obsoleteness---moving to facebook

Yeah, title pretty much says it. Haven't used this thing for anything much recently, and for simple updates, facebook is a more popular and more variable format.
I hate long goodbyes.
requiem in pacem

Third Theology

Well, two weeks at home flew by in a flash and now I'm sitting here at Seminary once agian. It's actually kinda nice: familiar friends and places. Already started out with a happy weekend of bumming around with old friends. Of course there are a lot of people I don't know too (new guys) and my room this year is a terrible location (high traffic area), but if that's my only complaints, I'm not doing bad. Classes start today, which will give me some more to do.
I may post again with some substance after they get the Internet working in our rooms (grumble, grumble, grumble). Cheers!

Countdown: one week

One week! By next Thursday this time I"ll be on my way to home, with a layover in ElPaso. Rather excited about this. Also, my professor this morning told me that I had done very well on my latest writing assignment. So all in all, it's a good day.
Not much news. I'm getting so close to the end that I don't really have much energy or enthusiasm for trips or such. I'm just kinda of coasting in toward the finish.
But in review, I have accomplished my primary objective with a large amount of success: I have basic language skills in Spanish. I am able to talk in Spanish--provided that my interlocutor is a very patient person-- with a respectable amount of accuracy. I'm slow and clumsy with the language, but I can use it. That's about what I hoped to accomplish before I left, so a clear success on that front. In addition, I have learned a great deal about Mexican history and Mexican mentality;a secondary goal which I count as a win.
I will very likely be home by the time I update again.

Dark Knight--the Answer

The first real post that I wrote for my blog was a movie review, specifically, a review of Batman Begins. In that review, I gave praise to what has certainly been one of the most impressive and insightful superhero movies to date. It's awaited sequel, The Dark Knight, which I saw this weekend, follows in the same tradition and, in my opinion, is even greater than it's predecessor. It proves, once again, what a superhero movie is capable of being. It is intense, but as they say here in Mexico, es vale la pena (it's worth the trouble).
I will say nothing about the details, as there are many, I'm sure, who have not seen it and will appreciate my silence. But I will say one thing in general about the movie: I think they found it. What is "it"? Well, that would actually take a long time to discuss, and I'm not ready to publish my thesis yet. But if you are already familiar with my Superhero Thesis, then you will know that I have been searching for "it" for a while now. I'm rather excited.
Sorry to leave you with a cliffhanger ending on the topic. I'm excited and I want to talk about it, but at the same time it is a complex project that needs proper background.
This just about finishes my summer movie rounds. Nothing else on the line-up really catches my attention. But I definitely ended on a high note.

Time for a random update from the Gringo in Guadalajara

I'm feeling much better by the end of this week, health-wise. My appetite is still small, but the other symptoms are gone. Deo gracias.
I'm down to less than three weeks, which is very exciting. I have been missing my piano a lot recently.
Also, never order double cheese on a Dominoes pizza in Mexico. In the US, you will get mozzarella and cheddar. In Mexico you will get nacho cheese poured all over your pizza. It is a great desecration of a very sacred thing.

I'll write again by next week, si Dios quiere.
--Matthew

an interesting day

Yesterday was one of the most interesting days that I have had since I've been here. It all started when one of the other american students said "hey, there is this Bus and I don't know where it goes. Anybody wanna go find where a random bus leads to?"

Well, I had no plans for the weekend, so that sounded like as good as anything.

We left in the morning on a bus that, as we suspected, brought to the center of town. It was a busy and beautiful Sat morning--a perfect time to see the city. Most of the time in the morning was spent finding religious book stores (a pet hobby of almost any seminarian).

By midday we had met with a few other students and then found another bus that brought us to a suburb of the city called Talaquepaque (sp?) which is a big tourist stop. The nice thing about going to tourist areas is that they are usually cleaner and more attractive than the real cities. We ended up having a late lunch at a really wonderful restaurant simply called "The Patio". We had a taste-test platter of all of their appetizers and enjoyed some of their Two-for-One margaritas, all while being serenaded by Mariachis. Good food, good music, good times.

Then, in the evening, we made our way back to the centro for a live show. The Ballet Foclorica puts on shows every Sat night in July, and we managed to get some tickets. "Ballet Foclorica" could be described as the Mexican version of Riverdance. Lots of very traditional dancing, music, and spectacle. They are very good, so it was an excellent show. By the time it finished, it was already 10pm and we caught a taxi back home, exhausted from a long, but fruitful day.

