It’s that time of year. If you haven’t been to the Austin’s 37th Street display of lights, this video from illustrator Doug Potter gives you an idea of what it’s like.
Merry Christmas!
Austin: Christmas on 37th Street
December 22nd, 2011Recipe for Frustration
December 20th, 20111. Have flat wheelbarrow wheel.
2. Buy solid, never-go-flat replacement wheel.
3. Unscrew bolts holding on flat wheel.
4. Wrench flat wheel off axle with difficulty.
5. Be unable to remove rotatory cuff for old wheel that has fused to axle, and thus be unable to replace old wheel with new wheel, which has its own rotatory cuff.
6. Just when the trees finally decide to shed their leaves.
7. Be unable to find a suitable replacement axle anywhere online.
Shoegazer Sunday: Laboratory Noise’s “Here, She Is Evergreen”
December 18th, 2011Today’s dollop of Shoegaze goodness comes from Laboratory Noise. Love the band name. The YouTube description says they hail from Manchester, the birthplace of classic Shoegaze, but their bio says they hail from nearby Bradford instead.
Their debut album, When Sound Generates Light, is available through Amazon.
Finally, a Christmas Film I Can Get Behind
December 16th, 2011A Very Calvin & Hobbes Christmas
A Few Recent Book Aquistions of Interest
December 14th, 2011The book buying continues apace here at Stately Person Manor. I plan to have a comprehensive roundup of every damn thing I bought toward the end of the year (which is nigh), but here are a few particularly interesting, obscure, and/or lustworthy books I’ve picked up since Worldcon (a;; pics enbiggenable):
Tokyo Shoegazer’s “Bright” Take 2 (The Complete Song)
December 12th, 2011Little did I know that almost immediately after I put up the short version that Tokyo Shoegazer would put up the complete 8 minute, 29 second version.
Well, because I run a full-service blog (full service, I tell you!), here it is:
Llamas With Hats
December 11th, 2011Maybe I’m easily amused, but something about the absurd, over-the-top, off-screen violence tickled my funny bone. Given that each of these have more than a million hits, once again I may be a wee bit behind the curve.
“That’s what forgiveness sounds like. Screaming, and then silence.”
“I should probably mention that I filled our luggage with orphan meat.”
Texans Clench AFC South, Playoff Spot
December 11th, 2011The Houston Texans beat the Bengals 20-19, which, combined with the Titans loss to the Saints, means that the Texans have clenched the AFC South and are going to the playoffs for the first time in team history.
Also, Dwight Brown owes me $100.
Shoegazer Sunday: Supercar’s “Lucky”
December 11th, 2011After posting last week’s Tokyo Shoegazer song, I did some more research, and it seems that Shoegaze is (thankfully) a lot more popular in Japan than I first realized.
Here’s a band named Supercar (which evidently broke up in 2005) with “Lucky.” Here they seem a little more J-Pop than Shoegazer, but either way they’re very tasty. Skip the first 42 seconds of cheesetacular introduction.
And here’s the live version:
Because “Screw the Lakers,” That’s Why
December 9th, 2011When the three-way trade between the Rockets, Lakers and Hornets was announced yesterday, I wasn’t a big fan of the trade. The Rockets would have gotten Lakers’ center Pau Gasol, arguably the second best center in the game. The Lakers, who do not need any help in getting better, would have gotten the league’s top point guard in Chris Paul, the Hornets would have gotten Lamar Odom from the Lakers and Luis Scola, Kevin Martin and Goran Dragic from the Houston Rockets, plus the Kinck’s 2012 first round pick.
I enthused because I think Houston gave up too much for a 31-year old center. Scola is good for 18 points and eight boards a night, while Kevin Martin scores and extremely efficient 23 points a night (though he’s definitely a defensive liability). If Gasol had been 26 rather than 31, I would be more favorably inclined to the deal. (If Rockets GM Daryl Morey had a deal for the Nuggets Nene at hand with the freed-up cap space, as many suggested, then the deal becomes a lot more palatable for Rockets fans.)
But New Orleans clearly made out like bandits, receiving three extremely solid starters and a first round pick for a guy who was going to walk in eight months anyhow. Which is why they’re the ones most screwed by NBA Commissioner nixing the deal for vague “basketball reasons.”
As many commentators pointed out, this was a solid deal with risks and rewards for all concerned. Both Paul and Kobe Bryant have experienced knee problems. If they stay healthy and the Lakers land Dwight Howard next year, yeah, that’s going to suck for everyone else in the Western Conference. But if Paul and/or Bryant go down, and they don’t land Howard, then they’re in a world of hurt from having gutted their front court.
I’m all behind screwing the Lakers, but having Stern do it in this fashion, with so little justification, screws all three teams.