© by Gerald So | 2:30 A.M.
I get to pad my publishing stats for 2016 with three new poems at Johnny Longfellow's Midnight Lane Boutique, which also just reopened to submissions.
Please enjoy with the festive food and drink of your choice. See you next year.
Saturday, December 31, 2016
Thursday, December 29, 2016
Reflection
© by Gerald So | 8:00 A.M.
Tuesday night, I had dinner with college friends and fellow Star Wars fans Andrew Carbone, Deshant Paúl, John Ricotta, and Matt Tedesco at Dinosaur BBQ in Brooklyn. Quickly and naturally, talk turned to that morning's death of Carrie Fisher, and last night brought news of her mother Debbie Reynolds' death.
Quite a few celebrities have died this month, in fact, which you might see as more reason to lament 2016. I, however, hesitate to blame time for anything. Instead, I remind myself to treasure friends, family, people I admire, and things I enjoy as long as I can.
Andrew, Deshant, John, Matt, and I became friends because, in 1995, we and a few others were interested in starting a literary magazine at Hofstra more inclusive and more likely to stand the test of time than the previous few. As we found our way through setting up and running Font, we knew our chemistry was special. We didn't need retrospect to realize. We wanted to stay in touch, so we have.
And though we no longer run Font, the student body has kept it active all these years. We must have done something right.
 |
| L to R around the table: John, Matt, me, Andrew, Deshant |
Tuesday night, I had dinner with college friends and fellow Star Wars fans Andrew Carbone, Deshant Paúl, John Ricotta, and Matt Tedesco at Dinosaur BBQ in Brooklyn. Quickly and naturally, talk turned to that morning's death of Carrie Fisher, and last night brought news of her mother Debbie Reynolds' death.
Quite a few celebrities have died this month, in fact, which you might see as more reason to lament 2016. I, however, hesitate to blame time for anything. Instead, I remind myself to treasure friends, family, people I admire, and things I enjoy as long as I can.
Andrew, Deshant, John, Matt, and I became friends because, in 1995, we and a few others were interested in starting a literary magazine at Hofstra more inclusive and more likely to stand the test of time than the previous few. As we found our way through setting up and running Font, we knew our chemistry was special. We didn't need retrospect to realize. We wanted to stay in touch, so we have.
And though we no longer run Font, the student body has kept it active all these years. We must have done something right.
Tuesday, December 27, 2016
TRAVELERS
© by Gerald So | 4:30 A.M.
Hundreds of years from now, the technology to transfer human consciousness from one body to another is used to send a few thousand Travelers into present-day bodies near death in hopes of preventing humanity's bleak future.
Co-produced by Canadian TV network Showcase and Netflix, created by Brad Wright of TV's Stargate franchise, Travelers stars Eric McCormack as present-day FBI Special Agent Grant MacLaren, who discovers the presence of Travelers shortly before he was reported to have fallen to his death chasing a killer. Grant's body is taken over by Traveler 3468, who heads his own five-person Traveler team.
The teams must stay on-task so as not to alter the future more than expected, but soon enough, 3468 and his team grow attached to people in their hosts' lives and try to help those people as well as themselves. Meanwhile, they succeed at the bulk of their missions, but their future doesn't seem to improve.
Only the tip of the iceberg, I'm sure. I started watching on Netflix yesterday and wound up binging the full season. Recommended for fellow fans of Quantum Leap, Leverage, and Person of Interest.
Hundreds of years from now, the technology to transfer human consciousness from one body to another is used to send a few thousand Travelers into present-day bodies near death in hopes of preventing humanity's bleak future.
Co-produced by Canadian TV network Showcase and Netflix, created by Brad Wright of TV's Stargate franchise, Travelers stars Eric McCormack as present-day FBI Special Agent Grant MacLaren, who discovers the presence of Travelers shortly before he was reported to have fallen to his death chasing a killer. Grant's body is taken over by Traveler 3468, who heads his own five-person Traveler team.
The teams must stay on-task so as not to alter the future more than expected, but soon enough, 3468 and his team grow attached to people in their hosts' lives and try to help those people as well as themselves. Meanwhile, they succeed at the bulk of their missions, but their future doesn't seem to improve.
Only the tip of the iceberg, I'm sure. I started watching on Netflix yesterday and wound up binging the full season. Recommended for fellow fans of Quantum Leap, Leverage, and Person of Interest.
Saturday, December 24, 2016
To Unscheduled Joy
© by Gerald So | 4:00 A.M.
It's another Christmas for me as a single, childless adult (not by choice). As such, I've learned to take joy of the season when and where I feel it. After all, I don't see that one can bottle up joy to be released just in time on the Twenty-fourth, -fifth, or Thirty-first.
I don't have the means to repay all my friends and loved ones in material gifts, but I try to bring that friendship and love with me whenever I see or talk with them. To last week's gathering of nine of us for Rogue One, for example.
I hope this blog strikes a similar friendly tone with every post.
I have Christmas-themed poems running at The Five-Two this and next week. I need one more poem to fill out January and then some for our February theme, crimes of passion. Submit today.
All the best to you for the holiday season and the new year.
