Recording nostalgia, one song at a time (11/23)

Like many other '80s kids, I grew up with Ninja Turtles, that blasted "Crossfire" board game commercial and Nintendo.

Though I didn't get my start in gaming with the ol' NES, it was certainly the portal to my continuing love of interactive entertainment.

I've been a fan of nearly all things gaming ever since first bopping heads in Battletoads. My interest has waned over the years, but I still enjoy a good videogame ever so often.

A few years ago, I started recording random game-related tunes I enjoyed listening to as a child. Figured I'd upload 'em to Youtube and show the world. Why? I don't know, and I'd wager that 90 percent of Youtube uploaders don't know why they upload either.

But hey, maybe a few people out there will get a warm memory or two from some of these. I'll put a few more up when I get to it.

With that said, open the nerd gates!

The Legend of Zelda theme:



Tetris theme:



Killer Instinct Sabrewulf theme:

Left4Dead - Severed heads above the competition. (11/21)

As a horror nut, it's sometimes difficult (read: nigh impossible) to stay complacent with D-grade movie adaptations and countless subpar remakes.

The winter of our discontent never comes. It's as if bad horror flicks have ironically stumbled into an idiotic, neverending cinematic zombification - they just won't die, and they just keep comin'.

When I do catch a horror screening, I feel awkward. Knowing I'm sitting in a cesspool of new-age Saw and Hostel fans disturbs me. Parents drag along their kids to bloodbaths; a twisted tale in its own right, possibly more drama-filled and psychologically distracting than the movie I'm watching.

It's no secret that I don't appreciate what "horror" has become: torture porn breaded into bite-sized delectables for a tweenage audience. Even with occasional releases overseas attempting to compensate with lackluster, superviolent atrocities, I still can't get into the scene like I once did.

I never thought I'd say this, but where's Jason Voorhees when you need him, if not solely for some wholesome(ly gruesome) American-born entertainment that doesn't involve pinching toenails off with needlenose pliers?

Crossroads. Where do I go from here?

Videogames. That's where, and I plead that any antiqued (I'm 23, by the way) horror aficianados join up with me.

Ask just about anyone: I'm a sucker for 28 Days Later (not to be confused with its deplorable sequel). It's a glorious glimpse into mankind's dark underbelly - beautifully shot, hauntingly desolate.

Now jump into Valve's Left4Dead, a shooter for the Xbox 360 and PC. You won't find any princesses or fat Italian plumbers here. Instead, this is raw, interactive horror at its best.

You're pitted with three teammates - AI-controlled if you don't have buddies to play with - and the goal is to survive long enough for evacuation.

On your way, you'll meet fast, bloodthirsty infected (NOT zombies. Stop calling them zombies.) that are mostly interested in your outting your innards. 28 Days Later: The Game, anyone?

The game isn't necessarily scary per se, unless you've fine-tuned your understanding of what "fright" really is.

Tension builds as you creep along a dimly lit subway. You flinch as a swath of infected soldiers, friends and family erupt down a distant corridor. That's fear. Though its not explicitly said, a true horror fan can see that these diseased, rotting people, these "things," are us. No different than a movie, other than you're the one pulling the trigger. Awesome.

It takes a bit of imagination, but if you can see the writing on the blood-soaked wall, the fun factor goes through the roof.

When you play with friends, it gets even better. Tired of fighting for survival? Go online and join the horde of enraged dead-esque and vomit on your friends. Yeah, you can do that.

Keeping in the horror vein, L4D knows when to take itself dead-serious. Chances are, you won't be laughing if a giant mutant bashes through a wall in attempt to kill you; that is, unless your buddy is controlling him, in which case, it's hilarious.

However, the infected Source material (pun intended for those nerdy enough to understand) there's some laughs to be had, especially with comical conversations jotted on graffiti'd concrete.

I do wish the lot of you take it upon yourselves to try this visceral gem out, especially if you're a jaded horror flicker like myself.

2008 Voting Blog

5:55 p.m. Antonia Wilson said she voted for who she described as the "best candidate," Sen. Barack Obama.

"What he's speaking about, he's more for the people, more for the United States," she said. "He's more for us."

Pat Booth, of West Graham Street, said her vote went to Republican Sen. John McCain.

"I think he has more experience," said Booth. "I think that he will give the country a little more confidence, give other countries an image of more confidence."

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5:46 p.m. Light is definitely an issue now. Supporters look more like shadowy silhouettes than vocal campaigners.

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5:40 p.m. Wow. Shelby City Park is filled with voting signs (outside the gymnasium, at least) but only a few supporters are among the cardboard and plastic forest.

Interesting. Much like Grover Street Fire Department, vehicles are everywhere but there's hardly anyone around.

Wait, speak of the devil. Five people just left the polling location and another one is entering.

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5:36 p.m. Traffic is heavy on Grover Street. Voter turnout or just rush hour? I can't help but wonder.

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5:34 p.m. On the move again, this time to Shelby City Park.

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5:31 p.m. Night is falling and more supporters are using layered clothing to their advantage. A few people are huddled around a heater (pictured in the streaming dashcam footage, if you're following the live broadcast).

The crowd at Grover Street is comparable to that of Shelby's No. 2 precinct, though the stream of voters seems slightly less.

Three voters declined to comment on their presidential choices.

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5:24 p.m. Parking is a precious commodity at the Grover Street Fire Department. Cars are lined up in the grass nearly everywhere. The next-door Kwik-N-Klean car wash is also filling up with would-be voters.

