Great Caesar's Ghost!

I tired to make up a funny caption for this...but I just remembered I'm not funny...just funny looking. Good movie though.

03/31/2006

Daylight Savings thingy this weekend- don’t forget to spring forward your clocks.

This has been a Public Service Announcement. Remember: "Kein Mitleid Für Das Mehrheit"

They’re playing the Cure’s Just Like Heaven at 7:40am on the local KROQ wannabe station. Ahhh…the best song of all time…they’re playing Royal Albert Hall tomorrow. Anyone want to fly Holly and me to England and also give us tickets?

PS: stupid April Fool’s joke at www.depechemode.com about Fat Bob suing Anton Corbjin for using his image for the new DM album cover. Whatever Mister Da Brat. I never liked your remixes anyway.

Today is also the day set aside to commemorate Caesar Chavez- a guy who has roads named after him in every city I’ve lived in since moving to the Land of the Free: Oxnard, Los Angeles and now Austin. I first learned about him in high school- as the logical heir to the non-violent philosophies of Ghandi and King. Slightly appropriate that there’s that huge issue about immigration going on currently. I’m not too well informed of the issues regarding the matter (although I should- I myself am an immigrant) but the whole situation reminds me of Prop whatever-the-number-was about eleven years ago that was also about the issue. I remember being in High School and the talks of a walk out in protest. No one I knew what the issue actually was- they just heard it affects immigrants and immediately assumed it was bad. That- and they just wanted a reason to walk out during lessons.

I wonder if it’s the same today. A story like http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-students31mar31,1,5470646.story?coll=la-headlines-california shows a teen that was given permission by her parents to participate gives hope. It also mentions that kids were inspired by documentaries of walk outs in the sixties- albeit nowadays the word gets spread around in a more high tech manner. The sixties will never be back- no matter what the hippies and the wannabe hippies say- but never underestimate the power of converging in the thousands, taking a stand and giving an opinion.

Unless you’re one of those who wanted just another excuse to take the day off.

Dumbass.

Just remember- everyone was a or has descendants who were an immigrant to this country. Even the Native Americans’ ancestors walked over here via the Bering Strait Land Bridge.

Now…I saw Smallville last night- mostly turned in because James Marsters is back as Brainiac. Now, the scenes he was in were slightly interesting. I keep expecting him to go full blown Spike and give us the two finger salute. The show- it’s one of those really frustrating shows because there are good episodes but those are surrounded by a handful of crap. And it seems to go nowhere. No stars at the moment.

Hmmm…March is over, how about that? What was the cliché? March comes in like a lamb but comes out like it was eaten by a lion? Something like that. Seemed like this month lasted forever.

This coming weekend is one of those stooooopid weekends where everything seems to happen at the same time. Dude, why can’t you space out these things? There’s the Record Convention, the Waterloo Records sale, the Austin Fine Arts Festival, the free exhibit (this weekend only) featuring the works of Jean Claude Christo, we still have to do taxes and I just found out that an entertainment store called Hastings is also having a pretty good sale.

Bastards.

I think I’ll just go to sleep all weekend.


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Excelsior!

03/29/2006

Stan Lee’s car is for sale on ebay:

Vehicle DescriptionSpider-Man Co-Creator, Stan Lee Offers His Favorite Car for Sale. A long, lean 1987 Mercedes 420 SEL gray touring sedan. Fell in love at first sight and bought in 1991 with 48,500 miles on odometer. Driven an average of only 3,600 miles per year since 1991. Lovingly serviced by Mercedes dealerships. Countless celebs have sat in the comfortable leather seats. License plate MRVLCMX is available with car, plus a Stan Lee autograph on dashboard or wherever desired. Excelsior! Four chrome wheels, hands free mobile phone and plush, gray sheepskin seat covers included. Maintenance and repair receipts included. Passenger side power seat needs fixing. Otherwise everything else is in perfect condition.

The car's lucky new owner will be using it primarily to face front and cruise for true believers.

Plus- more VNV Nation Stuff at http://www.dekonstrukt.net/vnv/vnvvideo.html and http://vnvnation-tribute.tk/


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The One WHere I Find You Guilty

A normal tribute to the Two Gun God ususally is one's first born.



03/29/2006

Ahh…the horror that is Vin Diesel with hair. Holly and I got to see his new one “Find Me Guilty (based on a true story)” for free last night. Lemme just tell ya- please no one make anymore Italian Crime flicks until Martin Scor-sez passes away. He did it so perfectly with Goodfellas and Casino that any other movie tackling the subject just screams rip off (same goes for the Sopranos). This movie tries to be different by being mostly set in a courtroom and with most of the courtroom dialogue lifted directly from testimonial transcripts and adding an element of humor. Now the courtroom dialogue was interesting because it’s from the actual transcripts…but when it veers away from the courtroom scenes, there’s nothing original or interesting about the movie. Then there’s the forced sympathy with the criminals. Yeah, they’re lovable Italian stereotypes, but they’re still criminals. But hey- it was in at least interesting to see the dude from Pitch Black in a non-action role- he played a six-grade educated thug who tries to be funny with some success pretty well…

Another thing- many people are talking about the death of movies in theaters especially with high ticket prices and the luxury of just waiting an extra month or two for the movie to hit DVD. Certainly- I’m one of those…although I do love seeing things on the big screen and much more so when they make use of the BIG screen. Totsi- for example, is a small crime drama- but the shots in the movie take advantage of the big screen in showcasing the landscapes that are both sweeping and claustrophobic in the depiction of the shanty towns. Additionally- the composition of shots also exploit the big screen, placing the cast in a manner so that you have to view the whole picture. The final image of the title character with arms outstretched filling the screen and slightly just lingering stays with you after the credits have finished rolling.

Find Me Guilty was filmed as if it were a made for TV movie (in full screen to boot).

2 Stars (rent it if you gotta see it…although I am now slightly interested in learning about the real guy Vin played…but only slightly)

Finally saw the trailer for the second Pirates of the Caribbean movie while waiting in line to get into the movie- albeit without sound. I liked the first one enough…definitely not a brain taxing movie- a so-so plot, overacting but all overshadowed bombastic action and totally awesome visuals. Fun to see in theaters. The sequel looks to up the ante in the fantastic complete with hammerhead shark men (love hammerheads) and HP Lovecraft invoking characters as well as the living skeletons. Plus, the Two Gun God Known Only As Chow Yun Fat has a small role in this and the third one. We shall all bow to him and offer out respects as doves fly by in slo-mo.

Yo Ho.

Cool Stuff re: The Birthday Massacre at http://www.zamolxisdesign.com/thebirthdaymassacre/ . Since I’ve started listening to them I’ve wanted to:
a) watch the Neverending Story (movie and cheesy but cool TV show)
b) watch bad Canadian TV shows or at least shows with Canadian production values- just catch a glimpse of old X-Files episodes
c) watch good Canadian TV shows (La Femme Nikita rules! Except for the first season- that was just disjointed and all over the place…and does anyone know where I can get more episodes of John Woo’s Once A Thief?)
d) visit my sister in Toronto (I have another sister in South Carolina…but who wants to go there?)
e) say ‘eh’ or ‘aboooooooooot’

Fact of the day: VNV NATION KICKS ASS

You know this to be true.
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Misc

That's a weird looking face.

