tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-91444501796875502272024-03-10T04:27:34.934-04:00DEVL DesignDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.comBlogger66125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-23009510545047133462014-07-03T14:25:00.000-04:002014-07-03T14:37:47.344-04:00First and First - The Nexus Of The UniverseOne of the funniest moments on the TV show <span style="font-style: italic;">Seinfeld</span> (of so many funny moments) is when Kramer gets lost downtown in the episode "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bb9IA-914Xw">The Maid.</a>" He calls Jerry from a payphone at the corner of First Avenue and First Street and says he must be at the "Nexus of the Universe." Hilarious.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnGpKVUKe-YIGnralPmfNPtl6jmb6mh_mgbcmymT3u1H1NajtaoL_G-znsGxtRS0eYJ0MpWzZfDcb-EFP4uoQPpkxfqQ13PoeyI__FlBdPfrAeB3OHreNWBITELJAqLL9d4hK4jIx-4YNL/s1600/NYC2_NexusFirst.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnGpKVUKe-YIGnralPmfNPtl6jmb6mh_mgbcmymT3u1H1NajtaoL_G-znsGxtRS0eYJ0MpWzZfDcb-EFP4uoQPpkxfqQ13PoeyI__FlBdPfrAeB3OHreNWBITELJAqLL9d4hK4jIx-4YNL/s320/NYC2_NexusFirst.jpg" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5712882827554902162" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 286px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a>When Niki and I had visited <span style="font-style: italic;">2 Dag Hammarskjold Plaza</span> in midtown Manhattan (referred to in <span style="font-style: italic;">The Dark Tower</span> series as the "Nexus of Time and Size"), we were continuing our first New York City adventure further south later that same day and we decided to start at 1st and 1st to pay tribute to this other famous "New York Nexus" located in the East Village.<br />
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Ironically, shortly after this we traveled west to Greenwich Village, where we had the chance to see <a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2011/09/by-vishanti-its-dr-stranges-sanctum.html">177a Bleecker Street</a>, the fictional home of <span style="font-style: italic;">Marvel Comics</span> hero Dr. Strange, which is also known as the "Nexus of All Realities." So there you have it, one city, one day, three Nexus' . . . or would that be <span style="font-style: italic;">Nexi</span>? Does this mean that Manhattan is the "Nexus of Nexuses?" Or maybe it should just be Nexus³ . . .<br />
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Argh, my head hurts.<br />
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-DE<br />
<br />DEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-90637817966684178302014-07-03T14:24:00.000-04:002014-07-03T14:39:52.048-04:00A Punk Jacket Fit For A Princess<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcdt36eKwiastRnjMFH4OlDh4nMxZp_lwHrEKJ6XHCyCQm7ev3xODNsv1gQ4lUBuyra4jyWluWIOQ3Iv9Vm-CEZc7i_moYqacJusZutd08qqEf2OkP_0AbgCkwouZSP81vfAHswa_Rsm3G/s1600/DSC00062.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcdt36eKwiastRnjMFH4OlDh4nMxZp_lwHrEKJ6XHCyCQm7ev3xODNsv1gQ4lUBuyra4jyWluWIOQ3Iv9Vm-CEZc7i_moYqacJusZutd08qqEf2OkP_0AbgCkwouZSP81vfAHswa_Rsm3G/s200/DSC00062.JPG" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5712868781484957410" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 170px;" /></a>Some time ago, I began working on another jacket for my (then) two-year-old niece, Mia. Decorating the jacket itself didn't really take much time at all (child's size jackets don't usually take more than a few days to finish), but I had to wait on the delivery of one of the patches before I could truly call it complete. Besides, I've often found it's the labours of love that go by quickest and easiest, no matter how intricate or monotonous the task needed to complete it.<br />
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The jacket is essentially the same as the <a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2011/10/fully-metal-jackets.html">child sized jacket</a> I shared on here a while ago, but with artwork and patches better suited for a girl.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP3JQOLs71m7uPChRB7eAZRdYS94VI6VCcUoY3PYWsuW6Ugdvegy8uLPH_jRmHwZabAyG4r_ahvPoCdbL9cgdDszzZVQ2pxiNWpXJVBEjqlxAvOzaBtGy1YzM8WExe-YNwTtqUZ0Mn7plV/s1600/DSC01184.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP3JQOLs71m7uPChRB7eAZRdYS94VI6VCcUoY3PYWsuW6Ugdvegy8uLPH_jRmHwZabAyG4r_ahvPoCdbL9cgdDszzZVQ2pxiNWpXJVBEjqlxAvOzaBtGy1YzM8WExe-YNwTtqUZ0Mn7plV/s320/DSC01184.JPG" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5712868556600521826" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 257px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a>Niki and I had given Mia a <span style="font-style: italic;">Hello Kitty and the Mad Barbarians</span> stuffed doll the year before and it seemed like the perfect artwork to pair up with a jacket designed for a tiny punk princess.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOvoMbkGFUpyJz44JKsYe3NQZ21KYIrDVAxuS9Cxzx1vUybSKW7aeno4hnvG9QefFCWlMG27Hkka_g0mBdLUZ96Psp6cdivEAA9-QyR4Evn-m2xamlgehW13t58VAqNX9excFoyFVr3t3J/s1600/DSC01191.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOvoMbkGFUpyJz44JKsYe3NQZ21KYIrDVAxuS9Cxzx1vUybSKW7aeno4hnvG9QefFCWlMG27Hkka_g0mBdLUZ96Psp6cdivEAA9-QyR4Evn-m2xamlgehW13t58VAqNX9excFoyFVr3t3J/s320/DSC01191.JPG" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5712868562411255298" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 242px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 320px;" /></a>There is another full-sized jacket in the works right now, but it's nowhere near complete yet. Once I do finish it up though, I'll be sure to post pictures of the end result.<br />
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In the meantime of course, there's always the other examples in the Apparel section of the <a href="http://www.devldesign.com/apparel.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">DE/VL Design</span> website</a>.<br />
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-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-20653455372672957092014-07-03T10:53:00.000-04:002014-07-03T11:04:27.068-04:00My very own (sorta) homemade "The Death of Captain Marvel" statue.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKqDmU0_FFmmeu2BU_qPNmAnCQVxK0WeCP_3F_N9vGffeWUEvoIsjddQdU7kq-9lOvhLqJjXiY4NTH28bIYkpqhyphenhyphen_OtExSt6J3K2XNYkZsZNz4zPG4t7LT3W4zX-AV4HGmKnsPyrJzyxFO/s1600/pieta10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKqDmU0_FFmmeu2BU_qPNmAnCQVxK0WeCP_3F_N9vGffeWUEvoIsjddQdU7kq-9lOvhLqJjXiY4NTH28bIYkpqhyphenhyphen_OtExSt6J3K2XNYkZsZNz4zPG4t7LT3W4zX-AV4HGmKnsPyrJzyxFO/s1600/pieta10.jpg" height="200" width="152" /></a></div>
A few weeks ago I needed to get the wheel rims replaced on the car and so, literally without any wheels and stranded on Ontario Street for about an hour, I took a stroll down to Value Village to see if I could <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/findthefind" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">#FINDtheFIND</a> and, sure enough, I did. For me, "The Find" was a small plaster reproduction of Michelangelo's "<i>Pietà,"</i> depicting the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus. Goddam creepy, right? Of course, truth be told, when I saw it on the shelf what I immediately flashed on was one of my all-time favorite comic-book stories, the original cover for the graphic novel "The Death of Captain Marvel" by Jim Starlin. That's why I couldn't pass it up.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3tvumAp1Lr-pRylrsJHnhyphenhyphensCxQSs3gM0DUkeOuqM9ECnxPSrW6Dg-B868m4tM3yGyrAR76d2CYGmjq5NNmUhTPWYnyClGfWLGjsMWc6Lhvl8zoKtsHcFZICUvuk0ImoB9XG2dfhyphenhyphend96mr/s1600/statue_artasylum_deathcapmarvel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3tvumAp1Lr-pRylrsJHnhyphenhyphensCxQSs3gM0DUkeOuqM9ECnxPSrW6Dg-B868m4tM3yGyrAR76d2CYGmjq5NNmUhTPWYnyClGfWLGjsMWc6Lhvl8zoKtsHcFZICUvuk0ImoB9XG2dfhyphenhyphend96mr/s1600/statue_artasylum_deathcapmarvel.jpg" height="320" width="274" /></a></div>
My plan? To paint that sucker to be just that, a passable version of the cover image of the personification of Death herself cradling the estranged Kree captain and cosmic protector, Mar-Vell, as he succumbs to his final battle with both the cancer consuming his life from within and a re-animated Thanos of Titan, called back to life to claim Mar-Vell's for his beloved Mistress. While there's already a beautiful version of this cover art in statue form, produced by Art Asylum back in 2002, it goes for about $200 . . . and that's if you can even find it!<br />
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So, starting with the faux-bronze statue as I'd found it . . .<br />
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. . . first I spray-painted a flat black basecoat . . .<br />
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. . . which, once I started applying the primer coat for the parts to be painted, immediately came to life as Mistress Death's cloak. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixMAHoLFwdkBT6D7IjLIJGl_v0ctb3jO3dASCti65o_YtUjuELvbOAxIlqikVtud1bI6PxsT57eEPrxWQPs3NYuQLhQxwLq3oJp58J8X8lhdVPdfg8e1h0yGk8R_9mqmYKLBgDmL1mOkHP/s1600/DSC02982.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixMAHoLFwdkBT6D7IjLIJGl_v0ctb3jO3dASCti65o_YtUjuELvbOAxIlqikVtud1bI6PxsT57eEPrxWQPs3NYuQLhQxwLq3oJp58J8X8lhdVPdfg8e1h0yGk8R_9mqmYKLBgDmL1mOkHP/s1600/DSC02982.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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I threw a second primer coat on to make sure the paint colour would stand out . . . <br />
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. . . sketched the features of Mar-Vell's uniform and Death's face in pencil . . .<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzhivXfBWIztRgQ4E1cie1ovr0xZ3268d6gHMcPBxR-jm4Y8vnORhFTopTSIGLi2H1xjOzX2F1QfllA7-X8X7pCqV_VEEjZF3GpckrWsjImRUeSM3iltOoE5f1NY7OKj0mVznMTX7Vxs4Z/s1600/DSC02992.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzhivXfBWIztRgQ4E1cie1ovr0xZ3268d6gHMcPBxR-jm4Y8vnORhFTopTSIGLi2H1xjOzX2F1QfllA7-X8X7pCqV_VEEjZF3GpckrWsjImRUeSM3iltOoE5f1NY7OKj0mVznMTX7Vxs4Z/s1600/DSC02992.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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. . . and, after carefully painting some more definition in the more detailed areas, I quickly filled in the colour for the base and stone portions.<br />
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Then, once I'd filled in the larger areas of blue and red on the uniform, the whole thing really came together . . . <br />
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. . . and with just a few touch ups to Death's face and the eight-pointed star on Marv's chest, I was pretty pleased with the final outcome.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPpxMIkybxO1Mv1yO_p7mhWHicudgSJ3HO-2EF_GNgg0Rj0d4vKZ9fu7kaHkpXqOdCM3j67FvqGPZxv_QQoZIRz1GIAC_i46lEK1B83g7Nk4NYmpVB_qWTJh_0IQOfCh9pWSd1FrDT3xrW/s1600/DSC03003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPpxMIkybxO1Mv1yO_p7mhWHicudgSJ3HO-2EF_GNgg0Rj0d4vKZ9fu7kaHkpXqOdCM3j67FvqGPZxv_QQoZIRz1GIAC_i46lEK1B83g7Nk4NYmpVB_qWTJh_0IQOfCh9pWSd1FrDT3xrW/s1600/DSC03003.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Of course, when looking at them side-by-side, mine still doesn't compare with the Art Asylum version, but for only a fraction of the cost, it's good enough to sit proudly on my shelf!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipnyIOL9HOBNXfOFfAtX1o8wxoabdOvyWOZWPzXZCYH1RcPDDtPry7eDncG2naOHgKkBhSTX8g03Cy7HT0KT1iBsynAJKgxOqTWEVPqztn-h1tepojluRHmrJ046RSX3nxZpBff4JPdPEi/s1600/sidebyside.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipnyIOL9HOBNXfOFfAtX1o8wxoabdOvyWOZWPzXZCYH1RcPDDtPry7eDncG2naOHgKkBhSTX8g03Cy7HT0KT1iBsynAJKgxOqTWEVPqztn-h1tepojluRHmrJ046RSX3nxZpBff4JPdPEi/s1600/sidebyside.jpg" height="198" width="320" /></a></div>
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-DE<br />
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DEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-66456490755201776292013-08-28T10:07:00.001-04:002014-07-04T08:59:57.823-04:00The Adam Warlocky Horror Picture Show?<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj95Rm288fbgzkOwmt0RMFVOFuuamSqShA3r6Nl2Hip3kg7DA0jPZefKEIBtD0HiX19Qv2U9B3ZtkR7sEu9Pez9q5nvX8Mm3thyZyNIQ-TSIM6ctcx8PAJbUUUMO5MUvLQXzo8wVYhpbCPZ/s1600/WarlockHim.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj95Rm288fbgzkOwmt0RMFVOFuuamSqShA3r6Nl2Hip3kg7DA0jPZefKEIBtD0HiX19Qv2U9B3ZtkR7sEu9Pez9q5nvX8Mm3thyZyNIQ-TSIM6ctcx8PAJbUUUMO5MUvLQXzo8wVYhpbCPZ/s200/WarlockHim.jpg" height="198" width="200" /></a><span class="userContent">Between the </span><span class="userContent">perfect bronze physique from the moment he first sprang to life, </span><span class="userContent"><span class="userContent">the platinum blonde bowl haircut</span> and those rockin' </span><span class="userContent"><span class="userContent">gold l</span><span class="userContent">amé shorty shorts, </span>I've always wondered if Dr. Frankenfurter's
creation from the eponymously-named <i>The Rocky Horror Picture Show</i> was actually based on the first appearance of Adam
Warlock in Marvel Comics' <i>Fantastic Four</i> #67, when he was known </span><span class="userContent"><span class="userContent">only </span>as "Him."</span></div>
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<span class="userContent"> </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikAjdABIhqnC5fC675qIy8KRJ_zmDqlPicnHzWgyfhZCY6cJawk_yGoRPn6wFiqd9NKCOFYzD2QLNPJq2216JzhNvTXMxYF8hp4xdIIbvGp53P1Ap0SiI3X7bMY5XPz_tYTVQEyvECxKfq/s1600/Warlocky.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikAjdABIhqnC5fC675qIy8KRJ_zmDqlPicnHzWgyfhZCY6cJawk_yGoRPn6wFiqd9NKCOFYzD2QLNPJq2216JzhNvTXMxYF8hp4xdIIbvGp53P1Ap0SiI3X7bMY5XPz_tYTVQEyvECxKfq/s320/Warlocky.jpg" height="278" width="320" /></a></div>
<span class="userContent">It looks like legendary longtime Adam Warlock scribe Jim Starlin might have thought
so too, since <i>The Infinity War</i> version of the Magus (Adam Warlock's twisted, evil future self) is nearly a dead ringer for "Space Riff" as well.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMACPrim0KZRDXBMH5-BQMXsd0v14bgU_w_ZII9IUpxGvLTRxFWXtpECCFpXF0V1okLMKOUjbZtAeqT-OT1yO5ES9r3XroiA_oHfRd94PeMna7WfU9GI83Rf_Q8KZGv80WGxKzd6ircc7Z/s1600/Riff+Ragus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMACPrim0KZRDXBMH5-BQMXsd0v14bgU_w_ZII9IUpxGvLTRxFWXtpECCFpXF0V1okLMKOUjbZtAeqT-OT1yO5ES9r3XroiA_oHfRd94PeMna7WfU9GI83Rf_Q8KZGv80WGxKzd6ircc7Z/s320/Riff+Ragus.jpg" height="272" width="320" /></a></div>
<span class="userContent">Come to think of it, there's an eerie resemblance between the Magus' </span><span class="userContent"><span class="userContent">original look</span> from the '70s comic <i>Warlock</i> and Dr. Frankenfurter himself!</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Ud4yTwofOlKzXHmpIULSHowbVA_rV_eEiwrvtsChyny3y_ZJVK3sTr_5CcIXiC6K3N87BXXyNjvgt5HRtsGaVH7pOBMGjeDQIPQnvWwDrmMDcwGHNDvlXLWQ_Culb6f-zETZQb0WPJPb/s1600/Frankenmagus.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Ud4yTwofOlKzXHmpIULSHowbVA_rV_eEiwrvtsChyny3y_ZJVK3sTr_5CcIXiC6K3N87BXXyNjvgt5HRtsGaVH7pOBMGjeDQIPQnvWwDrmMDcwGHNDvlXLWQ_Culb6f-zETZQb0WPJPb/s320/Frankenmagus.jpg" height="251" width="320" /></a></div>
<span class="userContent">Cosmic . . . </span><br />
<br />
<span class="userContent">-DE </span>DEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-50380739761802533402012-07-14T15:38:00.002-04:002012-07-14T15:38:32.287-04:00To our friends on their day . . .<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA2eENoOguzAxxlgU4Lr0DqrJC-MLVuYiJ3ctmjv2S9sy_WxUIPiheePJoLiPa0Or7j3oU00gJrQL14q0JsK9QfkAfqDg6h6ATZFf8yNemG_7KyGwsn7ugUrt0tQz34VsLURjWHiX5rE9L/s1600/J&J+Wedding+Gift.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA2eENoOguzAxxlgU4Lr0DqrJC-MLVuYiJ3ctmjv2S9sy_WxUIPiheePJoLiPa0Or7j3oU00gJrQL14q0JsK9QfkAfqDg6h6ATZFf8yNemG_7KyGwsn7ugUrt0tQz34VsLURjWHiX5rE9L/s320/J&J+Wedding+Gift.JPG" width="219" /></a></div>
<br />
Jason & Jordaan, <br />
<br />
May your wedding day, and your lives together from this day forth, be everything that you had hoped and planned them to be.<br />
<br />
Congratulations!<br />
<br />
Love,<br />
<br />