I entitled this post "an interesting day" and not "a great day" because although everything throughout the day went very well, I was not feeling well. In fact, ever since I got sick last weekend, I have not been feeling poorly. Mostly the trouble seems to be in my stomach, which refuses to accept food in large portions, and the rest of my digestive track, which refuses to process the food with efficiency. It has been that way for about a week without change, and I only hope that I will overcome whatever this is soon.

Today I'm relaxing and catching up with bloging, etc. Hopefully I will get started on some homework too. Spanish verbs are very complicated. Adios!

An extensive review considering the aesthetical, social, environmental, political, and grammatical repercussions of WALL*E (…or not)

Actually, all I have to say is that R2-D2 needs get on the phone with his lawyer and sue the gears off that copycat.

patriotic picture post

Key's Vision:

my spanish prof. has a sense of humor

So, I had a mid-summer evaluation on Wed. Just before I started the test, my maestra (teacher) asked me "do you have any questions?"

Um-huh. Obviously she didn't hear me when I told her that I study philosophy. It is dangerous thing to ask a philosopher if he has any questions. Only slightly more foolish is to start a land war in Asia.

Anyway, I resisted the urge to get her opinion on the metaphysical reality of accidental qualities, and, instead said: "Yes maestra, one question: why are there so many irregular verbs in the past tense in Spanish?" I asked, with mock innocence.

We both laughed, but then she stopped short and said "no, seriously, let me tell you the reason why there are so many irregular verbs."

"They are there to aggravate Americans who study Spanish."

She was joking.
I think.

random rants

Just before the weekend, I finally decided to cut the cord; go cold-turkey; bite the bullet; take my chances; cut my loses; take the plunge.
I moved the TV from my room.
That probably needs some explanation. When I arrived here, there was a TV in my room with many cables channels. At any given moment I was basically promised that at least two different American movies would be on, or at least some reruns of CSI or maybe even a funny sitcom (no, that is not a redundancy; it is a necessary distinction). Thus, I found myself with the permanent temptation to ignore my exile through some cinematographic escapism. It is the same temptation that I had most of the past year in Cove. But I've come to the conclusion that a life dependent on TV is a life not worth living. So, out it went.
Sometimes I can't tell whether I'm brave, stupid, or masochistic. I spent most of the weekend bored out of my gourd. Really bored--and homesick.
And yet, I also reclaimed a certain peace and inner recollection that I have lacked most of this past year. I found my pencil and did some drawing. I started studying ahead in my Spanish textbooks. I had the time to reflect and think. TV anesthetizes and scrambles the brain, white noise that makes deep concentration impossible.
Right now I'm isolated with my studies and my thoughts. It is something like being a monk. I'm
not sure if I'd be a good monk, but it does have it's bonuses.

Naturally, now my tutor is nagging me that I need to get out more and practice my Spanish on the street. "What good is it to come to Mexico if you only practice in school? You could do that in the States" (translated). I don't know how to tell her that I hate talking to people "on the street" in the States--why would it change now, when I can't even formulate decent sentences?
I am now beginning week 4. Almost to the halfway point.

a tale of two heroes

This has been a good summer for Marvel. The Marvel universe is getting bigger (though, from another point of view it’s becoming a rather small world—those of you who know, know what I am talking about.) One of the deprivations of my childhood was not reading many superhero comics. This is one reason why I am welcoming the famed heroes’ entrance onto the big screen. On top of being great action filx—which I enjoy as much as any man—superheroes intrigue me. They are the contemporary myths and metaphors, the portal through which the imagination and subconscious attractions or fears of the modern mind can find a place to live and thrive.

But I digress. I was going to talk about Hulk (or el Hombre Incredible, as the theatre down here advertised it), which I saw this week. But I find it difficult to talk about Hulk without talking also about Iron Man. The two are intertwined—and this way I can take care of two reviews at one time. (btw, spoilers ahead. You are warned.)

Hulk is a more serious drama. Better actors, more emotion, more impact. The fight scenes were both stunning, and powerful tools to keep the story going. I really liked seeing the way Bruce and Betty interact—it’s a painful relationship with all sorts of unfulfilled hopes and desires, but they persevere. Beautiful and tragic, and well done.

