I just learned that Mr. Bert I. Gordon has passed away at the ripe age of 100. Those with even a passing knowledge of the sci-fi films of the 1950s do not need to be told about Mr. Gordon, nor those who grew up watching Mystery Science Theater 3000, of which he was a frequent … Continue reading RIP Mr. B.I.G.
History
Friday Flotsam: Lent and Reading
1. So another Lent begins. This year I'm focusing on purgation, clearing out habits that have been a drag on my mind and attention span. In particular I'm giving up most video media: no perusing YouTube, no movies, no shows, etc. I'll still work on my own videos some, and still use 'ambience' videos (which … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Lent and Reading
A Little ’80s Love
I happened across this video the other day; a well-made bit of nostalgia that really does capture a lot of the cultural tone of the era (apart from a severe lack of Jason Voorhees). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATFM5Oq_oCI Same guy also has one for the '90s. Also very good, though serious lack of Beast Wars. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93g_40atCgA
Some Christmas Music
In the words of Ross Scott, "I've got some good Christmas music for you this year!" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPdHkHslFIU
‘A Gentleman Instructed’ Now Available!
My freshly-edited edition of A Gentleman Instructed in the Conduct of a Virtuous and Happy Life, by William Darrell S.J., is now available on Amazon! And just in time for the Christmas shopping season. "For what can even fancy paint more charming and more glorious than grandees neither abject in adversity nor insolent in prosperity; … Continue reading ‘A Gentleman Instructed’ Now Available!
Friday Flotsam: Voting, Veterans, Video, and a Gospel Verse
1. I voted this past Tuesday. Might be the last time I do, since I reject the liberal paradigm that the practice represents and I find the whole thing to be frankly absurd anyway. Though I'll probably still vote in local elections, once I settle down somewhere, since I think those are the only ones … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Voting, Veterans, Video, and a Gospel Verse
Flash ‘Apollo 13’ Reaction
The other night I finally got around to seeing Apollo 13, and it was the most enthralling and satisfying film experience I've had in a very long time. Damn, I'd almost forgotten we used to make movies like this; gripping accounts of actually worthwhile true events, focusing on intelligent, mature, professional men working to solve … Continue reading Flash ‘Apollo 13’ Reaction
Friday Flotsam: Mostly On Halloween
1. "The spirit of wickedness in high places is now so powerful and so many-headed in its incarnations that there seems nothing more to do than personally to refuse to worship any of the hydra's heads."-J.R.R. Tolkien (from a letter written in late 1969) 2. Our problem with Halloween is that we miss half the … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Mostly On Halloween
Feast of St. Boethius
There are a surprising number of people whom even knowledgeable Catholics don't realize are Saints, and Boethius is one of the more prominent. While secular scholars loftily debate whether he was even Christian (which seems to me absurd given even a cursory reading of De Consolatione), the Church has recognized him as a Saint and … Continue reading Feast of St. Boethius
‘Good Ole Rebel’ at the Everyman
My latest piece is up at the Everyman: I’m very fond of the postbellum Confederate song ‘Good Ole’ Rebel’. Dating from the bitter days of Reconstruction, it offers a defiant rejection of the new order: Oh, I’m a good ole’ rebel, now that’s just what I am For this ‘fair land of freedom’ I do not … Continue reading ‘Good Ole Rebel’ at the Everyman
Serpent's Den 