Rorschach's Journal.

May 7th, 2014:

Been a year since I was freed from lock down. Noisy place. Nosy people poking their faces and fingers at me.

Human took me away from that. Let's me stretch my legs. Let's me sleep on the bed. Doesn't get mad when I bite his fingers.

He's a good friend.

I patrol the apartment, searching for information on the Red Dot. I've seen its true face.

It fears me.

 

 

 

One year ago today, my life became enbiggened with the introduction of a huge personality in a small body.  Today's post is dedicated to him...

In order to tell his story though, I feel I must give a little back story. I once had a Siberian Husky named Thunder, he was a wonderful dog, and very much still a puppy until he hurt his back in 2011. For a year, he slowed down considerably, had many accidents in the house, and would actually stumble and fall down the two steps on the back porch on several occasions. At his most recent visit to the vet, the discussion about "quality of life" had come up.

He was struggling.  He was unhappy.  After 13 years, he had become old, simply because of an injury, in the blink of an eye. He tried so hard to greet me at the door when I'd get home, but often would watch me from the floor, wagging his tail and waiting excitedly for me to go to him.  It was around this time that my wife decided that she no longer wished to be married.

I now had a dilemma, I was moving out of my house, uncertain of where I'd wind up. My brother and his family had graciously offered for me to stay with them until I had found a place of my own. The drawback there was that their backyard had about 7 steps to it, and they had a dog that was much more active and rambunctious than Thunder. After a long, soul-wrenching discussion with the vet who had taken great care of him since he was a puppy, it was agreed that the most merciful thing would be to let him sleep.  He drifted off in my arms as I bawled like a baby, soaking him with my tears.

I had just lost two of my best friends at around the same time.

R.I.P. Thunder MacLeod Cruts

 

Eventually, I had acquired an apartment, and, thinking forward, asked the landlord if I'd be able to eventually have a cat.  I knew that after the pain had subsided, I would want another companion, and being on my own, a cat made more sense than a dog. He said it would be no problem, and that answer helped cement my desire for the apartment.

A few months after moving in to my digs, an opportunity to have a cat had cropped up.  We have feral cats where I work, and they would propagate at an alarming rate.  We had taken to capturing the adults, having them spayed or neutered, then returned to the grounds.  Any kittens we located, were young enough to be able to find homes for, as they readily warmed up to humans.  During the cold Winter months, we had located more kittens, one of which was solid black (Spooky). They were malnourished, but otherwise seemed healthy, him being the runt.  They were taken to the vet, gotten a checkup and shots, and Spooky would soon have a nice warm home.  Unfortunately, for no known reason, Spooky didn't make it through the night.  My coworker broke the sad news to me the next morning.

I have several friends who are associated with A.W.S.O.M., which is a no-kill shelter located in the Poconos.  I had friended them on Facebook, and enjoyed reading about all the great dogs and cats who had found loving homes.  Every week they'd do a spotlight piece on a cat or dog who desperately needed and deserved a good home.  One week, they did a spot on a sweet, petite, tuxedo cat they were calling "Pat" who had been in their care for two years!!!  The moment I saw him, and read his story, I knew I had to open my home to him.  I contacted my landlord to make sure it was still okay for me to have a cat, and after a maddening afternoon of him hedging, he finally acquiesced to the agreement struck when I accepted the apartment.  All my ducks in a row, I contacted AWSOM, and informed them that I'd be up after work.

After finally finding the place, I got the ball rolling on the adoption.  As paperwork got shuffled and sorted, I met "Pat" face to face for the first time.  He wouldn't even come to the door to my coaxing, and only grudgingly did with the temptation of the cat treats they had sitting on the reception desk.  My heart sank.  He hates me!  My friend, who met me there, had similar results with him.  Is this a mistake?

