A "mecha" or "mech" is a high-tech, man-shaped killer robot suit, popular in science-fiction.
In fact, you may be more familiar with them as "robot armor" or "robot tanks" even, depending on your particular flavor of sci-fi. For those of us who are, or have been, hardcore Japanese animation junkies, however, they will always be mecha. And, believe you me, many of the faithful fanboys have dreamed of owning a mecha like this and doing battle with giant, alien invaders just...
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Yes, I'm a little obsessed with money this month.
No, it's not because I can't pay my bills. Rather, it's about work. Now, for the most part, I enjoy my work. I find it challenging, but not too challenging, and interesting and the pay is pretty good. Also? I have a ten-minute commute. Hard to beat that! But, the reality is, at heart, I'm a lazy bastard. If I could skate by without working another day in my life, I totally...
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Can we ever have enough money?
Or be too thin or too good looking? Well, I don't know, but I do know that I've struggled at times with money. It seems to slip through my fingers like water. The harder I squeeze to hold on to it, the faster it seems to slip away. But, I know that about myself, so I do what I can to stop the bleeding, so to speak. For me, the first step is tracking where...
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For those of you who don't know Star Trek, that'd be "space".
I'm kind of obsessed with space and space travel, really. Doubtless, the few regular readers left here have picked up on that.
I guess my obsession is really about getting out and away. Some days, it seems like the only place to escape is, well, to get off the planet! And, if the environmentalists are to be believed, I think we've done such irreparable damage to this planet that the...
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Okay, that may be going a bit far.
I mean, I know a lot of people who aren't into science-fiction at all, so they may not claim to have read these books or have any interest at all. But, they are a pretty good hit-list of interesting ideas in science-fiction. And, I suppose that's why the folks over at IO9 probably suggested that instead of claiming to have read these books, that you actually read them. I'm pleased to say that...
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No, I'm not advocating that you actually do this!
But, in Europe, it's already been done.
Apparently, the special key that costs you $160 for your super-secure BMW isn't really all that much of a deterrent after all. According to a story that ran recently on ExtremeTech, hacker-thieves have found a way to bypass the BMW security system and, in a separate step, decode the information needed to actually start the car without having the special, expensive key. It seems that the...
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Well, at least if you're a Kindle user.
Recently, I acquired an older Kindle from a friend who had upgraded and was in the process of shedding "extra baggage" before moving. I've passed it on to the woman I've been seeing for the past several months. (If you're friends with me on Facebook, you already know this and her name. And, if you're not, you don't need to know her name!) She loves her "new-to-her" Kindle, of course, and has transferred...
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Today is Friday the 13th.
In the past, I've posted some of the possible history of the negative superstitions around Friday the 13th, but I'm not going to mention that today. I think it's unseemly, especially since I've already talked about the history and traditions surrounding Friday the 13th earlier in the year.
No, I thought I'd share something else.
Have you ever wanted to visit the restaurant in your favorite novel? How about collect all the magazines they mention? Or, possibly, even...
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Don't worry, I promise it will be a fun list.
Hey, remember when you were a kid in school and they'd give you a Summer reading list? You know, those painful "classics" that we were forced to read because they were supposed be so good, but were really terrible to read because of the archaic language and tired, dusty old plots?
Well, these are nothing like that.
One of my favorite magazines, Wired, has put together a list of new-ish science-fiction and fantasy...
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Yeah, it's kind of a mind-bender, isn't it?
So, the few regular readers who are left at this sad, old, mostly-neglected blog know that I'm a big fan of science-fiction. And, when I have time, I read a lot. Granted, since college I think I read more non-fiction than fiction, but, still, I manage to hammer away at it and more than exceed the national average of three to four books per year. Also, I tend to think of myself as...
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