Friday, May 31, 2013

My birthday present

Check out what Megan got me for my birthday?! THE SWEETEST IPAD CASE IN THE WORLD!!!

Now all I need is Falcore to come pick me up and chase down the bullies from my childhood into the nearest garbage bin.

The lost Adventure Journals!

Hi Folks! It's my birthday and I just realized I don't have many friends to celebrate with! So to make my day somewhat interesting I'd like to geek out about Star Wars and the amazing discovery I've made!!
 
 So what were the Star Wars Adventure Journals? Well, back in the mid-90's West End Games created several RPG books for Star Wars. I never took much notice until after they were shut down but when I found they carried Star Wars fan fiction in them, I was all over that!

I remember buying the full set of 15 at the time and being very proud of my collection. Though little did I know that there was SO much more out there hidden on the www!!!

While perusing through my favorite website "Wookiepedia" I came across this article that informed me about the "unpublished" Journals that West End Games never released. So after some diligent web searching (I tell you, I am REALLY bored) I came across a website that had them all in digital form!!

 

I quickly gobbled up everything I could and am currently reading it now. #16 (shown in the picture at the very top) Was heading towards the printers when Lucas stripped WEG of the Star Wars license. But the WHOLE thing was ready and waiting! They even had #17 (shown in the pic above) halfway thru and I got to see all the wonderful stories for it as well!

#18 was only created in theory but nothing was made for it yet. HOWEVER while ready #16 online I read that they'd hired an author to write fiction for each of the 3 unpublished issues and since they never went to print the author decided to post them on his website!! I checked it right then and IT WAS STILL UP!! (Though no post had been made on it in a couple of years)

I know this sounds geeky and you probably stopped reading after the first 2 sentences but this was like finding buried treasure to me!!

Happy Birthday indeed!!

Ok, I'm going back to reading my new found material.

Geek. Out.

Happy Birthday to me

How bout for my birthday this year, you go out and by YOURSELF a birthday present?

One good thing about not being on Facebook is you get to see which of your friends actually remembered it was your birthday without being reminded via a pop-up reminder. Just one more reason I don't have an account!

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Rainbow in my Room



The ultimate gift for a little girl can be bought on Amazon right here.

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Red Wing blues

How can my Red Wings go from being up 3 games to 1 to the Blackhawks and end up losing the freaking series!!!

I don't know what sucks worse, the fact that my hockey season is officially over or that all I have left is to watch the Mets now.

(sigh)

Han Solo Ice Cubes



I may have to get these from Amazon as well.

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Monday, May 27, 2013

Polaroid camera

I didn't know they still made this anymore. Amazon has them here if you're interested in reading more about it.

Sunday, May 26, 2013

Rhino Glass?



This is...interesting.

Saturday, May 25, 2013

FX Home Movie Day! (8)


Ok folks, that's all for today! See you tomorrow with another post!

FX Home Movie Day! (7)

If only I had this app when I was younger...

FX Home Movie Day! (6)


FX Home Movie Day (5)


FX Home Movie Day! (4)


FX Home Movie Day! (3)


FX Home Movie Day! (2)


FX Home Movie day!

Just thought I'd spice up the day with some fun vids we made a few weeks ago.

I'll be posting them throughout the day....enjoy!

Friday, May 24, 2013

Fooseball Table



Excellent idea and I happen to be in the market for a coffee table right now so hmmm....

Check it out here on Amazon.

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Han Solo Chocolate



The fact that this was on Amazon and I never knew about it in time is heart breaking.

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Peanut Butter Maker




Why isn't this an infomercial for late night TV?!

Check out more on Amazon here.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Clone Wars Season 6 Preview



So they're making this bonus content on the next DVD set of Clone Wars, which gives me a better reason to add them to my collection without having too much disappointment in the series as a whole.

In other news "Star Wars: Rebels" TV show was announced by Disney to premiere on there Disney XD station in the fall of next year. The series will take place between Episode 3 and 4 and hopefully will be more interesting than it's predecessor.

Is Disney on the right track with Star Wars? That's yet to be determined.

