Random Access

Sunday – 22 July 2007
After errand running and an unfulfilling (and debt-increasing) trip to Paragon City, I headed to and Jack’s wedding reception. It was nice and I got to see quite a few people I haven’t seen in many rains. I was also reminded that m3l is one of the first people I met after moving out here.

Post-reception, I came home and puttered around the apartment for a bit before heading to breakfast. joined us. Hopefully, we didn’t scare her too badly. At least, nothing that a little psychotherapy and or hypnosis can’t take care of.

The Best
Last night, I heard a cover of Easy Like Sunday Morning. I had heard it many times before and it’s a decent cover… but I still think that The Commodores’ version – the original – is the best one.

Likewise, I was listening to Annie Lennox’ version of A Whiter Shade of Pale. Good version, but still not quite enough to knock Procol Harem’s version out of the box.

Stray Toasters

• I got bored again: Family pictures
• I haven’t rushed out to get my copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows; I’m more inclined to pick up a new Spenser book before breaking my neck to power-read HP7. Sure, I’ll read it. And, yes, I’m going to make efforts to avoid seeing/hearing spoilers, but I’m not too stressed about it.
• “Super plasma frag some bitches… expialidocious!” and “Napalm is Nature’s toothpaste!” (by way of Ctrl-Alt-Del)
• Chafing and vagina dentata.
• I’m about *this far* from rewriting King of Pain as a testament to life in Utah on a Sunday, like I did with Salt Lake Valley Sunday.
• Amusing sequence: Applegeeks Issues #123 and #124 and Ctrl-Alt-Del “Issue 124 and a Half”
• …and that reminds me: Sequins vs. Sequence
• I think I may have just broken …
• This is definitely going on the outside of my cube wall at work:
• 10 tech disappointments… with cool names
• I may wind up at a driving range within the next 36 hours. Maybe less. Maybe much less.
• Irregular Webcomic: Not just entertaining, it’s educational, too!
• By way of :
  …and…
  

“And now, for something completely different…”

Namaste.

Saturday – 21 July 2007
I was up at 6:45 this morning.

It was of my own volition, this time. I agreed to go with to take Lightning to the vet. He howled and mewed the whole way there. And while we were sitting there waiting to be seen. Once we got into an examination room, he settled down… a little. He roamed around the room, exploring all of the places he could get to, which turned out to be most of the room. He was still a little skittish, as there were many sounds coming in from other parts of the office, but as I said: “he calmed down.

Until the nurse took his temperature.
(Do the math… it’s not hard to suss out why he wasn’t happy about that.)

I like the doctor we saw. He was good with Lightning and he listened to what we had to say and gave us constructive feedback on what to try. I give him a thumbs-up with an okay.

After dropping Mr. “They took my temperature WHERE?!” at home, it was on to Einstein Bagels to get breakfast-type foods. I haven’t been to Einstein in a while; it was a nice change of pace. And, as a note: Their omelette bagels are pretty tasty.

Back home for some down time. Naps are good. And now, errands!

Namaste.

Friday – 20 July 2007
I crashed a little early last night… which was a bit disappointing as I had wanted to finish Vision of the Future. Oh, well… that will give me something to read tonight. No, I didn’t pre-order Deathly Hallows. *shrug* I’ll read it when I read it.

This morning is moving along nicely. The abbreviated commute didn’t hurt, either.

Stray Toasters

• I was cruising boingboing.net when I saw an article titled “Thriller” as performed by inmates of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center. Of course, that caught my attention. But, I then noticed a link to LEGO Thriller. LEGO…. and Thriller… all rolled into one? How could I resist. Not only was it the music video, it was the long-form video, redone shot-for-shot. Thirteen minutes of LEGO stop-motion animation. Someone had way to much free time.
• Chuck Berry
• UUCP
• That Spells DNA
• Constitutional. As in “walk,” not as in “allowed by law.”
• I Feel Fantastic

Pow.

Namaste.

Thursday: coda
The post-work evening looked rather drab, until called and asked if I was interested in getting sushi.

Well, let me think about that… Sure!

And out we went. Tepanyaki Japanese Steak House. I think that this is the first time that I’ve eaten in a Japanese steak house since I went to visit and Tyanna back on Long Island. (And that’s been a while!) It was fun… even though I missed the shrimp that the chef tossed at me. Oh, well. I had a Chicken and Shrimp combination plate, with Ika (squid) nigiri and California Rolls. Quite tasty. It also reminded me of Kabuto, the Japanese steakhouse that Mom used to take us to in Greensboro, so it was not only a nice change of pace, it brought back a few pleasant memories.

Stray Toasters

• I am, once again, talking with the lovely Ms. .
• Safest Seat on a Plane: PM Investigates How to Survive a Crash
• Fluffernoodle. Almost as amusing to say as “Jigglypuff.” But not quite.
• Thank you to Tyranist for returning me to a softer world.
• Chocolate. Milk.
• CubeNews1
• I was wrong: There is an Iron Lad ‘Clix… which means that it makes even less sense for there not to be a Hawkeye II ‘Clix.
• I Would Die 4 U/Baby I’m a Star – two songs that make me bounce like a fiend.
• This excerpt from Ask Kate amused me.
  

