Picturesque

Took little Elliot over to the groomers on Friday morning. Upon getting him back, I spent a little time with him in the afternoon and I happened to have my camera handy.

Rather proud of this photo.

Closing November

I don't know about you... but I'm glad Thanksgiving and all the headaches that come with it are over. Anyone else finding it hard to believe that it's not December 1st every morning?

I had the pleasure of spending the past 4 days in the greater San Antonio area... In retrospect, I wish I got a little more accomplished.

The past 2 days have been incredibly hellish at home... my sister has laid out plans to set up not 1, not 2, but 3 Christmas trees at our house.

To the right of me is one of the largest christmas tree's I've ever seen. I think it's fully decorated... there was talk of possibly hanging a few more ribbons to it. I should charge admission at the door so people can take a peek at what will likely be the cause of a slipped disc in my back on December 26th.

To help curb my discomfort... my sister informed me that a that I could decorate an "evil theme" tree in my office. If I have it my way, I'll get to hang the tree upside down and I'll hang Kiss figurines all over it.

A KISSmas Tree.

Yummy.

Your podcast has truly arrived if...

Got word today, that a listener of the Ekobase, a podcast I contribute to, was arrested over the weekend while wearing our shirt.

While I'm happy to report that the listener is out of jail... news of podcast listner getting arrested wearing our shwag is the equivalent of a band getting panties thrown on them.

PUNK RAWK!

Mission Wiicomplished

I was one of 20 lucky peeps at a local wal-mart last night to secure the new Nintendo Wii. My wait was anything but unpleasant. I got in line 20 minutes after 6 PM... I was the 11th person in line and I sat next to some really cool people.

Some drama went down at the end of the line because of some kids that supposedly cut-in.

I went into the bathroom when that happened, but when I got back I got word that they would be giving out a "Wii tickets" early. That happened minutes after 9:00PM, so I got to go home eat before I had to return at midnight.

When I arrived they asked orders 1 - 10 to form one line and they asked orders 11 (me) thru 20 to form another. Because I was one of the first 2 people to secure accessories. I was able to secure an extra Wiimote, a numbchuck, a classic controller and a Nintendo Points card.

I arrived safely at home last night around 1:00 AM.

the Wiimote
If you haven't had a chance to use the Nintendo Wii yet... you're probably wondering what its like. The Wiimote feels like a quality product. Can't say that the Numbchuck feels the same in hand. The Numbchuck ergonomically feels amazing tho'. Just disturbingly light...

Interface.
The Set up was a Breeze. In comparison to the 360, it felt a lot more fluid and simple. The Controller flows incredibly well through the navigation screens. There's a gentle buzz in the remote has you move in any direction. It's incredibly intuitive. There's a number of directions on the screen but its done with little copy and it almost feels like every decision is the appropriate one and you don't really have to look.


The Games
I had to get up extra early this morning to secure a copy of Zelda... They misplaced them at the Wal-Mart I got my Wii last night so I played Wii sports till 2:00AM last night.

I'll post more on this later.

I downloaded SONIC the Hedgehog this afternoon. The download was wicked quick... I forget how big the first Sonic game was... but it downloaded in what seemed like seconds.


All in all... the system is great. I can't wait to play some Game Cube games on it like Battalion Wars.

I'll post more later.

Elliot and the Guatamalen Armadillo

A few weeks ago, Elliot lost his last puppy tooth and for some foolish reason, I thought his chewing stage was over. For about 2 solid weeks he struggled with chew toys & chew bones... and it seemed like he began to shy away from chewing things all together.

That blissful wish went up in smoke when Darwinism selected my dog to fully grow his teeth back in place in what has to be record time.

I inspected his gums 3 days ago after he dismantled a pair of of my sisters shoes. I nearly jumped out of my skin when I saw that he had a new set of teeth fully set in place where is tiny puppy teeth were in place only two weeks ago.

For all the uncomfortable bites and snaps he gave me as a 12 week old pup... they simply pale in comparison to his keen sense of seeking out one of kind belongings.

Just yesterday, he trotted into my office and ran off in a span of 3 unmonitored minutes with a small keepsake I got from a Guatemalan Art Show I attended in Detroit. Admittedly, I paid very little for the Armadillo, but I got to meet the artist at the showcase and he mentioned to me that of all the things he had for sale, the Armadillo was his favorite too.

I'm sure he said that about every piece he unloaded that evening... but it was a unique piece and it was something that I really liked to look at on my shelf.

My heart simply sank when I caught him in the living room and my Armadillo in his mouth. Of all the items in my room that he had easier access to... I can't believe he sought out my Armadillo.

