While I was at it, I figured I'd draw another RLC Death image.
And here it is.
Saturday, December 10, 2005
Two For The Price Of One
While I was at it, I figured I'd draw another RLC Death image.
And here it is.
RLC Is Become Death
Quite some time ago I mentioned that one day I would present you with my interpretation of my beloved Rachael Leigh Cook as "Death" from Neil Gaiman's "Sandman" series.
You may recall that on our way back from seeing "Mirrormask" in DC, Scott and I had a conversation about who should play the role of Death in any movie featuring the character, and Scott mentioned that RLC would be perfect for it.
I was greatly ashamed by this, as the idea had never even occurred to me despite the fact that it's such an obvious truth. RLC would be perfect as Death, and yet, here I was, a big fan of the character and, while not exactly a fan of RLC, I am extremely taken with her beauty (Those eyes of hers just kill me, which is ironic, in a way.) having failed to even consider the idea.
My folly is compounded by the fact that a little over a decade ago I considered Winona Ryder to be the perfect choice for the role of Death and there are frequent comparisons drawn between RLC and Winona Ryder.
In any case, I thought I would put forth an image of RLC as Death. I think the image adds a lot of weight to the argument that RLC would be perfect for the part (In addition to looking the part, I think that she would also be able to bring Death's character to life...sorry, couldn't resist the pun.)
I'm not sure which artist first introduced the little curly dealie under Death's eye, but somewhere along the line it became a part of her standard "look," and though I'm not particularly fond of it most of the time, I felt that I did need to include it. Besides, it gave me a way to incorporate (albeit somewhat clumsily) my signature into the image.
Welcome Aboard
Congratulations to Scott and Stacy on the birth of Scarlett Josephine (21 inches, 7 lbs, 9 oz) on December 7.
Friday, December 09, 2005
Jock Vs. Nerd
The process of signing the contract for the condo was really long and drawn out. I can’t recall a time in my life in which I had to sign my name or write my initials that many times.
One thing that was kind of irritating was that after dealing with us on Wednesday, Daniela, the cute sales person, decided to pawn us off on someone else, so instead of being treated to some eye candy I got to have an eyesore.
Okay, so the guy, Chris, wasn’t horrible looking, but he was a guy, which was a letdown.
I don’t think that she ditched us, exactly; I think it was more a matter of professional courtesy to her co-worker in that Chris was the person we had originally spoken to.
It just struck me as another example of how I just don’t get to have those “chance encounters” that can lead to romance, though it’s extremely unlikely that Daniela would have developed any interest in a guy who drives a Kia and is in a state of near panic at the prospect of writing a check for $1,500 when you consider how much money she probably makes. After all, she just recently bought a condo in Reston, where most one-bedroom condos cost about as much as a two-bedroom condo in Leesburg.
In particular, my utter lack of charm – much worse than usual thanks to my high levels of anxiety – would have effectively prevented her from developing any amount of interest, though I don’t think that there’s enough charm in the world to make a short, weird-looking, pudgy nerd stand out to an attractive, successful woman when he’s in the same room as a big, good-looking, former Washington Redskin who is now a successful realtor and who drives a big, fancy SUV about which said attractive, successful woman made numerous comments about “loving” the other day.
I’m not saying that my realtor would have been putting the moves on her (he has a girlfriend), just that he wouldn’t have to; his simple presence would overshadow me whether he meant it to or not.
(As a related aside, on Wednesday, when were waiting outside for my realtor to pull up his SUV to drive us to the building where the condo I was looking at was located, Daniela asked me where I work and what I do. When I started explaining the nature of my job it was very much like that scene in “Office Space” when Peter is explaining what he does for a living to Jennifer Aniston’s character and we see her attention just drift away as she loses all interest in what he’s saying.)
But like I said, a little eye candy might have been nice.
Monday I have to start on the financing end of things. It’s not as though I’m some huge credit risk, and my credit score is decent, but I just have a feeling that there are enough problems with my credit history that actually getting financing will be out of the question.
But I guess we’ll see.
It snowed a bit last night, so naturally all the schools were closed today.
What’s interesting is that while it was unsafe for the kids to go to school, and for many of their parents to go to work, it was safe enough for them to all head out to go shopping.
It must be great to be a school-age kid around here. For one thing, even under the best of circumstances they only seem to go to school two to three times a week anyway, but the mere mention of potential snowfall pretty much guarantees that there will be no school. School is frequently cancelled in advance, well before the first flake even falls.
Still, as I’ve often said, there are some problems that result from the snowfall out here, problems that can make traveling even more of a hassle than it is in places that get real amounts of snowfall.
The biggest, of course, is the panicky nature of your average Northern Virginia driver.
Beyond that, though, is the condition of many of the roads. The attitude of the road crew around here seems to flow from a line of thinking that goes something like, “It’s snowing now, but eventually it will stop. No matter what happens, pretty much everything will be closed, so nobody really needs to be on the road, and eventually the snow will just melt on its own, so…”
The end result of the attitude is that no effort is made to clear the roads until after it’s stopped snowing, and the majority of the snow removal is actually left to nature and traffic, with some of the side streets that don’t get much sunlight or traffic left with terrible, icy ruts for days on end.
