Cupcake: Great Big End

Going with my theme for the next little while, I'm sharing with you one of the greatest REM covers ever by one of the (IMHO) greatest Canadian bands ever. Heck, "great" is part of their band name.

This is Great Big Sea performing "End of the World (as we know it)."

And this is the tonal version I fell in love with:

Is it just me, or is this actually faster than the REM version? And why do I get the feeling that Great Big Sea is going joyfully into whatever comes next?

Yeah, I love this song and I love this band.

I'll get back to you with final thoughts Monday next week. (It's relevant, I promise.)
(Previously on "This Devious Mind"...)

Going back to an Old Read: Wyrm

Alright, so imagine you’re back in 1999. That’s how long ago it was I last read this book. But, this book was one of the most formative to my college self. While I was a table-top gamer, I had only been introduced to MMOGs and in particular MMORPGs and all the rest through AOL text chats. There, it wasn’t so much a formal game as a bunch of folks - like me - who had fun creating characters around each of our log in names. You described your characters in text - a red-haired half-elf with decidedly human ::clears her throat:: attributes, a silver dragon man, a green skinned orc. You described what you were doing. You interacted verbally with other people. You learned to type like the wind or get left behind.

Ahh, the good old days. Back then, things like Everquest and World of Warcraft were only beginning to become the behemoths they would prove to be.

It was also when the “Y2K bug” concerns were coming to a fever pitch. Computers were out to get us. They would start a nuclear war or crash and leave our economy burned all because of some lazy 70s programming. (Gee, this sounds familiar, doesn’t it?) Or that mysteriously, the Julian Calendar turning the 2 Millenial mark would bring about the end of the world. (The end of a calendar bringing some unknown end of the world... still sounding familiar....).

So, it’s with current events at heart, I decided to dive back into the world of Wyrm (not to be confused with the World of Warcraft, although I believe they might be mentioned in homage).

This book I would still recommend, although it’s hard for me to do it justice by describing it. As basic as I can make it though, the premise is that there’s a virus infecting systems and our hero has to save the world by entering the computer realm.

You’ve heard this story before? Well, not like this.

Sure, it REEKS of the 1990s, but it’s AWESOME. I mean Schrodinger’s Cat is personified (?!), there’s a VR chair, and some SWEET 1990s era hackers.

Go. Read it. And enjoy.

And enjoy a tankard of Dwarven ale or a pint of Elven mead while you’re doing it, would you?

Cupcake of the Week: Bruno Mars & THE LITTLE MERMAID

If, like me, you were a kid in the 80s and 90s then you'll have heard this song many times. You may have sung this song into your hair brush. I did. While playing dress up and dancing around. Pretty much exactly like this gif. My family had Sebastian's reaction-- "Oh, Holy Hannah in a hoop skirt-- there she goes again!"

Anyway, when I heard this the other day I couldn't stop smiling. Happy Wednesday!

Sometimes I'd Rather Watch Kittehs Doing Cute Things Online...Than Anything Else.

I don't know what it is about cute, adorable kitties...but they are fluffy little productivity vampires. Invite one in, and they all come trooping over my digital threshold--and before I know it, it's six o'clock and I have done nothing productive for the last hour. I sometimes have to turn on Freedom  (I would get nothing done without Freedom) just to escape them.

But who would want to escape them? Look. Just LOOK. Awww!!!

What I'm reading: Book ADD Edition

Ok first, first I need to share this with you. OMG! I am still laughing. I'm laughing so hard there will be typos. Oh, Jon Snow. Oh, CW. Oh, why has no one done this before? And where is my copy of A Feast for Crows? I seriously need to get back to Westeros. Pronto!



Next, as this title implies I'm a bit scattered with my reading lately. This is because at the moment I am working my way through a LOT of books for work. Books that won't be published until next year. Books that are so bloody fantastic it is impossible not to list them all right now. In this blog post. I won't. You see, I always feel a bit torn about writing about these books so far in advance. On one hand, I'm a passionate reader, if I love what I'm reading (and I do, I really really do!) I cannot wait to share. On the other . . . it seems almost cruel to tell you what I'm reading when it might not come out for another year or two.

