The (entirely middle aged) Hodge and the Podge:

1. So, as is often the case, I'm on vacation this week! And yet the blog still ticks along aimlessly. Somewhat more aimlessly than usual, even. Lately I do have the occasional thought to shake things up, change the focus, get things done...a good nap usually takes care of that, but we'll see. I haven't so much as changed the background here in ten years--I think I've changed the banner once--so it looks like I'm pretty fine with letting things continue the way they are.

2. I have seen a fair number of movies lately, in the cheapest possible ways. Yocrunch yogurt had a promo for Ghostbusters tickets, and I already eat a ton of yogurt; plus the tickets are good for other movies to boot! So I saw the new Ghostbusters last week, and Star Trek Beyond Sunday, and liked them both. Really enjoyed Beyond, I think that's going to hold up to re-watching a little better than Into Darkness. Took the Youngest to Ghostbusters, the Wife to Beyond, but I'm probably going to end up going to Suicide Squad myself!

3. You might have heard, local entertainment chain store Hastings is going out of business. Even if you didn't have them in your area or had never been to one, it's still of some note to comics fans, since the bankruptcy probably leaves Diamond holding the bag for a lot of comics, Funko pops, figures, etc. I'm not completely crushed since I still have a better-than-swell comic shop in my area, and I'm not left out in the cold...but it still sucks. I thought about it the other day, and realized I had been shopping at various Hastings for over twenty-six years--since I was in high school! I'm pretty sure I bought my first issues of Badger and Nexus there, along with my first Cure tape--I'm old, don't judge me!

Last I checked, their sale was in the 30% off range--not bad, but I'm holding out for better. Things I don't absolutely need at full price, but could be tempted at half-off or so. We'll see...The picture above is just a smattering of some of the books I've picked up over the last couple years from Hastings used, many for under four bucks a piece. And so many singles...the last batch of stuff I get from Hastings is going to hurt.

4. Why is there back to school stuff in stores in July? If I was a kid, I would curse in the face of every store employee that crossed my path...Lemme guess, it's because Halloween stuff has to be on the shelves then out the door in August, so Christmas stuff can be up in September.

5. Eh, what else? I'm rarely (read: never) on Facebook, but I am on Twitter a bit. A bit. I rarely respond to anything, since I'm feeling a little numb lately. It's like I'm never more than two clicks away from something terrible. I'm trying to keep this in the most generic fashion, even though I think my political views are fairly known, but ugh.

6. It's my birthday today, and I think I'll tell you a little secret you might already know: conventional wisdom is, 2016 is the Year Hell Begot, a nightmarish orgy of beloved celebrity deaths, political crapstorms, and rampant social/economic/fill-in-the-blank injustice. But personally? Ah, could be worse. We're more than halfway through it, I think we'll be OK.