Random Notes from a Crank

I found a typeface I will now be using more of: Charter. It's easier on my eyes when I look at documents on a screen. 

For this blog I've been using Trebuchet for years. It's a sans serif font that has some serif-like style with its pointedness. 

And this all reminds me of the character Brick from The Middle who is also fascinated with typefaces. 

I started watching that show a few months ago. It's hilarious. Of course, with my timing, I didn't actually watch the sit-com when it was off the air. 

HBO has a new series I'm interested in: Watchmen. I enjoyed the graphic novel and its adaptation to the big screen. On the latter opus, I guess I"m a minority if one goes by all the vitriol on the InterWebs. I don't know what the series will be like, but I was surprised by Don Johnson being in the show. I haven't seen him in years. 

His Dark Materials looks very interesting too. I'm intrigued. I'm considering reading the novel trilogy that is the series' basis. 

Who are the morons who started the idiotic trend of wearing socks with Birkenstocks?

Random Notes from a Crank

I've been a college professor for a good while now, and I will be happy to see this semester end. I want to plunge a wooden stake in the semester's soul-sucking heart. I had some good students who did very fine work. But I had a number of students who still think they're in high school, are unmotivated, and are unwilling to put in the work necessary, or a combo of all three. It's not like I'm doing anything significantly different in my classes. It was just bad luck of the scheduling draw. 

I've been watching the AMC series Robert Kirkman's Secret History of Comics. It's a worthwhile series for fans of comic books and graphic novels. The episode about Wonder Woman was really good, the one on the start of Marvel was interesting, and the recent episode about Image Comics was excellent. 

Next year AMC will feature another series in a similar vein: James Cameron's Story of Science Fiction. I hope there is an episode about Phillip K. Dick. I don't read a lot of science fiction, but I'm interested to learn more about it. 

With all the men getting canned or stepping aside from elected office, it's not surprising this is the first sentence of the article "Three Women Reassert Allegations of Sexual Harassment against President Trump": "The #MeToo sexual harassment movement roiling the nation reached the doors of the White House on Monday, when three women who last year accused President Trump of sexual misconduct began a renewed public push to gain attention for their allegations." 

The Mueller investigation is likely to continue to unearth more dirt on MoscowDon and his associates, but I like that he's getting hit on these charges again. 

Random Notes from a Crank

I picked up the well received Sex Criminals the other day. It's an interesting, freaky story so far. The problem is this: Where do you store a R-rated comic book volume (vol. 1 collects issues 1-5) when you have kids? I just can't put it in the stack of comic volumes I have downstairs, which include various old and new versions of Daredevil, Fraction's Hawkeye, Gaiman's The Sandman, Fraction's The Immortal Iron Fist, Neurocomic, and Wood's Star Wars series. I found a hiding spot for the volume though, so it's all good. For a sound review of the series, check out Laura Hudson's "The Man Behind the Comic Book That Finally Got Sex Right" on WIRED. 

And now I'm thinking of checking out The Wicked + The Divine. 12 mythological gods come back every 90 years to inhabit the bodies of humans and then die in 2 years? I might be in. 

The Heisman ceremony is this Saturday. I hope Cooper wins and ends the tyranny of QBs winning the award, but I'm sure Mariota will take home the trophy. 

In the Monday Night Football game, here are the stats from Julio Jones's night: 11 receptions for 259 yards. Roll Tide. 

The MLB winter meetings are being held right now, and a great deal of attention is on which team Jon Lester will sign with. Apparently it's down to the Red Sox and the Cubs. Regardless of whether they sign Lester, the Cubs made some good moves by resigning Jason Hammel and trading for Miguel Montero, a much-need left-handed bat in the lineup. 

Random Notes from a Crank

In the November election in Illinois, there are a number of ballot initiatives. The Millionaire Tax Increase for Education has a certain degree of appeal. You could argue that it's a flat-out voter turnout generator in response to Rauner running for Governor (and probably winning since Quinn and the Democratic Party of IL are so inept). Then again, maybe there's something more to it if you've read "Right vs. Left in the Midwest" from political science professor Lawrence R. Jacobs. 

