Remember back in my ComiCon-Way post-mortem when I asked:
I wonder if they got any photos of Artoo, stormtroopers, or Vader at this machine?
Looks like the universe takes requests. … Read more
I’ve been talking for some time about tearing down my man-cave, only for a variety of reasons it hasn’t been happening as fast as I’d like. Today I emptied out, moved, and refilled one of the heaviest, most awkward pieces of furniture in my house, a 6+ foot tall bookshelf that my folks got for me, and my dad built for me, one Christmas in the ’80s. It matched a computer desk and printer table which are no longer with me. It’s still in one piece, reasonably attractive, and it’s damned solid. And yeah, the fact that I remember watching my dad build it while knocking back a beer and cursing a lot has something to do with it. I do the same thing with build-it-yourself furniture, minus the beer (though as I get older, and the printed instructions gradually become more incomprehensible, I have to admit that the temptation is sometimes there). … Read more
Little E and I were watching Star Wars (again) on Friday night; toward the end, when the Imperial Flunkie asks Tarkin if he wants his escape pod fired up and ready, my son suddenly blurts out “ARE THEY TRYING TO TEXT EACH OTHER?”
I have no. idea. where. that. came. from. I don’t have a plan that allows for a lot of texting. Texting is something that really doesn’t go on in this house. I’m old and unhip. But, you know, if George is going to keep reinventing Star Wars for a new generation, then I guess this road only leads to one place…
For the “about the author” photo in the back of VWORP!1, I constructed a “set” using plastic shipping crates that a local store’s been getting rid of fairly cheaply; they’re awfully handy things to have around. For lightweight items, they actually make pretty nice shelving. I threw a few knick-knacks from my vast knick-knack collection in there, set them up next to a window where I already have marquees from old arcade games set up, and boom, it looks like I live in a warehouse full of geek-a-licious relics. Which, of course, I do.
It took a while, but Little E finally watched Star Wars all the way through over the weekend, over a meal of a homemade cheeseburger and some fries. He’s about the same age I was when I first saw it: four-going-on-five.
He now “gets” what’s up with his two lightsaber flashlights and wants to play Star Wars with me all the time. For unspecified reasons that will become clear to him later, I’ve always got the one with the red lights. (Spoilers, sweetie.)
One thing does seem to have struck a chord with him, though (literally): he loved the music. At naptime on Sunday, he curled up next to his mother and asked her to hum Star Wars music to him. She found this a daunting request. Now, I could go into how silly it is for a former music major and a lifelong Star Wars fan to not know the best-selling soundtrack of all time backward and forward (who’s the music major here?), but I’ll spare her the embarrassment. (Oh… wait. There was probably a more graceful way to mention that.)
He asked me on Monday night, “Dad, do you have any Star Wars music?”
Who, moi? A guy who can’t read sheet music to save his life but still geeks out over what the woodwind section is doing at any given moment in any given soundtrack?
Why… yes. Yes I do. My dear boy, I thought you’d never ask.
I have a feeling my room is going to suddenly be a lot more interesting to him.
I’ve recently been liquidating more of my video game collection on eBay, and the thought never occurred to me “Hey, let’s turn around get moar video game stuffs with the moneys!” But I’ve made an exception here, and with good reason. … Read more
They are fast. Faster than you can believe. … Read more
One of Little E’s favorite games on his Leapster 2 is Star Wars: Clone Wars Jedi Math. From just listening to it (and, okay, playing it just a little bit), it’s a pretty fun little math game (I would’ve gone over to the Dark Side just to have a Jedi Math cartridge back when I was a kid; instead, I had… Math-A-Magic!). He plays it a lot, even if he’s not exactly memorizing the names of the Jedi Council.
Tonight, he played a pretty good game, rescued some Republic prisoners from the Trade Federation, and just before plunging into a new level of the game, held up his new R2-D2 figure and said “LET’S DO THIS, ARTOO!” That’s my boy. 😆
And if you think that’s impressive, check out the age/grade bracket that the game falls under on the label. God and/or the Force willing, he might just be better at all things numerically-oriented than his daddy was.… Read more
So Little E brought home a note from his day care a couple of weeks ago, announcing the annual Christmas party. All boys were supposed to bring a boys’ gift, girls were to bring girls’ gifts, and everything was supposed to stay under $10 – the usual drill, really.
What’s amazing is how much I agonized over what to get. Pardon me while I be a big hippie for a few minutes here. … Read more
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