The first of the season, on the first decent-weather day. This was a loop that hopped a bunch of standard trails, and I thought this went up the big elevation rise that gives you the nice view of the Allegheny—the dashed blue line on the top left there. But as you can see, our path … Photos: Harrison Hills Hike
See Graham’s post here: If Intelligent Design Is “Pseudoscience,” Then Neo-Darwinism Might Be Too, and my comment on it. “Pseudoscience” has too much negative baggage for it to be a proper name for all the speculative scientistry out there that masquerades as plain vanilla science. Maybe we can blame the western world’s creepazoid falsifiability fetish, … Bulleted Thoughts: Science, Creation, Corporate Prayer
This post is for Daughter of Jay, coming out of a personal conversation, but also for my own reference. This excerpt was taken from the free sample of the The Ancient Book of Enoch (I put the leading “The” in there) by Ken Johnson, on Amazon. I found him from one of his videos, here: … Genetic Manipulation from the Book of Giants
My friend NESMETAL recently released an EP, Upon the Precipice. Despite the awkward description of the style and genre (deep breath)—progressive guitarless chip-instru-metal—there’s a very obvious guitar solo on track 2 (deeper breath), “Turn From The Carcass And Vulture Cycle (And Love One Another, Forgive One Another)”. UPON THE PRECIPICE (2026) by NESMETAL
When you schedule a future time for a post to publish in WordPress, it’s unclear how to “deschedule” it and just publish the post immediately. You can reschedule it for a minute or two from now, but it’s not helpful to do that when the UX can easily work in a “nah, I decided to … Fixing WordPress Scheduling UX
Birthday Wonderland On Akane’s 12th birthday, a mysterious alchemist teleports her and her aunt Chii to a parallel world in crisis. Watch it here for free, at least for now: The Wonderland. The Japanese title is literally, Birthday Wonderland, which a lot more fun than the English title version, so I went with that one. … Sci-fi and Fantasy Movies and Series Reviews, Part 53
A band I played guitar for got the upload treatment to a bunch of streaming services. Lo-fi power pop mixed with metalcore with a vintage flair. I didn’t play guitar on all of these tracks, since they are from recordings at different points in the band’s history. “Chick Invisible” is one of my favorites. Youtube: … Wednesday Humpday Midday Music: The Sparkle Blues – Two Heart Summer
Kite After her parents’ grisly murder, a teenage girl becomes an apprentice assassin. Given that I could get past the hyperviolence, I wanted to watch this after seeing its legendary falling-from-a-skyscraper scene. Most of the action was an understated version of the absurdity of that scene. Since Sawa is a Nikita-type of protagonist, there’s a … Sci-fi and Fantasy Movies and Series Reviews, Part 52
My friend Seth W from the Social Media Escape Club is hosting a “Break Up With Social Media Day” video meet up, next month on Valentine’s Day. I’m going, although I’m not on social media at all (mostly): On February 14, 2026, we’ll gather on Zoom to delete at least one social media app from … Break Up With Social Media Day
Some ex-bandmates of mine—from Concrete, Sparkle Blue, Life in Your Way—have uploaded their EP from 2005, onto just about every streaming platform. Similar to Kilswitch Engage and some other bands I can’t think of right now. The last minute of “This Fading Ember” and “Oh, Mercy” have some nice harmonies. “Peace and Rest” is an … Wednesday Humpday Midday Music: Rest Complex – Enduring Downtime EP
Here.
