About a month ago I sped read through Orson Scott Card’s Novel Ender in Exile.  I was really looking forward to this book, but it wasn’t what I expected and not necessarily what I wanted.  I really wanted Ender and Bean to meet up again, yet that isn’t what happens.   This book effectively takes place immediately after the end of Ender’s Game.  The main problem I have with Card jumping all over the place is it becomes a pain to tell someone which order to the read the books.

I think I knew from our first date that my wife was going to be the one I was going to marry.   Granted I literally broke up with my ex the day before I asked her out, but it all worked out.   Though I was twenty -one and she was eighteen it was the first real date either of us had been on.   We had started “going out” with people before, but it was always meeting and doing things in social situations then you labeled as a couple and doing things was just being together and not really a date.  I did ask one girl out on a date previously, but it turned into a double date, so this was my first real date.

It was in September of 1997 and I managed to get off work early and get a hair cut, then I went out to one of our customers and bought her a bouquet of roses.   We went to Chi-Chi’s in Lorain, Ohio driving there in my 1986 Ford Escort.  I ordered a mexican pizza which they burned and she had me send back, and I believe she ordered the chimichanga’s .   We talked about going to the movies afterward and decided on Conspiracy Theory.   Walking to the car I asked her if I was the type of guy she could fall in love with (me=geek, not the best social skills).  She said maybe.   I asked her if I was the type of guy she could see herself marrying, she said she didn’t know.   We then drove over to the movie and had a wonderful time.

A few days later she was having problems with her parents, she was at a cross roads and all upset.  She was sitting on the front stoop of her friends house and that was the first time I ever told her I loved her.  She cried in my arms (not from me saying that, but because of the other stress) and said it back to me.   Three months later we were engaged. Thirteen months later on Jan 2, 1999 we got married.  From that first date until about 2004 when she went back to Ohio to visit family while I was stuck working in Oregon, we never spent more then 24 hours away from one another, over 2600 days of seeing each other at least once every day.

I’m not going to saying everything has always been fantastic, we’ve had our ups and downs.  We have managed to stay together and stay in love.   I love her more each day, and now she is going to be the mother of my child (last year we did say we would do something special for our 10th).  We are opposites, but we are also twins, we are stronger together then we are apart.  We are both critical thinkers, yet I’m the only one that thinks she is the better of the two of us – so sometimes she is wrong.

She is the core of my being and the center of my universe, even though I don’t always show it.   Her thoughts and dreams revolve around mine, like mine do around her.   She is my wife, and I love her.

I look at the title for this blog post and I just think it looks for innuendo.  It may just be me, but let’s move on.   Last night I finished what was a three month journey which was reading Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke.  It didn’t take me long because I am a slow reader, if I power read it I could have done it in two or three days.   This was my bath book.   When I take a bath I prefer to read while I’m in there, otherwise I’m staring at the walls.

The book was a good read.  If you are an adult and you like the Harry Potter book I woudl recommend you pick this up.  The tone or content isn’t necessarily adult, but it does have a higher vocabulary then Rowling uses in her books.   I would say this is a mixture of Harry Potter and Stephenson’s Baroque Cycle.   If that intrigues you, but it.  It’s only 7.99 at Amazon now.

Stargate Atlantis Season 3- more Stargate goodness.

Amazon Synopsis:

