May the Fourth Be With You

May 4th is also known as Star Wars Day to many fans. Don't quote me on this but I'm pretty sure it started out as a joke before it became known as Star Wars Day. At least that's how I remember it. All my fellow Star Wars nerds would gather would come up to you, knowing you were a Star Wars fan, and say "May the Fourth be with you." Some would even use a really bad Yoda voice. Or wave their hand in front of you like it was supposed to be a Jedi mind trick.

1983 Me - About as 1980something as you can get. Watching Garfield.

This is not going to be a re-hashing of the entire series of movies. That would just bore any fan out there. There's no need to summarize the plot, prattle on about random points of trivia, or give favorite quotes. Instead, I'm hoping to look at the series as a whole and how it stands up over time. The movies were created generations apart but do they still hold their sway for an old fart like me?

Prologue (1980 something)

I was but a child when the first string of movies came out. I remember seeing one in the theater and being afraid of Chewbacca. He was hairy, roared really loud, and he had big teeth. But growing up watching, and re-watching, and re-watching the original trilogy has left me jaded towards these three movies. When George Lucas re-released them, I was excited. But I didn't like all of the new edits he made. Don't even get me started on Greedo.

1977 Me. Too young to watch Star Wars.

When the second trilogy came out, I was again excited but things were a bit more tempered. That may be why I enjoyed the movies more than some of my fellow fans. Sure, I'm not a huge Jar Jar fan, but I don't hate him. I just see him as a patsy for Palpatine. But the trilogy turned dark in a hurry and the acting wasn't what I had hoped for. But seeing Darth Vader at the end made up for some of it.

1980 Me. This was not the Yoda I was looking for.

Now as a father of a young boy who loves Star Wars as much as I do, I'm falling in love with Star Wars all over again. As a kid, I never would have seen Star Wars in the theater as much as I did with my son. But it was fun. I think we both enjoyed the experience but on different levels.

Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)

The visual beauty of the movie is clear and crisp and sometimes stunning. Yes, some of the effects are plainly, or painfully, obvious, but at least it looks pretty. The battle droids and Jar Jar are clearly comedy generators. And just like young Anakin Skywalker, it seems to be a movie made for kids.

Unknown.

I think what strikes me the most is how clean everything is. I'm hoping it's part of the overall trend where things get more run down and dirty and re-used as the Jedi fall out of power. But I think there's a part of it that comes from the nature of films from that time where things are just cleaner and more crisp. We see a lot of this in the special effects and how props are built in the movie. It's almost like they knew they had the power but instead of using it wisely, they just used it.

This is Roger Roger. I won him as a book signing.

So how does it hold up? It does okay. There's political intrigue, podracing, space battles, and of course lightsabers. I think visually it holds up quite well. At least a stand alone movie. Within the franchise, not so much. It doesn't have that gritty, realistic feeling the others do. The acting is okay. Story is okay. So I guess overall, it holds up okay. But it holds little sway over me now. It was very easy to get distracted while watching.

Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)

Here we go again. Another movie with crisp and clean shots and not a lot of grit and grime that makes it realistic. The acting takes a step down unfortunately. The overacting by Hayden Christensen and painfully obvious scheming by Palpatine is sad and at times enraging. The overt plots by Palpatine are mostly enraging. But even the Jedi were irritating at times. Mostly because of their lack of action. Patience they say. Bah.

Unknown. 

And oof dah, the acting. It starts out small but then develops into a growth that just can't be ignored. Like a bad mole that starts out like a cute little freckle but ends up sending you to the doctor because you know it needs to be removed. Ouch.

Unknown. 

At least the clones were interesting. Now I can see why they spun those off into TV shows of their own. They certainly had more depth than a lot of the other characters. And I think that's why it holds up a little better than Episode I. But it holds little sway.

Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005)

A more battle heavy and emotionally heavy movie. But it's also heavy with some over-acting. Again. While the CGI seems to be a bit better than the last movie, it's still a struggle so see some of the reality of things.

Um, yeah. That's me.

I know it's a sci-fi movie and it's just a movie, but that's what the industry lacks is the believability of special effects. There are a few exceptions of course, but as a whole, I think the movies of today lack something. That rustic feel of physical film is a part of it, but even then, there's something to be said for practical, physical effects. Movies like this that rely on so much computer generated magic lose some of that magic when they go too far.

Taken circa 2005.

Speaking of going too far, the movie again shows Palpatine going too far with his schemes. He's so overt it makes you wonder if he's so strong in the Force that he can dupe Jedi into thinking he's the good guy or if it's just bad writing. Then we have Anakin going too far with his pouting teenage angsty self. He's like Kylo Ren but so much more obvious. And like Palpatine, we're left to wonder if he's so strong in the Force he can dupe Jedi or if the Jedi are just blind to the obvious.

Just a minor glimpse of my collection.

In the end, it holds up about as well as the other two prequel episodes. But holds no sway over me. As with the other movies, there's just not much these first three movies seem to add to the franchise other than a bit of backstory. ::sigh::

Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)

I'll admit openly and freely that this is my favorite movie of the series. Which means I have a lot of bias towards this movie and how the others measure up to it. With that said, this is also the first time I've watched it on Blu-ray and the first time I've watched it right after watching the previous movie. In fact, this is the first time I've watched all of the movies in order and within a relatively short time frame (3 days to be specific).

