Never...more.

How do you make Poe creepier? Just add Walken.

Pixelated Pigskin Prognostications: Week Nine

This morning I conjured the spirits that dwell deep within my Xbox 360 and asked them to send a signal to the material world about a couple of today's college football match-ups. Through the medium of CPU vs. CPU games, here are the images that appeared on my screen...IN BLOOD!



Ohio State 76, New Mexico State 0



Richmond 20, Towson 26

I guess not all omens are bad. But some are frightening. Bwuh-ha-ha!

Happy Halloween!

Crush of the Week: Dahlia Dark

This Halloween week's Crush is spooktacular pin-up model Dahlia Dark (or check her our here). Earlier this month I went through seemingly every pin-up picture posted on the web in order to find one to use for the cover of my Autumn Mix*, when I discovered Dahlia and was immediately smitten.



It's strange to find a woman who is not really my type (the tattoos and general gothiness) and yet so my type (well, everything else) at the same time. Kudos to her!

Hey, why not post a bonus video?



Haunting.

*My job is rough, I tells ya!

My Autumn Mix 2009

The golden leaves are falling from the trees, so it must mean that it's time for another mix.

Unfortunately, not all of the songs on my CD are available to stream, so here are the missing songs (YouTube links where available):

The Jayhawks - "Stick in the Mud"
Jack Ingram - "What Makes You Say"
Gerald Collier - "Dark Days"
Christina Courtin - "Bundah"
Clem Snide - "Close the Door"
Robbie Fulks - "I Like Being Left Alone (Live)"
Tim Easton - "All the Pretty Girls Leave Town"
Glen Hansard - "Hairshirt (Live)"
Garfunkel and Oates - "Me, You and Steve"
Fun. - "The Gambler"
Sean Connery - "In My Life"

Grab my other seasonal mixes here, here, here, here, and here.

Why I love Halloween Part V

"I'm a witch."
"If she was a hooker."
-Jim Gaffigan

It's the return of a Micah World tradition!

Bonus: The 10 Worst Sexy Halloween Costumes

Credit due: Dena for the list link

What Jack-O-Lanterns eat for breakfast*

This weekend I made a large batch of pumpkin pancakes (thanks, Trader Joe!) and I don't think I'll ever be able to go back to the regular kind. I'd better stock up likes it's Y2K all over again.

*The cannibalistic ones, at least.

Pixelated Pigskin Prognostications: Week Eight

Four teams enter these CPU vs. CPU Xbox 360 matches. Two leave victorious, as precursors to their real life counterparts' performances.



Ohio State 58, Minnesota 14



Richmond 13, Massachusetts 17

Are you not entertained?

Crush of the Week: Katie Featherston

This week's Crush is actress Katie Featherston of the sublime creepfest Paranormal Activity. She did a good job portraying a women tormented by an unseen force and when the movie got too tense I just focused on her and that took me to my Happy Place.



After watching the movie, though, I don't think I'd like to share a house with her. She brings too much baggage.

Tastes great on a cracker!

Well, Trader Joe's Pumpkin Butter is now available. And it's awesome.

Quick movie review

Paranormal Activity: Creeped me the eff out! Certain scenes of this movie actually stuck with me for days, but I'm a big wuss when it comes to a certain type of scary flick. In fact, this was kind of a bait and switch, since I went in expecting a certain type of movie and it turned out to be something a bit different (my thought when I realized that: "oh, shit"). It's refreshing to find a horror flick these days that relies not on cheap gore or flashy editing, but atmosphere and a sense of dread to give the audience chills. Not that it's without its flaws - which I'll go into in the comments section, if anyone wishes. I won't detail the plot because it's best if you go into this film fresh. DO NOT watch the trailer, as it gives away one of the best moments.

I would like to also add that what scares me the most about Paranormal Activity is, should this become a mainstream hit, most people will pronounce my name as "MEE-kuh". It's "MY-kuh", dammit!

Pixelated Pigskin Prognostications: Week Seven

Week seven. Xbox 360. CPU vs. CPU games. Yada yada.



Ohio State 62, Purdue 20



Richmond 41, Maine 20

Yada.

Pixelated Pigskin Prognostications: Week Six

It's hard to believe that we're halfway through the regular college football season. My Xbox 360, on the other hand, is self-aware and doesn't wax nostalgic about the faded glories of past college pigskin seasons. It merely picks the week's winners via a series of CPU vs. CPU match ups. This week:



Ohio State 33, Wisconsin 31



Richmond 48, JMU 31

Shortly after predicting the above, my Xbox started making out with the toaster.

I'm a member of the 111,111 Club!

Things are going to start happening to me now. Earlier this week my car hit 111,111 miles. Yes, it's a very exclusive club to belong to. Okay, so it's not as prestigious as, say, the Five-Timers Club (oh, the smoking jackets!), but it's at least a step up from the Subway Sub Club.

Quick movie reviews: zombies, Nazis, vampires and aliens! Oh, my!

Zombieland: I had a blast with this one. It's funny and Woody Harrelson is a trip. It's refreshing to get a zombie flick that goes balls-out with the laughs and kills and isn't weighted down with heavy-handed social commentary (I'm looking at you, late period Romero). Plus, it has one of the best opening credit sequences in recent memory, next to Watchmen*. And I won't spill the beans about the Big Cameo like Letterman did (Arrrrrgh! RAGE!), but that alone is worth the price of admission.

Inglorious Basterds: Loved it! Sure, it could use some trimming, but what Tarantino film can't (don't get me started on Death Proof)? I've got to give him credit: the dude even managed to somehow work his creepy foot fetish into a WWII flick. Honestly, from the marketing I expected this to focus on each individual Basterd and their contributions to the plan, but it didn't. And that's okay. There are two tremendously tense (and long) scenes that are just purely great filmmaking. If there's any justice, Christoph Waltz, portrayal of a charming yet menacing Nazi should win him an Oscar.

Let the Right One In: This Swedish vampire movie isn't particularly scary, but it is beautifully shot and acted. I'd classify the film as more of a coming of age tale with some unnerving scenes thrown in. This is a great one to watch while the temperatures outside drop.

Plan 9 From Outer Space (Rifftrax version): Somehow I managed to live my entire life without seeing The Best Bad Movie Ever until this past August. Boy, it really is a terrible movie - and perfect fodder for the former MSTies at Rifftrax to mine for snarky comedy. I saw this when they riffed on the movie in front of a live audience back in August and there'll be an encore presentation beamed into theaters tomorrow. Check it out. It's hilarious.

*Though not as brilliant as the opening of the Dawn of the Dead remake. What is it with zombie flicks are great credit sequences?

Pixelated Pigskin Prognostications: Week Five

Richmond has a bye week, so my mystical Xbox 360 is using its full resources on only one CPU vs. CPU match.



Ohio State 24, Indiana 21

That is all.

My Autumn of Britcoms: I'm such an easily-distracted bell end

Hey, remember that grandiose plan I concocted earlier to watch a whole slew of Britcoms over the summer? Yeah, it didn't really happen. I mean, I did watch the entire runs of a couple of shows ("Spaced", "The Old Guys", "The Inbetweeners"), but never wrote anything up about them here.

But my marathon viewing of the hilarious aforementioned "The Inbetweeners" over Labor Day renewed my interest in the project (thanks, SBN1!).

So I now proclaim this to be My Autumn of Briticoms*. Now, this may be too lofty a goal, since we're in the midst of college football and the fall TV season, but I'll do my best. If I fall short, you can blame the Buckeyes and the overabundance of quality American programming on Thursday and Sunday nights.

*Which will inevitably phase into My Winter of Britcoms.