tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10137888985271945642024-02-07T14:13:04.160-05:00Wibbly-wobbly, Timey-wimey BlogThe random writings of T.J. Blackburn
<br>on the intersections of his passions and on his observations of the world in general.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger64125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-12214070918818974102015-04-07T00:55:00.002-04:002015-04-07T01:04:06.552-04:00Changes 2015<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
You may have noticed a few changes slowly rolling out here at Wibbly-wobbly, Timey-wimey Blog. Yes, that right. I've decided on a slight name change. It's not as significant as some of the new title I had been considering, but it is a change. Who knows it might change again. I doubt it. I can't seem to bring myself to go from a general blog to one that covers a more niche audience, say, social media or movie reviews. I think the name reflects this.<br />
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The next—and more obvious—change is layout.<br />
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It was really difficult for me to bring myself to change the look that I've grown so accustomed to. However, I really felt that the old look had gotten stale, and I have to admit, it was ugly, cluttered and purple. The layout is still evolving, and I am still making changes to make the site more mobile-friendly and visually appealing, but I think I've got my new layout.</div>
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What else? What else? A new, cleaner and better written "About" page is up, and a "Resume" tab is slowly coming to fruition.<br />
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Finally, I start to post again, I hope to better adhere to best practices for blogging. </div>
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So what do you think so far? Is there anything you'd like to see? Any gadgets, widgets or functionality you think I missed? Have an idea for a tab I should include? Let me know in the comment fields below.</div>
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For all of those who miss the old layout, click "Read More" below to access a screen cap of how it all use to be.<br />
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Until next time, Allons-y!<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-81421723260164132962015-02-09T14:17:00.000-05:002015-03-31T00:46:53.860-04:00The Walking Dead Season 5B Predictions [Spoilers]<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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AMC's <i>The Walking Dead </i>returned to last night to eat our hearts out. Since everyone on the Internet has already reviewed and/or spoilered it for everyone else, I'm not going to review the episode or go into scene by scene recap. (Though the image above probably says it all). I will say that it was beautifully done and ranks as one of my all-time favorite episodes in the series.<br />
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It’s no secret I almost gave up on The Walking Dead back in Season Two. I was a purist back then, and I couldn’t separate my love of the Robert Kirkman’s graphic novels to appreciate the TV series for what it is. I could go into great detail about my conversion, but that’s probably best left for another post entirely. Suffice it to say, I’m glad I stuck it out. Looking back I’ve come to the conclusion that Season Two may be one of the strongest seasons in the series.<br />
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I’ve wanted to write reviews of AMC’s <i>The Walking Dead</i> for some time now, but I’ve been a little bit of a slacker. Perhaps I might still. Maybe a binge watch review or a seasons ranking post. We’ll see. For now I think I’ll stick to making predictions for the rest of the season.<br />
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Anyways, despite its strengths, Season Two deviated significantly from the comic, and the rest of the series seems to have been a slow trudge to getting the show more in line with the comics. As we’ve seen in the back-half of season four and the first half of five, the pace seems to have accelerated. Therefore, my predictions finds most of its basis on the idea the show-runners are bringing the two story lines closer together and staying more faithful to the milestone moments from the comics.<br />
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With that in mind, lets get the predictions under way. As always: SPOILERS.<br />
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<b>#1: We’ll see Alexandria by the end of the season. </b><br />
If you read the comic book, you know that we are well into the trek from Atlanta to Washington D.C. story arc. We’ve seen the Hunters in form of the cannibalistic Terminants, met Father Gabriel, and are 100 miles from the Washington. Despite that fake out with Shirewilt Estates in last night’s episode, if the show-runners are indeed following the comic books more closely, we should be introduced to the city of Alexandria soon. Bearing in mind that creator Robert Kirkman has confirmed that a “a very prominent gay character from the comics” will be introduced during 5B, this is more than very likely. If you haven’t read the comics (and why haven’t you yet?), there are two prominent gay characters in the comic. The first, Aaron, is the Alexandria scout who brings the group to the safety of Alexandria safe-zone, and the other is fan-favorite Jesus, a trade ambassador who is part of the Hilltop community, another group of survivors the group encounters shortly after joining the Alexandria community. Theres a very good chance that both characters and communities will be merged into one, but either way I predict the show will enter the safe-zone story arc by season’s end.<br />
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<b>#2: Jesus, not Aaron</b><br />
As much as I would prefer that that Alexandria and Hilltop communities remain separate, I have a feeling that show-runners will merge the two to streamline the story line for television. That said, Jesus, in my opinion has more prominence in the comics that Aaron, and the character could easily stand in for both men. Honest, I think Noah will end up standing in for the Aaron character anyways.<br />
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<b>#3: Negan</b><br />
I’m not going to reward any of the folks who have yet to read the comics. If you don’t know who Negan is, look him up. However, with the cast members and producers all saying to expect an even darker second half, I’m predicting that the season finale will see Negan in all his evil glory. There was a lot of foreshadowing in the midseason premiere of the evil in the world that the survivors are living in. From the walker torsos in the back of the truck to Glenn’s missives about how it doesn’t matter who killed Dawn for killing Beth because there will always be evil people out there, it all points to a very bad encounter coming up for the group. If Alexandria (or a city like it) is coming up, you better believe Negan is just around the corner to fuck up Rick’s life. And that means...<br />
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<b>#4 ...Glenn dies.</b><br />
Spoilers. Sorry. But at least...<br />
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<b>#5 ...Maggie will be pregnant.</b><br />
Again. Spoilers.<br />
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<b>#6 Carol and Daryl</b><br />
Tyreese is dead. He didn’t make it out of the prison alive in the comics, now he’s gone in the TV show. To me, it was fitting that his death mirrored that of Alan (a character who didn’t exist in the TV show) in the comic since I felt that Tyreese was portrayed more like Alan anyways. Even the Tyreese-Rick dynamics was more like that of Rick’s and Alan’s from the comics, while Daryl, who is not in the comics, fills in Comic-book Tyreese’s spot in this regard.<br />
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That said, I think the <a href="https://www.tumblr.com/tagged/caryl" target="_blank">#Caryl</a> fans will get their wish and we’ll see the Tyreese-Carol romance from the comics play out between Daryl and Carol. I will say: since these two characters, especially TV-Carol, are significantly bigger badasses than Comic-book Tyreese and Comic-book Carol, I don’t expect this story to end the way it did in the comics.<br />
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<b>#6 Sasha and Rick</b><br />
Following the theme of characters standing in for other characters, I am betting on this one.<br />
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Dale died way too early in the TV show, so did Andrea.We never got the opportunity to see the romance and growth between the two that we saw in the comics. Fortunately, we were able to explore that relationship through Bob and Sasha took on the Dale-Andrea romance. Bob also stood in for Dale in the Terminus/Hunters story arc including dying much in the same way as Comic-book Dale did. With Comic-book Andrea still alive and playing a prominent role in comics, it’s only logical that Sasha should continue to fill in for the character on TV as the groups resident sniper. In fact, she already easing into the role. She already tackling Bob’s death just as Andrea did in the comics. Tyreese’s death provides her with the same experience of lost that Amy’s death provided for Andrea. We’ve even seen her show off her sniper skills against the Grady group and the Terminants. If things continue to progress, we should see the Rick-Andrea romance take shape between Rick and Sasha soon.<br />
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<b>#7 Death Watch</b><br />
We’ve witness lots of lost since the the fall of the prison. Many of these deaths involved one character standing in for another character’s comic book death. Herschel had Comic-book Tyreese’s death scene. Bob died in Dale’s place. Beth, who is a TV stand in for Comic-book Maggie’s brother Billy, didn’t die at the prison, but did so soon after. I think we can expect both Herschel and Beth’s death to affect Maggie in the same way it did in the comics…(hint...hint…). We’ve already discussed the significance of Tyreese’s death, which by was beautifully done by Chad Coleman and Greg Nicotero. This is probably one of my top five episodes of the series. So where does that leave us?<br />
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Well, if my Negan prediction pans out, we’ll probably see Glenn die by season finale. Abraham is next if things continue to stay true to the comics. However, I do think that, although Negan will be introduced by season’s end, the “All Out War” story arc will not get into full swing until the first half of Season 6. Therefore, Abraham may actually have until that season’s mid-season finale to keep breathing.<br />
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Tara and Noah are on my list, but only because I don’t like them and if we need a few red shirt kills these two are it.<br />
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Well, those are my Season 5B predictions. Let's see how they pan out.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-53334217631999558562014-08-05T12:35:00.000-04:002014-08-06T13:46:18.135-04:00Why Am I Just Now Learning About Humble Bundle?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
It is an immutable fact that I will inevitably be reminded of how out-of-touch I am, especially when it comes to the internet culture and discovering really cool websites. I blame my age.<br />
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Today's reminder came in the form of a tweet from I<a href="https://twitter.com/IDWPublishing" target="_blank">DW Publishing</a> that showed up on my Twitter newsfeed.<br />
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W/ over 120 issues for $15, you don't want to miss out on the Humble Transformers Bundle! Ends 8/6 @ 11:00AM PT <a href="http://t.co/MmNJJ6QGFz">http://t.co/MmNJJ6QGFz</a><br />
— IDW Publishing (@IDWPublishing) <a href="https://twitter.com/IDWPublishing/statuses/496407475826855937">August 4, 2014</a></blockquote>
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Intrigued, I followed the link to <a href="https://www.humblebundle.com/books" target="_blank">HumbleBundle.com</a> where I was immediately bombarded by the awesome!<br />
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As it turns out, many of my friends already use Humble Bundle to get game bundles on the cheap, and they made sure to point out how behind the times I am. Apparently, I've been living under a rock. In fact, Time recently listed Humble Bundle on their "<a href="http://time.com/3054279/50-best-websites-2014/" target="_blank">50 Best Websites of 2014</a>," calling it "a good place to go if you need some geeky entertainment on the cheap."<br />
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Formed in 2010 as Humble Indie Bundle and headquartered in San Francisco, Humble Bundle offers "digital creations" such as video games, eBooks, and digital graphic novels on a purchaser-determines-the-price model [<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humble_bundle" target="_blank">1</a>]. You can read more about them on their <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humble_bundle" target="_blank">Wikipedia page</a>, but I think their motto pretty much explains it all: "Pay what you want, DRM Free, Cross-platform, Helps charity."<br />
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It was the charity aspect of Humble's offerings that really got me to try them out, however. As it turns out, Humble Bundle often partners with publishers to release charity-driven bundles [<a href="http://time.com/3054279/50-best-websites-2014/" target="_blank">2</a>]. In this case, IDW Publishing is offering over 120 comic books (in collected format) of their popular <i>Transformers</i> comics for a minimum payment of $15. My only regret is that I'm learning about this deal the day before it ends. So I was not able to spread the word sooner and more often.<br />
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If you're interested in getting your hands on some <i>Transformers</i> Trade Paperbacks on the cheap while helping out charity at the same time, you better hurry. Apparently, this sale began two weeks ago and is scheduled to end tomorrow, Wednesday, August 6th, 2014 at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time. For this bundle, <a href="http://www.hasbro.com/corporate/en_US/community-relations/childrens-fund.cfm" target="_blank">Hasbro Children's Fund</a> will receive whatever portion of sales has been designated by purchasers to charity. If you missed it, fear not! There are other bundles currently available with more certainly on the way.<br />
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Purchasing a bundle and designating how your payment should be divided was surprisingly simple. Once you've created an account you can go to the page for the bundle you want to purchase and click the purchase button.<br />
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As you can see in the image below, you can pick one of the pre-determined amounts or customize your payment. Then, you can choose a "default split" or customize who gets your money by adjusting the sliders or inputting values in the field. With various payment options available, you can choose whichever funding method suits you best.<br />
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Your purchases can be claimed by logging into your account and accessing your order history. You can then link over to a specific bundle where you can then download your purchase.<br />
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Like I said. I'm excited and overwhelmed by how cool this is. I might be a late adaptor to Humble Bundle, but I think I'm now a loyal fan. I'll definitely be stalking the website from now on.<br />
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If you haven't already, <a href="http://www.humblebundle.com/" target="_blank">check them out for yourself</a>! Let me know what you think in the comment fields below. I'm truly interested in reading about your experience—the good and the bad. What do you think about Humble Bundle? Have you used them and ran into issues? If you had to contact support, how was your experience? Let us know.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-63396425117041561602014-07-24T14:30:00.000-04:002015-04-04T01:32:23.795-04:00Titan Comics Gives Us Our Doctor Who Fix in Two New Comic Series [Review]<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Well, we're officially less than a month away from a brand new season of <i>Doctor Who </i>and a brand new Doctor. Like many of you, binge-watching previous seasons has become a tradition for me, a way of welcoming the Doctor back into my life. But if you're looking for ways to add variety to your tradition, may I suggest picking up a copy of Titan Comics's two new comic books series, both of which hit the shelves yesterday, just in time to drive fans and comic collectors bonkers in the lead-up to Comic Con this weekend. Can you imagine the lines at San Diego of fanboys and fangirls, all vying to get their hands on the limited runs of convention exclusive covers? Already much of the retail copies of each title has sold out of their first printings—and not just copies of the incentive and chase variant covers, but of the regular runs as well. Personally, I like the regular Alice X. Zhang painted covers best.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="text-align: left;">You can check out some of the different covers available </span><a href="http://titan-comics.com/news/issue-1-variant-covers-for-doctor-who-the-tenth-do/" style="text-align: left;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="text-align: left;">. </span></span><br />
UK Diamond Exclusive Covers [Image Source: <a href="http://tennantnews.blogspot.com/2014/06/more-titans-doctor-who-comics-covers.html" target="_blank">david-tennant.com</a>]</td></tr>
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There were plenty of speculations about the fate of the Doctor Who comics after the BBC did not renew IDW's license at the end of 2013. When it was announced that Titan Comics had been awarded the license, rumors began to circulate that this move was only one in a series of maneuvers "to bring the US and UK publishing rights under one roof," but those were quickly denied [<a href="http://www.kasterborous.com/2013/08/has-titan-got-2014-comics-license/" target="_blank">1</a>][<a href="http://www.bleedingcool.com/2013/08/09/titan-comics-get-the-doctor-who-comics-licence/" target="_blank">2</a>].<br />
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Regardless the motivation behind the change in publishers, both Titan titles are definitely bigger on the inside (See what I did there?). I thought that the writers of both books captures the spirit of the Tenth and Eleventh Doctors well, not just in how David Tennant and Math Smith portrayed their respective characters on the show, but also the atmosphere of their respective television runs. The artists of each book play significant roles in translating each Doctor to paper and in rendering these stories in ways that are very appropriate to their respective Doctors. When it comes to story, Titan does not disappoint. Both books are set during periods in which the Doctor travels alone and introduce new companions to share the Doctor's adventures. Although spin-off media like comics are rarely considered canon, if Titan keeps their continuity as tight and as in line with the TV show and other spin-off media as IDW did during their tenure, we can expect these books to fit nicely within the series as extra-episodical adventures just as the IDW titles have.<br />
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Specific review on each title, after the jump. [WARNING: Spoilers possible.]<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Issue #1Alice X. Zhang <br />
Painted Cover Variant<br />
[Image Source: <a href="http://titan-comics.com/c/102-doctor-who-the-tenth-doctor/" target="_blank">Titan Comics</a>]</td></tr>
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<b>TENTH DOCTOR</b><br />
Writer: Nick Abadzis<br />
Artist: Elena Casagrande<br />