I just don’t understand why they do such a shitty job of snow removal. For one thing, there’s so little in the way of snow to actually remove in the course of a winter. And it’s hardly as though there’s no money to pay for snow removal. I mean, I pay taxes out the wazoo: what the hell are they spending the money on? What am I paying for with my “personal property tax” on my car, or the additional fee I pay to buy a sticker that shows that I paid my personal property tax? What about the food tax? What does my annual inspection fee pay for?
There must be some money somewhere in the state and county coffers to pay for a decent snow removal system.
Oh well.
Tomorrow night my realtor is holding a Christmas party for clients. It looks like I’m going to go with Kathleen, who is herself a former client. In fact, it was on Brian and Kathleen’s recommendation that I (and several other people at work) went with his services in the first place.
Anyway, Brian is on duty at the fire station tomorrow night, so I get to be his stand-in for the evening. Though it’s not any sort of set-up, Kathleen is also bringing the only single woman she actually knows as a guest.
In Kathleen’s words it will be a “threesome that really isn’t.”
Since neither Kathleen nor I are actually designed for the whole “mingling” thing, we figure we’ll have a third person to sit with us and join in while we make fun of all of the other people there.
At the very least it’ll be a chance to get a free meal, and there’s an outside chance that one of us could win a new TV or an iPod or something.
In any case, not much else is going on. I’m now officially in the “time off zone,” though that will end on Sunday night, at which point I’ll be into my regular weekend.
One thing that was kind of irritating was that after dealing with us on Wednesday, Daniela, the cute sales person, decided to pawn us off on someone else, so instead of being treated to some eye candy I got to have an eyesore.
Okay, so the guy, Chris, wasn’t horrible looking, but he was a guy, which was a letdown.
I don’t think that she ditched us, exactly; I think it was more a matter of professional courtesy to her co-worker in that Chris was the person we had originally spoken to.
It just struck me as another example of how I just don’t get to have those “chance encounters” that can lead to romance, though it’s extremely unlikely that Daniela would have developed any interest in a guy who drives a Kia and is in a state of near panic at the prospect of writing a check for $1,500 when you consider how much money she probably makes. After all, she just recently bought a condo in Reston, where most one-bedroom condos cost about as much as a two-bedroom condo in Leesburg.
In particular, my utter lack of charm – much worse than usual thanks to my high levels of anxiety – would have effectively prevented her from developing any amount of interest, though I don’t think that there’s enough charm in the world to make a short, weird-looking, pudgy nerd stand out to an attractive, successful woman when he’s in the same room as a big, good-looking, former Washington Redskin who is now a successful realtor and who drives a big, fancy SUV about which said attractive, successful woman made numerous comments about “loving” the other day.
I’m not saying that my realtor would have been putting the moves on her (he has a girlfriend), just that he wouldn’t have to; his simple presence would overshadow me whether he meant it to or not.
(As a related aside, on Wednesday, when were waiting outside for my realtor to pull up his SUV to drive us to the building where the condo I was looking at was located, Daniela asked me where I work and what I do. When I started explaining the nature of my job it was very much like that scene in “Office Space” when Peter is explaining what he does for a living to Jennifer Aniston’s character and we see her attention just drift away as she loses all interest in what he’s saying.)
But like I said, a little eye candy might have been nice.
Monday I have to start on the financing end of things. It’s not as though I’m some huge credit risk, and my credit score is decent, but I just have a feeling that there are enough problems with my credit history that actually getting financing will be out of the question.
But I guess we’ll see.
It snowed a bit last night, so naturally all the schools were closed today.
What’s interesting is that while it was unsafe for the kids to go to school, and for many of their parents to go to work, it was safe enough for them to all head out to go shopping.
It must be great to be a school-age kid around here. For one thing, even under the best of circumstances they only seem to go to school two to three times a week anyway, but the mere mention of potential snowfall pretty much guarantees that there will be no school. School is frequently cancelled in advance, well before the first flake even falls.
Still, as I’ve often said, there are some problems that result from the snowfall out here, problems that can make traveling even more of a hassle than it is in places that get real amounts of snowfall.
The biggest, of course, is the panicky nature of your average Northern Virginia driver.
Beyond that, though, is the condition of many of the roads. The attitude of the road crew around here seems to flow from a line of thinking that goes something like, “It’s snowing now, but eventually it will stop. No matter what happens, pretty much everything will be closed, so nobody really needs to be on the road, and eventually the snow will just melt on its own, so…”
The end result of the attitude is that no effort is made to clear the roads until after it’s stopped snowing, and the majority of the snow removal is actually left to nature and traffic, with some of the side streets that don’t get much sunlight or traffic left with terrible, icy ruts for days on end.
I just don’t understand why they do such a shitty job of snow removal. For one thing, there’s so little in the way of snow to actually remove in the course of a winter. And it’s hardly as though there’s no money to pay for snow removal. I mean, I pay taxes out the wazoo: what the hell are they spending the money on? What am I paying for with my “personal property tax” on my car, or the additional fee I pay to buy a sticker that shows that I paid my personal property tax? What about the food tax? What does my annual inspection fee pay for?
There must be some money somewhere in the state and county coffers to pay for a decent snow removal system.
Oh well.
Tomorrow night my realtor is holding a Christmas party for clients. It looks like I’m going to go with Kathleen, who is herself a former client. In fact, it was on Brian and Kathleen’s recommendation that I (and several other people at work) went with his services in the first place.
