It's August 10!

That means Stardust starts!

Follow Up

Arm is doing much better, swelling considerably down, now just a nasty bruise on my elbow. Range of motion is not stellar yet, but improved. Still can't grip without pain, or hold much weight in my right hand. My wrist has been reminding me to not push. You can guess how hard it is for me to behave myself.

I have renewed respect and admiration for Camille (duh, like when do I not?). I can't imagine having to relearn everyday reactions with my weaker side. Granted, she was in her early 20s when she paralyzed, but still. I haven't even tried writing, and still am seriously impaired.

Evan seems a bit put out we aren't taking him to the Rush concert in August. I'm not sure he understands it's a school night, and mom was too cheap to pay $65 for him to go. He can just add it to the list of things I've done to scar him for life.

Degolar found an important site. Support democracy in action. While I seriously doubt Amidala is the appropriate Star Wars image for stamp history (vote results as of Wednesday morning)... I have no doubt many an enthralled fanboy who would die happy if she won the vote.

Granted, I did smile after the page loaded, and I heard the TIE fighter and lightsaber sound effects. And if the fanboys can vote for Amidala, then I can vote for rogue Han Solo and Chewbacca!

Things I Miss, Not Working Downtown

Thankfully, the article also answered my question... where are the Star Wars stamps? They come out May 25.

Lyndy smiles.

Wait for It...

Went to see '300'-- and plan on giving my opinion... but want to reread the comic to refresh my memory.

Initial reaction was a "hell, yeah!" Visually, it rocked. The coloring was quite perfect. And of course I won't complain about the very, very pretty cast.

While my lovely boyfriend will be disappointed I was enthralled by the slow motion march towards the camera... in my defense, the rock music score hypnotized me. I had no choice. The night scene, watching the Persian fleet crash upon the shore, during that rain.... *that* was a rock star moment. Wailing guitars and stoic stances are a powerful combination.

Back to Reality

Leaving Phoenix yesterday, 5:20 p.m local time..... 90 degrees

Landing at KCI two and a half hours later.... 37 degrees. Good lord!

All in all, an awesome trip. No problems with the flights. Managed to avoid Yuppiebees (Chili's is better anyway), and found a new favorite with El Toro Bravo.

We wrapped up our tour with excellent chill time at Fox and Hound. Their set up was pretty similar to the one in Overland Park, other than they have a pool table in the huge foyer. Makes me want to go back to the one in KC again soon.

And, bonus! Finished Prachett's "Wee Free Men" and the first in a series of Anita Blake, vampire hunter books-- appropriately enough titled "Guilty Pleasures". Don't judge me!

Degolar, I tried... I really did... to try and finish "The Hobbit". Made quite a bit of progress. But after in comparison to the writing style of the other two, I was struggling mightily. The truth be told, I think it's just because Bilbo is not my favorite Tolkien character. Can you really blame me... when you have all those other pretty warrior boys?

PS: That reminds me-- Girls, take note! Saw the trailer for Karl Urban in "Pathfinder". He's awful pretty. AND! He's appearing with that yummy Christian Bale in the next Batman movie.

My Newest Artist Crush

Eric Poulten has posted another Steampunk Star Wars drawing and synopsis.

One of the commentors opined a steampunk series would have been much cooler than Episode I-III. Other than being way out of time line, that would totally rock.

I also have a craving for more Edward Gorey work.

Days It's Good to Be a Geek

Justice League movie coming to big screen

Now To Only Find the Time...

I'm slightly geeking for this to arrive, and hopefully before I have to go out of town for work.

Though I ought to be a good girl and take The Hobbit with me, so that Degolar doesn't kick me off the book club blog. Fortunately, a lack of book blogging doesn't mean I haven't been reading along!

And if I get ambitious, then I can resume the Tiffany Aching book as well.

Possibly My Next Favorite Show

Dan recently wrote about the new season of '24'.

While I've heard and known of the series, I never seemed to catch an episode. I feel a little sorry for the former president, now featured in insurance ads.

Anyway, I guess I had forgotten the series was directed and produced by this guy and this guy behind Nikita.

If I HAD been watching... I would have already realized they were keeping love for the Nikita folks. Madeline kept a job for most of one season....

And now they have Mick Schtoppel!
He is the life of the party, isn't he?

Looks like I'm in for some serious catching up.

More Reason Than Ever...

I really need to start watching "Heroes". Not only would Adrian then stop ridiculing me at work, but now there's additional appeal...

How I Spent My Thanksgiving Vacation

Now I have the whole series, glee!! Even it was a bit underwhelming to rip open the wafer-thin box. Eight episodes don't go very far.