  Dear Kate,
  I wonder what early Borg looked liked? Was it just some alien race that decided to go cybernetic? If so, when did they start assimilating other races? Is there a species 01? Questions like this just go on and on, like why do the Borg speak English(they even think in it). I find these questions confusing, maybe you could give me some insight.
  YOU WILL BE ASSIMILATED 10 of 23-
  
  Hi 23,
  Well, since you’ve asked me… early Borgs are among us! You’ve seen those people who walk around dazed with an earbud in one ear — early Borg! And those people who have a phone on one hip, an iPod on the other, and a PDA, and have to have the latest and greatest electronic gadgets — oh yeah, Borg too! Besides, haven’t we all seen the way the cellphone has evolved, remember how big they used to be only a few years ago? Next we’ll be implanted with our phone and we’ll have to plug the charge cable into our arm to power the batteries. See, we’re being consumed and dependent upon our technology… Technology is overtaking us! Grab your less advanced 8-tracks, and manual typewriters — and go! Run for the hills! Save yourselves!!!
  

• And, since I’ve already crossed the Neutral Zone… for : Requiem for Methuselah
• Oh, and here’s a bit of trivia for : Yvonne Craig, probably best known for her role as Batgirl from the 1960s Batman television series, also had a guest appearance on Star Trek: The Original Series. Whom did she play? Marta, you know… “the green chick.”
• The theme from The Simpsons, played on two guitars… by the same guy. Check it out.

Namaste.

Thursday – 19 July 2007
So far, it’s been a fairly decent day. The worst thing, so far, was the collection of monkeys on the road during the morning commute. Slow-in-the-fast-lane monkeys, truck-driving monkeys, monkeys who didn’t know how to merge when an opening was presented. Monkeys. But, I managed to make it down to AF without having to unload the disruptor cannons.

I had another good – and tiring – day at the gym. Today’s bench presses were:

• Set 1: 205 pounds/10 reps
• Set 2: 205 pounds/10 reps
• Set 3: 200 pounds/8 reps and 3 (slow and painful) reverse reps – instead of pushing the bar up, I had to allow it to/make it slowly descend

So, I’m pretty jazzed about that. Now, it’s just a matter of continuing to move that weight… and eventually see how much I can increase beyond 200 pounds.

The Best
I’ve been a fan of the song Tempted, by Squeeze, for many moons.
I’m also a fan of the Rockapella cover.

I’m a bit torn over which version is “The Best,” but I think that the Rockapella version edges out the original, ever so slightly… because of the harmonies that the group added.

Stray Toasters

• I’m not sure why continues to try to kill me… but she does. Although, today’s attempt was far less painful than last week’s. In fact, I even found this one entertaining and amusing.
• Seems as though Carmen and (and a few other family-types) may be in the area next month. If the timing is right, I may be able to kill multiple avians with a single piece of silicate.
• By way of : Messner ‘in God’s hands’
• Moab Brewery. (Damn you, !)
• That’s it. I’m moving to Sweden. Not (just) because of the Garden of Sweden, but because of this: Swedish woman gets superfast Internet.
• : Based on your comment, as we were leaving Clitorati last week, I think that I’ve found a theme that works: Parisien du Nord (instrumental), by Cheb Mami and K-Mel. This isn’t to say that I won’t change my mind at some later date, but this works pretty well for now.

Namaste.

Wednesday (coda)
The expedition to Dr. Volt’s was a success. I went back to work with my four-colored bounty and three (and ONLY three) pieces of plastic crack: Patriot, Stature and Sunspot. While I can understand why there’s no Iron Lad figure, I’m still a little unsure of why they did nor do a figure for Hawkeye (Kate Bishop). Oh, well… maybe they’ll put one in the next set.

Four-Color Coverage
Let’s get to it:

• Action Comics #852 – It’s the Jimmy Olsen issue. Watch as Jimmy – and his reporter pal, Clark Kent – observe a release hearing for The Kryptonite Man. Also, we see what led to Jimmy getting his handy-dandy Superman hypersonic signal watch. And, what’s going on with those monkeys at the zoo…?
• All Flash #1 – Wally West is back. And, he’s not exactly happy about the circumstances of his return. Here are the opening, pre-title, captions:
  

  My name is Wally West. I’m the Flash. The fastest man alive.

  And I’m still… too… late.

  I got super-speed back in grade school. Freak accident. Grew up running alongside my uncle, Barry Allen, the Flash before me.

  About midway through my adult career with the Justice League, I met Bart Allen, Barry’s grandson, who inherited Barry’s speed. The boy was flaky, unpredictable, and had the attention span of a bullet. He got codenamed “Impulse,” and it was probably the first thing that ever stuck to him.

  His grandmother, my Aunt Iris, brought Bart to me to train, and I spent months trying to figure out what I’d done to hack her off.

  I misjudged them both.

  Over the years, I watched Bart go from “Impulse the annoying” to “Kid Flash the amazing.” I learned to like him. A lot.

  When I decided to retire with the wife and kids, I had no hesitation about giving the Flash costume and identity to him. That’s what the Flashes do. We run our race, then we pass the baton to the next guy.

  I always figured I’d come back to check up on Bart–

  –not to catch his killer.

