Further adventures in meta-gaming

For reasons that I don’t entirely understand, I’m quite intrigued by The Game Neverending, which I just got access to in beta. Actually, I’m in equal measure intrigued and baffled. The best way I can think to describe it is The Sims Online programmed in Hypercard. You wander around, exploring areas and picking up strange stuff. Paper (just paper, not paper money) seems to be the main mode of currency in this made-up world. You can also chat with other players and become their official “acquaintances” or “friends.” The interface, all in Flash, reminds me of Apples eWorld. It’s quite simplistic, but also witty and odd enough to make it strangely compelling. Has anyone played/seen this “game”?

Quotable Quotes from tonight’s Anna Nicole Show

“Are you flexible on age – after the last one?”
-Millionaire dating service matchmaker, to Anna

“Turns out Kimmy’s birthday was on Halloween this year.” -Anna

“On the way to the party, we picked up my friend Rip Taylor.” -Anna

“The male stripper rubbed up against me, and I had all this sweat and baby oil all over my face.” -Kim

“I need to puke again – get the hat!” -Kim

After months of hard work, my latest project is finally live on the web. There are a lot of things that I personally would have done differently, but web design is a collaboration, right? The thing I’m most proud of is reorganizing the site so the information important to the different audiences is kept in its own section. The site is due to be linked by a big food site, FoodFit.com, on Monday, so hopefully I can get some exposure out of this.

I really like Fox’s “Firefly.” The premise is cool, the scripts are wry, and most importantly, the appealing cast has scads of chemistry with each other. Offhand, I can’t think of a new show this season that I want to watch, other than this one. Clearly, that’s the universe’s way of saying, “this show isn’t going to last long.”

The future of “Firefly” seems in doubt, but “According to Jim” is still on the air. Will wonders never cease.

Well, the Weblog Recruitment Project is going better. Amanda has just inaugurated her weblog, “Savoring the Journey,” with the start of a “100 Things About Me” list. Mark my words – this is one to watch.

Vatican to test if trainee priests are gay

There’s so much wrong with this, I hardly know where to start. But mainly I’m thinking – what exactly is the test? (via Metafilter)

At the risk of inviting even more derision from my esteemed readership, I figured I should explain why I was asking people if they watched “Alias.” I had this idea, and I wanted to try it out on someone who watched the show. Here it is. It’s not at all funny unless you watch the show, and even if you do, it may just be stupid. But it was an idea I had. They say to make a weblog stand out, provide original content. Well, they don’t say *good* original content.

Let the sniping begin.

High-tech dating

“So I had just upgraded to Windows XP, and I really like it. And I was on a date with this guy, so I asked him, ‘What operating system do you use?’ And he said, ‘Internet Explorer 5.0.’ And I thought, ‘I gotta get out of here.’ “

-Cat Schwartz, Tech TV

Metablogging

My cat just puked. I love George Clooney. My roommate sucks.

“The Ring” review

I figured I should write a semblance of a real review of this movie, rather than just the snarky comment from last night.

I loved the visual style – all muted greens and greys – and there were some really nice touches, not the least of which is the explanation for the title itself. The feeling of unease and dread is well done in spots. (I’ve always been sort of spooked by horses anyway.) I think Naomi Watts (late of “Mulholland Drive”) should have a long successful career.

But otherwise, for me it just ended up a big muddle. The script managed to explain too much and not explain enough all at the same time, so often right when you’re getting into the mood, it’s interrupted by a “huh?” reaction. It doesn’t flow.

I’m always looking for a movie that will actually scare me – haven’t found one yet. But I can tell you, I was much more disturbed and unnerved by the more pedestrian goings-on in “Frailty” (now out on video) than I was by any frame of “The Ring.”

Sparky especially will be interested to know that in a fit of film-geek fever, I bought the original Japanese “Ring” trilogy on DVD from eBay last night. I’ll let you know what I think of those.