February Sweeps

I decided to take off February. I was working less this month and the preceding months (and years) have been other people heavy. Even when I am out having fun it was usually the result of meeting up for someone else's event/benefit/thing.* I also have been doing extra work looking after people or just picking up the slack because I feed into that "if I don't do it..." mentality a lot of the time which is stupid. It's the way I have been built.

Like a sexy Terminator with a Marty McFly fashion sense.

So I decided to make this February the Month Of Me. I would focus on starting to adopt habits that would make me a better person- emotionally, mentally, financially and spiritually. I would try to become a better adult and work hard at moving from the back of the pack. I would also focus less on others. The only exceptions would be for my mother, those who can't care for themselves (babies, kids and animals I encounter) and anything I had already agreed to before this month began. No new promises. No new agenda.

Also, I would catch up on my DVR shows.

Oh, how I miss you...

Have I've been successful? Moderately. A lot of the time it has involved putting my phone on Do Not Disturb or turning it off completely, fighting my urge to respond to things immediately that aren't work/money related and generally ignoring non-Sean stuff. It's hard and I backslide at times. When you care about folks it's hard to turn it all off, particularly when those folks are screw-ups and/or extremely anxious. But it's necessary.

This is not to say that I'm not thinking about others. My friends are definitely a source of determination and dedication and my family is a source of strength.** I'm inspired by what they have accomplished and their focus. They're amazing and I plan to become as amazing one day soon.

I'm happy with how I'm proceeding but I need to go harder. I have to get back in shape** and meditate more and just push forward without trying to have dreams about what might be. I think it will all come together but I gotta keep up the work. Keep my head down and go forward.

*This is only partially true. When I'm hanging with my friends, it's because I love them and enjoy their company. But I also many times feel like I'm out because they want to be there and not me.
**The non-crazy ones.
***Some would say not back BUT finally in shape.

AMAZON!

I apologize. I've been sitting on this one for awhile (as well as this blog) for a variety of excuses...

WW by Nathan Fox

So, DC is making a Superman Vs. Batman movie. Actually, apparently, they are making a gang of films a la the Marvel Cinematic Universe. As a geek I should be happy about this. I am a Marvel fan more than I'm a DC fan if we are getting into a discussion of the Big Two but I still can see how this could be potentially awesome. I mean, DC's Animated Universe is great and I usually enjoy whenever they put out animated content. Content like this which will relate to the rest of this post. And I LOVED Nolan's Batman trilogy and really enjoyed Man of Steel, even though it felt more like a Dragonball Z origin flick at times over a Superman movie.

I even have little to no problem with most of the casting at this point. I liked Cavill as Superman, Affleck will probably be a good older Bats and, although I was wary at first, I think Gal Gadot has the ability to pull off a decent Wonder Woman.* She's been working out, she is familiar with stunts from the Fast &Furious franchise films and her accent could be great to help portray Diana's foreign origins. Hell, maybe Jesse Eisenberg could pull off a good and fresh new version of Lex, like Ledger did with the Joker.**Plus, Momoa as Aquaman? Yeah. I'm with that.

Something says he can pull it off.

Sure DC has had hiccups (I'm looking at you Green Lantern) but if done correctly, I believe they can put out good movies like Marvel.

My fear is they won't.

Just looking at how they are planning on releasing these films worries me. Shazam before Wonder Woman? Really? If the plan is to build a good Justice League film, you start with the base- The Trinity. You put out at least one kick-ass Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman film. You don't build a house with some foundation and throw on an attic piece without making sure the footings are right. (Sorry, been watching a lot of Holmes Inspection lately)

And this is not a piece on how I care deeply about Wonder Woman or that she is my favorite character. She's not. That's Spider-Man. She's not my favorite DC character. That's Power Girl She's not even my favorite (and I hate this qualifier) female character in either Big Two universe. That's Dakota North.

But she is vital. Not even to just DC doing this right and it's history but to ALL comic book history. She might be the most popular female character out there and is definitely the most well known. Diana Prince is inspirational to many people, of both genders and all sexual orientations. She has been around since 1941. Seventy plus years, huge popularity and one of the core members of your main super team and you are putting her third after Shazam and Sandman? C'mon, son.

DC, do what you gotta do but I would have went a different way. My plan would be to tie the movies you already released together into one coherent plot or very close to it. I thought that was part of the plan and also to do things with some elements based on more realism, or as realistic as you can make films with the last remaining solar space god from an alien race.

