Watchmen

Do you wanna know what you should do right now? You should go read this graphic novel.

Did you ever wish that you had read Sin City or 300 before they became movies? To have read anything before it becomes a movie, I think is something to aspire to. Now is your chance to go out and maybe step into a new realm...the realm of comics. I recently took such a step last semester under the apprenticeship of my dear friend Kevin. Comics is one of those things, that if you want to get into them, you kind of need a guide. I've been reading the latest series in Uncanny X-Men, The Rise and Fall of the Shi'ar Empire. I can't tell you how fun it's been to really read these things seriously, and dare I say it...tap into my geeky side. Embracing the nerdyness is the only way to live. Anyway, I've really started enjoying comics, and I think you should too. Watchmen is a great piece of literature, and I think it should be more greatly appreciated. They are now in the pre-production process for the film, a process that has been in the works since the late 1980's. The author, Alan Moore, is one of comics all time great writers. He is also known for writing V for Vendetta, which brings up an interesting point. V was written 1982 and then made into a movie in 2006. The movie follows the book extremely closely, as Moore had originally written it. When the movie was made, many were claiming that this film was a critique on the Bush administration. If they had only known that this story was conceived during the Reagan administration....Anyway, the movie is gonna be rad whenever it comes out, so you should read the book now. Kevin gets all the credit here...

Sputterings

First of all, I'd like to give props to Chelsea for winning the FA Cup. I'm a novice soccer fan, but Drogba's goal in the 116th minute was exceptionally fun to see. I love soccer and am so glad we have the FSC channel here at home. I always hated soccer growing up, but with the World Cup going on last summer, I got really interested. It's very soothing to watch, almost as soothing as Jeopardy. I've been watching a lot of the NBA playoffs as well, and I must say the Spurs are playing too good for anyone to beat them. I don't like them much.... I can't handle Parker's floaters, Ginobli's foul drawing drives, or Bowen's dirty play. I wanted to see Phoenix on to the end, but that wasn't meant to be.
I'm not a huge horror movie fan, but last night I saw 28 weeks later. I was a big fan of the first film, and this one possibly outdid it. Both films are exceptionally edited, and director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo definitely carried on the torch for the series. The thing I love about both of these films, is that they are frightening, yet tolerable. Since the acting is superb, and the gore is somewhat timid, there are minimal opportunities for cheesiness. The rule of thumb for scary movies, as exemplified by Hitchcock, is less is more. The more you leave to the imagination, the more powerful the film ends up being. I'll sight M. Night Shyamalan in this area as well. Granted 28 Weeks Later is still fairly gory, a lot of it is blurred by the stunning use of the handheld digital cameras. If you want a good scare, but still want to be able to go to sleep at night, I highly recommend this film.
I recently went on a cruise to Costa Maya and Cozumel. It was extremely intense and fun, yet strangely exhausting. I feel like I wouldn't want to go on another cruise for about 5 years. There is something about being on a boat for 5 days that is a little odd. The cheesiness of everything on the boat was a little much for me to handle as well. There were tons of strange people on this boat. I sang Miami by one of my favorite artists Will Smith one night at Karaoke. The crowd loved it. Matt took a video of it. Ok I'm gonna stop writing right now.

Mere Hours

remain before I jump in my driving car, and head east, stopping only to refill my tank, both gasolinic and digestive. I million things used to lie in front of me, and they have dwindled to a few, only to propogate a million other things which shall soon fall away behind me.

Mailbox: a Free Burrito at your neighborhood imitation place. I think the only thing authentic about this place is it's inauthenticity. Orange cans make it hard to drive. Dumptrucks, interchanges, detours. Oh to drive at a constant speed for more than 10 seconds. I hope my car doesn't hyperventilate on the way home. My AC is broke. I might burn alive. I seem to recount a certain tale I heard from arig101. Inopperable AC, DDR with DJ sammy, towelhead, redbulls. This post makes little to no senses.

In the words of Pete, "Let's start an emo and name it suicidal rhapsody."

Knife in the Water

If you want to know why Roman Polanski is brilliant, please watch this movie. I revisited it recently and its subtlety blew me away even more than the first time I encountered it. I also regained my crush for the lead actress, Jolanta Umecka. For more Polanski brilliance, watch Chinatown.

Ticket Stubs

I've never considered myself an avid concert goer, and this list proves it. In the past I usually only went to concerts when it was convenient for me, or if a lot of my friends were going. I often ended up at concerts that I had little interest in, which left me somewhat dissappointed in the whole live music scene. Living in Arkansas also hampers one's ability to see a variety of different artists. Here is a list as best I could remember of concerts I have attended, in chronological order starting with the earliest. I also included the location. This list does not include small venue shows like BDS or Ultimate Fakebook. Please laugh at this.

The Steve Miller Band //Pullman, WA
Blues Traveler //Little Rock, AR
Everclear //Little Rock, AR
The String Cheese Incident //Little Rock, AR
Widespread Panic //Little Rock, AR
James Brown //Little Rock, AR
Hootie and the Blowfish //Little Rock, AR
Collective Soul //Little Rock, AR
Further Seems Forever //Little Rock, AR
Third Eye Blind //Nashville, TN
Cheap Trick //Milwaukee, WI
Eve 6 //Milwaukee, WI
Ben Folds //Milwaukee, WI
Foo Fighters //Milwaukee, WI
Better Than Ezra //Fayetteville, AR
Jimmy Eat World //Conway, AR
Bone Thugs 'n Harmony //Fayetteville, AR
Gin Blossoms //Fayetteville, AR
Ben Kweller //Fayetteville, AR
Phantom Planet //Fayetteville, AR
Lucero //Fayetteville, AR
Regina Spektor //Dallas, TX
Camera Obscura //Denver, CO
The Shins //Denver, CO
Ratatat //Denver, CO
Brazilian Girls //Denver, CO