In other news... I totally know what to get my boys next. Watching Evan play Guitar Hero II last night was HYSTERICAL! The boy has rhythm. Although... it's big, dorky, white boy rhythm. It was so cute to watch them having such a good time.

Obi Wan: I felt a great disturbance in the Force

.. as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. I fear something terrible has happened.

Peter Jackson won't direct 'The Hobbit' or LOTR prequel (clicky)

Although not from the same movie, it still works. Jackson and New Line are breaking up, over money. Those prenups are more important than you realize!

That's all I have today, folks. It's been a hard week for levity. This week, a year ago, was the beginning of the end for my personal goddess. I'm grateful the last words I received from her were happy and optimistic.

Every once in a while, though... I'm still pissed she's gone. This too shall pass.

Equal Time

No longer do I need worry about neglecting the DC comics heroes.

While at the post office, I found these:

Like golden age comics, the postal service has been around long enough not to care if they're PC or not. So that's is the only comics option you get. Don't go crying to your mama, hippie.

That's Queen Geek to You!

I felt a pang of dilemma this morning, trying to decide what style of checks to reorder.

When you're a comic fan, it's hard to be loyal only to Marvel, or only to DC.

Fortunately, Marvel upped their offer, by including my girl Elektra:



Marvel wins!






And I'm really having to resist ordering the coordinating checkbook cover:


It's got my man Daredevil!!!








Aww, crap... I am so screwed! I hate paying money anyway for checks, since I really only use them to track what I pay online. The internet minimum order will last me like two years!

But they're so dang cool!

Best Election Coverage Yet

I found this through a string of Friends-of-Ali blogs. The writer appears to be from Seattle, and very funny.

I'm not sure if it is his original work, but I loved it all the same. How can you go wrong? Comics+politics=humour!

Tuesday, November 07, 2006
ELECTION DAY 2006 - WHOSE SIDE IS YOUR FAVORITE SUPERHERO ON?

It's mid-term election day here in the States, which means that tommorrow 1/3 of the country will be cautiously happy, 1/3 will be pissed off, and the other 1/3 will have no idea that there was an election in the first place.

It's times like these that make me wonder how superheroes would vote. Is Captain America a Republican or a Democrat? What about Batman? It's tempting to attribute one's own political beliefs to one's childhood heroes, but that would be wrong. We're in a No-Spin Zone here at Dave's Long Box, so I have examined the evidence and decided on a political party affiliation for some of my favorite heroes without regard to my personal beliefs.

So, in an effort to piss off readers of all political persuasions, here then is the breakdown. I can't wait for the Green Lantern fans to start flaming me in the comments section...

SUPERMAN – MODERATE REPUBLICAN
Small town values and big city pragmatism inform Superman’s middle-of-the-road political beliefs. On the one hand, his upbringing in rural Kansas forms the bedrock of Superman’s values system. On the other hand, as Clark Kent, Superman works in bustling cosmopolitan Metropolis for a big city liberal newspaper, The Daily Planet. Superman is a fiscal conservative who has a healthy distrust of big government – don't forget his arch-enemy Lex Luthor was President of the United States for a while. He’s moderate on most social issues like gay rights (Jimmy Olsen is his best pal) but is pro-capital punishment. Hey, Superman, it doesn’t matter if you cry after executing some Kryptonian criminals – you’re still pro-death penalty.

WONDER WOMAN – SOCIALIST
Wonder Woman was raised in an all-female society, a monarchist utopia with strong socialist overtones and plenty of hot girl-on-girl action. Wonder Woman came to “Patriarch’s World” with a clear liberal agenda but a willingness to crack skulls if need be. She’s heavily into social justice, environmental issues, and sisterhood. Wonder Woman is not beyond sticking a high-heeled red boot up your ass if you get in the way of her Sapphic Socialism

GREEN ARROW – TOTAL FUCKING COMMUNIST
Green Arrow is a loose cannon, politically speaking. He’s somewhere to the left of Alec Baldwin on the political spectrum and he’s armed to the teeth with those crazy-ass arrows of his. Green Arrow is an unapologetic leftist. He's always bitching about how the Justice League are a bunch of fascists and railing against “The Man.” He’s soft on drugs – his sidekick Speedy was a frickin’ junkie! An advocate of redistribution of wealth and his own pinko version of justice, this modern day Robin Hood wants to take your hard-earned money and give it to some soup kitchen or something. Go smoke another joint, hippy!

