Calling All Geeks!

I guess this is really old, but I’m just learning about it…

I love “The Nightmare Before Christmas”. I can still remember seeing it for the first time when it first came out and, when it came out on video, watching it over and over again. Anyway, for the last few Halloweens they’ve been re-releasing a 3D version in theaters. I saw it year before last and it was awesome. Meant to see it again this year but I never got around to it. Well, apparently, one of the years they did this (back in ‘06, I’m thinking.), they re-released the soundtrack with a bonus disk with famous artist doing covers of songs from the movie. Like I said, I guess its old news, but I just found out about it the other day and I’ve been listening to it a lot ever since.

I figured I’d share a little sample here. Here’s my favorite song from the movie sung by an unexpected, yet oddly appropriate, singer:

Star Wars Galaxies update: I’m finally out of Tansarii Station. I didn’t finish those damn flying missions that have been driving me crazy these past few days, but when I hit level 10, I was told that I could go no further in the station. I even went on a bit of a droid killing spree to test it out and, sure enough, I was getting no experience points. Considering that, I didn’t really see the point in pursuing the flying missions, which I hate, any more. So, I’m finally on Tatooine. Unfortunatly, I’m running into an all new problem. Now that I’m in the main part of the game, I’m being hit was some serious ………….. lagging issues. I’ve cranked every quality and terrain option down to zero, but I can still only move a few feet before stopping. Then again, I was only getting four bars on my wireless connection last time I tried, so perhaps I’ll have a little more luck when it gets up to five. Any other tips are certainly welcome.

From a link off of Jon’s blog:

19

Hmm, I obviously need more practice fighting 5 year olds…

The X-Men have always held a special place in my little geek heart as I attribute the old Fox cartoon as being one of the major reasons I first got into superheroes and comics as a kid. Back in the days of the old cartoon, my favorite character was always Gambit. I’ve always felt that he got a raw deal in the comics. Its the strangest thing. Despite his huge fan following, writers and editors have always seemed to hate him, thus he’s yet to appear in any of the movies so far. (Lost star Josh ‘Sawyer’ Holloway was rumored to be in the running to play him in the third movie, though the Gambit scene was supposedly cut just before casting.) I always assumed it was because Gambit violated the first commandment of X-Men/Marvel Comics: Wolverine is thy God and ye shall have no other God before him.

With that in mind, I’m finding it quite amusing that Gambit is FINALLY making his big screen debut in the upcoming Wolverine movie. According to Superhero Hype!, he will be played by Friday Night Lights star Taylor Kitsch. I’ve never seen FNL, so I can’t say how he is as an actor, but he certainly has the look down.

My interest in this movie has just shot way up.

I’m absolutely fascinated by voice actors. One of the greatest ones around today is a guy called Billy West. You’ve probably never seen his face, but I guarantee you’ve heard his voice. Just look at his IMDb page.
Anyway, I found these YouTube videos and thought I’d share:

EDIT: For some reason, I can’t get these videos to embed properly. So, here are some links: Vid 1, Vid 2, Vid 3, Vid 4

Well, we finally got SWG going and, so far, its awesome. The only thing I don’t like about it so far is the space battles. I’ve been in one for about an hour now and I don’t think I’ve accomplished jack shit. My ship apparently has two settings. Slow as hell, where you can’t keep up with anything, or super sensitive mouse, in which your ship spirals out of control at even the slightest nudge. And I’m pretty sure my enemies are invincible.

Other then that, however, its been really cool so far.

Man… the Transformers movie sucked so bad. THEY SHOULD HAVE MADE IT MORE LIKE THE CARTOON!!!

