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Sunday, August 31, 2003
Inter-blog interview Saw this on Green Boogers and decided to do it. Thanks, Laura! And now, the questions: (1) What is your most embarrassing moment ever? - Gee, there's been so many! I'll go with the most recent - a couple of years ago, I had the bright idea to organize a Happy Hour get-together with some coworkers. I spread the word in the office, booked a couple of tables at a local restaurant/bar and used some PTO to leave work a little early to make sure things were Good To Go at the bar. About 4:30, my coworkers should have started showing up. I was seated at a corner of one of the tables, I'd ordered a beer, and I sat there patiently reading a Scientific American while I waited. 10 minutes go by, then 15, then 20, and finally, an hour later, I decided no one was showing up. The worst part was the pitying stares from the staff and other patrons as I paid for my 3 beers and walked out. The good part is that since that time, I've managed to hang onto my job, while every single person that didn't show up after agreeing to be there has been laid off. The moral of this story is: Don't. Fuck. With. Adam. The Fates are on MY side. Bwah-ha-ha. (2) What are the best and the worst things about being a parent? - Best: Hugs, watching the kids sleep, Income Tax Deductions. Worst: Temper tantrums, getting the kids to sleep, having to say things like, "Franny! The dog does NOT want to be licked!" (3) What do you dream of having achieved before you die? - Urk. It used to be reproduce, but I've done that 3 times now. Let's say (in case some Power That Be is reading this and wants to grant my desire) I want to die peacefully in my sleep after having lived at least 100 wealthy, healthy and well-loved years. Seriously, I'm not that concerned about Making My Mark Upon The World, or Going Boldly Where No Man Has Gone Before. It'd be nice to get up into space, I wouldn't mind someday writing a comic, earning an international ranking as a fencer would be kind of cool, but nothing really eats me up inside hoping I'll do it. (4) All the other people in the world disappear for 24 hours. What would you do? - Good one. Assuming I can go anywhere and do anything, I'd spend 12 hours entering myself on the payrolls of a couple of top-secret government agencies, then spend another 11 hours and 55 minutes getting my hands on some rare books I've always coveted. The last 5 minutes would involve the following words: White House. Oval Office. Baboons. Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Ex-Lax. (5) What quote or motto do you live by, or think you should live by? - Virtue brings its own punishment in the form of extra work. Decadence is its own reward. ******************************* If you're interested in being interviewed by me, use the comment feature to tell me so. I'll email you 5 questions, and you just have to answer them as truthfully as you want to, and post the rules below with them: 1. If you want to participate, leave a comment saying "interview me." 2. I will respond by asking you five questions - each person's will be different. 3. Update your journal with the answers to the questions. 4. Include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post. 5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 11:23:00 PM   | Saturday, August 30, 2003
Best. Bithday. Ever. Or at least in the top 5 I wasn't expecting much for my birthday yesterday - Melissa is still recovering from her c-section, we're both short sleep what with the new baby and all, and money in general is a wee bit tight. I thought a card, maybe the kids and I could bake a cake in the afternoon and have fun making a mess while we decorated it. First Merideth shows up with a cake and dinner fixings, and her kids Merlin and Gavin have brought some roses and balloons for me as well. Merideth cooked dinner and helped me wrangle the kids so Melissa and Alec could get some Quality Nap Time in. I was thrilled - I love surprises (at least good ones - "Surprise, I'm a psycho killer with a butcher knife!" is RIGHT OUT), and it's an example of the kind of thoughtfulness that makes my eyes get a wee bit teary. Will, meanwhile, was getting together with Dave to give me a web domain - spittlefleckedrant.com. Now I'm all teary-eyed, dammit. And I haven't even been drinking! Much. So, besides the blog, what else should go in spittlefleckedrant.com? posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 3:50:00 PM | The Right's Think Tanks The Southern Poverty Law Center, one of the more worthwhile organizations out there, has compiled a list of far-right think tanks and foundations that are used to spread their views. The entire list is here, but I'll excerpt some prominent names and the tripe they espouse: The American Cause - Founded & funded by Pat Buchanan. He's our current wanna-be Adolf, proclaiming his love for white, anglo-saxon immigrants and decrying