Friends

In 1932 the first production zoom lens for movies cameras was introduced, and the directors of the world used it ad nauseam because it was new and novel. Eventually the novelty wore off and zooming started to occur only when it added something of creative value to the movie.

This pattern has repeated itself ever since. Starting as innovative and ending up in everything including commercials. Bullet time started in the Matrix and ended in the gap commercials. Digital rotoscoping came around just in time to save the analog version from oblivion and now it lives in the Charles Schwab commercials.

Currently I am sick of digital swarm technology. Directors, it is time to stop using it. Introduced in Tim Burton's Batman Returns and more recently seen in the new version of The Day the Earth Stood Still, the latest Indiana Jones film, and The Mummy films.

Please stop.

So, 2,500 km of driving has been done. I note the following

Fuel economy is 5.3 l/100km (18.87 km/l, 53.3mpg, 44.38mpUSg) under my style of driving. I could get better if I drive like an old fart. I get this economy alone or if the car is full of people.

Single CD player is a bit of a peeve. I know the car is the base model, but how much extra would a 6-stacker CD player add to the cost?The sales guy said he could add one at the time I bought the car but he'd have to sell me the full sat nav/ blue tooth set to give me the better CD player. That was a $4k upgrade.

A/C runs even when the petrol motor is off. I like that.

Still waiting for the automatic transmission gear change bump the CV tranny doesn't have.

Biggest peeve: there is nothing that gives me a reading of how the petrol engine is doing beyond the "Oh no, something is wrong!" light. Not even a temperature gauge.

On the whole, I'm happy with the car.

Current Mood: pleased

ha ha! I put a drawing there to get your attention! It's of the Food Emporium on Gottingen, so it is related geographically at least.

The details for the signing at Strange Adventures next Friday in Halifax are up! All the info is on this facebook event. See you there! (ps, dudes, don't add me on facebook, I don't add people I don't know and neither should you!)

As you may remember, the Compocalypse set us way, way back in terms of The Secret Life of Dolls, and I have many, many events to catch you up on. However, I don't want us to miss Christmas--it just won't be as fun however many months from now it takes me to catch up--so I'll try to go ahead and tell you what I can. Obviously, however, I'll have to be vague about a few developments.

( They have to be, in light of the coming Squirrelmageddon )



(Zomg e-book! The Annotated Movies in Fifteen Minutes: Wizards!)

For many years tthe theme song of my household has been Tim Curry's I Do the Rock</>. It occurred to me that a change might be in order - though I'm very attached to I Do the Rock.

So, any suggestions on what might make an applicable substitute?

Post from mobile portal m.livejournal.com

So, I'm getting my hair done cut, and there's an ongoing conversation about family, the holidays, and so on. My stylist shared a few real gems:

1) A decent definition of "sufficiently drunk" is when you think that cows are really, really funny - but are still sober enough to think that running out into a cow field to try to push them over is a very bad idea.

2) "There's something to that whole boy, girl thing," because "women tend to be too cold, and men tend to generate insane amounts of heat. Two men in a bed is just too much!"

And finally, number 3) We were talking about travel with family, and how with some family members it's comfortable to just sit and read - or to be in each other's presence. At which point he exclaims "yeah, I'm like that with my mom. I totally should have married my mom."

The salon murmured with gentle approbation, so he continued: "y'all - I'm from New Hampshire. We're allowed to marry 1st cousins there."

Someone allowed as to how that might, or might not, be over the line. He finished: "Damn, you're all just jealous because you don't have any hot cousins."

On a lighter note, my cousin was telling stories over Thanksgiving. He shared the story of how his handgun safety instructor had actually shot a mugger. Apparently the instructor was up against a wall and had already handed the guy his watch and wallet. Then the story changed to "now I'm -a- shoot you." He turned around, drew his pistol, and shot the guy 17 times. When the police asked why he shot the man 17 times he answered: "I ran out of bullets."

Seems perfectly reasonable to me.

