Edward's March 2012 Mix

I'm coming up on being a century old and I have to say this has been the most unusual March as far as weather is concerned I've ever experienced. So, my mix this month has been intermingled with getting back on the bike and hitting the fitness center. Every day exudes that tingly wonderful thread of uber excitement like back in high school when you only had two weeks left of school and all you could do was stare out the window and try to keep your joy from bursting out of you like Mount Vesuvias But on the few rainy days we've had and the late nights I have been able to indulge my cultural diversions. And without further ado, here they are:

  

1. Tiger Woods’ PGA Tour ’08: 

I’m still working my way through. I have 5 golfers left until I confront Tiger Woods, himself. It's been a great game. 103 hours so far and I'm beginning to wonder if there is a longer sports game on the planet. I'll keep driving through (pun intended) to get to the end of this thing. I suppose I should relish it because this will probably be the last golf game EA makes for the PC.

2. Dorothy and the Wizard in OZ by L. Frank Baum on Kindle: 

This is the 4th book in the series, and I wasn't prepared for how really dark this series of books is. I can see why it met with the same controversy the Harry Potter books did by the right wing denizens. This particular book finds Dorothy returned once again to Oz by way of a San Francisco earthquake in which she is swallowed up by a crack in the earth. The threat of death ever looms, and Dorothy and her companions (no Toto this time, but a kitten named Eureka) narrowly escape each time (so far.) Good reading.

3. Syberia:

Plodding along on my laptop with this one. I've actually stooped so low as to use a walkthrough, but sheesh, the game would be impossible to play without one. But don't take my word for it, all the forums concur wholeheartedly. Still, it's a tour de force as far as adventure games to, even if I do have to play it like a cheap Dollar General paint by numbers paint set.

4. Adventures in my Youth: A German Soldier on the Eastern Front 1941- 1945 by Armin Scheiderbauer on Kindle:

“Harrowing account of a Wermacht's account of the Russian retreat which was a fighting retreat all the way. The author gets windows glimpses of the life he left at home and what's happening on the Western Front through letters from his parents. Odd how the Germans seemed to almost revere the Americans and Brits in direct contrast to their thoughts of the Russians being almost monsters. This account details the author's reminiscences on from what it was like to kill someone to the dreaded uncertainty of his future as a Russian POW. Powerfully written. The book could have used an appendix of maps. It does, thankfully, have a glossary of German words."  (Plagiarized from my very own review on Shelfari.com. Heh.)

5. The Iceman Cometh by Eugene O'Neal on DVD:

My parents have been hounding me to watch this with them, so reluctantly I went over and sat through it. It's a play created for television in 1960. I'm not a fan of plays (especially televised ones) but Jason Robards was excellent in his role, and it was cool seeing Robert Redford playing a guilt ridden youth driven to suicide. The whole play occurred in a run down bar populated by hopeless drunks filled with lost hope. If you feel like being depressed check this one out.

6. Levi 501 Classic Button Fly Jeans:

Been looking forever for a pair of these classic jeans. My wife found them through JC Penny online. Putting them on for the first time was a sort of homecoming. I suddenly felt very cool again. Hard to believe a pair of pants a peddeler introduced in a mining camp in the 1870's became such a legacy. On a sour note, these pants were made in Mexico. "nihilne sanc­tum est?”  

7. PC Gamer Magazine 2002:

Reading through the year 2002 PC Gamer Mags. This was definitely a good time to be a gamer. Medal of Honor: Allied Assault, Return to Castle Wolfenstein and Ghost Recon (probably my favorite game of all time) were fresh off the burner. These magazines bring back oh so sweet memories.

8. Memoir from an Antproof Case by Mark Helprin:

I'm engaged in this tome about a man whose adventures and misadventures have led him from everything from being billionaire to being a pauper, of being shot down as a WWII fighter pilot (twice) to carrying out a multimillion dollar bank heist. Helprin's metaphors and use of language makes me grin all over. If I could only write half as well. Sheesh. "I was not constructed to celebrate the senses. I could never celebrate anything. Nor have I ever wanted to, as celebration has always seemed to me to be the merely mechanical replication of a vital moment that has fled."