Anyway, Brian is on duty at the fire station tomorrow night, so I get to be his stand-in for the evening. Though it’s not any sort of set-up, Kathleen is also bringing the only single woman she actually knows as a guest.
In Kathleen’s words it will be a “threesome that really isn’t.”
Since neither Kathleen nor I are actually designed for the whole “mingling” thing, we figure we’ll have a third person to sit with us and join in while we make fun of all of the other people there.
At the very least it’ll be a chance to get a free meal, and there’s an outside chance that one of us could win a new TV or an iPod or something.
In any case, not much else is going on. I’m now officially in the “time off zone,” though that will end on Sunday night, at which point I’ll be into my regular weekend.
Anxiety's Floor Plan
Ever wondered what anxiety loooks like? Well, for me, it looks kind of like this:
This is the floor plan of the condo that I signed a contract to buy today.
Along with writing one of the biggest checks I've written in a long, long time, I signed a note saying that I'll write them an even bigger check in about a month.
And that, of course, is to say nothing of the checks I'll be writing every month for the next 30 years...
Actually, that's not really true. I won't be writing checks on this place for the next 30 years because the odds are that I won't get financing.
Wait, no, that's not the reason. I forgot that I'm trying to be optimistic. The reason that I won't be writing checks on this place for the next 30 years is that I will no doubt sell the place at a significant profit sometime within the next few years and will move on to something bigger and better.
If all goes according to plan, in a little over a month I'll be living in a state of abject poverty inside a shiny new condo in Leesburg.
Of course, I can't recall a time in my life when everything went according to plan, and, despite what I might be hoping, I don't see that pattern changing.
Still, people keep assuring me that I'm doing the right thing. I think that as well, but that doesn't keep me from feeling anxious about it, or worried that the whole thing will fall through.
But we'll see, I guess.
In any case, I'll likely be back later with more of an entry.
This is the floor plan of the condo that I signed a contract to buy today.
Along with writing one of the biggest checks I've written in a long, long time, I signed a note saying that I'll write them an even bigger check in about a month.
And that, of course, is to say nothing of the checks I'll be writing every month for the next 30 years...
Actually, that's not really true. I won't be writing checks on this place for the next 30 years because the odds are that I won't get financing.
Wait, no, that's not the reason. I forgot that I'm trying to be optimistic. The reason that I won't be writing checks on this place for the next 30 years is that I will no doubt sell the place at a significant profit sometime within the next few years and will move on to something bigger and better.
If all goes according to plan, in a little over a month I'll be living in a state of abject poverty inside a shiny new condo in Leesburg.
Of course, I can't recall a time in my life when everything went according to plan, and, despite what I might be hoping, I don't see that pattern changing.
Still, people keep assuring me that I'm doing the right thing. I think that as well, but that doesn't keep me from feeling anxious about it, or worried that the whole thing will fall through.
But we'll see, I guess.
In any case, I'll likely be back later with more of an entry.
Thursday, December 08, 2005
They're Gonna Yell At Me
It seems strange, as it always does when I take time off, to not have to prepare myself to go to work tomorrow.
Of course, the weekend will fly quickly past, and soon I’ll be back on my regular days off and it will only be a blink of an eye before I’m back at work once again, my time off just a fleeting memory of freedom.
It looks as though I’ve managed to jump over the earnest money hurdle, and so tomorrow I will, apparently, be signing a contract on the condo, and assuming the financing goes through, I will be well on my way to becoming a homeowner.
Of course, I’m operating on the assumption that despite the fact that my credit is decent once again after a long, dark period, and I do have a decent income, something will go wrong when we get to the financing portion. If nothing else, I’m of the opinion that somehow, even though they shouldn’t, the monthly payments will come out to be more than I can afford and I’ll have to back out of the whole thing and I’ll be back to throwing money away on rent.
Naturally I’m being pessimistic because…well, I’m naturally pessimistic, but also I feel as though I’m being set up for a pretty big letdown, so I want to be prepared.
Quite honestly, this whole thing is causing me an extreme amount of anxiety. I feel sick to my stomach and as if I’m just barely restraining an overwhelming sense of panic.
Why? Well, for one thing, it really is a daunting prospect. I mean, we’re talking about a LOT of money here.
And for another…well, as irrational as it may sound, I feel as though things are going to fall through and I’m not going to be able to buy the condo, and not only will I be disappointed but all of the people involved will yell at me for wasting their time, and then I’ll be banned from ever even trying to buy a place again.
They’ll put up posters of me all around the Metro DC area that say, “This loser can’t buy a condo,” and there will be an article in the Post about what a deadbeat time-waster I am and how people should spit on me if they happen to see me.
…
Okay, at the very least I’m worried that they’ll yell at me.
I just wish the whole process were simpler and more straightforward. Like someone says, “This is how much you’ll have to pay a month. Sign here. Here are your keys. Congratulations.” And then, like a Nextel commercial, done.
But no, it has to be a long, drawn-out, confusing, and aggravating process that leaves me stupefied and looking like a simpleton (“Do you have any questions?” “Duh, me no have question. Should me have question?”), and which pisses me off to no end.
To make matters worse, I keep getting crap in the mail like the thing I got today telling me about some other condos that are bigger, nicer, and while more expensive, come with mortgage plans that would make the monthly payment roughly equivalent to rental rates in the area.