I mentioned a couple post ago that I was working on a movie song playlist that I could play at work. Just in case anyone cares, this is what I have so far:

• The Immigrant (Main Theme) – the Godfather
• Battle Without Honor Or Humanity – Kill Bill vol. 1
• Gonna Fly Now – Rocky
• Miserlou – Pulp Fiction
• The Time Warp – Rocky Horror Picture Show
• I Don’t Want To Miss A Think – Armegeddon
• Little Green Bag – Reservoir Dogs
• Bring Me To Life – Daredevil
• Spybreak (Short One) – The Matrix
• The End – Apocalypse Now (<– May need to take that one off for work. Forgot that Jim Morrison chants the word ‘fuck’ in the end.)
• Stuck in the Middle With You – Reservoir Dogs
• New Slang – Garden State
• In Time – The Punisher
• Still – Dogma
• Tube of Wonderful – Chasing Amy
• Mad World – Donnie Darko
• Suicide is Painless – MASH
• Woo Hoo – Kill Bill vol. 1
• Smoke, Smoke, Smoke That Cigaret – Thank You For Smoking
• Ghost Riders in the Sky – Ghost Rider
• Superman Theme – Superman
• Star Wars Main Theme – Star Wars
• Imperial March – Star Wars

Thats what I have so far. Stuff I want to add:

• Pink Panther Theme – The Pink Panter
• Star Trek Theme – Star Trek (<– Surprisingly difficult to find so far.)
• Batman Theme – Batman (Tim Burton version.)
• Louie, Louie – Animal House
• I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow – O Brother Where Art Thou?
• Kiss From a Rose – Batman Forever
• Axel F – Beverly Hills Cop
• Rainbow Connection – The Muppet Movie
• In a Gadda-Da-Vida – Manhunter (<– Actually have a short version of this song, but I want to go for the super trippy 14 min version. Hehe.)
• Tequila – Pee Wee’s Big Adventure
• Don’t Stop Me Now – Shaun of the Dead
• Old Time Rock and Roll – Risky Business
• Goodbye Horses – The Silence of the Lambs (And Clerks II, lol.)
• I Believe I Can Fly – Space Jam
• Wind Beneath My Wings – Beaches
• Moving in Stereo – Fast Times at Ridgemont High
• Bohemian Rhapsody – Wayne’s World
• Footloose – Footloose
• Shaft – Shaft
• Johnny B. Good – Back to the Future
• Hip to Be Square – American Psycho
• What a Wonderful World – Good Morning Vietnam
• Maniac – Flashdance
• Ghostbusters – Ghostbusters
• Eye of the Tiger – Rocky III
• I Will Always Love You – The Body Guard
• Don’t You Forget About Me – The Breakfast Club
• Mrs. Robinson – The Graduate
• The Time of My Life – Dirty Dancing
• You’re the Best – Karate Kid
• Men In Black – Men In Black

Now, I do think its important to note that some of these songs aren’t necessarily on the list because I like them, but because they’re from a movie. (So don’t give me any crap on “Wind Beneath My Wings” or “I Will Always Love You”.) Anyway, what do you guys think? Am I missing anything?

I got this off of Harlan Ellison’s online community by means of ComicMix. Its a very interesting take on the recent WGA settlement.

HARLAN ELLISON ON THE WRITERS STRIKE SETTLEMENT

YOU HAVE MY PERMISSION TO RE-POST THIS ANYWHERE:

Creds: got here in 1962, written for just about everybody, won the Writers Guild Award four times for solo work, sat on the WGAw Board twice, worked on negotiating committees, and was out on the picket lines with my NICK COUNTER SLEEPS WITH THE FISHE$$$ sign. You may have heard my name. I am a Union guy, I am a Guild guy, I am loyal. I fuckin’ LOVE the Guild.

And I voted NO on accepting this deal.

My reasons are good, and they are plentiful; Patric Verrone will be saddened by what I am about to say; long-time friends will shake their heads; but this I say without equivocation…

 

 

THEY BEAT US LIKE A YELLOW DOG. IT IS A SHIT DEAL. We finally got a timorous generation that has never had to strike, to get their asses out there, and we had to put up with the usual cowardly spineless babbling horse’s asses who kept mumbling “lessgo bac’ta work” over and over, as if it would make them one iota a better writer. But after months on the line, and them finally bouncing that pus-sucking dipthong Nick Counter, we rushed headlong into a shabby, scabrous, underfed shovelfulla shit clutched to the affections of toss-in-the-towel summer soldiers trembling before the Awe of the Alliance.

