RIP David Warner

Posted on July 25, 2022 by Steve

Such a shame to see David go! Another great Shakespeare-trained actor who went on to have an incredible Sci-Fi resume: two Star Trek movies (V and VI – Klingon Chancellor Gorkon is the most memorable), Star Trek: the Next Generation (Gul Madrid), Babylon 5 (the guy looking for the Holy Grail), Time After Time (Jack the Ripper!), TRON (Sark, Dillenger and MCP) and my personal favorite…he played Evil (or the Devil) in Terry Gilliam’s crazy comedy Time Bandits. Then there was him being the scumbag Pinkerton in Titanic or the Pirate King in The Island. Outside of Time Bandits, I didn’t know he did straightforward comedy as he was in The Man with Two Brains, a Steve Martin flick I never got around to seeing. It was cool that he loaned his voice to at least a pair of cartoons: The Amazing World of Gumball and Billy & Mandy. The Guardian said his career really got rolling after appearing in the original version of The Omen which I had forgotten, David was the photographer who had figured out the next victims of the Devil or Anti-Christ via the pictures he took.

David also had another special place in my heart and mind…we have the same birthday! I’m saddened to know he wouldn’t be seeing yet another this upcoming Friday. A fact enjoyed during my one-on-one time with fellow July 29er Wil Wheaton over ten years ago.

Thanks for everything David. You often played villains and you gave it your all which is probably why many kept hiring you back. However, you were well liked by many of your contemporaries; Patrick Stewart looked forward to their time together in ST:NG even if it was a pretty dark chapter in a rather optimistic show. You will be missed but we’re all grateful for the legacy you left behind.

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Chess robot breaks kid’s finger…

Posted on July 24, 2022 by Steve

…and then it beat up Deep Blue and Watson for their lunch money!

Well, the real story can be found here in The Guardian. I fear that the horrors of Skynet might be closer than we thought and it won’t come from a source we expected, aka defense systems but something more insidious such as leisure. Why not? Kids already have had their noses buried in video games for decades, myself included. My generation mostly broke free due to the current iteration of them being equal to part-time jobs and no longer just simple-to-follow-and-play games.

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A little post-GACC nostalgia with Xmas ’79

Posted on July 23, 2022 by Steve

Before I head out to Austin’s 15th Classic Game Fest, I thought I would keep up some good feelings (or vibes, which is getting as overused as Kate Bush’s 1985 hit). When I was at the Greater Austin Comic (Book) Convention two weeks ago, this vendor had this on display. I didn’t ask if the original toy was inside, I was way more impressed that he had the first packaging as Kenner would update it at least twice. I had to have a photo due to how many good memories it continues to give me. Not just the movie, the toy and all the fun I had “flying” it around the house occasionally pressing the button which blurted the only noise it made; it wasn’t anything from the movies.

The greater memory it instills involves my parents who I haven’t spoken to in 19 years (their loss). How they went through all the difficulty to get me 1979’s it toy. So whenever a kid got (or receives) a Cabbage Patch doll in 1983, a Tickle-Me-Elmo in 1996 or I imagine an iPhone today, I share the happiness, the joy and the heart-warming glow. The Netflix show The Toys That Made Us had such an incredible episode covering the history of Star Wars toys, namely the Kenner era. What’s really funny, or sad, my friends Doc and Eiko gave me the Falcon in 1995 and 16 years later, Kenner used the same mold to make it: the smuggling compartment floor, where the landing gear retracts and how it’s assembled. The improvements were awesome too. It had four real sound choices the Falcon actually made, they found a way to put re-entry and battle scars into the plastic and the stickers were more accurate. What happened to it? I sold it to a friend in order to move in a hurry and cut down on my clutter. I regret it somewhat but it was an emergency. So I foolishly wasted some stimulus money on the most recent version of the Falcon which is closer to scale and the clincher, it came with a Hondo figure! It remains in storage right now and one day it will either be in my office(s) or a very, very lucky child will receive it. Off to see all the video games I loved at Aladdin’s Castle, played in college when I should’ve been studying and whatever else my very large tribe loves.