The DE/VLsDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-82817911460631237522012-04-06T11:09:00.001-04:002012-04-06T11:11:33.589-04:00The Quest for the Dark Tower Pt. 13: The World Trade Center<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0w8tcr-d-1FeSzL0cumQg6VzSCNigbqpjVGzHZAjjW-C-v7N1TJphG-qbcptp-BRWQfYy68fc8b9YOo3EcnHVpQczI8MAOfmD54I4Qf0lWyDpwj88w8oRbOy9lLQ7Q3dwevhadaVtn7RM/s1600/button.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0w8tcr-d-1FeSzL0cumQg6VzSCNigbqpjVGzHZAjjW-C-v7N1TJphG-qbcptp-BRWQfYy68fc8b9YOo3EcnHVpQczI8MAOfmD54I4Qf0lWyDpwj88w8oRbOy9lLQ7Q3dwevhadaVtn7RM/s200/button.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705448228875726098" border="0" /></a>***Spoiler warning! Though I've made every attempt to avoid giving away key plot points during this quest, it's still very possible that information discussed herein may spoil a new reader's experience, so consider yourself warned! ***<br /><br />When Jake and Pere Callahan arrive in Midtown New York of 1999, they quickly track Susannah to <a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.ca/2012/03/quest-for-dark-tower-pt-12-new-york.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">The New York Plaza-Park Hyatt</span></a>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLn5C1qskRbXLDwWuP-bOqFDNIqfnUPUm_kV6Od389nR090Da0097LzdLPSLhg2zoIyHQHX8cbdqiwBmgXR-eGiaag8qQZl9xQ8rKaVIr6D7_KvSLgw3pPDI9YYSDHGYPP3MEAe3oiAuot/s1600/DSC01078.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 194px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLn5C1qskRbXLDwWuP-bOqFDNIqfnUPUm_kV6Od389nR090Da0097LzdLPSLhg2zoIyHQHX8cbdqiwBmgXR-eGiaag8qQZl9xQ8rKaVIr6D7_KvSLgw3pPDI9YYSDHGYPP3MEAe3oiAuot/s320/DSC01078.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705448615514865474" border="0" /></a> Finding a key left for Jake at the front desk by the most unlikeliest of sources, they eventually discover that although Susannah has left, Black Thirteen is still stowed away in the room's security safe. Taking the powerful talisman, they soon decide to store it in a more secure location.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr65Xh4x0JZbPVT7ZOuJutHWAImoSqafiz9P-xJO4iKRL_-cNSIPO3S2rUk_f3Ru35KEm5r12ZNKlW5HYqTPeqJGEtXyjzLWV0IPLtiRhXFnlEA9QXrEwsWjQcB8eDO3pp1o04dw_AFQuh/s1600/18.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr65Xh4x0JZbPVT7ZOuJutHWAImoSqafiz9P-xJO4iKRL_-cNSIPO3S2rUk_f3Ru35KEm5r12ZNKlW5HYqTPeqJGEtXyjzLWV0IPLtiRhXFnlEA9QXrEwsWjQcB8eDO3pp1o04dw_AFQuh/s320/18.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705448621007299730" border="0" /></a>After grabbing a cab south, Jake and Pere decide Black Thirteen should be kept in what Pere was once told were the safest storage lockers in all of Manhattan: <span style="font-style: italic;">The World Trade Center</span>. Once there, they lock the evil talisman in a long term storage locker and feed enough tokens into it to keep it tucked away until June of 2002 . . .<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixAz0hTkQyMZxAPclRMCiJghkU0Czc08W_56ypT-5KDuhd2dlchd8_dGjGG5Dd-hfGKKjhJ2zTxbeDUB-OOUmL19PucGkMThw8B_KIjJfUsxRV-wsB0Rnpblb4APHk378raN99Z7x9gzbo/s1600/17.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixAz0hTkQyMZxAPclRMCiJghkU0Czc08W_56ypT-5KDuhd2dlchd8_dGjGG5Dd-hfGKKjhJ2zTxbeDUB-OOUmL19PucGkMThw8B_KIjJfUsxRV-wsB0Rnpblb4APHk378raN99Z7x9gzbo/s320/17.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705448625208199042" border="0" /></a><br />Long days, pleasant nights!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-73525518147491407252012-03-30T10:54:00.000-04:002012-03-30T10:55:55.738-04:00The Quest for the Dark Tower Pt. 12: The New York Plaza-Park Hyatt<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdyU44pVvR5lOMeVWyUVQXNkj6foSh23NC0ISaCaFJoHW6ZjPLrMeN1Bk-fpjsNruJibPGG7tCQfom1IGe76HHzl99AABC38Fg_EbYwa3NP3aFf78yaYN7HW__WyefR74LmB46DWG22ZFh/s1600/button.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdyU44pVvR5lOMeVWyUVQXNkj6foSh23NC0ISaCaFJoHW6ZjPLrMeN1Bk-fpjsNruJibPGG7tCQfom1IGe76HHzl99AABC38Fg_EbYwa3NP3aFf78yaYN7HW__WyefR74LmB46DWG22ZFh/s200/button.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705451459117731042" border="0" /></a>***Spoiler warning! Though I've made every attempt to avoid giving away key plot points during this quest, it's still very possible that information discussed herein may spoil a new reader's experience, so consider yourself warned! ***<br /><br />In book six of Stephen King's <span style="font-style: italic;">Dark Tower</span> series, Susannah travels to Midtown New York in the spring of 1999 using the Unfound Door, a magic portal that can only be opened with the crystal ball or <span style="font-style: italic;">Bend O' the Rainbow</span> known as Black Thirteen. Once there, she finds a scrimshaw carving of a turtle in a hidden pocket of the drawstring bowling bag being used to carry Black Thirteen.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTT2Siv9hBrJMbIV_0LBQ0AbkosVF-ZT4rAlpUdCQoZofiGdWOfaCs-AAva0d0mBZff5R6qk6sQjNHOf2gt5o2n9hbzkeOYcVOzbacSCr4n8W4wAA-MSR5Aen3NCJG2REqGA3zw3I0FtPq/s1600/DSC01077.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 220px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTT2Siv9hBrJMbIV_0LBQ0AbkosVF-ZT4rAlpUdCQoZofiGdWOfaCs-AAva0d0mBZff5R6qk6sQjNHOf2gt5o2n9hbzkeOYcVOzbacSCr4n8W4wAA-MSR5Aen3NCJG2REqGA3zw3I0FtPq/s320/DSC01077.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705684444104339282" border="0" /></a>Holding the scrimshaw turtle, Susannah inadvertently mesmerizes an unsuspecting passerby. Needing a place to clean up and regain her bearings, she uses the turtle's suggestive power to convince a UN ambassador's aide to book her a room at the the <span style="font-style: italic;">New York Plaza-Park Hyatt</span>, located on 46th Street and First Avenue.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHySRjDDU1sTy4RqAdxyiCcAKFcEjzMMq8KeAgxgNO-MwjrWvWrJenzwiKa9w6O9ukuKcqgSN9Wixqz0ibE2X8pw49p8yu6rBYF01SV0IPIMEL7UkHvJ6M9t_DRD-6DjueADLpt4x27Mi3/s1600/NYC2_UNMilleniumHotel.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHySRjDDU1sTy4RqAdxyiCcAKFcEjzMMq8KeAgxgNO-MwjrWvWrJenzwiKa9w6O9ukuKcqgSN9Wixqz0ibE2X8pw49p8yu6rBYF01SV0IPIMEL7UkHvJ6M9t_DRD-6DjueADLpt4x27Mi3/s320/NYC2_UNMilleniumHotel.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705450335012286098" border="0" /></a>As Susannah enters the lobby of the the hotel she thinks that, aside from <span style="font-style: italic;">St. Patrick's Cathedral</span>, she had never seen such a beautiful room.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj53QggLTsgnCeIQQUnLKFCnXO6fhbgdazGzahEUH8ZXP72qHs9-mnmZO7frBUBRX5XQyK2SbjP_ErcErHxzNiDtx6LonEtPheUdLMFrvksJevAB9Dl3LQOtacUb_OqsattieFff684opVt/s1600/DSC01961.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj53QggLTsgnCeIQQUnLKFCnXO6fhbgdazGzahEUH8ZXP72qHs9-mnmZO7frBUBRX5XQyK2SbjP_ErcErHxzNiDtx6LonEtPheUdLMFrvksJevAB9Dl3LQOtacUb_OqsattieFff684opVt/s320/DSC01961.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705450347556135346" border="0" /></a>Walking up to the front desk, Susannah notices a sign stating:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">AS OF JULY 1ST, 1999, THE NEW YORK PLAZA-PARK HYATT<br />WILL BECOME THE REGAL U.N. PLAZA HOTEL<br />ANOTHER GREAT SOMBRA/NORTH CENTRAL PROJECT!!<br /></div><br />In fact, in our own where and when, the <span style="font-style: italic;">New York Plaza-Park Hyatt</span> has since been renamed the <span style="font-style: italic;">Millennium U.N. Plaza Hotel </span><span>and isn't located on 46th street, but on 44th.<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1vgnn5wvxXgw2kY0DCjU6rlx4D40QHShN65D5bogV9kH-6rCQ8rbeGtCrWxX6BaGYRORlhWBNJFQ-L2cwowggpWzc8onNyDRolQ_F2vyL48q8xyAffag3QKcCIbVxeLsZDUnFjxHM-AW1/s1600/NYC2_UNMilleniumHotelInside.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1vgnn5wvxXgw2kY0DCjU6rlx4D40QHShN65D5bogV9kH-6rCQ8rbeGtCrWxX6BaGYRORlhWBNJFQ-L2cwowggpWzc8onNyDRolQ_F2vyL48q8xyAffag3QKcCIbVxeLsZDUnFjxHM-AW1/s320/NYC2_UNMilleniumHotelInside.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705450335769458482" border="0" /></a>At the front desk Susannah once again relies on the hypnotic power of the turtle - or <i style="font-style: italic;">skö</i><span style="font-style: italic;">ldpadda</span> - to convince the clerk on duty of her identity. Holding up one of her <span style="font-style: italic;">Oriza</span> throwing plates, she convinces the woman behind the counter that it is her driver's license. Once she's checked in and has her room key, Susannah quickly takes the elevator up to her room.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitmXzKlTGYXUX-bawDAsnodaqyop5Sih5K06JYCdav66Xw-Xmrf8WvWd3czDsP_JB9YBVEOXQgBelwVDKnZp2g8Wl90aIem4rzoaDCXslVfYYSa7OdZaNLxkLA4h9TysnSa1eQnmdtFhUF/s1600/NYC1_Views_Skyline3.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitmXzKlTGYXUX-bawDAsnodaqyop5Sih5K06JYCdav66Xw-Xmrf8WvWd3czDsP_JB9YBVEOXQgBelwVDKnZp2g8Wl90aIem4rzoaDCXslVfYYSa7OdZaNLxkLA4h9TysnSa1eQnmdtFhUF/s320/NYC1_Views_Skyline3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705450348924247234" border="0" /></a>In the book, Susannah's room is said to be on the nineteenth floor, but in reality the hotel's rooms don't even begin until the thirtieth floor. So the view we had out our hotel room window was a bit higher up than what Susannah would have seen, but it still offered a fantastic view of all the buildings in and around the Turtle Bay area.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJvSZGYQDcrMbSKioDpsK0tYEPhg-056o4HESpYSMgsTswr3PayUl2uvGTzU_IvuK7XiUiOcYGSz51G1snru6fLWfgRdMu_q47dQ2t0CZMBkIZ-_ka9lQ5cpCgWGgZZ7RnsDJK9_rgifO3/s1600/NYC1_Views_Skyline2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJvSZGYQDcrMbSKioDpsK0tYEPhg-056o4HESpYSMgsTswr3PayUl2uvGTzU_IvuK7XiUiOcYGSz51G1snru6fLWfgRdMu_q47dQ2t0CZMBkIZ-_ka9lQ5cpCgWGgZZ7RnsDJK9_rgifO3/s320/NYC1_Views_Skyline2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705450364807296786" border="0" /></a>That includes the Trump World Tower, which while not part of the Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, is right next to it and may have been Sai King's inspiration for the 99-storey tower that 2 Dag Hammarskjold Plaza is described as in Book VII.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFLvKJLZdJSaNxxGpYin93vJxNGWbsp4mpvBLCc_eSn8rLoYja-LCpYBwIfZ3c41tNVLaJysOGrJQgmSCsvahFDBRxlwAmiMJwoiaGi_3YhsWe-OFVN1L2H_GQrxuUpAN3xSR9ody4Uli3/s1600/NYC1_Bedroom.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFLvKJLZdJSaNxxGpYin93vJxNGWbsp4mpvBLCc_eSn8rLoYja-LCpYBwIfZ3c41tNVLaJysOGrJQgmSCsvahFDBRxlwAmiMJwoiaGi_3YhsWe-OFVN1L2H_GQrxuUpAN3xSR9ody4Uli3/s320/NYC1_Bedroom.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705452223514540802" border="0" /></a>Aside from the spectacular view, the room itself was also very nice. I highly recommend the <span style="font-style: italic;">Millennium U.N. Plaza Hotel</span> to anyone who would be staying in New York, whether they are <span style="font-style: italic;">Dark Tower</span> fans looking to experience a little bit of the quest or just New York bound and looking for that perfect place to stay in Manhattan.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ-k8YaChpw6okGSfDXChcYUFz31Oh7Vex3nAoS8fmsuIM7jhuAPvnaYr6P8vzMca-aD91abYGzXcgL6DZylH9QC-R-AVlD0cSwZhJmGbbnkwIBytE2Gs200I5JeUaS3-S2K8crcfep4rg/s1600/NYC1_Bathroom.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ-k8YaChpw6okGSfDXChcYUFz31Oh7Vex3nAoS8fmsuIM7jhuAPvnaYr6P8vzMca-aD91abYGzXcgL6DZylH9QC-R-AVlD0cSwZhJmGbbnkwIBytE2Gs200I5JeUaS3-S2K8crcfep4rg/s320/NYC1_Bathroom.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705452232719316626" border="0" /></a><br />Long days, pleasant nights!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-82647363377918526832012-03-23T10:03:00.003-04:002012-03-23T10:11:47.213-04:00The Quest for the Dark Tower Pt. 11: The Doors of Fifth Avenue<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0si8Cp6dPNuuGs9rXIVf3dEZQ1cOUsRSH_NkBm-h6EA1jf8qDBpaVmuu_f1vA8H5LxeyONXMX0Eh5_Jb7ykkXFvTD5cbMlCV52GfeeUF-3SL1bOgnbGhioYQ1pcFfwOXMxs2GYlv2_z_J/s1600/button.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0si8Cp6dPNuuGs9rXIVf3dEZQ1cOUsRSH_NkBm-h6EA1jf8qDBpaVmuu_f1vA8H5LxeyONXMX0Eh5_Jb7ykkXFvTD5cbMlCV52GfeeUF-3SL1bOgnbGhioYQ1pcFfwOXMxs2GYlv2_z_J/s200/button.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705452865545781154" border="0" /></a>***Spoiler warning! Though I've made every attempt to avoid giving away key plot points during this quest, it's still very possible that information discussed herein may spoil a new reader's experience, so consider yourself warned! ***<br /><br />Before I begin this week's leg of the quest, I thought I'd just mention that these chapters of mine are based on personal photos, memorabilia and experiences while researching many of the different aspects of Stephen King's <span style="font-style: italic;">Dark Tower</span> series, so there are times when I skip over large portions of the story. For those looking for a more linear experience detailing Roland's quest without needing to read the books themselves, I highly recommend Suzanne Johnson's <span style="font-style: italic;">A Read of the Dark Tower</span> on <a href="http://www.tor.com/features/series/a-read-of-the-dark-tower">Tor.com</a>.<br /><br />The weekly feature is a chapter by chapter breakdown of the entire <span style="font-style: italic;">DT</span> series . . . but be warned, it is an <span>extremely</span> long journey. After ten months, Ms. Johnson's weekly coverage has only brought her to about three quarters of the way through <span style="font-style: italic;">The Waste Lands</span>, meaning that it will likely be another two to three years before the entire read-through is complete, especially once the new book, <a href="http://www.stephenking.com/DarkTower/wind_through_the_keyhole.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Wind Through The Keyhole</span></a> is added into the mix. Nevertheless, it's very insightful and any reader of the series would benefit greatly by following along.<br /><br />And with that said, now back to my own quest for the Dark Tower:<br /><br />At the beginning of Book VI: <span style="font-style: italic;">Song of Susannah</span>, Jake is called upon to use his unique ability, known among gunslingers as "<span>the touch</span>," to open yet another mystical door between worlds. As Jake tries to open the Unfound Door with nothing other than his mind and the help of the mystic folk known as the Manni and their Branni Bob, he tries visualizing doors of all kinds. All the doors he was obsessed with when he was trying to get back to Mid-World, bedroom doors, bathroom doors, kitchen doors, closet doors, cloakroom doors . . . even the Robert Heinlein book <span style="font-style: italic;">The Door Into Summer</span>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSffySwe-QHMg84yrl1nA_4PwpuEUw3N0P-5t6aYeVJyOD7-NXowj7BF0OhuSiaO3DxRBQwROn7KmsbNcDUvAF0YkDG97iCsq2VmsrT-hlkKHeohF8hNA0kf2LK8bLw-q-8azEN8vYqqQR/s1600/The+Door+into+Summer.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 193px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSffySwe-QHMg84yrl1nA_4PwpuEUw3N0P-5t6aYeVJyOD7-NXowj7BF0OhuSiaO3DxRBQwROn7KmsbNcDUvAF0YkDG97iCsq2VmsrT-hlkKHeohF8hNA0kf2LK8bLw-q-8azEN8vYqqQR/s320/The+Door+into+Summer.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5720907609180202210" border="0" /></a>As Jake concentrates harder he envisions all the doors on both sides of Fifth Avenue between Forty-eighth and Sixtieth opening all at once . . .<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBwZEVTXaN1r51G4-E3kp2fOfsGXaEhIt9EWdhAhafq4dhxMILZmFiHIH7NSrk5F6qLgnn1lpv9zLqsWzqYNJAGlPk8hKU9Cp25Kr7fh2ff3mEo-odSWZHDjuA3kCGqKN5DDhuMDPmKOmb/s1600/DSC01863.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBwZEVTXaN1r51G4-E3kp2fOfsGXaEhIt9EWdhAhafq4dhxMILZmFiHIH7NSrk5F6qLgnn1lpv9zLqsWzqYNJAGlPk8hKU9Cp25Kr7fh2ff3mEo-odSWZHDjuA3kCGqKN5DDhuMDPmKOmb/s320/DSC01863.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705454043337161346" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Fendi</span>!<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Vf7vviqMnSKf2V-CSrUM6WHBhu9amcNLlzHiRxoStwMrUv8DFdgCdZF8tG8D9UNRFWXl4ugujilVTOrFA_ogRuRXDV906jBquM0ajt7hUj74fzoXcjgfXZXQNynAD8ow2MyCq4hcy7NY/s1600/DSC01872.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0Vf7vviqMnSKf2V-CSrUM6WHBhu9amcNLlzHiRxoStwMrUv8DFdgCdZF8tG8D9UNRFWXl4ugujilVTOrFA_ogRuRXDV906jBquM0ajt7hUj74fzoXcjgfXZXQNynAD8ow2MyCq4hcy7NY/s320/DSC01872.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705454056789502370" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Tiffany</span>!<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS_vbVMrsqJ-OgxuShQVcQFyPlpYGYOWWpUsO1iUKuCG4vHT3c7SHOBL7P0n_ohUG1Zruj2r2a9BovvRi3hPYNsnGanYPXCiWiLZW1nJB1yoYiyOO2aT-UkEsaDqBkEWpqUKyXiiJGTLf9/s1600/DSC01881.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS_vbVMrsqJ-OgxuShQVcQFyPlpYGYOWWpUsO1iUKuCG4vHT3c7SHOBL7P0n_ohUG1Zruj2r2a9BovvRi3hPYNsnGanYPXCiWiLZW1nJB1yoYiyOO2aT-UkEsaDqBkEWpqUKyXiiJGTLf9/s320/DSC01881.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705454072462747010" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Bergdorf Goodman</span>!<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYKL9HahoyGJfp-1jZeeDrYs0ooEhkxEVaInDZNGFMLobQB7jupOQZiXm2bToNCyH1c6OSaW1Sf-6osEhAnVIcOSNVDwfu0Hq3l-bG_Tfxm_2p8IyzPuHR-J8khTb3BWknsBhsycVk1bix/s1600/DSC01862.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYKL9HahoyGJfp-1jZeeDrYs0ooEhkxEVaInDZNGFMLobQB7jupOQZiXm2bToNCyH1c6OSaW1Sf-6osEhAnVIcOSNVDwfu0Hq3l-bG_Tfxm_2p8IyzPuHR-J8khTb3BWknsBhsycVk1bix/s320/DSC01862.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705454050306376946" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Cartier</span>!<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-banN4eRPp1EUkwzooX13q6kjYlP_zKQ_5jldhKFgBBl_bH-pEE3P4aseqrQZfYgLYUKclVpq0GYmxhe2bk7bFpRnZ-UOzaZyP9g4whj5Ukiz1ZsWh6itJ1ppPXWHiX0rVditTQgRsnQn/s1600/DSC01890.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-banN4eRPp1EUkwzooX13q6kjYlP_zKQ_5jldhKFgBBl_bH-pEE3P4aseqrQZfYgLYUKclVpq0GYmxhe2bk7bFpRnZ-UOzaZyP9g4whj5Ukiz1ZsWh6itJ1ppPXWHiX0rVditTQgRsnQn/s320/DSC01890.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705454079035995554" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Sherry Netherland Hotel</span><span style="font-style: italic;">!</span><br /></div><br />Jake sees thousands of doors along an endless hallway which he instantly knows to be in the Pentagon and imagines them all swinging open, creating a hurricane draft. Then suddenly the Unfound Door opens to New York in 1999 and sweeps both Jake, Oy and the fallen priest, Pere Callahan into it before closing quickly, reopening on another time and place and yanking Eddie and Roland in . . .<br /><br />Long days, pleasant nights!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-89055371328675713342012-03-20T10:41:00.003-04:002012-03-20T15:57:54.210-04:00Tombstone Tuesday!<span style="text-decoration: underline;"></span>Headstone monument from <span style="font-style: italic;">Victoria Lawn Cemetery</span> in St. Catharines.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtedQ6EILjUTDsAAbWVXQgQGSbmNW1mqBoxqZm4zHwX91WEXz-jSk6QZKqcL72EO0hxbjgocu3e9i5L1JF_a8z5Kt8Ubg_geDxd1kAq9l_w3JcM7aSeqVvxSPzg6mnyd4DZ9LDSYVEYNqc/s1600/DSC00097.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtedQ6EILjUTDsAAbWVXQgQGSbmNW1mqBoxqZm4zHwX91WEXz-jSk6QZKqcL72EO0hxbjgocu3e9i5L1JF_a8z5Kt8Ubg_geDxd1kAq9l_w3JcM7aSeqVvxSPzg6mnyd4DZ9LDSYVEYNqc/s320/DSC00097.