Not So Long Ago, In A Library In Baton Rouge

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Baton Rouge, LA

I had the wonderful opportunity to speak with fellow lovers of Star Wars this weekend in Baton Rouge, LA.  The Red Stick Rebellion, a Star Wars collectors group, invited me to talk about and display some of the ARC (advance reader copy) editions of recent Star Wars books.  I brought six books along with me (my entire collection as of this post) and explained to the group how I got my hands on these editions (they are sent to me for review by Amazon Vine) and let everyone take a look at them and see the differences between them and books bought off of the shelf.

After my brief talk, we had a very casual chat about everything from the upcoming films to the fate of the Expanded Universe pre-Disney buy out.  It was a really fun time for myself and, I believe, for those who attended as well.  I hope to make more meetings in the near future, as these people are my people.  Living in Lake Charles, it’s hard to find enthusiasts that share my love for George Lucas’ work.  While there are plenty of Star Wars fans in the Lake area, not very many of them are vocal about their love of the franchise.

I’ve fallen in with a Star Trek fan group, as well as a Doctor Who group, but finding fellow Star Wars fans is a bit difficult.

I also managed to get my hands on a Black Series 6″ Han Solo figure.  I really love it.  Hopefully I’ll be getting Chewbacca soon as well.

That’s all I really have for now.  I am hoping to attend Comicpalooza in Houston, Texas in a couple of weeks, but that particular event is still up in the air for me.  Peter Davison, my favorite Doctor from Doctor Who, will be there, as well as Sylvester McCoy (already met him), Colin Baker, and Paul McGann, not to mention John Barrowman and the lovely lady that plays Madame Vastra.  There are going to be a ton of other guests as well, including the bulk of the main cast from Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and actors like Billy Dee Williams and others.

As always, thanks for reading, and in case anyone is wondering, no, my books are not for sale!

Tunes! A Top Ten List Of My Favorite Rock Songs

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Lake Charles, LA

 

I’ve been listening to music ever since I could hear.  Some of my first tunes were children’s classics like Jesus Loves Me and The B-I-B-L-E.  As I got older, my ears were treated to music from artists like Merle Haggard and the Statler Brothers thanks to my father’s all-encompassing power and control over the radio in our car and the stereo at home.  Once in awhile I would listen to bands like Fleetwood Mac or Journey whenever I was playing in my brother or sister’s room.

Once I decided to make my own musical listening decisions, I started listening to a lot of Top 40 radio.  The first album that I ever bought with my own money was Huey Lewis and the News:  Fore!  I thought that I was the coolest kid on the block.  I also fed my musical mind with albums from artists like Debbie Gibson and Prince, but somewhere during my search for the perfect tune, I ran into bands like Skid Row, Def Leppard, KISS, Motley Crue, and Bon Jovi.  A couple of years later I discovered groups like Metallica and Aerosmith.  I started listening to less and less pop music and focused on hard rock, heavy metal, and left-of-center country music.

Today, most people consider me a classic rocker, metalhead, or old rocker, but I still listen to a lot of new music.  Heck, I even dabble in pop music from time to time and have no problem saying that I like artists like Kesha and Bruno Mars.  I’ve also taken a shine to Renaissance Faire music, and listen to a lot of world music as well.

For this list (which might change within minutes of posting it), I’ve decided to list my ten favorite rock tunes.  Some of them are more metal than others, but they all rock.  I hope you enjoy!

