Speculative Friction - Blogs http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/blog.php This is a discussion forum powered by vBulletin. To find out about vBulletin, go to http://www.vbulletin.com/ . en Sun, 20 May 2012 18:19:33 GMT vBulletin 60 http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/images/misc/rss.jpg Speculative Friction - Blogs http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/blog.php <![CDATA[gluten-free, that's me...]]> http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/38-gluten-free-that-s-me Sun, 26 Feb 2012 21:59:56 GMT Before I went to the Final Frelling Farscape Con I was diagnosed with Celiac disease. Basically that means that I am gluten intolerant and should... Before I went to the Final Frelling Farscape Con I was diagnosed with Celiac disease. Basically that means that I am gluten intolerant and should not consume even one molecule of gluten. That can take a huge chunk out of a person's diet.
It sounds much worse than it is -for me. I was not consuming much in the way of pastas or breads, so that helped me ease into this gluten-free thing a bit. I do find that I am looking for something to eat, but I do not know what. I believe that there is something I snacked on that contained gluten, and I have gotten rid of that food item and cannot quite put my finger on what it is I am looking for.
oh yeah, and I really miss bread, and warm, doughy foods.
I can eat rice and rice-based foods, like rice bread (ick). I have found many gluten-free foods that are quick tasty and satisfying -and others that are on par with wet cardboard with thin, watery sauce. Most gluten free foods I have tried are fairly good though.

I also have a blog (at blogger) about my 'journey of discovery' as a celiac person- that you can find by googling "zhaan-blue-ycbm". ]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/38-gluten-free-that-s-me final Farscape Con--part 3 (Sunday 11/20) http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/35-final-Farscape-Con-part-3-(Sunday-11-20) Sat, 26 Nov 2011 06:29:52 GMT Okay, on to Sunday, 11/20/2011, the final day of the final official Farscape Convention. First, waiting in line for the Celebrity Breakfast. I... Okay, on to Sunday, 11/20/2011, the final day of the final official Farscape Convention.

First, waiting in line for the Celebrity Breakfast. I was probably about the 15th person in line at 7:30am, an hour before the doors were to open. The thing that I will never forget is that I was made to be ashamed of other Farscape fans. Seriously. As I say, I was about 15th in line, the problem I have is that the number of people in front of me line (all 'Scapers) at least tripled while we waited for the doors to open, probably in fact quadrupled. That was so wrong. There were fans of other programs present, in line behind me. Including Stargate fans, who are not crazy about 'Scapers to begin with. It was a disgraceful showing by the Farscape fans. Myself, I was all alone in line, no one ahead of me invited me forward in line and I have to say that I would have declined the offer. This was our last chance to show the fans of other Sci-Fi genre programs what kind of people we 'Scapers are,... I am ashamed of those folks who held space in line for 3 or 4 other people who could not get their a$$ out of bed and get down there to line up in a polite and appropriate fashion. (ask yourself: What would Ben think!!)

Okay, enough of my rant. Our guests at the Celebrity Breakfast were: Ben Browder, Rebecca Riggs, Wayne Pygram (all of Farscape), and Saul Rubinek (Warehouse 13), Tony Amendola, Cliff Simon, Corin Nemec, JR Bourne (Stargate SG-1), and Kavan Smith (Eureka, Stargate: Atlantis). Each of those lovely folks spent at least 5 minutes at each table and this went on for about 2 hours. It was not handled well by Creation Entertainment and some tables sat for over 20 minutes waiting for their next celebrity guest. My table was the last with all of us seated, waiting for Wayne Pygram, and delaying Ben Browder's appearance on stage in the Farscape hall.

Anyway, on to the man himself: Mr. Ben Browder! Ben came onstage to a standing ovation and in greeting us told the story of the past year in his life. This includes his lovely wife, Francesca Buller having breast cancer and undergoing treatment, including chemotherapy. At present Francesca has been declared 'cancer-free' and will of course have regular check ups (and we all pray that the cancer does not return). By the time he finished his "hello" speech Ben had tears on in his eyes, as did a great many in the audience.
Then Ben surprised us by bringing, first his 14-year-old son and then his 22-year-old daughter onto the stage! Ben walked off to a microphone at the left side of the stage (mics set up for fans to ask questions) and proceeded to ask his children questions! (Like: who is your favorite actor?)
and as they finished their turns each of them asked the audience "can I get a hell yeah!"? To which we responded with very enthusiastic "HELL YEAH"s. And Francesca came on to be questioned by Ben as well and she also asked us for a "Hell Yeah".
A few minutes later Ben was informed that we had scared the folks in the Con across the hall with our "HELL YEAH!!" and he had us do it again --"as loud as we can!" he said. "HELL YEAH!"