By the way, how's everyone feeling about JJ Abram's being the director of Star Wars after all the Trekkies suffered a huge disappointment over the newest film? Haven't seen it yet but every trekkie I've spoke to is a little miffed at how one character (for sake of spoilers will go unamed) was handled in it.

See ya folks!

Solar paneled charger



Dang! Why didn't I think of this first? What an awesome idea! When you're at the beach or the park and you need a quick charge just set it up and plug it in!

Check it out at Amazon here for more details.

Monday, May 20, 2013

The odd side of the Amazon

As all of you know, I'm a HUGE fan of Amazon. They have EVERYTHING on their site. And what do I mean by everything? Well for the next few weeks I'm going to show you some things you probably didn't know even existed for sale on Amazon.

Some of it will make you laugh and the rest of it will leave you scratching your head and asking why but for better for worse, it all kicks off tomorrow...

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Pilgrim's Progress



When I was a kid, this probably was my favorite book of all time.

Way before I set foot on the stage, I remember holding a one man "play" on this book for my parents on the expanded hearth of our fireplace in Ms. Even when we moved to Monroe, I remember doing a daily story-telling of this book for my little brothers, using old felt stick-ons as props that my Dad had for us years earlier. That being said, I have nothing but fond memories over this book and have been looking forward to re-reading it for years but never made the time to do so until now.

After doing so however I noticed it's not a good without the illustrations. About every version I had of this, came with illustrations which really brought the story for life. But the classic memories from the book still remain.

The Worldly Wiseman, Christian's fight with Apollyon, his capture in Doubting Castle and several other stories are what brought my imagination to life as a kid.

For those interesting in reading it I would highly suggest getting a children's or illustrated version of the book before reading. It's much better that way.

So, what's next on my book list? Check out next week's post to see...

Saturday, May 18, 2013

The Wind and the Willows

So I had time last week to read the short tale of the Wind and the Willows and wanted to give you my take on it.

Great stuff. It plays like a Winnie the Pooh tale but with more depth to the characters. The story of Mole, Rat, Badger and of course, Mr Toad are interesting the whole read thru.

I'd recommend the book (especially if illistrated) to anyone with kids who are looking for a good read. It's extrememly funny at times and the re-reading it again since my childhood brought back memories of why this book was one of my favorites back in the day.

Finishing up my next book now. Expect a review on it tomorrow!

Friday, May 17, 2013

Green Lantern Ride too?!



Why did no one tell me about this when I wrote my 6 Flags article?! This is an ingenious ride! Too bad I'd never be caught dead on it!

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Go Wings!

If you missed it this weekend my Wings beat the Ducks! The good news is we advance in the playoffs, the bad news is it took us to game 7 to beat the DUCKS?!?

This may be another short playoff season for my team.

In other news, the Mets played like a professional little league team on ESPN and lost to Cards 6-3

It's going to be a loooooong season!

Whales (7)


Monday, May 13, 2013

Riddler's Revenge



What?! There's a Riddler Ride at 6 Flags Magic mountain?! Dang man! This looks like a ride I'd never get on but I do love me some Riddler...ooohh... I'm just glad this place is no where near me. I wouldn't need this dilemma!

Survivor review

So after his 2nd time playing the game he finally wins. Does he deserve it? I guess. There was no one else even close to being worthy next to him so congrats by surrounding himself with two losers. That's the way you win Survivor.

Btw, I called Brenda the pregnant the second I saw her appear on satellite. The Blood vs Water has something to do with family so I'm guessing it's the Hantz family vs a new group of Survivors.

Whatever happens, I'll be there in September watching it all go down!

Sunday, May 12, 2013

Happy Momma's Day

If you forgot it was today...you better hustle to at least get her a card!

Saturday, May 11, 2013

Dracula Book Review

So after many years I finally read Bram Stoker's classic "Dracula" and I wanted to give you folks a little review. (since Saturdays seem to be "Book Review Day" for my blog these days)

First off, this book is all written in first person, which is not my favorite. I know at the time it was probably a nice way to convey a story but I've seen this used SO much in today's fiction that I'm really turned off by the style.

