An' a Happy St. Patty's t'Ye!

Happy Irish Day, everyone. I've downloaded and displayed a shamrock for you to look at because I love you so. And they said JeremyBear.com didn't care! Pah! Regard!

A very special shout out to the inlaws, who have just enough Irish in them to be dangerous (though something tells me they're passing on the green beer this year). Faith an' Begorrah! Erin go Bragh! Top o' the Mornin'! Red hearts, yellow stars, green clovers, blue diamonds, purple horseshoes!
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As it turns out, little Gilbert didn't have a majorly-torn ligament, he had a minorly-fractured bone in his leg. Still have no idea how it happened, but a surgeon took a gander at the little fellow's x-rays and confirmed it. So, we're doing our best to keep him calm for the next five weeks or so.
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Some very cool and interesting links, courtesy of Neil Gaiman's website:

- First of all, Dr. Stephen Unwin, a risk assessor in Ohio of all places, seems to have calculated the odds of God's existence at approximately 67%, which is good to know. And all my Christian schooling taught me that the evidence isn't quantifiable, it's wholly a faith issue... shows what they know! Turns out God has a slightly better chance of being For Real than George W. has in November, according to the latest polls. My favorite part of the article:

Despite his findings, Dr Unwin maintains that he is personally around 95% certain that God exists.

Which is sort of funny. "Jesus, I admit I'm a sinner and I'm reasonably convinced only you can save me. Please come into 19/20ths of my heart, dear Lord, and the odds are well in your favor that I'll follow you during the vast majority of my remaining days. Probably."

- Second, my wife and I had a disagreement this morning about a quote that may or may not have been attributed to Abraham Lincoln. Thanks to this site (full of interesting quotes from famous people of today and yesteryear), it seems she was right all along. I spent way too much time here today when I should have been working.

- Third, ever been waiting at a cross-walk, impatiently hitting that button? Ever thought, "you know, I wouldn't be suprised if pressing this thing doesn't make a bit of difference. These things are probably on their own timers anyhow." Well, as it happens, your worst fears are confirmed... It seems that many "buttons" that we think are working... really aren't. Yikes.

- Fourth, I was delighted to discover that a whopping 45 episodes of my favorite childhood variety program, The Muppet Show, are available on DVD. Unfortunately, this doesn't include the one episode my mom taped and played ad nauseum for my sisters and me when we were bouncing off the walls (the Anne Murray episode, of course). Still, I may just order these if the price ever goes down... er, dramatically.


All in all, not a bad batch of links. Thanks, Neil!

posted by Jeremy Bear 8:33 PM

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Sunday, March 14, 2004

A movie for Christ's sake!

Just returned home from finally seeing the Passion of the Christ.

Without question, the most powerful moment in the film was when Jesus, bloody, beaten, scourged, utterly ravaged, hanging on the cross... lifts his head, looks at the audience and slowly whispers, "...why would you take your three-year-old to watch this, dumb-ass?"

I immediately stood for an ovation. Because, seriously, that kid never shut up and what kind of brain-dead parents are taking their wee ones to this flick? Did it occur to them that... I don't know... maybe the subject matter is A LITTLE TOO INTENSE FOR A TODDLER?

Okay, some sincerity...

This is a truly astonishing film. I'd heard this described as everything from "a life-changing spiritual experience" to "a two hour ass-kicking", so I went in with moderate expectations, fully expecting it to be better than what the harshest critics were describing, but not quite so stunning as what the biggest fans had experienced.

But, man, this thing is a work of art. Beautiful. Harsh. Towering. Personal. It's the portrait of Jesus I've had in my mind for years and this is the first time I've ever seen an actor really nail it. The story was as fresh and alive and horrifying as I'd ever imagined (and, being raised in a Christian home, I've been given more than my fair share of opportunities to imagine it).

And as for weighing in on the controversy... all I can say is... "eh?" What controversy? Where's the anti-Semitism? The racism? The elitism? I really didn't see any of it. You'd have to be a professional contortionist to bend anything in that film against any people group. Why is this such an uproar? The material's been there for 2000 years in the most printed, most quoted, most studied, most influential piece of literature in recorded human history... why is everyone acting like the content is some big flaming surprise?

Anyhow, it's a great experience and one that I'm glad I had a few weeks to prepare for. I guess I'm saying... er... believe the hype. Or don't. I don't know. See this film.

SEE THIS FILM.
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One Kitty to Rule Them All (pt. 2)

Let's face it, who's still thinking about the Oscars? Hooray for Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, I guess, as if anyone suspected that anything else would come close to being last year's big winner (though, I have to admit, I didn't expect it to SWEEP EVERY FRIGGIN' CATEGORY IN WHICH IT WAS NOMINATED. Jeezow).

Anyhow, big surprise, I love the Oscars, even if it means enduring the syrupy-sweet red carpet walk, sitting through the dumb categories that no one gives a hoot about, and Billy Crystal. What can I say? I love everyone fawning over Jack Nicholson, the "Look Who Died Last Year" montage, the cheeseball impromptu performances, the pomp, the... uhn... the... circumstance?

Uh.

Anyhow, just as Steven Spielberg was about to announce the award for best picture, I heard Carey shriek. "GAHHH! WHAT'S WRONG WITH GILBERT?!"

Fast forward several hours and we're at the 24 hour emergency vet hospital. It's nearly 3 in the morning and the doc finally calls us back to examine our poor kitty's x-rays... yeah. Who knows how he did it, but young Master Gilbert had somehow torn a ligament in his back-left leg. He's been limping ever since.

Doc suggested we keep him apart from Calliope, as they do tend to get rambunctious and the problem could be aggravated if he runs around and plays and jumps too much. So, he was locked in the office for several days and... yeah, okay, I'll say it... the guy gets very desperate and lonely when he's alone at night, so... (am I really going to admit this? Hhh...) Carey and I inflated the air mattress and took turns sleeping in the office for the better part of the week.

I know. Look, Dad, I know. No, seriously, I KNOW.

He's doing better and the doc says he'll likely avoid surgery with the anti-inflammatory meds we've had him on. Carey is taking him for a checkup tomorrow. Good luck, Gilb.
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I spent all day Friday doing layouts for yet another Playstation 2 game. There's a good chance that I won't get to illustrate this one (they may pass my thumbnails onto a 3-D artist for the actual cover artwork, which would be kind of a bummer), but I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I had such a blast with Future Tactics (due out in 2.5 weeks), I'd love to do it again.

In the meantime, another Playstation game is going to hit the stands in a few weeks called "StrikeForce Bowling". I didn't do the cover artwork (that was handled by my terribly talented buddy Chad Meshek), but I did do the logo. So, you know. That's something.
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And the Spanish Inquisition obsession continues. I'm mowing through material on this like a man possessed. What's happened to me? I never used to care about history, particularly European history. I can't get enough!

Any leads? Any books? Any recommendations? ANYTHING ON THE SPANISH INQUISITION, I want it. Tell me. Please. I'm really into this stuff.

posted by Jeremy Bear 8:04 PM

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