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721989927406213826" border="0" /></a>Stay Tombed!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-57463784463872862232012-03-16T10:54:00.006-04:002012-03-16T13:06:30.593-04:00The Quest for the Dark Tower - Reshuffle: The Songs of Roland - Part 2<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIeuraKvHgp4omINzrpggE3mxVP8dYR8JZiyzwLs2oinfJw98CDp8LZWJEKvf6goV5AaTmHLbie5wHGI8HMn5reBQmD-ck-2NxMRBrwg9M0zRObpBDkVNVJvjybzi5F0RbZC9kcdaugPX1/s1600/button.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIeuraKvHgp4omINzrpggE3mxVP8dYR8JZiyzwLs2oinfJw98CDp8LZWJEKvf6goV5AaTmHLbie5wHGI8HMn5reBQmD-ck-2NxMRBrwg9M0zRObpBDkVNVJvjybzi5F0RbZC9kcdaugPX1/s200/button.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5691996496237090290" border="0" /></a>***Spoiler warning! Though I've made every attempt to avoid giving away key plot points during this quest, it's still very possible that information discussed herein may spoil a new reader's experience, so consider yourself warned! ***<br /><br />This entry covers Books V-VII, Part I (covering books I-IV) was posted in a <a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2012/02/quest-for-dark-tower-shuffle-songs-of.html">previous entry</a>.<br /><br />There are a lot of songs on this list, and I'm sure I've missed a few, so if there's anything missing, or if any of the links turn out to be broken, please feel free to mention it. This list wouldn't be nearly as complete as it is if not for several playlists that had been posted on the now defunct web community, <span style="font-style: italic;">www.TheDarkTower.net</span>, so I'd like to take moment to say thanks to those good folks for sharing and helping to enrich so many readers' listening experience.<br /><br />I've included links to <span style="font-style: italic;">Youtube</span> (or other sources, on those rare occasions when <span style="font-style: italic;">Youtube</span> came up dry) and page numbers to the hardcover trade editions for easy reference. In several cases, I've included some commentary notes (for example, where a band or singer is mentioned, I've tried to include the song that best suits the situation, or <span style="font-style: italic;">vice versa</span>). Some song references have been mentioned repeatedly, so for simplicity's sake, I've only included the first page where a song is made reference to.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIeuraKvHgp4omINzrpggE3mxVP8dYR8JZiyzwLs2oinfJw98CDp8LZWJEKvf6goV5AaTmHLbie5wHGI8HMn5reBQmD-ck-2NxMRBrwg9M0zRObpBDkVNVJvjybzi5F0RbZC9kcdaugPX1/s1600/button.jpg"> </a><span style="font-style: italic;">Dark Tower V: The Wolves of the Calla</span><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIeuraKvHgp4omINzrpggE3mxVP8dYR8JZiyzwLs2oinfJw98CDp8LZWJEKvf6goV5AaTmHLbie5wHGI8HMn5reBQmD-ck-2NxMRBrwg9M0zRObpBDkVNVJvjybzi5F0RbZC9kcdaugPX1/s1600/button.jpg"> </a> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6E94ppMz-4"><span style="font-style: italic;">New York Groove</span></a> – Hello (pg. 48)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMBO2Sb_91k"><span style="font-style: italic;">Kansas City Blues</span></a> – Jim Jackson (pg. 49)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wU1kTuVSUOw"><span style="font-style: italic;">19th Nervous Breakdown</span></a> - The Rolling Stones (pg. 179)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEIM0dpfiG0"><span style="font-style: italic;">Maid of Constant Sorrow</span></a> - Joan Baez (pg. 228)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KaWSOlASWc"><span style="font-style: italic;">Walk On The Wild Side</span></a> - Lou Reed (pg. 276)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u18dXZzslF0"><span style="font-style: italic;">Someone Saved My Life Tonight</span></a> - Elton John (pg. 277)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSZ261HBCb4"><span style="font-style: italic;">M-O-T-H-E-R (A Word That Means the World to Me)</span></a> - Howard Johnson/Theodore Morse (pg. 428) - "Put them all together . . ."<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://vimeo.com/2690387"><span style="font-style: italic;">A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall</span></a> - Bob Dylan (pg. 435)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccenFp_3kq8"><span style="font-style: italic;">I Can’t Go For That</span></a> - Hall & Oates (pg. 463)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBwS66EBUcY"><span style="font-style: italic;">I Need A Hero</span></a> - Bonnie Tyler (pg. 503) - "Holding out for a hero . . ."<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sc0F-fw3tkY"><span style="font-style: italic;">Summer in the City</span></a> - Lovin' Spoonful (pg. 514)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDY4nR1IqCs"><span style="font-style: italic;">In the Summertime</span></a> - Mungo Jerry (pg. 515)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XwwR8tfQMoM"><span style="font-style: italic;">Follow the Pied Piper</span></a> - Crispian St. Peters (pg. 593)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-style: italic;">Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah</span><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlNantlznCA"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Court Of The Crimson King</span></a> – King Crimson (pg. 13)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoHBeGlRLvE">Night and Day</a> - Fred Astaire (pg.91)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SursCSfvIZ8"><span style="font-style: italic;">Stormy Weather</span></a> – Ethel Waters (pg.95)</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://vimeo.com/25499686"><span style="font-style: italic;">Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again</span></a> - Bob Dylan (pg. 139) - "And here I sit so patiently waiting to find out what price you have to pay to get out of going through all these things twice"</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://vimeo.com/30256466"><span style="font-style: italic;">Visions of Johanna</span></a> - Bob Dylan (pg. 153)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BBfybCPkjA"><span style="font-style: italic;">Pinhead</span></a> - The Ramones (pg. 274) - "Gabba-Gabba-Hey!"<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDMGMztg16g"><span style="font-style: italic;">Bad Man’s Blunder</span></a> – The Kingston Trio - "Ninety-nine years on the hard rockpile." (pg. 289)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=et3fVvAbL7k"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Wreck of the Old '97</span></a> - Johnny Cash (pg. 289) - Sai King mistakes this song as </p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fw-btrdpOG0"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Wreck of the Hesperus</span></a> – Procol Harum (pg. 289)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JORFRQfAd70"><span style="font-style: italic;">99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall</span></a> - Trad. (pg. 289)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eq9FCBatl3A&ob=av2e"><span style="font-style: italic;">That'll Be The Day</span></a> - Buddy Holly (pg. 290)<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuSrX8309qo">Walking Through My Dreams</a> - Big Bopper (pg. 290)</p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ziSLGVQOSg">Come On, Let's Go</a> - Ritchie Valens (pg. 290)<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IctvKFfpHI0"><span style="font-style: italic;">Hang on Sloopy</span></a> - The McCoys (pg. 302)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAp5XcTTBCQ"><span style="font-style: italic;">This Time</span></a> - Troy Shondell (pg. 303)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cD6zTJqbt8"><span style="font-style: italic;">Pop Goes the Weasel</span></a> - Trad. (pg. 328) - "Round and round the mulberry bush . . ."<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVnK0zSpu7M"><span style="font-style: italic;">Man of Constant Sorrow</span></a> - Ralph Stanley (pg. 339)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dpyhl85MYmU"><span style="font-style: italic;">I Shall Be Released</span></a> - Traditional (pg. 353)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFvkhzkS4bw"><span style="font-style: italic;">Blowin in the Wind</span></a> - Joan Baez & Bob Dylan (pg. 353)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_AJifsE2eQ"><span style="font-style: italic;">Hesitation Blues</span></a> - Reverend Gary Davis (pg. 353)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5pgrKSwFJE"><span style="font-style: italic;">I Ain’t Marching Anymore</span></a> – Phil Ochs (pg. 353)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3djPplD03Zk"><span style="font-style: italic;">Alfie</span></a> – Burt Bacharach & Nancy Wilson (pg. 404)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ww5GXbk58R0"><span style="font-style: italic;">Bad Company</span></a> – Bad Company (pg. i)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o22eIJDtKho"><span style="font-style: italic;">Hurt</span></a> - Johnny Cash (pg. i)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeNQkQGcGkA"><span style="font-style: italic;">Moonlight Becomes You</span></a> - Frank Sinatra (pg. 7)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zorT_gsXzXI"><span style="font-style: italic;">I left My Heart in San Francisco</span></a> - Tony Bennett (pg. 7)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LBmUwi6mEo"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Lion Sleeps Tonight</span></a> - The Tokens (pg. 81) "Wimeweh . . ."<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPmaVT-P5Ds"><span style="font-style: italic;">Good Golly Miss Molly</span></a> - Little Richard (pg.77)</p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esuVxk_gqX0"><span style="font-style: italic;">Harrigan</span></a> - George M. Cohan (pg. 90) - "H-A-double R-I; Harrigan, that's me!"<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">- <span style="font-style: italic;">Roll Tide</span> - University of Alabama Fight Song (pg. 95) - "Go wide, go wide, roll you Tide, we don't run and we don't hide, we're the 'Bama Crimson Tide!"<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B95r6k1MouI">Walk Like A Man</a> - Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons (pg. 96)<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYKNViGnXoo">Funny How Time Slips Away</a> - Wanda Jackson (pg. 96)</p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcwD7kh28M0">Ya Ya</a> - Lee Dorsey (pg. 96)<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StDpLge_ITM">Yankee Doodle Boy</a> - James Cagney (pg. 97)<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzkMdIwL-hM"><span style="font-style: italic;">Who Threw The Overalls In Mrs. Murphy’s Chowder?</span></a> – Edward M. Favor (pg. 167)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQRIOKvR2WM">Nowhere to Run</a> </span>- Martha and the Vandellas (pg. 227)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7dkn1ZnIPk"><span style="font-style: italic;">Drive My Car</span></a> - The Beatles (pg. 317)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zeWVzT4s2Kw"><span style="font-style: italic;">That’s Amore</span></a> - Dean Martin (pg. 351)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3t9SfrfDZM"><span style="font-style: italic;">Born to Run</span></a> - Bruce Springsteen (pg. 404)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wl47EEYrAc"><span style="font-style: italic;">I’m Late</span></a> - Bill Thompson (pg. 432)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipc9pL27krs"><span style="font-style: italic;">Hey Nineteen</span></a> - Steely Dan (pg. 434)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xTsvwBkVdKw"><span style="font-style: italic;">Crazy Train</span></a> - Ozzy Osbourne (pg. 444)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3XdXEJEI4E"><span style="font-style: italic;">Amazing Grace</span></a> - Trad. (pg. 478)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdiCJUysIT0"><span style="font-style: italic;">Rockin’ in the Free World</span></a> - Neil Young (pg. 600)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C95Cb2ByHNA">Wild Blue Yonder</a> - Air Force Anthem (pg. 603)<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwyvWQxoVhk"><span style="font-style: italic;">What Child Is This?</span></a> - Trad. (pg. 645)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yy57Xdk9u0o"><span style="font-style: italic;">California Sun</span></a> - The Rivieras (pg. 707)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DW8ecqu0Iw"><span style="font-style: italic;">Sugar Shack</span></a> - Jimmy Gilmer and the Fireballs (pg. 716)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUWs8L2yhiU"><span style="font-style: italic;">Heat Wave</span></a> - Martha and the Vandellas (pg. 716)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0YifXhm-Zc"><span style="font-style: italic;">She Loves You</span></a> - The Beatles (pg. 716)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-2Tnp9whDU"><span style="font-style: italic;">Silent Night</span></a> - Trad. (pg. 724)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtINzvbYwY0"><span style="font-style: italic;">Come Go With Me</span></a> - The Del-Vikings (pg. 728)<br /></p><br />Long days, pleasant nights!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-39348513297887447632012-03-13T10:27:00.003-04:002012-03-13T10:59:04.833-04:00Tombstone Tuesday - The Cemetery Gates Pt. 3The gates and fountain at Los Angeles' <span style="font-style: italic;">Hollywood Forever Cemetery</span> in California.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQV2NELiuCPRlOg7YviwkbrZigtoYQ6o-aieOtJDBzKBPKw8AUX7D4-0W3K-SD9PoNmmJNtatXNR-ydVk2wZ12of94Ck0837eTl2dDUatHqQi1JhKOK8v5PwaWLbFL_zn98A0TDcHSFoXA/s1600/HFCHollywoodSignHills.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQV2NELiuCPRlOg7YviwkbrZigtoYQ6o-aieOtJDBzKBPKw8AUX7D4-0W3K-SD9PoNmmJNtatXNR-ydVk2wZ12of94Ck0837eTl2dDUatHqQi1JhKOK8v5PwaWLbFL_zn98A0TDcHSFoXA/s320/HFCHollywoodSignHills.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5719395874808630450" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDZFbpzOAbiPqu7-hdD9lTsUZZpvdkJEjvMYjIF68mOUzjdSDecvEUORjB6hM-2C2BgQ7EojqGpfSfMFJYCt4dal5s1Hvn6T5VAhNQl85mBZ66A1mWu4hqLq0FVGh8wugNkRcMfoJuKgRK/s1600/HFCFountain4.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDZFbpzOAbiPqu7-hdD9lTsUZZpvdkJEjvMYjIF68mOUzjdSDecvEUORjB6hM-2C2BgQ7EojqGpfSfMFJYCt4dal5s1Hvn6T5VAhNQl85mBZ66A1mWu4hqLq0FVGh8wugNkRcMfoJuKgRK/s320/HFCFountain4.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5719393471886828178" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRFUVvis5Hk1vg3VkQNWZbpNYD8wQGZFhyphenhyphenk7JQWo4AJN0Gm_iCAY-WyokCjud0cDF9dKQjdA34PIiNzgCzx7CqUwHl-UWkiCh7XooNDj0JYDFV9Aha8RX0SLQ4R2ndLAbm5kRusc2dZo8x/s1600/DSC00319.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRFUVvis5Hk1vg3VkQNWZbpNYD8wQGZFhyphenhyphenk7JQWo4AJN0Gm_iCAY-WyokCjud0cDF9dKQjdA34PIiNzgCzx7CqUwHl-UWkiCh7XooNDj0JYDFV9Aha8RX0SLQ4R2ndLAbm5kRusc2dZo8x/s320/DSC00319.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5715714631953493362" border="0" /></a><br />Stay Tombed!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-55907984436122670012012-03-09T09:04:00.006-05:002012-03-15T12:29:59.361-04:00The Quest for the Dark Tower Pt. 10: The Vacant Lot - Part II<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig9JKWAc-g9fHusJx1uasfWkqGC5PVqw0gA1OjakJ7ShGXtTZqoNoS1GVURw6PTjrNibzcXRCt2WoSKtimHd7Dx6qtaW_qBf0JqrVAK3QijYkVjpHe0C4olEs4Vhzy0DvPaWdfM-SgQLQM/s1600/button.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig9JKWAc-g9fHusJx1uasfWkqGC5PVqw0gA1OjakJ7ShGXtTZqoNoS1GVURw6PTjrNibzcXRCt2WoSKtimHd7Dx6qtaW_qBf0JqrVAK3QijYkVjpHe0C4olEs4Vhzy0DvPaWdfM-SgQLQM/s200/button.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5715383339958771010" border="0" /></a> ***Spoiler warning! Though I've made every attempt to avoid giving away key plot points during this quest, it's still very possible that information discussed herein may spoil a new reader's experience, so consider yourself warned! ***<br /><br />Not long after surviving a deadly riddling contest with an artificially intelligent <a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2012/03/quest-for-dark-tower-pt-9-charlie-choo.html">runaway train</a>, Eddie Dean has another dream about <a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2012/02/quest-for-dark-tower-pt-8-vacant-lot.html">the vacant lot</a> at Forty-sixth Street and Second Avenue. In his dream, he is standing with the rest of the <span style="font-style: italic;">ka-tet</span>, Susannah, Roland and Jake (who is holding his billy-bumbler companion, Oy) in front of the weedy, trash-littered corner lot. This time though, the short board fence is sporting very different handbills.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8k85dqHIJRdYZPBZJaPa8dPnbhy3tR0RgEANMXGpKBC2OJUvlAexSkFJqLzztN4StxSX2r02aXbO_KvlBWhO29sClT1XmjBD5Toc-SIZ1dgySzNQefzJRXJhW4MD64pIZpX3jGiGlLC6d/s1600/sexpistols.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 234px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8k85dqHIJRdYZPBZJaPa8dPnbhy3tR0RgEANMXGpKBC2OJUvlAexSkFJqLzztN4StxSX2r02aXbO_KvlBWhO29sClT1XmjBD5Toc-SIZ1dgySzNQefzJRXJhW4MD64pIZpX3jGiGlLC6d/s320/sexpistols.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5715437616494999954" border="0" /></a> The first that Eddie sees is a poster for a reunion tour of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Sex Pistols</span>. Eddie scoffs at the notion of this, thinking that <span style="font-style: italic;">The Sex Pistols</span> is one band that would never get back together. In truth, despite bassist Sid Vicious' death in 1979, the band <span style="font-style: italic;">did</span> reunite in 1996 and tour, a fact that would be lost on Eddie since he was pulled out of 1987 when Roland recruited him for his quest to the Dark Tower.