Moving On

I am no longer here. Most of you likely already came to that conclusion seeing as how I have not posted anything since last year. Many things conspired to this lack of activity. I will cover none of it here. For those of you interested, I have begun again somewhere new. You may find my blog at the link on the left (the only one there so there should be no confusion). So let us bid farewell to the Superiority Report. Hope to see you on the other side.

Defending Pacman

Living in Tennessee these past 2 1/2 years, I've become quite a big Titans fan. I've enjoyed seeing a team that was lousy when I got there become good enough in 2 short years to make the playoffs at the end of last season. The only aspect of the team I did not like was cornerback/kick-returner/malcontent Adam "Pacman" Jones. Although he is a talented, exciting player his off field fiascoes far outweighed any benefits he brought to the team (at least in my mind). I am not one of those fans who believe in win at all costs. I like to see things done the right way and with players that you are not ashamed to cheer for. Granted, it is becoming increasingly rare in this day and time, but it is still possible. Anyways, Pacman is the guy who got suspended for the year by the NFL last season for running afoul of the law a number of times, mostly for being in strip clubs and behaving badly. It didn't bother me that he got suspended even though he was never actually charged or convicted of anything. He was clearly a nuisance to society and got what he deserved. At least that's what I thought at the time. However, in the last couple of weeks I've seen little blurbs at the bottom of the screen during SportsCenter referring to players who have been convicted of crimes (in some cases doing time) not receiving any fines or further punishment from the NFL. What the hell? Where is the justice in that? A man who has never even been in court for his behavior gets suspended for the year while others who get convicted don't have anything happen to them? Yes, I realize jail time is a punishment but you try and get arrested and see if you're still employed with the same company. Furthermore, Ahmad Bradshaw, a running back for the New York Giants won't even have to serve his six months in jail until after the season is over. You go ahead and go get yourself arrested and convicted then see if you can get them to delay your time served six months or so and still have your same job when you get back. Go ahead, let me know how it works out for you. I never thought I would defend Pacman Jones but I really believe now he got a bum deal from the NFL.

Chaos Theory

Well, I finally got to see The Dark Knight last night. I'm really still absorbing a lot of it so I'm not sure how I truly feel about it. I liked it well enough and there are some genuinely jaw dropping moments but I'm not convinced it lives up to all the incredible hype. Really though, how could any movie? The theme of the movie seems to center around chaos as a tangible force. It's the reason the Joker thrives in Gotham, it's what inspires him. He sows discord throughout the city by appealing to man's basest natures, namely greed and the need to survive no matter the cost. Unfortunately, the Joker consistently uses the same ploy to sow chaos which to me seems to be a much too organized way of creating chaos in the first place. I think the only thing that truly annoyed me about the movie was the damn music. Every time (and I mean every damn time) something major was about to happen you would hear this one freaking note that would get louder and louder until the "shock" came. I was kind of disappointed that Christopher Nolan would resort to using this hack method of creating tension. The story and the surprises were good enough that the music was unnecessary. After awhile it actually took away from the scene. Leave that crap for stupid slasher films, man.
Heath Ledger was as good as advertised. This is the best Joker ever put on film, no contest. Anyone giving me Jack Nicholson needs to go back and watch that original Batman film again (I did recently and was disappointed I ever thought that movie was good). Aaron Eckhart did very well as Harvey Dent also. Nobody else in the cast really stood out. In fact I thought that Christian Bale did a terrible job as Batman this time out (though he was quite good as Bruce Wayne). The deep voice he affected when in costume seemed a little cartoonish. The batsuit itself did not look very intimidating either. I also did not like the way Batman finally tracked down the Joker. I know he's always relied on gadgets to fight crime but the method he uses here seems pretty far fetched even for a "comic book" movie and especially for a Batman film directed by Nolan. I think in the final analysis I enjoyed Batman Begins much more. And as far as a Nolan/Bale collaboration goes, I enjoyed The Prestige even more (that film gets better with every viewing, believe me). I guess I have to say that I really did like Dark Knight but there were some minor things that kept it from being a great film in my eyes. Make no mistake though, it's still a very good film. Just don't believe the hype.

