Sunday Reflections: New Year's Resolutions

Okay, it's that time of year again. The time of year when we all set new goals for the new year and always, WITH OUT FAIL, give up on all those New Year's resolutions by Valentine's Day. 

Man, why can't I stick with it!? I can't even remember what goals I set for 2013. I eat horribly, I'm out of shape, totally unorganized, the house is a disaster, we're totally broke, and my "career path" is a train wreck! I need to stick with it this year! I know I said that last year, but this year is different!

What resolutions do you usually set? Do you stick with it and meet your goals? If so, how the heck did you do it!? What's your secret?

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

Merry Christmas!

Sunday Reflections: Christmas Miracles

In front, from left to right: Sargent Slaughter, Alpine, and Ace as the 3 wise men. Playmobil figures as Joseph and Mary. LEGO Frodo Baggins as baby Jesus. Dinosaur as an oxen. Arthur Dent and white ninja as shepherds.

In back, from left to right: Shrek as a shepherd and Donkey as a donkey. Ralph Bakshi's Balrog as the angelic messenger.

Christmas is a time of miracles, big and small. The miracle of the Christ Child, The Son of God, our Lord and Savior. 

 6 For unto us a ^achild is ^bborn, unto us a ^cson is given: and the^dgovernment shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, ^eCounsellor, The ^fmighty ^gGod, The ^heverlastingFather, The Prince of ⁱPeace.

 7 Of the increase of his ^agovernment and peace there shall be no^bend, upon the throne of ^cDavid, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with ^djustice from henceforth even for ever. The ^ezeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

(Isaiah 9:6-7)

We would do well to recognize miracles in our lives, even the little ones. For example, we often take for granted the miracle of electricity and natural gas. Something as simple as that is something to be truly grateful for, especially during the holidays. I for one am grateful for the miracle of life! Ava is our little miracle baby and we love and cherish her so much! Derek, the Goodwill Geek, relates a Christmas miracle he experienced from his Christmas past. You HAVE to read it, it's amazing and it warmed my heart! Click HERE for the wonderful Geekmas miracle.

What miracles have you experienced in your life? Do miracles still really happen today? This Christmas I hope you experience your own miracle. And remember, don't discount the small miracles in your life, because when you think about it they really are a great blessing from our loving Heavenly Father.

UPDATE

The miracles just keep rolling in! Check out Laura's miracle over at Boo Bobby!

Axe And You Shall Receive

Recently I initiated a trade with the one and only Goodwill Geek. I was reading about the most epic of all Goodwill finds (Check out the epic find HERE, it will blow your mind! Castle Grayskull anyone?) and I spotted 2 Masters Of The Universe maces were amongst the Geek's haul, so I asked if he'd trade me a spare mace for my blue He-Man axe and he kindly obliged.

Moss Man can now better patrol the Shag Swamps with his trusty new silver mace.

It could have ended there with a simple arms trade, but the Geek is a fun-loving guy and decided to mix things up a little. He suggested we also throw in 5 fun little things in addition to the He-Man weapon swap. It sounded like a good idea so I went with it. Check out the fun Christmasy extras he sent me! And while you're at it check out Derek's blog Goodwill Hunting For Geeks, the inspiration I needed to revive my little DI bargain hunting blog here, I learned from the best!

AWESOME! I love Moss Man's awkward pose.

Cute little shifty eyes!

I was super happy to see the infamous ET game piece! I've been seeing a lot of this little guy traveling all trough cyberspace. ET's not just some game piece, the Goodwill Geek has started a great little tradition I like to call ETs Go Home. 

9 ETs

It all started with the Geeks very first post! He discovered these 9 ET board game pieces and has been distributing them throughout the blog-o-sphere to other reputable bloggers. 1 ET found it's way to John of The Clawful Punch. I love John's blog! He has a lot of great stuff and his posts are always a ton o' fun to read. John is just an over all great guy and he's kind enough to frequent my humble little blog here! I sent him a Barrel-O-Slime and I was delighted to see a fun and clever post about it HERE. Be sure to check out The Clawful Punch today!

