The Second Coming (of the Saints. Jesus is still on Vacation)

I had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and I hope you can all say likewise. Also, when did "tryptopantastic" become a word? I think I should be notified about these things. Is there a mailing list I can get on or something?

I saw Boondock Saints 2. I wasn't expecting much, and for that reason I was very pleasantly surprised that they actually did a really good job with this film. In large part, it's a rehash of the first. If you liked the first one, you'll almost definitely like the sequel. And if you didn't like the first one, you'll be equally nonplussed by this.

For the most part, it follows almost exactly the same formula as the first one, tossing in a reference to its predecessor approximately three times per scene. In some ways it reminds me of most comedy sequels, where they simply reuse all the old jokes with a new coat of paint. It does, however, manage to be a wonderful time for the fans of the first one. I saw it at one PM on a Saturday, and the theater was so packed that my brother and I had to sit in the front row to find two seats next to each other. And everyone in that theater seemed to respond fairly well to the movie, roaring with laughter and applause with a frequency which made me grateful of the fact Troy Duffy was presumptuous enough to throw in a pause for laughs after most of the better jokes.

The old jokes are recycled, but usually in a clever enough way to still be funny. The film brings very little new to the table, but it does manage to deftly revive almost everything we loved about the old one. The brothers, their father are played by the same three actors, the bumbling Irish cops from the first movie come back (they seem to have had a couple acting lessons since the first one) with an unexpectedly humorous new routine, and even the untimely demise of David Dela Rocco's character in the first movie doesn't stop him from having a couple of monologues.

Clifton Collins Jr., is rather awkwardly shoehorned into his role as the new sidekick. He is introduced as some kind of untouchable kung fu Spaniard, but that entire aspect of his character is instantly forgotten as he spontaneously adopts Rocco's persona as the slightly-retarded but well-connected sidekick. Still, he manages to make the role his own to some degree, and by the end of the movie I found myself viewing him as more than just a Rocco-clone.

One thing I was disappointed in was Julie Benz. I loved her on Angel, and I don't think she can be held personally responsible for this, but she simply couldn't reproduce Willem Dafoe. If the moviemakers had realized that, she's pretty and talented enough that she could have given them something to work with, but it seems that somebody in charge was insistent that she be cast as a female version of Willem Dafoe's character from Boondock Saints I, and that just wasn't happening.

One aspect of the film I really liked was that while the Saints are certainly a couple of badass action heroes, they aren't very bright and they generally don't plan very well. The first film made a minor note of this, particularly in the penthouse shootout scene, but in this movie the point is really driven home that these guys have absolutely no idea what they are doing. It reminds the audience that this isn't a formulaic action flick so much as a parody of formulaic action flicks.

Which, in the end, is what makes or breaks this movie. As a simple action or a simple comedy, it is probably sub-par. Some films, like Shoot-Em-Up, are action movies that aren't meant to be taken seriously. this is a comedy that is meant to be taken seriously. In the end, you will probably feel the same way about this movie that you did about the first one.

Excellent...

So I informed my boss the other day that I had decided that I would be cutting back on my classes so that I could keep coming to work. As casually as if my roommate were informing me that no, I didn't need to go out because he'd already picked up milk, she tells me that it won't be necessary, because the hours would be heavily reduced in February anyway, and there would be no trouble keeping me under 20 hours per week.

Awesome. It would have been great to know this before I spent weeks freaking out about it, but still, awesome. So now I just need to find a permanent job, preferably back in St Louis, and I'll finally be ready to take my life off pause.

Things are looking up.

Sometimes I wish I were an Eloy

Wow, so once again, I haven't posted in like a bajillilon years. Or a couple weeks, you be the judge.

Working a full time job while also tackling a four-class graduate school schedule is a royal pain in the ass. It's probably not nearly as exhausting as actually working two full time jobs, but it's still pretty heavy. I'm glad the semester is about to end. I've pretty much decided that I'm keeping the job, which means I won't be graduating until December of next year. Boo, hiss, and damn.

On the plus side, I get to build some work history, take the academic side of things relatively easy, and whatever CPA tests I don't finish in the summer, I can wrap up during my very moderate Fall semester. Furthermore, even if I don't find work right after graduation, I should be able to do the HR Block thing again next tax season to make some money and pad my resume a bit more.

I'm exhausted almost all the time now, though. I have no energy to go out, hit the gym, or even make more than a minimal attempt at my schoolwork. The stress is definitely taking a toll on my sanity. Between Thanksgiving break this week and the two weeks I'm taking off for my finals, I should be fine in terms of my grades, but I definitely would not even consider trying to work this schedule for an entire semester. At least I'll make enough money to fix up my car and go Christmas shopping.

