Ramblings of the Eternally Bored

I've been dealing with my brothers death pretty well. I still think of him all the time. For example, I laminated one of the cards from his funeral and use it as a bookmark so every time I read something, I'll be reminded of him and our shard passion for books. My brother Steve on the other hand, he can't talk about Bill without getting choked up or breaking down. I've been passed that stage for awhile. Even this week, where Bill would have celebrated his 53rd birthday, it didn't get me full of sorrow. But those feelings sneak up on you when you least expect it. I was watching a documentary about the band Iron Maiden tonight. After they get offstage, they play Always Look on the Bright Side of Life from the Monty Python movie Life of Brian through the PA as the crowd leaves. The minute I heard the song start, i completely lost it. Not just simple crying, but the doubled over in a fetal position and sobbing sort of crying.

The song brought back so many memories of him. The first time I saw the movie was with him when I was quite young. It was a double feature with Blazing Saddles. (first time I saw that one as well) It's a song my brothers and I would sing many times over the years. It's amazing how something like that can uncork a well of emotions so quickly. I think of him when reading. I have some things of his I took from his house after his passing to remember him by. I can look at those every day without breaking down. I can listen to music I know he loves like Utopia or Peter Gabriel. It will remind me of him, but no tears. Who knows why, but that song just did it tonight. It felt good. Like I was bottling it up for awhile. I miss you brother.

I was so bored last night that I actually started to watch the new reality train wreck I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here... Goodness. Where to start. First off, the only reason I even put on this garbage was to see the wife of our former Governor. How badly would she come across? But any hopes of some much desired schadenfreude on her behalf, it was Heidi and Spencer who stole the show. What a couple of Grade A douchebags these two are. My lord. Now, I've never seen their show. I'm way out of the age bracket that would watch, but are they always so loathsome? Are they just playing it up for the shock value? Ick. I didn't see the whole show. The host mentioned the show would be live every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. I have no intention of investing that much time into a show like this, so I immediately changed the channel. I spent too many days suckered into Big Brother, and I'm not about to get suckered into this one..

Speaking of being out of the age bracket for a show, I watched the MTV Movie Awards. With so many of awards going to movies involving Twilight, Hannah Montana, and High School Musical, it's clear that show has passed me by. It was fun to see Forest Whitaker singing Dick in a Box, and Eminem getting a face full of Bruno, but the rest of the show might as well had been on Nick.

I've been trying to find something interesting to read for awhile. While cleaning up my room, I came across Galilee by Clive Barker. I bought this years ago, and never even cracked the cover. I'm horrible at that. I buy a book I "must have now", and then by another, and the first one disappears in a pile somewhere. I'm only 50 or so pages into it, but I'm really digging it. It's a pretty healthy sized book. Have any of you read this? Does it keep going as well as it starts, or does it fizzle out, like some other Clive Barker book has been know to do? Luckily for me, the EP Library book sale is this weekend, so I get to load up on lots of books that I'll forget about buying, and I'll have something to read next year or two. ;)

Lastly, thank goodness Pushing Daisies is finally getting its last few episodes aired. I missed getting my Kristen Chenowith fix. They made up for the lengthy delay by having her sing Hello by Lionel Ritchie. Well worth the wait.

Hey all. Just popping in to say hello. Recovery is doing pretty well, though I'm a little concerned that the doctors took out my staples too soon. I won't get into the gory details, but the scar is a little gooey, and I need to keep it covered to keep from ruining my clothes. I have an appointment next Tuesday at the hospital for my surgeon to make sure all is progressing well. I think I'll take the bus this time. My parents drove last visit, and let's just say, it was a nightmare. They shouldn't drive anywhere outside the neighborhood.

I didn't really go into any details about my stay in the hospital in my last post. One event I find amusing, so I thought I'd post it here. When I finally went in for surgery, I remember clearly the cute German doctor talking to me when I was on the operating table. She kept telling me to take deep breaths. The next thing I remember, I was in a curtained area, and my hands are bound to the bed. I wake up kind of startled, and get agitated. The nurse comes in and asks how I'm feeling, and she explains they needed to restrain me because I came out of the anesthetic badly, and was disoriented, and kept trying to rip out all my tubes. She asked my name, and I still wasn't quite clear headed, so she let me rest a few.