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RIP Alan Grant

Posted on July 22, 2022 by Steve

Sad to read the news about this comic book writer passing who oddly had the same name as Sam Neill’s character in Jurassic Park. He was part of DC Comics’ influx of UK-based writers and artists who made comics and superheroes more sophisticated for a larger audience. Alan isn’t as famous as Neil Gaiman (Sandman), Alan Moore (Swamp Thing, Watchmen) or Dave Gibbons (Watchmen, Green Lantern) yet I used to own his run of Detective Comics:Batman in the late Eighties with Norm Breyfogle doing the art. I think he also got the nod to write Batman’s team up with Judge Dredd, which is the family of characters he originally worked on to get DC’s attention. Alan’s other lasting contribution was for Batman. He created the funny and odd villain The Ventriloquist. You’d think Batman would’ve had such a foe way back in the Forties or Fifties. Nope. The character even made the jump to great Nineties cartoon because Alan’s creation was that good.

Thanks for everything Alan. You were part of a great vanguard responsible for making comic book characters more popular to a larger audience through your perspective.

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First visit to Barton Springs in years, still ground zero of weird

Posted on July 21, 2022 by Steve

My friend Kathy invited me to go hit Barton Springs after work. Given the horrible heat, even for Austin, I thought, yeah, sure. It’s way closer than my favorite watering hole, Hamilton Pool and it would be a mini-adventure.

Once we got past the bullshit parking for Blues on the Green, aka, a Blues concert for three old people and bunch of Boomers who think it’s like a deep cut of Eric Clapton’s crap. Fortunately, the attendant let us in for free as he could tell we had no interest. Then we had a little picnic since there was a no coolers policy. I have no recollection if this was new or not. I definitely had no remembrance of how damned cold the water is. I know Lake Michigan is painfully cold yet I figured the Colorado River supplying Barton Springs would be warmer given our daily highs cracking 100° F/40° C. HA! I had to take it in bit by bit versus how willing I am to just jump into a well-maintained pool. My brain also had big gaps about the slimy surface below too. Barton Springs is filled with “harmless” algae. The side we started on was fine. The other side I made it to, nope. It resembled somebody releasing the apple splatters in the water. Blech! A big brown spider on the wall didn’t help ease my concerns neither.

Overall, the experience isn’t terribly different than Lake Springfield when I lived there from 1979-82, algae and all. What’s the weird element. Hmm. I’m going with the two topless women present. Austin can be pretty libertine but I didn’t think it was legal here. It’s not exactly the EU here. I admit, they were brave and from what I could tell, they were being very matter-of-factly, good for them. I didn’t stare! I preferred to enjoy my sandwich while I was concerned about some creeps or immature boys staring. Besides, given how fat and out of shape I am (the indoor bike only helps my legs), it should be illegal for me to take off my shirt in public! Anything else to chalk up for weird? Barton Springs still had areas deeper than four feet and it uses duck decoys to mark the boundary for the diving board instead of buoys. I’m confident I could find more things to point out if I went there during a busy weekend.

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Solo living through a long weekend

Posted on July 21, 2022 by Steve

Yesterday, I dropped off Jennifer and her friend Shannon at the new Terminal Two at Austin’s clusterfuck called our airport. They were flying to San Diego and then driving over to Tijuana today. Shannon is getting some surgery which is way cheaper and just as good in Mexico. Jennifer is tagging along for moral support…plus, it’s Mexico, not exactly a place known for consistency. As much as I distrust and dislike American cops, they’re at least predictable and can be punished unlike Mexico’s.

So I have to feed and care for all five cats myself which would be easy if it weren’t for Nubby. He is the difficult one. Demands to be fed at particular times. It must be the wet stuff which he then makes a mess everywhere with. Worst of all, he’s very wasteful. I estimate that he only consumes at best, half of what is put out. We guessed it was habit to take out the moisture but based upon my current observations, no. He’s a slob and in his tiny, flawed brain, if it falls out of the dish, it isn’t edible. Thankfully, the monthly Chewy order arrived too. This means Agamemnon’s specialized food is back in stock for him to eat while I do what I can to keep him out of the stuff responsible for his hospitalization last year. Discovered what a traitor Metztli was last night too. Seems she only likes to sleep on the bed if Jennifer is present. I’m not good enough.

Anyway, not much is going to change while my girlfriend beat the odds of landing a good hotel room during the biggest Nerd Gathering on Earth, aka, the San Diego Comic Con which doesn’t have many comic books. I could’ve sworn she’s been to San Diego before but found out I was wrong. Me? I haven’t been there since 1989 while my parents lived around Poway. Really sucked too. They lived there for five damned years. They couldn’t hold still while I was in high school nor live somewhere (other than Houston) cool. I hope she has a great time. I’m going to be catching up on laundry, cleaning the fridge and attending Austin’s Classic Game Fest on Saturday.

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Introducing my friend Marian!

Posted on July 20, 2022 by Steve

Yesterday, my friend Marian was officially recognized by the state by her current and correct identity and I wanted to let the world to know because I want to share the mudita expressed in the celebration and photo.

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Craig McCracken returns to the Cartoon Network!

Posted on July 19, 2022 by Steve

After all the shit storms going down and the oppressive heat, it was great to see some great news through Variety, Craig McCracken will be involved with rebooting (or continuing) his two earliest creations from his long career…The Powerpuff Girls and Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends. Recently, PPG was brought back briefly and without the original three voices for the girls. It didn’t last very long and I haven’t seen it but all episodes are available with HBO Max. I have no opinion of it as I’ve never seen any from that run. I think most people are aware of the failed attempt to make a live-action version under Greg Berlanti and crew. He was pretty successful in creating the Arrowverse so Warner Brothers going with him was logical. Making the PPG adults might have been what kept the live-action from working out. Despite that, they’re going to try again.

I don’t care though. I’m just stoked to know Craig is back after being away for some years and I’m confident he’ll either do a plausible reboot/do-over or better, just have the stories pick up where they left off. With PPG, they can be little kids forever. With Foster’s, I would be impressed if they went forward in time with Mac being a young adult, helping a very adult Frankie run the house since Madame Foster has passed away. Old Bloo remains unadopted, not due to Mac sticking around, let’s face it, Bloo is a pretty difficult friend to have given his selfishness. Maybe Wilt, Coco and Eduardo are back after they’ve been a child’s friend a couple times. The possibilities are endless! Glad to have you back Craig!

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Another demonstration of Kapitalism’s failure

Posted on July 18, 2022 by Steve

This is one of Austin’s numerous homeless camp sites and it’s within a mile of my house; it’s not just an LA or NYC problem! Does it worry or bother me? Yes but not for the same reasons it upsets most Centrist Residents. Firstly, the weather is probably really hurting these people as you can see there’s not much around in the tree department. Secondly, I have a feeling they were from another location, possibly closer into Austin and they were pushed out of the city’s jurisdiction. Given my house being in unincorporated Pflugerville and Austin’s city limit is a tad South, I think they’re on Travis County land. They had a fire break out around a month ago too. Thankfully the PFD came to their rescue to put it out.

Anyway, the affordable housing shortage plaguing Amerika is Kapitalism’s fault because it didn’t create more to meet the demand as per the fake gospel of Adam Smith, it created the shortage to increase demand. So whenever some asshole opens their noise hole to say, “Millions have been killed by Communism,” remind them, “Yes and Kapitalism has killed billions and it’s still going strong during the pandemic.”

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Caloric goal achieved at gym!

Posted on July 17, 2022 by Steve

It would be there sooner for a couple reasons that we all know, Covid-19 and not going to Planet Fatness. When I logged into the bike today, I was relieved that it set the next calorie goal to 200,000 since doubling it to 300,00o or 500,00o would’ve had me faint. I only wish I were more consistent on how many calories I plow through on a daily basis too.

What’s next? I’m guessing the mileage because there’s no way in Hell I can pull off another 200 hours before year’s end. May the bike crank the next mileage goal to 7500 too.

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Qatar Branch of the family visit!