“All governments suffer a recurring problem: Power attracts pathological personalities. It is not that power corrupts but that it is magnetic to the corrupt-able. Such people have a tendency to become drunk on violence, a condition to which they are quickly addicted.” -Missionaria Protectiva, Text QIV (decto) Chapterhouse: Dune – Frank Herbert
I stole this idea from Graham and his 2025 reading list post. Science Fiction Dune – Frank Herbert Dune Messiah – Frank Herbert Children of Dune – Frank Herbert God Emperor of Dune – Frank Herbert Heretics of Dune – Frank Herbert Fantasy The Paths of Cormanor – Jim Breyfogle Religion The Bible (NIV or … 2025 Reading List
This makes Prometheus a Christmas movie, I guess? Interesting that Janek’s first scene, after awakening from cryosleep, doesn’t have him brusquely asking for a status report from his crew or a typical no-nonsense captain thing. It’s setting up his goofy Christmas tree. It shows a very human touch to his character, and a sacrificial one: … Friday Night Video: Christmas Tree from Prometheus
The Chosen The story of the followers and supporting characters surrounding a certain itinerant apocalyptic Jewish preacher in 1st century Roman-occupied Near East get a closer examination. Not sci-fi nor fantasy, but it involves real life supernatural lore so I think this qualifies. There’s going to be a lot of strong feelings either way about … Sci-fi and Fantasy Movies and Series Reviews, Part 51
Demo page here Download the .zip here I listen to my normal album music on Spotify or Youtube, but I have a very large playlist of soundtrack and game songs that I stream from iTunes when I work or write. iTunes is way too complicated as it is, and for my needs of “just play … I Made a No-Database Mp3 Player
An open-world game based in the Star Wars universe should be one of the best games ever, even better than Red Dead Redemption 2, if that were possible. But no amount of franchise notoriety matters if the protagonist, the guy you’re supposed to root for, is a garbage human being. Not an anti-hero or even … Friday Night Video: The Worst Star Wars Protagonist
Not so much AI itself, but employing it. At me, specifically. Below is an email I received recently. I redacted the name but there’s something of a real person behind it, with an Instagram account. I have to admit I took this seriously at first, but there’s just too much here for me to believe … AI is Getting Crazy
Angel’s Egg is an atmospheric, abstract, and symbolic film, so viewer interpretations will abound. Director Mamoru Oshii, though, explained exactly what it’s about: Oshii said in a 1985 interview with Animage that the contents of the egg are supposed to represent dreams and hopes, something that may or may not exist, and that while the … What Angel’s Egg is About
From The Works of Jonathan Edwards, Vol 1: Once, as I rode out into the woods for my health, in 1737, having alighted from my horse in a retired place, as my manner commonly has been, to walk for divine contemplation and prayer, I had a view that for me was extraordinary, of the glory … Jonathan Edwards on Encountering God
Ingredients 1 c flour 1/3 c olive oil 1/3 water 1/8 tsp salt Directions Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit Mix all ingredients in a bowl Place dough onto a parchment- or silicone-lined baking sheet and cut it into 6 equal pieces Flatten balls into a rough circle Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until … Recipe: Unleavened Bread
Here’s me dying in Alien: Isolation. Oops: When ally AI gets confused, from Halo 4: A ridiculous toy: Another toy. I remember it wasn’t working correctly because of low battery power and I found its struggle amusing: A guileless baby bunny that allowed me to get dangerously close: A Christmas tree lighting animation at the … Friday Night Video(s): Personal Video Dump
Ingredients 16 oz pasta 3 leeks 7-10 asparagus spears 1 c peas 4 tsp minced garlic 5 c vegetable broth 2 tblsp mint 2 tblsp chives 2 tblsp lemon juice 1/2 c parmesan 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest 1 c white wine 6 tblsp olive oil salt 1/4 tsp black pepper (more, if you want) Directions … Recipe: Fay Marie’s Pasta Primavera
Right outside the Boston Public Library’s main building, the McKim Building, on the Dartmouth Street entrance. On the pedestals themselves, there wasn’t any information on who these two women were so my headcanon at the time established them as muses. The Boston Public Library website says they represent Science and Art, so I wasn’t too … Photos and Video: Boston Public Library, Gloucester
It’s not officially fall yet in 2025, but in the of praxis of childhood, our summers ends when school starts. That annual transition sticks with you into adulthood in many ways, but instead of breaking into school we just break out our hoodies, knit hats, boots—rituals remnant from this academic moveable feast day. The seasons … Wednesday Humpday Midday Music: “Summer’s Gone” by Bob Bradley and Thomas Balmforth
Sakuga in Japanese just means the work of animating, but if it’s used as western-language loanword, it means any especially detailed, realistic, or noteworthy animated sequence or scene. Directors will sometimes create a sakuga scene to draw attention to thematically important, or to reinforce an aspect of the mise en scène or kind of world … Friday Night Video: Machine Sakuga Compilation