With Stargate SG-1 now permanently off the data screen (except for a TV movie or two) after ten productive seasons, it appears that the fate of the universe is now the responsibility of the Stargate Atlantis crew. Based on the latter’s third season, whose 20 episodes (plus a wealth of bonus features) are made available here on five discs, we’re in good hands.
Three years into it, Atlantis has retained numerous familiar elements while continuing to evolve steadily. The core cast is intact, with the cocky wiseacre-hero Lt. Col. John Sheppard (Joe Flanigan) and the egotistical, neurotic genius Dr. Rodney McKay (David Hewlett) still the most entertaining of the bunch; as the series explores the characters’ personal lives and backstories, we even meet (in “McKay and Mrs. Miller”) the latter’s sister, who’s every bit the wiz that he is. On the other hand, the roles of team leader Dr. Elizabeth Weir (Torri Higginson) and members Teyla (Rachel Luttrell) and Ronon Dex (Jason Momoa) are neither especially well-written nor well-played. The return of Richard Dean Anderson (and his sense of humor) as General Jack O’Neill, the SG-1 mainstay during most of its run, for a few cameos is most welcome, as is the presence of the Wraith, the series’ principal villains (SG-1 fans will also recognize the “sentient machines” known as the Replicators from that series). With their flowing white locks, cat-like eyes, pale, almost translucent skin, ultra-fine black leather dusters, and, in one case, shades that would make a Hollywood hipster envious, the Wraith remain the coolest bad guys on the sci-fi scene. We already knew that they feed on humans, but this season brings some startling new revelations, particularly in “Common Ground,” an excellent episode that finds Sheppard and a Wraith (Christopher Heyerdahl) forming an unlikely alliance against a mutual enemy; we also witness the return of the Wraith known as Michael (Connor Trinneer), who was the subject of the Atlantis team’s ongoing “retro-virus” experiment (designed to make Wraiths human) in Season Two and plays a significant recurring role in Season Three. Other developments are apparent as well, but most dramatic of all is the death of one of the team’s key members.
Stargate Atlantis isn’t the most original TV show ever created; in fact, elements of The Running Man, Alien, The Abyss, Enemy Mine, and other sci-fi works are sometimes so obvious that the characters themselves mention them in dialogue. But as always, the action sequences, special effects, models, and other technical elements are first-rate, as are the bonus features, which include episode commentaries, featurettes, and photo galleries.

Stargate Atlantis Season 2 – more Stargate goodness.

Amazon Synopsis:

If Stargate Atlantis isn’t the coolest sci-fi series on television, this five-disc, 20-episode box set from the second season (2005-06) offers ample evidence that it’s right up there. The writing is good; the stories are intriguing, and the science part of the equation is credible enough to justify our suspension of disbelief. The characters are for the most part well-defined, and the acting, while perhaps not Emmy-caliber, is just fine. The action is exciting, the effects work impressive, the costumes and sets first-rate. But what Atlantis really has going for it is the presence of some of the baddest bad guys in the cosmos: the Wraith.

With their flowing white locks, cat-like eyes, pale, almost translucent skin, and teeth so bad they’d make the British blush, the Wraith rock. They also have a constant need to feed–on humans, of course–and are a serious threat not only to Atlantis but to the entire known universe, including good ol’ Earth. And although there are occasional diversions, the producers and writers have wisely kept the focus on these implacable antagonists; in fact, the newest member of the team, one Ronon Dex (played by the dreadlocked and hunky Jason Momoa), is a “runner” who escaped the Wraith’s clutches, was a fugitive for years before being found by our heroes, and specializes in dispatching the villains with cold precision. In the course of the season, via single episodes and several multi-parters, the Stargate team, commanded by Dr. Elizabeth Weir (Torri Higginson in the show’s least interesting role) and led by insouciant Major John Sheppard (Joe Flanigan), with genius-neurotic Dr. Rodney McKay (David Hewlett) handling the scientific intricacies and yet another doc, Carson Beckett (Paul McGillion, affecting a Scottish brogue), overseeing medical matters, deals with the enemy on many fronts. Lt. Ford (Rainbow Sun Francks) defects after assuming Wraith-like characteristics. The team experiments with a “retrovirus” designed to turn Wraiths into humans (the results are decidedly mixed). They encounter a human who raised a Wraith female from childhood and insists she’s just like us (she’s not). They’re captured and imprisoned on a Wraith “hive” ship. And in the final episode, the humans and the Wraiths even form an alliance of supposedly mutual convenience (the episode is a cliffhanger that awaits resolution until Season Three, but anyone who thought this “partnership” was a good idea for our side clearly hasn’t been paying attention). As was the case with the Season One set, bonus materials are generous, including audio commentary (by actors, directors, and others) on every episode, various featurettes, photos, and more. Now if only there were a few Wraith interviews…

I wasn’t too excited about Stargate Atlantis when it was first announced.  Season 1 however gripped me by the shorts and I have since fallen in love and have given it the fan-boy love it deserved.