  1. Hard Luck Woman–KISS-Peter Criss’ scraggly-tinged vocals make this track my favorite tune not only by KISS, but by any band ever.  I sing along with it, skip ahead to it, and sing its praises everywhere I go.  Without this song, I probably wouldn’t have become the massive KISS fan that I am today!
  2. Hysteria–Def Leppard-Whenever I am feeling overly stressed (which happens a lot), I pop this track on and almost immediately my worries swim away.  I love a lot of tunes by Def Leppard, but this particular track is my favorite by them.
  3. N.I.B.–Black Sabbath-Although Electric Funeral is a close second, N.I.B. was the tune that made me a Black Sabbath fan.  From Geezer’s massive bass solo to Ozzy’s dark vocals, this track is my go-to Sabbath tune.
  4. Master of Puppets–Metallica-Any pre-St. Anger Metallica is good in my book, but Master of Puppets (the entire album, but specifically this tune) is their best stuff.  Lars pounds the skins, Hetfield and Hammett shred, and Burton keeps things in check.  Orion, also on the album, gets an honorable mention as well.
  5. Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap–AC/DC-I could select a lot of AC/DC tunes for this list, but Bon Scott’s gritty lyrics peppered by the Young Bros. and company make this track my favorite by the band.  I’m especially fond of Scott’s screech at the end of the tune.
  6. Live Wire–Motley Crue-Of all the bands on this list, I’ve been a fan of the Crue for the longest time.  I wanted to be Mick Mars growing up, but unfortunately I was too fat and too uncoordinated to master his guitar licks.  Live Wire is off of the band’s first album, Too Fast For Love, and it captures the band at their rawest and punkish best.
  7. Drink, F*ck, Fight–The Treatment-I saw this young UK-based band whenever they opened up The Tour featuring KISS and Motley Crue a couple of years ago.  I knew absolutely nothing about them, but before their set was over I was a massive fan.  I actually got to meet a couple of the guys in this group and they were awesome.  Drink, F*ck, Fight was one of the tunes they played live, and once the crowd realized what they were chanting, everyone started chanting with them.  Here’s to a long and prosperous career for those guys!
  8. Crazy Train–Ozzy Osbourne-I’m a big fan of Ozzy both as a member of Sabbath and as a solo artist.  Crazy Train is one of those tracks that I sing along with every time it hits the airwaves.  It’s also one of my favorite air guitar tunes.  Oh, and it was one of the first songs I ever taught my son how to sing.
  9. Hell To The Heavens–Leaves’ Eyes-The newest song on this list, Hell To The Heavens, comes from an album by the same name from Leaves’ Eyes, a Beauty and the Beast metal band that I’ve only discovered within the last four or five years.  They are the perfect blend of melody and mayhem.
  10. Welcome to the Jungle–Guns N Roses-Back when GnR were really GnR (with the lineup of Rose, Slash, Izzy, Adler, and Duff), they produced one of the greatest albums in history, Appetite for Destruction.  In my opinion, it did more for heavy metal and hard rock than anything the grunge era ever produced.  With all of the polished acts out there, GnR were the gritty, dirty, punkish antidote.  I wish they would have made more music together before the train derailed.

Well, there you have it.  My top ten rock tunes.  Sooner or later I’ll be posting top ten country, pop, blues, and other song lists.

Leave a comment with your own favorites, or tell my why my list is terrible.  I’d love to hear from you all.

A Web Of Confusion

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Lake Charles, LA

I saw The Amazing Spider-Man 2 this weekend and I have to admit that I really enjoyed it for the  most part.  The story builds upon the events that occurred in The Amazing Spider-Man, picking up with our favorite wallcrawler having firmly established himself as the hero of NYC and about to graduate high school.  Everything seems to be going fine for Spidey.  He has a lovely girlfriend, Gwen Stacy, and has started making a little money by selling photos to the Daily Bugle (J. Jonah Jameson gets a few nods, albeit briefly and is never seen on the screen).  Aunt May is making ends meet as well.

A couple of things from Spidey’s past are haunting him, though, and they rear their ugly heads at seemingly random times during Peter Parker’s day-to-day activities.  He keeps thinking about the mysterious disapperance of his parents and starts to investigate what really happened to them.  On top of that, he keeps remembering the promise he made to Gwen Stacy’s father that he would keep her safe from harm by distancing himself from her.  He attempts to break up with her, but Gwen’s determination and charm and the overall love the pair shares for each other is stronger, and while Spidey does have a few misery-filled moments away from her, they eventually get back together.

