Greetings From 2112

Hello from the future!  I've commandeered this persons web log to communicate with you, the people of the 21st century to assure you that humans do survive past 2012.  After reading some of the history files of your era that whole Mayan calendar thing seemed like a big deal so I just wanted to put your minds to rest.

Let me back up a little.  The Mayans were right, our world did come to an end on December 21st but luckily there was a fleet of alien ships waiting to rescue us.  The Creeedithoscarlats were a race of creatures that were big fans of the television transmissions that we beam into space from Earth, particularly those of a show called "Jersey Shore." They wanted to meet someone named "Snooki" so we really have to be thankful for bad taste.  The Creeds had heard about the possible end of the world through the broadcasts and thought they should come, just in case the predictions came true.  Wow, what are the chances right?

Anyway, here we are on Earth 2.  Yeah, it's not a very creative name but after the war of 2015 over what to call our new home, the Democrats and Republicans compromised on something simple and easy to remember.  Oh, I forgot to tell you, after the move it was decided that our new world would be governed by the U.S. leaders.  The educations system hasn't been the same since.  

2112 will mark 100 years and we're planning a big anniversary celebration this coming December. The first thing our scientists did, thanks to the mandatory DNA storing bill of 2013, were to clone the members of Canadian rock band Rush, so they could perform their album 2112 in it's entirety.  The cloning process isn't exactly perfect and Neil Pert 2 doesn't keep time as well as the original so his android counterpart is standing by, just in case things don't go as planned.

Speaking of androids, Steve Jobs Mark IV will also be appearing at the anniversary.  Of course he'll be at a different location and it won't part of the official celebration.  He's expected to announce the iPhone 104S, rumored to be even smaller than the iPhone 104 but it may also just be a software upgrade since it was just last year that the device became something that is now implanted in a persons brain.  Of course the Apple faithful will get the surgery again but experts believe most new business will come from people switching over from Windows Phone.

So, there you have it, the news from 2112.  I'd better wrap this up before the singularity I'm using to transmit this back through time closes.  One more thing though, Google+ does survive but now it's called Google Infinity.

Happy New Year.   

Life In A Day

I just got done watching the YouTube movie Life In A Day and all I have to say is WOW! Sorry for yelling but I was blown away by this film.

In case you're not familiar with Life in a Day, it's a crowd-sourced documentary film comprising an arranged series of video clips selected from 80,000 clips submitted to the YouTube video sharing website, the clips showing respective occurrences from around the world on a single day, July 24, 2010.

In my opinion this movie should be required viewing for everyone living on this planet.  Not only because it shows how similar we all are but at the same time demonstrates our differences. For example, one segment featured a wife separated from her husband, who is serving in Afghanistan and at the same time in Kabul a young Afghani photographer gives a tour of his city to show how hopeful he is for the country's future.

The film was put together in chronological order and showed the daily life of people from all across the globe, performing all the same tasks you and I do on a daily basis.

Life In A Day was beautiful and gross at the same time, from the father and child waking up somewhere in Asia and saying good morning then lighting incense for the mother and wife they had lost.  To the killing in the slaughter house of a cow in a scene that seemed to last forever.

It was also both sad and uplifting, from the little boy earning his living shining shoes on a Saturday, to the montage of births, both human and animal.

I believe that if everybody saw this documentary, there would be a little less war and a tad bit more peace in the world.  

Go ahead and watch Life In A Day now below.

The Undead Diary

Let's create a brand new zombie story for the Halloween season this year. I'll start it and the best comment will determine the way it continues. 

It was the one thing that Al Gore never mentioned in his climate change movie; I guess because he didn't know. Hell, none of us knew that it was lying in wait. 

In the year 2026, as the world's temperature rose and the ice caps melted, something buried long ago, deep beneath all that ice was exposed again. Some scientists believe it's actually what killed off the dinosaurs but that's a debate for another time. This contagion, which was locked in a frozen prison for millions of years, was now free to be picked up by the wind and carried to all corners of the globe. 

The disease was first presented as some form of exotic flu, with rather typical symptoms, cough, fever, etc, until it's final stage. By that time the patient, who all along had no hunger or thirst now exhibited an appetite for human flesh. The nurse, who was changing exhibit A's iv was the first victim of human to human transmission of the virus; as far as we knew. After that first bite, the disease spread rather rapidly. The only people who seemed immune from this contagion were...

