Christmas Wong Kresten: March 2008

Sunday, March 30, 2008

Chapter 75.2: Are You Ready for Some Baseball?!

It’s that time again. Baseball season!

There are several enticing stories surrounding this season, not the least of which is that it’s the one hundredth anniversary of the last time the Chicago Cubs have won the World Series. My White Sox fan friends in Chicago notwithstanding, I think most baseball people would be pleasantly surprised to see them at least make the Series if not actually win it. Personally, I believe they lost their chance in 2003 – though I don’t blame Bartman, I blame their pitching and inept fielding.

Anyway, I open this season as I’ve opened each season since I started this blog: My annual predictions. Since it takes too long to actually report on every single team, I’m going to give more general statements.

NL East: As usual, I hesitate to predict the Mets will take the division because – as they proved last year – it’s always within their capacity to screw things up and steal defeat from the jaws of victory. That said, I believe the Mets pitching staff is much better than it was last year. Johan Santana is quite possibly the best pitcher in the game today, and by placing him the admittedly weaker National League, he should be able to dominate. I’m looking for an excellent season and the first Met Cy Young Award winner in more than twenty years (Dwight Gooden, 1985). Mets to take the division. Their competition will be Atlanta and Philadelphia. I have no faith in Washington or Florida.

NL Central: This division will be fun to watch. It’ll be either Chicago or Milwaukee, both of which are fun to watch. I can’t trust Milwaukee’s pitching however. Even their ace, Ben Sheets, is a risk given his injury history, though Jeff Suppan is usually steady. After them, their current staff is Dave Bush, Carlos Villanueva, and Manny Parra – not exactly John Maine, Oliver Perez, and El Duque. Plus their bullpen has more questions than a four-year old. They can hit, and it should be fun to watch Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun lead their offense. The Cubs have a better pitching staff going in: Carlos Zambrano and Ted Lilly are fairly solid. Jason Marquis, Ryan Dempster, and Jon Lieber seem like the likely other starters if Rich Hill isn’t able to hold onto his spot in the rotation.

The other possibility in this division are the Reds, though I honestly don’t expect them to do much of anything. The rest of the division has become pretty much a joke. It’s hard to believe that the Astros were in the 2005 World Series and the Cardinals won it all in 2006. Like most teams these days, they don’t have enough pitching. Pittsburgh doesn’t count. Cubs to take the division.

NL West: This division is a crap shoot because there are several teams with enough talent to win. The worst of the west, the Giants, actually have pretty decent pitching – and if Barry Zito can return to his old Cy Young form, they may actually be able to find enough offense to contend. But I doubt it. Coming from the West are the NL Champion Colorado Rockies as well as the resurgent Dodgers, the much improved Diamondbacks, and last year’s second worst chokers, the Padres – all of which have the ability to sneak out with at least the Wild Card. I think we’re going to see the baby snakes prove themselves. Diamondbacks to take the division, Rockies take the Wild Card.

AL East: This remains a Red Sox and Yankees division, but the Blue Jays are ready to surprise people. Their pitching staff sports former Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay as well as Dustin McGowan and A.J. Burnett. Their bullpen is a little sketchy, but should be ok, especially if BJ Ryan returns with anywhere near his past accomplishments. Both the Yankees and Red Sox remain quite well stocked, however, so anything less than second place for either must be viewed as a terrible failure. The Rays (formerly from hell, but now simply hailing from Tampa) have greatly improved but won’t reach 75 wins. Baltimore will probably find themselves in the basement of the division. Red Sox take the division.

AL Central: The Tigers are scary! They have pitching, they have "mad offense," and they have one of the game’s best managers. I expect great things from them. The Indians will be strong again as well, though I would be impressed if C.C. Sabathia can retain his Cy Young form in his walk year and especially if Fausto Carmona can match his accomplishments from last year. The White Sox should be improved, and if the Royals can pitch at all, they may surprise people; they’ve got some great young hitters like Billy Butler and Alex Gordon, who had a strong second half last year after an awful beginning. I don’t think the Twins can compete with these guys, though they always play hard and have lots of talent still. Tigers take the division, Indians win Wild Card.

AL West: Like its NL cousin, I expect this division to be fairly tight most of the season. But I don’t think it’ll be for the same reasons. The Angels could have run away with the division, but they’re already struggling with their pitching, which has been hit by injuries. John Lackey – out. Kelvim Escobar – out, possibly for the full season. Jon Garland is toward the top of the rotation now. He should be stronger than he was in hitter-friendly US Cellular in Chicago, but he’s got to prove himself again. The Mariners have replenished their rotation with young stud Erik Bedard, who along with Felix Hernandez, Jarrod Washburn, Miguel Batista, and newcomer Carlos Silva should make the Mariners the biggest unexpected surprise of the year. The Angels could still squeak it out if they get their pitching back, but I’m going to go out on a limb. Mariners take the division.