Amazon Synopsis

When a secret base, abandoned by the original builders of the Stargates, is found buried in the ice of Antartica, the newly formed Stargate Atlantis team is born. The team’s discovery leads to a daring expeditiion to the distant Pegasus galaxy, where they encounter a primitive human civilization and a sinister new enemy that threatens human life everywhere. The Stargate Atlantis mission is headed by Dr. Elizabeth Weir, a specialist in diplomatic relations. Her political savvy is balanced by the bravado of her military counterpart, Major John Sheppard, a courageous pilot. Rounding out the crew are Lt. Aiden Ford, Sheppard’s second-in-command, Dr. Rodney McKay, a clever and quick-witted astrophysicist and Teyla, a beautiful young leader among the primitive alien civilization that the Atlantis team encounters.:

Stargate SG-1 Season 10, SG-1 greatness continues – nuff said.  Though I cried a bit inside when it was canceled.

Amazon’s Synopsis:

The final Season comes to DVD! In season 10, Vala, a former Goa’uld host turned freedom-fighter, joins SG-1 in their battle to defend the galaxy from the holy war of the Ori. Meanwhile, relations between the Jaffa and Earth continue to be strained. It all comes to a sizzling end on the finale.

Stargate SG-1 Season 9, SG-1 greatness continues – nuff said.

Amazon’s synopsis:

The Stargate is an intergalactic gateway, developed by an ancient civilization, that links other planets from other solar systems to ours. The U.S. Air Force assembles a Stargate team for interstellar peace-keeping missions. Boasting incredible special effects sequences, rapid-fire pacing and awesome scenes of alien warfare, STARGATE SG-1™ is your gateway to pulse-pounding, sci-fi action!

Stargate SG-1 Season 8, SG-1 greatness continues – nuff said.

Amazon’s synopsis:

STARGATE SG-1 DVD:8TH SSN V1: Episode #8.1: New Order Part 1 – When Carter and Teal’c fly to the Asgard world of Hala in hopes of finding a way to revive O’Neill, they are attacked by Replicators, who take Carter prisoner. Meanwhile, Dr. Weir and Daniel Jackson attempt to negotiate a treaty with Goa’uld System Lords who wish to unite against a common enemy. Episode #8.2: New Order Part 2 – The Goa’uld send a mothership to Earth, demanding that it prove its superior defenses. As Dr. Weir applies her most expert diplomatic tactics, Daniel and the still unconscious body of Colonel O’Neill are unexpectedly beamed aboard Thor’s ship, where Thor tries to access the knowledge of the Ancients. Episode #8.3: Lock Down – When Jackson contracts a mysterious illness from a Russian colonel, O’Neill is convinced that a contagion has infected the base and orders a lockdown. But when Jackson reveals that he was actually possessed by Anubis, who is now loose on the base, O’Neill must discover the identity of the new host! Episode #8.4: Zero Hour – O’Neill finds his plate full with a visit from the president and negotiations between two warring tribes from the planet Amra. But when SG-1 is captured by a Goa’uld System Lord and he’s forced to choose between the safety of the team and the fate of an entire planet, O’Neill begins to question his competency!

Stargate SG-1 Season 7, SG-1 greatness continues – nuff said.

Amazon’s synopsis:

The futuristic action continues in the seventh season of STARGATE SG-1 the popular sci-fi series. Richard Dean Anderson is back as the leader of the crew who can instantly be transported to anywhere in this or any other universe. The crew hops from planet to planet in this collection containing every episode from the show’s seventh season

Stargate SG-1 Season 6, SG-1 greatness continues – nuff said.

