Two Quick Rants on Vanishing Cash and Gun-toting students.

I'm scurrying to get ready for work, but I needed to take a break to get a few things off my chest. First off, Money: We all need it, we all like it, but it just never wants to stay in our pockets or bank accounts. This is why I hate money, because it never seems like I have enough, which is very frustrating because I have so many loans, debts, and bills to pay on every month. This month I lucked out as I got my tax return, but sadly, I did not get to fully enjoy it or put it towards new tires for my truck. Instead, half of it went to my parents (part of it was a past debt that I've been meaning to pay off, the rest went to the property taxes which are not nearly as outrageous as the school taxes around here!), another small percentage went to Tara, and the rest went to groceries, gasoline, nearly two dozen (used and cheaply priced) DVDs, and lastly, my loans and bills. I delivered a pained laugh an hour ago as my bank account had over $1,100 dollars in it, the most I've ever had since I first started my checking account years ago. By the time this week ends, I'll have maybe forty or fifty bucks left. After I budgeted my money, wrote out checks, and put them out in the mailbox, I just had to laugh... to keep from crying.... DAMN YOU MONEY! DAMN YOU TO HELL!

My second little tirade focuses on the tragic slaying of 32 (or was it 33? Depends on the news station I suppose.) college students at the hand of a "mentally unbalanced maniac." Ok, this Cho kid did something terrible and I'm not condoning his actions at all. But, I'm not placing all the blame on this now deceased college psycho. I'm blaming society! Yeah, that's right! You, me, everyone! It's our fault stuff like this happens and I will tell you why. It's because that people are so damned cruel, to one another that the occasional high school or college kid suddenly snaps and goes on a shooting spree. Cho was an outcast and that's something I know a lot about. From grade school, up until my Sophomore year in high school, I was pretty much a social outcast, if only because I was a chubby, dorky-looking kid. I was picked on constantly, made fun of, bullied, and beaten up. I was driven off of a Little League team and a Soccer team because I couldn't take the abuse any longer. However, I was eventually befriended by a group of well... jocks. They took me in, made me the chubby mascot of their group, taught me how to play sports, and saved me from becoming a violent killer with nothing to live for. Had it not been for them, I probably wouldn't be here today, or I would be a completely different person altogether. I thank the good Lord every day that I was befriended by Bryan Scopeletti, Bruce Cavalotti, John Karam, and Danny Horn.

Anyway, what I'm saying is this: If a kid is a misfit, or outcast, try and befriend him/her, or at the least, treat them nicely. Kids are pretty damned cruel and don't realize what kind of damage they can do by trouncing on someone's self esteem on a frequent basis, so hey, let's all get along and not be mean to each other. (HA! Like that'll ever happen.) Oh, and if someone is acting really weird, or shows violent patterns of behavior, or (in Cho's case) writes insanely violent, gory, nightmarish stories or screenplays, then tell someone about it! There are always warning signs before the shit hits the fan and if they are ignored, then the consequences can be dire to say the least.

I've said my piece on these subjects (to recap: Money is a necessary evil. We all love it and simultaneously hate it. Be nice to weirdo kids and people, that may save your life when they finally snap and go on a rampage.)

Well it's time to get my arse to work! Blog ya later.

Laundry night = no writing.

I'm about to get some laundry done (at 1:40 AM? Yeah.) and watch a little TV, so there will be no writing going on, except of course if you count this blog post or the posts I made in the B-Movie Film Vault Forums mere moments ago. The dryer is about to give its signature buzz, so I'm gonna head off the net for the night... err... uh... morning. Tomorrow is a "Bill Day" so balancing my checkbook, paying bills, and budgeting my paycheck will take up most of my time before work. Hopefully when I get home from work, I'll have a little energy to get some writing done, but I don't have high hopes. G'night b-movie fans!

Rumors of my disappearance have been greatly exagerrated.

Ok, well maybe there haven't been any rumors of me disappearing, but coming up with interesting headers for these blogposts is a pain. ;-) Since I've been hiding offline for quite a few days, I thought I'd just make a post to let everyone know I'm doing well. Last week I had a damned good stretch of days where many things have gone my way (or better) and it seems like this streak is still continuing (but I'm waiting for that to change because all good things must come to an end as they say. And who exactly are "they" anyway?). In any case, I haven't done jack with my RC stuff or the Vault (which I'm sure you've noticed) but have instead bought a TON of DVDs with my tax return, leading to long hours in front of the TV instead of the computer. (To see what's new visit my B-Movie Collection Page!) Sadly, the rest of my money is going towards bills, and vehicle maintenance, but I'm making sure that I put some cash aside so I can see "Hot Fuzz" this weekend!