the prevalence of non-Christian, non-white, non-English speaking interlopers. American Enterprise Institute - Has given funding to Dinesh D'Souza, who thinks the Civil Rights Movement made things worse for blacks, as well as Charles Murray, co-author of The Bell Curve, which "proves" through the use of bad science, poor statistics and outright racist lies that dark=skinned people are less intelligent and more crime-prone than us white folk. Center for the Study of Popular Culture - Founded by former Communist David Horowitz. Horowitz has rejected his youthful ideals of racial harmony and economic justice to instead espouse the tired, repulsive rhetoric of the White Supremacists he once railed against. One of his more memorable quotes: there never was an anti-slavery movement until white Christians - Englishmen and Americans - created one. Uhh, yeah. Whatever. He's also prone to hint about the dark conspiracy by those darn leftists to, umm, not pay money for bigots like him and Ann Coulter to speak at colleges. Oh, and sometimes, people call him names, and that makes him cry like a big, fat titty-baby. Scaife Foundations - Founded by Richard Scaife, the same moron that spent so much of his own money (and orchestrated the Right's Hypocrites in Congress to spend over $40,000,000 of OUR money) to get Bill Clinton out of office. Sciafe also funds quite a few racist and anti-immigrant foundations, and still keeps his grubby paws mixed in far-right "Christian" politics. There's more on the list, enjoy reading up on it, and remember these groups when you think about the politics of the Republican Party - anti-immigrant, anti-civil rights, anti-homosexual rights. They might not say it in so many words, but many of the guys that make their decisions believe this shit. DeLay, Lott, Santorum, Gingrich - you know who they are. I wish for many guns. Floating around me. Controlled by murder thoughts. - Spider Jerusalem posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 2:32:00 PM | Friday, August 29, 2003
New Blog My buddy Gord, the Smartest Canadian I Know, has teamed up with Marvin, Austin's Sharpest Philosopher, to create the New Sophist's Almanac, a philosophically ball-busting blog chock full of profound insights and dizzying logic (in a good way, folks. Not like mine, which is dizzying like a ride on a travelling carnival's Tilt-O-Whirl that makes a clunking noise every other revolution, and you're full of greasy funnel cakes and watery beer, and the carny operating it looks like he's jonesing for some heroin instead of paying attention to the ride). posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 5:57:00 PM | Friday 5 First things first, though. Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me!. Yes, folks, it's my birthday! Still haven't got that Tesla Death Ray Kit I've been asking for. In point of fact, I'm still waiting on that goddamn pony I asked for 31 years ago. Don't tell me I'm not patient. Now to the Friday 5. Colleen picked today's topic, the Top 5 Most Profound Moments In Your Life. I'm eschewing the obvious, marriage and childrens' births, because those weren't profound moments - they are each part of constantly unfolding and changing perspectives on the world at large and upon myself. Profound moments are, to me, times when one moment produced a shift in my perceptions. If the topic was profound experiences, then marriage and parenting would fit in. I'm going to go off in my own direction here. Don't hate me because I'm weird. (1) 4th Grade, the playground. I'd tried staying away from bullies, reporting them to teachers and even passive resistance. Nothing worked. One day, something snapped. I got knocked down by Patrick Hawkins while a bunch of his friends stood around and laughed. Instead of crying, trying to run or curling up in a ball, I got up and launched myself at him. I got in one good hit before he knocked me down, but I got up again. And again. I don't know how long the fight lasted - I was utterly outclassed, he got in 3-4 solid blows for every wild swing of mine that connected. Nevertheless, he was more reluctant to mess with me after I adopted this new strategy. Over the next year or so, I got my ass kicked on a regular basis, but this time I took a little of the bully bastards with me when I went down. Eventually, I was left alone, because it's apparently not fun to beat up someone that actually fights back. Since that one moment, I've been of the opinion that when your back's against the wall, it's better to go down with your teeth in the other guy's throat. I'm not gonna go silently or easily, and to quote Harlan Ellison, "When the grim reaper comes for me, he better bring some friends, because I'm gonna fight that bony motherfucker every step of the way." (2) Early September, 1988, Birmingham-Southern College. Marrying Melissa felt more like a logical progression from our previous relationship than a huge change. I met Melissa shortly