Amazon’s synopsis:

The biggest change for Stargate SG-1‘s sixth season was its move to the Sci-Fi Channel. Financial rescue or genre haven from cancellation? Whatever the behind-the-scenes politics, the departure of Daniel Jackson (actor Michael Shanks) the previous year most certainly contributed to the need to run a tighter ship somewhere. With the addition of his replacement, Jonas Quinn, the new show dynamic (hinted at by the new title theme) meant far more convolutedly involved story arcs and less individual focus. One of very few solo spotlights came from Christopher Judge writing his own show, when “The Changeling” saw Teal’c act out a life as a fireman. One reason for its being a fan favorite was the cameo from still-alive-after-all Daniel Jackson. There’d be several more through the year, culminating in a finale that relied on how much attention you’d been paying to that all-important back-story. Other kooky cameos included Dean Stockwell in one of the many spotlights on the energy resource n’quadria, Ian Buchanan as one of the devilish Replicators (and hopefully the end of that plotline), and regular spots from John DeLancie, Ronny Cox, and Tom McBeath as the Earth-bound series bad guys. More pertinently, we also saw The X-Files‘ Byers (Bruce Harwood) as a scientist involved with the Antarctic Gate. Lest we forget, there are other portals on Earth. Is that an already planned spin-off on the horizon?

Stargate SG-1 Season 5, SG-1 greatness continues – nuff said.

Amazon’s synopsis:

It now seems clear that season 5 of Stargate SG-1 will be remembered as the one in which something went awry with Daniel Jackson. Lots of behind-the-scenes rumors fueled the idea of cast tension, but whatever the problem, his sudden departure from the show was obviously through a quickly contrived scenario. In retrospect, there must have been a problem for some while before the weird penultimate episode (“Meridian”). Michael Shanks looks frequently bored in his rare moments of individual screen time as he infiltrates a Goa’uld meeting and even when making friends with a creature everyone else wants dead. In fact, there’s only one point when everyone really seems to be having fun, and that’s in the spoof 100th episode “Wormhole X-treme!”

Stargate SG-1 Season 4, SG-1 greatness continues – nuff said.

Amazon’s synopsis:

Based on the film starring Kurt Russell this spin-off became a wildly successful cult hit among science fiction fans. This collection contains the entire fourth season of the adventures of the space station intended to be a sort of interplanetary United Nations.

Stargate SG-1 Season 3, SG-1 greatness continues – nuff said.

Amazon’s synopsis:

The third season of the popular science fiction series is included in its entirety in this collection. Colonel Jack O’Neill (Richard Dean Anderson) leads his interplanetary crew into numerous adventures throughout the many galaxies.

Stargate SG-1 Season 2, SG-1 greatness continues – nuff said.

Amazon’s synopsis:

Exploring various pockets of the universe Richard Dean Anderson leads his crew on intergalactic voyages. This second season of one of the most popular science fiction series in syndicated television history enhances both the action and the intrigue of this fascinating space opera.

Stargate Season 1, I’ll be going over all of my box sets so with the Stargate franchise there is going to be alot of redundancy.   When I first heard they were going to a series on Stargate I thought it was a stupid idea.  Macgyver has the team lead, HA – I love Macgyver and all but I didn’t think Richard Dean Anderson could have pulled it off.  I was wrong.

Stargate is one of my favorite TV franchises of all time now.

Now since I have 10 of these to write – I’ll give you Amazon’s review:

Hollywood’s film archives overflow with the carcasses of dismal movies based on lame ’60s and ’70s television shows, a syndrome that shows no sign of abating. But here’s evidence that the reverse effect, turning a movie into a TV series, can have surprisingly positive results. Indeed, based on the 21 episodes produced for the first season of Stargate SG-1, it could be argued that this show is significantly better than the 1994 feature it’s derived from.

The central conceit of the original Stargate–the existence of an artificially created “wormhole” through which one can travel to different worlds light years away from Earth–was an intriguing one. In seizing on the obvious possibilities for expanding on that premise, series executive producers-writers Jonathan Glassner and Brad Wright have smartly retained some of the film’s basic elements (its amalgam of myth and theoretical hokum, or the ongoing clash of wills between scientists and soldiers), while adding a variety of fresh ideas (including new characters, new locations, and a welcome dose of humor, much of it supplied by Richard Dean Anderson, MacGyver himself, who replaces Kurt Russell in the central role of Colonel Jack O’Neill). The result is a show with multidimensional heroes and villains and consistently compelling story lines (many of them introduced in the pilot and carried forward through subsequent episodes) balancing excellent special effects and production values. All this and full frontal nudity, too (at least in the aforementioned pilot). Who can resist?