03/29/2006

Hmm........
In the distance I traveled to get to Austin from Northridge, I could have driven from Paris though Bulgaria, to Germany and ending up in Romania to visit my vampiric relatives.

Bleah, Bleah! We shall drink...wine....

FYI: Usually, an acronym for a band name is secondary to the name, but in the case of KMFDM, the acronym IS the name. Originally meant to stand for "Kein Mitleid Für Das Mehrheit", which translates to "No Pity for the Majority"...now I wanna start a tribute band called NPFTM…I’ll get my boots ready for stompin’…cuz, that’s what they’re made for…

PS: check out Big Louies’ blog at http://razapressassociation.org/sinfronteras/ , it’s not so much movie reviews, book reviews, ruminations on life or whatever- but more of a collection of Latino American issues especially one of identity, activism and politics in today’s world. Plus it links to his FLICKR page which contains evidence of what I did at Casa Pacifica during times where there was nothing to do and they had they bright idea to leave a digital camera in my grubby little hands.

Plus the thing that I like about Big Louie’s blog is that it’s a constant reminder that the world is much bigger than me, you, movies, music, work and art. There’s a big globe underneath your feet and the petty little problems one may have don’t mean didly squat when you realize that some people are trying to attempt change on a bigger scale.

That and criticisms of the Bush Administration.

One of these days I’ll get my own digital camera. I love taking pictures of stuff. Obviously, I’m not as talented as Holly is in picture taking- her work demonstrate that she has more creativity in her pinkie than I’ll ever have. My pics are more slice of life things and are mostly poorly composed and rarely focused.

Ronan Harris of VNV Nation posted a bulletin on Myspace that a new album may be out later this year. That rules. Hope the band comes by Austin or San Antonio…I’ve seen them at LA twice and those some of the best shows I’ve ever been at. I got to shake their hands and everything. Plus he answers your emails…Robert Smith never corresponds with me…

Plus VNV Nation’s doing the soundtrack to the movie Gene Generation. The IMDB entry makes it sound like a very direct to video release despite Bai Ling and Parry Shen from Better Luck Tomorrow- an awesome movie if you haven’t seen it yet. Hopefully they release the soundtrack as well.

Rainy days are here again…the kind that make you wish you stayed in and listen to Disintegration over and over again…

Came across the year 1990 in my work (I’m a Time Lord)…and realized that that was SIXTEEN years ago. There are teenagers out there who’ve never lived in the eighties.

Are you gonna drop the bomb or not?

Speaking of Time Lords, I saw the third episode of the new Doctor Who last night. Zombies- gotta love the Living Dead.

(Speaking of the young ones…someone just requested on the flashback lunch the song New Order by Bizarre Love Triangle- I kid you not…)
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The Jack Sack

03/28/2006

24 POWER HOUR REVIEW

Ahh….the magic that is the Jack Bag. Some people call it the Jack Sack, that sounds like he’s running around pantless- and I don’t think a lot of people would like to see that. I have a man bag like Jack- but mine’s grey (or gray) with the VNV Nation logo on it and contains some pens and stuff to write with and usually some CD’s if I’m at work. I’d like it to be like Jack’s with spare ammo, several cell-phones, C4, a PDA, a cougar, knives and probably Chloe O’Brian if he could.

Last night’s episode seems like semi-filler stuff…the in-between from one plot point to another. But Audrey is not evil (or is she…you never know with these things), a hyper-paranoid chick just replaced Edgar (who’s now gonna come gunning at me for calling her a chick), Robocop still running around and apparently the ex-principal of Sunnydale high can take out a trained commando, take his weapon and stalked a highly trained Secret Service officer. The magic of this show…so outrageous it’s almost Sci-fi…I do wish that next season is an all out alien invasion. And I love every minute of it. Escapist entertainment at it’s best.

But wait, what about next week? They stopped the show in the middle of an explosion…is Jack alive? Does it even matter? The CTU action runs pretty smoothly without Jack proving if the show is Jackless next season- it’d still be watchable and still be bad ass. Is the FLOTUS’ assistant really in on everything? Another red herring? I think the mastermind of everything is Principal Wood himself…and Robocop and the Russians are just mere pawns.

FOUR STARS!

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I Say Moo...

03/27/2006

Before I forget…eight months in Texas…yay! Cheer! Hop! Hip! Hooray!

Oh, well.

This past weekend, the Rock N’ Roll lifestyle was hit over the head by a mace bought at the Renaissance Faire, intoxicated by fumes at the Outside Art exhibit and missed the Go-Go’s much to Holly’s chagrin.

Sorry…

Plus the schizoid weather patters went from freezing cold nights, to burning hot days to rain & thunderstorms that are supposed to hit early this week.

Can’t the weather gods of Texas make up their minds?

Oh, and drive 30 minutes out of Austin and you in the middle of nowhere with cows, water buffaloes and emus all over the place.

Yup. When Holly gets her pictures developed- you shall see the wounderous wildlife we encountered.

Moo.

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TSOTSI & MUSINGS

TBM VS KMFDM:


03/24/2006

So Holly and I saw the South African movie Tsotsi (pronounced Sot-see) last night. Apparently the winner of the Best Foreign Movie Oscar (not that it matters), it was a decent little film. I love watching movies in languages I’ve never really heard (try watching Himalaya). I thought the movie would be in Swahili but I may be thinking of the wrong geographic location. The language was in Afrikaans (and recognizably some Dutch and Pidgin English). In fact, it surprised me how much English was thrown here and there into the language.

The movie surprised me at not being sappy. The description of a young gangster who steals a car that happens to have a baby in the back seat makes one cringe at all the ‘Three Men & a Baby’ hijinks that could ensue. But none of that really happened- the movie was mostly a redemptive piece about the title character as he goes from angry youth to a-lesser-angry-youth-but-more-in-terms-with-the-events-of-his-life person. That- and it turned out to be a bit more of a crime drama as well. Some nice composed images and the best parts of the movie for me were the ones there it was silent and you just see his eyes and almost hear the character’s thoughts.

Plus who knew there was such thing as South African Gangsta Rap?

Three Stars!

Been looking up more info on the Birthday Massacre. When I first saw their video, I thought, dude, they’re nothing but minors. To my surprise, they’re mostly my age- with four of the six born the same year I was. At 28, they’ve released an album through a respected label and amassed a small but still considerable following. Me at 28? A little here and there…but then again, I hope that all of my stuff gets really popular after I die and people discover all my short stories and little sketches here and there, my blog gets published in 27 languages including Klingon and my heirs (probably felines) get billions of dollars and live fat the rest of their lives.