I remember laying there, reading the posters on the wall. Trying to gauge what was going on. I was in the hospital, wasn't I? I remembered my enormous lump, and I was able to get a hard in the general area, and felt it was gone. I leaned forward trying to read my wristband. Mark Spencer. Hmm. I know who I am. The nurse walked by and I told her I was Mark Spencer, and I just had emergency hernia surgery. She smiled and said "Good. Now we can get you up to a room." The cute German Dr came by while I was waiting. She asked if I remembered anything from when I woke up. I did have some vague details, but it was all hazy. She laughed and told me that after surgery, when they moved me to the post-op area, I awoke suddenly and started trying to pull out my IV and monitors. I was ranting about how they were trying to steal my identity, and implant a new one from the internet. I was bound and determined to stop them. When she told me, it was like a fog lifting, and I could remember vague details about it. It was something to do with a Govt conspiracy with Monster.com, and they were all in on it. Something about creating a drone work force. LOL. Where the hell did that come from? I apologized, and she laughed it off saying it was not even close to the weirdest thing that happened when someone woke up groggy. The rest of my time in the hospital, I kept apologizing whenever the surgical team came in.

A long delayed update!

It's been so long since I've logged on to visit with my LJ friends. I'm sure a few of you have wondered where I've been. (at least I hope you even noticed I was gone) For those of you who have read my journal for awhile, you know I've had some nagging medical issues. Mainly, and terrible hernia sticking out of my stomach that I could not afford to fix. Well, things came to a head recently. I was rushed by my family to the county Hospital, and the doctors admitted me for emergency surgery.

It actually was an unrelated problem that led me to where I am now. I came down with a hellacious stomach virus. I couldn't hold down anything, and I was throwing up to the point that all my abdominal muscles tightened from the constant strain of the vomiting. That where it ties in with my long standing hernia problem. It seem the muscles all tightened up, and it caused the hernia to constrict, and it completely cut off my bowels. For a few days, I was in pretty bad shape. Luckily, my family is smarted then I am, and they dragged me to the hospital. After flushing out my stomach with a tube don my throat, they did all the tests. (XRAY, CT Scan etc) They determined I was in serious risk, and got me in for emergency surgery.

Well, to make a long story short, I spent a few days in the hospital recovering, and I've been home for a few more recovering. My hernia is fixed! I no longer have an enormous bump sticking out of my abdomen. (no idea how I'll be paying for it though) Things are getting better. I have good day and bad, but more good then bad. Sadly, to spend time online, I have to go upstairs, and sit in this horribly uncomfortable chair. So obviously, I have been offline for the past few weeks. I have updated my friends on Facebook, but I felt I had to get a note to my friends on LJ. I haven't posted in so long, and haven't read any of your journals, so I feel so cut off. I just wanted to you all to know I', thinking of ya, and hope to be back online soon continuing our weird little brand og LJ camaraderie. Hope you are all well, and I'll see ya soon. Mark.

Well, Kumar anyway.. After his shocking exit from the cast of House this week, actor Kal Penn wasted no time finding himself gainful employment. He now works at the White House. His official title is Associate Director in the White House Office of Public Liaison. When I heard this on the news, I had to glance over at the calender to see if it was still April Fools Day.

Well, Kumar anyway.. After his shocking exit for the cast of House this week, actor Kal Penn wasted no time finding himself gainful employment. He now works at the White House. His official title is Associate Director in the White House Office of Public Liaison. When I heard this on the news, I had to glance over at the calender to see if it was still April Fools Day. Bizarre.

#1 What author do you own the most books by?
Probably Terry Pratchett. There are a ton of Discworld novels.

( Click here to read the rest )

Just saying HI to all my LJ friends. I feel I've been negligent on keeping up on this journal and reading everyone elses. The little time I spend online, I'm usually checking facebook. When I first joined, I looked to see if anyone I knew from school was on there, and there was nobody. So I never went back. In the last month or two, I've gotten friend requests from tons of people. Everyone from my first childhood friend, to girls I had crushes on in high school. It's been interesting to hear from everyone. Who's married. Who's passed away. Who's in jail etc.. The best part for me is hooking up with some old musician friends I haven't talked to in well over a decade. We're getting a jam session together soon, and I'm so excited to play again, especially with some of these people. My friend Bob is the best drummer I've ever met. Just a world class musician. But sadly, we never really played together. We messed around a few times in the garage, but we never found the time to be in a band. I look forward to seeing how we gel.

My depression is not as deep lately, so that's a good thing. I took my brothers death pretty hard. We were closest in the family. He was the one that if I was reading a good book, I'd pick up the phone to tell him about it and have him pick it up. I'd get a call about some movie on cable he was watching. I love my other siblings, but we have none of that in common. I can call them to say hi, but we won't get into hour long conversations about some obscure 70s British prog band. I miss it. I miss him. Though I am dealing with it much better, I think next month will be tough. We are heading to my sister in laws house for Easter. It will seem so empty without him there. I'll probably just want to go sit in his office and go through his books.

I've always loved this song. I think this is King Crimson at it's best. The double power trio concept is odd, but it works here..

