Tattered n Weathered

Long Live the Smoking Gun... pt. 2

2009-03-27T22:09:00.000-07:00

Long Live the Smoking Gun returned to their favorite West Coast stop, Monterey on March 21st. So, I got another chance to spend some quality time with the men of the aforementioned ensemble, Rob, Mike, Paul, and Kyle. Here are some shots commemorating the shenanigans of that day (w/ appearances from one of my Marine friends).

Marine friend: So, you wanna learn how to kill someone with your bare hands? Well, I'm gonna teach you.

Mike: Oh, stop. I kill with my good looks.

Marine friend: No, really. Let's do this.

Mike: Uh, c'mon guys, this really isn't a good idea.

Mike: *Gasp. No fair, I thought we were gonna tickle-fight.

Mike: Ok, the whole wrestling on the ground on broken glass is one thing. But, I am NOT punching that guy in the face, even if you are holding him down.

(To see the actual punch, visit Rob's Myspace or Facebook.)

(And in Mike's defense, he really did hold his own, and he took it like a champ... In fact, he was really the instigator in all of this.)

Rob chuckling as Mike gets beat up.

While on tour, Rob is rarely far from his phone and/or a bar.

Us: Dude, Rob, don't do that there... Seriously man, someone's coming... Rob, c'mon... Oh, Rob...

Rob: Guys, it's a sewer. No one is gonna care.

Check out Long Live the Smoking Gun here. Or go see them if you get a chance. But, don't eat their tacos! or they get yelled at.

To see the pictures from this post, click here.

The Year of the Ox

2009-02-08T12:35:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

26 January 2009 marked the beginning of the Chinese New Year.

This year is the year of the ox. I went with 2 buddies of mine to San

Francisco to celebrate in Chinatown and to see the Chinese New Year

Parade. Here are some photos from the night:

(You can see larger versions of all my images at http://www.flickr.com/photos/tatterednweathered/sets/)

college

2009-02-04T15:03:00.000-08:00

bad times to sign up for college classes:

1. while in Iraq

2. while attending the toughest language institute in the country

3. right after high school

4. while under the influence of anything that impairs judgement, i.e. perscription painkillers

5. while encased in carbonate and being transported at the speed of light aboard Slave 1

guess which one i haven't done.

Movies, 2009

2009-02-01T10:53:00.000-08:00

If 2008 was a big year for movies, 2009 is shaping up to be even bigger.

Here are some movies slated for release this year in three categories:

1. Movies which the idea of them makes me want to vomit.

2. Movies I will have to do a coin flip to decide whether or not to see them. They

will probably be entertaining, but that's about it.

3. Movies I'm stoked about.

Vomit:

Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li

Race to Witch Mountain - Starring Dwayne Johnson.

12 Rounds Starring John Cena.

Hannah Montana: The Movie

Crank 2: High Voltage

Hurricane Season - I'm tired of sports movies. They are so unoriginal, and the fact

that this one is based around Hurricane Katrina just makes it worse.

Final Destination: Death Trap - C'mon!!!! Really????

2012

And many more...

Coin Flip:

I'm gonna put the entire month of May in this section. There

are some great looking movies coming out, but again, they will

mostly be entertaining Hollywood Blockbusters, with little substance.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine (01 May)
Star Trek (08 May) - I am not a Star Trek fan, but the trailer

looks spectacular, and Simon Pegg as Scotty? Awesome. I'm also

a fan of Eric Bana, who plays the villain.

Angels & Demons (15 May) - This is Author Dan Brown's best book by far. If you

haven't read any of them, start here.

Terminator Salvation (22 May) - I must say, at first I was sceptical about another

Terminator movie, especially spearheaded by director McG (Director of the Charlie's

Angels movies and multiple MTV-Caliber music videos). But

after finding out Christian Bale would be playing John Connor, James

Cameron (Director of the first two Terminator movies) would be

involved, and seeing shots from the set, I think this will be the

darkest, most brutal, and (dare I say?) best Terminator yet.

Up (29 May) - This may be the one exception for May that could

easily go in my Stoked category. After 2008's Wall-E, Disney/Pixar

show no signs of slowing down, as they continue to create beautiful

animated flicks with heart touching stories. Up

will be no exception... Check out the trailer.

Land of the Lost (05 Jun) - Starring Will Ferrell

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (May 2010) - Starring Jake Gyllenhaal. I am

most interested in seeing how this movies does because it could

be an indicator for future video game-based movies. And I

am still holding out for a Halo movie directed by Peter Jackson.

Video game movies have had a dismal start thanks to the horrific efforts of

Uwe Boll, director of such hits as Bloodrayne, Bloodrayne II: Deliverance,

House of the Dead, Far Cry, and In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale.

Prince of Persia will be directed by Mike Newell, who did

Donnie Brasco, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, and

Love in the Time of Cholera... a much more note-worthy resume.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (29 Jun) - Need I say anything?

Bruno (10 Jul) - Sacha Baron Cohen brings his Ali G Show Character to the Big Screen.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (17 Jul)

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (07 Aug)

Shutter Island (02 Oct) - Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio team up again in this 1950's Mystery/Drama

about a U.S. Marshall searching for a murderess escaped from an insane asylum.

Stoked:

Che - Benicio Del Toro plays the legendary revolutionary Ernesto Che Guevara

in the film directed by Stephen Soderbergh. It had a limited release in 2008 as

a 4+ hour epic, and will release in 2009 in two installments: Part One and Part Two.