Unknown. 

The first thing I noticed was how clean the newly released versions are. Some of the older special effects have been feathered out and it's generally brighter and cleaner. But there's still enough grit and grime to make it more realistic than the prequel movies. So yeah, it's going to be hard to top that.

My old car.

Despite the modifications Lucas made well after the original release, the movie holds up. The story is solid, the acting is great (for some characters but not others), and it still holds sway over me. It is the epitome of the franchise. Yeah, like I said, I'm a bit jaded in my opinion.

Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

I know a lot of people love Empire but for me, it loses me after the Battle of Hoth. The rest of the movie is fine, better than the prequels, but it just leaves me feeling a little meh. I will say that the character development of Luke is progressing nicely. We see him grow from a wimpy farm kid to the leader of the Rebellion and, even though he whines on Dagobah, he's at least growing as a Jedi Knight.

Unknown. 

Speaking of Dagobah, it just creeped me the heck out as a kid. That's probably part of why I never liked Empire as much. But at least Yoda was real. Jim Henson's magic is so clear and obvious even after all these years. That's not just a sock puppet talking or some computer generated character using the Force. That's a person acting there and it shows.

Unknown. 

In the end, Empire holds up over time but holds little sway over me. Yes, Hoth was great and the final battle between Luke and Vader was good, but still, it just doesn't make my lightsaber rattle much.

Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983)

Sure, sure, there's Ewoks and they're cute and vicious. But the scenes on Endor really make this movie. I think it starts out well enough with Luke going full Jedi but I was never a fan of Yoda's death. I guess it was too sad for me as a youngling. But as an adult, it was an appropriately emotional moment between the two. Three I guess if you count Obi Wan.

An animation cel I own.

I think what makes this movie hold up over time, and hold some sway over me, is that the effects are mostly physical and those computer effects that are used, are done so sparingly but with enough quality to keep you in that particular moment in the movie. In other words, it doesn't gut-check you when you see an Ewok or an AT-ST on Endor. Nor are the space battles so full of CGI that you don't know what's going on anymore.

One of the only comics I have.

So yeah, Return of the Jedi is right up in the top three for me and easily ranks higher than Empire.

Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015)

As we enter a new generation, we get a new trilogy of movies. I went into this with my jaded thoughts about which movie was best and how little I expected of the new installment. While I expected a good movie, I just didn't think it would carry much weight with it. To use an out-of-universe analogy, I figured it would be like a new Star Trek movie and just be meh.

My movie collection.

It wasn't. Time will ultimately be the final judge but for now, I'm ranking this right up there with the original trilogy and would even put it ahead of Empire and Jedi. That's right, I like this movie just as much as I like A New Hope. Some days I like it more, some days less, and some days the same. But in the end, it's always in my top two of all Star Wars movie out there.

Chewie (Peter Mayhew) and the man who killed him (R. A. Salvatore).

As a collector of the books for many years, I was seriously disappointed that they would not hold true to the stories they came out with revolving around the Solo and Skywalker families. They were pretty darn good and a solid arc of storytelling about the galaxy. But as much as I wanted to see those stories on screen, and still do, I'm okay with the new direction they've taken things.

Epilogue (almost 40-something)

So where does this leave us? Well, how about I keep things simple and rank my favorites based on how much they've held up over time and how much I think they've impacted me.

1. A New Hope
2. The Force Awakens
3. Return of the Jedi
4. Empire Strikes Back
5. Attack of the Clones
6. Revenge of the Sith
7. The Phantom Menace

But there's more to it than that, isn't there? No, I don't think so. That pretty much sums it up. But remember, that's just the movies. That doesn't take into consideration any of the spin offs and homages.

You want to check out the FANBOYS movie by Adam F. Goldberg.

Finally, one parting shot of the next generation of fans.

Note: Many of the photos in this post are not mine. I'll freely admit I downloaded them years ago and take no credit for them.

Meet BARC - Introductions and Review of the Star Wars Bike from Huffy

Okay, so we're all a little weird or damaged or just plain crazy, right? Well, here's a wee bit of a story about how I continue to meet those requirements. But before you read on, this is broken up into two major parts with photos at the end. The first is where I prove and disprove how crazy I am. The second is getting into the more technical aspects of the bike and a bit of a review.

I'm Crazy Not Crazy

I won't go into the long backstory of my Star Wars fandom but I'll set the record straight by telling you that I'm a fan but not a fanatic. Some family members and friends may disagree but I do have a life outside of Star Wars. Or at least I think I do.

Anyway, with the recent Force Friday excitement, it was no surprise that William and I were both like kids in a candy shop at Target last weekend. Elizabeth was only slightly amused and Yvonne, well, she just left us the three of us there acting like kids. There were a lot of toys and clothes that looked neat but nothing really struck me as something that I absolutely had to have.

Except for the bike. I had to have the bike. I hemmed and hawed about it because it was a lot of money to spend. I didn't want to spend it but I also knew I had to have it. It isn't often that you find something that's Star Wars AND has a Stormtrooper. And it's pretty much impossible to find anything with TK-421 on it. Trust me, I've looked.

