Stupid October

October came back at me with a vengeance, friends. Just as I was about to escape its jagged claws, a hurricane-force head cold swept down upon me, booming with its thunderous voice, “NO, no no no, you were supposed to be sick on Halloween!” How dare I, really.

And just in time for Daylight Saving Time, I’m finally getting over it. Aside from finally being free of my autumnal maladies, I most look forward to DST for the sole reason that I get to correct people who incorrectly say savings, plural, which is grossly incorrect and disgusting.

I think this is covered somewhere in Workbook 3.

It also means that I have to force myself to begin work on my annual Christmas music mega mix. This will be the 10th annual CD, the first being way back in 2002 when I worked at Hollywood Video in Palatine Illinois. They’ve grown larger and generally better as the years progressed, and there’s no sense in thinking that this will be my greatest one yet. The good news is that I won’t be devoting an entire post itemizing the entire 100+ track list as I did last year, so that will be nice for you. I think what I will do, though, is host a .zip file in case you want to make your own mp3 CD (the preferred method), or mp3-player play list. For this to be the case, I’d naturally have to have this thing finished and out-the-door by November 25th, as tradition dictates. The pressure’s on!

Juliet has her much-anticipated THREE-MONTH photo scheduled to be taken on THURSDAY, and while I can’t give away the theme, I can assure you that it’s going to be almost impossible to pull off the way I currently have it planned. First off, they don’t sell scuba gear for infants. Secondly, octopuses (yes that is actually how you pluralize it thank you very much) are generally expensive to rent, and hard to tame. Thirdly, there might be nuanced copyright issues involved in whatever poorly planned recreation of “20,000 Leagues Under The Sea” I have up my sleeve. We’ll have to wait and see.

Like this, but under water.

Uncharted 3 came out last Tuesday, and you need to go buy it. NO, I haven’t played it yet, but that’s not gonna stop me from labeling it as game of the year. It’s just not. Much like with movies, I’ve gotten pretty good at pegging games I haven’t played yet (with the rare Catherine situation, here and there), and unless Naughty Dog drastically screws things up, it will be the best one in the series, and therefore the best game on the system. None of this will surprise me when it happens. I also want to point out how ABSURD it is for me to even be talking about playing another game as A)I traditionally only play one game a year (this year I’ve already beaten 3), and B)I have no time for games. Still, what can one do when faced with Uncharted frickin’ 3?

Oh yes.

Lastly, a public service announcement/confession. I’ll admit it: I’ve watched television or listened to music or played games with my infant daughter, and turned around to say “man, Juliet really likes Seinfeld” or, “Wilco” or, “Mozart” or what have you. “She was all about it!” I’d shout at you. I’ve realized that after the first time you say this, it becomes incredibly annoying, and I apologize. Babies can’t distinguish shapes on the TV, they only enjoy the colors. It doesn’t matter if you’re showing her Sesame Street or The Wire at this age, she’s just gonna like the bright (or gritty) color patterns. Likewise with music, she can’t differentiate structures in the sounds. The only things that affect her directly in regards to this is how loud the music is, and according to studies, how complex. It’s not like she’s gonna like Bach over Beethoven because Bach is more complex, it’s just that studies indicate it might help her mental growth (via magic, or something). So, to summarize: no. She doesn’t like whatever the hell she’s listening to or watching, and I’m sorry I ever said that she did.

*whew* okay, that’s a weight off my chest.

Next week I’ll finally be in my new location for work, and therefore able to write blogs during my lunch breaks. Look forward to it! Or else!

Bonus Public Service Announcement! Don't ever, ever watch "Season Of The Witch" starring Nicolas Cage.