The Walking Dead

          Tomorrow is the Season 1 finale of The Walking Dead. If you’re unfamiliar, you’re dead to me. Well, maybe that’s a little too harsh. Let me scale it back a bit. If you are unfamiliar with The Walking Dead I’m going to give you a crash course.

          The Walking Dead is a comic book series that is written by a good ‘ol Kentucky boy named Robert Kirkman. It is centered on a group of survivors of a zombie apocalypse, primarily Rick Grimes. Rick wakes up in the hospital after he was injured in a shootout (he’s a cop) and the whole world has gone to hell. It’s pretty gripping and fantastic reading. The story follows Rick as he tries to figure out what is going on and where his family is. Contrary to most zombie movies, TWD focuses more on the people who are left and not the monsters. Of course the zombies are a large character in the book, but there will be occasions when you won’t see any for several issues at a time. Kirkman also excels at making you believe these characters and making you realize that the zombies aren’t the most threatening thing left in the world.

          AMC picked up TWD and ran a six episode season starting on Halloween and ending tomorrow night. (By the way, AMC is running the first 5 episodes consecutively before the season finale.) When episode 2 aired, the series was renewed for a second season and that news was received by the geek/dork community with huge applause. Not only that, the show has been critically acclaimed as well. AMC has a great line with TWD, Breaking Bad, and Mad Men. This network is slowly but surely becoming a powerhouse.

Now, several purists are a bit upset because the content of the show doesn’t mirror the content of the book. I admit that I am the first to point out differences, but I understand that it can’t be the exact same as the comics. One, comics don’t have a budget. You can do anything you want as long as it can be drawn. The same is not true in television. Two, mixing it up a bit gives the show it’s own legs and exposes it to an audience that would never have read the book. My inner Martha Stewart keeps telling me that “it’s a good thing.” Yes, I have an inner Martha Stewart. Don’t give me that look. Stop it. My mother cooks well and loves crafts! It’s not my fault.

Happy Saturday!

The Black Death

This morning my coffee is serving a dual purpose. Obviously, it’s waking me up, but it’s also soothing my sore throat. Apparently, in the Ragsdale house we all have The Bubonic Plague. Seriously. I’ve considered loading up our used Kleenex to catapult onto our enemies. As you can most likely imagine, because of the sickness, our home life has not been a lot of fun lately. Cranky kids. Cranky parents. It’s a lose lose situation.

Largely, our current malady is destroying our sinuses, but it feels as if it’s affecting our very soul. I’ve never had this experience where four people who live in the same house and are sick try to pretend like they’re not and the keep going even though they’re slogging through a river of mucus. It’s a testament to the human condition. Or maybe it’s a testament to how dumb we are that we just can’t take a break and get better. Either way, we’re soldiers. Soldiers in a war on germs.

Sorry if today’s post is a little weirder than normal. Last night while assembling our Christmas tree I had an allergy attack. The only medication I could find to soothe my itchy, watery eyes was a single Benadryl capsule that expired in 2008. Needless to say, I’m in a bit of a fog today.

Wifeasaurus Rex

Yesterday I spent all day hanging out with my two best friends in the world: my brother and my wife. Stacey and I woke up and we dealt with our sickly little ones, then Matthew came over at 11:30. We spent all day hanging out and cracking jokes and playing D&D. It was one of the best days I've had in recent memory and it has everything to do with who I was with.

In the last 5 years, Stacey has proven an invaluable asset for me to keep my sanity. She's learned all about my geeky ways and not only accepted, but embraced most of them. I've seen her play Rock Band, read comics, and play D&D with me and I truly think that she understands why these things appeal to me. It's fantastic to have a partner in life who is willing to give my passions and hobbies a shot and I consider myself very lucky to have stumbled across her.

Not only is she my friend, but she's an awesome wife and mother and I'm extraordinarily proud to have her in my life. She's extremely supportive of me and my endeavors. She knows how and when to get through to me when I'm being an idiot. She's honest with me (some times to a fault) and she will tell me exactly what I need to hear. She sacrifices a lot for me and my dreams. One day I hope that I can repay her for that with a level of success due in large part to her. I am thankful every day that I have her and that she is an amazing wife to me. I can't imagine where I would be without her guiding me. 

Thank you, Stacey, for who you are and who you've helped me become. I love you very much.