• The Brave and the Bold #5 – Batman and the Legion. Supergirl, Green Lantern and Adam Strange. And, what’s this..?! Another (somewhat different) Batman/Karate Kid fight? And what happens when you put a Kryptonian on a planet in a trinary-solar system? Three guesses. (Sorry, couldn’t resist.)
• Countdown: 41 – “Secret identities are such a pain…” Mary Marvel has a few moments of introspection. And, holy Titan A.E., Batman…. are Donna Troy, Jason Todd and Monitor #1 (I think) having a moment?:
  

  Donna: You deserve thanks, too, for helping our reality, and for helping Jason and me try to discover our places in it at last.
  Jason: She’s right. And we don’t even know your name.
  Monitor: Any gratitude paid me is irrelevant. My name is my mission– to maintain the balance in which you are elements and to prevent the coming of the Great Disaster.
  Jason: Then I’m gonna call you Bob.
  Donna: “Bob?”
  Jason: Because “To maintain the balance in which you are elements and to prevent the coming of the Great Disaster” is too much to say every time I want to ask you to pass the ketchup or something.
  Monitor: Mm. Very well, if calling me “Bob” will simplify matters for you, do as you will.

  And, , you’re going to want to pick this one up to see just who it was that kept Karate Kid from returning to the 31st Century.

• Green Lantern Corps #12 and #13 – Two dead Green Lanterns. Guy Gardner… the prime suspect?! Kilowog on a rampage. What’s wrong with Mogo? What are all of those… yellow… spores on its surface?
• Justice League of America #11 – First off, let me say how beautifully painted (or possibly drawn) this issue was; Gene Ha did some amazing work here. Brad Metzler wasn’t exactly a slouch either: Red Arrow and Vixen, buried alive. No signs of help on the way. And time is running out.
• Martha Washington Dies – This is the closing chapter in a book that Frank Miller started nearly twenty years ago, Give Me Liberty. I never read that book, but having read this one, I think that I might have to track it down.
• Superman #664 – Magic + Kryptonians = Not good (for the Kryptonian, that is). Arion apparently knows this. And using this knowledge, takes Superman down… Just before a newly-minted government team, dubbed “Squad K,” comes to kick Superman’s butt… Just before the Justice League comes to… well, you get the picture. And, as you can imagine, none of that does much to improve Superman’s mood.
• Superman/Batman #38 – Someone’s going around inciting fear in some of the citizens of Metropolis. And their ultimate target: A certain high-flying Kryptonian hero. But, the instigator is not The Scarecrow. Nor is it Sinestro nor anyone in his newly-formed Sinestro Corps. But, once their – and their co-conspirator’s – identity is revealed, I don’t think that you’ll be surprised at just who it is.
• Ultimate Power #5 and #6 – Irresistable Force (Nick Fury, along with the Ultimates, X-Men, Spider-Man and the FF), meet Unmovable Object (the Squadron Supreme). And… what usually happens when two groups of superhumans get together? That’s right: BIG. FIGHT. Knock-down. Drag-out. The only thing missing is hair-pulling. And, just who is that person lurking around the Helicarrier with Nick Fury? They look… familiar.
• Ultimate Spider-Man #111 – I stopped reading this title (regularly) almost a year ago. I saw the cover of this issue and decided to flip through it. The few pages that I read made me decide to take a chance on it. It wasn’t a bad choice. This issue was aptly titled “The Talk.” May Parker. Peter Parker. The kitchen table. And the truth about Spider-Man. In the words of the Rush song, Force Ten:
  

  
  Tough times demand tough talk
  demand tough hearts

  Well worth the price. This issue also sees the end of Mark Bagley’s run as writer. He has been on the book since it began, nearly ten years ago – these days, you don’t find a writer who sticks with a title for that long, especially at one of the big publishing houses. I won’t say that Mr. Bagley saved the best for last – he had some good stories along the way – but he definitely goes out with a bang.

Stray Toasters

• I have breathed new life into my LEGO and Bionicle LEGO watches! All thanks to the modern technology known as “new batteries.”
• Unfortunately, my clear-backed Fossil watch seems to have suffered fatal deceleration trauma. I need to take it into a jewelry shop and see if it can be made whole once more.
• Thanks to for sending me a link to this picture.
• Acolyte Derek’s training proceeds nicely, as evidenced by this post. He also gets bonus credit for this post, particularly the second cartoon – the seventh bullet point on this list is why… and he wasn’t aware of that item when he created his blog entry.
• : NPR is running a series called “Vocal Impressions: Hearing Voices,” where the commentator “…has been asking listeners to describe their impressions of famous voices.” They are currently on Round Six; Round Five apparently included “She Whose Sole Purpose On Earth Is for Me to Ridicule” (scroll down for the comments).
• Guitar Hero fans should take a look at this t-shirt.
• Down for the Count Profile: Karate Kid
• and/or : Glow-in-the-dark cross-stitch
• Tori Amos’ Big Wheel (video)

Namaste.

Wednesday – 18 July 2007
4:43 AM.

That’s when a rocket launched from just outside my bedroom window. Needless to say, I was roused from sleep – rather suddenly. It took me a moment or two to realize that I was not, in fact, on a launch pad at Kennedy Space Center. It turns out that it wasn’t anything so grand.

It was my air conditioning unit. Yay. I need to call maintenance and get them to take a look at it.

