http://storymatt.com General Stuff From Here & There Sat, 31 May 2008 04:05:57 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Tonight I had the privilege of being able to see the first two episodes of HBO's new mini-series, "Generation Kill," as part of the Nashville Screenwriters Conference. The series focuses on a group of Marines headed into Iraq at the start of the invasion. On top of the ... http://storymatt.com/2008/05/30/generation-kill/ The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus is considered a bedrock of English law. It's derived from the Magna Carta (1215), which said: "No free man shall be seized or imprisoned . . . nor will we proceed with force against him . . . except by the ... http://storymatt.com/2008/05/29/the-importance-of-habeas-corpus/ The guys I work with are big nerds. We're all sitting in a big room fixing machines all day. We talk back and forth while we work. Sometimes, we say some stupid things to break the monotony. Sometimes we watch TV together after work. While Heroes was ... http://storymatt.com/2008/05/14/flying-man/ I'm pretty strong, but I've got a neck injury I just can't shake. It's worse in the mornings, as soon as I peel myself out of bed. I'm stiff all the way to work. I can't look over my right shoulder. I've found that, if I ... http://storymatt.com/2008/04/08/bum-swivel/ I spent the day helping Rachel start landscaping in our front yard today. I chopped some things down, she planted some things, and the dog managed to dig, just not in the right places. This was the first nicely warm day of the year. After visiting the local mexican ... http://storymatt.com/2008/03/02/first-cigar/ Tonight, for the first time ever, I watched the entire four hours of The Oscars. I'm not an award show fan. I should have been content with skimming a list of winners tomorrow morning, but my wife has never seen The Oscars at all (because in the UK ... http://storymatt.com/2008/02/24/the-oscars/ It feels like something out of a book. I've been reading about the Church of Scientology and their now-sworn enemy, Anonymous. Anon has pledged to destroy the Church of Scientology because, as they see it, it needs to be done. Anon's last message is a call to action. ... http://storymatt.com/2008/01/28/not-such-a-keen-protester/ There's a dull ache in my head from studying. I'm scheduling myself to take my long-overdue Apple Certified Machintosh Technician exams. There are two exams, the Apple Macintosh Hardware Exam and the Mac OS X Service and Support Exam. I've been going through the online training, and it's nice ... http://storymatt.com/2008/01/27/the-dull-ache/ Here's a quick roundup of articles I marked to share with others over the past few weeks: What Storytellers Can Teach You About How to Learn Faster From lifehack.org, a short article on the use of fantastical metaphors in learning and remembering. Characters who are not yet important From Screenwriter John August, at johnaugust.com. ... http://storymatt.com/2008/01/05/weekly-or-so-link-roundup/ An Associated Press article this evening told the story of Utah's $227 million renovation of the capital building. Apparently $227 million buys flat-screen televisions, wireless internet, and the finest, state of the art, dead mormon insulation. (That's not insulation from dead mormons, but insulation made from dead mormons.) Around ... http://storymatt.com/2008/01/04/insulation-in-utah/