Posts
So, really, I know very few people actually read this blog. Thus, those few that do might wonder why I, every so often, post random lists of links instead of writing something moderately more interesting. The answer is twofold and pretty simple. First, I'm a pretty boring person and don't usually have something interesting to post. Second, the lists are more for me, to refer back to at a later time, as most have sparks for story ideas. That's why a lot of them are science-y in nature. If I don't compile them somewhere, then I will forget them and good story ideas go down the drain. This is just the easiest forum for me to keep track.
And on that note, more links of interest:
Humans evolving faster and faster
I don't understand it but it deals with the previous link.
Falling from heights and surviving sans parachute.
because I think Space Travel is awesome. It's mind blowing
so there isn't any story here, but this is just crazy. Rooftop tennis to the extreme.
Herbal medicine, wormood is good for the Crohns. (Wormwood is what absinthe is made out of)
Who needs a mongoose when we already have squirrels?
Growing cells into new shapes, this can be useful (for science and for my fiction)
A study as to how visual perceptions skew our mental projections and other scenes (ie we rely heavily on visual cues and create differences even when none exist)
Invisibility cloak, interesting if true.
Why we dream, rehearsals for disasters.
Wild! But maybe they only found white kryptonite
So I can watch this at home because the computer at work has no sound.
Mega64.com - check it out, looks like it could be funny.
Strange strange deaths.
I need to hear this with sound.
Genetic story idea or at least help for my own story.
Robot evolution. How robots learn to lie in order to survive.
Why would anyone actually do this? Two games played simultaniously with the same controller.
Alternate to spider-mans sticky powers.
Man returns to army after sex change operation.
The future of cyberpunk dialog. Kinda makes me wish I had a cell phone to figure this stuff out.
I don't really think that god wants it done this way. Seems to defeat the purpose of prayer.
There is a romantic comedy in here somewhere.
Cool but weird, with a potential bad turn for the rabbit, though maybe Disney would like the rights for their next animation.
A neat new theory trying to explain the universe.
I just think it's neat that we are still discovering new species on this planet. The diversity of life is just amazing.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Why only wenseday?
Why have I only been posting on Wenesdays? Well, that's an extremely boring question. Don't you have anything better to do with your time than ask something that absolutely no one either cares about, or has even noticed? If you are reading this blog, then I assume that answer to the latter n is a resounding no. Thus, I shall answer the former.
The only time I've really been at the computer with the time or inclination to write, ie haven't been working at starbucks since 5:30 in the AM, or am about to go into Starbucks to work until 11:00 in the PM, is when I am at Tribeca Productions on Wensedays and often, especially during the writer's strike, have nothing else to do. Now that the writer's strike is over, I still have little to do, hence my posting only on Wenesdays.
Some news:
I added a link to my youngest brother's new blog That Green Gentleman in my link section.
I'm getting sick, but trying desperately not to. I didn't sleep at all on Saturday night. We went out for my brother's bachelor party (not the one with the blog) and I didn't get back from Manhattan until four in the am. As I was scheduled to work at six thrity I figured sleep would just make me more tired and I stayed awake and worked my eight hour shift. I got a lot of sleep afterwards, but everytime I wear myself down like that I get sick. And always the same way too. Sore throat that turns into a runny nose and congestion headache, and is usually gone in about a weeks time. So I figure I have a few more days of drinking copious amounts of orange juice, eating lots of soup, and trying my best to stay out of the cold and rain (doens't help that I was out shoveling snow three times yesterday, and that it is horrid and cold and rainy today), drinking tea, and sleeping.
As always, good night, and good luck.
The only time I've really been at the computer with the time or inclination to write, ie haven't been working at starbucks since 5:30 in the AM, or am about to go into Starbucks to work until 11:00 in the PM, is when I am at Tribeca Productions on Wensedays and often, especially during the writer's strike, have nothing else to do. Now that the writer's strike is over, I still have little to do, hence my posting only on Wenesdays.
Some news:
I added a link to my youngest brother's new blog That Green Gentleman in my link section.
I'm getting sick, but trying desperately not to. I didn't sleep at all on Saturday night. We went out for my brother's bachelor party (not the one with the blog) and I didn't get back from Manhattan until four in the am. As I was scheduled to work at six thrity I figured sleep would just make me more tired and I stayed awake and worked my eight hour shift. I got a lot of sleep afterwards, but everytime I wear myself down like that I get sick. And always the same way too. Sore throat that turns into a runny nose and congestion headache, and is usually gone in about a weeks time. So I figure I have a few more days of drinking copious amounts of orange juice, eating lots of soup, and trying my best to stay out of the cold and rain (doens't help that I was out shoveling snow three times yesterday, and that it is horrid and cold and rainy today), drinking tea, and sleeping.
As always, good night, and good luck.
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
Still so sleepy
This was going to be my week of lists, where everyday was a different fun list (no not links, just random Ami thoughts) but I've been too tired to get anything together. Still working more hours than I would like, and sleeping too little. I've had a bit of fun, went out for dim sum with two freinds yesterday before work, so that was nice.
I started the ball rolling in planning a bachelor's party for my brother who is to be wed in March, but completely fell off the ball due to work, exhustion, and a bit of laziness. Lucky one of Hillel's freinds picked up the ball and there is a tentitive plan for the weekend. So I got lucky, and feel a little bad that I didn't acutally plan anything myself, just threw it out for someone else to plan.
To be honest, having written only two paragraphs I've already forgotten what my point was going to be in this post. I know I had a point when I started, but now, not even two minutes into typing this, I've lost it. I need to stop working six days a week.
And on that note, hooray brother, hopefully it will all work out. And lists shall probably come next week, if I get back on my game.
Stay happy kiddos
Also, it seems Rawbean stopped blogging again. I'd have probably known this sooner had I read her blog more frequently. But I read other people's blogs about as frequently as I post my own, which gives you a pretty good idea as to how often that is. It isn't that I don't like the blog, if I didn't I wouldn't link to it from here, just that when I don't blog myself I kinda forget about the blogging of others. it's one of those out of site, out of mind (and that was an intentional pun, site instead of sight, as in website, it's funny because they're homophones).
I started the ball rolling in planning a bachelor's party for my brother who is to be wed in March, but completely fell off the ball due to work, exhustion, and a bit of laziness. Lucky one of Hillel's freinds picked up the ball and there is a tentitive plan for the weekend. So I got lucky, and feel a little bad that I didn't acutally plan anything myself, just threw it out for someone else to plan.
To be honest, having written only two paragraphs I've already forgotten what my point was going to be in this post. I know I had a point when I started, but now, not even two minutes into typing this, I've lost it. I need to stop working six days a week.
And on that note, hooray brother, hopefully it will all work out. And lists shall probably come next week, if I get back on my game.
Stay happy kiddos
Also, it seems Rawbean stopped blogging again. I'd have probably known this sooner had I read her blog more frequently. But I read other people's blogs about as frequently as I post my own, which gives you a pretty good idea as to how often that is. It isn't that I don't like the blog, if I didn't I wouldn't link to it from here, just that when I don't blog myself I kinda forget about the blogging of others. it's one of those out of site, out of mind (and that was an intentional pun, site instead of sight, as in website, it's funny because they're homophones).
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Superman Returns, Again
Because I have some spare time right now, and lack of anywhere else to focus my imagination, and because sequels and superhero movies make money, I give you my thoughts as to how I would write the next Superman movie.
Ideally I would be able to start from scratch, leaving the 1978 Richard Donner Superman movie and 2007 Bryan Singer sequel/remake mythology out of it completely.
But as this is far from an ideal world (just ask Plato) for the sake of this pointless exercise, let's assume that I'd have to make it directly connected to the most recent incarnation (see Bryan Singer's sequel/remake link above).
I'm also going to assume that any reader of this entry has seen the most recent Superman movie. If you haven't, this is going to be something of a spoiler.
