I swear to god...

that this was not staged. I put Jack down on the bed while I folded laundry, and the animals just all showed up.
Notice how the cat, who came up there on her own, looks totally pissed about that decision. Yes Maggie is wearing a sweater. It was cold. Also not how Sadie is looking with extreme envy at said sweater.

Marie Antoinette

Weirdest trailer ever: ------>

I guess Marie Antoinette is partly responsible for a New Order, but it seems odd. Does contemporary music work in period pieces? Sometimes. A Knight's Tale? Yes, but that was essentially a comedy and the music was fun, no matter how bad the movie was(or how much I love it). Buch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid? Sure. The "raindrops" scene was one of the best in the movie, and it was only used that once. But then there's Orlando. DID NOT WORK. The scene at the end of a floating cherub singing Euro-synth pop just ruined what could have been a great adaptation of a Virginia Wolfe book. I guess it depends on the director. In the case of Marie Antoinette, it is Sophia Coppola, and I have to say that I like her as a Director. Lost in Translation and The Virgin Suicides were surprisingly well made. She has a great sense of pacing, taking her time getting to the point, and not beating you over the head like her father does. She's also great with awkward silences, making the viewer just as uncomfortable as the characters. But those two were small indy films, and more often than not, when you hand a really good indy director a big-budget Hollywood movie, they can get a little lost (Dune, anyone?). Sometimes they pull it off, like Robert Rodriguez and Quinten Tarantino did, although it took each of them a few tires. Jackie Brown was just plain horrible, and Soderburg did a much better job with the same Author's source material with Out of Sight, just a year later.
And I have to say that I am on the fence about Dunst. Mostly she's cardboard, but then Bring It On comes around and you have to give her props. (You know you love that movie, so shut up) But for every Bring It On, there is a The Cat's Meow, which got horrible performances out of the entire cast(Eddie Izzard as Charlie Chaplin: great casting, bad performance), so it might not be her fault. Spider-Man if fine because all she has to do is look mopey and scream. Who knows. Sophia got good work out of her before, so maybe she can do it again. Schwartzman is in it so it can't be all bad. I love that guy. How he snuck into Hitchhiker's guide is beyond me.

Victory!

I know all of you have been waiting anxiously, and it finally happened. I beat X-Men Legends. I got Magma to do her little thing and I got Wolverine to beat up a bunch of robots. I do have to say that Magneto went down a bit like a bitch for my taste, but it was 4 against 1.
Now I can spend time with my family again. Or start on one of the other games I got for Christmas, or go buy X-men Legends II. Though I think that purchase would have to come with a divorce lawyer.
Now onto the Olympics: I think 24 hour coverage both helps and hinders the Olympics. Back in the day, they were a prime time event only, and only the REALLY cool ones were shown. The rest you had to listed to on the radio, which you can't do now. There isn't even a webcast that I can find. If I want to know how the Hockey games are going from work, I have to check the website every 10 minutes instead of just listening to it live. When I get home, I have to watch a tape, and I usually already know the score, and that takes all the fun and energy out of it. Everybody loves the figure skating, I guess.
BTW (and this will make me sound sooo gay) did anybody see Sarah Hughes? I know she was only like 16 at the last Olympics, but man she put on some pounds! (she's still cute, tho!)
Not like I can talk. 2002.... I think I was just under 200 lbs. Now I am well above. Though I am working on that. I started a new regiment of more stimulants and less food and switching to whiskey instead of beer. Oh, and I joined the Stillwater Y, and it is exactly what you would think a small town Y would be like. I am also consciously eating a third less food. I hope all of this will get me to my target weight by the summer time. Not like I'm one for the beach or anything like that, I just realized one day that I'd like to be around for Jack's High school graduation, and to show up not looking like Gilbert Grape's mother.

The Alternative

Those of you who grew up in Denver in the late '80s/early '90s and were of the counter-culture subculture will remember Teletunes, a now defunct music video show that aired on PBS channel 12 on Sunday mornings. Sunday was a big day for us. For me, Teletunes replaced Dr. Who as the Sunday morning pajama viewing show once I figured out that cool music existed and that there were videos to go along with it. It later became a regular weekly hangover cure once I discovered drugs and alcohol. It was where I saw new videos that MTV just wouldn't play until 120 minutes came along, and 120 minutes only focused on bands that gained national popularity, thus defeating the purpose. Every once in a while they had a cool guest host or interview, as when Robert Smith hosted 120 minutes of Pure Cure on the eve of Wish's debut, but that was about it. Teletunes was local. Local VJs that you might see at Wax Trax, or better yet, knew personally, as was the case with Sean. Local bands and local music featured prominately, and they were the only ones to interview cool bands that came through town, as no good radio was ever around (KTCL and The Peak tried, but failed over time and were eventually bought out, and 1190 was barely audible most of the time due to low band width).
A Sunday morning spent on the couch in my undies working on that 3rd pot of coffee, smoking obscene amounts of cigarettes with no windows open, introducing my self to my roommate's one-night stand as they fled the apartment still in the goth dress from the night before, all while watching Peter Murphy run blindly through the woods or Morrissey run blindly through London are some of my fondest memories.
Now, I finally have a replacement. VH1 Classic (I feel so old) now offers a Sunday morning show entitled "The Alternative" that shows most of the vids I loved during my late teens and early 20s, when I had shitty apartments, 2nd hand furniture, a crappy job, died black hair, a leather jacket, and disposable income that went mostly to comics, concerts, illicit pharmaceuticals, and punk rock t-shirts. Now I watch while playing with my kid and cooking breakfast for my wife, but the feeling is the same. I still drink 3 pots of coffee, I still smoke too much(though out on the deck of my awesome house that I own, and has decent furniture), I still have weird T-Shirts.
And although Morrissey and Peter Murphy are now too old to run blindly anywhere, at least I know that they once could.