While all of this is going on in Peter’s world, another individual is struggling with a little misery of his own.  Max Dillon, an electrical engineer for OsCorp, lives an empty life.  He’s extremely intelligent and has done brilliant things on the technology front, but he still goes about being a relative unknown and disliked and/or ignored by his co-workers.  He ends up getting saved by Spider-Man, and Spidey tells him that he is important and that he helps Spider-Man fight crime by being his eyes on the street.

Then an accident occurs, and Dillon becomes Electro, a powerful being that can channel electricity and travel through it as well.  All of sudden Max Dillon is getting the attention from everyone that he’s been begging for for many years and eventually something happens that turns him against Spider-Man and his love for the webslinger turns into vengeful hate.

Harry Osborn also pops onto the scene after being away for over about a decade.  I’ll leave out the reasons for his return, but know that he is intent on getting a transfusion of blood from Spider-Man in order to cure an illness that he suffers from.  He teams up with Electro whenever Spidey turns down Harry’s request, and the pair decide to wipe out the wallcrawler together.

What happens from there is an action-filled battle between Spider-Man, Electro, and Harry Osborn (they never officially call him Goblin, Green or Hob, but it looks like the studio wants him to be known as the Green Goblin, who is actually his father in the comics).  Without giving too much away, I’ll state that there is one major, major occurrence in this film that comic readers are well aware of, and it hit the audience that I was in quite hard.  I must assume that the majority of the people in the theater were unaware of certain events that took place in the comics, because there were gasps, crying, and questions about this one event.  Just know that when it does take place, the actors involved nail the emotional strain with perfection.

Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, and Sally Field head up a fine cast of actors that make this film extremely enjoyable.  I still enjoy the first two Sam Raimi flicks, but The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is definitely a step up from the first film in this reboot.

Now, to the “confusion” I alluded to in the title of this post.  What’s confusing to me is how so many people were upset with the changes made in the first film in this series and now that the series is leaning a little bit more towards the books, they are getting even more upset.  Yes, Jamie Foxx as Max Dillon was idiotic, but once he became Electro, I enjoyed the character a whole lot more.  Yes, the Goblin was a bit underplayed in my opinion, but the event that he is part of was played out brilliantly, even by fooling folks a bit by having certain characters meet up on a bridge before the event happens (if you’ve read the comics, you know what happens on a bridge in the books).  Rhino was totally wasted (and glaringly revealed the limitations of CGI) in his few brief moments on the screen, and the film served up a heaping helping of hints as to what villain(s) will be taking on Spidey in the next film, but ultimately it is a good film.

I appreciate Sony attempting to clean up a bit of the mess from the first filim and love the fact that they stayed pretty true to the books when it came to a certain character.  In fact, the story managed to fit in three villains and used them in a way better than any other previous villain combo flick (I’m looking straight at you Batman Returns, Batman & Robin, Batman Forever, & Spider-Man 3).  I would much rather see  a hero take on one villain instead of two or three, but this film made it work fairly well.

I recommend everyone check out The Amazing Spider-Man 2.  It’s a really fun film full of drama and action.  Highly recommended.

Weight Update And A Few Thoughts

Lake Charles, LA

For anyone who might be following my attempt at losing weight, I am currently at 206 lbs.  I started my current weight-loss journey at 244 lbs, so I’m quite proud of myself so far.  I want to make it to two hundred pounds before I dial back on the goals a bit.  When I reach that magical two hundred number, I plan on shooting for ten pound goals until I’m happy with what I see in the mirror every day.

How am I losing the weight?  I’ve been doing Insanity since January (I’m on my second round now) and about two weeks in to my first round I started using the Lose It! app on my phone.  Insanity works, period.  If you apply yourself to it and follow the program, you will see results.  I’ve done Insanity in the past and while I didn’t lose as much weight (I wasn’t really watching what I was eating), my body became more tone and my endurance shot through the roof.

Lose It! was recommended to me by my wellness coach, who is provided through my insurance provider.  She checks on me every three weeks by phone and gives me tips and ideas to help me on my journey.  She has recently started to encourage me to add weight training to my repertoire and I must admit that I’m giving it a lot of thought.  If any of my readers know of some simple weight training plans, I’d love to hear about them in the comments section.

