Almost Baby Yoda Time

I’ve had a ball buster of a day today. It started shortly after I got out of bed and it just kicked my ass over and over again all day long. The biggest insult was the 30–40 minutes or so when our whole neighborhood lost power. It was right before lunch so it didn’t screw up anything for anyone other than me, but still… thanks.

Hopefully it will all seem worth it shortly after I leave work tonight. That’s because my wife and my step daughter and I are all going to the movies to see Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu.

That’s right, folks. Tonight we’re getting us some quality Baby Yoda time and I gotta say, I really need it. 

Don’t ask me to review the movie though. I cannot be objective about anything Star Wars related. As soon as the flick starts playing in the theater I am going to revert to my six year old self, watching the original movie in the theater in 1977 and I am going to love it just as much as I loved that first movie, and every movie and TV series and book and comic and video game that has come since. It’s part of who I am. My very DNA includes that Galaxy Far, Far Away.

A new Star Wars movie… tonight… it makes my crappy day worthwhile. I can’t wait.

18 Years Ago Today

18 years ago today I got down on one knee and asked the love of my life if she would marry me.

Even after all this time, I am still shocked that she said yes. I mean, I knew she was going to say yes. We had talked about it quite a bit before the moment actually came. It’s just that I had lived 37 years being solidly convinced that I was never going to find anyone and I was going to be alone forever and then suddenly here I was popping the question and getting a “yes” in return. It was fucking amazing.

May 24 and 28, 2008 - Game Night and Memorial Day
Look at those two crazy kids

I don’t think we’re doing anything special to celebrate our 18th proposalversary. I’m planning on making hamburgers for dinner, which is always cool. I do tend to set off the smoke alarms when I cook burgers in the kitchen though. Cross your fingers for no issues.

Tomorrow evening we’re going to see a Star Wars movie because my childhood obsession still burns brightly and I cannot function in a world where a Star Wars movie is in the theaters and I have not seen it. Here’s to The Mandalorian and Grogu. I have remained utterly free of spoilers and reviews thus far. I just have to stay that way for about another 31 hours. Cross your fingers for no spoilers.

Yesterday I tried to use a post here to alter space and time so that my film photos would get developed, scanned, and uploaded to The Dark Room’s site. It didn’t really work. If it had the pics would have been available immediately. Instead, I got the notification overnight. It was after 1:00am, which means someone in California was putting in a late night. Your hard work is appreciated. I won’t be able to share anything until I get them downloaded, run through Apple Photos, then uploaded to Flickr. Suffice to say, my new camera works.

In closing, allow me to stand in front of the universe of the interwebs and once again declare my love for my bride, Jen. I would propose to her again in a heartbeat. I love her like crazy. Our actual wedding anniversary is a little more than a week away. Another chance to shout my love from the virtual rooftops.

Love you, sweetie.

Check In Appointment

I had my four year anniversary of Gastric Bypass surgery check in with the surgeon today. In summation: All is well.

We talked about energy levels and how protein intake might affect them. The take away being that I have an appointment with the clinic’s nutritionist in a few weeks. The last time I met with them was… over three years ago, I think.

We talked about a couple of slightly embarrassing digestion issues and the take away was to try adding a probiotic and see if it makes a difference. I can so that.

I asked a question that wasn’t really worrying me until I actually got to the appointment today. My weight has been steadily increasing over the last two years. Not a lot, but enough for me to take notice. I asked her at what point should I start getting worried about that. She basically said that I don’t have to worry about anything but if we someday get there, there are things we can do. That made me feel better.

On the way home I stopped at a river-walk along the Merrimack River in Lowell, MA. I had my new/old/used film camera with me. I am trying to work through a test roll and I took a few pics. Unfortunately the weather was crap and it was starting to rain so I bailed after a short few minutes. I’ll try again over the weekend. 

Other than that… not much happening today. Oh, except for one thing… My wife, Jen, bought tickets to a showing of The Mandalorian and Grogu next week. Opening night, thank you very much. I can’t wait! The first new Star Wars movie in about seven years. This is the way!

Tired

I don’t think I have recovered from all of the driving last week. Somehow I feel like I am not terribly tired but at the same time I am terribly exhausted. I don’t get it. I just want to nap, I think.

Well, I want to nap but I also want to put a roll of film through my new camera so that I can find out if it works or not. Functionally I think it is working fine. The question is whether or not it leaks light. I won’t know that until I get a roll of film developed.

I have a doctors appointment tomorrow morning (my annual post-gastric bypass check in with my surgeon) and I was thinking of taking a quick stop along the Merrimack River in Lowell, MA on the way home. I checked the weather though… rain. Shit. I guess I’ll take the camera with me when I go on the off chance I get lucky. We’ll see. If not I might be able to take it for a walk through the bird sanctuary in Methuen on Saturday. We’ll see.

