October randoms

Start this entry off with something fun and nice. We went down to Victoria for a week for holidays and it was awesome. Beautiful weather considering it is middle of September. Lined up a ton of activities. Whale watching, haunted tours, the sky walk and a bunch more. You can check out my yelp for a ton of reviews. Tavis P. There if you want. I am not going to go into detail but it was a great trip. What I will say is times have changed. Pre 2007 I went with some friends and we stayed in a "hotel" that a friend of a friend down there was the manager of. I say "Hotel" because the mattresses were on the floor, it was dirty and there was a skeezy bar in the basement. We stayed there cause that was all we could afford. Rumor was it had been a brothel that was just shut down before.... This time we stayed in a place that was $450 / night. In all honesty I could never afford that BUT points program helped. We had a valet lol & a king sized bed instead of mattresses on floor. I guess it made me grateful staying there for how things have worked out. Anyways I know there is a bunch of rants coming up so I just wanted to start positive. I love that city and would go yearly if I could. 

I have to rant, like angry rant!! SO I was in the children's section of chapters, looking for a book or 2 for my coming nephews. In the 0 - 2 section there is a book called bye bye binary. Seriously?! I have defended free speech and I do still. I just can't get over you freaks pushing this shit on infants. A story about an infant that can't decide to be boy or girl??? AN INFANT SHOULDNT BE DECIDING THAT! AT that age they are legit still shitting their pants! So why is this even a thing? Harper Collins, why would you publish this book? Eric Geron what kind of mind thinks this shit up for babies. IMO at least this is too far. I won't / can't say ban it as well, I still support free speech. I am just saying this is some sick freak shit..... A legit perfect example of what is wrong with the world. 

Woodstock 99 Documentary was alright. I think it could have been longer, like 2 or 3 more episodes. It mentions a lot of issues that probably led to the shitty end of the concert but doesn't really get into them. Also as a 90s kid, graduating in 99 it brought back so many good music memories for me. Shitty shit not withstanding that is a concert I wish I had seen. The brief scene of the Korn set gave me chills, wish I had seen it! Also while there can be no doubt Fred Durst is a twat, I don't blame him. His job was to put on a hella show and he did! The blame in all this lays at the feet of the greedy producers John Scher and Michael Lang. Festival goers should accept they are getting gouged but this was insane. Also no clean water, no shade, tons of liquor and drugs. That doesn't excuse the actions but if you can't see that's what's gonna happen your blind. Peace Patrol?? If you have 250,000 people you need real security not kids in tee shirts. A lot of those things could have been stopped before had real security been there. Also the pay per view, another greedy idea. They admitted they were pushing people to get stupid, okay fill those people with drugs and liquor and see how stupid it ends up being. Lang went on to say he didn't know the bands he was signing up, just they were big. I get the logic behind that but as a responsible promoter would you not know the product you are promoting??? Honestly it is tragic, we won't likely see a concert like that again because the failed so bad at it.

