It always surprises me that no one every really knows about this novel by Harold Frederic. Maybe I’ve just failed to appreciate the extent to which good old Morty Adler’s Great Book’s program actually succeeded in building up an artifical cannon of “classic” literature–being off the list relegates a book to obscurity as much as being on the list makes it the (well-known) bane of every schoolchild’s existence. But I guess Frederic comes off as too American-provincial to have made the cut. Regardless, I’ve always had a rather bittersweet fondness for this novel. I haven’t read this book in several years, but I feel like perhaps I owe it to myself to read it more often. I think we’ve all got a bit of Theron Ware in us, some of us more than others.

Yes, I have been an unfaithful chronicler. I suspect, however, that the tedious details of my recent exploits will be missed by none, and yet it seems that some update is long overdue. So what better way to make up for my prolonged silence than with a confession? I suppose this is actually more an admission than a confession, but it’s still something that will undoubtedly come back to haunt me, so please take as much perverse pleasure in it as you can.

I dressed up like a wizard for the end of the year party for the Tolkien class.

I’ll give you a moment to let that sink in.

Never let it be said that I am not, occasionally, a good sport. I still do not get the appeal of Tolkien’s works really. I don’t know if it’s because they are too Christian for me, or that hobbits and elves just aren’t my kind of escapism, or that I never found a character in the books that I really liked. But I’ve never been one to fear wearing a costume, and whether the situation calls for a headless horsemen, a pretty pretty princess, or a purple wizard with a staff, I’m willing to take one for the team and make it happen.

Happily, I have no pictures of the incident. And the only person who does has been warned of the consequences of leaking them. So you readers will just have to be content with using your imaginations to conjure up the image of your beloved Batty wearing a purple robe and a black cape and carrying a mighty wooden wizarding staff.

Now please stop rolling on the floor laughing…

Now that you’re apparently all fixated on this Pretty Pretty Princess thing (see comments to learn why you’re all S.O.L.), I’m shifting gears to bigger and better things. By which I mean video games, of course.

First of all, if you haven’t heard about the new Firefox extension (you’ve got to upgrade your Firefox to the just released version 3) FireNES, it lets you play some old school Nintendo games in your browser. Not that any of us need more ways to procrastinate, but there you have it. There’s supposedly 2,500+ games available, athough I couldn’t manage to find my favorite NES game, River City Ransom. I suppose I should be grateful for that.

Related to today’s old school gaming theme: I want these!

I admit, I’m more partial to the Super Mario Bros. decals, since that was so much more a part of my childhood than was Donkey Kong. But the Donkey Kong ones are still undeniably pimp. I don’t know who these blik folks are, but they are geniuses. I think it’s about time to redecorate!