Life & Times Of Trent Steel – October

Today’s Episode: Smoking, Giant and a Shitty Economy

Lets skip my normal “Hey gang”-style entry. I know it’s been forever, but I’ve been really busy lately. In lieu of me trying to explain myself, let’s just chop into the “random thoughts” section of my mind…

Political Panopticon

This will be quick, but I’m fucking sick of the pandering and have to say something.

We’ve lived under a C-student administration for eight fucking years.  Probably worse.  So, why the hell are people applauding Sarah Palin like she’s a fucking special needs kid who managed to NOT to get her ice cream cone all over herself?  Seriously.  All the news networks are fawning over how much she DIDN’T fuck up too bad.  Stop rewarding mediocrity, American public.  We all know why McCain picked her, and it wasn’t for her moose-hunting skills.  I’m not even pro-Obama (both candidates voted for that ridiculous bailout bill), but I don’t think the adoring soccer moms realize the repercussions of voting for someone “just like them”.

THIS could be the future president of America, people.

McCain’s fucking old.  Hold Palin up to the standards every other candidate is held up to.  If women truly want to be treated and respected like men, then stop using a double standard by giving her banana stickers for doing an alright job.  Don’t vote for someone because they did “okay”.  Vote beyond the celebrity atmosphere that our political process has developed into.  Do your research, vote with your hearts and do not settle for another C-student.  Please.

END SOAPBOX RANT

I’ve Got Your Bailout Right Here

Yeah, traffic-bait.  Sue me, it’s this or no post for the week.

What if I promised some Linkbeard?  You’ll stay?  I figured as much…

California Love

9/22 12:00pm PST

I’m currently in Las Vegas, on a 3-hour layover for the 2008 Streaming Media West conference in San Jose, CA.  I’m no seasoned traveler (leaving my home scares me at times), but the slot machines IN the fucking airport?  Genius.  Why wait for people to hail a cab and hit the strip, when you can rape them of their hard-earned cash the MINUTE they disembark?  Well played, airport.  Well played.

September Reviews

My weeklong “drinkation” is over, and I’m back to the soul-crushing monotony of work.  Actually, after a week of binge-drinking and recovery, I’ve realized how a life of routine can be a lifesaver.  Though I’m overloaded at work (another reason people hardly take vacations anymore), it’s nice to be back on a workout schedule and not sweating booze/shaking all day.  Maybe next time I’ll take a real vacation (i.e. going somewhere OTHER than home and drinking like a wino).

I’ve also turned 28, and have no real changes to speak of: wife, house, cats, job.  Not exactly where I thought I’d be when I was 18, but no complaints here.  I was surprised, however, by the callousness of friends this year.  Not a single present/offering was received, which means Saint Alvis will be a vengeful lord for 2009.  It’s your own damn fault, fuckers.

The hardest routine to come back to is blogging, as taking week without having to come up with content was exceptionally nice.  I couldn’t deprive you guys, though, so here’s some shit to check out.  I’ve decided to keep all reviews under 100 words (which is a lot fucking harder than you would believe), so ultimately you’ll get more of the gist of the media reviewed and less of my bantering.  No, for that you’ll have to read non-review pieces.

Shock And Awe (Again)

Alright.  I’m fine-tuning a new version of reviews, and what the fuck happens?  A bombshell.  So, you get this instead.

I’ll let the link/video handle the details, but let’s just say that you never TRULY know some people like you think you do.  A person you considered not only a co-worker but a friend winds up doing shit like this.

And, no, he didn’t look that evil/creepy on a daily basis.  Fucking media.

Much like a serial killer or school shooter, you ask yourself, “Did I see it coming?  How could I have missed the signs?”.  That’s a shit analogy to this situation, but it’s all I’ve got.  I’m confused, kind of shocked, a bit disappointed, but most of all just numb.  I’d hung out with this dude on several occasions and never gotten the vibe that he’d pull something like this.  I feel bad for the girls in our circle and the sick feelings they may have looking back on his past statements and actions (seemingly innocent at the time).  Not only that, how the fuck should I feel?  Having the dude over for a party, letting him meet my wife?  You would hope he wasn’t like that, but I honestly don’t know.