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM6PbPFB9sEclXPTnrjYwcz3xB3VhttNCpYiB-Mv-gOlqxHhm5d53s4eTud_HT__5S52-Ca84TfaORBGcrobFXBZwneYrCYUc0OVlS7fFdI9Sb3_Assg0RfaG-3s9sz24t9FsDBWpekr9y/s1600/happygilmore01.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 222px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM6PbPFB9sEclXPTnrjYwcz3xB3VhttNCpYiB-Mv-gOlqxHhm5d53s4eTud_HT__5S52-Ca84TfaORBGcrobFXBZwneYrCYUc0OVlS7fFdI9Sb3_Assg0RfaG-3s9sz24t9FsDBWpekr9y/s320/happygilmore01.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5715382314223564642" border="0" /></a>The second poster Eddie sees is an advertisement for Adam Sandler, a comedian that Eddie has never heard of. This is further evidence that the scene before his eyes is from (what he would consider to be) the future.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp3B_iY9NOEXNFcWKsfkgc2jjUKQBMWYExIy-_NUPhEz1-Hkr3iIBOgZ4ClTyhhA1IGw2C_TfTkOI4UynmeJPioNCLD83JCc-Uy2gqRy3bwvFxlQ19N5iQlUNgl6ndWs7L50m8fPKbSW1l/s1600/The-Craft-1996-movie-poster.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp3B_iY9NOEXNFcWKsfkgc2jjUKQBMWYExIy-_NUPhEz1-Hkr3iIBOgZ4ClTyhhA1IGw2C_TfTkOI4UynmeJPioNCLD83JCc-Uy2gqRy3bwvFxlQ19N5iQlUNgl6ndWs7L50m8fPKbSW1l/s320/The-Craft-1996-movie-poster.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5715382315519824562" border="0" /></a>The last poster that Eddie spies is for a movie about teen witches called <span style="font-style: italic;">The Craft</span>. This is most interesting because one of the stars of this movie, Fairuza Balk, made her film debut years earlier as Dorothy Gale in the 1985 Disney movie <span style="font-style: italic;">Return To Oz</span> (both witches and Oz have a very large part to do with the story before the end of <span style="font-style: italic;">Wizard and Glass</span>).<br /><br />Beyond these posters is another graffiti message:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">See the BEAR of fearsome size!</span></span><br style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255); font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span></div><div style="font-style: italic; text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">All the WORLD'S within his eyes.</span><br style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);"><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">TIME grows thin, the past's a riddle;</span><br style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);"><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">The TOWER awaits you in the middle.</span></div><br />Looking past the fence, the <span style="font-style: italic;">ka-tet</span> admires the rose growing in the vacant lot before noticing the sign indicating the luxury condos scheduled to be built on this spot. Jake assures them that the sign has been there for some time and that the construction is not likely to happen. Just then, a large red bulldozer, with the words <span style="font-style: italic;">All Hail The Crimson King</span> slashed across the front blade in bright yellow, begins tearing across the lot towards the rose.<br /><br />At first, the bulldozer is being driven by Gasher, a diseased gang member who had kidnapped Jake as they were traveling through the near dead city of Lud. After a second glance, the driver appears to be Engineer Bob, the fictional character from the children's book, <span style="font-style: italic;">Charlie the Choo Choo</span>. As the bulldozer bears down on the rose, the ka-tet helpless to save it, Eddie realizes just before waking that the man behind the controls of the bulldozer is none other than Roland . . .<br /><br />Long days, pleasant nights!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-8625191327810470082012-03-06T09:17:00.001-05:002012-03-06T09:17:56.778-05:00Tombstone Tuesday - The Cemetery Gates Pt. 2The gates of St. Catharines' <span style="font-style: italic;">Victoria Lawn Cemetery</span>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiX0wR9-thIpNR5a4NE9qlxtmdOWzXSEw-AdBeufeyHOR4I1wR9kfHASK0Fsg52ALgm3cFwuXE1bcxQ7HO3kCoCcNtp7ObcvAtUHj3sTbGy74xdw3piqxcxm49Muo12UWLRgR7xx8nHuZF/s1600/DSC00127.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiX0wR9-thIpNR5a4NE9qlxtmdOWzXSEw-AdBeufeyHOR4I1wR9kfHASK0Fsg52ALgm3cFwuXE1bcxQ7HO3kCoCcNtp7ObcvAtUHj3sTbGy74xdw3piqxcxm49Muo12UWLRgR7xx8nHuZF/s320/DSC00127.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5715712531102896034" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWFE1nDShJ5mMRefpBemflNQ4erZ7QWzXYSOaCayAJyo6hmLleiUlbXRseHJBlJs-66yPEO90t28hVwwz0Wki2auQT-j8STR7cmFkRmsn3UHsE10kCy-7ZXEXyfzzOvPrXd8eWtGiLQ9H-/s1600/DSC00167.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWFE1nDShJ5mMRefpBemflNQ4erZ7QWzXYSOaCayAJyo6hmLleiUlbXRseHJBlJs-66yPEO90t28hVwwz0Wki2auQT-j8STR7cmFkRmsn3UHsE10kCy-7ZXEXyfzzOvPrXd8eWtGiLQ9H-/s320/DSC00167.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5715712536358639074" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9I-r19luJPhYT48UpGZnKgz4TNdSr3KM7rUrlsCmXpZFQk-TlfJMQvYjK91ZMMk4RURlb7rWTVcKLBwNRaLp2TOUynfskNUd52aRf8YhINaySf_eLmcFlEHxxpxMRttbaY-j6ixqB9FSj/s1600/DSC00166.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9I-r19luJPhYT48UpGZnKgz4TNdSr3KM7rUrlsCmXpZFQk-TlfJMQvYjK91ZMMk4RURlb7rWTVcKLBwNRaLp2TOUynfskNUd52aRf8YhINaySf_eLmcFlEHxxpxMRttbaY-j6ixqB9FSj/s320/DSC00166.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5715712544869414786" border="0" /></a><br />Stay Tombed!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-3247342274395534902012-03-02T14:12:00.009-05:002012-03-16T15:25:10.807-04:00The Quest for the Dark Tower Pt. 9: Charlie The Choo Choo<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQyK8XOitOhW3mbYHsCanIlJ8e1D9QRZrDalVIWQ57HAvrLubi43neYBL3-bpT8zI-DWLqqLsAK0ASoGXktcmNfJbr5ZvXU9qMSh7qQwvL2BQU51Tq1JYFSpwBu_cdTObyCqnQpfiZcwUI/s1600/button.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQyK8XOitOhW3mbYHsCanIlJ8e1D9QRZrDalVIWQ57HAvrLubi43neYBL3-bpT8zI-DWLqqLsAK0ASoGXktcmNfJbr5ZvXU9qMSh7qQwvL2BQU51Tq1JYFSpwBu_cdTObyCqnQpfiZcwUI/s200/button.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705810443936333906" border="0" /></a>***Spoiler warning! Though I've made every attempt to avoid giving away key plot points during this quest, it's still very possible that information discussed herein may spoil a new reader's experience, so consider yourself warned! ***<br /><br />When Jake arrives home after his discovery at <a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2012/02/quest-for-dark-tower-pt-8-vacant-lot.html">the vacant lot</a>, he's confronted by his parents who are furious over his leaving school early, but he dodges their frantic questioning and quickly heads to his room.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTAJ13a81dbsMTPHAo_90FT_SaJyEFsV6akgkV3-oypPMq65EuBBtYIxtslSAE06wH_AhZ_lLr0Z4Y7GBgRVT-jZdNySKE2LHqlVzWCkyVK92FW0YWWs_VfPAKtDcLSw24hrOOULCAgiP4/s1600/256_26149375780_678405780_1377529_7287_n.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTAJ13a81dbsMTPHAo_90FT_SaJyEFsV6akgkV3-oypPMq65EuBBtYIxtslSAE06wH_AhZ_lLr0Z4Y7GBgRVT-jZdNySKE2LHqlVzWCkyVK92FW0YWWs_VfPAKtDcLSw24hrOOULCAgiP4/s320/256_26149375780_678405780_1377529_7287_n.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5715066118977214802" border="0" /></a>Once there, Mrs. Greta Shaw brings him a sandwich and the dreaded Final English Comp. essay that had prompted Jake's fleeing <a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2012/01/quest-for-dark-tower-pt-5-piper-school.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Piper School</span></a>. Attached is a note from his French teacher expressing support during Final Exams week and Jake is suddenly overcome with the urge to cry at the warmth and misplaced effort to understand his anxiety. He opens the folder and discovers he has received an A+ for the mad gibberish he had typed out, his English teacher assuming it to be inspired stream-of-conciousness writing.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBRt5ICrEHOCSB-YeSl7Woho36uKxiTc5XEx22HtNz50CnMXKhJRf5U3thYl8SOlVF7fTsdWVhI_-dvc2HF3ulKGYQpPxKzkxXamdqsB2KZXVUrA2KKWFdYrrCkvH-NmzNKZSQXdQwJXxl/s1600/DSC02787.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBRt5ICrEHOCSB-YeSl7Woho36uKxiTc5XEx22HtNz50CnMXKhJRf5U3thYl8SOlVF7fTsdWVhI_-dvc2HF3ulKGYQpPxKzkxXamdqsB2KZXVUrA2KKWFdYrrCkvH-NmzNKZSQXdQwJXxl/s320/DSC02787.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705681781789597250" border="0" /></a>After laughing himself silly at the absurdity of his teacher's critique of his Final Essay, Jake speaks with both of his parents and smooths things over. After they leave, he picks up <span style="font-style: italic;">Charlie the Choo Choo</span> and begins to read.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYao9VBi2ZL2ZG2FLrlyg4W9WIc0gyhM4mCUczdrZdAlstp-7JU14xSvO79CDWiUxpmTBaRzQQp4RAtwRz4uZdtTeiBuk_8fMZ4QGkgIfTPlq2IUmYRb0G5qJ7qeEndzBpzujgXBq6ZtUI/s1600/DSC00902.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYao9VBi2ZL2ZG2FLrlyg4W9WIc0gyhM4mCUczdrZdAlstp-7JU14xSvO79CDWiUxpmTBaRzQQp4RAtwRz4uZdtTeiBuk_8fMZ4QGkgIfTPlq2IUmYRb0G5qJ7qeEndzBpzujgXBq6ZtUI/s320/DSC00902.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5715064391307953986" border="0" /></a>While reading, Jake thinks of how the illustrations in the book are similar to the ones in his favorite kindergarten book <span style="font-style: italic;">Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel</span> by Virginia Lee Burton. In fact, there are a great deal of similarities between Mary Anne the Steam Shovel and Charlie the Choo Choo beyond just the drawings. Both are anthropomorphic machines who are eventually deemed too outdated to be useful, but who eventually prove their continuing worth through hard work and determination.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_cysseNratuMtnlcJq3n_0R2uXA20X_AzKt4uko6GqZeXViF9E8iPHQqoZHgE0dlMeNH1OU7LVlmPdGXbReP07Pw0iTfb1XdkhdSBUQ3vfXaqXAb5q3T4pRyg_LKBmefMQMtpVOQnIoY7/s1600/DSC01093.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 302px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_cysseNratuMtnlcJq3n_0R2uXA20X_AzKt4uko6GqZeXViF9E8iPHQqoZHgE0dlMeNH1OU7LVlmPdGXbReP07Pw0iTfb1XdkhdSBUQ3vfXaqXAb5q3T4pRyg_LKBmefMQMtpVOQnIoY7/s320/DSC01093.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5715064395408101810" border="0" /></a>Another interesting coincidence is that among the other books Virginia Lee Burton wrote (<span style="font-style: italic;">The Little House</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">Katy and the Big Snow</span>), one of the lesser known stories is <span style="font-style: italic;">Choo Choo</span><span style="font-style: italic;">, The Story Of A Little Engine Who Ran Away</span>. In other words, the story of a runaway train. This is a topic that will become a deadly literal fact in Jake's near future.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3K8h8hUEwk5s_QghE92w7zpv0dSipBtLZ0ow9Kd4uKcAtS3QkkQbzcDNPtrUmtZXEUouat6MX4aqhXmIMtcLkouGL1GBaAAyrL4ORwz1WzU1JKdfJl9DWfO6O_iweNIz64N3IoYWrwfNe/s1600/DSC02793.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3K8h8hUEwk5s_QghE92w7zpv0dSipBtLZ0ow9Kd4uKcAtS3QkkQbzcDNPtrUmtZXEUouat6MX4aqhXmIMtcLkouGL1GBaAAyrL4ORwz1WzU1JKdfJl9DWfO6O_iweNIz64N3IoYWrwfNe/s320/DSC02793.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716836812618679778" border="0" /></a>A few years ago, at the <span style="font-style: italic;">Canal Days Festival</span> in Port Colborne, Ontario, I happened to notice a miniature train that seemed to match Charlie the Choo Choo in almost every way.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu7O_Dnt-L_qGQn8SFfY4JA2QDUH1oEtU_jC3zvPYXhz2Lfh-Cuntx1ui0rdiax3hGGvDbyEDsVUl_oKOwfgfff0NX_6NuoOS9A9NgExms3K6ld3fBaqCdx01qyHrD1rcPrSbu5AM3ny7X/s1600/DSC02788.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu7O_Dnt-L_qGQn8SFfY4JA2QDUH1oEtU_jC3zvPYXhz2Lfh-Cuntx1ui0rdiax3hGGvDbyEDsVUl_oKOwfgfff0NX_6NuoOS9A9NgExms3K6ld3fBaqCdx01qyHrD1rcPrSbu5AM3ny7X/s320/DSC02788.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5715112257600323106" border="0" /></a>There was no face on the front like the one you'd see on something like <span style="font-style: italic;">Thomas the Tank-Engine</span>, but with the engineer and the kids being pulled along, it had a real Charlie the Choo Choo feel to it. I had to resist the urge to sing Charlie's favorite song as it chugged past:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Don’t ask me silly questions,</i><br /><i> </i><i>I won’t play silly games.</i><br /><i> </i><i>I’m just a simple choo-choo train</i><br /><i> </i><i>And I’ll always be the same.</i><br /><i>I only want to race along</i><br /><i> </i><i>Beneath the bright blue sky,</i><br /><i> </i><i>And be a happy choo-choo train</i><br /><i> </i><i>Until the day I die.</i><br /></div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigKT_qNQyBoidToCnDEaq93g0FwYrAHs7l7K2k28fe51R8JrGihdQvPROvVXk8W5fqZqisR6LanbDt-hHXckSSoEA2UGx1OoikUxfsOAp6pr7QieVmP8TkY3pQ1R3_nQF_7F-yIKmR89DW/s1600/DSC02794.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigKT_qNQyBoidToCnDEaq93g0FwYrAHs7l7K2k28fe51R8JrGihdQvPROvVXk8W5fqZqisR6LanbDt-hHXckSSoEA2UGx1OoikUxfsOAp6pr7QieVmP8TkY3pQ1R3_nQF_7F-yIKmR89DW/s320/DSC02794.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705680959053202178" border="0" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;">It wasn't until the train stopped and I got a closer look that I began to suspect that this might indeed be Charlie. I looked at the serial numbers along the side of the engine and added them up, that's when I decided I didn't want to get any closer to <span style="font-style: italic;">this</span> locomotive!<br /></div></div><br />Long days, pleasant nights!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-50818403041598066272012-02-28T08:22:00.007-05:002012-03-05T11:01:59.175-05:00Tombstone Tuesday - The Cemetery Gates Pt. 1I thought we'd do something a little different for this regular segment, so here's our first Cemetery Gates edition of Tombstone Tuesday!<br /><br />This week, it's the gates of Niagara Falls' <span style="font-style: italic;">Drummond Hill Cemetery</span> on Lundy's Lane . . .<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4z-K8Mniy-y2rl8ray1THeeefLFLaF1IFrTR5f2cPNUelkR9ih94OmIbkXVVh3LWxj58pH1OXBsnPuL28cR9LBU61WLt7yHlxIyULaO-WtG1Cd6yXh_t1MgO-uz9o5LUwRxl1xHLVs7cc/s1600/DSC00838.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4z-K8Mniy-y2rl8ray1THeeefLFLaF1IFrTR5f2cPNUelkR9ih94OmIbkXVVh3LWxj58pH1OXBsnPuL28cR9LBU61WLt7yHlxIyULaO-WtG1Cd6yXh_t1MgO-uz9o5LUwRxl1xHLVs7cc/s320/DSC00838.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714178501544321458" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6v6RGc-Gky4Nm0_kKlnyV7L0AdgX7x9VdTw9aFAYeL1ctXF496r1f55DjJoXxn98pozjC5lzbYhn8e2E0UYNmAx6ZTxVdo6kvBkkMCu4jjC3vHf48mkBTuSoE1oKuwdae6g_FL1hRcm7J/s1600/DSC00837.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6v6RGc-Gky4Nm0_kKlnyV7L0AdgX7x9VdTw9aFAYeL1ctXF496r1f55DjJoXxn98pozjC5lzbYhn8e2E0UYNmAx6ZTxVdo6kvBkkMCu4jjC3vHf48mkBTuSoE1oKuwdae6g_FL1hRcm7J/s320/DSC00837.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714178509966836930" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbWxWB4OX4ijCsTIs-mArFz5lHZVWxaUVgvdnVEz2Hlb0lu56u-nTNd_vWaAww9NvHKB0fjLGGNvb703F2aIo6angkC0dPF9-tvnpJ-c0bwxAfPMLd2UJztuUJsYCZ8LijckjLuvzY0ICz/s1600/DSC00839.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbWxWB4OX4ijCsTIs-mArFz5lHZVWxaUVgvdnVEz2Hlb0lu56u-nTNd_vWaAww9NvHKB0fjLGGNvb703F2aIo6angkC0dPF9-tvnpJ-c0bwxAfPMLd2UJztuUJsYCZ8LijckjLuvzY0ICz/s320/DSC00839.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5714178520543006210" border="0" /></a><br />Stay Tombed!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-66525704980430049662012-02-24T08:17:00.010-05:002012-03-05T18:04:22.028-05:00The Quest for the Dark Tower Pt. 8: The Vacant Lot - Part I<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIeuraKvHgp4omINzrpggE3mxVP8dYR8JZiyzwLs2oinfJw98CDp8LZWJEKvf6goV5AaTmHLbie5wHGI8HMn5reBQmD-ck-2NxMRBrwg9M0zRObpBDkVNVJvjybzi5F0RbZC9kcdaugPX1/s1600/button.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIeuraKvHgp4omINzrpggE3mxVP8dYR8JZiyzwLs2oinfJw98CDp8LZWJEKvf6goV5AaTmHLbie5wHGI8HMn5reBQmD-ck-2NxMRBrwg9M0zRObpBDkVNVJvjybzi5F0RbZC9kcdaugPX1/s200/button.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5691996496237090290" border="0" /></a>***Spoiler warning! Though I've made every attempt to avoid giving away key plot points during this quest, it's still very possible that information discussed herein may spoil a new reader's experience, so consider yourself warned! ***<br /><br />Jake walks the entire <a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2012/02/quest-for-dark-tower-pt-7-eight-magic_17.html">eight blocks of Second Avenue</a>, from Fifty-forth Street all the way down to Forty-sixth Street. In Eddie's dream, when he arrives at the corner of 46th and 2nd he finds <span style="font-style: italic;">Tom and Gerry's Artistic Deli (Party Platters Our Specialty!)</span>. When Eddie inserts the key he's been carving into the door's lock, it opens onto the Dark Tower standing at the center of a field of blood red roses.<br /><br />Jake's experience though, like the <span style="font-style: italic;">House Of Cards</span> magic shop that was actually a diner named <span style="font-style: italic;">Chew Chew Mama's</span>, is somewhat different. Rather than the deli, which somehow he fully expects to find after walking past a stationary store named <span style="font-style: italic;">The Paper Patch</span>, he comes instead to a vacant lot containing weeds, piles of bricks and other trash, like beer bottles and empty wrappers.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTqtBB-5dpfOBfY49U_iNUFPPjXqYzzUcqmlZG3UTeTz-TAiuQS7_XHcUhN1Tv8v5Z7-pj_k6wCTtpUGD-QG1D_OytOyu_3ywk7D0tu-uPtyZDKdjxtqzIBrHJ0onwaHk5JQiuGij2hwlP/s1600/Olivia_Newton-John-Olivia+Newton-John+-+Making+A+Good+Thing+Better.