This week, I hope to finally jump into my Rogue Cinema assignments. At the very least, I'd like to get some interview questions typed up and sent to Sharyn Chen and Richard Knight. With that out of the way, I'll have a bit more breathing room, plus it'll help get my brain in gear for some actual writing. I'm hoping to get back to writing on a frequent basis before summer starts, but its just so damned hard for me to get back in gear. I'm usually pretty tired when I get home from work, and I usually don't have much time to write before I go to work. And writing on my days off is becoming a "Mission Impossible" scenario because those two days are the only time during the week where I can have a social life. And truthfully, I'd rather go catch a flick with my friends, or spend some time with my girlfriend, than sit in front of the computer and type for hours at a time.

But don't get me wrong, I love to write, and frequently have urges to do some writing. The problem is this: I lack discipline. If I can manage to do a little writing on a daily basis and make it a habit, then I think I could be as prolific a writer as a one Andrew Borntreger, a U.S. marine that finds the time to post a new review every single week at his website, Badmovies.Org, despite military duties and being a fulltime husband and father of two. It was Andrew that inspired me to become an online reviewer, and it's Andrew that continues to inspire me to write. (He is like the patron saint of b-movie fans and reviewers. Perhaps he can bestow a blessing upon me in order to get my butt in gear... hmmm....)

Well, it's about time for me to shower up and get my arse to work, so I shall be going now. Keep fighting the good fight for b-movie lovers the world over b-movie fans!

Happy Friday the 13th.... and some other stuff.

Well yesterday was a momentous day.... for reasons I can't really get into unfortunately, though I am tempted to brag a bit (Let's just say that my recent DVD binge didn't hurt my checkbook as badly as I thought it would.), and this week has been wonderful. (About damned time I caught a break Fate, Karma, and God! So... thanks! :-)

In any case, happy Friday the 13th! Get out your hockey masks, pull out all of your good luck charms, and have a little fun. After work tonight, I plan on popping in a Friday the 13th flick as its the only way I know how to enjoy this allegedly unlucky day. I may just go with the original, or I may pop in III, IV, VI, or VII as they are my favorites of the series. I guess it'll all depend on how I feel after I get out of work.

This weekend I'll be spending my days off at home so I plan on getting some things accomplished that I keep pushing off, either because I'm being lazy, or because I'm genuinely tired. My main task will be to ship out interview questions to Sharyn Chen (director of "Collision") and Richard Knight (creature suit maker for "Frankenstein vs. the Creature from Blood Cove" and other monster flicks). After that I'm going to tackle "The Valley of Gwangi" for the Vault and then I'll be running a race to complete the remainder of my Rogue Cinema material. And after all that's done, I need to get back to uploading my old reviews at the Vault.

And speaking of the Vault, the traffic has greatly increased and I've even got a new forum member now (named Muldune) who is a very prolific writer. Head over to my Forums now and check out Muldune's reviews for "Zombie Night" and "Troll 2." (Yup, this guy enjoys watching horrible movies! Right on!)
I guess that's it, so I'll be heading off for the night. I'll blog ya'll later b-movie fans!

P.S. - GRINDHOUSE RULES! Go see it before it leaves theaters!!!

Back on the home front with lots to tell you!

Yes, I have returned to my fortress of solitude and I'm preparing some questions for indie film maker Sharyn Chen. But before I actually go and start using my brain, here's the rundown of my last three days:

Sunday was a pretty nice day (though I disappointed my mother by not going with her to church. Sorry mum, but the fact that you drug me to listen to preachings and prayers every Sunday for most of my young life has sort of killed my urge to go to mass.) and dinner at Tara's was great! There was tons of food and dessert, and we all had a good time. I capped off the night with a viewing of Borat with my future father-in-law (Bob Speranzo, one of the most politically incorrect and hilarious guys I know). I also got to spend some quality time with Tara, though she nearly cooked me to death in her room because the heat was cranked up! Because of that, I snuck downstairs to the VERY cool living room and watched an great flick called "Hara-Kiri." (From 1962.) While watching the film, I nursed a bottle of Bacardi Silver (Strawberry flavored) that I found in the basement fridge. By the time the film ended, I was wiped out and ventured back into the unforgiving desert known as Tara's Bedroom.

