Tech Week

Quote of the Decade

"[The]scales of American history have shifted heavily against the vibrant and varied intellectual life so essential to functioning democracy. During the past four decades, America's endemic anti-intellectual tendencies have been grievously exacerbated by a new species of semiconscious anti-rationalism, feeding on and fed by an ignorant popular culture of video images and unremitting noise that leaves no room for contemplation or logic."
Susan Jacoby The Age of American Unreason

Blech!

To be perfectly honest, I'm surprised it took me this long to get sick. It seems everyone around me for the past couple of months has had some kind of plague. The COA has been coughing for quite some time now. Mrs. Marius had an ear infection last week. Many of my students have missed class due to illness, and at least some of them weren't simply hungover. And then, in Texas, I was surrounded by hundreds of sniffling, coughing, wheezing, and sneezing teenagers. So it really is no wonder that the crud finally nailed me. But it couldn't have picked a worse time. I have a metric-shitload of work to do to get the next show ready for tech next week. I wanted to go in today, despite feeling like 10 pounds of doo-doo in a five pound bag, but the drive to drop the young'n off at school, which is about a two mile round trip, left me feeling woozy. So it seemed prudent to lose one day today, and hopefully get better enough to push hard all the rest of the week. So that's where I am. At home. Just me, the kitties, and a bunch of unruly, unwelcome microbes. NyQuil take me away!

Blech.

By the way, whenever I'm doing dishes, and I notice things like how epoxy-like dried egg is, or how efficiently spaghetti sauce will plug up the mesh drain screens we have, I often wonder if that information would have helped the castaways on Gilligan's Island. Am I the only one?

I was afraid of that.

I'm going to lie down now...yes, I think that would be for the best.

Marius the Icky

Information Overload

Hi, Honey, I'm home! By the left meatball of the Flying Spaghetti Monster what a long, strange trip it was. Sorry for not posting more from Houston, but between trying to keep my cranium from a cataclysmic rupture, and dealing with the hotel's 'high speed internet' connection that made me long for the good old days of dial-up, it was an exhausting time. Tuesday's class, which lasted from 9am-5pm, contained many more relevant issues, but it was still a lot of information to assimilate in such a brief time. On the one hand I was pleased to see that I know quite a bit about safety, but on the other hand I was appalled to see just how many OSHA regulations we in the theatre tend to violate on a daily basis. Once the current show is finished I have a lot of work to do. Unfortunately my hotel was a $15 cab ride from the convention center, and the only places to eat within walking distance were a MacDonald's, a scary looking greasy spoon/bar, and a Denny's, so Tuesday night I was reminded of a joke I heard once. Complaining about the food from Denny's is like sleeping with a hooker and then complaining that you didn't feel loved. But, full if not necessarily satisfied, I crashed early.
Wednesday was when the actual convention began. My first class began at 9am, and I didn't get a break until 1ish. Most of the classes I chose were about safety and Hazcom procedures(meaning how to properly deal with, and disseminate information about hazardous materials). Again it was a mountain of information, but at least the instructors were actual theatre people and were able to help us navigate the numerous sources of health and safety data. Each class was 90 minutes long, so we were able to get rather in-depth about stuff. After I had lunch at the food court of a nearby mall I was back in classes til 9:30pm. There was a reception for the convention goers after that, but after I saw that a beer was $6, and a glass of wine was $7.50 I decided to take my tired brain back to the hotel and get a six-pack for the price of one beer.
Thursday saw the opening of the show room. Vendors of all things theatrical were set up in an enormous ball room hawking everything from moving lights to portable scenery. The room was awash in spinning logos, hissing fog machines, and audio displays. And the SWAG...oh the SWAG. Everyone was giving away all kinds of trinkets and toys. Glow-in-the-dark Frisbees, yo-yo's, lanyards, and catalogues by the ton were there for the taking. It was like trick-or-treating for grown-ups. Keep in mind that going back to the hotel to drop off any of my booty was not an option, and by lunch time I was carrying around at least fifty pounds of junk. As I sat down to eat my smothered burrito from the convention center snack bar, my gimme-that mindset cooled, and I culled the herd a bit. I got rid of several catalogues that were already sitting on my desk back home, and freed myself of a good ten pounds of gak. There were a few classes to take on Thursday, some were good, some were so basic that I left after ten minutes or so, then it was back to the vendors. There were a lot of things that we actually need, so I got business cards and literature, and many things we'd never use. I ran into a few old friends, and cruised the floor one more time just in case I'd missed anything cool or important. Then, around 6 or so, I went back to begin the arduous task of fitting all this crap into my luggage.
Back at the hotel, after dining on a Denny's breakfast(the one meal they do right any time of day), I threw away another fifteen pounds of redundant catalogage, and crammed everything into my two carry-on's. The shuttle was to pick me up at 4:30 the next morning, so I tried to get to sleep early. I set the alarm on my phone for 3am, and crashed. Unfortunately, while I had reset my watch for Central time, I never had reset my phone, so the alarm went off at 2. I tried to go back to sleep, but it was no use. I drank coffee, watched CNN, and did a bit of low-speed intertube surfing. Finally it was time to go home.
The return trip was uneventful, and thanks to the power of Xanax completely stress-free. The worst part of it was that I got into Tampa three hours before Mrs. Marius, who is a TSA screener, got off work, but I read, and rode the monorail around the airport a few times, and once she was done we went home. But first we had to stop by Wally World to buy a new pillow for me. I learned long ago that if I want to get any sleep when I am away from home, I need to bring my own pillow. Which I did this time. But when it came time to try to get everything back into my luggage, something had to go. Fortunately I had been planning to replace that pillow anyway, so it was not that big a deal to jettison it.
And there you have it. If any of you are still awake, thanks for lasting this long. It was a fun, educational, and exhausting trip, and I hope I get to go again next year in Cincinatti.