The Soloist (13 Mar) - Starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Foxx

Tokyo Sonata (13 Mar)

State of Play (17 Apr) - This could be great or it could just be another

Hollywood

political thriller. I'm hoping for the former. It stars Russell Crowe, Rachel McAdams,

and Ben Affleck. It is based on a BBC series, and the trailer looks promising.

Public Enemies (01 Jul) - A 1930's gangster movie starring Johnny Depp,

Christian Bale, and Emilie de Ravin (one of my favorite actresses on Lost), and directed

by Michael Mann, being released just before 4th of July... This is

the recipe for a HUGE summer blockbuster, and it looks sweet.

The Lovely Bones (11 Dec) - Peter Jackson returns to the Director's seat with

this movie which has been in the works for quite some time. It is based

on a hugely popular novel by Alice Seabold of the same title. It stars Rachel

Weisz and Mark Wahlberg, who has some respect to regain after being in two of

2008's worst movies, The Happening and Max Payne. But, Jackson hasn't

failed us yet, and although this movie is a different pace for him, it will no doubt

be well-done.

Nottingham (probably early 2010, actually) - One of my favorite Director/Actor teams,

Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe (If you recall, the duo did Gladiator,

A Good Year, American Gangster, and Body of Lies together. In

my book they are just above Tim Burton and Johnny Depp for director/actor duos)

will put a new face to the Robin Hood legend. Originally casting Crowe as

the Sheriff of Nottingham and a younger unknown actor as Robin,

they have since

decided to have Crowe play both roles, Nottingham and Robin.

This is an interesting move, that I am somewhat tepid about,

but will keep a close eye on.

Sherlock Holmes (13 Nov) - Robert Downey Jr. plays the detective with Jude Law as his side-kick, Watson.

The Wolf Man (06 Nov) - Director Joe Johnston (Director, Hidalgo

and October Sky; Visual Effects, Star Wars IV, V, VI, and Raiders

of the Lost Ark) recreates the legend of the Wolf Man, played by

Benicio Del Toro. This looks vicious.

Now for my Top 4 most-anticipated films of 2009:

4. 9 (09/09/09) - I'll let the trailer speak for itself:

Youtube

Apple Trailers

3. The Road (TBD, 2009) - I read a good amount, and this is by far one of the best books I've read in a long time (Thanks Matt, for the suggestion). The Author, Cormac McCarthy also wrote the book that last year's No Country for Old Men was based on (by the same title). This novel is so well-written with such evocative imagery, I couldn't do it justice trying to describe it. Check the book out. The movie has a great cast, including Viggo Mortensen, Charlize Theron, and Guy Pearce, and from the director of The Proposition.

2. Inglourious Basterds (21 Aug) - Considering the plot of this one, and who is involved, it will be bloody, it will be vulgar, and it will be brutal. Quentin Tarantino directs this story set in WWII. Says an IMDB synopsis:

"In Nazi-occupied France during World War II, a group of Jewish-American soldiers known as "The Basterds" are chosen specifically to spread fear throughout the Third Reich by scalping and brutally killing Nazis."

Sick. Starring Brad Pitt, Eli Roth, and Diane Kruger.

1. Watchmen (06 Mar) - I am not a big comic book nerd, but I read the Watchmen graphic novel, and I highly recommend it. It is a usual comic book story in a sense, but it has more mature themes. Morality, politics, sex, and a relevant (at the time of publication) world setting litter the pages of beautiful, intense, dark art and spectacular story-telling. Images from the trailer appear to be the book itself, come to life. The movie will be incredibly faithful to the novel, which is necessary considering the large fan base it has built up over the years (It was first published as various issues in 1986 and 1987, then later compiled into its current volume). Watchmen is the first comic book/super hero movie to recieve an R-Rating, another indicator of the mature and dark elements. A solid cast, a great director (Zack Snyder, 300), and a wonderful story make this my most anticipated movie of the year. Check out the graphic novel, it is unlike any other comic out there.

Long Live the Good Times...

2009-01-31T15:34:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, my bro Rob and his band Long Live the Smoking Gun came out to California, and made a stop here in Monterey. It was a huge pleasure to see them perform, and to hang out with them afterward (Until about 3:30AM, and I had to get up for work at 6). Here are some shots from the night, they are, admittedly, not very good pictures... I was very- uh, tired. Yeah, we'll go with that. I was tired.

Rob

Highlight of the night: Mike and Emily singing Karaoke at The Brit

A proper farewell

___________________________________________________

For New Year's Eve I went to Tucson to visit my friends:

Oh, Guitar Hero

Matt busting out the Trader Joe's Vintage

No New Year's celebration is complete without fire. At one point this was a soccer ball,

and at one point Matt's yard had weeds...

and the Legend begins...

2009-01-31T11:16:00.000-08:00

Once upon a time (about 3 years ago), I bought this sweet camera (it's a piece of crap 35mm), and started taking pictures. I was in Texas, and walking/driving around taking shots soon became one of my favorite things to do. I didn't take any classes, and thus began the experimentation...

xkcd

2009-01-30T07:06:00.000-08:00

To kick off my foray back into the world of blogs, here is a blogging related comic from the genius mind behind the web comic xkcd. (He really is a genius, and some of the comics are very nerdy/scientific, but incredibly hilarious.)

(If you can't make it any bigger, see it here.)

(Also, notice this is "Secretary: Part 4". Check out the rest of the story.)

I'm a student, but I spend many a class hour reading the comics on this website, all the while trying to stifle my laughs.

...or weathered garb, tattered sentiments

2009-01-29T19:32:00.000-08:00

So I've decided to start up this blog business, again. This will be primarily a place for me to post pictures, as well as some thoughts on music, movies, politics, books, etc. I welcome hearing others' opinions and criticisms, differing or similar, positive or negative...