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTqtBB-5dpfOBfY49U_iNUFPPjXqYzzUcqmlZG3UTeTz-TAiuQS7_XHcUhN1Tv8v5Z7-pj_k6wCTtpUGD-QG1D_OytOyu_3ywk7D0tu-uPtyZDKdjxtqzIBrHJ0onwaHk5JQiuGij2hwlP/s320/Olivia_Newton-John-Olivia+Newton-John+-+Making+A+Good+Thing+Better.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705454996409394482" border="0" /></a>The board fence surrounding this vacant lot is plastered with handbills featuring advertisements for Olivia Newton John performing at <span style="font-style: italic;">Radio City Music Hall</span>, a band called <span style="font-style: italic;">G. Gordon Liddy and the Grots</span> performing at an East Village club and a movie poster for <span style="font-style: italic;">War of the Zombies</span>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxa1vXKoabecRMgPK4SiPAO8D61VZ_vMC9bLAX1c_RE9JzzFDxv94CHBkvonI9ypQ42ME-GyMSoRbEsmnTxf1Wf0IZrwL11zFXdCOrUHzVKNXbDcCwOZ4844lh3dG8jxoFF1PMCxSKjU6k/s1600/G_Gordon_Liddy.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 246px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxa1vXKoabecRMgPK4SiPAO8D61VZ_vMC9bLAX1c_RE9JzzFDxv94CHBkvonI9ypQ42ME-GyMSoRbEsmnTxf1Wf0IZrwL11zFXdCOrUHzVKNXbDcCwOZ4844lh3dG8jxoFF1PMCxSKjU6k/s320/G_Gordon_Liddy.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705455015022131842" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">War of the Zombies</span> is a 1964 Italian film originally released internationally under the title <span style="font-style: italic;">Roma Contra Roma</span> (<span style="font-style: italic;">Rome Against Rome</span>).<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh932jbsDfrUZKSK-s8LSgAFsxP1dP7eFG4Dcr-tvZDkpvingeTkFJhJ4a94W5zyx_FfW36-4yWEE9oWZm9p2-0o7_GKti6b_4sp_TsliD3PFob3-Bl2ChvQNdKenL1smYdVs_0whn9euvy/s1600/DSC01177.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 270px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh932jbsDfrUZKSK-s8LSgAFsxP1dP7eFG4Dcr-tvZDkpvingeTkFJhJ4a94W5zyx_FfW36-4yWEE9oWZm9p2-0o7_GKti6b_4sp_TsliD3PFob3-Bl2ChvQNdKenL1smYdVs_0whn9euvy/s320/DSC01177.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5710241164162702354" border="0" /></a>It was distinct from other "<span style="font-style: italic;">sword and sandal</span>" epics of the time because of it's use of a legion of living dead zombie soldiers warring against the Roman armies they once fought for. It stars John Drew Barrymore as Aderbal, a villainous enchanter who bears a striking resemblance to Gilead's own traitorous sorcerer, Marten Broadcloak.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu6fY_QgRCmgYG4j6IGpurdei-0tYWAGW2mpgw6uGLqXZiquEWBqMCKNVChrSxI0URa3BkFeY4gLAU3rjGHd-x9c-MmQ8hjapCU6X9Dq7dYxF3bRXXZ_E_FS22R_77hGPI_2VZhkmy_o9W/s1600/WaroftheZombies2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 205px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu6fY_QgRCmgYG4j6IGpurdei-0tYWAGW2mpgw6uGLqXZiquEWBqMCKNVChrSxI0URa3BkFeY4gLAU3rjGHd-x9c-MmQ8hjapCU6X9Dq7dYxF3bRXXZ_E_FS22R_77hGPI_2VZhkmy_o9W/s320/WaroftheZombies2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705455008351175922" border="0" /></a>Among all these handbills, Jake also notices a sign:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">MILLS CONSTRUCTION AND SOMBRA REAL ESTATE<br />ASSOCIATES<br />ARE CONTINUING TO REMAKE THE FACE OF<br />MANHATTAN!<br />COMING SOON TO THIS LOCATION:<br />TURTLE BAY LUXURY CONDOMINIUMS!<br />CALL 555-6712 FOR INFORMATION!<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">YOU WILL BE SO GLAD YOU DID!</span><br /></div><br />which has been tagged by a graffiti artist known as <span style="font-style: italic;">Bango Skank</span>. This isn't the last time this type of graffiti will show up. Several times throughout the course of the <span style="font-style: italic;">Dark Tower</span> series <span style="font-style: italic;">Bango Skank's</span> name is found, but what's most interesting is that this isn't the <span style="font-style: italic;">first</span> appearance of this signature tag, either.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjryxUrtq9Pd2-bA58GSEomv5zmXCs1uLSH_Rb_OjCwb_w2O12k0nUVGviiDsm3GvXNsblf8_1tXOrcZw3JasX37K5lz08QvQBR8oL6DOT8qGEOJZ7uM6r4ZecJ7S9yEqmoJL1mztOGleIB/s1600/DSC01089.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 262px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjryxUrtq9Pd2-bA58GSEomv5zmXCs1uLSH_Rb_OjCwb_w2O12k0nUVGviiDsm3GvXNsblf8_1tXOrcZw3JasX37K5lz08QvQBR8oL6DOT8qGEOJZ7uM6r4ZecJ7S9yEqmoJL1mztOGleIB/s320/DSC01089.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705457510735385282" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Bango Skank</span> first showed up alongside another graffiti tagger by the name of <span style="font-style: italic;">Jeepy,</span> in <span style="font-style: italic;">The Buffalo Hunter</span>, a short story in the collection <span style="font-style: italic;">Houses Without Doors</span> by Peter Straub.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIRBkAeonQbDQGjOf8xGS_LeK5wkOGij07Gks1oYzHsKC5PuRG2V1HFdocJsjmlnTQr9poff38Q9Lw5hOK7kJpFYJyGgAyYMVyTL6JjNuGiAuJ5fPY2mIdNBPXgaPTA9pnNdiTTwkRqQS2/s1600/DSC01091.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 253px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIRBkAeonQbDQGjOf8xGS_LeK5wkOGij07Gks1oYzHsKC5PuRG2V1HFdocJsjmlnTQr9poff38Q9Lw5hOK7kJpFYJyGgAyYMVyTL6JjNuGiAuJ5fPY2mIdNBPXgaPTA9pnNdiTTwkRqQS2/s320/DSC01091.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705457513537202658" border="0" /></a>Bev Vincent dedicated an entire sidebar entitled <span style="font-style: italic;">The Ubiquitous Bango Skank </span>in his <span style="font-style: italic;">The Road To The Dark Tower</span>, which mentions how <span style="font-style: italic;">Bango Skank</span> was originally created by Straub for <span style="font-style: italic;">The Talisman,</span> but was never used. Strangely, despite a lengthy list of appearances elsewhere in the <span style="font-style: italic;">Dark Tower</span> series, the appearances in <span style="font-style: italic;">The Buffalo Hunter</span> aren't mentioned at all.<br /><br />Continuing to explore the vacant lot, Jake sees more graffiti art, one reads:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">See the TURTLE of enormous girth!</span><br style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 153, 255);"><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">On his shell he holds the earth</span><br style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 153, 255);"><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">If you want to run and play,</span><br style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 153, 255);"><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">Come along the BEAM today.</span><br /></div><br />Another, on the old <span style="font-style: italic;">Tom and Gerry's Artistic Deli</span> sign simply says:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 153, 255);">HE HOLDS US ALL WITHIN HIS MIND.</span><br /></div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSNxw68v36LwStWhK15BWlSfisf7GpIFgpFt1uzhndzg4W94RKboev12nNtuFi1B3UdJqLkIkToil6jhAlMEDj9daxcOz0pexIFwZ11M4w_7LSu5zl0elnATJ7JJb5sY1j8OEiG7im4cKM/s1600/DSC01071.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSNxw68v36LwStWhK15BWlSfisf7GpIFgpFt1uzhndzg4W94RKboev12nNtuFi1B3UdJqLkIkToil6jhAlMEDj9daxcOz0pexIFwZ11M4w_7LSu5zl0elnATJ7JJb5sY1j8OEiG7im4cKM/s320/DSC01071.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705454992685762066" border="0" /></a>Eventually Jake comes across a key which he picks up and puts into the <span style="font-style: italic;">Charlie the Choo Choo</span> book . . .<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSBMwqLW59BzKFcQF4ejEdVCQBRoggYl0_tZ0oBUZhtg8ZtryoGyNVKrhOdyLCG1bQ-dBhqdIpPijLo6ohLey4CBomtF5qOJfzuvUQNxwI59q1oQhIU-3KNLmA1PzE10dUQLwhHRNWtHsW/s1600/therose.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 236px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSBMwqLW59BzKFcQF4ejEdVCQBRoggYl0_tZ0oBUZhtg8ZtryoGyNVKrhOdyLCG1bQ-dBhqdIpPijLo6ohLey4CBomtF5qOJfzuvUQNxwI59q1oQhIU-3KNLmA1PzE10dUQLwhHRNWtHsW/s320/therose.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5710246239044907970" border="0" /></a>. . . and then, just beyond where the key was resting Jake finds a single, beautifully alien wild rose growing in the shade, just out of sight from the street. He gazes at the flower, entranced by it's beauty, and feels an overwhelming urge to protect this rose from any harm that may come to it. Before he can do anything else though, he realizes the hour has grown late and reluctantly decides to head for home.<br /><br />Long days, pleasant nights!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-17447752521346776902012-02-21T09:35:00.007-05:002012-02-21T09:54:34.162-05:00Tombstone Tuesday!A gravestone marker in Los Angeles' <span style="font-style: italic;">Hollywood Forever</span> cemetery. Once again, the name "Graves" in a place full of graves is spookily appropriate. The palm trees seem a bit out of place (cypress is the traditional tree of choice for cemeteries), but then, it <span style="font-style: italic;">is</span> California.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpXMQXoOhOZfNM2I-KXZPvSEQ7p6wyL26degsiNEYtf0zgZ8TZtNdghZPLiJ8omFT8ASvkabSreSbKeZgjcexmVvWkCOw9qk1MP0bG3FPbZX3DDXgUwVuUs4MdGlpxjA4ieNfAlptMjUZW/s1600/HFCGravesGraves.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpXMQXoOhOZfNM2I-KXZPvSEQ7p6wyL26degsiNEYtf0zgZ8TZtNdghZPLiJ8omFT8ASvkabSreSbKeZgjcexmVvWkCOw9qk1MP0bG3FPbZX3DDXgUwVuUs4MdGlpxjA4ieNfAlptMjUZW/s320/HFCGravesGraves.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5711599007145179602" border="0" /></a><br />Stay Tombed!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-26953945225394467102012-02-17T08:47:00.003-05:002012-02-24T08:24:16.951-05:00The Quest for the Dark Tower Pt. 7: The Eight Magic Blocks<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQi7PbRe364puw3Vy0gmnzPoTgQUViZ1w5Zzeji_e2O_xsZtsXqmasULhtvBWDhFX_NYvKLLm0zk-iez6zAo6REHGPJf1W0bb-UrQaPVUnjsd7ZEu_Gb5mlDQnCSQG1SKRjJKPuSPhLQon/s1600/button.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQi7PbRe364puw3Vy0gmnzPoTgQUViZ1w5Zzeji_e2O_xsZtsXqmasULhtvBWDhFX_NYvKLLm0zk-iez6zAo6REHGPJf1W0bb-UrQaPVUnjsd7ZEu_Gb5mlDQnCSQG1SKRjJKPuSPhLQon/s200/button.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705440356539768562" border="0" /></a>***Spoiler warning! Though I've made every attempt to avoid giving away key plot points during this quest, it's still very possible that information discussed herein may spoil a new reader's experience, so consider yourself warned! ***<br /><br />When Jake leaves <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2012/02/quest-for-dark-tower-pt-6-manhattan.html">The Manhattan Restaurant of the Mind</a> he continues walking down Second Avenue. At this point, it should be noted that earlier on in the novel <span style="font-style: italic;">The Waste Lands</span>, Eddie Dean has dreams of walking down the same street, which between 54th and 46th Sts. is collectively referred to as <span style="font-style: italic;">The Eight Magic Blocks</span> in Robin Furth's <span style="font-style: italic;">The Dark Tower: A Concordance</span>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvanxWkHjgPkZvpaRMzUoWuVP6TccykineMGdJHW0ICEx7GOLQU18eSMsDbqsggNu-vEax_FhXYAnd7hRgEmZrTBtXYAW5_hqQ0qUrURUy7ApWri2a3A9lpgfKRhx3dVmcgtkjX4K9bDgS/s1600/DSC01167.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 208px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvanxWkHjgPkZvpaRMzUoWuVP6TccykineMGdJHW0ICEx7GOLQU18eSMsDbqsggNu-vEax_FhXYAnd7hRgEmZrTBtXYAW5_hqQ0qUrURUy7ApWri2a3A9lpgfKRhx3dVmcgtkjX4K9bDgS/s320/DSC01167.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708757410290191026" border="0" /></a>Eddie's dream version of the walk begins with him carrying a book, when he stops to read the title he sees that it is <span style="font-style: italic;">You Can't Go Home Again</span> by Thomas Wolfe (which features a very similar waking dream sequence that also takes place in <span style="font-style: italic;">Turtle Bay</span> with the character, Foxhall Edwards). On the cover he sees the shapes of a key, a rose and a door.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH_KB0mmZdRnlCyhdye6onG3IpXLCo4Jq2J_CvynjQC3ke2l-xfckruK8ZSX8Wmw1Ko_TAXJNbrsQ3NUQxz1NRcU8jp5IHPc_ALKHBauy4xcJuNs63H8gnwesNebfcW8MMrt5C78lRY9DJ/s1600/DSC01084.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 248px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH_KB0mmZdRnlCyhdye6onG3IpXLCo4Jq2J_CvynjQC3ke2l-xfckruK8ZSX8Wmw1Ko_TAXJNbrsQ3NUQxz1NRcU8jp5IHPc_ALKHBauy4xcJuNs63H8gnwesNebfcW8MMrt5C78lRY9DJ/s320/DSC01084.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705447114619885762" border="0" /></a> Very similar to the opening lines of Thomas Wolfe's first novel, <span style="font-style: italic;">Look Homeward, Angel</span>, which begins "<span style="font-style: italic;"> . . . a stone, a leaf, an unfound door; of a stone, a leaf, a door. And of all the forgotten faces.</span>" When Eddie opens the book in his hand, the first line in the book reads "<span style="font-style: italic;">The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed.</span>" This is the opening sentence to the <span style="font-style: italic;">The Gunslinger</span>, and it should also come as no surprise that the revised and expanded edition of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Gunslinger </span>opens with the first lines to <span style="font-style: italic;">Look Homeward, Angel</span>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieLuJDAUbi44Eij6vIuI3FP8tn-81A66L8bYhFI-8gu5ot-Eb-uOTritPFt8bg7R3h1Nspk92V2-e8VKgKRv5mHs6Jt6SwBmtPpd0q2aUa07prU-dwArj0t3hxena_4I1zQ0BOgH98zL0o/s1600/DSC01087.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 254px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieLuJDAUbi44Eij6vIuI3FP8tn-81A66L8bYhFI-8gu5ot-Eb-uOTritPFt8bg7R3h1Nspk92V2-e8VKgKRv5mHs6Jt6SwBmtPpd0q2aUa07prU-dwArj0t3hxena_4I1zQ0BOgH98zL0o/s320/DSC01087.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705447120074520066" border="0" /></a>Obviously, these novels will have a great deal to do with <span style="font-style: italic;">The Dark Tower</span> before the story is through, but in Eddie's dream, he drops the book into the hands of a vagrant sitting in front of a magic shop named <span style="font-style: italic;">House of Cards</span>. Later, when Jake passes by this building (handing the vagrant sitting in front the change from his purchases instead of a book), it actually houses a diner named <span style="font-style: italic;">Chew Chew Mama's</span>. Much later in the story, in <span style="font-style: italic;">Song of Susannah</span>, readers will discover the name has changed once again to <span style="font-style: italic;">Dennis' Waffles and Pancakes</span>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5s9wVPx1P39nJORLHfkNASUiZ8jJ2wJaX97dueo6IniVZKeDmOYyTlmtih95FTTPyqJjVGwb6T0Ejw8FohimVfIoYldnWvPC9fRiMwrWu4putzcZIDhw-gSUfPI41OiBDcllczRkEX3fs/s1600/DSC01920.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5s9wVPx1P39nJORLHfkNASUiZ8jJ2wJaX97dueo6IniVZKeDmOYyTlmtih95FTTPyqJjVGwb6T0Ejw8FohimVfIoYldnWvPC9fRiMwrWu4putzcZIDhw-gSUfPI41OiBDcllczRkEX3fs/s320/DSC01920.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705447145671888706" border="0" /></a>So what do the many different names of the corner of 52nd Street and 2nd Avenue mean? I'd guess that Roland would say that "<span style="font-style: italic;">time is a face on the water.</span>" In other words, things change and in New York City things can change <span style="font-style: italic;">very</span> quickly. In our own where and when, the north-east corner of 52nd St. and 2nd Ave. is home to a restaurant named <span style="font-style: italic;">Go Sushi</span>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmbE-1bAyVOBbRGkGCtgMxNACtQG8bI1OBF_BOb-QVyprshWriYot9Jn-p8n5JdvEXDZhoqyixtbCABVVBKFCOSCFCJjKj205JGclNyT6s6k_Wkpp4ULWeriWERYtacBckANzRFHhhMHBq/s1600/DSC01921.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmbE-1bAyVOBbRGkGCtgMxNACtQG8bI1OBF_BOb-QVyprshWriYot9Jn-p8n5JdvEXDZhoqyixtbCABVVBKFCOSCFCJjKj205JGclNyT6s6k_Wkpp4ULWeriWERYtacBckANzRFHhhMHBq/s320/DSC01921.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705447135074872914" border="0" /></a>In both Eddie's dreams and Jake's where and when, the corner of 51st and 2nd is home to <span style="font-style: italic;">Tower of Power Records</span>, which is prone to blasting music by <span style="font-style: italic;">The Rolling Stones</span> out of it's streetfront speakers. In our reality, the corner has been rebuilt and is home to a <span style="font-style: italic;">Rite Aid</span> pharmacy.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiggYEbri9GltGNqacc6T_4kZckYu3X9b7aF5rqO7tYiJELGb6uac6B3-JEAq7RLAuEh5hRqrQY4K5s2HyHf16HWb4QrPxC4kE5sgMKb4wTGbULZw3veGDk4BsR2H9VjjMxah_A83huGXKy/s1600/DSC01922.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiggYEbri9GltGNqacc6T_4kZckYu3X9b7aF5rqO7tYiJELGb6uac6B3-JEAq7RLAuEh5hRqrQY4K5s2HyHf16HWb4QrPxC4kE5sgMKb4wTGbULZw3veGDk4BsR2H9VjjMxah_A83huGXKy/s320/DSC01922.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705447128301528274" border="0" /></a>What I found most interesting was that halfway between 49th and 48th streets, where both Eddie and Jake see a mirror shop named <span style="font-style: italic;">Reflections Of You,</span> is a bulletin board for the <span style="font-style: italic;">Turtle Bay Association</span>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtWL8XN57II1xnpyHpM8fJxEaX6T6M1VwvtPv50Q5yKtaKVI6gYOzxoWVgP_aIGi5Huo5fy5ZYEe4hC_FMi0fCgO6UhFyuimPvV7376Nz8I5oHDTYzQwNf1fHaF4VYLdT0n0ew1vjvoQ4q/s1600/TBN.