. Do we want a president more focused on spending our lives in continuation of a war that has gone pretty much nowhere?

Of course he knows all about fighting. Considering he was born sometime in the mid-cretaceous era, he probably took part in every major war since storming the gates of Ilium in the Trojan war. Being born that far back would explain his tiny Tyrannosaurus arms.(see my illustration)

Why does McCain always say "I've been there." I been to Georgia a bunch of times, but that doesn't mean I know a damn thing about Georgia or the people that live in that state, and that's part of our own country. Even living somewhere for a time may only provide a small demographic of the locales culture.
As for the war itself, it's a never ending problem. The middle east area has been at war since, oh, I don't know, FOREVER. War is eating up our moral. While total withdrawal may be an impossibility, there should at least be a gradual pullout of troops. I mean, come on, honestly, we can read newspapers from space, have GPS systems, and all manner of crazy other technologies, and we still can't find Bin Laden. Ridiculous.

He is quick to anger, and eager to enter conflict. This has not worked in the last 8 years, why would it work now. The time now is for a man of diplomacy.

I feel that Obama is more focused on fixing issues here, instead of leaving us fighting a "war on terror". He is looking to the bulk of America, the middle class. Our country cannot grow if we are hemmoraging all our resources overseas. A global economic problem is here because of foolish steps taken. Not just because of Bush either. Many were involved.
It doesn't matter who is elected, change is coming.

Change. Will. Happen.

I just believe that Obama is the better candidate.

10.30.2008

Heroes: Eris Quod Sum: notes and thoughts

Starting with Peter, I would just like to say, what the hell.
After his fall instead of getting a blood transfusion from Claire he just forgets that that's exactly how he fixed Nathan's wounds after going nuclear over New York. Even with the reminder standing right in front him.
As for the falling out the window and surviving, many things could have happened. 1. Sylar saved him. This is probably the most likely. He went to Pinehearst with that intention anyhow. 2. Arthur saved him. Possible, but less likely. He does have the abilities, but does this fit in with his master plans? 3. Peter saved Peter. Very unlikely, as he seems to be stuck in a position of being able to do absolutely nothing for himself. Maybe his abilities were only suppressed. With the Haitian's powers in the background, a halting of Arthur's theft of powers could have been an autonomic response, like the automatic healing. Things to think about: Peter may have an ability not yet fully used-He saw the invisible man before he wanted to be seen, and when Hiro froze time in season 2 Peter was unaffected. Sylar also moved in season 1 with time frozen, so maybe there is a subtle muting power not shown that they both inherited. Sylar regained telekinesis after the loss from the Shanti virus, and future Sylar has Ted's power. Which implies that absorbed powers may be regained. So there may be a very slim chance his powers are regrowing.
The loss of his powers, at least currently, would explain why he was scarred in the future, and why Claire could shoot him to death. Maybe future Claire was out of range of Peter. Or maybe her dyed hair has the power sapping drug as an ingredient. But, then again future Peter has other powers, courtesy of the labs of Pinehearst and Mohinder?
I've got to give the baby Petrelli credit, he sure is proactive in at least attempting to get things done.
Oh, and Future Peter is a butterfly killer. Stepping all over them and Effin' up the future.

Parkman pulled a pretty nice trick on Knox, making him think they were dead. Once Knox leaves he tells Daphne his dad could do that. Perhaps he did do that. Or Arthur for that matter. There is also a nice change of pace that Parkman is the only character showing growth in a fairly realistic manner. He is definitely getting better at deception.
Being deceived is another story. Or maybe not. Future Daphne was still with Pinehearst. Although I believe Usutu told him the future he saw was already changed, so maybe he thinks he is changing it. But then again, maybe he knows Daphne is still working for them now.
When will he get the talent for knowing when others are "looking for him"? Like when Molly was looking for the "Nightmare Man"(Maury), assuming it's because of her thoughts, being a mental function.
When is Molly returning anyway?
I also noticed that when Parkman took the Usutu drug, he needed headphones(music), as Usutu did at least once, but Hiro went out without it. Possibly something to watch for?
There is always the chance that the turtle is running everything from behind the scenes.

Hiro Nakamura should stop being an idiot. He swore off going back in time to change things, but if he didn't come back from the future in season 1 Peter would have blown New York to hell. Besides that, did he really change history? Didn't his lady friend promise him that she would tell the stories he grew up with, thus history remains the same?
Time travel has so many issues. In heroes the past(the time from Kensei until now) has remained, so far, unchanged in any noticeable way. The present(which is the future's past) is somehow malleable. Subject to alterations. Why doesn't anyone go back before this started, after much preparation and planning of course, and change things? As of now Hiro and Arthur are the only two that could do this.
When does Hiro become awesome Hiro from season 1? Or was the newest incarnation of future Hiro the current path he is on? Maybe Future Ando killed a shape shifter. He was arguing with him about the formula, but what would having it matter if others(Ando) had already received powers? Doesn't make sense.