Monday was another decent day. I ended up seeing the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie (great CGI, some good one-liners and jokes, but damn it, the villains were disapointing), ate some leftovers, then watched "Borat" again along with the deleted scenes and other extras. Bob thought the naked-fight scene was so funny that he called everyone into the living room to see it and even got his neighbor down the street to come up and watch! LOL! After that I ended up playing some video games with Tara's nephew, Michael, before succumbing to fatigue. What followed was one of the heaviest good night sleeps I've had in a while.

Tuesday was friggin' awesome.... though the day started out with a visit to an old friend's house and not under the best of circumstances. The mother of Amy Dickerson, a fellow graduate of ye olde Scranton High School, had finally succumbed to cancer. My mother called and told me, so the first duty of the day (after a cold shower and a hot breakfast of French Toast!) was to swing over to Amy's house and give my condolences. Sadly, Amy was not at home, so I spoke with her father for a bit before hitting the road. After cruising around my neighborhood for a few minutes and reminiscing, I decided to hunt down "Godzilla Raids Again" and "Mothra vs. Godzilla" on DVD, and that's where the fun really began....

Best Buy didn't have them, so I ended up buying "Tommy Boy - Holy Shnikes Edition" for 5 bucks (thank goodness for my five dollar gift certificate!). Then I hit Borders because they would more than likely have both films, even though they'd be pricy. I only found "Mothra vs. Godzilla," but before I left with that, I managed to find the Vincent Price / William Castle classic, "The Tingler" for a mere $7.99! With three DVDs in my possession, the hunt continued for the elusive "Godzilla Raids Again." I went to Circuit City next but didn't find the film there, so I headed up to "Wal-Mart" to try my luck there.

I didn't find "GRA" but did find, and purchase, "The Revenge of the Nerds: Atomic Wedgie Collection" for a mere $19.92 (plus tax). After getting that I decided that F.Y.E. (within the Viewmont Mall) would be a good place to check and this friends, is where I hit gold! Not only did I find "Godzilla Raids Again," but I also snagged Anchor Bay's newest releases of "Phantasm" and "Phantasm III." Wih my DVD-lust sated I headed home, ate some pasta, then went to work for a smooth and rather quick evening. It was a great day (though I shouldn't have purchased those DVDs) and I look forward to tomorrow because I'm going to see GRINDHOUSE! WOOHOO!

That's it for now so G'night everyone!

Happy Easter

Well Happy Easter everyone! I'm getting ready to leave for Scranton for a day (or two) so I'll see ya'll when I get back. Hope you have a nice day and get to spend time with the ones you love on this (now fully commercialized) holiday. ;-)

Oh and no I didn't get any extra work done on my "Gwangi" review, and now I have TWO interviews to do this month for RC.... sigh.... I need a miracle. Hahahaha! Enjoy your day off fellow cult movie fans!

Warning: Chugging Monster energy drinks can be harmful to your health.

Tonight at work I challenged Joshua, one of my "stockboys" (or "stockguys" as they usually prefer to be called) to a drinking challenge. This time Monster was the beverage of choice and we each got one of the XXL cans. Now to shed a little light on this, on Tuesday, I chose Enviga, a rather wretched carbonated drink that allegedly burns fat and "tastes great." As far as I know, it doesn't live up to either claim. Josh thought it tasted so bad that he gave up and I won out. Tonight though..... I lost, big time.

I came out of the gate, chugging like an alcholic and polished off half of the energy drink when I suddenly felt a sharp pressure in my abdomen. Ignoring it, I started chugging more of the highly carbonated drink. Josh in the meantime was taking his time and watching me intently, because apparently he knew that something like this might happen. To make a long situation short, the carbonation built up into a painful gas bubble inside my guts. I felt like someone was stabbing the hell out of me with a machete, right through my midsection.

I gave up trying to drink and attempted to work the gas out and maybe deliver a world class burp or fart. Instead, I ended up kneeling over a garbage can for two minutes before puking up my dinner and the deadly Monster Energy drink I had consumed. Needless to say I felt a hell of a lot better after exorcising that devil drink from my body. So with this little life lesson, I've learned that chugging Monster can lead to some pretty painful consequences. So kids, don't be like me! Learn from my mistakes! Make something of yourselves! And don't chug Monster too fast or you'll explode!

Oh and just to add insult to injury, I had one more gulp left in the can before I vomited.... so close, yet so far. ;-)