Anyway- it’s kinda nice to be at the ground floor of a band that’s getting a little bigger. Well, not the ground floor- more like the second or third floor of an at least thirty story building. I don’t think the band will ever get played-on-KROQ big, but they’ll probably amass the kind of following that VNV Nation, Apoptygma Berzerk or even KMFDM who’ve they’ve opened for (dude, I wish I were at those shows). Then again, they seem to be quite a force on the internet- with a very fan friendly website, forums and then there’s myspace.

Myspace.com is an interesting creature. It seems like all in the world to be a fad- and it is. I’ll be surprised if in five years it’s still around or all the people who are on it are still on it then. I mean, there’s only so much you can do with it. But it does give people like me a presence on the internet for little or no cost- and you can personalize it in various ways. And it gives bands a chance to gain exposure that have no chance of getting on the radio or even itunes.

Ah, the evolving faces of the information superhighway.

Of course, for the Birthday Massacre it all hinges on their second album. Switchblade Symphony had an awesome debut album (which I love to this day) but their subsequent albums just sucked.

Also learning about the totally awesome European music festival circuit. Dude, they have line ups that you’ll never see here- even the more mainstream ones. But festivals like The Monsters of Rock Festival in Bulgaria, Wave Gothik in Germany, Castle Party 2006 in Poland (with VNV Nation headlining!), Summer Darkness in Denmark and especially Mera Luna also in Germany- these shows have lineups that cater directly to my music tastes and would love to go to at least one. Although if I ever do go, the bands I want to see will be all playing at the same times. It’s my curse. Well- one of them anyway.

Ahh…plus the World Cup’s in Germany as well. I wanna see an England match just so I can yell out loud: ENG-A-LAND!

Plus, it’s funny that the members of the Birthday Massacre still have day jobs. HAH!

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What Shall I Write?

03/23/2006

PS: <> Rambaldi was here.

Ahhh….back in the days when Alias wasn’t such a mess. It’s a beautiful mess right now but definitely not the glory that was the first two seasons. I liked the other seasons, but the first two would have laughed at the mediocrity that is the show now. There are flashes of brilliance here and there but…it’s still not the same. Oh, Sydney Bristow…let’s hope the final episodes have that fire in one’s eye as you battle the hordes of evil in a red wig.

Anyway…

I wanna enter that Hyphen writing contest, but of course, the evil that is writer’s block is currently afflicting me. I wouldn’t mind submitting ‘Only Time Enough to Die’ again…but I wrote that story about five years ago now and I want to write something new. So now it’s time for some free hand thoughts as I try out some concepts and see if I can come up with anything original:

The evil that (other) cats do: A three legged warrior cat stands retired as he believes that the evil he defeated in his younger days is vanquished. But things are afoot and now, he’s unsure it was indeed put away. What is he to do as the signs of evil return and is there anything he can do about it nowadays?

An Urban Ghost Story: An old tale repeats itself in modern times. A young man wanders into an abandoned downtown building to escape the rain, his emotions shattered as his life as an agent for the IRS brings nothing but grief. A beautiful woman befriends him but something is not completely right with her. Does if have anything to do with the androgynous tree spirit that lurks in the hallways?

Mister Almond Eyes: Edward Scissorhand’s cousin, with almonds for eyes. Will his life be as sad? And how can he see with almonds for eyes?

The Last of the Famous International Playboys: A league of men- all extraordinary in their own ways. Imagine a team comprised of all James Bonds ever portrayed. Imagine all the trouble they could get into.

Breaking In: She inherited a bass from her uncle who never learned how to use it. She has no idea how to play it either. But she looks good holding it- in fact she looks like a superstar. So much so, that when spotted by dudes from a record label, she gets signed up right away. “But I don’t play the bass”, she pleads “I don’t even know how a bass is different from a regular guitar.” Now, she has multimillion dollar contract, the record is due in a few weeks, she has no band and all her friend think she’s another sell out. But she was never indie to begin with.

Goth like us: A thirty year old man from Nowhere, Texas (population 3568 and a half)- who loves the rodeo, George Strait, saying Y’all, jeans, steaks and trucks descends into madness as slowly and surely he starts wearing all black, wearing shiny pants, spiky hair, writing poetry and listening to…Goth. The worst part? He’s beginning to like it.

The Five Pound Catterpillar: Is stuck in his chrysalis. Will he get out in time?

The Adventures of Siouxsie & the Banshees: She’s not just the Godmother of Goth and they’re not just another eighties band that grew from the ashes of punk that reunites every now and then and tours. She’s also an immortal Guardian who defends the earth from the forces of M.E.D.I.O.C.R.I.T.Y., an ancient evil bent on destroying the ideas of Earth and the Banshees are just that- Banshees whose scream resonates from their musical instruments and are powerful enough to light up ten cities and their surrounding neighborhoods. She’s also British. Guest Starring the Cure!

The Future is Evil: A descent into madness as one man whose computer still runs on Windows 3.1 tries to figure out Windows XP, why his cellphone needs to be a camera as well, and what MP3 stands for all at the same time while wondering why his car doesn’t fly yet.

The Secret Martial Arts of John Wayne: A man unfortunately named after a cowboy actor also just happens to be the last know practitioner of a kung fu so powerful, the simplest stance can destroy the world. He’s also prone to exaggeration.

Why is there a Black Hole in the middle of my head? : A man with a zit on his forehead finds out it’s a black hole. Is there anywhere he can run to without things getting sucked in? And why is it that someone was able to take a picture of him when even light can’t escape the gravity well that is his cranium?

Heaven is a place on earth: Seven strangers find out it’s not.

Marshmallow Peeps in Hell: Easter is fast approaching and bird shaped marshmallows known as peeps have to figure out which level of their hell is worse. Exploding in a microwave or being eaten by slimy, dirty little kids who don’t brush their teeth afterwards? We all know the answer to this: Being eaten by a slimy dirty kid who doesn’t brush their teeth afterwards AND being spit out and then exploded in a microwave. Does a peep have a chance? Seven peeps in a box hurry to figure out. Does the peep shaped like a dog have the answer?

A million stories for the price of one: Two writers compete with each other as each tries to finish their story first. One problem: They both have no idea what to write about.

Hmm, that’s enough for now…now comes the hard part. Trying to figure out which to write about if any. How about a contest to my loyal readers…if there are any. Let me know which concept deserves to be expanded to a full fledged short story…or submit a concept for me to expand upon. If I choose your concept, I’ll give you co-writing credit and I’ll do all the hard work. If you’re reasoning on which of my concepts is cool enough that I write my story because of it, I’ll name the lead character after you. Imagine a peep named Big Louie.

I wish I could give out cash prizes. But I have no cash.

I spent it all on DVD’s yesterday.
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WHO?