Ciao, y'all,
Marius

Close the Pod Bay Doors, HAL.

The first book I ever read by Arthur C. Clarke was 2001. I couldn't have been more than 14, and much of it eluded me. Years later I read Childhood's End, and mostly enjoyed it, mostly. Then I read Rendezvous with Rama, and I was hooked. Clarke's magnificent way with making the fantastical totally plausible and real, while pushing the boundaries of both knowledge and the imagination made even the most mundane of stories fascinating. In Rama an alien spaceship streaks through our solar system, and despite our best efforts to investigate it's interior, it remains totally indifferent to our invasion. It sounds boring, but it is anything but. Alas, such tales will be no more. At the age of 90 Arthur C. Clarke died in his home in Sri Lanka. I am saddened not only because yet another great voice is now silenced, but I had also secretly held out the hope that someday I could meet him and thank him for all the hours of joy and wonder he had given me. Perhaps he knows now.

Adieu, Sir Arthur, and thanks.

Marius

Lonestar, We Meet At Last

Howdy from Texas! As you can see I am alive and kicking. The fight was relatively stress free, thanks to the magic of Xanax and noise-cancelling headphones. Take off was smooth as glass, and though landing was quite the experience due to some serious cross-winds, by then I was pretty relaxed and didn't mind so much. I got to my hotel without incident, and after some abortive attempts to utilize the Metro bus system to get to the convention center as cheaply as possible, I finally gave up and called a cab. The George R. Brown(everything here seems to be named after a George) convention center is ginormous, and it took me a little while to find where my class was meeting, but I got there with time to spare. The actual convention doesn't start until Wednesday, but this Professional Development Workshop took up three hours yesterday and lasts all day today. It's about health and safety concerns in a theatre/educational environment, and so far it's been more educational for the people putting it on than it has been for us. That's ok, though, because one of my biggest problems throughout my career has been wading through the oceans of regulations and codes that don't apply to theatrical situations trying to find what does. These people know the codes, and are seeing that much of what they are teaching us doesn't really help, and our questions are helping them chart a path for the future of the course. So while it may be a bit tedious learning how to dispose of a ton of hazardous waste, we are helping to trim the data down to what we actually need.
After the class was over I was starving. So I came back to the hotel, and ordered a pizza. I devoted the rest of the evening to sloth and gluttony while doing nothing more strenuous than lifting the TV remote. And now I prepare for yet another foray into the world of things you shouldn't put in your mouth.

