Joseph Mallozzi's Blog, page 519

November 7, 2011: Maximus update! Another blog for you to follow! Alexander and Sarah are my place-bound! Name that wardrobe item! Welcome Euphemia Finn! Mailbag!

My poor buddy, Maximus, somewhat revitalized since his return home to Vancouver, has taken a downturn these past few days.  His appetite is there but the melanoma in his mouth makes chewing very difficult.  Lately, he's taken to following me around and just parking himself beside me when I'm on my laptop.  I'm bringing him in for a vet visit tomorrow to discuss the merits of a procedure to remove part of the visible tumor and, hopefully, improve his quality of life.

 Hey, look who's blogging now!  It's none other than my old Transporter nemesis, Tara Yelland -

Look at her. All cool and such because she's suddenly blogging.

You can follow her mundane existence here: http://tarayelland.wordpress.com/

Speaking of Transporter connections, I received word the other day that my old Production office mates, Alexander and Sarah, will be Vancouver-bound in a week or two.  I've got to start coming up with a gameplan!  How would you entertain a cantankerous, tattooed, country music-lovin' German?

Okay, you eagle-eyed Stargate fans.  It's time to play: Guess the Stargate Wardrobe!

The following item, modeled by handsome Lawren Bancroft-Wilson, appeared in which episode of the Stargate franchise and was worn by which character?  First person to guess correctly receives the admiration of thousands of his/her fellow blog readers and the nickname "Eagle Eye" bestowed upon them for the remainder of the calendar year.

Congratulations to the Finn family on the birth of their first daughter!  Blog regulars will know that we held a contest to name the child of my former assistant, Trevor Finn.  Unfortunately, neither Oprah nor Spearmint made the final cut.  In the end, Euphemia won – although now Trevor is trying to go back on the agreement that saw him keep his job in exchange for my blog readers naming his kid.  Fortunately, suspecting a double-cross, I took the precaution of filling out the birth certificate in advance.  So Euphemia Finn it is!  Congratulations to mother, Holly, who suffered through labor and gave birth.  And the father, the lazy bastard who no doubt simply stood by and watched.

Mailbag:

Patricia Stewart-Bertrand writes: "Why does Ivon have an open laptop in just about every picture you take of him? Is he up to something nefarious, I hope?"

Answer: Nope.  Just obsessively checking his fantasy football scores.

Lou Zucaro writes: "I'm curious how you served the braised meat trio."

Answer: With their braising mirepoix (celery, onions, and carrots) over a parsnip mash.

Lou Zucaro also writes: "Is all your cooking experience from watching Food Network and just trying stuff?"

Answer: I used to cook quite a bit in Montreal, but the Food Network definitely inspired me to get back in the kitchen.

Lou Zucaro also writes: "Also…you've been quiet about the premiere of Top Chef. Did you and Akemi watch it, and if so, what'd you think?"

Answer: Unfortunately, I have to wait for Food Network Canada to air it – usually severals weeks, even months, after the original American broadcast.

Ben writes: "I was wondering if you – or your readers – could point me in the direction of the books I should be reading – I'm highly ignorant of the genre in fiction. So where should I begin?"

Answer: Well, you've already picked up some John Scalzi, so that's a great start.  For terrific space opera, check out the works of Iain M. Banks (Consider Phlebas, Player of Games, Use of Weapons, etc.) and Alastair Reynolds (Revelation Space, House of Suns, etc.).  Some titles I've really enjoyed = Glasshouse by Charles Stross, The Ophiuchi Hotline by John Varley, The Dark Beyond the Stars by Frank M. Robinson, Camp Concentration by Thomas Disch, The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon.  Start with those and get back to me.

maggiemayday writes: "Do you like goat?"

Answer: Love it.  Roasted!

Lloyd67 writes: "Where did you find your "Original animation cell" of the simpsons? I want one!"

Answer: It was a gift from actor Dan Castellaneta (the voice of Homer Simpson) after he guest-starred on Stargate: SG-1.  He was well aware of the fact that all of the producers (including Richard Dean Anderson) were HUGE fans of his show.

Ben writes: "Not to ruin your enjoyment of them, but I find the Kobe Beef to be a bit short on, well, meat. The muscle to fat ratio is way too low for my liking."