My Guild did what it did in 1988. It trembled and sold us out. It gave away the EXACT co-terminus expiration date with SAG for some bullshit short-line substitute; it got us no more control of our words; it sneak-abandoned the animator and reality beanfield hands before anyone even forced it on them; it made nice so no one would think we were meanies; it let the Alliance play us like the village idiot. The WGAw folded like a Texaco Road Map from back in the day.

And I am ashamed of this Guild, as I was when Shavelson was the prexy, and we wasted our efforts and lost out on technology that we had to strike for THIS time. 17 days of streaming tv!!!????? Geezus, you bleating wimps, why not just turn over your old granny for gang-rape?

You deserve all the opprobrium you get. While this nutty festschrift of demented pleasure at being allowed to go back to work in the rice paddy is filling your cowardly hearts with joy and relief that the grips and the staff at the Ivy and street sweepers won’t be saying nasty shit behind your back, remember this:

You are their bitches. They outslugged you, outthought you, outmaneuvered you; and in the end you ripped off your pants, painted yer asses blue, and said yes sir, may I have another.

Please excuse my temerity. I’m just a sad old man who has fallen among Quislings, Turncoats, Hacks and Cowards.

I must go now to whoops. My gorge has become buoyant.

Respectfully, Yr. Pal, Harlan Ellison

I hadn’t heard any terms of the settlement, but I thought it was interesting to get a peak at a different perspective. I think the guy makes some interesting points, at least in the parts of his rant that I understood. (Honestly, he lost me in some of his allusions and metaphors. My gorge has become buoyant? WTF?) I must admit, however, that as a television consumer, no matter how much I supported the WGA during the strike, I’m just glad that things are going to be making their way back to normal. If that makes me some kind of traitor, I apologize, but I really, really hate reality shows.

HA! I bet you thought I was going to slack off and forget about the blog once again. Well… you know I am, but not yet. I still have a little more in me.  I guess my number one reason for not posting for about a week now is the classic excuse: Work. Its the one thing that takes up the most of my time and yet leaves me with the least amount of material I want/can blog about. Also, and I’m kind of happy about this one, I’ve been focusing a lot of my writing elsewhere lately. Writing is one of my hobbies that I don’t talk about very often, but it is something that I really enjoy … once I get the ball rolling. Starting stuff is a real bitch for me, but I’ve recently crafted a decent start to a story and I’ve been on a bit of a roll.

As far as what I’ve failed to cover this past week, there are a few items of note. My good friend Katie is finally home from Japan. I haven’t seen her in what seems like forever. We still haven’t had a chance to hang out yet, but its nice to know my friend is in the same hemisphere as me. Also worth mentioning is my ex-girlfriend, also named Katie oddly enough, (Its weird, I’ve always seemed cosmically draw to women named Katie. I have a cousin named Katie, too.) has officially announced her engagement. I mean, its been public knowledge for quite some time now, the the announcement was in the paper and everything. I also read the date the wedding is to be held, though I can’t quite recall it right now. I think it was sometime in May. Anyway, I congratulate her and wish her and her husband-to-be the best of luck.

Still no luck on Star Wars Galaxies. Honestly, I’ve taken a small step back from it. I’m still going to try to get it going, but it was becoming a huge source of frustration, so I decided to take a break before I started full on hating it. This week wouldn’t have been a good week for it anyway. I recently showed Jared how to do something online and its been eating up a TON of bandwidth. I swear, one day it was like being back on dial-up. Luckily, thats calmed down a bit so my connection has been restored to full strength. Right now, I’m trying to create a new playlist for my Zune. At work, our Musac subscription recently ran out, so a couple of us have decided to bring in our MP3 players and provide our own music. I’m trying to create a list of cool songs featured in movies. So far, it’s about an hour and a half long (with a lot more left to add) and its really cool.

And thats about it. See, the real reason I don’t post much is that I’m actually quite boring.