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This issue begins a five issue story arc in which the Doctor finds himself on the eve of Día de Muertos celebration in New York City where he meets Gabriella Gonzalez, a second generation Mexican-American, who is stuck between the rut of her obligations to her working class family and her unrealized dreams of college and a career of her own. Together they he must face "an infestation of psychic aliens."<br />
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Set sometime after "Journey's End," the loneliness and remorse the Doctor shows in this story seem to indicate that the series is set fairly soon after the lost of Donna Noble. I would even venture to say that the series falls before the events of "The Next Doctor," however we'll have to wait and see how the writers seed elements from the show's continuity to be certain. I thought IDW had done this very well during their tenure, keeping their books in line with the show chronology. So far, Titan has followed suit. Their one Easter Egg reference is spot on and might make you go<i> ding! (</i>hint, hint) when you read it.<br />
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The artwork is pretty forward. Casagrande's style is in line with modern styles of sequential art (her pervious works include <i>Angel, Suicide Risk, Hulk, </i>and <i>Spider-man). </i>She previously worked on the Tenth Doctor chapter of the IDW <i>Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time</i> mini-series, and she brings that same quality to Titan, once again capturing Tennant's likeness and charisma very well. You can find other samples of her work on <a href="http://elena-casagrande.deviantart.com/gallery/" target="_blank">DeviantArt</a>. While you're there, be sure to check out her character design for new companion <a href="http://elena-casagrande.deviantart.com/art/Titan-Comics-Doctor-Who-Gabby-the-new-companion-449595945" target="_blank">Gabriella Gonzalez</a>.<br />
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All in all, great opening story. It's more drawn out and slower-paced than its Eleventh Doctor counterpart and more reminiscent of "Rose" or "Smith and Jones" in how the first three-quarters of the issue introduces and follows the Doctor's new companion before dumping them in the middle of the craziness that seems to follow our favorite Gallifreyan. The story does end on a cliffhanger just as everything gets interesting, but that'll just keep me coming back for more.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Issue #1Alice X. Zhang <br />
Painted Cover Variant<br />
[Image Source: <a href="http://titan-comics.com/c/103-doctor-who-the-eleventh-doctor/" target="_blank">Titan Comics</a>]</td></tr>
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<b>ELEVENTH DOCTOR</b><br />
Writers: Al Ewing & Rob Williams<br />
Artist: Simon Fraser<br />
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Set between the events of "The Big Bang" and "The Impossible Astronaut," this title truly captures the essence that was Matt Smith's Doctor during the early days of his run: a mad man with a blue box who suddenly shows up and adds color to your dull, boring life. In fact, the creative team translates this quite literally into the page of this issue. The first few pages are rendered in gray scale reminiscent of Image Comic's <i>The Walking Dead</i>. In those page,<i> </i>we follow new companion Alice Obiefune as she copes with a humdrum exist that seems to become more bleak and sad with each panel. The only color, a small TARDIS blue blip in one panel, foreshadows what comes next for Alice. As we turn the page, we are greeted by a vibrant splash page as the Doctor enters her life—chasing a bright, multi-color space-dog. The art—and story—seems almost cartoon like after that, full of fantastic color and dizzying motion, reflect a Doctor that is full of the fun, grandfatherly spirit that epitomized the early Matt Smith episodes.<br />
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I really missed that Doctor, the Doctor before he lost Amy and Rory. He runs to get into trouble because they are fun. He is dark but you wouldn't know it by the clownish absent-minded professor persona he shows the world, replete with tweed jacket and colorful bow-tie. Even his TARDIS desktop theme reflects the madness and fun of this Doctor's personality. We have yet to see the Batman-ification of the later episodes. Unlike the Tenth Doctor adventure, which ends in a cliffhanger, this issue wraps up the internal conflict nicely, leading into the next installment with a brand new adventure, much like how "The Eleventh Hour" led into "The Beast Below."<br />
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Since this series is set during the period between Series 5 and Series 6 when the Doctor travels without Amy and Rory who are honeymooning and getting their lives together, I don't foresee this title facing many obstacles with continuity aside from establishing a firmer timely on when these events are set on the Doctor's timeline. My guess: after "A Christmas Carol" when the Doctor was chaffering the Ponds on their honeymoon, closer to the opening of "The Impossible Astronaut" when Amy and Rory are trying to build their lives together.<br />
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To sum it all up: two great books with top-notch creative teams. I'm definitely glad I decided to subscribe to the titles instead of waiting for the trade paperback collections. In fact, I'm now looking forward to October when Titan's Twelfth Doctor comic is set to premiere. Although I am wary about how Peter Capaldi's Doctor will translate to comics so soon after his debut. If history and Titan's work thus far are any indicators, we should be in good hands.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-82743527314101152692014-05-22T15:20:00.000-04:002014-05-24T14:35:37.911-04:00Avocado-Lime Cheeseburger [Recipe]<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">I’m bored with my usual birthday <a href="http://tjblackburn.blogspot.com/search/label/Birthday" target="_blank">posts</a>. More often than not, I end up making promises for this blog—and to myself—that I’ll most likely never keep. So, since it is a Thursday, I think today would be the perfect day for the next installment of my randomly recurring “Taste Bud Thursday” series instead. And since, for many of you, tomorrow marks the official start of the Memorial Day weekend and the start of grill season, I thought I’d share my recipe for avocado-lime burgers.<br>
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To be honest, I don’t remember exactly what inspired me to concoct this recipe. If I had to guess, I would say that I probably ordered something similar at a restaurant and figured I could make them at home. I’ve spent years experimenting on this recipe, years of pulling my hair out trying to keep my patties from falling apart. The avocado is excellent at keeping the patties juicy and plump. However, it’s best feature was also my worst enemy. I’ve tried adding bread crumbs and oatmeal, and I’ve tried using less avocado. My burgers fell apart all the same. Finally, after some research, I found a link that led me to <a href="http://www.rachaelray.com/blogs/index.php/2008/04/01/how-do-i-keep-my-burgers-from-falling-apart/">an advice page</a> for celebrity chef Rachel Ray’s website. In it she recommends refrigerating or freezing the patties for at least an hour before grilling. She goes on to point out that the patties should only be flipped once in cooking process. Excessive flipping contributes to breakage. Other websites recommend forgoing the bread crumbs and oatmeal all together. I gave Rachel Ray's suggestions a try and sure enough, it worked! <br>
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If you follow me on <a href="http://instagram.com/tjblackburn81">Instagram</a> or <a href="http://facebook.com/tjblackburn81">Facebook</a> or <a href="http://twitter.com/tjblackburn81">Twitter</a> you will know that I actually I posted the above picture two weeks ago. I had teased this recipe and had hoped to post it that Thursday but—oh well! Here it is now. I hope you enjoy. Please, comment with your feedback below. I’d love to hear your thoughts. And happy summer!<br>
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<b>INGREDIENTS & INSTRUCTIONS</b></div>
<br>
<b>Makes 4 servings<br><br>Burger Patties</b><br>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Half of a California (Hass) avocado, cubed</li>
<li>Juice from half a lime</li>
<li>1 Tbsp cilantro, coarsely chopped</li>
<li>1 lb Extra lean ground beef</li>
<li>1/4 tsp black pepper </li>
<li>1/2 Tbsp onion powder </li>
<li>1/2 Tbsp garlic powder</li>
<li>1 tbsp French’s Worcestershire Sauce, Reduced Sodium </li>
<li>1 tsp kosher salt</li>
<li>1 whole California (Hass) avocado, halved and sliced into strips</li>
<li>4 slices Pepper jack cheese</li>
</ul>
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Optional Ingredient</b><br>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>4 roll Arnold Sandwich Thins, Pre-Sliced, 100% Whole Grain </li>
<li>Uncooked red onion(s)</li>
<li>Mixed greens</li>
<li>Alfalfa sprouts (not pictured)</li>
</ul>
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<b>Steps</b></div>
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<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li>In a large mixing bowl, lightly mash cubed avocado with lime juice and cilantro and mix well. (I personally like to leave this mixture on the chunky side.) </li>
<li>Add ground beef, onion and garlic powders, and worcestershire sauce. Mix well. </li>
<li>Divide into 4 quarter pound patties and lay out on paper lined tray. Patties will be VERY moist and fragile. </li>
<li>Refrigerate or freeze for at least an hour or until firm. </li>
<li>When ready to grill, lightly salt each side of the patties before putting on the grill.</li>
<li>On a lightly sprayed grill, cook first side for 4–6 minutes, then flip. </li>
<li>Layer avocado and cheese on top of burgers and cook for an additional 4–6 minutes. </li>
<li>Serve with sweet potato fries and your favorite cold beer.</li>
</ol>
On a side note, I calculated the Weight Watcher’s points for this recipe. The patties are 8 PointsPlus each with avocado slices and a slice of pepper jack on top. I prefer to use Arnold Sandwich Thins (3 PointsPlus) for my bread. I serve this with some 3 PointsPlus sweet potato fries and wash it all down with about a hundred points in beer.<br>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-64356129755915441212014-05-01T10:00:00.000-04:002014-05-06T12:58:29.897-04:00UPDATED (2014) Weight Watchers 4 PointPlus Red Velvet Cupcakes [Recipe]<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-0b2216d5-b853-1cf1-a1fe-02ce6c5f397b">This past Valentine’s Day, I decided that I wanted to bake a red velvet cake for the Spousal Unit. As I set out on my mission, I remembered that the wife had just started back on Weight Watchers and was very conscious about what she ate. A brief search on das here Interwebs, and—BLAMO!—Weight Watchers red velvet cake recipes! I soon realized that all the search results were blog re-postings of a recipe <a href="http://www.food.com/recipe/ww-4-points-red-velvet-cake-137255" target="_blank">originally posted to Food.com in 2005 by a user going by the name mariposa13</a>.<br /><br />I decided to give it a try. It was only 4 Points a serving, after all.<br /><br />The cake turned out nice and was a hit with the wife. It was denser than regular cake but still pretty moist and flaky. The frosting, when the pudding and Cool Whip were blended together (more on this later), had a consistency and flavor similar to whipped frosting used by bakeries. Overall, the end results were unmistakably red velvet cake.<br /><br />However, I wasn't satisfied. I had encountered several stumbling blocks as I prepared the recipe as originally written. These challenges got me thinking about ways to improve and update the recipe. When I learned that I could follow-up on my theories for my final project in the technical writing course I'm taking at Georgia State, I leapt at the opportunity to experiment.<br /><br />So, dear friends and followers, I am proud to present to you the results of this culinary endeavor. We'll call this the first installment of "Taste Bud Thursdays," a new randomly-recurring series serving as my response to the over-saturation of Throwback Thursdays. I hope you enjoy the results, and—Please!—feel free to comment with your reviews and suggestions for improvement.<br /><br /><br /><b>INGREDIENTS & INSTRUCTIONS</b><br /><i>My notes on how and why I felt that the original recipe needed to be updated can be found after the jump.</i></span><br />
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<b>Makes 16 servings at 4 <i>PointsPlus</i> each </b><sup>[1]</sup><br />
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<b>Cake:</b><br />
<ul style="text-align: left;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-0b2216d5-b853-1cf1-a1fe-02ce6c5f397b">
<li>1 box (16.5 Oz) Duncan Hines Signature Red Velvet Cake Mix <sup>[2]</sup></li>
<li>12 oz diet Dr. Pepper soda <sup>[3]</sup></li>
</span></ul>
<span id="docs-internal-guid-0b2216d5-b853-1cf1-a1fe-02ce6c5f397b">
Mix cake mix and diet soda. Line cupcake pan with cupcake liners <sup>[4]</sup>. Pour mix into cupcake pan. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until toothpick poked into the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool completely.<br /><br /><b>Frosting:</b></span><br />
<ul style="text-align: left;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-0b2216d5-b853-1cf1-a1fe-02ce6c5f397b">
<li>2 small boxes of Jell-o fat-free, sugar-free instant cheesecake pudding mix <sup>[5]</sup></li>
<li>2 cups skim milk</li>
<li>4 oz (half a container) fat-free Cool Whip, thawed </li>
</span></ul>
<span id="docs-internal-guid-0b2216d5-b853-1cf1-a1fe-02ce6c5f397b">
Whisk pudding mix and milk together until smooth. Pudding will thicken as you mix. Once the pudding is thoroughly mixed, add Cool Whip and whisk well. Refrigerate until ready to serve <sup>[6]</sup>.<br /><br /><br /><b>Tips and Things I Learned While Play with My Food:</b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[Image Source: <a href="http://www.food.com/recipe/ww-4-points-red-velvet-cake-137255" target="_blank">Food.com</a>]</td></tr>
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[1] The original Food.com recipe valued each serving at four points each at 15 servings. This valuation is based on whatever formula the Weight Watchers program used in 2005. For this update, I recalculated the recipe into the PointsPlus system using the “Recipe Builder” feature on the Weight Watchers website. I inputted the ingredients into the program and the number of servings, then allowed the system to calculate the points for me. According to the “Recipe Builder,” the original recipe is now valued at 5 PointsPlus a serving. By reducing the amount of Cool Whip and increasing the number of cupcakes from 15 to 16, I was able to bring the points value back to four points per serving. Of course, by limiting or cutting out the frosting altogether, you can further reduce the points value of each serving to roughly two points per serving.<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span><span id="docs-internal-guid-0b2216d5-b853-1cf1-a1fe-02ce6c5f397b"><br />[2] The original recipe called for an 18 oz. box of Duncan Hines red velvet cake mix back in 2005. However, nowadays the only size I seem to be able to find is 16.5 oz. This update takes into account this change and factors it into the point valuation.<br /><br />[3] The original recipe uses 8 oz of diet Dr. Pepper. I found this volume made the mixture awkwardly thick and difficult to work with. Since the Weight Watchers points tracker feature valued a 20 oz bottle of diet Dr. Pepper at the same zero points as 8 oz, I added a little more soda to the mix until it was a more manageable consistency.<br /><br />[4] I’m taking a cue from Wendy Zitzman of <a href="http://www.laaloosh.com/2009/03/03/weight-watchers-red-velvet-cake-recipe/" target="_blank">LaaLoosh.com</a>. Pre-proportioning the recipe into 16 cupcakes is a lot easier and less messy than cutting a sheet cake slathered in frosting.<br /><br />[5] The original version of this recipe called for one large box of pudding mix, which in 2005 made eight servings. In 2014, the large box only makes six serving. (I think you all are seeing a pattern here. That’s the Recession for you!) For this update, I used two small boxes at four servings each to achieve the original volume. The updated points valuation reflects this change.<br /><br />[6] One of my biggest problems with mariposa13’s version had to do with the frosting. Her recipe called for the pudding to be spread onto a sheet cake separately from the Cool Whip, which was dolloped or spread on top of the frosting. I found the pudding too thin for this to work well. Also, I felt that the frosting tasted like pudding with Cool Whip on top, not cream cheese frosting, especially since her recipe uses a whole 8 oz tub of Cool Whip. Instead, I placed the mixed pudding in the refrigerator for about 10 minute prior to adding the Cool Whip. Doing so gave the pudding a consistency more like that of the frosting you might buy off the shelf. The pudding was less runny and easier to work with. I then whisked in only half the tub of Cool Whip. This actually made the frosting taste and behave more like whipped frosting used by bakeries. Also, by cutting the ratio of pudding to Cool Whip from 1:1 to 1:½, the points value dropped back down from 5 <i>PointsPlus</i> to 4.<br /><br />Coincidently, empty Talenti gelato jar are excellent for storing extra frosting.<br /><br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; text-align: center;">Weight Watchers Red Velvet<br />
Creme Cakes Nutrition Label</td></tr>
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On a side note: ever since I did a paper on </span><br />
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<a href="http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1819573" target="_blank">a study</a> published in the February 3, 2014 online issue of the JAMA Internal Medicine linking sugar consumption to death from heart disease, I’ve started being a little more self-conscious about my intake of artificial sugars, especially high-fructose corn syrup. I fail more often than succeed at regulating my consumption of these “bad sugars,” but at least I try. Unfortunately, everything nowadays, is infused in these added-sugars, making it hard to get away from it all. This recipe is no exception. When compared to the prepackaged Weight Watchers 2 <i>PointPlus</i> Red Velvet Creme Cake snacks, however, we find that this recipe fares somewhat better in regards to all those unpronounceable ingredients. If the points difference is a big concern, you can easily match the value by increasing the number of servings to 24 cupcake.<br />
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Still, my biggest concern is the ingredients in the diet Dr. Pepper. Weight Watchers is all about substitutions. Although diet Pepper is better than many of the other options, I feel it would behoove me to investigate this further since I like this recipe enough to make it again, after all. If I do any further experiments, I will of course let you all know about in a future post.<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-25389058770891619982014-04-30T11:30:00.000-04:002014-04-30T12:01:27.723-04:00The Advent of 3D Printing and Redefining Agriculture<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Not taking better advantage of Earth Day last week to do a series of environment-friendly posts continues to make me feel like a slacker about myself, this blog, and the environment. To make myself feel better, I though I would:<br />
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<li><a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=upload+pdf+to+blogger+post&oq=upload+pdf+to+blogger+post&aqs=chrome..69i57.7817j0j1&sourceid=chrome&es_sm=119&ie=UTF-8" target="_blank">Figure out</a> how to embed and/or link a pdf into blogger. (Coincidently, I also learned how to <a href="http://support.apple.com/kb/ht4075" target="_blank">insert</a> pages/other pdfs into and <a href="http://www.simpopdf.com/resource/how-to-delete-pdf-pages-on-mac-with-preview.html" target="_blank">extract</a> pages from a pdf on a Mac without paying a ton load for Adobe.)</li>
