A friend of mine suggested that I download a copy of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (it’s free on Amazon). Having been forced to read the likes of Great Expectations in school, I couldn’t see much use for Dickens – unless, of course, you wanted to depress yourself. From my young perspective, all of […]
What’s your experience with a time-travel TV show or movie? Was it uplifting? Was it an angst-filled diatribe about a dystopian future? Maybe it was a hypercautionary tale about the dangers of changing the past and potentially eliminating oneself from existence. Or maybe time travel was used to put lovers together who were impossibly separated […]
Do you remember which scary movies cost you sleep as a kid? And by extension, which ones cost your parents sleep when you kept them up with your heebie-jeebies? If we’ve grown into healthy and stable adults, those same movies can be viewed again without any ill effects at night. More often than not, we […]
I’m going to throw out some phrases that are commonly used in certain businesses. See if you can guess what kind of business. Where’s the 3/16” drill bit? Hand me that socket wrench. Better torque down that cap some more. What did you guess? I was recently an earwitness to these phrases as some […]
The movie Blade Runner was based on the short story Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, published in 1968 by important science-fiction author Philip K. Dick. The film deviated from the original story, but even if you hadn’t read it, the movie’s plot stands on its own. It takes place in a dark future on […]
At Star Trek’s military service Star Fleet Command, there’s a strict code of conduct. Officers have to play nice with others, no matter how many ridges or spots or off-putting facial features other Federation of Planets species may have. In other words: fairness to all, no matter the discomfort it may cause you. And there […]
If a tree falls in the forest, does it have to block my driveway … or knock out my power? About a week ago, my wife and I were minding our own business, happily reconnecting over a board game. Every now and then we make it a point to ask – how’re you doing? Two […]
Should I be ashamed to admit that I’ve enjoyed the show Young Rock on NBC? I get a kick out of Dwayne (The Rock) Johnson narrating his experiences growing up in a wrestling family. To me anyway, it’s nostalgic revisiting the exploits of the likes of Andre the Giant, Rowdy Roddy Piper, Randy “Macho Man” […]
When I was a kid, I aspired to be like my heroes; most of us did. I liked the superheroes, but I also liked those without any supernormal abilities too, such as The Lone Ranger. He proved that one didn’t have to be born on the planet Krypton to be something special; ambition and training […]
In 1979 I graduated college, so to all outward appearances I was an adult. However, seething under the surface of this grownup was a rabid Star Trek fan who had closely followed the rumors of a big-screen production of the old show. Several of my classmates anticipated reliving the wonders of life in Starfleet ten […]