In other business, I’m growing very fond of a small group of Trekkies that I’ve joined.  They are called the USS Lafitte and are based in southwest Louisiana.  I have attended many of their meetings and while I’m not as hardcore when it comes to Trek, it’s nice to be surrounded by people that get me.  I’m completely comfortable nerding out in front of them and they get almost all of my nerdy jokes.  I’m also a member of another local group called the Doctor Whooligans.  I’m a Who fan from over thirty years ago, and this group makes me feel pretty old since most of them are into New Who.  However, the group’s founder hosts monthly meetings focusing on each Doctor from the classic series, and the newbies seem to really enjoy the old stories.  I hope to become more involved with this group as time goes on.

I mentioned Jennifer Lawrence in my last post, and I have to bring her up once again.  There are rumors floating around that a Mystique movie could be coming at some point in the future.  To be honest, I hope that Fox backs off of the X films for a while.  While I love Jennifer Lawrence (and that open invitation to come out at my house with me and my family is still open, Ms. Lawrence), I’m afraid that the X franchise is a bit too excessive, especially in recent years with the seemingly endless amount of Wolverine focused stories (including his solo flicks and the recent anime version).  I want the focus applied to characters like Gambit, Nightcrawler, Cyclops, Banshee, and especially Beast  and Colossus.  While the two latter guys are getting more attention in the newest film, I want some solo adventures from them both.  However, I’ll happily wait three or four years for a really good solo outing from any of these characters instead of one mildly enjoyable flick each year.

Disney has their Marvel properties locked in, and they are doing a brilliant job with them.  They put out more films than Fox and Sony when it comes to Marvel, but the difference is that their films have all been excellent (except for the misfire that was Iron Man 3).

Well, gang, thanks for reading.  I really do want to hear from you on any and every topic, and if you happen to know Jennifer Lawrence, tell her that I would really like to have her check out my blog and/or hang out with me and my family!!!!!

Peace!

 

A Few Quick Notes

Lake Charles, LA

I don’t have much to talk about this week.  Good Friday and Easter are upon us, so I hope that everyone has a great weekend.  Hopefully the Easter Bunny will leave all of us something good in our baskets.  I’m hoping for a million bucks and (if I weren’t happily married) Jennifer Lawrence, but I’ll probably just get a couple of pieces of candy and an egg or two.  Oh well, if you’re reading this, Ms. Lawrence, you have an open invitation to hang out at my house for a few days.  My entire family loves you both on the screen and in interviews that we’ve all watched.  You seem like a really down to earth person, and that’s rare in Hollywood these days.

I did manage to see Captain America:  The Winter Soldier this passed weekend and I must say that it was brilliant.  I loved it just as much as the original Cap film, but for different reasons.  The first film made Cap an icon with every single scene and bled patriotism.  It showed an America that needed a hero, and it got one in Cap.  Soldier finds our hero in a new America, where all of our moves are being watched and/or recorded, and he begins to question just how far our country’s defenses should go to keep us all “free.”  It’s actually a very heady film, and I highly recommend it.

As far as my weight goes, I’m at 208 pounds.  Insanity is kicking my butt for a second round and my wellness coach has me eating more veggies.  I’m exploring more foods now, and I would love to hear some of your favorite healthy recipes and snack options.

Have a great Easter weekend, friends, and as always, thanks for reading.

CyPhaCon 2014!

Lake Charles, LA

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Deep in southwest Louisiana, in the growing city of Lake Charles, there is a convention that takes place every year that is something of an anomaly.  It’s called CyPhaCon, and it has done something that very few fan-run cons in similar (and in some cases, larger) markets have achieved:  It’s thriving and growing each year.

