Damn, now it?s been over a week since I last posted. The funny thing is, not too much has been going on, yet I?ve had no time to actually sit down and write about it…
- So last Wednesday night mark yet another return to movie night. Another added bonus to living in the city once again is that I can afford to be more social and stay later, instead of worrying about the shitty state of Brooklyn bound R trains in the later hours, which can be hell on earth (the A train also slows down late at night, but the key difference is, it may take a while, but one will come, whereas you don?t know what the fuck is going on with the R sometimes, and of course, no one else knows either, especially the people who work for the MTA).
Anyway, we didn?t watch any TV shows, thank god; last time was an episode of both Reaper (we saw the series premier last time, and I simply thought it was okay) and Californication (I don?t know where to begin with that one; David Duchovny?s lifeless demeanor only works as the stiff as wood Fox Mulder, and certainly not some lady killer writer, let along some down and out blogger, which is already lulz worthy, absolutely none of the character had any bit of charm or other redeeming value, as well as the actors who portrayed them, plus they all sported a thin film of sweat, making them all the more unappealing, and overall the entire thing felt so low rent, in a wannabe HBO-kind of way). Instead, it was another taste of the good old days, with random bits of Buster Keaton (whom everyone knows? you know, that other physical comic actor from the silent era, the one without the Hitler mustache) and Harold Lloyd (whom most people do not know, another silent daredevil, who at one point lost a part of his right hand, so he wears this flesh-glove to hide this fact, but despite how amazing his feats are, once you know about his half-hand, YOU CANNOT STOP STARING AT IT), plus some classic Merrie Melodies, all of which built towards a theme! A former movie night staple.
The main feature was The Shining in glorious ultra high definition, via Blu-ray. And Christ, did it ever look amazing. Again, all the experts in attendance who had seen it in the theaters back in the day stated how it never looked or sounded as good. Though it was Jack Nicholson who benefited the most; because his facial expressions are now so crystal clear, he comes off even more insane.
Oh, and on the way back to my train, I came across a pedestrian crossing light, which had appeared to had been hit by a car or something. But it still worked, and it looked pretty neat. Hence why I snapped some shots with my cell phone…
- The next day was, of course, Thanksgiving. And as I?ve done for almost ten years now, I went out to Long Island to spend the holiday with Dave Roman and his clan. Actually, this year I believe marked the ten year anniversary’ I?ve been there every single year except for the last one, which I spend with my ex?s family. Here’s a pic of ahuge load of bread that Dave and Raina brought over, shaped like a turkey. I LOLed…
But yeah, as expected, the food was amazing (I even got to take home some cookies and a whole apple pie), though it didn’t feel exactly the same, since there were no Sega systems handy (all that stuff is in Dave?s current digs, naturally).
I was going to go check out some deals the next morning, but quickly realized that it just wasn?t worth dealing with the throngs of dumbfucks, all to save $20. Instead, Jason came over and we played some Wii Sports (apparently, I don?t play bowling correctly, which is my best game, to the point that, according to him, the way that I throw the ball constitutes “cheating”), plus he got the chance to check out Super Mario Galaxy, which I?m still knee deep in.
- On Saturday afternoon, I went out to Long Island once again, this time to meet up with the ICON crew, to talk about the upcoming event. I forget if I?ve mentioned it already, but I?ve been asked this time around to help with the behind the scenes action in addition to my regular guest appearance duties. And I really can?t or shouldn?t go too deep into things, but rest assured, I will do my best to inject my own particular flavor throughout the preceding. One primary goal is redefine the very definition of what an anime dance party is all about it. Stay tuned!
The meeting took place at this store in Ronkonkoma, where pen and paper gamer dweebs gather to wage battle with dice, cards, and pewter figurines. It was certainly a bit different compared to the nerdy scene that I?m more used to; it?s both endearing and creepy to see the glazed, happy as pigs in shit expressions of dorks as they run around, checking out the various games and acting as backseat Orc handler or simply crashing in on conversation that they feel they could contribute towards. More than once I was state an opinion on something, and then of the blue, some huge chubby dork (wearing a trench coat, of course) was thrown in his two cents, and I would ask the others if he was the one guy we had been waiting for, and it never was. Many there knew about ICON, they?ve all gone there, and are eager to know what the next year will promise.
