Get Your Exercise The Geeky Way Part 2
This time, instead of focusing on a single method, I rounded up a variety of workout tools, apps, accesories, and more to add nerdy flair to your fitness routine.
1. The Imperial All Star shirt is one of many great workout tops by Geeked Out Fitness.
2. Vitality Potion Water Bottle by Geeked Out Fitness.
3. Zombies, Run! app. Available for both iPhone and Android, this clever app is essentially a game you play by being active. Your goal is to collect supplies needed to survive the zombie apocalypse.
4. If you get your exercise on treadmills or stationary bikes, you’ll love these World of Warcraft treadmill videos. You’ll go on a tour of Azeroth without ever leaving home. Bonus: recently the uploader added a Wildstar version.
5. This Captain America Duffel Bag is perfect for a small gym bag.
6. Geek-themed workout videos are a must-have for any geek’s fitness routine. I’m partial to this X-Men HIIT workout, but the uploader has about twenty other themed videos including Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, Minecraft, and many more.
7. If you’re not quite fit enough for a challenging HIIT workout like in the previous video series, this Zombie Step Aerobics workout is fun, funny, and good for a beginner.
8. This Harry Potter circuit training workout from Pinterest is kind of like a drinking game, only with exercise instead of booze (okay, I know that sounds a tad disappointing, but bear with me guys). What I love best about this is you can take this basic principle and apply it to any movie or TV show to add some exercise when you park in front of a screen. It’s also a really good way to get kids interested in fitness.
9. I love this Run Like Ron Weasley shirt from Stride Fitness Apparel, another great shop with a variety of geeky workout apparel.
And if you haven’t read my post about walking from Bag End to Mordor, be sure to check it out.
LARPs: The Series
Live Action Roleplay. Arguably one of the geekiest hobbies, even by the standards of geeks. This hilarious series by Geek & Sundry chronicles a band of LARPers and their adventures, all done with amazing production values. The audience gets to know them both in and out of their game world.
The humor manages the fine balance between poking fun at some of the sillier aspects of LARP without ever looking down on the hobby, or more importantly, the people who enjoy LARP.
Terminology is handled well throughout the series; various terms are explained quickly without detracting from the flow of the episodes, so people unfamiliar with roleplaying jargon can get up to speed without bogging down the story for viewers who are better acquainted with the source material.
The series is really held together by the knockout performance of Jon Verall as the GM. Like the Game Master of any good RP group, he really sets the mood, and in the show he’s also the straight man the audience can relate to as he tries to herd the others as their shenanigans constantly threaten the plots.
My only real complaint would be that I’d have preferred more emphasis on the game’s storyline with less real-life interludes. It’s not so much that they were long, but rather the episodes are fairly short to begin with, leaving very little time for the in-game action. But even with that minor quibble, it’s still an excellent watch.
Wildstar Goes Free-To-Play
Wildstar is launching its free-to-play service on September 29th. Debuting in June of 2014, the MMO–created by a sizable portion of former World of Warcraft employees as well as developers from other popular games–originally required a $15 per month subscription fee. After much initial hype, subscription numbers never really held strong.
The free-to-play option has a number of restrictions, ranging from character slots, auction listing, the ability to form circles and invite other players, to priority of access to Customer Support. For players who want all the perks, “Signature” accounts are offered at the old price of $15 per month.
The full list of game features effected by free-to-play account status can be found here.
Like Warcraft, Wildstar is divided into two factions, the Dominion and the Exiles, with a fairly balanced set of races. Each has a cute and cuddly short race, a human or human-like race, a big and fierce race, and the choice of either robots (Dominion) or mechanically-augmented zombies (Exiles).
Expect server access to be severely impaired and congested in the first few days, possibly weeks, like launch of any major online game. Weekends will likely be congested for a few weeks beyond that.
Furiously Happy: A Second Memoir from the Bloggess
Taxidermy monstrosities. Fainting spells in the stirrups at the gynecologist’s office. Wild adventures in the Australian Outback while dressed in a full kangaroo furry suit. Chronic illness, both mental and physical.
