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Geek

A New Episode of The Flickcast

Posted on May 1, 2014

Hey, I do a podcast. You probably already know that. But if you don’t, forgot for some reason or are trapped under something heavy with nothing to do but listen to podcasts, I thought it would be a good idea to mention it again.

In fact, a new episode just dropped yesterday. It’s a pretty good one. Actually, I would go so far as to say it’s very good.

So yeah, I do a very good podcast. It’s called The Flickcast and on it my co-host Joe Dilworth and I discuss lots of geeky stuff like movies, TV, comics, tech, gadgets, beer and a whole lot more. Yes, more. Lots of more.

Heaps of it, in fact. I’m not sure you can handle all the more, but you should try. Trust me, it’s worth it. It’s very worth it.

You can find the podcast on iTunes, on Stitcher and at The Flickcast website. Check it out, won’t you? And if you like it, feel free to tell someone and, perhaps, rate or review it.

Thanks. You’re a real sport.

This Supergirl Fan Film Is Worth a Look

Posted on January 16, 2014

It’s become somewhat of a tradition around here. That is to say I like to bring interesting videos I find out there on the Interwebs to your attention. Frequently. Well, as frequently as I can now that I’m also Mr. Mom (more on that in a separate post).

I bring things to your attention, mostly, because I care. I care about you and I care about people doing interesting and cool things. So, if I can bring those elements together, I think the ten minutes or so I spend doing it is time well spent.

This time around the video in question is called Girl of Steel. It’s a Supergirl fan film with a great deal of promise. It’s good, in other words.

Watch it and enjoy.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNaQLxhQTyo?rel=0]

Dragon Park

Posted on October 25, 2013

I love finding this kind of stuff on the Interwebs and seeing people who still care about making things better. This park looks like a fun place to visit. I wish I lived close enough to check it out in person.

The fact that it’s maintained solely through donations is also pretty cool. Here’s some more info from the folks who put together the documentary about “Dragon Park.” And no, we won’t be saying anything about the relative quality of the documentary itself.

That’s not why we’re here today. We’re just gonna let the good will flow instead:

“This is a short documentary on “Castle Park” or “The Dragon Park”, located in Carbondale, Illinois. With a unique fantasy motif, this private park attracts a variety of visitors each weekend and is funded entirely on donations.

The documentary tells the story of the park through the eyes of its patrons and visitors, and explores the reasoning behind the park’s appellation of “Carbondale’s Best Kept Secret”.

Wish I had this kind of place to play when I was a kid.

[vimeo 42254605 w=560 h=315]

Nerdapalooza 2013

Posted on October 11, 2013

Sadly, I’m not going to the Nerdapalooza event in Orlando next week. I would if I could, because it looks like a great time with a lot of bands, and other nerdity, I would enjoy. Plus, hello, I’m a nerd from way back.

But, as many of you know, there’s this new man in my life (his name is Max) who needs lots of attention right now and also a steady supply of clean diapers and nipples. So, no trips for me right now.

However, not being able to go doesn’t stop me from talking about the event or from posting a video about it. It also doesn’t stop me from posting this link to Z’s article at Geek Dad about what to bring to the show if you’re one of the few, the happy few, to be going.

Plus, I like cool events that cater to my people and I like to promote them when I can. I don’t get anything for it other than a warm feeling inside and the satisfaction of knowing I did what I could to help out a worthy event. So there.

Oh, before we get to the video, my pal Joe Dilworth and I managed to crank out a new episode of our podcast this week. I think it’s pretty cool. You might too.

Okay, enough self-promotion, here’s the video.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZBbvjYeOAA]

8-Bit ‘Kick-Ass’

Posted on August 6, 2013

I’m a fan of all-things Kick-Ass. I thought the comic by Mark Millar and John Romita, Jr. was great and the movie, directed by Matthew Vaughn and starring Aaron Johnson, Chole Moritz and Nicholas Cage, captured the spirit of the comic and was a fun ride in and of itself.

Naturally, I’m also interested in the sequel to both the comic and the movie. But before I get all into that (which I will at a later time), there’s this:

Enjoy.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKZgWdBK8-A?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

Happy Birthday Gary Gygax

Posted on July 27, 2013

Gary Gygax, the co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons and the man most closely associated with the boom in popularity of roleplaying games, would have been 75 today. When he died in 2008, I wrote two pieces about his death and my personal connection and experiences with him.

You can read my piece for ComicMix right here. I’m including the one from this site below. He would have been 75 today.

Sad news today. E. Gary Gygax, the man widely considered the “Father of Role-Playing-Games,” has died. He was 69 years old. I already wrote a piece about Gygax and his death over at ComicMix. What I didn’t mention in that piece was that, like ComicMix’s Glen Hauman, I also had a personal connection to the man.

I was fortunate to meet Gary Gygax after some friends of mine and I decided to have a D&D marathon at my house one Summer weekend in the late ’70s. We decided to invite Mr. Gygax to join us by writing him a personal letter. We even enclosed an article from the local paper (the Coast Dispatch in case you’re curious) featuring our upcoming marathon in order to try and entice his participation a bit more.

Sadly, he wasn’t able to attend, but he did write me a personal letter with his regrets and also graciously included several D&D adventure modules, as yet unpublished, for us to use during the game. We used them and had a great time, all the while praising Gygax for being cool enough to not only respond to us, but for caring enough to send us stuff to help make our marathon D&D session a success.

Several years later, I was able to actually meet Gygax in person at GenCon after I had convinced my parents it was a good idea to drive me across country so I could play D&D with a bunch of other kids in Wisconsin. My parents were cool like that and did it not only once, but twice.