John's ET

Another ET found it's way to Laura H. of Boo Bobby. I discovered Laura's blog via The Goodwill Geek and I liked what I saw! Her blog is full of charm and wit, a real joy to read! Her family is absolutely adorable and every post just lights up my day! It's kinda freaky and cool how many things we have in common! Be sure to check out Boo Bobby right now dang it!

Laura's ET with space buddy Alf and friends

I believe some other ETs may have made there way out there in cyberspace, bringing joy to good girls and boys. Geek, if you're reading this let me know if you have sent any ETs to others and I'll add there story here. Thanks!

And now yet another ET has reached my humble abode. I feel truly blessed to be a part of this fun little ET tradition. So "be good", I'm tellin' ya why, because ET is comin' home to you! 

Now I know I'm supposed to avoid the Noid, but I love this PVC figure! The Noid is all decked out in his usual Christmas red. He's also sporting some niffty yellow shorts and boxing gloves. Kind of looks like a demented Strong Bad...COOL! I always got a kick out of the Dominos Noid commercials. I never really understood that ad campaign though. "Avoid the Noid?" So, when we think of Dominos pizza, we're supposed to think of avoidance? What the heck is a noid anyways? I know that's not what they were getting at, but that's what stuck in my mind as a kid. Whatever though, I'm no marketing expert. In fact, I think they should bring the Noid back, purely for the entertainment value. You just don't see claymation in commercials that much anymore!

Oh my freaking gosh, it's an OMFG! mini figure! I was really surprised to see this little guy! (Geek, you are too kind!) This here is King Castor from Series 1, in a very festive red. I've had my eye on the OMFG! mini figures ever since I found out about them on Weirdo Toys. OMFG! stands for Outlandish Mini Figure Guys! They started out as a kickstarter project that called on the talent of anyone that wanted to submit a toy design. Anyone that is part of the October Toys community can vote on their favorite design and the winners become the next set of OMFG! Right now the votes are in on Series 4. Check out these amazing figures and help support independent toy makers! If you like to shop retail instead of online I've seen OMFG! in Gray Whale stores.

Here is a nice Christmasy Green Lantern Power Ring! It goes perfectly with my Christmas Sunday best, right next to my CTR ring. Now I will always have the will to choose the right. I shall wear it with pride right along with my pins I got from The Trash Man at Pop Pop! It's Trash Culture!

Lastly, I received a jazzy California Raisin! My Dad collected the California Raisin PVC figures and he still has most of them, at least the ones I didn't claim and play with (steal) as a kid and subsequently lost. I should ask him if I can look through his collection. I remember this trumpet guy, he's pretty sweet! You may be wondering what a California Raisin has to do with Christmas. Well, watch the following video and find out!

Thank you Geek for the trade and thanks for making it fun! God bless you and Merry Christmas!

I'm feeling so blessed this Christmas season largely in part to this wonderful little blogging community! Brian at Cool And Collected has really helped us come together with The League Of Extraordinary Bloggers! I have discovered some incredible bloggers and their wonderful blogs, like Pop Pop It's Trash Culture, Toyriffic, Nerd Out With Me, Caffeinated Joe, The Nerd Nook, Diary Of A Dorkette, Little Weirdos, Erik Johnson Illustrator, MikeACall Creations, Calvin's Canadian Cave of Coolness, and so many more! I don't always have time to comment, but I always try to at least follow all these blogs. My day just isn't complete until I'm up to date! If I forgot to mention you and your extraordinary blog then please leave a link below in the comments and I'll be sure to check out your blog!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

Sunday Reflections: Seasonal Depression

My kid sister Annie and me at the extended family Christmas party

I gots me a case of Christmas blues. I have a headache, backache, and stomachache. The poor air quality has me coughing and sneezing. It's freezing cold and the sun goes down before 6pm every night. Not to mention trying to drive in this horrible, icy weather on my way to my dreaded retail job so I can pay off our $200 gas bill. I do love playing in the snow for a while, but it gets old fast. What's a seasonally depressed guy to do?