The best part is how it services all their needs: internet access, soda, and Cheetos. The bathroom was no where near as gross as I thought it would be. I also want to add real quick that I?ve been to Long Island many, many times over the ten plus years, and that day marked my first taste of LI?s interpretation of Mexican food. And I swear to God, it marked my last. Hey, time for another semi-crappy cell phone camera shot, this time of the huge Xena, Warrior Princess-esque figure that greets visitors as they enter…
- Later that night was the opening of BITMAP, in Willamsburg. It featured many computer-related, mostly video game-related, and some cases internet-ish pieces. I went primarily to see Dave Mauro?s painting which he had been slaving away on for a while now…
Jeremiah also had a piece, GR_DIUS, which is basically a modified Gradius cart with the ship and its bullets removed so they?re invisible. I actually didn?t do too bad? I managed to get far enough to score an option, though if I had played it twenty years ago, I would have one credited the whole thing (Gradius, not Super Mario Bros, was the main reason why I finally got a NES). Again, excuse the crappy quality…
There were tons of other neat things, including these old Game Boy carts with Gundam body parts…
I totally dug the Google Ads scarf…
And some other random odds and ends…
… That one was just a looping clip of the two people looking quite concerned, with an “8 bit joke” popping up every once in a while. Though my favorite piece would have to be this tray of water that produced animated liquid pixels…
… It?s definitely one of those “you just have to see it in person” kind of things. I actually got a chance to chat with the creator, Mike Beradino. Really cool guy!
Also got to chat it up with Marcin Ramocki, the curator, as well as the director of 8-Bit (which I reviewed last year, as some might recall). Also a very cool cat, who reminded me how it was at that same gallery a few years back in which Jeremiah was performing when a cop showed up to stop the show. With that, someone yelled out “CHIPTUNES!!!” or something (I believe it was actually “DATA DESTRUCTION!!!”), and I replied with a hearty scream of my own, which was the closer of the documentary, which Marcin was still happy about. Enough to offer me a nice stiff shot of Scotch!
Later on there was some chiptunes, courtesy of x|k…
I was curious, as was Dave, why he wasn?t performing at this year?s Blip Festival, but a reason was given, and it was a sensible one (which I will touch upon at a later point). The set, as expected, was awesome, and I got a nice spot right up front; Mike decided to record the performance via his own digital camera, but I believe he was only interested in capturing the audio, or at least I hope, since it was my crotch that was in front of the lens more or less the entire time.
Afterwards I caught wind of an after-party, and despite numerous invitations, I was tired and hungry, and decided to head back into the city to check out a burger joint I had long wanted to give a try (mostly because from the outside it looked like that burger place from the classic SNL sketches… you know, where they only serve cheeseburgers and Pepsi?s?). It?s on 14th between 1rsr Ave and Avenue A called Express Burgers & Gyros. Yeah, it does sound about as generic as it gets, but it was pretty good. And then I went home and spent the rest of the night watching Manhattan cable access and building Ikea furniture. I?ll save my big I heart New York Cable Access report for a later date, though I will mention that my new favorite show is something called Star Crash, which is a sci fi show with a very feminist slant. The CGI is beyond cheesy, though not as bad as the so bad its not even funny bad acting.
- Sunday was a lazy one; was supposed to have dinner with my friend Shep who was back into town for the holidays, but he ended up staying in Connecticut, so I just stayed home and continued to unpack. Though I did head on over to Jeremiah?s, who is now a neighbor of mine, one who lives literally fifty seconds away from me. Him and Olya had some furniture that they were getting rid off, and since he knew I have pretty much nothing of the sort, he was kind enough to pass a coffee table and some end tables along. I also got to finally check out the super sweet Japanese arcade cabinet that he recently acquired…
Now I want one! And considering that I have more than enough room.
