"I think that the chances of finding out what's actually going on are so absurdly remote that the only thing to do is to say, 'Hang the sense of it,' and keep yourself busy. I'd much rather be happy than right any day."

- Slartibartfast in Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

The Black Donnellys (or...why I am unavailable on Monday Nights from here on out)

I hesitated to get into yet another NBC, hour long drama...after all, I'd dug Medium...they changed and moved it, I dug Studio 60...they changed and moved it...NBC has taken more than they've given and I wasn't about to invest any more time in them. So as I flipped away from CBS who has my attention from 7 to 9 on Monday nights, I come across NBC in time to see that the anticipated new series The Black Donnellys was making it's premier right that second. "Well fuck" I thought, "I can check it out...but I would be missing The Jeffersons." "To Hell with it." I figured...if it sucked...I probably have already seen that Jeffersons anyway. Well I could not have been more pleased with what this show has to offer. First of all...the badasses are Irish. 'nuff said. This show is part Boondock Saints, part Commitments and all entertaining. Action, drama and plot twists out the arse, and more reasons to tune in then there are reasons to drink and fight. If you missed the premier last evening, you can check it out on Thursday or go to NBC.com and watch it. Believe me, it's well worth it. This show has my attention, I wouldn't even flip around during the commercials, and anyone who knows me knows that that is ritual for me. I've found a show that actually makes me sit through commercials rather than miss a single second. If that's not enough to get your ass to watch this show, then you're a hopeless dumbfuck and I wasn't going to get through to your stupid ass anyway.

(((03)))

Operation: Raging Bull (...the systematic disillusionment of attempted dogmatic Scorsese worship)

So I borrow a copy of the special edition Raging Bull from my buddy Dave as I had not seen it, (I know, I know... any way...). So I through it in my PS2 and...get an error...unable to read disc. What the fuck?!?! So much for "Special" edition. So I have to watch it in my bed room (which is darker than the soul of a singer in a band from Norway circa 1991-1992)...and kept falling asleep, waking up and re-starting from the last spot I could remember seeing. All in all I've seen about 16 Hrs. of Raging Bull...and still have yet to finish the film. What I've seen so far I like...like a watching all your cousins (from Goodfellas and Casino) in their first film...at least...that's what I can remember so far. So...thanks to Martin for making, Dave for letting me borrow and hold on to for a bit...and thanks to Playstation for their systems lack of support for the "Special" DVDs. One of these afternoons I'll get to watch and finish this film, in the meantime though, congratulations to Martin for his Oscar win last evening and for basically sweeping the night. It's about time...I would have thought that maybe the academy was coming to their senses except for that fucking farce of a win by that dumbfuck in the category of "Best Supporting Actress". Fuck all that horseshit...please!!! Stop fucking perpetuating idiot worship! I beg you.

(((03)))

Isn't it Easy? (Or...How I Learned to Embrace the Target)

Easy to spot when needed, convenient if the occasion should arise to throw blame. Your art is in the reception, the cushion of your acceptance of blame. Don't bother to duck, the circles can be seen when you're not around, even when guilt is absent, sometimes especially then. Yours is the shell they aim to crack. Yours is not perfect, but they will tell you theirs is. Down? Prepare, you will be there a while.

(((03)))

This Movie is Smarter than You!

I had heard really good things about this movie from a number of people but after its initial release I kind of stopped hearing about it and never picked it up. One night, on the way home from spending Christmas with my family, I stopped and picked it up with a couple of other movies and...on my shelf it sat...until last night.

I just have to say, it was my loss. This movie is by all accounts, perfect. Writer/Director Shane Black proves that he is not only incredibly intelligent but also funny and capable...three things that almost never appear together. Not since True Romance (a movie that featured Kilmer in a faceless Elvis role) has there been an aesthetic between cast members like there is in this movie. Downey, Kilmer and Monaghan are perfect as is every other character. Incidentally, the film also features a small role by Michael Rapaport who also had a role in True Romance. Why do I keep making reference to that movie? Well, some will say they see it and some won't...but if you got and loved TR you will love KKBB. Trust me...if you don't like it...you can pull out your mindless Bad Boys II and knock yourself out with brain-dead same-ol same-ol again. Loser.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, although nearly perfect has one flaw that I hated to see. The last scene with Corbin Bernsen was stupid. Just delete it from the special edition DVD please.