PS- Jackson seems to be fond of Renegade Soundwave and Thrill Kill Kult. I still don't know if that is good or bad.

Re-envisioning

So I made this ----->
As an ad for my silly job. I make these all day long, and this one was on a pretty obscure portion of our site. I thought nothing of it after I sent it off to the programmer like my second week here.



The other day, I notice this---->
On the Chinese version of our site. They got this product months after we did, which means they made their little image way later. It is possible that there are only so many ways that one can show visually the concept of sound coming out of a little speaker thing, and it should come as no surprise when similar ways come about. But I'd like to think that since this is the same product from the same company, whoever made the Chinese version was poking around our site to see what we did and followed suit. This means that something I have made has been taken, reinterpreted, expanded upon and remade. That fills me with an enormous sense of pride as an artist. Intellectually, however, I am filled with pity for myself that a silly web image on a Chinese website blew my skirt up so much.

Such it is to be an artist.

Spider Monkey

I made this for my comics page, though I'm not sure where to put it. Maybe in the header. I swiped the idea from R Stevens and his awesome Diesel Sweeties web comic. It you haven't read it, you should. He's funny and there are lots of jokes about pron stars getting it on with robots. That sounds a lot less tasteful that it actually is. His site also got me into Scary go Round as well. SGR is a little bit all over the place but the eventual jokes and witty one-liners more than make up for it.
I added something to NGV5 today that I have never added before: color. I shall use it sparingly, so don't worry. Steve will still be steve, though he and Tonto are getting new outfits. If there is a music performer you'd like to see included in there some where, let me know, and I'll work 'em in. There will be a few spots where I'll need it.
Enjoy.

Then I just sorta zone out..

This----->

Is how I spend at least part of my day. Constantly doodling on either my calandar or in my sketch book. This one isn't very full because HR didn't pass them out until halfway through the month. It's nice because it looks like I'm writing something really deep, or actually working, but then I just have a little drawing of a guy biting a hang nail when I'm done. The rest of the time I'm on the computer blogging or reading web-comics. I'm not lazy. When there's work to be done, I'm doing it. I actually hate it when I have an unfinished project just sitting there. But when I clear my projects, I go back to doodling. It's sad in a way.. I think I must think in doodles... A doodlegraphic memory ala Strong Bad.

Bob Slydell: If you would, would you walk us through a typical day, for you?

Peter Gibbons: Well, I generally come in at least fifteen minutes late, ah, I use the side door--that way Lumberg can't see me, heh--after that I sorta space out for an hour.

Bob Porter: Da-uh? Space out?

Peter Gibbons: Yeah, I just stare at my desk, but it looks like I'm working. I do that for probably another hour after lunch too, I'd say in a given week I probably only do about fifteen minutes of real, actual, work.

Addict personalities

So there are two new television addictions in the Powers household. One is this---->

Meet the Barkers is one in a long line of celebreality shows with the theme of "Let's see what white people do with a shitload of money" I'm not really a fan of Travis' band or any of the mediorchre TV series Shanna was on, but I wasn't a fan of Nick or Jessica either, and that show was like crank. Travis has a hell of a temper and is really anal about everything he does. He's a white suburban California punk without Green day's clout. He spends most of his time while not on tour working out, abusing his weird personal assistant, pulling up his ill fitting pants, and drinking Gatorade. Shanna is a spoiled southern belle who was once Miss America or something. Really all she did the first season was sleep and spend her husband's money. This season, she's pregnant, yet somehow taking a bigger interest in acting, trying to get a pilot launched, and developing the women's side of Travis' clothing company - Famous Stars and Straps. None of this she's very good at, and Travis usually has to bail her out with the checkbook. This all sounds horrible, but what saves it is that these two who have no idea what to do with their money end up spending it on really expensive yet touching and corny displays of affection. The sky-writers, the mountains of roses and balloons, the insane birthday parties, the $175,000 Cadalliacs. All mixed with lovey-dovey smooching and hugging, and terms of endearment like 'oofa woofa'. These two really love each other and since they have nothing else to talk about, that's all they talk about. It is fun to see Travis snap and to see Sahnna ruin things through sheer ditseyness. That's why Nick and Jessica failed: Jessica started learning things.