Stranger Things if you look at the overall plot is insane. I just finished the Dear Billy episode of season 4. So we have a girl left with a shadowy government organization to get her super powers back. This worries her other friends who are under the protection of this organization. Right when they are about to escape another government organization shows up and tries to gun them down. OH no the parent isn't around she currently is in Alaska trying to save the "super girls" dad who is also her love interest who is in a gulag in Russia because last season Russians captured him in their secret base under a mall in middle America. Oh and currently her and the conspiracy nut she is in Alaska with were drugged by a double crossing smuggler, who is selling them to the KGB. Then we have 2 girls that lied their way into an insane asylum, in the dangerous criminal ward and are speaking to a man who dealt with a demon? wizard? something that killed his family. Oh cause that is back in the original small town that all this crazy started from and that's the reason the government wants super girl to get her powers back. Oh on top of that in small town a group of stereotypical jocks are hunting down stereotypical 1980s DnD player because they think he murdered the cheerleader, when it was really a demon wizard thing.... The last group of kids is in the cemetery waiting on a girl that the demon is chasing. OH he got her, but playing her favorite song to her pulls her from the demons land back to reality saving the day! It all sounds like a little much eh?? SO if someone told me this would be the plot in what was becoming my favorite show I would laugh at them, but here we are. The crazy thing, all these plot lines are good. Usually a show will have a few plots and a couple will be good. Every single one of these has me waiting to see what will happen next. Season 1 of Stranger was great, mostly I think it brought us all the warm fuzzies about the 80s. 2 was meh at best but 3 & 4 have been incredible. They have made me care about all the stories which very few shows have done. I mean by the time I put this blog up I am sure I will be done this season BUT wow I get it now, why people love this show. (So I did finish season 4. Such good TV but so sad about who we lost :( Yes that was the most metal concert ever! Cannot wait for next season) I won't get too much into other TV as this blog is already getting long but House of the Dragon is really making up for GoT season 8. Right now only seen first 3 episodes but Dameon made it great from first episode. Is it the character, is it Matt Smiths acting?? Dunno but he pulls people in right away. Also princess Rhaenyra is the same, super bad ass and interesting. Is it the writing or the acting not sure but these to really make the show. Sadly the young actress who has been amazing will be gone soon.... Rings of Power has been visually stunning. It started out throwing a lot of shit at the wall and seeing what stuck. Or that was my opinion of the first couple episodes. They did not hook me, however as it has gone on it has. Seeing 4th episode at time of this writing, it is starting to come together in a more cohesive story. She-Hulk.... This IMO started SO strong. Like one of MCUs best shows, lets be honest the shows haven't been amazing. It was honest though, it said it was going to be a lawyer show and that is what they have given us. I am on 5 or 6 now first 3 or 4 were great but really slowed down and did become a lawyer show. A year ago I did say I wanted the MCU to branch out into other things, we had the buddy comedy F&WS. The sitcom Wandavision and now a lawyer show. I take it back. Just make superhero movies please.... Also last thought I am happy / sad The Walking Dead is wrapping up. I have been there since day 1 and while the show has had good seasons and bad season this ending is just dragging. Just make 1 season and finish it off. I am really quickly losing interest from what was such a good show. The first "final" episode is out and I haven't watched. In fact it isn't even high on the watch list and a few years ago I HAD to watch on Sundays cause I didn't want to be behind. 

So I noticed Edmonton is down to 3 strip clubs. There was at least 6 I can think of running at once say 20 years ago. Not that I have been to one in 4 years and probably 5 before that but back in the day, when I was a younger man we went tons! Thursday was pay day so go drop some $$$ and Friday was 5 at 5 at Saint Petes! Of course gotta get in on that! I posted on social media about it and I did get some smart responses. Only Fans was killing the club industry. Why go pay to get in, pay to get drinks and toss money when you can sign up for $10 a month or whatever and never have to leave your room to see a stripper. Why? Well social interaction for a start. I have seen a lot of strippers in my life, but all the time spent in clubs was with friends having fun. If you wanna stay home and be creepy just watch porn! It was going out, we drank, visited, shot pool. Went to a normal bar or someone's yard for a fire after. The fact is I get the screen between a performer and a patron might be nice but I will argue girls in the clubs were super safe. You didn't look at a girl wrong there or a rather large man appeared to fix that attitude. The girls made good money, mostly..... I lived with a guy who worked with them, as long as they were good, the cash they could make was crazy. What really caught my eye and take it with a grain of salt, was a comment from a strip club owner. He said young men used to come in and have a good time. Strippers interact with patrons and they used to joke around, have social skills. The owner claimed that was gone. His theory was to many hours playing online behind a screen, saying whatever they wanted led to young men with stunted social skills. I wonder if that's true.

