Still Kickin'

Pfew! New house, new job, new... well... that's pretty much it but the last two months have really taken it out of me. I figured it was time for me to pop in here to Hyde and Geek and update the world on why there's been no new posts.

Here's the main scoop. I'm slowly transforming this site from a news site into a personal blog. Oh! I'm sure I'll still post fun stuff and news that I find amusing or interesting and I will probably write some reviews from time to time. But, since I don't have the time to keep it up to date, I figure there's no point in calling it a news blog when it's only updated once every few weeks.

That said, now that I'm (mostly) settled in the new place and getting into the swing of things with the new career, I'll try to post more here and at my Tumblr.

As for the KNTR Tweetathon, I still want to do it again but I'm not sure when I'll have enough vacation to get around to it. Rest assured, I'm still working to help out that group as much as possible so I'm coming up with other plans at the moment as well.

Stay tuned!

Changes to Hyde and Geek

I'm writing for another site (again) so I won't be double-posting my stuff both here and there. So, from now until further notice, my comic book news will be seen on ScienceFiction.com. You can find the latest headlines from me over on the right side of this page under the heading "The Latest Comic News from Scott and ScienceFiction.com".

For now, all other writings (Muppets, Game of Thrones, video games, and other random goodness) will still be featured here on Hyde and Geek... unless you know of, or are, someone looking for a writer who has expertise on these subjects. If so, drop me an e-mail to swank_stuff@yahoo.com

When I was a Boy

When I was a boy,

the days were long,

and summers went on forever.

My only care was making it home,

in time for dinner,

Hoping that it was burgers

and not spaghetti… again.

and that my Mother wouldn’t

notice the rip in my new jeans.

The world was a grand adventure

waiting to be experienced,

and almost everybody was my  friend.

If they weren’t, that’s just because

I hadn’t introduced myself yet.

There was never much trouble,

and what there was didn’t matter.

Because my mother could fix anything

that might go wrong with a single word

…or a kiss, but don’t tell my pals.

They’d never let me live it down.

Now I’m a man,

the days are shorter,

and summers almost don’t exist.

But I still try to make it home,

in time for dinner,

and hope that it’s burgers,

and not spaghetti… again.

and that my wife doesn’t notice

the stain on my new shirt.

The world is a still grand adventure

if only a little more worn around the edges

from too much play.

Most everyone is still my friend,

but there are far more people

to introduce myself to than I expected.

There is more trouble than I remember,

but it still doesn’t matter.

A kiss from my wife or a hug from my kids

can make a bad day wonderful just like that.

…and go ahead and tell my pals.

I’ll never let them live it down.

Geeks Are a'Tumblin'!

Hi, geek gang! If you're one of the intrepid readers that have been eagerly awaiting a new Hyde and Geek post, I offer my apologies. I haven't had the time to devote to this blog as much as I'd like (translated: I've been studying a lot and thus unmotivated to write anything very lengthy).

However, I have been posting lots of awesome photos over at the Tumblr blog that I set up as a sort of little sister to this one. Check it out. I'm sure you'll find something there that will make you laugh.

Click the Image to Visit...

Sleepless Nights and a Book Recommendation

Have you ever had those nights where you can't go to sleep because your brain is just too wired? I don't mean the ones where you're thinking about work tomorrow, how you expect to get that bad muffler checked out on your car, or why McDonalds doesn't sell Shamrock shakes all year 'round. I mean the ones where you really don't have anything to worry about or think about but your brain just won't shut off. If you haven't had those nights, consider yourself a lucky cat (or kitten). I have barely slept for two nights and I can already tell that tonight will likely be night three. So why am I telling you this on a blog that you normally come to for comic, movie, or video game news? I'm writing this for no other reason than to pass the time and try to burn my brain's fuel up so that I can sleep.

That said, since you're here and you've read this far, I'll take a moment to recommend a great book for your reading lists. I just finished reading Scott Westerfeld's Behemoth. This is the second book of a trilogy that's set in an alternate history during World War I. It revolves around a young girl who disguises herself as a boy to join the British Air Service and a young prince who is fleeing his homeland after his parents were assassinated. The cool part? It mixes in a lot of steampunk and sci-fi elements. In this alternate world, the British (and a few other countries ) have developed a science of changing and/or combining animals into new lifeforms. These new lifeforms, called beasties in the slang of the novel, are used for everything from communication (as is the case with messenger lizards which can mimic human language and run messages back and forth) to military vehicles (as the great flying whale-hybrid Leviathan of the series title). These beastie countries are at odds with the "clankers" of Germany and Austria where science has developed along a mechanical path rather than biological. These countries have great zeppelin airships, giant robot walkers, and cannons that fire electricity. Naturally, the plot (which I won't ruin here) brings these opposing forces into conflict and the main characters are constantly astride the dividing line between both of these worlds. To top it off, the novels are illustrated with stunning art from Keith Thompson. If you're into steampunk, sci-fi, rousing adventure, romance, comedy, or just a damned good read, you could do a sight worse than Westerfeld's novels.

That's it, gang! Go read. I know that's probably what I'll be doing instead of sleeping.

A video trailer for the first book in the Leviathan series:


Related links:
The official Scott Westerfeld site
Scott Westerfeld on Twitter
Keith Thompson's official site

Hyde and Geek Musings

When I started Hyde and Geek some years ago, it was intended as a break from what I'd done before. My previous online presence, through websites and blogs, was always devoted to a single theme or genre each time. My first website was about comic books, my second was Godzilla, and my third was horror movie reviews. Over time, I decided that I wanted something that would allow me to stretch my geeky little fingers into everything that I was interested in and not be confined by a single theme. Thus, Hyde and Geek was born.

As I look back over all the posts on this site, I see that I have posted news and random goodness and that reflects my interests in a much better way than what I've done in the past... but it's still very limited. I have recently been considering posting some of my writings here as opposed to simply posting geek news, videos, and the like. These writings will most likely be random bits of personal commentary along with some fiction and whatever else that I care to share. (For the interested, I've started sharing random photos and videos on my Tumblr to keep them from bleeding into this main blog.)

I haven't decided when, what, or if I'll start posting these writings but I wanted to give my readers here a heads-up in case some random posts show up that aren't necessarily geek news. It's still me folks. It's just a different side of me. I prefer to think of it as the Mr. Hyde to my Dr. Geek.