That said, the book...was boring. I think this is the only time the movie would be better than the book. The first 2 chapters are interesting and exciting. You read excepts from the journal of Jonathan Harker as he travels to Transylvania to visit Count Dracula. An old man with a mustache, protruding teeth and (as Mr Harker discovers later) has the ability to move up and down his castle walls like a lizard.

Later, you find out that Dracula can change into a bat and a wolf. He can't cross running water and he can only be killed if you run a stake thru his heart, chop off his head and stuff him with garlic.

Wow. The wolf and mustache thing I've never heard of before so that was news to me! Overall, I can't recommend this book. It's bad, it's boring and it moves slow. After the first 4 chapters I spent more time counting how many pages I had till the end of the book, than I did worrying about what was going on. I'm not even sure how it ends. They meet up with Gypsies and...that's the end.

Weird.

Anyway, I'm almost done with my next book so expect back to back book reviews for next weekend.

I'm a reading machine!!

Friday, May 10, 2013

June Movie Preview

So before I start falling behind on this, let me give you a short clip what I think about the upcoming movies coming out in June...

 
The Internship

There used to be a day when I thought Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson were two of the funniest people in the world.

Yep, I used to think that.


This is The End

This is the worst idea for a movie that I've ever heard about.

Man of Steel

Nevermind that last comment. I stand corrected.


Monster's University

I shouldn't go see this....but I am.

World War Z

I hear the book in amazing. I also hear the movie is nothing like the book.

Zzzzzzzzz....

Have a good weekend folks!

Thursday, May 09, 2013

Wednesday, May 08, 2013

Tuesday, May 07, 2013

Star Wars update

In the latest Star Wars news, Disney announced it was giving the video game rights to a company that has held the title of "Worst Customer Service Ever" for 3 years straight. (no joke) I guess they figured fans were used to the abuse, living with King George for so long they're used to being abused.

I loved the idea of shutting down Lucas Arts. They'd gotten to be too compliant over the years and the gaming franchise needed an overhaul. But giving it to EA?! What were they thinking?! There are hundreds of better companies they could've given the rights to who'd have been better than these bozos!

Rocksteady anyone?

My point is, you don't had the golden goose over to someone as self-centered as EA who have NEVER shown love to any of their fans. Don't believe me? Check out all the "ho-hum" reviews over the years for Madden and NCAA football.

EA lost their imagination a long time ago. The only thing they have left going for them is exclusive rights over sporting games. If it were not for those rights, they'd have been shut down years ago!

And while I'm on a rant....

Have you heard about the new book coming out later this year? ANOTHER classic adventure novel!? I know everyone loves to tell stories of when Luke and Leia were young rebels on the run from Vader and the Empire but it's been done enough! Please stop!

As the timeline is now it looks like Han, Leia and Luke hardly had time to sleep inbetween A New Hope and Emipre Strikes Back. Why they keep choosing this timeline to write within is mind boggling.

Yeah, I'll read it but with thousands of other options for books, why Del Rey continues to harp on this point in time is beyond me.

Hmmm... maybe Disney can strip the rights from them as well and give the book rights to someone else...

Here's to hoping!

Whales (4)


Monday, May 06, 2013

May Movie Review

 
I know this is a little late but I've been so busy lately that I haven't had time for this post. So let me review some movies I've already seen and some others coming out soon.

Iron Man 3

I saw this last night and enjoyed it. They did a good job with the trilogy and I look forward to Marvel's next installment "Thor 2" at the end of the year. Is Iron Man 3 the movie of the year? So far, yes. But we'll have to see what else is out there before we crown it "Best of 2013"


Star Trek: Into Darkness

This movie doesn't get me excited at all. Sure, I'll see it but ever since JJ announced he's directing Star Wars has anyone else felt the air's been let out of the balloon on this movie? Who cares?! Everyone's talking about his next project and I think that it's also shrouded folks interest in seeing this.

That being said, I'm sure the movie will be fine but I'm equally sure no one will remember it by the end of the year.