It's another Christmas for me as a single, childless adult (not by choice). As such, I've learned to take joy of the season when and where I feel it. After all, I don't see that one can bottle up joy to be released just in time on the Twenty-fourth, -fifth, or Thirty-first.
I don't have the means to repay all my friends and loved ones in material gifts, but I try to bring that friendship and love with me whenever I see or talk with them. To last week's gathering of nine of us for Rogue One, for example.
I hope this blog strikes a similar friendly tone with every post.
I have Christmas-themed poems running at The Five-Two this and next week. I need one more poem to fill out January and then some for our February theme, crimes of passion. Submit today.
All the best to you for the holiday season and the new year.
Friday, December 16, 2016
ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY
© by Gerald So | 5:00 A.M.
Set shortly before A New Hope (1977), in defiance of Rebel superiors, Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones), daughter of original Death Star architect Galen Erso (Mads Mikkelsen), leads a bold effort to steal the Death Star plans.
While all of Disney's Lucasfilm projects may be seen as homage to those George Lucas helmed before selling, Rogue One is more graceful about it than The Force Awakens. It concentrates on the previously undepicted story of Jyn's standalone mission, only hinting at connections to the established franchise.
This much said, it's worth noting the order in which Disney releases these movies. If The Force Awakens hadn't captured the feel of the first trilogy, Rogue One wouldn't have had the freedom to tell its own story.
Set shortly before A New Hope (1977), in defiance of Rebel superiors, Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones), daughter of original Death Star architect Galen Erso (Mads Mikkelsen), leads a bold effort to steal the Death Star plans.
While all of Disney's Lucasfilm projects may be seen as homage to those George Lucas helmed before selling, Rogue One is more graceful about it than The Force Awakens. It concentrates on the previously undepicted story of Jyn's standalone mission, only hinting at connections to the established franchise.
This much said, it's worth noting the order in which Disney releases these movies. If The Force Awakens hadn't captured the feel of the first trilogy, Rogue One wouldn't have had the freedom to tell its own story.
Sunday, December 11, 2016
Fuller of Itself?
© by Gerald So | 3:00 A.M.
On Friday the 9th, I decided to reward myself for finishing and submitting a story by watching Season 2 of Fuller House on Netflix. I'd found Season 1 full of humor and heart even though I'm a few years too old to have "grown up with" Full House.
I looked forward to seeing more of the characters, but there may not be more to them. Season 1 ended on the cliffhanger of whether D.J. would choose to date her co-worker Dr. Matt Harmon (John Brotherton) or divorced, classic boyfriend Dr. Steve Hale (Scott Weinger). As we pick up, Matt and Steve, having waited all summer for D.J.'s decision, have not only befriended each other but also landed new girlfriends. Poor D.J.
In fact, every main character on the show seems to seek or find a romantic partner in Season 2, making their arcs too similar for my liking.
On Friday the 9th, I decided to reward myself for finishing and submitting a story by watching Season 2 of Fuller House on Netflix. I'd found Season 1 full of humor and heart even though I'm a few years too old to have "grown up with" Full House.
I looked forward to seeing more of the characters, but there may not be more to them. Season 1 ended on the cliffhanger of whether D.J. would choose to date her co-worker Dr. Matt Harmon (John Brotherton) or divorced, classic boyfriend Dr. Steve Hale (Scott Weinger). As we pick up, Matt and Steve, having waited all summer for D.J.'s decision, have not only befriended each other but also landed new girlfriends. Poor D.J.
In fact, every main character on the show seems to seek or find a romantic partner in Season 2, making their arcs too similar for my liking.
3-2-1 Contact
© by Gerald So | 2:30 A.M.
After two years with a serene yogini background photo, I've changed the look of this blog to take advantage of Blogger's contact form. With the form in the sidebar, I can leave my email address off the blog's pages and posts, closing those windows to spambots.
After two years with a serene yogini background photo, I've changed the look of this blog to take advantage of Blogger's contact form. With the form in the sidebar, I can leave my email address off the blog's pages and posts, closing those windows to spambots.
Wednesday, December 07, 2016
It's All Good
© by Gerald So | 5:30 A.M.
I wanted to check in after falling off blogging in recent weeks. The last two of November, I proofed and published The Five-Two's fifth annual ebook of fifty-two crime poems.
I had a good Thanksgiving at my cousin's, closed out with the board game Pandemic, in which players cooperate as CDC members against worldwide outbreaks.
For Black Friday, I got great deals on DVDs of Lucifer Season 1 and The Big Bang Theory Season 9.
Finally, for the past week, I've been writing a story I'm going to submit to a food-based anthology. Fondly, it's brought back characters I created twenty-one years ago in a novel-writing class.
Thank you for your ongoing interest here.
I wanted to check in after falling off blogging in recent weeks. The last two of November, I proofed and published The Five-Two's fifth annual ebook of fifty-two crime poems.
I had a good Thanksgiving at my cousin's, closed out with the board game Pandemic, in which players cooperate as CDC members against worldwide outbreaks.
For Black Friday, I got great deals on DVDs of Lucifer Season 1 and The Big Bang Theory Season 9.
Finally, for the past week, I've been writing a story I'm going to submit to a food-based anthology. Fondly, it's brought back characters I created twenty-one years ago in a novel-writing class.
Thank you for your ongoing interest here.
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