Thursday, March 31, 2016

In Praise of Brandon Sanderson

So, I'm going to assume that you have read at least one book by Brandon Sanderson.  And if you haven't, then you should.

I started as did most people with the Mistborn trilogy.  It's the concept how "magic" works on that world that was so fascinating.  I've read three of the four post-Mistborn series.  I think I need to read the Elantris books for the pre-history of the that world.

Then I read Warbreaker, and the foundation for magic shifted from metals to color.

Then came the Stormlight Archives,and I'm still not quite sure how magic works there.

Last to be introduced to me was the Reckoners series, which I'm reading the third book of right now.  Imagine a world of supers who become evil when they use their powers.1

And there are hints that these worlds are connected somehow.  Certainly, Warbreaker and the Stormlight world, but possibly others.

What makes Sanderson so fun is that the feel of the books are all different.  Even when he wrote the last three books of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series, he kept to Jordan's voice slowly shifting to his own.

So yes, give him a read.  You'll enjoy it.

Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Weekend Update

I forgot to mention two things in yesterday's post.

Just trying on unwashed selvage will leave you with blue fingers.

Second, on Saturday, Jennifer and I had breakfast at OVO Tavern.  Now, the first thing I have to sway is that you shouldn't be turned off by the webpage, because the place is so much better than the page.  Second, the food was great.  We got there and were the only customers the entire time.  We think they're more of an evening spot, but the food was great.  It wasn't just comfort food, and the service was top notch.  Being outnumbered by the staff is awkward sometimes, but they totally made us feel welcome.

Monday, March 28, 2016

Busy Weekend

This weekend seemed non-stop from the end of work on Friday.

I met Jennifer at BART halfway to San Francisco, and locked our bikes up.  Then we rode in and met a friend, got a ride over to Japantown and had dinner.  Then we went to "Batman v. Superman".

What did I think?

The intro pissed me off.  Do we really have to see the Waynes die in every fucking Batman movie?  After I got over that, it took me a bit to get back into the movie.  Once i did, I enoyed the show.  The second half is much more entertaining.  I told a friend I'd give ti a 3.75 out of 5 (7.5 out of 10 might sound better), and I'm viewing it as a bridge.  Yes, Marvel didn't really have a bridge movie, but I'm hopeful.  Affleck did a fine job as Bruce Wayne, I still like Henry Cavill, and Gal Gadot is good as both Diana Prince and Wonder Woman.  I look forward to the Wonder Woman.

Saturday, Jennifer and I rode around for a bit, but then decided to enjoy ridiculous fun, and play catch.  Then with sore shoulders, we went home and watched television with cats in our laps.

Sunday, we decided on a longer ride, and made a big loop.  We went up Alcatraz to Noah's Bagels on College, then down College and Broadway to a Starbucks in downtown Oakland.  Then we ate sitting on a planter on Grand.  After we ate, we walked up Broadway and found a few fun restaurants for future perusal, and a shop called Two Jacks Denim.

TJD is a great denim shop with pants, shirts and jackets.  I've recently become a fan of unwashed selvage denim pants.  I got a pair on Kickstarter, and they have become my favorite pants.  I've had them for almost two years, and they've never been washed.  The wear pattern on them is really looking amazing.  I got two new pairs of pants Sunday: one that is blue on a tinted thread and the second is blue on black.  they're going to look amazing too.

Sunday night, we came back to Drake's Dealership for dinner.  They've got some great beers.  Jennifer had a Farmhouse Ale (a great saison), and I had the amber (a great ESB).  Both were amazing with her poutine and my ribs.  For dessert we had a bourbon-barrel aged Drakonic stout and rye-barrel aged Robustito porter.  After one taste, both left you feeling you were in a distillery with the smell of the whiskey around you.

Thursday, March 10, 2016

Movie Time

So, yeah, it's been kind of difficult getting back into blogging momentum after my mom's death.  I'm hoping I can build some up again.

I have seen some movies over the past few months...

Star Wars: The Force Awakens - It's just fun.  There's no other way to describe it.  I like the new characters and it was great to see the old characters again.  I've seen it twice in theaters (tying for Jedi, but falling short of Empire [3 times] and Hope [4 times]), and the blu-ray has already been ordered.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid - Seen through Fathom Events, and so enjoyable on a big screen.

Blazing Saddles - Also great on a big screen.  Something of note, when the town is exploding at the end?  Those bodies flying into the air are horses.  That's a detail you miss on a small screen; I always though they were people.

Queen: A Night in Bohemia/A Night at the Odeon - Jennifer surprised me with tickets this week to a combination documentary (30 minutes) followed by a live recorded concert of Queen.  The documentary was a cool little bit of interviews through the years on "Bohemian Rhapsody" and Queen's move from one label to another.  What struck me a fascinating was Freddie Mercury saying how BR was actually three songs he had in his head that he strung together into one.  What makes this more interesting to me is that in an interview I heard, My Chemical Romance described the creation of "Black Parade" in a similar way, but with 4 or five pieces.  The recorded concert was actually Queen's Christmas Eve concert on BBC-1 in 1975.  Yes, 1975.  Aside from the fun of the concert, watching Brian May play was kind of funny.  He plays, and moves a bit then stands still and plays more, then repeat.  Freddie's showmanship hadn't worn off onto him yet.  He looks like such a nerd (astronomy major, remember) who just happens to play excellent guitar.

Deadpool - Now, I'll preface this with the fact that I knew nothing of Deadpool aside from internet memes and "Wolverine: Origins".  However, that being said, this was a movie that was just fun.  Crude and violent, but lots of fun.