...so cunning you could stick a tail on it and call it a weasel

As I'm alone at work today I'm listening to Yahoo Radio and am currently being reminded just how wretched a song Duran Duran's "A View to a Kill" really was. Wow, I'd forgotten that. Just dreadful.

Anyway, had a lovely and productive weekend, which is the perfect combination in my opinion. All the boxes are now officially moved over to jimweasel's place. I may take a few final bags of odds and ends over there throughout the next two weeks but all the big stuff is done and otu of the way. Many thanks to moonlightnrain for her amazing help over the past few weeks. It's a rare and special thing when you can count on someone to help you carry your shit, as well as your really poorly constructed bookcase. My ghetto bookcase is on its way to that great furniture supply store in the sky. Fare thee well.

She did admit that she wasn't too keen on wrestling my futon mattress on moving day and I had to concur. Then I devised a rather cunning plan. I've been meaning to replace the mattress for about a year now anyway and I'm going to be saving a half month's rent in February, in addition to getting my sizable deposit back from my current place...So, I'm thinking I Freecycle the thing next week, then we just move the frame, which is a piece of cake, and I get the new mattress delivered to my new apartment. If it works it'll be brilliant.

Saturday was the annual Murder Mystery Dinner and gift exchange. Got to drop off the only really bulky gift at the House of Egg early that morning. My one quilt for the season, with a Chibi Dr. Who theme, was well received and snickered over so I was pleased. Will post a picture if moonlightnrain works out how to get it from her phone to her computer. Got jimweasel his crack soap, and was relieved not to be taking anything back home with me. That evening I unloaded all the rest of my gifts and we had a great time going around the table opening stuff. Though I did think aelfsciene and elo_sf were going to launch themselves at some of the slower openers once or twice. Heh.

I did come home with loot this time, but it all fit into my super spiffy gift bag from E-, so that was good. I got chocolate bread! Not just any chocolate bread, jakejr's melt in your mouth and go straight to your hips, chocolate bread. So far I've eaten about half of it. Yes, it is the crack. moonlightnrain gifted me with the PS2 Avatar game which I hugged to my breast and silently decided to go unpack my PS2 system so I could play it NOW! aelfsciene gave me a box full of geeky goodness, including a gorgeous Brock Samson poster, a Shikon jewel keychain, a Lord Dio and Luciola statuette and Snape and Lupin knit finger puppets. R- was quite jealous until she opened her packaged from A- and saw that she'd gotten a set as well. We both commented that a really messed up Snupin finger puppet series might just be in our future. elo_sf gifted me with a spa gift certificate that can be used at Watercourse Way (woo!) and, of course, the latest Dr. Who series. We exchange them every year now, it keeps things nice and simple between us and we both know we're getting what we want.

The murder mystery itself was pretty lame, but we all did our best to liven it up a bit. cyranocyrano played a married couple with problems that we turned into a delightful snipe-fest. Sadly, it was later revealed that we actually were happily married and had to act accordingly. Ah well, it was fun while it lasted. A- got to be the all too obvious killer, and we all agreed that next year tersa and cyranocyrano write the mystery instead. I petitioned for a Harry Potter theme with the understanding that I get to be Snape :)

Afterwards A-, R- and I retired to my place for some Rolaids and so they could open their gifts from my sis. Given that all the vegetarians ended up in digestive distress, we're pretty suspicious that there was some kind of animal product in at least one of the dishes. If we do it at the same restaurant next year we're going to petition for just the rice and boiled veggies portion of the meal for ourselves and let the rest of the table go carnivore if they so desire.

Slept in on Sunday then ran errands and got shit packed into my car before moonlightnrain arrived to lend a hand. Two trips and one tossed bookcase later we were done. After some technical difficulties with the PS2, I got the set up working and played through the first level before getting killed in the second. Took a dinner break and got some bill paid before going back to it again and starting all over again. Second time was the charm. Aang's a great character, but he's like Legolas, frail and great at long distance fighting. I'm *so* not that kind of player. So usually I put Sokka in charge and send him into the fray to bash people with his club. Got far enough to rescue Katara from the Fire Nation last night before making myself stop and go to bed. Now I know what I'll be doing on Xmas this year :)

Oh my

It would seem the reviews for Eragon are in and it's every bit as wretched as the trailers made me think it would be:

* A load of generic mush perhaps best served as a piece of bitchin' '70s van art.

* For those who love the fantasy genre known as sword and sorcery -- and I count myself in their number -- sitting through the movie version of Eragon will suck the will to live right out of you.

* "Eragon" is based on a book by a 19-year-old with a script that seems to have been written by a 12-year-old.

* Eragon has the courage of its earnest, borderline-humorless convictions.

* It's a large-scale fantasy that plays like a rerun... Paolini began his novel when he was 15, and the simplicity of 'Eragon'... might bring back memories of high school writing workshops.

* It's mostly just a bunch of actors trying to look involved while attempting to act through their bad wigs and Studio 54 reject outfits.

* Eragon's fantastical milieu may be third-class Lord of the Rings, but its story--in what may constitute the most shameless act of plagiarism known to American cinema--is pure Star Wars.

* Been to that galaxy, done that ring.

It's easier being green

For those who are interested in unloading some tech trash but don't want it to just end up polluting a landfill, I highly recommend checking out Green Citizen, a bay area organization that will take it all off your hands and either recycle or dispose of it safely. They'll take most computer equipment off your hands for free, and most media for a very low price. I'm unloading all of my ancient audio tapes and floppy disks as well as most of my video tapes there. The prices are very reasonable, and it gives you a good feeling to know this stuff won't be going into the waste stream. Do yourself and the Earth a favor and consider checking out Green Citizen!