Like I said in the last post (which I'm shocked was left nearly a year ago), most of my activity these days is done over on twitter. Still, I figured I'd come back with an update on the progress of TDSA: The Teenaged Defending Squad of America, my graphic novel. Specifically that it's finished and at the printers as we speak, and the official website is up and running. I've also got a facebook page (which I really need to update with more details -- I suck at promotion, sadly), and I've been posting sneak peeks since the start of the year on twitter. So if you follow my blog (for some utterly inexplicable reason), that's what I've been up to.
Hi there. Haven't been doing a whole lot lately. Thinks've been fine, I suppose. Not great though. Trying to keep busy but've fallen behind on a few things. But enough about me. Here's a funny Office trailer-ish recut clip.
Hi there. Sorry again for not having much to say lately. I'm hoping to have some interesting stuff to write about down the line, but since I'm busy on stuff that's not quite ready to post about and since my moods been down lately, I haven't got a whole lot to say. In lieu of that, here's a song that describes how I've been feeling lately. Hope you like it.
Sorry I haven't been around lately. A lot going on and not enough time to take care of it all. In the meantime, here's my entry for this week's New Yorker caption contest:
"Naturally, I blame you for this"
Hilarious right? I'll admit, it was hard coming up with something that wasn't blatently obvious or probably a rip-off of a gag they made on "Hee-Haw". Even then... meh, I'm not unimpressed with myself here, but I wouldn't brag about this one.
Ha. "Hee-Haw". That's a dated reference even for me.
Sorry for the lack of updates lately, but things've been a little busy. I've been getting some good stuff accomplished though (even if there's still a list of things I've yet to get to) so it's good. All the same, I've been feeling kind of unfulfilled. I usually get this way around the holidays, so it's probably just all that.
Hoping I have something eventful happen worth sharing, or at least that time stops speeding by and I remember when a week's passed so I can update on time. Man alive, 2009 went by fast. If I didn't know for sure I was around for it, I'd swear there wasn't a summer this year.
I've just had to spend the last week in bed because of the H1N1 virus getting the better of me. And by better I mean making me sweat while I'm freezing cold and get such splitting headaches that if hurts to much to think to keep my eyes open.
Better now though. My temperature's down, not coughing up phlegm, and the only headaches I've gotten in the last little while can easily be attributed to the sedentary state of my brain after lying in bed watching NCIS and Reba reruns for a solid five-six days. I'm just kidding. I never watched Reba, and I only sat through NCIS because Charles Durning was guest starring in the episode and the man does good work.
But no, not dead. Slightly bowling ball-ish, but not dead. And sorry there wasn't an image to accompany this. I found an image of a skull inside a bowling ball that would've gone perfectly with the whole "bowling ball-ish" thing, but as an image alone, it's confusingly oblique at best.
Speaking of confusing, I'm surprised I got the H1N1 after my noted debacle with the swine flu from earlier in the year. I didn't think you could get the same flu twice in a year... I figured it was like how a husband and wife can't be tried for the same crime -- you know, you don't have to worry about it. Gah. My brain hurts. Gonna go.
I reread Final Crisis #7 a second time and... still didn't get the whole thing. Still, the artwork was nice, I suppose. Saw Tropic Thunder again the other day, and it was just as funny the second time.
Got an x ray on my back today. I'm not 100%, but I doubt a healthy spine should look like a Jenga tower about to tip over.
And on that note, here's a fun video including one of my favorite things -- spontaneous and random dancing:
Although I'm only a week into the new year, I feel oddly like this year might be a good one. I find that particularly unusual as I'm not generally a "9" guy -- when it comes to years and months I have more success with "4"s, "5"s, and "8"s. But despite the severe back problems I've been afflicted with, I've already gotten a few outstanding items off my personal checklist and, in the process of improving a few things for the betterment of my back, have improved my overall quality of life. For instance, instead of using a converted side-table as a desk as I have for the last while, I found a desk at Ikea that is nicely economical size-wise and only cost me thirty bucks. Not only that but I have the old side table as a clutter-solver in place of the old desk chair I was piling stuff on. All things considered I'm feeling positive about the direction this year is headed in. Here's hoping that isn't a sign something horrible is going to happen to me in the not-to-distant future, and that my twisted lower vertebrates compensate for any dreadful eventualities.
I saw the latest James Bond film a week back and enjoyed it quite a bit. Not the timeliest thing to be blogging about I suppose -- two weeks in release is a lifetime in blog years to finally get around to mentioning it -- but there you go. Curiously I thought of mentioning it after reading a brief review of the film with wrote of it negatively, the criticism having being due to the portrayal of James Bond in the film. Granted I didn't have a problem with it, and actually enjoyed Daniel Craig as Bond quite a bit.
