(no subject)
So I'm reading The Stand by Stephen King. I finally get to read some of his older works that they've never released on audio. I signed up with the library of congress and their recordings for the blind. The narrators are alright. No kidding, they really are. That really doesn't matter in this case. I get to read the complete and uncut version of The Stand and I've been wanting to read that one for years. It may be listening, but I like to think of it as reading. The made for TV movie was a real treat to watch. I remember it airing when I was 10 or so. The guy who played Randall Flagg always creeped me out. No one could have played a better walkin dude than him. If they ever consider making a Dark Tower TV series, I hope they bring him back. I'd love to be able to experience those DT comics Marvel has started cranking out. I'd love to know how the fall of old long tall and ugly's beloved Gilead occured. But me and comics don't realy mix. That's why I substitute films and TV shows based on Marvel or DC's characters and situations. I don't really have alot of time to enjoy that stuff these days but I still do when I'm able. Anyway, The uncut version of The Stand has been a blast. When I read a novel, I usually choose to go for the longest. It's no fun when the story ends, especially when you're enjoying it. So the longer the novel, the longer you have to wait to say good bye to the characters and the story itself. Why do I like S K's work so much? Well, he never looks down his nose at you when he writes. He doesn't use flowery language either. Stuff that sounds like,"As I ventured forth from the establishment, I took note of my thoughts and feelings as they branched off into various fields previously unexplored." Not that people who use flowery language or words tend to look down on others. He's done very well for himself, but he still considers himself to be just another brick in the wall. He also has this way of making his characters... Three D, I guess you could say. I read alot of fiction and in some books, your protagonist and antagonist these days don't seem to have any depth. The people in King's works seem like you could reach through the page and tap them on the shoulder if you wanted to. The scenery is similar. He's big on details and he knows how to describe a scene but doesn't bore you with the descriptions of woods or a dirt road. If I ever decided to write a work of fiction, I'd have a tough time with scenery. I think I could make the characters believable, but asking a blind person to describe a sunset? All my scenes would have more to do with textures and things other than visualization in terms of one's sight. "Why don't you write some work of fiction from the perspective of a blind person," someone once asked me. Maybe. But it seems too predictable. Here's a blind guy writing about a fictional character who's blind. It reminds me of the time when someone told me I should be a blind ref at one of our ball games at college when a bunch of us decided to dress up to psych out the other team. Too predictable and redundant. Here's a blind guy dressed as... a blind ref. Oh, but I guess he could go as the Daredevil if he wanted to. Nope, Matt isn't my favorite Marvel super hero. I'm glad Stan Lee created him and I think he's alright, but I prefer Spiderman or Wolverine over the man without fear. I wonder why Lee thought blind folks would be offended were he to create a character like Matt. It lets others know that just because you have a disability, you can adapt to it and come out even stronger than before you had to face it. I can relate to Spiddy because folks often misjudge him. Same way with the X-men. You don't ever see anyone discriminating against DD because I guess Stan is afraid he'd catch it from the fabled blind activists or whoever they are. You should know by now that I ain't one of them. I'm more laid back and like it that way. People often fear what they don't understand and either ignore it or try to crush that difference. So when I was younger, I found myself relating to the x-men more than Matt. The ages of 12 and 13 were when many kids probably related to Xavior's band of heroes. If you were different in terms of being a bit overweight or your eyes didn't work properly, there was always that anoying little twit there to point it out for you. They were the Senator Kellys back in the day, I guess. I miss that series Fox used to air back in the 90's. those were my comics when it came to X-men. As was the Spiderman series. I never liked the 80's version or the earlier ones. Too cheesy. I guess I liked Spidy so much because there were times when I could relate to him as well. No matter how hard he tried to help people, there was always someone who called him a menace like JJ. I've always liked Jameson though. Peter's boss may have bashed his alter ego frequently, but in the series during the 90's, he only did it because he feared men in masks. His wife was killed by a hit man. We discover this early on in the series and although we find ourselves wanting to bust him in the chops sometimes, we still feel sympathy for him once we learn why he spends so much time trying to discredit the webhead. I don't know if this is why he does the same thing in the comics because I can't partake of them, but maybe something similar happened. Wolverine, now. Every kid I knew liked that guy. Some people will tell you that it is because kids like going against authority, but I think I liked him because he dared to stand up for the little guy. And from what I understand, he's a pretty little guy himself. Remember that Spawn series on HBO years ago? I liked him as well. You have this guy living in this alley with all these defenseless homeless people and he looks like he could eat nails and actually like it. But rather than using his size to intimidate, he drives off all who would harm them. I also liked listening to Spawn's voice. Keith David's voice coming out of Spanw's mouth was unforgetable. It can be menacing whenever he is questioning a mob boss, but it can also be gentle when he's talking to a sweet little old lady about hoping to redeem himself. Guys like that are so very complex. More to them than just fighting the bad guys. Same with Roland from King's Dark Tower series. Roland's voice? I don't imagine an Eastwood drawl. Roland is from a land of knights and kingdoms. No, I doubt he sounds like a British person either. People say I should listen to one of the DT books narrated by Frank Muller. He's the greatest who ever narrated the written word, in my opinion. I've read all the Tower novels over the years narrated by so many. Now that I think about it, I bet Frank had Roland pegged. Eddy Dean too, for that matter. Those of you who stumbled upon this entry are probably shaking your heads and have no idea what I'm rambling on and on about. But for the one or two of you who often have moments of utter geekdom such as the one I'm having might appreciate what you've just read. I also need to join communities on this thing sooner than later. When I have the time, I'll look around and see what I can find. Too busy this week though. I gots lots to study for. On top of that, I want to perfect my skills at frying a burger. Oh yeah, I'm dead serious. I don't do fried stuff that much at all these days but that's one thing I'd like to learn to make. Slow going? Sure. But I'm getting there. The rain outside sounds so soothing. Well, minus the thunder. Will send this before I get kicked off the Net.