Whole lotta shakin’ going on this month. I got a promotion. And I moved to dayshift. Yay! My work hours decreased, which is a wonderful thing. I honestly forgot how intoxicating sunshine felt. I have eschewed my vampire coffin for seeing my shadow walking with me and birdsong. It makes me wonder why I didn’t do this long before. I have so much more time for myself now. Man, how I have missed it!
American Gods by Neil Gaiman: I’m still waist deep in this great little Gaiman tome. I have fallen behind in my reading, but each time I immerse myself in this story, I have to ask myself why I took so long to get back into it. I keep encountering these wonderful written nuggets that make reread passages over and again. It truly is like panning for gold. Neil Gaiman makes me sad in a way because I know as long as I live, I will never be able to put pen to paper and exude magic quite like he does.
Reacher Season One on DVD: I’ve been watching this series with my stepfather. As you know, I’m a fan of the books, so the Jack Reacher in my mind is different than any recent rendition of him in any other media that’s popped up in the past few years. Tom Cruise plays a good character, but he’s not the Reacher I see in my mind’s eye. Alan Ritchson, in the series spawned by Amazon Prime, and the one I watched this month is much too young and “pretty” to be the Jack Reacher I know of. Or so I thought. This guy totally grew on me. I think he may change my own Reacher book paradigm. This series is compelling and is wholly accurate to the first book, yes, that’s right. The first season is based solely on the first book of a series that expands to well over twenty books. Season 2 has already been slated to release in December. I can’t wait! I don’t often binge watch anything, but this has been an enjoyable exception.
Baldur’s Gate on PC: Still chugging away at it. I’m in the middle of Chapter 3 (of 5 chapters?). This old school game renewed is every bit as enticing as anything I’ve played in recent years, despite its yesteryear graphics. I’ve probably said it before but it’s like popping open a great fantasy novel and diving into it, becoming more than printed words on paper, more like an immersive experience – a waking dream. My ranger – beastmaster character is at level 4 now, not too far away from level 5. He is more than the sum of his parts simply due to the party members that accompany him. Each with compelling stories of their own and enough magnetism to make you reload each time one of them dies. The thought of watching them die and not being able to continue the game without them is unthinkable.
Railroad Corporation on PC: I recently tried to get through Railroad Empire which I purchased on Steam some time ago and couldn’t do it. I really wanted to like the game with its cartoony-like graphics. It was a cross between Sid Meier’s Railroad Tycoon 3 and Sid Meier’s Railroads! But I couldn’t finish the scenarios. I even watched YouTube vids and tried to mimic them. They were just too difficult. I ended up uninstalling the game. Railroad Corporation seems to be scratching that railroad simulation itch I get from time to time. It’s more of an economic sim than an actual railroad operation sim. There is no train switching or complex track laying involved. (Definitely a welcome reprieve from Railroad Empire.) In this, you don’t own the railroad. You actually work directly for a robber baron, lining his pockets thereby lining your own. It’s a wonderful time sink that’s been utterly fun without being frustrating. (So far.)
Nothing But Thieves: Dead Club City on Amazon Music: This band popped up on my Sirius XM, and I’ve not been able to stop listening since. A group of five members including 3 guitar players colored me interested from the get go. They are compared to Queens of the Stone Age, but I liken them more to one of my favorite bands, The Killers. I would suggest you listen to “Overcome,” and I’ll defy you not to fall in love with the sound.
Jagged Alliance 2 on PC: I had to restart this incredibly difficult and set it on Easy this time. I loved the original, and as I’ve probably mentioned it on here before, I played all the way through (and I’m the only person I know of who ever has beat it.) And, with that said, I can’t recommend the first game to anybody. The graphics are just too old and muddy. Not surprising since I played it in 1997. Jagged Alliance 2, isn’t much better from a graphic standpoint, but Jagged Alliance 3 released earlier this year and it’s getting stellar reviews. Since I played the first one, I just have to beat the second one before I can move onto the third. Go me, the eternal purist.
The Black Phone on Amazon Prime: This is probably the most interesting horror movie I’ve seen all year. It’s more a psychological slow burn than an in-your-face jump scare horror movie, but the main star of the movie is the setting and the attention to detail used to convey that setting. Taking place in 1978, I found very few (if any) anachronisms. The clothes, the cars, hairstyles, and what I notice most of all, the way the people talked. Scott Derrikson and C. Scott Cargill (writers and director) nailed the time period. And I didn’t realize this was based on a short story by Joe Hill. (I personally think he’s the better writer than his father.) Ethan Hawke’s creepy mask wearing villain resembles Lon Chaney from his vintage London After Midnight character. He pulled the role off so well I kept finding myself disbelieving it was actually Ethan Hawke beneath the mask and makeup.
