When I went in to our room last night to retire, this was the scene I found:

I was horrified when I saw just now that there’s going to be a remake of “The Thing”, which in its 1982 incarnation (above) is as near a perfect sci-fi horror movie as you can get.

But then I read it was a a miniseries sequel (on the SciFi Channel) by Frank Darabont who is responsible for the very good “Walking Dead” series.

That coulda been o.k., but then I saw that it’s apparently a regular old movie, launching late next year. The possibly good news is it’s a prequel—a phenomenon I normally hate, but in this case (due to the plot of the 1982 version) it makes perfect sense.

I’m kinda intrigued, but also a little wary. It’s called “The Thing 2011,” which also seems like a bad sign, but we’ll see…

as well as some treats: a peanut butter ball (Santa) and some lettuce (reindeer).

(I believe the “Look –>” originally pointed to the peanut butter ball, but I musta moved it. Oops! Hope Santa found it…)

This album (cover below) is simply awesome. One of the tracks is called “Female Guitar Players are the New Black.” Based on this record, I couldn’t agree more…

…with Finn while Christmas shopping at the mall:

Finn: Can we go to the toy store?

Daddy: You just wanna buy some toys for yourself.

Finn: Yeah.

Daddy: Well, we can’t buy toys this close to Christmas. You don’t wanna buy something that Santa already got you.

Finn: Santa hasn’t gotten me anything yet! He’s still waiting to see if I’m good.

Daddy: Oh yeah. That’s right. Good point.

(pause)

Daddy: But we still don’t want to get something that he might be planning on getting you.

Finn: But he’s watching. So he’ll see whatever we buy and know not to get it for me.

Daddy: Hmpf. Yeah, I guess you’re right. You got me there.

(pause)

Daddy: We’re not going to the toy store.

I recently bought Finn this Hot Wheels car:

Oops. Now I’m obsessed with this obscure car from the mid-70s, made only in Brazil. Here’s some pictures:

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And here’s some info (via NextAutos):

“Volkswagen’s Brazilian arm marketed a pretty (if little-known) coupe between 1972 and 1976. Dubbed SP2, the low-volume sports car (10,205 units) was motivated by an air-cooled 1.7-liter flat four and boasted period running gear – a rear swing-axle and disc/drum brakes with 14-inch wheels. Cloaked in slinky bodywork (lower than VW’s own Karmann Ghia and Porsche’s 914), the SP2’s chief undoing was arguably that it wasn’t as quick as it looked.”

Click the ads above or the pics below to see ’em bigger.

A few shots from the two holiday productions the boys were in this year:

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Cormac’s preschool had a little show in the church.

They’re (sorta) singing (sorta.)

Finn: Belting in out.

Finn: Gesticulating.

Can you pick Finn outta the group?

As a public service to all who want to make me happy this holiday, I have compiled this list…

Pick Punch:

Manzine:

3′x6′ Self-Healing Large Cutting Mat:

A few new gems from Chronicle:

Build Your Own Robotic Arm:

These two are cool, too:

I have some big plans for painting this year:

For All Mankind DVD:

Jeremyville t-shirt:

A little light reading:

The Impossible Project’s new experimental Polaroid film:

Magnetic wood picture frames (great for Polaroids):

Pinhole Camera Kit:

Hand block printing press:

Kits for my favorite digital drum software:

And there’s always gift cards:

ImageKind” so I can print up some of my unrealized poster ideas.

Blurb: So I can print up some of my unrealized book ideas.

Emusic: I spend too too much here.

Powell’s Books: One of my favorite places in Chicago.

Blick: For all things artsy and fartsy.

GoDaddy: Yeah, it’s ridiculous, but I buy a lotta domains…

With the neighbors, Rowan and Brooke.

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