I’m like Nick, the saint so slick that without him all your gears stick
Pick my disc and for sure I’ll make your ears prick
Because my fresh new single is crisper than Kringle
Bring my presence to your party and the ladies gonna mingle
Tell your boo, too, to write me a letter
It better come correct or I’ma drop it in the shredder
And on the envelope she should address that shit to Santa
My fan mail blows up bigger than a Sabado Gigante
Like Carmen Miranda, I’m a colorful enchanter
Soft like a silk suit, hard like a Black Panther
And the answer that she’s lookin’ for is yes
Come up to my room, I won’t make you confess
I know you been a good girl, got your name on my list
Fill you up with love like a true philanthropist
Just don’t get pissed if you got to wait in line
I have to satisfy each girl in the world by 11:59

I wonder, are you jolly enough?
You got the holly and stuff, but your mistletoe is hangin’ kinda rough
I got the big white beard, don’t be afeared of my style
S. Claus is the name, because I’m the same one makes ya mama smile
P-E-R-E N-O-E-L’s how I’m spellin’
North Pole dwellin’, I know you’re buyin’ what I’m sellin’
Ho-ho-hoes around the block when I come yellin’
Step to Claus, I’m gonna mush you on the melon
Got the loot, you know I never play the stick-‘em-up
Your gifts I’m droppin’ off, your girl I’m pickin’ up
Backin’ up your chimney while you’re pullin’ on your jimmy
Ace of bass like Lemmy, gonna make your sugar shimmy
I can see under the tree all of my cookies you stole
I ain’t mad at you, though, I like the hole and the Pole
So let me introduce you to the head elf in charge
KRS livin’ large, bust your face like Large Marge

Life is magical and full of... uh... a tiny teeny bit of hope?

The Jets beat the Bills of Buffalo last night in Toronto, which was good. Defense looked awesome, especially Darrell Revis, who completely shut down that loudmouth TO. Offense, not so much. And things got even worse on the offensive side of the ball when Mark Sanchez dove for a first down and hurt his OTHER knee, the one not already in a brace. Really, he's taking this "following in the footsteps of Joe Namath" thing too far. Kellen Clemens looked awful in relief. If Sanchez is seriously hurt, Gang Green is done.

And if not... well, there's still a slim chance we could make the playoffs. All we'd need to do is sweep our last four games, including the undefeated Colts and red-hot Bengals. That's going to happen, sure. Uh-huh.

But Rex does have the defense playing lights out, so that's something.

Current Mood: pleased

So. Trying to ease back into work--there are people in my life who don't think that what I do is terribly interesting or worthwhile, and even I admit that it's only recently that it's become a gainful employment once again. So I don't tend to recognize that it's possible to overwork myself, my dreams aside. But then you look back and realize that I put out an e-book and two Fifteen Minutes (HEY DID YOU HEAR ABOUT NEW MOON IN FIFTEEN MINUTES? BECAUSE THAT'S STILL THERE) in the space of about six weeks, and that's a lot of mental effort. I mean, narrative fiction is one thing--but humor can actually be kind of nerve-wracking, because (as I'm so fond of saying), it's either funny or it's not, and if you're any good at it, you know when it's not, and you just have to sit there sweating blood until you come up with something that is. Which is why I love a nice rambly entry or recap that just happens on a whim, because it's not me trying, and it doesn't involve breaking out into metaphorical hives. So my point, and I did have one, is that I'm having to recognize that maybe I am just a little bit burnt out right now. But the more time you take off from something, the harder it is to get back into it--think of how much you dread going back to work after several days off--so I spent yesterday setting up footnotes on New Moon, should something else in the house blow up and I find myself ever needing to do a third e-book. Just putting in the numbers and reminders to myself ("Talk about that news article for this one, here's the link"), which I also did last November for the Twilight 15M, and let me tell you, a year later, that really came in handy. So I did that to ease myself back into footnoting, so on and so forth.

I think one of the things I'm going to try to do is be a bit kinder to myself, in terms of work. What I really need to do, I think, is stop trying to create deadlines and expectations for myself--which sounds odd, but the thing is, the ones I create are stressful, self-defeating, and counterproductive. I think you do need discipline, but I need to live more in the present with it--put in the daily hours and work steadily and do my best, but not worry as to whether that "best" is good enough, and if I'm "on track" and set all these grand unattainable plans, because that does not produce results for me. In fact, it makes me kind of crazy, and the best things I've done in my life were, in fact, the things I did on a whim and with no expectations. That may not work for you, but it seems to work for me. So I'm going to try to live more with my best efforts in the present and stop trying to stress myself out about the future.