Here's how US Uncut described the situation on its FB page:

Today The Onion provided a fine article from its archives. Check out "18-Year-Old Miraculously Finds Soulmate in Hometown." 

I'm thinking about buying some dark brown, old-school wingtips. I've always liked wingtips.They look good with dress slacks, and they look good with jeans. Yes, I just used the word "slacks." If you like wingtips, that old-fashioned term is appropriate. 

If you're not watching Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, you should. Grist has a short intro to his report about sugar. Here's "John Oliver's Takedown of the Sugar Industry is Pretty Sweet."  

I don't know if I buy the pseudo-Rogerian argument that leads to a delayed thesis in this article, but "Why Comics Are More Important Than Ever" made me think about my reading practices and some of the reasons I like comics/graphic novels. 

Speaking of comics, in the mail today I got Brian Wood's final installment of his four-volume storyline of Star Wars after the Rebels destroyed the first Death Star and are looking for a base of operations. 

May the Force be with you.

Random Notes from a Crank

One of the liquor stores in my town is called Gate Way Liquors. I wonder whether this name is because the owner of the place doesn't know how to spell "gateway" correctly or it's some term only a drunk person can figure out. 

I'm looking for a new TV series to get into. The Americans season is over, and I suspect Fargo is getting close to finishing its first season (and I hope there are more).

This spring I finished the full run of Gaiman's Sandman series. I really enjoyed it because of the ways he plays with mythology and religion while telling a heck of a tale. Of the Endless, Dream is obviously a great character, but I'm fond of his siblings Death and Destruction. And the issue "15 Portraits of Despair" is exceptional. Some other of my favorite characters are Matthew the Raven, Mervyn Pumpkinhead, Bast, the Three, Lucifer, Cluracan, and Hob Gadling. 

I'm now in the midst of American Gods. Good stuff so far. 

I bought a copy of the collected first volume of The Saga of the Swamp Thing that Alan Moore did. It was okay, but it didn't knock the edges off like Sandman and Mind MGMT. 

Speaking of which, I also had the pleasure of gobbling up volume 3 of that fine work. That graphic novel just keeps getting better and better. 

Random Notes from a Crank

The other day my six-year-old son told us that he had two girlfriends. The first one is Lillie, a girl a year younger than him. He went to pre-school with her. The second, apparently, is Taylor Swift. I explained to him that he's too young to have a girlfriend and that Lillie is prettier than Taylor Swift and probably much nicer. I continued by telling him that I think Taylor Swift always looks like she's squinting or something. Also, with how many breakup songs she writes, you have to wonder if the men in her life aren't the problem. Maybe the real problem is her? 

Thought Catalog, one of those sites that's frequently shared via social media, had an interesting compilation of advice. It's titled "21 People On What They Would Tell Their 19-Year-Old Selves." My personal favorites are the advice given by Anya, Parker, Donald, Jackson, and Katelyn. 

If I had to provide advice to my 19-year-old self, like anyone else, there are a number of statements I'd make that I'd rather not share on the InterWebs or in polite company. However, here's some advice for that fool that I'm willing to share:

• Stay an extra year in undergrad because you should get a second major either in psychology, communication studies, sociology, anthropology, or history.
• Read more. In particular, read about rhetoric, composition studies, organizational communication, professional writing, psychology, history, anthropology, and sociology. And comic books and graphic novels. 
• Don't sell some of your comic books ~ the Daredevil when Elektra dies and the Amazing Spider-Man with the Spider-Mobile and the first appearance of the Punisher. You'll want to show them to your kids. 
• If she's not into you, she's not into to you. Move on. 
• Apply this principle liberally: Ars est celare artem.  
• What you will learn being a member of a fraternity will translate more productively to your professional life than most of the classes you will take as an undergraduate. Get good grades and all that, but keep this fact in mind. 
• Manage your money better, you idiot.

The other day I got a copy of Studs Terkel's Working. I'm enjoying it so far, but I wished I would have read it a long time ago. 

Random Notes from a Crank

It's come to that time of the year when I'm so desperate for college football that I'm watching a NFL preseason game. I feel so pathetic. 