Now let me pause here for a minute. Way back in 2000 or so, I got a personalized plate in North Carolina that was "TK 421." When we moved to Virginia, I had to settle for "TK-42ONE." I do a lot online with that name and I am always on the lookout for it in toys and other merchandise. With Star Wars movies taking a break, there was nothing new. And the Clone Wars cartoon didn't help because TK-421 was a Stormtrooper. He didn't have the Sandtrooper pauldron, he wasn't a Speeder Bike Scout, or a Snowtrooper. Just a plain old boring Stormtrooper. Trust me, there's a difference. And no, he wasn't even close to a Clone Trooper.

Now, back to the story. So I recently got a Star Wars shirt with TK-421 on it from a cousin. It was awesome. I love it. It's so rare to find that name on anything that I was happy to have it, and even happier that it was something I could wear. So seeing the bike in Target with TK-421 on the front forks made me squee like one of those Star Wars fanatics I claim to not be.

I left it in the store on Saturday but called Sunday to see if they still had it. They didn't. So I ordered it online and it was delivered yesterday. As I assembled it, a massive rain storm was going through so I couldn't ride it. Which meant I couldn't name it.

And that's where I get even weirder than you thought I was. You see, I name my bike (now bikes). And my shoes. And some of my equipment. If I recall correctly, it was born out of necessity when I had several pairs of Altra Instincts that were the same size and  color and I couldn't keep them straight in my running shoe rotation. So I named them. I've been naming them since. Booger. Snot. Slick. Yela Wolf. Silver Back. You get the idea. My bike is Shifty because, well, you have to shift the gears.

As part of the tradition of naming my shoes and bikes, I only name them during the run (or ride in this case). It feels natural to not have something picked out until you're out there. Sometimes I don't come up with something until after the run or ride but that's just my brain moving slowly. The key is, I may have great ideas before, but I don't decide until during or after.

Which brings us to the unveiling of the newest member of the .... family? No, it's not a member of the family. It's important but not that important. So without further ado, here's BARC.

Review

So a bit of a review on the bike itself. First of, it's not a bike I would recommend using for any sort of training. This is a casual bike for casual riding. Not anything even remotely close to something I would use for any sort of high performance races or sporting events. Think of it as a cruiser, not a tri bike.

I ordered mine online and paid list price ($349.99) plus shipping ($42.79 - but shipping was free) plus handling fee ($40.00) plus taxes ($20.76) for a grand total of $410.66. I could have paid more for shipping to get it here sooner but I'm glad I didn't because it arrived pretty quickly. I ordered on my phone on Sunday night and it arrived that Thursday. Not too shabby on speed.

The box arrived surprisingly intact. I've worked in shipping before and I know how things get beat up. Aside from a few dings, things looked good. The bike inside was also packed fairly well but not great. At first glance it looked like the paint on the frame was scratched but it was actually just how it was painted to look weathered. There were plastic caps on the point parts, foam around the frame, and cardboard placed in certain spots.

Once out of the box, the front tire was loose and the handebars were only attached by the cables. The pedals were also not installed and the seat was loose. The seat was an easy fix. Simply tighten the speed release and you're done. The handlebars were a bit tricky. The instructions stated to put the disc brake on the left side but I didn't see that until I already had it installed. So I loosened it, flipped it around, then tightened it back down. And to clarify, "it" was the handlebar stem that sits on that post which is the top of the forks when they come through the threadless stem.

Okay, with the handlebars installed and the brakes on the right side, which was the left side as you sit in the seat, it was time to move on to the front tire. Pretty easy install and only took a minute.

The pedals were just as easy to install thanks to convenient left and right stickers.

Then we had some issues. The bike was fully assembled but the front fork stem was wobbly as it went through the threadless head. Because it was threadless, I had to do some research on how to fix it. I just needed to tighten the bolt that goes through the top but only a quarter turn at a time. There still needs to be play in the front tire so it flops left and right. Do a quick search and you'll see some good videos on it.

Then there was the seat. It was at the right height but the front was angled way too high and would have given me a high voice if I didn't fix it. A few minor adjustments and I was able to tilt it down enough to make it comfortable without feeling like I would slide off onto the top bar.

Finally, there was the chain. I still haven't fixed this but it rubs on the rear tire when it's in 1st gear. Gears 2 through 7 work fine (it only has seven gears). But when you shift down to first, it gets too close to the tire and rubs. Not good. A washer or some adjustments to the derailleur may fix it but I'm not smart enough to figure that out yet.

After a test ride this morning, another issue cropped up. And it was further exaggerated by my father giving the bike a short test ride too. You see, they just don't work. Again, I'm not smart enough to know how to fix it but I know what the problem is. The front brakes are disc. But when you apply them, two things happen. First, you have to pull the lever way too far back to make the bike stop. Second, as soon as you apply just a little pressure on the lever, the piston comes out, and bends the disc on the wheel. Not good. And it bends it a lot. The rear brakes are just pads, which I guess is the bike version of drum brakes. Well, they squeek like a cat and a rabbit are both in a bag fighting a bird and all three are squeeling like a dog whistle. It's painful to listen to. And it's apparently starting to take some of the paint off the rim. Not what I want to see on a brand new bike. But any which way I look at it, I think it will need to go to a bike shop for a tune-up before I start putting any extended miles on it. Especially any route with hills.