How do you think this story should continue?

10 Myths About Introverts

I'd very much consider myself an introvert and to know me and others like me read the following.

10 Myths about introverts

Myth #1 – Introverts don’t like to talk.

This is not true. Introverts just don’t talk unless they have something to say. They hate small talk. Get an introvert talking about something they are interested in, and they won’t shut up for days.

Myth #2 – Introverts are shy.

Shyness has nothing to do with being an Introvert. Introverts are not necessarily afraid of people. What they need is a reason to interact. They don’t interact for the sake of interacting. If you want to talk to an Introvert, just start talking. Don’t worry about being polite.

Myth #3 – Introverts are rude.

Introverts often don’t see a reason for beating around the bush with social pleasantries. They want everyone to just be real and honest. Unfortunately, this is not acceptable in most settings, so Introverts can feel a lot of pressure to fit in, which they find exhausting.

Myth #4 – Introverts don’t like people.

On the contrary, Introverts intensely value the few friends they have. They can count their close friends on one hand. If you are lucky enough for an introvert to consider you a friend, you probably have a loyal ally for life. Once you have earned their respect as being a person of substance, you’re in.

Myth #5 – Introverts don’t like to go out in public.

Nonsense. Introverts just don’t like to go out in public FOR AS LONG. They also like to avoid the complications that are involved in public activities. They take in data and experiences very quickly, and as a result, don’t need to be there for long to “get it.” They’re ready to go home, recharge, and process it all. In fact, recharging is absolutely crucial for Introverts.

Myth #6 – Introverts always want to be alone.

Introverts are perfectly comfortable with their own thoughts. They think a lot. They daydream. They like to have problems to work on, puzzles to solve. But they can also get incredibly lonely if they don’t have anyone to share their discoveries with. They crave an authentic and sincere connection with ONE PERSON at a time.

Myth #7 – Introverts are weird.

Introverts are often individualists. They don’t follow the crowd. They’d prefer to be valued for their novel ways of living. They think for themselves and because of that, they often challenge the norm. They don’t make most decisions based on what is popular or trendy.

Myth #8 – Introverts are aloof nerds.

Introverts are people who primarily look inward, paying close attention to their thoughts and emotions. It’s not that they are incapable of paying attention to what is going on around them, it’s just that their inner world is much more stimulating and rewarding to them.

Myth #9 – Introverts don’t know how to relax and have fun. 

Introverts typically relax at home or in nature, not in busy public places. Introverts are not thrill seekers and adrenaline junkies. If there is too much talking and noise going on, they shut down. Their brains are too sensitive to the neurotransmitter called Dopamine. Introverts and Extroverts have different dominant neuro-pathways. Just look it up.

Myth #10 – Introverts can fix themselves and become Extroverts. 

A world without Introverts would be a world with few scientists, musicians, artists, poets, filmmakers, doctors, mathematicians, writers, and philosophers. That being said, there are still plenty of techniques an Extrovert can learn in order to interact with Introverts. (Yes, I reversed these two terms on purpose to show you how biased our society is.) Introverts cannot “fix themselves” and deserve respect for their natural temperament and contributions to the human race. In fact, one study (Silverman, 1986) showed that the percentage of Introverts increases with IQ.

Note - I did not write this but couldn't find the original author or source but whoever it was, thank you!

Restroom Wall Poetry

Here's the kind of stuff you get on the walls of trendy coffee shop restroom walls.

This was at Mapps Coffee, 1808 Riverside in Minneapolis.

My Fall TV Picks

Wow does time fly or what?  The fall TV season is already here!  I've gone through the schedule of new shows and picked the ones I'm looking forward to.  By no means is this any kind of prediction for which ones are going to last or a review blog.  It's just the series premieres that I'm looking forward to.  


Free Agents


Premieres September 14th at 10:30/9:30 p.m. CT and will air Wednesday nights at 8:30/7:30 CT on NBC starting September 21st. 

