New Life in the Woods

Well, the new job is certainly keeping me busy. Contrary to what HR had told me, I didn’t begin a regular shift the next week. Instead I have been filling in wherever needed until my background check is completed (don’t ask me why this wasn’t done before I was hired). Until then I am “shadowing,” which means I can’t (technically) be left alone with the kids, which limits my utility. I am still a big help, especially keeping the young boys occupied, but I can’t really take the place of another Counselor. So, I am doing some evening shifts, some morning shifts, and some overnight shifts, followed by training from 8-12 the next day, typically. All of which is screwing up my sleep cycle royally and leaving me slightly confused on any given day. But I am doing good and the staff and kids (mostly) really seem to like me so far. I’ll write more about the job as soon as I get a couple days to get my bearings, but, in the meantime, for those of you who have missed regular blog entries, here’s something else to keep you occupied….

This may be old news to some of you, but I recently came across something called Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog. Now, most blogs post links to other web sites of interest and even other blogs and I have been remiss in not doing more of that here, but this isn’t really a blog… it is something a little different. It is a low budget musical mini-series produced for the web during the writer’s strike some time back. It was created and directed by Joss Whedon (better known as the director of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and, perhaps more importantly, the Firefly series and the Serenity movie that was an offshoot from that) who also wrote all the songs along with his brother (if I have that right).

The series follows the story of a young wanna-be super villain named Dr. Horrible (played by Neil Patrick Harris, who some of you might remember from years ago as Doogie Howser, M.D.) who has his own video blog. He is a somewhat nerdy, strangely conflicted, endearingly insecure and well-intentioned wanna-be super villain who nevertheless has a clear vision, perhaps best characterized by his statement: “The world is a mess and I just… need to… rule it.” We are introduced to the hero (cough), I mean villain, as he is practicing his evil laugh for his video blog. He progresses to discussing the progress of his latest evil schemes for his fans and then reads some of the viewer comments on his blog and responds to them. One of the fans asks: “You always say in your blog that you will show her the way, show her you are a true villain. Who is ‘her’ and does she even know that you’re… ” Our protagonist stares into the camera, clearly at a loss as to how to respond. Then the scene changes and we see him launch into the song “Laundry Day” and the plot thickens. If you want a sneak preview, you can see the lyrics to that song and all the others here: Dr. Horrible Song Lyrics. It is ‘laugh out loud’ funny and some of the songs are truly exceptional. I can’t stop playing it (and singing along) over and over and I highly recommend downloading it if you have a little spare time.

Ok, not all the songs are universally great, notably “Everyone’s a Hero”, performed by Nathon Fillion (also of Firefly/Serenity fame, who plays the part of “Captain Hammer,” the super hero nemesis of Dr. Horrible). Don’t get me wrong, his overall performance was hilarious but he didn’t get the best material. And, anyway, what do you want for a low-budget series produced for the web and distributed for free? Well, there is a small fee to download it now but you can still watch it for free online — look for the “Watch it right now” link. I recommend downloading it so you can expand it to full screen size. And I think it is worth supporting the cast and crew on this one, if only for Neil Patrick Harris’ (Dr. Horrible’s) performance/character, not to mention yet another truly exceptional, innovative, and generally excellent creation from Joss Whedon. The man’s talents seem to know no bounds.

Just one warning: the ending is, as you might expect, horrible — in a good/evil, “makes you cringe even while you are cheering for the ‘hero’ and, simultaneously, your heart is breaking for him” sort of way. Nothing Joss Whedon does is black and white. Watch it and tell me who you were rooting for at the end.

Anyway, just had to pass that along. Maybe it will give some of you a few laughs, or at least a smile, during these troubled times. I can’t get enough of it. Happy blogging!