The other is this---------->

#1 Single is about Lisa Loeb trying to find love in this topsey-turvey world of ours. I never really cared for lisa's music, but this show has shown a different side of her. The side that collects Hello Kitty and Gnome figurines and that likes to cook, but isn't very good at it. She's decided that after two six year relationships that went nowhere, it is time to find "The One" and settle down, start pumping out babies and become a cool indy-rock-mom ala Susanne Vega and Liz Fair. She enlists the help of her family, and the fact that her sisters are blonde busty bombshells who were in the same sorority, adds to the fun. They are the ones who can find a sensitive metrosexual that really gets her. The first piece of advise is to get some sexier clothes because "guys like clothes they can imagine taking off you." The only reason I care is that I find her so damn cute. She's just the type I would have gone after and acted all awkward around until she dumped me because I'm to awkward-y around her. Plus she hangs out with people like Adam Goldberg who I totally love. The first episode saw her decide that there just wasn't anybody worthy in Los Angeles and deciding to move back to New York, where Adam thinks he may have a fella for her.

I hate that TV does this to me.

Neutral Grey Value Five

This---->

Is a series I did back in the day. I am resurrecting it for new fans. There were two big issues and a bunch of smaller stories in other comics like End of the Line, Earth: City Limits and The Pablo's Comics Evtravaganza. I had a lot of help on these from my brother Jeff and Stephan Donohue, so much thanks! You can find the first issue here:

http://ngv5.blogspot.com/

Start at the bottom and you can click the pages to read them bigger. Keep in mind that these were made over 10 years ago when I was a struggling art student and caffeine addict (among other things). This was from a time when there were 8 - 10 comics guys that would spend late nights at various coffeeshops drawing and ignoring girlfriends, family and schoolwork to draw and self publish mountains of comics. Most of us have real jobs now and families of our own. Thankfully the web-comic explosion had created a new more fluid outlet for people like me who want to work, but don't have the time or energy to self-publish anymore.

Issue two will be up as soon as possible then you get new stories as I make them! The style will be vastly different, as I am 10 years older and wiser now. The new one has giant slugs and zombies!

enjoy.

Where's Cy(rus)

So, a lot of attention lately in the netherverse known as the internet has been attached to this little fella. It is not a joke, or a manipulated photo. It is a one-eyed, kitten with no nose, who lived for only one day. His brother, the only other kitten in the litter was perfectly healthy, reminding me of the movie "Twins" for some reason. It has a very "Li'l Brudder" feel to it as well.

And after a flurry of people could not believe their eyes and new how to send emails started calling bullshit, it was confirmed by snopes, your source for confirming or denying urban myths here:
http://www.snopes.com/photos/animals/cyclopes.asp

Cy the Kitten, then started to gain cult celebrity status and was popping up everywhere.

Questionable Content.com----->

Featured on a t-shirt of one of the main characters, then as a live journal icon:

Diesel Sweeties--------------->







And in fine art interpretations:

Boing Boing------>

You get the idea. Strange that people would rally behind a freak. This society seems to love freakyness and mutations as long as it doesn't involve an adult human. Example: Ewoks. Cute and cuddly, they walk, talk, they have barbecues. An adult human covered in fur, with a doggy nose: No fucking way. Put it under a circus tent. Blame it when kids go missing, follow it with torches and pitchforks. Run it out of town. Unless it's a midget. Small things seem to br 'cuter' for some reason. Normal sized altoids tin: mundane. Teeny tiny altoids tin: cute. I can't figure that one out. Somehow Clifford the dog squeaks by that one. Maybe due to his 'antics'.

Einstein?

This-------->

Almost made me fall out of my chair at work and get fired for not working. Now I am posting while at work, so don't tell. The Onion is the greatest thing ever.

A Fine Weekend

This----------->

Can now be safely posted without prying eyes possibly finding it. Robin and I threw Jen a surprise party this past weekend. We had a good time. She knew nothing, until the idiot crossed-eyed concierge blabbed that her sister was there when we checked into the hotel. Joey and Laura driving up from Austin was a complete shock. (kudos, BTW) We had a good time. We met a really weird cab driver who took us on every back road possible to get to bricktown. He was convinced it was faster because Bon Jovi was playing at the stadium and the traffic would be horrible. He was right. We ate some really good Mexican food and Jen's dad sent a very good bottle of wine to the table from his comfortable chair back in Tulsa. I think technology is wonderful.

