the best thing i have ever read on the internets

Posted on By Wil

Jonathan Coulton:

Really? This is a good use of your time, to make someone you’ve never
met feel bad just because they made an amateur fan video about
something they really like? Where’s your thing that you made and put
online for everyone to see, you chicken-shit cockhole?

He writes this in response to the idiots who have left hurtful, cruel, hateful comments on a fan-made cover of Still Alive that’s on YouTube.

Not that my opinion matters at all, speaking as someone who’s endured something similar for two decades, I deeply respect the courage this girl has to create something like this, and put it out on the Internets where chicken-shit cockholes can take cheap shots at her from the safe anonymity of their own miserable little lives.

I would also be remiss if I didn’t point to xkcd and Penny Arcade, which are both relevant to this post.

UPDATE: Yes, I am wilwheaton on YouTube, and I’m touched in the bad place that anyone thinks I’m worth impersonating.

propelled!

Posted on By Wil

I’m working like crazy to get this Angel One review finished today so I can get started on some other (awesome) stuff that’s been bouncing around in my brains.

Until I have something new and interesting of my own to talk about, I’d like to share some really cool links I’ve found while Propelling in the last 24 hours:

Gordon Freeman crank calls Coast to Coast AM

Video Games – A theoretical physicist named "Gordon" called up the conspiracy wonks at Coast to Coast AM to tell ’em all about a mysterious government agent — a "G-Man" if you will — that he keeps seeing around. Lots of fantastic Half Life and Portal jokes for those who can read between the lines, here.

Marching band’s classic video game themed halftime show

Popular Videos – In this video, the UC Berkeley marching band performs a video-game-themed halftime show, playing the beloved themes from such old friends as Tetris, Zelda, Mario Brothers and others, all the while marching in animated formation and reenacting scenes from the
game. Bravo! [via boingboing]

The History of ‘It’ Girls (And Their Predictable Downfalls)

Celebrities – History has no dearth of young women who, once thrust into the limelight, manage to screw things up in astounding, stupefying ways. From extremely public and scandalous affairs to drug addiction to homelessness, It girls through the ages have been there, done that, and few have lived to tell the tale.

Now, it’s back to Angel One, where — contrary to what you’ve read in travel guides — they’re not as into the snu-snu as they once were.

Cloverfield

Posted on By Wil

I saw Cloverfield yesterday afternoon, early enough so I could avoid a theater filled with douchebags. I understand that this was a good thing, because people I know who saw it at night with the aforementioned douchebags were so annoyed by them, and so pulled out of the movie by them, it seriously fucked with their ability to enjoy the film.

If you haven’t seen it, I recommend it. I gave it 3 out of 5, but only because the first-person shaky camera stuff made me violently seasick, causing me to look away from the screen more frequently than I did with Blair Witch (a movie, by the way, that I enjoyed as much as "meh" can be enjoyed, and which doesn’t deserve to be compared to Cloverfield, IMHO.) On story and effectiveness, I give it a 4.6 out of 5but the camera stuff really messed with me, and I suspect it will mess with other viewers, as well.

Assume there will be spoilers in comments, because I’m starting the comments off with my extended commentary on the film, which you should not read if you haven’t seen it yet.

The Bad Astronomer (who I owned in a Techonobabbloff yesterday) has some nitpicks and a review that I agreed with pretty much all the way, too.

announcement 5 of 4 (math is hard!)

Posted on By Wil

According to Eventful, 84 people have joined a demand for me to come to San Diego. I usually come down for Comic-con, but with the eleventy billion people down there every year, it’s not exactly the most intimate environment for a reading and signing. So I’ve been looking for a more reasonable venue, where I won’t have to compete for attention with half-naked cosplaying MILFs.

So I talked to the Awesome Patrol at my favorite indie bookstore in San Diego, and I’m coming to Mysterious Galaxy Books on May 3 for a reading, signing, and geekfest.

I had a whole bunch of fun the last time I came to Mysterious Galaxy with Just a Geek. There was a great crowd, and it’s a fantastic store. I’m really looking forward to doing this, and I think it’s appropriate that Mysterious Galaxy will be the first official in-store signing on Wil Wheaton’s Happiest Tour of My Life, which I’ve just decided to launch and may cancel due to lack of interest at future date.

Mysterious Galaxy has a page with details and book ordering information, and I’ve also created an event page at Eventful that doesn’t have ordering information, but does have a spiffy picture of me, Wil Wheaton.