Based on the British comedy series of the same name, it follows the lives of two public relations executives, a recently divorced guy and a woman trying to move on after the death of her fiancee, who discover that they seem to have an attraction for each other, even after having slept together during a drunk-filled one night stand, while at the same time trying to stay professional at work, where their friends will do anything to get them to re-enter the dating scene.


New Girl


Premieres September 20th and will air Tuesday nights on Fox at 9/8 central.

The show will star Zooey Deschanel as Jessica "Jess" Day, a well-liked, bubbly, and adorable woman in her late 20s who is trying to get over her surprise breakup with her model boyfriend. She eventually finds a new place to stay when she moves in with three single guys, who try to help her learn about love, life and herself, while at the same time learn a lot about themselves.


Person Of Interest


Premieres September 22nd and will air Thursday nights on CBS at 9/8 central.

Based on a screenplay by J.J. Abrams and Jonathan Nolan the show, which stars Michael Emerson, Jim Caviezel and Taraji P. Henson follows a mysterious billionaire who has developed a computer program that predicts the identity of a person connected to a violent crime that will take place some time in the future. However, the program has its limitations: for example, it cannot predict whether the person will be a victim, perpetrator, or witness, nor can it predict when or where the crime will take place. 


Pan Am


Premieres September 25th and will air Sunday nights on ABC at 10/9 central.

Is centered around the iconic airline Pan American World Airways during the 1960s. The period drama, from writer Jack Orman (ER) and director Thomas Schlamme (The West Wing), will focus on the pilots and flight attendants working for the world-famous airline in 1963.


Terra Nova


Premieres September 26th and will air Monday nights on Fox at 8/7 central.

The show begins in the year 2149, a time when all life on planet Earth is threatened with extinction. In an effort to save the human race, scientists develop a time machine allowing people to travel 85 million years back in time to prehistoric Earth. The Shannon family join the tenth pilgrimage of settlers to Terra Nova, the first human colony on the other side of the temporal doorway. However, they are unaware that it's in the middle of a group of carnivorous dinosaurs.


Grimm


Premieres October 21st and will air Friday nights on NBC at 9/8 central.

Set in present-day Portland, Oregon, the series puts a new twist on the stories of the Brothers Grimm in which a homicide detective learns that he is a descendent of a group of hunters known as "Grimms", who fight to keep humanity safe from the supernatural creatures of the world. Upon learning of his destiny and that he is the last of his kind, he has to protect every living soul from the sinister storybook characters that have infiltrated the real world.


Once Upon A Time


Premieres October 23rd and will air Sunday nights on ABC at 8/7 central.

The series is loosely inspired by the classic fairy tale stories except set in the present day. The stories hold a key to the mystery that will draw a bail bonds collector and the son that she gave up for adoption 10 years earlier to a New England town called Storybrooke, Maine. This town is actually a parallel world in which fairy tale characters look like normal people and don't remember their true identities or anything about their true lives.

My 80's New Wave Mix Tape

I grew up in the 80's and lived through the New Wave era.  Recently I've gotten nostalgic for that time and as a result is the list below.

It's an 80's mix tape that I'm going to work on putting together.  Obviously it's not actually going to be on tape but I plan on putting these together in an iTunes playlist.  If you can think of anymore that I should add, feel free to leave your suggestion in the comment area.

So, in no particular order...