Iron Man was lower on the drama, but higher on the humor and overall fun. The main reason for this is that Tony Stark does not have Suffering Hero Syndrome (SHS), a malady which is almost ubiquitous with being a superhero. Symptoms of SHS often include moodiness, paranoia, schizophrenia, compulsive lying, compulsive need to be near a phone booth, an obsession with spandex, and the tendency to have relationships with a girl who has a crush on your alter ego. Batman has it; Hulk has it; Superman and Spiderman have serious conditions. But Tony Stark has found a cure: sarcasm. Laughter may be the best medicine, but a wry smile and a witty comeback seem to be a miracle drug.

Returning to the Hulk, I have to say that I’m disappointed that they changed his malady. From the first movie, Bruce Banner only became the Hulk when he got angry. The Hulk, therefore, was a metaphor for the power that someone has when they lose their temper: super strength and endurance but inability to think or act rationally. A favorite quote from the first movie: “the worst thing is that when it happens, when IT takes over…I like it.” This is a very human experience: the power, the thrill, the regret, and the fear of anger. But in the latest movie, there was a very definite switch. It was no longer anger, but simply excessive physiological stimulus, i.e. when his heart rate speeds up. That’s a very different thing than anger, and I am sorry for the change. It still makes for a powerful, tragic, and heroic tale, but lacks the metaphor that, to me, is at the heart of the Hulk story.

And in speaking of hearts, let’s talk about Iron Man/Tony Stark’s glowing “heart”. Ok, it is not actually his heart, it’s the super-powered electro-magnet that keeps him alive. The image, however, is obvious: Tony Stark/Iron Man has a heart made of super-technology. Traditionally, this has been a terrifying image: Man slowly being devoured by Machine, ala Darth Vader or the Matrix. But Iron Man takes a different twist. During Stark’s conversion, he does not abandon technology. He does not run from the monster that he has created or naively pursue a nostalgic vision of the ‘good old days’ before industrialization. Instead, Stark takes responsibility for his actions and he uses technology to pursue that goal. Being the technophile that I am, I applaud his stance. I believe that it is a superior answer to the lingering question of Man vs. Machine.

Neither of the movies excelled in the Villain category. In both cases they simply fought with a bigger version of themselves: a bigger monster, a bigger mecha. Now before I go any further, I will now publicly acknowledge my ignorance of the Marvel Universe. I don’t know much about Iron Man or Hulk, and I know even less about the villains they fought. I presume that they have a host of despicable bad guys to chose from, as is the case with most superheroes. But I don’t really know, so I will restrain from attacking harshly on that front.

If you pushed me and asked me which one I liked better, I would have to go with Iron Man. They were both good, and I will unhesitatingly attribute higher marks to Hulk in certain areas. But the action, the wit, the powerful imagery in Iron Man is genius and definitely goes on my “A” list.

And so, let me leave you with a story which I hope that you will find diverting. I was still in Cove when Iron Man came out and so we decided to go see it at the local theater. Prior to the beginning of the movie, one of the theater employees welcomed us and wished us a pleasant time at their theater. As she began to exit the stage she dropped a pen from her apron and said “oh drat! I dropped my pen again. and my back hurts. I wish someone could help me.” And suddenly, from beyond the curtains, a voice shouted “I’ll help you!” and onto the stage jumped a young man wearing a cape and brandishing his favorite tool for pressing shirts, proudly proclaiming “I’m Iron Man!”

Hola amigos!
Back from Mexico City! It was a good trip, although not with it's share of snags and, um, remarkable events. I would give a detailed travelogue of my trip, but I find them boring to read and even more tedious to compose. And besides, I need to save some stories for when I get back. Therefore, I'm going to cut it down to my Top Three for the weekend.

1) The shrine for Guadalupe. Obviously first--socially, spiritually, historically, gramatically... Our first stop when was the shrine and we returned several times because it was only three blocks from where I we were staying. For those of you who have seen the picture, yes, the shrine really is as ugly as it looks. But there are other parts, like the old basilica and the gardens on Tepeyac hill that are really lovely. We got to greet Mary and go to Mass in her shrine, which was a huge highlight for the trip.


2) One of the remarkable events of the trip was when the bus we were traveling on to Mexico City hit another car on the highway. Or maybe they hit us. I don't know. It is hard to tell from inside. I don't think anybody got hurt, but it did stall us for about 2 hours before we got a new bus to finish our trip. But, in general, the buses were rather comfortable and clean, which was more than what I was expecting.

3) I climbed the an ancient Aztec temple to the sun god. Appropriately, I got sunburned. But back to the point, it was a ridiculously enormous structure with a very steep face. This was actually one of several temples and ancient ruins that we saw during the weekend. Interesting stuff and very impressive, though very different and alien. I flet like there was so much that I don't understand about those ancient people.