Ava loves snow globes, so cute! This one leaked all over moments later.

Thank goodness Christmas is this time of year! Though even Christmas can be depressing if you get too caught up in the commercial side of things. Spending time with my family and friends certainly lifts my spirits, as well as contemplating the true meaning of Christmas. Hot cocoa and a nice warm fire can't hurt either. 

Just another cheesy family photo

What do you do to overcome that bah humbug feeling?

On The 13th Day Of Creepmas...

This week’s assignment from the League: Watch Lists

Last week, we talked about our wish lists, this week let’s talk about our watch lists…

—

What’s on your Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, DVD, movie, TV watch list?

—

Maybe we can avert some disasters by our fellow League members.

It's funny just how often The League Of Extraordinary Bloggers' assignments line right up with something I already planned on posting! How do you do that Brian!? Anyway, I know this is a day late and a dollar short, but here is my 13th day of Creepmas watch list!


On The 13th Day Of Creepmas my ghoul friend gave to me,

13 Creepmas movies!

12 slay bells tolling,
11 Which Ween costumes,
10 candy stab wounds,
8 Ghosts A Haunting,
7 Rat King's heads,
6 cards of evil,
5 SPIDER RINGS!
4 squawking crows,
3 ice skulls,
2 bloodshot eyes,
& arachnids in a pine tree!

13. Casper's Haunted Christmas on Netflix (So bad it's not good!)

This movie was so straight to video it hurts! The first Casper movie was alright. The second was pretty awful, so it's not like the 3rd movie could get any worse, right? I was so wrong, it's worse, so much worse. Why is this movie on my list then you might ask? Because I had to think of 13 Creepmas movies. Don't worry, the remaining 12 movies are actually at least pretty good, I promise.

12. Babes In Toyland for VHS (1986)

This movie is pure cheese, but I kinda love it because I watched it with my family when I was a kid. We always got a kick out of the low-budget quality of the film. It stars a young Drew Barrymore, Keanu Reeves, and Richard Mulligan as Barnaby Barnicle. We always got a kick out the scenes with that freaky one-eyed bird thing.

11. The Hog Father on Netflix

This is an interesting Creepmas movie I discovered on Netflix last year. It originally aired on television as a 2 part mini series, so that's why it's so dang long (189 minutes). Despite its length I think it's well worth watching. 

10. A Muppet Christmas Carol

Not at all scary, but there are ghosts and who doesn't love the Muppets!?

9. Santa Claus on Youtube (MST3K)

Watch as jolly old Saint Nick tries to deliver Christmas gifts whilst thwarting Old Nick's evil plans. If that sounds boring, don't worry because some guy and his 2 robot buddies, Crow and Tom Servo, poke fun at the movie the whole time and even take little breathers from the awful film.

8. How The Ghosts Stole Christmas on Netflix (The X-Files, Season 6)

This episode wasn't all that great, but it's cute seeing Molder and Scully almost dying and getting all into the Christmas spirit with deadly Christmas spirits. Man I love The X-Files!

7. The Worst X-Mas Ever on DVD (The last episode of Invader Zim)

Zim invades Christmas in an attempt to destroy all humans. GIR sings carols and Dib gets beat up again!

6. X-mas Story, A Tale of Two Santas, and The Futurama Holiday Spectacular on Netflix (Futurama) 

Santa Claus is not so jolly in the future. Santa was replaced by a robot and his standards are way to high, so bolt the locks and stay indoors because Santa kills tonight! Also featuring Kwanza Bot!

5. Gremlins

A Creepmas classic!

4. The Harry Potter Movies on DVD

The Harry Potter movie series is just perfect for Creepmas! They all have a Halloweeny and at the same time Christmasy feel to them. It's crazy seeing how much Harry and the gang grow up throughout the course of the films!

3. The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe on DVD

You know it's gonna be a dark Christmas when Santa Claus hands out weapons for Christmas!

2. Edward Scissor-Hands

Another Creepmas classic! A wonderful story about a misunderstood misfit that makes it snow every Christmas.