Oh, yeah, my car needed fixing up. Wednesday morning, I awoke to my cat biting rather harshly into my arm. I swatted him away and went back to bed, not realizing that this was cat for "dude, your alarm didn't go off, you were supposed to wake up like 20 minutes ago!" Eventually, I saw the clock, and it was almost an hour later than I typically wake. I sprang out of bed, ran into the shower, shaved, and ironed a shirt in just 25 minutes. I actually had a chance of making it to work until I blew a tire. Unlike the first time I had a blowout, I noticed this one quick enough to pull the car over to the road instead of driving on the rim.

So I get out into the very cold November morning and small the burnt rubber. Grimacing, I go into my trunk and extract the spare tire and car jack that I keep there. What I don't extract, for lack of owning one, is a tire iron. Can you tell I'm not a car guy?

So out comes AAA to save the day, and I really have to give that company credit. They were there in like 15 minutes, and the guy worked fast. Unfortunately, his jack wouldn't fit under my car because it had sunk a bit in mud, and the only solution he could think of was to drive the car a bit, even on the bum wheel. Eff that, says I, and I just lifted the back end of the car a bit for him. Cars weigh a few thousand pounds, but most of that's in the parts. The frame itself rarely weighs more than 500, and I was only lifting the corner. I got it up just enough for his jack to slip until the frame, thus saving me at least from further damaging my wheel. And now I had a valid excuse for being late.

So I had the next day off from work, and I spend part of it taking the car in to the shop. They charged me over $130 to buy and change the tire, but whatever. Took them longer to bring the tire out and change it than it took the AAA guy to arrive and do his whole thing, but again, whatever. I was able to knock out a tax class project while I waited.

A few other less significant things contributed to this being a generally bad week, but it's over now. I have no class next week, so I won't be dealing with work and school at the same time, and I get at least one of these days off. Starting the following Friday, I'll begin my reclusive finals prep week, and I won't be going back to work until the semester has been behind me for 24 hours. So right now I'm enjoying my last free weekend for a month, and taking it easy. I've got some personal long projects I've been meaning to start, I finally got to get down and dirty with some zombies in L4D2, I finished almost all of my Christmas shopping, and I got my back yard raked. I used to define "down-time" specifically as time that I spent relaxing and doing nothing productive. Now I define it as things that are productive for me instead of my employer.

I think this feeling means that I'm growing up, but it might just be gas.



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[UPDATE: coming soon, how Ben will attempt to both keep his job and graduate on time after all]

You Can't Hire Me, I Quit!

So as many have already heard, I was hired to a payroll bookkeeping position at HR Block last Thursday. As many are also aware, a few hours after accepting the position, I learned that I would have to be taking 4 classes during the upcoming semester. If I were to attempt to both graduate on time and do this job, I would only have five days and nine evenings per month in which to complete my coursework; I would be up at 7 AM, working until 5, then going straight to class until 10 PM. I would then be waking up about eight hours after I got home. I would get three evenings a week (Friday through Sunday) plus every other Saturday and three Sundays per month to study for exams or work on assignments. Frankly, that is not enough time to ensure passing grades in all my classes even if I was sure to be well rested and prepared.
Since I am unwilling to spend another seven months waiting to graduate, I did the only thing I could do. I explained to the nice people who had just given me a job during the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression that I would be unavailable starting in January. I feel sick acknowledging that. The job was only seasonal and would have ended in April anyway, but it still would have been great experience and a good resume builder.

So for the time being, I’m working through November, and we’ll figure out what’s next afterwards. Contrary to the above, I’m seriously contemplating extending my stay in Kansas City through the next Fall. Six more months of experience is a lot to pass up, especially in this economy. Well, that’s enough bitching about having to choose between having a Master’s degree or a job, seeing as both are opportunities that I would have killed for a year ago.

Halloween weekend was fantastic. We downed an entire handle of Everclear. I went to a very fine party in the loop, and saw a man in a Shriner costume. He had even built himself a car. Nobody got my Boondock Saints costume. Daylight Savings Time has never come on a better morning.

Evan’s house is fantastic. It’s spatious, it has guest bedrooms, and the view in his back yard is gorgeous. I predict it will be the site of many good times in the years to come.

Theo, next time I come we’ll celebrate your birthday proper. I will demand some Brutal Legend multiplayer out of you.

Dave, I hope to see you in January, if I make it out.