If you haven't seen it and are still reading because you are so completely fascinated with me, or just don't care if it's a bit ruined, here is a recap of the ending of the previous film. Superman ripped a man-made island composed entirly of kryptonite (built by one Lex Luthor) out of the Atlantic and hurled it into outer space. He nearly dies, but recovers only once he finds that he, not Richard White (Lois's fiancé) is the biological father of Lois's son Jason. Lex Luthor loses all his henchmen save Kitty and is stranded on a teeny tiny island in the middle of nowhere, with nothing but his girl Kitty, a small Pomeranian dog, a palm tree with six coconuts, and a helicopter without any fuel. The End.
And without any further ado, my thoughts for a sequel. This is only a rambling treatment, which of course would need a few polishes and revisions, but as it stands in my head right now:
We start on a boat anchored many miles off the coast of Metropolis. Here we have treasure hunters deep sea diving looking for any remnants of the Kryptonite Island that Lex Luthor built. They have no desire to kill Superman, but know that Kryptonite is an alien mineral, and have been hired by a private research firm for a tremendous amount of money to bring the mineral back for further study. Their motive is purely for profit, not for evil. Low and Behold they find a few small chunks of Kryptonite that fell off the Island as it was flung to outer space. One the way back from their successful search, coincidence of coincidences, they notice a helicopter stranded on a teeny tiny island and decide to investigate. Bum, bum, bummmmmm.
Now cut to Superman doing superman type stuff. Saving kittens from trees, Rescuing people from earthquakes, putting out fires, foiling bank robbers. That sort of thing. All the while, between each mission, flies by Lois and Richard's house checking up on his baby and baby momma so to speak. Richard, though a genuinely nice guy, starts getting a little pissed and a little jealous. He realizes very early on who Jason's real father is, as, since the first movie, Jason's Kryptonian powers start kicking in randomly, and kicking out equally as randomly. Of course Lois tries hiding it from Richard, which only puts that much more of a strain on their relationship. Jason has no idea what's going on and none of his parents, biological or in Richard's case, adoptive, tell him. Thus he's pretty freaked out.
Clark is sent by Perry to cover the newest press conference of one Professer Emmet Vale. Vale is on the forefront of robotics and is discussing his newest invention. A human like robot covered in artificial skin (think like Arnold Schwarzenegger in T1 through T3) to be sent into space and deep-sea expeditions in lieu of humans. The key is that the robots containing no intelligence of their own would be directly controlled by a human operator via some sort of remote control that was linked to their thoughts - sort of like a virtual reality machine. Using only one's brain one would control said robot over thousands of miles of distance ( yes I know that sort of radio control is impossible as instantiations transmission is physically impossible without breaking the speed of light, but if we can believe a man can fly, hopefully we can believe this sort of remote control is also possible). The only drawback to his design is the simple fact that the robot eats up a tremendous amount of energy and they haven't designed a small enough energy source capable of powering the robot for extended periods of time. Vale in the course of the press conference hints that a solution for the problem is forthcoming, and the final prototype will be unveiled by the end of the fiscal year.
Lois, crack reporter that she is, is doing research for a new story on Intergang. A shady organization focused on exploiting new technology for all its criminal needs. They don't focus on drugs, prostitution, gambling, or other protection rackets like regular organized crime. They focus on high-end weapons, computer programs, and what not in order to hack banks and government organizations, as well as break into banks and so forth. Superman is back and regular bullets and the like don't work. These guys are the 21st century of organized crime. She tracks down one of Intergang's main enforcers John Corben to try and get him to talk, but he brushes her off and threatens her that if she keeps on digging bad things may start happening to her loved ones.
Now, the boat we saw in the beginning comes into dock (yes I know it's been a long time, but this is a movie, stuff like that happens all out of order). Now, instead of the treasure hunters we met in the beginning Lex Luthor and Kitty walk ashore disguised as the treasure hunters. Lex is happy and confident. He's back in Metropolis and has the Kryptonite he needs to get his revenge. Before he can get anywhere he is confronted by Vale. Vale was the one who hired the treasure hunters in the first place, and assumes (due to the disguise) that Lex is a member of the team. Lex takes advantage of the mistake and follows Vale back to Vale's Lab (Lex is a fugitive and has no where else to go at the moment). At the lab Vale reveals that the kryptonite is intended to be used as a power source for his new robot, which he calls Metallo. There is a cavity in the Robots chest that has been retrofitted to house the kryptonite and convert the k-radiation into energy. It's not quite finished yet, however, he needed the actual kryptonite in order to finish it to the correct specification needed. Until then, the robot is actually powered by Uranium, which is not only incredibly expensive, but due to the robots power usage, goes through the uranium far to quickly to make it practical or ecologically sound.
Re-enter John Corben. He breaks into Vale's Lab in order to steal his invention, as is intergangs modus operandi. There is a struggle, Corben kills Vale, but Lex gets the drop on Corben and mortally injures him. As Corben lays dying, Lex steps over to finish him off, looks at Metallo, then at Corben, and smiles a diabolical smile. Bum, bum, bummmmm (once again).
Richard finally confronts Lois about Jason, and the frequent flyby's by the Man of Steel, but Lois won't have any of it. He earnestly wants to try talking it out, working through the hardship, but Lois plays a game of avoidance and denial, saying she can't talk now, she's too busy with her Intergang story. She's close to breaking it wide open.
At the same time Superman, due to his frequent flybys knows Jason is starting to exhibit his powers, and begins to secretly train his son. Not so much to fight crime, but to control the powers that are freaking Jason out so much. Jason, being a pretty bright kid, has very strong suspicions that Richard is not his father as he previously thought.
Lois manages to track down the head of intergang Bruno "Ugly" Mannhiem. Because in the movies Lois is impetuous (and kinda stupid) she decides to confront Mannhiem herself for her story. The exchange is heated, and Mannhiem realizes he can't let her live. He sends some of his goons after her. A bit of a chase scene, and right when everything looks the bleakest a figure from the sky crashes down and saves her from the goons. She turns and is about to say something like "thank you Superman" but realizes it's an entirely different man of steel (jeepers, am I clever!). It's Metallo who just saved her life. "I told you to stay away." Metallo says with John Corben's disembodied voice, but as he reaches to kill her he stops suddenly and voilently, as if he is not in control of his own movements. Then he grumbles something like "fine, I'll let her live, for now." before he knocks her out and bounds off for the bossman Ugly Mannheim. Metallo easily dispatches Mannheim and there is a new boss of Intergang now.
It's only then that Superman swoops in and now we have our first real super battle. It's quick, it's brutal, but Metallo is quickly running out of energy, so he uses Lois as a decoy and quickly escapes as Superman rushes to save her.
Metallo returns to Vale's Lab. There he argues with his master, Lex Luthor. He tries to attack Luthor but freezes up. Luthor has an override for his metallic assassin. It is at that time we learn that Luthor saved Corben Removing his brain and attaching it to the virtual reality device that controls the robot. Luthor used Corben because he wanted Corben's inside knowledge of Intergang. It's Luthor who's really in control.
Lois and Richard learn of Jason's secret training and they are not happy. This puts a strain on Superman and Lois's relationship. It also puts a strain on Richard and Lois's relationship. Lois and Jason become a bit emotionally distant because he knows that she lied to him about his biological father. Jason and Superman become distant again, as Lois forbids the training. The only relationship that grows stronger is the bond between Jason and Richard. Richard loves Jason just like a father (biological or adoptive) should, and Jason's love for his adoptive father only grows in admiration of Richards continual support.
Lois forbids Jason from using his powers, and Superman then agrees. Jason then becomes estranged from his biological father.
Clark does a follow up to the Vale story only to find that Vale is dead. Doing a bit of research, he finds out that the death of Vale is directly related to Intergang, and Perry assigns Lois and Clark to team up on the story. Lois is consumed with the story using it to avoid her personal life. Clark becomes the only real stable thing in her life and for the first time she starts to really appreciate him. He is safe as compared to her son, her fiancé or even her love with Superman. The love triangle gets more complicated.
