"The Honeybunnies", or: What if George Lucas had REALLY socked it to the fans?

An independent-minded scribe of stories wants nothing more than to produce the works that mean most to him.  And then one of his minor creations becomes a raging monster that takes control over almost every aspect of his life.  The fans won't leave him alone, they won't let him be free to find his own happiness.  And it's driving him insane... Sound familiar?...

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Coronavirus: Our generation's paradigm shift

Something that's been twirling around my gray matter since last night: The coronavirus situation is bringing about the first real paradigm shift since the fall of communism thirty years ago. We are not going to come out of this the same that we were before, just as life in the civilized world - or anywhere in the world for that matter - did not proceed as it had been before...

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The blogger in a time of coronavirus

Just me in my office today: Everybody had to wear a mask inside the place.  That was after being admitted inside following temperature being taken and making sure we hadn't traveled outside the state in the past 14 days.  Less than a quarter of the normal staff was in the actual building.  Starting tomorrow I'll be almost strictly working from my house...

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COVID-19 Test Results: NEGATIVE

That word has never sounded so sweet. The call came about thirty minutes ago.  The test indicated that I was negative for the COVID-19 virus.  Although the nurse emphasized that a "negative" now doesn't mean that a "positive" later is out of the question. But for now, I'm choosing to  be elated.  Like I haven't been in a heap long time. Self-isolation is not a fun thing.  Not at all.  Driving out to get tested two...

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I got tested for COVID-19

Remember way back in second grade, when you found that big book on Miss Hoppenleiger's classroom shelf.  You know, the one that was loaded with interesting facts and cool stuff and sometimes it was pretty gross.  Yeah, that book.  And you read how ancient Egyptians would make mummies by shoving a metal implement up corpse's nose to remove the brain through the nostrils.  Yeah well that's what happened to me about an hour ago. ...

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COVID-19? Nope, not kidding...

Well, this is an interesting turn of events. Could mean nothing at all.  Then again, well... The symptoms began yesterday.  Persistent coughing and a fever that may have been higher than I initially realized.  The coughing has diminished for the time being but it comes and goes.  No phlegm.  In the past few days I'd finally expelled the last of the mucous from a nasty sinus infection in January (my colleagues begged me...

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"One Shining Moment 2020"

"One Shining Moment" is the song that CBS uses in the final moments of their annual coverage of the NCAA men's basketball tournament, to recap the highlights of the road to the championship.  All well and good... except that there won't be an NCAA men's basketball tournament this year because of the coronavirus epidemic. So I, foolish I, took it upon myself to...

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An imperfect solution to the coronavirus situation

I emphasize "imperfect" because there is not an absolutely perfect solution and there never will be.  COVID-19 is now such a pervasive element that it's as every reputable engineer will note: there is going to be a trade-off.  We won't be able to help one matter without it negatively impacting others. But from where I sit... - fast-track production of and widespread...

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Coronavirus: Scenes from a supermarket

Pics that I took tonight at a nearby grocery store... I made sure to get the entire toilet paper section in one shot: No more ground beef.  Rest of the meat section was also depleted: See those bagels?  That is literally ALL that is left on the bread aisle: Not even Chef Boyardee pizza is in plentiful supply: Flour, frozen food, milk, chewing...

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Coronavirus: Calling America to the Carpet

Some are almost rubbing their hands in glee at coronavirus: holding to the notion that this is an obvious sign of the Second Coming because Pestilence is loosed upon the land. Though adherent that I aspire to be, my eyes cannot but roll in disbelief. Pandemics are almost as reliable as Old Faithful and will remain so until the end of time. The average span between worldwide...

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First draft of my first book is finished

Some of this blog's longtime readers may recall how I was writing a book about having bipolar disorder.  That was a project I'd been working on for some time, and then Dad passed.  It sort of took the wind out of my sails, but I vowed to finish it someday. Guess what?  It's still nowhere near finished.  The last time I committed a word to that endeavor...

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EMDR

This blog has been operational for sixteen(!) years now, and it's covered a lot of territory.  Everything from pop culture to weird news to chronicling my run for political office and anything in between.  It's shown readers the inside of a nuclear power plant, to the ancient sanctity of Orthodox Christianity. But it hasn't depicted everything about my life. ...

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Chris finally watches THE THING (2011)

There is a tradition I never fail to keep: whenever I get snowed in and can't go anywhere, I turn down the lights and crank up the sound and watch the 1982 movie The Thing.  Maybe that says something about my baseline state of mind. John Carpenter's now-classic film of horror and paranoia at an Antarctica research base might not be appropriate viewing for when one is...

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Today's Google Doodle is one I can respect

Some of Google’s ”doodles” either fly over my head or make me cringe in disbelief.  A lot of them are about historical events and people that at best are extremely obscure or else make me wonder "What the hell are they smoking over there?" But the one they have for today is as good as it gets and I recognized it immediately.  Give credit where credit is due:...

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Various thoughts about the Trump impeachment

As I write this it's 1:35 a.m. and it's all over but the cryin'.  Sometime in the next eighteen hours will likely come the final vote on Impeachment 2020 and the end of this mess.  Donald John Trump will remain President of the United States for another year and quite possibly more than that. I've never doubted the outcome.  Trump had this in the bag on a party-line...

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Just came out of seeing 1917

George MacKay in 1917 This won't be so much a detailed review as it is a gut reaction to something barely prepared for.  1917 isn't a movie you'll want to read too much of warm.  Just go into the theater and for the next two hours be assaulted by the horrors of hell as few things have done in recent cinema history. But it hit me on the drive back from the theater...

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This is the way: "New Beskar Steel" wrapping for your iPhone!

Disclaimer: Adam Smith is a friend of mine.  He's not paying to advertise his product on The Knight Shift and I didn't ask for any compensation whatsoever either.  I'm only sharing this because... well, because it's kewl!  And sharing cool stuff is just how I roll on this blog. Inspired by the hit Disney+ series Star Wars: The Mandalorian, Adam has forged...

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