We got pretty drunk at the Piano bar (at least I did) and we had to fend off raving Jovi fans loudly singing that they were indeed living on a prayer. A lot of people showed up, and someone brought cupcakes and we had the flakiest waitress ever. We were still pretty tipsy, so I guess she wasn't that bad.

Begs showed up in a corset straight from the fetish ball, and provided the entertainment for the second half of our stay at the bar. We stayed up till four in the morning chatting and drinking more in the hotel, and slept really well for about 5 hours. In the morning, or plans to sample "The big Bevberger" at Beverly's Pancake House, were thwarted by ancient church goers and two large groups of what I assume were cheerleading squads. Instead we ended up at Madison's Pancake House, which had an equal amount of really old church goers but no cheerleaders and the wait seemed just as long. The food was "meh" and there was no "big madburger", though in these days of mad cow disease, I couldn't really blame them. Then we drove to Tulsa to get the boy, who actually slept through the night and took a bottle, both rarities, and ate din-din with the parents. We then drove back to Stillwater, and almost fell over. A fine weekend!

Thanks to everybody who helped, drove a great distance, wore a corset, or just showed up. You all rock!

I think They're Staging a Coup

Terrorism can take many forms!

Green Bean Sentinels

I got three games for "Holiday". NHL Hockey, The Incredibles, and this------->

I have yet to crack open the other two because I am totally addicted to this game. I am pretty picky about my games. I don't usually play too often, and when I do, I want it to be really fun. This one could easily become a thorn in Jennifer's side, as I will ignore her and Jack while playing, and I'm taking up the good TV.

In other news, Jack has declared a jihad on green beans. In the Fatwa he released to the press last week, he stated that all green beans must henceforth relocate to the floor of the kitchen, with some being allowed small settlements on mommy's jeans, on her shirt and in her hair. Any and all attempts to enter Jackson's head will be met with swift force and a cry of "GaaauuuooooOOOOO!!"

That is all.

Reflections on 2005

This one was up there. One of the most eventful and roller-coasterish years of my life.
Random thoughts:

In 2005 I:
-Turned 30
-quit a pretty good job
-took a really shitty job
-got fired from that job
-spent almost 3 months unemployed while my pregnant wife supported me.
-landed the best job I've ever had.
-had a really freaky experience watching my son get born
-became a father
-started a blog
-was glad that the rest of the world realized that an all-bacon diet is not healthy.
-watched two marriages destroy themselves
-watched a serial bachelor fall in love and propose
-quit smoking
-gained almost 40 lbs
-started smoking again
-lost 10 of that 40 lbs
-was angered by my president on an almost daily basis
-got addicted to the message boards on the IMDB
-took Jackson on a plane
-bought a new house (twice the size of my old one and the nicest place I have ever lived)
-sold my old house (I actually had to pay $56.00)
-moved to an even smaller town. (I have gone from a town of 4 million to 300,000 to 50,000 in 4 years)
-realized how much I miss being in a town of 4 million
-sold a car and bought 2
-have returned to college levels of sleep, though without substance abuse to help me out
-have not had a decent haircut
-bought more music than in the past 5 years
-saw two friend's bands gain popularity at an alarming rate
-saw a huge weight lifted off my brother's back
-took more photographs and shot more film (of Jack, nach) than ever before
-have yet to make a new friend in my new town
-did not find a suitable place to have Jack christened
-watched three very close friends become first time parents within a few weeks of myself
-got addicted to Arizona iced green tea
-have lost touch with my favorite hockey team
-got a subscription to Entertainment Weekly
-stubbed my toe about a hundred times
-did not do one illegal drug the whole year ( I usually sneak in at least one)
-started to pay attention to commercials that offer something cool for babies
-started watching the Backyardigans on a regular basis
-realized that even though I have never been a violent man, I could easily kill somebody when it came to the safety of my child
-read more novels than in any previous year
-created art less than in any previous year
-realized just how strong my wife can be
-realized just how weak I can be
-every vote I cast went the other way
-realized that I cared more about the animals than the people in any one of the many natural disasters including Katrina
-realized that science has no place in a red state
-saw Episode III and was only mostly disappointed
-bought more stuff on line than ever before
-did not pass out on new year's eve (I think I'm 10 for 30 now)

This next yet will be a little more settled I hope. Jack will keep growing like a weed and we will get better at parenting. I will lose the other 30 lbs, and work hard at my job. Jack will probably enter a preschool or a teaching day care of some sort, and it will freak me out. My dogs will continue to shit on the carpet and the cat will keep shedding on my best clothes. The republicans will lose seats in the congressional elections and a little balance will be brought to the world.

I will get a good haircut.

End of Year

This------------------------------>
Just makes me laugh.

The holidays are almost over. Jack made out like a bandit, and doesn't even realize it. All he knew on Holiday was that things were bright and shiny and that it was okay to shovel massive amounts of wrapping paper into his mouth.

He got loads of clothes and toys, and Jen and I got cash and gift cards. I cannot think of a better Christmas.

