Gray Beard Nerd
Bio
A nerd who is into cars, video games, movies, book and more. I love to write and hope to share what I have written with others. Please enjoy!!
Stories (64/0)
The Day the Earth Moved
It was a quiet spring evening in Louisiana, and Robert stood looking at the starry night outside his Crew Lake house. He shifted his weight on his feet, listening to the wash pea gravel give and move underneath his boots. The only other sound was the bullfrog's deep croaking, amplified as the sound carried across the lake's surface. Robert's hands scratched on the material of his jeans as he shifted his hands from his coveralls to his pockets. He unwrapped a peppermint candy, dropping it in his mouth without taking his eyes off the night sky. With the porch lights off, he could see the whole Milky Way on a clear night like tonight, and he never missed an opportunity before bed to step out and stare at the stars. The sky connected him to his younger days, lying in the green grass of his childhood home, staring for hours into the inky abyss with his brothers after a long day working in the fields. Robert had grown up farming. After the war, he came home and went back to what he knew best. He comfortably owned the land around him and worked it for the last four decades.
By Gray Beard Nerdabout a month ago in Fiction
Totoro is a Masterpiece
So at this point my two year old daughter and I have watched “My Neighbor Totoro" at least ten times and all I can say is that it is nothing short of a masterpiece. That really is not that much of a shocking revelation though is it. I mean each and every Miyazaki film is often heralded as the best thing since sliced bread. I have seen several of them over the years and all of them have been something special. But Totoro, man what an experience this film is. I wanted to sit down and express why it speaks to me so personally and why I think it is a masterpiece in filmmaking.
By Gray Beard Nerd7 months ago in Geeks
Metroid 6 Challenge
I was scrolling through Reddit the other day and saw the above post. So being me I answered the call and spent an afternoon writing a rough draft of a plot for Metroid 6 that works within the criteria specified. I decided why not time travel and used Flashpoint as a starting point. Below is that first draft. It definitely could use some polish in places but it was to much fun for me not to share it somewhere.
By Gray Beard Nerd7 months ago in Gamers
Sphere: Book Review
So Jurassic Park was my favorite book/ movie / slash everything growing up. The book was published in 1990, when I was eight years old but you can bet I read that sucker cover to cover till the movie came out in 1993. I know eight seems a bit young to read Jurassic Park but at the time I was reading several grade levels above my peers and reading almost constantly any book I could get my hands on. I was your typical late 80’s early 90’s dino nerd and loved science. Even in my professional life today I am reading science texts almost daily to keep up with the biology, chemistry and physics classes I teach on the high school level. The book just seemed written for me and I lapped it up. My mother, noticing my interest and always supportive of my reading, immediately went hunting for more Micheal Crichton books.
By Gray Beard Nerd8 months ago in BookClub
Neo2 Distraction Free Writing
When I saw it sitting in a box neglected for years and gathering dust I had no idea what it was but I new I needed it. But what is the NEO2 and why is it just one of the best things ever for people like you and me who love to write but are constantly distracted or on the go? Well it is a neat little device produced by renaissance learning formerly alpha smart. It is simply a word processor and a modern equivalent to the typewriter in that all it really does is type. You can connect it to your computer to transfer files but it is essentially a distraction free device, like a typewriter, but a whole lot more convenient.
By Gray Beard Nerdabout a year ago in 01
Yonder Game Review
Today it seems that the industry is focused heavily on the concept that what we all want out of a single player experience is a huge open world to explore. Thus the market is flooded with big budget open world experiences. Most of your indie titles are the ones filling the niche for us old school gamers who like open world games for sure but also long for something a little more retro in scope and presentation. Do not mistake me, I love Breath of the Wild, and games like it. My point is this most big games come from big companies and most small games from smaller ones. But not this one. Yonder is different in a lot of respects from both.
By Gray Beard Nerdabout a year ago in Gamers
To The Moon Review
Indie games are by far my favorite type of new games coming out today. As a gamer who loves the classics, this slew of future classics is so wonderful to play. Indeed we find that the Indie developers are inspiring the big game companies to produce better games that people like me actually want to play. Let me introduce you to the Indie developed PC point and click adventure game To the Moon. You control two Dr. Rosalene and Dr. Watts, they are employed by Johnny, an elderly dying man to use the latest technology to alter his memory. In doing so they will grant his final wish which is to go to the moon. Why does Johnny want to go to the moon? Johnny does not remember and it is up to the duo to find the answers by exploring his memory in a virtual space. Moving backwards through Johnny's life, far from answering the question, simply brings about more questions and you must put the pieces together to send Johnny to the Moon before it is too late.
By Gray Beard Nerdabout a year ago in Gamers
Super Epic
I love Metroidvania. Games like Hollow Knight, Metroid Dread and The Ori Games have been a breath of fresh air and inspired me to go back and look at old favorites like past entries in the Metroid franchise. So needless to say I am always on the lookout for new experiences of this type and when I heard about Super Epic I decided that it was an experience that I did not want to miss out on. But is it a good game, or did I experience buyers remorse? Let’s find out. This is the under 10 review of Super Epic.
By Gray Beard Nerdabout a year ago in Gamers
G-Craft/ Front Mission
I am going to go ahead and open with a revelation. While I love JRPG’s I have always struggled to get into strategy RPG’s. I can't really explain why, it seems like something I would really love. But everyone I have ever picked up to play I just didn't really connect with. Well, all except one. Front Mission 3 captured me in a way that I can not really express into words. I love Mecha, in particular the realistic style of the genre, like Gundam. The setting and fictional political struggle immediately had me hooked. I have since replayed and beaten the game at least five times and I was excited to take a look into the other games in the series. Was it a one hit wonder for me? Or is there more down the rabbit hole than I could have imagined? Come with me on the journey as we complete a Front Mission/ G-Craft retrospective.
By Gray Beard Nerdabout a year ago in Gamers
The Hunter
There weren't always dragons in the valley. They were driven far to the north hundreds of years ago at the end of the battle of Angelos, when the last two servants of God perished in the final battle. The dragons were weakened from the conflict and settled in the northern lands far away from their enemies. Waiting for a time they eventually regained a measure of their former strength and again began to encroach on the lands given to humans. Climbing the mountains and swooping into the valley they brought great ruin and destruction on the people who had largely forgotten them and passed them into legend. No, there weren't always dragons here in this valley, but if this hunter has his way, this one will be the last.
By Gray Beard Nerd2 years ago in Fiction