GREEN LANTERN – REPUBLICAN
The squarest superhero in the DC Universe (and that’s saying a lot), Green Lantern is also one of the most conservative. A former test pilot and current galactic police officer, Green Lantern has always been a running dog for The Man. Dude carries a WMD on his ring finger and flies around reshaping reality according to his idea of The Way Things Should Be. Total neocon. (I am so getting hate email for this.)

BATMAN – INDEPENDENT
Batman is a true independent, a man of solid principles and baffling contradictions. This may be because he is mentally ill. Batman has an almost paranoid distrust of government institutions, yet believes in the rule of law. He’s an urban vigilante, yet he’s a proponent of gun control. Batman is anti-death penalty to a fault – how many times has he had to capture the mass-murdering Joker and return him to Arkham Asylum instead of the electric chair? Contradictions be damned. Batman follows his own moral compass, and Batman is always right. When Batman votes, he weighs all the options and chooses the best person for the job, regardless of party affiliation or whether they are actually running for office. In other words, he writes-in BATMAN on every ballot.

SPIDER-MAN – DEMOCRAT
“With great power comes great responsibility.” That’s 100% Democrat. Spidey is as much about taking care of the little guy as he is about clobbering bad guys. Spidey grew up poor, watching his Aunt May trying to stretch her Social Security check each month and scrambling to make ends meet as a freelance photographer for that yellow rag The Daily Bugle. Nowadays he’s working as a teacher in a New York public school. Recently Spidey was duped by reactionary neocon superheroes into supporting their oppressive agenda in Marvel’s Civil War mini-series. Total democrat.

DAREDEVIL– FAR-LEFT DEMOCRAT
Let’s see: Rich, highly-educated skirt-chasing Manhattan defense attorney. Total liberal. Enjoy that Streisand concert, Daredevil.

IRON MAN – NEOCON REPUBLICAN
No Marvel hero has better Republican credentials than Tony Stark, aka Iron Man. He’s a billionaire industrialist and weapons manufacturer with an Ivy League education and a drinking problem. He’s a staunch anti-communist and served as Secretary of Defense (can we have him back?). In Marvel’s Civil War storyline, Iron Man has drawn a line in the proverbial sand. He wants all superhumans to register with the government, and if you’re not with him, you’re against him. And if you’re against him, look out. He’ll classify you as an enemy combatant and throw your ass into his Negative Zone prison, where U.S. courts have no jurisdiction. No, he’s not considered a supervillain, why do you ask?

THE HULK – LIBERTARIAN
“Hulk just want to be left alone.”

CAPTAIN AMERICA - TRUMAN DEMOCRAT
Cap is a man out of time. Thawed after 50-odd years of suspended animation, this living legend from World War II is guided by old-fashioned American values and unshakeable principles. In other words, he’s got a bit of a stick up his ass. Captain America can’t even recognize today’s political parties, which have mutated in the decades he’s been on ice into bloated, hypocritical ideological monstrosities whose divisive policies makes him sad. Makes him cry, even. Cap believes in small government that stays out of private lives, a strong national defense, and pulling oneself up by one’s boot straps or shoelaces or whatever is handy. However, Cap is opposed to legislating morality and believes that government has a responsibility to help out the less fortunate and defenseless, like kids and puppies. Cap is a walking Frank Capra movie with a mean right hook. He votes his conscience, not along party lines.

GHOST RIDER - UNAFILLIATED
The Spirit of Vengeance, Ghost Rider is the ultimate protest voter. He always votes against the incumbent and anyone who endorses helmet laws. Vengeance is his.

posted by David Campbell at 4:42 AM

Geek Glee!

Avengers on-deck for movie

I'm seriously stoked about the Iron Man movie in process. But I wish they'd actually say would will play Tony Stark!

And while still happy... I'm not nearly as excited about the next Fantastic Four movie. Yeah, it's nice to have Silver Surfer. But I'm not sure why Jessica Alba needs to think she's the one to tempt Shiny. Though I also don't know why she thinks she can pull off playing Susan Storm, either.

Flame on!

Why Do Europe and Asia Get Cooler Gadgets?

... because I don't need an excuse to lose one more cute, yet unnecessary, electronic toy.

Beyond the whole "then I gotta go buy totally different media". Suckers.

Though, when it comes time for my "new every two"? I'm totally getting that Motorola Q. By then I'm hoping they aren't still $300.

Geek High Holy Days

(linky) Trekkies flock to Las Vegas for Star Trek convention

What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. Especially when it involves Tribbles and blue chics. Though now I wonder... what happens to the Andorians' antennae when they get really excited?