I completely hold myself accountable. But who would have thought that little dogs go through their own version of the "terrible 2's".

Spieces 10 years later...

When you see Ben Kingsley, Michael Madsen, Alfred Molina, and Forest "the ghost dog" Whitaker on a billing... you gotta say to yourself, this film couldn't be all that bad...

Well over 10 years after Species first hit the silver screen, yours truly got around to watching it this evening.

Wish I could say that the movie held up well after 10 years. Still tho'... there's something about the movie that was very redeeming. I wonder how much money they threw at assembled cast? I don't think anyone made it to the sequel. Ben Kingsley certainly didn't... he dies in the first one.

Anyhoo.. if its on check it out.

In apprecation of : The Craine Wife

From Wikipedia -

The Story of the Crane Wife

The Crane Wife is an old Japanese tale. While there are many variations of the tale, a common version is that a poor man finds an injured crane on his doorstep (or outside with an arrow in it), takes it in and nurses it back to health. After releasing the crane, a woman appears at his doorstep with whom he falls in love and marries. Because they need money, his wife offers to weave wondrous clothes out of silk that they can sell at the market, but only if he agrees never to watch her make them. They begin to sell them and live a comfortable life, but he soon makes her weave them more and more. Oblivious to his wife's diminishing health, his greed increases. He eventually peeks in to see what she is doing to make the silk she weaves so desirable. He is shocked to discover that at the loom is a crane plucking feat.


The Decemberists took this version and recorded a record for it.

Those who have followed the Decembereists for as long as I have, know that thematic records are anything but new for the band... for those of you who are new to the party.

Pick up a copy. Your ears and heart will thank you later.

.aCr.

Geeers of Warrr

Picked up my copy over the weekend and much to my surprise... I'm completely hooked on my first shooter since Perfect Dark - circa the Nintendo 64.

There's very little to add to the overwhelming amount of feedback on the game...

If you have a copy, read this blog, drop me a line. I'll add you to my buddy list or something.

In Praise of : Art School Confidential

Got around to watching Terry Zwigoff's last picture - Art School Confidential this weekend... like Bad Santa and Ghost World before it, I found myself thoroughly enjoying it.

Like Ghost World, Art School Confidential is based off a Daniel Clowes comic... Its my understanding that A.S.C. was a short strip tho'.

I wasn't terribly familiar with the story like I was with Ghost World a few years ago, so I went into the movie having low expectations. I found myself laughing hysterically throughout it. I found myself liking the actors more in this Daniel Clowes adaptation more than I did in Ghost World for some reason... I think Zwigofff managed to capture the feel of his comic strip better in this movie than he did with his last.

Anyhoo - if you're down for an indie comedy : rent it.

.aCr.

On the dismissal of Rummy

I'm of the opinion that there are 2 people whom are expendable at any cost to the Bush administration... One is Vice Pres. & fellow Skull, Dick Cheney (expendable because he is not going to run for Pres. in '08) the other, the NOW former Secretary of Defense Rummy Rum Rum...

While some found the news of his dismissal, specifically today of all days to be a bit out of the ordinary... I don't think there could have been a better time to let him go. Signs of his dismissal were visible to me when Bush began to change his language in the media about the "course in Iraq".

Having the White House discuss this topic instead of loosing the House and the Senate last night is easier in my opinion....

Shame its too little too f'n late.

Vote

Don't be an ass.

Go out and Vote today.

.aCr.

ekobase - eleven

Ekobase 11 is up. Recorded a day later than usual... the boys and I rocked out another recap of LOST. I saw some connections between this weeks episode and the "Like a Prayer Video"... tune in and see if you agree or not.ekobase

Post Halloween

Halloween has come and gone now... Last night was rather busy for
me and my neighbors as many of the kids on our adjacent blocks came
nocking on our homes.

As many know, I have two pets at home so I set up my front office as
a little Candy nook for kids to come buy. I took out the window
screen and handed stuff out from there instead of holding my pets
back from trying to run out the front door.

As luck would have it, my dog jumped out the window once and he
managed to give my sister the slip out the front door when she
arrived home after work....

Pet complaints aside - The neighborhood kids were very pleasant. I
saw a disproportionate amount of "Supermans" last night, but he just
had a Summer movie come out so I think that explains it.

I don't know if any costumes really stood out last night... it
seemed like kids played it safe. One kid came as a Power Ranger and
I said "sooooo '98". It just occurred to me that the comment was a
bit rude... it was also brought to my attention that they're still
quite popular so what do I know.

- Rollie