What do all these things have in common? They’re all part of the day-to-day life of Jenny Lawson, aka The Bloggess. Furiously Happy, the highly anticipated follow up to her first NY Times best-selling memoir Let’s Pretend This Never Happened, is a joyfully funny book for both old and new fans.
Depression sucks, and lies. So does anxiety. Lawson never shies from either of
these realities. But Furiously Happy is her commitment and call-to-action, a refusal to let either condition triumph. Full of whimsy and slice-of-life vignettes from a wonderfully bizarre woman, this memoir is at times poignant, at others silly, and often a hearty combination of both.
Furiously Happy was borne of a moment when Lawson, already having had a tough year, was handed a letter explaining that one of her close friends had died. At a cross-roads, she decided she could either surrender to despair or declare a fierce fuck-you to the abyss and make a concerted effort to not just survive but be furiously happy.
Most of my favorite people are dangerously fucked-up but you’d never guess because we’ve learned to bare it so honestly that it becomes the new normal. Like John Hughes wrote in The Breakfast Club, ‘We’re all pretty bizarre. Some of us are just better at hiding it.’ Except go back and cross out the word ‘hiding.'”
Furiously Happy is about “taking those moments when things are fine and making them amazing, because those moments are what make us who we are, and they’re the same moments we take into battle with us when our brains declare war on our very existence. It’s the difference between “surviving life” and “living life”. It’s the difference between “taking a shower” and “teaching your monkey butler how to shampoo your hair.” It’s the difference between being “sane” and being “furiously happy.
As someone who suffers from both depression and severe, almost crippling social anxiety, I feel infinitely less alone and like a carnival side show when I realize that so many people read and relate to struggles like hers. And it helps immensely to be able to point to a book that tackle the subject with so much humor and good will when people who don’t suffer from mental illness want to get a better understanding.
Star Wars: Shattered Empire Spoiler Free Review
Launched as part of the “Journey To The Force Awakens” multimedia campaign, Shattered Empire begins in the final moments of Return of the Jedi and takes off from there. A fast-paced space battle kicks the story off before the familiar post-Death Star celebration begins.
The story is divided fairly evenly between the original cast and the new. It was interesting and well-paced. It’s weakness is the ending, which honestly didn’t feel like a logical stopping point. If it weren’t for the tiny words “to be continued” at the bottom of the last panel, you’d have no clue the issue was about to end. While I think the series will be strong overall, the individual issues are likely meant to be read in a single sitting.
The art is gorgeous and remains strong throughout. Building on the theme of balancing the old with the new, the colors struck a balance between the more subdued tones of the McQuarrie-inspired original trilogy and the bright saturated look of the prequels and Clone Wars series, without favoring one over the other.
The final three issues of the four issue series will be released on October 7th, 14th, and 21st.
As a final note: Ewok-haters beware that they have a fairly substantial presence. Also, please grow a heart and learn to love the furry little guys. They’re cute and murderous, the two very best things anything can be.
Agent Carter Is Fierce And Fabulous
Agent Carter, subject to a criminally short 8 episode run in its debut season, is now available on DVD.
Originally it sounded like a tough sell. Peggy Carter of Captain America was a likable enough character, but she had no super powers and much of her role revolved around supporting Steve Rogers. Many wondered not only how she could star in her own series, but who would be the supporting cast when the bigger names were obviously going to be reserved for the movies.
Agent Carter, I can happily report, managed both feats astonishingly well. Peggy is presented as a capable woman experiencing what many female soldiers faced when World War II ended and gender roles snapped back into their rigid standards with heartbreaking ease. A realistic, if at times frustrating, world was built around her by the writers, filled with realistically flawed coworkers who struggle to understand why she wants to continue working as an agent of the SSR when she is relegated to picking up lunch orders and answering phones.