Using Intergang and Metallo, Luthor starts taking over the entire Metropolis underworld. Superman begins fighting back, saving people and such, slowly catching on that it's all organized. Not realizing that Luthor is setting him up for the kill. Luthor finally is able to assemble the kryptonite energy converter to the proper specifications and carefully removes the uranium and replaces it with the kryptonite as Vale originally intended.
We're closing towards the end.
Lois, the crack investigative journalist that she is, discovers Luthor is behind the new wave of crime hitting metropolis.
She of course is taken hostage, as was Luthor's plan all along. It's up to Superman and Richard to save her.
Superman swoops in as he tends to do but is confronted again by Metallo, this time far more powerful as the Kryptonite proves to be a much stronger power source. The two men of steel duke it out. The full on sort of action that we wanted so much in the first one. Big special effects, big explosion, big hits, ect. When it looks like Superman is on top Metallo rips open his chest, exposing Superman to the deadly kryptonite held within. Richard tries to help and shield Superman from the K-radiation, but is put in mortal danger as well. Lex gets to watch it all through the monitors back in Vale's lab seeing through Metallo's eyes. He forces Lois to watch what appears to be the end for both of her lovers.
Back at the scene of the fight, Jason rushes forward wanting to help, torn between his two father figures. His powers are acting up and he can only save one of them, the other is going to die. Richard tells him to save Superman while Superman is too weak to do anything. Jason zooms forward and saves.... bum, bum, bummmm his step father Richard.
Superman remains slowly dying.
Back in the lab Lois, fearing for Superman’s life, struggles once again and manages to get free, running to the controls and remotely shutting Metallo's chest.
Superman gets up, beats back Metallo, and uses his heat vision to seal the chest cavity shut. And puts down Metallo.
The ending I'm a little unsure of. Somehow we need to get all of our characters in the same place. Superman, Richard, Lois, Jason, and Lex. Lex still has a little Kryptonite left, and for the first time, now that his powers are starting to kick in the Kryptonite affects Jason.
Of course there is a struggle, Kitty (you haven't forgotten about her have you, she was around the entire time, mostly to provide witty repartee with Luthor) lets her conscious get the better of her just like the first one, and helps save our heroes. Luthor escapes (because Luthor always escapes) and in the confusion, the machine that hooks Corben's brain the the Metallo machine is destroyed, and traps Corben's consciousness forever inside Metallo.
We end with Lois publishing the story of it all, how it was Luthor behind it all. Her relationship with Richard is almost at an end, her relationship with superman is just as strange as it always is, but now her relationship with Clark is stronger than it ever was. And on that odd note, perhaps leading the two of them to a romance in the third movie, we end leaving everything back to the status quo (with Lois of course realizing that for Jason's own safety she has to let Superman continue to train him).
Epilogue: Luthor on the lamb has a lot of cool tech and files he raided from Intergang and Professor Vale. On one such file is named: "Codename: Brianiac", and thus we end giving us a straightforward segue to the next picture.
The end.
Not the best, perhaps, but just some thoughts as to how I would do it if I was forced to work with the established source material. How I would do it from scratch is a completely different story that I suppose I'll save for another time, if anyone is actually intersted.
Ideally I would be able to start from scratch, leaving the 1978 Richard Donner Superman movie and 2007 Bryan Singer sequel/remake mythology out of it completely.
But as this is far from an ideal world (just ask Plato) for the sake of this pointless exercise, let's assume that I'd have to make it directly connected to the most recent incarnation (see Bryan Singer's sequel/remake link above).
I'm also going to assume that any reader of this entry has seen the most recent Superman movie. If you haven't, this is going to be something of a spoiler.
If you haven't seen it and are still reading because you are so completely fascinated with me, or just don't care if it's a bit ruined, here is a recap of the ending of the previous film. Superman ripped a man-made island composed entirly of kryptonite (built by one Lex Luthor) out of the Atlantic and hurled it into outer space. He nearly dies, but recovers only once he finds that he, not Richard White (Lois's fiancé) is the biological father of Lois's son Jason. Lex Luthor loses all his henchmen save Kitty and is stranded on a teeny tiny island in the middle of nowhere, with nothing but his girl Kitty, a small Pomeranian dog, a palm tree with six coconuts, and a helicopter without any fuel. The End.
And without any further ado, my thoughts for a sequel. This is only a rambling treatment, which of course would need a few polishes and revisions, but as it stands in my head right now:
We start on a boat anchored many miles off the coast of Metropolis. Here we have treasure hunters deep sea diving looking for any remnants of the Kryptonite Island that Lex Luthor built. They have no desire to kill Superman, but know that Kryptonite is an alien mineral, and have been hired by a private research firm for a tremendous amount of money to bring the mineral back for further study. Their motive is purely for profit, not for evil. Low and Behold they find a few small chunks of Kryptonite that fell off the Island as it was flung to outer space. One the way back from their successful search, coincidence of coincidences, they notice a helicopter stranded on a teeny tiny island and decide to investigate. Bum, bum, bummmmmm.
Now cut to Superman doing superman type stuff. Saving kittens from trees, Rescuing people from earthquakes, putting out fires, foiling bank robbers. That sort of thing. All the while, between each mission, flies by Lois and Richard's house checking up on his baby and baby momma so to speak. Richard, though a genuinely nice guy, starts getting a little pissed and a little jealous. He realizes very early on who Jason's real father is, as, since the first movie, Jason's Kryptonian powers start kicking in randomly, and kicking out equally as randomly. Of course Lois tries hiding it from Richard, which only puts that much more of a strain on their relationship. Jason has no idea what's going on and none of his parents, biological or in Richard's case, adoptive, tell him. Thus he's pretty freaked out.
Clark is sent by Perry to cover the newest press conference of one Professer Emmet Vale. Vale is on the forefront of robotics and is discussing his newest invention. A human like robot covered in artificial skin (think like Arnold Schwarzenegger in T1 through T3) to be sent into space and deep-sea expeditions in lieu of humans. The key is that the robots containing no intelligence of their own would be directly controlled by a human operator via some sort of remote control that was linked to their thoughts - sort of like a virtual reality machine. Using only one's brain one would control said robot over thousands of miles of distance ( yes I know that sort of radio control is impossible as instantiations transmission is physically impossible without breaking the speed of light, but if we can believe a man can fly, hopefully we can believe this sort of remote control is also possible). The only drawback to his design is the simple fact that the robot eats up a tremendous amount of energy and they haven't designed a small enough energy source capable of powering the robot for extended periods of time. Vale in the course of the press conference hints that a solution for the problem is forthcoming, and the final prototype will be unveiled by the end of the fiscal year.
Lois, crack reporter that she is, is doing research for a new story on Intergang. A shady organization focused on exploiting new technology for all its criminal needs. They don't focus on drugs, prostitution, gambling, or other protection rackets like regular organized crime. They focus on high-end weapons, computer programs, and what not in order to hack banks and government organizations, as well as break into banks and so forth. Superman is back and regular bullets and the like don't work. These guys are the 21st century of organized crime. She tracks down one of Intergang's main enforcers John Corben to try and get him to talk, but he brushes her off and threatens her that if she keeps on digging bad things may start happening to her loved ones.
Now, the boat we saw in the beginning comes into dock (yes I know it's been a long time, but this is a movie, stuff like that happens all out of order). Now, instead of the treasure hunters we met in the beginning Lex Luthor and Kitty walk ashore disguised as the treasure hunters. Lex is happy and confident. He's back in Metropolis and has the Kryptonite he needs to get his revenge. Before he can get anywhere he is confronted by Vale. Vale was the one who hired the treasure hunters in the first place, and assumes (due to the disguise) that Lex is a member of the team. Lex takes advantage of the mistake and follows Vale back to Vale's Lab (Lex is a fugitive and has no where else to go at the moment). At the lab Vale reveals that the kryptonite is intended to be used as a power source for his new robot, which he calls Metallo. There is a cavity in the Robots chest that has been retrofitted to house the kryptonite and convert the k-radiation into energy. It's not quite finished yet, however, he needed the actual kryptonite in order to finish it to the correct specification needed. Until then, the robot is actually powered by Uranium, which is not only incredibly expensive, but due to the robots power usage, goes through the uranium far to quickly to make it practical or ecologically sound.
