Visuals

These days TV is confusing.

There's no apparent rhyme or reason to when seasons begin and end. No standard season length. If it wasn't for DVR this would be an extremely difficult time to be a viewer.

Thankfully we do have that advantage. As well as Netflix and a host of other great options. Instead of watching shows in weekly installments now we can pick a show and devour it in all our free time. We define our own seasons and schedules. When I find some free time here's how I've been assaulting my eyes:

Mad Men:
For my money this is currently the 800-pound gorilla of television. Since I don't watch reality tv I consider this to be the show at the moment.  It keeps you captivated with strong and flawed characters, and still manages to produce a couple watercooler moments each season. Don Draper, top-shelf advertising professional with a Midas touch and a closet full of skeletons introduces you to the transforming cultural landscape of the 60's and the cutthroat world of advertising. While everyone puts on a bold and ambitious front, you'll find that every character has at least one fatal flaw (beside the standard alcoholism and infidelity) a host of fears.

Watch Mad Men if you like: 

• 1960's Culture and historical events
• Skinny ties
• Advertising/Commercial media
• A little of this:

Justified:

While Mad Men may stand at the top of the mountain in my TV universe, I would say Justified is the show that gets far too little acclaim. Flying beautifully under the radar (possibly because it's on FX, a severely overlooked network in most people's universes), it features strong characters in a complex and ever-twisting plotline. US Marshall Raylan Givens is reassigned to his former home in Harlan, Kentucky after the high-profile shooting of an Miami crime-boss. In addition to old friends (as well as enemies) and the quiet simplicity of country life, he discovers more than enough less than legal activities and personal vendettas to keep him busy. One of Raylan's constant banes, Boyd Crowder, is one of the strongest characters on TV as far as I'm concerned.

Watch Justified if you like:

• Westerns
• Crime Drama
• Dukes of Hazzard meets The Sopranos
• Gorgeous images of the Kentucky countryside

Breaking Bad:

Admittedly not for everyone, I actually avoided this show for a long time. It seems to have a strong following. Surprising when you consider that it's about a science teacher turned meth cook. Turns out the strong following is for good reason. The show is dark to be sure. And frankly, Walter White frequently drives me crazy. In fact, he's a "hero" that it's practically impossible to like. Quite an accomplishment for a cancer patient. One of my favorite parts of Breaking Bad is reoccurring shot they use throughout the series. The camera is placed below a pane of glass and gives you an upward perspective on the action taking place above (ie: pouring toxic chemicals into beakers, stashing money/drugs in the toilet, chopping vegetables). 

Watch Breaking Bad if you like:

• Seeing people pushed to the brink
• Glimpses of hope 
• Sticking it to the man
• Getting frustrated/angry/annoyed at the characters

There are a couple other shows I should weigh in on, but this is getting rather lengthy. Another time perhaps!

Son: A Finale

As predicted, I blazed my way through Son this weekend. While it was longer than the first two sequels to The Giver, I found myself captivated, anxious and angry at myself at 2 a.m. when I finally forced myself to put the Kindle down and sleep.

The story was beautiful. It answered most of my questions and wrapped things up in a fairly acceptable package. After certain other book series' *coughhungergamescough* that seem to weaken at the finish it was a delight to read Son and have it second to only The Giver in terms of its strength and force. I was devastated thrilled and inspired by the way things played out.

I'll refrain from deeply reflecting on the messages/themes that I took away from the story. There's so much to ponder, but it's all very spoiler related. So do yourself a favor, read these books and then let's talk. :)

Thank You Lois Lowry

Just finished wiping my eyes and now I'm ready to dive in with a couple more Kindle Reviews.

Gathering Blue is the first sequel to The Giver. At first I was worried that this book was later in the series, because there was no connection with the original storyline. I actually checked a couple times and finally satisfied myself that it must be connected somehow.

The similarities were there. A dystopian society, rigidly structured and organized. A powerful few in charge, maintaining order and keeping the populace in their prescribed place. An emerging preteen protagonist, who senses something is amiss and wonders what else could be possible. Again, color plays an essential role. Again, there is deception and misdirection, an apparent need for change and the visionary youth becomes the catalyst.

It wasn't until I started Messenger that I confirmed these worlds were indeed connected. For Jonas' and Kira's worlds, and indeed many others, have found each other through their castaways and pilgrims. But again the world is changing. A dark trouble is creeping in, threatening to choke out the harmonious and benevolent balance of Village, this new place. Jonas (Leader now, as everyone in Village is simply named by their identified role in society) senses it. Matty, a once rambunctious youth from Kira's place senses it. And even across the vast and darkening expanse of Forest Kira senses it. Can these three find a way to restore order and goodness to a world on the brink?

It's safe to say the Kindle has endeared itself to me. I picked up momentum reading Gathering Blue and seamlessly devoured Messenger in less than a day. Granted they were short reads, but I simply could not put them down. I know there's so much in these stories that is speaking to me, but in a way I'm not fully understanding. It's about maintaining a naive and youthful outlook, unburdening yourself from the weight of possessions, status and honor. Putting others ahead of yourself, knowing and understanding how the world usually works and choosing to a more helpful and nurturing outlook.

There one last chapter to the story, Son.  I should blaze through it this weekend. The stories have been beautiful so far, but somehow... incomplete. I hope this conclusion brings everything together and prepares me to let go of these characters. To accept where their world has arrived and prepared to bring their memory to my own.