So, Ben talked for at least an hour, sometimes repeating stories so that the newbies in the audience would get to know the stories we all have come to love hearing. He took questions and, as always, one person (Sasheen from Cincinnati) got a Ben hug in front of the entire audience. (This is something that happens rarely, so it is a very special thing. Now Sasheen will have a story to tell her baby -about getting a hug from Ben Browder while she was pregnant.) Lovely young woman and she certainly deserved the hug.

Ben was as choked up as any one of us when he left the stage. Not a dry eye in the house, as they say....
Then many of us rushed out to get in line for our Ben Browder photo-op. (You do get a hug after your photo, but that is not in front of the entire audience!)

Next, Farscape creator Rockne O'Bannon and writer "Ricky" Manning were on stage. The problem was that timing was messed up by Creation and most of us were in line for our Ben photo and completely missed Rockne and Ricky. So much for Creation's "big con ending show", and events were not over yet anyway. Although they did give a group goodbye with Rockne, Ricky, Ben, Virginia Hey, Lani Tupu, Wayne Pygram, Rebecca Riggs and David Franklin all on stage together.... also missed by those in line for the Ben Browder photo-op. (really Creation --you guys screwed up big time here!)

In the meanwhile, before our last guest Francesca Buller sold autographs for cash donations to the Komin Breast Cancer fund.

Later we had on stage Wayne Pygram, who did give us the voice of Scorpius one more time. Wayne also took questions from the audience. Wayne lives now in Gulla Gulla (I think that 's what he said), in Australia, where he teaches the drums at the local school and works part-time as a bartender to support his family. He hopes to return to acting at a later date.

That was it, the con was over, except for lining up to get autographs from Ben, Wayne, Rebecca and David.

the end (for now)

'Scapers never give up hope, so maybe someday we will gather together for another Farscape Convention that is on it's own and we can visit with our friends from the show and other 'Scapers once more..... ]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/35-final-Farscape-Con-part-3-(Sunday-11-20) final Farscape Convention --part 2 http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/34-final-Farscape-Convention-part-2 Thu, 24 Nov 2011 16:47:30 GMT Day 2- Saturday, 11/19/2011 I was down to the hotel lobby very early in the morning as it is 2 hours earlier in LA than where I live --I woke up... Day 2- Saturday, 11/19/2011
I was down to the hotel lobby very early in the morning as it is 2 hours earlier in LA than where I live --I woke up and decided to get out of the hotel room I was sharing with 2 other 'Scapers who were still sleeping. I found a few other 'Scapers in the hotel lobby, even at 6:00 in the morning. We sat in the area of the lobby that was claimed as 'Scaper territory, very probably sometime in the early hours of Thursday. Eventually some of us wandered off and had breakfast in small groups, then returned to our little corner of the lobby.

Later in the morning I returned to my room to find camerascaper getting into her beautiful Zhaan outfit. I stayed with her as she spent hours applying the blue to become Zhaan for the day. She had her photo-op with Virginia Hey and wanted to be in costume for that, and then the costume competition was later in the day.
I am sorry that I did not have the camera ready when Virginia first laid eyes on the Zhaan outfit! I thought she (Virginia) would drop her coffee! And she immediately began fussing over the costume to make everything just right. Virginia was delighted!
(this all went on in the vendors room of the hotel, where Virginia and Lani Tupu were camped out with their various wares, Lani with his art and Virgina with her candles and perfumes, etc.)

One of the best things about this convention was that we could bring our autograph tickets to Lani and Virginia, at their table in the vendor room, and get our autographs and talk with them a bit. The other autograph lines do not really allow for a little chat with these folks, so the 'informal' setting of the vendor room is appreciated by the fans very much, and everyone behaves with decorum.