To be honest though, my favorite bits probably had to do with the Quantum group, which seems to be the latest Bond iteration of Spectre, albeit renamed due to rights issues surrounding that name and the Blofeld character. While, as a Bond aficionado (since TBS' 1995 "13 Days of 007", timed to the release of Goldeneye), I'd have preferred Spectre named as the group, Quantum is perfectly serviceable, and world's better than "Octopus", the fill-in name used in the "From Russia With Love" video game, and "SCUM", from James Bond Jr. (which, fittingly, I adored when I was 9 year old and had all of the action figures and vehicles for). Additionally, I find it awfully neat that there's a recurring bad guy in Mr. White, who, if wikipedia is to be trusted, was to have been killed in an alternate ending for the film which was unused to give the filmmakers flexibility for the next film, should they choose not to continue the Quantum storyline.
Anyway...
I put up the Christmas decorations the other day. I always hate having to get the trees out of storage since they're in the far part of the laundry room, tucked way down under one of the shelves. And last year, for some reason, I thought it a good idea to put the trees (yes I have two of them, since my dad wanted to have a second tree because he's a dope) in garbage bags, since the boxes they'd been kept in were falling to pieces. I've resolved to buy plastic bins to keep the trees and ornaments in when it's time to put them away this time, because, naturally, it's going to fall on me to have to deal with all that bloody mess in January.
So, terribly sorry I didn't get back sooner with these scintillating thoughts and anecdotes. I'd hate to think I've let down the folks who've stumbled on my blog, especially since I've shot myself in the foot with that pledge of new content weekly and I'm too lazy to change it. Meh.
A series of bad weeks and a few really bad days have really brought my mood down. I wasn't able to do much this weekend besides sleeping, lying in bed, and doing a whole restore of my computer's hard drive. At least it's running better, and I'm holding off on putting all of my files back on the hard drive in anticipation of borrowing a copy of the updated Windows from a buddy that will, presumably, wipe the hard drive clean in the process. I'm hoping that things pick up in the next few days, but the way things have been going, I'm expecting more of the same. Still hoping to get some stuff done in the meantime, but I'm probably not going to be that productive all things considered.
Sorry I haven't got much to say or anything interesting to link to, but that's the way it's been going.
Following up on the last post, the Kids in the Hall show was great fun. Sure they were a little older and chubbier than they were back in the heyday of their show, but they were great as ever. Kevin MacDonald's voice was a little coarse -- apparently he had a cold -- and one of the running jokes of the night was how rough his voice was. There was one or two sketches from the show, but the rest was new material.
There was a great sketch with Dave Foley and MacDonald, where Foley played a guy who only ordered one beer at a last-call and was berated by his buddy for not ordering more. Foley explained he didn't need to order more than one because he had a time machine, upon which MacDonald berated him further for having a time machine and using it to get drunk instead of going back in time and killing Hitler or something. So Foley goes back in time and orders two beers at last-call. After a call-back at the end of another sketch, a third sketch had the character going back in time to kill Hitler when he was an art student, but the good-natured Hitler offered him a German beer, which the guy reluctantly accepted instead of killing Hitler. I didn't do the sketch justice, but rest assured it was great -- definitely the sort of thing you'd see on the show.
On Tuesday I saw Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Wasn't a great movie necessarily, but Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford made it work when lesser hands wouldn't. And even if it wasn't the best movie I'll probably see this summer, it was worth seeing on the big-screen and I'd recommend it for that reason.
Not much else to say really. I finally put a DVD-TV stand unit together that I'd been planning for a while. For someone with zero carpentry skills, it turned out half-decent -- I had to build it from scratch since I couldn't find a unit to fit the spot I wanted to put it in, much less a decent unit for less than a hundred and fifty dollars.
Nana's settled into her room at the nursing home. She seems to like it, even if she thinks she's still in the hospital and will be coming back home at some point. My cousin, Aubrey, almost spilled the beans when he mentioned that we'd loaded her bed-frame into the truck he rented to move her stuff around, but we didn't dwell on it and moved past it.
Finally, here's a plug for Tangent: Superman's Reign from DC Comics. It's a nicely done, self-contained 12 issue series with nice writing and great Jamal Igle artwork. I'm really enjoying the interplay between Green Lantern and the Flash in the series and wish there was more being done with the characters as a pair elsewhere. It's an easy series to overlook since it's in his own little spot and not really connected to other titles, but I'm enjoying it quite a bit and recommend it.
Sorry for the lack of posts recently. Things have been a little hectic. My grandmother is still in the hospital and I finally finished getting her things in order and out of her room, moving my stuff in afterwards. Had the carpets shampooed to get the trail around her bed cleared up. Moved my computer in and just got a wireless internet thing set up too. The set up is still a little shaky, but it's good for now.