03/23/2006

Finally saw the new Dr. Who last night. Holly has a friend at work who tapes Sci-Fi’s Friday night lineup. She usually does it for Battlestar Galactica (which I should talk about eventually) and lets us watch as well. But, since that show is over for now, she taped Dr. Who and lent that to us. I have fond memories of the Doctor growing up. I saw quite a bit when I was knee high to a Dalek (do Daleks have knees?). Being very young, most of the story went over my head (and the idea that something was bigger inside that it is outside intrigued me to no end) but I loved the cheesy special effects, the wobbly sets and most of all the theme song. Wooooo-wooo-wooooooooooooooo! Plus I really loved the idea that the Doctor had to regenerate every so often and emerge as a different actor!

Anyway- I even remember watching the bad, bad, bad American attempt about ten years ago. Back then I was thinking, cool- now I can finally figure out what this show was about! Nope- it just confused me more. Too bad- Dr. Who is an institution of British TV and to have it gone for so long is a sin.

But here it is again! In a new incarnation and continuing the story of the last Time Lord as he travels through time and space fixing stuff and doing the hero bit in his flying phone booth. It’s clear now why the American attempt at the show failed- it had already been ripped off for Quantum Leap and Bill & Ted (whoa…).

And I finally found out that Tardis means ‘Time And Relative Dimensions In Space’!

The BBC actually came out with the new show a while back- it’s only now that the Yanks are getting it. We watched the first two episodes last night back to back. I wonder if the show was truncated for American release like MI-5 (or Spooks, which is short by 15 minutes per episode broadcast). Either way, the commercial breaks were a little off putting as the cuts made for them clearly weren’t smooth in the transition.

Two shows: One cheesy fun and one about the end of the world. Living plastic and trampoline humans. Attacking Mannequins with Kim Catrall or Kristy Swanson nowhere in sight (nothing’s gonna stop us now)! Killer rubbish bins and the biggest I-pod you’ll ever see! Humanish! The great composer that is Mark Almond! Benevolent trees! Living Memes! Giant Heads! Wussy boyfriends! Every place has a north! Fun stuff.

And then there was the teaser for next week’s episode:

London.

1869.

The Living Dead.

I am so there.

Four Stars!
(Can’t give cheese five stars, now can we?)

Now, about Battlestar Galactica…they did the Alias thing of fast forwarding the story- here about a year ahead. A good thing? The show is unpredictable (though not as much as 24), who knows where this is gonna end up? The fleet is gone, but they’re massively undermanned…and the Cylons have the leftover humans in their grasp. But my biggest question is: Can the get Lucy Lawless to at least do the ‘Yeeeee-yeeee-yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!’ of Xena at least once?

PLUS:

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Hyphen & The Asian American Writers’ Workshop announce2007 Short Story Competition$1,000 prize and publication in HyphenJudges: Brian Leung and Monique TruongWriters of short fiction are encouraged to enter the 2006-07 Short Story Competition jointly sponsored by Hyphen and The Asian American Writers’ Workshop (AAWW). The winner will receive a $1,000 cash prize, publication in Hyphen magazine, a one-year subscription to Hyphen and a one-year membership to AAWW. The competition is open to all writers of Asian descent living in the United States and Canada. To be eligible, manuscripts must be previously unpublished and in English. No email submissions allowed. Previously unpublished authors are eligible. The competition is limited to short works of fiction, including short stories, novellas and excerpts from novels; the latter must stand alone as a separate work. There is no required theme or page limit. Submissions must be postmarked by Monday, July 10, 2006 and accompanied by a $10 entry fee per story. Please send 4 copies of your story using paper clips. Manuscripts will not be returned and will be acknowledged only if an SASE is provided. Include a cover letter with name, address, email, daytime telephone number and a 3-sentence bio. The story title and page number should be clearly labeled on each page of the submission. Your name must not appear anywhere on the manuscript, except on the cover letter. Manuscripts should be typewritten and double-spaced on 8 ½ X 11 plain white paper.Manuscripts may be under consideration elsewhere, but please notify us immediately if your story is accepted for publication. Hyphen retains first publication rights and the right to publish a portion of the story on its website. All rights revert to the author upon publication. To enter the short story competition, please send submission to: The Asian American Writers’ Workshop2007 Short Story Competition16 West 32nd Street, Suite 10ANew York, NY 10001-3808Make checks payable to “Asian American Writers’ Workshop.”Hyphen is offering a discounted one-year subscription (4 issues) to all entrants. To receive a discounted subscription, please write a separate check payable to "Hyphen" for $15, and include it with your manuscripts and fees. Please include the memo "2007 Short Story Competition."Entrants will be notified by or on Monday, October 2, 2006.For more details visit: www.hyphenmagazine.com or www.aaww.org .

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Audrey is Evil!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

03/21/2006

24 POWER HOUR!

Watching 24 right after watching an episode of Sleeper Cell is kinda odd, kinda cool. One the one hand (24) you have a bombastic and fantastic take on an anti-terrorist unit that’s almost sci-fi (not surprising- since a good number of the writers are from that genre) with evil office politics, two-faced characters and a mostly black/white take on good and evil (the grays are presented but…it’s still very republican in their presentation). Sleeper Cell, like I’ve said before- is very much a tale as told by the bad guys (with no superheroes- although, let’s see how this ends, I might be mistaken). It’s not an original take- but it’s told well and a good compliment to 24.

Anyway- last night’s 24: DUDE, AUDREY RAINES IS EVIL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That’s a cool twist. Is she being set up? Maybe- but even the possibility that she’s playing on the other team is intriguing. My prediction is that she’s being set up- maybe her father’s evil or someone else in DOD. But if she turns out like Nina Myers? Well, she won’t be all assassin- but still…maybe Jack will finally learn that’s it’s okay to fall in love with someone with a lil meat on her bones.

Is the VP evil? Well, duh…he’s trying to kill the former principal of Sunnydale High. Unless it’s another red herring. As someone else pointed out, it’d be cool if he ran into the guy from Season 2 with the cabin…or Kim’s cougars. Agent Pierce seeing more action next episode? Hope so…and not just from FLOTUS, let’s see him demonstrate why he’s one of the heads of the Secret Service.

CTU vs. Homeland Security, where’s the misshapen head of Robocop, and which country will Jack piss off next? He’ll never be welcome in Bosnia, China and now Germany? I think the final seasons of 24 will involve an all-out World War. Wonder if we’ll see the German dude again?

Four Stars!

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Audrey is Evil!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

03/21/2006

24 POWER HOUR!

Watching 24 right after watching an episode of Sleeper Cell is kinda odd, kinda cool. One the one hand (24) you have a bombastic and fantastic take on an anti-terrorist unit that’s almost sci-fi (not surprising- since a good number of the writers are from that genre) with evil office politics, two-faced characters and a mostly black/white take on good and evil (the grays are presented but…it’s still very republican in their presentation). Sleeper Cell, like I’ve said before- is very much a tale as told by the bad guys (with no superheroes- although, let’s see how this ends, I might be mistaken). It’s not an original take- but it’s told well and a good compliment to 24.

