last supper.

so before i leave, i'm having some friends together for dinner at my favorite Mexican restaurant up north (in the annual tradition of my birthday...which i count as my personal new years).


as seen above, i doctored up a quick pic for the invite (click image to zoom). when shared, my favorite Catholic sent me a note finding it "terrible." which got me thinking...what make's it so terrible?

if i had changed out everyone's else's face (to that of my friends attending the dinner), would that have been better?

if i had simply drawn my own cartoon version of this (subbing in myself and/or my friends), would that have been better (since it would simply be a "cover")?

fortunately, this wasn't an Islamic image i Photoshopped, otherwise my fate would be worse than the guilt from creating (and since posting) the image.

i clearly have too much free time in this big, empty house.

"as you see there's no one around."

so i've been feeling a bit lethargic these past few days, as it dawns on me that i'm about to uproot my life and leave it behind for NY (as if packing up my life, an empty house, and sleeping on the floor had not sunk that in).

anyhow, this one song always cheers me up for some odd reason. i didn't have it on my laptop, so i pulled up the video and was taken back by such an excellent video (even tho Billy C has a creepy profile/look about him) which i still remember from my highschool days. enjoy.



have a safe & happy new years.

my life [in boxes].

so the day is finally here.

after about a month of sorting through EVERYTHING i've ever owned, it's all been sorted, organized, and packed away (well, what i didn't give away or sell...hope you like the TV/couches Jason). a cathartic experience, for sure, and yet i feel i still have too much (we all do, seriously).

i'm NOT getting rid of all my comics though (thanks for the bike Karl!)

everything seen (save the Christmas tree above + futon mattress on the floor i'm sleeping on) is going straight into a storage unit. hopefully by the time we move (6 months) closer to the city, and everything is taken out of storage, i'll have discovered how little i REALLY need (the essentials are being taken in my car when i drive out to NY after new years).

das ist alles (literally).

happy holidays

merry christmas from the entire team at ramancoke.com (seen below), where we're working dilligintly to not bring you all the latest information that you need. that, and saving the world from invading alien races...

see you after the holidays.

be safe. and give uncle Leo a big wet kiss for me.

will they ever learn?

ok, it's time we took the high(-er)brow, "nature is so majestic/i like to travel" nature of this blog down a few notches (again). last night, my roommate pointed this out to me:

W...T...F
?

(beyond the Sun breaking such important news, of course).
let's be clear. i have NOTHING against Eddie Murphy. i just don't think he is "the new awesome Batman movie series material.

in fact, Coming to America is one of the funniest movies EVER MADE. but riddle me this: did Chris Nolan (who, thankfully, is staying the director's chair) not see Norbit. or Bowfinger, or Beverly Hills Cop III, which undid all of my fond memories of Beverly Hills Cop I & II (tho the song "Axl F" is still quite awesome, i sing it in my head occasionally when completing awesome tasks at work)?

YES, i much preferred the idea/rumor of Jonny Depp (despite Pirates I & II), and while i knew it would never have happened, i expected Msr.Nolan to pull a rabbit out of a hat (and pull a HAT trick! groan) and deliver me an under-the-radar actor for the role, not a household name. but to add insult to injury, and i quote:
"Execs have also signed up rising Transformers star SHIA LABEOUF, 22, to play Robin.

further:
"Meanwhile, Brit RACHEL WEISZ is said to be up for the Catwoman role."
seriously. did they not read my post entry on what MAKES for good (and BAD) comic book movies? specifically Batman movies?!?

please, i beg you, allow me to elaborate:
BAD: did they NOT see Batman Returns (bearable, but pushing it w/ two villains, despite the sheer coolness of Christopher Walken basically playing himself, and the pure hotness of Michelle Pfeiffer in a black leather suit...though i think i can get behind the choice of Rachel Weisz)?

WORSE: did they NOT live thru Batman Forever ("holy rusted metal"...Robin, the Riddler, and Tommy Lee Jones in a pointless role as Two Face?)

WORST: did they NOT weep as they watched Batman & Robin (Robin returns as still-a-jerk, Alicia Silverstone is forced in as Batgirl, Uma Thermann is Poison Ivy, and lest we not forget Ah-nold as Mr.Freeze, "Everybody Chill Out!").



have they not learned from the mistakes of comic-book yore?
there is such a thing as TOO much. just give us a good, simple movie! sigh. but i guess Christopher Nolan has also included 2 villains in each of his Batman movies (which were excellent, some of the BEST comic book movies EVER MADE).

i think his trick has been to draw them out over 2 acts (if anything, the more important one APPEARS at the beginning, goes away for the gimmick villain, then returns at the end for the true character punch):

Batman Begins: Rhas Al Gul (geek fact: literally translated as "the Demon's Head," excellently played by Liam Neeson the guy who was unfortunately Darkman, but awesomely the jedi Qui Gonn Gin) in the opening sequences as Ducard (but really Rhas), Scarecrow as the protagonist, and the return of Rhas in the end for the true end-battle.
Dark Knight: Harvey Dent introduces himself as the flip side of Batman's coin, the Joker steals the show, and Two-Face returns to knock us all out in the finale.

but good directors are prone to fail as well. just look what happened with the Spider-Man franchise (another example of Hollywood ultimately pooping on my childhood). SM 1 & 2, by director Sam Raimi (of Evil Dead fame) were actually both great, but SM 3? IT HAD THREE VILLAINS! between 2 of the 3, you had enough character drama to make TWO movies!
think about it...
Harry Osborn hates Spidey, becomes Hobgoblin, terrorizes Pete personally.
Eddie Brock hates Spidey, becomes Venom with the suit our hero rejected, terrorizes Pete personally
...ok, so it's a bit formulaic, but that's what makes Spider-Man awesome. he's the tortured everyman (the everyman that climbs walls, spins a web, any size, and catches thieves, just like flies...look out!!!).
don't even get me started on Sandman (oh Lowell, how far you've come since your Wings days)
but i digress.