I went to a seminar on depression last week. Didn't really find out anything new, but it was good hearing some of the symptoms read aloud and finding out that what I'm going through isn't unique to me, that's exclusive to me and all that. Been hanging out with the guys lately, having a good time. Sleeping well too. My hours were a little off for a while there, but they're pretty normal now.
Not much else to say besides the guys are all into Grand Theft Auto now. John and Edmond even bought 360s just so they could play the game. I watched Kerr and Sean playing an online multi-player match yesterday. They hopped in a car, Sean driving, and tried to get away from the police. A second later the car swerved out of control and into a tree. Turns out a cop shot Sean and he died at the wheel. It was pretty funny, you know, not being real and all. Equally funny was when Kerr dove out of a car and was immediately run over by Sean who was following him.
Can't think of much else to say. Things have been a little better lately though, after a good while of things being pretty awful. Hope it keeps up.
I'd been feeling a little better over the past few days and looking forward to my birthday allowed the possibility of something great happening that would make me feel great. Didn't quite work out like I'd hoped -- got a few nice things, but mostly stuff I'd bought for myself. Went out for dinner with John, Edmond, and Kerr to Boston Pizza. Felt pretty crummy going in, but better afterwards. Still feeling down but better than I was. Birthday wasn't all that I was hoping it'd be, but I guess I've got to stop getting too excited about things since that usually results in me feeling down when it doesn't pan out. You think I'd know by now, but there you go.
Sorry for the depressing message. Here's a couple of pictures of cute animals to lighten things up.
I had a good weekend, better than the last few weeks. A Starbucks opened in my neighborhood and I've been stopping in every few days for a white chocolate mocca. Got a haircut and started going through my grandmother's things since it's all but certain she'll have to go to a home. Not much else to really report on, but that all kept me busy and I'm feeling a little bit better.
Still not feeling too good. Had a good day last Sunday -- I went to an Indigo book store with a couple of friends and got a few things to read and a Starbucks coffee. Had a nice dinner afterwards and even won a toy from a claw machine game. It's kind of been mixed since. Was riding the good day into the week, but it just got crummier after. My grandmother woke up with a sore back that got progressively worse until she had to go to the hospital. I spent about three hours with her and effectively screwed up my back on an uncomfortable chair in the process. Didn't sleep well last night and woke up aching and with a headache today. Still, the new episode of the Spider-Man cartoon wasn't bad, so there's that. Not feeling too good still. Hoping things get better, but I'm not overly optimistic. I think I need to get a new anti-depressant prescribed. I'm seeing my therapist on Thursday, so I'll bring it up then.
Anyway, hope to have more upbeat things to report on next time.
After being out of town for a week, I came back to a computer that crapped out on me an hour or two into getting caught up on a few of my usual online haunts. I finally got it running again yesterday and figured I'd stop by here since I still have that "updated weekly" thing at the top of the page. I should probably change that. Hm.
Anyway, nothing new has really happened lately. Had a good time in Windsor. Have been keeping busy since I got back. I did think of something worth posting the other day. Probably a rant about an advirtising campaign if the last couple of posts are any indication. I do have an idea for another post, something to the effect that people who write "ya" when they mean to say "yeah" are idiots, but I'll save that for another post and a less pleasant mood.
Does anyone else have this kind of problem? I have a good friend -- we've known each other since elementary school -- and the guy just crosses the line a lot. Not all the time, but he'll just say something so incendiary that it makes me want to cut off contact with the guy. First time was during an argument with another friend. Can't remember the details, but it ended with me telling him he screwed up. So this other guy, let's call him Sean (that being his name and all), comes in and tells me "my whole life is a screw up, and all I do is sit around on my fat ass". Now replace "screw" with an expletive my PG-13 mentality prevents me from posting here, and you'll understand why I felt like punching him in the face.
Actually, now that I think of it -- and since I'm loathe to go back and edit this post for fear I'll lose my train of thought -- the first time was when I was at a pub with a few of guys, and Sean. I went to use the men's room and Sean thought it would be funny to throw wet paper towels at me. And then he pinched me in front of the waitress. Not just a little pinch. The son of a bitch grabbed me. After the fact it occurred to me that we were there for four hours, so that might've had something to do with my foul mood, but it was an unpleasant experience all around.
The third time was on messenger. I add that Sean is stubborn. Pleasant, most of the time, and actually very funny (more on that in a bit), but very stubborn. So when I was trying to have a serious conversation with Sean about my depression, I was taken aback by his attitude that I "just do it", whatever that might be, however difficult that might be. I tried to explain that it doesn't work that way, that, a lot of time, I don't have the drive to do the things I most enjoy these days. And the conversation went as follows:
Sean: those are all just excuses.......millions of ppl with depression do things for themselves........... you just chose not to
Me: Sean. I'm so offended by what you just said. I don't dispute that I'm lazy, but my life has ground to a halt by very serious depression that I've only just begun to feel like I'm making any forward movement through. I find it terribly offensive that you'd attribute any lack of movement to my own choice.