Posted on July 16, 2022 by Steve

It was a great surprise this week to have Cannon, Anje and Aaron in town for the week! The sucky part was that it was an emergency trip because Carolyn (Aaron’s mom/my ex-mother-in-law) had to undertake new cancer treatment. When you live across the planet, you gotta’ time your trips since you want to avoid regrets, etc. It’s also tricky seeing them due to their popularity! There’s Aaron’s family, there’s Anje’s family (very nice people!), they have friends like all normal people and jet lag has to be addressed. I think they want to stock up on Dr. Pepper in the bloodstream as it’s very hard to get in Qatar. Maybe it will improve during FIFA hosting days.

They did manage to squeeze me in on Tuesday by coming to the house to see all the improvements Jennifer and I have made: flooring, curtains, some painting, meet the FIVE cats since there were only two the last time, new furniture, etc. It was nice of them to make the effort. I got a second opportunity last night and I really wanted to get Anje the Xmas card she never received despite it going probably around the world before it was rejected and returned to me. Trust me, we made a lot of effort for it, I want to make sure everybody gets a chance to laugh!

This guy is the youngest kid! All three of these brothers dwarf me and will block all my shots!

I lucked out into showing up around dinner time so it was very generous of Anje’s parents to feed me. Fajitas! Yum! Glad to share some more stories, make sure Carolyn has a good prognosis and wish them well on their way to Amsterdam to see my other nephews Wyatt and Hunter. The latter is graduating from school this month.

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The impotent Democratic Party in one short cartoon

Posted on July 15, 2022 by Steve

I recently heard the Fresh Air podcast about the GOP, namely the pro-Fascist faction, having their CPAC circle jerk in Hungary’s visible dictatorship. They then returned the favor with Orban being invited to the Orlando gathering. It’s disgusting and frightening to think there’s a group of assholes willing to emulate such a horrible regime. All these assholes’ grandparents and great-grandparents should come back from the grave and murder them for promoting Fascism. Sure, Amerika had its warts going into WWII thanks to homegrown segregation, anti-semitism, anti-Catholicism and violence against the First Nations. Yet a clear majority drew the line at what Hitler was proposing since I think enough people knew: today it’s the Jews, tomorrow it may be us because the Jews were exterminated and these thugs need a new enemy.

The cartoon above illustrates how tone deaf the fart knockers running the Democratic party are to our impending doom. Not like any of them will be alive when the planet’s average temperature is 45° C, wars are fought over water not oil and Gilead is a reality, not Atwood’s fictional dystopia. Meanwhile, they shit on the Left daily through their dismissive statements, their proxies attacking us in the primaries with, “But only a moderate can win!” It was their mantra in 2020 for Grampa’ Brunch. How’s it working out? Oh, he’s on the fast-track to be the next one-termer? Then there was the IQ Squared debate about expanding SCOTUS. Against the motion for expansion was a Democratic Establishment stooge warning about how it will become tit-for-tat, it isn’t needed as the system will correct itself…never mind it hasn’t for 30 years; and just willful ignorance on how the GOP via SCOTUS has put its thumbs on the scales:

  1. The gutting of the VRA
  2. Gerrymandering for race and political reasons are acceptable
  3. Soon: state legislatures may appoint their own electors if the popular vote isn’t to ALEC’s liking.

We shouldn’t be surprised at how naive and stupid the Democratic Leadership is. Dave Anthony reminds us often of when the murderous Pinochet Dictatorship overthrew the rightfully elected Allende government, Chilean Liberals (not Leftists) dutifully reported for interrogation and in some instances, cut in line. It went well for them if being murdered in secret was their goal.

I remain indifferent to voting this go round. Beto is a poseur and I know how strong Texan ammosexuality is along with how selfish Centrists/Moderates are. The latter would give up their children, freedom and dignity for cheap gas to fill their shitty SUVs.