I bought a copy of the remastered Escalflowne movie BluRay on eBay, on the cheap. Despite it being a “grim retelling” of the series—those are almost as tedious and overworked as “feminist retellings”—I believe it still holds up 25 years later as its own story. As it didn’t have the runtime of its serialized counterpart, … Escaflowne Rewatch
Who knew a well-written tune would be on the soundtrack for a cutesy Wii game? It’s got a carefree bounciness that one would associate with tropical islands, at least as a tourist. Native island life is not as serene as pictured in the brochures. There’s plenty of movement in the melody: it’s bright and dynamic, … Wednesday Humpday Midday Music: “A Piece of Home” from The Dog Island
Not so much a standard movie review as it is documenting the experience of using descriptive audio to consume a movie. If you didn’t know, descriptive audio uses a voiceover narration to describe onscreen action for visually impaired users. It ends up being a lot like a radio drama, but don’t make that comparison within … Descriptive Audio Review: Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
The timing of this trailer’s release is a bit serendipitous. A few days ago I came upon a different video (I think this one) with a few scenes from what I took as an animated version of Stalker meets The Road. From Ghost in the Shell‘s Mamoru Oshii, with Yoshitaka Amano having a hand in … Friday Night Video: Angel’s Egg Trailer
Large parking lots—ones you see for malls and the like—sometimes can having a marking problem. Either there’re no markers, or the markers aren’t as helpful as they can be, which can lead to more user (customer) confusion than if there were no markers. Here’s how a typical parallel-row parking lot would look with a standard … For a Better Parking Lot UX
I took these photos and threw all sorts of Photoshop things at them to use as desktops back in the day. I wish I still had the originals but they have been lost to the sands of time, to put it dramatically. They were both taken at shows in Connecticut. The Element 101 photos were … Photos: Luti-kriss and Element 101
I specifically listened to this song after my post about band names up for grabs, so I thought I’d feature it in a Wednesday post. Even though it’s on my soundtrack playlist, that thing’s got thousands of songs so this track can get lost in the mix. I didn’t mean for that pun to happen, … Wednesday Humpday Midday Music: “World to be Born” from Xenosaga Episode I
I had to put my phone down on a bench in PNC Plaza to fish something out of the bottom of my backpack—I have a nice big Chrome Yalta that will last forever—and somehow my camera was activated. The photo here is the view that came up. The double barrel-looking building in the bottom left … Photo: PNC Plaza Sky
In no particular order, except the last one. Open source and free of charge. Take these and run with them! Eyeless From Matthew 5:29-30, or even Samson from Judges 16. Yes, it’s a Slipknot song from arguably their best album, so metal bands may have to contend with that comparison. Searching “eyeless band” on the … Use These Band Name Ideas
I recently took a trip to Oklahoma to see some friends, visiting Robbers Cave State Park in Wilburton. A cicada husk: A photo from the cabin grounds, where we stayed: Lake Carlton: Permanent cornhole setup: Here are a bunch of photos of the cave path mountain area. There were marked trails but I don’t think … Photos and Video: Robbers Cave State Park
One of the great things about Biblical scholars who are Christian—for sure, a good number of Biblical scholars are not Christian—is that, if they do it right, you’ll get raw commentary with a much narrower range of variation, free from church doctrine or tradition. That might sound anti-Christian, though it’s anything but. There’s a lot … Friday Night Video: Michael Heiser on Aliens and Demons
It turns out this may be a regular/semi-regular series. Low-effort posts are enjoyable to write from time to time, and as I’m currently visiting friends in Oklahoma this nicely fits nicely into my schedule. I forget exactly how I found this game, but it’s likely I did it by poking through some Google or YouTube … Friday Night Video: Sable (2021) Gameplay
The post title makes it sound like this is a regular series. I didn’t intend that, but maybe it’ll happen? There’s something comforting with tucking into a video at the end of the work week, if you’re an office drone like me. Videos are insanely ubiquitous nowadays, so at first blush it feels useless to … Friday Night Video: Darth Vader vs. Cere Junda
Ingredients 1 lb ground chicken 2 large eggs 1/2 c parmesan cheese 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp Italian seasoning 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp black pepper Directions Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl. Dump mixture onto a baking pan with parchment paper, and bake or … Recipe: Chicken Crust Pizza
28 Years Later Thirty years after the rage virus swept through Great Britain, a boy living in a survivalist village on a quarantined island uncovers the secret of a strange man living on the mainland. The Road meets Apocalypse Now meets some Children of Men. This is the third installment in the 28 world, with … Movie Review: 28 Years Later