When I heard the teaser on the news saying two American female journalists were taken into custody by the North Koreans, my first thought was "I bet it's Laura Ling". Sure enough, when they came back with the story, Laura Ling and Euna Kim were the journalists. Whenever I see Laura Ling on Current TV, her reports are great. She'll be reporting from the Kurdistan/Turkey border about the ongoing civil war or something like that. She seems like a throwback to when journalists actually do some journalism. Nowadays, you get an Iraqi camera crew to go out and film some local destruction, then the "journalists" will so their voice overs from a safe and secure spot in a heavily fortified zone miles away. Current TV gives a lot of great "boots on the ground" reporting. Laura and Euna were filming on the border about the refugees fleeing the oppresive regime of North Korea to head for China. (how bad to things have to be for you to choose to live in China? Seems like trading on oppresive dictatorship for another) Tensions between the US and North Korea are pretty high right now, so I hope this can be resolved quickly, and get the women out of there.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/northkorea/5016053/North-Korea-detains-two-US-journalists.html

Just a quick note to say "Hello" to everyone, and apologize for not posting more often. I've just been a in serious funk lately, and haven't had much to write about. I don't want to just post about how sad and depressed I am, so I just refrain from posting anything. Hopefully I'll snap out of this soon, and get back to my usual jolly old self.

I wonder how this band ever came together. Who thought of putting these guys in the same room? Bun E. Carlos from Cheap Trick on drums, Adam Schlesinger from Fountains of Wayne on bass, James Iha from Smashing Pumpkins on guitar, and Taylor Hanson singing. Bizarre. Yet, I dig this song. It's very simple, but I have a real soft spot for this kind of stuff. Pure power pop. I look forward to hearing the entire album to see if it's all in this vein.

First Movie you ever saw in the theater: I'm sure it was a Disney movie, probably Bambi.

Fave movie as a kid: Star Wars

Movie you have seen the most times: Probably Life of Brian

Biggest Movie Star crush as a kid: Erin Gray. It was those skin tight spandex outfits she had to wear on Buck Rogers..

Fave 80's teen Movie: 3 O'Clock High. That movie still holds up well.

Fave song from a movie: Sweet Transvestite from Rocky Horror Picture Show. They should just retire that play. I can't imagine anybody ever doing a better version of this song then Tim Curry. He nailed it.

Fave Love/Romance Movie: You've got Mail. Yes, I like a chick flick. Make fun of me all you want...

Fave Horror Movie: Dracula. Sure, I could go with any number of modern gory movies, or the latest Asian mind-farks, but there's just something about this classic version of Dracula that stays with me. The incredible sets, the atmosphere, the great quotable lines spoken by Bela Legosi. I've been watching this one pretty much my entire life, and I still enjoy it.

Fave Drama: The two Godfather movies. There were just two of them.

Fave Sci Fi movie: Dark City.

Fave Fantasy movie: The Lord of the Rings trilogy. (especially the extended editions) Despite the complaining of the geek crowd about all that was left out of the books, I think Peter Jackson did an amazing job with these films.

Fave Musical Movie: West Side Story.

Fave Comedy Movie: It's a Gift. W.C. Fields at his best.

Fave Action/Adventure Movie: Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Movie that Scared You as a Child: The Exorcist. That makeup by Dick Smith literally haunted me in my dreams. Fantastic makeup.

Movie that makes you cry every time you see it: Field of Dreams

Worst movie you ever saw: Date Movie/Epic Movie/Meet the Spartans. I don't think I laughed once during these films.

Movie you walked out on in the theater cause it was so bad: I don't think I've ever walked out of a movie due to it being bad. I've stayed till the end.

Most sexual movie you ever saw (non porn): Two Moon Junction. I can't remember the story or any of the dialogue, but I can picture the sex scenes. ;)

Most disturbing movie you ever saw: Irreversible. The rape scene is so shockingly brutal that it sickened me to my core. I don't think I'd ever watch the movie again.

Movie that supposedly sucks but you love it: CJ7. Most people I've talked to thought this was the worst movie Stephen Chow has made, but I thought it was a fun movie, geared for children.

Favorite actors: Christian Bale, Russel Crowe, Brad Pitt, George Clooney.

Fave Actresses: Cate Blanchett, Maggie Cheung, Gong Li, Mariska Hargitay, Pauley Perrete

Movie you wanted to see the most as a child but were not allowed to: My parents pretty much let me see anything.

Sexiest movie star of all time (male): Cary Grant

Sexiest movie star of all time (female): Angelina Jolie

Movie that could/might as well been written about your life: Jackass

Favourite villain in a movie: Barnaby from Babes in Toyland. He freaked me out as a kid.

Last movie you saw on TV/rented: Jumper. What a disappointing movie. The concept is really good, but the acting and execution was god awful. I'm going to pick up the books the movie was based on tomorrow to see if they are better then this lackluster movie. Hayden Christensen shouldn't be allowed to act anymore.

Last movie you saw in theater: Coraline. Quite good. Hearing French and Saunders together again was worth the price of admission alone. Do another show gals...

