Archive for April, 2007

PS2….*#!&*#!!!

{ April 29, 2007 @ 1:15 am } · { Def Leppard, Internet, Myself, PS2 }
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A few days ago I found a PS2 in the lobby of my building.  People often leave things there for other tenants when they move out, so I grabbed it.  I figured it probably didn’t work, but maybe…

So I spent a week collecting the parts I would need; the power cord, the connection thingy to the TV, and a paddle.  Oh yes, and of course I borrowed a game.  I plugged it in, popped in the game and voila – error message.  I tried everything I could think of but it was no good. 

That’s when I went on the internet and read instructions on how to take it apart and adjust the laser.  It took about 3 hours to take it apart, adjust the laser a million times and try to load the game repeatedly.  And that, dear friends, is how I wasted 3 hours of my life on a Sony product.  It still doesn’t work.  I didn’t even bother to put it back together.  I just bundled it up and tossed it in a garbage bag. 

Now, I’m not knocking Sony.  In fact I’m very surprized I couldn’t fix it.  Sony is in fact my favorite electronics manufacturer, and I am very good at fixing things for some reason – even though I have a tendency to call electronic parts ‘thingies’.  Everything I’ve ever bought is Sony.  I don’t know the history of the aforementioned machine but I did see evidence that it may have been dropped so that might explain the whole thing. 

It was exciting to realize it contained a class 1 laser.  Who knew?  I certainly didn’t.  Not that I’m a laser expert or anything but that impressed me.  I was careful not to blind myself as was carefully advised in the instructions. 

Anyways, I’m now off to watch ‘The Def Leppard Story’.  It starts with a re-enactment of the car crash in which the drummer lost his arm.  I always wondered about that so now I can see for myself in all my rubber-necking glory.

Pet Peeve

{ April 21, 2007 @ 8:07 pm } · { Brother, Funny, Myself, Pet peeve, Uncategorized }
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Before I launch into the description of my pet peeve I must say a few things.  It struck me as I opened this page and thought about what I was going to write that all I ever seem to talk about is silly, mundane, day-to-day nonsense that is of no benefit or indeed consequence to the world at large.  When I combined this realization with the fact that I was about to compound my superficiality by bleating about my personal pet peeve, well, I was somewhat ashamed. 

It was at that point that I recalled that my brother is the author of one of the more intellectually stimulating, contemporary, and open-minded blogs on this site (Doug’s Darkworld).  With this in mind I decided (rationalized) that since he has all the important stuff covered, I should be free to babble on to my heart’s content.  There’s nothing I can say about the state of the world that he hasn’t said or won’t say in the future.  Plus, he is much more intelligent than I, so I’m not even going to embarrass myself by trying. 

I’m afraid to even leave a comment on his blog for fear of looking like an idiot.  For instance, I read his blog today about gun control, and what’s going on in the middle east, etc, etc.  But do you want to know what I found the most interesting thing about the blog?  He began a paragraph with the sentence ’snort’.  That was it – one word, ’snort’.  I laughed for five minutes over that one – puts ‘jesus wept’ to shame. 

Moving along I simply must expound upon my pet peeve.  Perhaps by exposing it to the light of day it will cease and desist its unending torture of me.  Picture this:  I’m in bed, I’m reading a novel, I become sleepy, I reach over and grab my bookmark to save my place for the next evening.  What bookmark?  There’s no bookmark.  It’s certainly not on the pillow next to me where I carefully placed it (in an attempt to foil the bookmark Gods), it’s not on my bedside table, it’s not on my chest, and it’s not on the blankets next to me.  I feel the sleepiness I had cultivated with a hour’s reading slowly dissolve into a fit of rage.  Up come the sheets, the blankets, the pillow is thrown thither, the book yon, and then suddenly the bookmark is there.  Innocently resting upon the bed as if it had been there all along.  This, dear friends, is my pet peeve.

Back to the Blog

{ April 19, 2007 @ 1:27 pm } · { Movies, Myself, Rutger Hauer, Screenplays, Writing }
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I’m baaaack!  Well, I never really went away but I’ve certainly been neglecting my blog.  Two things have kept me from blogging lately.  First of all I discovered two old movie channels on my TV.  So now it seems there is always a good old movie to watch, and I watch them endlessly.  After a weekend they all blur into one and I can’t remember who was in what with whom.  But that’s alright, they’re still very enjoyable.  I particularly enjoy watching the way things were – the way people behaved in the 30’s and 40’s, their technology (or lack thereof), and even the architecture and decorating.

The second thing that has been conspiring to take up all my time is that I’m making notes on a new novel I intend to begin this weekend.  The main character is based on my unknowing muse, Rutger Hauer.  It’s high time he came off his boat and out of semi-retirement.  A talent like that should be exercised until the bitter end.  So I have taken on the job of creating a suitable vehicle for the dashing Dutchman.  I just had the idea of perhaps posting some exerpts from my story as I go along – kinda like the New Yorker.  Perhaps input from the public at large would be very useful….I’m not sure though.  I’m very jealous of my creations and may not want anyone to read it until it is finished.

That reminds me of something that happened to me a few years ago.  I spent about 2 years writing a screenplay about a young boy who ran the Boston Marathon.  In my mind it starred Robin Williams as the coach/father figure of the boy.  Anyways, I finished it and was wondering what to do when I happened to see a commercial on tv – about a young boy who ran the Boston Marathon.  I felt sick.  I had never consciously heard of the movie.  And the story was not the same, but it was similar enough to give me serious pause.  I stopped writing for a long time.  It was a very disheartening experience.

But now things are back on track.  I’m inspired.  All I have to do is look at my lovely autographed photo of Rutger and the words pour out of me.

Most underrated actor of our time.  He should have been a superstar.  But perhaps, as they say, the play is the thing.  Nothing else matters.