Picnic at the zoo, game update.

This weekend, I went to the company's annual picnic at the zoo. I went with Harry (he was my guest), and we had a pretty good time. We checked out an IMAX movie called "Dinosaurs Alive! 3-D," but the title was a bit misleading. Most of the movie seemed to be about various expeditions to dig up fossils. There was some cool 3-D stuff, and a few computer animations of dinosaurs. We also visited the zoo's aquarium (where I took the shark picture at the beginning of this entry), the jungle exhibit, the nocturnal animals exhibit, and a few other places.

I was bummed that they preached the "birds-evolved-from-dinosaurs" myth in the film. They even had animations of raptors with feathers, which they claimed were based on fossil imprints in volcanic rock that showed these dinosaurs had feathers. Personally, I think they might have been stretching things a bit. Even if some dinosaurs had feathers, then it wouldn't necessarily mean that modern birds evolved from dinos. After all, the duck-billed platypus has a beak and lays eggs, but I don't hear anyone claiming that it evolved from a bird. Alligators and crocodiles are large lizards, but no one claims they evolved from dinosaurs. Just because one animal looks similiar to another animal, that doesn't mean they have common ancestors.

I made more progress in my "LEGO Star Wars II" game yesterday. I got to face off with the Emperor in the nearly completed Death Star as both Luke and Darth Vader. What was really cool was that I (as Vader) could levitate people and choke them to pieces using the Force. Unlike the movie, the Emperor used his lightsaber as well as Force lightning to attack me. I had to switch back and forth between Luke and Vader whenever he would blast me with the lightning so I could attack him and free my other character. In the cut scene following game play, Darth Vader threw the Emperor down the shaft, then Luke dragged Vader to a shuttle and took off his helmet. It was still a touching scene, even with LEGO people and without the dialog.

Other stuff on the weekend: after the picnic, Harry and I met up with Liz and went to see War (with Jet Li). Last night, I started watching the DVD they gave me of Spider-Man (2-disc Special Edition) for my birthday. I put another cellar spider in Peter's jar, but I haven't seen Peter try to catch it yet. Both of the cellar spiders I have put in his jar this past week have been spiders I encountered in my portion of the townhouse. The second one is larger than the first, and both are smaller than Peter.

Movies and game update.

Well, it was a movie weekend for me. First, I went to see Stardust with Harry and Liz on Saturday morning. It was a great movie, and I am eager to get it on DVD. Second, I went with Harry to see The Last Legion later on Saturday. It was also good, but not as good as Stardust was. Finally, I have been watching my latest DVD, Starman (the old Jeff Bridges' science fiction movie with Karen Allen). I'm about 75% of the way through it (I have been watching it in 30-minute chunks).

Today, I made more progress with "LEGO Star Wars II:" I played as Han (and occasionally Wicket) and, with the help of Leia, Chewie, Artoo, and Threepio, was able to destroy the shield generator for the Death Star on Endor. I got to drive a AT-ST again, even stomped on some Stormtroopers (and a few of my teammates by accident). According to a walk-through I have been using, the next chapter will have me on the Death Star as Darth Vader (and probably Luke as well).....

Game update, the weekend.

Well, I've made more progress with "LEGO Star Wars II." I got through the Pit of Carkoon level, running around on the skiffs and Sail Barge as Luke (and occasionally Lando or Han). Leia and the droids escaped from Jabba, and we blew up the Sail Barge. In the next chapter, I took turns playing as Luke or Leia on Endor. I rode around on a speeder bike, got to use an AT-ST to stomp or blast Stormtroopers, and even used an AT-AT to help destroy the shield generator for the Death Star. I can hardly wait to fly the Falcon into the new Death Star to blow it up.....

Besides playing my PS2, I've been doing other stuff this weekend. I went to see Rush Hour 3 with Harry, Liz, and one of Liz's brothers. I hung up several posters in my room. I've been reading a lot of Paradise Lost (the classic poem by John Milton). I watched an episode of "Mystery Science Theater 3000" that I taped several years ago--The Horror of Spider Island. Cosmo was over today and helped me make some improvements in my bathroom.

The weekend, LEGO Star Wars II Update.

Well, I had a pretty good weekend. I got together with Harry and Liz and saw The Bourne Ultimatum. It was pretty exciting, and we finally learned who Jason used to be and how he was turned into an assassin. I also played my "LEGO Star Wars II" game, something I hadn't done since moving to the townhouse:

I finished the final chapter of "The Empire Strikes Back." I got to be Chewbacca and Lando as they made their escape from Cloud City after Han Solo was frozen by Vader. Lando apparently likes to kick people in the hand-to-hand combat mode of fighting, and I got to rip off some arms as Chewie as well. In the cutscene, we picked up Luke and headed back to the Alliance fleet. Luke got his artificial hand, which popped off at one point and started jumping around in a humorous fashion.....

I also started "Return of the Jedi." In the first chapter, I alternated between Leia (dressed as a bounty hunter) and Luke (dressed in his black outfit). We entered Jabba's Palace and thawed Han Solo. Jabba caught us, and Han, Chewie, the droids, and myself (as Luke) got dumped into the Rancor Pit. It took some doing to kill the Rancor (and a number of Gamorrean guards got eaten), but I figured it out using an online walk-through. The next chapter is the Pit of Carkoon (not sure if I spelled that right)....