I’ll update these predictions after I’m proven wrong. But with these eight teams, I’m making the following predictions. NL playoffs: Mets defeat Rockies, Diamondbacks defeat Cubs. Mets defeat Diamondbacks. AL playoffs, Tigers defeat Mariners, Red Sox defeat Indians. Tigers defeat Red Sox. Tigers beat Mets in World Series.

Friday, March 28, 2008

Yoda Dog Says: "Bite You, I Will"

Dogs in Costume!

see more loldogs are funny dog pictures!

loldogs are funny dog pictures!

see more loldogs ask - i can has hotdog?

see more loldogs ask - i can has hotdog?

Make your own loldog photo with some costumes and clothing from www.SpoiledRottenDoggies.com. Have fun!

Photos & Summary of The Halloween Show

Me & Elvira!

Last week was the annual Halloween Show. It was held in Las Vegas at the Sands Convention Center. This is the show where industry manufacturers and wholesalers exhibit the costumes for the year.

It is our task to choose now what will be popular this Halloween and the rest of the year. the manufacturers make based on what is ordered at the show and they usually only go into production once a year. It is a daunting task, and while no one has a Halloween costume crystal ball, my dad and I are pretty experienced with this. I have actually been going to this show since I was 16 and he has been going since the late 70's.

Costumes and trends have changed a lot over the the last 20 or 30 years. Costumes are made and constructed much better now and many of the costumes come with cute accessories, trims, and add ons that make a costume more special and have better appeal. Every year costumes follow the fashion trends - especially costumes for women and girls. "Back in the day" a witch costume was a black long robe - type dress with jagged edges and a rope belt. Nowadays, if you want to be a witch, you have dozens of designs to choose from and many are not just black either.

Sexy costumes for women have been a growing trend over the past few years. the industry has had a lot of fun with this trend, voluptuous models in skimpy costumes are now a "staple attraction" at many booths at the show. Many of the manufacturers put on a fashion show, complete with emcee's, music, and even an occasional celebrity model.

Another new trend that has been growing in popularity is funny & humorous costumes. I love that these ideas bring the "fun" back into Halloween.

Matching costumes for couples, groups and families is also a growing costume category. It really brings in a celebratory and holiday spirit when you can have a group theme with your family or co-workers. It is one of my favorite Halloween trends. I always feel like "the more, the merrier"!

The one thing that really drives the costume market the most these days are movies and tv. 2008 will be no exception with a huge billboard of blockbuster summer movies coming out. Everyone likes to dress like a favorite character from movies and television. Many of the favorites this year are super heroes and movie icons. For die hard fans and children with big imaginations, movie character costumes are not just for Halloween! Some of this year's blockbuster costumes to watch:
Batman, The Joker, Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Mutt Williams, The Incredible Hulk, Transformers, Hannah Montana, High School Musical, Harry Potter, Speed Racer and the list goes on.

For more pictures from the Halloween Show, visit AnniesCostumes Flickr page!

For more details on this year's hottest costumes for Halloween, stay tuned for the annual Extreme Halloween List of the Top Halloween Costumes for 2008.

SC IV Flood

The Soul Calibur IV character shots are starting to flow like crazy now. First up is a scan of the new character Angol Fear. It’s hard to tell how she looks in-game from this, but her character art is kind of…interesting.

Up next is Amy who I was fond of in SCIII. Hopefully her moves are fully fleshed out this time.

I like Cervantes less and less with each new game. I think that trend will continue in IV.

Jury is still out on Zasalamel. I like the overall character design (not so much the look above, but with the hood), but he was so damn cheap in SCIII that it clouded my opinion of him.

Thursday, March 27, 2008

The Joke's On You if You Miss April Fool's Day!

Last minute shipping is still available to get you your gags, jokes and magic tricks to you in time to play April Fool's Day pranks on all your friends, co-workers and family members too!

Besides all the fun costumes, that you can dress up in and fool your friends, we also have some great gag assortment packs. [See pictured above.] It includes classics like rattle snake eggs and a whoopie cushion, a shocking pen, fake lotter tickets (every one is a winner), and see that bagel? There is a fake roach under it - one of the greatest gags of all time! The gag packs will bring you hours of fun and will last well past April 1st.

When we had our retail store, we always kept a trick bagel on the front counter. All I know, is too bad that was before the days of video cameras everywhere and YouTube, because we would have had tons of funny incidents to post.

The roach part is great because when you lift the bagel, the rubber little roach moves and appears to be real. So many funny memories from that silly thing!

So get yours now and start making funny memories, scaring people and grossing them out!