Answer: It was perfect, nicely marbled and mouth-meltingly tender.  Your remark reminds of my last trip to Tokyo with Stargate Special Features Producer Ivon Bartok.  We went out for yakiniku and ordered the top of the line meat for grilling.  Top of the line, it turns out, meant HEAVILY marbled.  So marbled, in fact, that Ivon and I felt queasy for the rest of the day.

Debra writes: "How is the process going with Akemi?"

Answer: Well.  We've forwarded our lawyer all the required paperwork.  Now, she's going over the documents to make sure everything is in order after which she'll file our request.  Fingers crossed.

jojo writes: "The first night the menu was displayed on the table. I made the mistake to read it. I was horrified at what I read and couldn't touch anything."

Answer: Now I'm intrigued.  What the heck were they serving?

Paloosa writes: "Is the flavor in the meat or the fat?"

Answer: Both.  The melted veins of fat yield a more fork-friendly texture.

November 6, 2011: Daring Food!

Port-Braised Ox-Tail, Veal Cheek, and Short Rib.

I'm a fairly adventurous eater and will try almost anything at least once.  I'm fairly open-minded when it comes to sampling atypical menu items but, of course, that doesn't mean I like everything I sample. Blood preparations (ie. sausages and puddings) have never won me over, not because of the main ingredient but because of their texture and consistency.  Brains have a  nice creamy texture but its their aftertaste – an unpleasant metallic undertone – that makes them hard to enjoy.  I find tripe too chewy, kidneys unpleasant in flavor, and duck tongues boney and relatively meatless.  On the other hand, I love foie gras (fatty duck and goose liver), delight in thinly sliced charcoal grilled cow tongue, and always order the chicken feet whenever I'm out for dim sum.

I like daring food.  I like to eat it.  I like to watch its preparation on the Food Network.  And, lately, inspired by the culinary creations of the Iron Chefs and Top Chef contestants, I've liked preparing it as well…

Pictured above is the braised meat trio I made a few weeks back for football Sunday – because, of course, nothing says football like ox-tail, veal cheeks, and short ribs.  My variation of the recipe calls for an entire bottle of port, reduced by half, as the braising liquid.  After eight hours of slow-cooking, the meat is fall-off-the-bone tender.

Pork Cheek Two-Ways.

You're unlikely to find the more daring meats on display at your local butcher.  Fortunately, the gang at Market Meats (2326 West 4th Avenue – Vancouver) are more than happy to accommodate unique requests.  Like the other week when I went in and asked them for pork cheek, figuring I'd have to place a special order.  "Pork cheek?"asked my man Spencer.  "You bet."  He disappeared into the back and returned a minute later with a package.

I ended up making Pork Cheeks two ways.  The first braised in an ice wine and pear reduction, the second marinated with apples, dijon, sugar, and chicken stock before being seared and finished in the oven. A double-dish worthy of Top Chef.  I saved a couple of pieces for Lawren who, uncertain at first, needed only a couple of bites to convince him to polish off the leftovers.

On that visit to Market Meats, in addition to the pork cheeks, I also picked up a package of sweetbreads.  For those of you who don't know, sweetbreads are neither sweet nor any sort of bread.  They're the thymus gland of a calf (or lamb).  Although they may look like brains, they possess a much firmer consistency.  Like brains, however, they require a whole song-and-dance advance preparation.  In the case of sweetbreads, they are soaked overnight in cold water (the water should be changed three or four times), then rinsed, patted dry, and the connective tissue and membrane removed.  Then, they're pressed and refrigerated for another few hours to remove any excess liquid.  I know, I know.  To most, they may seem more trouble than they're worth. Hell, I'm sure that, to most, the simple act of making a trip to your butcher to buy them would be more trouble than they're worth, but, like ox-tail, they're something I grew up with.  My mother would serve them, bacon-wrapped and crispy-grilled.  I decided to make them three ways…

Pan-Fried Sweetbreads with Metaxa

I dust them with flour, then pan fry them until golden, season them, then add a half cup of Metaxa and flambe.  Once that's done, add a few tablespoons of cream to finish and voila!

Pan-Fried Sweetbreads with Tarragon and Veal Demi-Glace.

I followed the same preparation as the first dish, dusting with flour and browning, then add some fresh tarragon and a veal demi-glace.  I allow that to cook down for five minutes, then serve.  This was our favorite of the trio.  Tarragon lends it a wonderful sweetness.

Roasted Chimichurri Sweetbreads

I dipped these in a chimichurri sauce made of blended fresh parsely, fresh oregano, garlic, and jalapeno peppers, then simply oven-roasted them.

