Sewer Pirates and Writer’s Block

Every now and then, I’ll read or see something that stirs up creativity like one of those old water vortex jugs you used to make as a kid, with ideas swirling in violent circles. For me, this usually boils down to a handful of movies or stories that always make me yearn to create my own. But occasionally, it’s something different.

Take this story from the L.A. Times today, which spins the tale of a buried ship at the World Trade Center, just discovered this week. Damon Lindelof linked to it on his Twitter account with a joke about the Black Rock and Lost, but my mind went different places. Continue reading →

Another Trip Around the Sun

Last Thursday marked the passing of my 27th year on this island Earth, and it went down much like any other annual “congrats for being alive” milestone before it: with general fatitude and revelry. What made this birthday weekend more remarkable than recent years was probably that it coincided with the Web Zeroes wrap party, and my youngest brother Kyle coming in town. It made for one exhausting and fun weekend, particularly as I reminisced on the nerdy shows we’ve made. I’m not sure if it was encouraging or a letdown to consider that I began pursuing my creative endeavors when I was 24, but I’m still on the good side of 30 I suppose, with lots of good writing or basket weaving years left in these bones. Continue reading →

Latepass On the Double Rainbow

OK, I know I’m going to get called for a serious latepass on this, but I thought I might as well post the glorious Double Rainbow meme that’s been circling the Web like a satellite recently. This particular set of videos falls under the category of stuff that gets increasingly funnier every single time I watch it.

It really must be experienced in both respective parts: the original, in which a hiker freaks out about a double rainbow. Then, the remix, in which the audio from the first clip is auto-tuned. They produce in me a feeling that can only be called pure and unadulterated joy. Continue reading →

Back to Zero

Mount DoomWell, tomorrow marks the end of a year of hard work for me and two of my best friends: Web Zeroes draws to a close with its final episode. I’ve got some mixed feelings on this, some of which I can share at the moment and a few that will need some time to sort out and file in the appropriate boxes for later use.

I think the thing that I’m feeling most of all is relief. We’ve had a fairly brutal schedule over the last ten months or so, one that is finally letting up and giving us a chance to get our heads out of the production hole. The most analogous thing I can conjure up when it comes to producing a series is that it is like throwing the ring into Mt. Doom at the end of Lord of the Rings, but not as cool or dramatic. Also I don’t really look like a Hobbit, and I hope that nobody shows up to bite my finger off once the show’s over. Continue reading →

Faith and Speculative Fiction

Science Fiction

There are typically two types of books that I lean towards when populating my reading list: Sci-fi/Fantasy books or books on theology and Christian living. It’s a strange combination, I suppose, but says a lot about the things I ponder, when I’m not thinking about Batman or cheeseburgers. As an aspiring author, these are actually the two types of writing that I’d like to delve into some day, and there is usually a stark separation between the two (although I’ve shared before how I think this should not always be so).

Over the weekend, there were some interesting discussions going on in a few Christian blogs about the absence of speculative fiction (sci-fi/fantasy/horror, etc.) from the world of Christian publishing. This all seemed to start over at ReveLife with a post about how Science Fiction Goes with the Christian Life, which discusses the myriad of thematic elements that are relevant for Christians in the realm of sci-fi. Personally, I think it raises some good points, especially considering that science fiction’s most powerful ability is to turn the magnifying glass on present culture by way of the future or the seemingly impossible. For reference material, see: Battlestar Galactica, the series. Continue reading →

Batman Quest

BatmanToday I feel like someone used the Five Point Palm Exploding Heart Technique on each of my limbs, rendering them completely defunct and obsolete. I shout at them to move but they offer me no recourse. I think they are upset at me about last night.

I’ve told myself for years that I’m going to take a self defense class at some point in my life. This has always been known to me as my Batman Quest, because deep down, who doesn’t want to be a crime fighter in a mask? Really, I just thought it would be cool to learn something new, and get in better shape doing it. Continue reading →

Confessions of a Nerd

ConfessionA few weeks back, I wrote a bit for this blog about The Rabbit Hole of Geek. The main premise of this piece of writing is that deep down, everybody’s a dork about something, whether they know it or not.

Originally I was going to tack on a whole other portion — a confessional if you will — of my nerdiest and most awesome exploits, but the post was getting a bit long. These are things that not everybody knows about me, but I feel it’s best to come clean. They say that confession is good for the soul, even if it’s not good for the self image.

So, here it goes: Continue reading →

The Reading Backlog

BooksIf you couldn’t tell, I am a fan of all things writing, which obviously includes reading. However, lately I haven’t really had all that much time to take part in this or any of my favorite activities for that matter. But with a break just around the corner and more free time in my foreseeable future, I’m finally going to get to tackle the stack of books that’s been waiting for me in the corner, lonesome and dusty.

The funny thing is, I used to read books like crazy when I was younger. All through out my childhood and through middle schooler, I was an avid reader, constantly getting my hands on any kind of book I could, wanting to devour its words like some text monster, ravenous and hungry for all the knowledge and stories I could gleam from their pages. Continue reading →

Achievement Unlocked

Crackdown 2

Last night, something weird happened when I played the demo for Crackdown 2. I loved the first game, but most of my memories with it are associated with hunting for agility orbs, which allow you to run faster and jump higher. I collected every single one in the first game, and ignored much of the game proper simply so I could do it. In fact, I spent several weeks hunting for the last 2 or 3, to the detriment of other real things I should have been doing. Continue reading →

Harry Potter World

If you don’t like Harry Potter and visit my blog regularly, I apologize, because you’re going to hear me geek out about it endlessly until I go visit the new Harry Potter attraction at Islands of Adventure in August. Last year, Jen and I went to Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure and Disney World for a vacation, and we’re going back again in 2010 just to see the Harry Potter stuff. It’s totally dorky, I know, but I can live with it, especially when I’m doing totally sweet stuff and you aren’t.

Anyway, it’s hard for me not to geek out about it when I see stuff like this YouTube video, where a wand chooses a kid at Ollivander’s. How awesome is that? Continue reading →

Load more