So that makes me wonder if I’m making a mistake going with this place instead of the bigger one, or if there’s some scam hidden in the fine print that I’m not able to pick out because the whole process of trying to buy a home has rendered me mentally incompetent.
*Sigh*
In any case, beyond the condo-buying stuff, not much else is going on in my life. Even though I’m technically on vacation I went in to work today for a meeting. It won’t count as overtime, but it will at least make up for the money I’ll lose in differential pay for not working on Saturday and Sunday.
I also went for a walk in the afternoon, despite the chill in the air. My timing was lousy, though, as I ended up caught in the rush of elementary school children walking home.
As a result, I’m beginning to believe that childhood is itself a form of mild retardation, one from which most people aren’t able to recover.
Several of the more obnoxious of the little monsters kept screaming at passing cars, saying that they were “hitchhikers” and needed a ride. I began to believe that the finest thing the children could do, in fact, would be for them to get in a stranger’s car.
Of course, I did not seriously wish them any sort of harm – though I did think about picking up some rocks and throwing them at them – but I did want them to shut the hell up, or at least drop their voices down forty or fifty decibels.
The old saying states that “children should be seen and not heard.”
I think that would be a good start.
Of course, the weekend will fly quickly past, and soon I’ll be back on my regular days off and it will only be a blink of an eye before I’m back at work once again, my time off just a fleeting memory of freedom.
It looks as though I’ve managed to jump over the earnest money hurdle, and so tomorrow I will, apparently, be signing a contract on the condo, and assuming the financing goes through, I will be well on my way to becoming a homeowner.
Of course, I’m operating on the assumption that despite the fact that my credit is decent once again after a long, dark period, and I do have a decent income, something will go wrong when we get to the financing portion. If nothing else, I’m of the opinion that somehow, even though they shouldn’t, the monthly payments will come out to be more than I can afford and I’ll have to back out of the whole thing and I’ll be back to throwing money away on rent.
Naturally I’m being pessimistic because…well, I’m naturally pessimistic, but also I feel as though I’m being set up for a pretty big letdown, so I want to be prepared.
Quite honestly, this whole thing is causing me an extreme amount of anxiety. I feel sick to my stomach and as if I’m just barely restraining an overwhelming sense of panic.
Why? Well, for one thing, it really is a daunting prospect. I mean, we’re talking about a LOT of money here.
And for another…well, as irrational as it may sound, I feel as though things are going to fall through and I’m not going to be able to buy the condo, and not only will I be disappointed but all of the people involved will yell at me for wasting their time, and then I’ll be banned from ever even trying to buy a place again.
They’ll put up posters of me all around the Metro DC area that say, “This loser can’t buy a condo,” and there will be an article in the Post about what a deadbeat time-waster I am and how people should spit on me if they happen to see me.
…
Okay, at the very least I’m worried that they’ll yell at me.
I just wish the whole process were simpler and more straightforward. Like someone says, “This is how much you’ll have to pay a month. Sign here. Here are your keys. Congratulations.” And then, like a Nextel commercial, done.
But no, it has to be a long, drawn-out, confusing, and aggravating process that leaves me stupefied and looking like a simpleton (“Do you have any questions?” “Duh, me no have question. Should me have question?”), and which pisses me off to no end.
To make matters worse, I keep getting crap in the mail like the thing I got today telling me about some other condos that are bigger, nicer, and while more expensive, come with mortgage plans that would make the monthly payment roughly equivalent to rental rates in the area.
So that makes me wonder if I’m making a mistake going with this place instead of the bigger one, or if there’s some scam hidden in the fine print that I’m not able to pick out because the whole process of trying to buy a home has rendered me mentally incompetent.
*Sigh*
In any case, beyond the condo-buying stuff, not much else is going on in my life. Even though I’m technically on vacation I went in to work today for a meeting. It won’t count as overtime, but it will at least make up for the money I’ll lose in differential pay for not working on Saturday and Sunday.
I also went for a walk in the afternoon, despite the chill in the air. My timing was lousy, though, as I ended up caught in the rush of elementary school children walking home.
As a result, I’m beginning to believe that childhood is itself a form of mild retardation, one from which most people aren’t able to recover.
Several of the more obnoxious of the little monsters kept screaming at passing cars, saying that they were “hitchhikers” and needed a ride. I began to believe that the finest thing the children could do, in fact, would be for them to get in a stranger’s car.
Of course, I did not seriously wish them any sort of harm – though I did think about picking up some rocks and throwing them at them – but I did want them to shut the hell up, or at least drop their voices down forty or fifty decibels.
The old saying states that “children should be seen and not heard.”
I think that would be a good start.
Dr. Seuss' How "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart" Stole Christmas
Go here and watch the "Secular Central" clip.
Wednesday, December 07, 2005
"Erotic" Bible Calendar
Read more about it here.
Sometime around eleven years ago I actually had an idea for a series of pictures depicting images from the bible with an erotic touch.
For example, I had an image of a stupefied Samson being straddled by a nude Delilah who had a lock of his hair in one hand and a knife for shearing in the other.
Another image, and, I think, the one that inspired the idea for the series in the first place, was of the Devil enfolding Eve in his wings and holding up the apple…which Eve was licking.
It should come as a surprise to no one that, despite doing a couple of preliminary sketches, the idea didn’t progress much past the idea stage, and soon I moved on to another idea which I promptly abandoned before moving on to the next.