If gags are not your idea of tricking someone on April Fool's Day, head over to The Wizard's Apprentice Magic Shop and get some magic tricks. You can amaze and mystify your friends!

Order your gags and tricks with next day shipping by 2pm EST and your package will be delivered before the end of business on Monday. Choose Second Day shipping to receive your package by end of business on Tuesday April, 1st!

Chapter 75.1: All Right, Already!

I swear, ever since my birthday I've had odd little reminders that it's time for me to seriously pursue my intended career writing fiction. There's the aforementioned receipt of an Irish-American encyclopedia that includes three pieces I wrote. Then there were other reminders that popped up about an editor I've worked with in the past and a profile subject who contacted me about her upcoming book signing.

The writer, who I'll interview this weekend, writes historical fiction set during the American Revolution. I've interviewed her before and she's been a wonderful resource for marketing materials that I might use as a template for my own novels. More importantly, she loves the era she writes about and there's nothing better than interviewing people who really has a passion for what they do.

Then I ended up sitting on the train next to a lawyer who's written a novel and is working on his second and is also shopping a screenplay that he wrote with his brother. He and I chatted a bit about finding agents [he has one that he found via a client], our mutual love of writing and our particular ways of writing -- he compiles entire folders, like case briefs, of characters, for example -- as his client [who looked guilty to me] listened inattentively.

But my point is that I feel like there's been an element of divine intervention involved in the scant days since my birthday: a reminder that the window of opportunity for my becoming a published novelist of not just one but several books is starting to close. Intuitively, I know that it doesn't happen without my putting the time in. I've written the book. People have read it, enjoyed it, and suggested ways to make it better. I've made lots of edits to improve it. It's almost ready. But I need to start shopping it around. Soon.

I'm reminded of that joke about the guy who's drowning and several boats come by and offer help, but the guy keeps saying: "No, God will save me." I think I've gotten the message.

Sci-fi fans gather to remember the man who saw the future

A long, long way from the last resting place of the one who showed them the light, the faithful are gathering. As Arthur C Clarke is buried in his adopted home of Sri Lanka today, those who followed his words are meeting and remembering – at Heathrow.

And these being fans of science fiction, they come in all shapes and sizes. They come as Klingons. They come as Daleks. They come to celebrate a genre that has produced a group of followers that are as strange as some of the storylines.

Every year they gather to discuss what is new in the world beyond our own. But Orbital 2008, Britain's 59th annual National Science Fiction Convention, which started yesterday, is dominated by the death of Clarke last week. And that has meant a hastily re-arranged programme to celebrate the legendary figure's achievements with a series of talks and lectures.

So, there is no place in this year's program for Klingon language seminars. Of course, this may have come as a disappointment to the man in the Worf outfit supping a pint of lager in the foyer of Heathrow's Raddison hotel, but for the rest of the 1,500 sci-fi fans gathering for the three-day celebration of all things intergalactic yesterday, there were plenty of other things to occupy them.

According to Charlie Stross, one of Britain's most successful sci-fi writers, Clarke, along with Robert Heinlein and Isaac Asimov, dominated 20th-century writing. "He was the last of them to die. But even if he had not written any science fiction he would have left his mark on the world as the creator of the communications satellite. He did the maths to demonstrate how it would work. He was scientifically rigorous, but also highly readable," he said.

Yet, like Captain Kirk and co, there is it seems more to 21st-century science fiction that Arthur C Clarke.

Among the other topics up for discussion this weekend is the thorny issue of Doctor Who, which despite having won over huge new audiences has received a muted welcome among hardcore fans. Proceedings kicked-off with a discussion over whether its creator, Russell T Davies, was the saviour of British sci-fi, or "just a mad fan with a God complex".

And though it may come as a shock to its fans, the BBC time-slip drama Life on Mars and the follow-up Ashes to Ashes were also generating fierce debate, alongside more traditional subjects such Blake's 7's famously wobbly sets. Tomorrow, delegates will debate whether Sam Tyler's amnesia and time-travelling skills can be explained by the fact that he is really the Master from Doctor Who.

But there was also something on offer for the fetishist wing of the movement in the form of a nightly series of workshops on bondage – topics covered include everything from wrist and ankle ties to whole body harnesses.

And the on-going controversy over Slash, where sci-fi or fantasy characters are placed in on-line relationships – often seeringly sexual – was also being given an airing under the title: "Where Does Slash End and Porn Start?".

According to the organising committee member John Wilson, such tendencies are easily explained. "The majority of sci-fi fans are brighter and more curious than the rest of the population. This means we also have a higher proportion with less vanilla tastes than the rest of the world – this is true when it comes to sex as with everything else. The thing here is that it is purely fantasy – it is all about role-playing." Try saying that in Klingon.