Thursday, January 28, 2010

Find Him! Bind Him!

First off, I strongly recommend that you listen to this song right here.  It’s by The Decemberists and titled “The Mariner’s Revenge Song.”  To my knowledge there is no official video, but I thought this production was pretty good.  The song style, words, and music are all akin to a classic pirate’s shanty and the story is most entertaining.  Go on.  Watch it.  You know you want to.  I can almost guarantee that you’ll smile from ear to ear from the wickedly delightful lyrics.  And, if you can listen to it and not feel like you’re on a pirate’s vessel, then you win today’s prize.

Well?  Whaddya think?  If you’re like me, after listening to it a few times I had to track down the lyrics and read the entire tale myself.

Second off, I have three episodes of Firefly left.  I knew I would like the show from the onset, and I knew it was going to end prematurely, but still I can’t help but wonder how something like this could get canceled?  It’s definitely better than plenty o’ other crap that makes it to tv.

Thirdly, I got an email from the library telling me Best Served Cold was in and on hold for me.  Of course, I just started reading Ted Dekker’s Green, so I’ll go pick it up and hopefully finish Green quickly enough.

Fourthly, here’s an interesting blog post by Al Mohler.  It discusses how many abortion workers turn to pro-life after years of work.  Sad, but encouraging, methinks.

We’re in a winter storm warning until tomorrow night or Saturday or something.  Expect 1-4 inches or something like that, so it’s said.  Who knows?  I know brevity is in order now.  There’s much afoot and I must hasten on.

Find Him.  Bind him.  Tie him to a pole and break his fingers to splinters.  Drag him to a hole until he wakes up naked, clawing at the ceiling of his grave…  I hope you gave it a listen.  So it goes.

9 comments:

David Wagner said...

I tried, Logan... I really tried... I made it about half-way through before the guy's whiny voice did me in... let me regroup and watch it again later... you watched it more than once? Man, there must be something wrong with me, I guess...

I told you long ago I'd ship you my copy Best Served Cold! Whatsamattah! You no like-a my cooking?!

Have a good day, bro.

logankstewart said...

Whiny voice? Say wha'? Hmm. Interesting how some people like some voices and others don't, but I completely understand. I typically like the folks that don't necessarily have great voices (i.e. Bob Dylan, etc.), but there's something unique in them. This guy's voice is indeed different, but it doesn't sound whiny to me. To each their own, though, eh?

I know I know I know. But you gave me BTaH and LAoK and I didn't wanna take another one off of you. Plus, it's not like your cooking's bad, it's just yours, y'know?

BTW, it looks strongly like you'll be winning Tea with Hezbollah. I've had 2 people enter so far and I have 2 copies. So, statistically, you've got 100% chance of winning, unless someone else jumps on board.

Okie said...

That was great. Thanks for sharing. I'm off to read the lyrics and find more from the Decemberists.

logankstewart said...

@Okie: You're welcome, and I'm glad you liked it. NPR spotlighted The Decemberists a few months back and I've loved 'em ever since. They tell fascinating stories with most of their songs. If you're looking at an album, Amazon is selling the mp3 album of The Crane Wife for $5 through the end of January.

Enjoy!

Unknown said...

The best of The Decemberists for my money has to be The Tain EP. I'd heartily recommend a band called Murder By Death if that does it for you, too.

logankstewart said...

@N.R. Alexander: I haven't listened to The Tain EP, so thanks for sharing. And I've ne'er heard of Murder By Death, so I'll give it a shot. Thanks for stopping by.

Kristopher A. Denby said...

Whoa, a bunch to comment on this post.

First off, The Decemberists were introduced to me via my Mark Knopfler Pandora radio station (I think we've tread this ground once before, you and I) and I really enjoy their music. The only thing I'll say in criticism is that the singer's voice grates on my nerves a bit on certain songs. It's not a big deal, but there nonetheless.

I'm surprised that this is your first viewing of Firefly. This was the last show (before DVR) that I looked forward to on a weekly basis. I made damn sure that I was in front of the set on the nights it was on, which were Fridays as I recall, a remarkable feat in and of itself. I was crushed when they canceled the show, and now that I think of it this may have been the defining moment that ended my love affair with tv. Well, that and the rise of the Era of Reality TV.

Now, the abortion thing? Hmm. not sure if I want to touch that one in this forum. Suffice it to say that I fall on the side of the Pro Lifers, but I don't think anything is ever all black and white. I get really upset when I hear phrases like "A woman's right" bandied about to cover any situation wherein a child might be considered. A woman's right ended the moment she decided to consummate a relationship, barring cases of rape and molestation of course. But I cannot wholly agree with the idea that an abortion isn't sometimes the right or necessary thing in some cases. Like I said, I think there are shades of gray in just about anything we can find to debate. Absolutism (in morality or ideology) has led to some pretty violent and unfortunate outcomes: Nazi Germany and the Inquisition come quickly to mind.

On a lighter note, have you read the review of Best Served Cold on The Speculative Scotsman? Pretty good review, and I think I'll be picking up some of Abercrombie's work because of you two guys.

Until next time, my friend.

logankstewart said...

@Denby: Hey, I don't think The Decemberists have came on my Knopfler station yet. Hmm... I like the guys voice (see my reply to Dave up the page).

I loved Firefly. It was my first viewing, but I already feel like we're dear old friends.

Yes, it's best not to open the abortion can, but I like everything you've said. There are no black & white situations. For instance, I know a woman (in my church, even), that just announced her pregnancy a few weeks back. Turns out, she had to end the pregnancy b/c the baby was "growing" in her cervix, which most likely would have killed the woman and the baby. She is now taking some shots to end the life of the child, but by keeping her alive. I cannot imagine the pain she's going through in her heart, and I'm glad I don't have to. That said, there is definitely plenty of grey area.

And 100% dead on with absolutism. "Only a Sith deals in absolutes," it was said. And they quickly lead to problems.

I've tried to eschew Best Served Cold reviews until after I've read the book, but I'll keep it in mind for when I finish to go back and read it. And if you'd like, I can mail you my Joe Abercrombie books. They were given to me by Dave (from My Little Corner of the World). Free of charge. Just passing along a wonderful story that should be read by all who can read it.

Shoot me an email with your mailing address and I'll put the whole series to post, just for you.

Dave said it best: (paraphrased) "There are some books that look great on the shelf, and some that look sad. They need to be read, so they look best off the shelf."

Kristopher A. Denby said...

Thanks Logan and David!