To all of you wondering where the hell the Christmas card or gift are, please remember that we are new parents and a little distracted, which means we are broke and tired and just didn't get around to it. We love you anyway. Do you really need a card to prove it? If so you are a shallow, shallow friend.

Non-demoninational Holiday

This --------------------------->
Will sicken you with cuteness.
Don't say I didn't warn you.

So, the holidays are here. I suppose you could say they have been here since Turkish Day, and they we are in the thick of it.
I am excited for wee Jack to see his first Christmas. He doesn't know why, but he's really excited. The coming years will be even more fun, as he will learn about the mystical Amazon who will deliver packages for weeks leading up to Dec. 25th, and then again for a little while after that. "why doesn't The Amazon deliver all on one day like Santa?" he will ask. "Because The Amazon doesn't have a magic sleigh, and has to rely on UPS," I will tell him. "But The Amazon does have elves. Clad in dark brown shorts and named Malone, but elves nonetheless," If the creators of this holiday had envisioned what the mail-order industry would become, they would have tailored their story to include it, and it would have helped out parents the whole world over. And there wouldn't be the awkward few years where belief slips away. The Amazon will deliver forever. Perhaps we could all band together, and slowly change the tradition to include The Amazon. We could get the UPS elves' union to agree (for a fee) to hold all packages, and deliver them all on Christmas day. This could eliminate the kids finding their presents hidden away in the bottom of a closet, or as my mom did, in the trunk of her car. They would have to rely on their hacking skills and crack into Dad's email instead. It would also add the the fun of opening a shipping package and the wrapped present. Oh what fun!
Who's with me?

Lies! All Lies!

This------------------------>
Is Jackson with Santa. It is a weird thing to decide to lie to your kid for years on end. Setting yourself up for the eventual time when the kid figures it out, and then you have a bunch of backpedleing to do. I suppose that just like buying a pet that you know you will outlive (unless it is a turtle), the good times and fun will far out weigh the time spent at the funeral. In my case, there was never a big deal, it just sort of trailed off. I remember figuring it out when I realized that Santa had the exact same handwriting as my mother.

It did have ramifications involving my religious beliefs. After finding out about Santa and the Easter Bunny, God and Jesus didn't stand a chance. At least the other two stopped by once a year and gave me something.


Jack did seem to enjoy his outfit however.

Nuthin'!

We got nuthin' !
Sure it got cold, but the storm passed to the east of Stillwater, and for the most part we got very little snow. Sad, The residents here still have no idea how to deal, and the most dangerous part of driving is the other drivers, who should just stay home if they are going to act like that.

Random Thoughts:

This------------->
Is a random pic of the D. I like it, so I'm sharing it with you.

"You can catch more flies with honey..."

I have no idea how that ends.

As a child, for some reason, I always wanted a pet rabbit. I don't know why, and it was never a deep desire. I just thought it might be kind of cool. Then, in my mid 20s, some friends of mine had rabbits that they kept in a cute little pen in their back yard, and I decided to go check it out. I realized that they don't really 'play' and that they smell awful. Not ferret bad, but bad. That small desire left my system, and I got a fish instead.

Bundle-fly

This--------------->
Is coming our way. It is to be the coldest air and the meanest storm Oklahoma has seen in over a decade.

amateurs!

Just as those up north are overly terrified of tornadoes, The southern states are scared of snow. Oklahoma gets both and can't deal with either. All competing weather systems seem to butt heads right over OK, allowing for really freaky storms that last about two minutes. When I moved here almost three years ago, I was worried that I wouldn't be able to enjoy the snow and cold that I love so much. Three weeks after we moved, a giant blizzard hit the state, shutting down half the infrastructure, closing schools and offices for three days. I was happy. It hasn't really snowed since. We'll see how this one turns out.

The first time I went to Austin to visit friends, it was in the last week of August. A wee bit warm for my tastes. Here is a conversation I had while watching the news one day:

Weatherman: The temperature is 101, but the heat index is 120!
Me: What the hell is the "heat index"
Beth: Well, because of the humidity, it feels hotter than it actually is.
Me: Oh, like the wind-chill factor.
Beth: The what?

Thanksgiving Weekend

This --------------------------->
Is what happens when your friends have way too much free time and access to an animal carcass. We had a lovely time in Denver City Denver. We did not get to see some of the people we wanted, so sorry to those people. My bad, really. We had a lot going on.
Turkish dei was yet again free of any mention of Istanbul, Constantinople or this country's proud eastern European heritage. Sad.




This--------------------------->

Is how Saturday started at Craig's house, and it just spiraled from there. Drunk babies and toddlers hanging from chandeliers and sliding down the banisters and taking passers-by hostage. Total mayhem. We had a good time.