<li>Revise my term paper I wrote in March 2013 on 3D Printing and Agriculture for my "People, Plant, and the Environment" botany course at the Dunwoody, Ga. Campus of <a href="http://gpc.edu/" target="_blank">Georgia Perimeter College</a>.</li>
<li>Create a post inviting the world to read my very simple and idealistic paper on how 3D printing technology could one day help solve some of our environmental and energy problems in the hope that it may inspire others to take my very basic idea and save the world. (All I ask is that you give me all the proper credit and citations—monetary donations would also be welcomed should my ideas help you make beaucoup bank.)</li>
</ol>
Those tasks accomplished, I present to you my paper. Interestingly enough, the only criteria other than formatting that Professor Sharon Lambert gave the class for this term paper was that a) it had to be about plants and b) well, I can't remember if there was actually a "b)".<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Title: </b><a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_IGVjvC9RKDeVd3RHN2YVJsSFE/edit?usp=sharing" target="_blank">The Advent of 3D Printing and Redefining Agriculture</a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Author:</b> <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/in/tjblackburn81" target="_blank">T.J. Blackburn</a></div>
<b>Abstract:</b><br />
Used mainly for drafting and design, 3D printing, a relatively new technology reminiscent of Star Trek, has recently expanded its practical applications beyond commercial fabrication and manufacturing into the realm of medicine and the sciences. The author briefly explores the impact this technology is having on agriculture and posits the possible role 3D printing could play in alternative fuel production.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe height="480" src="https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_IGVjvC9RKDeVd3RHN2YVJsSFE/edit?usp=sharing" width="450"></iframe>
</div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-58978066252014107962014-04-23T14:35:00.000-04:002014-04-30T01:22:48.957-04:00Dear Hollywood, A Captain Planet Movie, Maybe? Please.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I want to apologize. I allowed Earth Day to sneak up on me, yesterday. I had planned to do a whole week of fun and timely, environment-related posts ranging from an an analysis of problems we are facing today to profiles on people trying to save the planet to (fun?) things you can easily do year round to help the environment. I don't know why I keep making promises. I only disappoint you and myself.<br />
<br />
Well, maybe next year.<br />
<br />
So here's a fun little fan-made trailer for a fake live-action movie of one my (and maybe your's, as well) favorite environmentally-conscious cartoons from the 90s. Enjoy.<br />
<br />
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<object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://ytimg.googleusercontent.com/vi/_cIgKfReegg/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/_cIgKfReegg&source=uds" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/_cIgKfReegg&source=uds" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-48818218249142148562014-04-22T11:30:00.000-04:002014-04-30T04:15:22.975-04:00Earth Day 2014<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxfidjwzIcDk3EaDUC9wWfP5H7kQ_N_2GtKRkuphSNPVbWoHNZkXFr9kdmJVdCBeEteZjL6hHfJcqbsC1nHtqLXO8px6Z3Cde7RM7E5BlCsWfz8d_nes11Ai8uZKBl83Mdw6_G7KseIJs/s1600/Final-Earth-Week-Logo-2014-01-Compressed-600x600.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxfidjwzIcDk3EaDUC9wWfP5H7kQ_N_2GtKRkuphSNPVbWoHNZkXFr9kdmJVdCBeEteZjL6hHfJcqbsC1nHtqLXO8px6Z3Cde7RM7E5BlCsWfz8d_nes11Ai8uZKBl83Mdw6_G7KseIJs/s1600/Final-Earth-Week-Logo-2014-01-Compressed-600x600.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image Source: <a href="http://bangordailynews.com/community/unity-college-to-host-earth-week-activities-april-14-25/" target="_blank">Bangor Daily News</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
HAPPY EARTH DAY EVERYBODY!!!<br />
<br />
…or maybe its Earth Week for you. Or perhaps, for you, it Earth Every Day! Whichever way you prefer to celebrate our beautiful blue planet, thank you. I hope you join me in taking the time to remember that we only have one planet we call home—at least until we master space travel. Unfortunately, we may not make it until then, nor is the a guarantee we would find a suitable new world or that we won't destroy that one, as well.<br />
<br />
<br />
WOW! Depressing. Sorry. Anyways, moving on!<br />
<br />
As I searched the internet for a fitting image for this post, I came across the one above and felt that I should share it. I particularly like this image because it adds a new layer to the quintessential "Three Rs"( Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) that we've lived with for so long.<br />
<br />
Adding "Respect" to the mix reminds us that the "Three Rs" must be done with respect and forethought. Also, it reminds us, that everything else we do should respect the environment. Our laws and policies, for example, should bear the world in mind. As the <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=iraquio&oq=iraquio&aqs=chrome..69i57.2463j0j4&sourceid=chrome&es_sm=119&ie=UTF-8#q=7%20generations%20proverb" target="_blank">Iroquois proverbs</a> insist, our decisions should take into consideration the affects on the next seven generations (about 140 years). Unfortunately, in most case, governments and private decisions do not reflect this.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
The U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), for example, recently finished their work on the effects of and our ability to combat global climate change, and it isn't pretty. (Here [<a href="http://mashable.com/2014/04/14/un-climate-report-need-to-know/" target="_blank">1</a>][<a href="http://mashable.com/2014/04/13/global-warming-un-report/" target="_blank">2</a>][<a href="http://mashable.com/2014/03/31/key-findings-un-climate-science-report/" target="_blank">3</a>] are some great Mashable articles that explain those findings.)<br />
<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />
Earth Day is a great way to stop and think about our relationship with our planet. It is a time to remember our planet and to (re-)educate ourselves about our impact and about the ways we can reduce our footprint. For our part, Brooke and I have been recycling what we can and reducing elsewhere for years now. Where we use to have an overflowing trash bin days before trash pickup day, we are now lucky to have half of that volume every other week. This year, we've seen other reductions in our consumption, as well. Since I started classes at Georgia State University, the wife and I have been carpooling together into the city from the suburbs. Not only that, we are getting twice the gas mileage in our new Prius, which we park in a well-shaded parking deck at my wife's work helping to reduce gasoline evaporation from the sun and heat. I then take the train the rest of the way into Downtown Atlanta. If you haven't guessed, I'm pretty proud about of our effort—although, admittedly, we could definitely do better.<br />
<br />
Well, that's it for now. I hope you all enjoy your Earth Day. Here are some excellent, thought-provoking videos and infographics I found on <i>Upworthy</i> [<a href="http://www.upworthy.com/in-10-years-these-10-animals-could-be-as-extinct-as-the-dinosaurs?c=hpstream" target="_blank">4</a>][<a href="http://www.upworthy.com/meet-carter-she-wanted-to-be-a-scientist-in-a-field-that-didnt-have-many-women?c=hpstream" target="_blank">5</a>][<a href="http://www.upworthy.com/this-guy-tries-to-trump-science-but-fails-to-understand-the-difference-between-weather-and-climate" target="_blank">6</a>][<a href="http://www.upworthy.com/how-long-would-3-days-of-energy-for-an-american-last-in-ethiopia-no-guess-higher" target="_blank">7</a>][<a href="http://www.upworthy.com/a-very-ambitious-project-from-the-u-s-department-of-energy" target="_blank">8</a>]. But don't watch them right now, silly! Turn off your computer, go outside. Plant a tree or pick up some trash. Come back tomorrow! I could use the traffic anyways.<br />
<br /></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-28717035422622859402014-04-08T22:30:00.000-04:002014-04-22T22:52:41.498-04:00Heartbleed Bug and The Day the Internet Shat Its Pants<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
If you have yet to hear or read about the <a href="https://www.google.com/#q=heartbleed" target="_blank">Heartbleed bug</a>, you probably will soon. And no, it has nothing to do with your health. Well!—not medically, anyways.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGlEwPp7t68U-Mu62RpakUzBnHce6PTMbYWakgCcQwInyL31df5V1IlPAOW0crCJQgZOLrpVa2cQ04oB7q4k_Z3PUcHaJ3vockyAviVioX4eDL2gZsvExq_SVNZz-y0HvW1MpvbnoRyv4/s1600/1397013771000-heartbleed-logo408.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGlEwPp7t68U-Mu62RpakUzBnHce6PTMbYWakgCcQwInyL31df5V1IlPAOW0crCJQgZOLrpVa2cQ04oB7q4k_Z3PUcHaJ3vockyAviVioX4eDL2gZsvExq_SVNZz-y0HvW1MpvbnoRyv4/s1600/1397013771000-heartbleed-logo408.jpg" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[Photo Source: Codemonicon]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
As the news of this recent web security bug makes the rounds on television, news sites, and social media, it will be tempting to shutout all the doomsayers and the techno-babble. Unfortunately, we don't have that luxury. It does not help that all the tech talk can be confusing, especially for the less than tech savvy Joe Schmos such as myself.<br />
<br />
The doom and gloom brigade, however, can
justly say that this has the potential to bring internet security to its
knees as internet commerce and online banking, in addition to popular social media sites, are vulnerable to attacks. Worst still, the solution is not as simple
as changing your password.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b>So, what happened anyways?</b><br />
<br />
The discovery of a widespread security bug affecting sites running SSL encryption was announced on Monday, 07 April 2014. Dubbed the Heartbleed bug, the vulnerability was discovered by software security firm Codenomicon and by Neel Metha at Google Security, and is "located in the implementation of the TLS/DTLS (transport layer security protocols) heartbeat extension [<a href="http://heartbleed.com/" target="_blank">1</a>]" of the popular open source OpenSSL cryptographic library.<br />
<br />
According to <a href="http://blog.lastpass.com/2014/04/lastpass-and-heartbleed-bug.html">LastPass.com</a>, the bug "causes a vulnerability in the OpenSSL cryptographic library, which is used by roughly two-thirds of all websites on the Internet."<b> </b><br />
<br />
<br />
<b>So, what does this mean?</b><br />
<br />
We are all affected by this revelation. Some <a href="http://news.netcraft.com/archives/2014/04/08/half-a-million-widely-trusted-websites-vulnerable-to-heartbleed-bug.html" target="_blank">half a million</a> popular, well trusted websites have been deemed vulnerable; and, as of 16:00 UTC 08 April 2014, includes Yahoo [<a href="https://github.com/musalbas/heartbleed-masstest/blob/master/top10000.txt" target="_blank">2</a>][<a href="https://gist.github.com/dberkholz/10169691" target="_blank">3</a>][<a href="https://lastpass.com/heartbleed/?h=yahoo.com" target="_blank">4</a>], BarclaysCardUs.com [2], and Nasa [<a href="http://mashable.com/2014/04/08/major-security-encryption-bug-heartbleed/" target="_blank">5</a>]. (Yes! Some of our favorite porn sites are affected, too.)<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br /><br />
According to Codenomicon's <a href="http://heartbleed.com/">Heartbleed.com</a> website, the vulnerability:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
…allows anyone on the Internet to read the memory of the systems protected by the vulnerable versions of the OpenSSL software. This compromises the secret keys used to identify the service providers and to encrypt the traffic, the names and passwords of the users and the actual content. This allows attackers to eavesdrop on communications, steal data directly from the services and users and to impersonate services and users.</blockquote>
<br />
<div>
The Heartbleed FAQ section states that sites using OpenSSL versions 1.0.1 through 1.0.1f (inclusive) are affected by the bug, which "was introduced to OpenSSL in December 2011 and has been out in the wild since OpenSSL release 1.0.1 on 14th of March 2012."<br />
<br />
Version 1.0.1g, which was released on 07 April 2014, fixes the bug. The website lists OpenSSL 1.0.0 and 0.9.8 branches as "NOT vulnerable."<br />
<br />
Not all sites are affected, of course. Many websites do not use SSL. Many others use updated versions of SSL or have since updated their encryptions. You may have even notice site outages throughout the day as everyone continues to scramble to fix their websites. In fact, several websites have already completed their upgrades.<br />
<br />
Jamieson Becker has this to say on Twitter:<br />
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en">
To FIX Heartbleed: 1. Upgrade OpenSSL 2. Revoke ALL SSL certificates 3. Regen all SSL priv keys 4. Get new certs from SSL vendor<br />
— Jamieson Becker (@JamiesonBecker) <a href="https://twitter.com/JamiesonBecker/statuses/453662804713566208">April 8, 2014</a><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
</blockquote>
<b></b><br />
<b></b><br />
<b>So, what can you do to protect yourselves?</b><br />
<br />
<a href="http://mashable.com/2014/04/08/major-security-encryption-bug-heartbleed/" target="_blank">Mashable</a> lists the following three things you can do to protect yourself:<br />
<div>
<div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<ul>
<li>Wait for an official announcement from any secure website or service that you normally use regarding a security update.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>After you've confirmed that the site or service has installed a security update, change your passwords.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>For at least the next week, keep an eye on any of your sensitive online accounts (banking, webmail) for suspicious activity.</li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
</div>
LastPass.com provides a <a href="https://lastpass.com/heartbleed/" target="_blank">Heartbleed Checker</a>. Enter the URL for your website or for the website you frequent and it will check the vulnerability of the site's SSL certificate.<br />
<br />
Github.com provides several running lists of websites and their vulnerability statuses. The two lists I cited about were complied by users Donnie Berkholz (<a href="https://gist.github.com/dberkholz/10169691" target="_blank">dberkholz</a>) and Mustafa Al-Bassam (<a href="https://github.com/musalbas/heartbleed-masstest/blob/master/top10000.txt" target="_blank">masualbas</a>). Al-Bassam's list also includes a listing of site that are not vulnerable.<br />
<br />
Stay tuned to your news feeds as this is still a developing story. Also, be on the look out for announcements from the secure websites you use. They will be letting everyone know when their SSL encryptions have been updated.</div>
<div>
<br />
Most importantly, visit <a href="http://heartbleed.com/">Heartbleed.com</a> and read up on the issue. The FAQ can be somewhat heavy at times with the technobabble but, overall, it is a pretty comprehensive resource. Remember: knowing is half the battle.</div>
</div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-71123662555145885602014-04-07T09:43:00.000-04:002014-07-25T06:44:18.243-04:00A Watershed for the Larger Universe — Captain America: The Winter Soldier [Review]<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7WNoSmZgzwJyJmrIbmQ99mS2atETTPXM_Nu_h35eKt_hyphenhyphenPDv7SfBO0HEi2p0V3ri3MhljQJB6jDmSQCoeTU4KLZRurDjqE4rCI_v7qXiu00_8chk17fPllYXamQCChBS5mfVaZSXg_q8/s1600/cap.main_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7WNoSmZgzwJyJmrIbmQ99mS2atETTPXM_Nu_h35eKt_hyphenhyphenPDv7SfBO0HEi2p0V3ri3MhljQJB6jDmSQCoeTU4KLZRurDjqE4rCI_v7qXiu00_8chk17fPllYXamQCChBS5mfVaZSXg_q8/s1600/cap.main_.jpg" height="179" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[Image Source: <a href="http://mashable.com/2014/04/07/captain-america-winter-soldier-easter-eggs" target="_blank">Mashable.com</a>]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
At first watch, <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captain_America:_The_Winter_Soldier" target="_blank">Captain America: The Winter Soldier</a></i>, Marvel Studio's latest installment in their larger Marvel Cinematic Universe, may seem like a filler movie that one needs to get through—you know, to get the full effect of the larger Universe. The fact that the movie drags in some places only reinforce that line of thought. It does not help matters that Marvel seems intent on throwing in every Easter egg [<a href="http://observationdeck.io9.com/captain-america-the-winter-soldier-and-the-secrets-of-1558072929/1559129940/+rtgonzalez" target="_blank">1</a>][<a href="http://mashable.com/2014/04/07/captain-america-winter-soldier-easter-eggs/" target="_blank">2</a>][<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/07/captain-america-winter-soldier-spoilers_n_5017674.html" target="_blank">3</a>] that did not make it into the previous eight films or the 16 <i><a href="http://www.agentsofshield.com/" target="_blank">Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.</a></i> television episodes to date. Overall, the action sequences (and there's a whole lot of them) seem to take a back seat to slower moments of expositions and treatises. But, at first what appears to be weaknesses might actually be the foundations on which Marvel Studios can build a stronger mega-verse.<br />
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{WARNING: SPOILERS AFTER THE JUMP!!!!}<br />
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Structurally, <i>Winter Soldier </i>is less like a superhero movie and more like the bastard love-child of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bourne_%28film_series%29" target="_blank"><i>Bourne </i>Films</a> and James Grady's <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2579284-six-days-of-the-condor" target="_blank"><i>Six Days of the Condor</i></a> (the basis of the 1975 film <i>Three Days of Condor</i> in which Robert Redford also stars). The slow parts are there to throw plot twists at the plot twists and serve to remind the audience that nothing is what it seems. Much like our heroes, we must unravel a mystery in which the clues and half-revelations only bring out more questions, reminding us that, like our heroes, we know less about the truth than we think.<br />
<br />
As a sequel to the first Captain America movie, this film does a great job tying up many of the loose ends from the first film. We learn what happened to the rest of Capt.'s Howling Commandos, and we finally learn if Steve Rogers ever sees his World War II love interest Peggy Carter again. We also see what life is like for Rogers as he tries to assimilates into modern times and, much like the plots of <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=as_li_qf_sp_sr_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&index=aps&keywords=iron%20man%203&linkCode=ur2&tag=tjblackburnbl-20" target="_blank">Iron Man 3</a></i> and <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=as_li_qf_sp_sr_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&index=aps&keywords=thor%20the%20dark%20world&linkCode=as2&tag=tjblackburnbl-20" target="_blank">Thor: The Dark World</a>,</i> into life post-<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Avengers_(2012_film)" target="_blank">Battle of New York</a>.<br />
<br />
<i>Winter Soldier's </i>use of storytelling replete with literary devices and subtle (and not-so-subtle) social commentary makes it arguably one of the better movies in the franchise to date and quite possibly the biggest game changer for Marvel Studios and the characters of the bigger <i>Avengers </i>universe. Unlike the two previous post-<i>Avengers</i> sequels, the plot of <i>Winter Soldier</i> goes beyond the confines of putting its protagonists through the ringer of a darker Phase 2 second act while making casual in-universe references and homages to Marvel lore. As Christopher Rosen of the Huffington Post <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/07/captain-america-winter-soldier-spoilers_n_5017674.html" target="_blank">puts it</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
