The other day, my family took a mini-vacation to the Peek'n Peak ski resort. I saw this sign.
It's a good thing there's that emergency exit on the right, just in case...you know...you can't make it to any other exits.
Friday, March 29, 2013
Funny Foto #42
By Michael Seese
The other day, my family took a mini-vacation to the Peek'n Peak ski resort. I saw this sign.
It's a good thing there's that emergency exit on the right, just in case...you know...you can't make it to any other exits.
The other day, my family took a mini-vacation to the Peek'n Peak ski resort. I saw this sign.
It's a good thing there's that emergency exit on the right, just in case...you know...you can't make it to any other exits.
Monday, March 25, 2013
Castle: Scared To Death
By Michael Seese
Kids have Scooby Doo. Grown-ups have Castle episodes like "Scared To Death." Like "Close Encounters of the Murderous Kind" and "Undead Again," you knew that no supernatural forces were at work. Still, you wanted to go along for the ride, to see whatdunit, I mean, whodunit. The major difference is that in those episodes, Castle wanted his out-of-this-world explanation to be the answer. This time, he was (if you'll excuse the obvious homage) scared to death that he was right.
Since Scared To Death was a horror episode, the writers made sure to serve up all the right slasher film cliches:
- The creepy clerk at the Brunswick Inn. (My wife opined that he was Nigel's half brother, and the murderer. Not correct. But still, a good guess.)
- The brother in the insane asylum.
- The cabin in the woods.
- The unknown person in the bushes watching Castle and Beckett as they approached the cabin.
Oh, and kudos to me... When Leopold how he could have sent DVDs to Val or "the other witness," I thought (and Castle said), "We never said anything about the other witness."
Even though Castle was shaking in his shoes, he (and others) managed to get in some good lines.
Castle: "Based on the fact that she looks like an Edvard Munch painting."
Beckett: "Find anything yet?"
Castle: "Yes, a closet with more stilettos than yours."
M.E. Perlmutter: "Detective Beckett. And defective Castle."
Beckett: "You want me to outlive you?"
Castle: "Yes, who else will tell my tale of heroic sacrifice?"
Wes Craven (nice cameo, by the way): "So you call me up in the middle of the night to join my fan club?"
Castle: "Ha ha. No."
And the looks:
- Castle's lip actually quivering when he said, "I'm next."
- Castle's and Beckett's glances as they watched the DVD together.
- Beckett's overall barely contained laughter as she tried to cajole Castle into (perhaps) their final amorous encounter, and then her smirk as he walked into the standpipe.
- Finally, at the very end, as Castle counted down to "his" midnight. "Three, two..." Smile.
I must concede that I have a few complaints:
- I can understand why they had nurse Lockhart out at the cabin. Some plot device was needed to draw Beckett outside, leaving Castle and Heller alone inside. But doing it to prove the innocence of Leopold...really?
- Along those lines, she dug up Nigel's grave...really?
- By the way, how did she and Amanda know that Heller would be up there? Sure, it could have been (limited) public knowledge that he owned the cabin. But it's a big logical jump to think he'd abandon the relative safety of New York City to venture out there alone.
- Oh, and a defibrillator wouldn't leave any mark?
Oh well. It was still a good ride. And I'm looking forward to "The Wild Rover" tonight.
In the world of Castle, DVD stands for "Deadly Video Disc." Click to tweet.
Kids have Scooby Doo. Grown-ups have Castle episodes like "Scared To Death." Like "Close Encounters of the Murderous Kind" and "Undead Again," you knew that no supernatural forces were at work. Still, you wanted to go along for the ride, to see whatdunit, I mean, whodunit. The major difference is that in those episodes, Castle wanted his out-of-this-world explanation to be the answer. This time, he was (if you'll excuse the obvious homage) scared to death that he was right.
Since Scared To Death was a horror episode, the writers made sure to serve up all the right slasher film cliches:
- The creepy clerk at the Brunswick Inn. (My wife opined that he was Nigel's half brother, and the murderer. Not correct. But still, a good guess.)
- The brother in the insane asylum.
- The cabin in the woods.
- The unknown person in the bushes watching Castle and Beckett as they approached the cabin.