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 238px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtWL8XN57II1xnpyHpM8fJxEaX6T6M1VwvtPv50Q5yKtaKVI6gYOzxoWVgP_aIGi5Huo5fy5ZYEe4hC_FMi0fCgO6UhFyuimPvV7376Nz8I5oHDTYzQwNf1fHaF4VYLdT0n0ew1vjvoQ4q/s320/TBN.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708821436376390546" border="0" /></a>On the day Niki and I visited, the board was displaying a cancellation of a party held at <span style="font-style: italic;">The </span><span style="font-style: italic;">Katherine Hepburn Garden</span> due to rainstorms (which cleared up just as we arrived on Second Ave.) and a special edition of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Turtle Bay News,</span> reacting to the crane disaster that had devastated several buildings in the neighborhood just two months before. A little further uptown, another crane accident had occurred just days before. It all seemed like a series of strange coincidences considering <a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2012/02/quest-for-dark-tower-pt-8-vacant-lot.html">the next location</a> we visited on Second Ave . . .<br /><br />Long days, pleasant nights!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-44250753272177957082012-02-16T11:37:00.010-05:002012-02-16T15:05:37.643-05:00When Hell Freezes Over . . .<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRIvGxOLieFuSCsjlbZQqk8j6ABWtU5F-BcQYEcFIfjb5cXt0zh0pCLRae2Yx5I-59dcj8NLQeaxja8-ALoRJl81DOLS6HPRy64XBGNzVQHtbDGwh0o4HdH1tjzCvYkCwwBN12Lh-7CBd9/s1600/paradiselostsatan.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 176px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRIvGxOLieFuSCsjlbZQqk8j6ABWtU5F-BcQYEcFIfjb5cXt0zh0pCLRae2Yx5I-59dcj8NLQeaxja8-ALoRJl81DOLS6HPRy64XBGNzVQHtbDGwh0o4HdH1tjzCvYkCwwBN12Lh-7CBd9/s200/paradiselostsatan.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709779127035732002" border="0" /></a>A little while ago, I posted some pictures of the <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2011/10/where-does-devil-go-when-hes-thirsty.html">Devil's Punchbowl</a> and I've been waiting for the weather to turn cold (it's been especially warm through the first half of the season) so that Niki and I could revisit to get some photos of the <span style="font-style: italic;">Punchbowl</span> during the winter months.<br /><br />Last week, while on a day trip to Stoney Creek, we finally got our chance . . .<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzXjuGFWH4aY0q55ZDgynQhyt2iHf7jvC7UioBUsHqAcwpdxDNWrhcqg2llCe2q2UxhK1qaadwXULoN8AVD6krvHD1wUhJ3An81SPbLqmmZObqUfbnPDmw20b28rsh5tytG8U5T3GULx-G/s1600/DSC01096.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzXjuGFWH4aY0q55ZDgynQhyt2iHf7jvC7UioBUsHqAcwpdxDNWrhcqg2llCe2q2UxhK1qaadwXULoN8AVD6krvHD1wUhJ3An81SPbLqmmZObqUfbnPDmw20b28rsh5tytG8U5T3GULx-G/s320/DSC01096.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709361264813625186" border="0" /></a>The parking lot was closed, so we had to settle for pulling off to the side of the road and taking a little stroll through the snow, but there were several other people doing the same so it didn't seem to be a problem.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjpT36xCzEqW8_DQ3xjPUg0C0S21kM9D7nisEjKAYAzQVV1xXCmtqYcVGjwB2HaHplQWuw-dxAlr-OiSifAIy68qPKL880zBhXo1XKpROZ9pBW38nHruqE2mMgWfBRYcGbd9yauBzL6VHB/s1600/DSC01098.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjpT36xCzEqW8_DQ3xjPUg0C0S21kM9D7nisEjKAYAzQVV1xXCmtqYcVGjwB2HaHplQWuw-dxAlr-OiSifAIy68qPKL880zBhXo1XKpROZ9pBW38nHruqE2mMgWfBRYcGbd9yauBzL6VHB/s320/DSC01098.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709361279626880178" border="0" /></a>Once we reached the cliff's edge, sure enough it looked like hell had frozen over, looking much like Dante's experience in the ninth circle of hell when face to face with the great Adversary himself:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_LpBgJZq2SHGyRzCneLRAcbDx6t8Yc6PIekqdu3QqMXKgtEY31oGdSIHVZ-SgPeppGmH798UgUimuRR7yVdxDhEE1dKKOUmR3TPqlAh3kDRyNu2kJfN_YXQjBKMBp5eNV9pF2gZWIZ0zF/s1600/Inferno+-+Canto+34.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 255px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_LpBgJZq2SHGyRzCneLRAcbDx6t8Yc6PIekqdu3QqMXKgtEY31oGdSIHVZ-SgPeppGmH798UgUimuRR7yVdxDhEE1dKKOUmR3TPqlAh3kDRyNu2kJfN_YXQjBKMBp5eNV9pF2gZWIZ0zF/s320/Inferno+-+Canto+34.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5709775348591185570" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">'Under each face two monstrous wings were spread,</span><br style="font-style: italic;"> <span style="font-style: italic;">Proportionate to such a monstrous bird:</span><br style="font-style: italic;"> <span style="font-style: italic;">I never saw sails on the sea so broad.</span><br style="font-style: italic;"> <br style="font-style: italic;"> <span style="font-style: italic;">They were not feathered, but of such a kind</span><br style="font-style: italic;"> <span style="font-style: italic;">As bats have - and the fiend was beating them</span><br style="font-style: italic;"> <span style="font-style: italic;">So that he blew at once three blasts of wind:</span><br style="font-style: italic;"> <br style="font-style: italic;"> <span style="font-style: italic;">And hence Cocytus is all frozen over.</span><br style="font-style: italic;"> <span style="font-style: italic;">With six eyes he was weeping; down three chins</span><br style="font-style: italic;"> <span style="font-style: italic;">The tears were dripping, mixed with bloody slaver.'</span><br /><br />- <span style="font-style: italic;">Inferno</span>, Canto XXXIV, lines 46-54<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-6473759443186703762012-02-14T08:15:00.000-05:002012-02-14T08:16:55.470-05:00Tombstone Tuesday!Here's a row of very old grave markers from Port Colborne's <span style="font-style: italic;">St. Joseph's Cemetery</span> that Niki took a picture of a few years ago.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqqAJvtsaOACYuur1HKUEPra37bfhDpvuAtdnLHJDqDAfUf33qFij6eowhur4GJZUIf4T-Yqi0EcYnLnBYBvYvovmLNmYDVVL93jyJNwk4aMAf8xI3PliS-JRawwWC46LuX5xczEB2MaOh/s1600/graves.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqqAJvtsaOACYuur1HKUEPra37bfhDpvuAtdnLHJDqDAfUf33qFij6eowhur4GJZUIf4T-Yqi0EcYnLnBYBvYvovmLNmYDVVL93jyJNwk4aMAf8xI3PliS-JRawwWC46LuX5xczEB2MaOh/s320/graves.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708372341712038578" border="0" /></a><br />Stay Tombed!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-89544870052668147322012-02-10T10:30:00.003-05:002012-02-17T08:50:10.661-05:00The Quest for the Dark Tower Pt. 6: The Manhattan Restaurant of the Mind<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIeuraKvHgp4omINzrpggE3mxVP8dYR8JZiyzwLs2oinfJw98CDp8LZWJEKvf6goV5AaTmHLbie5wHGI8HMn5reBQmD-ck-2NxMRBrwg9M0zRObpBDkVNVJvjybzi5F0RbZC9kcdaugPX1/s1600/button.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIeuraKvHgp4omINzrpggE3mxVP8dYR8JZiyzwLs2oinfJw98CDp8LZWJEKvf6goV5AaTmHLbie5wHGI8HMn5reBQmD-ck-2NxMRBrwg9M0zRObpBDkVNVJvjybzi5F0RbZC9kcdaugPX1/s200/button.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5691996496237090290" border="0" /></a>***Spoiler warning! Though I've made every attempt to avoid giving away key plot points during this quest, it's still very possible that information discussed herein may spoil a new reader's experience, so consider yourself warned! ***<br /><br />After Jake flees <a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2012/01/quest-for-dark-tower-pt-5-piper-school.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Piper School</span></a>, fearing that his steadily growing insanity has finally become noticeable to those around him, he wanders the streets of New York with seeming aimlessness. After encountering two businessmen playing tic-tac-toe on the board wall of a construction site just down the street from Lexington Avenue and Fifty-forth Street, Jake crosses Lexington and continues on.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSjeMOtT_SdBnxTENYsAdxXT6jGkdtpfzHT8CyN5EF7za_9rFs2F3clTLi326jPTKdSIS6Z0GjVHVThl69pqS7BTYIsV6465syv3WiyDi2wQezrBxj0A7fCb6qgFX1xGzKUYdXl_m_jTGb/s1600/DSC01916.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSjeMOtT_SdBnxTENYsAdxXT6jGkdtpfzHT8CyN5EF7za_9rFs2F3clTLi326jPTKdSIS6Z0GjVHVThl69pqS7BTYIsV6465syv3WiyDi2wQezrBxj0A7fCb6qgFX1xGzKUYdXl_m_jTGb/s320/DSC01916.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702163832704128402" border="0" /></a>When he reaches the corner of Second Ave. and Fifty-fourth St., Jake is suddenly overwhelmed with a feeling of radiant <span style="font-style: italic;">goodness</span> and a sense of positive anticipation; the exact opposite of what he had felt three weeks earlier just before the voices had begun to argue. Jake yells aloud, declaring, "It's the White! It's the coming of the White!"<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjzUD7ZUKVNSbEdJ6-MB9xRp2gQQypyz2IQmaexKaTLR8696SxbQGvy6wQJZLy_uqkylpcCXEImHk8oCv512iCowgVNnKOX1iBpP-CRXxVZyCzTnt8e7JE0uT_zVhgEcHMd2rK3AyOvNtz/s1600/MROTM.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 224px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjzUD7ZUKVNSbEdJ6-MB9xRp2gQQypyz2IQmaexKaTLR8696SxbQGvy6wQJZLy_uqkylpcCXEImHk8oCv512iCowgVNnKOX1iBpP-CRXxVZyCzTnt8e7JE0uT_zVhgEcHMd2rK3AyOvNtz/s320/MROTM.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702163790533361666" border="0" /></a>Continuing<span style="font-style: italic;"> </span>down 2nd Avenue, he soon finds himself standing before a bookstore. In our own where and when, 988 Second Avenue (where the bookstore known as <span style="font-style: italic;">The Manhattan Restaurant of the Mind</span> is said to be located) is actually the site of <a href="http://tenzanrestaurants.com/flash/index.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">Tenzan Japanese Restaurant</span></a>, which opened it's doors to the <span style="font-style: italic;">Turtle Bay</span> community in April of 2007.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHpRJIPqfxbdFKWrglQZJXlWEuWDei8I8cLNEdBooxCy37s4-uCfBHn_FO1IBN4lJAbY-m3Gi5HGw1-965Nj9fB1cDOwadPkAHewmKTXiPcWAhQNAlhHAgCQ7USVD1pbnXx_gLbw70bjoI/s1600/DSC01917.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHpRJIPqfxbdFKWrglQZJXlWEuWDei8I8cLNEdBooxCy37s4-uCfBHn_FO1IBN4lJAbY-m3Gi5HGw1-965Nj9fB1cDOwadPkAHewmKTXiPcWAhQNAlhHAgCQ7USVD1pbnXx_gLbw70bjoI/s320/DSC01917.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702163816163508594" border="0" /></a>Speaking of <span style="font-style: italic;">Turtle Bay</span>; another restaurant, simply named <a href="http://www.turtlebaynyc.com/"><span style="font-style: italic;">Turtle Bay Grill and Lounge</span></a>, is located directly across the street and has been in business in the neighborhood since 1997. A number of <span style="font-style: italic;">Tower Junkies</span> have pointed out this restaurant over the years and it's this storefront that many devoted <span style="font-style: italic;">Dark Tower</span> readers think of when imagining the front <i>façade</i> of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Manhattan Restaurant of the Mind</span>, right down to the chalkboard menu standing out front.<br /><br />In Jake's where and when of May 1977, he looks at the chalkboard in front of the bookstore and reads the daily specials . . .<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii_NMKmcTZvhCWmT4k6coQL3Y6x4bEikEXTJwWhUqtU9lLrrQiriirsKbgRvFvGPDXdUEHKl5iPSrQf0_l9xw2_8eC17h3UN03Rk7Umd0OTgBITJiGoBOz7MJNnw3px85RD_jdvIchv06F/s1600/DSC00952.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 242px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii_NMKmcTZvhCWmT4k6coQL3Y6x4bEikEXTJwWhUqtU9lLrrQiriirsKbgRvFvGPDXdUEHKl5iPSrQf0_l9xw2_8eC17h3UN03Rk7Umd0OTgBITJiGoBOz7MJNnw3px85RD_jdvIchv06F/s320/DSC00952.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702164226648945490" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">From Florida! Fresh-Broiled John D. MacDonald</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> Hardcovers 3 for $2.50</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> Paperbacks 9 for $5.00</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5JiyRc4W0AHPAodTrEWyff4U-Qb28yv_D1O6yiVrjh-dQVn_1TEXEfXr3tMkg80Rs4KF2Sv5CB5O6exNBap4nKzpS72Gq2O7KU4p2LE4P9F8DUi0p1RwFbn845Bj3rNCMOOMbompZa4G4/s1600/DSC00956.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 313px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5JiyRc4W0AHPAodTrEWyff4U-Qb28yv_D1O6yiVrjh-dQVn_1TEXEfXr3tMkg80Rs4KF2Sv5CB5O6exNBap4nKzpS72Gq2O7KU4p2LE4P9F8DUi0p1RwFbn845Bj3rNCMOOMbompZa4G4/s320/DSC00956.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702163841824914114" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">From Mississippi! Pan-Fried William Faulkner</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> Hardcovers Market Price</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> Vintage Library Paperbacks 75¢</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">each</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzBCUb3rlCrLKgSUoJP5NcFYxmLPziZpuiEiggbEJx18BKQAUgvl8gGxU4Lwdy7zilpWBrHC35BnlH6CjStJQ9pgwOEnMjPgKoT8rMSqN2TQm7RbznvUr5bGZ2LL3ZiRqXHU2DusCVlRDl/s1600/DSC00965.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 202px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzBCUb3rlCrLKgSUoJP5NcFYxmLPziZpuiEiggbEJx18BKQAUgvl8gGxU4Lwdy7zilpWBrHC35BnlH6CjStJQ9pgwOEnMjPgKoT8rMSqN2TQm7RbznvUr5bGZ2LL3ZiRqXHU2DusCVlRDl/s320/DSC00965.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702164226075064002" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">From California! Hard-Boiled Raymond Chandler</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> Hardcovers Market Price</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"> Paperbacks 7 for $5.00</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;">FEED YOUR NEED TO READ</span></span><br /></div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5c3eqFH-HEgMv-1JXFN6kPcjytfxN47i5sxFW8v7wgpw8EXprPtWnPi-mQtJvNYHbfcWnk-FA2tyrBhminnzxbDQ8Ats4Ct6DBV90XQouiZDR2XdZe3h6LTmeWva33q1msHpoOjOsQhzv/s1600/DSC00947.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 166px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5c3eqFH-HEgMv-1JXFN6kPcjytfxN47i5sxFW8v7wgpw8EXprPtWnPi-mQtJvNYHbfcWnk-FA2tyrBhminnzxbDQ8Ats4Ct6DBV90XQouiZDR2XdZe3h6LTmeWva33q1msHpoOjOsQhzv/s320/DSC00947.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702163835959071362" border="0" /> </a>Entering the store, Jake finds the works of these authors displayed each on their own table, with a Malt Shoppe-style counter running down the center of the room. On another table dedicated to children's books, Jake sees <span style="font-style: italic;">Alice's Adventures In Wonderland</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">The Hobbit</span>, and <span style="font-style: italic;">Tom Sawyer</span> before he sees and picks up two books, <span style="font-style: italic;">Charlie the Choo-Choo</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">Riddle-De-Dum! Brain-Twisters and Puzzles for Everyone!</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiESr_R_VBQgb5E3-PHNKUg1UdEya0EWIuRPWWZELMN3S9lNqRsIl9almc22rpo4CArYTDkPwEzfrRmd5e-bOH_cmFR1lnJXkgmcRRXicA-LXTCwSzHxq_CuzRs3wXQh0NZ8XMjwKqttDBP/s1600/DSC00970.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 237px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiESr_R_VBQgb5E3-PHNKUg1UdEya0EWIuRPWWZELMN3S9lNqRsIl9almc22rpo4CArYTDkPwEzfrRmd5e-bOH_cmFR1lnJXkgmcRRXicA-LXTCwSzHxq_CuzRs3wXQh0NZ8XMjwKqttDBP/s320/DSC00970.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702164481864832498" border="0" /></a>Making his way to the counter to pay for the two books, Jake soon finds himself engaged in a conversation with the store's proprietor, who introduces himself as Calvin Tower, as well as another customer at the counter who Tower is playing chess with. During the course of the conversation, Tower refers to Jake as "O Hyperborean Wanderer." Which may simply be because Jake is out walking around on a beautiful spring day, but the title of Clark Ashton Smith's collection of stories, <span style="font-style: italic;">Hyperborea</span> might suggest a deeper literary meaning. Given Tower's occupation as a bookstore owner, this seems very likely the case.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv_x85gj5cvE8SIfe1bN9OpXPMFghlRUyG89jC29A9EubdGs2Js5nuqjDTUkl1fRU_iYEV4w8yuw6hb5JIb94rcHFWGvOijmO0gxQXmeblydY0en4YrrXtKGC-H-pEsAwhUnQKoyPbVqHN/s1600/DSC00973.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 221px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv_x85gj5cvE8SIfe1bN9OpXPMFghlRUyG89jC29A9EubdGs2Js5nuqjDTUkl1fRU_iYEV4w8yuw6hb5JIb94rcHFWGvOijmO0gxQXmeblydY0en4YrrXtKGC-H-pEsAwhUnQKoyPbVqHN/s320/DSC00973.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702164251951262754" border="0" /></a>Jake introduces himself and Tower once again drops a literary clue, remarking that Jake's full name, Jake Chambers, "sounds like a footloose hero in a Western novel–the guy who blows into Black Fork, Arizona, cleans up the town, and then travels on. Something by Wayne D. Overholser maybe."<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXyP3HTz0Wh5-nkn8ktfdnMdfRugJNEzfE33DSpSeUf9-FUmosQvuswTHDnSR6978CyjBy9V0n9XHGX6nztGn2nhxWj9ELW7n_mxNQuDg8zDNeF69GgMEsNLsQy2yvLDtxNkg-LEZNGGIC/s1600/DSC00978.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 209px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXyP3HTz0Wh5-nkn8ktfdnMdfRugJNEzfE33DSpSeUf9-FUmosQvuswTHDnSR6978CyjBy9V0n9XHGX6nztGn2nhxWj9ELW7n_mxNQuDg8zDNeF69GgMEsNLsQy2yvLDtxNkg-LEZNGGIC/s320/DSC00978.