CyPhaCon is in its fourth year now and has grown by leaps and bounds each year.  It caters heavily to the anime scene, but offers up plenty of things for fans of other genres to check out.  For instance, this year’s guests of honor included Battlestar Galactica and Hemlock Grove star Kandyse McClure, anime legend Tiffany Grant, and Chuck Huber, another anime voice artist who is also involved with Star Trek Continues, a project that is a labor of love for another anime titan, Vic Mignogna.  Fan groups included the 501st Legion and Rebel Legion, a number of other fan-run conventions, the Doctor Whooligans, the USS Lafitte, and many others, as well as a load of artists and vendors like Jessica Grundy, Paper Heroes, Icarus Wing, and Cosplay World.

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Panels ranged from topics like self defense from Batman (yep, Batman) to Stargate SG-1 to cosplaying.  There were also panels featuring all of the guests and some great entertainment from Take One Improv and the brilliant Suzaku 7 band!

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I attended the event for all three of its days, as well as the Wednesday night pre-party that included video games, a few episodes of BSG, and music at a club in Lake Charles called 3Topia.  When I arrived on Friday, the venue was packed.  There was quite a line to get into the convention, which is something that rarely happens at similar events in the lake area.  Saturday found even more people at the convention, and I squeezed in as many panels as I could between visiting with friends and making new friends as well.

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I got to meet Kandyse McClure, who turned out to be a real delight.  I turned her on to Tabasco Ice Cream and was a bit surprised when she actually made a note about the ice cream so that she could get some later.  I also talked with Chuck Huber, who was exceptionally friendly and very, very excited the entire time he was at the convention.

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Another treat was rocking out to the Suzaku 7, an anime party rock band that had everyone dancing as they sang hits from anime greats like Pokemon.  The band hung out with the fans after their set, and I snagged a copy of their CD, SuperEffective. 

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One thing that I noticed happening more at this convention than at other fan-run events, was the amount of attention that the volunteer staff paid to the needs of fans, vendors, and guests.  They would routinely check up on people and would also pop in on panels to make sure everything was okay.  The registration process went smoothly as well, and any gripes or concerns were addressed immediately.

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The quality of the costumes at this convention, especially considering the size of the event, was remarkable.  There were a lot of anime cosplayers at the event, as well as a few Star Wars, Star Trek, and superhero cosplayers as well.  All of them were kind enough to pose for photos, even with guys in bad costumes like myself.  I was dressed as the Discount Dark Knight (pictured above) and actually got in a couple of photos with people.

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The event was a bit quieter on Sunday, but it was also the best day to hit the vendor area.  I picked up some magnets from Three Sisters, a Commander Appo figure from Paper Heroes, and quite a few pieces of artwork from Jessica Grundy.  Look her up on Facebook!  Her work is amazing!

I wasn’t able to stay until the very end of the event, so I can’t say how well the last panels and closing ceremonies went.  However, I can say that I’ve been to many other conventions in the Gulf South, and none of them come close to CyPhaCon.

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I’ll be reviewing more conventions as the year progresses.  At the moment there are at least two others coming up pretty soon that I plan on attending.  There’s also another one coming up in June in Lake Charles.  I’ll be sure to review it as well.

Thanks for reading, peeps, and as always, much love!

The Discount Dark Knight Rises (At 3Topia)

Lake Charles, LA

As some of you might already know, Lake Charles has a yearly sci-fi/comic/anime/pop culture convention that happens every April.  It’s called CyPhaCon, and is the brainchild of a few people that I am proud to call friends.  This group works hard to make their event one of the top fan-run conventions in the southern United States, and having visited others and also having been part of a so-called “board” for another convention (a terrible move on my part, as the “board” consisted of myself and another guy who did his best to control any and every decision and expense made by that convention….in my opinion at least), I can say that they are doing things right.

Since last year’s event, CyPhaCon has expanded their event beyond the walls of the Lake Charles Civic Center and have started having events year round, including events specifically tailored to children or CyPhaKids, as that division of the convention is called.  They’ve held multiple gaming events and had a movie night as well (I attended that, and watched The Empire Strikes Back and The Wrath of Khan in all of their Blu-ray goodness). 