So I have been on old comics for the last few weeks. I finished Inferno a couple weeks ago and found a great back issue store on the south side. SO I have been trying to get the Mutant Massacre. Now I should have done this a few years ago. Each issue has gone way up in price BUT it really makes me believe the older Claremont run Xmen are the best. The art IMO is more real and the stories are better. Like the other day on social media I saw a big debate. Are comics to woke? A ton of people said no, if you think so you don't understand comics. I completely disagree with that statement. Years ago comics were not "woke" they were well written, they made points that needed to be made. NOW they go out of there way to make points. Good writing should not have to scream at you that it is trying to make a point, the point should just be made. Besides that though The Eternals, Xmen, Avengers crossover has been boring AF. It started so good but really kinda got slow and not exciting. Both Bat titles have been awesome. I honestly cannot get over how good these titles have been in the last 2 years. Or 3, god how long have I been collecting for? AWA has been okay, like I have liked most their titles but nothing really hooked me. E-ratic is back, honestly the whole villain and stuff in it never was that great but I think they do a great job on the struggles of teens in school and this volume looks like it will do that again. Oh and the wonderwoman copy look entertaining so far!

So the other day I read a quote that got me thinking being "woke" and a "social justice warrior" weren't bad things. Seeing shit that is wrong with the world, discrimination, racism, sexism and calling it out is a good thing! That's what woke social justice warriors do. I started to think ya, that's true that is a good thing! So why do people, myself included get so annoyed with their stupidity? Then I watched the world and remembered oh ya, these are good things but people take them to far. First... A tweet complains that Siri's voice is female and that teaches women to be subservient. Really? OR it is the fact it is more pleasant to the ear! Like I have her set as an Irish woman and I like it. Do I want Doug the long haul trucker saying shit like "Ya whoda ya wanna call!" No. It isn't sexism it is just more pleasant. Next we get to the woman a cop pushed in Edmonton the other day. So this woman has a knife and is threatening people. A cop shoves her over. Some people, including the Bear Clan call it excessive force. (I was trying to think of a way to donate to the Bear Clan but not anymore) REALLY?? She had a fucking knife and he pushed her. I am not a lawyer but I think he would have been well within his rights to use more force!!! On top of that at first the videos released were only showing the cop shoving the lady and people were all up in arms. Like why do people do that? Try and get anti police sentiment up?? Then coming home from my Victoria trip on the news a woman in Vancouver went into a hospital nursery wielding a knife and terrorizing people. They had to lock themselves in nurseries with newborns to keep her out. The police came and shot her with a beanbag shotgun. Then arrested her. Right away on the news people are calling it excessive force. WHAT?? She has a fucking knife in a nursery, honestly she should be grateful it wasn't in Texas. I am pretty sure it wouldn't have been police or a beanbag gun that stopped her, if she was a threat to a gun owners newborn. Also these people saying excessive force would they be okay if it was their newborn there? So I guess I don't have a problem with real woke people or social justice warriors. They have a heart in the right place. It is all these other idiots that go way overboard, that don't seem to have common sense. That in all honesty aren't woke, just stupid.

I wanted all the negativity around Thor Love and Thunder to be either people with superhero hangover or just bitter people who hate everything BUT sadly they weren't wrong. It isn't a very good movie. For sure better than Dark World and maybe better than the first one but that is a low bar. Honestly it is like they wanted too much from it. A movie that appeals to everyone, a hero movie, a love story, a kids movie (Like all the mini Thors was pure trash) a comedy (fell flat). So sadly I have to report it aint good. I mean the post credit of course sets stuff up but that's about it. Top Gun Maverick on the other hand is a good sequel. Is it an amazing movie, no. It is a military action flick with some drama sprinkled in. For the most part it plays out exactly as you expect. There were a couple things I didn't see coming but all in all an action movie. Saying that, it was a good watch. If you like Top Gun you'll like this one. Nothing ground breaking but a fun watch. My only question though, that "mission" were they attacking Canada?? Terrain looked like it and if you launch missile strikes do you really need to sneak in?