On the DVD commentary of this movie, Writer/Director Black says that he would like to reprise the roles of Lockhart and Perry to Downey and Kilmer to which they both agreed. I can tell you my fingers are firmly crossed on a sequel to this one because...damn man, this is just a brilliant movie. If you don't get it...you really need to start putting more vegetables in your diet and go back to school.

((03)))

At the Mountains of Madness

"With the upheaval of new land in the South Pacific tremendous events began.... Another race--a land race of beings shaped like octopi and probably corresponding to the fabulous pre-human spawn of Cthulhu--soon began filtering down from cosmic infinity and precipitated a monstrous war which for a time drove the Old Ones wholly back to the sea.... Later peace was made, and the new lands were given to the Cthulhu spawn whilst the Old Ones held the sea and the older lands.... The Antarctic remained the centre of the Old Ones' civilisation, and all the discoverable cities built there by the Cthulhu spawn were blotted out. Then suddenly the lands of the Pacific sank again, taking with them the frightful stone city of R'lyeh and all the cosmic octopi, so that the Old Ones were once again supreme on the planet..."

(HPL, 1931)

Chinese New Year (Like Those Who Know Me Wouldn't Know This...or....Matt the Rat)

Being the first sign of the Chinese zodiac, rats are leaders, pioneers and conquerors. They are charming, passionate, charismatic, practical and hardworking. Rat people are endowed with great leadership skills and are perhaps the most organized and systematic of the twelve signs. Intelligent and cunning at the same time, rats are highly ambitious and strong-willed people who are keen and unapologetic promoters of their own agendas, which often include money and power. They are energetic and versatile and can usually find their way around obstacles, and adapt to various environments easily. A rat's natural charm and sharp demeanor make it an appealing friend for almost anyone, but rats are usually highly exclusive and selective when choosing friends and so often have only a few very close friends whom they trust.

Behind the smiles and charm, rats can be terribly obstinate and controlling, insisting on having things their way no matter what the cost. These people tend to have an immense control of their emotions, which they may use as a tool to manipulate and exploit another person, both emotionally and mentally. Rats are masters of mind games and can be very dangerous, calculating and downright cruel if the need arises. Quick-tempered and aggressive, they will not think twice about exacting revenge on those that hurt them in any way. Rats need to learn to relax sometimes, as they can be quite obsessed with detail, intolerant and strict, demanding order, obedience, and perfection.

A valuable lesson for Rats is to learn to consider others before themselves, at least sometimes, and to avoid forcing their ideas onto others. Rats are fair in their dealings and expect the same from others in return, and can be deeply affronted if they feel they have been deceived or that their trust has been abused. Sometimes they set their targets too high, whether in relation to their friends or in their career. But as the years pass, they will become more idealistic and tolerant. If they can develop their sense of self and realize it leaves room for others in their life as well, Rats can find true happiness.

Traditionally, Rats should avoid Horses, but they can usually find their best friends and love interests in Monkeys, Oxen, and Dragons.

(((03)))

To Sleep...Per Chance to Scream

Of late my dreams have been of pain, of past unclear and nightmares that happen awake. My sweat covers my bed in the shape of my fear. I drown nightly in my horrible inability to change mistakes or to correct what I've wronged. My dreams tell me of how lost I am, how alone I make the world feel, how distant I am in my tower. The black comes to envelope me...hugging me, squeezing out the life until I fear to sleep at all. The appetite goes, for food and for life. This holocaust that is my nights, it sleeps within me during the day...awaiting the chance to turn my world into hell.

(((03)))

"...the only thing bigger than my ego is my inability to prove I deserve it..."

- Matthew Kim Amyx II

...reel to reel is living rarity...

(((03)))

My Valentine

"There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness."

- Friedrich Nietzsche

(((03)))

Stepped in it Again (...or, how we never saw this coming...sort of...)