But, let's say that's your plan and you want to get rid of as much of the myth and "made of clay" elements from Wonder Woman. Cool. Don't worry. I got you.


This won't be too deep but is a framework of how this would work in my head. We have to start with a prologue and this will tie Wonder Woman into Man of Steel a bit so bear with me. I'm basing this on the empty cryogenic pod in Man of Steel that Clark finds and the Man of Steel prequel comic book.


Prologue- In ancient Times ( less than 20,000 years ago)- A tribe of women are walking towards the Aegean Sea. There is an island there where many other women have already been shepherded and this is the last group to arrive. They are led by four sister, all daughters of a goddess/space alien. Their mother and their siblings are dead but are still worshiped as fallen heroes, gods and demigods among the primitive humans. These four sister are the last remaining members of their family but won't be the last of their line. They possess alien tech to start a new society on this island hidden behind an invisible shield. The island will be known one day as Themiscyra. The sisters are a Queen, a Keeper of Records, a Scientist/Priestess and a Warrior woman named Shim'Tar. The woman arrive at the shore and as they are sending off the final boat to the island, they are attacked by a gang of savage men. Most of the woman flee with Shim'Tar remaining to defend the boat and save some of the woman who will be left.*** The other women make it to Themiscyra and the shield protects and keeps them hidden for centuries.

Cue credits and opening logo. I would just title this movie AMAZON and be done with it but that's just me.

Six Months Ago- In the Amazon jungle, Barbara Ann Minerva is leading a rescue mission on behalf of Cale-Anderson Pharmaceuticals to locate a missing doctor and his team who were searching for new potential medicines. The doctor, Thomas Leavens, had heard rumor of a tribe that had access to special roots that gave them rapid healing abilities. Minerva arrives with her team to find the tribe slaughtered along with Leavens' team. They follow the trail of death to a hidden temple. Minerva's team is killed on the way inside. There she find Dr. Leavens, half naked and insane. He is standing before an altar to some ancient bestial god and is wounded and covered with blood. He rushes to attack Minerva.

Five Months Ago- Veronica Cale is the owner of Cale-Anderson Pharmaceuticals who has just acquired Cadmus Labs. She is entering her office with Dr. Dabney Donovan who is performing research on the pieces of Kryptonian debris from Metropolis. They enter the office and find Minerva sitting at Veronica's desk, with two robed figures beside her. Minerva says, with a crazy smile and a scratched and scarred face, "I have so much to tell you Veronica. We are going to change this world."

Present Day- Steve Trevor is an agent of the newly formed DEO or Department of Extranormal Operations, formed after the "Kryptonian incursion" and other occurrences of supernormal incidents. He is investigating reports of monsters off the shore of Greece. While he is waiting to hear back from headquarters he sees the beginning of a strange storm on the sea. Despite warnings from his director and the locals, Steve takes a boat to investigate. A humanoid  alien and a giant monster crash through Steve's boat in the midst of the storm causing it to begin to sink. He is rescued by a stranger on another boat who subdues the monster and saves the alien as well.

Steve wakes on the island of Themiscyra to the sounds of arguing. The stranger who rescued him is Princess Diana of the Amazons and she is fighting with her people about bringing outsiders to the island. Her mother Queen Hippolyta is listening to Diana's story and opposition from an Amazon named Aleka, Diana's chief rival on the island. Steve enters and is quickly subdued by an Amazon. Aleka argues that his life should be taken but Diana says she'll fight for his freedom. Cue big arena fight scene where Diana wins and Steve is allowed to live. He explains his mission and why he was in the area. Diana talks a bit about their history before they check on the alien she saved.  The alien is a dying female insect-like humanoid named Forager. Her last words before she passes are "Gods...god...war comes...he...brings....apocalypse."

An Amazonian council is assembled to decide what to do with this limited information. Some think it is the beginning of the end of the time of man, others think it is the return of the ancient god Ares but others believe that it is the start of another alien invasion. Steve says he has to report this to the DEO and see if he can get more information. Diana volunteers to go with him, for assistance and to keep the location of Themyscira secret. She is given armor, weapons and a communication device for her journey.

Meanwhile, back in the United States, Cadmus Labs is working on fine tuning their teleportation technology in DC. The two robed figures were ancient hibernating bestial aliens named Mokkari and Simyan, who were awoken by Leavens in his entry into the ancient temple. They are scientists with limited knowledge of this technology and great knowledge of genetic manipulation. They are assisting Minerva and crew with trying to open portals to their homeworld to bring their master, the God of War, to Earth. Minerva has had her body manipulated and is appearing more cheetah like in appearance and this worries Veronica but not enough to stop her and her pursuit of promised power and knowledge.