Otherwise, the day’s been fairly uneventful, so far.

Stray Toasters

• I think I’ll visit the good Dr. Volt’s at lunch.
• By way of comes: Basic Instructions – How to Apply the Laws of Physics to Personal Relationships
• DNS, stub zones and hosts! Oh, my!
• I have a pending “forgiveness vs. permission” matter coming up. Nothing major, it’s more amusing than anything.
• Dolphin and Iraq veteran share wonder of prosthetics
• “Melissa digs art. A lot.”
• 
• I didn’t bring anything for lunch today, so I faced the age-old conundrum of “What do I want for lunch?” I just decided to go to Dasks and get a gyro. That, in the way that my brain works, led immediately to Schoolhouse Rock’s My Hero, Zero…. which, in turn, led to “My Gyro, Zero.” *sigh*

Namaste.

So, kicking off today’s workout…

Three sets of flat bench press at 200 pounds.  Actually, it was:

• Set 1 – 200 pounds/10 reps
• Set 2 – 205 pounds/10 reps
• Set 3 – 205 pounds/8 reps and 200 pounds/3 reps

Sure, it’s five months past the date that I wanted to be there, but we’ve been doing a few other things in our routine.  Oddly enough, I’ve been able to do sets of 200 pounds on a decline press for some time now.  But, that’s not the point…

But the point is: I did it on the flat bench.

Oh… and it hurt.
(But it was worth it.)

Tuesday – 17 July 2007
I woke up in my clothes again this morning
I don’t know exactly where I am
And I should heed my doctor’s warning
He does the best with me he can

Okay, I didn’t really wake up in my clothes. But I did wake up. Before the alarm. Again. Not terribly long before it went off, but enough to make me think,”I could have gotten another 15 minutes’ sleep…”

The commute was, for the most part, alright… with the notable exception of a couple of van-driving PoW monkeys. Driving a little below the posted speed. In the left lane. Up Traverse Mountain.

*braincramp*

This required some judicious passing on the right. In fact, I had to go two lanes to the right so that I could also get around the semi that was in the next lane in. Fortunately, I wasn’t alone in my decision to “Choose the Right.” (Yeah, like I was going to pass up that golden opportunity…)

Stray Toasters

• I think that this is pretty cool: One giant leap for space fashion: MIT team designs sleek, skintight spacesuit
• From Dwim: The Want List: Sweep the Foot!
• From Derek: Wal-Mart to Sell Jesus, Religious Action Figures
• By way of Eric: Abortion and Slavery
• Welcome Back, Potter
• 

Namaste.

Monday (coda)
The post-work day has been somewhat productive.

• I got a new phone, as my old one was quite literally falling apart. I didn’t need anything incredibly fancy, so I went with the Motorola V3m.
• I looked in on a friend’s place, while he’s out of town.
• I cooked dinner (chicken breasts; rice, cooked in cream of mushroom soup; stir-fried vegetables)… and after it was done, fixed tomorrow’s lunch.

So, all-in-all, it wasn’t a bad evening. And I have a glass of Gewürztraminer (Holy crap, Firefox actually knows how to spell that… correctly) next to me. *nod* Not a bad evening at all.

I even caught online and chatted with her for a while. She pointed back in the direction of Monster by Mail. I then found the link to his Flickr page, with tons o’ zombified goodness. and I spent the next… half-hour or so stumbling across things that “fit” different people. Here’s what we came up with:

• and Tyranist: This should be up your alley.
• : You get two, this and this.
• : Pour vous… ceci
• : I saw this and thought of you.

And what conversation would be complete without the barbs and jabs…?

[21:03] : ah – for brad: http://flickr.com/photos/jawboneradio/670912335/
[21:04] : BWAHAHAAHAHAHAAHAH
[21:04] : You should [send] that to him… or post it.
[21:04] : i’ll let you 😀
[21:04] : you’ll be a hero
[21:04] : I already am… duh!
[21:04] : 🙂
[21:05] : i mean in the REAL world, silly
[21:05] : not where you dress in skirts 😉
[21:05] : I’m the Pope. What more do I need?
[21:06] : And, I look nice in that skirt.
[21:06] : I mean “shenti”
[21:06] : And I even shaved my legs for that!

Stray Toasters

• I really don’t feel like cleaning the kitchen. But, I will.
• and , this is a “Two birds, one stone” item: click here.
• Jelly Bellys.
• For :
• These Games Are So Bad, It’s Not Funny
• I have another idea for a lyric-to-drawing picture… and I think that it might supersede the one I’m planning on doing for Ed’s Song, because I can do this one much faster.
• The World Is Not Enough (video, by Garbage)
• Acolyte Derek posted a link to this video, done in LEGO. I countered with this video. And, I held this one in reserve, just in case… but I didn’t need it.
• I want another Sentinel Build-A-Figure.
• Jackie Chan (mp3)

And, that’s a wrap.

Namaste.

Monday – 16 July 2007
It begins anew…

I’m not exactly sure what’s going on, but I think that my body is on “automatic pilot” or something along those lines. I was up at 6:11 AM. That’s not really a bad thing, as the alarm is set to go off at 6:15 AM. The… unusual (?) part is: I haven’t done anything like this since I was in high school, I think. Sure, I know that it’s basically my circadian rhythms getting in line with the (rough) schedule that I keep. I just found it a little odd. I’m pretty sure that it’s why I’ve been getting up so early on the weekends, too, though.