Many of their events take place at an up-and-coming bar in the lake area called 3Topia.  I’ve been there a couple of times and look forward to my next visit.  The bar is excellent and the kitchen serves up some great eats.  They also have Zapps potato chips, which are basically Louisiana chip cocaine.  The wait staff, or at least the one waitress that I’ve had the privilege of having serve me on both occasions that I’ve been there, is excellent.  She’s friendly and attentive to her customers.  The bar also features multiple big screen televisions featuring everything to movies, TV shows, music, and gaming consoles.

Last night I atteneded the CyPhaCon Pre-Party.  The convention is this weekend (I’ll give a full report with photos next week), and the organizers decided to have an “appetizer” for any and every con goer who showed up at 3Topia. 

The event was great.  Lots of people showed up and I even threw on my Discount Dark Knight costume which, oddly enough, drew the attention of quite a few attractive ladies who chatted with me and/or took photos with me.  What is it about the Batman that makes ladies all excited?  I don’t know, but whatever it is, I apparently have it!!!!

Gamers were there to challenge each other in friendly matches, Battlestar Galactica was playing on one of the televisions in honor of the convention’s guest, Kandyse McClure (Dualla), and music, drinking, and dancing was happening everywhere else in the club.  There was even a fire-eater!

I had a really great time, and if this small event was any indication as to how great the big event this weekend will be, we are all in for a crazy ride!  Check out their website, http://www.cyphacon.org, for more info and try to come out to the convention if you can!Talk atcha soon people!

For those of you who have read any of my posts, thanks.  I really do appreciate it.  This silly little blog of mine would be nothing without readers.  If you enjoy what you’ve read, let your friends know!

The Walking Dead Season Finale!!! (SPOILER ALERT)

Lake Charles, LA

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Well, well, well…….The Walking Dead shut the door on another season last night, and I have to admit that it was one of my favorite season closers so far.  A ton of issues were resolved in the second half of this season and quite a few more issues were opened up or left hanging in the final episode. 

Last night’s episode gave us the never-quite-mentally-stable-all-season Rick finally coming unhinged with an extremely violent defense of Carl, Michonne, and Daryl when the gang of marauders finally catch up to him looking for revenge.  For those of you who have not seen the episode yet DO NOT READ ANY MORE OF THIS POST!  It contains spoilers!!  I can’t say that I blame Rick for his extreme reaction to what was happening to his friends and, in particular, his son.  I loved how the gunshot and headbutt seemed to jar farmer Rick out of his funk and he turned into raging Rick!

Those poor guys didn’t know what to do when Rick took a bite out of their leader’s neck and spit it to the ground.  It was the reaction of a man who had had enough with being the good guy or the moral thinker trying to bring some type of normalcy to this crazy new world he found himself in.  He ditched the shovel and picked up the knife, so to speak. 

His actions gave Michonne and Daryl the small window they needed to dispatch the rest of the baddies excepting one, Carl’s would-be molester.  I loved how Rick’s face flooded with anger when he said, “He’s mine.”  I honestly can’t say that I wouldn’t have the same reaction that he did to some sleezeball trying to do that to one of my own children.  It was violent, yet well deserved.

After cleaning up a bit, the gang of Rick, Michonne, Carl, and Daryl headed for the too-good-to-be-true land of Terminus.  As expected, they found trouble.  They also found most of their friends (minus Tyreese, Carol, Judith, and Beth), and a few new friends in the form of Abe, Rosita, Tara, and Eugene.  Of course, meeting them by being forced to shack up with them in a railcar isn’t the best thing in the world, but it’s a start.  That start, in true TWD fashion, ended the season and now we have to look at unanswered questions new and old.

1.  Where’s Beth?  Did the group from Terminus kidnap her, or perhaps another group (friend or foe)?  Did she become lunch for Tasha Yar?  I’m guessing we’ll find out later this year.