It’s always sort of a bittersweet experience when I see that someone hits upon an idea that I didn’t follow through on and actually does something with it. In one way it’s gratifying to think that maybe I am able to come up with interesting, thought-provoking ideas every so often, but it’s also frustrating that I’m not able to do anything with them myself.
Sometime around eleven years ago I actually had an idea for a series of pictures depicting images from the bible with an erotic touch.
For example, I had an image of a stupefied Samson being straddled by a nude Delilah who had a lock of his hair in one hand and a knife for shearing in the other.
Another image, and, I think, the one that inspired the idea for the series in the first place, was of the Devil enfolding Eve in his wings and holding up the apple…which Eve was licking.
It should come as a surprise to no one that, despite doing a couple of preliminary sketches, the idea didn’t progress much past the idea stage, and soon I moved on to another idea which I promptly abandoned before moving on to the next.
It’s always sort of a bittersweet experience when I see that someone hits upon an idea that I didn’t follow through on and actually does something with it. In one way it’s gratifying to think that maybe I am able to come up with interesting, thought-provoking ideas every so often, but it’s also frustrating that I’m not able to do anything with them myself.
The Importance Of Being Earnest
Much of yesterday was devoted to finally watching some of the movies I have saved on my DVR.
The two I watched yesterday were “Sideways” and “Meet the Fockers.”
I wasn’t especially impressed by “Fockers,” but “Sideways” definitely had its moments.
In particular, Paul Giamatti’s performance as a pessimistic, curmudgeonly, drunken, divorced failed writer stood out for me, as it was all too painfully familiar, though also ruefully amusing.
Of course, it’s not as if he were my identical twin, as I no longer drink and was never a wine drinker to begin with.
His performance actually made me want to watch him in the role that is my favorite of his, that of Harvey Pekar in “American Splendor,” but given that I still have six hours’ worth of movies left to watch on my DVR I decided that I wasn’t going to throw another movie in the mix.
Last week I picked up “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” on DVD and have yet to watch that.
I didn’t see the movie when it was in theaters, but I’ve heard it’s okay, and, quite frankly, the cover image featuring Angelina Jolie in that black dress was pretty much impossible to resist.
(I also got the Director’s Cut of “Blade Runner” from the 2 for $11 bin. With the spindle of 25 DVD-Rs I picked up at the same time, it was something of a DVD-intensive trip to Wal-Mart.)
In any case, I did enjoy “Sideways,” and I understand now what the buzz was about.
As for “Fockers,” it just didn’t deliver much in the way of laughs. It seemed like it was trying too hard, and there was nothing engaging enough about it for me to willingly suspend my disbelief and accept the idea that people might actually behave like that.
I will say, though, that in the appearance she made in Playboy concurrent with the theatrical release, “Meet the Fockers” star Teri Polo looked extremely good. So that’s one good thing that came about as a result of the movie.
Somewhere along the line in the course of yesterday I opted to take a nap, and still ended up going to bed fairly early.
So, apart from going for an abbreviated walk and getting lunch from Subway, I didn’t do much at all.
Today I accomplished slightly more.
I met with my realtor and we headed over to the complex where I’m thinking about buying a condo. In fact, we settled on which particular one I would like to buy.
Now, of course, the question becomes whether or not I can.
While it is ridiculously expensive because this is Northern Virginia and that’s just the way things are, it is within the realm of affordability for me – assuming I make a few sacrifices here and there, though luckily I don’t have much of a life so there isn’t much for me to sacrifice – but getting to the point where I’m actually making the monthly payments will, no doubt, be a bumpy ride, and may lead me to just chuck the whole buying idea and start looking for another place to rent.
While I was there I was quietly in sort of a mild state of panic at the enormity of the prospect of buying a place, and I was also distracted by the fact that the sales person, a young woman named Daniela, was extremely cute, I made an appointment to meet again on Friday and get the process started. Getting things started includes writing a check as “earnest money,” which is sort of a deposit to prove that I mean business.
The problem is that my head was too busy spinning, from the panic and from Daniela’s cuteness, for me think to actually ask just how earnest that money is expected to be, which is to say that I have only a vague idea of how big of a check they’re expecting me to write.
I’m fairly certain, however, that whatever the amount it will be more than I’ll be able to raise by Friday, so I think I’m going to have to reschedule that meeting.
Fortunately, the renovations won’t be complete until January, and it looks as though I have a few months before I absolutely have to get out of here, so, as long as I can keep them convinced that I am interested, I to have some time.
As for the condo itself, the square footage is just shy of being two hundred square feet smaller than my current apartment.
However, most of the space in my apartment is sort of wasted anyway, and most of it located in my bedroom.
The condo was basically gutted when I saw it, but I have an idea of what it will look like when finished and it should be nice.
I had looked at another, slightly cheaper one, and while it had granite countertops, which is a definite plus, it was on the first floor, whereas the one I decided to go with is on the second floor. Also, the cheaper unit was facing the highway, which would have led to some noise issues.
To get a third floor unit I’d have to get on a waiting list, as everyone wants the vaulted ceilings.
In an case, here are the features:
Hardwood floor in the kitchen, ceramic tile in the foyer, vinyl tile in the bathroom, carpeting in the bedroom, living room, and dining room.
Wood-burning fireplace, gas heat, electric oven (gas would be better, but oh well), new appliances (fridge, dishwasher, washer and dryer), new cabinets, ceramic tile shower enclosure, new Hunter-Douglas wooden blinds.