There were a few other minor tweaks but for the most part they were easy to fix. I will say, having the right size allen wrenches and open-end wrenches make things easy. It took some searching and trial and error but I finally found some that worked. If you have those on hand already, you'll be a step ahead of the game.

Photos

Yep, that's my license plate. And it's on the forks on each side. You can also see the weathered paint job on the frame.

Small Star Wars sticker on the handlebar. You can also see the screw that needed to be tighten in the middle of that round disc where the stem comes up from the forks and through the threadless head.

Nice little Imperial logo on the frame.

Detail of the TK-421 on the forks.

Never knew it until I saw this but it's a limited edition. Only 2,500 made!

Because the Empire is a pain in the ass.

Giant tires make it a little hard to steer sometimes but I think I'll get used to it. Besides, Stormtroopers can't hit anything anyway, right?

PS - If you don't get the BARC Star Wars reference, that's okay. You should at least get the BARC Lumberjack reference.

Darth Vader Hater

I would like to introduce my new treadmill, Darth Vader. Since I've taken to naming all my new equipment, I knew I needed to find a fitting name for the new treadmill. Since I occasionally go by TK-42ONE, Darth Vader seemed fitting since I'm a bit of a Vader Hater. I mean, he left all my bros on the Death Star and didn't even care that the Rebels blew them up!

Anyway, Darth Vader it is. Did I mention that this is the first time I've been on a treadmill in, oh, probably 3 or 4 years? I mean, I really, REALLY hate them. But, Darth Vader helped me find my way to the Dark Side by giving me a pretty decent run today.

Now for the boring details! The treadmill was ordered probably 2 weeks ago. It took minutes to process and the order to start rolling but took days to get from Texas to Virginia. Then a good week and a half to get to my house. And the guy they sent to deliver was: 1) one guy 2) one old guy 3) one old guy that was out of breath getting out of the cab 4) one old guy that was out of breath getting out of the cab and had a limp. So guess who provided the muscle? Me. Know how heavy Darth Vader is? Heavy as fuck. Easily 250 to 300 pounds. And he was in a box. Maybe Han Solo got revenge for that whole carbonite thing.

Once I unpacked the bastard, which took some time, I had to start the assembly. Thankfully my wife was able to help because even the little side struts were heavy as shit. I mean, I nearly blew a power converter trying to move the bottom but the support arms needed a load lifter. Not to mention how cumbersome it was to attach the wire, hold the arm, and try not to drop the screws. Really could have used an R2 unit but I somehow found a way. Maybe the Force really was with me.

I had to quit last night because I was making mistakes and tired as hell. So I finished this morning and finally got everything all assembled. It was starting to look like a nice TIE fighter, all black and silver and sleek yet clunky, so I plugged it in. It powered on, I attempted to enter my name, it didn't go so well, so I just started running. And did great for my ten minute warm up.

Then I popped a circuit. Not just any circuit, but the weird little special circuit on the plug next to the sink. Which wasn't the plug I used but is apparently connected to the plug I used. So I lost my miles and time as I reconfigured the extension cord to a different circuit. Then I started my workout. Finished my workout. And everything seemed to be just fine.

Phew! This is almost as long as my After Action Report from Hoth. Anyway, I skipped the freezing temps outside, got my tempo run done, and didn't fall off the treadmill. I guess Darth Vader and I really might have a chance to rule the galaxy.

Photos:
Fair warning, Darth is much bigger in real life.

How do you know Darth Vader and the Dark Side are going to screw you up? The tube of lube.

Vine:
https://vine.co/v/MW3Y7ei91qg

Weather:
Inside temp was 73F. No humidity, no sun, and no wind.

Fluids and Fuel:
Before the run I had some coffee. During the run I had plain water. Recovery was coffee, a banana, and oatmeal.

Aches and Pains:
Right knee was a little tweaky but I think it was just getting used to the different stride (trying to land more forefoot) and new surface. Everything else was fine.

Gear:
Wore underwear and shorts. I usually don't wear underwear but I wanted to get my run in quickly so I didn't change into my full workout gear. Was able to run topless. Didn't wear my HRM to avoid the distraction of too many gadgets. Was able to watch some TV on the DVD player (Taxi) and on my Kindle (Star Trek: The Next Generation). Was also able to Vine and check Training Peaks. And, as already mentioned, this was the first go for the new treadmill (a Sole F63 model).

Heart Rate:
Resting heart rate was 65 the first time but came down to 60 a few seconds later. Not sure what it was during the run but I'd guess in the 130 to 150 range.

Treadmill:
Since there's a ton of buttons on Darth Vader, I'm going to start keeping track of them. It's probably all going to be gibberish to most people but I like data so I'm going to track it. I lost the first ten minutes due to blowing a circuit so this is from the rest of the run.
Speed - 4.0
Tempo Speed - 5.0
Recovery Speed - 2.0 to 3.0
Incline - 5

Splits:
Not sure on all the details but I went roughly 2 miles.
RHR - 61
Weight - 222.6

A Spoon

Did my 40 minutes of chest work, got my crap together, then headed out on the bike. I wasn't in a super big rush and only tried to push the pace when I got onto the busier road. I ran over two VDOT measuring devices, saw two dead snakes, nearly had two heart attacks because of the dead snakes, saw a screwdriver, and saw a metal spoon. Oh, and the 1 Leg veteran that I see on occasion at the local Sheetz.