Anyway- last night’s 24: DUDE, AUDREY RAINES IS EVIL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That’s a cool twist. Is she being set up? Maybe- but even the possibility that she’s playing on the other team is intriguing. My prediction is that she’s being set up- maybe her father’s evil or someone else in DOD. But if she turns out like Nina Myers? Well, she won’t be all assassin- but still…maybe Jack will finally learn that’s it’s okay to fall in love with someone with a lil meat on her bones.

Is the VP evil? Well, duh…he’s trying to kill the former principal of Sunnydale High. Unless it’s another red herring. As someone else pointed out, it’d be cool if he ran into the guy from Season 2 with the cabin…or Kim’s cougars. Agent Pierce seeing more action next episode? Hope so…and not just from FLOTUS, let’s see him demonstrate why he’s one of the heads of the Secret Service.

CTU vs. Homeland Security, where’s the misshapen head of Robocop, and which country will Jack piss off next? He’ll never be welcome in Bosnia, China and now Germany? I think the final seasons of 24 will involve an all-out World War. Wonder if we’ll see the German dude again?

Four Stars!

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Nevermind

The Phrase of the Week

03/20/2006

Phrase of the week: Rock N’ Roll Lifestyle.
Definition: Where Holly and I spent most of the week of SXSW without wristbands hereby being denied entrance to 99% of the shows- but still seeing at least one band a night Tuesday thru Friday (with a bit on Saturday), staying up late and still managing to get to work the next day.

Yeah- how about them apples? The Birthday Massacre on Tuesday (feels like a million years ago), Tokyo Rose on Wednesday (feels like a thousand years ago), Echo & The Bunnymen on Thursday (feels like a hundred years ago), St. Patrick’s Day gallivanting on Friday and tarot card reading on Saturday. Sunday it was laundry day. And silent and gray…

For St. Patrick’s Day we went around downtown- saw a free show from a band called Need For Fire- where the band was all dressed up in kilts (I was going to wear mine but on me- they just look like skirts) and the electric guitars were accompanied by Irish Fiddles and a Bagpipe. Bagpipe Rock Rules! The show actually wasn’t free, you had to pay a $10.00 cover (the event wasn’t part of SXSW) to get into a beer tent. Holly & and I watched the show from the sidelines and got a pretty good view of the band. Pretty good gig for free and definitely matched the day.

The rest of the night, we just people watched and walked around. I made the mistake of eating a slice of pizza which sat in my stomach and got me tired and sleepy. Good pizza, though.

WEEKEND MOVIES! (Because I’m too wussy for the Rock N’ Roll Lifestyle and I needed to just kick back at home and be a potato)

Free Enterprise: Okay movie- tries too hard at times and works best as time capsule of the late nineties. Love the scene at the Northridge Golden Apple store- down the street from where I used to live and where I spent many an hour and many a dollar. That mural was painted over about a year ago and pissed me off when they did. It was an awesome landmark and I miss it. 3 Stars.

Happy Potter & the Goblet of Fire: The first movie in the franchise that I like. (I’ve read all but the 5th book, which I did start but got bored reading…maybe I’ll continue it later) I hated the first two movies and the third one was visually impressive but the story tried to do too much and just screwed the pacing. Sometimes, it’s all about the pacing. This one had much more liberty with the story as compared to the source material. It was still faithful to the book and I just loved that the confrontation between the title character and his nemesis retained the intensity from when I read it. 5 Stars.

Sleeper Cell Episodes 1-4: The Northridge Fashion Center gets attacked again! Who knew that mall was such a target? Another fine reminder of home. A ‘super-villain’ point of view story and different from all the spy/terrorist shows all over the place nowadays- want to see the rest of the series, the first four episodes were pretty cool. 4 Stars.

PS: some of the line up for the Mera Luna Festival in Germany:
APOPTYGMA BERZERK , BAUHAUS , CLAN OF XYMOX , DIE KRUPPS, FRONTLINE ASSEMBLY , FUNKER VOGT, MINISTRY , NITZER EBB, THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE (amongst others)

If anyone wants to send Holly and myself there- we’d be grateful. If you even ever see just two of the bands listed on the same show stateside, consider yourself lucky. That’s a bad ass lineup right there.

And then here’s some people playing at the Wave Gothik in June:

Clan of Xymox
Decoded Feedback
Haujobb
Heaven 17 (!)
Lydia Lunch
Nitzer Ebb
Nosferatu
The Legendary Pink Dots
MODCOM-a new project from Ronan Harris that will make its debut at this year’s Wave Gothic Treffen in Leipzig. The music from this one-man project uses analog modular synthesizers and analog sequencers for live sound generation. Sequences and sounds are patched, manipulated, effected, re-patched and mixed live. This kind of performance was common to 70’s synth pioneers who used walls of synths and cables to make sound but now it’s use will be for 21st century electronic beats, rhythms and soundscapes.

Sigh…Ich will nach Deutschland fahren.

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Bring on the Review of Echo and the Buh-ney-men's show!

NOT IAN MCCULLOCH OF ECHO AND THE BUNNY MEN

03/17/2006

Funny thing about living in Austin (among other things of course)? Spring Break. Everyone has it at the same time. Back home, they stagger the dates for spring break so all the kids don’t end up having the same free time. Either that or they’re afraid that when all bunched up, one of them might come up with an original thought. Anyway- over here, all the schools (pre-schools, kindergartens, elementary, middle, junior, high, community, vocational and oh, yeah- UT) all have the same week off. Funny- cuz the whole city seems to go with that flow and have a week off as well. I mean yesterday, going downtown at the middle of rush hour traffic was not stop-and-go. It was mostly go. And then they schedule SXSW (and the rodeo) that same week.

So, we saw Echo and the Bunnymen again last night. They were part of SXSW’s series of show free to the public. So, the only way you couldn’t get in is if you were ugly. Needless to say, I had to sneak in. They played at a park by the river that everyone calls a lake that’s just by where I work. It’s funny going to a show in the shadow of the building where you work. The venue was cool- very festival atmosphere and Holly & I were able to find a spot on the grass that hills up just a bit so that tall people can stand in front of us and not block our view.

There were four bands on the list and we came in at the tail end of the second act- the wonderfully named Blackalicious. A hippity hop band that didn’t rap about gang banging, misogyny or the kinda things that make the genre annoying. A pretty energetic act that just made you want to wave your arms like you just don’t care.

(PS: strangest thing I saw that night? A girl picking up after herself and throwing away her litter)

Then came the local favorite Spoon. I didn’t really care for their set- but a lot of the crowd did.