Everybody Have Fun Tonight - Wang Chung

West End Girls - Pet Shop Boys

Saved By Zero - The Fixx

Head Over Heels ~ Tears For Fears

Come On Eileen ~~ Dexy's Midnight Runners

Safety Dance ~~ Men Without Hats

Pop Musik ~~ M

99 Red Balloons ~~ Nena

Tainted Love ~~ Soft Cell

Don't You Want Me ~~ The Human League

Always Something There To Remind Me ~~ Naked Eyes

In a Big Country - Big Country

Perfect Way ~~ Scritti Politti

Love Plus One ~~ Haircut 100

Alive & Kicking ~~ Simple Minds

The Look Of Love ~~ ABC

Desire (Come And Get It) ~~ Gene Loves Jezebel

Just Like Heaven ~~ The Cure

I Melt With You ~~ Modern English

Tenderness ~~ General Public

I Ran (So Far Away) ~~ A Flock of Seagulls

Dance Hall Days ~~ Wang Chung

Enjoy The Silence ~~ Depeche Mode

Obsession ~~ Animotion

Poison Arrow ~~ ABC

Friday I'm in Love ~~ The Cure

True ~ Spandau Ballet

Let’s Go ~ Wang Chung

Don’t You (Forget About Me) ~ Simple Minds

What Have I Done To Deserve This ~ Pet Shot Boys

Our House ~ Madness

C’mon Eileen ~ Dexys Midnight Runners

Der Kommissar ~ After The Fire

Sunglasses At Night ~ Corey Hart

Rock Me Amadeus ~ Falco

One Thing Leads To Another ~ The Fixx

What About Me ~ Moving Pictures

If You Leave ~ OMD

Dancing in Heaven (Orbital Be-Bop) ~ Q-Feel

Shout ~ Tears For Fears

To Live And Die In L.A. ~ Wang Chung

The Great M&M Debate

I recently had a discussion with my sister about which variety of M&M was better.  Each of us agreed dark chocolate was best, but after that is where we parted ways.  Patty is more in the peanut camp where I lean plain in my liking.

This got me thinking: how many more iterations of the Mars candy treat were there and how would I rate them.  Here's my list.

• Almond - Last resort.
• Peanut Butter - Gotta be in the right mood.
• Pretzel - Too new to tell.  Have only had them once.
• Coconut - Never!!
• Crispy - Discontinued.

There's also been wild cherry and mint crisp but those were limited edition so they kind of don't count.

By the way, an 11.08 oz bag of Wild Cherry M&M's will run you about $15.00 American on Amazon right now.

I then thought, what other types of M&M's could be made.

How about fudge or caramel? Maybe Macadamia nuts or cashews?  Although, with the later of those last two the candy wouldn't retain it's traditional shape.

So, what about you?  Which flavors or ingredients would you like to see put into an M&M? 

This Week's Re-Mixes

Something got into me this week because I did two different Internet remixes.

First, I'm a big fan of the Twit.tv network and in particular their love of wearing fezes so I put together a video, combining footage from their various netcasts with the song "Doin' The Twit" and a sound bite from Doctor Who.  Check it out below!

Next, I found this picture of a little kid with his fist in the air and it reminded me of another photo so I combined the two.

Please tell me what you think by leaving a comment below.

A Geek Or Not A Geek?

A geek, or not a geek; that is the question!  Well, maybe for most people it's not but it's something I've been wondering lately.  What makes a geek?

Well, here's a test.  You might be a geek if anything in the song below struck a chord.

Oh, that didn't help?  Okay, let's continue the anatomy of a geek then.

I asked on Google Plus the other day "When did you realize you were a geek and why?"  Frank Garufi Jr answered with; When most of my short term goals revolved around something tech. And pretty much every piece of tech was going to help me accomplish my long term goals!  (Something I would've said.)


Meanwhile Stephanie Winans responded with  I just realized I'm a geek at dinner tonight... I made a new recipe I found online. My first thought after that initial delicious bite was "man, this is great... I'm gonna like it on Facebook".


Which of those two do you think is the geek?  Frank is because he's obsessed with technology, something that still isn't that mainstream.  Sure, everybody pretty much uses tech in some form but it sounds like he lives and breathes it, which the average human usually doesn't do.  

See, in my opinion the definition of a geek is someone who is obsessed with something that usually isn't socially acceptable, or "normal."  When someone says "Oh, I'm such a scrap-booking geek" or "Man, I really geek out over baseball," they aren't really being geeks.


For me it's science fiction and knew I was a geek the first time sitting down to watch Star Trek re-runs on a Sunday afternoon back in the 70's.  On one arm I have a tattoo of the symbol for the Klingon Empire and on the other the emblem for the Battlestar Galactica.     

Lately geeks have started to become more "chic" but don't let that fool you, we'll always be socially awkward, another geek trait.  


Now, about those nerds!

Story 2/Chapter 3 – Back In "The Cave"

Whew, made it back to “The Cave!” That’s the little nickname my friend Lyn came up with for the apartment I live in; because it’s where I’m the most comfortable and feel safest. If you were to study me, like an animal, my behavior might remind you of a bear in hibernation. As long as the kitchen and refrigerator were well stocked, I could go days without venturing into the outside world. It’s a very calm place to be! My cat Destiny also lives here with me.

