I saw the new Star Wars.

I saw the new Star Wars.

It was really quite good. I look forward to the next installment when, hopefully, they can leave the fan-service behind and start digging in with their new characters.

So last night I saw Hateful Eight in 70mm.

So last night I saw Hateful Eight in 70mm.

This is a Quentin Tarantino film. If you like QT films, you'll like this one. If you hate QT films, you'll hate this one. What if you don't know which kind of person you are?

It's a Western so there's none of the pop-culture geekiness that you see in a lot of his other films (like Pulp Fiction)

It's also a mystery. In fact, it's rather a lot like Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap. A group of strangers are trapped in a snowstorm. No one is who they seem. People wind up dead. But with a lot less cosy English charm and a lot more swears and gore. QT telegraphs his violence pretty well so if you're at all squeamish (like me) it's pretty easy to know when to avert your eyes.

Overall, I thought it was a pretty good movie. Except for maybe one small bit, the overall plot held together fairly well and made sense. One scene in the movie is completely gratuitous but I don't watch QT films for the sparse necessity. It's not the most comfortable movie to watch for a lot of reasons, but it is genuinely compelling in a way a lot of shock movies never are.

How was the 70mm? Expansive. I think that digital films produce a sharper picture and IMAX might be able to deliver the scope, but it was an extremely well-shot picture that tries to take full advantage of its jumbo screen size. Still, it was clear just how long it's been since I've seen an actual film at the movie theater.

So yeah, Hateful Eight, worth your consideration.

Title

"Truly this man was...the Ace of Spades."

RIP Lemmy

p.s. fuck cancer

Stoner Sloth Compilation

Duuuuuuude....


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rHm8GbTHyE

More "Best Of" reading lists.

More "Best Of" reading lists.

I've read several of the books listed and unhesitatingly recommend The Water Knife, Luna: New Moon, and Seveneves


http://io9.gizmodo.com/the-very-best-science-fiction-and-fantasy-books-of-2015-1748164151

Pre-order the Urban Tarot now

It's about 3 years late, but worth every second.

My copy of The Urban Tarot deck arrived this morning.

It's gorgeous. And I'm not just saying that because I'm one of the models.

The artist is taking pre-orders for those who didn't get in on the Kickstarter.

http://www.robinscottart.com/2015/10/pre-order-the-urban-tarot-now/

Leah Bloom -- I know I'm racing ahead, but I did like this list of books as well.

Leah Bloom -- I know I'm racing ahead, but I did like this list of books as well.
http://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/books-loved-2015

Hey

Hey,

For those of you playing along with the ad hoc book club thing, I just finished up The Discreet Hero this morning. I'd be happy to talk with you about it when you finish up.

Again, I read a bit faster than average so if you're still wading through, no worries.

Does anyone have a Dremel cordless drill with a small range of drill bits I could borrow?

Does anyone have a Dremel cordless drill with a small range of drill bits I could borrow? I'm about to attempt to pin a miniature and my hand-drilled attempts in the past have been terrible. Hopefully a power drill should make a fast, efficient hole for the pin.

Thanks!

Behind the Scenes - Emmet Otter's Jug-band Christmas - The Jim Henson Company

Drumroll please...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqWJD1ov6oY

What time is it?

What time is it?

It's TIME TO CLIMB!!!!

very slowly...


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DljStQsY80I#t=23

Title

If you're interested in being part of the ad hoc reading group Leah Bloom and I are doing. Today is the official start day. We're reading The Discreet Hero by Mario Vargas Llosa. Feel free to grab a copy and read along. Again, this is pretty loose, if you finish up by the new year, that's fine, but hopefully it'll be a fun read and you'll have something literary to chat about at holiday parties.

The World’s Ship Pilots Putter Around in Tiny Scale Models

I've wanted to do something like this recreationally for years now. Apparently this also happens in the US, I wonder if they've got "lubber classes".

ETA: SQUEEE!!! http://www.maritimepilotsinstitute.org/Manned-Models.html
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/12/151207-port-revel-ship-pilot-school/

They say to dance like no one is watching.

They say to dance like no one is watching.

Lady in the car behind me on the commute this morning, I saw you, but it didn't matter one damn bit.

Rock on, Lady in the car behind me on the commute this morning!

Title

Dear G+,

Why is it that I can't change who I share a post with after I make the post? If I accidentally make something public, I can't go back and change it to private (or vice versa). Worse, on the next post it defaults to public so there's that as well. Apparently this has always been true? It's kinda dumb.

Dear My iPHone,

You've started doing this thing where I get in the car and you send notifications letting me know how long it will take for me to get where I am to where I'm (probably) going to go (either home or work so far). That's a bit creepy and I should disable that.

No love
Tom

Because there doesn't appear to be any way to replace low-quality photos with better ones after posting to G+, here...

Because there doesn't appear to be any way to replace low-quality photos with better ones after posting to G+, here are better pics from Friday's walk by the river. Hopefully the magic school bus will be easier to spot.

The Discreet Hero: A Novel - Kindle edition by Mario Vargas Llosa, Edith Grossman.

Hey there!

So Leah Bloom and I are going to read The Discreet Hero by Mario Varaas Llosa as a sort of ad hoc book club. No regular meetings or anything, but we just think it'd be fun to read a book and then turn around and talk to someone else about it who has also read the book (and recently to boot).

So if you want to play along, feel free to snag a copy (I've linked to Amazon below, but you can probably get it at your favorite local bookshop as well). Leah expects her copy to arrive on the 8th or thereabouts so that's when we'll get started. Again, the timeframe is pretty loose. If you finish up by New Year's that's probably more than fine.


http://www.amazon.com/The-Discreet-Hero-A-Novel-ebook/dp/B00MSYXJ4K/