Re-enter John Corben. He breaks into Vale's Lab in order to steal his invention, as is intergangs modus operandi. There is a struggle, Corben kills Vale, but Lex gets the drop on Corben and mortally injures him. As Corben lays dying, Lex steps over to finish him off, looks at Metallo, then at Corben, and smiles a diabolical smile. Bum, bum, bummmmm (once again).
Richard finally confronts Lois about Jason, and the frequent flyby's by the Man of Steel, but Lois won't have any of it. He earnestly wants to try talking it out, working through the hardship, but Lois plays a game of avoidance and denial, saying she can't talk now, she's too busy with her Intergang story. She's close to breaking it wide open.
At the same time Superman, due to his frequent flybys knows Jason is starting to exhibit his powers, and begins to secretly train his son. Not so much to fight crime, but to control the powers that are freaking Jason out so much. Jason, being a pretty bright kid, has very strong suspicions that Richard is not his father as he previously thought.
Lois manages to track down the head of intergang Bruno "Ugly" Mannhiem. Because in the movies Lois is impetuous (and kinda stupid) she decides to confront Mannhiem herself for her story. The exchange is heated, and Mannhiem realizes he can't let her live. He sends some of his goons after her. A bit of a chase scene, and right when everything looks the bleakest a figure from the sky crashes down and saves her from the goons. She turns and is about to say something like "thank you Superman" but realizes it's an entirely different man of steel (jeepers, am I clever!). It's Metallo who just saved her life. "I told you to stay away." Metallo says with John Corben's disembodied voice, but as he reaches to kill her he stops suddenly and voilently, as if he is not in control of his own movements. Then he grumbles something like "fine, I'll let her live, for now." before he knocks her out and bounds off for the bossman Ugly Mannheim. Metallo easily dispatches Mannheim and there is a new boss of Intergang now.
It's only then that Superman swoops in and now we have our first real super battle. It's quick, it's brutal, but Metallo is quickly running out of energy, so he uses Lois as a decoy and quickly escapes as Superman rushes to save her.
Metallo returns to Vale's Lab. There he argues with his master, Lex Luthor. He tries to attack Luthor but freezes up. Luthor has an override for his metallic assassin. It is at that time we learn that Luthor saved Corben Removing his brain and attaching it to the virtual reality device that controls the robot. Luthor used Corben because he wanted Corben's inside knowledge of Intergang. It's Luthor who's really in control.
Lois and Richard learn of Jason's secret training and they are not happy. This puts a strain on Superman and Lois's relationship. It also puts a strain on Richard and Lois's relationship. Lois and Jason become a bit emotionally distant because he knows that she lied to him about his biological father. Jason and Superman become distant again, as Lois forbids the training. The only relationship that grows stronger is the bond between Jason and Richard. Richard loves Jason just like a father (biological or adoptive) should, and Jason's love for his adoptive father only grows in admiration of Richards continual support.
Lois forbids Jason from using his powers, and Superman then agrees. Jason then becomes estranged from his biological father.
Clark does a follow up to the Vale story only to find that Vale is dead. Doing a bit of research, he finds out that the death of Vale is directly related to Intergang, and Perry assigns Lois and Clark to team up on the story. Lois is consumed with the story using it to avoid her personal life. Clark becomes the only real stable thing in her life and for the first time she starts to really appreciate him. He is safe as compared to her son, her fiancé or even her love with Superman. The love triangle gets more complicated.
Using Intergang and Metallo, Luthor starts taking over the entire Metropolis underworld. Superman begins fighting back, saving people and such, slowly catching on that it's all organized. Not realizing that Luthor is setting him up for the kill. Luthor finally is able to assemble the kryptonite energy converter to the proper specifications and carefully removes the uranium and replaces it with the kryptonite as Vale originally intended.
We're closing towards the end.
Lois, the crack investigative journalist that she is, discovers Luthor is behind the new wave of crime hitting metropolis.
She of course is taken hostage, as was Luthor's plan all along. It's up to Superman and Richard to save her.
Superman swoops in as he tends to do but is confronted again by Metallo, this time far more powerful as the Kryptonite proves to be a much stronger power source. The two men of steel duke it out. The full on sort of action that we wanted so much in the first one. Big special effects, big explosion, big hits, ect. When it looks like Superman is on top Metallo rips open his chest, exposing Superman to the deadly kryptonite held within. Richard tries to help and shield Superman from the K-radiation, but is put in mortal danger as well. Lex gets to watch it all through the monitors back in Vale's lab seeing through Metallo's eyes. He forces Lois to watch what appears to be the end for both of her lovers.
Back at the scene of the fight, Jason rushes forward wanting to help, torn between his two father figures. His powers are acting up and he can only save one of them, the other is going to die. Richard tells him to save Superman while Superman is too weak to do anything. Jason zooms forward and saves.... bum, bum, bummmm his step father Richard.
Superman remains slowly dying.
Back in the lab Lois, fearing for Superman’s life, struggles once again and manages to get free, running to the controls and remotely shutting Metallo's chest.
Superman gets up, beats back Metallo, and uses his heat vision to seal the chest cavity shut. And puts down Metallo.
The ending I'm a little unsure of. Somehow we need to get all of our characters in the same place. Superman, Richard, Lois, Jason, and Lex. Lex still has a little Kryptonite left, and for the first time, now that his powers are starting to kick in the Kryptonite affects Jason.
Of course there is a struggle, Kitty (you haven't forgotten about her have you, she was around the entire time, mostly to provide witty repartee with Luthor) lets her conscious get the better of her just like the first one, and helps save our heroes. Luthor escapes (because Luthor always escapes) and in the confusion, the machine that hooks Corben's brain the the Metallo machine is destroyed, and traps Corben's consciousness forever inside Metallo.
We end with Lois publishing the story of it all, how it was Luthor behind it all. Her relationship with Richard is almost at an end, her relationship with superman is just as strange as it always is, but now her relationship with Clark is stronger than it ever was. And on that odd note, perhaps leading the two of them to a romance in the third movie, we end leaving everything back to the status quo (with Lois of course realizing that for Jason's own safety she has to let Superman continue to train him).
Epilogue: Luthor on the lamb has a lot of cool tech and files he raided from Intergang and Professor Vale. On one such file is named: "Codename: Brianiac", and thus we end giving us a straightforward segue to the next picture.
The end.
Not the best, perhaps, but just some thoughts as to how I would do it if I was forced to work with the established source material. How I would do it from scratch is a completely different story that I suppose I'll save for another time, if anyone is actually intersted.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
.Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Going, going, gone.
So tired. Worked over fifty hours last week and am not eating right (too tired to make myself healthy food when I get home from work). I don't know how other people do it. Haven't had the energy to blog, write, or search for a new job.
Gotta get off my ass and do it. I'm just a bit burnt out.
Gotta get off my ass and do it. I'm just a bit burnt out.
Saturday, January 05, 2008
Wednesday, January 02, 2008
New Year + 2 days
Saw the Dresden Dolls on New Years eve in the city. Tons of fun. Amanda (she of the piano and vocals in the band) mentioned that she recorded a side project album with Ben Folds. To which all I have to say is I must own that album. She played one song from the recording and it was good. Need more info on release date. No hype, but I can't think of a much better modern pairing than those two.
Saturday, December 29, 2007
once again Warren Ellis is smarter than I am
This should really come as no surprise but Warren Ellis is smarter than me. I've had a decent amount of free time recently, partly due to my own laziness, partly due to the holiday season, and partly due to a job offer I'm waiting to hear back from which may or may not be the ticket out the more annoying and sad parts of my life (seemingly now more likely not than yes, but we live in hope), and I've spent some time (too much time) reading stupid things on the internet. I thought about linking a bunch of sites to give examples but really, I don't want to subject you to the inanity that has consumed my waking hours. If you are really interested just got to reddit.com and check out their politics section.