There's so much crazy stuff in "The Winter Soldier" that not only does the film serve as a sequel to "Captain America: The First Avenger," but it feels like a prequel to "Marvel's The Avengers: Age of Ultron" (not to mention a game changer for whatever is happening on the ABC series "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.").</blockquote>
To say that <i>Winter Soldier </i>is a game changer for <i>Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. </i>may be an understatement. The link between the two titles definitely goes beyond the business-as-usual model of tying-in elements from different film plots. This film could have just as easily been a mid-season (3/4th of the way?)<i> S.H.I.E.L.D. </i>movie featuring Captain America and Nick Fury.<br />
<br />
Up until now, <i>AoS</i> had been making cursory references to different plot lines along the way—you know, just in case you forget that it's part of the MCU. At the same time, these references also served to separate the show as it's own entity. The <i>AoS </i>pilot, for example,<i> </i>established that it is set after the events of <i>Iron Man 3</i> by rolling in all the technology from previous titles into the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilot_(Agents_of_S.H.I.E.L.D.)" target="_blank">Centipede Project</a> while the events of <i>Thor 2</i> are peripheral to the series' overall story, serving more as a jumping off point for that week's evil-thing-o-mabob-of-the-week plot line.<i> </i>But now, who knows how the events of <i>Winter Soldier</i> and the dark denouement that signaled the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D will play into the remaining episodes of the season?<br />
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I know I was so preoccupied with with the obvious Bucky Barnes plot line blatantly flaunted by the trailers that I did not see H.Y.D.R.A. coming (Maybe if I were a big fanboy, I would have.) or that last week's episode ended in a cliffhanger that not only foreshadows but leads directly into <i>Winter Soldier. </i>We will have to wait until next week's episode to find out how closely the two entities will be tied-in, but what is certain is that the TV series' plot is about to change completely, never mind dynamic of the rest of the upcoming films. I, for one, am hoping to see some heavy film reference and a cameo or two.<br />
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Overall, this was an excellent, action-packed movie full of twist and turn and some top-notched writing. But don't take my word for it. Go to the movies. Don't skip this film especially if you are a fan of the TV series. I expect the two to go hand-in-hand. But even if you are not a fan of <i>AoS, </i>this is by far the best of the films in the franchise so far, both as part of the larger universe and as a stand alone sequel.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-23197583812882794712013-12-03T22:30:00.000-05:002013-12-04T03:42:57.942-05:00TARDIS Tuesday: "The Cave of Skulls" [Review]<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>THE BASICS</b><br />
<b>Episode: </b><i>Doctor Who</i>, Season<b> </b>01, Episode 002, Story 001 - Part 2 of 4<br />
<b>Title:</b> "The Cave of Skulls"<br />
<b>Original Air Date: </b>30 November 1963<br />
<b>Run-time:</b> 24:26<br />
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<b>CAST:</b><br />
<b>Doctor:</b><br />
First Doctor (William Hartnell)<br />
<b>Companions:</b><br />
Susan Foreman (Carole Ann Ford)<br />
Ian Chesterton (William Russell)<br />
Barbara Wright (Jacqueline Hill)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEcKdmvWTLKpdORtA5e0qxqr7xcLu5Vgvc2uwQEflheoMWc6hFjDn_MhXlfDVpuG_rZoxGkpG4duab6OeDrbGBDsgpEPyLtNhimavTfqDfA30XRgyTSpPCQ8OtPY1w0yRqpnVlUiaQoVw/s1600/p00v27r9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEcKdmvWTLKpdORtA5e0qxqr7xcLu5Vgvc2uwQEflheoMWc6hFjDn_MhXlfDVpuG_rZoxGkpG4duab6OeDrbGBDsgpEPyLtNhimavTfqDfA30XRgyTSpPCQ8OtPY1w0yRqpnVlUiaQoVw/s320/p00v27r9.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[Image Source: <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006q2x0" target="_blank">The BBC</a>]</td></tr>
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<b>REVIEW:</b><br />
<b><br /></b><a href="http://tjblackburn.blogspot.com/2013/11/tardis-tuesday-unearthly-child-review.html#.Up7dWGS_crw" target="_blank">In last week's "TARDIS Tuesday",</a> we focused on the very first episode of <i>Doctor Who</i>, "The Unearthly Child." In that episode we met school schoolteachers Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright who serves as the audience's surrogates in our first encounter with the enigmatic Doctor and his granddaughter, Susan Foreman.<i> </i>That episode was fairly slow-paced and served mostly to introduce us to the four main characters and to the TARDIS, the Doctor's mysterious time machine. The episode ended in a cliffhanger as the Doctor kidnaps the schoolteachers in an attempt to prevent them from going to the authorities.<br />
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<span style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875);">Episode 2 is when everything starts to get interesting. We learn that the TARDIS disguises itself to match its surroundings. (Previous disguises include an ionic column and a sedan chair.) Unfortunately, this time around the ship does not change forms, establishing one of the most iconic elements of the show: a time-traveling police box. The cranky, old Doctor reveals a cunning side and acts as a protector to his companions. </span>Also <a href="http://tardis.wikia.com/wiki/The_%22Doctor_Who%3F%22_running_joke" target="_blank">a running joke</a> in the series finds its genesis in this episode when Ian says, "Well just open the doors, Doctor Foreman." To which the Doctor replies, "Eh, Doctor who? — what's he talking about?"<br />
<span style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875);"><br /></span>
<span style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875);">We also begin to see how low-budget the show really was. Seams between sections of background set pieces are visible—as if the fake horizon was not obviously-painted enough. A lot of the action takes place in close quarters, so when the entire episode cast (extras and all) are in a scene, it gets very claustrophobic very fast, and is </span>indicative of the small sound stage used for production.</div>
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Yet, at the same time, the story is itself is compelling, replete with allegory and subtext.</div>
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"The Caves of Skulls" opens where the first episode leaves off. The TARDIS has materialized (still in its phone box disguise) in the middle of a barren wasteland as an ominous silhouette appears on screen. Soon, we learn that the shadow belongs to a caveman, a member of a tribe in the midst of a power struggle. The Doctor and his friends are captured and become immersed in Ice Age politics.<br />
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Two major themes run throughout . The first theme is of faith. It is present among the cave people who struggle to choose between their faith in religion (the Orb/sun deity) to save them from the cold and faith in new technology (fire). We also witness this struggle in the Doctor's companion Ian who must choose between accepting the established sciences that form the foundations of his beliefs and training as a schoolteacher and the wonders the Doctor presents to him, wonders that contradicts everything he knows.<br />
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The second theme is about the power of technology. Fire is a life-saving tool but also possess political implications, much like most of the technology we take for grant today. Among the cave people, he<span style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.294118);"> who possess the ability to create fire shall become the leader. This leads to a power grab among the tribe, a situation that quickly ensnares the Doctor and his friends. </span>We also see this theme play out in how the cavemen treat the technologically-advanced Doctor as a supernatural being. In a way the show asks its audience whether a technologically superior race or nation to our own might appear equally god-like? </div>
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<span style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969);"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969);">On the surface, the story might seem campy. </span>But on closer examination, we find that this <i>Doctor Who </i>episode hides some philosophical context within its educational content.<br />
<span style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969);"><br /></span>
<span style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969);">My only complaint about this episode so far is that character of Susan Foreman. I felt that she lacked true development and was easily pushed into over-played (in every sense of the word) hysterics. I'm not sure if Carole Ann Ford chose to portray the character as an overly-attached five year old in a teenager's body or if serial writer Anthony Coburn wrote her that way. It became very grating after the third time she screamed "Grandfather!" in less than a minute. Otherwise, it was a decent episode and I was really tempted to watch the next episode ahead of schedule. </span><br />
<span style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969);"><br /></span>
<span style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.292969);">Next week, we tackle Episode 3: "The Forest of Fear".</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-81004041492940209832013-11-26T17:31:00.005-05:002013-12-03T14:10:14.337-05:00TARDIS Tuesday: "An Unearthly Child" [Review]<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>THE BASICS</b><br />
<b>Episode: </b><i>Doctor Who</i>, Season<b> </b>01, Episode 001, Story 001 - Part 1 of 4<br />
<b>Title:</b> "An Earthly Child"<br />
<b>Original Air Date: </b>23 November 1963<br />
<b>Run-time:</b> 23:24<br />
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<b>CAST:</b><br />
<b>Doctor:</b><br />
First Doctor (William Hartnell)<br />
<b>Companions:</b><br />
Susan Foreman (Carole Ann Ford)<br />
Ian Chesterton (William Russell)<br />
Barbara Wright (Jacqueline Hill)<br />
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<b>REVIEW:</b></div>
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The uninitiated watching "An Unearthly Child" may find it disconcertingly hard to get used to at first. I know that each time I watch these classic episodes of <i>Doctor Who</i>, I still have to take the time to adjust to the stark differences between the fast-paced, big budget production of the revived series and its slower—sometimes cheesy—counterpart. Although both series are very story driven, the original show had to rely more heavily on the art of storytelling. The fact of the matter is that, even for it time, the classic series was ridiculously low-budget. It is a wonder that this Saturday children's educational show ever became the worldwide sci-fi sensation that it is today. This first episode is especially slow-paced and serves mainly as an introduction of the four main characters.<br />
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The majority of the action takes place in junkyard in 1963 London, where schoolteachers Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright go to confront one of their pupils, Susan Foreman, and her grandfather (who they believe is a doctor) about their concerns regarding some of her curious idiosyncrasies. She is a bright student but she exhibits and insists on a peculiar and troubling understanding of the world. These issues, they feel, could be resolved if her grandfather invested more time and interest. Their curiosity and concerns are heightened further when they follow Susan inside but find her nowhere in sight. Much to their surprise, they find do a blue police call box in the middle of the junkyard, the presence of which is out of place to say the least. The mystery comes to a head when Susan's grandfather, a cranky old man in Edwardian-style clothes, returns home. The rest of the episode revolves around the teachers' first confrontational interaction with the old man and the revelation that Susan and her grandfather are actually from a distant planet and time in the future, and that the police box is actually a time-traveling spaceship in disguise. The episode ends with a cliffhanger after the old man kidnaps the schoolteachers and takes them to the Stone Age to prevent them from telling the authorities about him.</div>
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The length of the episode and the scope of the story makes a comprehensive review difficult. The storytelling is straight forward and tight, limiting the events to setting up the rest of the serial and to introducing the most common elements that will the be main staple of the show: an eccentric old man traveling through space and time with his (at this moment, reluctant) companions in a blue box that is bigger on the inside.<br />
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Well that's it for now. "TARDIS Tuesday" will return next week with a review of episode two "The Cave of Skulls". Until then, enjoy this <i>Doctor Who</i> parody from 1999's <i>Doctor Who Night</i> special. Titled "The Pitch of Fear" this comedy sketch speculates how show creator Sydney Newman's pitch to the BBC must have went. It was a peculiar concept, after all. This parody is one of four comedy sketches that are included as extras on disc one of the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ANDGYRM/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00ANDGYRM&linkCode=as2&tag=tjblackburnbl-20" target="_blank"><i>Doctor Who: The Begining</i> box set</a>, which also includes the the next two serials that follow the four-part "An Unearthly Child" story arc.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-52726935972686981582013-11-26T12:39:00.001-05:002013-11-26T12:39:08.291-05:00TARDIS Tuesday: Introduction<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
So how was your<i> Doctor Who</i> 50th Anniversary experience this past Saturday? I hope to it was everything you expected it to be and much more. It was like gasoline to the fire that is my passion for everything <i>Doctor Who. </i><br />
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Last week, I commemorated the Anniversary by dedicating a post everyday leading up to Saturday's premiere of "The Day of the Doctor." My review for that brilliant episode is forthcoming and I hope to have it out by the Blu-ray release later this year. For now, I DVR'ed the episode and I've been watching it over and over, basking in its awesomeness. I really want to do the episode justice so I am taking my time to gather my thoughts and to get my words right. </div>
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But, with the 50th Anniversary episode behind us, we will be returning to our usual content and if you've been following for a while now, you've witness the evolution said content has taken over the years. Most recently, I've been trying to direct my post towards attractions and things-to-do in Georgia and the Metro Atlanta area. This helped satisfy the first part of my content-refocusing plan <a href="http://tjblackburn.blogspot.com/2013/01/first-post-2013.html#.UpRJJGS_crw" target="_blank">I laid out back in January</a>. I'm still working on integrating more Pinterest and life-hack related posts, so stay tuned.<br />
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However, just because the 50th Anniversary is officially over, that doesn't mean the celebration has to end. The title of this blog is, after all, <i>Wibbly-wobbly, Timey-wimey Stuff</i>.<br />
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At this time, I would like to introduce a new weekly segment I like to call "TARDIS Tuesday"!<br />
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In this segment, I plan to extend the celebration into the next year by reviewing classic episodes of <i>Doctor Who</i>. The plan is to watch each of the classic series Season One episodes on the 50th Anniversary of their original air-dates and then to publish a review the following Tuesday. I watched the first episode this past Saturday after watching the "The Day of the Doctor" premiere and you should see my review go live later today. That episode, which is called "An Unearthly Child," first aired in the UK on Saturday, November 23, 1963.<br />
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I've been planning "TARDIS Tuesday" for a while now. I'm sure the plans will evolve and change, especially regarding how it is formatted. I'm not sure if that means it will eventually be or include a video post or not. Nor I am certain whether I will limit myself to just the episode or if I will touch upon the extras included in the DVD releases. I still haven't figured out what I'm going to do when I get to the "Marco Polo" serial as those episode remain <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctor_Who_missing_episodes" target="_blank">lost due to BBC's junking policy</a>. I'm not even sure if I'm going to review each episode individually or if I will eventually move toward reviewing only significant episodes or just serials as a whole. I'm sure we'll figure it out together. But for now, here's what I know:<br />
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<li>Reviews will be posted on Tuesdays</li>
<li>I will start with Season One, Episode One "The Unearthly Child"</li>
<li>I will review each episode of that first four-episode serial (collectively known as "The Unearthly Child") individually then see where to go from there</li>
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I will only watch one episode a week and only on the 50th Anniversary of its Saturday premiere. I will allow myself to re-watch a previous episode but I will not be skipping ahead. I want to experience the weekly anticipation and the excitement of watching each episode as if they are being aired for the first time. I hope you join me on my little journey. Feel free to watch the episodes along with me if you own a copy. If you don't own them, the DVDs can be found on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_7_9?url=search-alias%3Dmovies-tv&field-keywords=classic%20doctor%20who%20season%201&sprefix=classic+d%2Cmovies-tv%2C256" target="_blank">Amazon</a> and on the <a href="http://www.bestbuy.com/site/searchpage.jsp?_dyncharset=ISO-8859-1&_dynSessConf=&id=pcat17071&type=page&sc=Global&cp=1&nrp=15&sp=&qp=&list=n&iht=y&usc=All+Categories&ks=960&fs=saas&saas=saas&keys=keys&st=classic+doctor+who" target="_blank">Best Buy</a> and<a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/doctor-who?csrfToken=vvIAHnHwVbBfCJotooKx46Pmi4bjWWnt&sort=DD&size=30&keyword=doctor+who&store=dvd" target="_blank"> Barnes & Noble</a> websites. </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-22095652868946567712013-11-23T13:00:00.000-05:002013-11-23T23:29:09.529-05:00Doctor Who: "The Day of the Doctor" Predictions<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I really like <i>Doctor Who </i>showrunner Steven Moffat. His ingenious writing makes for great television. A lot of his stories are driven by things the Doctor sees in the corner of his eye or brushes against. Even a very attentive audience may miss these subtle details. Moffat is also the devil when it comes to stories about paradoxes and negated timelines. I would love to one write like him one day.<br />
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So, since I apparently didn't learn my lesson from the last time I tried to make predictions about <i>Doctor Who</i>, here are my predictions for what we'll see in today's <i>Doctor Who </i>50th Anniversary episode. </div>
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Most of these are based off of trailers and the mini episode "The Night of the Doctor."</div>
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<li>The episodes will star the Eleventh and Tenth Doctors. It will also feature John Hurt's War Doctor.</li>
<li>The story will be set between the Tenth Doctor episode "Wars of Mars" and "End of Time" in the Tenth Doctor's timeline. Base on the Children in Need teaser preview, this may be the oft reference adventure that led the Doctor marrying Queen Elisabeth I.</li>