after a "Meet & Greet" session for incoming and current theatre majors at our college. Melissa approached me outside afterwards and asked for a cigarette. I looked at her as I reached for my pack and met her eyes. Folks talk about "Love at first sight". I don't know if I fell in love that moment, or several weeks later when we stayed up all night drinking and talking. I just know that that moment was a cusp moment in my life - had I not met Melissa, my life today would have been utterly different, and, I think, much for the worse. (3) 1995, Round Rock Fencing Club. I love fencing, even though I don't have the time or money to do it right now. In 1995, I was really internalizing the lessons Coach Murray was teaching me, and I'd made the transition from thinking to reacting when I fenced. One evening, after a lesson, I was sparring with a kid named Patrick. Patrick was a damn fine fencer - I wouldn't be surprised to see him on the Olympic Team one day - but that evening, I was doing something right. My epee was an extension of my hand and wrist, I was reading Patrick's body language, everything outside of the strip and my opponent were blurs that didn't even register on my consciousness. It was a zen moment, Kensho. For the 10 minutes of that practice bout, I was aware of myself, at peace, collected and capable. I lost, 12-15, but that was the best I've ever fenced. (4) 5th Grade, School Library. I had worked my way through the biography section, through the science section. The librarian recommended I look at the fiction section, and as luck would have it, the first part of fiction was Science Fiction. Starship Troopers was right there at eye level. Picking up that book changed my life, man. I still read primarily SF and Fantasy, and I wouldn't trade my book collection for any amount of money, unless I was allowed to use the money to buy and even more impressive collection. (5) Mid 1970's, Pensacola, FL. My family was down there for our annual visit with my grandparents/beach camping trip. My father always had a list of things to fix around their house and worked on that while my brothers and I alternated between pestering him, being gofers and eating fresh kumquats off the bush in the back yard. My father, my older brother and I were at the hardware store when my father got paged over the intercom. He went into the office, then came out, his face ashen. He choked out, "Let's go. Granny's had a stroke." and grabbed our arms and pulled us outside. I knew Granny was sick - she had brain cancer, which was in remission - and she seemed the frailest person I'd ever seen. We got to the house just as the paramedics wheeled her into the stretcher. My father dropped us off at a cousin's house while he went on to the hospital. I remember the look on his face when he told us that Granny was dead. I had an image, like all small children, of my father as some kind of super man - stronger, faster, smarter, more a force of nature than an actual person at times. He looked so alone then, and he was crying, the first time I'd ever seen him cry. An understanding of mortality, both my own, others' and what it means to those left behind, hit me then. My mother's parents are in a nursing home, and every couple of months, there's some small but potentially major medical crisis involving them. I dread the call I know I'm going to get sooner or later that Grandma or Daddy Rush have died. Other Friday 5 participants: Will, Merideth, Dave, Melissa, Gina and Chris. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 9:45:00 AM | Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Reality TV Some friends who shall remain nameless stopped by tonight, and we watched "Paradise Hotel", which apparently has something to do with a bunch of twentysomethings getting drunk a lot and making out, with the obligatory emotional crises and voting people out of the hotel. It got me thinking - these "reality" TV shows need one of two things: reality or surreality. Maybe both. In light of that, I'm going to propose a couple of ideas I've had: (1) Ultimate Survivor: Two teams, one island. Sharp sticks. Last man standing wins. Food drops are made equidistant between the two camps. Carnage is expected and appreciated. (2) Amuse Me, You Puny Fools: This one I like - a group of people desperate to win something on TV are assembled. I then make them do amusing things until I get tired of them and personally kick them out the door. "You! Get me a beer! You and you! Fight to the death for my amusement!" (3) Touched By A Biker: We get the most obnoxious people in America - I'm thinking Ann Coulter, Pat Robertson and Geraldo for the opener - and put them in a locked warehouse with a speed-crazed Hell's Angel carrying a baseball bat. If we're doomed to be stuck with reality programming, I want it bloody. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 11:16:00 PM | It's been a while since I've done one of these... Take the Nation Quiz!