Beyond that, the ride was fairly sedate. I did manage to work up enough of a sweat that I could feel it trickling down my ass crack. But then again, that could have been the chest workout from earlier in the morning.

Photo:
I figure only the Star Wars fans will get why I took this picture.

Weather:
Temps were a cool 65F to 70F. No humidity. Light breeze. Sun was out in full.

Fluids and Fuel:
Breakfast was iced coffee and yogurt. During the ride I had a bottle of plain water and a little bit of an iced latte. Didn't really drink too much on the ride since I was cooler than normal.

Aches and Pains:
Nothing really hurt.

Gear:
Nothing terribly special with gear. Did wear DATA and had to tighten it a bit since it kept slipping a bit.

Experiment:
Took my knife to hold my cards and that was it. Rode just fine in my jersey pocket.

Splits:
Outbound - 17:37 (AVG HR 143)
Aid Station - 6:07 (AVG HR 119)
Inbound - 16:00 (AVG HR 137)
Finish - 33:37 (39:44 total time)

I've got a bad feeling about this

Report:
Just a short run to get something on the books even though I didn't feel like it. It wasn't a pleasant run but it's still done. Biggest fight was getting out the door and I eventually had to tell myself out loud "don't be such a pussy, just go." It apparently worked. But I still aborted the mission early. Keep reading to see why.

Weather:
Temps were 65F or so, very little wind, no sun, and a constant drizzle. Thankfully it was light.

Fluids and Fuel:
Breakfast was water and yogurt. During the run I had a bottle of Hammer Fizz which I drank about 75% of. Recovery was eggs, breakfast burrito, and iced coffee.

Aches and Pains:
None to speak of. Felt a bit like a hangover run near the end but I didn't drink that much last night.

Gear:
This is why I quit early. I thought about doing my 5 mile route but opted for the shorter 3 mile route before I even made it out the door. Once I started down the road I was about half a mile from home when I realized I had forgotten two key pieces of equipment. My RoadID and my lucky charm. The RoadID isn't that big of a deal but I've become a bit OCD about my lucky charm. Turns out more OCD than I thought I was. Once I realized it was gone I was able to quell the looming panic but also quickly decided to not run the entire route. But I did do some good out there by moving a box turtle to the side of the road and forcing myself to run to the top of the hill. So at least I got my hill workout in for the week. But I was constantly looking around waiting for the hammer of doom to fall on me like a nail.

Codename - I've got a bad feeling about this
Yeah. Turns out I'm pretty damn OCD. I don't have to count to 100 before entering a room or drive around the block 5 times before I leave the house. But I guess I do have some issues.

Splits:
Outbound - 13:12
Inbound - 13:37
Finish - 26:49

The Weekend Getaway

Yvonne and I just spent a long weekend in the mountains. Without the kids. Or the dog. Soooo relaxing. We don't normally take vacations so this was a nice break from work and the daily grind of life. Special thanks to the in-laws for coming to visit and entertain/babysit the kids (and dog).

Wednesday started with the arrival of the in-laws and presents for Yvonne and Elizabeth. Gotta love those spring brithdays! (click here to see all the photos)



So, we left Thursday afternoon and made the trip in a few hours. We made a pit-stop in town to get a pedicure (Yvonne, not me) and socks (me, not Yvonne). I also picked up some new books. Once we made it to the resort, we checked in, unloaded our junk in the condo, and went into the "big" town of Elkton. They had a spring carnival/fair/flea market. I knew we were in the "country" but wow. Mullets, camo wife-beaters, and well, stuff that looked like it "fell off" the delivery truck. But we had fun. We had dinner at one of the resort's restaurants and headed back to the condo dodging deer and groundhogs galore.



Friday morning was our "tour." It had a tour, but it also included a sales pitch. Since we weren't interested in a time share and just wanted a free vacation, we listened politely but declined. The sales guy was doing his best to be professional, but his persona was still that of a high school guy getting drunk and having fun. And by having fun I mean being stupid. We also reported our ant problem and snagged lunch before heading into Luray Caverns. Yes, into. I had been there some time ago and it looks like they've developed it a bit more. They also had a car museum and a hedge maze. After that we headed to downtown Luray and hit a used book store, did some walking, and found an awesome place for dinner, West Main Market. Best food we had all weekend.



On Saturday we slept in, which was nice. But odd. After all those days and weeks of getting up so early, it's hard to break that habit. Anyway, we headed to Staunton and visited the farmer's market in Dayton on the way. It wasn't the farmer's market we expected. They had a few food items, but was mostly craft stuff. But the choices of beans, grains, etc. was amazingly like the old days (except with plastic containers instead of metal. Anyway, we visited the Frontier Culture Museum which had several farms from several eras and form different places. Nice to see how they shear sheep, clean the wool, run a smithy, and generally just how they lived back then. While the exhibits weren't that far apart, we splurged and rented a golf cart. Yvonne had a blast driving it. Then we went to the Virginia Hot Glass Festival at Sunspots. They had a ton of blown glass, people blowing glass, and some jewelry kiosks. Yvonne picked up a nice bracelet with some hedgehogs. We also stopped at Pufferbellies, a toy store, to get presents for the kids (and me). And we stopped at the best antique shop I've seen in ages (the Jolly Roger Haggle Shop) after lunch at the Beverly Restaurant (food was okay, but service was very slow).