Never having adopted before, I was completely green to the process.  I had it in my mind that I'd be meeting and greeting, and dropping off the fee and adoption request, then I'd get a call in a day or two with the good news after background checks and whatnot had been finished.  Imagine my surprise as I watched them take the cat from his cage and fight to get him into the carrier.  It took three grown women to accomplish this feat!  YIKES!!

They gave me his paperwork, a soft blankie, a toy mouse, a bag of catfood and a bag of kitty litter.  They said their goodbyes to "Pat", wished us both luck, and we were on our way.  Our first discussion was about his name.  I disliked the name "Pat", for a few reasons.  This cat would no longer be known as "Pat".  From now on, he would be known as Rorschach!  A very fitting name, considering his petite frame paired with his symmetrical markings.

He's the little guy in the back.

A quick stop at my friend's house, where she gave me some more cat toys and supplies, then we were on our way home.  I could tell it was a bit of an adjustment for him, it was about three days before he would retract his claws while walking around. His treks through the apartment conjured a strong comparison to velcro being pulled from its backing, repeatedly.  My apprehension as to whether or not we were a good fit was assuaged before the end of the first day, when he curled up in my lap and took a nap.  By the third day, he was sleeping on my bed with me. Being so tiny and light, I had no idea he had chosen to sleep on the bed, until  rolled over and disturbed him. He awoke immediately, and at three in the morning, I found myself cuddling and scratching a little cat who seemed to thrive on the attention.  It would be a week before he began purring, and when he finally did, I fell in love with its sound.

The vet couldn't write it if it wasn't true!

Ever since day one of having my apartment, every time I've opened the front door, I've announced, "Hi, Honey! I'm home!" My stepson* found it extremely amusing that I did this to an empty apartment. (*I know he legally isn't my stepson anymore, but I spent 7 years raising him, love him as if he was my own, and my family consider him to be my kid, so if you have a problem with that, deal with it.  I'm sure he'll be mentioned in future postings.)  These days, I continue said antic, but now Rorschach greets me at the door, tail wagging, when I do.  Cats are mysterious creatures, perhaps he learned that habit from Thunder.

What do you see?

A pretty butterfly.

And, now?

Some nice flowers.

Last one.

Love.

I can honestly say that this cat is one of the very few things in this world that can make me genuinely smile. He is definitely Daddy's boy, as he generally runs and hides from most anyone who comes over to visit.  There are only a couple people he will venture out for.  They must be special.

 

Happy anniversary, you fuzzy, little velociraptor.  We rescued each other! <3

No sleep 'til Brooklyn!!

Sorry folks, really phoning it in this time around.

I am exhausted.

Physically.
Emotionally.
Spiritually.

I got up relatively early today, and aside from shaving and showering, this post is about the only productive thing I've accomplished. And, I almost didn't bother with this.

I'm already worn down from work, but lately I've been fighting off a barrage of insanity and negativity. I try to take things like that with a grain of salt, but enough salt can crush a man. Also, unfortunately, negativity clings to me and I often have a hard time shaking it.

Apologies.

All work and no play makes Jer a dull boy.

All work and no play makes Jer a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jer a dull boy. All work and no

play makes Jer a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jer a dull boy. All work

And no play makes Jer a dull boy.

  All work an no play makes

Jer a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jer a dull

boy. All work and no play makes Jer a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jer a dull boy.

All

Work

And

No

Play

Makes

Jer

A

Dull

Boy.

  All work and no play makes Jer a dullboy. All work and no play makes Jer a dull boy.

All work

and no play

makes Jer a dull boy. All work and no play makes Jer a bull doy. All work and no play makes Jer

a dull boy.

  Yob llud a Rej sekam yalp on dna krow lla. Yob llud a Rej sekam yalp on dna krow lla. Yob llud a Rej sekam yalp

on dna krow lla. Yob llud a Rej sekam yalp on dna krow lla. Yob llud a Rej sekam yalp on dna krow lla. Yob llud a Rej

sekam yalp on dna krow lla.

Sweet dreams are made of this...

A funny thing happened the other night, and it reminded me of a similar incident that had occurred about ten years ago.