Youth Is Wasted

"Youth is wasted on the young". I've always hated that expression. Unfortunately though, as I get older the more I realize the truth of it. That's not to say that young people don't know how to enjoy life. To be sure, there are many that take every opportunity presented to them. I've had friends that have taken road trips, traveled to other countries, had adventures I always regretted not having. Naturally, life is full of regrets regardless of who you are. Life is filled with moments not savored properly, of doors never opened. In times of reflection I've often regretted not being bolder with my choices, with not savoring that certain kiss even longer (note to wife:yes, there were girls before you) or with not going away to college. I've regretted not ever have gone to Europe or Japan or even on a cruise. Yes, some of those things I can still do but when you have kids it's a little harder. When everyday life is always there, spontaneity is taken away. Scheduling an adventure is just not as good as being able to leave it open ended. There have been relationships I've regretted not pursuing, friendships I wish I would not have let go of. There are regrets with my children, even though none of them are yet teenagers. I'm afraid I've not been as good a parent as I could have been. In fact, I know I have not. So yes, youth is wasted on the young. It's not as insulting as it sounds. It's just one of those facts of life that makes bitter memories just a bit more so.

Summer in New Orleans

I've remembered what my least favorite thing about New Orleans is...summer. This is kind of a problem because it is almost always summer in New Orleans. The heat is ridiculous and the humidity makes it even more so. If you are not from the southeastern or southwestern part of the U.S. do not tell me that you know what it is like to deal with humidity. You don't. I've been and lived in lots of places north of say, Tennessee, in the summer. Yeah, it can get hot but it is still nothing like what we endure in the Deep South. I can't speak for other parts of the world having never been anywhere other than Canada (for a day) and the Caribbean (for a week). Another problem with the summers here is the endless amount of rain. Seriously, it rains here every day and usually it is a torrential rainfall. I know, people in Seattle are thinking "suck it up, whiner". But if you live in Seattle you have it a lot better than we in New Orleans do anyways. This summer weather makes me even happier that I have started my new job. It's indoors and it's air-conditioned. Plus it's not too strenuous (always a plus in my book). I know this sounds like unnecessary complaining and maybe it is. I'm just sick of the rain and the heat and the humidity already and it's only June. Oh well.

Better Late Than Never

This is the first chance I've gotten to offer congratulations to the Boston Celtics for winning the NBA Championship last week. It is very rare that a team I pick to win it all before the season starts actually goes on to do so. I was very glad to see Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and P.J. Brown (a New Orleans area native) finally win a championship after so many years. I was also happy for Ray Allen (who always has seemed like a class act), Doc Rivers (who I loved watching as a player) and for Glen "Big Baby" Davis (an LSU guy in his rookie year). What made it even better is that it came at the expense of Kobe Bryant. I just can't stress how much I don't like this guy. Yes, I realize all athletes are prima donnas to one extent or another. And he certainly isn't the first to push publicly for a trade. What made that worse though was that he demanded a trade from a team he created. He's the one that pushed for Shaquille O'Neal to be traded to the Miami Heat (where he promptly won a championship). He helped push Phil Jackson out the door even thought Jackson later returned. What's even more annoying about the guy are the comparisons to Michael Jordan. Of course, Bryant has no control over what others say about him but it's ridiculous to compare Kobe to Michael. Is Bryant one of the top players in the league right now? Of course he is. Is he so far above everyone else? Of course not. To insinuate that is so is ludicrous. LeBron James is at least Kobe's equal if not superior. Kobe has benefited from playing in a major market his entire career and with perhaps the greatest center ever in O'Neal. Let's be realistic. If Kobe played in Memphis or Portland or Charlotte people would say he's a good player but nothing special. What does he do that any other franchise player does not? Nothing. Okay, this has become an anti-Kobe rant when it was meant to be a celebration of the Celtics. Sorry, I just can't help it. Kobe really rubs me the wrong way and even worse are the supposedly knowledgeable people who perpetuate the hype. Anyways, congratulations Boston. Hopefully, the Red Sox will continue the Boston party this fall. Too bad the Patriots blew it on their end.