<li>This episode is set shortly after the events of the series seven season finale "The Name of the Doctor" in the eleventh Doctor's timeline.</li>
<li>The story will involve the end of the Time War and how the War Doctor ended it. I don't think any of the classic Doctors will actually be in the episode. Although this doesn't mean that there won't be some CG magic like in "The Name of the Doctor."</li>
<li>I think, despite Christopher Eccleston stating he won't be in the episode, we will see the War Doctor regenerate into the ninth Doctor. There is also a good chance the War Doctor will be negated and we will see McGann's eighth in a redux of his regeneration in "The Night of the Doctor" I. Which he becomes Ecclesston's ninth.</li>
<li>We will see Billie Piper as Rose Tyler but this isn't the companion we know and love. Based on the glowing eyes we saw in the trailers and on her outfit, this might be Bad Wolf Rose who we saw in "Parting of the Ways." If we do see a regeneration sequence, I think this will be the precursor to the revived era series premiere episode "Rose." I would not be surprised if we learn that ninth's meeting with Rose Tyler was not coincidental at all and follows immediately after the events of the 50th anniversary episode.</li>
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Well those are my predictions. In an hour or so we will she how close I came. Have fun, my dear Whovians. Happy anniversary!</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-18573143692813459762013-11-22T22:30:00.000-05:002013-11-27T14:26:41.366-05:00Doctor Who: "The Night of the Doctor" Mini-Episode [Review]<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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On November 14, the BBC released a mini episode to the <i>Doctor Who</i> 50th Anniversary episdoe "The Day of the Doctor." The prequel titled “The Night of the Doctor,” starred, much to the surprise of fans and critics, the eighth Doctor played by Paul McGann. McGann's Doctor was last seen in the <i>Doctor Who</i> TV movie, which was released in 1996 as a failed pilot to revive the series in an American setting.<br />
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The episode was critically acclaimed and applauded by fans and critics alike. At only seven minutes in length, the mini episode has the potential to be one of the most significant episodes to date both for the show's production history and for the <i>Doctor Who</i> lore.<br />
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As the mini episode opens, a ship is crashing onto the planet Karn, its pilot desperately seeking help. "I'm a Doctor," a voice says off screen. The camera pans and there stands the Doctor. "But probably not the one you were expecting," he says. True to his ironic words, this Doctor was not the Doctor we, the audience, expected. This was a great misdirection on the part of the BBC would originally teased the prequel this way:<br />
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The 50th Anniversary features Matt Smith, David Tennant and a mysterious incarnation played by John Hurt. Only one appears in the mini episode, The Night Of The Doctor. But which?</blockquote>
Later, unable to prevent the crash, the Doctor is dying from wounds. He encounters the Sisters of Karn, an exiled cult of Time Lords who provides him with a concoction to force a regeneration, the process by which Time Lords are able to stave of death by regenerating their body into a new form. This regeneration would be specific, the Sisters tell him. He can pick the from a selection of forms but whichever he chooses, he must take that form into battle to end the Last Great Time War, a war the Doctor has been able to avoid thus far.<br />
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He choose his form and becomes the "War Doctor." A look in the mirror reveals the face of John Hurt which has been digital edited to look younger than he is now. He is "Doctor no more."<br />
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In the span of seven minutes, "The Night of the Doctor" not only created the bookends to the eighth Doctor's life that began with the TV movie but also established Hurt's position in the Doctor's timeline. It was no longer a mystery where the War Doctor fit.<br />
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In those seven minutes we learned that the eighth Doctor ran away from the Time War, whereas until this point fans only speculated that he actually fought in the War before regenerating into Christopher Eccleston's ninth Doctor. We now know that he was conscripted and that the numbering sequence is actually off (although, since the Doctor refuses to acknowledge him as a Doctor, therefore thanks to semantics, we don't need to adjust our numbering.) It is also implied by the War Doctor's youth after regeneration, that this incarnation would fight the Time War for a long time to come, possibly culminating into "The Day of the Doctor," and could possibly hint at another regeneration sequence.<br />
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What really makes these seven minutes so special and so significant is that shortly before regenerating, the eight Doctor invoked and saluted the names of several companions from the Big Finish audio-plays. Up until this point the audio plays, like many of the Doctor's other spin-off media adventures in comics and novels, were considered apocrypha at best, in that although they were licensed by the BBC, the powers that be refused to acknowledge their canonicity. When the movie pilot did not take off, fans soon turned to these source to provide them with the eighth Doctor adventures the craved. But now, in a brief sentence, "The Night of the Doctor," canonized at least the audio-plays that featured these characters.<br />
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More importantly, since these very audio-plays sometimes mention or feature characters and events from the novels and comic books, the mini episode indirectly canonized those characters and stories as well. This is especially profound as those references are not limited the eighth Doctor. For example, one of the companions mentioned was Charlie Pollard who also crossed over to the sixth Doctor's audio adventure therefore the entire range the sixth Doctor's audio plays are canonizing since they are sequentially linked. The connections doesn't stop there, the sixth Doctor joins other Doctors occasionally and those audio plays are then connected to respective Doctors' own ranges.<br />
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The links are not limited to one medium of the one spin-off. The character of Frobisher, who appeared as a companion for the sixth and seventh Doctors in <i>Doctor Who Magazine's (DWM) </i>comic strips in the Eighties also makes appearance in the audio plays, so it can be inferred that those comic strip adventures are also eligible for canonization. The eighth Doctor audio play <i>Companion Stories</i> released in 2011 featured stories with companions from eighth Doctor novels and comic strips as well as the seventh Doctor novels.<br />
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What does this all mean? It means two things, mainly.<br />
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First, the eighth Doctor now has a proper life, full of adventures and friends. I already started to purchase copies of the audio plays starring the eighth Doctor. I will say, McGann gives stellar performances in the two adventures I've listen to so far. The novels are hard to find and are very expensive. Also, there are about seventy of them. I am trying to locate copies of the <i>DWM</i> graphic novels. (<a href="http://www.drwhoguide.com/who.htm#8TH" target="_blank">DrWhoGuide.com</a> has a great chronology reference that tries to use clues in the spin-off media to place those adventures in some sort of order.)<br />
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Secondly, if you add all the other Doctors' spin-off adventures, the <i>Doctor Who </i>lore expands into new depths and has the potential to change how we know the Doctor. You could spend a life time and a lot of money trying to experience these stories. </div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-55604253598323220192013-11-21T23:00:00.000-05:002013-11-27T14:25:55.762-05:00Doctor Who: Fish Fingers and Custard [Recipe]<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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One of the most memorable moments in <i>Doctor Who</i> comes from the Fifth Series season premiere in which the newly regenerated eleventh Doctor (played by Matt Smith) gets a young Amelia Pond to rustle him up some grub. Except...nothing seems to taste quite right. That is, until...FISH FINGERS AND CUSTARD!!!<br />
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Now, fish fingers and custard has become a Whovian staple. It's as ubiquitous in the fandom as Jelly Babies and "The Angel Have the Phone Box."<br />
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In reality, Matt Smith actually ate "coconut thingies in bread crumbs" with his custard [<a href="http://www.digitalspy.com/british-tv/s7/doctor-who/tubetalk/a209526/video-matt-karen-and-the-moff-talk-who.html" target="_blank">1</a>] during production. But this hasn't deterred many a fanboy (and fangirl) from trying it with actual fish fingers.<br />
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So, I decide to join the ranks of über-dorks and have fish fingers and custard for the first time for dinner tonight.<br />
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Since it's almost impossible to find British-style custard in American grocery stores and since custard and vanilla pudding are actually two different things, I decide to make the custard from scratch. (Pudding is a lot thicker and sweeter than custard and the best description of custard's consistency I've found is that it is "drinkable.")<br />
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I got my recipe for the custard from my copy of<i> Dining With The Doctor: The Unauthorized Whovian Cookbook by </i>Chris-Rachael Oseland [<a href="http://www.nerdist.com/2013/01/a-whovian-cookbook-reviewed-and-tested/" target="_blank">2</a>][<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1481153684/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1481153684&linkCode=as2&tag=tjblackburnbl-20" target="_blank">3</a>]. The recipe itself is pretty standard and matches almost exactly to those I've found on <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=british%20custard" target="_blank">Pinterest</a> and elsewhere on the internet. I've included the ingredients list and a step-by-step instructions toward the end of this post.<br />
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Now, if you aren't brave enough to actually dip real fish fingers in your custard, you can follow the show's lead and make faux fish fingers. <i>Dining With The Doctor</i> actually has several recipes for making these out of french toasts, cornbread, cake, etc. I recommend picking up your own copy. There is also a Kindle Edition. You can also find recipes for these mock fish fingers on the internet and <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=fish%20fingers%20and%20custard%20recipe&rs=ac&len=14" target="_blank">Pinterest</a>.<br />
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For my part, I decided to try the real thing. I had a bag of <a href="http://www2.costco.com/Browse/Product.aspx?prodid=11490606&whse=BD_823&topnav=bdoff" target="_blank">Costco Brand (Kirkland's) fish sticks</a> in the freezer, so I threw a bunch in the oven while I made the custard.<br />
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So, how did I like them?<br />
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It was good! Well, it wasn't disgusting, anyways. It tasted like a milder-flavored vanilla pudding. I was actually surprised how runny the consistency of the custard end up being. It definitely was "drinkable." Granted that could have more to do with my cooking than the recipe. The recipe called for milk, without distinguishing what type. I used skim milk, so perhaps using whole milk might have made it thicker. Also the recipe called for double cream which is not sold in the America, as far as I know. Double cream has about a 48% fat content. I used heavy cream which is about 35% fat content [<a href="http://whatscookingamerica.net/Sauces_Condiments/CreamDefinitions.htm" target="_blank">4</a>]. Also you could probably adjust the amount of cornstarch if you're feeling adventurous or find a recipe to make your own double cream.<br />
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<b><u>BRITISH_STYLE CUSTRD RECIPE</u></b><br />
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Source: <i>Dining With The Doctor: The Unauthorized Whovian Cookbook by </i>Chris-Rachael Oseland. (I paraphrased and formatted the instructions in a numbered format. This is Ms. Oseland's recipe. Please pay her compliments by picking up a copy of her cookbook. It has many other great recipes.<br />
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<b>IINGREDIENTS</b></div>
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<li><b>1 cup milk</b></li>
<li><b>1/2 cup double cream (heavy cream)</b></li>
<li><b>1 tbsp sugar</b></li>
<li><b>2 tsp cornstarch</b></li>
<li><b>1/2 tsp vanilla extract</b></li>
<li><b>3 extra large egg yolks</b></li>
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STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS</b><br />
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<li>Pre-measure ingredients. The success of this recipe has to do with timing and constantly stirring while doing every thing else. Extra limbs would be helpful.</li>
<li>In a bowl, mix sugar and cornstarch. Pour in milk and whisk well.</li>
<li>Pour cream into saucepan and "gently warm" over medium heat. Do Not Boil!</li>
<li>As cream warms, gently whisk in milk mixture. Keep whisking to prevent lumps, skins, and uneven mixing.</li>
<li>Once it starts boiling, take off heat.</li>
<li>In another bowl, beat eggs yolks until smooth (I recommend doing this before hand.)</li>
<li>Gradually mix in eggs, whisking the whole time. "Don't just dump all your eggs at once. You'll end up with an overly sweetened and mostly inedible egg drop soup."</li>
<li>Once it is all mixed well, put back on medium heat. Add vanilla. Keep whisking.</li>
<li>Keep whisking as you slowly bring it back to a boil.</li>
<li>Once it starts to bubble, remove from heat. Whisk for another minute.</li>
<li>Serve hot or put in bowl with plastic wrap to prevent skin from developing on top. Keeps for 2-3 days. makes about 1 1/2 cups.</li>
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Hope you enjoyed this recipe as much as I did.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-32254303597444101562013-11-20T23:00:00.000-05:002013-11-23T03:14:18.560-05:00IDW's Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time Gives Whovians Their Fantasy Team-up [Review]<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Every true Whovian dreams to one day watch a <i>Doctor Who</i> episode in which all the actors who played the various incarnations of the titular characters reprise their roles for that one epic team-up adventure. However, for various reasons, that most likely will never happen. Not for the foreseeable future, anyways. The 50th Anniversary episode "The Day of the Doctor," which will air this Saturday, is the series' most promising and, possibly, last opportunity to do so—at least for a while. Unfortunately, show-runner Steven Moffat indicated in interviews that the fandom will just have to settle for the tenth and eleventh Doctors played by David Tennant and Matt Smith, respectively. Doctors Ten and Eleven will team up with the recently revealed "War Doctor," a previously unknown incarnation played by John Hurt. Three Doctors are enough, I suppose.<br />
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Then, again: Moffat's penchant for lying and misdirection to protect the magic of the show from leaks and spoilers until their scheduled air times might also indicate that this door is not competely closed. I submit as evidence, the series seven season finale, "The Name of The Doctor," which used clever camera angles and computer-generated movie magic to splice old <i>Doctor Who</i> footage into the episode to bring all the previous Doctors back, even the late William Hartnell (1st Doctor), Patrick Troughton (2nd), and Jon Pertwee (3rd).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Prisoner of Time's <br />
12 Covers Merged<br />
[Image Source: <br />
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I suppose until then, we Whovians will just have to settle for spin-off media like novels, audio-plays, and graphic novels as stop-gaps. In which case: may I recommend IDW Publishing's <i>Doctor Who: Prisoners of Time </i>graphic novel mini-series?<br />
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IDW, one of todays leading comic book publishers, specializes in licensed property. They also hold the license for popular titles like <i>Star Trek</i>, <i>Transformers</i>, and <i>G.I.Joe.</i> Unfortunately, their relationship with the BBC and their license to publish <i>Doctor Who</i> will end with the 50th Anniversary of the show. Fortunately, they refuse to leave without a big bang.<br />
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<i>Prisoners of Time, </i>a 12-issue limited series comic book, is IDW's year-long contribution to the 50th Anniversary. From January through November 2013, each issue of the first 11 were dedicated to one of the eleven Doctors and followed each of the Doctors in sequence on an adventure. As each issue closed, a shadowy figure kidnapped that Doctor's traveling companion(s), linking each story together and leading into today's release of issue 12 in which the Doctor team-up with all himselves to save his friends.<br />
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Written by siblings Scott and David Tipton, the story asks the reader to examine the Batman-ification of the Doctor and the effects, both good and bad, that he leaves in his wake. We see this same question in the current TV series in such episodes as "Vampires in Venice" and "A Good Man Goes to War." Yet, by end of issue 12, we are still left with that strange feeling that, just as in life, everything remains gray and blurry despite all the arguments for the Doctor's goodness, despite the fact that those arguments won.<br />
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IDW has given fans well-written, canon-worthy between-the-episodes adventures for a while now. In fact, they have gone out of their way to carefully integrate on-screen story elements to each of their stories as well as to avoid contradicting <i>Doctor Who</i> Proper. <i>Prisoners of Time </i>is no exception. I love how they blended elements from both the show's classic run and the revived modern series. IDW went a step further and included Frobisher, the Sixth's and Seventh's shapeshifting companion from Panini Comics' <i>Doctor Who Magazine</i> comic strip adventures from the Eighties. (Frobisher likes to use the form of a talking penguin as his "normal" appearance, by the way. What's cooler than that?)<br />
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<i>Prisoners of Time </i>features different artist for each issue. I can't say I like the art in all the issues but I think it works and each artist's style matches the feel their respective Doctor invokes as well as the story for that issue. I do like that IDW brought back John Ridgeway, the superb artist who illustrated the Sixth Doctor's comic strips back in the Eighties, to do the art for issue six which follows Doctor Six. I think the Tiptons and Ridgeway even channeled the same atmosphere and feel of those original Sixth Doctor comics into the issue, reiterating my belief that Colin Baker's Six got the short shrift in the TV series and is one of the most underrated and unjustly maligned Doctors. I hear Colin Baker performances in the audio plays drill this fact home even further.<br />
