As I gear up to write my trashy vampire novel, I run into the problem of liking vampire legendry too much. All of vampires' storied powers and weaknesses appeal to me, which is trouble because many of those powers and weaknesses contradict one another. In addition, a vampire loaded down with every single pro and con in the book would be a boring ( Read more... )

I can't walk ten blocks in the city anymore without seeing a vampire.

They're everywhere. They're staring at you from book covers, movie posters, T-shirts. When I ride the subway, any crowded car is gonna have at least one young woman reading a vampire novel. They're ubiquitous, classy, and modern. They are the default and the ideal. They are, in ( Read more... )

We all know that story about Zhuāngzǐ's dream of being a butterfly, and his waking up and not knowing whether he was a man who dreamt of being a butterfly or a butterfly dreaming he was a man. I think mental illness feels a lot like that sometimes. During the periods in my life when I have been comparatively stable, the times when I've felt ( Read more... )

Do you like playing video games, but hate homophobia? Have your futile attempts to stop fellow and enemy gamers alike from spouting incessant streams of homophobia exhausted and discouraged you? Do you want to do something-anything-to stand for what you know is right without rage quitting your favorite games ( Read more... )

I've never been really excited about Black Lightning. His powers are boring as hell: "make lightning" and "be very athletic." More importantly, my first exposure to Black Lightning was in his disastrously dressed clone incarnation, Black Vulcan of the Super Friends. If you're not familiar with Seanbaby's take on the Super Friends, stop reading my ( Read more... )

Q: How do you make friends after college?A: The answer I get from most of my friends is, "it's difficult," which it is, but I would still like to find a solution because I'm going kinda stir crazy here. I don't connect to anyone at work or at my martial arts classes, and most of my friends from high school or college don't talk to me anymore, or ( Read more... )

lula-vampiro, a junior high school-age boy named GLEN, and GLEN'S MOM get in the elevator. GLEN'S MOM is leafing through her mail, which contains a flyer for a Suzuki Method event.

lula-vampiro
You get junk mail from the Suzuki Method?

GLEN'S MOM
Heh, yes, we do ….

lula-vampiroAnd it has words on it? I figured it'd just be a tape you had to listen to ( Read more... )

Poll dead cabaret battle

I'm not talking about music or who is a better person or which pop culture you like better, I'm talking about, if they tried to kill each other, who would survive? Granted, they both are really into pretending to be dead, but still. Post your reasoning in the comments. "I like this artist better" is not reasoning.

Trijicon to remove Bible verses from rifle sights

So this news is all well and good for United States soldiers serving overseas, but I see no promises from Trijicon to patch the ACOG sights I have already unlocked for my rifles, machine guns, and submachine guns in Call of Duty 4 and Modern Warfare 2. We need some accountability here. While I need ( Read more... )

THE BIOSHOCK SLUG IS REAL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34824610/ns/technology_and_science-science/?GT1=43001