Diana and Steve arrive in Washington, DC at DEO headquarters. Etta Candy takes them in to see the head of DEO, Director Robert “Bones” Todd. He dresses Steve down but takes the information he has and has teams run down any new information they can get along with other sightings of strange creatures and "hell-like landscapes" appearing. 

While this is going on, the Cadmus crew has success and opens up a great hole to the God of War's homeworld. He arrives with a small army and lays out a plan of attack for the subjugation of Earth in the name of his father. Several of his soldiers have brought updated teleportation tech with them and they scatter to a few different spots to open teleportation tubes to unleash soldiers and beasts from this other world, including, Greece, Cairo, London, Metropolis and Gotham. The God of War says he will take Minerva and begin his strike in the capitol of America.

The hell gates begin to open. Diana is alerted to this in DEO headquarters. She informs her sisters back on the island who scatter to help out as they can. Diana and Steve have, meanwhile, seen a small force begin to attack locally led by what appears to be the God of War of myth, Ares. Diana springs into action, trailed by Trevor and a DEO security force.

Diana arrives but is attacked by Minerva, now totally transformed into Cheetah. They battle fiercely but she is no match for Amazonian strength. Meanwhile, Trevor and the DEO squad is taking it to the alien fighters but they are stopped by the God of War. Diana arrives and punches the helmet off the tall figure. She faces him and draws her sword. She says "Prepare to fall, God of War. Prepare to die, Ares." The figure stands and says  "Who is Ares? I am Grayven, the World Ender. I am the harbinger of Apokolips and the herald of Darkseid." He punches a stunned Diana across traffic. They fight. Eventually, Diana gains the upper hand but just before she is going to land the killing blow, Grayven activates a Boom Tube and he and his remaining forces teleport back to Apokolips.

Diana finds Steve and she receives a report from the Amazonian General Philippus that the Apokoliptian forces have been beaten wherever the Amazons encountered them. They weren't able to get to some places like Egypt and Gotham but Trevor gets reports that something stopped them there too. Diana says she is worried that this was just the beginning, a test and that true terror is on it's way.

There will be an epilogue scene where Diana and Steve meet the head of a newly formed division under DEO. This division focuses on superhumans and their potential for action in the future. They are monitoring reports of the Batman of Gotham, Superman and stories about a fast moving creature protecting Keystone City and a man sinking whaling ships off the coast of Japan. This division is headed by Amanda Waller with technical support by a young Victor Stone. The name of the the division is Advanced Research Group Uniting Super-Humans or ARGUS. They want Steve Trevor and the newly named Diana Prince to join the effort in case of any potential world threatening menaces.

So, there you have it. Diana Prince action movie, the beginnings of a future Justice League and the foreboding threat of Darkseid, an actual adversary to a team at the level of the Justice League. Plus, characters to maybe be revisited later, including a lost tribe of Amazons in Africa and whomever defended the cities the Amazons couldn't get to. I even have a list of characters who should be in this movie, even minor Amazonians.

Thoughts?

Good luck, DC.


*In my head, I had envisioned Gina Carano, Jamie Alexander or, even as crazy as you might think, a Tamina Snuka as Diana of Themiscyra.

**If not, I'm gonna complain that they should have cast Michael Cera instead.
***This can be a leftover thread in case you need future Amazons or the Bana-Mighdall tribe, which settled in Egypt in the comic books.

Bullshite/Just Do It

I've come to a realization.

No, not a realization but something obvious that I already knew but have a tough time applying to the reality because, well, I'm me.

I need to write and there is no valid excuse not to be writing pretty much whenever I get a free moment.

I mean, I already kinda do but those writing jags come in bursts and I have full ideas for stories that I've either a) have completed only in my head b) should be stopped/put off for later because I don't have a really good ending or c) have not uploaded/shared.

A lot of the time I invent excuses for not writing and the big one is always access to the necessary equipment, ie a computer.

This is bullshit.

People were writing before these magical boxes were created. Hell, I was writing before this thing. I still write with pen and paper mostly now anyway. The only thing about not having constant access to a computer is a valid excuse for is the quantity of content put on the internet by me. I can update my Tumblr and Pinterest pretty regularly so there should be no reason for me not to do the same with these blogs.