Echo and the Buh-ney-men (as Jed the Fish on KROQ calls them) came on at about 8:20pm. I not a huge fan of the Bunnymen. I only have one of their CD’s and it’s the Best Of one. But the songs I know I do like and have liked for a while. They really impressed me the last time I saw the open up for the Cure as well. They’re not a band you go to yell, mosh and rock out. I mean, they do rock- but in a way you just want to sway slightly, get with the tune of the song and enjoy Ian McCulloch’s awesome voice. Even the songs I didn’t know (aka the album tracks) were really enjoyable. The first single they played was “Bring on the dancing Horses” which was a weird one for me to play at the beginning of a set as it feels like a song to end the night with. However, I do like the song- so, small complaint.

Then they played a slower paced song that somehow segued into the Velvet Underground’s Walk on the Wild Side. I heard this last time I saw them and really impressed me. It was cool to hear again. A couple more album tracks and then their biggest hit- The Killing Moon. Another small complaint was that an overcast sky obscured the beautiful full moon we’ve had the past few nights. The Killing Moon is the perfect Spaghetti Western- the kind of tune you’d expect to hear as the Man With No Name wanders into town, stared upon and bothered just because he’s a stranger. Most kids nowadays know the song from Donnie Darko- a movie I have yet to see.

Next was my favorite song of theirs- a tune I affectionately call the Gundam song as there are slight similarities to the first theme song to Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memories. A bad ass song no matter how you look at it. They closed out their main set after about fourty minutes- about the same length as the last time they saw them. But at least they played a song Holly’s been wanting to hear (and one they didn’t play last time) with Lips Like Sugar. And unlike last time, they came back with an encore and played Rescue and Ocean Rain (which Ian McCulloch is the most beautiful song in the world- it isn’t but it’s a decent attempt I guess). Holly and I were able to get closer up too and see the band at a better vantage point.

Good show- a little short and ended way before 10pm. Great plus in that they gave away free posters of the event with art by Tara McPherson.

Five Stars!

Three straight days of music. And only one of them was a SXSW show. Pretty damn fun if you ask me. Holly wants to try to see the Charlatans UK tonight. We still don’t have wristbands but who knows?
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Clones

Clones- that's supposed to be clones of Keiko Agena from Gilmore Girls.

Tokyop Rose Review

Why is it that everytime you go to an indie rock event you see a million and one close of Keiko Agena (LAne from Gilmore Girls)?
03/16/2006

First an apology to Holly: I had jokingly posted on The Birthday Massacre’s comments page that I wanted to marry the lead singer. I DON’T. A thousand apologies. I’ll go now to whip myself a billion and one times with a wet noodle.

Went back to San Antonio last night to see Tokyo Rose (they so kindly put us on their guest list after they got kicked off the stage last night and didn’t get a chance to complete their set). They played at avenue called the Sanctuary which I guess with the Front 242 and Aptoptygma Bezerk posters and the name of the place is where the goth community could convene at times. But not tonight. Tonight, it was all about tiny bands with small but growing audiences.

I’ll never get over the fact that the lead announced a song by saying, “you’ll know this one, it on MySpace!” What a time we live in. Their gig was a little over a half an hour long and had the same energy they presented with the previous night. Which was infectious. I was still functioning on only three hours of sleep so I didn’t really demonstrate my infection. But then again, would you like me to share my infections? Where was I? San Antonio? Well, last night I was…watching Tokyo Rose. Who are just a bunch of nice guys. Their music is guitar based and you’d like them if you like guitar based indie rock like…well, I’m not too familiar with indie rock…The Pixies are way past indie rock, no matter what they say. The Pixies have the WORLD’S GREATEST FILIPINO Joey Santiago in their band and Tokyo Rose has two flat nosed Asian-Pacific-Islander representatives in their band (I think- I haven’t seen another Filipino in Texas in over four months, I might forget what they looked like). Not that being a FOB makes for a rocking indie guitar band. Anyway- these guys were cool and I’d to see them again, although, maybe next time- I don’t want to be the oldest guy in the crowd. Ryan, Christopher, Joshua, Thomas and Mark- thanks for getting us into your show. Hope you had tons of exposure at SXSW and that next time we see you play it’ll be at Wembly Hall. Or something bigger than a living room. Not that I know how big Wembly Hall is.

I’ve never been there.

Anyway- why is it that I have to go to San Antonio to finally find a cool record store? Next to the venue was a record store named Hogwild and they had cool stuff in their store! A GOTH SECTION- I never thought I’d see another record store with that.

San Antonio seems like a decent place having gone there two nights in a row. Nice to see the 10 freeway again…a line that leads to the West Coast.

Holly and I also went to downtown to check out the SXSW activities. They closed down a few streets where good portions of the clubs were. We didn’t have wristbands, tried to go see World Party and got rejected because general admission attendees were closed of since 7pm. Oh, well- they’re on tour later this year anyway and hope they pass this way. The atmosphere was reminiscent of Santa Barbara during fiesta…college aged kids wandering everywhere, party girls trying to be cool but ultimately failing, middle aged men trying to be funny and twenty years younger, sidewalk food, rickshaws, traffic and me trying to sneak into places. And bad cover bands. Bad Cover Bands are an as of yet undiscovered layer of hell.

I’m going back tonight- I still don’t have a wristband but I heard there was a cool free show tonight. ________________________________________________________________________
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Birthday Massacre San Antonio Review

Flyuer for the show...I don't think the Promoters did their research...

03/15/2006

Okay…I’m functioning on three and a half hours of sleep here. I know- I’m a pansy. But my ears are still ringing, my throat is still hoarse, the songs are still in my head, I may still reek of cigarette smoke but I had a blast seeing the Birthday Massacre last night.

First of all- I don’t really care in driving to San Antonio. It’s about 85 miles from where I currently reside, but it takes an hour in itself for the first 15 miles or so just because you have to go through downtown traffic- but past that, you usually just fly by. Although the drive ain’t scenic- unless you count cows, snake farms and flat land as pretty to look at. But I digress.

The venue was the White Rabbit, which looks like a mechanic’s garage converted to showcase bands and heavy metal ‘graffiti’ style murals of the namesake all over the exteriors. A small place with three stages for bands to play (two were being used for the night). The website infuriated me as it listed only two of the opening acts as playing that night and didn’t list the main act. Then no one would confirm for me if the Birthday Massacre was even playing. Well, it was this or try and buy a wristband from a scalper for SXSW tonight when they’re not scheduled to even hit the state till 1am

Cover was $12.

First surprise? Everywhere I looked said the show started at 8am. Which would mean the Birthday Massacre would be on at about 10pm at the latest. Cool- it was a work night after all. We got there at 7:30pm.
Second surprise? The Birthday Massacre wasn’t the only band playing. Which I kinda knew because hey- everyone needs an opening band. BUT THERE WERE AT LEAST SEVEN OTHER BANDS. The Birthday Massacre wouldn’t be on till 11pm at the latest.
Third Surprise? The bands were all good. How about them apples? The music varied from decent to crappy but the bands all gave inspired performances even when the crowd was apathetic and could be counted on one finger.

