I found a guy on YouTube that uploaded a bunch of full-length classic British apocalypse movies, a genre I really enjoyed as a child. The first of the bunch is the one I recommend, and is also the most accessible of the bunch. All of these are broken up into ten minute segments.
Day of the Triffids (BBC, 1981)
This is the BBC version, which is way better than the movie I think… 28 Days Later and many other fall-of-civilization zombie movies are inspired by it. The basic plot is that walking carnivorous plants take over, killing nearly everyone, after a meteorite shower (or satellite weapon gone wrong) blinds the majority of the people on the planet.
Links: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10
Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16
Survivors (BBS, 1975-1977)
This series, which takes place after a plague kills almost everyone on the planet, examines the idea that modern man, when stripped of society, would do worse than Iron Age man because we've completely lost the facility to take care of ourselves or create objects without the involvement of a huge industry and the involvement of hundreds of people for even the smallest item. Aparently a remake/follow-up is in the works.
Links for Episode 1: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6
Links for Episode 2: Genesis: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6
Links for Episode 3: Gone Away: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
No Blade of Grass (Movie, 1970)
In this movie, a virus (or human environmental pollution) wipes out all forms of grasses, leading to massive famine, followed up by disease, choas and the collapse of society (interesting, given the food wars of today).
Links: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11
So last night I was watching the two-part season starter of the new UFC reality season (which had a brutal knockout on it where the guy lay moaning incoherently for a few minutes), while Caitlin browsed videos of “fainting goats”, which have “seizures” when shocked, on her computer… This is an actual part of the night's conversation…
That's why I love her, not why I can't watch UFC with her!
Anyway, I had a surprise diminutive guest for the evening, so I'm getting my ModBlog posts up later than expected. I updated the gallery code for the tattoo auto-keywording as well today, so tomorrow when I update the main site it'll have some aliasing built in, as well as all of the content from the mini-porfolios as well (so that content will get more attention)…
I'm not quite sure exactly how I achieved it, but I managed to slam my head in a car door this evening and gave myself a concussion (to say nothing of a huge bruise on my temple that made it hard to eat because it hurts to open my mouth). Yowch. I'm OK, but I'm going to put off posting stuff to ModBlog until tomorrow morning if I don't die in my sleep, haha (not likely)…
I put some wires on paintings today and hung them up around the house, and last night I finished off another… Now BB9 and wondering if McCain can get elected and kick-off the apocalypse.
So there were two “map” stories on Digg recently; first one that showed the breakdown of colon cancer by state, and then one that mapped CO2 emissions… As you can see below, and as I'm sure is no surprise, they line up pretty closely. I have no doubt that you could line up any number of similarly unpleasant stats and draw a variety of conclusions, but the underlying reality is pretty clear no matter how you look at it — living in polluted, populated, industrialized environments is extremely unhealthy.
You know, usually the “green homes” that hit the mainstream blogs are pretty questionable — green, yes, but generally outrageously expensive. Part of what interests me about many of the technologies inside the “green” space is that they can be done without a mortgage on minimal savings and income. That's why I was quite happy to see this list of green homes which is pretty good throughout, and includes primarily methods than a person on a “drop out, tune in” life could achieve.
The only problem with these building methods is that there are less and less places that will
legally let you build them. Building codes are both a way for lawyers to draw borders for lawsuit eligibility, and a way for “professionals” — corporate builders — to use the muscle of the legal system to restrict the right of people to build their own shelter on their own land… I don't think a building code has ever worked in the favor of someone looking to build their own green house.
Anyway, tons of birds out today on our two-plus hour hike… I'm really tired! I think I'm going to finish off the painting I recently posted, and crash out…