1. The Nightmare Before Christmas on Netflix

Maybe this one's obvious, but this is the only film that I can honestly say is the number 1 Creepmas classic! Every year The Nightmare Before Christmas music is streaming through my head and I love it!

Don't miss out on these other wonderful watch lists!

Cool And Collected

Geek Show Ink


The Nerd Nook


Crooked Ninja Turtle Gang

On The 12th Day Of Creepmas...

...my ghoul friend gave to me,

12 slay bells tolling,
11 Which Ween costumes,
10 candy stab wounds,
8 Ghosts A Haunting,
7 Rat King's heads,
6 cards of evil,
5 SPIDER RINGS!
4 squawking crows,
3 ice skulls,
2 bloodshot eyes,
& arachnids in a pine tree!

These slay bells were yet another great Halloween clearance bin find. They were a quarter a piece so they set me back a grand total of $3! I love the Jack-O-Bells but I was thrilled to find the Skull Bells. They even have green eye sockets!

These wonderful slay bells were originally intended as Trick or Treating necklaces, but of course I saw their Creepmas tree decoration potential immediately! All I had to do was just cut off the cheap necklace part, add an ornament hook and viola, instant Creepmas tree ornament!

These look perfect on the tree!

They look great in the tree and I love their eerie jingle. As if that weren't Creepmasy enough these little guys light up too! Check it out!

We've had so much fun celebrating our first ever Creepmas and I can't believe it's almost over! I'm going to make the last day of Creepmas, Friday the 13th, really count tomorrow! Did you decorate a tree this year for Creepmas? If so I really wanna see it! Share your Creepmas tree link below and have a very scary Creepmas!

On The Eleventh Day Of Creepmas...

...my ghoul friend gave to me,

11 Which Ween costumes,
10 candy stab wounds,
8 Ghosts A Haunting,
7 Rat King heads,
6 cards of evil,
5 SPIDER RINGS!
4 squawking crows,
3 ice skulls,
2 bloodshot eyes,
& arachnids in a pine tree!

(Source)

If you have been following my blog for a while then you know I'm a big fan of Homestar Runner. Who and/or what is Homestar Runner you ask? It's only the best online Flash animation site of all time! If you haven't heard of homestarrunner.com then click HERE! (And don't forget to check out the characters page)

So anyways, it became a yearly tradition for the Brothers Chaps to post a Halloween cartoon complete with all the Homestar characters dressed up in Halloween costumes and I always looked forward to it. Well, one year (2010) the Chaps didn't post a Halloween cartoon! I was crushed! Despite this horrible lack of Halloween costumes that year the Chaps Brothers totally surprised and delighted me with their Which Weens Costumes! They seemed to have gotten their weens crossed and dressed up in Decemberween costumes and totally redemed themselves! Almost all the costumes are characters from various Christmas movies and every one's a winner.

What costume are you going to wear for Creepmas?

On The Tenth Day Of Creepmas...

...my ghoul friend gave to me,

10 candy stab wounds,
8 Ghosts A Haunting,
7 Rat King heads,
6 cards of evil,
5 SPIDER RINGS!
4 squawking crows,
3 ice skulls,
2 bloodshot eyes,
& arachnids in a pine tree!

When I was a little kid I would always turn my candy canes into pointy little shivs. That was half the fun of eating candy canes. You shouldn't just eat a candy cane, you gotta suck on it until it turns into a sharp little candy weapon! Hey, when your parents won't let you get a knife for Christmas you have to improvise. Besides, you never know when this make shift armament could come in handy during Creepmas and that's why I like candy canes so much.

Axe Cop, on the other hand, hates candy canes. After seeing what Bad Santa, his arch nemesis, put him through it's no wonder Axe Cop hates them so much!

Do you like candy canes? Did you ever make candy cane jabbers?

On The Ninth Day Of Creepmas...

...my ghoul friend gave to me,

9 lumps if coal,

8 ghosts a haunting,

7 Rat King's heads,

6 cards of evil.

5 SPIDER RINGS!

4 squawking crows,

3 ice skulls,

2 bloodshot eyes,

& arachnids in a pine tree!