There’s something that I neglected to note last night: I noted how the new table – when the leaves are collapsed – looks a little small in the dining room. That’s fine, because I don’t need a huge table… and when I do need more space, I can extend the leaves. TADA! But, the table – like Mother Hubbard’s cupboards – was a bit bare. I have the place settings that Sib-1 and gave me a few years ago on the table (and they look rather nice, I might add), but there was still something missing. Basically, it needed a centerpiece or something to break up the blandness.

I found the perfect thing – at least for now or until something else strikes me as possibly “better.”

When my grandmother died, my father asked me if there was anything that I wanted from the old house. At the time, I could only come up with one thing (technically “four,” but let’s not quibble): A set of angels that I had given my grandmother for Christmas many years ago. I’m not sure exactly what they are made of; I don’t think it’s plaster or ceramic, but it’s something along those lines. I had originally planned to put them someplace else, but opted to set the four of them – wings to the middle, facing away from each other – in the center of the table. I’m rather happy with them there and they look good, to boot.

Stray Toasters

• Read this.
• I actually took the time to eat breakfast this morning. Just a bowl of cereal, but still… it’s something.
• From the “Some Peoples’ Children….” file (NOT to be confused with the “Children of Some Peoples’ Children” file): Nev. couple accused of starving infants while playing video games.
• By way of : Tokyo Dance Trooper
• 
• Code Monkey very simple man
  With big warm fuzzy secret heart:
  Code Monkey like you

Namaste.

Sunday: coda
It’s 11:45 and I still haven’t had dinner yet.  Popcorn and cotton candy, yes.  Dinner, no.

I went to see Paprika at the Broadway.  The movie’s basic premise:  What would happen if a machine allowed people to tap into others’ dreams… and what if that machine fell into the wrong hands?

Wow.

Perfect Blue may have been a right skull-fuck of a movie, but at least it got a few minutes into the movie before things went wonky.  This one…?  Right off the bat.  I don’t think that it was even three minutes in before everything went skewampus.   That said, I thought that it was a good movie.  It took a bit to suss out who was whom and how things related to each other, but things were okay once that was done.

Just before the movie’s end, posters for Satoshi Kon’s three previous movies – Perfect Blue, Millennium Actress and Tokyo Godfathers – can be seen.  I thought that it was a neat twist, not knowing that Kon had done this movie, as well.  I now need to see Actress and Godfathers, which most likely means that be adding a few more DVDs to the collection, soon.

Sunday – 15 July 2007
I woke from an otherwise good sleep a few times this morning… “just because,” as best I can figure. Around 9:30, I had my fill of lying in bed, so I made my way to the Command Center. After a few minutes of surfing, messaged me to see if I was still interested in going to the driving range. I was, so I got ready and hit the road.

I had originally considered going to Pebblebrook, in Sandy, but we opted for Murray Parkway, instead. Nice driving range and you can use drivers there. We hit a couple of buckets of baskets of balls. She said that my form looked good, but she suggested that I move in – slightly – on the tee. Lo and behold, it made a decent difference in my drives – better contact and fewer ground-skimmers.

Afterwards, we headed to the Garden of Sweden. We’d worked up appetites on the range – and we had both skipped breakfast – so we decided to have lunch before shopping. Swedish meatballs. Salad. Potatoes. And “Chocolate Overload Cake.” Mm-hmm, that’s right. Then the shopping began. My mission: Dining room table. We wandered through the store, looking at other things, before going to get… the… the… um… Where are the tables that are supposed to be here?! *blink* The entire bin of boxes – no, where the boxes should have been – was empty.

*braincramp*

Fine. I went to find a sales associate. He looked. None in the store. I corrected him: There was one – the floor display upstairs. He made a call… and a short while later, I was the proud owner of a new table, at a discounted price. Selah. We loaded it into <lj user=”suzie_lightning”>’s car and brought it here. It looks good in the dining area… but in it’s “small” form, the room seems to swallow it. To me, that just means that I need something on the walls to fill the blank space. Good thing I have a couple of ideas of how to do that.

The Best
Although it’s not radically different from the original, I prefer the No Doubt version of It’s My Life to the Talk Talk version.

On the flip side, Genesis’ version of Land of Confusion still wears the crown, although the Disturbed cover isn’t bad… it’s just not the same. Likewise, I prefer the Don Henley rendition of The Boys of Summer to the version by The Ataris.

Stray Toasters

• I talked with the ‘rents today. They’re doing well.
• I exercised restraint in the Garden of Sweden, quite a feat for the Patron Saint of Poor Impulse Control.
• This looks interesting…
• The world is not enough
  But it is such a perfect place to start, my love
• For Derek: Stephen Colbert’s Tek Jansen #1
• If Daredevil is known as “The man without fear,” doesn’t it make more sense to juxtapose him with Hal Jordan (or any other Green Lantern), whose power derives from his/their ability to overcome fear (or, in Jordan’s case, be without fear)? Instead, they always stack him up against Batman. I can understand that, in the sense that aside from DD’s radar sense, he’s the closest thing to “baseline human without superpowers” to put up against Gotham’s protector… aside from the late Captain America. But still… *shrug*
• Pop Quiz: What do you do when the God of Hunger – the very same god you’re trying to destroy – shows up to say “Hi,” while you’re in the middle of trying to get one of the weapons you’re planning on using to destroy him?Did I mention “He’s a god,” already? I did? Okay… just wanted to be clear on that point.