So, with that in mind, I'm going to be taking a bit of a cop out this week. I'm not going to tell you what I'm reading. Instead I'm going to tell you what I should be reading. I should be reading A Feast for Crows. I promised the lovely Jenny that I would read both this and A Dance With Dragons this year. It was one of those New Year's Resolutions. Wine was involved.

I've kind of failed on that front. I'm a big fan of A Song of Ice and Fire, I got to interview George RR Martin for work earlier this year (I know, I know, ignore my name dropping, its so tacky! I am ashamed. But it happened. It was awesome. My inner fan girl was like-- AHAHAHA, but my outer professional was all like: So, can you tell us about the inspiration behind . . ..)

I loved A Storm of Swords so much. I read it last year. I read the first three books in the Song of Ice and Fire back to back in a breathless rush. I couldn't stop myself. And then I got to the end of the third book. I'm not going to spoil this for anyone. But stuff happens. Stuff happens that made my husband look at me (there might have been tears) and declare I take a little break from Westeros.

And I have. But, I'm missing Westeros like crazy. I miss Westeros like penguins miss being known for being assholes, and not tap dancing freaks. I seriously love penguins.

So, what I should be reading is A Feast for Crows. And maybe, this Christmas, I'll put on my big girl reading glasses (oh yeah, I now need reading glasses) and return to Westeros. Because people, guess what: Winter is Here!

Now Leaving the Friend Zone...

I love the Vlog Brothers. Really, I got introduced to them through Genn. (Thanks, Genn!). They are funny, nerdy, kiind of adorable, and they talk about all kinds of things, from economics to life to dating.  Specifically:

When I was in college, I clawed my way out of the Friend Zone, bloody-cuticled and wounded, and into a relationship with that erstwhile "friend." It went great for a long while. (Until it didn't. Which tends to be how these things go.) So I know it can be done.

However. I will say that now, when I have someone else in that zone...I've never changed my mind about that person. They are in the Friend Zone for a reason. It's not a reason I would ever tell them, so I say things like they mention in the video: "I wish I could find someone just like you!" and that old chestnut, "I don't want to ruin our friendship with sex!"

Knowing what I know now, I wouldn't try to get out of the Friend Zone again (even though I've done it before). No. I am in the Friend Zone for a reason. Not a reason my "friend" would ever tell me--and I shouldn't try to make them. But a legitimate reason. Sticking around someone who doesn't like you is waaaay harder than finding someone who appreciates you for who you are--and has no problem "ruining" your friendship by making it a romance. The best significant others, after all, are both friends and lovers--and neither side of that equation is negotiable.

Scared Snotless

So, this is making the rounds right now:

http://www.hlntv.com/article/2012/11/28/ghost-elevator-prank-brazil-tv-show?hpt=hp_t3

I’d like to say I have something serious to say about this involving schadenfreude, but honestly I don’t know what to say. It kinda involves two of my wet-my-self level fears: a malfunctioning elevator and creepy “ghost” children.  

I don’t know about you, but the only chuckles I get from this are nervous titters, even knowing it’s a prank. More like heart pounding and whimpering in a corner.



I watched this waiting for someone to keel over from a heart attack. There are a couple of responses that were pretty close to what I’d have. But as my SO brought up: Why didn’t any one try to strike out? It’s very clear that there is a lot of fight-or-flight happening here, and since no one can get away (being that they’re locked in the elevator), it would seem that it was only a matter of time before someone lashes out instead of curling themselves in a small ball and screaming (or wetting themselves). He reminded me of the last time we went to a fun house/ haunted house and I ended up going toe-to-toe with the guy that jumped out at me wearing a werewolf mask.



I’ve given it some thought. Real ghosts (whether you believe in them or not) versus pranks, if you believe that what you’re seeing is … well... incorporeal, perhaps the fight or flight takes that into account. In a fun house or a haunted house where you’re paying to go in and get scared, you know you’re not really in any danger. You know that there are people behind the masks and the gore paint. You can “fight” because there’s someone to fight. But with something your mind has convinced you is isn’t solid or there or possible, what’s the point in lashing out. You can’t touch it, you can only get away. Add to that the fact that your elevator has just seemingly gone on the blink.... I think you get the picture.

Of course, this has never stopped me before from trying to pull something like this over on someone else. I love a good ghost story and I love scaring others with a properly told tale and a well timed sound or sight gag. It is more fun when you’re in on the scare than when you’re the one being scared.



What do you think?