Later, Lani Tupu (Crais and the voice of Pilot) was on the stage in the Farscpae hall. He took questions from the audience almost immediately. Lani was asked, by one person, what sports he likes or likes to play. That was a bit of an answer as it seems that his younger brother is a rugby player. Lani, however, is not a sports guy, was never very good at sports at all. He was on a rugby team as a younger kid, but he was "the orange boy" --the one who delivers oranges to the players during a break in the game.

Next on the stage was Rebecca Riggs (Commandant Grayza). Rebecca talked mainly about Grayza and took many questions. She was delightful as always.

Many of the questions were actually requests for fan favorite stories to be repeated as there was a large number of con "newbies".

Later in the afternoon Kent McCord (Jack Crichton) was on the stage. He spoke for a few minutes and then took questions. Kent was asked about his start in Hollywood, and related the story of a football game and Elvis Presley and his earliest memories of arriving in Hollywood. And he mentioned other old Hollywood/television folks like Ozzie Nelson, David Nelson, and Jack Webb. And there was a story about working with Jack Webb on Dragnet. I am sure that Mr. McCord could have gone on for hours and more than a few of us would have been happy to have him go on and on and on.....

My evening at the Con ended with the Costume Competition at 9:00pm. I had to be there for camerascaper in her Zhaan costume, to take pictures. There were 15 or 18 contestants, I will have to review the pictures again.... This was a "Tri Con" so we had Jaffa warriors, Peacekeepers, Stargate characters, Scorpius, Grayza, and some character from Warehouse 13. Now, Adam Malin (Creation Entertainment host of the Farscape con) has always asked that the costumes be home-made, but some people just don't listen.... Adam loved the Zhaan costume, in part because it was obviously a very well made, home-made outfit. The Grayza costume was also hand made at home. The winners are chosen by audience reaction, so the final 4 did include the Zhaan, Grayza, a Jaffa, and the Warehouse 13 character. Sadly, my friend in the Zhaan outfit did not make the final 3, and got nothing for her efforts. The Warehouse 13 character, almost entirely store bought, won -but only because she brought more of her friends to cheer for her. Sadly, only about 30 audience members attended the costume competition, so the voting was not at all fair!
camerascaper was sorely disappointed, as were myself and Adam too I believe.

(next day Adam chose camerascaper to be in a Farscape trivia competition, which she won!)

more to come later!,,,,,, ]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/34-final-Farscape-Convention-part-2 the final Farscape convention..... :-( http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/33-the-final-Farscape-convention-( Wed, 23 Nov 2011 17:05:07 GMT I did not take notes at the Convention, so you get what I can remember and little else..... try the Terra Firma website if you want details on the... I did not take notes at the Convention, so you get what I can remember and little else..... try the Terra Firma website if you want details on the myriad variety of events, gatherings, outings, etc. that went on at the Final Farscape Convention.

This was technically a "Sci Fi Tri Con" and included, in 2 other halls, the 3 Stargate shows, and Eureka, Sanctuary, Warehouse 13.
Many of us lined up in the outer area of the event halls to register or purchase tickets for the Con, autographs, photo-ops, etc. I only attended the Farscape convention, so I have very little information about the other parties to the Tri-Con.
It was mainly the Farscape fans who were a very bold, noticeable presence in the Marriott Hotel at LAX. 'Scapers appeared around the place wearing everything from name badges to Farscape t-shirts to long, black leather coats in the Peacekeeper style. And a great many of us hung around the hotel lobby- when there were no events in the convention hall --making for pretty much a 24-hour a day presence for 5 or 6 days! And as things wound up our numbers dwindled to only 5 or 6, but still shouting out a very loud "Hell Yeah" as various 'Scapers left to return to their homes.

Anyway, yes, our guests, entertaining us with stories of working on Farscape were, in order of appearance, David Franklin (Braca), Virginia Hey (Zhaan) on Friday, 11/18. David was a bit sentimental about it all, partially because he has spent so much time at the Farscape Conventions and knows some of us well. Virginia was,... Virginia, what can I say... she talked and answered questions, and had that scattering of stories hanging about waiting for her to finish all of them..... if you have ever attended a Con you know what I mean... Virginia always seems to branch off from her stories to tell little side stories, but she does manage to make her way back to her original story and finish it.
That was the afternoon on Friday.