Pardon the Interruption

The cat's way out of the bag on this one but it drives me insane every time I see it. If you watch t.v. for even only five minutes, regardless of what station, you've noticed the ridiculous amount of pop-ups that appear on the screen every couple of minutes. Most of them are for shows that you're going to see a commercial for in about six minutes but that doesn't seem to matter to the powers that be. The most egregious example I've seen is on TBS. Not only do their ads take up half the screen, they've now taken to pausing their shows to advertise the Bill Engvall Show. I've never seen the show. Maybe it's a great show. But I'll never watch it just because they've pissed me off so much by freezing the show I'm watching so Bill can do his little spiel. I really want to throw my remote through the t.v. sometimes. I realize it's way too late to do anything about this problem. It's only going to get worse. I just had to get this off my chest. It's a good thing I love to read. Luckily they haven't found a way to put pop-up ads in my books yet.

Checking In

Haven't much to say this time around. I started my new job this past Monday. I can't really say if I like it or not yet because all we are doing is sitting in orientation classes for the first two weeks. It doesn't seem like it will be a bad job as most of the machinery is fully automated. There is some physical labor involved depending on the department I end up in but certainly nothing worse than some of the jobs I've had. It pays well and the benefits are good so I think any aggravations will be outweighed by my paychecks. On other fronts, my wife and I still have not had any luck selling our house in Tennessee. We are both starting to get worried because there is no way we can afford rent and mortgage. We have family we can stay with here but obviously with a baby on the way that is not an ideal solution. So we shall see. Not much else today. Life is kind of on hold right now with waiting for the baby to arrive and trying to get fully relocated back in Louisiana.

Red Ring of Death

Well, my day is starting great. My oldest son was attempting to play a game on the 360 when he told me it kept freezing and the screen was going red. When I went to investigate and turned it off and then on again we got the dreaded "red ring of death". If you're not a gamer you have no idea what I'm talking about. If you are, then you are probably cringing with me. For those that don't know, the red ring basically means your unit is fucked. Now, I heard that Microsoft was replacing units that get the red ring but I'm not sure if they still are or if it matters when the manufacture date of your unit was. We purchased the extended warranty from the store when we bought it so hopefully we can get something done. With a baby on the way and us relocating to Louisiana the chances of me buying a new one anytime within the next year are virtually non-existent. Anyways, that's how my day has started. The good thing is that I start my new job tomorrow. It is the same one my wife and I were hoping I would get so we are both very excited. It's not like we will suddenly be living in the lap of luxury but once we sell our house in Tennessee we will be doing alright at least. I guess you really do have to take the good with the bad sometimes. That's a ridiculous statement, but true nonetheless.

David Stern Gets His Wish

Let me say first that I generally do not believe in conspiracy theories. I especially think it is absurd to believe that sports can be manipulated to fit into a pre-ordained outcome. Having said that, it sure is remarkable that the NBA actually ended up with the Finals match-up it most desperately desired, Celtics vs. Lakers. Of course the Celtics were the cream of the crop in the East. Their only serious competition this year came from the Pistons and the Celtics just flat out wanted it more than the Pistons did. However, by no stretch of the imagination were the Lakers head and shoulders above the rest of the Western Conference. Yes, they were the number one seed but that was only by a game and only because the Hornets faltered the final week of the regular season. They were decidedly superior to both the Nuggets and Jazz in the playoffs but then drew likely the easiest match-up they could have in the conference finals when they got the Spurs. Yes, I know the Spurs were the defending champs and no, this is not bitterness because they ousted my Hornets. The Spurs were lucky to survive New Orleans. Yes, lucky. Just compare their shooting percentages from the New Orleans series to the Lakers series (and the Hornets played excellent defense against them). So the Lakers got the older, less athletic team which had no legitimate answer for Kobe, Gasol, or Odom as opposed to the one that did. Now, did the NBA influence the outcome of the Spurs/Hornets series? I wouldn't say that but they sure got lucky. Now they get the Finals match up that will likely give them their highest ratings since Jordan retired the second time. The ratings in Boston and L.A. alone will probably be higher that last year's bore fest that was Spurs/Cavaliers. So David Stern is jubilant and Kobe gets the spotlight (which is all he really cares about). But my hope is that Kevin Garnett (a more complete player and classier guy than Kobe could ever be) gets his first championship. I won't give a prediction as far as how long the series will last but I will take the Celtics all the way.