Finally, today -

Kobe Beef Steaks

Kobe steaks are daring only insofar as, at about $80 a pop, you risk major disappointment if you screw them up.

I brought them up to room temperature a half an hour before cooking, then seasoned them with salt, pepper, thyme, rosemary, and chives before searing them over medium-high heat in a cast-iron pan -

I finished them in the oven (325 degrees for approximately eight minutes).  Alas, I forgot to take a picture of the finished product so you'll have to trust me.  They were delicious.

Finally, dessert -

Akemi's tiramisu.  This time, only daring insofar as a failure to mention it could well prove hazardous to my health.

A sad weekend for my Snow Monkeys.  They were trounced and it looks like it's time to make changes.  Besides Romo, my two best players were late waive wire acquisitions: Steve Breaston and Brandon Jacobs!  NoShow Moreno, you're cut!  Gaffney, you're cut!  Watson?  Cut!

The Running Dead also came up short, potentially costing Ivon a playoff spot.  Over in his league, looks like Lawren has an uphill climb for a playoff spot as well.  Rob, on the other hand, is simply relieved his Cowboys won.

November 5, 2011: Reflecting back on SG-1′s final episodes! Help a monkey out here!

My trip down SG-1 memory lane is almost complete.  145 episodes down; 3 to go…

FAMILY TIES (1018)

The SG-1 family had officially learned its fate during production on Bad Guys so, at this point in the season, we already knew we were done.  I'd already broken this story, a fun romp that offered up a little backstory into the Vala character (in addition some insight into to Landry and Lam's past), and couldn't really deviate – but since I was in the process of writing the script at the time, a little foresight did give me the opportunity to include a few subtle (?) references to the cancellation, in addition to one of my favorite endings in Stargate history.  This episode was also memorable for the hilarious performance of guest star Fred Willard who played the part of Vala's incorrigible father.

We open with Mitchell and Siler heading down the corridor, catching them in mid-conversation.  The first words out of Mitchell's mouth: "They cancelled it? Really? I didn't even know the new season had started." echoed the online comments of many a fan when they discovered SG-1 had been canceled.  And, later in the episode, Jacek in conversation with Carter: "That's too bad. Because after all your Stargate program has accomplished for this network – of planets, I would think the decision makers would show it the respect it deserves."  There were a couple of other references, but I was asked to lose them for the final draft.

Surprisingly, something that no one asked me to lose was the final scene in which Teal'c unwittingly attends a reading of the Vagina Monologues (Sorry. Virginia Dialogues.).  I put it in the first draft, fully expecting to be told "Very funny, but you've got to lose it."  Surprisingly, nobody asked me to take it out. Oh, I'm sure some thought about it, or assumed I would make the decision to take it out myself before the episode went to camera, but the scene went over so well with everyone else that I elected to keep it.

DOMINION (1019)

Well before this episode aired, I had fans online asking: "What would happen if a goa'uld symbiote was implanted in an Ori?".  Well…close enough.  This episode is packed with back-references (Adria, Baal, ascension, the memory altering device), jumps back and forth in time (between the present and a past that didn't really happen), pays off long-standing storylines, and propels the show's major arc in a bold new direction.  Which, alas, we wouldn't be able to pick up until the Ark of Truth movie.  But that's a reminiscence for another blog entry.  It was a huge cliffhanger – Would Adria be back and under what circumstances? – but we took solace in the fact that the plan was to make two movies, at least one of which would allow us to close out the Ori arc.  BTW, favorite line = "It's the bad guy equivalent of cordon bleu!".

Hmmm.  My Snow Monkeys face another tough match-up this weekend against the Pigskin Pirates.  My two top RB's are out (Peterson and Best are on byes) and it looks like I'll have to play perennially ineffectual NYG RB Jacobs, gimpy Daniel Thomas, or Denver's NoShow Moreno.  I'm starting Romo, who I believe should have a good day at home against the Seahawks, and am happy with my WR's: Dez Bryant vs those same Seahawks and Roddy White vs. the Colts.  Cleveland's Ben Watson is my fill-in TE, Green Bay's Crosby is my kicker, and I'm rolling with the Saints D that should lay a beatdown on the Bucs following their embarrassing showing in St. Louis.  Now, here's the BIG question: Who do I play in the flex?  Do I bench one of my three RB's in favor of Steve Breaston who'll be up against a porous Dolphins secondary?  Help a monkey out here.