In any case, everybody and their grandmother seems to want to blame everything on an ideology. Be it religion, left or right wing politics, or some other crazy ideology. What it comes down to I think is not an idea or ideology, it's (as Warren Ellis writes - and I'm sure lots of other people have also said) it doesn't matter what the idea is, people screw it up every time. People are the problem, not because people are inherently bad or evil, rather because people are inherently stupid.
It's unfortunately that simple. People ruin everything.
But maybe I've spent too much of my time on the internet instead of doing something more productive, like trying to have a life. Maybe I should get on that.
In any case, everybody and their grandmother seems to want to blame everything on an ideology. Be it religion, left or right wing politics, or some other crazy ideology. What it comes down to I think is not an idea or ideology, it's (as Warren Ellis writes - and I'm sure lots of other people have also said) it doesn't matter what the idea is, people screw it up every time. People are the problem, not because people are inherently bad or evil, rather because people are inherently stupid.
It's unfortunately that simple. People ruin everything.
But maybe I've spent too much of my time on the internet instead of doing something more productive, like trying to have a life. Maybe I should get on that.
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Happy Tuesday
Happy Tuesday! I will be celebrating this special Tuesday the traditional way. By eating Chinese Food, going to the movies and then working a shift for time and a half pay.
Enjoy your Tuesday, however you may spend it.
Enjoy your Tuesday, however you may spend it.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Will this actually make a difference? One can only hope
In the end of Janurary CNN will be hosting more debates for the presidential primaries. On their website, you have the opportunity to write in your own questions, and then vote on the questions you think are the best.
I myself have posted a question, and intend to post some more. If you would like to pose some questions to the potential nominees you may do so here: http://dyn.politico.com/debate/index.cfm
If you don't want to register with Politico feel free to leave your questions in my comments section and I will post your questions for you.
It is in our best interests to ask the questions we feel we have a right to be answered, not only for our own edification, but so the general public is aware of their stances (whether or not you are a US citezen, as - not to sound ethnocentric but - there are global implications depending on who becomes the the next American President). The political process is meaningless with out our involvement. Well, at least more meaningless than it would be otherwise.
I myself have posted a question, and intend to post some more. If you would like to pose some questions to the potential nominees you may do so here: http://dyn.politico.com/debate/index.cfm
If you don't want to register with Politico feel free to leave your questions in my comments section and I will post your questions for you.
It is in our best interests to ask the questions we feel we have a right to be answered, not only for our own edification, but so the general public is aware of their stances (whether or not you are a US citezen, as - not to sound ethnocentric but - there are global implications depending on who becomes the the next American President). The political process is meaningless with out our involvement. Well, at least more meaningless than it would be otherwise.
Monday, December 10, 2007
because no one asked, more LINKS OF INTEREST
Crazy Hitler TV show
Crazy escape
This is actually pretty cool
Wasps and orchids get it on!
Possibilities of life in outer space
Origin of cosmic rays, or how to join the fantastic four
Indian women vigilante justice
The brain as modeled by Pinky
Interesting it's jurrasic park but for viruses and the hope for future cures.
A possible addendum to the previous link in regards to bacteria
I don't know if a Robocop or Million Dollar man joke is more appropriate here
so I thought this was originally a joke, but apparently there really are people this stupid in the world (unless I'm wrong about it not being a joke)
But if it isn't a joke then this is proof that he's right and the conspiracy is real
When insults had class
Funny I'm pretty sure that this has already been explained by one of my earlier postings (which I guess I need to find before I link it) and also, by this little known fact
in order to write an action movie/story that more accurately portrays physics
A picture just for big ben.
The End....
For now
Crazy escape
This is actually pretty cool
Wasps and orchids get it on!
Possibilities of life in outer space
Origin of cosmic rays, or how to join the fantastic four
Indian women vigilante justice
The brain as modeled by Pinky
Interesting it's jurrasic park but for viruses and the hope for future cures.
A possible addendum to the previous link in regards to bacteria
I don't know if a Robocop or Million Dollar man joke is more appropriate here
so I thought this was originally a joke, but apparently there really are people this stupid in the world (unless I'm wrong about it not being a joke)
But if it isn't a joke then this is proof that he's right and the conspiracy is real
When insults had class
Funny I'm pretty sure that this has already been explained by one of my earlier postings (which I guess I need to find before I link it) and also, by this little known fact
in order to write an action movie/story that more accurately portrays physics
A picture just for big ben.
The End....
For now
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
Because I spend too much time putting together the inane when I should be reading my Einstein Biography
Bands I wish I was into before they broke up:
Pizzicato Five - Jpop (as in Japanese pop music) that is light, airy, fun and a bit jazzy, even touching at times. I don't know much about the world of Jpop (Puffy AmiYumi is really the only other Jpop band I know) but if this is a prime example I should probably go out and try to learn more.
Soul Coughing - I don't know if this one really counts as I started listening to them when they were together, but it was only in their twilight. A little while after I picked them up, they split. Very groovy, sort of on the jam band circuit, a bit more electronic sounding Morphine. Got into it in college, they performed live my freshman year and broke up not to much later.
Morphine - They didn't break up so much as Mark Sandman, the lead singer, died. The intersection in Cambridge right in front of the Middle East (a music venue and restaurant) is named after him because they were a Boston/Cambridge based band and played that venue a lot. Very good stuff. Kinda Jazzy, deep bass rhythms, smoky vocals, the kind of music you feel in your gut (almost literally as it's heavy on the bass). Chill, head bobbing, music that won't put you to sleep. If it weren't for my Junior year dorm neighbor (and later apartment mate) Mike Gibisser I never would have heard of these guys. (he is a man with much greater music knowledge than I posses - he also introduced me to most of the bands in the indie rock section of my MP3 player, such as the Postal Service, Death Cab for Cutie, Built to Spill, and Guster)
I kinda want to say Pavement also, but I'm not really into Pavement, but I feel for some reason I should be.
New Music that I'm kinda getting into at the moment:
Jesca Hoop - She's kinda new, found out about her a few weeks ago when I got an advanced copy of her new CD for free (by no doing of my own, it just sort of fell into my lap). If Nellie McKay was a bit more soulful and a little less ironic, I think this is what she'd sound like. Oddly enough I just noticed yesterday that one of her songs is being featured on one of the Starbucks play list, leading me to believe her music is playing much more widely than I would have imagined.
The Bird and the Bee - I really have only heard two of their songs, but like the two that I've heard and plan on listening to a lot more.
And thanks to Rawbean recently I've become addicted to Stars.
I also was listening to a lot of Feist, but with the constant replay on the TV, radio, and at Starbucks, I found her music to be catchy the first few times one hears it, but the catchiness decreases exponentially in diametric proportion to the frequency of repitition of said music. Though I am now interested in checking out Broken Social Scene, which coupled with Stars (a few of whom also play for BSS) I guess this is my little "hooray Canadian bands!" section.
Pizzicato Five - Jpop (as in Japanese pop music) that is light, airy, fun and a bit jazzy, even touching at times. I don't know much about the world of Jpop (Puffy AmiYumi is really the only other Jpop band I know) but if this is a prime example I should probably go out and try to learn more.
Soul Coughing - I don't know if this one really counts as I started listening to them when they were together, but it was only in their twilight. A little while after I picked them up, they split. Very groovy, sort of on the jam band circuit, a bit more electronic sounding Morphine. Got into it in college, they performed live my freshman year and broke up not to much later.
Morphine - They didn't break up so much as Mark Sandman, the lead singer, died. The intersection in Cambridge right in front of the Middle East (a music venue and restaurant) is named after him because they were a Boston/Cambridge based band and played that venue a lot. Very good stuff. Kinda Jazzy, deep bass rhythms, smoky vocals, the kind of music you feel in your gut (almost literally as it's heavy on the bass). Chill, head bobbing, music that won't put you to sleep. If it weren't for my Junior year dorm neighbor (and later apartment mate) Mike Gibisser I never would have heard of these guys. (he is a man with much greater music knowledge than I posses - he also introduced me to most of the bands in the indie rock section of my MP3 player, such as the Postal Service, Death Cab for Cutie, Built to Spill, and Guster)
I kinda want to say Pavement also, but I'm not really into Pavement, but I feel for some reason I should be.
