On Saturday, I had my belated birthday celebration with my girlfriend. We also got engaged.

It was a pretty good Saturday. I'm going to remember that one for a while. ;)

Is it generally a bad idea to discuss things like story ideas in a blog? I read a few, and it's occurred to me that while many would-be writers discuss their progress, few seem to actually post their ideas.

On one hand, it seems like common sense. On the other, it's disappointing to not be able to spill, so to speak.

Despite some frustrating news regarding my living situation, the last few days have been pretty good to me.

I've been more creative, playing around with my potential comic strip for the first time in ages, as well as putting together a webcomic with some friends. The latter's giving me a good vibe. The guys working on it with me are pretty funny contributors and trustworthy sounding boards for my own ideas. It's strange to be writing something like that and having little to do with the art chores. It's refreshing in a way, because even though I've been drawing for as long as I can remember, it's still a sore spot for me, having had so little formal training.

That said, it feels good to draw again after several months in a row of neglecting my drawing table. The webcomic's sort of stirred my brain into remembering that I can do a thing or two.

I've been doing more reading, too, which is obviously good. After so enjoying James Whale's Frankenstein films around Halloween, it's been nagging me that I've never read Mary Shelley's novel. Here I am, with science fiction a more or less daily part of my life, and I've never read the story that many say invented the genre. So I snatched it up at the bookstore this weekend, along with Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes. I can't wait to dive into them and, hopefully, keep the creative ball rolling in some fashion or another.

October was pretty good to me this year. Anyone who knows me is aware that Halloween begins on October 1st, and ends reluctantly on November 1st. During that time, I put up plenty of decorations and try to watch as many spooky films or dark comedies that I can manage.

Last year, circumstances sort of prevented me from taking full advantage of the month, so to speak. There were financial and personal hurdles that got in the way of the magic. I didn't get around to carving a pumpkin. I even kind of blew it in regards to celebrating Lady Saturn's birthday in the middle of the month.

This year, I got all that straightened out. I had decorations, watched movies galore, and (hopefully) made up for last year's cruddy Lady Saturn Day. I felt a little under-the-weather on the Night Itself, but I still had an enjoyable night sipping spiced cider and watching classic horror films.

I've even gotten around to seeing lots of the more celebrated horror films that I've somehow always missed. Movies like Carrie and The Exorcist. In fact, it's sort of piqued my interest enough to keep the ball rolling, watching fright flicks through the ages, from the Universal Monster films, to the old Hammer Films, to more modern classics.

There's something about the genre that's different from others in the sense that the people creating it are doing so out of genuine love for the material. Sure, there are films that work on deeper levels, and they're almost invariably the better ones, but even the schlocky films are usually made with a sense of fun. Horror stories seem somehow less manipulative than many other types. And they sure seem like a lot of fun to write and make.

I'm going to file that thought away. ;)

It's been almost a year since the last entry. Whoops.

The Lady Saturn's had a rough time this year. She's had several personal losses right in a row, and she's only recently had the time to let it catch up with her. It's been hard to watch her deal with it. I'm there for support and encouragement, of course, but the typical male impulse to "fix" things is pretty useless. We've had long talks about important things, which draws us closer. It never feels like there's much good that can come from tragedy, but there's some consolation in being there for each other. So I try to ditch the aforementioned impulse and just be there, whether as it's a source of strength and support, or to help with the relief found in smaller, enjoyable things.

In that vein, we've been having loads of fun with our new kitten, Izze. He's a funny little guy, with a tendency to act more like a dog than a cat. Rudy, the older cat, is gradually adjusting to him.

I'm down about 42 pounds, which is exciting, while she's lost around 35. We're feeling and looking better, which helps us get out and enjoy ourselves.

That leads into the trip to Boston we took a little while back. We went to a friend's wedding and toured the city a bit. It's a pretty interesting town, and it was fun to take our first major trip together. I kind of wish I'd been updating this thing while we were out there, or had a moblog or something.

I'll try to update more often. I just renewed this thing for a couple of months, which will hopefully prod me out of laziness.

I've been working in a new building for a little over a month, now.

It sways nicely when we have an earthquake.

It's probably the strongest I've felt since moving out here. Even so, nothing fell over. I just felt sort of drunk for a minute.

I'm regularly amused when people try a vegetarian dish and seem surprised that it's edible. A few days ago I was at a Japanese restaurant with my roommate. While I was looking over the menu's vegetarian options, the following conversation took place.

"Okay, there's plenty for me to eat here. More than tempura, anyway."

"Oh, hey, I went with a bunch of friends to the Saturn Café last week." (The Saturn Café being a local vegetarian diner.)

"That's a good place. I like their desserts."

"What are those burgers you have in the freezer at home? Gardenburger or Boca?"

"Boca."

"Okay. That's the kind of burger I had. It was pretty good!"

"Thanks. I make them all, you know, and I modestly accept your praise."

By this point, most people have heard about this, where the New York Post completely blew their headline this morning in regards to John Kerry's choice of running mate.

After the requisite thanks to God, the Fates, and Kerry's political advisors, I was wondering how many of those papers would find their way to eBay.

As it turns out, lots.

Pac-Man Game to Jump from Computer to City Streets

NEW YORK (Reuters) - "Life imitates art far more than art imitates life," Oscar Wilde once wrote. Little did he know that life would eventually also imitate video games.

New York University students plan to stage a real, live Pac-Man game on Saturday in the streets of Greenwich Village, as part of a project exploring how computer games work when transplanted into real-world settings.

In the hugely popular 1980s game that became a cultural icon, Pac-Man, a yellow circle with a wedge removed for his mouth, gobbled up dots while evading ghostly rivals Inky, Blinky, Pinky and Clyde who also try to gobble him.

This weekend a man in a yellow costume will weave through the streets collecting dots while being pursued by people dressed in ghost outfits whose aim is to stop him before he gathers all the dots.

The characters' movements will be controlled by five interactive telecommunications students, who will instruct them via cell phones from a room with a game map. They will use the map to update the latest position of the players and to see where to send them next.

Frank Lantz, the New York University professor who assigned the project, said his "big games" class is aimed at helping students think of new ways to design games in different spaces.

"We're invading an existing public space and transforming it into a game space," said Lantz. "Video games were often very solitary, so part of the impulse (behind the project) is to explore more types of social interaction."

Perhaps Pac-Man will be glad he waited 25 years before socially interacting with hurried New Yorkers. All will be revealed on Web site (http://www.pacmanhattan.com) after the game.

http://www.khaaan.com/

I'm tempted to make it my home page.