Poached from Tim Hall at Where Worlds Collide. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 8:34:00 AM | Tuesday, August 26, 2003
Miscellany Welcome Dave Friedman to Blogistan! His blog is "Epiphany in c", focusing on science and technology. Despite being out of the gym for 3 weeks (first due to a bad back, then to Alec's arrival), I'm holding steady at 254 lbs, down about 10 from my height. That means I'n only about 60-odd pounds from my fightin' weight. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 12:05:00 PM | Sunday, August 24, 2003
Why Disney Sucks Will disagrees with me on this - he's a huge fan of Disney, takes his family on vacation there, wants to be Mayor of Disneyland before he dies. Me, I've always hated Disney. The bowdlerized, sanitized, anesthetized hack jobs they do of familiar tales make for uninteresting movies and as an amusement park, well, I'm into rides that threaten to send your internal organs out through your nostrils. The goddamn teacups ain't gonna cut it, toots. In recent years, Disney has lucked out in their relationship with Pixar Entertainment, one of the more innovative animation studios out there. In-house, though, is anemic at best and painfully awful at worst. Disney has done best when its animators are allowed to stretch. Lilo and Stitch, while by no means a brilliant piece of movie making, was entertaining and different enough to warrant some positive attention. Compare that, Disney's high point in the last 4-5 years, with the better stuff being released from other studios: The Iron Giant and The Powerpuff Girls Movie showed more innovation and heart than you'll see out of Disney in a decade. When we cross the Pacific, we can see what should be happening in American animation, and isn't. Hayao Miyazaki has been in the business for over 30 years, and he's put out some damn good work - Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, Kiki's Delivery Service and Castle in the Sky are the best damn things that have come out in the last 20-odd years, and they show what happens when you let an amazingly talented man put his vison on screen without worrying about product tie-ins, happy meals and Saturday morning cartoons. Spirited Away is a movie for "anyone that was ever 10 years old", to quote Miyazaki. There's a sparkling wit and generous spirit to the movie that's sadly lacking in whatever over-hyped piece of crap Disney is trying to cram down our throats this summer. Until the studio execs at Disney are willing to walk away from their current lame-ass formula and let the frickin' artists make the movies, we won't be seeing anything notable from them. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 11:23:00 PM | Saturday, August 23, 2003
Nothing against Indianapolis, but part of me hopes for a meteor to hit the damn place Neo Nazis are planning a march to protest the growth of the area's Hispanic population. God, I hate Nazis. Subliterate morons that feel the need to blame their small penis size and inability to move out of a damn trailer park on other races need to be sterilized. It'd be nice if we could just sew some yellow stars on their clothes and shove them through a time portal to 1940's Poland, but I'd be happy right now if the thousands of bikers having a rally in Indianapolis at the same time could take some time out of their busy schedules to kick some Nazi ass. In other news, clueless religious moron Roy Moore has been relieved of his duties as Chief Justice for the Alabama Supreme Court. It appears that the rest of the Supreme Court realized that this guy was doing nothing whatsoever to help Alabama's image as a backwater, bible-thumping state filled with inbred, dumbass crackers. And in the "Glad that wasn't me" department, circus performer shoots self in head with crossbow during precision shooting stunt. "And for my next feat, I think I'll just lie here and bleed copious amounts of blood. Thank you folks, I'm here all week." posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 11:37:00 PM | Friday, August 22, 2003
Friday 5 Delayed - it was Gina's turn to come up with the topic, which is: Five 80s songs you feel are underappreciated classics (1) "If I Had A Rocket Launcher" by Bruce Cockburn. I was already aware, when this song came out, of the crimes being committed against the people of Central America. I lived 30 miles away from the School of the Americas at Fort Benning, training ground for priest-killers, nun-rapers and similar genocidal goons. The rage inherent in the song struck a chord with me, a liberal city kid living deep in the rural Reagan South. That kind of rage drives me a lot more than most folks know. (2) "Making Contact" by Bruce Cockburn. Yeah, broken record. Yadda yadda yadda. It's a love song, it's lyrical, catchy and it's a great metaphor about love being like an ocean to dive into and be consumed by. (3) "Stand and Deliver" by Adam & the Ants. I'm the dandy highwayman who you're too scared to mention / I spend my cash on looking flash and grabbing your attention / The devil take your stereo and your record collection / The way you look you'll qualify for next year's old age pension / Stand and Deliver your money or your life / Try and use a mirror no bullet or a knife (4) "Pablo Picasso" by Burning Sensations. Off the soundtrack of Repo Man, THE movie for punkish kids in the mid 80s. He was only five foot three / the girls could not resist his stare / Pablo Picasso was never called an ASSHOLE. Classic, baby. (5) "The Real Life" by John Mellencamp. Critically, this guy's been treated well. The industry, however, as well as top-40 radio, has moved him into the "Ignore as much as possible" category, along with tons of other actually talented artists. It's a song about growing up and growing old, and about fighting to live rather than simply exist. I want to live the real life I want to live my life close to the bone Just because I'm middle-aged that don't mean I want to sit around my house and watch T.V. I want the real life I want to live the real life The Usual Suspects are participating: Will, Gina, Chris, Merideth and Melissa posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 9:48:00 AM | Thursday, August 21, 2003