A solid balance is struck between intelligent and rewarding character development and the sort of fast-paced action scenes the audience would expect from a Marvel production. Agent Carter is thrust into a world of espionage and highly trained assassins when she is asked to help Howard Stark–Iron Man’s father–clear his name after many dangerous inventions are stolen and sold on the black market, making him a suspect of treason. Edwin Jarvis (another name familiar to fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Tony Stark’s virtual assistant) is tasked by his employer Howard Stark to assist her in the task of clearing his name.
One of the most pleasant surprises about Agent Carter is that she’s never presented as–nor does she ever claim to be–better than “typical women.” Never once do the writers put forth the tired trope about most women being vain and useless, while the female lead is set apart from the vapid masses by her willingness to be “one of the guys.” She owns her femininity, and is given several positive female friendships. Agent Carter is a series that quietly but firmly shows that women are often held back in a professional setting because men–either willfully or even without intending any malice–underestimate the competence of women who refuse to strip themselves of anything overtly feminine.
Agent Carter is easily one of my favorite entries set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and I hope you will all enjoy it as much as I have.
Incidentally, this post was originally supposed to be titled, “Agent Carter DVD Release Is Fierce And Fabulous,” but sadly Marvel wasn’t willing to put much effort into the DVD or Blue-Ray sets. The Blue-ray set has a small featurette. The DVD set has a blooper reel. It’s a substandard product but I bought it to support the series and show Marvel that there is a strong consumer interest in continuing it. I hate being put in the position of either rewarding a business for charging full-price for a few episodes and fewer bonus features, or sending the message that Marvel should cut its losses and cancel the show.
Get Your Exercise The Geeky Way With Audiobooks
Many of us could do with a bit more exercise. Jobs and hobbies are more sedentary than ever, and getting your heart rate up for at least 30 minutes a day does a body good.
But, ick. Starting is hard. I tried putting together playlists of my favorite songs to make all that time hitting the pavement more fun. When that didn’t take my mind off the sweating and the little aches and twinges that feel so much more dramatic when you’re exercising, I tried making playlists of cloyingly upbeat and sugary pop songs. I tried “motivational” songs the one from that old Gatorade commercial. None of it helped. Exercising was still the most unpleasant part of my day.
Then, on a whim, I bought the audiobook for Rosemary’s Baby, and after just a few minutes of listening, it changed my workouts forever. Whereas I used to dread lacing up my shoes and stepping outside on a hot day, soon I grew to regret seeing my house come back into view, because it meant the story was over for the day. When Rosemary’s Baby ended, I picked up The Hobbit, and at that point the habit really solidified.
I’ve traveled with the boys of middle earth, roamed the Hogwarts castle, faced down zombie hordes, and enjoyed epic battles of various flavors all while walking and running around local parks and nature trails.
Currently I’m enjoying the original Star Wars radio drama in celebration of all the new Star Wars news coming out. Aside from starting off in the bleak, oven-like desert landscape of Tatooine, going to a galaxy far, far away is great for when you want your mind elsewhere during exercise.
A few helpful suggestions for getting started:
- Always listen to a sample of the book you’re buying; some narrators can just rub you the wrong way.
- Unless it’s a big favorite of yours, try new books instead of one’s you’ve read before. Part of the motivation to get out the door is to find out what happens next.
- Ask your local library if they offer audiobook downloads. While many libraries still rely on CDs, many others have partnered with sites like Overdrive.com to offer digital audiobooks.
- Radio shows aren’t as numerous but there’s some real gems out there. Two of my favorites are Cabin Pressure and Welcome to Our Village, Please Invade Carefully.
- Use reasonable common sense for the sake of your well-being. If you’re exercising outdoors, don’t be oblivious to your surroundings.
Reviewing, Honesty, and Personal Preference
The other day I began reading a book with the intent to review it for the blog. But…I hated it from the very first page. Reading it was a misery and I knew I wasn’t going to be able to enjoy the story. It got me thinking about reviews and how personal preferences shape the choices we make when deciding to write them.