Movie that you really, really wanted to mention, but just couldn't find a category for it: Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea. Defintely meant for a younger audience then his last few films, this is yet another great movie by Hayao Miyazaki.

I've been trying to find something interesting to read. After all the drama going on around here the last month or so, I just want to read something light and easily digestible. I've re-read all the Harry Potter books. I've read the Artemis Fowl series. I've read the Bartimaeus trilogy. I've read the new Christopher Moore. I've re-read my Robert Rankin books. Now I'm to the point that I'm probably going to go back and either re-read all the older Christopher Moore books, or the Dresden Files series. Anyone have any suggestions of book along this vein? Light, humorous, fantasy, etc?

I think this is a pretty impressive version of one of my favorite songs. I think using the voice recorder really put it over the top for me.

This weekend, the 36th annual Annie Awards were held. The Annies are the Oscars for animation. Surprisingly, Kung Fu Panda swept through the awards, and took home 11 trophies, completely shutting out Wall-E. Wall-E actually won less awards then Jar Jar Binks, who won for his appearance on Robot Chicken. I thought Kung Fu Panda was a fun movie, but nothing ground breaking or special, so I'm kind of shocked by this. I thought Wall-E was as brilliant as pretty much all the other Pixar movies. I wonder if all the predictions that Wall-E is a lock for the Animated Feature Oscar might be a bit premature..

Rules: Copy, erase my answers, enter yours.

Use the first letter of your name to answer each of the following questions. They have to be real . . . nothing made up!

If the person before you had the same first initial, you must use different answers. You cannot use any word twice and you can't use your name for the boy/girl name.

1. What is your name: Mark

2. A four Letter Word: Mist

3. A boy's Name: Matt

4. A girl's Name: Missy

5. An occupation: Master of hounds

6. A color: Mauve

7. Something you wear: Mittens

8. A food: Meat

9. Something found in the bathroom: Mr. Clean

10. A place: Manchester

11. A reason for being late: Meandering

12. Something you shout: Motherf***er!

13. A movie title: Monster of Piedras Blancas

14. Something you drink: Mithering Bastard

15. A musical group: Moxy Früvous

16. An animal: Meerkat

17. A street name: Michgan Ave

18. A type of car: Marquis

19. The title of a song: My Baby Loves a Bunch of Authors

20. A verb: masticate

This is great. A few years ago, a band called the Easy Star All Stars released an album called Dub Side of the Moon, a reggae/dun version of Dark Side by Pink Floyd. It's an awesome album. I think since getting the dub version, I haven't listened to Dark Side once. I've listened to the Dub version many times.. I didn't know until tonight that they came out with another album. It's called Radiodred, and it's a Reggae/dub version of OK Computer. I can not wait to hear this album. I found it online, but it's downloading ridiculously slow, so I may just head to the record store tomorrow to buy a copy. Enjoy this live version. (not as reggae as they normally are, but it's one of my favorite songs, and I really dig this version)

President Bush is now ex-President Bush. All kidding aside, I have to admit I've been very impressed with the class shown by the former President and First Lady. I'm sure many of you remember the contentious transition between the Clinton administration and the incoming Bush administration. All the rumors of keyboards with missing letters, and missing phones etc.. From all I've read and heard, the transition between Bush and Obama has been smooth and cordial.

A couple of quick thoughts my viewing of the Inauguration.

The cheers that former President Clinton and soon to be Sec of State Hilary Clinton received was loud and enthusiastic. It was much louder then either Carter or Bush 41, and the Fox News commentators seemed to be taken aback by it. They never seem to remember that while they hate everything to do with the Clintons, the people loved them. Even during the height of the impeachment process, Bill Clinton had an approval rating somewhere in the 70s. I know that burns their hides..

This is a day to celebrate the amazing history of our nation, and isn't really the time for partisan sniping. (despite my journal title) Even though, I had to smile when President George W Bush was introduced for the last time, you heard a small chant in the crowd of Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey-ey, goodbye. He earned it.

The calm and cool Barack Obama seemed to get a little flustered during the oath of office. I imagine I'd be completely tongue tied if it were me.

Right wingers are still obsessed about the name Hussein. I'm listening to talk radio as I type this. They are talking about the Inauguration, and they are angry that they were criticized for pointing out his middle name is Hussein, yet he uses it for the oath of office. "Why are liberals so afraid of us saying it? It IS his name.. We're only saying the name his parents gave him! Yes. You are so concerned with getting formal names right. Let's check the archives and see how often you used the name Hillary Diane Clinton or Sarah Louise Palin. It's all in the intent, jackasses.

Cheney in a wheelchair makes him look even more sinister, if that's possible.

All the times I've seen this video over the years, and it wasn't until today that I learned it was Henry Rollins playing the Vanilla Ice clone in this video.