Anyway, while still lost in thought and confusion about this supposed double of mine and just the freakiness of the whole thing, a beeping noise brought me back to reality. It was an iPhone notification saying I had an un-read email message waiting.

The message was from my friend Markus: a reminder about his daughter’s high school graduation and the fact that he wanted me to shoot video at the ceremony, to then edit it down to something he can post on You Tube. For the love of Pete, can’t people do these things for themselves? I mean, it’s not that hard! Between you and me I’m thinking about making up some excuse that I can’t be there. You see, there’s a science fiction convention happening the same night and would much rather check that out!

I still can’t believe my friend from high school has a kid graduating from the same place we came out of! So, what the hell happened to me? Divorce, that’s what: and wasting the best years of my life on…nothing!! It’s moments like these that I always go back to what could’ve been, and Son Hui, my first love, and the woman I almost married. That’s when I did it again; put her name into Google to see what would come up. This was a regular exercise with me; that seemed to be happening more and more these days.

As yet one more fruitless search continued, another email notification popped on the screen. Oh man, he doesn’t give up does he; thinking it was Markus messaging me again. It wasn’t, but instead something from an address that wasn’t in my contacts or didn’t look familiar in the least.

Here's the screen capture.

Story 2/Chapter 1 – First Trip

I hate waking up hungry, because it usually means there’s absolutely no food in my kitchen and I’m going to have to go to the store right away, which I did on this particular morning. First thing; clothes. Damn; got to remind myself to get to the Laundromat, soon!

Stepping out of the door the light seemed more intense, and kind of fuzzy, like it used to look on hangover mornings back in my drinking days. I got in the car and let my instincts take over. It’s kind of like turning on the auto pilot now, with how many times I’ve been that same Kwik Trip 15 blocks away. My 2005 Hyundai Accent just takes me there and before I knew it we were pulling into the parking lot and struggling to find an empty space, like is always the case.

Knowing exactly what I wanted my body walked right to the cake droughts and chocolate milk. I scanned the shelves anyway, just in case there was something else there that peaked my interest. There wasn’t so I proceeded directly to the checkout line. Thank God there was no one else waiting so the food was paid for in record time and was quickly out the door and on my way home again.

I cracked open the 4 for a dollar pastries and sipped on the milk which made me a little more aware of my surroundings during the return trip. It was a Sunday morning so there weren’t a lot of people out on the streets or sidewalks which made it easy for me to spot him.

The G in Google Stands For Getting To Know Your Neighbors

By now I'm sure you've heard about Google Plus; in fact you have have signed up and are enjoying the world's newest social network, but did you know it's also a great way to get to know your neighbor too?  No, really!

Above is a screen grab of the Safari version of G+ from my iPhone.  As of when this is being written the iOs app is still awaiting Apple's approval but the mobile web version is pretty damned good and as you can see I circled the word "Nearby." When you click on that it takes you to status updates and things people have shared publicly from YOUR AREA.  (If you want to be part of that though make sure to grant Google permission to use your location data.)

To bring this discussion back around again to my original point; say you're new to a city and don't know any of your neighbors.  You go to the "nearby" stream on Google + read a post from someone that's perhaps in your neighborhood, you add them to one of your circles, the two of you become friends and voilà, the social network becomes even more social!

I don't know if the Google folks were thinking of that use case when they thought up the "nearby" feature but if sure seems like a great way to get to know some people you may have never had the chance to meet.

You can find me on Google + at THIS link or on Twitter HERE

Google Plus Twitter Divided By Facebook Equals Better

So, who's using Google Plus by now?  If you answered me, then you're among the 10 Million people who have signed up since the service launched just a mere two weeks ago.  At the rate it's going, and if those numbers stay consistent G+ could be a "Facebook Killer" after all.

But hold on, why should the world's newest social network kill anything?  In the mortal words of Rodney King, "Can't we all just get along?"  And there's no reason why Twitter, Google Plus and Facebook can't.  I know it would be convenient to have one social network to rule them all but there isn't a one that's perfect.

