Unemployed Pt. 1

Yes, I need a job.

Me at E3

In case you were wondering what the geek Mecca E3 is like, I’ll do what I can to paint the picture for you. The LA Convention Center felt a little like an airport, but without the promise of actually going anywhere. The wide corridors between the exhibitor halls were filled with slow-moving, pale, and greasy guys (I can’t deny being greasy, but I hate mall-walking speed). Naturally there were a few Jedi mixed in with them, and I assume they were there to keep the peace and protect the Batmobile from Jawas.


Not my photo.
Inside the exhibitor halls, I found the scene less interesting then I thought it would be. I assumed there would be eye-catching and over-the-top displays showing off all the upcoming games and consoles. The exhibitors tried, but I wanted grander displays - less trade show and more amusement park. There were only two exhibits that I thought lived up to the spectacle I was expecting. EA Sports had a huge 360 degree screen above its space, and everyone that walked in couldn't resist staring up for a few minutes.


Also not my photo.
The other was Rockstar Games. They had an large space fenced off and blockaded with a bunch of tour busses. It just looked cool. A friend told me people could only go in by appointment.

"Really?" I said, "You mean people are actually doing work here?"

I can't imagine that the work was anything other then PR for these companies. Almost every exhibitor had banks of kiosks where anyone could preview and play upcoming video games, but they would also have special closed-off areas with tables, chairs, couches, and whatever for meetings.

As for the big unveilings, the new X-box was accessible, but I didn't have the patience for the huge lines to see the new Nintendo and PlayStation consoles. If you want more info about any of the new consoles, try google and leave me alone.

None of this was really that interesting to me, except... if your eyes could pierce through the hordes of techno-tourists without being too distracted by the sheer quantity of shiny acne, the first things you’d notice are the girls. I’m not talking about the one or two girls actually there to look around, but the models.


Definitely not my photo.
The exhibitors at E3 must have accomplished the impressive task of draining LA of porn-star wannabes. The girls were by far the biggest attraction, and they were treated like celebrities by the guys there. Whether on stage or working the floor, cameras flashed constantly around these barely-costumed fleshbots. Beaming gamers swarmed to pose close to them - closer then they'll ever be allowed to stand next to girls like that again. You could just feel the fatigue behind the models' agonized smiles.

A lot of the guys didn't even get their pictures taken with the girls, they just stood back and shot off snapshots of the posing girls like unnerving Hitchcock characters. I hate to think about the damage that was done to area hotels that night as those guys "reviewed" the day's images.

Anyway, after that morning at E3, the TV show I worked for had a wrap party, so I was able to dim the memories with gimlets on the roof of the downtown Standard.

C! in a Month

My brother plays organ for these guys, and their new album will be released on June 21.

PREVIEW!


He's on tour in Europe these days. Must be nice to be a rock star.

DDE & GWB

Should any political party attempt to abolish social security, unemployment insurance, and eliminate labor laws and farm programs, you would not hear of that party again in our political history. There is a tiny splinter group, of course, that believes you can do these things. Among them are H. L. Hunt (you possibly know his background), a few other Texas oil millionaires, and an occasional politician or business man from other areas. Their number is negligible and they are stupid.

Dwight D. Eisenhower
in a letter to his brother on November 8, 1954
[via snopes.com]

UN vs. Bolton vs. America

So here’s my theory on why Bush wants Bolton as the ambassador to the UN (because I know you look here for deep political insight).

Clearly John Bolton would not reform or “shake up” the UN, as the neo-cons publicly claim. One angry and unlikable man cannot reorganize a multinational assembly. Democrats and sensible Republicans, on the other hand, are focused on the fact that he’ll further discredit the US and alienate other countries. This is true, but it’s of little consequence to Bush and his people.

He’d really be there to talk shit on the UN, and attempt to discredit it in the eyes of Americans. Most people here are uncomfortable with the thought of the UN frowning on our country. After all, it’s one of the loftiest and most idealistic concepts in politics, even if it does have some problems. But if there were someone who would say the UN is useless, powerless, and scandal-ridden… well, would anyone really care if they didn’t like us? Would anyone care if we ignored their rules?


I’ve said it before, but I’d like to reiterate: the neo-cons are waging a war with the left and “mobilizing their base” with language and words. It doesn’t matter if the words are true, because if enough anti-UN Bolton quotes slip into the media, then they will become apart of the neo-cons’ mythology of how the world works. In fact, even if he’s not nominated, part of the work has already been done.

His nomination is just another maneuver by the Bush peeps to remove public criticism and checks on the regime’s power.

Not Cool

Sorry for not posting this weekend. I have an ugly virus-thing on my home computer.

If I ever meet anyone who made, tweaked, or utilizes CoolWebSearch, I will hurt them.

I am getting help, and I hope to have it fixed soon.

Miss you, buddy

I realize this isn't the place to get heavy, but it's been two years now, and I'd like to think someone may look him up him at some point. The text is the biography we put together for his funeral.

LeRoy Edward Schauer
March 19, 1938 - May 2, 2003


Rev. LeRoy E. Schauer, 65, died on May 2nd (2003) at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland after a prolonged illness.

Born on March 19, 1938, to LeRoy and Mildred Schauer, Roy grew up in Baltimore with his younger sister, Janet. He graduated from the Maryland Institute College of Art, and from 1961 to 1965, he taught art to children in the Baltimore city school system.

In 1965, Roy made a decision that would change the direction of the rest of his life. Having learned American Sign Language from a childhood neighbor, he became a lay minister for Christ Methodist Church for the Deaf in Baltimore and began serving as a Methodist chaplain at Gallaudet University - a role he would continue until 1988. In 1969, he began his study at Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C.

Roy also taught sign language classes, and in 1970, one of his students, Carole Herlyn, became his wife. That same year he was appointed as the minister of the Brentwood United Methodist Church as well as the Washington United Methodist Church of the Deaf, where he would serve for 18 years. In 1973, Roy received his Masters of Divinity from seminary, and the following year he became an ordained Elder in the Methodist Church.

His first son, Michael, was born in 1972, and in 1974 he and his family moved to Hyattsville, Maryland. His second son, Andrew, was born in 1976. In the summers his family enjoyed idyllic trips to the beach and camping vacations.

In 1982, Roy was diagnosed with a heart disease, and in 1985 he received his first heart transplant from Johns Hopkins Hospital in the early morning of Thanksgiving Day. Due to complications, he required a second heart transplant in 1991. Throughout these trying times, Roy remained active in the Methodist ministry by accepting an appointment in 1988 to Christ Church Baltimore County, and then another in 1990 to Corkran Memorial United Methodist Church in Temple Hills, Maryland. In fact, his transplant experience opened him up to another ministry, and he regularly visited with transplant patients at Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Not letting his illness slow him down, he was also active in the arts. Whether it was photography, water colors, or ceramics, it seemed everything he touched came out beautifully. His sense of adventure and creativity are apparent in his sons today.

Roy continued to minister at Corkran until his retirement in 2000. In 2001, he was diagnosed with kidney failure and received a kidney transplant. Though problems with his health persisted, Roy enjoyed frequent trips with his wife to their second home in Ocean Pines, and rarely seemed to lose his sense of humor.

He is survived by his loving family - his wife, two children, sister and brother-in-law, nieces and nephews, as well as many other family members and friends.