a bit more of the old IN and OUT

IN                                                         OUT

Grey                                                    Black

Janelle Monae                                               Beyoncé
                        "RESIST"                                  "MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN"

KenKen                                                    Sudoku

Butter                                                    Bacon

Cash                                                  PayPal

$200 Chromebook                              $1000 iPad Pro

FilmStruck                                            SeeSo

Dungeons & Dragons                          Game of Thrones

James Baldwin                                     Ta-Nehisi Coates

MET Opera                                     Terminal 5

Iced Americano                                   Ice Coffee 
Rasputin                                   Hamilton

Chartreuse                                        Bitters

               Snow                                              Snapchat      

Now Ranting on ScreenRant

Since starting this blog way back in 2004, I've grown to love writing a little more with each passing year.

It has been an honor to share my life with, at least a hundred people through the years.  And I have the incredible 21¢ from Google Analytics to prove it.

Of course, my real fifteen minutes of fame has come from a side-gig over at the incomparably cool Forces of Geek, where I've had the pleasure of sharing movie reviews, nostalgia trips and now a new podcast about sequels, remakes and reboots called Oh No They Didn't.

If there's one thing that my recent professional full-time job seeker gig has generated, it's a desire to be a lot more creative on a daily basis.  I've probably started more side projects during the past few months than I can keep track of.

But now I'm being paid to write about the biz, and I'm enjoying the structure a lot.

You can now read my work over at ScreenRant here. I'm on their News beat for starters, but hopefully I'll be able to get some interviews and reviews up in due time.

You'll continue to find Beware of the Blog a great place for my occasional personal rants, shares of ephemeral knowledge and incredibly well structured Haikus.

In the meantime, please bookmark all the links above, and do subscribe to the new podcast over on iTunes or Google Play (better yet, write us up a glowing review).

BARB LIVES a STRANGER THINGS shirt, made by me...

As you know,  I LOVE, LOVE. LOVE Stranger Things.

And I love Barb more than anything on the show.

And you know what?

Barb's not dead.

No way.

No.

Spread the word with this awesome shirt, seen here modeled by Will from Casserole of Disaster (which is a website you need to bookmark, by the way).  You can follow him also on Twitter at the incredible handle @VeggieMacabre 

BUY THE BARB LIVES SHIRT HERE...

BARB (from STRANGER THINGS LIVES!

You've made it through the portal of the Upside Down and have a message to spread.

Get the limited edition t-shirt  here 

BARB LIVES!

the week inPOKEMON GO news...

It seems every day there's another news blurb about Nintendo's massive breakout POKEMON GO. Here's your weekly recap of some of the best from 7/9 to 7/15...

Pokemon Go leads teen to dead body 
- CNNMoney

Pokemon GO is Becoming a Dating App 
- Comicbook.com

The Strangest Places Fans of Pokemon Go Have Tried To Catch Them All
- Daily MailComicbook.com

Someone Inside The White House Loves To Play 'Pokemon Go' Too 
- The Inquisitr

Robbers used 'Pokemon Go' to lure their victims 
- Engadget

Cultural phenomenon Pokémon Go gets introverts outside 
- KUTV 2News

Pokémon Go is doing what few apps can – driving real-world traffic 
- TechCrunch

Restaurants Are Using Pokémon Go to Catch Customers 
- Slate

Pokemon GO' Powers Nintendo Stock to 25 Percent Growth 
- TheWrap

'Pokémon Go' Chasers in China Hit Brick Wall 
- Wall Street Journal

Pokémon Go becomes global craze as game overtakes Twitter 
- The Guardian

Pokemon GO App Users: Law Enforcement Urges Caution 
- Patch.com

Auschwitz Museum says no to "Pokemon Go" 
- CBS News

Pokemon Go exposes cheating boyfriend 
- The Week UK

Man robbed while playing 'Pokemon Go' 
- U.S. News

2016 Pokemon Go Is Partnering With McDonald's 
- GameSpot

'Pokemon Go' players arrested at Ohio zoo 
- U.S. News

Two Pokemon GO players fall off cliff while trying to catch 'em all 
- Mirror

All around the world, authorities are worrying about Pokemon Go
 - Washington Post

T-Mobile offering a year of free mobile data for Pokemon Go 
- Geek

Daughter hit by car while playing 'Pokemon Go' 
- WTVD-TV

AND POWER UP WITH THESE
POKEMON GO  CHEAT CODES, TIPS and HACKS...

