The 80th Post - Melbourne, here I come

Well, this is post number 80, hurrah!

I have come out of my week-long melancholic streak which I get from time to time, and began last Thursday due to a few different things.

According to Websters dictionary, Melancholia is: "A kind of mental unsoundness, characterised by extreme depression of spirits, ill-grounded fears, delusions, and brooding over one subject or train of thoughts." So there is the story of my last week. Hurrah for that being over.

I now only have 2 days at work standing between me and my Melbourne holiday, which should be good for the soul. I need to get away (*sings* I gotta fly... away... - not sure what song that is, but it sprang to mind as I typed).

Hopefully while I am down there I will get a bit more of a handle on the short story I am working on, I think for inclusion in The Witching Hour, which as I have mentioned before is reverting back to the original premise, following the plot becoming too convoluted to follow properly. I am thinking of retaining Shaitan as a regular cameo character between tales and times though.

Review: The Incredible Hulk

The new version of The Incredible Hulk hands-down beats the old one (which was shit). I actually enjoyed the film, which was interesting because I have never been a big fan of the green dude. I thoroughly enjoyed the battle sequences, although towards the end, I really hoped that the rotors from the crashed chopper would see action as swords. I love Liv Tyler, she is my current celebrity crush, and Ed Norton pulled off the character of Bruce Banner quite well. Overall, I was impressed with this version, and I caught myself enjoying it at more than one point. 3.5/5.

FELL

No, I haven't fallen from grace (yet) - I am talking about the comic series FELL, written by Warren Ellis and drawn by the inimitable Ben Templesmith (one of my favourite artists...).

I spent today getting up to date on the amazing series which my good mate Captain Dave pointed me to the other day. I am incredibly impressed with both the short, serialised and stand-alone stories of the series, not to mention the great characters... and the Nun.

If you want to find out about the crazy, Nixon-mask-wearing, prostitute-hiring, gun-buying Nun, you will simply have to read the series. The trade (collected first 8 issues) goes for about $30.00 Australian, and the comics themselves are roughly 2.50. They are made specifically for people with no money that want a good read.

Check it out HERE.

Blake.

One of those days all week...

Well, I have had one of those weeks. You know, the kind that make you want to curl up into a foetal position and pretend the world doesn't exist? That kind.

But Blake, I hear you ask, what on earth has happened that is that bad?

I will tell you - I was nearly killed last Thursday by an idiot doing a u-turn illegally and nearly t-boning me as I exited a carpark, I have had all manner of ridiculous developments (followed by non-developments) in my (lack of) lovelife, and I realised that what I wanted to do with The Witching Hour will not actually work, which has put me back to phase one.

*Groan*

On the plus side, next week I am going to be in Melbourne, and I am looking fowards to having a week of getting over crap. Hopefully I will come back a new man. Hopefully. I won't have the internet there, though, which will be hard to cope with - especially given my propensity to waste time on here...

What has happened that is good though?

Well:

> My darling Bec got her P-s, and I am incredibly proud.

> I discovered that Warren Ellis has written a book that is rather good fun

> I have decided that the best thing to do for The Witching Hour is to stick with the original plan of separate stories. Sometimes the original is the best. Essentially, I realised that what I had made was a very complex, rather clunky tale that would eventually die under its own weight. This is avoidable, and I believe that I can make it work on a number of different levels, with me being able to keep all the characters I love, and remove the ones I am not fussed on.

> I am going to see the new Hulk movie tomorrow night, which will be interesting. I hated the first one, and am not a fan of Hulk in general. It will struggle hard to get much praise - stand by for a review.

> I have come up with a new story which will fit into The Witching Hour, featuring all the classic elements of Lovecraftian horror.

> I won 2 ebay auctions, allowing me to actually obtain the parts I need to make a certain model.

Overall, a hectic week, with a lot of crap, but on reflection, a lot of good stuff too.

I might even edit and post up the newly written The Romance of Melancholy poem before I head off. Plus a quick drawing of the Necronomicon...

Blake.

New Coldplay album

I really love the band COLDPLAY. I have done for years, and in fact they were possibly one of my earliest favourite bands. That being said, you can imagine my excitement when I learned of a new album coming out after (I think...) 4 years.