Anyway, that's all I have time for now. I'll keep it coming though!

Pilgrimage

I just wanted to let you know that I'll be in Mexico City this weekend, saying "hi" to nuestra senora de Guadalupe and otherwise seeing the sites. Me and another student are taking the bus (a nice bus, don't worry) through the night to arrive in Mexico City on Sat morning and returning in a similar manner on Monday morning. I'm tired just thinking about it. I must be getting old.

Anyway, I'm sure I'll come back with some stories.

Summer traditions

So comes summer, so comes summer movies. There are no small number of hot tickets that come out this summer. Big names. Names that I can’t ignore, like Indiana Jones, Narnia, Ironman, Hulk, Batman,… Those of us who are into the sci-fi/fantasy/superhero genres have been budgeting extra for this summer’s box office weekly offering.

The past couple years I’ve been doing at least one major review of a summer movie, usually taking some cheep shots at Capt. Sparrow’s latest misadventures. But there are no pirates this year, so I’ll begin this round of reviews with an unlikely candidate.

I went to see this movie on a lark. Honestly, I think my entire motivation for going to see this movie can be summed up in a single phrase: “Look, look! Shiney!” I did receive one positive review from Neco-chan, which also encouraged me to go to see this movie, Speed Racer.

Speed Racer is a “B Movie” if there ever was one. A movie based off from an old, cheep anime, which was based on an old, cheep comic book, using the same outlandish 3D animation FX that ruled Spy Kids, with an overused “David vs Goliath” plot infused with an overdose of sentimentality. The film was two and a half hours of alternating between watching video-game-style racing scenes and sappy moralizing on the virtues of hard work, caring for family, following your dreams, and honesty because “cheaters never prosper.” It was cliché, predictable, overtly pandering to current pop fads—it was a textbook of how to write a B Movie.

And I wish more people could produce movies as good as this one.

The problem with most (all?) B Movies is that they are trying to imitate an A Movie, but their imitation is inferior to the original. The Woznoski brothers (of Matrix fame) took on the very ambitious idea that they could flip this around. They could imitate an inferior genre and then create a movie of greater quality. It was an attempt to find the true type behind the cheep stereotypes; the perennial truth hidden in a common cliché; the intrinsic attractiveness of an overused plotline.

This is a bold move. The contemporary fad is to tear apart old-fashioned clichés or stereotypes. Irony, dark humor, or satire are more popular—and more critically acclaimed—genres. Now, I like satire too. But I’m quite aware that its popularity is a sign of the cynicism of our age. To write a movie that is straightforward and unambiguous in its celebration of traditional virtues like honesty and courage is a sign of contradiction. Speed Racer—the character as well as the movie which bears his name—has an honesty, innocence, and sincerity which I found refreshing.

(As a side note, Speed Racer’s unbending will to succeed, his personal integrity, and his heroic dedication to his family and friends is a typical Anime thing. Naruto, Rounin Kenshin, and the Elric brothers are heroes of the same style.)

I also have to say two things about the FX of this film. First, they move fast. It is dizzying. One commentator compared it to setting off fireworks inside of your clothes dryer, turning on and jumping inside for about an hour and a half. I can’t really argue with that. Second comment is that everything in the movie looks like a comic book come to life. The colors are all too standard, too bright, too colorful. There are some scenes where they do face shots, just like you have in a graphic novel. Anyway, on both accounts I thought that is was perfectly appropriate for the feel they were going for, even though I usually don’t like that sort of stuff.

Now, on several subjective levels it was appealing for me. I like driving fast, I like computer games, I like anime and graphic novels, I like shiny stuff that goes fast, I think Ms. Ricci is cute, I like the monkey, I’m a sucker for a hero story, pro-family messages, and movies with a good moral. Thus, I make no promises for anyone with different tastes. It is entirely likely that you will hate it—though you might really like it. If I had kids I would probably show it to my children, maybe buy a copy for the house. There is a little bit of language (just crudity—no profanity, blasphemy, or sexual innuendo) but other than that, it is pretty family friendly. I think that the overwhelming positive themes in the movie make it worth it.

I love when a movie surprises me on how good it is. Speed Racer is the third movie this summer has been just such a surprise (which means that I have at least two more reviews that I should write—Ironman and 21.) Unfortunately, Narnia and Indiana Jones didn’t interest me enough to write something—though I would love to post reviews by others (Jeff? Andrew? Anyone?).