Christopher Nolan, while i have my reservations, don't blame me. i've been hurt, nay burned, far too many times. but i'm willing to get you a chance. A CHANCE.

don't let me down. otherwise you'll be on my list.
(you don't want to be on my list)

don't cry for me [argentina]?

though long overdue for a post, photos from my post-Antarctica trip to Argentina/Uruguay can be found by clicking below. be prepared to be...entertained?

highlights are gazing cemetery statues, hilarious local children, and a really big pillow fight. see if you can spot all 3!

below are the individual albums, i've starred those you might find more interesting than the rest:

• ushuaia return, 17-18.nov2008
• buenos aires wanderings, 18-22.nov2008
• cemetario de recoletta, 19-nov2008*
• el tango argentino, 20-nov2008
• colonia, uruguay, 21.nov2008*
• pillow fight! 22.nov2008*

desk architecture RETURNS!

for a limited time only (as i was populating my replacement's desk):

(no idea what this is all about? click here)

it is highly unlikely this tradition shall be continuing in the new year (esp since i'll be working remotely), but you never know. i might start going crazy sitting around a "home office" too much...

and just for continued holiday sh*ts & giggles:

why does Luke "i-can-fly-an-xWing-and-blow-up-the-Death-Star-like-i-was-shootin-Womp-Rats-coming-back-from-Toshi-station" Skywalker NEED A MOTORCYCLE?!?
...tho adding R2D2 to the back was a NICE touch.

use the force.

stupid christmas gifts.

today, as i was wandering our friendly neighborhood consumerist megamart (searching for a white elephant/dirty santa gift for the office christmas party...which i wound up choosing to re-gift something from my own wonder-stash), i naturally wandered down the toy aisle to see what was hot with the kids this year around. along my journey, i found 2 VERY STUPID toys:


#1. Aqua-Man & his Aqua-Sub:

ok. other than being the most awesome superhero to wear an orange shirt and green pants (and the subject of a Vincent Chase hit movie), why does Aquaman need a submarine? he's AQUAman. HE CAN BREATH UNDERWATER. sigh.


#2. Spider-Man Web Rocket Spider-Car:

rather than explain this one, i'm going to sing the lyrics to the Spider-Man theme song (which, whenever you see me deep in thought, is usually going thru my head...the Ramone's version, of course, which was almost the subject of ANOTHER Vincent Chase movie):

Spiderman, Spiderman,
Does whatever a spider can
Spins a web, any size,
Catches thieves just like flies
Look Out!
Here comes the Spiderman.
--
Is he strong?
Listen bud,
He's got radioactive blood.
Can he swing from a thread
Take a look overhead
Hey, there...
There goes the Spiderman.

ok. in what part of the lyrics do you see, "Drives a car, down the street. Floors the pedal, with his feet"? taking it even FURTHER, let's talk about Peter Parker (Spidey's secret identity...shhhh! don't tell anyone!). Pete's a poor, down-on-his-luck photographer/teacher/student living in NYC. he can't afford a car. and if he could, he doesn't really need one. HE'S FREAKING SPIDER-MAN.

sadly, this one is not very original, it was already done YEARS ago.

indeed.

antarctica. documented.

if you see only one thing, it should be the above video, created by a professional photographer on our trip, who mounted his camera to the ship's bow had it take a photo every 15 seconds. the finished product is amazing...no, brilliant, especially as you see us coming through the ice (look for the ship-sized iceberg that passes us when the camera is trained on the ship's stern). make sure you have your volume turned way up.

so after about a week of downtime (turkey, family, work), i've sorted through some 5000+ pictures from my recent trip to Antarctica/Argentina, and included the ones from Antarctica below. click the mosaic above to see the entire collection of albums i took while there (though in all honesty, the photos do not do the trip justice). if you're more interested in specific elements of the trip, here are the breakdowns by day/album:

• ushuaia arrival, 6-7.nov2008
• setting sail, 7-9.nov2008
• entering ice, 10.nov2008
• first landing, 10.nov2008
• penguins & friends, 11.nov2008
• continental hikes, 12.nov2008
• flatland invasion, 13.nov2008
• island fever, 14.nov2008
• return journey, 15-17.nov2008

MOST of these pictures are also posted to my Facebook photos (where there is a bit more color commentary, on the part of me, and several of the friends made while on the trip as well). up next: Argentina.

mumbai.

while a post on this topic is a (few) day(s) late and a dollar(s? rupees?) short, the more i go back and read the events of last weekend in india, the more offended i am. i tried to stay away from the coverage as it was unfolding, popping in and out of the news, even though there were so many who could not just "turn it off".

anyhow, i just saw this, and while amusing, it pretty much sums up my thoughts on terrorism.

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Mumbai Tragedy

and while i think i have already linked to this before, but this article also clarifies my POV.

more (uplifting stuff) to come soon, i promise (hope!)