This----------------------------->
Is why we flew and didn't drive. Let me tell you, this trip went off without a hitch while the day before and the day after our flights were delay crazy. A giant snow storm hit the mountains and the eastern plains, but missed DCD all together. We had no mishaps at all. Weird. It was by far the most relaxing trip home since I left. Including before we had a kid. Jackson did really well on the plane. No fussing or anything. At one point he was the hit of the plane as he flirted and giggled at the two college hotties sitting behind us. Good man. I never had the balls to hit on two at once, though I was never that cute.

Roadrunner, Roadrunner!

I saw one of these------------>
On my way to lunch yesterday. Just bookin' it. I've never actually seen a Roadrunner before, dispite spending a disproportionate ammount of time in the desert. Or the fact that the Metropolitan State College of Denver, where I went, uses the Roadrunner as a mascot. Yeah, I didn't know that either until I started getting alumni catalogs from them. In honor of the occasion, here is the complete transcript of a live performance by the Sex Pistols doing "Roadrunner"

enjoy.


'ey, I know, oi, oi, Steve -- Roadrunner!
Roadrunner!Roadrun...!
Should we do roadrunner?
'ey, that's fuckin' awful -- stop it.
Stop it; it's fuckin' awful!
Aaah! Torture.
Duh ug duh duh duh duh mah eyah
I donno the words!
I donno'ow it starts;
I've forgotten it!
Hold on; stop the segment. Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop.
Check out what how it starts.
What's the first line?
Paul: One, two, three, four, five, six!
Johnny: Alright, can you start at the beginning, then?
Paul: Roadrunner, roadrunner, (???)
Johnny: I can't hear you, Paul.
Paul: Roadrunner, roadrunner, go...
Johnny:Going faster miles an hourEuhlalalalala
Awith the radio on
Aroadrunner, roadrunner
Aeuhmuh faster miles an hour
Oh, God, I don't know it...
I drove past the Stop 'n' Shop
And I wah by the Stop 'n' Shop
An' I flarala wahbah Stop Shop
Have the radio on
Have touch with the modern world
I fell in love with the modern worldFell in love with (???)
Have the radio on
Roadrunner, roadrunner
Agoin' faster miles an hour
Felt in touch with with modern world
In love with the modern world
Alright, here we go now
Goin' twenty-eight watta power
It's all cold here in the dark
Fifty thousand watts of power
Agoin' faster miles an hour
Awith the radio onRoadrunner, roadrunner
Oh, God, I don't know it
It's fuckin' ridiculousWish I had the words...
Roadrunner, roadrunner
Agoin' faster miles an hour
I felt in touch with the modern world
I fell in love with the modern world
Rockin' modern lover, modern sound, ana mosaround
Modern rockin' runner around, mosaround rockin'
modern runnerin touchAn' a radio on
I got radio onAroadrunner, roadrunner
Oh yeah er ah ee ah eh uh
Do we know any other fuckin' Beatles songs?'
Ey? Brrrrrrr!'Ey? Do we know an...'Ey?
Do we know any other fucking songs that we can do?
Do we know any other songs that we can do?
I can't think of any.

They were Geniuses!

You know it!

Seriously. Look how freakin' cute this kid is--------------->

Sketchbook #2

Ball point pens and highlighters:

This is a pic of Bob Dobbs. I do most of my spontanious drawing at work now, and I don't have access to my art stuff. I use what ever is around. I have even dried out one of the dry-erase markers floating around. I once found a purple pen in the walkway and did a whole "Prince" themed doodle on the back of a meeting agenda. I love ball point pens. I find that one can achieve similar levels of shading as with pencil, but without the messy pinky. It is difficult to erase, but that is why the storage closet gods gave us liquid paper.

A friend of mone once did a whole series of comics using only ball points. The original art work was awesome, but when we tried to print it, some of the detail was lost. These were ash-can photo-copied mini-comics mind you, so we had to give a little.

Look how mean we are:

Seriously. It wasn't enough to buy the suit and cram him in it, but to cart him off to Sears and make him try to smile for an hour? Mean. We should not be parents.

So this is the outfit Jackson is wearing tonight at the neighborhood block party. We'll then retire to the house and hand out candy. If you are in the Stillwater area, and have nothing to do, stop by and marvel at the kid in the chicken outfit.

Insects and the like

We got this --------->

from Grace's mother in law. It covers the carseat, showing just the face. However, if you don't like that, there is a little flap that buttons down over said face. It is very cocoon-like and if they had a pattern of either the the aliens from Aliens or the equally horrific Wilford Brimley from Cocoon, I would have preferred it, but we got cowbows. Whatcha gonna do?

These guys -------------->

Came to Stillwater from Denver to play a show. I miss the Cains. They are good people. We sat and had beers like I never left, and was really refreshing. It was also the first time we left the boy with a stranger, and there was some anxiety associated with that. Mine was curbed with alchohol, while Jen's was not. A mother's instinct trumps all.