Santa brought me 9 delicious coal candies. They were nice n' crispy chocolates, like a Crunch bar, and I swear there was a hint of orange. "Being Naughty Never Tasted So Nice!" Thank you Santa!

Sunday Reflections: The True Meaning of Christmas

For this week's Sunday Reflection I just wanted to share some video's that teach us about the true meaning of Christmas. Today we just watched the 2013 Annual Christmas Devotional with music from the world famous Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

I also just watched Mr. Kruger's Christmas. It's a heart warming short Christmas movie starring Jimmy Stewart and also featuring the Mormon Tabernacle Choir! I've made watching this film a yearly tradition, along with Jimmy Stewart's other classic Christmas film It's a Wonderful Life.

Lastly, Pee-Wee share's with us the true meaning of Christmas.

And, if you ever find yourself in Salt Lake City during yuletide, then do yourself a favor and head to Temple Square to see the Christmas lights and Nativity scene. You'll be glad you did!

Merry Christmas everyone!

On The Eighth Day Of Creepmas...

...my ghoul friend gave to me,

8 Ghosts A Haunting,
7 Rat King heads,
6 cards of evil,
5 SPIDER RINGS!
4 squawking crows,
3 ice skulls,
2 bloodshot eyes,
& arachnids in a pine tree!

Just because it's Christmas time doesn't mean ghosts stop haunting. Sure, Halloween is a big day for ghosts, but Christmas is just as good a time for haunting as any! Here are 8 ghosts I cherish during ghoul tide.

Marley & Marley from A Muppet Christmas Carol

The Muppets' critical duo, Statler and Waldorf, get a ghostly make over and become Jacob & Robert Marley, the ghost's of scrooges late business partners. I love their musical number! It's a nice, catchy tune.

Zero from The Nightmare Before Christmas

If you take Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer, turn him into a dog and then kill him, what do you get? You get Zero, The Jack-O-Lantern Nose Ghost Dog! 

The Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future in The Real Ghostbusters X-Mas Marks The Spot

Somehow he Ghostbusters travel back in time and straight into Charles Dickens' classic work of fiction, A Christmas Carol. Scrooge's spiritual tormentors are captured by the Ghostbusters and Christmas in the future gets all messed up and stuff. Bah, humbug!

Strong Sad of Homestarrunner.com is "The Ghost of Christmas Suck"

Poor, unloved Strong Sad. Strong Sad is often spoken of as if he's is deceased. Strong Sad's brother, Strong Bad, refers to Strong Sad as "The Ghost of Christmas Suck" in The Homestar Runner Gets Something Stuck In His Craw. Poor sad, lonely, depressing Strong Sad!

Michael Keaton is Jack Frost

This movie is pure cheese! Michael Keaton (Batman) is a loving, rock n' roll daddy that is killed in a tragic car accident on Christmas night. A year later his ghost posses a creepy as heck snowman that his son built. Great movie for fans of campy, high budget Christmas movies.

Who are your favorite Creepmas Ghosts?

On The Seventh Day Of Creepmas...

...my ghoul friend gave to me,

7 Rat King's heads,
6 cards of evil,
5 SPIDER RINGS!
4 squawking crows,
3 ice skulls,
2 bloodshot eyes,
& arachnids in a pine tree!

Mike Call creates another masterpiece, the 7 Headed Rat King! Check out more of his art work at his blog MikeACall Creations.

When I was young I owned a copy of The Nutcracker. Normally such a book would never stand out in my mind, but this particular version of the classic tale featured a 7-headed Rat King! Apparently the original story of the Nutcracker, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King by E. T. A. Hoffman circa 1816, features a "Mouse King" (Mausekönig) with multiple heads, seemingly inspired by the multiple-bodied rat king. Now if they would just stick closer to the original version for the ballet rendition that would be interesting!

This 7-headed monstrosity has to be my all time favorite Creepmas creep!

And speaking of rats, I just couldn't pass up this perfect Creepmas toy, the Hot Wheels Ratmobile!