Lost in Transition

This is the first chance I've had to comment on the Lost finale which aired this past Thursday. I have said before that I think this has been the best season thus far and the finale did nothing to disabuse me of that notion. I remember having a conversation with a friend sometime during the second season in which I insisted that the show would start to suck if they ever had contact with the outside world or, worse, actually got off the island. Well, it doesn't happen often but I was wrong. I believe this season has been so good exactly because they got off the island. The fast forwards have shown that there is so much at work here that may or may not have to do anything with the island at all. The writers of this show do an excellent job of changing our conceptions of the characters and showing that choices are never "right or wrong" or "good or evil". It all just depends on perspective. I am very interested to see where the writers lead the characters. We have already seen many of them change dramatically through the use of the flash forwards employed throughout this season. If you used to watch this show and gave up because of season 3 (admittedly weak except for the jaw dropping finale) I would strongly urge you to catch up before fall. This show is strong again and it would be a shame to miss the ride.

Keeping Up With the Joneses

My wife and I went to see the new Indiana Jones film Saturday night. The best I can say is that at least it is an Indy movie. Other than that, I was pretty disappointed. It wasn't a problem that Harrison Ford is so much older now because I thought they did a good job with that, as far as not making him do anything too outrageous. Shia Lebouf was really good as the young greaser kid who has a close connection to someone from Indy's past (if you keep up with fan sites you already know who I am referring to). Cate Blanchett wasn't horrible as the villain but she never seemed as dangerous as Indy villains past. My biggest complaint was the story itself. Of course this is make believe, as all the Indy movies are but the plot of this just seemed completely out of tune with the entire Indy mythology. I can't say much without giving away a lot but suffice it to say that by the end of the movie I wasn't sure if they wanted Harrison to play Indy or Han Solo here. The special effects didn't bother me as much as they did my wife although one of the fight scenes really stretched the limits of believability. I think Lucas has come to rely too much on visual effects. The best things about both the original Star Wars and Indiana Jones movies was that they fired your imagination. His recent movies go to too many pains to leave nothing to the imagination and that is really too bad in my opinion. So, in summary, if you like Indy I recommend you go see the movie but keep your expectations low.

More To Read

Greetings. Time for more book recommendations (you know you love it).
Scar Night by Alan Campbell. Another book that got serious play all over the fan sites recently. I almost didn't get it at all but then the sequel came out and that sounded really good so I decided to give this one a try. I'm extremely glad I did. This book is much better than a first novel has a right to be. There are some basic fantasy plots set in a very unusual world. The heart of the book has to do with secrets that the church has hidden for centuries from the citizens of Deepgate, a city suspended above a huge abyss by chains. I won't say here what the secret is because that would ruin it. The story moves at a pretty good clip. It is graphic in some places with a good amount of deadpan humor interspersed. Definitely a good read and I'm looking forward to the sequel (which I've already bought) as well. A 4 out of 5.
Dusk by Tim Lebbon. I'm not really sure how I felt about this book and that's probably not a good thing. At first I was distracted by the amount of gore and profane language. It's not that I'm against these things per se, it's just that I enjoy writers who can get the point across without appealing to the lowest common denominator. The story is very short and focuses around five characters, one of whom is the vessel through which magic returns after a centuries long absence. There are some very good things in this book. The end, in particular, was one of the biggest surprises I've ever gotten at the end of a story but it's not really enough of one for me to highly recommend this book. In fact, a few days after finishing it I realized that I really don't care what happens to these characters in the next book. That's pretty telling right there. 3 out of 5.
The Engines of God by Jack McDevitt. I've had this book for almost two years and put off reading it again and again. Many of my friends have heard me insist that I really don't like reading sci-fi. After reading this and Dan Simmons though, I think maybe I do like reading sci-fi. At least, intelligent sci-fi. This book centers around interstellar archeology but before you think boring...the mysteries McDevitt presents here and their subsequent resolutions will keep you on the edge of your seat for most of the book. I wish I had only read this sooner. There's something here that keeps me from giving it a perfect score, but I can't put my finger on it. Nonetheless, a 4 out 5.