Who were the bands? Lemme see- from the ones I remember? Tokyo Rose, I Hate Kate, Girl In a Coma, The Start…I don’t recall the others names. Tokyo Rose had a fob as a lead singer and the band got shafted when their set was cut short and lasted only three songs. The reason, as the bass player told me, was that they had too many bands tonight, that the Birthday Massacre’s portion (their tour) wanted to start earlier so they were the chosen one to be cut. (Later we found out it was the lead singer to Girl In a Coma’s birthday and they were allowed to run their set longer- I believe this was the reason Tokyo Rose’s set got cut short) Too bad- their three songs were decent. But the bass player invited us to see them in San Antonio again tonight- which we may just might if I don’t drop dead from fatigue.

The other bands- like I said gave awesome performances even if their material was not too original. There were Killer wannabes, Greenday wannabes and enough little girls trying to sing like Debbie Harry to last me a lifetime.

But now to the main act before I forget. They didn’t come on till midnight. How did I find out abut the band? They had a song on the latest Metropolis records sampler and when I picked that up, I was listening to old Switchblade Symphony and was looking for a band in a similar vein. Enter the Birthday Massacre. Now, the only similarities the two bands have are a female on vocals and the genre their in. The Birthday Massacre ROCK! With a capital R-O-C-K! They have awesome synths and powerful guitars all capped with beautiful vocals. When I got their CD all of two months ago, I couldn’t stop listening to it. I really wanted to check them out live and hope they lived up to their studio recordings.

Which they did. It helped that the sound in the venue was awesome- the synths were a little down but a whole lot of emphasis was place on the ridiculously named lead singer Chibi’s voice. It helped that she was adorable as a button (even Holly thinks so, so she won’t be mad at me for this one). Reminded me of a younger Bjork and Chloe from 24 if she were nice. She had all the cute Bjork antics while on stage.

Set list?

The entire Violet album and what I came for too- older material which I have not heard and new material from an album supposedly coming later this year (which means another tour-yay!). They started off with Blue, and proceeded to play my favourite songs from the album (Play Dead, Never Mind, Horror Show) all in a row. If I had a complaint- I’d want them to space out those songs a bit more throughout the set, but it’s a really small complaint. The songs I knew all matched the album versions with added energy. The older material fit well and the new song seemed to continue the quality of material fund on Violet. They didn’t do an encore- which I believe is due to the fact that they don’t have enough material to do so. The set lasted all of an hour.

To cut to the point- I had a great time watching them perform. Reminded me of all the people who claim to have seen Nine Inch Nails in clubs before they hit it big and would boast about it. Well, I’ve seen the Cure, VNV Nation and now, the Birthday Massacre in clubs. I really hope this band continues their quality of work and hit it big at SXSW. They deserve it.

NOW DON’T SELL OUT!

SHOW RATING: ONE BILLION AND ONE STARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(the extra one is for Chibi being cute as a button- even Holly thinks so)

Merchandise: Two t-shirts, one free sticker that’s now on my car, their older CD and Tokyo Rose’s CD.
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RIP: SOUL PATCH

03/14/2006

24 POWER HOUR!

Well, there goes the affectionately named Soul Patch. Too bad you didn’t go out in a bang. And there goes the Fat Hobbit. And there goes CTU as well for now, replaced by Homeland Security.

A more straightforward episode than usual with most of the focus being in the remains of CTU as they try to escape the killer nerve gas and not much diverting to the other storylines. I’ve never minded Kim in the other seasons (she provided eye candy and an element of camp in an otherwise serious show) - but she annoyed me in this season’s two episodes. Too bad Jack didn’t bust C. Thomas Howell one and rip out his fake Spock beard. By the way- I tried to hold my breath as long as jack did in this episode but gave up after 90 seconds. I think he held out for about 120 seconds.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT!? I don’t know. But Robocop has a weird misshapen looking head. Looks like he’s going to be another hated character that you’re going to love. He taught Jack everything Jack knows- but does Jack know everything he knows? Hmm…And is the VP evil? Can LA survive another bout with martial law? I don’t think it’d worked in the real world back in the Rodney King riots and it didn’t work in n24 world during the 2nd season. WHO’S LEFT TO KILL?

Poor Tony Almeida…at least you’re with Michelle now.

FOUR STARS!


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I Have no life...

03/08/2006

What I really what to know is what are people doing at Wal-Mart so freaking early in the morning? I mean, it’s about 5:30am- got to sleep or something! Wait- what was I doing at Wal-Mart at 5:30am? Well, I wanted to stop by early in the morning to pick up some stuff on the way to work. And I didn’t get there till 5:45am! I think…I was half asleep. How should I know? By the way- I start work at 7am (I usually like to be there by 6:30am because just like L.A., one little bump in the road (figuratively and literally) and it’s gridlock…

AI YAH!

Anyway- why was I there? New DVD Tuesday of course! And Hot Sauce…it’s all about the Hot Sauce Baby. I got the three Miyazaki movies (two of which I have on imports, but I wanted the ones with the storyboard versions of the movie, semi-special features and Miyazaki is one of those people who deserve to be rich) and the Star Trek: Borg set.

MINI REVIEWS! (No- I didn’t watch all of them last night…I’ve mostly seen them before)

Howl’s Moving Castle: The best movie of last year
My Neighbour Totoro: Not Miyazaki’s best- but many a person’s favourite of his (me included); a conflict free movie of the idealized rural life, childhood imagination & fears and of course- big fluffy nature spirits.
Whispers of the Heart: If this were live action, it’d be an ‘indie’ flick. Another examination on childhood- here with the added emphasis on one’s ambitions, creative impulses and sweet, sweet, stuff. An animated chick flick with fat cats. Not bad though…too bad the director of this piece died young.
Star Trek: BORG: YOU WILL BE ASSIMILATED. I’ve seen some of these before…The Best of Both Worlds two parter isn’t about drag queens- but some of the best ST ever come out with. Also includes the concluding episodes of Voyager which I haven’t seen and have wanted to see for a while.
Harry Potter & the Goblet of Fire: I like the book because it finally throws off the predictable shackles of the school year. Instead of a month by month play with the expected breaks for quidditch and a ‘big bad’, it starts off heavily in the summer with their version of the World Cup and goes into the Tournament. Plus- the tale starts to get darker here…I haven’t seen this movie yet, but anything with dragons can’t be all bad. I didn’t really care for the first two movies; the third one was visually impressive but bland storytelling-wise.


BREAKING NEWS! I just learned that during the Oscars earlier this week that they left out Pat Morita was left out during the montage of people who died…THOSE BASTARDS! Someone’s gonna be waxed off for this…
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TWICE THE FUN, TWICE THE DAMMITS!