I went in to Sanity today and purchased the album, rushing back to my car, not waiting to get home to listen to it. I put the CD in, and recognised the opening music.

That's right. I recognised the opening track on a NEW album?!? What's worse is I recognised the second, third and fourth songs as well. Confused, I looked over the cover to see if there was any explanation. There was none.

Cautiously, I took the CD out, only to discover the girl at Sanity had put in the "A Rush of Blood To The Head" CD instead. Not happy. Expect a visit in the morning, Sanity-girl...

I had A LOT of sleep today. I mean, a huge amount. Out of the last 24 hours, I have slept for roughly 18. Finally catching up on it all. Hurrah.

Getting back to writing now that the Semester is done, and I have some time to actually concentrate on it. Hoping to move into Chapter 2 this week, although I am a little stuck on the intro bit to the chapter. Anyway.

Looking fowards to about a million things at the moment, currently pumped for:

> My soon-coming holiday to Melbourne
> The Dark Knight - new Batman film
> Star Wars: The Clone Wars - animated film coming August 15, looks tops
> Batman: Gotham Knight - a really funky-looking anime Batman film featuring Deadshot, a very awesome baddie.

Rock on folks. Blake.

Something in the air

There is a palatable sense of excitement in the air of my bedroom. I have finally finished all my assigments, assessments, tests, whatever, and I am FREE BABY!

WOOOOOOOOOOOT!

I am rather thrilled, as you may have guessed. I now have free time. I am looking fowards to wasting it doing all manner of fun, but unproductive things.

Also, I will now have time to write more of The Witching Hour, which I am hyped for.

Wishing you were are happy as I am. Blake.

High Achiever of Low Standards

Hello, I am not dead, despite a brief scare I had during this last week. Actually, there were a few near-death experiences:

1. After reading a news article about a man in either Tokyo or New York (I can't recall) who had a woman living secretly in his wardrobe for about a year (she was a bum, had this little matress and all...), I became paranoid, as my family was away on holidays and I was home alone. I kept attributing every strange noise to an imaginary Asian woman living in my parents' walk-in-wardrobe... While this was not exaclty near-death, I can't help but feel it qualifies on the grounds that if she was real, I would have had a massive heart attack and died on the spot.

2. Multiple hard hits to the head - I dropped a heater on my head, I stood up into a hanging potplant, I headbutted (accidently) a wooden sleeper while up a ladder, and I almost got concussion when I sat down awkwardly in my car, nearly knocking the top third of my brains out...

3. Idiots on the road - seriously, we have awful drivers here. Watch out, those red P-platers are a menace. Heck, I thought they were a menace even when I was one...

So, in spite of all that, I have actually had a good week. I have been remarkably busy, but also remarkably productive. I got 4 assessments done (2 to go - Discursive Writing and Shakespeare on Film) and I am done. Friday=freedom!

Still drinking lots of tea....

Oh, that's right, the reason for my post. I was reading an article on the net about Star Wars, and someone was saying that Mark Hamill did not portray Luke Skywalker properly. Think about that for a second. Luke Skywalker did not portray Luke Skywalker properly. Apparently, in the books that follow on from the series, he is more hardcore, and the Luke in the films isn't. Well bugger-me-dead if that's not the point. Character growth. Holy sailor, some people are thick. It's like if someone writes a book about me, and then another idiot reads it, then meets me and says, 'You know, you aren't really as good as I thought...' Pardon me for finding another example of why I cannot subscribe to Humanist Philosophy. If we're all we've got, we're screwed.

Goodnight. Blake.

Almost a Week! Gack!

Oh dear, it's been almost a week since my last blog, which is pretty sad. That being said, it has been a very productive week. I finished two essays on Friday, and handed them in, which means I have only three to go.

Today (I am writing this at 12.35 am) I am going up to Nelson Bay to check out the new place and celebrate (I may also get some work done too, as I will be taking my laptop, but will not have internet access, which is the single biggest timewaster ever).

Also, I have discovered an amazing ability to waste time while feeling remarkably productive and good about it all. I do nothing at uni. I go to uni, sit in a cafe, in a comfy chair, and read a good book drinking coffee or chatting to people I know. I do nothing, but because I am at uni, it feels productive.

Of course, when I pull my finger out, I end up getting things done in a quarter of the time it takes at home...

Have a good one. Blake.