I am so freakin' psyched right now. I was in Wal-Mart earlier today, getting some last minute items I needed for my upcoming trip to Thailand, when (quite by accident, I assure you) I found myself in the toy section. They were selling classic Transformers! Which wasn't as exciting in and of itself, (even though they are perhaps the coolest toys of ALL TIME) as it was when I saw that one of the few of the originals they re-released was Starscream. I had a Starscream when I was 10 or so, and he was my favorite because he was the most difficult one to perform the Transformation on, plus he turned into a fighter jet with spring-loaded missiles, giving me hours of robotic fun. I think I'd had him for about a month when he went missing... I was inconsolable. I even accused a neighborhood friend of stealing him, but it was never proven conclusively either way. I was never able to buy a replacement, and I've thought of poor old Starscream often in my later, more mature years.
What's also awesome is that his Decepticon identity sticker is one of those where you have to cause friction heat on it before the symbol appears. Those date from the Transformer's secret wars days when they had to go around rubbing each other before they knew which team the other guy played on. That's sort of how I understand it is in Bangkok; with alot of Thai girls, there is more than meets the eye. Scott says to watch out for the ladyboys; they assume that the only reason anybody comes to Bangkok is to see them, and can be hard to get away from, sort of a trans-gender tout conundrum. That's a weird cultural, um, thing, that I'm a bit apprehensive about. Seriously, isn't that just a bit off? People go to Paris to see the Eifel Tower and the Can-Can, to Munich for dirndles, lederhosen and beer, to London for Big Ben and Buckingham Palace guards, to Rome for bello bello mozzarella pizzaria little scooters, and to Bangkok for the male street-whores dressed up as (or, shall we say, transformed into) hot women. Oh, and for Lasik and plastic surgery.
Should be interesting.
It's okay to tell us you're going for gender reassignment surgery. No need to cover with this whole "Lasik" bit. It's cool. You're among friends.
Posted by: Heather | Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 06:31
Doh! I was trying to keep it and my new job as a Vegas dancer secret, too.
Posted by: messiestobjects | Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 08:29
You'll need a fancy name if you want to make it big in Vegas, junior. No one tips big for "Average White Boy Name".
Posted by: Heather | Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 10:55
Starscream is a good name. Or Optimus Prime.
Posted by: Miss Luongo | Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 16:11
Actually, I was thinking 'Rodimus Prime', (yes there is actually a Transformer that goes by that name) but that was too easy. Optimus Prime, less dirty, but probably better.
Posted by: messiestobjects | Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 16:25
When I was a kid, my neighbor friend stole my Pac-Man stickers. A set of 4! I'm still not over it. Not even the puffy Michael Jackson stickers could ease the pain. I mean, yeah, they beat it and everything, but they were no Pac-Men.
Posted by: Heather | Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 19:32
When I was a kid my friend and I used to hide a little plastic donkey from the other girls in playschool who liked it. I'd named it, so technically, it was mine. I wonder if those girls still hold a grudge? I sort-of hope so since I'm still quite proud of my Adventures with Donkey Hodey.
Posted by: Miss Luongo | Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 20:18
In grade school you named him after Cervantes? And no one beat you up?
Posted by: Heather | Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 20:27
Mike - We're all your friends. We don't judge. It's OK to go to Thailand for the boys.
Posted by: Christy | Friday, January 26, 2007 at 09:18
Plus, it probably only "bothers" you the first time.
Posted by: Heather | Friday, January 26, 2007 at 09:41
"I Can't Believe It's A Man!"
Posted by: Heather | Friday, January 26, 2007 at 09:52
Ballad of a Ladyboy?
I was too old for Transformers. I played with dirt clods mostly.
Posted by: Gary | Saturday, January 27, 2007 at 17:39
I'm not alone in the universe? I loved my transformers! More than meets the eye! You should explain to them that Rodimus came after Optimus... sort of a 'rebirth'.
Why do you travel so much?
Posted by: Cristy | Thursday, February 01, 2007 at 16:53
Because travelling rules the most! And I get antsy if I stay too long in wacked out 'ol US of A. The US is a deeply weird place, dude.
Plus, I'm about to go take a longtail boat out to a small uninhabited island off of the southern coast of Thailand to go snorkelling where I am told I will see fish I've only ever seen in the exotic section of the aquarium before. Why not travel?
Posted by: messiestobjects | Thursday, February 01, 2007 at 20:22