Conputers and comics

I managed to add Patric Lepage's new "A.I." fic to the AIFFOA, but since I was updating the site via the sssslllllooooowwww computers at the library in Lowell, that meant I barely got it done. The site editor refused to load after I finished creating the page and the links for it, and thus I wasn't able to add to the Update log on the homepage. Oh well...

And I nipped in to Larry's Comics for my semi every-other-weekly visit: I knew that the next issue of "Neverwhere" was coming out *sometime* at the end of the month, I just couldn't remember exactly when. It hadn't come out yet, but I managed to get the September issue of "Hellblazer", and for the heck of it, I got the first volume of "The Sandman", which I don't have and which is *always* out at the Lowell library.

While I was there, I got chit-chatting with a fellow who's a struggling comics artist, who used to work as a manager in a grocery store, so we got talking about comics and grocery store horror stories, like his adventures with a haunted register where customers would trip for no reason, or the day a disgruntled ex-employee hacked into their computer system using "a Pringles can and a laptop" (How the hell does someone pull that off??). I came within inches of asking him if he'd be interested in helping me out with the "Constantine"/"Hellblazer" comic-idea I'm tinkering with, but as I overheard him say, he's got enough next-to-nothing jobs on his hands right now.

I almost bought a volume of "Promethea", based on a reccommendation "seven" gave over on for_zion, even if *is* by Alan Moore, and some of you may remember my rant about his attitude problem. It's been described, in "seven"'s words as "a primer on soulbonding". Only trouble was, it was book 4 and I felt wierd about starting in the middle.

Also got the next volume of the "Fullmetal Alchemist" manga, and as luck would have it, I'm now developing a crush on Lust...

Watched the DVD of "Vanity Fair": Reese Witherspoon is starting to grow on me as an actress, and I loved the costuming in this movie (and the bit with Regency-era ladies trying to be Indian nautch dancers made me smile; hey, it was directed by a Bollywood director, it's entitled to have an Indian dance number in it).

( What comes of watching a 19th century costume drama with a soulbond looking over your shoulder )

31_days "Constantine"

Title: Into the Valley of Death
Day/Theme: August 26: Souls are like armed battalions
Series: Constantine
Character/Pairing: Chas - Constantine (friendship/master - apprentice)
Rating: PG

Note: Takes place during the movie, as Chas and John enter Ravenscar... And the lines from the poem toward the very end of this fic are a little nod to Neil Gaiman's "The Books of Magic".

( Into the Valley of Death )

The Matrix has my workplace...

It's settled: The company that I work for is 0WN3D!!111 by the Matrix.

The store manager who looked like Agent Smith and had about the same personality.

The dark-haired bagger named -- I kid you not -- Tommy Anderson, who was always getting on the Smith-clone's bad side.

The accountant (I think that's what he is...) who looks like the Architect. The first time I saw him, he happened to be wearing an off-white three piece suit: I nearly rammed him with a cart, on purpose, but I stopped myself.

My boss, who looks like a younger, shorter version of the Merovingian (and now, like the Merv, is married. If his wife even *vaguely* looks like Monica Bellucci, I'm gonna scream).

Another company bigwig who looks like Flood.

The meat department manager who looks like Roland. Even has a similar gruff, guttaral voice (but he's a lot less hard-headed than Rol).

EDITED TO ADD:I almost forgot one sighting that was a real kicker: A woman giving away free samples of some kind of cookies... and she looked eeriely like the "Enter the Matrix"/"Revolutions"/"Matrix Online" version of the Oracle.

Today, the district manager, one "Mr. Schmidt" (Who looks eeriely like a *young* Hugo Weaving; that and the last name make him even creepier to encounter) and his assistant -- a clone of Agent Jones, at least in looks -- showed up for an inspection. I was out breaking down aisles with one of the cashiers (One of the whiny ones, no less). The pair of grocery store-Agents approached her and started giving her the third degree. Meanwhile, I went about my business, straightening out the cans of Pringles and the boxes of pretzels. A moment later, they approached me and started asking me a few questions about how I liked working here. I kinda headed them off at the pass by telling them I'd worked for the company for over four years and that this was the cleanest, best-run store I'd worked in. No giving me the third degree, thank God.