Some posts ago I wrote about The Help, the fantastic novel from author Kathryn Stockett, which addressed several important social and personal issues: equality, race, the endurance of personal tragedy, and the strength of learning that as a human being, you're entitled to all the rights and freedoms as the next man.

Having read the novel (and because I prefer to read a novel before I see any screen adaptation of it) I decided to rent the movie as well, and just wanted to share briefly the ties and themes it stayed true to in regards to the original story.


I was actually pretty surprised and happy to find that the story (and much of the snappy dialogue) remained.  As far as faithful adaptations, having read the story prior was definitely an enjoyable part of the whole experience.  The emotional impacts it makes are far stronger when you've taken the time to develop these characters in your mind as you read the novel.

As far as the movie goes, it was definitely a powerful, emotional ride.  Much as with the novel, you spend time in the grip of anxiety, just waiting, waiting for the inevitable storm that will result from the behind-the-curtain going-ons happening in the story.


Definitely have some tissues on hand for this one too, I'm not embarrassed to say.  Nothing will beat on your heartstrings quite as much as listening to the tragic monologue of the main character and watching her evolve past that sorrow come the end of the film.

So I was trolling around online as I'm apt to do when a friend of mine referred me to a website I can only refer to as "pure, awesome-sauce!"  It's a free-auction site, meaning you basically spend no money and buy/sell stuff via auction (pretty much the same technical make-up as Ebay) for free! The system utilizes a point method to spend when you get stuff (so if you sell anything, you earn points and when you buy something, you use those same points!)

HOWEVER, the site gives you a ton of points as a bonus just for signing up! :D  I bought a variety of cheap-point (but really kickass) jewellery, books, a game, and some other sweet stuff!  So I thought you guys might definitely be interested in this.  They have a pretty kickass variety of things up for offer (and if you want even more points, some really quick and easy surveys and such to get them for free)  Most of the listings are free shipping worldwide too! Whoot!

If you want to check it out, sign up for LISTIA here!.  You'll be glad you did, I promise :3

• A nice variety of fairly populated servers, making for a pretty good social experience (and quick way to find a guild or group if you are in need) without sacrificing bandwidth or having to put up with much lag.
• Detailed and bright graphics engine with a nice variety of creatures and locations.
• Fast, dramatic, dynamic combat with a good choice of skills and abilities based on your class of choice.
• Pretty balanced XP/leveling mechanic, with newbies levelling at a pretty even rate and an increase in the difficulty curve as you go without overwhelming players.
• Fantastic voice acting/dialogue/script.  Seriously funny stuff and perfect for anyone who wants to get more involved in the RPG elements of an MMO.
• Several interesting, creative little side-quests in the midst of an ongoing greater plot.  Side quests never get too complex or too many at once (so you do not lose sight or focus from the main quest).
• Pretty good fan-base of players with many active guild communities and helpful players.

• Beautiful, bright, eye-catching graphics
• Good frame-rate with minimal lagging/skipping (even amidst the more crowded areas)
• Fast respawn rate for mobs/monsters, reducing situations where you find yourself stuck trying to compete for mobs to finish your quests or earn XP.
• Interesting storyline, well presented during story progression without taking away from the game-play too much
• Quick, simple levelling
• Extremely easy navigation (points of interest clearly marked on your map)
• Simple quest navigation (clicking on the name of the mob/quest giver will cause your character to run toward them--great if you turn yourself around)

It's been a while since I last posted.  I've had good reason, being out of country and with pretty unreliable internet :(  The good news, however, is that I've come back with some serious awesomeness.  Having visited Italy while I was gone, I was lucky enough to tour through a nice variety of historical areas!

One of the amazing places I had the opportunity to explore was the ancient city of Pompeii.  Most of you are familiar with Pompeii and its tragic history in connection with Mount Vesuvius, which erupted in AD 79, completely burying the city and all its citizens.

Below are a small number of photographs I wanted to share:


One of the things that struck me first was the sheer massive size of the remnants of the city.  You would think that being such a popular touritst destination a tour of the city might be a bit of a crowded experience.  However, the place was so huge that there were rarely times when you couldn't take a nice, tourist-less photograph.

WARNING FOR SQUICKINESS!
The saddest part about being in the city had to be the remains on display.  I won't post some of the more disturbing, sad photographs (a dog and pregnant woman, to name a few) but you get some idea of the full force of events when you see the following photos:

The Labcoat and I found ourselves at a local A&W last Friday, only to come out to billowing black smoke coming from the nearest intersection.  Then there was this.  Not something you see every day:


By the looks of the thing, the engine overheated and caught fire in the oven-like weather Mississauga's been experiencing.  The firefighters showed up moments later and nobody was hurt.