(I have a Zen Garden app on my phone that starts up with little sayings, and one of them was, "To a mind that is still, the whole universe surrenders." I think it's a little like that.)

Meanwhile, in other news, we're supposed to get snow tomorrow (YAY), and the dogs are deeply depressed because it's too cold for them to go out and play (I'll let them out after lunch, once it's warmed up a bit). Also, I think my birthday present to myself will be a whole mess of eyeshadow samples from Aromaleigh, since they're only $1 each anyway, last a good long time, and you can get as many as you want. (Aromaleigh: TLE approved.)

A few quick links:

'The 40 Year Old Virgin Who Knocked Up Sarah Marshall and Felt Superbad About It' is Sadly Real and Has a Trailer. And sharp-eyed folks on Twitter noticed that a certain sparklepire shows up at 1:37. (BEHOLD.) Way to steal from the easiest target ever and still fail at humor, guys.

New Moon retold with lolcats.

Vampirism Does Not Make Stalking Attractive. I think I might actually buy this shirt to sleep in. You know, as a precautionary measure.

Full info at Neil Gaiman's Twitter: "Scary and sad: Paralyzed & abandoned by insurance -The Full Story."

Remember the Twilight hate questionnaire a lot of you guys filled out? Well, octoberland's article is up now!

From oasis_beatles: megmatthews20 needs eye surgery related to Marfan Syndrome, can you help? hope_in_sight is running a general/fandom auction to raise the $1500. As far as vouching for the validity of it, I recognize Meg's username as a longtime reader/commenter here (I was actually kind of shocked when I saw who it was for, the name was so familiar to me). I haven't seen her comment in a long while, for reasons that should be obvious.

Also, I know there were a couple of similar reader requests in my LJ messages, but I swear to you, my inbox has eaten them. I rarely if ever delete messages there, and there's at least two I can't find now. I have to add, though, that I'm very wary of posting requests for causes that can't be easily verified, so keep that in mind.


(Zomg e-book! The Annotated Movies in Fifteen Minutes: Wizards!)

Current Mood: working
Current Music: Heather Nova - "Like Lovers Do"

I had a random memory today while walking on my break (in the freakishly warm and gorgeous weather). On the first day of a GenEd class in my Freshman year of college, the teacher gave us a small amount of background information and asked if we would do A or B, and to stand on either side of the room depending on what we chose. I wish I remembered what the question was about, but I don't. I think it had something to do with Africa. Whatever it was, it was a monumental sort of choice that would affect the lives of thousands of people.

About half of the students went to each side, and I think the teacher then intended that we would defend the choice of whichever side we went on. However, out of about 40 students, one chose neither side, and instead stood alone near the front of the class. That one was me, of course. The teach asked why, and I told her that I didn't have enough information to make the choice and then listed several questions whose answers would sway my decision. She was, to her credit, thrilled that someone actually felt too uninformed to decide, and used me as a teaching point.

What I wonder is, out of all the times she did that exercise, how many times did NO ONE ask for more information? And I hope that there were times when a small handful did, if not the majority. Asking for information is a GOOD thing, and doing research is even better. I suppose that's why I'm a librarian now.

Current Mood: contemplative
Current Music: Gleeeeeee

Didn't I say he'd be back? I read that famous rant by Verne about how Wells was full of it for making up spaceships etc without explicitly showing how they functioned and powering them with steam or coal or what have you, things that made sense in 1899.

But listen to this interview between H.G. Wells and Orson Welles. Who could EVER stay mad at someone so adorable? I ask you!



stoorree

PS: Are you in Halifax? I'll be doing a signing at Strange Adventures on the 11th, details to come!

and also: My friends, it appears Bad Machinery is kicking it up a notch, if you haven't gotten into it yet I think now is the time.

I see a lot of cute animal stuff. And a lot of stuff that people think is cute but is really just kind of dumb.
This video kinda threw me off guard with the cute factor.




Also, going to be doing some baking tomorrow. Cookies, to be exact.
what are some amazing cookies that I can make on the cheaper end of things, and are amazing?

Massive self aggrandizement compels me to note that I have a work blog for seriously geeky stuff that has nothing to do with my personal life.

It's here

I'm so juvenile and far too easily amused.


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but for the rest of you who might enjoy the torrid soiling of a childhood classic, I give you, Neil Patrick Harris as Frosty the Snowman: