The summer of 2009 was rather lackluster, despite being pretty damn profitable. What you say? You didn’t think the summer of Transformers 2, Half-Blood Prince, Wolverine, Star Trek, GI Joe and Terminator wasn’t amazing bomb-diggity mad-propz rooflecopters? In a word? No. Entertaining for certain, but nothing life-altering.
2010 seems to agree with me. I’ve already mentioned the Kick-Ass teaser, but the hits just keep on a-comin’.
I still have a VHS of the ‘81 Clash of the Titans. The stop-motion campy mythological fun isn’t something I was overly excited about getting redone. Especially given the track record of Hollywood when it comes to “re-imaginings”. Some things were actually good the first time, kthx. Anywho, this looks good. Feast, my pretties!
The first video was the “McNuggetini”. I’ve since watched about half the channel – a feat which challenges my libido and my ability fight back overwhelming nausea. I just about lost it on all fronts when they chimed “meat garnish”.
As we enter December and what passes for the 2009 television season draws to a close I’m struck by how awesome some shows have been this year. I’m struck by a number of other things, as well, but that’s another show…
My top picks of 2009, in no particular order…
Sons of Anarchy (FX)
SoA started off strong and only got better right up until the reaper graphic faded in to close out the season with this week’s 90-minute episode. Dramatic, well-acted, well-scripted and superbly well-written. It reminded me of the early episodes of the Shield – but better. The cast was simply electric week in and week out. Henry Rollins and Adam Arkin were great in their recurring guest roles – the play between them and the core cast seemed effortless. The true mark of a top-notch production team and gifted writers. If you haven’t given this show a chance assuming that “some crap about motorcycles” wouldn’t be great TV a) stop being stupid and b) OnDemand/NetFlix/whatever the first season. You won’t be disappointed.
Californication (SHO)
Great writing, great dialog, great guest stars/cameos (that don’t feel contrived and idiotic ala Entourage) and tits. I just don’t know what to do with someone who doesn’t think that would be worth their time.
Dexter (SHO)
A staple of Showtime’s series line-up many said that it would be unwatchable once they passed the available source material. I’ve not read Lindsay’s novels, but I have to say that while a true adaptation might have been good, this season has proven to me that the show-runners DO have a solid vision and can make some quality TV without it being pre-fabbed 100% of the way. Julie Benz and Jennifer Carpenter both really stood out this season along with the phantabulous John Lithgow as the Trinity killer. He has a way about him when playing this character that was subtle, yet sinister, and frigthening to see. If he’s not in the running for a supporting/guest statue of some kind next year it will be an absolute crime.
Leverage (TNT)
Ocean’s Eleven (not the less good 12 and 13) as a TV series. Yes please? Tim Hutton, Gina Bellman (Coupling/BBC), Christian Kane and the rest of the crew fit together like some insane jigsaw puzzle. The weekly capers are fairly light in subject matter with an eye on excellent storytelling, sharp wit and fun taking the focus rather than suspense, titilation or melodrama.
Psych (USA)
Think The Mentalist, but funny. James Roday and Dulé Hill are hysterical. Even if the show was JUST them, it’d still be a must-watch. Add Timothy Omundson, Maggie Lawson and Corbin Bernsen to the mix and you may have to pause the DVR to avoid going wee-wee in your pants. Filled to the brim with pop culture references and a writing staff that appears unafraid to go off on a crazy tangent on even the slightest possibility that it will be funny you find yourself, week after week, with comedy gold. Much like Californication I can’t stop myself from smiling the entire length of any given episode. It’s just plain good fun.
I certainly post a lot of these “I have better things to do than post” posts, don’t I? You know the drill. Work, non-work, the pending holidays, etc, etc.
The annual pilgrimage to Kenebec was somewhat less than fruitful this year. The fall was uncommonly wet, which delayed the harvest by nearly a month. For reference, fields in South Dakota are effectively nations unto themselves. When 60% of the milo is still standing the birds have miles upon miles of cover and food to play in without ever seeing a person. The weather started to turn bad and we ended up with 3 solid days of rain. We came home a day early to avoid the impending doom of a mushy snowstorm. The outcome of the trip aside, it was some family time, which is always welcome.
Thanksgiving will be abbreviated this year as I have to be in the office to cover phones bright and early at 8am. I’m only working a half-day, so it’s entirely possible I may spend the afternoon buying a car.
I’m definately digging this writing gig, it’s stretching muscles that I’ve never really tried using “professionally” before. Occasional forays into unknown territory are good for the soul.
No, really. My fury is without containment options.
This blog has (and will always be) my vanity site. My little corner of the internets where I can say whatever crazy nonsense pops into my head. I rarely censor (or grammar-check) anything I post or, for that matter, fact-check anything. Ever.
That’s just how I roll, bitches.
Every once and a while I get the bug to actually try writing something. I’ve always fancied putting quill to parchment but have always been hindered by being well… boring. Boring people write boring things. It’s a rule or something.