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The one downside to this story is that the eighth Doctor's companion is, once again, Grace Holloway from the 1996 TV movie. Despite living the excruciatingly boring life that past companions are all doomed to live after their tenure on the TARDIS ends, Grace does not want to ever be part of the Doctor's adventure again and spends the entire issue complaining. I felt that this was a missed opportunity for the writers to bring in characters from Eight's audio or Panini Comics adventures. But after the big reveal in last week's mini-episode prequel "The Night of the Doctor," I kind of understand why they didn't—or most likely, couldn't.<br />
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Otherwise, I have no complains. Ultimately, this is a classic tale of revenge pitting our favorite Time Lord against a villain claiming to be a former companion that the Doctor has wronged or will wrong. But who is he? And what could the Doctor have done to become the target of such hatred? As the story progresses, we find the villain's face and history very familiar. Arguably, the Doctor, in a fit of rage and impatience, did wrong this companion. In fact, fans have wondered what had happened to the character all these year. Now we know. Abandoned to fend for himself, hiding for years in the shadows, he was left to nurse his hate and now he has the means to exact vengeance.<br />
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One other cool "extras" you will get with <i>Prisoners of Time" </i>are the "Reflection in Time" essays at the end of each issue in which "prominent Whovians past and presents" wrote about their involvement with <i>Doctor Who</i> especially with the show's history and the various incarnations in comic book form.<br />
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All in all, this was a strong, well-written story arc and a fun read, worthy of the <i>Doctor Who </i>name. I don't normally read comics as they come out. Often, I either wait for the story arc to come out on trade paperback or for all the issues for the arc to be released then I read it all in one sitting. I am glad that I decide to break from my norm. The anticipation between each issue was like wait those long months between seasons. I devoured each issues over and over, re-reading each install when the next ones came out, then brooded that it wasn't next month already. It's sad to see IDW lose the rights to continue publishing <i>Doctor Who. </i>They've done a stellar job and they deserve a standing ovation, especially for this story.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-63066691315184421512013-11-19T22:00:00.000-05:002013-11-23T03:12:57.156-05:00Doctor Who: A Bigger Time-suck Than a Black Hole<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcjO_O4csWttNMw1zUa-sOjILmDV6ZnzzG7QugLnaTarXWfUxtYjWM6qcBxQeIXAIhg99HQoQwPls1dYmDtpRHwmx32MEAaxoe843h9leqF5wa6vGSWHxtmQYxlcNCUcM2LbdAmzmqnpg/s1600/Becoming-a-Doctor-Who-Fan-Comic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcjO_O4csWttNMw1zUa-sOjILmDV6ZnzzG7QugLnaTarXWfUxtYjWM6qcBxQeIXAIhg99HQoQwPls1dYmDtpRHwmx32MEAaxoe843h9leqF5wa6vGSWHxtmQYxlcNCUcM2LbdAmzmqnpg/s320/Becoming-a-Doctor-Who-Fan-Comic.jpg" width="166" /></a>In yesterday's <i>Doctor Who</i> post, I presented you with a watered-down synopsis of the television show's history. I also provided you with a must-watch list of the revived series episodes that I think will give you a richer understanding of the show, not to mention, get you caught up for the Saturday premiere of the 50th Anniversary special, "The Day of the Doctor.".<br />
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Today, I want to direct you towards some fun and often quirky <i>Doctor Who</i> related things you can find on the World Wide Web. If you're already a Doctor Who Fan—I mean a <i>PROPER</i> Whovian—you probably already know about all of these. AND THEN SOME! But for the uninitiated, I present to you a list of some of my favorite places to get my <i>Who </i>on!</div>
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<b>WHERE TO GET YOU <i>WHO</i> ON</b><br />
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<b>Pinterest - </b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwFro4-NuqVWRqwOC7vnUWW_KSlzyxYocyjTxI6p_ndvurd48h4xrA0D2Lg6UQOrpV0fkZBh7N0O2b1pnrrnloc17CKHzRDjWOycj7lLXydK0kO_rwFs9sD7pGZONxyUo5VNkdGdn-TrI/s1600/1b99c70f90d2fe7586a4b4609091c082.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwFro4-NuqVWRqwOC7vnUWW_KSlzyxYocyjTxI6p_ndvurd48h4xrA0D2Lg6UQOrpV0fkZBh7N0O2b1pnrrnloc17CKHzRDjWOycj7lLXydK0kO_rwFs9sD7pGZONxyUo5VNkdGdn-TrI/s200/1b99c70f90d2fe7586a4b4609091c082.jpg" width="139" /></a>Well, sure, you can get on Google or Bing but unless you know what you're looking for you're more likely to end up on a Wikipedia entry or yet another news article about the 50th Anniversary Special. Instead, I recommend heading over to Pinterest <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=doctor%20who" target="_blank">where a search for "Doctor Who"</a> can turn up some interesting finds. This is especially true as you explore the plethora of boards created by <i>Doctor Who</i> fans. Here, you'll find links to fan art, parodies and memes, official BBC promotional materials, and cosplay photos—most of which you probably will not get unless you are a die-hard fan.</div>
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Here is my <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/tjblackburn81/whovian-finds/" target="_blank">"Doctor Who" Pinterest Board</a>. I'm still working on building it up.<br />
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Fair warning: Pinterest is addictive on its own. Be prepared. This can become a bigger time suck than a black hole.<br />
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<b>YouTube - </b></div>
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YouTube has a lot of cool videos, everything from fan-made parodies, vlogs, and episode reviews to official trailers and mini-episodes from the both the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/doctorwho?feature=watch" target="_blank">Doctor Who</a> and the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/BBC?feature=watch" target="_blank">BBC's</a> official YouTube pages. Here are some of my favorite.<br />
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Alisa Stern has a cute YouTube tribute series called <i><a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/HelloDoctorPuppet" target="_blank">Doctor Puppet</a>.</i> Basically, <i>Doctor Who</i> marionette style. The series has been featured on the <a href="http://nerdist.com/" target="_blank">Nerdist</a>. In fact the Nerdist has some awesome YouTube <a href="http://www.nerdist.com/2013/11/the-best-of-doctor-who-week-vol-1/" target="_blank">videos</a> embedded on their page.</div>
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One of my favorite <i>Doctor Who </i>webisodes is the two-part "Space/Time" which was part of the 2011 Red Nose special. Written by showrunner Steven Moffat and featuring eleventh Doctor Matt Smith and his then-companions Amy Pond and Rory Williams (played by Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill), the webisodes highlights Moffat's talent and penchant for writing very Wibbly-wobbly, Timey-wimey stories that turns our concepts about time and the paradoxes of time-travel upside down.<br />
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"The Day of the Doctor" won't be the first time the Doctor will interact with his past incarnations. Three previous classic series episodes saw the The Doctor team up his past selves to save the universe [<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Three_Doctors_(Doctor_Who)" target="_blank">1</a>][<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Five_Doctors" target="_blank">2</a>][<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Two_Doctors" target="_blank">3</a>]. Multi-Doctor stories have appeared in spin-off media like novels, audio plays, and comic-books as well. The BBC's annual <i>Children in Need</i> special has also featured multiple Doctors.<br />
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The first time was in 1993 with "Dimensions in Time".<br />
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Then again in 2007 in "Time Crash"</div>
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This is the full length video for <i>The Science of Doctor Who </i>presented by Professor Brian Cox. One of the many specials that are part of the 50th Anniversary celebrations, it blows my mind away how much I understood about physics after I watched the show.<br />
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And of course we can't forget about the "The Night of the Doctor" mini-episode that's been getting a lot of buzz right now.</div>
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<b>The BBC</b></div>
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The BBC has lots of great Doctor Who content. Check out their <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/%E2%80%8E" target="_blank">website</a> for original videos and images and to get updates on the show. They even have this handy-dandy "<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01l1z04/profiles/dw50" target="_blank">50th Anniversary Guide</a>". Follow them on <a href="https://twitter.com/bbcdoctorwho" target="_blank">Twitter</a> or like their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DoctorWho" target="_blank">Facebook Pag</a>e.</div>
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<b>Reddit -</b><br />
<b><br /></b>Speaking of time-sucks, head over to Reddit.com and checkout the subreddit <a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/doctorwho/" target="_blank">r/doctorwho</a>. Here you'll find a lot more photos and fan-art and cosplay, stuff that you make never find elsewhere. The fun part about Reddit is that you may sometime find enlightening and often very funny conversations among users.<br />
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Don't know what Reddit is? Wellllll.....it's a bulletin board style forum where users can submit content and links on almost anything and other users can up or down vote those links. There a lot to Reddit and if you want to know more you should check them out. But be careful what you click on. A lot of things on there are strictly NSFW. Don't know what "NSFW" means? I suggest staying away from Reddit completely—you're not ready for what you might find and therapy is expensive.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-7521322094126628012013-11-18T10:30:00.000-05:002013-11-23T03:12:18.792-05:00Doctor Who: A 50th Anniversary Primer<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Today begins my week long countdown to the <i><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006q2x0" style="color: #177d75; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Doctor Who</a></i> 50th Anniversary Special "The Day of the Doctor" which will premier this Saturday, November 23, 2013 on the BBC and BBC America. To celebrate this milestone, I will be dedicating a daily post every day this week leading up to the premier of the special. Hey! That's what you get with a blog which gets its title from a line in the show.</div>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWpzsPAo2U80SF6SzJAt1F4SBa2YFIAtgm8fXySw0raIJxvwCVKCjH-pc9AqYS81VxZuUBfzNe3Fgr_o9xgqX1Lrl0izUTgYg73j2UYbFAijOfv-lnOkh9NlqA9own7icHuguDb8jT-ww/s1600/Doctor_Who_50th_Anniversary_Special__what_clues_does_the_poster_hold_about_The_Day_of_the_Doctor_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="color: #177d75; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-decoration: none;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWpzsPAo2U80SF6SzJAt1F4SBa2YFIAtgm8fXySw0raIJxvwCVKCjH-pc9AqYS81VxZuUBfzNe3Fgr_o9xgqX1Lrl0izUTgYg73j2UYbFAijOfv-lnOkh9NlqA9own7icHuguDb8jT-ww/s400/Doctor_Who_50th_Anniversary_Special__what_clues_does_the_poster_hold_about_The_Day_of_the_Doctor_.jpg" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 20px; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-left-radius: 5px; border-bottom-right-radius: 5px; border-top-left-radius: 5px; border-top-right-radius: 5px; border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 20px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 10px;">[Image Source: <a href="http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2013-09-11/doctor-who-50th-anniversary-special-what-clues-does-the-poster-hold-about-the-day-of-the-doctor" style="color: #177d75; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">Radiotimes.com</a>]</td></tr>
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Today's post is a bit of a primer for those who have no clue what <i>Doctor Who</i> is all about. </div>
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<b>History</b></div>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaGWyQRdHKm5cj5e6-oMaC7Vlu_u5x9IhHYplbrERn7p5V3iLqqYqFJUUmyX5Z33Llt5yE5qvpA2IbD2fhtG4vD8hQGlMQdDXW__zmym0vg-oNJQWLBJdx5Z-2Z8Ud4tBPSvsSNyVDOhM/s1600/tardis-row.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="color: #177d75; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-decoration: none;"><img border="0" height="98" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaGWyQRdHKm5cj5e6-oMaC7Vlu_u5x9IhHYplbrERn7p5V3iLqqYqFJUUmyX5Z33Llt5yE5qvpA2IbD2fhtG4vD8hQGlMQdDXW__zmym0vg-oNJQWLBJdx5Z-2Z8Ud4tBPSvsSNyVDOhM/s400/tardis-row.jpg" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 20px; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-left-radius: 5px; border-bottom-right-radius: 5px; border-top-left-radius: 5px; border-top-right-radius: 5px; border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 20px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 10px;">The Versions of the TARDIS<br />
[Image Source: <a href="http://www.thedoctorwhosite.co.uk/tardis/exterior/" style="color: #177d75; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">TheDoctorWhoSite</a>]</td></tr>
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Premiering on November 23, 1963, <i>Doctor Who </i>started out as a British children's Saturday educational show in which a cranky old man called The Doctor, his granddaughter, and her two teachers travel through time and space learning about history and science in a ship called a <a href="http://www.thedoctorwhosite.co.uk/tardis/exterior/" style="color: #177d75; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">TARDIS</a> (Time and Relative Dimensions In Space), which, as a running joke has the ability to change its appearance but is permanently stuck as a 1960's <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Police_box" style="color: #177d75; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">blue police call box</a>. (<i><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01lkxlw" style="color: #177d75; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">An Adventure in Space and Time</a></i>, a dramatized account of the show's inception will on November 21, 2103.)</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY0rPs0Yf2PAHMvyew74LwJKfm8xdI2KJbe2KehawMWPOsdCvXdo-9pxV7G76f1MmirBtxJK7qTf8Z6irU3J2q7gteeBeMRCOLAE046NRKhTJMoFVcZU96_RPQYuA03vVdRj0e5WJpDBI/s1600/Versions_of_the_Doctor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="color: #177d75; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-decoration: none;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY0rPs0Yf2PAHMvyew74LwJKfm8xdI2KJbe2KehawMWPOsdCvXdo-9pxV7G76f1MmirBtxJK7qTf8Z6irU3J2q7gteeBeMRCOLAE046NRKhTJMoFVcZU96_RPQYuA03vVdRj0e5WJpDBI/s200/Versions_of_the_Doctor.jpg" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 20px; background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; border-bottom-left-radius: 5px; border-bottom-right-radius: 5px; border-top-left-radius: 5px; border-top-right-radius: 5px; border: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 20px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="166" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 10px; text-align: center;">Versions of the Doctor<br />
[Image Source: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctor_(Doctor_Who)" style="color: #177d75; text-decoration: none;">Wikipedia.com</a>]</td></tr>
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Not long after, it would be revealed that the Doctor is a member of an alien race called the Time Lords and had the ability to regenerate his body (which had the side effect of creating the same man with a new face and a new personality) as a way to cheat death. This device would allowed the show to continue with a new lead actor and came in handy as William Hartnell, the first actor to portray the titular lead, left the show due to his failing health. To date eleven actors have played the coveted role with a 12th—Peter Capaldi—set to take up mantel beginning with the 2103 Christmas Special [<a href="http://tjblackburn.blogspot.com/search/label/Doctor%20Who#.Uom-mWS_crw" style="color: #177d75; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">1</a>][<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p01dpxh4" style="color: #177d75; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">2</a>]. </div>
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The show's original run aired for 26 season until December 1989 and quickly became a cult classic, especially in the United State when the show began to air on PBS. In that time, the show would go through seven Doctors and inspire writers for other, more famous shows like <i>Star Trek</i> as well as geeks and scientist alike. There was just something about a low budget show about an alien who travelled with a rotating cast of companions saving the universe from evil. </div>
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The show would get a TV movie and a new Doctor in 1996. Produced as a partnership between the BBC and Fox, it would serve as a failed pilot to revive the show in an American setting. The show would then continue on in spin-off media like audio-plays, comic books, and novels creating a sort of apocrypha which helped fill the void in many-a-nerds' <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctor_(Doctor_Who)#Physiology" style="color: #177d75; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">double hearts</a>.</div>
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Then in 2005, the BBC would revive the series. The show got a bigger budget and sleeker storytelling. Since then three new Doctors have helped user the show (both classic run and revived series) into a new era with a whole new generation of fans. It is now a world-wide phenomenon with spin-offs, merchandising, and one of the nerdiest, most obsessed followings around.</div>
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<b>The 50th Anniversary Episode</b><br />
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The 50th Anniversary episode titled "The Day of The Doctor" will air this Saturday and will star eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith and his companion Clara Oswald played by Jenna-Louise Coleman. The episode will also feature the return of tenth Doctor David Tennent and companion Rose Tyler played by Billie Piper. The sorry will revolve around the events of the Last Great Time War. A previously unknown incarnation of the Doctor (played by John Hurt) which was revealed in last minutes of the Series Seven season finale will play a large role.<br />
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<b>Playing Catch-up</b></div>
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Want to catch-up on all the fun but don't have the time to watch all 33 seasons, 239 serials, 798 episodes? (You can't, by the way, even if you wanted to do so. Due to the BBC's "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Doctor_Who_serials" style="color: #177d75; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">junking policy</a>" in the 60s and 70s, there are 97 missing episodes.) Netflix has seasons one through six available while season seven is now out on DVD and Bluray. BBC America will also air most of these episodes leading up to the Saturday's Premier. Set your DVRs!</div>
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Here is my list of the key episodes from the revived series that I think you should watch if you don't have the days off from work to watch all 102 episodes. By the way, the new seasons are referred to as "series".</div>
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* - Denotes episodes you can cut out from my long list but I include here because they are great episodes and I feel like they will enhance your experience and/or give you a better understanding of the story/characters/show history. </div>