Weekend Box Office Figure, August 15-17 Courtesy of Boxofficemojo.com: The highlights: Freddy vs Jason at number 1. Feh. Pirates of the Caribbean holding on at #6, gross of $248,720,985. Haunted Castle, an IMAX movie showing in 3 theatres, is beating Gigli. Move over, Ishtar! posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 9:18:00 AM | Wednesday, August 20, 2003
New Comics! Picked up Authority #4 & #0, Fray #8, The Filth #12 and 1602 #1. The last is Neil Gaiman's latest, and it's some good shit. Buy it. Read it. Love it. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 1:39:00 PM | Tuesday, August 19, 2003
Websearches that led people to this blog From August 13th to 19th: formosan macaque temujin barrister Formosan macaque monkey get revenge 419 scammer clockpunk life size frozen han solo russia+naked+paintball Cachu bant ti cachu mes whataburger UFO +bathurst+perleberg+1809 Catherine Zeta Jones Gynecology Magazine The last one disturbs me the most, I think. Why in God's name would someone think Catherine Zeta Jones NEEDS a gynecology magazine devoted to her? Ewwwwwwww. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 9:36:00 AM | Monday, August 18, 2003
Status report Alec slept longer last night, and I feel like I got a little more rest. I was up until 3ish keeping him asleep so Melissa could sleep - Alec and I watched The Frighteners, as well as several different cartoons we recorded on the DVR. Oh, and we saw the 1924 Douglas Fairbanks Thief of Baghdad. Mmmm-mmm good! Hopefully, I'll feel like going to the gym tomorrow. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 4:14:00 PM | Sunday, August 17, 2003
Must..stay...awake....Must...save...city... Baby Alec is still adjusting to life at home. He's slowly getting used to the fact that everyone else sleeps at night, and that he should keep to something vguely resembling that schedule. He's still not up to speed on that, though. I'm trying to get Melissa some extra downtime, to avoid mastitis, and our friends Gina and Theresa are in town to help wrangle Elder Brother and Elder Sister Dumpling, but the upshot is that Melissa and I are still bone-tired and shambling around the house like extras in some particulary dull zombie flick (as in, we're kind of wandering around dully without any of the flesh-eating excitement). Coooooffffffffeeeeeee...... coffffeeeeeeeeee....... posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 9:28:00 AM | Saturday, August 16, 2003
Well, my heart is breaking. Not. It seems that cannibal and bloody-handed tyrant Idi Amin, darling of the Saudi government, has died. I'd shed a tear for him, except that he was a sick, disgusting lump of shit masquerading as a human being. Understand that the previous is a figure of speech, and I mean no slight upon any real lumps of shit masquerading as human beings. He killed up to 500,000 Ugandans, climbed into bed with the worst elements of the Palestinian Terror Movement (which I will, out of a sense of noblesse oblige, pretend is separate from any major Palestinian independence movements), and claimed that Hitler had a good idea with the Final Solution. Here's hoping he's getting sodomized in Hell by the legions of the damned. Rest in torment, you fucking monster. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 1:38:00 PM | Friday, August 15, 2003
Friday 5 Topic chosen by ace legal mind (and fair to middlin' political pundit) Chris: Five Things That Other People Often Misunderstand About You. (1) I'm not an atheist. My theological views are a little more weird than that - I'm an Apatheist - I don't care if there's a God or not. It's irrelevant to my life if there is a God or not, and I just don't care. I don't think that others should give up their faith, their religion is a matter of supreme indifference to me unless it intersects what I feel are my personal rights. (2) I don't really know a lot about computers. Yes, I'm a geek. I work in telecommunications. I like technology. I do not, however, know a tremendous amount about mucking about inside a computer. (3) I'm not Jewish. Although Jews I know (Hi, Jen!) insist I'm one of the most Jewish people they know, I'm a goyim. I may have a fondness for matzoh ball soup, corned beef sandwiches with some nice kosher deli mustard and chocolate egg creams, but that's because I tend towards being a Hearty Eater. (4) My taste in music. Given that it's wide-ranging and inconsistent, I can't blame folks for not always getting it. I like some of just about everything, with a special fondness for 1970's Punk, 80's New Wave, Bluegrass, Celtic and Scandanavian Pop (Abba, The Cardigans, Aqua...). (5) Exactly how goddamn stubborn I am. I've been teaching myself to engage in compromise a little more, but when it boils down to it, if I don't want to back down on an issue, I won't. Ever. Not even in the face of overwhelming opposition will I change my mind. Titanic is a case in point. At this point, I don't care if it was as good as the friggin' mouth-breathers told me it was, I'll never watch it. I had too many people tell me, "Ohmygawwwwd! You HAVE to see this!" Once I've been told I HAVE to do anything, I tend to dig in my heels. The more I am urged, the less likely I am to do it. Other participants in the topic: Gina, Merideth, Will and (if she's up to it today) Melissa. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 11:35:00 AM | Thursday, August 14, 2003
