Aslan...

So, it sounds like C.S. Lewis didn't like live-action versions of his books. He preferred animation, but hated Disney. Remember what's coming out next month? Live action version of Narnia, by Disney. Lewis says a human-pantomimed Aslan would be "blasphemous", and I agree. Even the CG version (done, unfortunately, by Disney), as I've said, looks small and weak. We'll just have to wait and see, but this definitely doesn't raise my expectations.

Three weeks...

So the last bit of this semester is going to be hard, not because of loads of work, but because of loads of gaming/movies/socializing that will be distracting me. Such is the price I pay.

Most of our snow is gone, which is disappointing. It should be back to stay, though, this friday.

The time is come
The song is over
Thought I'd something more to say

One Week...

So, I'm going to try and remember everything that's happened in the last week.

Got Guitar Hero for my birthday. Think Dance Dance Revolution, just with a guitar and rock. Quite fun.

Took Dan to the train station in Flint monday. Even though Flint is the 3rd stop on the line, Amtrak still finds ways to be late.

Went to my sister's Venture meeting to play wallyball (volleyball in a racketball court, feel free to make liberal use of the walls). Now that was fun. I haven't had that much raw fun with a physical activity since youth group games.

Ohio was typical, I left more pissed than when I went. This time, it was due to the weather. More accurately, other people's unnecessary concern for the weather. They get a few inches of snow and it's already called The Big Thanksgiving Snow Storm! We get worse storms in Houghton on a regular basis, and we roll with it. Heck, Michigan was worse yesterday, and nobody moaned about that. And of course, Ohio drivers think that the middle lane is the slow lane, the right lane is the moderate speed lane, and the left lane is the "fast for everyone but the one guy who's going the same speed as everyone else and slowing the entire turnpike down" lane. I can't wait to get back to being around UP drivers.

Just a few more weeks of class, a little fun mixed in, and then it's X-mas (it's like the letter X was unhappy, so they needed to give it more things to do. "You can be associated with hugs and kisses and on a map you will mark the spot. You'll be a faster way to write Christmas and you can start the word xylophone. Happy now?"). I'm ready to be done, but I still have exams, a paper, and other miscellaneous stuff to do.

"If at first you don't succeed, try again, then quit. No use making a fool of yourself."

Of Home...

So, the drive back wasn't bad. We made it in 9 hours, including dropping of Elaan an hour away. Even assuming the weather is bad for the drive back up (I'm expecting it) that's pretty good time. I did drive the whole way, but I don't have a problem with that as long as I've gotten enough sleep and have other people in the car to keep me awake. Oh and caffeine helps as well.

I beat We <3 Katamari today. It's a great continuation of the first game, with the tasks being varied among the ones from the original Katamari and several new modes. The levels have also increased in size and variety, so there's more room to roam. The 2-player level where one person makes the body of a snowman and the other the head was genius. It may not be the deepest game, but it makes up for this in pure fun.

I had dinner with Autumn tonight to celebrate our birthdays. It was nice. We went to 101 Main which is always good and had plenty of time to chat. Fun times.

And I finally found the last Dune book, Battle of Corrin, at B&N today. Hooray for 700 page sci-fi serial epics!

Snow!!!

It's snowing here.


That means sauna tonight, maybe some pictures.

Tired...

I'm REALLY tired. I haven't slept in in a long time. I slept for 11 hours friday-saturday, but it really wasn't restful because of my cold. As has always been the case in dorms, it's difficult to get to sleep as early as I want to. I'm usually one of the first to bed, but I'm still sleep deprived.

Add to all of this my work load, typical frustrations, and all other areas where I exert myself, and you get the idea.

So, so tired.

Lightning round!

"Wait, didn't you just go out of turn?"
"No. This is the lightning round!"

I watched Say Anything, and it was good; not great but good. As far as John Cusack 80's movies go, this was the most hopeless romantic, and the least romantic comedy.

I've had a cold since about friday, just getting over it now.

Watched Saved as the only Christian in the room, made note that every character made the same mistake about Christianity. It's not about following the Law, it's about wanting to follow the law and living for God.

Hockey is cool, and it's good to have the NHL back.

Fencing equipment breaks a lot, and now I need my own electric foil equipment.

We DESTROYED NMU at our tournament, 1 gold and 1 bronze in each tournament. We ran short on time, but plan on fencing them again next semester.

Driving in snow is fun, and I'm glad I have a minivan.

Who hates Granholm?

So, Jennifer Granholm is a horrible Governor. She's done some good things. Some.

So she signed into law a bill that would make it illegal to rent or sell mature and adult-only rated games to minors. Sure that makes sense, it's just like preventing minors from renting R movies or buying porn. I'm not sure on the specifics, but I can agree with the concept. A group of game publishers sued (as is their right) to prevent the law from going into effect, saying the law's result would be to cause all M, AO, and possibly T-rated games to simply be pulled from store shelves because retailers would not want to risk the fines. So, they got an injunction (the law was supposed to go into effect December 1st) and they are suing governor Granholm, Michigan Atourney General Michael Cox, and Wayne County Prosecuting Attorney Kym Worthy claiming the law is unconstitutional.

