Edward's June 2019 Mix

Summer shutdown. Yay! Elation! Actually, I feel like as pressured as I do at work. There are things I MUST accomplish in this time frame. I spend too much time being lackadaisacal, but isn’t that what vacation is supposed to be about? I did spend time at the Sweetwater Gearfest 2109 which was a mini vacation in itself. (Sorry if you don’t live in Indiana!—it’s so worth it!) This one might be one for the record books: a total of eleven items! 

When the Legends Die by Hal Borland. I remember seeing this book in my high school library, but always passed it up. It’s about an Native American kid wrested from his parents into the great white world. He becomes a rodeo star. Here is my review, shamelessly plagiarized from my very own Goodreads.com review: “A gritty tail of a Ute Indian being torn from his native ways by having his braids cut, being forcibly introduced to the white man's way of school, and growing up to be a rodeo star. As his native ways erode and he embraces his life as a rodeo star, christened Killer Tom Black because of his reputation for riding rodeo broncs to death, in all out revenge for his seduction into the white man's world, in a twist of fate brought on by injuries in the ring, he begins to wrestle with the man he has become, estranged from his Indian ways, and his desire to return to them. This is a book I passed on in high school where I first saw it. I recently rediscovered it, and realize now it would have been remiss had I missed it.”

Magician by Raymond E. Feist: Each time I open my Amazon Kindle and immerse myself in this novel, I lose contact with the phenomenal world. Memorable characters and a plot as compelling as superglue binding two fingers together, this is some truly fun reading. This marks the beginning of a series that spans almost two dozen books. And yes, I’m probably in it for the long haul. 

Car Mechanic Simulator 2014 on PC: Who would have thought a wrench turning simulator would be so addictive, but alas! It is! Pretty simple concept, a customer brings in his or her vehicle for a repair, listen to their complaint, write up a complaint, and fix the problem. Take their remuneration and upgrade your tools, garage, etc. It’s tedious, but addicting. (But hey, at least you don't get busted knuckles and lose your tools.)

Kards on PC: An addictive free to play WWII collectible card game. Reviews on Steam are good for the most part, but I am starting to see some pay to win shenanigans. Still. I’m hooked. And did I say, it’s Free to play? A team of alienists must have conspired to create this one because it’s got my addictive personality on fire.  

   

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol on Blu Ray: This one has us visiting magnificent locales as The Kremlin and the Birj Khalifa in Dubai. We see Cruise perform his own stunts with hang wires and harnesses outside of the Birj. There must be a method to Cruise’s arrogance because I know in my heart of hearts there’s no way I could do my own stunt were it to come to scenes like this. The man definitely has my admiration and respect. Action scenes notwithstanding, this movie is full of the typical twisty, windy plot, the gadgetry and the high level bling of any other movie in the series. This one, directed by Brad Bird, who we know and love from The Iron Giant. And every bit as over the top.  

Dragon Age II on PC: I just hit 60 hours, and like a great novel I can feel it beginning to wind down. I’m at level 18 and I feel like I’ve risen from an underling to champion of the world. It’s been a good ride, but I’m ready for it to end. I still have a few sidequests and companion quests left. I’ve helped Isabella finagle her way into owning a trader ship, and she’s asked me to be her first mate. When things are finally settled in Kirkwall, perhaps I’ll take her up on that, forever chasing the horizon.

  

Indianapolis by Lynn Vincent & Sara Vladic: This book tells one of the worst stories I’ve ever encountered. The aftermath of the sinking of one of the US Navy’s finest cruisers in July of 1945, and the aftermath of the survivors who weren’t rescued for four days afterward. I’m well into the ship’s captain, Charles McVay’s court martial, which in typical Navy fashion seems contrived and totally unnecessary. Words like “fall guy,” and “scapegoat” seem to be the order of the day.  The book fast forwards to the mid 1990s in which a congressional investigation was opened into the case with some new light shed on the facts and new admissions from the US Navy that they aren’t the perfect embodiment of justice, prone to error like any other entity and an exoneration of Charles McVay, long after the fact that McVay ended his life by suicide (as did more than a dozen of the ship’s survivors over the years.) 

The Natural on 4K Blu Ray: This was the first movie made by TriStar Pictures who went on to be a major player in the world of movies. Starring Robert Redford as an aging walk on rookie in the major leagues in the 1930s with an almost divine ability to play the game, this has been regarded as one of the best sports films of all time. I hadn’t seen this since its release back in 1984, and I remember it being impactful. It was every bit as impactful as it was back then. Based on a novel by Russian immigrant, Bernard Malamud, he once stated after watching his novelization on the screen come to life,  “Now I’m an American writer. Robert Redford and Barry Levinson (director) made me an American.” The film was nominated for numerous Academy Awards, including best picture but only garnered one: Best Original Score. (Which I’m not a Randy Newman fan – too happy go lucky music in his films, but this one is a humdinger for sure. The 4K resolution was beautiful; I’ve not seen it compared to the DVD, but there was no graininess anywhere to be found. Interestingly, they producers asked Fenway Park if they could use their field to film this movie. Fenway Park said nope. Remember that, baseball fans! 

Sid Meier’s Railroads! on PC: I finished this way back in 2006 when it made its debut, again in 2013 and again last year in 2018. And here I go again for a fourth play through. I just can’t seem to get enough of it. I’ve always loved Sid’s Railroad Tycoon strategy games. This one was a big departure from his Railroad Tycoon 3 released in 2003. Many fans hated the new iteration, but with its cartoony graphics and light on trading sim aspects, I loved it. The only thing I hate is there doesn’t seem to be a Railroad Tycoon 4 anywhere in sight. There are a few contenders on Steam, but nothing that actually compares. I think it’s safe to say this is my favorite strategy game of all time with Relic’s venerable Company of Heroes running a close second place. 

 

Thin Lizzy “Dedication: The Very Best of” on CD: I’ve always enjoyed this band from when I was a kid listening to “The Boys are Back.” Fronted by Dublin, Ireland bassist, Phil Lynott, this band pioneered more than a few things. It was one of the first bands to make popular the idea of two main guitarists. It was a band formed with Irishmen from different social classes, and Lynott was the first black Irishman to make it big in the rock scene. They took their influences straight up from Jeff Beck and Jimi Hendrix. And in turn, they were one of Metallica’s inspirations. This album scored high marks on the dr.loudness-war site I frequent, meaning no dynamic range compressing remastering bullcrap! I had no idea before listening to this album that Thin Lizzy did the song, “Whiskey in the Jar,” and Metallica only covered it. 

Sweetwater GearFest 2019! Ft. Wayne, Indiana: This is a sort of mini NAMM Show promoted by northern Indiana’s premiere music store, Sweetwater. There is much to see and do. I can see why local hotels bear No Vacancy signs. There are tents galore filled with factory representatives from Fender, Gibson, Paul Reed Smith, Orange, Yamaha and Roland just to name a few. I got to meet Stan Cotey, the designer/builder of Fender effects pedals. He shook my hand and through talking to him I was convinced to pick up two new pedals, a chorus pedal and a distortion pedal. I’ll probably never use my Boss DS-1 ever again. I had watched numerous YouTube demo vids of Cotey accompanied by former Oak Ridge Boys guitarist Don Carr and it was like meeting a celebrity. I don’t know if this will become a yearly ritual for me, but I am definitely returning next year!