C-Ya!!
Marius

Paranoid

Ok, so call me stupid, call me paranoid, but I am afraid. Sometime in the last 15 years or so I developed a fear of flying. Take off is the worst, but landing isn't too much better. When I was younger I loved to fly. The thrust of the engines as we took off was a rush. But then again, I also used to like carnival rides. Today, with the reality of death, real death, not so distant as it once was staring at me from its fathomless cowl I'm not so eager to hasten my shuffle off this mortal coil. So I am now quite drunk. Thank the Flying Spaghetti Monster for spell check or this post would be completely illegible. Anyway, I have a bottle of Xanax prepped for tomorrow's journey, and the tiny little rational part of my brain, the part that knows that the odds of my particular plane eating it are astronomical, tells me not to worry, but many times today I found myself wondering if this would be the last time I got to do this,that, and the other thing. Stupid? Yes. Oh well. Anyway, just in case we find out just how far underground a plane can go tomorrow, let me thank you all for coming by The Corner. I love you all, motherfuckers.(I told you I was drunk.) ;-)

Smoke me a kipper, I'll be home for breakfast!!
Ace Marius

One for the Road

The year:1981
The place: The Cross County Mall movie theatre
The movie: Black and Blue

Rico convinced me that I needed to see this film. It was concert footage from Black Sabbath and Blue Oyster Cult spliced together into a kick-ass movie. I had never seen anything like it, and before seeing this the closest I came to liking heavy music was the occasional KISS album. Black and Blue literally rocked my world and I've been a fan of both bands ever since. A couple of years ago I found a DVD of the movie on Ebay. It's from Brazil, so it has Porutgese subtitles, but only when there is talking, and it still kicks ass. I am watcing it now as I pack, and it made me wonder if any of you had a musical epiphany in your lives that forever changed your tastes.

Well?

:-)
Marius

Leavin', On A Jet Plane

Hiya, Folks,
Well, tomorrow morning I'll be winging my way to Houston, Texas for the United States Institute for Theatre Technology conference. I'll be gone all week, and I don't know what my intertube access will be, but if I can I'll post from there. If not, I'll let y'all know how it was when I get back.

While I love my job, there aren't many perks that extend beyond the boundaries of the campus, but yesterday we got to enjoy a rare moment of serendipity. We recently purchased two nice stage-combat worthy broadswords for our upcoming show, but they didn't come with scabbards. I asked around, and found a gentleman who makes custom scabbards for a reasonable price. He needed to see the sword to take measurements, and said I could come to his establishment, or if we were in the area he would be at the Renn Faire all weekend. I told him we were planning on attending the faire anyway, and he said he would meet us at the gate with two free tickets. Wheee! We had a lot of fun, and ran into a few of our former high school students, and I even got a wee bit of fencing in.(I really enjoyed it. Must see about getting some more of that.) Mrs. Marius bought some Scottish stuff, and a tiny working catapult(have I mentioned what a lucky husband I am?) and the kid got an ocarina. I had a beer and a stress-free day. And there was much rejoicing.

Ok, when next you hear from me I'll either be in Texas, or back from Texas.

Peace, y'all.
Marius

And Now...A Bit Of Fun

This video is of the Masala belly dance troupe. One of the founding members is a very dear friend of mine. She is the first girl to solo at the end. Enjoy.

Whazzup

Greetings, Dudes and Dudettes,
Tonight was great. The COA's school had a 'kid's night' where for a nominal fee parents were allowed to drop their children off at 5:30 and pick them up again as late as 9:30. The kids got hot dogs and games, and we got a night off. We had originally planned to see a movie, but nothing we wanted to see was playing within the appropriate time frame, so we just went to dinner. We splurged a bit at Ruby Tuesdays where I had the most delicious, so-rare-it-nearly-mooed steak. I point that out because in our overly litigious society it is nearly impossible to get rare steak anymore. I have resorted to answering the 'how would you like that cooked?' question with the stock reply, 'As rare as they'll cook it.' And usually it isn't rare enough. Tonight's was perfect. Then we went and wandered around Wally World where I got some new sneakers. Then we mosied to Target, and the grocery store, before picking up the young'n at around 8:15 or so. It sounds mundane as hell, but we are so rarely out of the house after dark anymore that it was a treat just to go shopping with the sun down.

Pity me.