The First Step

I received some really welcome news yesterday. I went on my interview at the company I have been waiting two months to get on with. Lately it had become evident to my wife and I that without this job we probably would not be able to relocate back to Louisiana at this time, if ever. Yes, the job market here is better than before the storm but not necessarily in any field I have access to. I don't mind working jobs like the one I am at now (delivering pizzas...again). I make good money but it also fluctuates a lot. With 3 kids already and another on the way it's not really an ideal employment solution. Anyways, back to the point. I went on my interview yesterday and I got the job. I just have to wait for the drug test, background check and physical but there should be no problem with any of those. Once that goes through, I should start at the end of June, although there is a slight chance I could start two weeks earlier than that. My wife and I (and a lot of friends and family) are very happy about this news. Now we just have to find a place to live here and worry about getting our house in Tennessee sold. No problem.

The Bitter End

I tell myself that all young teams must go through a couple of years falling short before they can be champions. I tell myself that we lost to the champs, one of the best teams on the planet. I tell myself that their shooting percentage beyond the arc is the kind of fluke that you really can't do anything about. I tell myself that our shooting woes are the type of thing that happens and, unfortunately, it happened to us at the worst time. And even though all these things are true, it still hurts that the Hornets season ended, and ended bitterly, last night at the hands of the Spurs. But there is plenty to be proud of with this team. They accomplished so much, more than any other team in the organization's history. The fact remains that they are a dangerous young team whose very talented core is all under contract. They (hopefully) have learned from this year's playoff run and from this series in particular. Next year they figure to be even more deadly. This is a team on the rise, not the decline. They certainly do no appear to be a fluke. Barring injury to Paul or West, they should again be one of the top teams next year. But man, October is a long way off. I stand by my assertion that this is the most talented team New Orleans has ever had. I hope the fans continue to show up next year and that the team soon rewards us all with a championship...or two. Go Hornets!

Rise of the Machines

What the hell is with all these companies that have automated machines call you? I'll pick up the phone and hear "if you wish to speak with a representative, press 1". How's this? If I wish to speak with a representative, I will call you. I understand that there are buisness reasons why companies do this but, honestly, I didn't like any business or economics classes when I was in school. It's bad enough most of these jobs get outsourced. Now they aren't even getting humans to do this crap. Skynet ain't far off people.

...And Another One

If you read the comments on this blog you have noticed that my wife's other friend (a.k.a. "the freaky one") has checked in. I'm a bit confused as to why she would seem so clueless as to why she is considered the freaky one. I assure you, it has nothing to do with the hair color. I won't go into detail since my mother reads this blog but think hard about it and I'm sure you'll come up with the answer. On the bright side, I found your comments to be rather relevant to the spirit of this blog. Yes, I'm quite astonished. It seems you have a little geek in you after all (and yes, there is a totally inappropriate joke in there somewhere but as I stated earlier, my mother reads this blog). So welcome aboard. I didn't want you to feel like you weren't as welcome as your other partner in crime otherwise I would have never heard the end of it I'm sure.