So, time to stop the bs and just do it. Throw up (good) work and get this noise in my head out into the world on a consistent basis as opposed to those nights where I'm in the zone.

Keep me honest, Russians and Latvians.

So, I Have About Ten Post Done....

...or pretty much done. Or at least done to the level that if I take another 5-10 minutes with them I would be cool with posting them on here and here and here.

But I haven't posted anything really lately.

And it's not that I'm afraid or even being lazy (shocker) about it or even falling into the internet wormhole of random searching. Or at least not too much of the last one.

I don't really know exactly why I haven't put up anything. I don't really censor myself much here, particularly not when I'm the one to be potentially embarrassed. It's just been about a month or so of being shocked by different news events, questioning myself and, specifically, most of my relationships with other human beings. Things like how I interact with folks, how people interact with me, what I accept, what's my boundary line, how much effort I'm going to put into people and things... It goes on and on and I sometimes think I should share this with someone but those I would normally share this kind of thinking with are the ones who are in these thoughts. It's crazy.

So, I've dedicated myself to figuring out what is going on and resolving these issues. It's not going to be fun and I'm probably going to be more upset, mostly with myself, but this is the way to move forward and not totally become that dude that lives alone in the mountains growing a beard.*

While I work on all that I'm going to do my best to post those blogs, complete some good stories and basically get my shite back together.

Gotta boost brand ME and make that the priority. Everything else falls into place after that.


*that ACTUALLY sounds alright, as long as I have a pet and reliable internet.

Connected Guy, No More*

* well, at least for this weekend

Taking a break from as much of humanity as I can for at least the weekend.

Maybe until Tuesday.

Very hard. You forget how much you rely on the internet and your phone. Even posting this is taking all of my restraint not to go to another random website or fall into the Wikipedia hole.

Hopefully this time off will allow me to think and straighten out some life stuff and some emotional stuff. Also, maybe I can really get to work on things I have begun and just haven't completed/uploaded.

Plus, I still got a lot to clear out on my DVR. I have NO IDEA what is going on with Once Upon A Time at this point. Maybe I can fix that. This is low priority though.


UPDATE: I'm back on the net. I have a problem and it's unfortunately no longer this.

Like The Man In The Stall Said To The Man Waiting...

"Give me time, baby."- Al Bundy, Shoe Dick

I promise an update (maybe 3!) today. Been busy trying to work on something big that could be the start of actually being a real writer. Also, trying to nail down certain things in my life and figure out where I stand.

In the meantime in between time, check out these two links. The first is an awesome series of cartoon that I probably mentioned before.* The second is this writer on Cracked.com and I enjoy most of his articles on life. They speak to the screw-up in me. Enjoy.

http://www.viruscomix.com/subnormality.html

http://www.cracked.com/members/John%2BCheese/

*Plus I want that "SHIrT" shirt. Someone get on that for me. Thanks.

Carry On, My Wayward Son....

Well, it's about to be March (or it is March depending on how fast I can get this written and uploaded).

I didn't do as much as I would like to have done in February. I'm not happy about that. I was far less selfish during the beginning of the month. (By the way this is my Year of Selfishness; I didn't tell you? My bad) That's totally on me. I still have to finish my goals that I set for the end of March.

There is lots of craziness till occurring and things to deal with. I'm still not where I need to be but I feel oddly positive that I will do what is necessary for me to be happy and fulfilled and successful. I get these moments and I have to bottle all the emotion and drive associated with them. They can be fleeting and usually only happen when I have forgotten about or, at least, pushed my life, my folks and the world to the background into a static noise state. Helpful hint- Listening to this Gorillaz song helps immensely with this.

So, I'm gonna push to get the books (PLURAL!!!) done, make my blogs readable, attend to and clean up my personal life/affairs, work out harder and keep making myself more awesome. The Year of Selfishness and Also Awesomeness marches on. (see what I did there?)

But that's tomorrow.

I'm tired right now. Gonna watch Community, maybe a bit of Drive because that Gosling fella is so violently dreamy, try to FINALLY finish The Gone-Away World ** and sleep.

See you all on the 'morrow.

*I did it! Yay, me!

**It's one of those books that I always start that I never get through. I've pretty much given up on finishing Cloud Atlas. Maybe I'll give it another shot in the summer. ***

***Damn, summer isn't that far away.

I stole this from Jonathan Hickman....

because it was good and it hits so very close to home. You probably don't even need this because you got your shite together but I like this reminder.