The Friday Night Celebrity Cabaret was at 9:30pm and we were entertained by Ryan Robbins (Sanctuary, BSG, and Stargate Atlantis) who played guitar and sang songs. He is very talented and a strong singer. Ryan was followed by Alexis Cruz (Stargate the movie) who did a little comedy act with a monkey puppet and the assistance of a con newbie, lovely young lady from the audience. It was full of sexual innuendo and other silliness and was quite humorous.
Then we had the lovely Rebecca Riggs (Grayza on Farscape) come out and talk and sing and it was all about witches and bitches and female villians. And it was all very entertaining and often quite funny. Rebecca is interested in making it into a one-woman show, which would be terrific.
And Rebecca was followed by and later joined David Franklin. David had made a video (which can most likely be found on youTube or something).
The video was all David and he was reminiscing about the 11 previous Farscape Conventions. Most of the Farscape Cons were held in Burbank, so his video was filmed at that Convention hall and hotel (once a Hilton, transformed into a Marriott in 2007). It was funny and sad and memorable, and David got a bit teary-eyed watching it himself. Lani Tupu (Crais), who was sitting in front of me in the audience was a bit choked up himself over it, as many, many other people did also.

I will have to continue this later,.... but I will definitely be back to tell you more! ]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/33-the-final-Farscape-convention-( The actual Final Farscape Convention (November 2011) http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/32-The-actual-Final-Farscape-Convention-(November-2011) Sun, 23 Oct 2011 22:16:05 GMT Apparently the Farscape Convention, to be held November 18, 19 and 20 (2011) will be the Final Final Frelling Farscape Convention. Never to be held...
Apparently the Farscape Convention, to be held November 18, 19 and 20 (2011) will be the Final Final Frelling Farscape Convention. Never to be held again. I would mention that this is the FIFTH Final Frelling Farscape Con.... I attended the first Final Con in 2007, thinking that it would be the last time I would have a chance to meet up with so many other Farscape fans. But we fooled Creation Entertainment that year -they had the highest attendance on the final day of the con that they ever had at a Farscape Convention. So they decided to go on with more Farscape Cons.
Sadly, with the state of the economy now, it is just not a profitable thing to continue having Farscape Conventions at all, and many other television programmed-themed conventions are being discontinued, pared down, or combined with other programs, diluting the field of actors who do appear at such events.

Anyway, sadly, this is the last time Farscape fandom has the chance to sit in a room full of 'Scapers and listen to Ben Browder talk to us like we are each a personal friend of his. No more will we have the opportunity to sit and chat with the likes of Anthony Simcoe, Gigi Edgley, Lani Tupu, Wayne Pygram or Jonathan Hardy, or the other folks involved with Farscape, like Richard Manning. It really made the later Cons special to be able to just walk up to some of these people and talk with them for a few minutes.

Thanks for the memories people!

now, prepare for starburst.....
]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/32-The-actual-Final-Farscape-Convention-(November-2011) exhausted and ready to just give up on everything http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/31-exhausted-and-ready-to-just-give-up-on-everything Sun, 23 Oct 2011 21:20:53 GMT I am so exhausted. I have hardly been home at all this year and the constant travel is wearing me out. If not for the Farscape Convention coming up... I am so exhausted. I have hardly been home at all this year and the constant travel is wearing me out. If not for the Farscape Convention coming up in a few weeks, I would just lay down right now and give up. I am completely demoralized, exhausted, sick, and really ready to just give up completely -on everything. It is a terrible thing when an employer takes advantage of people who have no choice in order to stay employed. ]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/31-exhausted-and-ready-to-just-give-up-on-everything working with the boss http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/30-working-with-the-boss Sun, 14 Aug 2011 02:25:31 GMT For the next week I will be working with my boss in Wisconsin. Thankfully the unpleasant co-worker will be working elsewhere for a few weeks. That... For the next week I will be working with my boss in Wisconsin. Thankfully the unpleasant co-worker will be working elsewhere for a few weeks. That works for me!
I like working with my boss. He is one of the best bosses I have ever had.

I am still stressed out over the tachycardia, but the cardiologist appointment is not until September 2, so the stress will be here for a while.

I am just glad that we are finally having cooler temperatures! I wish everyone in the U.S. were enjoying the same! ]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/30-working-with-the-boss and it keeps getting worse! http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/29-and-it-keeps-getting-worse! Tue, 09 Aug 2011 22:59:14 GMT yeah, now I will have to work with difficult co-worker, for a day anyway. and he will probably be cranky to begin with. nice. I got results from... yeah, now I will have to work with difficult co-worker, for a day anyway. and he will probably be cranky to begin with. nice.

I got results from wearing a holter monitor --to monitor my heartbeat. Tachycardia. go ahead -look that up on wiki. It's depressing. I already have an appointment with a cardiologist, but now I realize that he will want to schedule more tests. I have to work, and not anywhere near home, so that should be really interesting. I have only a couple of sick days and a couple of vacation days left for the year. (this does not include my Thanksgiving week off, which I will NOT part with)

here is what I do know about --atrial fribrillation. both of my parents had "a-fib", so I know that I can live a long time with it, if that is the final diagnosis. The other thing is bad: a-fib can lead to a stroke. That I do not need -especially since I am all alone here.

Anyway, ..... life goes on I guess.....
I am still driving trucks around the countryside... for now...
actually, I believe that when I am out on the actual highway my heart is fine, no arrythmias or tachycardias or whatever... it is the confined spaces of a town or city that are more frustrating - the damn truck we are using fights me all the way, no gear is easy.