I've found different use cases for each.  Facebook is where my family and friends are.  Twitter is more of a news feed and G+ is really good for conversation.  Social Media and Tech star Robert Scoble did an experiment tonight and found the maximum number of comments per-post on Google Plus is 500.  

Talk about dialog! 

We also can't forget competition breeds innovation.  With the launch of Google + came the introduction of the "hang out," where up to you and 9 friends can video conference all at the same time.  What did Facebook roll out a week later?  Their own video chat service, which is the result of a partnership with Skype.  Granted it's something FB had already been working on but it's a good guess that Mark Zuckerberg and company put the project on the fast track and got it out earlier than they wanted to once they found out what Google was doing.  

Just watch and you'll be able to see the cat and mouse game heat up in the months and years to come.

I'm hoping none of the 3 social networks get killed because with each comes more choice and more innovation.  

Let me know what you think by leaving a comment.

Wausau City Summer Scenes

Here's some pictures I took over the July 4th Weekend in Wausau, WI.

Bench and Fountain at City Hall

Fountain at City Hall

Below are photos of the 400 Block City Square

Super 8 - My Take

Okay, this is my no means a review of the new JJ Abrams film Super 8; just consider these some casual observations.  There won't be any major spoilers in this blog post either so if you haven't seen the movie yet, don't worry, you can keep reading.

First of all, I loved this movie, for many, many reasons but most of all for the fact that it took me back to that era; not only to films that came out around 1979 but to that time period itself.  I remember playing the handheld electronic football game they showed in the film.  I remember the cassette Walkman and other technology that was featured in Super 8 too.

It wasn't just the gadgets that took me back to the late 70's/early 80's either; but also because of the way the characters lived.  For example, how those kids in Super 8 wandered around their neighborhood and beyond without a care in the world and that their parents didn't seem to worry too much either.  That's how things were done back then; we grabbed our walkie talkies and headed out into the great unknown, a.k.a. "the weeds" and spent the day exploring, not sitting in front of the computer or a video game system.

The soundtrack to Super 8 helped take the viewer back to that era as well with songs from The Knack, ELO, the Cars and many more.  By the way, if you want to find out which songs played when, here's the link to a really informational blog about it.

Finally, after watching the film I looked up director JJ Abrams on Wikipedia and found how that he was born in 1966, a year before I was so this movie was probably a way of paying tribute to his childhood.

If you grew up in the late 70's/early 80's and want to re-live that era then you definitely must watch this film!

Oh, and for the Lost fans, there are plenty of "Easter Eggs" to look for as well.

No, Duh!

According to a recent article at Poynter.org the New York Times decided to turn the auto pilot off of their main Twitter feed, for a week and put actual people in charge of Tweeting!

Social media editors Liz Heron and Lexi Mainland were taking turns running the@nytimes account during weekday business hours, writing Twitter updates and engaging with readers.  


Engaging with readers!  Wow, what a novel concept!!  Actually it's quite the change from how they usually do it, which has traditionally been a combination of automated headline-and-a-link feed of homepage stories with occasional contributions from staff. That approach has created a bad perception: “that it’s mostly an RSS feed of auto headlines,” Heron said.


Well, I say it's about time that an entity such as the New York Times "gets it."  Social Media is just that, designed to be SOCIAL and the point is to be a person interacting with other people, a.k.a. your followers.


The Poynter.org article went on to say that the @WSJ account has been run by people since January 2010, and that the metrics went up considerably and almost immediately after switching from automated to personal.


To that I say No, Duh!!


The truth is the New York Times has wanted to do this for a while but hasn't had the staff in place.  From the looks of it though, the experiment is over but hopefully they'll look at the metrics and decide that a human behind all of those tweets is the best way to go, all the time.  But don't you think that's something they should have figured out a long time ago?


Read more here


Dave.

Rules To Live By - Part 1

I've never had a personal set of rules to live by but as I grow older I'm beginning to think I should so, here's my first attempt.  Feel free to use these as your own, if you dare.

1)  Have a backup plan.

I thought of this one at of all places, the video store a few days ago when realizing that they might not have the movie I was looking for.  They didn't and I left empty handed.