I tend to critique movies more harshly by virtue of the fact that once I’m sitting in the theater, it’s frustrating to be forced between the choice of suffering through a stinker or throwing out my plans for the night. I’m there, comfy in my seat, and nomming on popcorn and sipping beer, so I’m darn well going to finish the movie and tell people what I think about it.
With a book, it’s a lot less trouble to just return one I’m not enjoying, so mostly I only end up reviewing books I enjoy for the most part. Not to say I don’t have anything bad to say about the books I review, but they do very much tend to lean to the positive side.
I’m left wondering which is the more honest approach for reviewers to take.
As a writer who aspires to be a published novelist, part of me leans towards wanting reviewers to lay off books they know aren’t for them. But the reader in me, who often spends hundreds of dollars a year on books, wants to see both good and bad reviews before I make purchases. It would certainly be hard to get even a rough idea of what a book is like if nobody who disliked it bothered to review it. Yet another part of me chafes when I see a book, movie, or show I really enjoy torn apart by someone who obviously isn’t a fan of the genre.
There’s also the unfortunate tendency for some writers to make a name for themselves specifically by ripping apart films or books with (supposedly) clever snark that entertains more than it informs. They gain followings who tune in not to get an idea about whether or not they should see or read something for themselves, but to enjoy watching someone’s hard work get ruthlessly mocked in front of an audience.
This phenomenon is always at the front of my mind when I write a really negative review. I try to tone down the tendency to inject clever put-downs, because while I’ll admit to wanting a decently sized audience someday (what blogger honestly doesn’t dream of that, deep down?), that’s absolutely not how I want to build a readership.
At this point, I have the luxury pick and choose whatever I feel like reviewing. But I’d like to eventually progress to getting paid to write for other sites. It’s part and parcel of the job description of a content creator to report on what the editors tell them to. Writers have to come to terms with the idea of occasionally sitting through something they detest while trying to pick out at least a few redeeming qualities.
I suppose the solution in that case is to put oneself in the shoes of both the artist who made it and the paying customers who want to know the pros and cons of something before making a purchase, and to try to strike a balance between the two.
Force Friday
Star Wars was out in Force today (see what I did there?) to celebrate the kick-off of the Force Awakens campaign. We’re about four and a half months away from the release of the next installment of the Star Wars saga and Disney clearly wants everybody to know about it.
The Disney Store, Toys-R-Us, Target, and Amazon all had special events lined up to celebrate Force Friday. Toys-R-Us and Target both opened their doors at midnight to crowds eager for a few commemorative trinkets and the first crack at new toys, while Disney Stores opened at 6am with a slew of family-friendly events such as an R2-D2 craft, story time, and a card game give away. Sadly the biggest bashes featuring celebrity guests were reserved for a select few locations in major cities, but I’m always a sucker for midnight release parties.
While it was an enjoyable experience, it was rather unfortunate that Toys-R-Us had only a few of each item in stock. I know companies do this on purpose to generate buzz and reinforce a sense of value, but it was a poor way to repay the loyalty of customers who spent two hours in line.
The excited atmosphere maintained through the wait evaporated quickly as all but the first few people in line were greeted with mostly bare shelves; the store allowed each person to take three of any character, and those at the front of the line didn’t hesitate to fill their carts to the disappointment of everyone behind them. I heard several people in line comment that they were just buying a few things they weren’t even sure they really wanted, because all the items they’d come for had been taken and they didn’t want leave empty-handed after spending so much time in line in the middle of the night. That’s not an effective way to hype people for the launch of new merchandise.
Still, I hope Disney keeps up the theme of big release parties for major Star Wars events. With a just a little tweaking to ensure a more positive experience for everybody, it can be a very fun way for Star Wars fans to meet and play for a few hours.