Guadalajara, Mexico: Primera Semana (first week)

Yes it really is a week since my trip began...depending on how exactly you want to use the word "began." If by "began" you mean when I left my home in Austin, well then, I have been rather more than a week because of the days I spent in El Paso with my good friend. But if you mean when I actually got here to Guadalajara, it is slightly less than a week--despite my efforts to the contrary.

I really did have a flight to Guadalajara on Sat. I bought the ticket and had an email with a confirmation number and everything. But upon arriving in Juarez airport, the man at the service counter informed me that they had changed their flight schedules and that there was no plane for me to board. Or technically, there was a plane for me--but it had left three hours earlier. He said that they had sent an email to me to inform me of this schedule change, but it wasn't this office, it was the US office in California--a story I was not terribly inclined to believe because i never received such an email. I was even less inclined to believe it when he offered me a free round trip ticket coupon in recompense for the mix-up (why pay me off if they hadn't done something wrong?).

So, he rearranged my ticket for the first flight in the morning--a task which only took him about an hour and a half--and I returned to El Paso for one more night. My original flight plan was a non-stop flight; the new plan made a stop in Mexico City and meant that I was in traveling for about 12 hours that day starting a 5am. For those who have traveled with me before, you know my typical system for traveling on planes: 1) love the take off and watching the city fade away, 2) remember how tight and constricting the plane is. 3) spend the majority of flight distracting myself from an increasing sense of claustrophobia. 4) fight bouts of nausea on the descent while I try to figure out why I put myself through this. 5) get off the plane and try to blot out the previous few hours from my conscious memory. 6) successfully blot out said memories and begin planning my next flight. There is probably a name for that sort of neurosis.

But I did successfully make it here to the city. Since then, I have been trying to adjust to life here in old mexico. Of course the biggest difference is the language. Right now I have the communication skills of a 5 year old child--and not one of those homeschooled kids who is reading Tolkien by the time they are 8. No, a normal 5 year old. I can figure things out if I have enough time to read or listen, but not nearly enough skills to really participate in a conversation for more than a few sentences. Needless to say, for a man like me who loves words, and loves to talk, and loves the English language, it is mildly degrading and not a little frustrating. I've been making progress, and I am hoping that in a few weeks I will have the capacities of a 12 yr old: basic language skills complete, but still mostly ignorant of complicated topics or highly inflected language (i.e. sarcasm or irony).

I do like my classes very well. I have two tutors: one in the morning and the other in the afternoon for a total of 6hrs per day. I do some "workbook" stuff--fill in the blanks, grammar drills, etc--but the vast majority is simply practicing talking and listening. So, in short, I sit around and talk for 6 hrs everyday. So far, our topics have ranged from 'small talk' to more substantial themes like sociology, travel, theology, immigration, and jokes. Next week I'm going to ask my afternoon professor to tell me about Mexican history--a topic of which I am woefully ignorant. There are about a dozen other students at the school, all of whom are seminarians or priests from the states.

I stay with a host family down here. Their house, which is very standard architecture around here, is very different than American houses and it would be difficult for me to explain. I should post up some pictures soon, which will do that job for me. But it is enough to know that I have my own habitacion slightly apart from the main house, with my own bedroom and bathroom. My family consists of an older couple, who are very kind and very Mexican--in fact those two go together very often. They have two nieces who go to school in town here and use a room during the weekdays--I think. I have hardly seen them around. I have three meals a day at the house, following the Mexican custom of having the main meal midday, around 2:30pm.

I think I shall enjoy myself more as the time goes on and I become more familiar with surroundings, customs, language, etc. In the meantime, well...Mark Twain once suggested that the greatest for of punishment he could think to inflict on one of his fellow citizens would be to make them the American consulate in Tunisia, mostly because he believed that the culture was so incompatibly different the person would go insane of boredom. Mr. Twain is a rather insightful man.

Umm, I will post some more later, but the power just went out here in starbucks and I have a very limited battery supply on my computer. I better post before I go black! My thoughts and love goes north. Adios.

South of the Border (dong!)

Hear ye! Hear ye!
Let it be known throughout the cyberspace, both here in the Blogosphere, in Facebook, and across the further regions, that I will be in Mexico starting tommorow and will stay there till mid-August.
Stay tuned for further updates.