Easily Distracted

Lately, for some reason, my attention span concerning books has been nearly non-existent. In just the past 3 weeks I have given up on four different books. Usually I will give a book 200 to 300 pages (depending on the size of the book) before I deem it not worth my time. I think some of the fault has to lie with the circumstances I find myself in right now. I am New Orleans, away from my wife, daughter and unborn child. I am still trying to find a good job and that causes stress. We still haven't sold the house in Chattanooga and that causes more stress. Now, having said that, some of these books I've given up on haven't done much to grab my attention in the first place. But since this blog is essentially a self-serving endeavor, I thought I might list the offending tomes and if anyone out there has read any of them and thinks I should give them a second chance you can make your case here. The first (and one I would most likely finish) is Lord of Snow and Shadows by Sarah Ash. This actually wasn't a terrible book at all. I found many of the themes to be very Shakespearean. The problem was that the character development seemed forced and a little rushed. Other than that, not too bad. Second was In the Eye of Heaven by David Keck. This book got a lot of pub on the Internet sites last year and, having begun it, I'm not sure why. It's not original, it's kinda hard to follow and it's very disjointed. Third comes The Jackal of Nar by John Marco. I was really disappointed in this series because I think the trilogy he wrote after this (which begins with The Eyes of God) was excellent. This book was his first and it is painfully obvious. The biggest problem I have is that the characters here do things that make absolutely no sense in any world, real or imagined. It's like he had to force his own characters to do outrageous things just to tell his story. Like I said, a real disappointment. Last up was Rhapsody by Elizabeth Haydon. Within 20 pages I knew I would hate this book. This is the type of book that, unfortunately, makes a large majority of people think women can't write good fantasy (and no, I do not personally believe that). I can't even explain what is wrong here. Suffice it to say, if you read as much fantasy as I do you know pretty much right away when something works and when it doesn't. Here it most definitely does not. The only book I've finished since coming to New Orleans has been To Green Angel Tower by Tad Williams. It is the concluding volume of his Memory, Sorrow and Thorn series. At over 1,000 pages it is perhaps the best thing I have yet read by him. It scored a perfect 5 in my book because even at that length, it never stagnates. That's hard enough to do in a "normal" size book. So maybe the problem isn't with me after all. I mean, if I can finish a 1,000+ page book without a problem maybe those other books just sucked.

Back Up the Bandwagon

Sports commentators get paid a lot of money to prognosticate and dissect. Almost to a man, they said the Hornets would wither under the playoff lights. Not a ONE of them picked the Hornets to beat Dallas in the first round. Not only did the Hornets beat the Mavericks, I'm pretty sure they are now all our bitches with the possible exception of Brandon Bass (a former LSU standout, by the by). Once we eliminated Dallas all these experts had to say was that of course we all knew Dallas was flawed. Oh really? Then why did you think that a 56 win, 2nd seeded team would not be a match for them? To add insult to injury, all these experts went on to predict that the Hornets would not be able to handle a "real challenge" like the defending champion San Antonio Spurs. How's that working out so far? (For those who don't know we're up 2-0 in the best of seven series). Of course it's not improbable the Spurs could come back and win this series but the way things have looked so far, I wouldn't bet on it. Which brings me to another point. How strange is it that New Orleans has a sports team this good? I'm not counting LSU because they are based in Baton Rouge. And I don't want to hear about Tulane's undefeated football season a decade ago. The Zephyr's minor league championship a few years back doesn't count either because, well...it's the minor leagues. Saints? Don't get me started. Yes, there was that NFC Championship game two years ago but if you can't beat a team quarterbacked by Rex Grossman you probably aren't as good as you think. No, the Hornets are the real deal and possibly the best team New Orleans has ever seen. We are the two seed in the Western Conference in a year when pretty much everyone agreed the conference was as tough as it's ever been. We won our first division title. We have the coach of the year. We have the MVP runner-up (who, seriously, should have been the winner but hasn't been in the league long enough). This team is young, fast and athletic. We can score, we can defend. We can play pretty much any way you want. The bandwagon's starting to fill up. Jump on now.

What the Hell Have I Done?

First let me say I am more than happy that my wife and her friend have decided to grace my little blog here. But I am starting to get this sinking feeling that they are trying to usurp my power. Your comments are quite welcome here, particularly when they are on subject. However, rating various actors "hotness" is neither required nor requested. As far as I know most of my regular readers are straight males so the way a guy looks in a superhero movie does not really matter to us. Just for the record though, I thought Robert Downey Jr. actually ended up as quite a convincing Tony Stark. I didn't think he was the best casting at first either but he ended up proving me wrong (and we all know how hard it is to prove me wrong). I thought Terrence Howard, on the other hand, was terribly cast and very robotic in his part as James Rhodes (who, I hope, in the sequel will don the War Machine suit). Anyways, ladies thanks for your time and comments. Let's just make sure they stay on point and we don't devolve into Entertainment Tonight or, even worse, Access Hollywood. And to my other readers, don't be intimidated by these two. I continue to look forward to your comments. Maybe you can help me maintain control of what has apparently become a celebrity rating site...