The other night, I went to bed with my television on, which isn't unheard of, for me. At about 2 or 3 in the morning, I woke from a sound sleep, which also isn't unheard of for me.  (It's been years since I've slept completely through the night.) I glanced around my room, looking for my cat, who usually sleeps on my bed, curled up against me, but I couldn't locate him. I expanded my search further, and found him, his form in front of the TV, staring at the screen, backlit by an infomercial. Only one thought crossed my mind...

They're heeeere!

Chuckling, I rolled over and went back to sleep.  I'm so glad I have my sense of humor.  I'd hate to think of myself sitting up all night, afraid to close my eyes.

Ten years ago, I was dating a woman who had two children, a daughter who was around 10, with really long, blonde hair and a son who was around 4, who sported a brown crewcut. Being that she lived a good distance away, we usually just saw each other on weekends, and I'd stay the night. We went to the theater to see the remake of Dawn of the Dead on one such weekend. The following weekend, I went and stayed over again. I usually slept on the sofa, but as I had become a stable fixture in their lives, it was the first night I slept in her bed with her, while the kids were home.

I awoke in the morning, bleary-eyed to a fuzzy world, as I have to wear glasses to see properly. In the doorway stood her daughter, in her nightgown, with her hair draped down her back, like a cape. It was Easter, and she had gotten up early, and wanted to wake us so we could get to celebrating. That time, the first thing that had entered my mind...

"Eeeeeeeeggs"

 My girlfriend woke to the bed shaking from my silent laughter. It took me a good five minutes before I could explain to her why I was laughing. She admitted that if it had been her, she wouldn't have handled that nearly as well.

I hope you enjoyed my anecdotes. I'm sorry this post is on the short side. We are in outage at work, and long days paired with lack of energy are to blame. Truth be told, I almost didn't post anything, but I've been trying to crank out at least one entry a week.

Yay willpower!

Coming this Spring... MORE WINTER!!!

Okay... Okay... Put away your torches and shovels, you angry villagers.  I'm not writing about the weather, this blog entry is about the newest Captain America movie... Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

I was hesitant to write about this for a couple reasons.  One being, several people have already blogged about it (One being my friend Phil, who did a great job here.) The other reason, it was such a great movie, but made in such a way, that it is very difficult to talk about it without giving away spoilers.

I took my nephew to see it, and he loved it.  Previously, Bane (from The Dark Knight Rises) had been his favorite comicbook movie villain, but now that title has changed hands.  It was great hearing some of his insight to the movie, and I was impressed that he remembered even some of the minor characters from other Marvel movies. (He remembered Gary Shandling as Senator Stern from the second Iron Man movie)

But, before I really delve into the movie... THE TRAILERS!!!

This was the first time I can remember ever being interested in seeing all the movies that were shown in the trailer lineup. It looks like it is going to be a HUGE couple of months for Marvel/Disney

Maleficent: Simply wow.  The effects looked great, Jolie seems to be a good fit for the title role, and it appears to have a nice dark humor to it, while still keeping somewhat kid friendly.  The commercial caught my attention, hopefully the film will keep it.

It does have quite a few crows... that always helps.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2:  I've always liked Spider-Man.  He's smart... I'm kinda smart.  He's a smartass... I'm absolutely a smartass. He can lift a dumptruck over his head... I can lift a... Tonka truck over my head.  When I first learned about this reboot, I was happy to hear that they were sticking closer to the books.  Gwen Stacey being his love interest and all helped make the character who he is. (Almost much as his Uncle Ben had)  Oddly enough, I hadn't watched the first of this series, I should really remedy this.  The new movie looks fun, my only letdown is the fact that the Rhino looks like a Transformer.

I am, however, cool with them taking away Electro's dandelion costume.