We then spent some time in Tulsa, working on the house that is selling this friday. Yay. Good to have that off out backs. Jens parents move the weekend after that into a beautiful new home that they had built, so we helped them pack.

And that was "my weekend"

by little jasey powers, age 9

Most boring day ever.

The email systen at my work is down, and that;s how we get all of our projects. So I sit here with nothing to do. I have been reading trivia on IMDb all day.
In other news, my mom has been here all weekend helping me with the boy, as Jen was out of town at a conference. It was a big help, as I know dick. Thankfully Jen returned last night, and all is returning to normal and whatever I still can't cope with is therefore my own problem.

Sick.

All of us. All three of us huddled under blankets trying to drink as many liquids as possible, then running to the bathroom to pee. Our kitchen counter looks like a pharmacy puked on it. Jackson has a wee little couch that will just break your heart. And trying to care for a sick baby is bad enough when one is healthy, but when one is just as sick, it is no good. I wanted to lay down next to him and wail just as loud. We have to give him anti-biotics that smell like cotton candy in a little plastic syringe, and though he likes the taste, he spits most of it out every time. Now everything he owns has sticky pink goo on it. Luckily, Jen and I both had Monday off, because we would have called in anyway. I didn't change out of my jammies for three days. Now I know how Arthur Dent feels.

I hope the worst is over.

You too, can be a winner!

Sketckbook #1

Well, The DSl I thought was hooked up last week is not working, so I have no pics of Llamas or children or real estate for you. Sorry about that. But if you click on this pic, you can see some of the doodles from my sketchbook. I scanned them while my supervisor went to the bathroom. I hope to show you more, and it may become a regular thing.

The move and busy time at work and no DSL means that I have been negligent in my blogging duties, and thanks to those who have stuck with me.

This week, Jen went out of town to KC for work. That left me with the boy for two days. I did just fine, as did Jack, so stop worrying. His needs are simple: Food and human contact. Both of these things I can provide.

I also learned this week that our parking lot is where kids from the high school next door park when they plan on ditching classes. Ahh.. memories.

Llamas!

I knew moving to rural Oklahoma was going to be a bit of a change from the hustle and bustle of a big city, but come on, llamas? There is a little herd of them a few blocks from my house. Makes me wanna watch Emperor's New Groove again.

The llama is a quadruped.

It lives in the big rivers like the Amazon. It has two ears, a heart, a forehead, and a beak for eating honey. But it is provided with fins for swimming.

Llamas are larger than frogs.

Llamas are dangerous, so if you see one where people are swimming, you shout...

Look out, there are llamas!

Moved!

We have now made the big move. The weekend was spent packing up a giant truck with what was left of our belongings, after the great purge of 2005. We then put everything into a house almost twice the size of the old one, or any of the previous ones for that matter. It looks so sparse, I couldn't believe it. We have spent so long in such small spaces that we are unaccustomed to having so much room to move. I walked the entire length of our old house last night to get a towel.

I'm not storing anything for you, so don't ask.

Hectic Planet

So this is the new house. We close on thursday and move on saturday. It is bigger and nicer than anywhere I have ever live in my whole life. On some subconcious level I don't feel I deserve something this nice just because I've never had anything this nice before. I am really excited, though. It is big enough and affordable enough that I think we could stay here for the next 30 years or so.
BTW, anyone interested in helping me move, can call at any time

Packing Packing Packing

We move to Stillwater in one week. We are packing all of our stuff for the fifth time in our relationship. Jack doesn't know any better, sso he doesn't care. Today we filled our living room with boxes, and while I'm out getting burgers, some realtor calls and wants to show the house. We are both sweaty, and icky and our house is a pile of half packed shambles and knick-knacks. We had an hour to make it presentable and get the fuck out of there. Some how we did it, and went straight to somewhere where we could get a beer. Delicious, wonderful Newcastle.

We have yet to hear back from the realtor.

Canine Crazy

Animals are strange things. After the initial weirdness and uncertainty displayed by our pets about the new wee one in our midst, they have now accepted him as part of the tribe, Ewok style, and will fight any Imperial force to protect him. This weekend, while getting the A/C serviced, Sadie went nuts, and sat next to Jack and growled and barked and carried on until the obviously evil man went away. Had she the time to craft a rudementary hang-glider so she could drop rocks on him, she would have, as I have seen the plans in her kennel. Later, as pictured, Maggie curled up next to him to keep him warm, as the onesie was obviously not getting the job done in the September afternoon heat. Sadie and Maggie make regular checks on him when he is in the other room and usually react quicker than we do when he starts to fidget in the middle of the night. (by we, I mean me. Jen has developed sonar)

The cat does not, nor will she ever, give a shit.