Now Granholm and Cox want to be removed from the list of defendants. What the hell for? These are the people who championed the bill, signed it into law, and are prepared to enforce it. They just aren't ready to defend it in a court of law? Whats worse is that there is no official explanation as to their motion to withdraw.

I agree that minors shouldn't be able to buy M and AO games. Like I said, it's the same as R/NC-17 movies. But I can't agree with Granholm when she tries to pull this kind of crap. Just stand up and defend yourself. You're the governor, it's your JOB to either defend the law or change it.

If I were to get my way, Granholm would defend the law, the law goes into effect, then Granholm resigns, because she sucks.

Wholesome goodness...

First of all, Meg: your car? And second of all: YOUR car?

So after I wrote my last post wind gusts got into the 60s. Also, our campus is built like a wind tunnel, so most people experienced way more than 50mph. Then it started hailing, so we got pelted in the face by 60mph chunks of ice. And it's not even winter yet. I love Houghton, and I mean that with absolutely no sarcasm. I really do love the weather. Even when it's harsh, it's worth it.

I got Say Anything for $7 at The Wal-Mart yesterday. John Cusack is my hero (right behind Dave Grohl, Victor Wooten, and Jaco Pastorius). And $7! One step closer to my complete John Cusack collection.

Sunday I'm skipping church to fence against NMU. Hooray (for the fencing, not the church)! Then, next week is home.

Enjoy the weather! If I hear any of you complaining about the weather where you are, know that you have no right and that you will be officially whiny if you do so.

It's stupid windy

Up here, it's stupid windy.
How stupid windy?
This stupid windy:

You read that right. We have 50mph wind gusts.
If you want up to the date weather from Houghton, so you can feel better about the weather wherever you are, check weather.com.

Death throes...

So, my computer finally dies today. Actually, it was just Windows. I've reinstalled and am back up and running. Now comes the fun of getting everything back to the way it was. Fun.

Anyways, I have a new game.

More on the villany of Sony

So, it appears lots of people are having problems removing the Sony rootkit. Not only does Sony make you jump through hoops to uninstall the software, it may crash your computer, as well as Sony denies anything is out of place here. Seriously, Sony sucks.

FYI, the copy protection only gets on your computer from the actual CD, not anything downloaded.

Under Attack...

Remember that AIM virus a while back? Apparently it was nastier than usual, including a trojan horse, spyware and a rootkit.

For those of you who don't know what a rootkit is, it's pretty much the nastiest hacker tool around. It modifies your windows files so that files in a virus cannot be detected. Not only has it hidden a virus so that it can't be removed, it has also tampered with your operating system.

If any of you have the new Switchfoot album and bought it from a non-christian retailer, you got a rootkit that Sony BMG placed there. Why did they put it there? They say it's to prevent piracy, but Sony BMG will tell you how to copy it if you ask them just right. What they're really after is making sure that people can't easily copy the songs to their iPod, because the iPod sells more than Sony's MP3 players.

So, in exchange for buying their CD, they hack your computer and hide a program in your system. Not only this, but their rootkit can be used by malicious hackers to hide their own viruses, so now Sony BMG has opened a security hole in your computer. Why not thank them by telling them how pissed you are.

Let me know if you've gotten either of these bits of malware and I'll help you out.

Don't let the man get you down.

In review...

The results of my fencing tournament are up. I finished 21st out of 44 in mixed foil (better than the median, but my DE performance left a lot to be desired) and 8th out of 12 in Epee (I really should have done better in pools). All together, I was happy with what I did well and know what I need to do to improve, which makes me even happier. Most importantly, There are talks of another tournament in Midland in the Spring, since this one was so successful, so look to me showing up there. Now I get to look forward to destroying NMU in out tournament in 2 weekends.

I wish I had a PS2. The problem with console wars is that some games only come out for one system. The most notable games I want to play right now are Katamari Damaci and We <3 href="http://www.guitarherogame.com/index.asp">Guitar Hero. Think DDR, just with a guitar and rock songs. It's as close to playing guitar without actually playing guitar. And it looks like a load of fun.

Jack Thompson keeps going lower and lower:

Oh, and certain regional governments in Japan have banned the sale of the Grand Theft Auto games to minors, but Japan's Sony has no problem whatsoever dumping this garbage into American kids' brains. Looks like Pearl Harbor 2 by Sony/Take-Two...

So now, video games aren't just the cause of violence in America, they're also a conspired attack by the Japanese on the scale of Pearl Harbor. Jack's currently prosecuting against Sony, WalMart, GameStop, Take Two, Rockstar, and Devin Moore in the civil trial concerning the so-called "GTA killer" shooting (please read this link so you understand the story). I wouldn't give Jack so much attention if people didn't take him so seriously. People need to realize that the roads in Hell are paved with good intentions, and Jack might just be walking them.

I still need ideas on how to get my hair cut. I want short, but not too short; not quite a buzz cut, but no more than 1.5". Any examples you guys can find would be appreciated.

I'm finally starting to appreciate the blessings of being single. It gives me more time to spend with the friends already have and fewer things to worry about. Also it gives me time to become a better man, so when it comes time, I can put that knowledge into practice. The only thing I can ask is that when I do meet Mrs. Right I realize it and do things right.