Sunday was the worst day. The last day of vacation is always hard. It's great to get back home and sleep in your own bed, but man that drive was just way too short. All in all, we had a good time. I think we'd both go back to Luray for the food and Staunton for the shopping.

All the vacation photos can be found here.

Because we should all see Star Wars

http://www.vimeo.com/2809991

Nuff said.

The Year's End

With so much happening over the holidays and with my taking some vacation time, it's hard to find time to sit back, check email, skim the RSS feeds, and post something here.

So, I thought I'd share some quick thoughts on memorable moments that have happened over the past week or two.

Elizabeth stopped me one day while I was sharpening the kitchen knives on one of those wheely-sharpener-thingies and asked how it worked. So I showed how you sharpened the knives, then explained how it was like the emory board you use on her fingernails. After giving her an example with her fingernail, she said something to the effect of "Dad, you're the bestest teacher. You always take the time to explain to William and me how things work and we learn it so fast. You're a great learner."

I finished Abercrombie's final book, The Last Argument of Kings. While I can certainly see how some may take the ending as below par for his level of work, I must say I can see his subtle hand in the workings of the greater machine of a genius author. All those comparisons of him being the Tarentino of fantasy aren't true. He's better than that. Glotka is gruesome. Logen is human. And Bayaz makes the Emperor in Star Wars look like a sissy boy.

It snowed today. Briefly, but it snowed. Yvonne and I got a "grown-up day" while the in-laws babysat the kids. We did some returns, spent time together, had lunch, and painted a plate (at a pottery place - something I haven't done in several years).

There were presents galore. So many presents I know I didn't get pictures of them all. Me, I got a Les Stroud book, and a jacket, pants, and new shoes for running. Yvonne got lots of stuff she returned (so much for me thinking I know her size), books, and movies. Oh, I got movies too. We scored big on DVDs this year. Movies, TV shows, etc. And of course there were a ton of toys and clothes for the kids. A few duplicates we returned today, but overall some nice stuff. Like stuff I'm excited about playing with too.

William is getting big. And he's starting to understand more and more everyday. Lately I've noticed he's learning to shake his head "no" when he doesn't want something. You'll ask him if he wants a "milk" or a "toy" and he'll shake his head. Trust me, it's an improvement on him just shaking his head "no" when you tell him not to do something.

Oh, and if you've made it this far, I've started a new blog (this will be number four in my resume) over at Library Dad. Go there to see what it's all about. I'm hoping, really hoping, that I'll be able to spend most of my year over there instead of here. Which means fewer updates on my life and more updates on the library.

There are of course more updates of a more personal nature, but I'll just leave it at saying I love my wife and I like our (joint) New Year's resolution.

I'm over halfway through Chabon's Kavalier and Clay novel. Not quite as good as his Yiddish Policemen's Union, but still a work of art. Chabon is a master with words.

I also finished The Road Taken by Megan Hart. Simply put, it's a short, lame, romance novel with some dirty scenes in it. But it was free.

I'm still reading the Bible. I'm in 2 Samuel and it's actually (and surprisingly) getting interesting. More so than some of the other books I've read this year.

I'm looking forward to you, the reader, to tell me what to read next over at Library Dad.

And I think that's it. If you care, I don't really have a New Year's resolution for myself. I would like to run most or all of the Grand Prix events in the area (tomorrow's race isn't part of the Grand Prix, but I figured, hell, what's some frigid temperatures when it comes to starting the year off right, right? Yeah. We'll see if I freeze, run, walk, and finish.

I am such a dork

Make that a Dork with a capital "D." Why? Because not only do I "get" the comic below, I actually know what a "null" is.

Scary.

Oomph, books that hit you in the gut

So I recently finished two Star Wars books after a back-to-back reading session. First came Inferno by Troy Denning, then Fury by Aaron Allston (Legacy of the Force books 6 and 7 respectively).

And wow, what a wild ride.

It had been a while since I picked up a Star Wars book (way back in March), I think mainly due to getting burned out a bit. Well, simmering on the back burner, I finally smelled the sweet aroma of the Force and decided to delve into how evil Jacen Solo is.

He's the next Darth Vader. That's how evil he is and that's how duplicitous the story is. Just imagine yourself watching Episodes I-VI and that's pretty much The Legacy of the Force (LOTF) series. At times, it makes me cringe (like when Jacen does that Vader-thing to the security officer). Fortunately, there is enough new material and enough awesomeness to offset the copycat-like plot line.

And these two books (and pretty much the whole series' story arc) is as good as or better than the New Jedi Order. It's hard to pick which is better because LOTF feeds on NJO. Anyway, I'm taking a breather from LOTF as I pick up a another book that has been simmering, Marcus Sakey's The Blade Itself (not to be confused with Joe Abercrombie's The Blade Itself).