This…isn’t a good song, even by Insane Clown Posse’s standards. I don’t listen to them at all, but I know they don’t have the storytelling prowess of an Eazy-E or Nas, or the complex wordplay of Eminem or Lil Wayne. But “Miracles” doesn’t even match the lyrical quality of many other ICP songs, and yes, … Some Philosophy from Insane Clown Posse’s “Miracles”
The Dark Herald posted about trickster gods—think Loki and the like—in mythology. From “The Sons of Mercury – The Trickster Heroes”: There is no pantheon without a trickster. No mythology without an agent of chaos in the court of gods. The Trickster is not the enemy of the gods—for the most part. But he is … Yahweh, the Trickster
Purple Rain A young musician struggles to maintain his personal and familial relationships while fronting his fledgling house band. These movies are hard to review because it sits in the middle of a lot of genres and artistic intentions. Purple Rain is not a musical since it’s really about a musician’s life and the musicians’ … Movie Review: Purple Rain
I went to Honduras. Edit: reordered the photos and added more information so things are little more sensible. Also, Pam took some of these photos but I forget which ones exactly. The Lord’s handiwork: Chicharrones: Entering Tegucigalpa, the capital: This tree was massive: Another massive tree, in a rotary. One of the branches needed its … Photos and Videos: Honduras
The modern western mind, soaked in democracy and equality, bristles at God keeping a man within His good graces despite his terminally bad performance. I suppose the gross unfairness appeals to me personally because my personal failures are various and sundry, and I can be acutely aware of them at times. I’ve heard pastors calling … Heiser on Believing Loyalty
This reminds me a little of the Final Fantasy 6 opera scene, not so much the music itself but the context of involving a performance art like music in with the battle mechanic. In both instances, a music performance was a means of advancing the main plot and not relegated to a fun sidequest or … Wednesday Humpday Midday Music: “Song of Hope” from Octopath Traveler 2
WARNING: Nearly 100 photos! I know next to nothing about cars, so I can’t provide any more information other than the visuals you see here. I was glad to catch the fellow waving at the very end of the video. I know him from church but I forget his name. Sorry, fellow!
Something new for this series: an actual songs from an actual band. Filmed on a budget at one of their shows, but to great effect. There’s something appealing about the “crowd view” footage, with shots of the band obscured by the audience and impromptu, guerilla blurriness. It reminded me of Circa Survive’s “Child of the … Wednesday Humpday Midday Music: “Soul Catcher” by The Artificials
Here.
Ingredients Eggs Directions Boil a medium pot of water Add eggs with a slotted spoon and keep the heat on high Fill another bowl with water and some ice. After 7 minutes, remove the eggs with the slotted spoon and add them to the ice water bowl Let eggs sit in the ice water bowl … Recipe: Soft Boiled Eggs
A washed-up video game champion, two parentless siblings, and a welcome wagon go-getter must find everyman Steve and the Orb of Dominance to escape a strange land made of craftable cube, ruled by a pig witch queen. You knew this was coming, after the success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie a few years ago. … Movie Review: A Minecraft Movie
Only three photos here, but I thought they were noteworthy. Michael the Archangel, judging by the sword-brandishing. I actually don’t know if it’s him since I didn’t check the plaque and there’s no information online, but let’s go with it: Caught the stained glass in one of the bathrooms at just the right time of … Photos: Mt. St. Peter’s Church in New Kensington, PA
The Velveteen Rabbit A shy boy learns important lessons from a stuffed rabbit come to life. This was sweet. As expected, there were some differences from the book, namely giving the boy a character arc alongside the rabbit’s, but it was actually well-executed. They could have padded the runtime out with a lot of nonsense, … Sci-fi and Fantasy Movies and Series Reviews, Part 50
This is more west than north, I think, since the “triangle” of downtown Pittsburgh points northwest, and the side of the building I was on pointed squarely at the Point. Two notable landmarks without visible branding are PPG Place on the left—the tall, reflective, Batman-looking building, AKA, the Glass Palace—and the square, tree-lined clearing below … Photo: Pittsburgh Northwest Skyline
Ingredients Meatballs 3 lbs ground beef (or any 3 lb combination of meats) 2 cups crushed pork rinds 1 tablespoon salt 1/3 tablespoon parsley flakes 1/2 tablespoon basil flakes 1/2 tablespoon Italian seasoning 1/2 tablespoon onion powder 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder Lots of pepper Sauce 1 30oz can of tomato sauce 1 30oz can of … Recipe: Nonnie’s Meatballs and Sauce
Short answer: no one knows, and many scientists qua scientists probably know the least of all. If the age is being calculated using most Big Bang theories, it’s probably wrong. Assuming Alfvén was being truthful of what Lemaître’s said (the 3:00 mark), establishing a timeline of creation using Aquinas would be starting down the wrong … Video: How Big Is The Universe?