November 4, 2011: The Great Vancouver Food Truck Tour #4!

"What are we going to watch?  The Walking Dead or the scary show?" – Akemi, last night as we were trying to decide between The Walking Dead and American Horror Story.  Ouch.

First, Washington's Tim Hightower. Now, Lulu.

Well, it looks like Lulu's football season is over.  We noticed her limping yesterday and brought her in to see the vet.  Following a thorough examination, he diagnosed a slight tear of her ACL.  Guess we're going to have to bench her and give Bubba the carries moving forward.

Today, we continued our tour of Vancouver's varied food trucks.  And by "we" I mean Akemi and me – and only because it wasn't raining otherwise it would have just been me.

First stop: Osa Tako Hero

Cha-daah! Serving battered octopus balls with a choice of toppings ranging from nori (seaweed) to maple syrup.

We went spicy sauce and shaved bonito flakes. Alright, a tad overdone, but I'm reserving full judgment until I sample the curry version.

It's not a real takoyaki experience until you sear the inside of your mouth on the molten hot batter!

Second stop: Bada Bing

Specializing in Philly cheesesteaks and poutine (serving up a version called "the animal" that looks all sorts of coronary inducing). I had the Philly cheesesteak and thought it alright. Didn't like the bread and found the meat a little bland.

Third stop: Off the Wagon

Serving up tasty taco variations. I went with the rotisserie pork and onions with habanero sauce. Our favorite food item of the day!

Fourth stop: Dim Sum Express

Serving up a wide variety of dim sum items including - pictured above - barbecued pork buns! Heavy on the bun and light on the pork which didn't really impress.

Hoping for a better turnout next week.  Who's in?!!

Today's entry is dedicated to blog regular Penny.

November 3, 2011: Dark Matter Preview! Reminiscing SG-1′s Tenth Season!

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DARK MATTER #1 (of 4)

Joseph Mallozzi (W), Paul Mullie (W), Garry Brown (A/Cover), and Ryan Hill (C).  Edited by Patrick Thorpe for DARK HORSE COMICS

A derelict ship floats in space, its troubled crew awakened from stasis with now memories of who they are or how they got onboard.  Their search for answers triggers the vessel's deadly security system: a relentless android bent on their destruction.  Facing threats at every turn, they have to work together to survive a voyage charged with vengeance, redemption, betrayals and hidden secrets best left unknown.

ON SALE JANUARY 11, 2012

The two page sneak peek of our SF comic book series, Dark Matter, is out in the November issue of Previews.  Head on down to your local comic shop to order!

Continuing my reminiscing on Stargate: SG-1′s tenth and final season…

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THE SHROUD (1014)

The original plan had been to have Daniel go darkside and play out his descent, turn, and ultimate redemption over the course of several episodes. In fact, in its original, multi-episode version, this story would have demonstrated a much, MUCH darker Daniel – but it was ultimately decided that making him too dark, regardless of the circumstances, would have damaged the characters so the decision was made to make his turn to the darkside a little more uncertain.  I don't know.  I've always wanted to explore the theme of redemption with these characters, push them to the line – and beyond – and then bring them back and have them suffer the consequences, because, in the end, its their emotional response to these consequences that creates drama and explores hitherto uncharted facets of their personalities.

The reveal of the pale, milk-eyed Daniel stands as one of the top ten Stargate tease outs ever.  Hmmm.  Now that I think of it, that could form the basis of a future top ten: My Top 10 Favorite Stargate Tease Outs!  File that one away for a future blog entry.

Anyway, a terrific Daniel Jackson episode that sees the return of Jack O'Neill and one final, glorious in-series reunion between the two best friends.

There's a scene in the episode in which Woolsey (played by the marvelous Robert Picardo) is telekinetically lifted off the ground. Director Andy Mikita dribbled apple juice down Bob's pant leg to suggest Woolsey was so frightened, he'd actually peed himself.  Alas, the urine didn't make the final cut.  Hmmm.  There's one of those lines you rarely see.