White people, please stop. So I dunno who has heard about the statue that was built for one end of the Walterdale bridge. It is a settler sitting on a pile of buffalo pelts. It cost the city $375,000, oh and it can't be displayed. Somehow it is offensive. It may bring up painful memories?!? I don't even know how to respond to that. Pretty sure there isn't a person alive who was alive back in those days. It literally depicts an unknown settler. I don't agree with changing the name Grandin on things BUT he did do some shifty shit that did cause harm SO I can understand why people may get upset. This is a fucking unknown settler! I am not even going to get into how fucking stupid it is we can't display that giant waste of money. I mean every year we hear how the city needs more money, but we pissed away over a quarter million? Okay....This little rant though is about the responses I got when I posted on Social Media how stupid not displaying the statue was. ANGRY Woke white people loved to throw insults or call me racist. Key word being white. There was not a ton of people who agreed with me yet some of the ones who did were Native Canadians.... You know the people who are supposedly offended by this statue. The funny thing is I swear in general it is the Woke crowd that needs to be angry for everyone. The media has had numerous Native Canadians say they don't really care. There is the whole residential school issue, that was ya know a real thing that caused real trauma OR a fucking statue that apparently offends white people who apparently need to tell minorities what should offend them. Please white people, fuck off & if something actually offends someone they will let you know. You don't need to go out looking for things that SHOULD offend people.  

I wish I had anything for music or podcasts here. Legit anything. I have been listening to my liked list for the last couple months. Also, a lot of KO. I am sure I liked him years ago and forgot all about him. Now his stuff I find relatable and catchy. It is funny with music it always seems like a song comes out that relates exactly to what has been going on in your life. Like randomly driving thinking about stuff and a song comes on that is almost word for word what I am feeling. Does that happen to everyone or am I just weird. I haven't found any pods that have hooked me. Zip Zero None. Problem is I don't know what I want to listen to podcasts on. True crime is played out, history was all summer so need a break. A lot of comic ones I want to choke the podcasters, I want something funny but also smart. Not to woke.... but not maga either.  ARGH sorry nada this month for music. Well how about this, most white guys shouldn't rap.... WTF is a Stiff Gritty? Madchild used to be the man. Early Swollen Members I loved. Even his solo stuff was pretty damn good BUT recently it like he hammers out a ton with only 1 good song. Save it dude make a lot less but put out that good shit! Also is Tom McDonald still rapping like a 15-year-old that just heard the Slim Shady LP and wants to mix it with MAGA? Just caue your not wrong doesn't mean you sound good.

So.... I don't want to politicize a tragedy. I fucking hate when Trudeau does that to push his agenda. So I am just going to put a quick note out about the mass murder in James Smith Cree nation Saskatchewan. I would like to point out not a single shot fired. Honestly you can say all you want about gun control and how bad guns are! How many dead? How many injured? If a bad person wants to hurt someone, they will find a way. I am willing to bet he could not get his hands on a gun because of our VERY GOOD current gun laws. So just gonna leave that here, not going to rant on and on over a tragedy using it like a good Liberal would. Oh and WTF criminal justice system, why was this guy out? Thats another whole rant I am not getting into....

Who likes Witcher? I do! Thats why I have restarted on my Xbox X. I do not know if there are improvements, but it is such a good game I am happy to do it again. For real make a couple different choices! Like ya Yenn is hot and ya she is the "mother" to Ciri but man she is a bitch! Games, books, TV. So I am going team Triss. A friend said don't just up your sword and sign skills do like alchemy and shit. I don't think that will happen.... Finished the Quarry and was going back to play it again but it takes a long time to get into important choices. I mean there are a couple things I want to do different but I dunno if it is in me to play all those hours. I finished Bioshock 2. Liked the game, hated the ending. 