The Muses are faithless and flighty creatures. They have, for somewheres around two years now, inspired me to Blog. My original aspirations to make my blog a "home to many interesting and inspirational thoughts, updates on my life in seminary, and some superior digital photography" has historically been successful, but lately has been lacking in innovation and interest...and posts.
I don't presume to know entirely why the songs of inspiration have ceased to speak to me here. I suppose the biggest reason is because I have developed other creative and/or communicative outlets which has rendered this medium mostly ineffective.
This post in not meant to be a requiem. It is mostly meant to be an acknowledgment of reality: not much is happening here folks.
Perhaps there shall be a resurrection--like I said, these Muses are unpredictable. Looking back, I remember how this blog has housed some good posts these years (if I do say so myself). I do not begrudge a good life that comes to a dignified end.

Flashback: scenes from Seattle

Trip to Seattle

busy...mostly

The closer I got to Holy Week, the more anxious I became. I had several of my biggest projects of the year all happening, roughly at the same time: the St Patty's Day party, the Passover Seder for the parish, and then the Triduum services where I would be acting as Master of Ceremonies. In retrospect, I really didn't need to get all worked up. Some of those events are done, and I've already conducted some good rehearsals for others. And all of them are successful so far, with a strong probability to continue that way. Thank God.

Of course, I'm not in the clear yet. I still have a few more days to be paranoid before the end. ;-)

So, have a blessed Holy Week, and may you be lead from the cross to the Joy of Easter.

Little brother's 18th

snagged a couple photos from ni-san's little birthday sha-bang--which was great! I don't remember the last birthday party that was so fun. Costumes, games, pizza, singing, dancing--entirely enjoyable.
Here is a nice group shot of some of the costumes. I'm the one in black with an angel on my shoulder (Megatokyo reference. if you don't get it, it will be too hard to explain.) The birthday boy is the guy in back with a studied look of apathy.

does it still count if it's one day late?

green over gold

The tree outside my office window is starting to show new leaves. It's the first thing that I've really noticed responding to the immenent arrival of spring. I'm rather looking forward to it. This'll be the first time in years that I've spent the spring-time here in Central Texas.

We have only a few precious days left, then, to the golden days of winter. I say "gold" not because of their worth, but simply because of the colors. As I have been driving through the roads between Cove and Austin, I have been continually struck at how sepctacular the countryside is wash with its mix of yellows, gold, tan, brown, and grey. The gold-bright sunshine plays upon the subtle shade changes and the mix of textures through the hills, grass, shrubs, rock. Of course, that is only the lower-half the background. The pure blue sky is the perfect contrast to the ground below. And when dusk comes, the sunset lights the dome gold, making heaven match the earth.

Soon the green (and blue, and red, and yelllow) of spring will overtake the winter tones and we shall have a whole new glory to enjoy. But I thought it was worth noting what many simply write off as the "dead" winter season.

Kari Carrying on in Seattle

Well, this is a little bit of a throw back. This was drawn on the train ride the day we went downtown Seattle. We only had notebook paper, but it still turned out well. It is meant to highlight what we did that day including:

• Shopping at Pikes Place Market
  
• Eating at the Brewery
• Going to Seattle's Best Coffee
• Going to Tully's Coffee
• Avoiding Starbucks coffee
  
• Celebrating the Asian New Year (Year of the Rat!) and seeing some musicians and dancers in Chinatown
  
• 
  

Case of the Mysterious Mixed-Up Mixer

There is a fancy sound mixer at my parish, passed on from the reign of the previous pastor. Unfortunately, no one but the pastor had ever been trained on how to use it. Accordingly, it is locked up in a closet and everyone (including myself) is afraid to touch it.

This weekend, however, I got to pretend to be a Sound-Techie because, for some reason, things started not working.

Fr Jim noticed that his wireless mic wasn't working; so I set up a free standing mic at the altar. But just before mass started we found that the choir mics were also on the fritz. So after mass I ventured into the forbidden closet and perilously peered at a mixer with enough keys and buttons to make an organ look easy. I finally found the answer to one problem: the sound for the wireless had been turned down ridiculously low and a few other bits were messed with also. I fixed them all, put away the free standing mic, and congratulated myself that everything was ready for the next mass.

Except when the next mass came around, the wireless wasn't working. Then the next mass, the speaker in the cry room stopped. Every time I thought I'd fixed it, something else went wrong. Oh, and did I mention that I was preaching all this weekend?

My Pastor and I were both frustrated and puzzled: the closet with the mixer is not only forbidden and scary, it is also locked. How was everything getting messed up? I mean, I was quite willing to take the blame after I started pressing buttons and things, but someone was tinkering with it in the first place. Father figured that it was the cleaning lady, but I had other suspicions...