I don't know if I've mentioned this, but my In-laws gave me an MP3 player for Christmas this year. It is a wonderful gadget, and if you don't have one yet I highly recommend one. It's tiny, holds 2 gigabytes of memory, and makes changing tunes in the car a much safer and easier task than fumbling with CD's. Recently, as a result of this new toy, I have discovered Podcasts. They are audio programs, usually made by amateurs, that can be downloaded from the Intertubes, often free of charge. As I must commute 80+ miles a day they are a godsend. There are a few that I listen to regularly, and they are:

Wait Wait, Don't Tell Me. This is National Public Radio's hilarious weekly news quiz show. If you like silliness, and current events this show is for you.

Make It So. This is a podcast out of Britain which features two or three guys talking very candidly about Star Trek in all its incarnations. They are very relaxed, and even though they love the show, they aren't above tearing away at any and all flaws. Much like many of us do when we get going. They don't censor their language, however. Just FYI.

The Naked Scientists. This is a weekly science show, again out of the UK. If you are a Monty Python fan the show sound a lot like one of their sketches at first, with very British people talking rather briskly, and sometimes just a tad too cheerfully, about what's new in science, and then rapidly lobbing the story to another person, but once you get used to the format it is a great summary of the week in science.

The Skeptics Guide to the Universe. This is also a weekly show, this time from the good old USofA that debunks pseudo-science and other areas where people take things as reality when they really shouldn't. And it isn't all just 'psychics are all fakers', although to be fair there is quite a bit of that. This last week they explained just why and how many time share schemes are scams. So there is some useful information there. I will admit that they can get a bit, um, uncharitable with their criticisms of some of their subjects, but they almost always have facts to back themselves up. This one may not appeal to everyone here at The Corner, but I rather enjoy it.

And lastly there is Smodcast. This is Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier's podcast. If you don't know who they are, they are the writing/directing/producing team behind such movies as Clerks, Dogma, Chasing Amy, and many others. I left this one for last for two reasons. 1. They haven't posted a new one in over a month. 2. You really have to dig Kevin Smith to like this show. He and Scott talk like most of the people in their movies. Lots of profanity, and no subject, no matter how depraved or private, is taboo. Sometimes they go too far, but most of the time I find them hilarious. All of their shows are archived, as are all of the above mentioned podcasts, so you need not dive in unprepared, but beware of Smodcast if vulgarity and juvenile humor aren't your thing. And all of these shows can be subscribed to through I-Tunes.

Ok, I think that's enough for one night. If you have any podcasts that you like, let me know. I'm always looking for more and varied entertainment while driving.

Peace out, y'all,
Marius

Recall The Dream of Luxor...

I was just watching Jeopardy, and an answer had to do with an ancient Egyptian city, and my first thought was Luxor. The answer actually was Cairo, but it reminded me of how cool of a city name I think Luxor is. Luxor. Luuuuuxoooor. It is the grooviest place name ever. At least to me. So, what is your all time favorite place name?

Rationalization

I rationalize things. Mostly things that don't matter in the grand scheme, but it lubricates my universe. Calvin and Hobbes, for example. Folks apparently still ask Bill Watterson if Hobbes is 'real'. He won't answer, but I knew the answer long ago. The strip is being told from the point of view of the grown up Calvin. It's his memories. That's why five-year-old Calvin has such an overblown vocabulary. And that's why it doesn't matter if Hobbes is real or not. Not that I've shared any confidences with Watterson, it's just how Calvin and Hobbes fits into my universe. Likewise Star Trek. Fans of the series(plural) have difficulty reconciling the different look between the original show(TOS) and later series, most especially Enterprise. That show was supposed to have taken place nearly a hundred years before the adventures of Kirk, Spock, and the rest of the crew, yet looked far more advanced than their 'decedents'. The reality that a show made in the earliest days of the 21st century cannot help but look superior to something made in the mid
60's notwithstanding(is that a convoluted sentence or what?) I decided in my mind that the look of the uniforms and hardware of TOS represents one of those well-intentioned but misguided attempts by the brass to change the general designs of all military areas. But rather than an improvement, they just make things look stupid. There is not one shred of verification of this 'theory', but it helps me ignore glaring inconsistencies. It is similar to the fan/producers' little bit of retcon(retroactive continuity)regarding Chekhov in Wrath of Kahn. Walter Koenig had not yet joined the cast of Star Trek when the original episode Space Seed was filmed, yet his character was the first to find Kahn, and there was mutual recognition. It was explained later, once the mistake had been realized, that at the time of Kahn's first appearance on the show Chekhov was not yet a member of the bridge crew, but was on the ship, and was a close friend of the woman who would become Kahn's wife. A bit of a stretch, but not so much as to be unbelievable.