New Music that I'm kinda getting into at the moment:
Jesca Hoop - She's kinda new, found out about her a few weeks ago when I got an advanced copy of her new CD for free (by no doing of my own, it just sort of fell into my lap). If Nellie McKay was a bit more soulful and a little less ironic, I think this is what she'd sound like. Oddly enough I just noticed yesterday that one of her songs is being featured on one of the Starbucks play list, leading me to believe her music is playing much more widely than I would have imagined.
The Bird and the Bee - I really have only heard two of their songs, but like the two that I've heard and plan on listening to a lot more.
And thanks to Rawbean recently I've become addicted to Stars.
I also was listening to a lot of Feist, but with the constant replay on the TV, radio, and at Starbucks, I found her music to be catchy the first few times one hears it, but the catchiness decreases exponentially in diametric proportion to the frequency of repitition of said music. Though I am now interested in checking out Broken Social Scene, which coupled with Stars (a few of whom also play for BSS) I guess this is my little "hooray Canadian bands!" section.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
The Suck explained
If you didn't click the link in the title, bear with me for I am about to explain the mystery that is this older posting.
A little over two months ago, J_ broke up with me. It sucked. It sucked in ways that words can't (at least my words can't) describe. I was totally, head over heels, ridiculously in love with that girl, in a way that I had never been with anyone before in my life. In that stupid movie and storybook way love is always described, but not believed by said reader until experiencing it him or herself. The story of the break up really isn't that interesting unto itself. I loved her, her feelings for me had changed. It happens, and I'm not the first person that it's happened to (in fact I can recall a time in my life when the situation was almost exactly reversed), nor will I be the last. C'est la vie.
The reason I bring this up now, instead of two months ago, the emotions were a bit too raw, and I kinda, sorta, secretly hoped we'd get back together. This past Friday I finally took her pictures out of my wallet the finality of the break up only now realized. We still talk, J_ and I, a bit over the phone, and e-mail. And we've even hung out once or twice since, but as friends and nothing else.
Which I guess brings me to my new point. If any of you lovely ladies out there are looking for a mildly emotionally crippled guy who's a bit still hung up on his ex-girlfriend, I am now officially available.
P.S. Only time will tell if I'll ever reveal the secret behind this posting, let's keep our fingers crossed that the answer will someday be yes.
A little over two months ago, J_ broke up with me. It sucked. It sucked in ways that words can't (at least my words can't) describe. I was totally, head over heels, ridiculously in love with that girl, in a way that I had never been with anyone before in my life. In that stupid movie and storybook way love is always described, but not believed by said reader until experiencing it him or herself. The story of the break up really isn't that interesting unto itself. I loved her, her feelings for me had changed. It happens, and I'm not the first person that it's happened to (in fact I can recall a time in my life when the situation was almost exactly reversed), nor will I be the last. C'est la vie.
The reason I bring this up now, instead of two months ago, the emotions were a bit too raw, and I kinda, sorta, secretly hoped we'd get back together. This past Friday I finally took her pictures out of my wallet the finality of the break up only now realized. We still talk, J_ and I, a bit over the phone, and e-mail. And we've even hung out once or twice since, but as friends and nothing else.
Which I guess brings me to my new point. If any of you lovely ladies out there are looking for a mildly emotionally crippled guy who's a bit still hung up on his ex-girlfriend, I am now officially available.
P.S. Only time will tell if I'll ever reveal the secret behind this posting, let's keep our fingers crossed that the answer will someday be yes.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Random "important" thoughts Part one
On Global Warming:
I don't know much about global warming. I generally believe in global warming, from the bits that I've read and seen on TV and such it makes sense to me. Do I think it's a catastrophic event that is going to destroy mankind? I have no idea, but probably not. Do I think that it's minute and nothing we should worry about? No, I definitely don't think that either. I'm somewhere in between those two poles in regards to the belief that global warming exists and it is caused to a certain extent by human beings and the industrialized world. Given that, my basic notion in regards to global warming and the environment is the following: whether global warming exists or not, it's still a good idea to try and keep our environment as clean as we can. Tossing global warming aside, anyone who argues that an Earth with more pollutants and less biodiversity is a good and healthy place to live is an idiot. Can't we just want clean air and water, and a bountiful and beautiful natural landscape because that's better living for all inhabitants of Earth, including (and especially) humans, without making it political? I'd like to think so.
On President Bush:
I think I'm one of the few liberals that I know, who has grown to like Bush more as time goes on than less. Which is not to say that I think he is a good president, or actually agree with his policies. Perhaps like is too strong of a word. Grown more tolerant of our current president is probably a better way of putting it. I recently had a short conversation with someone at work (not a fellow employee but a customer) who was going on about how Bush is a fascist, and then started comparing him to Hitler. Many jokesters like saying that Bush is nothing like Hitler because Hitler was democratically elected. This may be so, but Hitler then dismantled the government, started a world war of conquest, and institutionalized genocide in Eastern Europe. So far, as I am aware, the government as imagined by the constitution still exists. We have started a war, and though many have categorized it as a colonialist occupation, the ultimate goal is one of withdrawal. Granted there has been tremendous deal of lying, and the removal of civil liberties, along with the ignoring of international treaties (as in the Geneva convention) but we as the public are slowly gaining ground on these issues, and hopefully the next president will be able to restore the seat of the presidency so there isn't such egregious abuse of power in the future (which means I hope a democrat wins in 2008). Do I think he is a bad president? Definitely. Do I think he might have broken the law and thus should be prosecuted? I do. Do I think he's evil? No I don't. I think the more I hear or read arguments comparing him to leaders like Hitler, or calling him a fascist, the more tolerant I become due to the extreme fallacy of those arguments.
I don't know much about global warming. I generally believe in global warming, from the bits that I've read and seen on TV and such it makes sense to me. Do I think it's a catastrophic event that is going to destroy mankind? I have no idea, but probably not. Do I think that it's minute and nothing we should worry about? No, I definitely don't think that either. I'm somewhere in between those two poles in regards to the belief that global warming exists and it is caused to a certain extent by human beings and the industrialized world. Given that, my basic notion in regards to global warming and the environment is the following: whether global warming exists or not, it's still a good idea to try and keep our environment as clean as we can. Tossing global warming aside, anyone who argues that an Earth with more pollutants and less biodiversity is a good and healthy place to live is an idiot. Can't we just want clean air and water, and a bountiful and beautiful natural landscape because that's better living for all inhabitants of Earth, including (and especially) humans, without making it political? I'd like to think so.
On President Bush:
I think I'm one of the few liberals that I know, who has grown to like Bush more as time goes on than less. Which is not to say that I think he is a good president, or actually agree with his policies. Perhaps like is too strong of a word. Grown more tolerant of our current president is probably a better way of putting it. I recently had a short conversation with someone at work (not a fellow employee but a customer) who was going on about how Bush is a fascist, and then started comparing him to Hitler. Many jokesters like saying that Bush is nothing like Hitler because Hitler was democratically elected. This may be so, but Hitler then dismantled the government, started a world war of conquest, and institutionalized genocide in Eastern Europe. So far, as I am aware, the government as imagined by the constitution still exists. We have started a war, and though many have categorized it as a colonialist occupation, the ultimate goal is one of withdrawal. Granted there has been tremendous deal of lying, and the removal of civil liberties, along with the ignoring of international treaties (as in the Geneva convention) but we as the public are slowly gaining ground on these issues, and hopefully the next president will be able to restore the seat of the presidency so there isn't such egregious abuse of power in the future (which means I hope a democrat wins in 2008). Do I think he is a bad president? Definitely. Do I think he might have broken the law and thus should be prosecuted? I do. Do I think he's evil? No I don't. I think the more I hear or read arguments comparing him to leaders like Hitler, or calling him a fascist, the more tolerant I become due to the extreme fallacy of those arguments.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Monday, November 12, 2007
It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a 98 lb. weakling caught in a gentle breeze
I always said I knew I was out of shape. I just don't think I really knew that I was out of shape. One of those, "sure I can't run a marathon, but I'm a pretty healthy guy" sort of out of shape. Turns out, I'm just as out of shape as I said but never really believed I was.