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702164236891244306" border="0" /></a>As Tower rings up the bill for Jake's purchases, he observes that Jake seems a bit too old for these books and thinks he might be more interested in a good deal on some nice old Donald Grant edition Robert Howard books featuring <span style="font-style: italic;">Conan the Barbarian</span>, the ones with the Roy Krenkel paintings. In actuality, Roy Krenkel never illustrated any of the Donald Grant edition <span style="font-style: italic;">Conan</span> books by Robert Howard, but Krenkel <span style="font-style: italic;">did</span> illustrate other Donald Grant editions of Howard's works, including <span style="font-style: italic;">The Sowers of the Thunder</span> and <span style="font-style: italic;">The Road of Azrael</span>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJMuhAQhyphenhyphenH0I2aYS9lnv-1-0bpw2Gy8gJ9eyatK3lw93NePjlCIaTE5ZoFY9433ARXbpuIJA9zmtJZ0xcduFdTE0X7COouDCcs5POd5ZpHwmtU-9V8QRmsmDR_d_HfnVkROTnRuhfK3TRg/s1600/DSC00980.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 210px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJMuhAQhyphenhyphenH0I2aYS9lnv-1-0bpw2Gy8gJ9eyatK3lw93NePjlCIaTE5ZoFY9433ARXbpuIJA9zmtJZ0xcduFdTE0X7COouDCcs5POd5ZpHwmtU-9V8QRmsmDR_d_HfnVkROTnRuhfK3TRg/s320/DSC00980.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702164248260374226" border="0" /></a>Jake is intrigued at the prospect of these books, but has only enough money to cover the two books he'd selected on impulse. He lies to Tower, saying that he needs them for his little brother whose birthday is next week.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxWIRKY8o92ojN_xwj54xhAgXL9aQ1uxalEuembkUloNoRwRLG_6fHCri0xUZyM3Lh1R5dz1mdLIROee4-JDTcgTeiDiyfVqKzzZ8Glka6oSmnGKSv8rIYLqDbOJ5y_lh4HYEM60z-BpN3/s1600/DSC00982.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 258px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxWIRKY8o92ojN_xwj54xhAgXL9aQ1uxalEuembkUloNoRwRLG_6fHCri0xUZyM3Lh1R5dz1mdLIROee4-JDTcgTeiDiyfVqKzzZ8Glka6oSmnGKSv8rIYLqDbOJ5y_lh4HYEM60z-BpN3/s320/DSC00982.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702167759196113618" border="0" /></a>Tower doesn't buy the lie, but simply remarks that Jake looks like an only child "enjoying a day of French leave as Mistress May trembles in her green gown just outside the bosky dell of June." Tower apologizes for the poetry, explaining that spring always puts him in a William Cowper (that's pronounced <span style="font-style: italic;">Cooper</span>) kind of mood.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOE08PIIicTKUGTq-a31EYwsGMz_I6t0E4ObO2qCkeZf4BO73GBeExvLHjPnZlhLGlXYVoaNTiipASHJIiPGgDfQr4nLyFVZliI4JZdSkrFG0p6_aSBiW6GIQwnv7HSulNEVzhqHL5-9An/s1600/DSC00976.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 251px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOE08PIIicTKUGTq-a31EYwsGMz_I6t0E4ObO2qCkeZf4BO73GBeExvLHjPnZlhLGlXYVoaNTiipASHJIiPGgDfQr4nLyFVZliI4JZdSkrFG0p6_aSBiW6GIQwnv7HSulNEVzhqHL5-9An/s320/DSC00976.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702166160021224018" border="0" /></a>It's at this point that Aaron Deepneau, the customer playing chess with Tower, interjects and tells Tower to hurry up and get back to the game in play. Deepneau is not only playing chess, but also reading a battered copy of Albert Camus' <span style="font-style: italic;">The Plague</span>. Tower concludes the transaction and Jake leaves, but quickly returns to ask about one of the riddles he's just read in <span style="font-style: italic;">Riddle-De-Dum!</span>:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">'Out of the eater came forth meat,</span><br style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;">and out of the strong came forth sweetness!'</span><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br />Deepneau helps Jake solve the riddle using a verse from the song 'Samson and Delilah' and then poses Jake with another riddle:<br /></div></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">'What can run but never walks,</span><br style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Has a mouth but never talks,</span><br style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Has a bed but never sleeps,</span><br style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Has a head but never weeps?'</span><br /></div><br />Jake is stumped, but Deepneau doesn't divulge the answer, instead he tells the boy to think it over and come back another time if he can't figure it out. Jake says he will, thanks the two odd fellows and then once again proceeds walking down <a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2012/02/quest-for-dark-tower-pt-7-eight-magic_17.html">Second Avenue</a>.<br /><br /><br />Long days, pleasant nights!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-83478842343539789942012-02-07T08:27:00.002-05:002012-02-07T08:33:29.680-05:00Tombstone Tuesday!Once again, like the '<a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2011/11/tombstone-tuesday.html">Fear</a>' and '<a href="http://devldesign.blogspot.com/2011/12/tombstone-tuesday.html">Lament</a>' stones in St. Catharines' <span style="font-style: italic;">Victoria Lawn Cemetery</span>, I happened to come across this gravemarker with the name <span>'Skelton'</span> that just seemed all too appropriate in a place <span style="font-style: italic;">filled</span> with skeletons.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfMzkRUBSvXh4az1miWmY5si65HmVzbodAlz27e11QqeoKaf2tXP0Sse78PEA1z4A1uEkuazWj_qaBRgofuj_Sgat-4drhkvjet3Uje0h1ka9mXDYrS5qcM53TniBXB452rHUU3z2VrDIi/s1600/DSC00142.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfMzkRUBSvXh4az1miWmY5si65HmVzbodAlz27e11QqeoKaf2tXP0Sse78PEA1z4A1uEkuazWj_qaBRgofuj_Sgat-4drhkvjet3Uje0h1ka9mXDYrS5qcM53TniBXB452rHUU3z2VrDIi/s320/DSC00142.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705306183666620194" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Stay Tombed!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-41793790587190322102012-02-03T09:00:00.014-05:002012-03-16T12:50:17.016-04:00The Quest for the Dark Tower - Shuffle: The Songs of Roland Part I<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcjm8FNRaFf73_jPR43FswSXkfPqlTkR5sEdCrKarf2otoZrIWJ8Ea7r_eVaIYkCUQt77vCaiMa2X5GDpqbcQjxiZWyzsvVQLGTl7Li5orJfPjzch4WPPsLTNQvn0fdR0et0PEYYcUzj-h/s1600/button.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcjm8FNRaFf73_jPR43FswSXkfPqlTkR5sEdCrKarf2otoZrIWJ8Ea7r_eVaIYkCUQt77vCaiMa2X5GDpqbcQjxiZWyzsvVQLGTl7Li5orJfPjzch4WPPsLTNQvn0fdR0et0PEYYcUzj-h/s200/button.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5705768129650988402" border="0" /></a>***Spoiler warning! Though I've made every attempt to avoid giving away key plot points during this quest, it's still very possible that information discussed herein may spoil a new reader's experience, so consider yourself warned! ***<p class="MsoNormal">It's amazing how many musical references there are in the Dark Tower series, so I thought I'd share what I think of as "The Ultimate DT Playlist." This entry covers Books I-IV (since I'd rather not jump too far ahead of my own quest's narrative). Part II (covering books V-VII) will be posted in a future entry.</p><p class="MsoNormal">There are a lot of songs on this list, and I'm sure I've missed a few, so if there's anything missing, or if any of the links turn out to be broken, please feel free to mention it. This list wouldn't be nearly as complete as it is if not for several playlists that had been posted on the now defunct web community, <span style="font-style: italic;">www.TheDarkTower.net</span>, so I'd like to take moment to say thanks to those good folks for sharing and helping to enrich so many readers' listening experience. </p><p class="MsoNormal">I've included links to <span style="font-style: italic;">Youtube</span> (or other sources, on those rare occasions when <span style="font-style: italic;">Youtube</span> came up dry) and page numbers to the trade paperback editions for easy reference. In many cases, I've included some commentary notes (for example, where a band or singer is mentioned, I've tried to include the song that best suits the situation, or <span style="font-style: italic;">vice versa</span>). Some song references have been mentioned repeatedly, so for simplicity's sake, I've only included the first page where a song is made reference to.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-style: italic;">Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger</span><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsGDiYlMFuk"><span style="font-style: italic;">Woodstock</span></a> - Crosby, Stills Nash & Young (pg. xi of the expanded and revised edition) </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWeEy7nNjXA">Bobby Ann Mason</a> - Rick Trevino (pg. xii of the expanded and revised edition) </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pR30knJs4Xk">TNT</a> - AC/DC (pg. xii of the expanded and revised edition)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIPfNFdXqI8">Like A Rock</a> - Bob Seger (pg. xii of the expanded and revised edition)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHVeyo4W18U"><span style="font-style: italic;">Time Is On My Side</span></a> - The Rolling Stones (pg. xv of the expanded and revised edition)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDdI7GhZSQA"><span style="font-style: italic;">Hey Jude</span></a> - The Beatles (pg. 22 - pg. 17 of the expanded and revised edition)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mG78M7g9wRo"><span style="font-style: italic;">Onward Christian Soldiers</span></a> – Traditional (pg. 34 - pg. 31 of the expanded and revised edition)</p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8EIjGXtCLk"><span style="font-style: italic;">Shall We Gather at the River</span></a> – Traditional (pg. 48 - pg. 49 of the expanded and revised edition)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.youtube.com/watch?v=H1i_kODS4qI"><span style="font-style: italic;">Calling Dr. Love</span></a> - KISS (pg. 83 - pg. 88 of the expanded and revised edition)</p><p class="MsoNormal">- <span style="font-style: italic;">Careless Love</span> – Traditional (pg. 86 - pg. 91 of the expanded and revised edition) - I like various versions of this song, depending on the situation. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDyaEOd6t-w">Bessie Smith</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqU1d27JanA">Fats Domino</a> and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SGsQWY020I">Bob Dylan & Johnny Cash’s</a> versions are all favorites.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ztDwyEuiBY"><span style="font-style: italic;">Ease on Down the Road</span></a> - Michael Jackson and Diana Ross (pg. 120 - 126 of the expanded and revised edition) – The first reference to the Wizard of Oz, and a mighty strange and unlikely one at that.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <span style="font-style: italic;">A Hundred Leagues to Banberry Cross</span> (pg. 120 - Replaced with <span style="font-style: italic;">Careless Love</span> in the revised and expanded edition) – This probably refers to <span style="font-style: italic;">How Many Miles to Banbury Cross</span> which is an alternate title for <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzZNZNCpWw0">How Many Miles to Babylon</a> a traditional English nursery rhyme. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fpxUytsv6U"><span style="font-style: italic;">Instant Karma (We All Shine On)</span></a> – John Lennon (pg. 191 - Omitted from the revised and expanded edition)</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-style: italic;">Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three</span><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puWqkyJMYx0"><span style="font-style: italic;">Lookin’ Out My Back Door</span></a> - Creedence Clearwater Revival (pg. 77) - Eddie has a door following three feet behind him and he occasionally looks back through it. Also, repeated viewings of <span style="font-style: italic;">The Big Lebowski</span> (a character with some similarities to Eddie) has caused me to consider the song in another light, or rather, a place where the sun doesn’t shine. The Dude listens to this track immediately after his (thorough) physical examination. Eddie endures a similar experience with Jack Andolini’s brother, Claudio . . . back door indeed.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lN-4lX0QyZc"><span style="font-style: italic;">Just A Gigolo</span></a> - David Lee Roth (pg. 93) - “I ain’t got no body . . .”</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTlIdxu--TM">Tu-Ber-Cu-Lucas and the Sinus Blues</a> - Huey “Piano” Smith and His Clowns (pg. 123) - This is the song with the lyric “Doctor tole me son you got to quit it fast / Because one more rocket gonna be your last” which was incorrectly credited to Billie Holiday.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xZ_uHXydq4"><span style="font-style: italic;">You Go To My Head</span></a> – Billie Holiday (pg. 123) - Even though Billie is incorrectly credited with singing “Tub-Ber-Cu-Lucas,” I still felt she needed to be represented. After all, nothing is mentioned in the Dark Tower without purpose. Granted, the mention of Ms. Holiday here is really only to emphasize her involvement with heroin, I think this song might sum up exactly what Henry Dean could be thinking as he’s given his last shot. Plus the fact that, soon after, Eddie breaks cover to run for Henry adds a slightly morbid literal twist to the song.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWsuVuw5JO4"><span style="font-style: italic;">Folsom Prison Blues</span></a> - Johnny Cash (pg. 124)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euIuWoZIJVo"><span style="font-style: italic;">A Boy Named Sue</span></a> - Johnny Cash (pg. 124)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9yepsv842U"><span style="font-style: italic;">People</span></a> - Barbara Streisand (pg. 170)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gFOzaSQY6Q"><span style="font-style: italic;">Pink Shoe Laces</span></a> – Dodie Stevens (pg. 196) - Heard briefly by Detta Walker while scratching the face of a drunk frat-boy in the back of a ’46 Dodge DeSoto in a roadhouse parking lot.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wZfvn_Nmwc"><span style="font-style: italic;">We Shall Not Be Moved</span></a> - Mavis Staples (pg. 198)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5eBEgY2h5Cs"><span style="font-style: italic;">John Henry</span></a> – Traditional (pg. 199)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFHTJ08U_Fg"><span style="font-style: italic;">Barbry Allen</span></a> – Traditional (pg. 199)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRGFqSkNjHk"><span style="font-style: italic;">Take The ‘A’ Train</span></a> – Duke Ellington (pg. 215) - That fabled ‘A’ train that stops nowhere near Christopher St. Station.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.wat.tv/audio/bob-dylan-oxford-town-1xell_2ey7h_.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">Oxford Town</span></a> – Bob Dylan (pg. 233) - “Two men dead by the light of the moon / Somebody’d better investigate soon.”</p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGwa2tw7Vws&ob=av3n"><span style="font-style: italic;">Twilight Time</span></a> - The Platters (pg. 295) - "Heavenly shades of night are falling . . ."</p><p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-style: italic;">Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands</span><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aW7TiXIQzvA"><span style="font-style: italic;">Among The Living</span></a> – Anthrax (pg. 55) - Captain Trips and The Walkin’ Dude. Wonderful little bit of musical foreshadowing.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umeZtszNShk"><span style="font-style: italic;">Peace Sells</span></a> – Megadeth (pg. 55) - The title track for the album, the cover of which features Vic Rattlehead leaning on a “For Sale” sign in front of a bombed-out, dilapidated UN building. The vacant lot is in a similar predicament only one block over.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clJb4zx0o1o"><span style="font-style: italic;">Down on the Corner</span></a> - Creedence Clearwater Revival (pg. 72) - Seems like the logical CCR song to be playing on Eddie's headphones as he imagines himself standing on the corner of Broadway and 42nd St.</p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1zBG2TEjn4"><span style="font-style: italic;">Paint It Black</span></a> - Rolling Stones (pg. 77) - "I see a red door and I want to paint it black . . ."<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYYqKjUtMEM"><span style="font-style: italic;">Ninety-Nine and a Half (Won’t Do)</span></a> – Creedence Clearwater Revival (<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hq5NhAL1RQk">Wilson Pickett cover</a>) (pg. 85) - Eddie (a confessed fan of CCR) thinks a very similar line while contemplating the carving of the wooden key.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9gMpxZtKg8"><span style="font-style: italic;">Love to Love You Baby (Radio Edit)</span></a> - Donna Summer (pg. 104)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyMadKeO8cM"><span style="font-style: italic;">Samson and Delilah</span></a> – The Grateful Dead (pg. 117) - “Samson and the lion got into an attack / And Samson climbed up on the the lion’s back.” From The Grateful Dead’s “Terrapin Station.” Turtles and Train Stations . . . ye gods.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uqj6QlnCL8U"><span style="font-style: italic;">Choo Choo Mama</span></a> – Ten Years After (pg. 119) - “Chew Chew”</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElX7x_qNUYQ"><span style="font-style: italic;">Blitzkrieg Bop</span></a> – The Ramones (pg. 172) - On the trail to the speaking ring Eddie lets out a gusty “Hey Ho, Let’s go!”</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uqj6QlnCL8U"><span style="font-style: italic;">Kashmir</span></a> – Led Zeppelin (pg. 182) - Jake hears a LedZep tune on the gum-chewing cutie's transistor radio, I figured the song that mentions a "wasted land" was the perfect choice.