Weblog Sin Pies

By Charley Daniels

For months I’ve tried to write at least 12 or 15 polls per day for BuzzDash. What can I say, I’m a dedicated member of the polls-as-entertainment community. You should be too.

Some days it’s tough, and I sit there staring at the wall. On those days, I often come up with questions like this:

But other days nothing happens. I stare, sometimes so hard the fire alarm goes off — or it would, if it were set to detect intense staring. And on those days, almost without fail, one word pops into my head: “dribble.” Or variations: “dribbling,” “dribbles,” etc. I don’t know why. What is my mind trying to tell me? I usually push the thought away and focus on other things, but the next time I try to come up with poll questions, it almost always returns. It’s never there during other times, even if I’m concentrating really hard. At work, when I’m having trouble recrafting sentences, it’s not there. When I’m watching Jeopardy! and the answer is stuck on the tip of my tongue, but I have to say something, anything, because it’s almost too late, I never blurt out, “DRIBBLING!” Subconsciously, I really want to write a question about dribbling, I guess. I mean, what else could it be? So I did:

Granted, there’s nothing really special about this question, but I’m hoping it cures me of this distracting affliction. So far so good.

By Charley Daniels

What I’ve been doing lately is reading a lot about TV and video games. I’ve also been trying to watch a lot of TV and play a lot of video games. This may sound like all lollipops and sunshine to you, but I promise it can feel like work much of the time.

Just kidding: It’s freaking great. Things are going well. I like to complain about work but then I remember that I’m paying the bills doing exactly what I moved to L.A. to do: stealing batteries from parked cars and selling them to mom-and-pop mechanic shops. Who says college is a waste?

I know I keep promising things, like more frequent updates — I know, not because I have a good memory or like to “keep” my promises, but because I read back a few posts and saw. I just want to say that I promise it’s coming. Most of you are here by chance and won’t come back anyway, but I know there are a few of you who come back now and then to see what the hell is going on. This message is for you! And for everyone else, a picture I took to let you know that I’m still sensitive:

By Charley Daniels

One of the casualties of working all the time and being paid for it is that the little things that maybe don’t help pay the bills kind of fall off the top of the to-do list. It isn’t that I’m not dedicated to Sin Pies, it’s just that I haven’t the time or energy to put together worthwhile posts. I assure you this hiatus is temporary, though.

If BuzzDash weren’t so fun to work on, my life would be a lot more difficult right now. As it is, I’m neglecting my hobbyish activities in favor of something that’s fun and happens to be work. Not a bad deal. Speaking of, here’s a little something from the site, for your voting pleasure:

I know at least one of you (counting me) is going to wonder where the “It doesn’t matter so long as it’s pouring into my mouth” option is. You should pretend this is Heaven, where you get to choose whatever type of beer you want from this list I’ve provided. See, look at all these choices. And feel free to print that in your fancy publications, too. “BuzzDash: Sort of like Heaven.”

By Charley Daniels

Checking in … so … tired. I’ve been working a lot lately, so it’s pretty much impossible for me to come up with anything worthwhile to post here. What I do, essentially, is read other people’s writing all day. Then I rewrite it. Then I reread what I’ve rewritten. Then I usually rewrite it again. For a typical 500- to 700-word story, this lasts about a half hour, at which time I’ve rearranged it back to its original form (minus the requisite spelling, grammatical, and factual errors, natch) and then go refill my mug with hot water for tea and start the process anew.

What does that have to do with my writing, you ask? If I had even half of my brain functionality right now I’d come up with some awesome analogy to illustrate my problem. But I don’t have it in me. And that’s just it!

Anyway, I’d like to keep this from devolving into a little diary where I say things like, “This week, so far, is the worst” and “I had a burrito for lunch.” (Both of those things are true, by the way. See how I did that?)

I watched The Prestige tonight. Pretty good. Unfortunately I already knew half the ending because of an article I had to edit for work. It was an interview with Christian Bale in which he talked about his approach to the role. A good read, but I would have enjoyed it more if I’d seen the movie before I read it. I guess that’s life in the rip-roarin’ world of Hollywood. And everywhere else, for that matter.

Okay, this is getting dangerously close to becoming a journal entry. Thanks for reading, anyway. It won’t be long before I’m back in the saddle. Or at least back under the saddle. Or whatever you would call what I usually do around here.

By Charley Daniels

Hey! Things are getting a little crazy around here. I’m moving and starting a new job (in addition to my current one) all in the same week! I’ll tell you more about the new job when it gets closer, because it’s top secret for now.

Boy, there’s some lively discussion going on in Dave’s American Apparel post. I only point this out because it’s essentially the liveliest discussion we’ve had since Sin Pies began, 150 posts ago. And, yes, 17 comments is a lot for one post on this site. We’re indie, man, INDIE! Come join the chit chat. Especially if you have an opinion about American Apparel T-shirts. Did I mention it’s completely lively?

Has it really been only 150 posts? Maybe the frequency will increase after I move and become inspired by my new awesome surroundings. Or maybe the frequency will decrease at that time. Hard to say.

Speaking of T-shirts, you fans should check out tcritic for links to a lot of cool shirts. Our latest sponsor is pretty stacked in that department, too.

Also, I know it seems early, but it’s never too late to start thinking about Halloween safety. It will ruin your fun if you cause some sort of lawsuit or get killed while you’re out trick-or-treating. With that in mind, here’s some unconventional suggestions that I came up with to help you really enjoy the holiday:

Does anyone else have any Halloween safety tips?