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Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Look! Chris makes a political endorsement!

Here comes something that I haven't done in... what, at least six years?  To be honest I can't remember.  I think the total amount of times that I've endorsed a candidate has been less than three. (Okay, I guess I kinda endorsed myself during that very wacky school board race in 2006, but that mostly came during the process of chronicling that process here on the...

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

GOG.com has released X-WING and TIE FIGHTER!

Today shall be a day long remembered... Courtesy of the amazing folks at GOG.com (the GOG stands for Good Old Games), what are by far two of the greatest computer/video games ever wrought by mortal hands have gone on sale today, ready to be enjoyed by a new generation or by those who have longed to reminisce about those heady days of the early Nineties. Stick it to the...

Friday, October 24, 2014

So... you wanna watch Chris play the Doctor Who theme on his dulcimer?!?

Sure.  Why not... I've mentioned a few times that ever since late spring I've been taking lessons on playing the mountain dulcimer.  So far I've notched up quite a repertoire but I'm still learning the real basic mechanics of what is truly a beautiful instrument.  Still, I've come a long way in a short amount of time :-) Anyhoo, from the very beginning I've had in mind to play the Doctor Who theme on dulcimer.  It's something...

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Fixing iPad and iPhone "bricked" by iOS 8.1

So the other week I upgraded my iPad (it's an iPad 2) to iOS 8.0 and since then there was some significant slowdown of apps, and Safari seemed especially effected.  Oh it worked, just not at the brisk pace that I'm used to.  Anyway, last night I finally updated to iOS 8.1 Never, never again will I do such an upgrade to my ever-trusty iPad 2.  And yes, I know that I should upgrade the iPad itself.  It's three and a half years...

Monday, October 20, 2014

Get out your Bible and re-watch last night's THE WALKING DEAD

No need to discuss the "Bob-b-cue" or the "shish-ka-Bob" or whatever you want to call it at the end of last night's The Walking Dead 'cuz chances are that you've heard plenty enough of it today and Lord help you if you had to eat ribs tonight. I'm re-watching "Strangers" right now and something that caught my eye... After Rick finishes sweeping through Gabriel's church and the rest of the group come in, there are a couple of boards on either side...

Saturday, October 18, 2014

"Flatline": Chris declares this week's DOCTOR WHO to be nothing less than astounding and brilliant!

It's been 45 minutes since the transmission (heh-heh-heh, did you see what I did there, saying "transmission" like they always do in Britain?  That's all I got...) on this side of the pond of "Flatline".  And with each passing minute I'm coming to be convinced more and more that this episode of Doctor Who may be one of the very best since the legendary "Blink" of...

Friday, October 17, 2014

Best fried chicken recipe I've EVER had!

It was going to be finished by the end of June.  And then the end of July.  Then the end of August.  Then by the end of September.  That didn't happen so I projected the end of October. More than halfway through this month and my book is still far from finished.  I'm learning the hard way (but what other way is there really?) about what it means to...

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Horrifying for Jesus: The problem with "hell houses"

Hell-raiser?Poster for hell house in Texas The first time that I went to a hell house (we’ll get to what that is soon) it depicted a commercial airline crash.  It was pretty impressive really, all taking place within the basement of a Baptist church in Asheville.  Then we were taken through a series of rooms that showed what happened to the characters following...

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

My prayer for this day

Dear God, Please show me how to believe, without needing to understa...

Sunday, October 12, 2014

Gone to Terminus

Don't even think of phoning or e-mailing or telegraphing or Pony Express-ing me for the next few hours.  At least not until tonight's season premiere of The Walking Dead finishes. (Okay, there are a few who I am expecting to call if they need to, but that's it...) Looking forward to learning more about Terminus.  It can't be that bad.  Can it?  Can...

Saturday, October 11, 2014

So, about what happened in North Carolina yesterday...

Celebrating that one unaccountable man has redefined more than six thousand years of tradition from across the width and breadth of human society with one stroke of a single pen. Seems more than a little ridiculous to me.  To say nothing of arrogant and presumptuous in the extreme. I've seen a lot of hate and viciousness since yesterday afternoon.  Most of it seems to be coming from those who were most clamoring for "equality of love". ...

Friday, October 10, 2014

A Facebook post: My beliefs about politics, law enforcement (and other stuff)

 Earlier this morning, following some comments on Facebook, I posted a status articulating some thoughts about politics, government, and my take on respecting law enforcement.  Subsequently I've been feeling led to post it here as well.  It could be because I really haven't written anything here for quite a while about my beliefs on some things. Anyway, here it is... There are some people on Facebook who the better angels of...

Monday, October 06, 2014

That show you like is going to come back in style

It's happening.  No joke.  Right on time.  Just as dream-Laura said to Dale Cooper. Twin Peaks, arguably the most influential television show of all time, is coming back.  We will see it again 25 years after that final episode of its second season in 1991. Not a remake.  Not a relaunch.  It's going to be an honest to goodness continuation...

Friday, October 03, 2014

Just watched the premiere of STAR WARS REBELS

I had heard only insanely good things about Star Wars Rebels: the latest animated series taking place in that galaxy far, far away.  It's also the first real Star Wars production since Disney took over the franchise.  And additionally, it's the first installment of Star Wars since the new canon policy was announced earlier this past spring.  The gist of that being: anything that Disney does with Star Wars from now on is canonical so...

Sunday, September 28, 2014

75,000 words!

As of today, the book project has officially smashed through the 75,000 words mark. This is considered the minimum point of a memoir. And that's what this is (among other things). That is enough material to quantify as being a book. But there is much work still to be done. It wouldn't surprise me if at least one of the "locked-down" chapters was re-written, and that's what I'm considering even now. One of the first chapters written is also...

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Book report: What is old is new again

Some developments since the last time I posted about how my writing project is going... The original title of the book, which then became another title by changing one word, is now the title once more. Manuscript is now hovering around 73,000 words.  It's going to hit the 75,000 mark that I've aimed for since starting writing this!  But still a lot more work to go. There are now two definite "parts" to the book completed.  I just...

Monday, September 22, 2014

Just watched the premiere episode of GOTHAM

I rarely watch television.  A show has to be very good for me to invest any of my valuable time toward.  As things stand now the only shows that I can think of that I indulge myself in are Doctor Who and The Walking Dead. It is much rarer still that I will watch the pilot episode of a new series when the show has its premiere.  In fact, I can probably count the number of times that I've done that, across my entire life, on one hand. It...