...what does it actually take to convince? A bad idea is a bad idea for everyone. Not that we are always any better. We just try to learn after the 20th or 30th time at least. Ours is not a battle being fought by you, ours is a battle we must fight in a war you keep starting. Light the match, light the fuse...leave us standing next to the bomb you didn't create...but keep buying and igniting. Maybe we will learn, maybe we'll keep being blown off...oh sorry, I mean up.

(((03)))

(Irish) Maiden Voyage

The rain is one
Of earth and sun
For you and me and everyone

The move is on
The way is long
The pain is here but still we carry on

(DT) V.2

Photo by Brandon Riza

"...Your need to know shouldn't surpass your need for peace..."

(((03)))

I don't want to hear another word about it...EVER!!!

Per: LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer (For the journalistically challenged, AP stands for Associated Press)

Nappers now have the perfect excuse: New research shows that a little midday snooze seems to reduce the risk of fatal heart problems, especially among men.

In the largest study to date on the health effects of napping, researchers tracked 23,681 healthy Greek adults for an average of about six years. Those who napped for about half an hour at least three times weekly had a 37 percent lower risk of dying from heart attacks or other heart problems than those who did not nap.

The strongest evidence was in working men, according to the study, which appears in Monday's issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

The researchers said naps might benefit the heart by reducing stress, and jobs are a common source of stress.

A daytime siesta has long been part of many cultures, especially those in warmer climates. Mediterranean-style eating habits featuring fruits, vegetables, beans and olive oil have been credited with contributing to relatively low rates of heart disease in those countries, but the researchers wanted to see if napping also plays a role.

"My advice is if you can (nap), do it. If you have a sofa in your office, if you can relax, do it," Trichopoulos said.

Exactly how stress is related to heart disease is uncertain. Some researchers think it might be directly involved, through unhealthy effects of stress hormones, or indirectly by causing people to exercise less, overeat or smoke.

The researchers in the latest study factored in diet, exercise, smoking and other habits that affect the heart but still found napping seemed to help.

***In other words, fuck the fuck off and leave me alone DAMMIT!!! I don't want one more word about my naps from fucking ANYONE!!! EVER!!!***

(((03)))

photograph, Let Sleeping Dogs Lie by John Benigno

The Book We Mean To Finish (the Chapter We Keep Re-Reading)

You'd like to keep it like a secret. Like to travel this road alone...only not so alone that you maintain your course.

We don't live when we nurture the dead....but then again...who can tell...right?

(((03))) V.2

Heartache and 1007th Street

That sound...the one we thought we heard...did it pass this time..?

Was it the echo from tomorrow..? The murmur of neverland..?

Wear and tear on that big beating machine...the one that's quitting on us.

(((03))) V.2

Paradiso Canto (Tehiyyat ha-Metim)

Your indominable flesh brought forth in a roar of emblazened infamy...brought down by your own insufferable need for it to have been viewed by another. The universe is tired, and the watchers no longer care to see what you've done...nore did they ever. Your rightiousness is abymal, terrifying and rude...it was a burden to me before my birth, and it will burden my son. Our bloodline is cursed by yours...our souls doomed to recieve your spite. This, our declaration of contempt shall stand as our crest...and shall cover the sun...it shall make extinct your power to speak our name. You are forever to remain our enemy. You...the enemy of thought.

(((03))) V.2

...what do you really think..?

(((03)))

He was just looking for a church he liked...

Thanks to Proscriptor for the pic.

(((03)))

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1,000 hits on Caveat Lector

(((03)))

Sleeping Thump and the Motorcade to Nowhere

The past is passed...long gone memories opening doorways to nothingness. The sleep doomed, there is a way through that one dare not trespass, yet always, we innveriably do. Cancel your rite, void your emotion and control. See blindly for the first time.

Ancient, and well traveled, this road is not yours nor ours by choice...it is ours by debt. We have no answers as to why, only to know for sure that there are no answers. There are no truths, only the visual, only the forbidden. Only the insane.

Take it, although regret is not certain and neither is reward...

(((03)))

Photo by Brandon Riza