If the outcome of the cardiologist visit is that I cannot drive the tractor-trailer, then I will be unemployed to top off everything else! ]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/29-and-it-keeps-getting-worse! totally stressed now... http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/28-totally-stressed-now Sun, 31 Jul 2011 23:17:45 GMT I have learned that I will be working on a hearing for the rest of the year. Not good news to me! I was hired to do this, but also to be in the... I have learned that I will be working on a hearing for the rest of the year. Not good news to me! I was hired to do this, but also to be in the office (meaning home at night) a good portion of the time. This is stressful for a few reasons, among them: I am expected to drive a trailer with a crappy rental tractor, which is hard to down shift and a general pain in the ass to drive. That is for a week I work alone. Next, I am concerned that I will be paired up with a very difficult co-worker --someone who makes no effort to get along with me and that is extremely stressful for me. Then there is rent! I am paying rent on a nice apartment that I won't be spending much time in. I wish that I had not accumulated all of the personal items that fill the apartment --things that cannot be put into storage because a lot of it would be ruined after months in a damp storage unit. The whole situation sucks because I am exhausted now and need about 2 weeks off entirely, which I have already used half of my vacation time and the rest is slated for November, and that I will not change.
Then there are my health issues. I really need about 2 months of being home every night, so that I actually have a chance to schedule procedures and doctor appointments. It would be a really good idea for me to get all the health issues sorted out now, before I really do have health problems and am suddenly unable to work at all!
Meanwhile, in about 11 hours (which will be 3:30am!) I have to pick up a co-worker for a long day of work. Not much sleep coming tonight and that is a very bad way for me to start a week of travel! ]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/28-totally-stressed-now working and traveling and sightseeing... http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/27-working-and-traveling-and-sightseeing Tue, 21 Jun 2011 03:07:25 GMT I have been working in Virginia, so I took advantage of my Saturday off and drove over to Shenandoah National Park and cruised on down 65 miles of... I have been working in Virginia, so I took advantage of my Saturday off and drove over to Shenandoah National Park and cruised on down 65 miles of the Skyline Drive. Even though it rained that was pretty spectacular. I love all the green and growing trees and plants, and those mountain views!!! That was a great afternoon.
I spent the next week working at a major East Coast airport. The worst part of it was that I was basically trapped at the airport for 9 to 10 hours at a stretch. Too much of a hassle to try to leave --even during a 2 hour break. But it did give me some time to people watch.... which can be interesting and was.
Now I have a co-worker with me for the next 10 days. Not as much fun as being on my own, even if I have to work. Having this other person here just interferes with my private time. Oh well, can't do anything about that. Just driving a big dually pickup, working and traveling and sightseeing.... ]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/27-working-and-traveling-and-sightseeing heat advisory... http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/26-heat-advisory Fri, 10 Jun 2011 00:16:19 GMT the past 2 days there was a heat advisory and the temperatures were around 100. it was terribly hot!! the pickup thermometer measured 103 degrees on... the past 2 days there was a heat advisory and the temperatures were around 100. it was terribly hot!! the pickup thermometer measured 103 degrees on Wednesday in Havre De Grace, Maryland. I had to work hard cranking the landing gear on the trailer in that heat. It was a nightmare!!
Thankfully the air conditioning in this truck works like a dream. At least once I started driving I got cooled down. What miserable weather!! I would almost rather be working cold and snowy conditions,...almost.
The best thing about this trip is that I did not need to bring any winter clothing!
That lightens the load and makes dealing with the suitcase so much easier over all.
We had severe thunderstorms this evening, high winds and pouring rain for a little while. Quite an impressive looking storm as it blew in. Thankfully it was just the wind and rain here (York, PA).
I am working alone for another 10 days and after that I may wish I was still alone. But the jobs after that require 2 people again.
I hope to do the tourist thing in Washington, D.C. one of the next two Saturdays. And I have a few other things in mind for my weekend entertainment. Will have to see how energetic I feel as those weekends come up. ]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/26-heat-advisory still recovering and traveling too... http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/25-still-recovering-and-traveling-too Sun, 05 Jun 2011 22:59:15 GMT Well, I went back to the doctor and was again diagnosed with bronchitis. I am on different medication, which will hopefully clear this up soon. ... Well, I went back to the doctor and was again diagnosed with bronchitis. I am on different medication, which will hopefully clear this up soon.
Unfortunately I am traveling for work, so I won't be getting much rest or relaxation. We had some folks retire and I am replacing them for a couple of weeks by myself and another person will join me later, when the jobs call for two people.
Trucking.... it is a smaller vehicle, a smaller van pulled by a Chevy Silverado dually. The truck runs good and the engine sounds great. I have not actually driven it yet though, as it is parked at a job site right now. Actually my boss is with me for 2 days and we have a rental car. ]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/25-still-recovering-and-traveling-too recovering from bronchitis... http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/24-recovering-from-bronchitis Wed, 25 May 2011 21:41:10 GMT Yes, I was coughing like a fiend for about a month! I am tired of coughing, it's so exhausting. Got some new meds this week and I am feeling much better, the cough is going away, finally!
Just working in Illinois this week. Mostly in the office. Tuesday is my one day out on a hearing van, so far as I know today, which happens to be Tuesday. I will be working in the office the rest of the week --I hope.
We have a "temporary" van technician who will be working on the hearing van instead of me, for the rest of this week, and hopefully he can continue working with us for a while. His wife is going through a second bout of cancer, and is currently in treatment. I am told that her radiation therapy was considered successful. She is currently in chemotherapy and that is making her very ill. So, please think good thoughts for J.G. in Indiana. May she recover and be healthy in the future!! ]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/24-recovering-from-bronchitis hanging around Illiconsin for a bit http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/23-hanging-around-Illiconsin-for-a-bit Tue, 17 May 2011 23:10:25 GMT I have been working in the Illiconsin area for the past couple of weeks. From the Western 'burbs of Chicago through North Central Illinois and over into Eastern Iowa.
That was last week. Just working, working and working.
This week I am in the office most of the week. Nothing much going on really. As is normal where I work everything is constantly changeable. One never knows what the next hour may bring. So I do appreciate the times when there is not much going on! ]]> zahn-c http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/23-hanging-around-Illiconsin-for-a-bit Smallville: Finale Exceeds Worst Expectations http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/22-Smallville-Finale-Exceeds-Worst-Expectations Mon, 16 May 2011 21:31:15 GMT I ask you...what is the point of having a huge overarching story if you don't properly resolve it? Why bother building up the threat of Darkseid and his minions if they were that easy to defeat? Desaad, Granny Goodness, and Godfrey were all individually built up to be a huge threat. Except Oliver ends up taking all three of them out with a single shot. Seriously.

Wait...it gets worse. Clark effectively beats a Darkseid-possessed Lionel Luthor was a single strike. Clark also makes short work of the darkness within Oliver. I mean no one has ever done so before, but Clark inspires Oliver to rid himself of it.