2.  Are Carol, Tyreese, and Judith already at Terminus or are they even going to end up there?  My guess is that they will eventually show up, and when they do, they will cause a lot of trouble for the Terminus bunch.  I also believe that Carol will be fully forgiven by Rick for her actions at the prison.  Why?  Because I believe that after his throat biting/molester gutting incident, he finally realizes that she was simply doing what she thought had to be done, good or bad. 

3.  How are Rick and company going to break out of that railcar?

4.  Which, if any, of the group will end up as the main course at a Terminus dinner on the ground?

5.  Will Tasha Yar die in this series as well?

6.  Is Morgan going to return?

7.  Finally, and quite possibly most important of all, will Eugene keep that sweet mullet, or will he pull a Shane and shear off those lovely locks?

Thanks for reading, gang.  Feel free to leave any guesses, answers, or theories below.  Did I miss any questions left open after last night?  Be sure to toss them in the comments section as well.

Peace out.

Knights In Satan’s Service?????

Lake Charles, LA

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The following story happened to me quite a few weeks ago, but with all of the hype surrounding KISS’ induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame (long overdue, by the way), old memories were drawn up from the pit of my brain.  So, here it goes…..

I was strolling through a local department store minding my own business when a smiling gentleman in a cowboy hat walked up to me.  I gave him a smile in return and considered our little encounter complete, but he then pointed at my shirt (which had the KISS band logo on it) and asked me, “Do you know what KISS stands for?”  I replied half-questioning, “Keep it simple, stupid?”  “Nope,” he said, “It stands for Knights In….”  I cut him off as politely as possible and finished the phrase for him, “Satan’s Service, right?”  I figured that that was what he was going for, but I mentioned “Keep It Simple, Stupid” hoping that I was wrong.

I wasn’t.

He said that the members of KISS were evil and worked for the devil.  Being a lifelong Christian (and a Roman Catholic convert since 2000) who just so happens to be pretty well versed in both the Bible and KISStory, I simply replied, “Have you ever heard the story of Gene Simmons?”

He seemed a bit taken aback by my response.  I didn’t lash out at him or ridicule him for what he had just asked me, but instead I went into a very brief history of the life, hardships, and charity of The Demon and eventually the good works of KISS in general.  I mentioned how Gene and his bandmates have donated to the Wounded Warrior Project, give free concerts to soldiers overseas, and discount military tickets stateside.  I also mentioned how Gene doesn’t drink or do drugs and outside of his love of the ladies, manages to be a fairly devout Jewish boy.

The man wasn’t ready for that response.  He started to say something else, but I politely cut him off again with a pleasantly stern “No, they aren’t Knights In Satan’s Service.  They’re a rock band,” and walked away.  He stood there for a couple of seconds and then shuffled off.

Once I got back into my car for the ride home, my little encounter with this guy was spinning around in my brain.  I wanted another chance to talk with the guy.  Not about KISS or Satanism, but about judging people based on their clothes.  He obviously assumed that I was an unsaved heathen rocker because I was wearing a KISS shirt, but I am actually a former Southern Baptist/Congregationalist/Pseudo-Evangelical/Catholic convert that has done his homework when it comes to his own faith.  I wanted to tell the guy that I could have made quite a few judgement calls myself.  He was wearing a cowboy hat and boots, so automatically I could assume that he listens to country music.  Also, based on his age, I could assume that he doesn’t listen to bro country or the pop with a fiddle in it that passes for modern country music these days.  Nope, he looked like a hardcore Merle Haggard, Conway Twitty, George Jones, Hank, Jr. kind of fella.

Then I started to think how I could tell him that if he did listen to such music, he’s listening to nothing better than rock n’ roll, since country music deals with drinking, cheating, stealing, and a whole ton of other topics (including murder).

Why do I let such things get to me?  Why didn’t I tear into him like I knew that I could?

If his intention was to somehow save my soul or convert me, he went about it the wrong way.  Telling someone to their face that they are wrong (whether they are wrong or not) is not the way to get them to change their ways.  Ridiculing or (and this rings particularly true for people claiming to be Christian) judging someone and then “calling them out” on this judgement is DEFINITELY NOT the way to convince someone to join your team.