X-Men: Days of Future Past: Holy bankroll, Batman!!! This movie is teeming with famous faces.  The story, being one that bounces from past and future, they hired on many of the actors from the original X-Men movies as well as the actors from The First Class.  I am super psyched to see this one, even if the Sentinels look a bit (read: a lot) shrimpy.

They also look a lot like the Destroyer from Thor, to me. But, maybe that's intentional.

Godzilla:  I like Godzilla. In the past, I've watched some Godzilla films, but I wouldn't consider myself a fan. However, I do want to see this film.  Alas, the Statue of Liberty gets whupped on again.  She seems to be the yardstick to which giant monster and natural disaster movies are held.

Godzilla is the one who knocks.

"Wait. What?"

Guardians of the Galaxy:  I know very little about this story, having never read it.  I know of the characters through crossovers and whatnot, but this was not a title that I used to read back in the day. They trailer looked interesting and funny enough, that I'd be willing to plunk my money down to see it.

For the record, I know exactly how that machine works. EXCELSIOR!!

And now... On to the show!

Cap 2 was a very fun movie.  Our hero is still adjusting to a world that grew bigger as he slept as well as life as a (relative) civilian. The jokes and barbs at his expense are sprinkled throughout the movie, with the Black Widow starting it off as she first appears. The thing about the movie that was so great was, they actually took some time to flesh out the characters, make them human, and give you more reason to care about them.  Sure, it's fun to watch Steve or Natasha kick ass on the screen, but when you have insight as to why and how they fight so fiercely, you find yourself rooting that much harder.  And, considering BW never had a movie of her own, it was nice to get that chance to learn more about her.

Two things this movie really hit home were, Big Brother is watching, and any weapon you can pull in a fight can be taken from you and used against you. Hubris is a bitch.

A lot of stuff happens, that I painfully can't get into, because sighting parts of this movie, especially some of the cool ones, without giving away spoilers is seriously like navigating a minefield.  Espionage, cloak and dagger stuff... You get the idea. Even if I tried, I think this would jump around so much, it would be unreadable.

I liked Falcon's character.  I liked the background they gave him, and how he handled himself in the film.  It didn't hurt that he was given a few good lines. Again, fleshing out characters with backstory helped out here, giving him both some depth as well as reason to fall in with the Captain.

There was a scene where Natasha walked up behind Steve, blew a bubble with her chewing gum and snapped it in his ear. It was a very small thing, but I thought it was great.

Even though some characters weren't present, they helped contribute to the story in ways that made a lot of sense. There was no hide nor hair of Tony Stark or Bruce Banner, but they both had a petty big part in the story. I also enjoyed some of the namedropping done for characters that haven't had appearances or movies of their own. One mention that is getting a lot of press is Stephen Strange. I actually find this a bit annoying since he was mentioned in Spider-Man 2, and no one seemed to care. J. Jonah Jameson was trying to come up with a catchy name for Doc Ock and someone offered Dr. Strange. "That's pretty good. But, it's taken!"

It took quite a while for the Winter Soldier to make his appearance, but when he did, he did it with style.  It was even longer before he spoke, but that's okay.  Actions speak louder than words, and his actions already made it clear that he was a badass.

My nephew's face lit up when he appeared, because a) he was a fun character, and b) because my nephew had known about him but it hadn't clicked until he finally showed up on screen. When the first Captain America movie came out, for some reason they had added a Winter Soldier toy to the roster of action figures, even though he wasn't in the film. I had purchased these figures for him as a gift for his birthday, and had to explain to him who WS was. Years later, enlightenment.

Robert Redford did a wonderful job playing Alexander Pierce, and it was great seeing him in a movie again. I can't remember the last time I had seen him on film, but it was great seeing him bring Pierce to life.

Stan Lee had another great cameo.  I really enjoy seeing him pop up in these films, and it will be a very sad day when he passes on. I had the chance to meet him a few years ago, and shake his hand. (I wasn't supposed to shake his hand, but I'm rebel, Dottie) He's a really nice guy, and I am very happy to have had the chance to see him in person.