Then we have a disgusting sycophantic hero-worshipping Lois trying to convince our national leaders that Clark will save the day. The religious over-tones of this story in combination with the absurd ease in which the darkness was defeated was just gross. Lois is mindlessly worshipping Clark at this point. And Clark becomes a pseudo-religious savior in this story.

Then Clark flies towards the planet Apokopolis (which is barrelling towards Earth causing incredibly little gravitational strain on the planet) and somehow makes it go away. I'm not kidding. Somehow without explanation and in the most anticlimatic manner possible, Clark just flies into it and pushes it away without regard to the physics of stress and strain.

Then everyone gets inspired by him and the omegas vanish from their foreheads. This is despite the fact that no one has been able to do such a thing before on a mass scale. This is also directly in spite of the fact that Clark is told that the way to banish Apokolips is to inspire the people and thus exorcise the darkness from them which is what has attracted the planet Apokolips to Earth. And yet somehow a fleeting glimpse of Clark as Superman, pushing Apokolips away ends up inspiring people to the point where the darkness is exorcised from them. I could scarely believe my eyes. Awe? Maybe. Confusion? Probably. Inspiration from a distant CGI blur? I don't think so.

This episode couldn't even follow its own rules. The hero is told to accomplish A by doing B, so he heads off and accomplishes B by doing A. Okay, so that was the main threat of the story and the whole season. They ruined that whole plot and wasted our time building up to nothing.

How about the introspective hand-wringing? Yes, luckily they found time for that and then some. This episode was chuck full of it: from Lois & Clark trying to decide whether or not to get married...to selling the farm...to trying to figure out what place dead-daddy and computer-daddy still have in Clark's life. Really? We needed to address all those points in the final two hours of the show...all while an alien planet was on a collision course with Earth? We had to sacrifice the Darkseid payoff for this soap opera crap? The worst is part is that even after both agreeing to go forward with the marriage, Lois & Clark are shown in the epilogue to be unwed even seven years later. No, wait...the worst part is the farm issue is brought up but not resolved. No, wait...the worst part is now Clark can see and talk to his dead father by the power of wishful thinking. Okay, it's a three-way tie. I can't believe they actually wanted to address these points in a story that had a huge planet lumbering towards Earth.

Of course, the whole story is framed by Chloe reading a Smallville comic book to her son which was an absolutely absurd indulgence. He also has a bow and arrow in his bedroom, which could just be their lame way of telling us that Oliver is the father without bothering to actually put him in the scene. Then again, this assumes Chloe and Oliver would be living together. Perhaps Oliver finally got smart and dumped her.

I love Chloe's character, but I have to question her relationship with Oliver. Every dangerous situation ends up with her hugging Clark in case she never sees him again while Oliver stands around like a schmuck. Then she invariably walks right past Oliver, resulting in him desperately following her out, practically begging to be with her. "Nah! It's okay. You just do your hero thing. Don't let me get in your way."

So, Oliver gets infected by the darkness because of his anger when he thinks Chloe is in danger. Then he gets possessed and turns on his friends. The world could be coming to an end, so his wife hugs Clark and walks right past him (not even for the first time in this show). Uh-huh. Is it possible this episode was written by pubescent girls? It sure seems like it.

Maybe I'm not putting this in proper context. Let me imagine that I am married. In the course of trying to save me, my wife gets possessed by an evil entity. My wife turns on me and my friends until the girl I had a crush on in high school exorcises her. Then the world is potentially coming to an end, so both my normal non-powered wife and my super-powered high school crush join forces, risking their lives to save us all. Any one of us could die. I'm in a room with the two of them. This is the last time I may see either of them. So, naturally...I give my old high school crush a big hug. Then I walk past my wife without even acknowledging her existence, making her chase after me...upon which I assure her that I totally accept her dangerous lifestyle.

Any ladies reading this...feel free to role-play in the part of my wife and tell me what a fantastic guy you think my husband character is.

Finally, Clark in costume...wow...they really really didn't want us to see him in that costume. I know I said it would be fleeting, but damn...they did everything they could to make sure we didn't get a good look at it. They were so embarrassed by it that we didn't even get that payoff.

Well, Smallville is over. It could have ended with a roar, but predictably it ended with a whiny hand-wringing whimper. ]]> Thyme Laird http://www.speculative-friction.com/forum/entry.php/22-Smallville-Finale-Exceeds-Worst-Expectations