Canto LII

I'm going to put all my Harry Potter related thoughts into a different blog post, the one below this, so those trying to avoid spoilers will know to avoid that entry.

Well, it's been 3 weeks it looks like. Wow. I think I could keep putting this off indefinitely, but there's been a lot going on the last few weeks, so at least that should be something to keep the hungry masses yearning for more Eric satisfied.

Well, I'll admit, I've spent a lot time looking at sports. It's been a crazy few weeks. Oklahoma had to vacate all of their wins from 2005, including their Holiday Bowl victory over Oregon. And that was one of the least interesting stories! I'm not really sure if I agree with the NCAA on this one, it appeared that Oklahoma had done everything promptly when they found out about the shady car dealership employment, but I guess they said that due to "lack of institutional control" led to that oversight. Too bad. In the profootball world, training camps have started! Only 1 month left until football is back in our world. Oh the excitement. And of course, in other NFL news, Micheal Vick. Wow. Frankly, if half of the things in that indictment are true, our animal cruelty laws (which he is currently not under indictment for) are not nearly tough enough for what he deserves. Trial starts this November.

Ben was in town last weekend! Things we did: went to the Sox game (White Sox at Red Sox, the Red Sox won 8-5, powered by two 3-run homers, one by Manny and another by Mike Lowell.), went to the White Stripes (excellent concert, they played a lot of old stuff, Elephant or earlier, including the songs I quoted in my wedding vows, which was sweet. Sadly, due to a ticket snafu on my part (How was I suppose to know there were two areas of GA?!? What's up with that?), Ben and I were separated from Steph for the concert, and she wasn't feeling too good. But it was still cool.), and hung around in Boston. And now that I think about it, we didn't get cannolis. So really, that visit was a failure. We take people visiting us very seriously. SATISFACTION GUARANTEED!

Steph wrote a piece of "drabble" fiction (100 words) called "Nemesis", which has been accepted for publication in an online literary magazine, Boston Literary Magazine. More details to come on when you can find her first official publication, but give her a big congratulations!

Well, work has certainly been really busy lately. I've got 3 different things going on right now, and I think I could spend all my time on any one of them and still be busy. It's been a bit of a balancing act, and I'm still working on my planning skills to figure out what needs to get done when. But slowly but surely, progress is being made!

We saw The Simpsons Movie Friday night. I was thinking as we saw it, am I too old? I mean, I just didn't want to see the midnight showing. This is The Simpsons Movie we're talking about. If this had come out in high school, I would have waited in line for hours for the midnight showing. And I knew some people who were going to the midnight showing at some of the various theaters. But honestly, I just wanted to get my usual nights sleep, and I had some stuff that I wanted to finish the next day at work. That's right, I was thinking about work and put it ahead of The Simpsons Movie. I must be too old. At least I saw it opening day... But I can highly recommend it (especially Spiderpig). Think of it as an extra-long good-but-not-great episode from season 9 or so. So that's totally worth it right there.

In other news, I've had several doctors appointments lately. I decided after I got back from TASI that I should get some checkups. My eyes have not been as sharp as they used to, and I've been thinking about moving closer to the front of the room to read the board better. Anyway, I still don't need glasses, but the Optometrist said I'll probably need distance glasses in another 5 years or so. Next up was the dentist. Still no cavities, and still haranguing me for not flossing. In 2 weeks is the full physical. Given my lack of exercise and poor diet, I can't imagine that's going to go well. But if I work out really hard the night before, that will undo years of bodily neglect, right?

Lastly, Final Fantasy XII is moving along slower than I had hoped because of all the other stuff going on, but the sooner I get that done, the sooner Blogging The Simpsons can begin. Steph and I watched the Original Trilogy (theatrical release) over the last month, and then last night decided to watch The Phantom Menace. First off, due to the damn special edition, there were definitely some problems with how I remember certain things. I hope to get that all straightened out in my head. But also, you can really see how certain scenes, like the Cloud City, really got brought to life with a bit of a face lift. I guess I can see what George Lucas wanted to do with the original trilogy, but ultimately, as an artist, you just have to say 'it is done' and move on. Also, Phantom Menace not as terrible as I remember, but there are definitely some weird & bad points. And child actors always suck. We have to remember this. Just because a few here and there don't completely suck, that's the exception, not the rule.