Accomplishments and Book News

Accomplishments:

So this weekend was very productive for us. Here's the short version of what we did.

• washed my car and Yvonne's van
• vacuumed my car Yvonne's van
• vacuumed most of the house (just didn't get to the living room/toy room)
• dusted our bedroom and William's room
• cleaned our bathroom
• watched Stargate SG1: Continuum
• watched Monk
• watched Psyche (last week's episode was waaay better, but I'm never disappointed with this show)
• finished The Cipher
• started The Tower of Shadows (Elizabeth picked this book because it had "horses on the front")
• I got new shoes and William got new clothes
• I got a new pillow (feather and it's awesome)
• there's more but I forgot it all!

Books arriving in September:

• Dark Curse by Christine Feehan (Berkley, $24.95). 250,000 copies
• Walt Disney's Alice in Wonderland by Jon Scieszka, illus. by Mary Blair (Disney, $16.99). 100,000 copies.
• Gingerbread Friends by Jan Brett (Putnam, $17.99). 300,000 copies
• The Other Queen by Philippa Gregory (Touchstone, $25.95). 300,000 copies.
• Paul of Dune by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson (Tor, $27.95). 250,000 copies.
• Star Wars: Order 66 by Karen Traviss (Del Rey, $27). 150,000 copies.
• The Forever War by Dexter Filkins (Knopf, $25). 150,000 copies.
• Brisingr by Christopher Paolini (Knopf, $27.50). 2.5 million copies.
• Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Special Anniversary Edition by J.K. Rowling, illus. by Mary GrandPré (Scholastic/Levine, $30). 180,000 copies.
• Tsar by Ted Bell (Atria, $26.95). 175,000 copies.
• Hate That Cat by Sharon Creech (HarperCollins/Cotler, $15.99). 125,000 copies.
• Planet Google: How One Company's All-Encompassing Vision Is Transforming Our Lives by Randall Stross (Free Press, $26). 100,000 copies.
• If You Give a Cat a Cupcake by Laura Numeroff, illus. by Felicia Bond (HarperCollins/Geringer, $16.99). 1 million copies.
• The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, illus. by Dave McKean (HarperCollins, $17.99). 250,000 copies.
• Jon Scieszka's Trucktown: Snow Trucking! by Jon Scieszka, illus. by David Gordon, Loren Long and David Shannon (S&S/Aladdin, $3.99 paper). 100,000 copies.

So there's a nice long list for you to look at.

Writerly and personal news

Audible
I've been sitting on the "audio book download" fence for some time now. I've been listening to audio books for several years now and must say, it makes my commute pass much faster than normal. And at seven to eight hours each week, that makes a world of difference. But my problem has become funding. An average audio book will run me $30 to $40. An insane amount considering that the same title in print would be half that in hardcover or even less in paperback. So I'll give the Audio Book Exchange a whirl and see what Trina and I can do (anyone else i welcome to join of course). But I'll still keep Audible as an option. Especially when I read this (bit of Star Wars news after it too):

Audible has formed a new imprint, Audible Frontiers, which will offer a range of exclusive science fiction and fantasy titles that will be available as digital downloads solely through its Web site. The imprint will feature a number of original works as well as titles from six publishers.

Mainspring
I'm seeing some static about Jay Lake's latest endeavour. Maybe it's good marketing, maybe it's a good book. Either way, flying ships always catch my eye.


School
Well, school is school. Not much to say about it right now. But I do plan on running through three classes before taking another break.

Shed
The shed has power and has passed the final inspection. That means we are done! Well, almost. We still have some insulation and drywall to install, but neither of those need an inspection because it is not a livable space. Maybe I'll be able to get some alone time to work on projects. More likely, I'll just putter.

Train Race
Elizabeth ran in a train race this weekend. It was only 400 meters or so but it's the largest race on the East Coast for kids. To put things in perspective, they limited the Caboose Run (for kids 6 and under - the one Elizabeth ran in) to 400 kids. That's right, 400. Overall, there were 2,500 kids there as racers. Add parents and fans and you get a madhouse. This photo should take you to more from the race (and of the shed).



And that's it folks.

Death of a Hero

I've been meaning to post this for some time, but have been too riddled with grief and confusion to put it down in words. After a few months of healing, I've finally gotten it out.

It was a slow death. One that's finally here and, while sad, somewhat a welcome relief. After years of a persistent illness, I regret to inform you that R. A. "Bob" Salvatore is no longer my favorite author. I weep with sadness at our departing, but know that we will both continue on in our lives and do great things.

I was introduced to Bob back in the mid 1980s. As a young boy, my aunt would take me to the bookstore in Williamsburg to buy me books or comics. On that particular day I chose a G. I. Joe comic. As I was reading it that night, again, I noticed I was continually entranced by the ad on the back cover. There was something haunting and compelling about it. Something that made me want to buy the book.

So I did. And with introductions to Drizzt, Wulfgar, Regis, Bruenor, and Catti-brie, my relationship with Bob grew. Other introductions were made over the years from Gary Leger to Elbryan and from Luthien to Nom Anor. All great people to meet, read about, and ride next to on their adventures.

But every adventure must come to an end, every McGuffin must be found. And to that end, when the story The Ancient began, I realized that our relationship had died. There was no longer a spark there. Bob's words no longer held any magic.