A follow-up to I Got Hacked. One of the other issues with jaydinitto.com being a fully operational battlestation was a certain plugin, Display Posts, a fine little bit of code that you easily control a list of WordPress posts. It’s how I had listed out all of my post titles and dates on the front … I Got Hacked, Part 2
This site, as well some of the other sites I subhost, were taken down a few weekends ago. Someone had hacked my hosting space somehow and deleted many of the front-end files. Thankfully, no databased were affected. Bluehost had a very recent backup of the files I needed, so some sites were back to normal … I Got Hacked
From the Naked Bible podcast, episode 8 (Spotify, YouTube): So how does this help us understand the passage? Briefly, baptism is not what produces salvation. It saves, in that it first involves or reflects a heart decision, a pledge of loyalty to the risen Savior. In effect, baptism in New Testament theology is a loyalty … Heiser on Baptism
One of the best video game songs I’ve heard in a while, and it’s one of the standard battle themes. I don’t need to say how unusual its usage is, given how carefree and playful it sounds, and what even the video game layman’s idea of what battle music should sound like. After doing some … Wednesday Humpday Midday Music: “Grain Rain, Wheat Wind” from Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & The Secret Hideout
Click/tap/select me.
Ingredients 2 parts oatmeal 1 part plain full-fat yogurt 1/2 part protein powder 1/2 part whole milk 1/2 part heavy whipping cream 1/2 part frozen berries Directions Mix and refrigerate for a few hours before enjoying. That’s it. Useless Information and Photos Aren’t “parts” measurements usually used with baking? I feel like with this recipe … Recipe: Overnight Protein Oats
A lounging deer at Genoa Park in Columbus, Ohio: The bathroom door at a Coffee Tree Roasters: Chocolatier lore at the Boulevard Sweet Shoppe in Oakmont: Huevos rancheros at Deluca’s. The lighting was very spotlighty—odd for a diner: Took a trip to the Phipps Conservatory. This Lovecraftian entity is hanging in the lobby area: All … Photos: Phipps Conservatory and Miscellany
I devoured Eddings’ Belgariad and Mallorean series as a kid. They hold up well as good YA fantasy, and even though the Mallorean was a literal copy of the Belgariad, he at least formulated an in-story reason for repeating the events. Anyways, I thought this news bit was funny, even if just for the photo … David Eddings Burnt His Office Down
Stallone’s work, aside from the first few Rocky installments and maybe Rambo, is cinematic candy or Wonder Bread. It’s nothing groundbreaking but it gets the job done if you’re in the right mood. Critics might look at him with upturned noses, naturally, but sometimes his dialogue can strike a decent vein of gold. Rocky doesn’t … Good Guy Dialogue
Ingredients 2 lbs chicken breast 4-5 strips thick cut bacon 1 cup heavy whipping cream 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese 2 cup diced onions (~1 large onion) 2 cup diced mushrooms 2 cup diced bell peppers (~2 whole bell peppers) 2 cup diced broccoli 2 tbsp minced garlic or equivalent 2 tbsp cumin 2 tbsp … Recipe: Jay’s CBV (Chicken Bacon Vegetables)
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails must deal with a powerful new foe that has been awakened from a multi-decade slumber. The Dark Herald has a good review here. I agree with him about Mufasa and the recent direction Disney has taken, of using hyper-realistic CGI retellings and sequels. The big disconnect is … Movie Review: Sonic the Hedgehog 3
I didn’t say anything particularly insight, but I wanted to post it here for safekeeping. From “Violence in Scripture and the Nonviolence of Jesus“: Might I suggest that theologians are complicating the matter? Canaan was a part of a larger plan God had, post-Babel, to establish a nation under His direct authority, apart from the … Quick Comment Re: Violence in Scripture and the Nonviolence of Jesus
I had to make this after watching a bunch of Robert Sepehr videos. He has some really interesting ideas but some of the word games he plays to “prove” connections to occult/secret society knowledge are just silly: An inside joke between Ed and I: My attempt at nonsensical Gen Z reaction image humor: I screenshotted … A Few Images for Safekeeping 03