When I met him the first time at GenCon we spoke for several minutes and he even remembered me from when I had invited him to our game. He was a great guy to talk to. Over the years I would run into him again at various events and each time he would, somehow, remember me and we would have another very nice conversation. At each and every meeting he was gracious and generous with his time.

The magnitude of Gygax’s influence on gaming and pop culture, both directly and indirectly, isn’t something that can easily be measured. He was extremely popular among those who played his games, of course, but his creations, particularly D&D, also had a profound effect on kids of my and later generations.

D&D helped us learn to think logically, to solve problems, to work as a team and, more importantly, to use our imaginations. As someone who has the privilege of using his imagination on a daily basis and gets paid for it, I , for one, have a debt to Gary Gygax that can never be repaid.

I feel confident there are others out there working away creating the current and next generations of games, comic books, movies and TV shows that feel the same way I do.

Thanks for the help and inspiration Gary. We need more people around like you. You will be missed.

Scooby Doo Walking Dead

Posted on July 25, 2013

More often than not, you come across things on the Internets that are lame and not worth the time it took you to see them and decide they were lame. Things like that are a waste of time and that time is something you will never, ever get back.

But then, once in a while, you find something that is really cool, worth the time and makes you smile. That’s right kids, this is one of those times.

I won’t say too much more about these images, created by the very talented Jeff Zoet, except to say that I wish I’d thought of this. It’s really quite clever and makes perfect sense. Combining Scooby Doo with The Walking Dead (sorta) is a brilliant concept and a is deftly captured in these images.

Jeff has got plenty more great concepts, videos and photos at his website, so be sure and check them all out. Hey, maybe you’ll even hire him to do some work for you? That would be a nice thing to do. And no, before you ask, I don’t know Jeff at all.

I just like what I like.

D&D Players Can Be Ruthless In This Trailer for ‘Zero Charisma’

Posted on July 22, 2013

Long ago, when Dungeons & Dragons was just called D&D and about the time the first edition of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons arrived, I started playing the game. Back then it was a group of like-minded friends who gathered around the ping pong table in my parent’s garage and had adventures.

It was a simpler time and I don’t remember the games ever getting violent, or even very confrontational, except when we were engaged in epic battles for our band of adventurers very survival. In the game, of course.

So when I saw this trailer for the indie film Zero Charisma (a title which works for me on several levels), I had to think if I ever had these kinds of problems as a young D&D player. I was pretty sure I didn’t, but perhaps I was remembering it wrong? Or, was I just lucky that none of the people I played with back then were bona fide sociopaths as, unfortunately, the character of Scott (the terrifically creepy Sam Eidson) seems to be.

I like to think we were all just good friends brought together by our love of role playing games, the desire to use or imaginations and because we liked to have fun. I really hope it wasn’t that other stuff. I don’t like to think that I can’t remember things or that I could have misjudged people’s character so badly back then.

As I still keep in touch with most of the guys I played with “back in the day,” I guess I can just check with them and see if my recollection of events jives with their own. I’m pretty sure it will.

You can call a prison directly, right? I kid, I kid.

Check out this trailer for Zero Charisma and some scenes from the movie. It looks like a lot of fun and I look forward to seeing it when I get a chance.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRRCt0tbQvw?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgbLhDUqAXM?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

LEGO Super Star Destroyer Timelapse

Posted on July 11, 2013

I’ve been into LEGO since before it was cool. Back when the blocks were bigger and they only had a few basic colors. In fact, I still have some of my original sets of blocks. One day I will get them out, take a few pics and post them here. But that’s for another day.

Moving on I’m also, surprise, a big fan of Star Wars. Or, in this particular case, The Empire Strikes Back. I’ll wait while you recover from the shock of that revelation.

So, when these things are combined, as they are in this pretty awesome video, I take notice. What is this video you may ask? Well, it’s a timelapse recording of Jeff Needles, who works at TWiT, assembling a LEGO Super Star Destroyer.

I think it’s pretty cool. Perhaps you will too.

Now to scrounge up an extra $300 to get one for myself.

Picking Up the Pieces and Putting Them Away

Posted on July 2, 2013

As I mentioned previously, we moved. In fact, we did the whole thing last Saturday on what was, up to that point, the hottest day of the year. Not a great day to be hauling boxes and whatnot from one place to another.

In truth, we had movers do the majority of the actual hauling. We just have way too much stuff and, more importantly, H is gestating Project M at the moment so she shouldn’t really be lifting anything. And as we know, I’m extremely lazy (and have a useless back). So, movers.

The movers were mostly okay and managed not to break 99% of our stuff. Sure, a couple things were damaged, but it could have been a lot worse. Most importantly, they got everything in the truck, got it to the new house and put it pretty much where it goes. All for a reasonable fee. I’m calling it a win and moving on.

Although, I did call the moving company to tell them about the few broken items (again, none of them were critical or irreplaceable) just to see what they would say. They haven’t called me back yet. I suspect I will be politely told to suck it up, but we’ll see. I could be surprised.

Now we are in the process of unpacking and putting stuff away. I only hate this part a little less than packing. Although, one highlight for me was finally being able to install my Nest thermostat and get it going. Yes, I did it myself and managed not to be electrocuted.

Plus, starting to set up my office and getting Internet installed were also very good first steps. It’s amazing how much we’ve come to rely on having super speed Internet. You really miss it when you don’t have it for a couple days.

There are many other aspects (good and bad) of moving and home ownership I won’t get into now. Suffice it to say we are slowly getting back to normal.

Or, as normal as we get.

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