Friday, December 30, 2005

Another "shocking" Meme

beatrix
"Beatrix" by Dante Gabriel
Rossetti

You are a very loyal and devout
person. You have dedicated your soul to a
single cause and will never abandon it so long
as you draw breath. You are wise and venerable.
Graced with such honorable characteristics like
loyalty, courage, and honest people are
naturally drawn to you, because you are full of
all that is good. You are like a shining,
bright, white light in a room shrouded in
darkness.


Which beautiful pre-Raphaelite painting represents you? (9 beautiful photos)
brought to you by Quizilla

Sunday, December 25, 2005

So This is Christmas...

Merry Christmas to one and all. And if you're not of the kind to celebrate Christmas, well, Happy Holidays anyway. And Happy Hannukah too any practitioners of Judeaism in the house. Today...has been a good day. I was a little worried, truth be told. Jerod, Jenna, and I spent the night with my dad for the first time since he and my mom separated some nine years ago. Which is a delicate thing. My mom gets very ansy about these things. But we got up at the absolutely ungodly hour of Oh-Dark-Thirty(06:30 for the kids playing along at home). And had Christmas with my Dad and Barbara. And ate breakfast. Then drove back out to my mom's and was home here at around 10AM. Christmas. Breakfast. Then to my aunt's house for Christmas with my dad's side of the family. Lunch. Then swiftly back home and out to my step-aunt's for the usual awkward Christmas there. And more food. *is full. ugh.*

All-in-all, I came out pretty good. Christmas was a whole lot of fun this year. Transformers and Legos were the order of the day, and I, for one, couldn't be happier. I don't ever ask for anything practical for Christmas. Where's the fun in that? My parents and aunts and uncles and grandparents like to get toys for their children/nephews/grandchildren. They have more fun, I have more fun, it's fun all around. I got, of course, the obligatory clothes, but I asked for some, so it's ok. New jeans are always good. I also got a 1GB USB flash drive. Which is ever so cool and useful. I think that's the only practical thing on my list, as I can use it at work. With it, another 1GB SD card. So that's another 220 songs or so for Vector Prime. I got a very nice brown leather jacket, finally completing my Indian Jones look. Candy, of course. Coffee and chocolate covered coffee beans. TF Cybertron Starscream vs. Vector Prime(US version, not Supreme Starscream), Oil Slick vs. Crystal Widow(TF Universe), and TF Cybertron Runamuck. And Viking Legos. Let me reiterate. Viking. Legos. How awesome is that?! There was, also, the usual assortment of little puzzles and mind benders, movies and music. And a poster-sized '06 calender with a collection of Star Wars movie posters. And I've still got one Christmas left. All told, a good day. It would have been nicer if I could have seen a few more of my friends and loved ones, but I got to talk to a couple of those on the phone today. I hope you all have had as great a day as I have been blessed with today.

Merry Christmas.

o come thou dayspring

Thursday, December 22, 2005

Crap.

I'm doing that whole one post a week thing again, aren't I? Hmm.

Lots of stuff has gone down of late. I've seen a number of excellent movies. Crackhead Mike might be finally on his way to fired. And all of my holiday shopping is done. Whee!

The Chronicles of Narnia - Holy cow. Disney movie making at its best. Very close to the book. Even dark at points, but still very family friendly. Even kept all the Christ allegoricalness it's famous for.

King Kong - Ok, I was surprised. I wasn't all that hyped about the movie. Despite Peter Jackson being behind the wheel. Peter Jackson's King Kong, to me, was sounding like Joss Whedon's The Pride and the Prejudice. Great director, sure, but a great movie? Mr. Jackson, I apologize. Kong was emotive and sympathetic. All of the characters had a depth and realism to them. Even the "bad" guys had redeeming qualities, sympathetic qualities. A very moving film. And further proof that Peter Jackson is incapable of making a short movie.

So all of my holiday shopping is done. Which is weird. Because I don't usually have much of anything to do holiday shopping-wise. First year I've really done much at all. First year I've really had the money to do anything. It's kinda nice, actually. I just hope it all gets here in time. Most of it has. And there's still several days for it to come in yet. Whee.

it's the hap-happiest season of all

Wednesday, December 14, 2005

Crafty

I feel crafty. By which I mean that I have crafted something. Gasp! Tonight I finally got around to, what amounted to, chopping up my old thigh-high round-toe renaissance boots. They had seen seven seasons of faire, and at least four other faire visits. They had been resoled. This season early in I noticed that the right boot was having issues. On the outside and inside on the rounding of the ball of my foot, the leather had split from the sole. No way was there enough leather left to resole them. Not to mention they still didn't have enough heel. So tonight I put my plan into action. I have, essentially, turned the thigh-high boots into a pair of thigh-high spats. I put them on over my combat boots. So far, it's turned out pretty good. I can use my spurs to hold them spats down for now, but tomorrow I plan to hit up the K- and Wal-Marts and scour for some really really cheap belts I can chop up and rivet onto the bottom for a more secure connection. I'm also going to look into some grommets so's maybe I can split the seam up a little on the back in the bottom for a little easier fitting on, then just lace it back down, tie it tight. Though I might just make another excuse for a buckling. Who knows! My finished project I will post a picture of here! Hopefully tomorrow!

rush

Saturday, December 10, 2005

Afoot.

Something is happening. Or rather, is on the verge of happening. The lull, the resting period, is coming to a close. It seems all the preparations, whatever they are, have been finished, though not consciously. Or if consciously done, not with the knowledge that they were, indeed, preparations. Certain things, important in my own life, but not to world at large, have cause changes in myself and my state of being that, though they do not change who, at my core, I am, they have, nonetheless, caused me to be a different man than I was. Or perhaps have made me truly into a man, where I had been, until recently, not.