Marvel has been doing a fantastic job with continuity and crossover in these films. It's nice to see characters and plot devices pop up unexpectedly, and even nicer when their appearance makes sense.  However, it seems like they also fall into the cliche tropes that have been done to death. A military building where it doesn't belong, comes to mind. And, as cool as Nick Fury's spare key was, it was a bit far-fetched. It was nice that Sam got to keep his lightsaber from Star Wars. A couple other things come to mind as well, but... spoilers.

Overall, it really was a great film. I'd actually pay to go see it again, and I can't say I'd do that for most movies. So, if you're hankering to go to the movies, but not sure what to see, Captain America: The Winter Soldier is highly recommended by this viewer.

"You're a minifigure, Harry!"

I am a big kid.

I like video games...

I like Lego...

I enjoy the Harry Potter franchise.

So, it only makes sense that I should play the Lego Harry Potter video games. I started with the first game which covers years 1 through 4, which I got for a deal at $15, brand new at Toys R Us.  I enjoyed it so much, I picked up years 5 through 7 before I had completely finished it. Together, the games rang in just over $30, due to a sale on the second, which isn't bad considering they each probably ran near $50 or $60 when they first came out.  They are, as you'd imagine, very nerfed down, which is odd, considering the story deals heavily with death.  Sometimes, this just adds to the comedy.

You deserved better, Ced! (A dissected wizard, stuffed into a cup certainly isn't disturbing!)

The gameplay involved is pretty much the same as all the Lego games.  You WILL NOT get a perfect score on any level during the main story line, so there is a lot of backtracking involved later on in 'Free Play'.  There are areas that are only accessible to certain characters, or items that only react to certain skills (some skills, like advanced spells in the HP games, are acquired later).  This fact gave me pause to chuckle.  One of the aspects of the game deals with rescuing 'students in peril'... this can range from chasing away bullies, freeing said students from spiderwebs, getting them out of a jam that they have obviously put themselves in, etc. The one that cracked me up the most was a boy, trapped in a box that was wrapped in a heavy, metal chain and locked with a huge padlock.  I heard his thumping and muffled shouts for help during Year one, alas, Harry wasn't powerful enough to spring him.  The poor little fella was trapped in that box for 4 years until Harry was strong enough to blast off the chain that bound him within his confines.

"What did you learn in school, Son?"  "Patience... and how to sustain myself on my own tears and fingernails"

Being an older Lego game, the characters communicate through pantomime and various inflected sounds. This makes for some difficult storytelling, which explains why the newer games have actual voice actors with lines.  It just makes the story go a bit smoother, but in doing so, it does lose some of its charm.

So, as you go along, teachers teach you new spells which help you advance, some characters have a slightly different loadout than others ie, Harry could conjure a Patronus in Year 3, which others couldn't cast, but he could not cast Riddikulus, due to the Boggarts taking the form of Dementors when they'd pop out at him.  This makes it a fun challenge trying to get around obstacles with your given characters, or chosen characters, later on in 'Free Play'.  Some characters even get an extra goodie, Harry, for example, has his Invisibility Cloak, Hermione has Crookshanks, Nevil has a shovel.  All are very handy.

One gripe I had was with free play.  There were items that had red sparkles floating around them, which no one could access.  My guess was that you'd need Vold... He-who-shall-not-be-named to use them.  Since I hadn't unlocked him yet, I bought Kakarov, Headmaster of the Durmstrang School and known Death Eater, thinking that might do the trick, but to no avail.  Later on, I unlocked and bought Snape... because Snape's the shit, and he could manipulate those items because he was a Death Eater!  What the Hell???

Fun Fact: If you play the game on the Xbox, and have Snape hide in a barrel, you unlock an achievement called "Solid Snape".

Never rub another man's rhubarb!