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5:19 p.m. Departed the senior center.

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5:06 p.m. Turnout is, at least now, significantly less at the Neal Smith Senior Center than that of Shelby's No. 2 precinct. There are a few voters coming and going, but traffic in general hardly compares.

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SENATE DISTRICT 46 UPDATE:

5 p.m. Les Roark, sporting a blue Keith Melton support shirt, says Melton will make a good senator because of his experience as Rutherford County Clerk of Court.

"He's well-qualified, he's well educated," said Roark. "Being a county Clerk of Superior Court is one of the most challenging county employees. They have a lot of things to keep up with."

Dan Brown, decked out in Debbie Clary gear, believes Clary's support for outdoorsmen is an important component of her campaign.

"She's been supportive of hunters, shooters and sportsmen in North Carolina," he said. "She has the experience in the House of Representatives. I think she has the experience and the know-how to get things done at the state senate level in Raleigh for our area."

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4:39 p.m. Cleveland Volunteer firefighters responded to a stove fire. The loud noise didn't seem to distract those campaigning at the fire station.

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4:32 p.m. Cleveland County Democratic Party Chair Jennifer Helton said the turnout in some precincts will wind up being "astronomical."

"The turnout has been steady everywhere," she said. "People were coming out to vote first thing."

Helton said it was ironic there were no lines because of all the early voters. Residents who sought to avoid lines by voting early had to wait much longer than those on Election Day.

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4:26 p.m. As of late afternoon, 618 votes have been cast at Shelby precinct No. 2, according to Chief Judge Holly Arakelian-Watts.

"It was very busy this morning," she said, describing the turnout as "steady." "We were lined up at 5:30 (a.m.). No problems."

But she believes the busiest time is still to come. Rush hour could bring in even more voters.

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12:39 p.m. Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory's (R) camp claims recent radio ads against him are racist. He's running against Democratic candidate Bev Perdue for the office of governor. I encoded one of the ads to let you decide for yourself. What do you think?



12:12 p.m. Let's say Election Day ends in a 269-269 tie. Who would decide the winner? The only real answer lies in this video:



11:58 a.m. Here's some neat resources to follow the presidential race:

From CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/results/president/

From the New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/11/03/us/politics/20081104_ELECTION_PREVIEW.html

11:27 a.m. County GOP Chair Wayne King was pleased to see "significant" turnout in Earl for the 2008 General Election.

"The rural boxes are voting, which trend more Republican," he said. "Looks like people are excited about voting."

8-year-old dies at gun show after shooting himself with Uzi

I don't even know what to think about this. Maybe I should just label and toss this gem into the "absoutely absurd" category and be done with it.

The federal ATF is expected in Westfield today to aid local police in investigating the accidental death of an 8-year-old boy who was killed yesterday after firing an Uzi submachine gun while attending a gun show.

The boy, identified as Christopher Bizilj, was firing the Uzi when he lost control, forcing it upwards and back, causing him to shoot himself in the head, said Westfield Police Lt. Hipolito Nunez. Bizilj of Ashford, Conn., was under the supervision of a certified instructor at the gun expo at the Westfield Sportman’s Club when he was shot.

The rest of the story can be read here.

No surprise, "Saw V" a hit with American filmgoers

The sheep are out to pasture and they're loving it -- expectedly so, might I add.

Yep, only the tween-friendly "High School Musical 3" could beat out "Saw V," one of the worst-reviewed movies of the year, for this weekend's top grossing spot.

The R-rated torturefest reportedly pulled in $30.5 million. Amazing.

Just for fun, I decided to make a MadLib version of "Saw VI," which will inevitably come out next year.

Unfortunately, the HTML for it is screwed up so I'll just paste my story instead. I think it has a chance making the screenplay. What do you think?

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MadLib:

It was 6 a.m. on a nasty autumn Saturday. Herbert begins to stir, finding a note attached to his/her shackled leg.

"Watch the tape."

The dazed person, though panicked, obliges and flips on the television.

"My word, how many canned hams are in this freezer?!", Herbert exclaims. It`s a surveillance tape of your friend, Col. Mortimer Putz! He/she finds him/herself in a dimly lit room. His/she is ice skating loudly.

A puppet appears on the monochrome surveillance screen and crafts.

"Sup boyz?," it says, only a few feet away from your friend.

"I`d like to play a game. You have attached to your jawbone a bear trap exerting enough pressure to snap iron bars in two. Above your right index finger is a Mario Lopez' autograph. You have 4,000 seconds to crump a 1961 Nolan Ryan Topps card to your scalp. If you fail to do so, your butt cheek will be shaved."

"Let the game begin," the doll said.

"Saw" returns to torture American intelligence

Look into the mirror, America. Tell me what you see.










Look familiar? Thought so.

In a dramatic turn of events, Saw is back. Now in its fifth iteration (and I'm pretty sure it died halfway through the second), Jigsaw and friends return tonight to theaters. Yay.

Though sure to be hackneyed and riddled with plot holes, Saw V will, no doubt, be well-received by its sheep following.

On a side note, I'm happy to report though that Jiggy won't be enough of a "hit" (lol) to dethrone Heath Ledger's "Joker" as the No. 1 pretentious, overdone Halloween outfit.

So go forth, America. Eat up the pile of crap David Hackl has presented you. Eat it and like it, and then get ready for next year's feast with the obligatory Saw VI. Bon appétit.