As a geneticist, Mohinder sucks big time. He spends season 1 trying to finish his father's work. Moves on to the Shanti virus, a sort of extension of the work. Then forgoes all scientific process because of an epiphany, and injects himself with something completely untested. Smooth move genius. Now he is turning into a spiderman ripoff monster.
Did Arthur Petrelli refuse to take Mohinder's mistake, or just make Mohinder question his having it.
He also appears perfectly willing to start testing on humans. Way to mull that one over. Even when it's on Peter, someone trying to stop the coming turbulence.
Then he doesn't believe the future can be changed, even though he has seen it done by stopping New York from being levelled.

I don't hate Elle as much now as I did in season two. She has become more down to Earth. More relatable with her current state of affairs. With her abilities going haywire, she has no where to go without daddy covering her ass. No safety net.
The powers malfunctioning may be from Sylar slicing her head open, but he usually preserves the brain for inspection. Could the Shanti virus still be going? Or mutated?
Her choice to take aerial public transport, instead of driving, a really bright idea. Where is homeland security when needed? Hey, everybody, LOOK AT ME, electricity is discharging from my body and putting people in jeopardy.

Now for Claire. Claire should shut the hell up. Ohhh nooo, I can't feel pain. Boo-Hoo. Looks like someone bought a first-class ticket on the complaint train. (Whoo-Whooooo). Pain is a function to tell the body that something is wrong. If you heal from pretty much everything, pain is unnecessary.
While the chance she may lose other feelings is there, why waste it whining. She still has emotions, which are working in overdrive. Teenage angst in overdrive.
She has also developed an undeserved sense of courage. She can't be hurt in the traditional sense, so she decided she was going to be a vigilante now. So what if her step father, Noah, has been doing this since before she was born? What does he know? So what if you can heal, you may not be so lucky with other specials. Black hole guy? Yeah, you got lucky. Puppet master guy? Super freakin' lucky.
I seriously hope that someone shows her that non-physical pain can be much worse than what she is dealing with. True pain.

Noah is slowly returning to what he was in the first series, a badass. He knows how to deal with these people. Fear is as much his weapon as it is for Knox. When is his old partner, the Haitian, going to reappear. Team juggernaut of Primatech.

Knox. The most useless power ever. Not the super strength from fear, but the ability to tell when someone is afraid, and feel the need to say it. Sure, Daphne was afraid, she was surrounded by a group of people that could kill her.

Nathan and Tracey are going visit Arthur to do what, exactly? Get dead maybe.

Whatever. I am done with this post my fingers hurt a little.

10.29.2008

Pope of (Dr.) Pepp(er)


A short time ago I decided to become the religious-iest Dr. Pepper drinker ever. It started when I was younger, I was a nonbeliever. A Mr. Pibb-aholic.

Well, Coke went and changed the most delicious soda ever into a new and improved model.

Mr. Pibb became Pibb Xtra. More like Pibb Neutered. It has become too much like Cherry Coke. Too full of "Xtra", whatever that may be. It tastes kind of like pain. The church of Pibb has forsaken me.

But... my zealousness for effervescent goodness must be sated somehow. Where was comfort for the loss of my fallen liquid friend? Many long nights spent wandering in a decaffeinated stupor. I sought the nearest thing possible. Which was at a competitor, Pepsi.

Pepsi opened it's arms to me with a wonderful beverage. Dr. Pepper tended my emotional wounds. Mended the crushed heart in my chest with a refreshing goodness.

Dr. Pepper obviously put in the extra time to become a professional. It is, after all, a Doctor... of... ummmm... something. Oh, what joy, to be a part of something that tastes like pure happiness.

After years of dedication, I have proclaimed myself the Pope of Pepp. Street corners shall be warmed by me. I yell out the good word of the Book of Yum, wearing one of those cardboard ponchos reading "The Pepp is near!". Unfortunately many think I have escaped from a mental institution.

And previous studies I have undertaken have shown me that Lip Balm Dr. Pepper really DOES taste more like the Original Dr. Pepper. Whereas Diet Dr. Pepper tastes more like crap than the original.

Which is actually kinda funny because Dr. Pepper tastes more the like Original Mr. Pibb than Pibb Xtra does. Ouch.

10.28.2008

The Potato Fairy?


Hey peoples this is just a recap of the morning of Oct 18, 2008. I woke up, got ready and left to get some delicious Panera breakfast. What did I discover? Low and behold, I had been visited by the Potato fairy! A rare and magical cousin to the Tooth fairy.

While I was in the land of sleep this little creature decided I was to be blessed with the gift of a raw spud upon my car's windshield. I do truely feel that a good thing has occured.

A beautiful sunny day and a visit from a formerly non-existant mythological being. What strange lives we live.