A friend asked me if the spell loadout carried over from the first game to the second by going off the console's memory.  I had wondered that myself, I mean it couldn't be very challenging starting off with all the spells, so how does one make the game challenging without feeling like your character had been sent back to first year?  The game handled that brilliantly, by simply following the story.  "Hem hem!" Year 5 introduced Dolores Umbridge, the newest DADA teacher, and lapdog to Cornelius Fudge and the Ministry of Magic.  Paranoid that Dumbledore was creating an army to challenge the Ministry, Umbridge used her position to try to nip that in the bud.  *poof* four or so "dangerous" spells gone. (They also added new spells and goodies to make new puzzles and further the story.)

The second game changes a few things which made it a bit difficult.  Fine manipulation of Lego pieces seemed tougher the second time around, and they changed the location of where you buy some of the extras, but all in all, both games are a great deal of fun!

Mischief Managed!

Mawwaige

My weeks are usually quite boring.  I work at a job that is a bit under stimulating and sometimes quite aggravating.  Due to his fact, I tend to shy away from writing about my days here.  I really don't want this blog to become a bitch-fest, though I reserve the right do just that on occasion, should a topic warrant it.  My evenings usually find me haunting my apartment with my cat, watching TV or movies, or playing video games (and much to my chagrin, too often nodding off on the sofa right after eating dinner).  That is, unless I make plans to do otherwise.

I suppose, I shall once more regale you with the happenings of my weekend.  If you'll remember, in my last post, I wrote about the bachelor party for my friend.  If you don't remember, or haven't read it, go on back and do so... we'll wait...

Need more time?

Well, this past Saturday was the big day!  I spent the morning getting ready, I had to buy a card and pick up the gift.  Unfortunately, I couldn't seem to find my black tie or slacks (probably in storage), so I had to buy them as well.  I made a mental note of the pants size of my jeans before I left on my shopping trip, with the intent of just grabbing a pair off the rack and saving myself some time by not trying them on.  Luckily, while in the store, I had the nagging hunch to try them on... they wound up being a size too small.  I had a feeling that was going to be the case as soon as I had gotten into the changing room and saw myself in the full length mirror.

Maybe this will inspire me to workout more.

Last year, I had injured my knee.  No sooner did it get back up to snuff, my leg went through a serious trauma, then Winter had settled in with the laziness and indulgence that often accompany it, etc. etc. etc.  View them as reasons or as excuses, I won't argue either.  Long story short (too late!) I got fat.  But, I digress...

I had gotten myself around, shaved, showered, and dressed.  Earlier in the week, I had posed a query to my friends in Facebook as to whether or not I should wax and curl my mustache for the occasion.  The response was a resounding "Yes!".  The notion was further supported from a text I had received from the groom, on Friday night, encouraging me to do so.  Apparently, the bride's father was planning on doing the same thing, along with one or two others in attendance.  So, the mustache was waxed and curled.

A little late in the evening.

 The venue for the wedding was a nice little B&B about 40 minutes from where I live.  Both the wedding and the reception were held in an old barn, that had been repurposed for just such events.  It was actually quite lovely, decorated with white lights.  The guests were greeted by live strings, which played through (pausing for the wedding, itself) until the hors d'oeuvres were served, it was very elegant.

The groom and his men looked very handsome, the bride and her ladies were all lovely, and the wedding ceremony was beautiful, with its mix of humor and apparent love that they share with one another.  After the ceremony, while the wedding party ran the gamut of photos, the guests enjoyed hors d'oeuvres and located their assigned tables for dinner.  Soon after, the music switched over to a playlist of the bride's design, and she did a fantastic job with her choices.  Several people requested a copy of her playlist.

I had gone to the wedding stag, as I have yet to sucker anyone into dating me.  Weddings are an occasion where it is nice to have a date, what with all the dancing and such, so that was a bit of a downer.  On the up side, being that I was dateless, I was assigned to sit at the table of EVIL.  Table 3, home of the miscreants, trouble makers and ne'er-do-wells.  We did not disappoint.

