How stupid do you have to be to try to re-enact Star Wars at your home by filling fluorescent light tubes with gasoline and then lighting that gas on fire?

Apparently not so stupid that no one would try just that... Two people did just that in England.

How does that plan get laid out?

Person 1: I've got a great idea! Let's re-enact Star Wars at home! I even know how to create the light sabers.

Person 2: Awesome idea. How do we do that?

Person 1: I've got some used fluorescent light tubes laying around...

Person 2: But how do you we get the glow down? We don't have millions of dollars to spend on special effects.

Person 1: Hmm. You're right. That's tricky.

Person 2: Ah-ha! I've got it. Let's pour gasoline in the tubes and light it on fire.

Person 1: Brilliant!

Person 2: Brilliant!

The arcade cabinet arrived today and it's fantastic. Just so you people know, it's housed in an old Terminator 2 cabinet, but it in fact plays everything because of MAME.

Here are pictures for all of you to marvel at the glory of the arcade machine and the vending machine together at last.

The following tale encompasses my thoughts of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.
If you don't want anything spoiled then don't read this.



The highs:

1. The acting was not nearly as poor as in the first two movies.
2. The writing, while still sub-par, also wasn't as bad as in the first two movies.
3. Space battles!
4. James Earl Jones' voice!
5. Plenty of lightsaber goodness.
6. Tied in well with episode IV.
7. There was actually some powerful imagery (in the Jedi temple before Anakin dispatches the children.)
8. Jar Jar was in it for maybe a total of 20 seconds.
9. Chewbacca.



The lows:

1. I didn't like the "camera" work in the space battle. I would rather see it from a range rather than be attached to a moving/spinning ship.
2. Darth Vader sounded like a pansy at the end when he found out Padme was dead. I was expecting more of an emotionless bad ass.
3. Most of the Jedi masters didn't put up much of a fight... especially versus the Emperor. Within 3 seconds 5 of them we dead. Who promoted so many crappy masters is what I want to know.
4. Jar Jar was in it.
5. The Emperor came off as too psycho to me. I could've done without some of the maniacal laughter.



All in all it was definitely the best of the new episodes. I'd still rate it 4th in the series though. Was it entertaining? After the first 20 minutes, yes it was. Would I accept it as a gift? Yes I would. Will I purchase it? Maybe.

So, with that said, I'd give it a rating of 8. Would Purchase if I was in the mood and happened across it.

I'm going to see Star Wars today in a DLP/THX theater. If it's not good there, it can't possibly be good. I fully expect wooden acting and terrible dialogue. Overall, I'm not expecting too much.

I'll report back my impressions.

After all the trouble between Indiana and Detroit this year, I think they certainly acted in the right way last night. When you have a Hall-of-Fame caliber player retiring, it's nice to see some actual sportsmanship come out of a league where we are used to seeing everyone playing for a SportsCenter highlight and for their own statistics.

Roller coaster designers are coming up with new rides that they could never manage to get me to ride. Ride designers are going even further than coaster designers. If you want proof, just view this photo and this photo from atop the Stratosphere tower in Las Vegas. The ride is called Insanity, and is appropriately named.

Imagine a swing attached to a merry-go-round. As the merry-go-round goes faster and faster the swings fly out further and further. Now imagine this happening at 70 MPH while you're dangling 30 feet over the edge of an 800 feet tall building. Brilliant!

Six Flags Magic Mountain has a ride called X. The cars for the coaster sit outside of the tracks and the special track allows the cars to rotate independently of the track. That means you could be going through a loop but be spinning in the opposite direction. I know what that feels like. It feels like you just tried to drink a gallon of milk in a hour and then puked twice in the process.

I've seen video of it where it's going through a cork screw to the right and the cars are spinning backwards. I can only imagine how many people are sprayed with vomit while waiting in line for it.

Lastly, if you'd like to see what it's like to ride Cedar Point's new ride maXair, just watch this movie. I might ride that. Maybe. Going backwards doesn't suit my elderly body very well though. Spinning either. Since this ride spins you constantly and you have no idea whether you're going forward or backwards, maybe this isn't the ride for me. Maybe.

This just in. I raised my GPA to 3.73 and I haven't had Taco Bell in over 2 months.

It's like I believe in the complete opposite of everything I stood for at Purdue.

The vending machine moved downstairs 1000 times easier than it did upstairs. Gotta love that gravity. The arcade art work is printed up and should get to me in a week or so, and then the cabinet will be completed within 2 weeks of that. My place will be a veritable fun house of unused toys.

Today is the big day. I'm moving the vending machine downstairs.

This statement may lead you to pose two questions. First, why is the vending machine upstairs? Second, why do you have a vending machine.

The answers are because I am an idiot and I don't know.

The Pacers should not be hanging with the Pistons at all, and yet here they are. They're up 2-1 in the series. Why does it seem like no one is talking about them? Why didn't Carlisle getting coach of the year talk? Is it because they put themselves into this situation? Is it because they don't have any charisma? If this was the Lakers all we'd be hearing about was how great Kobe was and how he carried the team this far. I don't know how they're doing it, but people need to give them credit for getting to this point when other teams would have folded up and went home 4 months ago.