RESISTANCE-

It was October 2nd, 2004. I was sitting alone, bawling my eyes out, in a little Greek restaurant about half a block from the hotel where I was attending a Robert McKee seminar. I was reading Steven Pressfield's book, THE WAR OF ART.

It's a book about overcoming obstacles that stand in the way of creative undertakings. It's about realizing the only thing preventing you from succeeding is yourself. It's about becoming the person you are meant to be.

Here's an excerpt- 
"We don't even know what hit us. I never did. From age twenty-four to thirty-two, Resistance kicked my ass from East Coast to West Coast and back thirteen times and I never knew it existed. I looked everywhere for the enemy and failed to see it right in front of my face."

From twenty-four to thirty-two... I WAS THAT GUY.

Pressfield uses the word resistance to identify that thing within every creative person that keeps us from actually creating: Doubt, procrastination, fear, etc.

YOU KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT.

A couple months earlier I'd decided to try and make a go of making comics, but it was that night I stopped being a dabbler and became a creator. I went back to my hotel, sat down and wrote myself a reminder. Now, I read it everyday before I start work:

I am my own Enemy,
RESISTANCE is my Nature.

I am aware of RESISTANCE
And it prevents me from achieving the life I am Meant To Have.

RESISTANCE is Self-Generated, Self-Perpetuated.
It Lies and Seduces. Its goal is my Utter Destruction.
Every day is a battle for my soul.

This Moment, This Day,
I change my life.

Help me to defeat myself,
And realize fate.

Now, is all of this a little too spiritual? Is it too much new age, feel good, self-actualization?

Maybe, but am I committed?

ABSOLUTELY.

2013

That is all.

Easter Drankin´

5 PM...

Easter Sunday...

About 3 beers in...

Tecate to be more specific. Yeah, I know Easter isn´t a traditional drinking day, what with it supposed to be honoring White Jesus Walkind Deading it up and all but, then again, folks get winter wasted on Christmas, which is supposed to be about Baby Jesus, so whatever. Excuse my blasphemous boozing and typing.

The point of me even bringing that up is to say that I´m drinking. Obviously. But it´s also to explain why this post is on this blog instead of one of my other blogs. (although, I really should mirror it on my Caged Therapy one too...) Let me rewind back a tad...

I´m apartment sitting and dogsitting for friends. Whenever I do this activity and it allows me freedom for a few days, I like to drink and write. Not drink to get bent/wasted/drunk, but to feel a tiny buzz. I feel it lubricates my writing tools. I´m like Hemingway in that way, or that´s the excuse I usually use. What REALLY happens is I end up killing the six pack over the course of two days, come up with ideas I jot down but don´t really finish anything.

I planned on this time being different.

I´ve been pissed at myself for not completing what I at least think are awesome story ideas. I say I´m a writer but I did way more writing when I was clueless as what to possibly label myself. I know what needs to be done. I even see myself wrapping up tales in my head; I just don´t do it.
So this time was going to be different.

I usually take most of my story ideas with me. This time I only took two with me and the book I would have to reference for one of them. I was gonna get it done.
That was Friday´s plan.

Cut to Sunday at 5 PM and I haven´t made any strides that are worth reporting about. I know pretty much 75% of how I want the main story I was supposed to bust out this weekend should go; I´ve just haven´t committed it to eternity. The ideas still exists only in my head and my fragmented chicken scratch. What happened?

I can blame this cute dog falling asleep in my lap but I won´t because that´s dumb. It´s harder to type but I´m still able to post with her in my lap right now so that´s a copout. I could blame being unfocused and tired and horny but only the last one is true. (SO TRUE) But, again, only excuses. Drinking beer maybe? Nope. Never stopped me before.

This is on me. My writing mojo is out of whack and has been for awhile. So I´m going back for what worked for me in the past- write a bit about the non-fiction of my current life and then move into my fantastical take on fiction when that gets me angry/sad/fired up enough. Hoping that works out. We´ll soon see in a few days won´t we.

BTW, there is no images on this post right now; I´m using someone else´s laptop and I´m not gonna monkey around with that stuff right now, especially since everything is en Espanol, even the keyboard to an extent. So, if you DO see images, it means I revisited this page at home, looked it over and said "Ehh. This is frakkin´true enough for me and the three folks who read this. It just needs a beer can or two to be perfect."