BOUNTY (1015)

The Stargate version of Grosse Pointe Blank sees Cameron Mitchell going back home for his high school reunion, unlikely date in tow (Vala, natch), and even unlikelier complication lurking in the shadows (an interstellar bounty hunter played with delightful swagger by Mike Dopud).  This episode was alot of fun (one of my favorites of the show's tenth season) and it wasn't just the Cam and Vala fish-out-of-water scenes.  Carter and her "hands on" demonstration at the conference and Daniel's run-in at the Museum of Antiquities all made for a fun and memorable episode.  In the latter scenario, Daniel is quietly studying away when a sexy young lady (later revealed to be an alien) comes on to him.  Daniel's is confoundingly uninterested suggesting he is either focused on his work, suspicious, or creeped out.  Or, perhaps, those Jack/Daniel slashers had it right all along!

This episode marked what I believe was the second in a long line of guest spots actor Mike Dopud has done for us, first as a Russian soldier in SG-1′s Full Alert, then as Bounty Hunter Ventrell in this episode, then as Kiryk the runner in SGA's Tracker, then as the Lucian Alliance member Varro in Stargate: Universe and, most recently, in an episode of The Transporter.  I've already told Mike that, if Dark Matter goes to series, I've already got a role in mind for him…

BAD GUYS  (1016)

Oof.  If Bounty was one of my favorite episodes to the show's final season, this one ranked down at the bottom.  Daniel just felt out of character in this one.  Still, the premise was interesting, a story that formed from an idea Brad once had for a tease: A museum tour on an alien world takes visitors by an ancient artifact, the Stargate, that suddenly comes alive, kawooshing, and introducing SG-1 to the shocked crowd.  I recall sitting in on the auditions for this one and having one of the actors for the role of the museum curator delivering his lines with a French accent.  What, exactly, an alien was doing with a French accent, I'm not sure.  But, then again, I'm not exactly sure why all the aliens SG-1 encountered spoke English.  Oh, right.  It was the communication nanites that "infect" all gate travelers, allowing them to understood and be understood in any off-world language.  Except goa'uld of course.

TALION (1017)

Ah, Damian and his affinity for cryptic titles (see Chimera and Ethon). For almost the entire duration of the production and post, I kept hearing "Italian" when someone said "Talion".  Anyway, bizarre title aside, I thought this was pretty strong episode, a dark examination of the Teal'c character and one of those of those instances where the show was fairly on point in exploring a contemporary and controversial subject matter in a scifi context.

The final showdown between Teal'c and Arkad is mighty gruesome – but nowhere near as gruesome as the director's cut that was so gory it had us wondering whether we'd been overworking Director Andy Mikita.

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November 2, 2011: Reminiscing on SG-1′s Tenth Season!

I'm past the halfway mark, reflecting back on SG-1′s tenth and final season…

THE QUEST II (1011)

My many years of playing Dungeons & Dragons finally paid off in this fantasy-themed two-parter.  And mom and dad thought I was wasting my time! Again, loved the double dose of villainy in this one with the indefatigable Adria in dogged pursuit while our team of heroes is saddled with the ever-entertaining Baal.  The production did a terrific job offering up various looks for various planets.  My favorite was the snow planet.  It was beautiful. And, in retrospect, a pain in the ass because the stuff they used for the falling snow ended up sticking to the bottom of my dress shoes and just wouldn't come off despite my best attempts.  In the end, I ended up having to throw the shoes away.

I recall that, in the first draft, it's Mitchell who races out to take on the dragon with the C4.  Exec. Producer Rob Cooper suggested giving the moment to Teal'c and the script was rewritten.  However, on the day, the scene was first up that morning and actor Chris Judge was still feeling the effects of a late night celebration.  Director Andy Mikita took great delight in running Chris through the sequence.  Several times.

Writing for the Baal character was a lot of fun because he was such an insufferable ass.  I remember writing his scenes with Carter and thinking that, if he'd copped that attitude with anyone else, they would have punched his lights out.  And then I thought – Why the hell not? Carter slugging Baal was my second favorite beat in the script.  My favorite?  Baal yelling: "I'll go get help!" and attempting to beat a hasty retreat before getting blasted.

LINE IN THE SAND (1012)

This episode stands out to me for the great one on one character sequences, Vala and Tomin, and Carter and Mitchell.  In the original pitch, Mitchell was going to be the injured party and Carter would have had to see to him while scrambling to save the day.  Ultimately, it was decided to switch things around since Mitchell had been injured at least twice in recent episodes.  Again, we made effective use of the village set that had been used in previous episodes (Morpheus comes to mind) and would be used on both Stargate: Atlantis and, one last time, in Ark of Truth. That enormous set was eventually struck and the stage (VFX Stage, we called it) became the home of the wraith hive ship set as well various other Atlantis- related locations (ie. the cafeteria balcony looking out on the water).