I’m sorry for going off on this tangent, but it really, really bugs me.  I don’t go about pointing out the shortcomings of other people, nor do I correct them if what they believe is wrong in my eyes.  I try to open up a discussion with them.  Not with the intention to convert them, mind you, but to get their perspective.  As long as they respect me, I’ll respect them, even if we disagree.

Again, I’m sorry for blowing off a bit of steam with this post.  I promise I’ll get back to Insanity and my nerd musings soon enough.

Thanks for reading, friends.  Comment below if you’ve had a story similar to this one.  I’d love to hear it.

Progress And Nerd Thoughts For The Day

Lake Charles, LA

I’ve dropped a couple of more pounds since starting my second consecutive round of Insanity.  I’m now at 215 lbs.  I started this wild ride at a whopping 244 lbs.  I’m starting to experiment more with my food choices, as I’m starting to drop my caloric intake more with each pound lost.  I use the Lose It! app to log all of my food intake for the day, and I’m nearing the 2000 calorie mark.  I started with an allowed amount of 2379 calories and now I am down to 2221 calories per day.  I know that doesn’t seem like a lot, but considering the fact that I’m averaging 500 or so calories per meal and trying to thin out my snack choices to just veggies and fruits, I don’t have a lot of “breathing” room snacks.  Consider that one banana can run up to 110 calories, and you run out of calories real quick!

I’ve been eating a lot of Asian food lately.  I find it to be very filling for the calories it contains, and it is so varied that I don’t see myself running out of options any time soon.  I’m also fond of Mexican food, but that’s a big no-no for the most part.  I’ve cut out all fast food with the exception of the oatmeal at McDonald’s in the morning and the occasional sub from Subway.  I’ve also eaten a few of the Smart Choices frozen meals, but I’m really not a fan.

I’d love to hear some of your food choices or any advice you can give me on what to eat.  I’m still losing weight and still watching my intake, but it would be great to have even more options than the ones I’ve already discovered.

On the nerd front, I’ve noticed a lot of people on Facebook complain about spoilers.  I’m a huge The Walking Dead fan and one of my favorite things to do is hop on Facebook and discuss the latest episode with friends who also watch it.  I’m part of a group on Facebook called Southern Geek, and we have one specific post that we place comments on that contains spoilers, opinions on the episodes, musings on what might happen next, and your standard nerd discussions on such topics.  This particular post is specifically for those of us who have seen the episode and there is a nice big spoiler alert warning at the top of the post for people to see.  It has worked quite well so far, but I also like sharing memes that are often related to recent episodes on my personal page.  While I don’t post many of them, I will share one on my wall.  I try to share only vague ones, and I haven’t had any complaints yet, but I have to ask:  When exactly are spoilers allowed on Facebook pages?

I know people who are two or three seasons behind on certain shows.  They will often gripe that people shouldn’t post any spoilers on their wall because they are so far behind.  Guess what?  It has been two or three years since whatever episode someone is talking about occurred!  Is it the fault of a person posting that Shane is dead on The Walkind Dead that you haven’t caught that episode yet?  NO!  What about films that have been out for a year or more?  Is there a statute of limitations on them as well?  If I post that Darth Vader is Luke’s father, is that considered a spoiler since it has been common knowledge for nearly forty years????

My point in all of this is that Facebook and other social media sites are SOCIAL.  People will want to talk about their last vacation, recall memories of high school dances, and maybe even share photos of their family.  They also might mention what happened on the last episode of Doctor Who.  Are they out to intentionally ruin your weekend because you were at work when that particular episode ran?  No.  They are being social.  It’s what people do. 

Granted, I personally try to shy away from posting major spoilers for a few weeks after an episode has aired, but sooner or later myself or one of my other friends will mention what happended to Amy and Rory.  It’s up to the person who did not see the episode (at least in my opinion) to do their best to avoid the spoilers.

Okay, I’m off of my soapbox.  Much love and appreciation for reading my ramblings.  Thanks for reading and have a great day!