<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7eNDZLwo8Q"><span style="font-style: italic;">Legs</span></a> – ZZ Top (pg. 196) - “She got legs and she knows how to use them” Eddie quotes this line once more in Wolves of the Calla.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgDW18QMpuo"><span style="font-style: italic;">Double Shot of My Baby’s Love</span></a> - Dick Holler and the Holidays (pg. 196)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlkKB1JlbFg"><span style="font-style: italic;">Hippy Hippy Shake</span></a> - Chan Romero (pg. 196)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APl9fRFmdC0"><span style="font-style: italic;">Foggy Mountain Breakdown</span></a> – Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs (pg. 227) - The closest I could find to “Clinch Mountain Breakdown.” And yes, it sounds about as inappropriate a thing as you could play on a banjo during a funeral.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nm2G05SOno0"><span style="font-style: italic;">Buffalo Gals</span></a> - Trad. (pg. 228) - Versions of the original arrangement by <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6rpp8eXbSI">Woody Guthrie</a> or even Bruce Springsteen are far more appropriate than Malcolm McLaren's <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckjhFWWlyoY">old school hip-hop track</a>, which, while influential in it’s own right, has nothing to do with the Dark Tower (of course, there <span style="font-style: italic;">is</span> a Sex Pistols reference in <span style="font-style: italic;">Wizard and Glass</span> so who knows?). </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Darlin-Katie/dp/B001J2CL64"><span style="font-style: italic;">Darlin’ Katie</span></a> – Michael Holliday (pg. 228) - Misspelled 'Katy' in DT:III.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7a4cdUKGa_4"><span style="font-style: italic;">Red Roses for a Blue Lady</span></a> - Wayne Newton (pg. 228) - Eddie mentions him in relation to Jimtown (for those curious, Newton was born in Norfolk, Virginia) and I didn’t want to simply fall back on the old “Danke Schoen” cliché. When I dug this track up it seemed to fit perfectly, what with the rose in the vacant lot and Susannah's Aunt Blue.<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pn2-b_opVTo"><span style="font-style: italic;">Sharp Dressed Man</span></a> - Z.Z. Top (pg.254)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQkfmoGW_pg"><span style="font-style: italic;">Velcro Fly</span></a> - Z.Z. Top (pg. 254)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emvVDC1-bwI"><span style="font-style: italic;">Knock Three Times</span></a> - Tony Orlando and Dawn (pg. 317)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmb9HD-5Saw"><span style="font-style: italic;">My Gal’s a Corker</span></a> - Trad. (pg. 336)</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-style: italic;">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pw75H4mbJIA">See You Later Alligator</a></span> – Bill Haley and His Comets (pg. 385)- One of Blaine’s favorite sayings, I figured this song deserved inclusion, since Blaine drops quite a few musical references to the tet.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2fbOAyNOpM"><span style="font-style: italic;">Stardust</span></a> - Hoagy Carmichael (pg. 399)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rx4QL0yi6nQ"><span style="font-style: italic;">Tube Snake Boogie</span></a> - Z.Z. Top (pg. 409)</p><p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-style: italic;">Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass</span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AY62QByUYJQ"><span style="font-style: italic;">As Time Goes By</span></a> - Frank Sinatra (pg. 39)<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEC5s3nzVzo"><span style="font-style: italic;">Blue Sky</span></a> - Allman Brothers Band (pg. 56) - Music references from Blaine. this song is from the album <span style="font-style: italic;">Eat a Peach</span> and could easily be used to describe Blaine's late companion, Patricia.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mEbczpvLIs"><span style="font-style: italic;">To Be a Lover</span></a> - Billy Idol (pg. 56) - From Idol's album <span style="font-style: italic;">Whiplash Smile</span>. Billy keeps yelling "Have mercy!" throughout the song, I like to think that's what Blaine was driving at (in his usual obtuse and riddling way . . . I'm still puzzling over "OLIVE OIL BUT NOT CASTORIA" twelve years later).</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7NHWKbQuRw"><span style="font-style: italic;">On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe</span></a> - Judy Garland (pg. 68) - Roland notices a sign featuring this railway. The movie ‘The Harvey Girls’ stars Judy Garland (Oz), as Susan (!) and features this song early on.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BmEGm-mraE"><span style="font-style: italic;">Bad Moon Rising</span></a> – Creedence Clearwater Revival (pg. 90) - All that talk of demons and moons makes this a pretty obvious choice.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRcgeVmJgzQ"><span style="font-style: italic;">Flying High (In the Friendly Sky)</span></a> - Marvin Gaye (pg. 90) - Sounds like the sort of song Eddie would dig while doing some turnpikin’.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cN6DXflD7fU"><span style="font-style: italic;">Hard Headed Woman</span></a> - Elvis Presley (pg. 90) - This song references Samson and Delilah and the phrase "hard headed woman" is mentioned later on in<span style="font-style: italic;"> Song of Susannah</span>.<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcauCclfytI"><span style="font-style: italic;">Pretty Vacant</span></a> - Sex Pistols (pg. 100) - A Sex Pistols poster shows up on the fence of the vacant lot. Can’t get much more obvious than this for song choices.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yRdDnrB5kM"><span style="font-style: italic;">Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On</span></a> – Jerry Lee Lewis (pg. 214) - One of Pettie the Trotter's favorites.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzQ5Vm55qQ4"><span style="font-style: italic;">Golden Slippers</span></a> – Traditional (pg. 244) - Sheemie hums this one, probably heard Sheb playing it the night before.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vw1aQigjND4"><span style="font-style: italic;">Lay Lady Lay</span></a> - Bob Dylan (pg. 268) - Possibly a variation of Mid-World's <span style="font-style: italic;">Play, Ladies, Play?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RCGyCxQyFJw"><span style="font-style: italic;">White Christmas</span></a> - Frank Sinatra & Bing Crosby (pg. 406) - "We'll break bread and speak of . . . whether or not Frank Sinatra really <span style="font-style: italic;">was </span>a better crooner than Der Bingle."<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Red-Dirt-Boogie-Brother/dp/B0028EW6M6"><span style="font-style: italic;">Red Dirt Boogie, Brother</span></a> – Jesse Davis (pg. 466) - Possibly a variation of Mid-World's <span style="font-style: italic;">Red Dirt Boogie</span>?</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Reha-bLFSNQ"><span style="font-style: italic;">Beer Bottle Boogie</span></a> – Marilyn Scott (pg. 563) - Possibly a variation of Mid-World's <span style="font-style: italic;">Big Bottle Boogie</span>?</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEtMhIB9oIg"><span style="font-style: italic;">All God’s Chillun Got Wings</span></a> – Paul Robeson (pg. 627) "I got shoes, you got shoes, all god's chillun got shoes . . ."<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> - <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXhd05NYNPU"><span style="font-style: italic;">We’re Off to See the Wizard</span></a> - Wizard of Oz Cast (pg. 633)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwNYqHRHUOQ"><span style="font-style: italic;">Brain Damage</span></a> - Pink Floyd (pg. 633) "See you on the Dark Side of the Moon . . ."<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p><p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ljl2xIQB7s"><span style="font-style: italic;">Somewhere Over the Rainbow</span></a> - Judy Garland (pg. 636)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVlcqMLMbVA"><span style="font-style: italic;">Green Door</span></a> – Jim Lowe (pg. 640)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGmUsJvRv7U"><span style="font-style: italic;">Big Iron</span></a> - Marty Robbins (pg. 664)</p><br />Long days, pleasant nights!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-77522455145049195062012-01-31T08:57:00.005-05:002012-01-31T18:19:50.863-05:00Tombstone Tuesday!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisRquz_I2BnXDBqyODyWbknj7JzJLOlHtiSiJm_BZrYlNHhj_KTQqFEyYjqkdVkB9NurXORxhQVlToNX2mmvqIxfJR12zgAEariE4KDw04gm5Mnu1I_I4TrXlv5n9_DYc9O8bBcxOafsnb/s1600/DazNix.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 146px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisRquz_I2BnXDBqyODyWbknj7JzJLOlHtiSiJm_BZrYlNHhj_KTQqFEyYjqkdVkB9NurXORxhQVlToNX2mmvqIxfJR12zgAEariE4KDw04gm5Mnu1I_I4TrXlv5n9_DYc9O8bBcxOafsnb/s200/DazNix.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702420217210596290" border="0" /></a>Seeing as how Niki and I are now residents of the Niagara Region, I figured we should head over to Niagara Falls to pay tribute to one of Canada's most famous and courageous women, Laura Secord.<br /><br />During the War of 1812, she ran through twenty miles of wilderness and harsh terrain to warn the British forces of an impending American attack. A warning that resulted in the American invaders' defeat and the capture of their leader.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0herJKRtEKlVYsruldHp7sIcBQnk9EjEOA0TOVTdHbqka8LwRg57_iBCezAFgMgxc2K6YDFRGKKQY2JrpsZbqCWmFh3Y-5ntI1S7hhGuH0kSiuk80Y6hKl4AEH9L3RAbNwCtw9T2ol0Ap/s1600/DSC00851.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0herJKRtEKlVYsruldHp7sIcBQnk9EjEOA0TOVTdHbqka8LwRg57_iBCezAFgMgxc2K6YDFRGKKQY2JrpsZbqCWmFh3Y-5ntI1S7hhGuH0kSiuk80Y6hKl4AEH9L3RAbNwCtw9T2ol0Ap/s320/DSC00851.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702418992874696018" border="0" /></a>Laura Secord's gravestone monument is located at <span style="font-style: italic;">Drummond Hill Cemetery</span>, which was the site of the fiercest and bloodiest battle of The War of 1812, <span style="font-style: italic;">The Battle of Lundy's Lane</span> in July of 1814.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjECdihdZOCqmp62Y87VzQGnakliLPvf7NReZFX0TS_L_Gw2WLaHx1wU81P8bI4uLUSdxUPLKIQ1PnAuVn1jJ7GnNw-or863DWPxIC5gYNncU_oGjounHQHx4iil1DJeF2P5fvRG-YW25Sc/s1600/DSC00853.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjECdihdZOCqmp62Y87VzQGnakliLPvf7NReZFX0TS_L_Gw2WLaHx1wU81P8bI4uLUSdxUPLKIQ1PnAuVn1jJ7GnNw-or863DWPxIC5gYNncU_oGjounHQHx4iil1DJeF2P5fvRG-YW25Sc/s320/DSC00853.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702418989131473154" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">The inscription is a little hard to read, but to the best of my knowledge it says:<br /><br /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNZmWKQB3Di8gpXiUkynCZ2gcr9e8z3hBhyNnLqppHsAcOxTUuMsBu_rXszu5Hm9QAhx20FItN3KMFQW0UL9S8BiVvTWF-CJA1zhOjnx47Pp1a3Bz-kbmuuwBDVoSb-9ia35rhaU3Ty-rG/s1600/DSC00852.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNZmWKQB3Di8gpXiUkynCZ2gcr9e8z3hBhyNnLqppHsAcOxTUuMsBu_rXszu5Hm9QAhx20FItN3KMFQW0UL9S8BiVvTWF-CJA1zhOjnx47Pp1a3Bz-kbmuuwBDVoSb-9ia35rhaU3Ty-rG/s320/DSC00852.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702418983120119218" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> To Perpetuate<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">The Name and Fame of<br />LAURA SECORD,<br />who walked alone nearly 20<br />miles by a circuitous, difficult<br />and perilous route through woods<br />and swamps and over miry roads<br />to warn a British outpost at<br />De Cew's Falls of an intended attack<br />and thereby enabled Lieut. FitzGibbon,<br />on the 24th June, 1813, with less<br />than 50 men of H. M. 49th Regt.,<br />about 15 militiamen and a small<br />force of Six Nation and other Indians<br />under Captains William Johnson Kerr<br />and Dominique Ducharme, to surprise<br />and attack the enemy at Beechwoods<br />(or Beaver Dams), and after a short<br />engagement to capture Col. Boerstler<br />of the U. S. Army and his entire force<br />of 542 men with two field pieces.<br /></div><br /><br />Stay Tombed!<br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9144450179687550227.post-59238227385318082272012-01-28T19:51:00.014-05:002012-01-29T13:11:06.977-05:00The Etheridge Rose<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZvV3p-yA8VXDnytFc3h7TQNvnUU0vOTUTASRISFaH_m4_4madMrjVWzCxVdmUpbyIPYZn90vksDzUfLKxT3r-uADCme4HLR9qRX3VmFew22o3o5-wDeky-s4lYVymohb0C-VYImsom4A5/s1600/n756455234_2143378_3160.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 134px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZvV3p-yA8VXDnytFc3h7TQNvnUU0vOTUTASRISFaH_m4_4madMrjVWzCxVdmUpbyIPYZn90vksDzUfLKxT3r-uADCme4HLR9qRX3VmFew22o3o5-wDeky-s4lYVymohb0C-VYImsom4A5/s200/n756455234_2143378_3160.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702860628692709010" border="0" /></a>When my grandmother on my father's side died in 2003, I wasn't able to travel to Cape Breton to attend the funeral, so when my grandfather died in 2006, I made sure to be there without fail, and I also made sure Niki was by side. I've always been very thankful for her being there to support me (I remember the morning of the funeral was especially hard on me, after waking up from an intense night-terror).<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_bkrW68N8JnxWSFbrqdP_8lkst6a3qAzinGZUzsx8lj_4C5xv46u2ADukhi-bsXnHWNA9NO82Y_oM2lQ48qMwPYM9y6buWfTZoStIo0nG3cOhWUOLA8aZ2Uww4y9Nox3cYVItUQW1OnOn/s1600/PalmerEdith.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_bkrW68N8JnxWSFbrqdP_8lkst6a3qAzinGZUzsx8lj_4C5xv46u2ADukhi-bsXnHWNA9NO82Y_oM2lQ48qMwPYM9y6buWfTZoStIo0nG3cOhWUOLA8aZ2Uww4y9Nox3cYVItUQW1OnOn/s320/PalmerEdith.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5671197275606032482" border="0" /></a>At the service, I had the honor not only of being one of the six pall-bearers among Palmer's grandchildren, but also to be a recipient of one of the four roses given out at the end of the service, the others each going to one of the three great-grandchildren who were in attendance. I've often wondered why I was selected to receive that fourth rose and I continue to come up blank. Perhaps because like those three, who were so very young at the time, I continue to view the world with a somewhat child-like sense of wonder. Maybe it was because I was dressed so spiffy in my pinstriped suit and bowler derby (the same outfit I would wear one year later at our wedding). Who can say for sure?<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBC0C7UKArmDxgURSJLiTyrMETXcrU9VU8prAP4DqvST_qvRiNXSD7rqjD_ckljINLSORi9AAAIkhO3-FNd0b4r2q0uLBbu9NAhT94aVnWfgYbzNaZNVG2n1b-COuXOsDtKz2xWFzFm4YQ/s1600/n756455234_2131044_6441.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBC0C7UKArmDxgURSJLiTyrMETXcrU9VU8prAP4DqvST_qvRiNXSD7rqjD_ckljINLSORi9AAAIkhO3-FNd0b4r2q0uLBbu9NAhT94aVnWfgYbzNaZNVG2n1b-COuXOsDtKz2xWFzFm4YQ/s320/n756455234_2131044_6441.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702860015729885634" border="0" /></a>Niki had found a hip flask with a thunderbolt symbol on it and had given it to me for Christmas later that same year (one of my last impressions of Grandpa was of him having just a <span style="font-style: italic;">little</span> too much whiskey at the family reunion, and my Dad and I having to each take an arm to help him into the house that night . . . it still makes me smile to think of that), and in that flask the funeral rose has stayed to this day. But I have always worried about the potential damage that could be caused to the rose, so I finally took the time to secure it within a shadowbox frame.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6pWXtTbXnTifSL5jFXVIPF5uNIUWrGouV3UlQ1ID17eq91oOqvQsaEdBw9QQBtJcrVji52ubKEyzEdPYMVo0plRsS8XRxOBoCckL9frRut2O57XCVeCra6fcheuMdcar8xhhxa7_H4eVC/s1600/Palmer%2526Edith.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 203px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6pWXtTbXnTifSL5jFXVIPF5uNIUWrGouV3UlQ1ID17eq91oOqvQsaEdBw9QQBtJcrVji52ubKEyzEdPYMVo0plRsS8XRxOBoCckL9frRut2O57XCVeCra6fcheuMdcar8xhhxa7_H4eVC/s320/Palmer%2526Edith.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702863506357547554" border="0" /></a>I included a picture of my grandparents when they were surely no older than I was when the rose came to me (electronically preserved and sent by my genealogy-buff, Aunt Helen) and a picture of the rose in full bloom on the day it was given to me (that photo was taken by my cousin, the incredibly talented photographer<span style="font-style: italic;"></span>, <a href="http://etheridgephotographic.com/">Kelli Etheridge</a>).<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkca9zAGnrAHEx2dFYPk0FN0n6OwhsumVBtZUToIQ7YCpvRri2mk5uml-IXDJm3rbdpMJLfH36ikG5olUE-kzNWmazyIXcbwrk69wd0pwpMmectu7tiMcSj5JNvRWyhPteWqUWFU2vnV_m/s1600/DSC00993.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkca9zAGnrAHEx2dFYPk0FN0n6OwhsumVBtZUToIQ7YCpvRri2mk5uml-IXDJm3rbdpMJLfH36ikG5olUE-kzNWmazyIXcbwrk69wd0pwpMmectu7tiMcSj5JNvRWyhPteWqUWFU2vnV_m/s320/DSC00993.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702859463588960850" border="0" /></a>Now I can hang the entire ensemble safely, knowing that a random movement won't cause any harm to what I consider a priceless and irreplaceable family heirloom.<br /><br /><br /><br />-DEDEVLhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10084683563217221011noreply@blogger.com0