Over the years I've followed Bob across the country, through his life and mine. I cut my "fantasy" and "sci-fi" teeth on his books. I started following message boards back in the mid 1990s in the first incarnation of his website. I met great fans along the way and made great friends. I followed Bob to book signings. Traded emails. Even shared a drink once.

But each friendship evolves over time.

And to that end Bob, I'm sorry to say you have officially been replaced as my favorite author. Who has replaced you? Who now holds the coveted spot in my heart and in my mind? I don't know.

My favoritism is now adrift. I may have grown up reading Hardy Boy books, but I'm now looking for the new kid on the block. Man or woman, young or old, established or rookie. Nothing matters but my favoritism. There are some front runners with Patrick Rothfuss, Joe Abercrombie, Anton Strout, and others.

But who will finally arrive at the much desired spot of the trump-all author? Who will spur me on to read more of their work? Who can manage to turn my life so upside down I'm willing to spend more money just to get it spinning faster? Is it you Pat? Joe? Karen? Anton? Who can measure up in the end?

And that is where I will leave my faithful, yet small, group of readers. Salvatore is dead to me. His work doesn't measure up. I'll continue to follow his stories but only from afar. I can only hope someone will live up to the challenge.

Audio Book Exchange

So I've thought about an audio book exchange for some time now and after looking at Audible and Borders, I've not been terribly happy with what I've found. In short, not a lot of options for audio book listeners. Audible does look like the best option for the future, download your mp3 version of the book and have a nice day. But until I get a fancy Zune like my wife, I'm stuck listening to them on CD in my car.

And since I'm sick of paying full price for a book that can cost as little as $8 in paperback, I cringe when my audio book queue starts to run dry. It means another expensive trip to the book store.

So I broached the idea of an audio book exchange. So far, only one nibble.

And to that end, I'm welcoming any and all takers. There will be an application process for those I don't know (i.e. stranger danger). But for the moment, it's open for business.

Behold the spreadsheet!

The Kessell Run

How many parsecs does that thing get to the gallon?

Star Wars Redux

A very talented artist by the name of Sillof has done wonders with Star Wars characters. Check out his Steampunk version and WWII version. Pretty freaking cool.



Oh, and Stargate Continuum comes out in July.

More Book News

Attention all personnel:

I've talked to several people before about e-books and the future war between print and virtual publishing. To that end, I found this article interesting. I knew Baen had a ton of books online, but never knew they were considered pioneers in the field. A few mentions of Star Wars here (but a less interesting article). And this article on the Alternate History genre, one of my closet addictions, fails to mention Giambastiani. What a shame. But with the press the Yiddish Policeman book is getting, maybe I should check it out.

That is all.

Book News

First, I finished Sacrifice by Karen Traviss (very short review is here).

Second, Publisher's Weekly reports that:

Holt editor Sarah Knight preempted North American rights to Christian Moerk's Darling Jim; Joakim Hansson of the Nordin Agency made the six-figure sale. A bestseller in the author's native Denmark (Moerk writes in English and does his own Danish translation), the novel is a gothic tale of suspense, drawing on elements from classic mythology. Narrated largely through the diaries of two murdered sisters who had become involved with a handsome stranger, the story unfolds as a local postman reading the diaries attempts to find the mysterious survivor of the fate that claimed the sisters' lives. Moerk is a former New York Times film writer. Pub date is spring 2009.

And finally, FBS reports there's a free download (in installments) of Wasp Factory available, but alas, it's only for those on the other side of the pond. Damn.

Reading update

I finished Half-Blood Prince today. Read the review for some interesting comparisons.

The big news is, I'll be starting Deathly Hallows on the way home today. My big request to all (five) readers out there is: Please don't spoil it for me. I haven't read/listened to it yet.

And in other news, I am making some seriously slow progress on A Magic of Twilight. The language is hard to swallow and the characters don't really speak to me yet.

Sacrifice is coming along nicely. Ben assassinated the guy and is making his way off planet. I smell a Sith coming.

Book News

Sacrifice by Karen Traviss
I'm about halfway through this book and it's better than the Republic Commando books, but still not as good as I'd like. Maybe I've been spoiled by some other high class reading (think Rothfuss and Abercrombie), but there you have it.

A Magic of Twilight by S. L. Ferrell
A free (and signed) book I won in a contest. I love free books because no matter how bad they are, you still make out in the end. So far, this one isn't bad, but it is a bit rougher than most getting into. I think it's the language part that I haven't figured out yet. All the ce, cu, ca, etc. before last names is throwing me back to my 9th grade French class and it's hard adjusting.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J. K. Rowling
I'm making quick work of this one. But I never remembered that this one appears to move faster than previous ones. I'm on disc 13 and it's already March or April or something. I think it was Goblet of Fire that it took half the book to get past the Quidditch World Cup.



Jack Du Brul
He's an author, not a book. I've read all of his work and have enjoyed most of it. His co-authoring with Clive Cussler left something seriously desired, enough so that I think Cussler wrote the crap, not Du Brul. But the news here is Doubleday bought rights to the next two Mercer novels by Du Brul. Here's hoping he can keep Cussler away long enough to get some quality writing done.