Amenities include a fitness center, with a sauna, pool, and tennis court, not that a tennis court matters to me.
Beyond the features of the unit, it is in a good location, and while it’s a longer drive to work from there it’s also slightly more of a straight shot.
Of course, I’m not actually getting my hopes up, as I’m sure something will come along to piss on my dream of being a homeowner, and that may, in fact, be my realtor calling back to tell me how much they want for the earnest money…
The two I watched yesterday were “Sideways” and “Meet the Fockers.”
I wasn’t especially impressed by “Fockers,” but “Sideways” definitely had its moments.
In particular, Paul Giamatti’s performance as a pessimistic, curmudgeonly, drunken, divorced failed writer stood out for me, as it was all too painfully familiar, though also ruefully amusing.
Of course, it’s not as if he were my identical twin, as I no longer drink and was never a wine drinker to begin with.
His performance actually made me want to watch him in the role that is my favorite of his, that of Harvey Pekar in “American Splendor,” but given that I still have six hours’ worth of movies left to watch on my DVR I decided that I wasn’t going to throw another movie in the mix.
Last week I picked up “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” on DVD and have yet to watch that.
I didn’t see the movie when it was in theaters, but I’ve heard it’s okay, and, quite frankly, the cover image featuring Angelina Jolie in that black dress was pretty much impossible to resist.
(I also got the Director’s Cut of “Blade Runner” from the 2 for $11 bin. With the spindle of 25 DVD-Rs I picked up at the same time, it was something of a DVD-intensive trip to Wal-Mart.)
In any case, I did enjoy “Sideways,” and I understand now what the buzz was about.
As for “Fockers,” it just didn’t deliver much in the way of laughs. It seemed like it was trying too hard, and there was nothing engaging enough about it for me to willingly suspend my disbelief and accept the idea that people might actually behave like that.
I will say, though, that in the appearance she made in Playboy concurrent with the theatrical release, “Meet the Fockers” star Teri Polo looked extremely good. So that’s one good thing that came about as a result of the movie.
Somewhere along the line in the course of yesterday I opted to take a nap, and still ended up going to bed fairly early.
So, apart from going for an abbreviated walk and getting lunch from Subway, I didn’t do much at all.
Today I accomplished slightly more.
I met with my realtor and we headed over to the complex where I’m thinking about buying a condo. In fact, we settled on which particular one I would like to buy.
Now, of course, the question becomes whether or not I can.
While it is ridiculously expensive because this is Northern Virginia and that’s just the way things are, it is within the realm of affordability for me – assuming I make a few sacrifices here and there, though luckily I don’t have much of a life so there isn’t much for me to sacrifice – but getting to the point where I’m actually making the monthly payments will, no doubt, be a bumpy ride, and may lead me to just chuck the whole buying idea and start looking for another place to rent.
While I was there I was quietly in sort of a mild state of panic at the enormity of the prospect of buying a place, and I was also distracted by the fact that the sales person, a young woman named Daniela, was extremely cute, I made an appointment to meet again on Friday and get the process started. Getting things started includes writing a check as “earnest money,” which is sort of a deposit to prove that I mean business.
The problem is that my head was too busy spinning, from the panic and from Daniela’s cuteness, for me think to actually ask just how earnest that money is expected to be, which is to say that I have only a vague idea of how big of a check they’re expecting me to write.
I’m fairly certain, however, that whatever the amount it will be more than I’ll be able to raise by Friday, so I think I’m going to have to reschedule that meeting.
Fortunately, the renovations won’t be complete until January, and it looks as though I have a few months before I absolutely have to get out of here, so, as long as I can keep them convinced that I am interested, I to have some time.
As for the condo itself, the square footage is just shy of being two hundred square feet smaller than my current apartment.
However, most of the space in my apartment is sort of wasted anyway, and most of it located in my bedroom.
The condo was basically gutted when I saw it, but I have an idea of what it will look like when finished and it should be nice.
I had looked at another, slightly cheaper one, and while it had granite countertops, which is a definite plus, it was on the first floor, whereas the one I decided to go with is on the second floor. Also, the cheaper unit was facing the highway, which would have led to some noise issues.
To get a third floor unit I’d have to get on a waiting list, as everyone wants the vaulted ceilings.
In an case, here are the features:
Hardwood floor in the kitchen, ceramic tile in the foyer, vinyl tile in the bathroom, carpeting in the bedroom, living room, and dining room.
Wood-burning fireplace, gas heat, electric oven (gas would be better, but oh well), new appliances (fridge, dishwasher, washer and dryer), new cabinets, ceramic tile shower enclosure, new Hunter-Douglas wooden blinds.
Amenities include a fitness center, with a sauna, pool, and tennis court, not that a tennis court matters to me.
Beyond the features of the unit, it is in a good location, and while it’s a longer drive to work from there it’s also slightly more of a straight shot.
Of course, I’m not actually getting my hopes up, as I’m sure something will come along to piss on my dream of being a homeowner, and that may, in fact, be my realtor calling back to tell me how much they want for the earnest money…
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
Monday, December 05, 2005
"X3"Pics And Trailer
Check them out here.
(Okay, the trailer? Not so much. I haven't been able to get it to work.)
(Okay, the trailer? Not so much. I haven't been able to get it to work.)