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ERCOT’s current solution from Abbott’s base

Posted on July 14, 2022 by Steve

So far, our shit-bag governor putting the CEO of a truck-stop chain in charge of ERCOT isn’t really working out. As expected, the GOP-run Idiocracy has been begging people to scale back their AC usage and to not run major appliances during the peak hours: from late afternoon until early evening (weekdays). Now remember, when Democrats, Liberals or Leftists make the same recommendation…it’s a failure of the Green New Deal.

Firstly, it’s just good policy given how much Amerika remains too dependent upon fossil-fuel sources. If 100% of the energy were coming from renewables, it would be A-OK. Quick side note: nuclear fission isn’t renewable unless you count the radioactive waste because that shit lasts for centuries. Secondly, the real disaster in waiting and we can count on the the Corporate Media spinning it at an “oversight;” will be the inevitable rolling blackouts for the grid remains unaltered and NOT weatherized for the extremes, aka, the new normal for Earth.

Jennifer assures me, our house lucked out by its location. Allegedly, there’s some ESD or related operation nearby so it would have to be pretty serious if our neighborhood loses power; it has happened multiple times over the house’s 21 years of existence, thankfully nothing approaching a half day or longer as it was three days at her old apartment when the Big Freeze of 2021 happened.

I’m just hoping we make it to October (when the Austin end traditionally ends), and we won’t be resorting to what’s in the photo above as the interim solution to stay alive.

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1977: The Great NYC Blackout…of the Seventies

Posted on July 13, 2022 by Steve

Although I wasn’t there, in New York, I do remember the events adequately because it was freaky to my eight-year-old brain. My parents were watching a movie (Made for Each Other, had to look it up!) on CBS/Channel 3, WCIA and boom, right near the end, CBS crapped out. I’m certain my parents checked the only two other channels we could get, pretty much the same. Then a message came up about how the network lost its signal due to a power outage. My anxiety and immediate fear of this being a nuclear war wouldn’t kick in until St. Reagan’s reign of error.

When the local newscast followed, the main story was how New York was plunged into chaos with looting everywhere. The city wouldn’t have enough power restored until late into the following day. The finger-pointing and blame throwing was already underway given America’s biggest city already being a disaster: crime, pollution and bankruptcy mixed in with the Son of Sam murders. It was the cover story with the next Time magazine my parents subscribed to. ABC developed a made-for-TV movie about the events within a couple years to turn a bad situation into money.

I did go back to dig deeper, namely on how it happened since the 2003 debacle was better remembered and documented. Turns out there were several lightning strikes that hit over an hour before the power collapsed. As the strikes damaged electrical infrastructure, the various power companies had to adjust and compensate until they blew it…boom! Most of the five boroughs went dark. The only areas spared were parts of Queens and some sections still using Edison’s original DC power-generation stations which could only drive a few blocks. If it weren’t for Tesla’s development of AC, we’d be stuck with those clumsy DC-only solutions every half mile. I was also wrong on when the blackout officially began. My flawed memory said about 10 minutes before 10 PM Central. History says more like 9:20-9:30 PM Central was when it hit the fan.

Lately, nobody thinks much about the event, including me. What got me remembering it again was a free reprint of a Marvel What If…? comic book. It was a story asking, what if Conan the Barbarian ever visited the “real world?” What luck! He showed up in New York, during the very same blackout, protected some helpless folks from muggers and had a romantic liaison with the big-chested (female) cab driver who encountered him in the beginning. Then he returned to his mythical past, hoping to kill the sorcerer who sent him to our horrible world. I wish he showed up on January 6, 2021 and killed some of those shit head Oathkeeper thugs.

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An editorial from the Math-impaired

Posted on July 12, 2022 by Steve

The only thing I give D&D 5E a round of applause for is their advantage/disadvantage rule with d20 rolls. Given how much players love to roll dice more than anything, it caters to their obsession. It’s a pretty clever solution yet I have one peeve that rears its ugly head from those who are a little too attached to it, a hatred of Math or what they claim are too many modifiers to track. Sure, 3/3.5/PF1 could get a little out of hand but from my experience, all the crazy amounts of +/- comes from the power gamers. As a DM, I tune out after a couple are in their favor since failure will only happen if the player rolls a “Natural One.”

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