On a recent trip to Massachusetts, I took a hike on the Assabet River Rail Trail. I didn’t find the trail on AllTrails app, so I did a Google search for nearby trails. This was the closest to where I was staying, and it had name recognition for me since my mom worked at Assabet … Photos: Assabet River Rail Trail Hike
I’ve been boning up on a lot of the Christian hair metal bands from the eighties that aren’t Stryper: the likes of Barren Cross, Bloodgood, Sacred Warrior. Some of these bands are still going today, Sacred Warrior included. Their sound has understandably modernized with their newest album, Waiting in Darkness, but echoes of the music … Music Appreciation: Sacred Warrior’s “Waiting in Darkness”
I hiked Hartwood Acres twice. The first was a route suggested by AllTrails, a mix of different blazed and unblazed paths. The second was the shorter, more standard Yellow blazed trail. In general, it wasn’t as scenic as I had hoped. All the leaves had fallen and there wasn’t much variation or interesting views. The … Photos: Hartwood Acres Hikes
AI video has come pretty far from the nightmarish productions from a year and a half ago. With some nuanced inputs and direction, it’s starting to look like highly-stylized stereoscopic images. The actual story here seems okay, and is based loosely on Zecharia Sitchin’s ramblings, who should’ve just written a sci-fi series instead of claiming … Somewhat Recommended: The Return of the Anunnaki Movie
Osmosis Jones A white blood cell cop and a cold pill agent team up to fight a foreign threat that found its way inside an irresponsible zookeeper. Inside Out meets Innerspace. The animation style reminded me of Don Bluth, but he had nothing to do with it; a script shot through with toilet humor doesn’t … Sci-fi and Fantasy Movies and Series Reviews, Part 50
Seen when attempting to view a Reddit page. I probably wouldn’t have gotten this if I were logged in, but I refuse to create a Reddit account. There has to be a better way.
Heh: Considering what the ancient Hebrews thought about the goings on in the heavenly realm with the Elohim council, and who rules the nations after Babel, a horrifying cosmic god-being directing America’s fate is not far off from the truth compared to other views. That is, if you share those ancient beliefs at all (I … Cthulhu For President, 2024
As seen in the Carnegie Museum of Art.
Here are some photos and videos from a recent trip to Massachusetts. Lake Williams in my hometown of Marlborough recently installed a walkway across the water, connecting one end the lake’s namesake trail to the other end. I didn’t know about the land-lubber part of the trail; I thought it was just a boardwalk, so … Photos and Videos: Lake Williams, Hampton Beach, Jellyfish
Carrie (2013) A bullied high school student discovers her telekinetic powers. I never saw the 1976 original, but checking out its synopsis and comparing that with the remake, they were fairly similar*. The 2013 version benefitted from better production values, so the telekinesis scenes could be played up a little more intensely. They were a … Sci-fi and Fantasy Movies and Series Reviews, Part 49
Ingredients 1 serving of tagliatelle (around 3.5 oz) 1 tbsp Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese 1 tbsp butter Directions 1. Boil the pasta 2. Move pasta from the pan/pot (tongs work best) to a plate or bowl; don’t drain the water 3. Mix pasta with the butter until melted 4. Add cheese and mix until well-combined 5. If … Recipe: Tagliatelle Alfredo
I made a comment on Mike Duran’s latest post: “What Does the Bible Say about Haunted Houses?“. Posting it here for safekeeping. Lots of good points here, Mike. The effects of Babel echo to the present day. God doesn’t direct the nations as they are now…that’s more under the control of the Elohim council, which … Haunted Houses and Babel
Alien: Romulus Young miners ransack a derelict Weyland-Yutani ship in a decaying orbit around their planet, only to find a wholly alien threat onboard. Alien for the Gen Z moviegoer, and I’m mostly saying that because the cast are older Gen Z. It makes some marketing sense, as Alien: Covenant, the previous film, had a … Movie Review: Alien: Romulus
Bingo bango bongo.