I also understand that I barely knew the dude outside of hanging out after work and day-to-day encounters.  I feel especially bad for lifelong friends and family who are being blindsided by this.  I’ve really got no room to bitch, given the span of our “friendship”, but it still disturbs me.  I feel kind of bad posting this, as he was (I thought) a decent guy.  I hope that he still is, regardless of whatever drove him to do this.  But, family and friends read this site, and I highly doubt you guys would ever hear the story without me posting it (and it saves a lot of email/phone calls if you did).

I’m not encouraging everyone to suddenly get paranoid about their friends, but maybe something like this will make you truly take stock in who you call a “friend”.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to call Trent and warn him to keep his deviance on the down-low.  Lord knows what the Pottsville media would do if they uncovered the corpses under his floorboards skeletons in his closet.

God, I hope that last statement stays a joke…

Correspondence Of Steel: The Challenge

Every now and then, Trent sends me an email that goes completely over the top in describing is alcohol-fueled day-to-day activities.  As a gift to mankind, I share them here:

OK, beat this.
…
Friday, I got completely shit faced with my neighbors at the Pville club (think “country club”) and then went to The Club, because if I didn’t have another $20 worth of booze I wouldn’t have died.
While at The Club I get invited by association (sitting at the same table) to a party, but not just any party: REDACTED’s (who is away at school) sister’s 21st birthday party.  On the walk there (we’re talking maybe four blocks away), I get separated from my group and then proceed to get lost; knowing fully well where I’m at, but it was dark and I was bombed.
By the time I make it to the party (after receiving directions, from what I can remember), all of the shots I did at the bar have set in and I’m in, like, full-on blackout mode (see also: “functionally drunk”).  The only part of the party I can remember is telling REDACTED’s sister she should throw everyone out because her parents were going to be pissed.
Wake up the next morning fully clothed, shoes and all, on my bathroom floor, my keys still hanging in my back door.
…
Ta-da

And Armageddon 2008 hasn’t even STARTED yet….

[Insert Witty Pirate-Themed Joke Here]

Armageddon 2008 is just around the corner, so the rest of this week is going to be spent preparing for the festivities of Saint Alvis.

If you don’t know what Armageddon is… you’re a fool.  Read about it here.

Anyhoo, I’m taking next week off to recover/celebrate/relax.  Don’t expect much in the way of posts (unless the pictures from Sunday’s party come out awesome).

To tide you over for the next couple of weeks, I’m unleashing the stockpile of links brought to me by our pirate friend LinkBeard.

The Uncanny Valley

This interview is all over teh Intarwebs, but you may have missed it:

This chick is computer-generated.  Completely believable, except for the half-dead eyes they ALMOST got perfect.  It’s fucking scary what’s possible these days, and even scarier knowing what will happen when this technology is perfected.  Trent, Screff, and LinkBeard will never leave the house again (as long as the tits and vajayjays look realistic).

PS – Didn’t get the title of the post?  Click here.

Reunion From Hell

Well, I’m still recovering a bit from my weekend, so bear with me until I get back on track.

Where was I?  At my 10-year high school reunion.

How was it?  I’m assuming it was slightly worse than others’ experiences with their own reunions, while still being awkward, disappointing, and booze-fueled.

See, when my class entered the high school our freshman year, the principal at the time took us (along with the sophomores) into the auditorium and proceeded to rip us a collective new asshole.  He warned us that he’d heard about how awful and evil we all were and he wouldn’t be putting up with it.  He even coined the term “Class From Hell” that we ran with and printed on t-shits and all that.  Talk about setting a precedent.

So, fast-forward 10 years and the Reunion From Hell was upon us.  I’m not going to go into details, as it’s all meaningless to you unless you went to school with me, but below are some rules/ideas to help you prepare for your eventual reunions: