In the morning I leave for Tallahassee. My dad's brother, Unky B, is turning 70 and both of my second cousins (my dad's cousin's family is also in Tallahassee) have had children of late, and we're to attend the baptism Sunday morning before departing.
It's a mini-family reunion of a family that is not particularly stellar at expanding. My Uncle never had children, so I've no cousins on that side, and Jason and I are also failing to carry on the family name. Much like the Creature from the Black Lagoon, I am a seemingly successful evolutionary dead-end.
Truthfully, I am wiped out. I have no idea how this is going to go. Right now my gameplan is to stay upright until I am released back into my hotel room.
Then Monday I'm back at work, and Tuesday I'm off to Lubbock. I am a little worn out. If I can just make it to Saturday the 17th, I am slated to see SkyFall with a pack of British people led by our own SimonUK. The Austin Brit ex-pat group loves their James Bond.
Get me to SkyFall, and all will be well.
No blogging til I return Sunday night. I'm leaving my computer behind.
Film. Comics. Sci-Fi. Superheroes. Pulp. Noir. History. Superman. 20th Century Archaeology.
Friday, November 9, 2012
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Barack Obama Wins Four More Years
I'm posting this to have a clear record. This post will go up Thursday morning, but I stayed up far, far too late on Tuesday night/ Wednesday morning watching NBC and ABC news covering the election, beginning around 10:00.
Most of you will guess who I voted for, but this isn't a political blog, and we're not going to dwell on the particulars of who received which vote from me.
I will say I am pleased that Austin voted in geographic representation to the City Council, doing away with the At-Large system that had - as Austin has grown - meant that areas (like the 78745) were not necessarily feeling the love from a city council focused on growth in the urban corridor and leaving those of us in Lower Austin out of future development plans for things we can use, like mass transit.
Most of you will guess who I voted for, but this isn't a political blog, and we're not going to dwell on the particulars of who received which vote from me.
I will say I am pleased that Austin voted in geographic representation to the City Council, doing away with the At-Large system that had - as Austin has grown - meant that areas (like the 78745) were not necessarily feeling the love from a city council focused on growth in the urban corridor and leaving those of us in Lower Austin out of future development plans for things we can use, like mass transit.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Coach Darrell K. Royal Merges with The Infinite
Darrell K. Royal, icon of University of Texas football, has passed at 88.
I am sad to learn that former UT football coach, Darrell Royal, has gone on to his reward, but as I said to CoWorker Kristi - "It's kind of hard to imagine living a better life than that guy".
Longhorn Football fans know that Royal brought three championships to Texas and had a 167-47-5 record at UT. Memorial Stadium is actually now Darrell K. Royal Memorial Stadium, and has been for quite a while.
He remained active in UT Athletics and the University of Texas, and was on the field for a coin toss just a few weeks back. He'll be missed, but in Austin, it is impossible to believe he'll be forgotten.
I am sad to learn that former UT football coach, Darrell Royal, has gone on to his reward, but as I said to CoWorker Kristi - "It's kind of hard to imagine living a better life than that guy".
Longhorn Football fans know that Royal brought three championships to Texas and had a 167-47-5 record at UT. Memorial Stadium is actually now Darrell K. Royal Memorial Stadium, and has been for quite a while.
He remained active in UT Athletics and the University of Texas, and was on the field for a coin toss just a few weeks back. He'll be missed, but in Austin, it is impossible to believe he'll be forgotten.
Signal Reads: The Strange Case of Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde (1886) by R. L. Stevenson
The only other Robert Louis Stevenson I've ever read was Treasure Island back in elementary school. I remember it being quite good, but that was also 1984-85, so it's been a while. I will also state that, in third grade, I read an adaptation for kids that was still very gripping to me at the time, and pretty scary, but I think it had elements from the movies sprinkled in.
I have seen multiple version of the Jeckyll/ Hyde story in film, from silent versions to Mary Riley, so it's not like I was unfamiliar with the story, but as Dracula and Frankenstein are adapted again and again, the books they sprang from often seem forgotten entirely in the adaptation - so I wanted to give the novella a spin. I found a copy a long time ago narrated by Christopher Lee, but it doesn't appear to be available on Audible anymore. Needless to say, Christopher Lee is a tremendous talent, and his range suits the book incredibly well.
But this was my first time reading the actual novella of The Strange Case of Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde by Stevenson.
Here's the thing about this book...
I have seen multiple version of the Jeckyll/ Hyde story in film, from silent versions to Mary Riley, so it's not like I was unfamiliar with the story, but as Dracula and Frankenstein are adapted again and again, the books they sprang from often seem forgotten entirely in the adaptation - so I wanted to give the novella a spin. I found a copy a long time ago narrated by Christopher Lee, but it doesn't appear to be available on Audible anymore. Needless to say, Christopher Lee is a tremendous talent, and his range suits the book incredibly well.
But this was my first time reading the actual novella of The Strange Case of Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde by Stevenson.
Here's the thing about this book...
Texas Voting Demographics
This is interesting.
There's no point here except that I thought I'd share some actual representations of information. I just never really have a feel for Texas' voting patterns outside of Austin and that the majority of Texas is red.
We often say "Austin is a little blue dot in the middle of the state", and that's true. What I didn't know was that Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and El Paso would be blue, and I really didn't know The Valley was that blue.
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| click to enlarge |
There's no point here except that I thought I'd share some actual representations of information. I just never really have a feel for Texas' voting patterns outside of Austin and that the majority of Texas is red.
We often say "Austin is a little blue dot in the middle of the state", and that's true. What I didn't know was that Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and El Paso would be blue, and I really didn't know The Valley was that blue.
By this time, we should be having a bit of this...
My pre-loaded post for election night as I avoid the internet and television.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Signal Reads: The Damsel (1967) by Richard Stark
At the conclusion of the Parker novel The Handle, Parker and Alan Grofield have landed in Mexico City with Grofield licking his wounds and Parker leaving him there so he can get on with it.
Richard Stark (aka: Donald Westlake) spun off Grofield into his own sub-set from the Parker novels with The Damsel (1967), giving Parker's occasional co-worker with the head full of flights of fancy room to pursue his own adventures.
Structurally, it feels a bit like a Parker novel, but tonally, The Damsel is a lot lighter on its feet and a bit wackier in scope. While Stark narrates both books from a third-person perspective, the attitude of the protagonists infiltrates the worldview of the book. Parker's methodical, systematic, almost obsessive-compulsive perspective is ditched for Grofield's devil-may-care approach, and talent for improvisation and theatricality giving the adventure more of... an adventurous air.
Richard Stark (aka: Donald Westlake) spun off Grofield into his own sub-set from the Parker novels with The Damsel (1967), giving Parker's occasional co-worker with the head full of flights of fancy room to pursue his own adventures.
Structurally, it feels a bit like a Parker novel, but tonally, The Damsel is a lot lighter on its feet and a bit wackier in scope. While Stark narrates both books from a third-person perspective, the attitude of the protagonists infiltrates the worldview of the book. Parker's methodical, systematic, almost obsessive-compulsive perspective is ditched for Grofield's devil-may-care approach, and talent for improvisation and theatricality giving the adventure more of... an adventurous air.
Vote-a-Geddon is Upon Us!!!!
If you are an American of voting age and registered, and you have not yet voted, I implore you - exercise your right to do so!
But not if you're undecided..? Seriously. You've had plenty of time to get informed. If you still don't know, sit this one out and try again in four years.
Well, so I'm back in Austin (for a bit)
I don't know how I did this to myself this fall, but my schedule somehow got filled up right up til Christmas. Not totally full, but it sure feels like it's going to be jam-packed.
Friday I fly out for a family reunion of sorts in Florida. I return Sunday night and then next Tuesday (the 13th) will be flying out to Lubbock, returning Thursday the 15th. And then Thanksgiving. And then December 1 we're having our Holiday party (you, yes YOU, are invited!). We'll follow that with me cheerleading a wedding in mid-December, and then we're pretty much in Christmas.
Christmas, people.
Friday I fly out for a family reunion of sorts in Florida. I return Sunday night and then next Tuesday (the 13th) will be flying out to Lubbock, returning Thursday the 15th. And then Thanksgiving. And then December 1 we're having our Holiday party (you, yes YOU, are invited!). We'll follow that with me cheerleading a wedding in mid-December, and then we're pretty much in Christmas.
Christmas, people.
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