Sticking with the subject of furniture, what I really need most is a couch. And it?s been suggested that I appeal to all my friends this holiday season for some assistance. Basically, instead of getting me a DVD or video game, which at this point no one likes to do since most everyone assumes that I have everything already, if everyone simply chipped in $10-$20, I could easily have enough by the end to get a really nice thing to sit on. Though I personally find it weird to email all my friends about it, hence why I guess posting about it on my blog (like I?m doing right now) seems a less direct and a tiny bit more dignified (though begging on the internet is not exactly a smooth move either? but at least I?m not putting up a donation button like it was also suggested, since others have pointed out how bad that could look as well). So if anyone feels like passing along some love… my contact info is available elsewhere on the site!
Besides, those who have been asking for a housewarming/fort90forum party, all I can is, it ain’t happening till I get a couch! Unless no one minds sitting on the floor.
- As for earlier this particular week, just been busy with work, plus reviewing games for the upcoming Independent Games Festival. Speaking off, I?ve also decided not to go home this Xmas. The bottom line is that dealing with the family unit during the holiday season is just not worth the aggravation, plus I was already in Washington earlier this year anyway. So instead, I?m gonna enjoy Christmas in New York City, though I might crash some other holiday function. Hey, I?ll finally get a chance to play Christmas NiGHTS on Christmas!
The plan is this: I still need to go back home to visit the folks, so I?ll do that in February, right before the Game Developers Conference. Now, because of my father?s schedule, and the GDC?s, that means I might have a few days in-between in California. So if anyone out there wants to hang, let me know!
- Oh, and last night, I didn?t make it out to movie night, of course. That?s cuz it was my company?s holiday party. Yesterday was actually the one year anniversary in which my company purchased Zedge, so there were several reason to celebrate, which culminated in a massive feast, me getting tipsy from wine around 4:30 in the afternoon (we were all instructed not to eat all day since there was going to be so much food), a speech from our fearless leader in which he congratulated us on an amazing job, with Slap Shot playing in the background (and right when a scene featuring tits was going on), and me making a speech about why Iron Man is my favorite comic book character (basically, he?s like Batman, but he?s not as dark and depressing since his parents were never murdered, plus he?s a drunk, and fucks hot chicks constantly). After the meal was a hockey game, my very first, and that was fun.
As for tonight? and for the next three nights, it?s the long-awaited return of the Blip Festvial! And this time, I?m gonna be there for every last beep and boop. Plus, I?ll be providing a comprehensive report, though not for this site but GameSetWatch! So I guess it marks my triumphant return to that oh so wonderful site. And I intend to make sure my write-up kicks ass, because I owe it to Simon after so many false re-starts (when I mentioned this to Jeremiah, he went “Yeah, its about time you finished something for the guy!”). Anyhow, the Blip Fest is easily this weekend’s hottest ticket (it’s actually getting a ton of coverage… there was even a Times piece on it a while back), so get your tickets now!
- Hey, real quick, an update on what the else the rest of THE TRIFECTA has been up to. First off, Katie?s Nurse Nurse #2 is coming along quite beautifully!
I know I shouldn’t mention this, but Katie has admitted that she tries to put in as many ass shots as possible, just for me!
Meanwhile, Hilary has is whipping up some awesome prints for the upcoming animu fest happening in NYC next weekend!
- Still haven’t been able to go back to the schedule in which I used to have when it came to updating this site. But least I still have the forums to pass along video game chit-chat, plus “other stuff”! It was actually pretty dead late last week, due to the holiday season, but things have really picked up over the past couple of days…
… Check out this one girl’s totally bad-ass Metroid cosplay:
… So the original NiGHTS is coming out for the PS2. Yay?
… Some dude finds out his wife was cheating on him via her lover’s Mii.
… The fighting game that the whole world needs:
… We’re FINALLY getting a lightsaber game for the Wii, though it would just be nice if we just got what we wanted and not be forced to also buy another bloated, boring Star Wars action title.
… By far, the AWESOMEST website/screen saver in the world. A must download, I shit you all not.
… Again, a pretty cool top ten list for fictional weapons, though the Subtle Knife is still sorely missing.
… Katie discovered how truly fucking awesome Fatal Farm really are:
… Time yet another sample from the random pictures thread:
… To be honest, if I had known what was going to happen later in the week, I would have stuck around in Willamsburg Saturday night.
… There is now a better way to YouTube!
