The War for Elderly Folks

Hey there folks. Looks like I just about forgot to post again. I know I'm supposed to be posting stuff on the weekends. Heck, I've been doing it nearly every single weekend since this year began. So why am I starting to forget to post stuff now? Anyways, here's a little catcher-upper on one of the latest books I've finished, John Scalzi's Old Man's War.

A Sjambak, a Maneuver, and a Couple of Drones

Oops. Almost forgot that it was Friday, and that would mean that you guys wouldn't be getting your weekly dosage of new (well, maybe not quite brand spanking new) stories from around the web. And this week, I have a good handful for you. Here's the line-up: "The Dying Drones" by Christian A. Larsen, "The Johnson Maneuver" by Ian Douglas, and "Sjambak" by Jack Vance. So go and grab a freshly popped bag of popcorn and a tasty beverage of your choosing. It's time to sit back and enjoy the stories.

A Long Lasting War

Ah man, it looks like I just missed the deadline for this post by just a few short moments. That's ok. I'm still getting it in, so I feel good. Anyways, less of me rambling on... for more of me rambling on? Haha, well, whatever. Enjoy!

Earlier this week, I finished reading Joe Haldeman's The Forever War. And like I said last week, it's pretty good. The novel starts off more or less like the science fiction edition of a dissertation on the Vietnam War. In fact, Haldeman is a veteran of that war and drew extensively from many of his experiences while serving in the military. The second half of the novel deals more or less with the disconnect that the main character, William Mandella, felt towards home, or more pointedly, the changing society. Many veterans may have felt, and may still feel, how Mandella does in the book when they initially returned home from a long stint on the battlegrounds.

The Last "Last Airbender" Post

Are these getting boring to the rest of you? I think this will be the last Avatar: The Last Airbender post that I make. This time, I want to focus on the Avatar, Aang. He grew up with the air nomads, but like the beginning of each episode says, he got frozen in ice and his people were killed. Aang is the last of his kind. When Sokka and Katara find him, he's just an average pre-teen, enjoying the moment and having fun.

One of the best aspects of the entire show is watching Aang grow from that impulsive child into a young adult who carries the weight of the world. He doesn't do it overnight, and there are even some digressions here and there. However, with the help of his friends, he is able to move past that, and ends up reuniting the world and brings it to peace.

One Last Thing
Don't know if you know about this yet, but there is now a new avatar in town. Her name is Korra and her story has just started airing on Nickelodeon. There's a new episode on tonight. I watched a couple of these over at Nick's website, and if you'd like to catch up, you can probably do the same. I don't know if I like Korra as much as I did Aang, but maybe over time she'll start to grow on me. We'll only be able to tell with time.

Again? Really?

Last night as I was publishing the Friday stories, I noticed that I forgot to post my typical Saturday spiel last week. Sorry to disappoint you. To make up for that, I'll try to leave a couple of tidbits on here throughout the day today. This one does not count. Keep your eyes open, and maybe you'll get lucky.

Rust, Gold, and a Door to Infinity

Well, hello to all of you joining me today! It's another Friday and that means it's short story time. This week I revisited some places that I haven't visited for a while and even started jumping into some anthologies that I've been meaning to get around to. From the short story deliverers to your inbox, Daily Science Fiction, you have a link to "Rust" by Steven Saus. Matthew Sturges' "Cleansed and Set in Gold" is a superhero tale from the anthology Masked, which is edited by Lou Anders. Last, but not least, our blast from the past is Edmond Hamilton's "The Door into Infinity." These stories are a little bit longer than usual, but they are just as good, if not better than the stories I have dropped off before. So, if you find that you have a little bit of time this weekend, see if you can give a couple of them a try.

A Nomad, a Not-So-Quite Perfect Score, and a Race of Warriors

Would you look at that? Its only been a few hours, and I'm already back. Anyways, enough of the shenanigans. Let's get straight down to it. I have three stories for you this week, much like I have been doing in the previous few months. By now you should know how I like to roll. Two newer stories and one as a blast from the past. "Nomad" by Karin Lowachee and "Ten with a Flag" by Joseph Paul Haines are this week's recent stories, and Robert Sheckley's "Warrior Race" comes to us from just over half a century ago. So, with no further ado, please read on and learn more about these stories.

Starting to Lose Track

It looks like I'm starting to lose track of when I should be posting up here. I totally forgot about last Saturday, and then I spaced out on posting those stories for last night? I think I will have to do something really big to make up for this. I've been playing around with some ideas for a couple of short stories. Maybe in the next couple of weeks, I'll post one or two of them for all to see, you know, along with the other stuff that i've been trying to do.