Getting Started With Geeky Crafts
Your dilemma: You see tons of cute geeky craft projects everywhere you turn on the interwebs and you want to hop on board…but you can’t craft to save your life. And you may be afraid that trying to take up crafting is going to leave you with a ton of junk that’s going to sit around your house for the next few years as you mumble, “I’ll get to it this weekend…” every time you walk by.
I’ve rounded up a short list of crafts that require very little time, space, and money investment to get started in.
1) Amigurumi
Amigurumi is a very simple crochet style that is beginner-friendly for a variety of reasons:
- Most patterns only require you to know the first two stitches a crochet student has to learn: the chain stitch and the single crochet.
- Since toys are much more forgiving of size variation than clothing, you only need a few hooks.
- You can buy the absolute cheapest, bargain-brand, super-clearanced yarn you find, since you don’t have to worry about it being comfortable to wear and 99% of projects require less than a single skein of yarn per color (Added bonus: the cheap stuff is the easiest to wash if your ami ever gets dirty).
- Because it had an explosion of popularity a few years ago, there’s a staggering amount of tutorials and you can get free patterns for hundreds, if not thousands, of amigurumi on sites like Craftster and Ravelry. There are entire blogs dedicated to giving out free amigurumi patterns. If you don’t mind spending a few dollars for patterns you have access to an even greater variety.
- Because of the simplicity, once you’ve had some practice and can comfortably follow patterns, it’s very easy to start coming up with your own designs. Eventually you’ll be able to whip up cute figures for your favorite characters.
A few links to get you started:
- Craftster master list of free amigurumi patterns and tutorials
- Planet June has numerous helpful amigurimi tutorials, with many being available in several formats
- Amigurumi baby monster video. It’s fairly long but she takes the time to really explain the steps.
Note: Sometimes it can be hard for crochet newbies to understand exactly what is going on in a video tutorial because a strand of yarn being twisted around can be a hard target to follow. Don’t be discouraged if you have to rewatch portions of a video several time to be sure what is being demonstrated.
2) Decoupage (Picture + Glue + Surface of your choosing + Sealer)
This is a very simple craft technique that can be adapted to a variety of base materials. You can use decoupage to make coasters, pendants, cell phone cases, wall art, cigar box purses/containers, magnets, switchplate covers, etc. There are two main limitations: you want the surface to be free of lumps, and the material you’re using for the image should be tested to make sure it doesn’t bleed colors when you brush on the Mod Podge.
The easiest method is to cut up pictures from comic books, magazines, or your home printer, adhere with Mod Podge, and spray with sealant. Allow to dry for as long as the sealant says it must cure (often 72 hours).
Note: Decoupage was the original go-to term to describe this technique. Mod Podge, the most commonly used product as a dual purpose adhesive and sealer, has begun to supplant decoupage as the generic word for the technique itself in common usage. When you’re looking for tutorials and inspiration, you’ll often have better luck doing searches for both terms.
Some basic tutorials:
3) Cross Stitch & Embroidery
All you need is an embroidery needle, a package of several floss colors, and some fabric. It’s literally as simple as learning how to make a few lines and “X”s on fabric. If you’ve seen the extremely detailed counted cross stitch and needlepoint kits in stores, you may have been too intimidated to try this craft. I assure you that you can find (and design) simple beginner projects that are orders of magnitude easier than commercial kits.
Like decoupage, this is a case where a very simple technique can be used to create any image you can think of on a variety of surfaces. Aida cloth and felt are the most common, but you can graduate to harder surfaces like leather, denim, and canvas once you have a hang of the basics.
Some basic tutorials:
- In this very short and basic Youtube instructional video, the crafter makes much bigger-than-normal “X”s so you can see very clearly what the technique is)
- Sublime Stitching tutorial section
- This diagram-heavy cross-stitch tutorial is made by DMC, one of the most well-known brands in the industry
- This is the DMC instruction for embroidery
- DMC’s guide to various techniques for transferring images to fabric is very helpful for anyone who wants to make their own designs
- Craftster needlework tutorials
Pop Culture To Die For 