In A Constant State Of Flux
Going back to work on Sunday after having Saturday off was kind of odd. In one way, it made it feel like it was my “Monday” all over again, even though it was actually my “Friday.”
Because the party had been the night before, Scott, Chris, and Chip all opted to come in to work a bit late to allow themselves to recuperate from either drinking, being up late, or both.
So that mean that for the first part of the morning it would be just me and Brian manning the desk, which, on a typical Sunday wouldn’t be an issue.
Of course, when I got there the overnight people told me that Brian had called in and said that he’d be late, which would be a little more bothersome.
I was immediately suspicious that it was a joke, but, prepared for it to not be, I got pissed at Brian just in case.
The week before Brian hadn’t come in on Sunday because in the middle of the night he responded to a fire call. Knowing that it would just be us on Sunday morning I told him that he was absolutely not allowed to respond to a call.
I got the hand-off from the overnight crew and resolved to work the desk by myself.
A couple minutes after six Brian walked in to reveal that it was a joke. He had told the overnight crew to lie for him when he left Saturday night, and then waited in his car until after six to add believability to the whole thing.
Once he came in I said things to him that I won’t repeat here.
Today I went to see “Aeon Flux” with Scott and Chris. Brian was invited as well but didn’t show, which is hardly surprising, as it really wasn’t his kind of movie.
I’d heard nothing but bad things about the movie, but I was at least somewhat pleasantly surprised to find that it wasn’t as bad as I’d expected.
It wasn’t especially good, but it had its moments.
While it differed considerably from the source material, that really wasn’t a big deal.
“Aeon Flux” began life as a series of highly stylized – and weird – animated shorts on MTV’s early 90’s animation series “Liquid Televison.”
Most of the “Flux” shorts had no discernible plot, consisting of a series of visually stunning – and often stunningly violent – action sequences that typically ended in the death of the titular protagonist.
Stylish, sexy, and sometimes unsettling, the “Aeon Flux” shorts mostly resulted in you either saying, “That was cool,” or scratching your head in bafflement.
Eventually it grew into an actual series with plots and dialogue, though I seldom saw many episodes of the show, and even with the dialogue and tacked-on plots the half-hour episodes were just as puzzling as the shorts.
One of the most memorable things about “Aeon Flux” was the Pepsi commercial that featured Cindy Crawford and Malcolm McDowell engaging in a bit of dialogue that seemed lifted from the show, followed by the transformation of the “real” world into a world animated in the style of “Aeon Flux,” with an animated Aeon Flux-esque Cindy engaging in the kind of acrobatics that were a hallmark of the shorts and the series.
In any case, in my opinion, the movie didn’t have much to live up to in terms of the source material. Really, all it needed to do was be stylish and have interesting visuals.
And it did.
One complaint I actually had about the movie was the attempt at making a nod to a classic scene from the source material – Aeon catching a fly in her eyelashes – which was just kind of silly and unnecessary.
There were some other bits of imagery that were in line with the sort of creepy/sexy visuals of the animation, most notably the scene early on in which a fellow agent passes something to Aeon via a kiss. The close up of her tongue wrapping around his to retrieve the object was like something directly from the shorts.
Another visually similar scene also involved Aeon’s tongue – along with a trademark act of brutal violence.
Where the movie fell short in comparison to the source material, though, was in the nature of the action.
Just as I had read in a review of the movie, the unarmed combat was incredibly vicious. A lot of it actually made me uncomfortable. Between Charlize Theron’s performance and the way the director just zoomed in on the action the fight scenes elicited a visceral response. You almost felt like you were in the fight, struggling to kill or to be killed. It almost seemed too personal, as if it were something that you shouldn’t be watching.
But the gunfights, which were a hallmark of the animated shorts, were much weaker by comparison.
As for the plot…meh. It had some interesting ideas, but there were a lot of unexplained holes.
Some of the ideas were actually quite similar to the basic concepts of the universe in which one of my characters – who is herself a bad-ass, sexy femme fatale in a skin tight outfit and a futuristic world – lives.
That’s not too surprising, given that Aeon played a (small) part in the character’s genesis in my mind, though I did actually develop most of the concepts of my character’s world before Aeon ever acquired any sort of plot.
In any case, overall the movie was nowhere near as bad as some people would lead you to believe it is, but I can’t really recommend seeing it.
I will say, though, that Charlize, as always (except in “Monster,” though her performance in that was amazing) was incredibly hot. I would have liked for her have worn an outfit more like the animated version, though…
Of note to any Neil Gaiman fans out there, the actor who portrayed the Marquis de Carabas in “Neverwhere” has a role in “Aeon Flux.” (Props to Scott for recognizing him)
Once the movie let out we went outside to see that there had been a light dusting of snow, which, quite naturally, had brought everything to a standstill.
And that was pretty much my day.
I made an appointment to meet with my realtor on Wednesday.
It looks as though I’m going to try to buy a condo in Leesburg.
It’s a less-than ideal space – it’s actually smaller than my current place – but it seems to be the best deal I’ve seen so far, and it’s in a nice development.
So we’ll see how that goes.
In any case, that will do it for this entry. I’m sure that I’ll be here babbling quite a bit for the next little while, as I don’t have to go back to work until the 16th.
Because the party had been the night before, Scott, Chris, and Chip all opted to come in to work a bit late to allow themselves to recuperate from either drinking, being up late, or both.
