Recent viewing

Must-sees (descending order) - "Ithaka" and "Another Round".

Very good (d/o) - "Worth", "The Bob's Burgers Movie", "Uncharted".

Merely OK (d/o) - "The Ringmaster", "Gotham By Gaslight". 

[Seen on: SBS On Demand, Stan, ABC iview, Disney+, Kanopy, Prime Video and Netflix.]

S**t talker

I'd been at a music festival all day with a colleague, her boyfriend and their pal, S. We were pleasantly intoxicated, mildly sunburnt and in a busy kebab shop, waiting for our orders.

S. began talking loudly about how when someone farts and you smell it, that means tiny s**t particles are going up your nose.

I could see a big dude nearby looking increasingly angry as S. - whose day job was at a technical college - delivered his lecture.

I think the other two sensed the danger as well. We tried to divert S. onto a more acceptable topic, but his drunken brain was obsessed with the idea of roaming poo particles and he wanted to tell the world about them.

The big dude looked like he was ready to punch S. in the face. Maybe the rest of us, too. If it was a cartoon, he would've had bright red skin and steam coming out of his ears.

Fortunately, that's when our number was called by the person on the register. We were able to grab our food and hustle S. outside before violence ensued.

We ate our kebabs on the street. There was talk of kicking on somewhere. Then my workmate and her fella got into a heated argument. I said goodbye and jumped in a cab home. She told me later that she and her b/f had done the same soon afterwards.

I don't know where S. ended up that night, or what kind of s**t (particles) he got himself into.

Party of two

You're preparing to play in a mid-level 5E "D&D" campaign. There is one other player. The DM tells you that the coming adventures will require a wide variety of abilities. However, she does not allow multi-class or non-standard characters in her game. You and your fellow player must now decide which combo of classes will give your party - such as it is - maximum versatility and hence maximum chance of success. Which two do you choose?

My heart says Ranger and Druid, just because it's a natural pairing I've always liked. Given that we're talking 5E, though, my head tells me there's probably a much trickier combination to be had, e.g. War Domain Cleric and Arcane Trickster Rogue. 

Feel free to share your thoughts on the matter in the comments. Oh, and if your instinctive response to the first paragraph above was, "Just hire some NPCs," then congratulations - you win the Lateral Thinking Award :-)

Recent viewing

"Life Of Pi" is the only one of these I would recommend. Unless you're into mecha, then "Mobile Suit Gundam 1" as well.

[Seen on: Netflix, Disney+, Netflix, Prime x2.]

Explanation

I originally posted the previous entry in 2010.

It was recently removed by Blogger for "violating community standards".

Since I couldn't see why such a lame visual gag could offend anyone, I asked to have the decision reviewed.

The post was immediately reinstated.

Except, obviously, they did it like a brand-new one instead of returning it to its old spot in the archive.

[Shrug] It can stay there now.

The dog ate my blog entry

...

Cages

Our neighbours on one side are retirees and have aviaries of beautiful birds. The birds are colourful, make all kinds of exotic calls and, thankfully, are small enough that they can fly around inside their cages.

Our neighbours on the other side buy, sort and resell the contents of unclaimed storage lockers (yes, like in those TV shows). Their front yard often features furniture, containers, a cage trailer or a rental truck.

In the middle, though not unhappy - never unhappy - I'm scared to socialise or travel far afield for health reasons. Unless it's absolutely necessary, it doesn't seem worth the risk. My cage is an invisible one.

Recent viewing

"Summer Of Soul" is a masterpiece. I don't have time to write more, sorry (work deadline). Read about "S/O/S" here - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Summer_of_Soul

[Seen on: Netflix, Netflix, Disney+, Disney+, Kanopy, Netflix.]

RIP, Olivia Newton-John

I didn't know that Olivia Newton-John's father was an MI5 agent or that her maternal grandfather was a Nobel prize-winning scientist until I learnt said facts from an obituary today. She didn't need those associations to be interesting in my eyes.

I saw "Grease" at the local cinema when I was six or seven. "Xanadu" when I was eight (and mad about rollerskating to boot). The clip for her song "Physical" on breakfast telly when I was nine. Olivia was an angelic-voiced chameleon and I adored her. Not in a sexual way - I was too young. However, I recognised she was levels above "pretty". If additional proof of her heavenliness was required, Tim Brooke-Taylor was infatuated with her in an episode of "The Goodies".

While nothing Olivia did post-1981 grabbed my attention in the same way, "Grease", "Xanadu" (especially) and "Physical" have never fallen in my estimation. Am I simply mourning a part of my childhood? I'd like to believe that's not the case. Everyone is saying she was a special person. I'd like to believe I knew that all along.

What is a grognard?

In the Napoleonic era, a grognard was an old soldier. In modern times, it's come to mean an old gamer. I first encountered the term when my pal SC directed me to the "Grognardia" RPG website more than a decade ago. These days, I can't hear it without thinking of the wonderful RPG podcast "The Grognard Files". I like grognard as a descriptor because it sounds sort of curmudgeonly and also contains the word "grog". Mmmm...grog.

Recent viewing

I loved "Ghostbusters: Afterlife". I've heard it criticised for being obsessed with reverential continuity and trying to evoke the feelings of the original pair of films. That's *why* I loved it.

[Seen on: Kanopy, Prime, Kanopy, Kanopy, Netflix.]

Six of the best: buskers and spontaneous public performances

Please enjoy.

1. Infidelix feat. EllandM - "???"

Raw talent, real passion. When the only thing that matters is the music you are making.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XUHlSWG92I

2. Two pianists @ Paris train station

A good pianist is joined by a great one for a jam. Give it time...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4I_NYya-WWg

3. Angela Trimbur's three "Dance Like Nobody's Watching" videos

What can I say? She fuckin' rules.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ft8GNg4wyIk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVVXtknZVf0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S32bgx36G-0

4. Teen bass player pulled from audience, Seoul

Long, comedic preamble. The improv track is worth it, though, and the lad does well. (Make sure you activate the subtitles.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzKhSS0YE8Q

5. Allie Sherlock & Fabio Rodrigues - "Billie Jean"

Not often you will hear a single busker with a voice this special, let alone two duetting.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcWA1LoeWU4

6. Lucky Chops brass band in NYC subway

Was either this or the bloke who joins Dovydas for "Tennessee Whisky". Both are tops.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d77p2Cg1q1Y

I may do a metal S/O/T/B in the future. Another idea I had was live TV performances. But could anyone ever beat this commitment?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GK4lD3Uf8_o