• How To Train And Evolve Your Pokemon In 'Pokemon GO'

• Top 10 Pokemon Go Game Tips and Tricks Everyone Should Know

• Pokemon Go Cheats: Where To Find Pokestops and Pokemon Gyms

• How to Save Your Phone's Battery While Playing Pokémon Go

• The beginner's guide to Pokémon Go: A FAQ on how to catch 'em all

• Pokemon Go items: the best unlockables to buy  

• How to request or remove PokeStops and gyms

The Best Article Listing 50 Best Anything You'll Read This Week...

Every other article on the web is a top 10 or 20 or 50 or whatever list, so it's no surprise that print newspapers and magazines are hitting the trend hard.

Thanks a lot, Buzzfeed.

That said, this week's cover story in THE VILLAGE VOICE is pretty darn fun.

Check out their picks of the fifty most New York City albums EVER.

And better yet, listen to selections from them on SPOTIFY below...





And,

tweet tweet oscar...

I'll be live-tweeting the awards on Sunday.
You've been warned. Follow me @bewareoftheblog on Twitter.

hollywood games...

Last year I had a chance to tour the Universal Studios backlot. Ok, so it was the tram tour attraction with the cheesy Jaws section and the new King Kong experience.

But one thing that was kind of interesting is the little bungalow set up for toy manufacturer Hasbro. For those of you living under a community chest, Hasbro, has a permanent home on the Universal lot to develop their properties into big budget television series and movie franchises.

Battleship is their upcoming property they hope becomes the next Transformers. A lot of people think it's sure to sink.

Whatever the outcome, they've already put into production big screen adaptations of Risk, Stretch Armstrong and now shifted their Candy Land movie to Columbia Pictures under the poignant comedic eye of auteur Adam Sandler. You really can't make this shit up.

Here are a few games I wouldn't mind seeing movies. All log-lines and ideas © 2012 Todd Sokolove.

COOTIE

A gang of misfit kids accidentally bioengineers a new race of super-strong, fast-multiplying six legged bugs. Super 8 meets Starship Troopers.

PARCHEESI

In ancient India, a ruthless villain pursues a legendary magic diagram that can bring immortality to its possessor. A disastrously failed attempt lands him in the 21st century, where he soon discovers the pattern on a family board game. Ben Kingsley stars in this time-travel comedy.

HAWAIIAN PUNCH

When the secret recipe for the delicious original flavor of Hawaiian Punch goes missing, it's up to a crack team of spies to uncover a dangerous mission that spans all eight of Hawaii's islands. Product placement and game adaptation collides in this fast paced caper.

WHICH WITCH?

Eli Roth brings to the screen a twisted tale of a school bus filled with children captured by a clan of carnivorous witches. When the kids are put under a psychotic spell, they must use their wits, as any one of them could be a witch in disguise.

MR. MOUTH

Michael Fassbender plays a popular gigalo who's street cred is badly jeopardized after jaw-surgery forces him off the job for months. NC-17

the air was soft,the stars so fine...

Hey all you hipsters! Check out these vintage ON THE ROAD book covers from around the world here.

And if you don't already have a copy of the phenomenal "original scroll" edition, be sure to pick up one at this special price on AMAZON...

selling out the blog...

Hey there loyal followers, have I got a deal for you.

You'll notice that over there on the right hand side are some outstanding recommendations in products now available on Amazon.com. You'll be taken directly to the Amazon page to purchase any of these.

In addition, there are many recommended MP3s to get you through your day, which you can preview without even leaving my blog. Purchase directly from Amazon as well (better sound quality than Apple, by the way).

Glad to be of assistance.