Author Archives: Bob Evans

Sunday Night Movie: Master and Commander: The Far Side Of The World

It was a string of events that lead me to select Master and Commander: The Far Side Of The World as this weekend’s Sunday Night Movie.

First off I am editing/re-writing Love and Loyalty. Now Love and Loyalty is a Space Opera novel of adventure among the stars it might not seem congruent with a movie like Master and Commander. That’s only on the surface, Love and Loyalty  is my salute/homage to the Horatio Hornblower novels, which are Napoleonic Sea adventures, like Master and Commander. I have read the entire Hornblower series multiple times and one of these days I intend to get around to the Jack Aubrey novel — from which the film Master and Commander was inspired.

Second over at Star trek re-watch after a particularly wide-ranging conversation in the comments section we ended up talking about naval matters and traditions. Star Trek also is inspired by the Hornblower stories and so there was a mood synergy that just insisted that I had to watch Master and Commander and soon.

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A very pleasant Saturday

So yesterday was another board and card gaming day, but this one got an earlier start as my friend Brad came over about noon so we could get in a game of Federation Commander. That game did not go very well for myself. I was rolling poorly and Brad was rolling hot. Still it was fun and I don’t think I made any bonehead mistakes as I had in the game previous.

Around 5:30 we got together for the regular B7C gaming session and that went alright. (Though I did not win any of the games I did come close in Showbiz Shuffle.)

After my sweetie-wife retired for the evening we sat and watched a blu-rau, The Wrath Of Khan. Not only was that a throughly enjoyable film to watch, all of use including Brian snapped with commented during the screening. It is so good to hear Brian’s voice getting clearer each week. After the movie it was sit around bullshitting for a little while and at one point something was said that set Brian off laughing. It was one of those laughing jags that is so difficult to stop. I really felt good hearing him laugh like that.

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Experimenting

I am now experimenting with having my blog posts cross posted to my lj and my facebook accounts. We’ll see how this goes.

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Sarah Palin®

So it turns out that Saint Sarah Palin, Profit of the Republican party, has trademarked her name. (h/t to TPM for the story.) Now some people of a less than clever nature have thought that this is an attempt by Sarah Palin® (gods that’s fun to type) is hoping to use the ® as a method of shutting down her critics. This is utterly wrong. You can trademark your name until you reach George Lucas levels of absurd  legalisms (after all his company did try to trademark Nazi) and your opponents can still use your name and print all the horrid stories about you that they want. A trademarks will not stop that, nor will it stop satire and other forms of political attack. Further more I fully believe that Sarah Palin®  knows all this and people who think this is her motive grossly underestimate her.

No, I think she has very good cause and reason to file for this trademark. Sarah Palin® is about celebrity and making money, she must move to protect her most valuable asset, he name and image. To protect any potential line of products, speeches or seminars she must trademark or risk getting ripped off by copy-cats and other intellectual property thieves. This is a smart and savvy business plan.

What this indicates to me though is she is not going to run for president. (As I have theorized at this blog before.) Those, like Andrew Sullivan, who quaked with fear at a Sarah Palin® candidacy were trembling at shadows. This woman is in her happy spot and I fully expect her to stay there for as long as it lasts. I suspect that will be until 2012 when it becomes clear that she is not running and interest in her wanes. She will not have a long politically oriented entertainment career like Rush Limbaugh. Hers will be brief and bright.

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No blogging tonight

Sorry my dear friends but a flare up in my arthritis is going to prevent any belonging by your not so humble host tonight. (I do hope my ENbrel is not popping out.)

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Despotism and the Tea Party

Just a quick observation. There are those — and I am not saying all or even a majority — within the Tea Party movement that like to call the initiatives of the Obama ‘socialism’ or a move towards tyranny. This sort of hyperbole is pointless. However, as I watch the Arabic world erupt with people longing to overthrow the despots who have ruled over them. (Often in very socialist-like setting) I can’t help be feel that these people who like to hurl Nazi themed insults and comparisons are acting like spoiled teenagers. They live in a system free enough for them to whine that they are not free.

(edited for clarity)

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Solution Found

So less than a day after diagnosing the problem with chapter 2 of Love and Loyalty (it was not character driven and did not reveal anything about the character) I have mapped out a solution to the problem. It will entail rewriting nearly all of chapter 2, but I think I was have a much stronger chapter and novel for the work.

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Another Epiphany

This is why being a member of the Mysterious Galaxy Writers Group is worth it. Not only do I meet great and interesting characters — not just the fictional ones either — and hear some great pieces of writing, but the feedback from fellow writers open up vista in my mind to where I have been blind.

I can see clearly fault in the plotting and form of chapter 2 that have nothing to do with the prose style. Now, to figure out a way to fix them.

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