Wonder Woman 1984 Now an antiquities scholar, Wonder Woman must deal with a greedy businessman and a jealous coworker when the effects of an artifact, the Dreamstone, get out of control. I had left the TV on and this streamed on Tubi for free (I don’t pay for streaming unless it’s something specific), automatically, and … Sci-fi and Fantasy Movies and Series Reviews, Part 48
It’s weird. I tend to enjoy rock or metal instrumentals in video game soundtracks more than I do from traditional virtuoso artists. The reason is that instru-metal guys—who are mostly guitarists, obviously—can’t get past their virtuosity and present a coherent song without their chops getting in the way. A song that has “handles,” where you … Wednesday Humpday Midday Music: “Sunshine Coastline” from Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana
Today is Anne Bradstreet Day, dedicated to someone I never heard of: She was one of the first colonial poets to be published in the New World, the first Englishwoman to publish a book of poems and the first published American poet. While her early works were more rooted in the traditional poetry structure at … Anne Bradstreet Day
It’s not that movies need to be all realistic, but the dramatization of someone waking up from a nightmare has been overplayed for a while now. I can’t speak for everyone, but I never wake up from a bad dream by sitting bolt upright, breathless, and yelling out. That might be appropriate in a comedic, … How to Wake Up in a Movie
Taken over last weekend, near the Pittsburgh International Airport.
It’s been quite the minute since I posted, hasn’t it? I haven’t had the privilege of naming a wifi network in a while. I was going to do something like “FBISurveillanceVan” or “NSALogin” but I’ve seen that approach too much. There are some funny names in this forum thread—note all the “FBI” examples—but most of … You Won’t Pass
I almost didn’t want to label this as a “hike,” since it was more of an easy walk through mostly-paved paths. Really no elevation changes or rough terrain. Memorial Park in New Kensington is mostly a forest. The developed section has a road, parking lot, a small soccer field, basketball courts, tennis courts, not-ice-or-field hockey … Photos: Memorial Park Hike
We’ve probably come across many forms of the paradox before. The most amusing one I’ve ever seen was the two door dilemma from Labyrinth. Is the following statement true? This statement is false. If it’s true, it’s false. If it’s false, it’s true. What to make of this? There’s been many convoluted solutions to get … A Liar’s Paradox Solution
The Imaginary Rudger, Amanda’s imaginary friend, is forgotten and must learn to live with the other forgotten imaginary friends and evade the clutches of a strange man seeking to consume him. Toy Story meets Spirited Away, and I’m not referencing the latter because Studio Ponoc was related to Studio Ghibli. This was honestly more British … Movie Review: The Imaginary
As I mentioned in the “Love Death + Robots, Volume 3 Review” post over a year ago, I wanted to rewrite part of the “The Very Pulse of the Machine” short film to make it a little more effective in communicating what (I think) was the depiction of choice and risk. There are other themes, … How “The Very Pulse of the Machine” Should’ve Gone
Mars Express A pair of private investigators travel between Earth and Mars to probe into the disappearance of a college student and her roommate, who have been jailbreaking androids from their constraining moral programming. This was a French film, which I suppose means something. I was ready to dislike this because a movie about advanced … Movie Review: Mars Express
I watched part of a playthrough of this game a while back, back before playthrough videos on Youtube got obnoxious with overediting and spastic commentary. I was initially attracted by the watercolor portrait artwork and the hand-drawn, diagonal gameplay backgrounds, and the story was unique enough to bother paying attention. The soundtrack, written by Masashi … Wednesday Humpday Midday Music: “Rosekranz” from SaGa Frontier 2
Divergent In a highly-structured, post-apocalyptic Chicago, a young woman hides her “divergent” gift when she joins the peacekeeping Dauntless faction. Let’s get the negative stuff out of the way. Without knowing the books at all—which are in my library, yet to be read—I would be fine with the story: a paint-by-numbers dystopian teen sci-fi action … Movie Review: Divergent
A ginko tree on Forbes Avenue and Smithfield Street: The Citizens Bank Tower on William Penn Place, taken from PNC Plaza. On the middle right is the old Kaufmann’s building, with a basketball court on the roof. Bottom right is the Warner Theatre sign, which I believe has been there since 1918: Fifth Avenue Place/Highmark … Photos: Pittsburgh, June 2024