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<b>Bold</b> - denotes the episodes to watch for a super-short, nitty-gritty marathon</div>
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<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Series 1 - Features the 9th Doctor and Begins the Revived Series</li>
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<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>Episode 01 - "Rose"</b></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 02 - "End of the World"*</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 06 - "Dalek"</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>Episode 12 - "Bad Wolf"</b></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>Episode 13 - "The Parting of the Ways"</b></li>
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<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Series 2 - Features the beginning the 10th Doctor's tenure</li>
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<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>X-Mas 2005 - "The Christmas Invasion"</b></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 03 - "School Reunion"</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 04 - "Girl in the Fireplace"*</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>Episode 12 - "Army of Ghosts</b></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>Episode 13 - "Doomsday"</b></li>
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<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Series 3</li>
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<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">X-Mas 2006 - "The Runaway Bride"</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 01 - "Smith and Jones"</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 02 - "The Shakespeare Code</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 08 - "Human Nature"*</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 09 - "The Family of Blood"*</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 10 - "Blink"* (I don't recommend skipping this one, though.)</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 11 - "Utopia"</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 12 - "The Sound of Drums"</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 13 - "Last of the Time Lords"</li>
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<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Series 4</li>
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<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 01 - "Partners in Crime"</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 09 - "Silence in the Library"*</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 10 - "Forest of the Dead"*</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>Episode 12 - "The Stolen Earth"</b></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>Episode 13 - "Journey's End"</b></li>
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<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Series 4B - The Specials</li>
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<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>Episode 17 & 18 - "The End of Time, Parts 1 & 2"</b></li>
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<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Series 5 - The 11th Doctor takes over. </li>
<ul style="line-height: 1.4; list-style: disc; margin: 0.5em 0px; padding: 0px 2.5em;">
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>Episode 01 - "The Eleventh Hour"</b></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 04 - "The Time of Angels"</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 05 - "Flesh and Stone"</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 12 - "The Pandorica Opens"</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Epsidoe 13 - "The Big Bang"</li>
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<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Series 6</li>
<ul style="line-height: 1.4; list-style: disc; margin: 0.5em 0px; padding: 0px 2.5em;">
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 03 - "The Doctor's Wife"</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 07 - "A Good Man Goes to War"</li>
</ul>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Series 7</li>
<ul style="line-height: 1.4; list-style: disc; margin: 0.5em 0px; padding: 0px 2.5em;">
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>Episode 01 - "Asylum of the Dalek"</b></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>Episode 05 - "The Angels Take Manhatten"</b></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>XMas 2012 - "The Snowmen"</b></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>Episode 06 - "The Bells of Saint John"</b></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 10 - "Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS"*</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;">Episode 11 - "The Crimson Horror"*</li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>Episode 13 - "The Name of the Doctor"</b></li>
<li style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0.25em; padding: 0.25em 0px;"><b>YouTube Mini Episode - <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U3jrS-uhuo" style="color: #177d75; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">"The Night of the Doctor"</a></b></li>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-83409198055559312432013-11-15T18:01:00.000-05:002013-11-18T00:14:33.954-05:00Braves Move North. Will Traffic Nightmare Follow?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
On Monday morning November 11th 2013, Atlantans were greeted by the news that the Braves, Atlanta's iconic baseball team, will leave Turner Field when their lease ends in 2016 and will move into a new stadium in Cobb County in time for the 2017 season. The announcement left many questions in its wake and social media and news outlets quickly became a cornucopia of commentary ranging from jubilant acceptance to vitriolic criticism.<br />
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But as the day and week wore on, and as the shock that followed Braves President John Schuerholz's press conference wore off, it became evident that the club's decision will have a much broader impact on the city which goes beyond the zip code the team will call home.<br />
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To their credit, the Braves PR team launched a new website, <a href="http://www.homeofthebraves.com/">www.homeofthebraves.com</a>, to provide a central place where fans and interested parties can go to get the organizations stance on the matter. The website is comprehensive and does an excellent job answering why they think moving is a great idea. As Max Blau of <i>Creative Loafing</i> puts it, the website "sums [the Braves’] rationale up in one paragraph:"<br />
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The reason for moving is simple. The current location has certain issues that are insurmountable and will only become more problematic over the years. These fundamental issues involve how you, our fans, access Turner Field. There is a lack of consistent mass transportation, a lack of sufficient parking and a lack of direct access to interstates. Furthermore, the Braves do not have control over the development of our immediate surroundings[<a href="http://clatl.com/freshloaf/archives/2013/11/11/braves-turner-field-had-insurmountable-transit-and-development-issues">1</a>][<a href="http://homeofthebraves.com/overview/#prettyPhoto">2</a>].</blockquote>
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Therefore the answer to the Brave's predicament, the website argues, is to move closer to the geographic center of the team's fan base. Their evidence: a map showing ticket sales for the 2102 season that paints Atlanta’s north suburbs in a sea of red, clearly delineating the heart of Braves Country.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHDIoEKwbLtGOMASkE3SCfz5Aonax_OFJ5Bdx8RPBBi5zRN9XE6SG4bjJFIqxBN6rVG-SBAvDhu1pn0GK8X4MF_3M1iuRh4wPGAaF-1AjLhWsMEj7SnicZOSrC7q-UKGXfuqH4MjjF54Q/s1600/TicketSales_Web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHDIoEKwbLtGOMASkE3SCfz5Aonax_OFJ5Bdx8RPBBi5zRN9XE6SG4bjJFIqxBN6rVG-SBAvDhu1pn0GK8X4MF_3M1iuRh4wPGAaF-1AjLhWsMEj7SnicZOSrC7q-UKGXfuqH4MjjF54Q/s320/TicketSales_Web.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Last Season's Ticket Sales<br />
[Image Source: <a href="http://homeofthebraves.com/">HomeOfTheBraves.com</a>]</td></tr>
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Shortly thereafter, politicians and special interests began quibbling over key concerns. Is the move truly a “done deal?” Can Braves be enticed to stay Downtown? Are the Braves and the city betraying a promise of revitalization made to the folks living in the neighborhoods around Turner Field, a promise that has yet to materialize? How much will Cobb taxpayers be on the hook with this move? But, one common concern seems to haunt the minds of Atlantans regardless of the positions they take. Traffic.<br />
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It is no secret that traffic on the Northside Perimeter is a nightmare on a good day, especially near where Interstates 75 and 285 meet, the very same area where the proposed stadium is to be built. So, what happens to everyone’s commute when you build at its crux a 60-acre mixed-used development with a 42,000-seat stadium as it’s main attraction?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-k7JM4_1ayV6tMlVDelMuNOWn4_cfkG51JRPI9X06A3Z7mNJDCsvrP7icZjvcRaYC1GYlU1CHfSyC29rMIRL-5nWjgPn2htXTjIB12_6IheLsL1_irusf7jEK2BZyveYbqYgvsmCRQnM/s1600/site-plan-zoom-large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-k7JM4_1ayV6tMlVDelMuNOWn4_cfkG51JRPI9X06A3Z7mNJDCsvrP7icZjvcRaYC1GYlU1CHfSyC29rMIRL-5nWjgPn2htXTjIB12_6IheLsL1_irusf7jEK2BZyveYbqYgvsmCRQnM/s320/site-plan-zoom-large.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Proposed Site Layout <br />
[Image Source: <a href="http://homeofthebraves.com/">HomeOfTheBraves.com</a>]</td></tr>
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“We’re taking a wait and see approach.” Natalie Dale, a spokesperson at the Georgia DOT told me in a phone conversation Tuesday morning. See explained that since the announcement was on Veterans Day when GDOT was closed, they only just started to look into how their projects will be impacted. “But,” she says, “we don’t foresee this affecting any of our plans at this time.” She went on to say that the planned managed lanes along the Northwest Corridor and the variable speed limits for the north side of I-285 which is set to take effect in the summer of 2014 will easily handle the increase in traffic.<br />
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But what about mass transit? A MARTA representative I spoke to said they too are taking a “wait and see” approach. For its part, MARTA can’t just decide and set roots and rails into the Northwest Corridor, even if they wanted to or if it were for the benefit of the people. “Our Charter prevents us from just going into a county. We have to be invited in,” he said. Cobb County residents must vote in referendum to bring MARTA into the county.<br />
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Opinions on MARTA vary as wildly as they do about the Braves’ move.<br />
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“A referendum to approve MARTA would mean a one percent permanent sales tax,” Cobb County Taxpayers Association (CCTA) president Lance Lamberton said to me in a phone call. Citing MARTA’s record and public sentiments, Lamberton called MARTA inefficient and poorly managed. Still he worries that the increase in traffic will create a public demand for MARTA, a prospect he calls a boondoggle. CCTA’s main concern, according to Lamberton, is to make sure that residents are not left with the tax bill to for the development.<br />
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When asked whether or not he would vote for MARTA even if means more taxes, Cobb County resident Gary Hemrick nodded vigorously and said: “Oh, yeah! Shoot! Yeah!” He said he probably would have gone to more games this past season had their already been a MARTA line from Cobb to Atlanta. “I live about three miles from there where they’re building it so it’ll be nice being really close.”<br />
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Braves fan Oscar Gomez, however, was leery of a MARTA presence, citing the same concerns as Lamberton. Regardless, he is also excited about the new stadium. “I work right down the street from the site and live 20 minutes through it and I absolutely love the move. Will traffic suck? Yes! But will I make it to more Braves games and have fun rooting this team to victory, absolutely. I love the move, I love this team and I love the idea of BBQ and tailgates after work,” he wrote in response to one of my Facebook post soliciting opinions. <br />
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Meanwhile, Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, resigned to the lost of the Braves, seems to push for regionalism, a perspective that would mean a rail option that bridges the 12-mile gap between Atlanta and the Northwest suburbs. That is a position that doesn’t sit well with Joe Dendy, chairman of the Cobb County GOP, who is quoted as saying: “It is absolutely necessary the solution is all about moving cars in and around Cobb and surrounding counties from our north… and not moving people into Cobb by rail from Atlanta” [<a href="http://www.ajc.com/weblogs/political-insider/2013/nov/13/why-publicly-financed-braves-stadium-might-survive/">3</a>]. <br />
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Until the MARTA question is resolved, many of the traffic solutions will fall on the shoulders of Cobb County DOT, who told Atlanta’s WSB that they have several projects in the pipeline for improving traffic in the area [<a href="http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/cobb-dot-will-be-ready-if-braves-move/nbqmC/">4</a>]. Among these include possibly diverting Cobb commuter traffic away from the Windy Ridge-Circle 75 area where the stadium will be located. Cobb DOT also highlighted a diverging diamond interchange for Windy Ridge Road at I-75 which is set to open in 2017, the same year the Braves will begin their tenure at the new stadium. Proposals for shuttle services and a pedestrian bridge are also in the works [<a href="http://www.mdjonline.com/pages/full_story/push?article-Cobb+envisions+bridge+to+connect+Galleria-+stadium%20&id=24041003">5</a>]. My phone calls to Cobb County DOT for more insight into their plans were not returned in time for publication.<br />
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I contacted Joe Sorenson, Communications Director at the Gwinnett County government, to see if they could shed some light on the kind of challenges a county might face bringing in a baseball team into the county. In 2009, the Richmond Braves, a professional minor league team and the Atlanta Braves’ Triple-A Affiliate, moved to 10,000-seat Cool-Ray field in Buford, Ga., becoming the Gwinnett Braves. “It’s really apples and oranges,” Sorenson said. “A minor league team won’t have the draw that the Braves will.” The town—which is about 20 miles up the Northeast Corridor and is host to the Mall of Georgia—saw some traffic delays the first day, he said, but the county quickly adapted. However, without figures in front of him, he said he couldn’t tell me how much of the reduction in congestion in the area had to do with traffic improvements and how much was due to the lost of novelty of having a minor league team in the area. <br />
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But I doubt the Atlanta Braves will have to worry about that prospect.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-22071161526705848512013-10-30T23:30:00.000-04:002013-10-31T02:05:32.279-04:00Lawrenceville Trolley Ghost Tour<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Madame Macabre doing her think.</td></tr>
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<b>What:</b> Lawrenceville Ghost Tours<br />
<b>Where: </b>Historic Downtown Lawrenceville, Ga.<br />
<b>When:</b> May-September: Fridays and Saturdays, 8:30 p.m.<br />
then<br />
Every Night in October: Sunday-Thursdays, 7:30 p.m. and 8:00 and Fridays and Saturdays, 7:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m.<br />
<b>Website:</b> <a href="http://www.scarystoll.com/">www.scarystoll.com</a><br />
<b>Cost: </b>Varies Depending on Tour Day and Time, See Website; Free parking downtown<br />
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<b>***Special Engagement Times and Prices for Trolley Tour - See Website***</b><br />
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Last year Brooke and I went on the Lawrenceville Ghost Tours. This ghost tour, which was created and is run by the <a href="http://www.auroratheatre.com/" target="_blank">Aurora Theater</a> in partnership with the L<a href="http://www.visitlawrenceville.com/" target="_blank">awrenceville Tourism and Trade Association</a>, offers both a walking tour of Historic Downtown Lawrenceville and a trolley tour that takes you around town as well as for a walk though Historic Lawrenceville Cemetery[<a href="http://www.lawrencevilleheritage.com/stories_details.asp?sid=9" target="_blank">1</a>][<a href="http://www.waymerich.com/lawrencevillecemetery.htm" target="_blank">2</a>]. Having missed the last trolley tour slot last year, we ended up doing only the walking tour. (You can read my review of the walking tour <a href="http://tjblackburn.blogspot.com/2012/10/review-lawerenceville-ghost-tour.html" target="_blank">here</a>.) But we decided then to make it a point of going on the trolley this year. So last Friday, we decided to make a date night of it.<br />
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So, was it worth the $25 per person?<br />
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Yes and no. Our experience this year was a mixed bag. The tour itself was great—don't get me wrong. The trolley stories were the same as walking tour and if you read my review from last year, then you know I think that the storytelling is topnotch and the stories are some of the best I've heard since Brooke and I started going on ghost tours. An added bonus for us was that Madame Macabre was once again our tour guide. The main differences are that you are riding around town on Annabel the tour trolley rather than walking and the take you to the cemetery.<br />
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There were no new or different stories, much to our disappointment. In fact some of the stories seemed to be told at a faster pace, most likely to match the speed of the trolley and I certain there was a story or two from the walking tour last year that were omitted. But I felt that Madame Macabre and our driver "Slim" had great chemistry and their playful interactions added a new dynamic to the tour. It was also nice to see some of the same locales from last year from different sides angles. Also some of the stories were told in the cemetery at the graves of some of the protagonists which I thought gave the story a some dimension. You can probably hang out in the cemetery during daylight hours on your own but there is something to be said about walking around a cemetery in the dark listening to scary stories and being encourage to use cameras and video recording devices to see if you can pick up <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=ghost+orbs&oq=ghost+orbs&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l5.1454j0j4&sourceid=chrome&espv=210&es_sm=119&ie=UTF-8" target="_blank">ghost orbs</a> and <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=evp&oq=evp&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l5.700j0j4&sourceid=chrome&espv=210&es_sm=119&ie=UTF-8" target="_blank">EVP</a> (electronic voice phenomena). I'll let you decide.<br />
