In Germany, Apparently

I realize that my postings have been somewhat ummm...infrequent, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to point out this article, considering it involves actual jet-packs.

Researchers flash personal aircraft, future jetpack

Clearly, there is much research remaining, especially in the area of making the technology look more bad-ass and less like one of those costumes that people make out of electrical tape for halloween:



Whatever...I'm still excited about having only to wait another decade or two for my personal jet-pack.

Morimotorgasm

Aline and I had our 10 year anniversary yesterday, and we celebrated by going to
Morimoto. For those of you who aren't in the know, Morimoto is owned/run by Iron Chef Morimoto. He was my favorite Iron Chef, though I'm not sure why, aside from the fact that he never took any shit from Bobby Flay. Anyways, it was one of the best meals I've ever had. We got one of the Omakase tasting menus, which I feel compelled to document in its entirety:

1. Tuna tartare with shallots, caviar and a Japanese peach
2. Kumamoto oysters with three different sauces
3. Scallops carpaccio
4. Sashimi salad
5. Peach sorbet (palate-cleanser)
6. Half lobster with vegetables
7. Kobe beef with Japanese sweet potatoes and truffles
8. A sushi course
9. Some sort of chocolate mousse and blood orange thing for dessert

I'm not telling you all this because I really think you give a crap. Rather, I want to be able to look back at this blog and recall this meal long after excessive alcohol use has wiped out my long-term memory.

Comic Sutra, Feb. 2007

The third meeting of our comic book reading club, Comic Sutra will meet on the evening of Tuesday, February 20th, 2007. Our reading for this meeting will be the the graphic novel Bone by Jeff Smith (writer and artist).

The Amazon link for the book is given below:

Bone: One Volume Edition (Paperback)

Please note that this is the one-volume collection of all the Bone trade paperbacks. It is a 1300 pages long, but a surprisingly fast and enjoyable read. An Amazon review follows:

Mere months after publishing the final installment of the long-running fantasy saga Bone, Smith collects all 13 years' worth of it in a single, massive volume. As many comics fans know, the series chronicles the adventures of the Bone cousins--plucky Fone Bone, scheming Phony Bone, and easygoing Smiley Bone-- who leave their home of Boneville and are swept up in a Tolkienesque epic of royalty, dragons, and unspeakable evil forces out to conquer humankind. The compilation makes it evident how fully formed Smith's vision was from the very beginning--although the early chapters emphasized comedy, as do the final pages, the tale quickly found its dramatic bearings. His remarkably accomplished drawing style, in the manner of such comics masters as Walt Kelly and Carl Barks, was fully formed from the start, too. Libraries that have missed out on individual Bone series titles should seize this opportunity to make up for the fact, and those who have collected the series all along will do well to acquire the collected edition to supplement or supplant those doubtless well-worn volumes. But be prepared for overdues: even the most voracious readers will be hard-pressed to get through this hefty, phone book-like tome before they're supposed to return it.

Comic Sutra, Dec. 2006

The second meeting of our comic book reading club, Comic Sutra will meet on the evening of Tuesday, December 12th, 2006. Our reading for this meeting will be the the graphic novel V for Vendetta by Alan Moore (writer) and David Lloyd (artist). Our discussion will be followed by a viewing of the movie based on the book.

The Amazon link for the book is given below:

V for Vendetta Graphic Novel

The Amazon book description follows:

V for Vendetta is, like its author's later Watchmen, a landmark in comic-book writing. Alan Moore has led the field in intelligent, politically astute (if slightly paranoid), complex adult comic-book writing since the early 1980s. He began V back in 1981 and it constituted one of his first attempts (along with the criminally neglected but equally superb Miracleman) at writing an ongoing series. It is 1998 (which was the future back then!) and a Fascist government has taken over the U.K. The only blot on its particular landscape is a lone terrorist who is systematically killing all the government personnel associated with a now destroyed secret concentration camp. Codename V is out for vengeance ... and an awful lot more. V feels slightly dated like all past premonitions do. The original series was black and white and that added to the grittiness of the feel while the coloring here in the graphic novel sometimes blurs David Lloyd's fine drawing. But these are small concerns. Skillfully plotted, V is an essential read for all those who love comics and the freedom, as a medium, they allow a writer as skilled as Moore.

Comic Sutra, Nov. 2006

The inaugural meeting of our comic book reading club, Comic Sutra will meet on the evening of Tuesday, November 7th, 2006. Our reading for the first meeting will be the first two graphic novels of The Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman (writer) and Tony Moore (artist). The Amazon links are given below:

The Walking Dead Vol. 1: Days Gone Bye

The Walking Dead Vol. 2: Miles Behind Us

The Amazon book description follows:

An epidemic of apocalyptic proportions has swept the globe, causing the dead to rise and feed on the living. In a matter of months, society has crumbled: There is no government, no grocery stores, no mail delivery, no cable TV. Rick Grimes finds himself one of the few survivors in this terrifying future. A couple months ago he was a small town cop who had never fired a shot and only ever saw one dead body. Separated from his family, he must now sort through all the death and confusion to try and find his wife and son. In a world ruled by the dead, we are forced to finally begin living.

Introduction

The purpose of this blog is to give me a venue for venting about my own pet peeves. Call it free internet therapy.

Future topics will include:

1. The title peeve: where is my jet-pack? We've been promised jet-pack technology for decades now.

2. Why am I not allowed to use a lap-top during takeoff?

3. Why do all my favorite TV shows get cancelled?