In other news, the new Star Wars movie comes out in just under two weeks. Friday May 22nd sees the release of The Mandalorian and Grogu. I would like to see it opening night, but as long as I get to it on opening weekend I will be happy. I asked my wife and my step daughter if they want to go. I hope so. I don’t like going to the movies alone, but I will. I could always drive up to Burlington, VT again (see previous posts for recaps of the million and a half drives to Burlington I’ve taken in the past 2+ weeks) and see it with my step son, assuming he’s interested. He might not be. I don’t know. My family isn’t quite as in love with Star Wars as I’ve been since 1977. In love is the wrong phrase… clinically obsessed is probably more accurate.

Okay, back to work with you, Sir. This is the way.

Four Year Weigh In

Today is May 4, 2026. Four years ago today I went under the knife and had my stomach rewired. Gastric Bypass Surgery. I try to honor the memory of that day by stepping on the scale and weighing myself to see how things are looking.

When I first decided to work toward getting the surgery I weighed 452 pounds. About four months later when I actually went through with it I weighed 431.4 pounds. This morning at about 4:30am when I got out of bed I weighed 231 pounds. I am still down 200.4 pounds since the surgery and 221 pounds over all.

I was really hoping I would still be under 230. Hell, I was hoping I could get back below 220. I am actually up 12.4 pounds since last May the 4th. There is no reason for me to be upset by these numbers. I have always known that they would creep up over time. Still… shit. My next weigh in will be in six months on November 4th. Until then…

Happy Star Wars Day, I guess.

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Art Imitating Life

Sometimes I hate it when art has to imitate life. I hate it even more when the people being called out metaphorically by said art are too fucking stupid to realize the art is talking about them.

Mild spoilers for Andor season two episode nine. If you haven’t seen the episode, or if you haven’t seen Star Wars Rebels season three episode 18 (I think that’s the one), stop reading. You have been warned.

Last chance to bail (Bail Organa, if you will)…

In Star Wars The Return of the Jedi, a rebel leader gives a briefing spelling out the details of the second Death Star. It’s the “many Bothans died” speech. That character’s name is Mon Mothma. She was a senator who became one of the primary leaders of the Rebel Alliance. She shows up in a deleted scene in Revenge of the Sith, then she shows up for real in Rogue One and Rebels and Ahsoka and she’s one of the main characters in Andor. In a novel that is canon and takes place after Return of the Jedi she is actually elected to be the first Chancellor of the New Republic. Pretty sure that’s the job she’s doing in her brief scene in Ahsoka, but I have to go back and watch that entire series again just to be sure.

In Rebels we learn that her last act as a senator was to give a speech where she called out the Emperor as the bad guy for the whole galaxy. She gets chased out of the capital and smuggled to the rebel base by our Rebels heroes. Once at the rebel base she gives another speech that basically calls for revolution and the rest is Star Wars history.

This week’s third episode of Andor gave us the speech at the senate. It was perfect. Both in terms of the story itself and for our current shit show of a country. Replace the name Emperor Palpatine with Donald Trump, or even Orange Shit Clown, and it stops being fiction and starts being reality.

The distance between what is said and what is known to be true has become an abyss. Of all the things at risk, the loss of an objective reality is perhaps the most dangerous. The death of truth is the ultimate victory of evil. When truth leaves us, when we let it slip away, when it is ripped from our hands, we become vulnerable to the appetite of whatever monster screams the loudest.

“This Chamber’s hold on the truth was finally lost on the Ghorman Palaza. What took place yesterday… what happened yesterday on Ghorman was unprovoked genocide. Yes, genocide. And that truth has been exiled from this Chamber. And the monster screaming the loudest, the monster we’ve helped create, the monster who will come for all of us soon enough, is Emperor Palpatine.

Like I said… I hate it when art has to imitate life, and I hate it even more when the monster and his cult are too fucking stupid to realize they are the monsters and not the heroes. Fucking maga cult bullshit.

That’s all I have to say about that.

Season Two Episode Eight

Two new episodes of Andor down and still one to go. My spoiler free review of episode eight:

HOLY SHIT! Andor s2e8. Was that the most intense 40 minutes of television ever? I say again, HOLY SHIT! I swear my heart rate increased by about 300% over the course of the episode.We are the Gor!

Rob (@robj1971.bsky.social) 2025-05-07T03:16:48.385Z

I was planning on watching seven and eight tonight and then watching nine in the morning. It’s 11:20pm now and I cannot wait until tomorrow. On to episode nine, right now. HOLY SHIT!