Obviously, who ever it was didn't like my preaching. I suspect Heretics. They hired someone—a secret agent, or a cat burglar—to sabotage the sound system. A devious plot; nearly successful too.

It wasn't till Tuesday morning that one of the office ladies and myself went back into the forbidden closet to try some more sound checks and perhaps fix things (again). I was again perilously peering at the mixer when suddenly she shrieked “there's something alive in there!”

Startled as I was, I glanced around the corner long enough to notice a ball of white fur that moved—which was plenty enough for me to decide it was a good time to lock the closet again and let the professionals deal with this. We went back to the office to call animal control while Father went back to the closet to look at the creature (my Pastor prides himself on his rugged, cowboy demeanor. I don't even listen to country music.) He came back with the verdict: it was a small, white, half-starved kitty.

I was right—they did hire a cat burglar! And then they let their pawn starve after her job was done—the heartless fiends!

And so (*switching to “Guy Noir” voice) the mystery of the Mixed-Up Mixer was solved. Kitty was picked up by the authorities and taken where she belongs. But still, the mastermind to this crazy caper was still out there somewhere...and so my job is not really over...it's never really over...

k1s.t3h.5hF

back, been back, and sticking around for a while

the trip to Seattle with the siblings was very much a success. There was a healthy mix of seeing the sites, visiting the fam, and cooking General Tso chicken (tasty!). The weather was, predictably, overcast with an omnipresent drizzle. They tell me that there are mountains surrounding the city; I cannot testify to this fact myself, having seen only the misty foothills.
Quote of the trip? (prompted by our prejedice toward Seattle's Best Coffee and against Starbucks) "we scoffed at every Starbucks we passed; at the end of the day, our throats were sore."
A good time, but we were glad to get back to the Texas sunshine (some of us are solar powered!)

pic post for the week

Q: can you go southwest to get to the northwest?

A: sure, if you don't mind flying on the cheep airlines.

Starting tommorow morning, ObsessivePianist, m3ri , and myself will be taking a one-week vacation to Seattle. Well, the real reason is to visit our sister and her family (cute kids!) but I certainly hope to see some sights while there. The forecast is rain, followed by rain, and then some more rain. I guess that mean's we'll have an authentic Seattle experience. So, wish us all a good trip--we'll be gone for a week.

Who are you and what have you done with my Sensei!

Megatokyo just updated with the 4th page in a row--on time.



. . .



Sensei? is that really you?

art day

"What if I designated one day a week as 'art day' and I always try to post some original drawing on that day?" I asked myself. I thought about it for a second, and realized that this was a very good plan. I contemplated congradulating myself on such a good plan, but I wouldn't want myself to get a big head. If I did, there wouldn't be room enough for both of us up here.
So I rummaged through my files and uplled out this piece. It's pretty rough, but no need to set the standards too high at the beginning (always room to go up!) I actually have some other peices that are better, but because they are better I want to give them a little extra tweeking/context before they are published. Since you already know Jamie and Rin, this was easy.
(btw, I'm pretty sure that Mon is not going to be my official 'art day', but it was convenient for this week.)

Pirates in the Cove

"why is he dressed as a pirate?" you might be asking yourself. Or even more "why is there a priest with a pirate hat?"

I could tell you the real story--but that is boring. I could tell you a fun and fanciful and falsified fiction--but I'm really not feeling creative enough for that. I could tell you that I was in a performance of "The Pirates of Penzance"--but that would simply be daydreaming. I could tell you I was at a "One Peice" cosplay contest--but that is simply freaky...even for me.

I can tell you that it involved karaoke, line dancing, and a trip to Applebees (in costume)--and I leave the rest to your imagination. ;-)

P.S.--many thanks to my big brother for the use of his outfit and sword. it was a hit! (the costume, not the sword, I mean)

scandal?

Today, it seems that the last of the repairs will be done on the heating unit for my suite--Murphy's Law holds true because it has finally gotten warm enough that I don't care if I have heat (that, and I'm leaving for a week too--double irony!)
During the post-fire exile, I was living half in my suite and half in the guest room. Which is fine for a couple days but the days lingered on and I finally decided that an extra blanket would compensate for the lacking heater and I happily reconsolidated myself to my familiar surroundings.
So would have happily ended my mini-drama, except that the housekeeper was now confused as to which bed she should make-up for me and, while I was in my office, I heard voices coming down the hall telling me: "Matthew! we need to know which bed you are using. Really, you need to stop sleeping around."