Why do I mention this now? Well the opportunity to contribute to a new site presented itself so I pounced. I posted my first commentary earlier today for review. Assuming the editorial powers that be find it worthy it should be up any day now. Assuming the site is fixed. Top men are on the case, I’m sure. But don’t be surprised if the site occasionally goes into convulsions for the near future.
Bite My Review – Now with 10% more direct-linking to my actual editorial! (also linked over ————-> in the blogroll)
Yeah, so … no updates or something for a while. “IRL.” It happens. Lots of things to discuss, not a lot of time. That, too, happens.
I canceled my World of Warcraft account a couple months ago – more on that later. I have a standing copy of Aion, which has been quite fun so far. More on that later as well.
Are we sensing a pattern?
I’ve been reading a couple books of late, both I find fascinating. One is a collection of “Aesop’s Fables” and the other is a copy of Darwin’s Origin of Species (6th edition). Both have been genuinely illuminating. Many of the colorful aphorisms we drown in every day date back far, far earlier than I realized. It’s interesting that many of these sayings I’ve heard attributed to biblical passages when the true origins dated back to the oral storytellers a millennium or so before quill was ever put to papyrus. As for Origin? Wow. Let’s just say I’ve never met anyone who articulated what he was actually saying. Most people, in fact, get it wrong. Exposure to this material would have been handy 15 years ago. Thanks again, public education.
In other news, I’m car shopping. What a nightmare. I think I have it whittled down to a couple solid choices. I’m past considering the wishlist vehicles and focusing in on solid price/performance comparisons. A couple more test-drives and I should be able to pull the trigger. Knowing myself as I do that may take months.
Yesterday marked my first share of this summers CSA crop and man-o-man was it most excellent. CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. CSA farms use sustainable farming methods (though not necessarily organic) and deliver their produce fresh from the field to the communities within which it was grown. The “supported” part of that comes from the part where people like you or I pay for a share of the crop.
What’s the point, you ask?
All politics are local. Supporting people in your community supports your community and you. Not only that, but it doesn’t cost much more (and in some cases less) than standard mega-mart prices. My bi-weekly CSA share was a few hundred dollars, of which 125 will come back to me in the form of a rebate from my health insurance provider.
If that’s not enough incentive for you, how about the fact that sustainably-grown produce that travels 10 miles to you just plain tastes better than anything in any store you have ever or will ever buy. Pretty bold statement, if you’ll forgive the pun, right? You won’t think so after your first share. Trust me.
Ok, soapbox disengaged. On with the show.
The spring/early-summer in Wisconsin has been superior weather for greens. Spinach and lettuce of all varieties grew like proverbial weeds. My first share this year came through with a huge head of some odd red leaf lettuce I’d never heard of (but tastes great!) and a giant bag of mixed leafy greens. Oh, and the bag of giant spinach which I put to immediate and tasty use.
Garlic scapes. Holy crap on a crap-boat do I love these things. They’re like garlic-flavored asparagus and just as versatile. In fact, I’ve cooked them with garlic and asparagus together for a trifecta of awesome you would not believe. I’d never even HEARD of them until joining a CSA farm. Put another check-mark in “reasons to CSA” column.
My share was rounded out by some fresh scallions, turnips, chives (that flowered already) and an itty-bitty basil plant. All-in-all, a wonderful start.
I picked up a nice ribeye on the way home from work, so while that was resting I used my trusty (and still blazing) cast-iron skillet to wilt about half of the spinach greens. I mixed that with the remaining uncooked leaves and some sliced turnip and scallions and tossed with some fresh-ground pepper. If you’ve ever had a spinach salad at a good steak place with the sweet bacon vinagrette you’ll almost get the taste right, save this salad was more savory than sweet/tangy. I wish I had snapped a pic of the finished product so I could show off a little, but honestly the stuff was just gone.
Anywho, take some time and seek out your local CSA group if there is one. Your efforts will not go unrewarded.
After much anticipation Blizzard has opened the StarCraft II Beta opt-in. In the beta test you will get an opportunity to provide your feedback on the overall experience, including units, maps, aesthetics, and more. We would also appreciate reports on any bugs you may encounter during your game-play experience.
We will be selecting account holders of Battle.net and World of Warcraft accounts who opted-in at random to participate in the much anticipated StarCraft II Beta. To opt-in for the beta test go to the opt-in page found here. Please be prepared to enter the current retail World of Warcraft or Battle.net account name and password you use. To be eligible to participate in the beta tests, you must have a valid retail World of Warcraft or Battle.net account active and in good standing as of July 17, 2009.
Needles to say my in was opted post-haste. Ever since WoW I’ve been keeping my eyes off most beta stuffs. Preferring to see completed (or laughably launched) products before I deign to open the purse-strings. I’ve stayed as far away from Old Republic to avoid clouding my judgment. The most I’ve visited so far is to check on beta status and nab a few swanky wallpapers.
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