I have begun to dream. How, dream? Does not every man dream? Perhaps, but dreaming is not something that I, under normal circumstance, do. Or at least not in a capacity that I remember such things. Moreover, these dreams, or at least one most recent, have become prophetic. How, prophetic? Is this not the normal case for such as I? Well, while it is true that often I will have dreams, usually of mundane things, simple, seemingly normal interactions or events, usually at a workplace or another, these are of a different brand of clairvoyance. Those dreams are, for one, many months, sometimes years in advance. Second, they are guideposts, not prophecies. Signs to search for, or, at least, recognize upon seeing. Ah, that is what that is. I am on the right path. No, the dream I have had, and this not two nights ago, was, in faith, prophetic. The last time I had a truly prophetic vision was in the spring of 2002. Struck, as it were, during my waking hours a week before Babylon's parting. Such things must be interpreted, of course, but the players were the same. And the actions, those being of myself placing my person between someone special to many of us and harm, also the same. A very strage blending of this world and the one I portay as Captain Julien Grey.

Still, something is coming. Perhaps this thing will have no greater influence than to directly affect my own life and those closest to me. Or, perhaps, this will be something that will hold great importance for many people. It does not smell like an omninous something, but at the same time, it lacks the perfume of the opposite. Something is coming, and there will be, I think, some growing pains, but only the pain associated with stiffness from inactivity. Nothing that the event will not stretch out and remedy, the result ending in a far better feeling than the comfort of sitting. For I, or we, or whomever, really, have been sitting far too long. Something new is coming. And it's going to be big in my life, I think. What it is, I have my hopes, my speculations, my fears. Only time will tell, I suppose.

I do know, however, that God is speaking to me again. Not that there was a time when He or I were not in communication. But Speaking to me in a more specific sense. His was the first dream. I need to start going back to church. A Catholic one, He tells me. Or at least, I need to attend to the duties and rituals of my Faith that I have been...letting slip. He tells me this, not because He is concerned for my lack of ritual, like a parent might get on a child to keep his room. No, this is more of a preparation for something. Honing the edge of a sword, you might say. Keeping me sharp. He prefers precision work from time to time. Seems this might be the case. I need to pick up my bible again.

I've also been pulled back to a series of books I started reading back in middle school. The author is Steven Brust. The books in question are The Phoenix Guards, Five Hundred Years After, The Paths of the Dead, and The Lord of Castle Black. In these books is a character, Khaavren, who is the base inspiration for Lord Captain Grey's character. Aside from being just an entertaining series of books, that is. In these pages, there is the building of the main character, the falling of an Empire and the struggle to meet the prophecies and portents that point to its resurrection into something far greater than before. Perhaps this is something symbolic? I need to get the last book, Sethra Lavode. If for no other reason than to finish out the series. I need and ending!

Anyway, I was starting into The Paths of the Dead after an awesome night at Plum Krazy's listening to Chris' band Also Known As with a large invasion of rennies when I was Told I should write what's on my mind here. So I have. Having so finished, I think I might just finish up the other half of the book, having started somewhere in the 3:30AM range, it now being 6:22, after attending to the, I'm assuming, feeding of my cat so that he will cease his plaintive mewling, allowing me to read in peace.

The Peace of the Lord be with you all
(What, am I writing a book for the New New Testament? God gives no reply. Oh well.)
Justin. Or perhaps Grey.
Outlaw Prophet of Greensboro.

for every season, turn, turn, turn

Monday, December 05, 2005

Computers, Computers, Everywhere

And not a game to play.

Okay, so that's not entirely true. But I am currently looking at the guts of about three computers, all told. Two working ones, one that does not. But enough extra bits all about to make up the parts of three whole computers. Whee.

That is all.

who-wha?

Friday, December 02, 2005

This is all Hugh's fault.

Ground rules: The first player of this "game" starts with the topic "Five of My Weird Habits" and the people who get tagged need to then write a LJ entry about their five quirky little habits as well as state the rules of this game clearly. In the end, you need to list the next five people who you want to tag.


Right. To it then.

1. I often insert movie soundtrack bits, usually Star Wars, into whatever I'm doing. Usually in my brain. Unless I'm feeling good. In which case I have been known to break out into full-on vocal renditions of the Death Star Trench Assault soundtrack.

2. When opening a door for a friend (which is often. Old School Southern manners.) I will bow and make a very foppish "EEeeeaaaaahhyeeaaaaaa doooooor, sah?" It's from an old old old SNL skit involving one of the guys from Kids in the Hall and another guy. Can't remember names. Or when I saw the skit. They were dressed as 18th century wussy-type fops. But it makes for comical juxtaposition.

3. I love to use the word juxtaposition. And many other large words. Usually because it annoys the heck out of my friends. Other than Hugh.

4. Grammar and spelling nazi. I blame Mrs. Herrington's AG classes.

5. One unintentional benefit of Attention Deficit Disorder. If something does not grab my interest, I have to really force myself to focus on it. However. If something does grab a hold of my interest, I am utterly tenacious in seeing it through. I read Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince in one sitting. It's also lead me to get up out of bed and assault the internet looking for obscure things from my childhood. Like any stray episodes of Spartikus and The Ancient Cities of Gold, shows I used to watch early, early in the mornings on Nickelodeon back in kindergarden.

Also posted in the LiveJournal. Since that's where it's...y'know...supposed to be. Heh.

i didn't do it. nobody saw me do it.