Sunday, August 2, 2009

Just some stuff

Gah, need to make a resolution to post more often, especially if I want to get better at writing. That's one of the two big things they say people need to do to become better writers. The other is to read, and in doing so learn from what other writers do, both good and bad. But, I typically don't have much to write that's actually blog worthy, as opposed to Twitter worthy. And while I know if I want to write something that could stand of chance of being published professionally I have to type it up on on PC, I much prefer doing anything creative with a pen and paper (rollerball pen, preferably a Pilot, but Uniballs are okay too). Actually, on the rare occasion I draw, I typically do it with a pen, instead of a pencil. Unless I really want something to be perfect, that is (I actually have a picture I want to do as a new avatar in mind right now).

Anyways, that's all neither here nor there. Like I alluded to before, I don't have a topic today, but I need to get something down. So this is pretty much a current events of sorts.

Currently playing Overlord 2. I'm around halfway through, I'm guessing, and I'm a little torn. Yeah, the idea of being a badass freakin' overlord is fun, but, so far I haven't felt like one. Not that its a bad game, its just basically Pikmen being controlled by a badass normal, except you're not all that badass, you just look badass. Kratos could bash through a phalanx without help... Also, the game has uneven framerate, especially when you've got alot of minions on screen, which is often. Anyways, I'm sure I'll finish it, but I'm pretty sure I'll be trading it in shortly thereafter. So I'ma just wring all the achievement points out of it while I can. Don't expect a full review from me.

Got a couple movies and some music too. Watchmen and Coraline on Blu-Ray, two movies that everyone should see, though for different reasons. Watchmen for the commentary and being one of the best comic book adaptations I've seen (anyone who says this isn't a good adaptation is too much of a blind fanboy to understand the realities of making adaptations of any written work). Coraline, well I don't want to be a name dropper, but the story its based on was written by Neil Gaiman, and that alone is worth the price of admission. But on top of that, the movie itself is stopmotion done by the same people that did Nightmare Before Christmas and Corpse Bride. And the story is enchanting, if dark, modern fantasy. On that note, I still need to get The Graveyard Book, but I already have 4 things currently on my reading list:

1) Multireal: David Louis Edelman (just started)
2) The Difference Engine: William Gibson and Bruce Sterling (been searching for this one for awhile)
3) Brilliance of the Moon: Lian Hearn
4) The Edge of the World: Kevin J. Anderson (I honestly didn't know he had a new book)

On the note of The Edge of the World, I only found out about it because of a story (on i09.com) about Kevin J. Anderson liking progressive rock, and how he got a new prog-rock group Roswell Six to do an album (their debut album, it appears) based on it. Music is a bit weird, but pretty good once you get used to the style. Album is called Terra Incognita: Beyond the Horizon, by the way.

And lastly, while the account has remained open, I haven't played FFXI for months, but with the announcement of FFIV, I'm considering installing and playing it again. I stopped playing LotRO, but I think the messed up work schedule has been a major factor in that. It may not be WoW, but its a good WoW clone, and it looks freakin' amazing if you can run it at full spec.

But whatever.