  I think that it basically comes down to: “We’re boned.”
  (Remember Dunwich County? Yeah… that level of boned.)

• I realize that putting old shows on DVD and sticking ’em in your local video purveyor is the new “in” thing, but I would have never expected this show to get that treatment.
• Comic Urban Legend: Marvel Comics once had a line of female superhero comic books. Answer.

Time to figure out what I plan on doing for dinner… and what to do this evening.

Namaste.

Saturday – 14 July 2007
For reasons yet unknown, I was up at 8:15 this morning… after going to be sometime around 3:30. Not that this was a problem, per se, I just wasn’t expecting to be up quite so early.

Last night was apparently Rob the Route Planner (not to be confused with Bob the Builder) night – both Dad and Adam are travelling, and I was acting as remote navigator. Not a problem, especially as I’m kind of used to the role, but it was a little amusing. Adam is traveling a small portion of the route that I took when I moved out here, so I was passingly familiar with some of the things he should look for, but had to consult the Internet and a Rand McNally atlas to fill in some gaps when he got into an area that I didn’t travel. And I neglected to ask him to stop in Metropolis, Illinois to get a picture of the Superman statue. And, I just spoke with Dad; he’s about 10 miles out of Reidsville – he’s stopping in to see Mom and my stepfather and one of my aunts on his way home from West-by-God Virginia. He’s spoken with Adam this morning, who is already underway on the next leg of his trip.

Last night was also Clitorati night. Good turn out… and Acolyte Derek also put in an appearance at coffee. The conversation-to-musical reference generator in my head was turned up to 11. I think that it amused Chris S. to find out just how quickly – and randomly – it worked.

This morning, I watched a “new” episode of Legion of Super-Heroes: “Phantoms.” In it, Clark inadvertently releases a criminal from the Phantom Zone. This results in lots of property damage across New Metropolis as the Legion tries to wrangle him back into the Zone.

I saw Transformers (again) with <lj user=”duckspeaker”> and his… friend and/or co-worker (I think), Terry. Watching robots wantonly blow up lots of property is a great way to start off a Saturday afternoon.

The Best
New addition to the list: Big Bad Voodoo Daddy – I Wanna Be Like You (from The Jungle Book).
You can check out a version of it here.

Four-Color Coverage
This week’s take included eleven weeks of Countdown, DC’s latest weekly maxi-series that I had originally intended to skip… until I found out that Karate Kid seems to be featured in it. Which means that it’s a Legion tie-in, even if only tangentially. Which means that I am compelled to buy it. So, that said, let’s get to it:

• Action Comics #851 – Superman is trapped in the Phantom Zone, while General Zod, Ursa (and a few other Kryptonian villains) are free on Earth. But, just like Ringo Starr, Superman gets by with a little help from his friends. Or just one friend, in this case: Mon-El, who at this point had been in the Zone for about 15 – 20 years… of the 1,000 years that he would wind up being there.
• All-Star Superman #8 – More adventures on Bizarro World. And Lois discovers Superman’s secret. No, not that he’s Clark Kent (that was Issues #1 and 2… and she didn’t believe him). The secret that his mission to the sun in Issue #1 is killing him.
• City of Heroes #20 – Final issue. This issue has a big knockdown, drag out fight that lasts for seven pages, establishes a few changes in the CoH/CoV uniferse and alluded to a few things in the upcoming in-game update, Issue 10. There was a little too much exposition in this issue and it felt as though they tried to wrap things up a little too quickly. But, what’re ya gonna do?
• Countdown #51 – 42 – Something is amiss in the newly reborn DC Multiverse. The Monitors – DC’s answer to Marvel’s Watchers – are back; they who haven’t really been seen since 1985’s Crisis on Infinite Earths. Now, there are 52 of them – one for each level of the new multiverse. And, at least one of them is on a mission: Eliminate anomalies in the timestream/multiverse – namely, anyone who should be on one Earth, but has migrated to another one.The mysteries don’t end there. Why is Jimmy Olsen suddenly exhibiting superpowers? What’s happening to Mary Marvel? What are the Flash’s Rogues planning? What’s the story behind the Athenian Women’s Help Shelter… and what’s Harleen Quinzel’s angle? Who’s killing the New Gods? What is Monarch planning for the new multiverse?One thing that I am appreciating is a look at some of the between-the-pages scenes that occurred during “The Lightning Saga.” Case in point: A scene aboard the JLA Watchtower, with Dr. Mid-Nite, Dream Girl, Karate Kid and Starman looking down on Earth:
  