Sean: maybe it was your lifestyle that led to the depression, in which case it kind of was your choice........... i dont think depression is something that should be prevelant in someone your age. you have it good.....you just gotta find better ways of dealing with problems
Me: I can't even have this conversation with you right now.
Sean: thats also the problem.....
Me: If you want to know what is the cause of my depression, I'll have a frank conversation with you, but not over messenger.
Sean: you always want help but dont want to listen
The conversation went on a little longer. And that was, as far as I was concerned, the third strike. Thing is, I have a small handful of friends, and despite their faults, I can't afford to lose one. So after not speaking to him for a week or so, it more or less returned to business as usual. Until tonight. I just find myself unable to deal with Sean's negative attitude. And the stupid thing is why I'm so frustrated now. We were talking. He told me about this female comedian -- and he uses the term loosely -- that he went to high school with and he hates, mostly because she has the nerve to refer to herself as a comedian when, and I can attest to this as well, she isn't particularly funny. So I told Sean, who, as noted, is actually quite naturally funny. An angry sort of funny, but funny all the same. And what did he choose to tell me after telling him he was funny and should try putting together an act? That he'd "pull my bowels out my mouth" next time he saw me.
Yup. That's right. But I rolled with it. He's an 'angry funny', after all. I even told him that was funny, questioning how that sort of thing would even work. His reply doesn't bear repeating, but I found it needlessly vulgar and mean-spirited, hardly the sort of thing you'd tell a friend during a pleasant conversation.
So that's where I'm at right now. This guy is a close friend, but he's an asshole. Do I keep hanging out with this guy and run the risk of having him say something like that again, or do I lose a friend. It's something I've been thinking about and figured I'd put into words. Maybe it'll help me sort through it. It's not the sort of thing that makes compelling reading, I suppose, but it's helpful for me. If you did read through it, hope you liked it, hope I didn't sound whiny (or at least, too whiny).
My internet's been down for the past week, but it's up and running now. Haven't got a whole lot to say... Been keeping busy. Was going to go tobogganing with my friends, but they got drunk and played Guitar Hero instead. Watched the Super Bowl, fell asleep half way through. Went to see Juno and really enjoyed it -- it was a really satisfying film, with very real and extraordinarily well-written characters. Just a solid film.
Great poster too. I've been getting movie posters lately -- Naked Gun, There's Something About Mary -- and I really like the Juno poster. Might get it. Don't have the wall-space for it, but it's pretty sharp, all the same. Can't really think of much else to write about. Haven't been writing as much as I'd like to lately, but I'm hoping to get back into that and keep busy. Hope I have more to write about next time I remember I have a blog.
I haven't been up to much this past week, but I've been keeping busy. Saw Cloverfield opening day. Went in the afternoon to beat the crowds during the evening shows. Worked out too -- I heard from a friend who tried to see it that night that it was sold out. Wasn't that bad. The weak dialogue was more obvious because it was supposed to be "real" and it felt very by-the-numbers, but it was fun seeing in theatres and had some good scares. Kept busy most days of the week. Did some writing, ate out with friends, had pizza one night, chinese the other. Been watching a lot of the sixth season of 24 on DVD with Kerr and Edmond. -- it got bad reviews but it's been fine. Went to London overnight on Thursday. Had a good time.
Don't really have much to say. Terribly sorry about that. Life's been fine lately, so there's not much to gripe about. There was this douche with a cell phone standing in front of me in line at Tim Horton's the other day. That was bloody annoying. He was shouting into his phone and standing his one leg bent and against the other, the tip of his shoe on the ground. It's hard to explain, but it added to the doucheiness. It wasn't as bad as being near someone on a bluetooth in an airport, but it's right up there.
My new year started with me sleeping more hours than usual. I went to bed at a decent hour but wasn't able to get out of bed until six pm or so. A few days later I came to realize my over-sleeping was the warning sign I'd caught a cold, only I didn't get this until I was laid out in bed Saturday morning with a 104 degree temperature. Was feeling better Sunday evening and into Monday. Went to see my therapist Tuesday, didn't really feel up to getting out until yesterday though. Went to a few places and out to dinner with a few of the guys. Hoping to get down to Niagara Falls tomorrow.
I can't really think of a whole lot else to comment on. Which is kind of crummy when you're trying to keep people interested in reading your blog. The Daily Show is back on TV though. That's pretty good.
I've also got a facebook page (which I really need to update with more details -- I suck at promotion, sadly), and I've been posting sneak peeks since the start of the year on twitter. So if you follow my blog (for some utterly inexplicable reason), that's what I've been up to.
