June 23rd, the anniversary of Z-Poc

If you are a follower of Adrian's Undead Diary, then you already know that June 23rd was the day the Zombie Apocalypse began, so this is a pretty important anniversary.



If you are not a follower of Adrian's Undead Diary, then why not?

You think you can let down your guard at the holidays? Think again.

Zombie defense awareness does NOT take time off, even, or especially, not at the holidays.

And some books that are great for listening to on CD

We have also listened to a few audio books on CD while driving long distance. Any time you can get your hands on an audio book of Tony Hillerman's series on the Navajo Tribal Police read by George Guidall, do it. We listened to The Wailing Wind one trip and now all I hear when I read Tony Hillerman is the voice of Guidall. Luckily, it's a beautiful voice, so that's a good thing.

And then there's Max Brooks' World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie Wars. It's a fun book to start with, but then when you add the voices of people like !!MARK HAMILL!! reading characters, it rises to the level of awesome. It's abridged, and there were a couple of my favorite chapters that got left out, but over all, I highly recommend it.

I'll also put in a plug for any of Judy Kaye's readings of the Sue Grafton alphabet mysteries. She gets Kinsey Milhone beautifully.

Why Zombies Don't Run, by Simon Pegg

(Yes, we did celebrate the Resurrection this morning, but still this is a post about zombies, not faith.)

Simon Pegg wrote this piece for The Guardian back in 2008.

You cannot kill a vampire with an MDF stake; werewolves can't fly; zombies do not run. It's a misconception, a bastardisation that diminishes a classic movie monster. The best phantasmagoria uses reality to render the inconceivable conceivable. The speedy zombie seems implausible to me, even within the fantastic realm it inhabits. A biological agent, I'll buy. Some sort of super-virus? Sure, why not. But death? Death is a disability, not a superpower. It's hard to run with a cold, let alone the most debilitating malady of them all.

Birthday present from Britta

Britta gave me my birthday present a little early. It's this great government-issued official Zombie Survival poster, which I can put where I can easily see it from my desk for quick reference. Just in case. Because you just never know.

Everybody's Doing It: My Favorite Movies from 2009

C'mon, it's all the rage! Everyone wants to know what everyone else's favorite movies of the year were. And I'm sure you have been checking this blog at least daily wondering what Maria's favorites were. Wait no longer. Here they are.

Since we hardly go to theaters because of a) being broke and b) having children of too many different ages and interests to go together, I saw exactly 2 movies in the theater this year.


So my top 2 movies were: Star Trek and District 9. I liked STG and I LOVED D9.

Can I count movies I saw this year that didn't come out this year? I can? Oh good. This year I saw Voices of a Distant Star on DVD. I do not do anime. Master K does, and cannot figure out why I am not interested in it. But I Netflixed Voices of a Distant Star on the recommendation of several people whose opinions I respect, and loved it. It's animated, but not anime, if that makes sense. It's a poem of a film, not very long, and while it has a sci-fi setting, it is a poem about two people separated by time and space and what happens to their love. I cried and cried. I give this one a Five Hankie rating.

I re-enjoyed Aliens after a long time away from it. We have the extended version with all the deleted scenes and I don't like it as well, but I can cover my eyes and say lalalalala during those scenes and just let the story unfold as I remember it.


Some others:
Gran Torino Clint Eastwood swearing a lot and showing that he's really soft-hearted in the end.
Let The Right One In A darling baby vampire. In Sweden.
[Rec] FAST ZOMBIES!
The Fall Lee Pace being sexy, tortured and a little twisted.

And in television:
The Wire: The Complete Series (Barry and I went on an all-five-seasons binge during which not much else got accomplished around here)
Flight of the Conchords: The Complete First and Second Seasons (indescribable and hilarious)

I'll post my favorite books from 2009 another day.

Fun with Sitemeter: Zombie Edition

Somebody found my blog by searching "iowa zombies".

Tag - I'm It

Erin tagged me to tell 7 things about myself. I'm also supposed to tag some other people. I'm going to be a giant party pooper and NOT tag anybody, though you are welcome to tag yourself if you like; just tell 7 things about yourself. And tag some other people. If you want.

1. I grind my teeth a lot. It's weird, and it's not good for my teeth, but I can't seem to quit.
2. My left thumb is double-jointed.
   
3. I think baby fish are cute.
   
4. I have always loved brussels sprouts. No kid likes brussels sprouts. Except me. I loved them.
5. I sometimes eat rhubarb straight out of the garden. Just rinse it in the hose and chomp on it.
6. I have never driven past a garage sale in my life. (Okay, that's an exaggeration.)
7. I am addicted to Diet Dr. Pepper.

Well! Wasn't that exciting? I'm sure you're very glad you read this blog tonight. :o)

P.S. May I add another?

8. My husband and I actually have a Zombie Attack Defense Plan. Seriously. You just never know.

Zombie Instructional Videos

This one is okay...

What To Do In A Zombie Attack


... but my fave will probably always be this one, from Fido (not embeddable, so you will have to follow the link). I love Fido. It and Shaun of the Dead take turns being my favorite zombie movie.

Let's settle this once and for all.

How Much Is Your Corpse Worth?

$4140.00The Cadaver Calculator - Find out how much your body is worth.

And while we're at it: How likely would YOU be to survive the coming Zombie Invasion? I lost points big time for not keeping a gun in the house. (I notice they did not include "cricket bat" in the list of potential weaponry one may have in one's home. Not that I have a cricket bat, mind you; but I've seen Shawn of the Dead a few million times.)

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