So, how long have I had an Xbox 360? Five years? How much have I played it? Umm. I think maybe three hours. Today I hooked it up, attached a network adapter, and signed up for Xbox Live. Like I said a year and a half ago, I really wanted Snoopy Flying Ace.I’d never hadContinue reading “On Taking to the Skies with Snoopy”
On the Looming Government Shutdown
So, it’s likely to happen. Sometime later today, the United States federal government will shut down. Even though the Democrats and the Republicans are within a few billion dollars of spending on the 2011 budget, the real issue for Republicans isn’t the overall spending but specific funding for Planned Parenthood and environmental regulations. Democrats wantContinue reading “On the Looming Government Shutdown”
On an Oxfordian Movie
So! The Shakespeare Authorship Question is the subject of a new film from Independence Day director Roland Emmerich, Anonymous, out this autumn. According to a write-up in Entertainment Weekly, it focuses on Edward de Vere, the Earl of Oxford, who is considered by some (like the Shakespeare-Oxford Society) to be the true author of Shakespeare’sContinue reading “On an Oxfordian Movie”
On Anger With the Post Office
Over the weekend, I mentioned that I’ve recently started collecting some rarities relating to Elbow, the Mancunian band that I utterly adore. Toward the end of the post, I mentioned that I’d ordered the Build a Rocket Boys! Souvenir Book from Elbow’s current UK tour. In the book, frontman Guy Garvey talks with artist OliverContinue reading “On Anger With the Post Office”
On Charlie Brown Apparel
As I mentioned last week, I’ve recently started reading 3eanuts, a remix project (of a sort) of Charles Schulz’s Peanuts. This morning, I noticed something, a detail that had somehow escaped my notice for thirty years. Charlie Brown wears a striped shirt. But it’s not a tee-shirt. No, Charlie Brown wears a polo shirt. OrContinue reading “On Charlie Brown Apparel”
On Collecting Elbow Rarities
As many people know, I’m an Elbow fan. I’m a bit of an evangelist for the band, actually; I push Elbow on all of my friends. 🙂 Cast of Thousands, the band’s second album, was my first Elbow album, and as such it’s probably the one I will always be fondest of. I remember buyingContinue reading “On Collecting Elbow Rarities”
On the Meaning of Thanksgiving
For reasons that are obscure even to me, on a bulletin board I frequent there is a discussion going about whether or not, in the United Kingdom, holidays like Thanksgiving and the Fourth of July are celebrated. To those reading across the Pond, I apologize for the obtuseness of my fellow countrymen. We have aContinue reading “On the Meaning of Thanksgiving”
On the New Peanuts Special, Happiness Is A Warm Blanket
For this Peanuts fan, yesterday was a doubly significant day — not only did Happiness is a Warm Blanket, Charlie Brown come out on DVD, but I discovered 3eanuts, a “Garfield Minus Garfield”-esque reworking of Charles Schulz’s comic strips. 3eanuts takes the classic four panel Peanuts comic strip, then tosses the fourth panel out theContinue reading “On the New Peanuts Special, Happiness Is A Warm Blanket”
On Policy Debate and Actual Politics
I drove to work today; I needed to get a few extra things done at the office. It was, surprisingly enough, a peaceful, even pleasant drive. Normally I hate driving the Beltway. I had NPR on this morning, and I heard a story that, somehow, provoked a random thought. I can’t imagine how policy debateContinue reading “On Policy Debate and Actual Politics”
On Allyn’s Adventures With Unicorns
It all began last year, on April Fool’s Day. As a longtime WordPress user, I frequently visit Planet WordPress, an aggregation blog of a number of top WordPress-specific blogs. And on April Fool’s Day, there was a post from the Gravatar blog on a new gravatar algorithm — Unicorns. A gravatar, for those unfamiliar withContinue reading “On Allyn’s Adventures With Unicorns”