Stormtroopers Like Video Games Too

Dark Mom Of The Sith

E and I were picking up some dinner for ourselves and some friends.

I asked for extra napkins and said, "We're going to the Hollywood Bowl."

One of the two guys helping us said, "Oh, who are you seeing there?"

I replied, "John Williams," and was greeted with blank stares and questioning nods. One of them asked, "Who?"

"He's a composer," I explained. "He's done the music for lots of movies you know, such as Star Wars, E.T., Raiders of the Lost Ark..."

They nodded, sort of knowingly. Although I wasn't sure they did know and was wondering what bizarro world I'd landed in.

All of a sudden, I saw the eyes of one of the guys light up. He glanced confidently at E and said, "So that's why you're wearing that shirt, huh?"*

The guy then excitedly asked, "So he made that Darth Vader theme?"

"Uh huh."

He chuckled and said, "That plays on my phone whenever my Mom calls."

I can't make up stuff this good, people.

*Because no one would ever wear a Star Wars shirt otherwise, right?

Star Wars Lite

So I spent this past Memorial Day remembering those from the Rebel Alliance, who so bravely fought against the Galactic Empire. That is, I went to Star Wars Celebration IV, which commemorated the 3oth anniversary of the first movie. I did see the film in the theater that summer, at age 6 and 3/4, and it had an impact on me. Well, I was inspired to hang a poster of Luke Skywalker in my bedroom at least. E was a 10-year-old boy in 1977, the key demographic of Star Wars: A New Hope. He's told me, but I can't remember how many screenings he sat through, back to back.

So, for E, the big Star Wars convention taking place in Los Angeles last weekend was a big deal. Many months ago, he joined the fan club and purchased the 5-day pass. While he'll tell you that the event was not very well run in many aspects, he did have a great time. One of our friends went with him for a few days and the two of them ended up shooting a movie involving many of the people in costume.

I chose to go for only one day and I think that was plenty for me. I didn't go to any panels, but that's okay. I was able to get some merchandise 50% off, since it was the last day. My two favorite things were the Vader Project and all of the droids roaming around, courtesy of the R2 Builders Club. I took plenty of photos of each, but haven't gotten around to posting them yet. E met some of the droid builders and hung around after hours to take some 3D video for them. I have a feeling we may have a homemade droid entering our lives sometime within the next year or so.

The Tokidoki Vader helmet was probably my favorite! Go figure.

I took some video of some of the droids in action, including a conversation I had with one, but who knows when or if I'll get around to posting those.

May the force be with you.

There's Always A First Time

A few things I'd never done before this weekend:

• Treated myself to a second pedicure within one month.
  

• Eaten a full-on Thanksgiving dinner in May.

• Bowled a 160! (Okay, it was on a Wii, but I'd never done that either).

• Gotten up the nerve to eat white Jello. It was pretty tasty.

• Gone to a Star Wars convention.
  

Feeling Random (And Tired)

Read about George, a Jack Russell Terrier from New Zealand. He's truly a hero. SPOILER ALERT: Things don't end well for George.

You must read the Evil Hamsters poem if you missed it. While I disagree with the sentiment, I admire the author's talent.

I finally got a photo of one of the two R2-D2 mailboxes that I've seen in Burbank, which are both near studios. This is the one by Warner Brothers, in front of the Taco Bell on Olive. In the background, you can see the WB water tower, where the Animaniacs live.

The Silver Lake Film Festival opens tonight. It will be consuming a lot of my time over the next ten days. One of E's short films is in the fest, so I have a free pass. It looks like it's going to be a great festival this year, with a lot of film and music events. I guess I'll be seeing the Circle Jerks later. Cool. I'm already behind on updating here. I've uploaded photos that have yet to be labeled, etc. Someday. Someday.