Please stop the whining. I am going to say it YES the world is rigged against you. Nothing was made to be easy & money creates money. If a person has a leg up they will likely keep up. I feel your pain, the fact is for many years I barely lived cheque to cheque and at the end of the day while I feel more secure than I did 3 years ago I think a LOT of people are only a few months away from broke. This is for the entitled new generation or well people my age or older who feel the world owes them something. IT DOESN'T! get that through your skull. This schooling has made me aware of a few things. People are being taught work should bend around them. No, it shouldn't. You get hired to do a job, just fucking do it and carry on with life. Again the game is rigged, when you finish school & get a rental chances are it will be hard to save money. (I do not agree with that. Something should be done to make rent more affordable for people) You can do it though, you will have to make hard choices. Same as everyone before you ever. The difference (partly) is expectations. I expected to work (hard) maybe get promoted and have to save if I wanted anything. I didn't quit when things didn't go my way. I didn't jump ship for a dime and it took a while. We have entered an era where it really seems people have 0 loyalty to the company they work for. You really should.... If they are a good company & by that I mean reasonable not saying they give you everything you want. You start with a couple weeks holidays, and it increases over time, You get fair raises, over time. You have a good health plan. Your boss is willing to work with you over emergencies and stuff. Meaning if for some reason you really need a day but don't have the time they will make something work with you. not just say no or not just cave and give it to you. If you have a decent job and jump ship, I really don't feel all that bad for you. The grass isn't always greener. Saying that companies need to do better to. It used to be if a person was a good, hard worker the boss gave a raise. People never used to have to come in and ask. A return to something like that would be nice. It would show employees they are valued and might actually make them want to stay. Also get into the fucking trades!! There is nothing wrong with not sitting in an office. It annoys me that people look down their noses at blue collar workers. First a tradesman can get their ticket in 4 - 6 years and be making top $. Someone isn't less smart if they are in the trades which seems to be a common misconception. So possibly lose the snotty attitude and the world might be better as well. All I am getting at is ya sometimes shit sucks, things feel hard but it seems to me we are building in shitty attitudes now. I personally believe we as a society need to find a balance between say the 50/60s and the 2010! Yes labour laws, safety all that shit needed improved but keep in mind the world owes you nothing and it seems we are teaching people the world does owe them something. That companies work for them, not the other way around.

So hockey started again. I had an awesome first game, couple of points. Then back to my nothing after that. Played well though so happy about that. BUT missed 3 games for fun and work. Which I am fine with just saying it felt like getting my legs back but probably gone now. Oh well the problems of being old lol. Also we had a Disney moment against us. We literally kept above a team, like it was 1-0 for us they tied it. then 2-1 for us and so on until 3-3. Then legit with 0.7 seconds left they scored. Like all time buzzer beater after fighting back all game. So ya that was cool for them and crushing for us! Now I know what the bad guys in Disney always feel like. 

Edmonton Expo was a couple weeks ago. I enjoyed it, there was a lot there. Big wow to some of the cosplay, super good. Most vendors were really good as well. Overall the guest line up was a big sad. The main ones I wanted to see cancelled. Got some awesome back issues. Had to laugh when I dropped a "few bucks" clearly the vendor wanted to haggle, he asked me how much I could pay I said sticker price. He seemed let down and gave me $10 /  issue. Maybe it was cause it has been cancelled for a couple years BUT it was stupid busy. I dont mind crowds but even for me some spots were tight and annoying.... Also the entry process was a bit much. So you print off a ticket, bring it. Get it scanned, have to go on line, then check in or whatever to get a plastic card to be scanned? Seriously?? What happened to the old paper tickets or a stamp. The whole world is up in arms about one use plastics (Well done Edmonton city council, you're saving the world...) and we get these entry card, lets just go back to a paper ticket....

I think that's about all I got this month. Sorry for the anger, I guess the world was just dumb last month. Plus there was a lot of interruptions to my blogging. Things like the queen dying. I am really debating on how to blog moving forward. Like do I dedicate it simply to a topic. Tavis' comics blog. Or hot new music or angry middle class politics. So I dunno I may take a break and think on that. Or maybe do 2 blogs. Do 2 profile, 2 blogs keep politics and pop culture seperate. I know I have said it and it is a lot of work but maybe...... Either way if I change I am sure I will put it up here.