Oh, and kudos to me... When Leopold how he could have sent DVDs to Val or "the other witness," I thought (and Castle said), "We never said anything about the other witness."
Even though Castle was shaking in his shoes, he (and others) managed to get in some good lines.
Castle: "Based on the fact that she looks like an Edvard Munch painting."
Beckett: "Find anything yet?"
Castle: "Yes, a closet with more stilettos than yours."
M.E. Perlmutter: "Detective Beckett. And defective Castle."
Beckett: "You want me to outlive you?"
Castle: "Yes, who else will tell my tale of heroic sacrifice?"
Wes Craven (nice cameo, by the way): "So you call me up in the middle of the night to join my fan club?"
Castle: "Ha ha. No."
And the looks:
- Castle's lip actually quivering when he said, "I'm next."
- Castle's and Beckett's glances as they watched the DVD together.
- Beckett's overall barely contained laughter as she tried to cajole Castle into (perhaps) their final amorous encounter, and then her smirk as he walked into the standpipe.
- Finally, at the very end, as Castle counted down to "his" midnight. "Three, two..." Smile.
I must concede that I have a few complaints:
- I can understand why they had nurse Lockhart out at the cabin. Some plot device was needed to draw Beckett outside, leaving Castle and Heller alone inside. But doing it to prove the innocence of Leopold...really?
- Along those lines, she dug up Nigel's grave...really?
- By the way, how did she and Amanda know that Heller would be up there? Sure, it could have been (limited) public knowledge that he owned the cabin. But it's a big logical jump to think he'd abandon the relative safety of New York City to venture out there alone.
- Oh, and a defibrillator wouldn't leave any mark?
Oh well. It was still a good ride. And I'm looking forward to "The Wild Rover" tonight.
In the world of Castle, DVD stands for "Deadly Video Disc." Click to tweet.
Friday, March 22, 2013
Imagine A World...
By Michael Seese
Generally speaking, I don't use my blog to jump up on a soapbox and promote social causes. After all, I have so many other closer-to-home things to promote.
But if I may cast aside for a moment my selfish self-interests...
I saw this posted online, and felt it should be shared. It's a one-minute video that is well worth your time.
"Clever" actually is the first word that came to my mind when I saw it.
Generally speaking, I don't use my blog to jump up on a soapbox and promote social causes. After all, I have so many other closer-to-home things to promote.
But if I may cast aside for a moment my selfish self-interests...
I saw this posted online, and felt it should be shared. It's a one-minute video that is well worth your time.
"Clever" actually is the first word that came to my mind when I saw it.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Eiffel Slog-gress
By Michael Seese
Well, I'm in the revisit / revise phase of "Eiffel." As I said in my previous previous entry on the topic, I have finished the first pass-through, and now am filling in the blanks. The substantial blanks. Sometimes it's a drudge. Sometimes I fear having to tackle the task. And sometimes...
Last night I prepared to work on chapter 3, which takes place during Eiffel's school years. Some time ago, I had roughed out a wide-ranging conversation between Eiffel and one of his professors. I shelved it back then, because I realized that the topics they discuss should have a bearing on what comes in the rest of the book. So I opted to press on, vowing to later plug in references to the key events that I would devise as I moved forward. Prior to last night, as I contemplated what additional ideas to incorporate -- even though I now know comes in the later chapters -- I was drawing lots of blanks. But I had some time on my hands last night, so I persevered.
And the words just came.
When I first sat down to type, I had hoped to merely flesh out a few of the details already there, and perhaps refresh my memory of that skeleton conversation, so that I could see if any later events "fit."
But the words just came.
When the dust settled, I got down over 1,000 words. And I'm pretty happy with them. In fact, I would call that chapter done.
Such is the magic of writing.
Total count: 59,239.
Well, I'm in the revisit / revise phase of "Eiffel." As I said in my previous previous entry on the topic, I have finished the first pass-through, and now am filling in the blanks. The substantial blanks. Sometimes it's a drudge. Sometimes I fear having to tackle the task. And sometimes...