And this is from the heart, folks Thank you very much for all the kind words. You like me! You really, really LIKE me! posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 4:03:00 PM | Home again, home again Got home from the hospital today with Baby Alec. He and mom are fine, and we're all hoping a little sleep will be coming our way. I will be back in my spittle-flecked ranting form by Sunday or so, I hope. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 4:01:00 PM | Tuesday, August 12, 2003
Quick update Got a short break from the hospital - just wanted to report that Melissa and Alec are Just Fine, and all manner of things are well. I'm on my way to the grocery store for some food for me, because apparently the ungodly amounts of money my insurance company is paying Seton Hospital do not include meals for me. While I've been told I can get drinks from the Maternity Patients' Kitchen, I'm already growing tired of fruit juice, coffee and tea. The chicken bouillon is OK, but I'm probably good for only a little more of that before I start seriously contemplating the bacon cheeseburger served at the Waterloo Ice House across the street from the hospital. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 2:02:00 PM | Monday, August 11, 2003
William again, with more news. Baby Dumpling will now be referred to as Alexander Norman Lipscomb 
posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 10:40:00 PM | William here, with new baby info. Baby Dumpling was born at 7:46. He was a he. He was 9 pounds, 8 oz. He is nameless as yet. Some pics can be seen here and here posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 11:01:00 AM | Sunday, August 10, 2003
9 hours to go Give or take a few. Melissa and I report to the hospital at 5:30 AM tomorrow for her c-section. The baby should be out by 7:30 ish. Details will be posted by a SPECIAL GUEST BLOGGER shortly thereafter. After that, expect a 3-4 day hiatus for this blog, as I'll be at the hospital with Melissa and Baby Dumpling (Hope we settle on a name soon). That is all. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 10:44:00 PM | A good night's sleep... ...does wonders. My back is not at 100% capacity, but it's allowing me to move at a speed faster than a septugenarian using a walker. With any luck, I won't be in any pain at all tomorrow morning. One hopes. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 1:02:00 PM | Saturday, August 09, 2003
Aw, crap I woke up this morning with my lower back aching like a linebacker had been tapdancing on it in cleats. I had some leftover Soma and Naproxen, so I've been loading up on those today. It's not helping much, and I'm hoping that a hot bath and lots of sleep tonight will help. I do not want to be laid up for a bad back when the baby gets here. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 8:04:00 PM | Friday, August 08, 2003
Things I like: Shiner Bock Naproxen A big stack of paperback SF that I picked up at Goodwill Celery posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 11:18:00 PM | Jon Gabriel has a pretty nifty little blog. It's right here. Dig it. Groove to it. Fly, my pretties! Fly! Fly! posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 3:11:00 PM | Friday 5 Top 5 Life Goals No One Knew About This one was Will's idea. Hurm. This one's tough, mainly because I'm not exactly reticent about anydamnthing, so I'll have to go with "Life Goals I Haven't Discussed Often". (1) Read Remembrance of Things Past - No, seriously. I don't know why, but I feel some weird obligation to read it. I've been saving it for when I've got a large block of time. Might save it 'till I'm 70 or so, when I retire. (2) Learn Latin - Another one I keep putting off. Dunno why, but I'm more interested in picking up a dead language than a live one. Latin has always struck me as a fascinating language, seeing as so much of Western language and philosophy is based upon things Roman. (3) Have a cool, non-soul destroying job - I think I've done OK there, really I do. I'm well paid, Management respects me enough that they're willing to cut me loads of slack and openly listen to my ideas/suggestions, the work's easy, the hours are good. Yeah, I'm stuck in a cubicle, but I'm able to decorate it as I see fit (well, 'cept they won't allow me the Keg-o-rator I want. Bastards.). All in all, it ain't bad, especially as I get the added bonus of knowing I'm taking care of my family, which would make up for a lot of crap on the job. (4) Write a comic - Almost got this one taken care of when I lived in Atlanta - I had a script, and I'd lined up an artist, who ended up deciding to do his own thing. I'll get around to it one of these days. It's a gritty, violent little tale about a psychotic that fights crime. It was cutting edge back in the late-80's, but now I'm going to have to come up with a different idea. Some other deconstruction of Superhero mythology, I suppose. Let's see, fetishists, psychotics, gays/lesbians, de-deconstructions (the Super as honestly decent person), steampunk, stone-age, clockpunk (Neil Gaiman's "1602") - doesn't leave me much room. Maybe I could do a Bronze Age thing... The Persian Wars with Greek and Persian Supers battling in the pass of Thermopylae... I'll think of something. (5) Run for public office - Still might get around to this one. I'll most likely lose the election, as I tend to shoot from the hip, and I don't have the advantage of saying what everyone's thinking, as I'm just too freakin' weird. It's one thing to mouth off about how Affirmative Action doesn't sit well with you, or you think Bush is a disaster for the country, but something tells me my SFR's about religion, politics and those pathetic, crazy people that believe in the Reptoids would not get me loads of support. Other Friday 5 folks: Merideth, Chris, Melissa, Gina, Will posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 3:09:00 PM | Thursday, August 07, 2003
Thank you, California. Thank you. And here I was getting worried that Texas was the primary home of stoopid political ideas (redistricting, if you've been under a rock for the last 3-4 months). Seems that in California, all you have to do to get on the ballot in the Republican-bankrolled effort to oust Governor Davis is file some papers an pay a fee. This means that any Tom, Dick or Harry can run for governor in this election (assuming the recall effort succeeds). So far, among hundreds of losers, publicity seekers and general whacknoodles, we've got: (1) Arianna Huffington, former new-age spirit channeler, now populist poster gal (2) Arnold Schwarzenegger, former bodybuilder and current ridiculously overpaid movie star (3) Gary Coleman, former cute child actor, now scrabbling for some measure of validation that he still matters (4) Gallagher, melon-smashing "comedian" (5) Larry Flynt, pornographer (6) A few asshole Republican politicians, including the San Diego businessman that paid for this effort in hopes that he could somehow steal an office he couldn't win fair and square. The kicker for this recall effort is that to win, you've only got to do better than any single other candidate. Means that, conceivably, someone could win with less than 10% of the popular vote. Serves them right, I say. Oh, and I'd vote for Flynt - at least he's honest about what he's doing and why he's doing it. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 12:59:00 PM | Total pounds lost so far: 11 Total number of cigarettes smoked in the last 6 days: 0 Total number of innocent bystanders killed in a nicotine-craving fury: 0 Amount I wish cigarettes weren't bad for you: You don't have the numbers to quantify it posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 11:46:00 AM | Wednesday, August 06, 2003
Well, my bucklers are properly swashed Pirates was indeed the Quality Swashbuckling Experience I hoped. It had all the elements of a proper swashbuckling movie, infused throughout with an honest love of the genre and understanding of the requirements thereof. Despite its being based upon a Disney ride, it was a fun movie, and worth seeing again. Also saw some previews before the movie - Freaky Friday looks to be Utter Crap, as does The Haunted Mansion starring Eddie Murphy as A Nervous Black Man. Hidalgo, OTOH, looks to be interesting. Granted, I like cowboy movies almost as much as I like swashbucklers, so I might be biased. Movies I still want to see: (1) Masked and Anonymous (2) The Hulk (3) American Wedding (big Alyson Hannigan fan, me) Movies I Won't Go See If You Drag Me There (1) The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2) Legally Blonde 2 And in other news, word is that a film of Alfred Bester's The Demolished Man is going to be made. Crossing fingers for a good, intelligent version. Also, Dan Simmons has hinted that a "Major director" and "major star" are interested in doing a film based upon his novels Hyperion and The Fall of Hyperion. Simmons made a cryptic remark about the director's last movie "being about gangs, in a city". The thought of Martin Scorsese doing this project makes me a wee bit tingly, although I hope it's Daniel Day Lewis and not Leonardo DiCaprio that wants to work on it also. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 9:03:00 AM | Tuesday, August 05, 2003
Well, you can just rock me to sleep... Missing US nuclear weapons. In 1956, a US B-47 bomber carrying two nuclear weapon cores disappeared over the Mediterranean Sea. Despite an extensive search, no trace of the aircraft or the nuclear weapon cores were ever found. A year later a C-124 transport aircraft having mechanical problems jettisoned two nuclear weapons without their fissile cores off the east coast of the United States. Although neither weapon detonated, both are presumed to have been damaged from impact with the ocean surface. In 1958, a nuclear weapon without a fissile core was lost after a mid-air collision near Savannah, Georgia. A B-47 was unable to land and jettisoned the weapon into the Savannah River. It was never found. This Mark 15 bomb was 100 times more powerful than the Hiroshima weapon. In 1961, an atomic catastrophe was narrowly averted when a B-52 bomber on airborne alert carrying two nuclear weapons broke apart in mid-air over North Carolina. The weapons fell from up to 10,000 feet and while the parachute on one worked properly, the second did not and it broke apart on impact, scattering debris over a wide area. The bomb's highly enriched uranium core was never recovered. Gaaaaaah. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 9:00:00 PM | Finally, I get to see it Gonna see Pirates of the Caribbean tonight. Mel's rested, kids are alseep and I will be savoring this Swashbuckling Goodness all by myself. I'll be smuggling in some Junior Mints, as the theatre I'll be attending does not understand how important those are to a Quality Movie Experience. I will also be able to savor the treat of No Popcorn (it sticks between my teeth) and perhaps I'll treat myself to a cuppa joe after the movie is over. Sorry to disappoint those that were hoping for another of my spittle-flecked rants today - I'll see what I can do tomorrow, OK? posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 8:48:00 PM | Monday, August 04, 2003