So what little rationalizations do you use to make your universe function better?

Lio

I've been reading this comic for a few weeks now, and I'm digging it more and more. Imagine Calvin & Hobbes as written by Tim Burton. You can see more here.

And Lo...

Star Trek Trailer

Guys, you have got to watch this. I don't know if this movie will be any good, but this kicks ass!!!!!

http://www.startrekmovie.com/

Stuph

So you've read my rave reviews of The Sarah Conner Chronicles, and you know I am really digging this show. Well, Monday night was the 2 hour season finale. After only 7 weeks we get the season finale. And it wasn't that much of a cliff-hanger. And it was split up into two separate episodes. And there was much puzzlement. Then I did some digging last night and found out the truth. The writer's strike meant that only 9 episodes got finished, so that's where they stopped. Now I'm keeping my fingers crossed for more.

When someone you care about forwards one of those 'you are my best friend in the entire known universe' emails, and it includes instructions to send it on to 400 of your closest friends lest you be proven an unfeeling troglodyte, is it wrong to delete it immediately? What about those sappy, yet utterly bogus stories that include some kind of smarmy prayer at the end and are usually about some elementary school teacher who gives the writer a puppy then dies a horrible death and many years later the writer finds the puppy tucked away in an unused underwear drawer and we all cry?

Well, I guess the movie quiz wasn't as compelling as I'd hoped, but here are the answers anyway.
1. Alien
2. Henry V
3. LA Story
4. Dogma
5. Galaxy Quest
6. 2010
7. Tank Girl
8. Underworld
9. The Day The Earth Stood Still
10.Army of Darkness

Alas, time to make the donuts.

TTFN
Marius

Gary Gygax Dead

Dungeons & Dragons Creator Gary Gygax Dead At 69
MILWAUKEE (CBS) ― Gary Gygax, creator of the original Dungeons & Dragons fantasy game, died Tuesday morning at his home in Lake Geneva, Wis. He was 69.

He had been suffering from health problems for several years, including an abdominal aneurysm, said his wife, Gail Gygax.

See the full story here.

People can make jokes all they want about D&D nerds, but it was Gygax's flawed, but fun game that paved the way for every RPG game out there. I'd be willing to bet that every game designer either played Dungeons and Dragons, or was inspired by it's inadequacies to make a 'better' game. D&D helped me break out of the shell that encapsulated my adolescence and gave me lifetime friends. So call me a nerd, a geek, or a dweeb, but I will mourn the passing of Gygax as I mourned Roddenberry, Kelley, Jeffries, Leonard, and Doohan. He brought happiness and fun into my life, and I hope that those closest to him can soon get beyond the pain of loss and remember with warmth the joy he brought to an entire generation...and beyond. RIP, Dungeonmaster.

Carpe Diem

Now get out there and seize it!

Strawberry Sucktival

Imagine a state fair, but less thought provoking. Imagine a festival dedicated to strawberries, but with only two places to get strawberry shortcake, and you'd have to stand in line for over an hour to get some. Imagine a midway so crowded that you could barely squeeze through. And imagine that you are me, and have no interest in prize winning cows, or people selling videos saying that 'evolution is a lie'. My wife and the young'n had a good time, but I was bored to tears. There were a lot of displays of country type things like cake decorating, and quilting, and such. And I am sure the craftsmanship was top notch, but it just was not my cup of tea. Plus I don't like crowds, and the place was PACKED!! If we weren't less than half an hour from a major city...Tampa...I could understand the crowds. But this might as well have been the only cultural event for hundreds of miles. Plus such places always give me flashbacks to the time at the South Florida Fair where I got totally fleeced by a smooth talking carny at the balloon dart booth who took me for about $15. For some reason this festival brought that embarrassing event back in vivid detail. When all was said and done we ended up getting some strawberries from the grocery store and making our own shortcake. But since the wife and kid had a good time it wasn't a total loss, and I get to not go next year. Next week, the Ren Faire.