THE ROAD NOT TAKEN (1013)

I love AU (alternate universe) stories.  I love them so much that I had come up with an AU story late in the show's tenth season.  Titled Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow, it saw the team jumping back and forth through time, influencing events and being influenced by past actions in a story both ambitious and, admittedly, fairly complex.  So complex, in fact, that I took the time to produce a detailed, color-coded outline clearly delineating the different time periods and alternate worlds.  Unfortunately, at about the same time I was working on my story, Robert and Alan had spun another AU story involving Carter. There wasn't room for two AU stories in the back half of season ten but I wasn't about to give up my story without a fight. Ultimately, it was a conversation with Exec. Producer Carl Binder that put things in perspective for me.  After I'd weighed the merits of both pitches, Carl threw me a look and said: "None of that matters.  You just do the better story."  And, in hindsight, this episode was the better story.

One of the things I love about AU stories is that they allow us to use our pre-established characters in slightly different roles.  Or, in some cases, in roles in which we aren't accustomed to seeing them.  This episode brought General Hammond and Major Lorne back to the SGC and offered up a more somber take on the Cam Mitchell character.  In this reality, Rodney McKay is a millionaire but still a jerk – who ends up doing the right thing.  And the President of the United States?  Why, none other than Hank Landry.  And in universe, fans of the franchise finally got what they'd been asking for: the existence of the Stargate program was finally made public.  With predictable results!  The decision to reveal the program to the public would have formed the core of the third SG-1 movie, Revolution.  After beating out the story with Brad Wright, Carl Binder got as far as completing a first draft before the project was shelved.

And only seven more episodes to go…

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November 1, 2011: My post-Halloween report! And an old SGA behind the scenes clip I discovered behind the radiator!

Last night's Halloween action shattered the previous year's record of FOUR tricker treaters with an astounding FIVE costumed kiddies paying us a visit! We had the lights on, giant plastic pumpkin out front, and modestly creepy decorations in view. Don't know what more I could have done. Akemi suggested I probably discouraged a few children by hiding under the porch steps and slashing at their little legs with an exacto knife, but I argue that being frightened is what it's all about. Certainly, a dangling rubber spider or front yard scarecrow aint gonna get the job done anymore. Kids are more sophisticated nowadays!

What about you guys?  Do anything special to terrify/annoy the tykes? Hand out fresh vegetables?  Toothbrushes?  Demand a trick before a treat and then immediately insist they take song requests starting with something from the Andrew Sisters?  For my part, I was going to give out ice cream, dropping a scoop in each bag with the advisement to "Hurry up and get home and eat it before it melts!" but, again, Akemi intervened.

Hey, check this clip out from the old days on Stargate: Atlantis, and a little episode called Tracker…

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October 31, 2011: Hmmm. This could take a while…

Granted, it's early, but Halloween is off to a quiet start.  Hopefully, we'll break last year's record of six kids!  I'm already eyeing that bag of mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.  Regardless, the day is off to a splendidly scarific start.  Apparently, Akemi threw a scare into poor Lawren, startling the hell out of him when he came home this afternoon.  She claims she'd heard him fiddling with the lock and was simply opening the door for him.  He insists she was waiting for him, standing there like Sadako from The Ring.  Awesome.  I heard him yell from upstairs in my bedroom.

Well, hmmm.  The fantasy novel is off to a slow start.  I set aside two hours today to writing and got all of a page done – approximately 500 words – that I'm going to have to rewrite tomorrow.  At this rate, I figure it'll take me a couple of years to actually complete it.  I suppose it should come as no surprise given that my one and only foray into prose fiction, the short story "Downfall" for the Lou Anders edited superhero-themed anthology Masked, took me approximately nine months to write.  Still, I'll persevere

About halfway through the many, many books I'm going to have to read in thoroughly researching this period piece I'd like to write.  I feel like I'm back in university.

Also reading for pleasure.  About halfway through The Secret History by Dona Tartt, a terrific novel gifted me by Rob's wife, Hilary.  It's a change of pace before I move on to the second book in the Belgariad series.  I really enjoyed the first book, Pawn of Prophecy.  An engaging adventure, interesting characters, and a wonderful sense of humor.  Finally, a fantasy series that has won me over.  It's been a while!