So that mean that for the first part of the morning it would be just me and Brian manning the desk, which, on a typical Sunday wouldn’t be an issue.
Of course, when I got there the overnight people told me that Brian had called in and said that he’d be late, which would be a little more bothersome.
I was immediately suspicious that it was a joke, but, prepared for it to not be, I got pissed at Brian just in case.
The week before Brian hadn’t come in on Sunday because in the middle of the night he responded to a fire call. Knowing that it would just be us on Sunday morning I told him that he was absolutely not allowed to respond to a call.
I got the hand-off from the overnight crew and resolved to work the desk by myself.
A couple minutes after six Brian walked in to reveal that it was a joke. He had told the overnight crew to lie for him when he left Saturday night, and then waited in his car until after six to add believability to the whole thing.
Once he came in I said things to him that I won’t repeat here.
Today I went to see “Aeon Flux” with Scott and Chris. Brian was invited as well but didn’t show, which is hardly surprising, as it really wasn’t his kind of movie.
I’d heard nothing but bad things about the movie, but I was at least somewhat pleasantly surprised to find that it wasn’t as bad as I’d expected.
It wasn’t especially good, but it had its moments.
While it differed considerably from the source material, that really wasn’t a big deal.
“Aeon Flux” began life as a series of highly stylized – and weird – animated shorts on MTV’s early 90’s animation series “Liquid Televison.”
Most of the “Flux” shorts had no discernible plot, consisting of a series of visually stunning – and often stunningly violent – action sequences that typically ended in the death of the titular protagonist.
Stylish, sexy, and sometimes unsettling, the “Aeon Flux” shorts mostly resulted in you either saying, “That was cool,” or scratching your head in bafflement.
Eventually it grew into an actual series with plots and dialogue, though I seldom saw many episodes of the show, and even with the dialogue and tacked-on plots the half-hour episodes were just as puzzling as the shorts.
One of the most memorable things about “Aeon Flux” was the Pepsi commercial that featured Cindy Crawford and Malcolm McDowell engaging in a bit of dialogue that seemed lifted from the show, followed by the transformation of the “real” world into a world animated in the style of “Aeon Flux,” with an animated Aeon Flux-esque Cindy engaging in the kind of acrobatics that were a hallmark of the shorts and the series.
In any case, in my opinion, the movie didn’t have much to live up to in terms of the source material. Really, all it needed to do was be stylish and have interesting visuals.
And it did.
One complaint I actually had about the movie was the attempt at making a nod to a classic scene from the source material – Aeon catching a fly in her eyelashes – which was just kind of silly and unnecessary.
There were some other bits of imagery that were in line with the sort of creepy/sexy visuals of the animation, most notably the scene early on in which a fellow agent passes something to Aeon via a kiss. The close up of her tongue wrapping around his to retrieve the object was like something directly from the shorts.
Another visually similar scene also involved Aeon’s tongue – along with a trademark act of brutal violence.
Where the movie fell short in comparison to the source material, though, was in the nature of the action.
Just as I had read in a review of the movie, the unarmed combat was incredibly vicious. A lot of it actually made me uncomfortable. Between Charlize Theron’s performance and the way the director just zoomed in on the action the fight scenes elicited a visceral response. You almost felt like you were in the fight, struggling to kill or to be killed. It almost seemed too personal, as if it were something that you shouldn’t be watching.
But the gunfights, which were a hallmark of the animated shorts, were much weaker by comparison.
As for the plot…meh. It had some interesting ideas, but there were a lot of unexplained holes.
Some of the ideas were actually quite similar to the basic concepts of the universe in which one of my characters – who is herself a bad-ass, sexy femme fatale in a skin tight outfit and a futuristic world – lives.
That’s not too surprising, given that Aeon played a (small) part in the character’s genesis in my mind, though I did actually develop most of the concepts of my character’s world before Aeon ever acquired any sort of plot.
In any case, overall the movie was nowhere near as bad as some people would lead you to believe it is, but I can’t really recommend seeing it.
I will say, though, that Charlize, as always (except in “Monster,” though her performance in that was amazing) was incredibly hot. I would have liked for her have worn an outfit more like the animated version, though…
Of note to any Neil Gaiman fans out there, the actor who portrayed the Marquis de Carabas in “Neverwhere” has a role in “Aeon Flux.” (Props to Scott for recognizing him)
Once the movie let out we went outside to see that there had been a light dusting of snow, which, quite naturally, had brought everything to a standstill.
And that was pretty much my day.
I made an appointment to meet with my realtor on Wednesday.
It looks as though I’m going to try to buy a condo in Leesburg.
It’s a less-than ideal space – it’s actually smaller than my current place – but it seems to be the best deal I’ve seen so far, and it’s in a nice development.
So we’ll see how that goes.
In any case, that will do it for this entry. I’m sure that I’ll be here babbling quite a bit for the next little while, as I don’t have to go back to work until the 16th.
Something Cold To Keep You Warm
It snowed a little bit today, so in keeping with the wintry weather, I thought I'd post this picture.
It didn't turn out exactly how I'd envisioned it (nothing ever does), but I think the basic idea is there.
I'll be back later with more of a post.
It didn't turn out exactly how I'd envisioned it (nothing ever does), but I think the basic idea is there.
I'll be back later with more of a post.
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