"Heroes are what you make them, and where you find them" - Bhazo

I just got done reading a book suggested to me by a couple of friends that goes by the name "Villains By Necessity" by Eve Forward. They told me its one of thoose books that stick with you and you want to read every year or two. I can see why. Its a great book. An easy read, yet with a fresh idea.
The Good Guys have won, theres little, if any, evil in the world. By unknown forces, a rag tag group of villians that are on their way out, are gathered together to save the world from its glorious self. I like it because it makes you think.
How does one define a Hero? Or a Villian for that matter? And who decides? Theres a little passage that I absolutely loved from the book I'll share:

"There's more to people than some defined Label," said Arcie. "There are more than straight good and evil, aye, even more than law or disorders or fence-sittin'. There's prejudice, whimsey, affection, superstition, habit, upbringing, alliance, pride, society, morals, animosity, prefernce, values, religon, circumstance, humor, perversity, honor, vengance, jealousy, frustration... hundreds o' factors, from the past and in every present moment, as decides what some one person'll do in an individous situation." ..... "Sometimes there's other reasons for helping, other than personal gain of benefiet," added Sam softly. "Friendship, companionship, trust and love are not confined to light alone... they are harder won, fewer seen... but no less real."

So what does shape a person into a person he becomes? Lots of factors. So I say lay aside your prejudice judgment of things different from you, and get to know whom you would judge. You might be more similiar than you would think.

"When you 'Hulk Smash' upon a star"?!?!

If you’re a geek/nerd/card carrying member of The Comic Book Addiction Hotline, local 120, as I,m myself, am, then you’ve most likely already heard of this. Walt Disney has bought Marvel Comics. More Info can be found here.

At first, I was a little apprehensive about the whole thing. But if I remember right, there’s a lot of other weird mergers/ownerships out there that seem to work well. So, I’ve upgraded my naturally state of “What the Hell?” to more of a Cautiously Hopefully “What?! Uh, ok…”. Time well only tell if this is going to be a good thing. And Walt Disney? No little Mouse’s in Mark II armor, alright? If there is, a big Fist Shake of Doom will be sent your way…

(and I thought these were pretty funy)

"The frame of the cave leads to the frame of man." - Stephen Gardiner

Over the weekend, I had the pleasure in going spelunking with some friends to cave system called Minnetonka. I really had a lot of fun. The temperature inside the cave is about 40 degrees year round, and if I had it my way, that’s the temp I would want around me all the time. It was absolutely wonderful. If I was a billionaire, I would buy that cave and live in it. But I digress.

In my mind, the Cave itself is very photogenic. I got a lot of good pictures during my visit. I wish we weren’t so rushed along (it was a guided tour), or I would’ve taken a few more. Next time I go, I’m definitely taking a camera stand, holding up the group be damned. They have really good mood lighting in there, and you would need it if you want to take full advantage of it and not get blurry pictures.

If find yourself in the Bear Lake area of South Eastern Idaho, and looking for an afternoon adventure, I would send you this way. It`s totally worth it.

"What is the point of having free will if one cannot occasionally spit in the eye of destiny?"

The past year, I’ve come across a new author that I absolutely love. Jim Butcher, author of the series “The Dresden Files” and “The Codex Alera”. Both are rather intriguing in their own respective ways, but I if had to choose which I liked best, it would be The Dresden Files.

The thing that makes the series for me is that the main character, Harry Dresden, is so damn flippant, it’s awesome. I wish I could be as flippant as he. Plus the world that Butcher spins, a Wizard in modern day Chicago, is brilliant and captivating. The characters feel real to me and end up caring what happens to them. And there’s so many great lines from the book, you would be underlining them at least every other page. In fact, that’s where I got my main quote for The C of Fail. I would suggest this series to anyone.

The other series, The Codex Alera, is good, but not as captivating as The Dresden Files. The series seems to start up slow. But by the 4th and 5th book, it really comes into its own. What I like best about the series though is the it’s a fantasy world with an ancient Roman spin and his different take of a “Magic” system is really creative and original.

So, if any of you are in need of a new series to read, at least consider reading The Dresden Files. I don’t think you would be disappointed.

"Is there anything worn under the kilt? No, it's all in perfect working order..." -- Spike Milligan

I recently attended a local Celtic Festival over this past weekend, the first of its kind in my valley. I’ve got to say I was pleasantly pleased. They had a variety of things to browse at, from Caber Tossing, different Scottish Clan booths, and reportedly there was Haggis, which I would've tried if I would've known about it. I would recommend to anyone if they come back next year, for I certainly would be going.

Now, I love all things related to Scotland, for its freakin' awesome. I’ve always entertained the prospect of having a full Kilt set up, but never had the means or opportunity to get one. Now at this certain Festival I attended there was a certain little both selling Kilts. After much deliberation and a certain amount of peer pressure, I broke down and bought one. And I’ve got to say, I have no buyers remorse what so ever.

There's a certain amount of freedom I’ve never known before while wearing the Kilt. It’s cool, flexible, and covers everything that needs covering. No wonder those Scots liked them. The only thing I have to say it’s just pure awesome. Now I’m on my way to building a great Halloween costume, for I have late have been watching a certain cartoon called Samurai Jack.

You’re probably asking what does Samurai Jack have to do with Kilts? Let me explain. There’s a certain character on the show that I absolutely love. And he only goes by The Scotsman. He’s one of my favorite characters on the show, and I will be going as him this year. If you have never seen said cartoon, I would suggest giving it a try. After a few episodes, it can be kind of predictable, but it does have a bit of charm to it. One of the qualities that I like is that it shows without telling. If you ever seen Wall*E, you would know what I’m talking about.