Bottom 10

#9 - When the scene in the trailer is not in the film

I don't know how long this has been going on, if it is a common practice from way back or what, but I hate it. Sometimes it is a really cool action scene, like the bouncing tire from Twister or entire scenes, like "when to count the anniversary" in Guess Who. I realize that both are completely horrible movies, even more so because of this. Sometimes it is forgivable, as with the Spiderman trailer that featured a giant web catching a helicopter between the WTC towers, and a similar one for Men in Black II. Both those were changed after 9/11. Other than that, if the scene isn't in the movie, don't get me all excited, and then not put it in there.

Yep, He's Mine.

For the astute viewers, I am making the exact face that Jackson is. This was not intentional, just genetics. He does the same one-eyebrow raise thing I do, and has the same double-jointed thumb I have. (My Dad and my brother have double-jointed thumbs, though at a different spot.) It would be difficult to deny this child in any court of law.

kudos to Brian B. for the pic. We had a wonderful time at the party, though Jack did not. He cried all night until he passed out. Just like that one girl you knew in high shcool. He's a bit of a drama queen, you see.

Stupid Things I Have Done #2

I once was talked into putting Carmex on my eyeball. I spent the next several hours blinking uncontrolably, while a tingling sensation washed over the right side of my brain. And let me tell you, the more you rub, the worse it gets.

-JP

Where's my beer?

I think Jack is ready for football season. He will join the rest of America, on the couch, in his undies, belly protruding from under a dirty t-shirt, staring at a little talking box for hours on end, getting fatter.

It amazes me at times that he doesn't just get up and go into the kitchen for a cold one, and some more salsa. He looks like such a little man.

The gang's all here!

Driving Miss. Sadie

Curious Jack

This is one of the few pics where his eyes are open and he is not pissed off. Kudos to Norm for taking this one

Bottom 10

#10 - inconsistent highway speeds

I now drive an hour each way to and from work every day. I have now realized that cruise control is the greatest thing ever, and more people should use it. I get all fulla road rage when I go to pass somebody, and they pick that time to realize that they had been going too slow, and speed up, so's I cant pass. OR when people start to pass me, and decide to just pace me instead, and camp out in my blind spot.
If I owned a Road worrier kind of car, I would run these bastards off the road.

Vivid Imagination

more baby

This kid is the coolest. He fusses like crazy sometimes, but then he falls asleep on my chest, and I don't care anymore.

-JP

Stupid things I've done #1

Long ago, in a drunken stupor, my friend Larry and I moved some traffic cones we came across late at night. We move them so that eventually the cars were forced to go the wrong way down a one way street, on the other side of a concrete barrier. We parked at a good vantage point and watched as people tried to figure out what the deal was. Most cars just went back to the other side at the next crossing, or drove between the cones. We sat there for hours, listening to old Abbot & Costello recordings and drinking more beer, even going so far as to go get more alcohol and come back.
As the sun was coming up, and rush hour began, a cop came along to fix the problem. Someone had evidently called to complain about the cones, but not about the two drunk teenagers laughing hysterically in the car down the way. The cop was about half way through moving all the cones, when we could see that a moment of revelation washed over him. He put all of the cones back to the way we had set them, and drove down the block. He then proceeded to start writing tickets to people for going the wrong way down a one way street.

We could not have asked for a better pay off.

kid no sleepy

Disaster movies

I love disaster movies. Actually, I love movies where lots and lots of people die. Shakespeare's tragedies were always my favorites, and I am the only person who has sat through Titus more than once.
Zombie movies hold a special place in my heart, as massive ammounts of people die twice. I like it even more when the death is totally indescriminant. Keep in mind, that as a film lover, most of these movies are never what I would concider good. I mean, come on, Ben Affleck and Bruce Willis are gonna save us from a giant meteor? Piss on Ben Affleck. There are exceptions, of course. 28 Days Later is wonderful, and Peter Jackson's Dead Alive was one of the funniest movies I've ever seen. Then there are some that are almost good, bit do something that really pisses you off. Case in point: The Day After Tomorrow. Lots of death. There is even an entire sequense where giant tornados destroy Los Angeles for no reason at all. It has nothing to do with the plot. So far, so good. people drowning, freezing, falling off buildings and generally having a pretty poor time. Oh, how are the principles gonna make it? (BTW - you can usually tell who is going to survive by how famous the actor is.) Then they go and ruin it. There is a whole sequence where Jake Gyllenhaal gets attacked by wolves. Fucking wolves!! How stupid is that? It was one of the few times in my life that I have actually thrown something at the TV. The others were Iris because there was no point to that movie, and Signs because M. Night Shayamalan is a one trick pony, and his movies are stupid and predictable now. All this wonderful creepy build up for an alien that looks like Barney. Fuck M. Night. Fuck him right in the ear. Overrated bastard.

My favorite Zombie Movies:
28 Days Later
Shaun of the Dead
Dead Alive
George A Romero's Night of the Living Dead
Cemetary Man
My favorite Disaster movies: (or movies where a lot of people die)
Them
The Hindenburg
The Posiden Adventure
Richard III
Reservoir Dogs

-J.