Monday, October 30, 2006

So, what's new in my world?

I have been thinking about death quite a bit lately. Almost to the point of obsession. I think I really started thinking about death more once I had kids. Makes me realize my own mortality; I was their age just the blink of an eye ago.

I think I am most scared because I believe in heaven and hell, and I know that I am not living the life I could or should be living. I really think that if I died now, that I would spend a long time in a fiery pit. Pleasant thought, huh? I really need to work on being more open, honest, compassionate, giving and loving. If you pray, keep my in your prayers please.

Myrddyn mentioned that there is nothing like the love of a woman. While the love of a woman is wonderful, there is truly noting like the love of a child. My children are incredible, they amaze me everyday. I have never been so lucky in my life as to have children. Pure love that really goes both ways. Those kids, as crazy and naughty as they can be (and as punishment for all my bad behavior as a child, they can be pretty naughty) can do nothing to stop me from loving them with every fiber of my being. I have a feeling Chaos knows (you will stop being afraid that he will stop breathing while you are not watching).

My wife and I went to the movies a couple of weeks ago and saw the Prestige. This movie is fantastic. One of the best movies I have seen in quite a while. The story of duelling magicians is fully entertaining; the acting is superb; and the plot twists are great. The ending is phenomenal. We talked about the subtleties of this movie all night, remembering things that characters said earlier in the movie that were made so much clearer by the end.

Unfortunately, the date ended on a sour note. We went to Cheesecake Factory, a favorite for us, when we can afford it. We started off with the appetizer sampler, which is a good sized appetizer for four; we eat it as a meal sometimes. Because it is four plates of food, it takes up a bit of space. The other couple we were with had the same thing; our table was completely covered in appetizer plates. About 5 minutes after the apps were delivered, out comes the other couple's entree; there was no room on the table. I mentioned, not even loudly, that I could not believe the waiter allowed the order to come out already. The waitress delivering the entree asked if we wanted her to take it back. Wasn't my meal and other couple said no it was fine. Waitress leaves. Waiter never comes back. Never. 5 minutes, then 10 minutes pass. He hits all the tables around us. Stops, looks at our table; no way he misses the empty drinks; just walks on by. First time in my life that I did not tip. The cheesecake was comped by the manager, but I was really ed. The guy thought there was a problem and just avoided us for half-an-hour. @#$#@#.

Tuesday, October 03, 2006

Some good Neil Gaiman short stories

Blackbirds

Cthulu

I am a huge fan of Gaiman's work, from the Sandman comic to his short stories to his novels. His most recent release is a collection of short stories and poems entitled "Fragile Things". It is the first book I have actually purchased in over a year and am currently reading it to my wife. His writing tends to be of the fantastic with plenty of subtle humour and a myriad of references to other literature and characters. For the most part it is fun reading, not very serious, although some of his work is a bit on the Clive Barker side.

Check him out.

Monday, October 02, 2006