I like storms

I'm still working on a comic strip of the weekend (it's not looking too promising), but for now, here's this--some video of a huge effing storm that we drove through on the way here.

Day 2

According to the Awesome Counter, yesterday was only an 8. Today's already up to 6 thanks to a 6-pack of Harvey Weinhard root beer.

A different kind of blogging

A couple of thoughts about this: 1) Netty, you should try Sketchcasting some dreams, since Audioblogger is dead; 2) This has some cool potential for teaching; and 3) This weekend is the 1-year anniversary of my comic book depiction of our adventures in Colorado. Maybe this year I'll do a sketchcast version. (Although I'm hoping we can avoid those kinds of "adventures" this time around.)

Ok, for a matinee

I had a few reasons for wanting to see this movie, even though it was undoubtedly going to be somewhat stupid. First, it was one of those "Well, I saw the first two, so I guess we'll do this one, too" kinds of movies. I may complain along with everyone else about Hollywood's current sequel-itis, but I buy into certain franchises just like all the other suckers. Despite my having only played one RE game (RE4 for the Wii--great game), I keep finding myself interested in these movies.

Second, judging from the trailer, it seemed to have a kind of Mad Max vibe going for it--armored convoys traveling through the desert, and what have you. Until Fallout 3 comes out next year, I'll get my post-apocalyptic-desert-wasteland fix whatever way I can.

And my third reason? Zombies!! (Though, it should be noted, this movie follows the "28 * Later" model and never uses the Z-word...not sure why.) Shallow and disturbing as it may be, I like watching undead getting shot and run over and decapitated.

So, did the movie meet expectations? As the third movie in a series...not really. They decided to take an increasingly-common risk here in not really setting anything up. As Netty pointed out, if you didn't see the first two, you really don't care about these characters. And as someone who did see the first two...I still didn't care all that much. Plus, despite what might be considered foreshadowing in the title ("Extinction" => either humans or undead become extinct), this movie doesn't resolve anything. It only advances the plot of the overall series in one significant way which, for the sake of spoiler-free-ness, I won't mention here. So, as a sequel, it more or less fails.

Luckily, the Road Warrior vibe did actually work for me, though I can see others criticizing it as derivative. Heck, it is derivative, but the idea of a bunch of dirty, tired, scared people banding together for survival, and welding together a convoy of armor-plated vehicles is always cool to me. It's too bad they didn't play it up more, but I guess the whole T-Virus plot (you know, the thing this series is supposed to be about) got in the way of that...

Maybe I should just go rent The Road Warrior.

Bottom line: a decent zombie movie that feels cooler than it actually is.

My rating: 6/10
IMDb rating: 6.5/10

(BTW, I'm hoping to catch 3:10 to Yuma either tonight or tomorrow. I expect it to be quite a bit better than this movie was.)

Holy Food, Holy Quest

Question: what's the one flavor that makes (or would make, if you were daring enough to try those wilder ideas) any food better? Obviously, I refer to that holiest of holies: bacon. When salted, cured, and smoked to the peak of artery-clogging deliciousness, bacon has the potential to transform even the most mundane food into so much more. In short, bacon can turn a lesser food into a culinary experience.

Do I exaggerate? Certainly not. Name me a sandwich, a burger, a cheese fry that is not improved by bacon. Name me a grilled meat, be it chicken, pork, or shrimp, that is not brought closer to the Divine by wrapping it and/or stuffing it with bacon. You cannot name such a food, and indeed, to even try would be to blaspheme, for Most Revered Bacon sits at the head of the Holy Trinity of Food, with noble Bread at its left and mighty Cheese at its right.

My message today concerns the crusade of two brave young men who wish to spread the gospel of Most Revered Bacon with the flick of a wrist and the shake of a bottle. Brother Justin and Brother Dave are on a holy quest to "make everything taste like bacon." The miraculous product they've created to achieve this goal? Bacon Salt. I don't know what arcane rituals they had to perform in order to capture the essence of bacon in a bottle, but they seem to have done it. Visit their website. Read the testimony of other Bacon Disciples. And support this noble crusade by purchasing each of Bacon Salt's three flavors: Original, Hickory, and Peppered. I'm going to try it; won't you? Bacon can one day rule the world, if we all do our part.

[Update: I just ordered the 3-pack! Bacon!]

It's over!

That was fun. And i am tired.

This weekend doth rock.

We're off to the K.C. Renfest! (Netty's still getting ready to bring the pain, so to speak.) I'll be posting pics on my sidebar all day, I'm sure.

34-14. Booyah.

First home game.