Bookshelf:

Keeping off the Streets

Hmm, a week-and-a-half layoff isn't perhaps the best way to kick off the new year, journal-keeping-wise. But y'know, there hasn't been a whole lot to write about recently. And by the time I'd built up enough "little things" to write an entry, I was into my end-of-week busy period (gaming, ultimate, Debbi), and didn't have time to write.

So, anyway, I'm back. Let's play catch-up.

Last weekend, I went to see The Fellowship of the Ring again, with Debbi and her friend Lisa and Michel, none of whom had seen it. This is surely the first time in ten years or more that I've seen a first-run film twice in the theaters, which ought to be as good a recommendation as anything, for those few of you who haven't yet seen it.

I liked it as much this time as the first time, though not, I must admit, any more than that. Like the book, it's not a particularly deep story, but it's an intricate and lush one, and its rewards on repeat viewing are not so much new revelations about the story as a further appreciation for the craft which went into it.

For instance, I realized that one of the things that makes the Hobbits seem endearing and sympathetic was that they mostly wear old-style British clothing, e.g. waistcoats and suspenders. This form of dress seems rather quaint now, which is, of course, the point. I realized at some point that their appearance reminded me very much of the attire of various Doctor Who leads. Whereas Gandalf is endearing in a grandfatherly manner, the Hobbits seem exotic yet familiar at the same time.

The music is also extremely effective and moving, punching up the emotional impact of the scenes as it's meant to do. This was always one of my gripes with, say, Star Trek: The Next Generation, whose music was about as boring, lifeless, and ineffective as music in a TV show or movie can be.

I also spent some time thinking about the acting. I decided that I don't agree with some that Viggo Mortensen's portrayal of Aragorn was weak, although I agree that he was out-acted by Sean Bean as Boromir. I also don't mind that some of the scenes were "over-Hollywooded" (such as crossing the gap in the stairs in Khazad-dum), though I would have appreciated more Gimli/Legolas interplay.

Anyway, it was fun. Again.

Wednesday at gaming we played a new game called Zombies!!!. The idea is that you're in a horror film being chased by zombies, and you have to either destroy 25 of them, or reach the heliport alive. Each turn a player puts a card down on the table to add to the map of the town, and puts some zombies on the map. Buildings provide bullets (which help in killing zombies) and extra lives. If you lose all your lives, then you return to the beginning and lose half the zombies you'd killed.

It's a lively game, probably meant to move faster than us thoughtful gamers took it. I managed to come from behind to win thanks to a combination of special cards played by myself and one of my opponents, which proved just enough to leap to the heliport in one turn. Yay!

Somewhat horrifyingly, Google now has an advanced search feature of the USENET newsgroup archives. I was extremely active on USENET from about 1989 to about 1995, mostly on the talk.abortion and later rec.arts.startrek groups. You can search on my last name in those groups and find many posts of mine, including the many Star Trek reviews I wrote.

Seeing my old posts kind of makes me cringe today, but I had a lot of fun at the time, learned a lot about writing and debating, and made several good friends through the groups, including John, who eventually got me to interview for a position at Apple. USENET has been very, very good to me, as they say. Even though I barely use it anymore, I remember it fondly.

My birthday's coming up on Wednesday, so I've started receiving some gifts from my family. I'm also having a party the following weekend, which is also a housewarming party. It turns out that another journaller in the area (whom I don't know; can't even remember her name) is having a party at the same time, so a few of my friends won't be able to make it. Dang! Well, more food for the rest of us, I guess.

Meanwhile, I received the window blinds I ordered through CostCo, and now have to put them up. I'm borrowing Debbi's electric screwdriver/drill and should have them both up sometime tomorrow. If it all goes smoothly, it will be a big relief! Then I can order the next set of blinds for my other two windows, and look into curtains for my sliding glass doors.

And today Debbi and I went out and looked at futons, as I want to get a full-sized futon to use as a chair and a guest bed in my study. We saw one we both liked, and a couple we were lukewarm about, but I haven't committed to buying anything yet.

And besides that, I've figured out what to do to get my Christmas tree recycled. And I'm trying to figure out why I never received my 1999 Wisconsin tax refund for the amendment I filed in July. And I filed a new W-4 form to adjust my tax withholdings from my paycheck now that I've bought my house.

Hey, it keeps me off the streets.

Well, mostly!