03/07/2006

24 POWER HOUR REVIEW!

Holly says that the best scene was when Curtis Manning took out the canister of nerve gas and narrowly saved an entire hospital filled with premie babies. I’ll have to agree that it was a tense and cool sequence but I prefer the yelling match between Jack and his mentor Henderson that ended with a bullet in Henderson’s wife leg. That was cool. However…the greatest scene of the night was at the end of the two hours was when everyone was rushing around CTU looking for a safe place for yet another canister of nerve gas and in the chaos a member of the team we’ve never seen before bangs on the door demanding that she be let in and the poor sobs can’t do anything but watch her die because if they break the seals on the door it’ll lead to their demise as well. Slowly as she passes- we see poor Edgar Stiles waddle in all confused like and PLOP! There goes another main character!

Too bad- he was annoying at times but never much so, he was pretty likable. We’ll miss you and apparently so will Chloe- the close up on her face at the end…I wonder who will kill Henderson now? Chloe because she will blame him for Edgar’s death or the ever-lovin’ Soul Patch known as Tony Almeida? The one who is stuck in the same medical area as Henderson and who will undoubtedly blame him for Michelle’s death and who is also a trained torturer? PS: Tony was not trained by Henderson.

Kim Bauer was back tonight? I hardly noticed. And is that Evil Spock with her? Nah, it’s the guy from that 80’s movie Soul Man- you know- the one where a white guy gets into college by taking tanning pills and pretending to be black? That movie sucked. Anyway, my guess he is a were-cougar. Just wait till the moon comes out.

I hope that Secret Service guy Agent Pierce and the First Lady don’t form a romantic relationship. That would be eggy as Holly is prone to saying nowadays- and I wholeheartedly agree. I would like the series to end however with President Pierce presiding over funeral services for Jack as he is buried in Arlington for the many times he saved the day in 24 hours or less.

Tons of shit happened in last night’s episodes. Is the Fat Hobbit still alive? I didn’t see him rush into one of the sealed rooms. How heavy was his sister? Dude, her legs were smaller than my puny weakling arms! Why didn’t the President get slapped? Is the Vice President evil? Martial Law in L.A.? Rodney King anyone? And more burning questions!?

That was a badass episode. We’re at the halfway point!

SIX STARS!
(The extra star is for poor Edgar’s look in his face as he realizes he about to be written off…)

PS: The X-Men III Trailer is an awesome trailer. The original X-Men team from the comics of Cyclops, Marvel Girl, The Beast, Iceman and Angel are finally in the same movie…I hope the five of them share a scene together and just them. Elements of Joss Whedon’s first X-Men story and the Dark Phoenix…hope it gels together. Not a lot of people have faith in Brett Ratner directing this but I hope he surprises everyone. SNIKT!
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My So Called Ang

Dude, she's so cute...Neil Gaiman say's the Aintitcool report got some of the casting info wrong, but I hope this chick is still in it...

03/06/2006

I forgot that Ang Lee also won best director last night…good for him- the first Asian person to do so. I’ve only seen two of his movies- both of which I liked. Most of his movies are more…adult, is the only word that I can use to describe. Human dramas about family, love and relationships. Not the kind of thing I rush out to see. But I love, love, love Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. It’s not the best kung fu flick, but it’s an awesome tribute to them. I never thought Chow Yun Fat would look good doing kung fu- but he does the best rendition of a Jedi master EVER. People have said that this is the movie that Star Wars Episode I should have been and I wholeheartedly agree.

Plus, my mom is in it.

As for the other Ang Lee film I’ve seen- The Hulk gets bad vibes from a lot of people, and I didn’t like it when I first saw it in theaters. But when I got it on DVD and saw it for a second time, it grew on me. It’s all about frustration and anger. It’s all the things we bottle up and don’t let go. Nobody likes anybody when they’re angry. I love the explosiveness when Banner finally lets loose and battles the army. HULK SMASH!



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Jeg Heter Jose...or something...

03/06/2006

Jeg heter du?

Dude, I just spoke to you in Norwegian. Holly’s part Viking- so I have to assimilate to her ways. I’m undergoing DNA therapy to grow my hair red, and I have a helmet at the metal shop waiting to be picked up. She’s also teaching me how to pillage properly. YARG!

We went to UT’s open house this weekend and were the oldest people there who weren’t on their school’s field trip or bringing their kids to view the college. There were some cool things- all the departments were open and showing their stuff. We went to the geology department (Holly loves her rocks) and saw the students practicing how to cut gems (they were practicing on quartz). They also had some cool fossils including a pterosaur’s arm/wing.

We went again to the Harry Ransom Center- an art gallery that’s part of their campus- and got caricatures done and viewed alternate photographic techniques. I remember making my own pin-hole camera in high-school and drew the Punisher all around it because the teacher told us to decorate it.

There were classroom demonstrations, most of the ones we wanted to go to either were being held at the same time and/or they changed the schedule on us. There was a Klingon demonstration that I wanted to go to where they used the fictional language to show the basic concepts of language.

Qa’Pla!

Yes- I’m a Star Trek Nerd. I both save money and spent too much money and bought ST: TNG Season Two yesterday and watched the first three episodes. Funny how I remembered all three from when they aired eighteen years ago.

Anyway- the only one Holly and I went to was the ‘How to speak Norwegian’ one. And it was pretty cool. Although it was interesting that some of the kids in the audience didn’t know what a ‘Norway’ is.

Oh, well…

Finally went to the last major mall (that I know of0 in Austin. A higher up mall with a good middle-eastern fast food joint. Happy to see that there’s a MAC store there. I need to save money to buy an external DVD drive so I can finally install a newer OS (I still run on OS 9.1) and also more memory. Probably in a billion years.

It’s been warmer lately. No more ice days I guess. Which I’m happy about. However, now we have to get ready for the hundred degree days. AI YAH. It’s nice to be able to wear shorts again though. You know you’ve missed my sexy legs. The thing about Texas, though, is that people tend to over-refrigerate their areas. It’s freezing right now at work.

Wallace & Gromit won the oscar. That’s crackin’! Miyazaki already won one (personally- I think Howl’s Moving Castle is the better movie- but you just can’t deny the charm of Wallace & Gromit) and Tim Burton’s movies works best as the cult favorites that they are. Other that that, I didn’t really watch or care for the Oscars.

They’ve reported that Claire Danes is going to be in Matthew Vaughn’s movie adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s Stardust. Not the person I would thought of to be in the role but cool nonetheless. She was awesome in that Romeo & Juliette movie but I remember back in the day when she pissed off the Filipinos when she said the Philippines was gross. Anyway, I hope they reference the Charles Vess artwork quite a bit, I love the book. I still have to see Layer Cake though…


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Lost Forever in a Happy Crowd..

03/01/2006

PS: Yesterday marked se7en months in Texas, five months working for the State and a month for my new job.

Yay…

That’s approximately 270 days here in this State.

Wow…

It’s also Ashy Wednesday. Am I giving up anything for Lent? Not really anything big- I’ve decided to refrain from making any purchases from both Waterloo Records and Cheapo Records. Most of my buying there is on impulse anyway. Also I might refrain from internet purchases…except for maybe concert tickets. Most of my internet purchases are on impulse too.

Aside from that- I plan on boycotting Lent altogether…

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