  Dr. Mid-Nite: Does she still look the same in your era? Or have we managed to completely pave her over by then?
  Karate Kid: Actually, Earth’s axis is tilted differently in our time. The South Pole’s in Australia…
  Dream Girl: Can we please not make chitchat? I’m worried about the others.
  Dr. Mid-Nite: Understood, Dream Girl, but we’ll find them, safe and sound, just like we found you.
  Karate Kid: We appreciate your Justice Society and Justice League putting everything into finding our lost teammates, Dr. Mid-Nite… but Dream Girl says one of us is going to die before this is all over, and she’s never wrong about these things.
  Dr. Mid-Nite: Perhaps… but all of you experienced memory loss when you arrived here from the thirty-first century. In the case of Starman, the cognitive impairment was, shall we say, even more profound. How do you know Dream Girl’s precognitive abilities aren’t similarly affected? Just let us finish tracking down your missing teammates’ flight rings. We’ll bring them back here safe, just like Dream Girl. And, hey, at least you’re not locked up in one of our holding cells anymore.
  Karate Kid: Aren’t we? You’ve given us free run of the station, but we’re effectively in quarantine up here.
  Dream Girl: Val, this man is trying to help us.
  Karate Kid: He’s diagnosing us, Nura. He knows a potential infection when he sees one.
  Dr. Mid-Nite: Fair enough, Karate Kid, but can you blame me for being cautious? You very nearly took down Batman!
  Karate Kid: I was mind controlled. I’m not a threat anymore.
  Dr. Mid-Nite: *hh* Do you know why you traveled a thousand years back in time to come here?
  Karate Kid: You know I don’t.
  Dr. Mid-Nite: Do any of you know why you’re here?
  *blank looks on Dream Girl, Karate Kid and Starman’s faces*
  Dr. Mid-Nite: Then until we’re sure your mission isn’t something along the lines of “Kill Sarah Conner,” I suggest you relax and enjoy the view.

  …and…

  *Karate Kid approaches Batman on a Gotham rooftop*
  Batman: People who try to sneak up on me usually regret it.
  Karate Kid: I’m sorry, Batman. I didn’t come to make trouble. I just wanted to say that the Legion is returning to the Thirty-First Century. I’m going to go rendezvous with them right now…
  Batman: Don’t let me keep you.
  Karate Kid: Before I go, I, uh… I am humbly grateful to have fought such a skilled martial artist–
  Batman: Don’t. You outfought me. Once. You wouldn’t in a rematch.
  Karate Kid: I wasn’t trying to rub your nose in it. I only wanted to… Never mind. *flies away*
  Batman: *smirking* Did you expect a sidekick job?

• Fantastic Four #547 – I think that this has to be one of my favorite issues of FF ever, if only for the following exchange between Storm, The Thing and The Black Panther:
  

  Storm: I can’t believe you said that.
  Thing: I didn’t say it, I’m just telling you what Michael said.
  Storm: You can tell Michael Collins that my hair is completely natural.
  Thing: Okay, you know. Whatever. Sorry I brought it up.
  Storm: This is not a weave. Go ahead.
  Thing: Go ahead what?
  Storm: See for yourself. Pull my hair.
  Thing: Are you nuts?
  Storm: *wrapping strands of hair in Ben’s hands* Hard as you want.
  Thing: I don’t want!
  Storm: Do it. *irritated look on her face*
  Thing: *lifts Storm a few inches off the floor… by her hair* There. Happy now?
  Storm: I think I proved my point.
  *Black Panther walks into the room*
  Thing: T’Challa, I can explain…
  Black Panther: Don’t bother. She’s very sensitive about her hair. Word of advice: As you value your life, never ask her if she’s wearing colored contact lenses.
  Storm: I ‘m not!
  Black Panther: I know, my love. *walks out of the room*

• Green Lantern #21 – Aftermath of the attack of the Sinestro Corps. 59 Green Lantern rings seek replacement bearers. Most of the Guardians are… ignoring… the Blackest Night prophecy. Two Guardians – Sayd and Ganthet (surprise) – don’t think that it’s a wise course of action…. and recruit Officer 2814.1 (Hal Jordan) to spearhead an attack against the Sinestro Corps. But, what is it that Hal Jordan (still) fears?
• Justice Society of America #7 – Another post-“Lightning Saga”thread weaves through this story, with Superman visiting Starman at the Sunshine Sanitarium:
  

  Starman: *singing* “…to make me fret, I fly a-round! I had strings, but now I’m free– there are no strings on me!” *walks into the cafeteria*
  Doctor: Good afternoon, Starman. You did a very good thing this morning, pulling that school bus from the river. You saved a lot of kids and made a lot of parents happy.
  Starman: Well, today should be a good day for everyone, Doctor. It’s Wednesday, after all.
  Floyd: Hi, Starman.
  Starman: Hi, Floyd. Oh, yes! *bends down to look at Sloppy Joes on the lunch counter* They don’t have these when I come from.
  *off-panel voice* Excuse me, Starman.
  Superman: I know the Justice Society wants a few words with you , but since we’re old friends– I asked for some time first. I want to know more about what’s happened with the Legion. And I want to know more about you.
  Starman: *chompf* You ‘anna ‘oppy ‘oe, Kal?
  Superman: I’d love one, Thom.
  *the pair get lunch trays and sit down*
  Starman: Aren’t you going to drink your milk?
  Superman: Um, no.
  Starman: It makes your bones stronger. You’re not still mad at me, are you, Kal?
  Superman: I’m not mad at you, Thom.
  Starman: The we’re still friends?
  Superman: The Legion will always be my friends.
  Starman: Mine too. I like Power Girl an awful lot, but not in the way I love my Dreamer. I can’t wait to see her again. *chompf*
  Superman: Why didn’t you go back with the other Legionnaires?
  Starman: I wanted to, but I can’t. I’m here to help.
  Superman: Help who?
  Starman: Myself. And Earth, too! The black hole is supposed to help her see the truth. Then he’ll come and why… the Justice Society of America shows us all the way. The world needs better good guys! That’s not just our world, you know. Or our time. But the future isn’t up to me to save. I have my own job. I have gravity powers! I’m quite happy about that. *uses his power to crush a milk carton*
  Superman: Why did the Legion come back here?
  Starman: There’s trouble in the 31st Century, you see. The big three say you can’t help them.
  Superman: Why not?
  Starman: Why Clark Kents can’t come! It’s common sense.
  Superman: When they opened the Speed Force, Wally West and his family came back.
  Starman: And they say lightning never strikes twice in the same place! Pfft! Just ask him.
  Superman: But is that why the Legion were here? To bring the Flash home?
  Starman: From the vibrational plane! Zip! Zoom! The Legion of three worlds! Do you remember XS? She had such a crush on you. And I got to meet another Thom and another Thom!
  Superman: I don’t understand what you’re talking about.
  Starman: Yeah. Me either.