2)  Change course in Mid-Stream

It's okay to admit your plan was the wrong one and start from scratch.  Even better, ask for help in coming up with a new one!

3)  Don't Take Yourself Too Seriously

Go ahead, laugh at your mistakes; it will show that you're human. (I've actually struggled with this my whole life.)

That's it for now but come back for part 2, coming soon. 

Wausau Urban Images

Here's some pictures I took around Wausau.

Railroad Bridge Looking West

Whitewater Rapids Course

Wisconsin River and Downtown Wausau

Downtown Shops

400 Block

The 2011 Rapture Day Film Festival

Since the heavily hyped rapture ended up not happening today (Saturday, May 21st, 2011,) I decided to at least pretend like it did by watching a bunch of post-apocalyptic movies.

The only rules I set out for this are...

#1 -  The film would would have to be one that I would want to see in the first place.

#2 - They would have to be available on Netflix streaming, and up until yesterday there was actually a category for this genre of movie.

Here's what I'll be viewing.

Carriers a 2009 film about four people fleeing a viral pandemic starring Star Trek's Chris Pine.  

2012 This 2009 movie about a global cataclysm that brings an end to the world and tells of the heroic struggle of it's survivors stars John Cusack and is directed by the king of disaster films, Roland Emmerich.

Legion When God loses faith in humankind, he sends his legion of angels to bring on the Apocalypse. Humanity's only hope lies in a group of strangers trapped in a desert diner with the Archangel Michael.

Mad Max This 1979 film, which made Mel Gibson a star, is about a dystopic future Australia where a vicious biker gang murders a cop's family and makes his fight with them personal.

Water World Kevin Costner stars in this 1995 movie about a future where the polar ice caps have melted and most of Earth is underwater.

So, there you have it, my list of post-apocalyptic films.  Maybe you'll celebrate judgement day by watching them as I will.

Personal Electronics Then and Now

I don't know what my problem is lately but more and more of these blog posts are ending up being strolls down memory lane; and this one is no exception.

The above picture is of the first piece of personal electronics that I ever owned.  It's a Mura Hi Stepper AM/FM radio.   To put some perspective on it, this unit is about 3 times the size of an iPhone and all it did was play the radio.  This became available around the same time as the Sony Walkman did in the early 80's but if my memory serves I didn't have very much money to spend.  And, anyway, all I needed was the radio.

I remember seeing it in a newspaper ad convincing my father to take me to pick it up at some weekend warehouse sale south of the Twin Cities.  Hearing Stevie Nicks "Edge of Seventeen" for the first time on the Mura Hi Stepper convinced me it was a good buy.

Later on when I got my first job washing dishes at Bridgeman's restaurant I purchase the below speaker unit which had an area in the center where you put your radio and plugged it into the speakers, kind of like a poor man's boom box.

I know that these days our smartphones and tablet computers can do so much more in a lot smaller packages but it's still nice to think back to simpler times when all we need was a device that did one thing.

My Short Photo Walk

Here's some pictures I took while on a walk along the Wisconsin River in Wausau tonight.

River bank

Walking path

Bridge over the River Wisconsin

New Shoes

This has became somewhat of a tradition with me, taking a picture of new pairs of shoes I buy.

They're blue Airspeed's from Walmart and cost me $18.

Re-Living My Childhood

During my childhood I was a big fan of the original Battlestar Galactica.  So much so that I ended up building my own Viper Fighter, which were the small ships those humans fleeing from the Cylon tyranny used to defend themselves.

The above is a picture of me circa 1979 wearing a helmet made from a plastic ice cream bucket and masking tape sitting in the pilots seat ready to be shot out of Galactica's launch tubes.

What if that pretend ship of mine had never been dismantled but instead was sitting in a garage someplace?  And, what if, as an adult I were to get back in it, then through some sort of magic, the Viper turned real and I was able to fly off into space to fight along Starbuck and Apolo?      

Well, that's the premise I hope to explore in the next blog story I'm going to write.  Maybe from there the fictitious version of me could land on the moon and serve alongside the characters from Space: 1999 then board the Starship Enterprise. Obviously exact names would change to avoid copyright infringement.

But first, this one needs to be finished http://ablogaboutstuff.com.