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Bottom line: if you go on one, whether the walking tour or on the trolley, you aren't really missing much of anything by doing the other. The trolley stopped to let us visit the historic jail. Unfortunately one of the other tour groups left the jail locked so we didn't get to go inside, but Brooke and I got to go inside on last year's tour so she and I, in particular, didn't really lost out on anything. I will say that had we done the trolley first last year then went on the walking tour this year, the walking tour would have been more disappointing. In my opinion, if you are healthy enough to walk, you should take the walking tour. It is cheaper and better for your health not to mention, the tours are fair identical. Save the trolley for the less ambulatory patrons.<br />
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On a side note: I mentioned in <a href="http://tjblackburn.blogspot.com/2013/10/howlphartta-ghost-tour.html#.UnHwzJS_crw" target="_blank">my post</a> on HOWLpharetta earlier this week, all the rain this year have made some of the grave shift and sink. Well, I fell into one such grave. Nothing dramatic. We were gathered around a grave and when I stepped back I felt my footfall land awkwardly about four inches lower than the ground in front of me. As I tried to catch myself my other foot followed its pair. I froze in place I as stood should, feet length apart, my toes and the side of my feet pressing up against the corners and walls of a hole that match the distinct shape and width of a coffin. I was standing inside of a grave on top of someones foot!<br />
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Welp! Good Night!<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-90338735911032221882013-10-28T14:34:00.000-04:002013-10-28T15:17:04.569-04:00HOWLphartta Ghost Tour<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[Image Source: <a href="http://alpharettatours.com/">AlpharettaTours.com</a>]</td></tr>
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<b>What:</b> HOWLpharetta Ghost Tour</div>
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<b>Where:</b> Historic Downtown Alpharetta, Ga.<br />
<b>When:</b> Fridays and Saturdays, 8:00 p.m. March - November<br />
<b>Website:</b> <a href="http://www.alpharettatours.com/">www.AlpharettaTours.com</a><br />
<b>Cost: </b>$15 Admission, Free Parking<br />
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As you all may—or may not know if you've only recently started following me—one of my favorite traditions is going on ghost tours with the wife. Each Halloween season, we try to check out at least one new tour. It's a fun little obsession we have that allows us to learn about Georgia's quirky local history while sightseeing the state's many historic down-towns. This year, one of those tours was the HOWLpharetta Ghost Tour.<br />
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Located in Historic Downtown Alpharetta in northern Fulton County about half an hour north of Atlanta, HOWLpharetta is a guided ghost story tour presented by the nice folks at Alpharetta Tours. Tours meet at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays in front of the historic Dodd Hotel at the corner of Milton Avenue and Roswell Street and follows a two mile stroll around town, making frequent stops to weave history with local legends and tales of ghost sightings. "I have permission from the owners to tell you of their ghostly encounters," Jen Hunt, our guide tells our tour group. She goes on to say that many of the store owners and residences enthusiastically volunteered their stories when she initially approached them about doing a history tour. "I don't even mention ghosts," she says. "'Did you know, this building is haunted?' Would be the first thing they say to me."<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jen Hunt of [Image Source: <a href="http://alpharettatours.com/">AlpharettaTours.com</a>]</td></tr>
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Bring a flashlight as this tour not only only takes you in front of several shops in the well-lit Business District, but also down a couple dark alleyways and side streets as well as Resthaven Cemetery where many of Alpharetta's founding families are buried and to which Alpharetta Tours claims an exclusive night-time access. Add the fact that all the rain this year has caused many of the graves to shift, rise, and/or sink, and you have the making for an eerie and enjoyable night out.<br />
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Most of those stories are of mischievous specters or idiosyncratic ghosts who, despite the violent ends many of them meet in life, are out to play tricks on the unsuspecting store employee rather than induce scares. Others tales can be spine-tingling for the faint of heart, however. At one point we ended up in front of "one of the most active addresses" where the scent of pipe tobacco near the front porch is a documented sign of one of the hauntings. I stood at the spot for a while as I waited my turn to approach the front door but didn't smell a thing. Then, I walked away up the steps to take a look through the windows and as I walked past the same spot away from the house, it hit me! It was faint at first but grew stronger. The distinct aroma of pipe smoke. I'll let you decide if it really was an encounter or just my mind opened to suggestions. But I think you should go there yourself before you make any conclusions.<br />
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Tickets are $15 and can be purchased though the <a href="http://alpharettatours.com/tickets/" target="_blank">tour website</a> which links to their Zerve listing. Although the website says the tours are from March through November, there are tickets available for December. But get them fast as tickets do go quickly. I'm a little late with my review, we went on two weeks ago. The tickets for the rest of October (including special engagement times for Halloween week) and November didn't stay up that long.HOWLpharetta also does special nights once a month when guest can bring their best-behaved furry friends on the tour with them. These dog-friendly outing require that owners keep their pets on a leash, that owners pick up after their dogs, and that dogs not be easily startled by noise.<br />
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Be aware there is a waiver you will need to sign to participate. It seems to be (I'm not a lawyer here folks!) a general waiver basically stating that—hey!—you 're knowingly and willingly going on a two mile walk in the dark while being told scary stories and that you're assuming all risk of said activity. There is one part of the waiver I did not like, however. There is a small media release section at the end of the one page waiver that requires a separate signature. It states:<br />
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I agree to grant Alpharetta Tours to a worldwide, royalty-free license to use my name, statements, photographic, video, or digital likeness solely for promotional, educational, and/or commercial purposes.</blockquote>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I think it glows in the dark.</td></tr>
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Otherwise, it was a fun night of ghostly adventure that would make any history buff or ghost-story aficionado proud. They definitely fulfill their promise of a night of "exquisite storytelling and Southern charm." I was not disappointed.<br />
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If you do decide to take one of their tours, make sure to like their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/alpharettatours" target="_blank">Facebook Page</a> or follow them on <a href="https://twitter.com/alpharettatours" target="_blank">Twitter</a> and to leave a <a href="http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g29196-d4521262-Reviews-Alpharetta_Tours-Alpharetta_Georgia.html" target="_blank">TripAdvisor</a> review, as doing so qualifies you for their drawings to win a goody-bag and t-shirt. Brooke, who always seems to win thinks she enters, received this nifty shirt.<br />
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Here are just some of the photos we took during the tour. You can see more of the photos on my <a href="http://on.fb.me/16h7O4D" target="_blank">Facebook page</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What ghost lurks here?<br />
I won't spoil it for you. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidpMzsPH_1rkXHl55z2kMv9SByFFXAvUlbcA1Qh-_IvfL8q1gSU8EDlUVHZwM52EqYHlFrgokVLNaI8Q0aJ1L-yOBbs6LWDmgPIjLRU7JqdmVT3exqx9tKQKzZvccJqjvZMKvsbXfx_Yg/s1600/IMG_6574.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidpMzsPH_1rkXHl55z2kMv9SByFFXAvUlbcA1Qh-_IvfL8q1gSU8EDlUVHZwM52EqYHlFrgokVLNaI8Q0aJ1L-yOBbs6LWDmgPIjLRU7JqdmVT3exqx9tKQKzZvccJqjvZMKvsbXfx_Yg/s200/IMG_6574.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The tour begins.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Resthaven as seen from the Gates</td></tr>
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Not high-def enough for you? Check out photographer Jonathan Phillips <a href="http://capturelifethroughthelens.com/2013/09/07/howlpharetta/" target="_blank">blog</a> where he reviewed the tour and posted some really crisp, professional photos. Alpharetta Tours also has some great images on their <a href="http://www.alpharettatours.com/" target="_blank">website</a> and on their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/alpharettatours" target="_blank">Facebook page</a>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgky-BNjnX2y2I5L8GEnDP30dlYcyzZLCCgIY9dbqZs0gfREoPEcYgJ-gOfFCtS065b2_Qy82D6Z44Z-kWg9VcvCGeOVWlQEnDoxExB4qc8CASMsNBWtqruxOgsU9XZjoNB8AKGt_LbJlQ/s640/blogger-image--1759376021.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-12529120487355387092013-09-19T11:30:00.000-04:002013-11-06T12:29:25.820-05:00Duluth Food Truck Fridays - Duluth, Georgia<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">[Image Source: <a href="http://www.duluthga.net/community/food_truck_fridays.php" target="_blank">DuluthGA.net</a>]</td></tr>
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<b>What: </b>Duluth Food Truck Fridays</div>
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<b>Where: </b><a href="https://maps.google.com/maps?q=3167+main+street+duluth+ga+30096" target="_blank">3167 Main Street, Duluth, Georgia 30096</a></div>
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<b>When: </b>Fridays, 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m., <br />
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September 6th -<strike> October 25th </strike> <i><b><u>Extended to November 15th!!!!</u></b></i></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">Billed as a "community block party," this Historic Downtown Duluth, Ga. event runs every Friday from September 6th through October 25th and features a rotating line-up of Atlanta's best mobile eateries. </span><span style="text-align: left;">Check out the event website for that week's food truck lineup as well as the entertainment planned for the day. In fact, Friday September 20th's line up was announced yesterday morning. There will be live music starting at 5:30 p.m. and a screening of </span><i style="text-align: left;">Great Gatsby</i><span style="text-align: left;"> on the lawn planned for 8 o'clock.</span></div>
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I do have one piece of advice for you if you ever decide to check out Duluth Food Truck Fridays this fall: get there early! Let me re-iterate that: <b><i><u>GET THERE EARLY!!!</u></i></b></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">That was probably the only regret the wife and I had when we went this past Friday for our first ever visit. </span><span style="text-align: left;">I had geek-related errands and Brooke was working late.</span> <span style="text-align: left;">So, by the time we finally got there around 7:30 p.m., the lines were long and most of the food trucks had sold out of many of their best dishes. Parking wasn't too bad but the combination of event traffic and the tail end of Friday night rush hour was somewhat frustrating. At least parking was free!</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">But don't let all that deter you from getting your munch on at t</span>his family-friendly shindig<span style="text-align: left;">. </span>Brooke and I learned about this event earlier that morning when one of the food trucks that Brooke stalks on Facebook, Ibiza Bites, posted that they would be making an appearance. We decided to check it out as a last minute date night idea and <span style="text-align: left;">we were glad we did. W</span><span style="text-align: left;">e will definitely go again. It was well worth it. Heck! If we can manage it, we might even go each week that Food Truck Fridays is running. </span></div>
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Last week we were treated to live music and stand up comedy and the food truck line up included:<br />
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<li><a href="http://freckledandblue.com/" target="_blank">Freckled & Blue</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.ibizabites.com/" target="_blank">Ibiza Bites</a></li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.masalafresh.com/" target="_blank">Masala Fresh</a></li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.cuzinechefs.com/food-truck/" target="_blank">MIX'd UP</a></li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="http://www.pressedfortimetruck.com/" target="_blank">Pressed For Time</a></li>
<li><a href="http://souprnoodles.com/" target="_blank">Soup 'R Noodles</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.chayjs.com/" target="_blank">Chay J's New Orleans Candies</a></li>
<li><a href="http://atlanta.kingofpops.net/" target="_blank">King of Pops</a></li>
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We tried out Ibiza Bites and Pressed for Time. Both were delicious though we missed out on the more popular menu items. Here are a couple pictures to make your mouths water. If you do decide to go, maybe we'll see each other there. More pictures from our visit last week (and of future visits) are available for your food porn viewing pleasure on my <a href="http://on.fb.me/16oKPRK" target="_blank">Facebook page</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ibiza Bites, the truck that drew us in.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ibiza Bites' Coconut Fried Chicken<br />
w/ Mango Slaw and Coconut Rice</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of the court yard from <br />
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MIX'd UP & Freckled & Blue <br />
in the back ground</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blackened Chicken w/ Raspberry <br />
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If Duluth is too far of a drive you, other towns the Metro Area host their won food truck events. The city of Brookhaven holds their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/BrookhavenFTN" target="_blank">Brookhaven Food Truck Nights</a> on Wednesdays from 5 p.m to 9 p.m. while the Buckhead community in Atlanta has a lunch time <a href="http://livablebuckhead.com/placemaking/communityevents/food-truck-tuesdays-in-buckhead/" target="_blank">Food Truck Tuesdays</a> from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. There's even a <a href="http://www.atlantafoodtruckpark.com/" target="_blank">Atlanta Food Truck Park and Market</a> on Howell Mill Road who, according to their website, is trying to "rehabilitating an old hotel site that has been sitting vacant and is a key piece of property within the community." There are plenty more; too many to list here. Some of these events are seasonal. The city of Suwanee's summer series of Food Truck Fridays ended on September 6th, just as Duluth's fall series began.<br />
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The Atlanta Street Food Coalition is a great resource if you are interested in following the burgeoning Atlanta food truck scene. Their <a href="http://www.atlantastreetfood.com/" target="_blank">website</a> includes links to some of the Metro's best street food vendors as well as news and announcements especially about local laws and ordinances that affect where and when you can find these amazing mobile restaurants. They also have a how-to eBook to help you start your own street food business if you are so inclined.<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1013788898527194564.post-62037214482689505392013-09-17T20:00:00.000-04:002013-09-18T13:39:34.786-04:00TV Review: Sleepy Hollow<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Fox's new Monday night drama <i>Sleepy Hollow</i> premiered yesterday, taking the #1 slot with 10 million viewers and making it the broadcasting company's "highest-rated fall drama premiere in six years," according to <i>Entertainment Weekly </i><sup>[<a href="http://insidetv.ew.com/2013/09/17/sleepy-hollow-premiere-ratings/" target="_blank">1</a>]</sup>. Described by complex.com as "the bastard child of ABC's <i>Once Upon a Time</i> and NBC's <i>Grimm,</i>"<sup><a href="http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2013/08/most-anticipated-fall-tv-shows/sleepy-hollow" target="_blank">[2]</a></sup> the show was created by <i>Transformers </i>and <i>Star Trek </i>scribes Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, director Len Wiseman (<i>Underworld</i>), and writer/producer Phillip Iscove.</div>
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As could be expected from a retelling of one of America's most adapted literary stories, <i>Sleepy Hollow</i> isn't a wholly original show. Following a TV Land trend of taking a public domain story or fairy-tale and resetting it in the modern world, the series is basically a supernatural procedural thriller that takes many liberties with Washington Irving's 1820 short story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." Included among these liberties is chief protagonist Ichabod Crane (played by Brit import <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2070427/" target="_blank">Tom Mison</a>) who has been transformed (no pun intended) by the writers from a cowardly and lanky 1790's Connecticut schoolmaster into a determine and hunky British Redcoat turned Continental Army soldier and George Washington spy. Dying from a wound sustained during battle in which he beheads a Hessian mercenary, Crane wakes up Rip Van Winkle-style in 2013 where he must team up with Sheriff's Deputy Abbie Mills (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2718512/" target="_blank">Nicole Beharie</a>) to unlock the secrets behind the town of Sleepy Hollow, New York and to stop the Hessian who has also returned as the Headless Horseman.</div>
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Despite some questionable plot points and some bad acting from Beharie and <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0428963/" target="_blank">Orlando Jones</a> who plays Police Captain Frank Irving (hmmm...Irving? Coincidence?), the show was actually pretty enjoyable. There were a lot of creative angles and camera work that one might expect from one a Hollywood blockbuster. The special effect were also pretty amazing with the Horseman moving fluidly and CG elements being rendered realistically.</div>
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The writing wasn't too bad either. It was interesting to see how the writers interwove different elements into their story to make it their own and separate it from previous retelling. Historical details like George Washington as spymaster or the witch hysteria of 17th and 18th century brought color into this tale. Crane's 18th century worldview also made for some hilarious moments as our time-displaced hero experienced his new environment with awkwardness and culture-shock. The recasting of classical monster fairy-tale is reminiscent more of the success behind CW's <i>Supernatural</i> than that the shortcomings of <i>Grimm </i>and the slightly more tolerable, yet still tedious <i>Once Upon a Time. </i>Time will tell whether or not <i>Sleepy Hollow </i>will keep a place on my DVR schedule.<i> </i> Next Monday's episode does looks promising. Just saying.</div>
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<i>Sleepy Hollow </i>airs on Monday nights at 9 p.m. EST following <i>Bones </i>at 8 o'clock. Check your local listings. If you missed yesterday's episode, the four minute trailer below from Fox actually highlights some of the key points. But if you'd rather watch the show, the full episode is currently available on <a href="http://www.hulu.com/sleepy-hollow" target="_blank">Hulu</a>.</div>
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