The first season is spread out over five DVDs; the 100-minute pilot shares the first volume with two other episodes, while discs 2 to 5 contain anywhere from three to five shows each. Sound and visuals (in widescreen format) alike will take full advantage of any home system’s capabilities. But aside from language and subtitle options, bonus features are limited to brief featurettes that play like commercials and provide little in the way of background information or insight (there are no features at all on the first disc). Then again, if you really want to know what that symbol on Teal’c's forehead means, or why the nasty, parasitic Goa’ulds look a lot like the fledgling stomach monsters in the Alien series, there is no doubt a Web site out there just for you.

I saw Zack and Miri Make a Porno Friday night, it wasn’t that good.  I won’t say that it’s bad, it’s just wasn’t what I was expecting.  I expect a normal Kevin Smith movie to have heart and an echo of reality through out it.  I liked Jersey Girl, and my favorite is Chasing Amy – both of these showed me a glimpse of who Kevin Smith is. Zack and Miri didn’t show me that.

Let’s look at the opposite side, I also love Seth Rogen movies for the same reason.  But the glimpse of truth that is shown his movies is different then the one that Smith provides.  I can identify with Freaks and Geeks as much as I can with Clerks.   Just it’s a different way that binds them both to me.

So what’s the problem?

This is one of those times that two worlds shouldn’t collide.  I think Smith haves actors he normally works with that follow a certain speech cadence and dialogue flow, Rogen can’t perform that.   I’m sorry Seth, it just isn’t your style.   Though in the final product it felt more like a Seth Rogen movie then a Kevin Smith movie.   The only thing that felt remotely Smithesque was the fight between Zack and Miri in the back right before Zack disappears.   This was the only time it felt like a Smith film.

He seemed to be chasing the dream of Chasing Amy in the film, but for that goal it fell flat on it’s face.  Part of my problem maybe  was looking forwrad to this movie too much and my personal didn’t live up to expectations.   Either way I’ll look eagerly towards his next movie.

I would have gotten this write up done sooner since I saw the movie on Friday night (premiere night), expect Saturday my writing wsa wrapped up in NANOWRIMO.

Stargate is one of those movies I almost missed, I’m glad I didn’t.  I originally saw it at the Lorain Palace Theater my senior year of high school with one of my close friends.  We were both Star Wars buffs and had been told this movie was Star Wars-like.  I’ll add to the fact that it is nothing like Star Wars other then if you mean it is science fiction.

That being said it was a great movie that I’ve purchased on both DVD (twice) and VHS.

I think I’m one of the few people on the planet that actually enjoys Jersey Girl.  I love Kevin Smith but this was a departure from his normal movie route. He attempted ot move into a more adult and less infantile movie style.  Unfortunately the box office said that this wasn’t a good idea and he hasn’t yet approached anything like it.   I originally saw this in the theater with my wife.   There was only one other couple there.   Here’s looking forward to seeing Kevin Smith attempt to do more things different and experimental to his style.

It’s been a few years since I’ve read Hacker Crackdown.   It was/is one of the best computer crime books I’ve ever read, Litte Brother is a close second.  Inside the book Sterling goes over the details of the biggest computer crime sting operations of all time.   I’m not going ot say everyone was guilty to the extent they were prosecuted, but some of the crimes that were prosecuted in this novel helped bring in the computer crime laws we have today (for better or worse).

The first time I read this was in 1995 on a 286 laptop with a 9600 baud modem.   I downloaded the book online, Sterling was one of the first mainstream authors to release his work for free online.  For someone at the time was reading Phrack and to have something that was professionally published (I’m not knocking Phrack – I loved Phrack)  was a completely different experience.

The book covers the history of computer crime before it jumps into the meat of the story.   Never does it really feel that the Sterling is pandering to you for anything, instead it teaches you.   For anyone interested in computer crime I would highly recommend picking this up.   So far I’ve worn through three copies myself.