Hasta,
Marius

Advise for my Mom

The Strict, Unbending Rules for Dealing with Stray Cats

1. Stray cats will not be fed.
2. Stray cats will not be fed anything except dry cat food.
3. Stray cats will not be fed anything except dry cat food moistened with a little milk.
4. Stray cats will not be fed anything except dry cat food moistened with warm milk, yummy treats and leftover fish scraps.
5. Stray cats will not be encouraged to make this house their permanent residence.
6. Stray cats will not be petted, played with or picked up and cuddled unnecessarily.
7. Stray cats that are petted, played with, picked up and cuddled will absolutely not be given a name.
8. Stray cats with or without a name will not be allowed inside the house at any time.
9. Stray cats will not be allowed inside the house except at certain times.
10. Stray cats will not be allowed inside the house except on days ending in "y".
11. Stray cats allowed inside will not be permitted to jump up on or sharpen their claws on the furniture.
12. Stray cats will not be permitted to jump up on, or sharpen claws on the really good furniture.
13. Stray cats will be permitted on all furniture but must sharpen claws on new $114.99 sisal-rope cat-scratching post with three perches.
14. Stray cats will answer the call of nature outdoors in the sand.
15. Stray cats will answer the call of nature in the three-piece, high-impact plastic tray filled with Fresh'n'Sweet kitty litter.
16. Stray cats will answer the call of nature in the hooded litter pan with a three-panel privacy screen and plenty of head room.
17. Stray cats will sleep outside.
18. Stray cats will sleep in the garage.
19. Stray cats will sleep in the house.
20. Stray cats will sleep in a cardboard box lined with an old blanket.
21. Stray cats will sleep in the special Kitty-Komfort-Bed with non-allergenic lambs wool pillow.
22. Stray cats will not be allowed to sleep in our bed.
23. Stray cats will not be allowed to sleep in our bed, except at the foot.
24. Stray cats will not be allowed to sleep in our bed under the covers.
25. Stray cats will not be allowed to sleep in our bed under the covers except at the foot.
26. Stray cats will not play on the desk.
27. Stray cats will not play on the desk near the computer.


Enter the ICHC online Poker Cats Contest!

...And In Local News

Howdy, Folks! Sorry I've been kinda light on content of late. It's been a bummer week that started on Sunday with a visit to the emergency vet because Artemis, showing remarkable ingenuity for a cat that never goes outside, came down with tapeworms. The only thing ickier than cleaning the cat box is finding living ickiness therein. It must be pointed out that Artemis hates, hates, HATES her carrier, so much so that she will claw at it until her toes bleed. This trip was no different. But she was good for the vet, and after having had my cat violated in numerous ways we came home healthier, if $130 poorer. Since we were going straight home I let her out of the carrier, and she thanked me by peeing in the back seat. I don't know how many of you have ever had to deal with cat pee, but it is easily one of, if not the most foul smelling substances in the known universe. I have tried carpet cleaner, Woolite, stuff that is supposed to be specifically for removing cat pee, baking soda, and Febreeze, and nothing has worked. Tomorrow I'm going to rent a carpet cleaner and see if that works. If not I'll have to burn my car and hope for a generous insurance settlement.(Just kidding, State Farm)
Then, in another testament to my continuing physical disintegration, I impinged my rotator cuff in my left shoulder. The result was that lifting my arm was agonizing. The doctor gave me a shot of steroids, and if you've never had the pleasure of a needle going into an inflamed joint, and then being moved around to make sure the medicine gets into all affected areas, I suggest you try it. You'll never gloss over tales of the Inquisition again. I was told to avoid all lifting for the entire week, which makes doing my job rather difficult. But I have found that the people at Home Depot are very helpful when you tell them you are broken and will gladly load six sheets of plywood into your truck for you.
On a less aggravating note, there is a Strawberry Festival going on in Plant City, and Mrs. Marius expressed a desire to attend. The blood bank to which I regularly donate is giving away a free ticket to the festival, so I went and did my civic duty the other day and we'll be strawberry bound as soon as she gets home from work in a couple of hours. I'll let y'all know how it was.
As for the pic below, it is apropos of nothing, but I think I would pay to see that movie over and over and over. ;-)

Peace, y'all.
Marius the Broken