Mel Gibson - Fucking Whacknoodle Last month, Will blogged about Mel Gibson's 12-hour long Jesus movie. I've got some more information on this, and I'm happy to announce that it has confirmed Mel Gibson's status as my WHACKNOODLE OF THE WEEK: The Guardian details the reaction of some Christian and Jewish scholars to the movie here. Basically, this film is a piece of anti-semitic trash that broadcasts the tired, old "Christ-killers" tripe. A group of Christian and Jewish scholars, guys who, I dunno, devote their FRIGGIN' LIVES to the study of this period, contend, based upon a draft script, that the movie is riddled with inaccuracies, and consistently brings up the worst anti-Jewish stereotypes from the passion plays that did so much to make life hell for European Jews over the last thousand-odd years. Gibson, for them that ain't aware, is a staunch supporter of a traditionalist branch of Catholicism that rejects the Vatican II reforms, including the astonishing concept that, just maybe, the Jews are not collectively responsible for Jesus' death. While Gibson has NOT uttered any public statements that are overtly anti-semitic, his father, Hutton Gibson, has expressed doubt as to the ligitimacy of Holocaust statistics, and described the Vatican II Councils as a Masonic plot backed by the Jews to subvert Catholicism. Mel himself is openly critical of the Vatican II reforms (some of the only signs of rationality from the Vatican), and it's perhaps natural to wonder how critical, and in what areas, he is. Gibson had a screening of this movie in late July, and pointedly only invited right-wingers like Cal Thomas, Peggy Noonan, Matt Drudge and Jack Valenti. Jews were not welcome, nor were liberals. Why? Because they might be, you know, honest about the movie. Note to self: Move Gibson up 12 rungs higher on the "hope he gets eaten by rabid badgers" list. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 8:47:00 AM | Sunday, August 03, 2003
Still tired - slept from 9-6AM last night, and now I feel like I've only missed 1 night of sleep. Melissa got a full night's sleep, which she desperately needed. I ended up not working the shoots yesterday afternoon or night, as it was obvious to me that Melissa was run ragged, and as she's 9 months pregnant and experiencing irregular contractions, I had to give her some down time. Will, who is directing the documentary project, was very good about it - he's planned multiple ways to work me back into it in post-production, which I hope does not mean he's make me some kind of bizarre Jar-Jar Binks character. Gave the insurance company the details on the accident, still haven't heard from the other party. Hopefully the insurance company will be able to get some insurance information out of her. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 8:40:00 AM | Saturday, August 02, 2003
GAAAAAAAH Filmed the first portion of the documentary project Will Garcia and I are working on tonight. Got out around 2AM, drove home. On the way home, someone backed their fucking big-ass truck into the front of my car at a traffic light, leaving a huge fucking hole in my front bumper. Then, I get home, and I see that John Cornyn, the freshman asswipe senator from Texas, is leading a fight to codify marriage to only include heterosexuals. I initially wrote a 147-word string of profanity here, which I've decided to delete, as it was seriously harsh. No, really - it was harsh for ME. If I think something's too nasty to put on my blog, it's pretty damn nasty. We'll pick up about where I ran out of steam.... assholes! I'm sick of hypocritical know-nothings wasting their time on pointless crap like "defending marriage" from the eeeee-vil hom'sexshuls. Sick of it to the point that I want to beat them senseless with their own internal organs. And don't even get me started on the Vatican. Where the HELL does the Pope, a senile celibate who has sanctioned the coverup of years of heirarchal SUPPORT for child-molesters, get off telling ANYONE what constitutes a fucking "legitimate" marriage? I don't give a fuck if you want to call me anti-Catholic. I'm not - I have nothing but respect for every single Catholic I know personally. I despise, however, the rigid, medieval, idiotic mindset of the Catholic heirarchy, which seems to think it still runs things in the Western world, a situation that hasn't been the case for well over 500 years. In fact, any religious idiot that wants to try to tell me that something that two consenting adults do together is going to send both of them to hell is welcome to, as I will take great pleasure in ripping that moron a new asshole and shoving his head so far in it that he sees out of his stomach. Frickin' idiots. Hate 'em, I do. Yes. posted by Adam C. Lipscomb at 3:03:00 AM | |