Scattering Tests and Lotteries

Hey, it's Friday again! And i've got a couple of stories for you. So instead of going on and on like I normally do, I think I'll just let you jump right in.

The Last Avatar: Katara and Sokka

Continuing with the Avatar: The Last Airbender thing that I have going on, this week I will focus on the two members in Aang's gang who hail from the Water Tribe. Those two are the siblings Katara and Sokka.

Katara is one of the only two surviving water-benders from the South Pole, the other being the puppet master who resides in the Fire Nation. She's portrayed as a youth who is more mature than her age lets on. And with her motherly attributes, Katara often holds the group together when things get tough. The only problem that I have with her is that she was a very static character. Her personality remained more or less the same as the series went on. However, I guess there wasn't much of another direction in which she could have gone.

Sokka, on the other hand, I view more as a dynamic character. Yes, he's often portrayed as the series' comic relief, but he managed to grow up from imagining himself as being a fierce warrior in the beginning of the series into a great leader in the ultimate time of crisis. Sokka even helped to lay down plans for the invasion of the Fire Nation. And though not a water-bender, he has to rely on more conventional ways of defending himself, which he often does with his boomerang and some kind of sword, be it a machete or an awesome space sword.

Paws, Beauty, and a Tomb

Well, I'm trying to make up for what I missed out on last week. Here are another three stories. Instead of introducing them, I think I'll just let you jump right into them.

My Bad

It would seem that I let myself become a little absent-minded last week and completely forgot to publish any posts Friday or Saturday. I plan on making that up this week with the two that I should have left last week plus the two for this week. So, for the next four days, starting tonight, look for posts from me. I need someone besides myself to hold me accountable.

The Last Airbender: Prince Zuko

Last week I said that I would talk more about Avatar: The Last Airbender, and I intend to stand by my word. I did get around to finishing off the series earlier this week, so now I have some words to offer up about it. However, instead of laying everything out right now, perhaps I will give one character at a time. I have a busy schedule, and this way I have something to write up each week without having to read/watch so much.

Prince Zuko, the son of the Fire Lord, is probably my favorite character. The inner conflict that he wrestles with intrigues me. In the beginning of the series, he is so caught up with regaining his honor and impressing his father that he doesn't even see the destruction and mayhem that he causes. However, by the middle of the second season, he starts to see that he is making a mess, and by the beginning of the third begins to hold himself accountable and prepares himself to clean up after himself. In my book, Prince Zuko is the real hero for the complete turnaround he makes. I didn't see it as much in any of the other characters than I did in him.

Eyes, Takes, and Scientists

Hey all! I know, it's not Friday today, but I missed posting this yesterday. I still want to keep the goal of posting twice a week, but now I'm wrestling with this new schedule and I'm losing track of which day is which. I plan on getting on top of that soon and figuring out ways of getting around my schedule and finding the little areas in there where I have some free/downtime and getting in more reading and writing. Everything is just a little hectic now, but I know I will find a way.

Now for this week's stories. The first story, Jonas David's "Those Eyes," comes to us from Ray Gun Revival. The other more recent story is Alex Shvartsman's "The Take" from Daily Science Fiction. The classic story comes to us from the beginning of the Great Depression. It's Desmond Winter Hall's "A Scientist Rises." They are all fun stories and pretty quick reads. I don't think that there is any reason why you shouldn't read any of these.

Avatar: The Last Airbender (Pt. 1)

Hey all. Looks like I might have to start posting this one earlier in the day. I don't exactly have too much time after getting home to write this up and post it to the blog.

Anyways, I've been watching quite a bit of Avatar: The Last Airbender lately. This is my second time going through the entire show, and third time for many of the episodes. I'm so glad that my nerdy friends got me into this back in college. Thank you, nerdy friends! I'm sure you all know who you are.

Today I just finished the first season and started watching the second season. By next week, I'm planning on finishing it up with the entire show. However, if I will in fact stick with that plan has yet to be determined.

I don't know why, but my favorite character in Avatar is not any of the protagonists. No, my favorite has got to be Prince Zuko, son of the Fire Lord. In the beginning, he sort of has this defiant personality, but as the show progresses, we, the viewers, begin to see what has happened to him that he acts in that manner. And also, near the middle of season one and onwards into season two and definitely in season three, we start to see a new Zuko. One who is not bent on capturing the Avatar, but rather on restoring balance to the world.

Actually, since I will be finishing up with the show next week, why not come back here and check out what I have to say about it then?