At one point, I was pulled aside to participate for a photo of just the few who had the patience and ability to don our fancy, curled mustaches.  The bride's father informed me that I looked as though I should be holding a rapier in one hand, or sporting a Derringer.  The photo was captured with one shot, with no need for a re-shoot... 'cause that's how we roll.

Everyone seemed to have a fantastic time throughout the night.  There was much laughter, love and frivolity.  I, myself, had a wonderful time with my friends, as well as catching up with old friends whom I have not seen in years.

And, once again, I'd like to wish the bride and groom a lifetime of happiness together.

Narcissism, thy name is blog.

Blogs are, at their core, narcissistic things, this one being no different.  They need an audience, they need readers, they need validation, otherwise, they'd just be journals... tucked away under pillows or resting on writing tables, read only by the person who had set down the words to begin with.  That said, blogs need to be interesting, entertaining, humorous, etc., to gather and keep an audience.  Therein lies my dilemma.

I have a wide variety of interests, but just because I enjoy something, it doesn't mean you... the reader... would be at all interested in reading about it.  So, I've spent a week with my thoughts, wracking my brain for a topic that might fit the bill.  This is why I could never be a professional writer (well, one reason). I would not be able to keep to a deadline, or at the very least, I'd struggle with one.  Luckily, I have not imposed a stringent goal for my blog entries, they shall appear when they appear.

So, for lack of a better idea and for the sake of having written something, I give you... my weekend.

My weekend had a rough start, considering I missed work on Thursday and Friday due to a nasty migraine.  A fierce battle ensued... my weapons being sleep and copious amounts of hot tea, sweetened with raw honey from the Pine Barrens (a gift from a very good friend).  I am  fortunate in that, I don't get them as often as used to, but they do like to rear their ugly heads from time to time.  Unfortunately, when they do crop up, they render me almost completely useless.  I am not a fan.  And, as is par for the course, a persistent, albeit duller headache tends to linger after that migraine has passed.

Saturday was my friend's bachelor party.  Those who arranged everything did a very good job.  The groom isn't much of a drinker, nor was he interested in going to a strip club.  He does, however, have a considerable sweet tooth.  All those invited to attend were asked to bring a dessert of some kind, a table quickly filled up with pies, tarts, cannolis, Irish potatoes, and other tasty treats.  I myself baked chocolate chip cookies and bought a raisin soda bread from McCarthy's Tearoom in Bethlehem. (I was there anyway, as I was picking up loose tea for said groom since it always seems to be out of stock when he makes it into the area.)

The party was held at JT Baker's in Sellersberg, PA, in a private room.  A small group of friends attended, food was eaten, laughs were had, games were played.  A few of the games were Red Dragon Inn, a very fun card game from SlugFest Games (the company happens to be owned by a mutual friend of ours), Cards Against Humanity (another card game, it's like the game Apples to Apples... but very wrong) and Smashup, among others.  A good time was had by all.

Sunday was a lazy day.  I finally got to watch Kickass2 and Hunger Games: Catching Fire, and enjoyed both.  I think I liked Catching Fire more than the first movie, but neither held a candle to their respective books.  No idea how I'll feel about the third movie, considering it was my least favorite book of the three.

Movies watched, restless from all the sleep I had had, and feeling fat from all the eating, I felt the need to get out and do something.  A few weeks ago, my friend took his daughter to go see the Lego Movie.  Ever since, they had been collecting the smaller sets to construct together.  He mentioned to me that he was having a hard time locating a set that his daughter was very interested in.  I made it my mission to track it down, because I seem to have a knack for finding things like that.  Between my leet internet skillz and fancy legwork,  my labors bore fruit.

Everything is awesome!

Because the internet needed another blog!

My inaugural post!

One day, you'll be able to tell your friends, "I was reading that blog before it was cool"

I've really no idea what I'll be writing about as I have a number of interests and ideas, thoughts and notions, but I am happy to have you along for the journey.  I suppose we shall figure it all out along the way.

Stay tuned!!