• The New Avengers #32 – Welcome to “Who Wants to Be a Skrull-ionnaire?” There’s tension on the team. After last issue’s revelation that Skrulls may have replaced some of Marvel’s best and brightest, now the question looms: “Who can you trust?” In the New Av’s case: It seems to be no one. Not even your teammates. Where are Scully and Mulder when you need ’em?
• Supergirl #19 – Finally! FINALLY! Kara grows up, grows a pair (so to speak) and owns up for her actions – or lack thereof – over the past year. Maybe this book will actually see some progress and story advancement now…
• Ultimate Fantastic Four #43 – The Silver Surfer arrives… and he’s not exactly the harbinger of good news.
• Ultimate X-Men #84 – Wolverine lets off a little steam. Stryfe attracts the attention of a fleet of Sentinels. Bishop’s team of X-Men makes a public appearance.
• Uncanny X-Men #488 – Nightcrawler and the Professor go off in search of Magneto. The Morlocks declare war on the over-world. Storm, Hepzibah and Warpath head to the Morlock tunnels in search of some answers, which leads to this scene:
  

  Storm: Can both of you concentrate, please? We’re about to enter potentially hostile territory.
  Hepzibah: I do not like tunnels either, Storm. Especially not ones that stink of rats and vermin.
  Storm: For me, it’s a little bit worse than not liking them, Hepzibah. It’s worrying that they might drive me insane… *hovers down into the sewers*
  Hepzibah: Warpath? What does she mean?
  Warpath: Storm’s claustrophobic. Can’t take being in small places, or being boxed in. It takes all she’s got to even go into these tunnels.
  Hepzibah: Then let us not leave her on her own down there. *drops through manhole… into sewer water* Ukk. This is so unclean.
  Storm: Heh… you look…
  Hepzibah: Careful with your next words…
  Storm: I was just going to say… dignified. You look dignified. For a wet cat.
  Hepzibah: You are a brave woman, Storm. Very brave woman.
  Storm: You don’t know the half of it.

Stray Toasters

• I spoke with Dad and Adam again today; their respective trips are going well.
• I am going to have to replace my cell phone. Today. This one is on its last… hinge.
• To go to the Garden of Sweden or not to go? That is the question.
• I should install – and play – Locomotion. Finally. I’ve had it since God was a boy.
• I think that I’m actually craving Ika… and maybe a few other types of sushi.

Time to get something to eat and get some errands taken care of.

Namaste.

Friday – 13 July 2007
Thank God it’s…

Last night, after deciding what to do for dinner – being lazy and not wanting to go out to eat – I decided to take on Paragon City’s criminal element. As soon as I logged in, I was invited to join a team comprised of a few members of my supergroup. We fought The Council and Freakshow… and a hybrid Nictus-Freakshow (think “Freakshow, with some of the raw power of a Peacebringer or Warshade”) called “Shadow Freakshow.” There was some dying – and debt – involved. But, when all was said and done, I had reached Security Level 31. And I was alright with that.

Stray Toasters

• I was about to look up something on the Nictus-infused Freakshow and mistyped “city of heroes” as “city of herpes.” I caught the mistake before I hit ENTER, but I am almost afraid to think about what the results for that search would have looked like.
• Jesse, meet Sam.
• (among others) might dig on this: Steampunk Batman costume – for sale on eBay (I’m pretty sure that this link will go dead shortly after the auction closes, but I couldn’t pass up posting it. Thanks to for pointing this out!)
• We are a part of the Rhythm Nation.
  (We are, according to Janet. “Ms. Jackson,” if you’re nasty.”)
• DC Direct Action Figure Archive
• 
• , can you identify the other person (the one not in red-and-blue) on this cover? He looks… familiar.
  (And since he’s running around in Countdown, does that make it a Legion crossover maxi-series?)
• My calves hurt.
• Be selective
  Be objective
  Be an asset to the collective
• Notable citizens of Salt Lake – I grok seven of those; the other three…? Not so much. And what about the ever-lovable B’Orrin Snatch?

Namaste.