Last night I prepared to work on chapter 3, which takes place during Eiffel's school years. Some time ago, I had roughed out a wide-ranging conversation between Eiffel and one of his professors. I shelved it back then, because I realized that the topics they discuss should have a bearing on what comes in the rest of the book. So I opted to press on, vowing to later plug in references to the key events that I would devise as I moved forward. Prior to last night, as I contemplated what additional ideas to incorporate -- even though I now know comes in the later chapters -- I was drawing lots of blanks. But I had some time on my hands last night, so I persevered.
And the words just came.
When I first sat down to type, I had hoped to merely flesh out a few of the details already there, and perhaps refresh my memory of that skeleton conversation, so that I could see if any later events "fit."
But the words just came.
When the dust settled, I got down over 1,000 words. And I'm pretty happy with them. In fact, I would call that chapter done.
Such is the magic of writing.
Total count: 59,239.
Sunday, March 17, 2013
No Spam SPAM
By Michael Seese
They said "no spam," so I guess I should trust them...right?
PS: Check out whom the email is addressed to: MapcPIRrRk@michaelseese.com
Yeah, I use that one all the time.
They said "no spam," so I guess I should trust them...right?
PS: Check out whom the email is addressed to: MapcPIRrRk@michaelseese.com
Yeah, I use that one all the time.
Monday, March 11, 2013
Eiffel Terminé
By Michael Seese
(Per my French dictionary, that means "completed," rather than "dead.")
Exactly two months after typing the first words, I have completed the first pass of "The Secret World Of Gustave Eiffel." Total words to date: 57,323. For those of you keep score at home, it works out to just over 970 per day.
Not too bad.
So now it's on to Phase II. I think I'll take a "vacation" from Paris for a few days, and then get back to the daunting mountain of REALLY finishing it. The specific tasks will be:
1. Writing most of the detail in the first few chapters. Right now, they're basically placeholders.
2. Fleshing out details where I knew that I wanted additional description or dialogue, but didn't have it on the tip of my tongue. So I pressed forward, rather than lose momentum.
3. Finding the right word where I, likewise, did not have it "right there." (I call this an the previous my "digitial Post-Its.")
4. Making sure that there are no continuity errors.
5. Finally, making sure that, you know, it doesn't suck.
No problem.
My target for this effort is the week of April 22. That give my proofreaders some time to review and comment, a little time for me to implement the suggestions, and a few weeks (which I hope is enough) for the actual printing.
Tally ho!
(Per my French dictionary, that means "completed," rather than "dead.")
Exactly two months after typing the first words, I have completed the first pass of "The Secret World Of Gustave Eiffel." Total words to date: 57,323. For those of you keep score at home, it works out to just over 970 per day.
Not too bad.
So now it's on to Phase II. I think I'll take a "vacation" from Paris for a few days, and then get back to the daunting mountain of REALLY finishing it. The specific tasks will be:
1. Writing most of the detail in the first few chapters. Right now, they're basically placeholders.
2. Fleshing out details where I knew that I wanted additional description or dialogue, but didn't have it on the tip of my tongue. So I pressed forward, rather than lose momentum.
3. Finding the right word where I, likewise, did not have it "right there." (I call this an the previous my "digitial Post-Its.")
4. Making sure that there are no continuity errors.
5. Finally, making sure that, you know, it doesn't suck.
No problem.
My target for this effort is the week of April 22. That give my proofreaders some time to review and comment, a little time for me to implement the suggestions, and a few weeks (which I hope is enough) for the actual printing.
Tally ho!
Friday, March 8, 2013
Funny Foto #41
By Michael Seese
It has been a while, friends.
While researching some corporate travel from Cleveland to Jacksonville, Florida, I came across the following.
Take a close look at first one: both the time of travel and the number (and location) of the hops. Perhaps I'll pony up a 10-spot and cut it to HALF a day.
How did that 1950s jingle go? "See the USA in your Chevrolet."
OK, so Delta doesn't rhyme with USA. Still...
It has been a while, friends.
While researching some corporate travel from Cleveland to Jacksonville, Florida, I came across the following.
Take a close look at first one: both the time of travel and the number (and location) of the hops. Perhaps I'll pony up a 10-spot and cut it to HALF a day.
How did that 1950s jingle go? "See the USA in your Chevrolet."
OK, so Delta doesn't rhyme with USA. Still...
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