I went to the gym this morning because I thought it would be a good idea and I need something like that in my life right now. I'm not really into free weights or the machines, so I settled on swimming. I almost made nine laps (well, technically if you consider there and back a single lap it was really almost five laps) before my heart was beating so fast I thought it would explode, and there was the serious and realistic fear that I would throw up in the pool. Luckily not only did my heart eventually slow down, but I managed to keep all my insides in.
So I'm going to have to go again, and probably join the gym if I think it's something I could get into. My main problem with working out is that there isn't any stopping point. It's not like, say learning an instrument, where it's hard work for a while, but once you learn it you don't need to take lessons anymore and just play for fun. I can't swim until I'm in shape, and then just stop, because that "in-shapeiness" will disappear. I don't want to be a slave to a gym for the rest of my life.
On a side note, I hate public showers. My father said this is a phobia I have to overcome. It isn't a phobia. I'm not scared of public showers, I can use them (and used one today in fact) I just don't like them. I don't care how often they are cleaned, it isn't solely a cleanliness issue. I like privacy when I shower. I like to absorb the heat, take it in slowly, and relax as I clean. This is very difficult to accomplish when there are a bunch of naked people walking around. I have no problem with the nudity in the locker room, or even being naked in the locker room myself. It's just a shower to me is a very personal thing. Growing up in a family of six with only three bedrooms (well two if you don't count my parents bedroom), doesn't really allow for any private or personal space. The shower was a refuge of privacy one couldn't really find anywhere else in the house. And that is how I still view it. Showering in public is antithetical to my belief's as to how a shower should be.
I went to the gym this morning because I thought it would be a good idea and I need something like that in my life right now. I'm not really into free weights or the machines, so I settled on swimming. I almost made nine laps (well, technically if you consider there and back a single lap it was really almost five laps) before my heart was beating so fast I thought it would explode, and there was the serious and realistic fear that I would throw up in the pool. Luckily not only did my heart eventually slow down, but I managed to keep all my insides in.
So I'm going to have to go again, and probably join the gym if I think it's something I could get into. My main problem with working out is that there isn't any stopping point. It's not like, say learning an instrument, where it's hard work for a while, but once you learn it you don't need to take lessons anymore and just play for fun. I can't swim until I'm in shape, and then just stop, because that "in-shapeiness" will disappear. I don't want to be a slave to a gym for the rest of my life.
On a side note, I hate public showers. My father said this is a phobia I have to overcome. It isn't a phobia. I'm not scared of public showers, I can use them (and used one today in fact) I just don't like them. I don't care how often they are cleaned, it isn't solely a cleanliness issue. I like privacy when I shower. I like to absorb the heat, take it in slowly, and relax as I clean. This is very difficult to accomplish when there are a bunch of naked people walking around. I have no problem with the nudity in the locker room, or even being naked in the locker room myself. It's just a shower to me is a very personal thing. Growing up in a family of six with only three bedrooms (well two if you don't count my parents bedroom), doesn't really allow for any private or personal space. The shower was a refuge of privacy one couldn't really find anywhere else in the house. And that is how I still view it. Showering in public is antithetical to my belief's as to how a shower should be.
Friday, November 09, 2007
This is why people suck
I hate people. I hate people so much I can't remember a time when I didn't hate people. I wouldn't go so far as to say I'm a complete loner, but generally I prefer to either be alone or the company of just a few friends, and I hate meeting strangers. People bother the crap out of me. This might surprise anyone who knows that I have worked in customer service most of my life. Simultaneously this might also explain why I hate people so much. I fake it pretty well, working behind a register, being all bright and cheerful, but I only act that way because I'm getting paid to do so. Maybe I'm not as bitter as this paragraph makes me seem, but I do hate people none-the-less.
This past Wednesday I was working at Tribeca Productions. It was slow all day long, mostly due to the writers strike. No submissions, no rewrites, and very little we, as a production company, could do. It got to a point where the director of development was tossing a water bottle up and down into the air out of boredom, and joking that he soon might also need to get a job at Starbucks. Having little to do myself I hopped on Triggerstreet to read other amateur writers material and write reviews/constructive criticism to help them improve their writing. I have some material posted and reviews I have received have helped me write better drafts. I read a short story and this is the review that I posted for a story entitled BEING DUMB:
Arguably, the writing in this review could have been better. I wrote it pretty quick after I read the short story in question. I didn't much care for the story and I tried to write my concerns and straightforward as I could. I wasn't trying to be mean, just honest, tempered with some compassion in the end. I mean it's difficult to write a glowing review if one thinks the piece in question is sub par. And that's the point of the reviews on Triggerstreet, for writers to get feedback about their stories, both the good and the bad.
The next day this is the e-mail I received from the writer of BEING DUMB (which apparently was a biography, though not mentioned anywhere for me to know that, unless I am supposed to assume that all stories written in first person are biographical):
All I was trying to do is be helpful, show what I found to be the weaker points of his story. That's the whole point of Triggerstreet. I want to write him back but I know it's pointless. It's just really fucking me up.
And this is why, people suck.
This past Wednesday I was working at Tribeca Productions. It was slow all day long, mostly due to the writers strike. No submissions, no rewrites, and very little we, as a production company, could do. It got to a point where the director of development was tossing a water bottle up and down into the air out of boredom, and joking that he soon might also need to get a job at Starbucks. Having little to do myself I hopped on Triggerstreet to read other amateur writers material and write reviews/constructive criticism to help them improve their writing. I have some material posted and reviews I have received have helped me write better drafts. I read a short story and this is the review that I posted for a story entitled BEING DUMB:
I can't tell if this story is trying to be ironic or if it's supposed to be read straight forward. At first I thought the story was being told from an eleven year old's perspective but then even though the story had a bit of a child like voice the character got older.
Then I thought that perhaps the narrator was actually supposed to be as dumb as he claimed, only every so often he would say mildly ironic things leading me to believe he isn't supposed to be that dumb after all. The bit about the college degree in the end was pretty confusing, not unto itself but when juxtaposed with the tone.
the bit about the abusive step-father came out of left field, then was dropped almost as soon as it came. Either the guy is really dumb and it's inconsequential to him, or he just pretends to be dumb, but then why doesn't he make this a bigger issue, or lead up to it a bit better? It was another moment where I couldn't tell exactly the intent of the story.
the story, I think, was also a few pages too long. It's a bit repetitive, at least in the telling of all the different girls, and if you took one or two girls out near the end you could shave a few pages without losing anything.
I know this seems like a disparaging review, but I did like the story. It was very cute and at moments the narrators voice really resonated with the storytelling. It was a good read that I think can use a little more work.
Arguably, the writing in this review could have been better. I wrote it pretty quick after I read the short story in question. I didn't much care for the story and I tried to write my concerns and straightforward as I could. I wasn't trying to be mean, just honest, tempered with some compassion in the end. I mean it's difficult to write a glowing review if one thinks the piece in question is sub par. And that's the point of the reviews on Triggerstreet, for writers to get feedback about their stories, both the good and the bad.
The next day this is the e-mail I received from the writer of BEING DUMB (which apparently was a biography, though not mentioned anywhere for me to know that, unless I am supposed to assume that all stories written in first person are biographical):
You know, instantly, I guessed a lot about you. Even where you’re from, your age (actually I thought you were a few years younger) and your heritage. That obnoxious rudeness and lack of any common sense gave you away.
Not understanding the story or who the narrator is, is okay. I can except that from someone like you.
It’s those dumb remarks, asshole. I bet you got your ass kicked quite a bit when you were a kid.
I’m sure you won’t (and incapable of) back up anything you wrote with examples.