Just wanted to share this quick snap I took of a cooler The Labcoat and I picked up during a garage sale raid.  It cost $10 and I'm considering turning it into an outdoor flower planter.  R2-D2 looks like he would make a good planter :3

So what did I do recently? I flew in a WWI Tiger Moth Biplane :3


You can't hear a thing up there, the wind velocity is so strong.  The pilot was seated behind me and I could only just barely hear him via the headset. The plane itself was used during the first world war and is 69 years old! Originally put together in England, it has since come to Canada and is now available for rides, if you have the stomach for it :)

...I think my mind just blew a little.

So like every good apocalypse-geek, I waited for the end of the world as it came...then went.  Now it seems the date has been pushed up again (seriously, indecisive much?), so I've decided to take matters into my own hands (really, I guess you just have to do it yourself!) and let everyone know exactly what will be going down:

The only thing I want to know now is...have you been touched by his noodly appendage?

So I finally visited a local scrap-booking store I've been meaning to check out for a while now.  The Labcoat's uncle sent us a fantastically creative home-made postcard and I wanted to do something equally fun in return. 


I don't normally do much in the ways of crafts, but I'm pretty proud of this one.  It was particularly fun to put together :) Decided to take a shot of the back as well:

Snapshot Sunday #6
May 22, 2011 
This Sunday I've got a mix of Canadian and UK snapshots!

 Absolutely no idea who this girl was, but I dug her style :D

  And in other news....

Lastly, I'd like to thank the bible for once again getting my hopes up this last Saturday.  Predictably, the world did not end for the 1,000, 000, 000th time this weekend. Nice job there guys, thanks. 

I wanted to inject a bit more humor into this blog, so I've decided to share some of my Cracked-submitted articles.  I think I'll introduce the first few items on the list and then just link right to the article itself :)

8 Scary Japanese Urban Legends

Whatever country you visit, you are sure to find plenty of folklore. Nowhere does this take a more pants-crapping creepy turn than Japan. We now present 8 of Japan's scariest, creepiest, just plain odd as hell urban legends...

#8: The Snake Woman (Nure-Onna)

I was very happy (and surprised) to find myself the recipient of this awesome Versatile Blogger Award:

• Thank the blogger(s) that tagged you
• Share 7 facts about yourself
• Pass the award on to 15 other bloggers

Here are 7 facts about myself (fascinating stuff, I know):

♥  I was born Slovakia, I've lived all over the world since and I love to travel! 
♥ You can find me to the North in Canada, living with the Labcoat and our beloved laptops
♥  Canada is a great place to live! We have friendly people, delicious bacon, and only have to battle polar bears every other day!
♥  I love to draw--mostly cartoon-y stuff or fan-art--and you can find it all over at my Deviantart
♥  Every once in a while I'm bit by the lit-bug too and I might come out with a short story or a novel-length.  I'm a big fan of horror/romance stories.
♥  Crafts and sewing show up every once a while too.  I like to me custom My Little Ponies (though they can be on the creepier side).
♥  Snark-y reviews and articles are also a favorite of mine.  I review movies, iTunes apps, books, and more.

So I was looking trough the T-Shirts on sale over @ SharkRobot and just had to share this:

The Labcoat was awesome enough to take us to East Side Mario's, where I got to bury my face in their favorite dish, Baked Garlic Shrimp!

Wow...seriously, if you like any kind of combination of garlic, shrimp, and joy, this is the meal for you! :D

Today I was vegging around the internet as I'm apt to do and discovered a site showcasing a few great creative adverts.  I wanted to share some of my favorite with you!

What? 2 Deal Days in a row? Sorry guys, I just couldn't help myself.  Not with the sexyness of this bed. I love it!

I've been toying with featuring one of the blogs I follow in some small way.  Ms. Domo Roboto saved me the trouble of looking too far :)

Why, you ask? Because I love to play games. Particularly on my iPhone.  Particularly Plants. vs. Zombies. The lovely lady @ Ms. Domo Roboto enjoys crochet projects.  Most recently, she shared this:

Credit: Ms. Domo Roboto

Do you see the awesomeness? Because that right there is awesome. Really, how much more awesome needs to be produced? Go visit her. GO NAO!