Dogs pics!  It's been a while…

See, this is why I have such a hard time being prolific. It's tough getting any writing done with a dog on your lap.

Lulu spooked out.

Maximus is almost back to his old self. A little lazier than his old lazy self, but that may just be the tramidol.

Bubba oblivious to the food on his face.

Jelly enjoys a stumble-about in the leaves.

Bubba soaks up the sun.

Lulu also enjoys the sun, squeezing in between the couch and the window so she can check out the outside happenings.

A post spa Jelly.

A rare shot of all four of them together, in this instant squeezed into the lone sunny spot in the room.

Post-spa Bubba ready for Halloween.

Lulu dares you to take her toy away. Go on. Try and take it.

Bubba turns in for the night.

Maximus turns in. Since his diagnosis, he prefers to sleep with a towel tucked under his chin.

But, since returning to Vancouver, Maximus has seemed much happier. And hungrier!

Maximus out and about.

A cozy Bubba.

Those mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cups are looking pretty good right about now…

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October 30, 2011: Sweet furry victory!!!

Yeaaaaah!!!  Can you believe it?!  My Snow Monkeys beat the top-ranked and undefeated team in fantasy football league.  By the narrowest margins mind you (one point something) but a win's a win.  Pending scoring adjustments.  For now, let's celebrate!

A little welcome back gift awaits Lawren compliments of Akemi.

Lawren keeps track of his team's play.

Jelly keeps track of Lawren keeping track of his team's play.

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Ivon's team, The Running Dead, is poised to claim a rare win and vault into playoff contention.

A day of highs and lows for Lawren. Lows = his team's play. Highs = the company, of course.

Ivon brought over dessert. I was initially dubious. As it turned out, the little lemon things weren't terrible.

I preferred Akemi's sweet potato cakes.

Not to be outdone, Lawren baked up some spookerific treats of his own.

For the third game of the triple-header Sunday, we headed over to Rob's place…

Rob, decked out in appropriate attire, mans the oven.

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Veal schnitzel sandwiches with cheese, spicy peppers, grilled onions, and parmesan sauce. I told Rob he should get his own food truck!

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While we were on the edge of our seats, watching the Snow Monkeys pull of an improbable win, Rob's kids were upstairs - totally oblivious - making what I assumed where celebratory cupcakes but turned out to be Halloween cupcakes. For tomorrow.

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I particularly like the detail on the severed finger.

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October 29, 2011: Things not Japanese! Or maybe they are!

There are times when I feel like I'm dating a Japanese version of Star Trek's Chekov.  Remember how the pesky navigator of the U.S.S. Enterprise would often claim that anything of any note originated in his homeland of Russia?  Quadroticale, scotch, the Cheshire Cat, the Garden of Eden!  In similar fashion, Akemi is constantly bringing up the Japanese origins of things that are clearly not Japanese.  This afternoon, for instant, she was singing "Saru, gorilla, chimpanjee! Saru, gorilla, chimpanjee!" to the tune of the River Kwai March.  I hummed a few bars and she threw me a shocked look and asked: "How do you know that song?!"  I informed him it was an old (movie) military tune.

"Japanese,"she said.

"No, not Japanese,"I said.

She stared blankly.  "Not Japanese?  But words are Japanese."  I had to break it to her that "saru (monkey), gorilla, chimpanjee (chimpanzee) were not, in fact, the lyrics.  In fact, to the best of my knowledge, the tune doesn't even have lyrics.  It's simply whistled.

She seemed dubious. Like last week when she was singing the Japanese version of Old McDonald: "Ichiro-san no oniwa de, Iya iya yo!" Which roughly translates to Mr. Ichiro (san)'s garden…I don't want to go!".  What, exactly, goes on in Mr. Ichiro's garden that so fills one with dread is perhaps best left unexplored.

Also, the hymn What a Friend We Have in Jesus is a Japanese graduation day staple while Auld Lang Syne is reserved for major department stores that play the tune to let customers know they're closing up and it's time for them to go.

Hunh.

Tomorrow, my Snow Monkeys take on the undefeated I Have No Imagination in fantasy football league play.  The projections have them favored by some twenty points and it's going to be tough given that my RB2, Daniel Thomas, is out.  I'm considering starting Romo over Fitzpatrick.  What do you think?

Don't mess with the monkey!

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