This piece was clearly autobiographical to anyone with a little reading comprehension. As children we sometimes do stupid things (you probably still do). If you could have understood what I wrote (I doubt you actually read it, because I can’t believe you can be that stupid.), the actions of the adults were actually more senseless than anything the main child did. But of course, you’re incapable of seeing that. Actually I’m sure you can’t understand what I wrote so far.
You make this asinine remark about the step-father. That can be expected from someone who isn’t too bright (and doesn’t realize it). I won’t attempt to explain it to you simply because you wouldn’t understand it.
You question my degree? How did you make it through high school?
Which girls do you suggest I remove? It’s part of a constructive review to give examples and why. But since I’ve had the displeasure of getting several of your verbal attacks without one iota of constructive criticism, I realize that’s not your style.
The stories involving the girls all led to something else. Maybe you didn’t comprehend that part (that’s if you read it).
I’m confident being honest wasn’t a part of your upbringing. But I’ll ask the boy, clearly lacking in credibility, did you actually read this story (I know 19 pages is a lot)? What is it: incapable of understanding simple things or you didn’t actually read the whole thing?
I don’t really expect any kind of intelligent response (fuck you is probably your definition of an intelligent response, much like the mind of a ten year old).
All I was trying to do is be helpful, show what I found to be the weaker points of his story. That's the whole point of Triggerstreet. I want to write him back but I know it's pointless. It's just really fucking me up.
And this is why, people suck.
Sunday, November 04, 2007
I wish I wasn't a moron
So:
Today at Starbucks I'm working, making drinks, making small talk with customers, doing what I'm paid to do. It's a bit busy but no big deal.
There are these two girls who have started coming in. A white girl and an asian girl. They seem nice. Both studying to be, well, I don't know the official scientific term, but basically foot surgeons. Apparently they've asked about me when I wasn't around, and now I get teased by my fellow co-workers when they come in. I'm not interested in either of them, but it's nice to know there are people out there in the world who find me desirable.
The two girls in question came in, and of course I make small talk (which is how I learned about their studies and their intended career). When their backs are turned my manager Danny teases me a bit, all in good nature, and I'm feeling pretty cool.
Feeling cool is always what leads me into trouble because I am never, in no way, cool.
Later, still feeling cool, a man, say in his mid-thirties walks in, a professional look about him even though he's wearing a Superman t-shirt. Of course, being the comic book dork I am, I talk up a bit about superman, and we this man says that a few years ago he dressed up as Clark Kent for Halloween.
Anyway, a bit later I catch him reading what I think is a Justice League comic, mostly because it has Superman on the cover.
Ok, in reality, maybe an hour total has passed since the girls walked in and then this fellow with the superman shirt. I punch out to leave and the man with the Superman shirt asks if I'm the manager. I'm not the manager but maybe I can help him. He asks an innocuous question about the furniture but there really isn't anything we can do to help because we get all the furniture from Starbucks corporate and know nothing about it.
Then I ask him about the comic book, which turns out to be the Justice Society, not Justice League. Those of you not into comics are probably thinking, who cares, right? Well, no one really cares. I tell him the only reason I asked was I wanted to know what he might have thought about the new Justice League writer. He didn't really answer but said that the Justice Society comic was good. I responded that the writer of the Justice Society, Geoff Johns, never really thrilled me. I liked his run on the Flash, but outside the Flash it was just ok and I didn't think I was going to pick it up.
What's the big deal with all of this? I felt cool so I engaged a customer after I was off the clock. Had I not felt cool I probably would have directed his question to someone still on the clock and made my exit. The cooler I feel the more likely I'm to interact with strangers.
I came home and something about the whole exchange niggled me in the back of the head. Not so much a voice, but a general uneasiness, which kept biting the corner of all my thoughts. I decide, because this is how fate works, to look Geoff Johns up on the internet.
I've never seen Geoff John in person or in any photograph before today, but after seeing his image just a few moments ago on the internet, I'm about 85 percent sure that the man I spoke with at Starbucks was Geoff Johns himself, and I told him I wasn't thrilled by his writing. First off, as a writer I know how much that really sucks. Secondly, I would love to write comic books someday. And if it was Geoff Johns (which I'm now pretty sure he was), he'd be an amazing contact to have. I can't imagine, in my stupid, look how cool I am fanboy mode, I gave a good first impression. "Hey, yeah, remember me? I'm the idiot barista who said you weren't such a good writer to your face. How'd you like to help get me a job?" I don't think that will go over very well.
Next time I just have to remember that I'm not cool and to keep my big mouth shut. Or at least ask for a name first.
Today at Starbucks I'm working, making drinks, making small talk with customers, doing what I'm paid to do. It's a bit busy but no big deal.
There are these two girls who have started coming in. A white girl and an asian girl. They seem nice. Both studying to be, well, I don't know the official scientific term, but basically foot surgeons. Apparently they've asked about me when I wasn't around, and now I get teased by my fellow co-workers when they come in. I'm not interested in either of them, but it's nice to know there are people out there in the world who find me desirable.
The two girls in question came in, and of course I make small talk (which is how I learned about their studies and their intended career). When their backs are turned my manager Danny teases me a bit, all in good nature, and I'm feeling pretty cool.
Feeling cool is always what leads me into trouble because I am never, in no way, cool.
Later, still feeling cool, a man, say in his mid-thirties walks in, a professional look about him even though he's wearing a Superman t-shirt. Of course, being the comic book dork I am, I talk up a bit about superman, and we this man says that a few years ago he dressed up as Clark Kent for Halloween.
Anyway, a bit later I catch him reading what I think is a Justice League comic, mostly because it has Superman on the cover.
Ok, in reality, maybe an hour total has passed since the girls walked in and then this fellow with the superman shirt. I punch out to leave and the man with the Superman shirt asks if I'm the manager. I'm not the manager but maybe I can help him. He asks an innocuous question about the furniture but there really isn't anything we can do to help because we get all the furniture from Starbucks corporate and know nothing about it.
Then I ask him about the comic book, which turns out to be the Justice Society, not Justice League. Those of you not into comics are probably thinking, who cares, right? Well, no one really cares. I tell him the only reason I asked was I wanted to know what he might have thought about the new Justice League writer. He didn't really answer but said that the Justice Society comic was good. I responded that the writer of the Justice Society, Geoff Johns, never really thrilled me. I liked his run on the Flash, but outside the Flash it was just ok and I didn't think I was going to pick it up.
What's the big deal with all of this? I felt cool so I engaged a customer after I was off the clock. Had I not felt cool I probably would have directed his question to someone still on the clock and made my exit. The cooler I feel the more likely I'm to interact with strangers.
I came home and something about the whole exchange niggled me in the back of the head. Not so much a voice, but a general uneasiness, which kept biting the corner of all my thoughts. I decide, because this is how fate works, to look Geoff Johns up on the internet.
I've never seen Geoff John in person or in any photograph before today, but after seeing his image just a few moments ago on the internet, I'm about 85 percent sure that the man I spoke with at Starbucks was Geoff Johns himself, and I told him I wasn't thrilled by his writing. First off, as a writer I know how much that really sucks. Secondly, I would love to write comic books someday. And if it was Geoff Johns (which I'm now pretty sure he was), he'd be an amazing contact to have. I can't imagine, in my stupid, look how cool I am fanboy mode, I gave a good first impression. "Hey, yeah, remember me? I'm the idiot barista who said you weren't such a good writer to your face. How'd you like to help get me a job?" I don't think that will go over very well.
Next time I just have to remember that I'm not cool and to keep my big mouth shut. Or at least ask for a name first.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
last one on the bandwagon (but it's how I feel)
So I grabbed this link from Peter David's Blog but he got it from Dan Slott (sorry couldn't find a homepage for him, but really I didn't look very hard), so I'm just spreading the wealth.
Anyway, I don't know if this counts as Irony that I found the link from a comments forum, but I think it speaks the truth.
http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1771556
Anyway, I don't know if this counts as Irony that I found the link from a comments forum, but I think it speaks the truth.
http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1771556
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