Fast and the Furious 6

Who'd have thought years ago that they would be making a movie called "Fast and Furious 6" that would still star all the original characters and we'd still be excited to see it?! Wild that it's gone on this long and in my opinion they've all been pretty much fun to watch.

I'm glad they're calling it "6" because you don't see that in movies much anymore. Will I go see it in theaters? Eh...I don't know yet. I don't think I've seen a single one in theaters so far, I've watched them all on DVD and I think I may keep my streak going on this one too.

Should be exiciting to see either way!


Hangover Part III

The 1st one felt unique and intriging. The 2nd felt forced. This one will be Hollywood's brightest example of brow-beating a one trick pony to death.

All that said....yes I'll be seeing it.

After Earth

Yeah....no.

Sunday, May 05, 2013

Cinco de Mayo



I don't know why the US needs another reason to celebrate this holiday. It used to be just at Mexican restaurants but now I see it at several others not even offering any mexican food but nachos. Back in the day I used to have fun with this holiday but now it's been blown up way out of proportion just like Mardi Gras (which used to be only celebrated in Louisiana)

Ok, I'm done griping. Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone. 

Saturday, May 04, 2013

Free Comic Book Day

GO GET YOU SOME!!!

May the 4th

As some of you know, it's "Star Wars" day and all I've gotten to celebrate the day is Star Wars junk mail in my inbox.

It's sad because this used to be the day George Lucas would announce what dinner scraps he's throwing under the table for the fans to gobble up. The announcements have never been that big but at least we've had some.

I expected Disney to officially confirm the signings of Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford today but I guess they don't care about this holiday either. About the only Star Wars news that we've seen is that JJ Abrams would like John Williams to do the music to Star Wars, which to everyone else should be a no-brainer but for someone like JJ it shows improvement in his novice familiarity with the Star Wars brand.

Happy 4th everyone!   

A Memory of Light


My journey through the Wheel of Time books has finally come to an end.


In this 909 page book contains the account of the foretold “Last Battle”….the WHOLE book is about the battle!

Not joking here. Only in the last 16 pages is the final battle over and you read about the aftermath. I couldn’t believe literally the ENTIRE book was about the battle. Unbelievable.

As always Brandon Sanderson delivers his material with excellence and I have to wonder whether Jordan wrote any of it at all or if Sanderson was going off of an outline. I suspect it’s the latter.

Not to spoil anything, but a lot of characters die and the ending fits the story as a whole I think. It didn’t feel rushed like some of Jordan’s previous book endings, instead it felt like closure was given to the story and that’s all the mattered.

Overall I’d recommend this series. Even having the reader suffer through Jordan’s annoyingly lagging trilogy in the middle of the series just makes the ending a bigger pay off.

Take heed however! These books are NOT what I would consider to be “light reading” Even in this book a chapter titled “The Last Battle” is over 200 pages long! (I didn’t recognize it till 150 pages in though) So if you’re into books with only 300 or so pages…nope, not for you.

But if you love fantasy and long story arcs, this one’s right up your ally!

So what should I read next? Hmmm… I think I saw some Little Golden Books laying around here somewhere.

Friday, May 03, 2013

What I'm collecting

It was only a matter of time before my Star Wars nerdiness took things to the next step....collecting the entire RPG library of books that were published by West End Games back in the late 80's  to mid 90's.

Thanks to Amazon and Ebay, I've just about have a complete set. And with the help of a lot of Amazon gift cards it didn't cost much at all!

I've never played role playing games but had a lot of friends back in the day that used to play. They invited me over several times but I regret to say I never made it around for a game. I should've and now I'm going to try and make up for it.

I play a lot of board games so why not try my hand at what West End Games offered the world way back in the days before Zahn's trilogy came out. Zahn even said in an interview that when writing his epic Thrawn Trilogy that Lucas gave him a copy of all the WEG material to have at his disposal.

I'm excited to see what news stories abound from this RPG galaxy far, far, away...

Thursday, May 02, 2013

Wednesday, May 01, 2013