On Tuesday, the OED Online Word of the Day was "monkey parade." It's a noun, and here's the definition: "An evening promenade of young people, esp. for the purpose of meeting members of the opposite sex." Because I've lived in college towns for good portion of my life ~ Kirksville, MO; Tuscaloosa, AL; and Charleston, IL ~ I recognize these parades. Monkey parades are especially prominent in small towns when college kids travel on foot to a keg parties. I've observed many of them. 

I've been making pickles close to every day since my pickling cucumbers have been producing, which is three weeks or so now. I've been experimenting with different ratios of types of vinegar (hint: go heavy on the cider vinegar and light on the white vinegar) and experimenting with hot peppers in the mix. I did one jar with a serrano pepper and a couple others with jalapenos. Mrs. Nasty tried the serrano-infused pickles the other day. She hung in there, but she said they were pretty hot. I tried them too. They're hot, but serranos impart wicked good flavor. I've also thought about making a jar with three peppers marinating the cucumbers ~ a serrano, a jalapeno, and cayenne. I think I'll call it my "walk into a bar..." recipe. You see, a serrano, a jalapeno, and a cayenne walk into a bar, and... [you fill in the blank]. 

In October, we head up to Iowa to see my parents for their celebration of their 65th wedding anniversary. I hope Mrs. Nasty and I stick around long enough to have a 65th wedding anniversary. 

While I enjoyed The Wolverine movie, reading the comic books series from 1982 was quite a treat. I was somewhat right on what they kept from the comic book for the movie. Regardless, I'm a bit of purist, so I prefer the original comic book storyline, especially because it brings in the rest of the X-Men at the end (for a wedding that goes wrong). With all that said though, the movie reinterprets the Logan/Wolverine character in a thoughtful way. 

After reading the full series of The Northlanders by Brian Wood, I got into his most recent work, The Massive. It's good. I'm looking forward to the second volume. 

Stay Positive: Comic Books & Graphic Novels

Recently I've gotten back into comic books, and I'm also venturing into graphic novels.

Above is one of the paperbacks I've bought recently. Daredevil was one of my favorite superheroes when I was a kid. Back in those days, I also regularly read Spider Man, The Avengers, and X-Men, but "The Man Without Fear" was always my go-to superhero. 

I've waded into the recent stories about Daredevil as told by Mark Waid, which goes to four volumes at present, and I've pre-ordered volume five, the cover of which is below. 

Obviously, like in volume 4, Daredevil and the webslinger team up. 

As for Daredevil in the Marvel universe, I don't know if experts would consider him as major of a character as Thor, Wolverine, Captain America, Iron Man, Spider Man, Hulk, et al. But I guess I was drawn to him because his comic books tended to have a darker sensibility. At least that seemed the case when I was reading Daredevil in the 80s. 

Besides the superhero stuff, I also read Fun Home, a graphic novel by Alison Bechdel that is excellent. Then I read a compendium of American Splendor by Harvey Pekar. 

And after having an email conversation with a guy I went to grad school with, a fellow who teaches courses on comic books and graphic novels at a R1 university, he recommended I check out Brian Wood's Northlanders. 

My friend is a scholar of Medieval Studies and can translate in Old Norse. Though I'm not a scholar in Medieval Studies, like him I have an interest in the Vikings, but that's mainly because I'm a quarter Danish and a quarter Norwegian. I like to think that my ancestors were Vikings of some ilk, but in reality my forebears were probably Norwegian and Danish fishing people who got killed or exploited or shook down by Vikings.

Nevertheless, I'm interested in Vikings and Viking culture. In fact, a couple of summers ago, I read A History of the Vikings by Gwyn Jones for personal enjoyment. And I may venture into other historical accounts/nonfiction about those folks in the future.

However, even though Wood's work is rooted in history, the seven volumes of Northlanders are fictional accounts about the dying out of Viking culture from various perspectives. From the looks of it, the volumes are all stand-alone stories. I've only read volume 1 (above) and 3 so far, and volume 2 is on its way. 

The artwork in Northlanders is gorgeous, and the stories are solid. Wood did his research. Lots of blood though. 

Because it seems pretty easy to convert graphic novels to the screen, I wonder if we could see Northlanders in film form sometime in the future. My hope is that HBO creates a series. I'd like to see Sven the Returned and the Shield Maidens on the small screen.