Review: The Assassin's List

Just finished my second book on the Kindle. The Assassin's List, by Scott Matthews. Another free, or nearly free, title as I decide if this device will replace printed pages in my hands.

It was an engaging and entertaining read. The story clipped along quickly, a pleasant mix of Tom Clancy and Hardy Boys for big boys. About what you'd expect for a military-themed patriot action drama. The story follows Adam Drake, an ex Delta Force operator turned PDX lawyer. Fascinating read since the story was based locally and included the Clancy-esque constant dropping of extremely specific names/locations. Drake's US Senator father calls in a favor to have him investigate an unusual murder at a local company with national security ties and lands the young lawyer back on the front lines of a deadly conflict.

Managed to get all the way through this book during an extremely busy week at work. This is a testament to the quality story and my embracing the Kindle reading experience. There were a few times where I felt like I was reading a cheap/free piece of literature, but they were few and far between. The story sets up as the first of a few and I'll definitely be willing to shell out some of my hard-earned to see where it goes.

But for now it's on to the first book(s) of significant price I've acquired for the Kindle. While browsing what's out there I discovered that one of my all-time favorite books The Giver, has sequels! I snatched them up and I'm poised to start Gathering Blue, the second installment, next. I actually just re-read The Giver last year so I'm looking forward to seeing what Lois Lowry does next.

I also keep drifting back to Kindle Serials. At a couple bucks for a subscription it seems like an interesting way to consume the written word. There's only a few titles available right now and they're mostly sci-fi/fantasyish. I'll probably pick one out and give it a shot.

Pretty Excited

I'm pretty excited. Let me count the ways:

1. I ordered a bunch of snazzy socks on Woot.com. They've added lots of different categories and I find something that tantalizes me pretty much every day. Generally I use restraint, but when dynamic footwear is on the line you've gotta pull the trigger. Once they arrive I'll have to find some excellent compliments from The Tie Bar.
2. This Kindle thing is pretty exciting. I'm reading a free novel about this army dude turned lawyer who is caught up in a Tom Clancy-eque incident in PORTLAND of all places. It kinda makes me want to drive around and see how well the author actually researched the locations he's referencing. 
3. Kindle usage has prompted me to explore Amazon. Also, there's a podcast I listen to that's sponsored by Amazon, so if I find excuses to buy stuff I can support their show. Not gonna lie... I'm kind liking the possibility of buying groceries on there and having them just show up at my door! I go to my friendly neighborhood produce stand every week, but they don't have any canned/dry goods or cleaning supplies etc. I need to check to make sure the pricing is decent, but it seemed pretty close when I was browsing last night. For a lot of things you have to buy larger quantities, but I'm fine with that. So we'll see how that goes...
4.  Candles. They're pretty exciting.
5. I ended up getting Black Ops 2 on release day. I wasn't planning to (and really wasn't that excited about it), but I broke down on my way home from work. After a mini-rage when I couldn't connect to Xbox Live for a minute I dove in and started having a blast. Pretty excited that Thanksgiving is next week so my brothers will be around and we can have a mini-party. Even though they're more sports game people.
6. I'm excited about sports. NBA, NFL and College Football. Holiday fun times. 

Did I mention I got an Kindle?

I got a Kindle. A fantastic pseudo-impulse buy. I've been pondering the idea of a Kindle for a while, but haven't been able to fully convince myself I needed it. But then I got an Amazon gift card for my birthday and suddenly the Kindle was basically the price of a couple paperbacks.

How could I resist?

I'm still struggling to come to terms with the idea of paying nearly the same price for most ebooks, and not having that extra physical form to occupy my bookshelf. I almost wish there was a way to buy the book and the ebook as a bundle (kind of like you can do with movies now). It would be great to get the book, smell the pages and hold it in my hands, while still getting the "digital copy" that's more portable and tech-savvy. But in the meantime there are plenty of free ebooks to keep me satisfied until I sort this whole business out.

One cool concept with the Kindle is the Serials that Amazon offers. For a couple bucks you can subscribe to an episodic story that gets updated ever couple weeks. I have checked out a couple of these and they sound interesting. I'll probably wait until I finish the free book I'm working on now before I pull the trigger on something like that.

A no-brainer purchase (series of purchases) I had to make though was the three sequel books to The Giver. DID YOU KNOW THERE ARE THREE SEQUEL BOOKS TO THE GIVER???? That's one of my favorite books of all time. I hope these new ones live up to the standard.

Onward

Time to get better at this... So I bought a house, became a puppy daddy and continue to soldier on in personal, professional and existential pursuits. Everything is pretty good.

Becoming a grown-up is tricky. There's a lot to enjoy about it for sure, but it definitely cuts into your free time and bank account. Since when does 7:30 a.m. constitute sleeping in on the weekend? Because now it does. At least I have a natural affinity for doing dishes and folding laundry. So I've got that going for me.

I haven't been traveling enough. It's been cutting into my reading time. Managed to carve out time for State of Wonder by Ann Patchett. Positively heartbreakingly perfect. Also ripped through The Hunger Games trilogy. I'm such a young adult! :P Trying to endure The Museum of Innocence. It's mind-numbingly detailed. Only 200 pages to go...

Kinda becoming a candle snob. Or maybe it's just an ambiance snob. I keep plugging away at things, arranging, rearranging and creating.

Hoping to get motivated for some creative activities. Stay tuned...