. . .

It was actually kinda funny, but the timing could have been better. I was meeting with someone in my office when she said it.

convergering lines, POVs

well it's about bloody time. Fred-sensei finally got to the part of the chapter where the separate story cells converge and mass mayhem commences. Fanboys, NPCs, Largo, m4gic grrls, TPCD, zombies, Ed and Dom (not to mention a conspicuously absent l33t ninj4 and pink-haired android)—it's sort of like watching the Battle of Five Armies :-)

And I have a new theory for why we should all love Dom more than we do: Dom is the fundamental agent of these chaotic encounters. Skeptical? Well, don't let that crudely drawn stick figure fool you. Let us review the facts:

• Dom was essential to Largo fighting the first zombie horde (which in turn was what sparked Erica's interest in t3h l33t 1).
• Ed's brain is permanently hard-linked to his trigger finger, so Dom seems to have little trouble manipulating him when he wants to.
• Dom brought Asmodeus with him on the boat to Tokyo (there is no evidence that Dom did this intentionally, though his the general evilness must have been some factor in Asmodeus' arrival, and with him, the 3vi1 k77y).
• Dom leaked info about Erica which resulted in the first fan insurgents into Megagamers. Dom staged a fan-mob at Megagamers. Dom staged a second mob at MegaGamers, which he personally attended.
  
• Dom also has been putting more and more pressure on both Erica and Kimiko to join the Dark Side, which in turn has been forcing Largo and Piro to get out there and act all heroically.

So, if you are looking for the real mastermind behind this grand chess game, the one who keeps these variant stories crashing and colliding with each other, I think we need to look for the man cleverly disguised as a stick-figure with glasses...

Holy Smoke!

...did you hear the one about the Church that burned down?

When I arrived back from DCYC late Sat evening, I was met with the news that the heating system for my room had tried to burn down the complex, or at the very least, my suite. The fire-station had been called out, smoke alarms were going, smoke started filling into my room through the air-ducts--and I missed all the excitement.

When everything had settled, I ended up moving across the house to the guest room. My room no longer had heat--unless we wanted to try burning the place down again--and it still smelled like smoke. Actually, it still smells like smoke. My rooms have almost no ventilation capacity. But on the upside, it doesn't smell like nasty plastic-smoke. It has a homey, fireplace smell to it. :-) I have tried to isolate all my clothes from the smoke remnant, but I have a feeling I'm going to have to start washing everything and try to air out the bedding and whatever else I can do to clean this out. Any suggestions?

"Back in the saddle again"

Well, I'm back. The retreat went fine, although it ended up feeling more like a professional conference than a spiritual experience. Something a little different every year, I suppose.

I had madly agreed to preach this past weekend as well. Fr. gave me the option of switching weeks but I thought "I"ll have plenty of time on retreat to prep my homily." And between this and that, I didn't actually print the hard copy until the same time I was vesting for mass. Ugh. But the final product turned out pretty good. I'm beginning to feel more and more that writing a homily is like drawing a picture: you have the idea in your mind, the trouble is getting it to transfer properly. It is always more lively and powerful in my imagination.

As I came back to my office I discovered that someone had upgraded my computer--not something that I typically complain of--but has not, as yet, bothered to transfer any of my files from it to my new system. I don't need those files yet, but this makes me anxious. The first thing that I did was to make myself a new account and change all of the settings and background. My computer is an extension of me; it must conform--according to it's capacity--to my image and likeness.

So, I'm gearing up for busy start to the week. Yesterday everywhere I turned people were coming to me and saying "good, now that you're back can we talk about--"whatever it was that they wanted to do. I'm still a little tired from a busy weekend (I understand now why so many pastors take Mondays off) but it is nice to be here and, as my cowboy-lovin'-pastor would say, back in the saddle again.

Out of Office Memo

from now till the 11th, I'm gone and will be on my silent retreat. ergo, I will be basically unavailable. pray for me, I'll pray for you all.
Happy Epiphany!

The Duet

Lullaby, la lullay
Little one, my love

In my arms is your home
In my heart is you warmth
In my breast is your food
And my kiss,
your benediction

Lullaby, la lullay
Little one, my love

Never now be afraid,
I am with you

just a little something

My-brother-who-needs-a-better-screen-name and myself have been coordinating on this one for a while. I'd been toying around with the images and came up with this. The characters are (front to back) Darc, Aeneas, and Marin who are set in a "Firefly" theme action game.
big kudos to ni-san's CGing--outstanding job!