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Remember I had that list of things to do before I turned 30? Well late is better than never, right?

Besides, if ever there was an excuse for putting something off temporarily, the total implosion of a marriage might be it. That or death. Or just plain laziness. But it was definitely the marriage thing in this case.

So here I am, a day late, but not a dollar short (metaphorically at least — this chica is on a budget), and I’m back to trying to do some of the things on my list because gosh darn it — life is for living.

Visit a ‘You Pick’ orchard and pick too much fruit

Last week, one of my BFF’s Nancy and I packed up all six of our kids and visited a blueberry farm. That’s two car seats, two boosters, half a bottle of sunblock, 12 shoes that are bugging at least seven feet, and that’s only because the other five have been kicked off at some point. Oh, and two mamas with cameras. And cameras I mean iPhones. Because it’s 2013.

So we got the place and sauntered shambled in to find out how the process worked. Each kid was given a small bucket. Each bucket had a capacity of two pints. Each pint cost $5. Six kids, six buckets, sixty dollars.

YOU MAY ONLY FILL YOUR BUCKETS LESS THAN HALFWAY!

We screamed that at them as they tore off down the rows of blueberry bushes.

We needn’t have worried.

I’m going to go ahead and guess that blueberries are friggin expensive because they’re so dang hard to collect. After 10 minutes or so, the kids all had at least three blueberries each.

Eventually we ended up with four pints of blueberries altogether, which may or may not have been too many, but when you think about it … who can have too many blueberries?

And if you do, you put them in the freezer and make pie out of them in December.

P.S. The kids pretended they were ninja power ranger super spy blueberry farmers. They had a blast.

P.P.S. The majority of them declared afterward that they hate blueberries and how dare we suggest they eat them.

In light of Mr.Cooper's letter and Judge Wright's order, it appears to the Court that the plaintiff has relied on forged documents in securing multiple court orders authorizing the discovery of information that, in turn, led to settlements in the above-captioned cases.

The Court agrees with the reasoning of Pino and concludes--based on its own interpretation of Rule 60(b)(3) and Rule 60(d)(3)--that it has jurisdiction to strike a plaintiff's notice of voluntary dismissal, reopen the case, and award appropriate relief when allegations of a possible fraud on the court come to its attention. This interpretation of Rule 60 is necessary to preserve the integrity the of judicial system.

All three elements of the Pino test are met here: (1) the plaintiff attached a fraudulent document to the complaint; (2) the Court relied upon that document in authorizing the discovery of internet subscriber information--information the plaintiff was not entitled to receive absent a court order; and (3) after obtaining the discovery (which--at least as far as the Court is aware--is the only relief the plaintiff ever seeks in these cases), the plaintiff settled and voluntarily dismissed all of these cases.

During the Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo, actor Sean Patrick Flanery revealed during a panel today that a third Boondock Saints film is in development after director Troy Duffy was inspired by the recent tragedies that struck Boston.

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McConnell's campaign manager Jesse Benton said in a statement, “Senator McConnell’s campaign is working with the FBI and has notified the local U.S. Attorney in Louisville, per FBI request, about these recordings. Obviously a recording device of some kind was placed in Senator McConnell’s campaign office without consent. By whom and how that was accomplished presumably will be the subject of a criminal investigation.”

Added a source close to the campaign: “We’re going on the assumption that a crime has been committed. No one at the meeting leaked this.”

Earlier in the day, the McConnell campaign had thrown a party to officially open his offices. 

There were about 75 invitation-only guests at the event. 

Fascinating. 

The McConnell campaign accused the culprits of using “Nixonian tactics” in the bugging of the campaign’s headquarters.

But David Corn, the Mother Jones reporter who broke the story, stood by his reporting according to ABC News: 

Mother Jones said the recording was provided to them last week "by a source who requested anonymity." In a statement they said they "were not involved in the making of the tape, but we published a story on the tape due to its obvious newsworthiness."

"It is our understanding that the tape was not the product of a Watergate-style bugging operation," the statement reads.

The discussion itself was about what you'd expect to hear at such a strategy session:

Most of the discussion focuses on Judd’s liberal positions, including support for gay marriage and President Barack Obama’s health-care reform law. It’s unclear how long McConnell was present during the session.

You can listen to the recording, here. 

Today, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) released a report, “The Legal Limit: The Obama Administration’s Attempts to Expand Federal Power” that analyzes six instances in the last 15 months where the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously rejected the Obama Administration’s arguments for increased federal power.

“When President Obama’s own Supreme Court nominees join their colleagues in unanimously rejecting his Administration’s call for broader federal power six times in just over one year, the inescapable conclusion is that the Obama Administration’s view of federal power knows virtually no bounds,” said Sen. Cruz. “This is a deeply troubling pattern that we will continue to highlight as long as this Administration continues seeking ways to expand its power in direct violation of Americans’ constitutional rights.”

Sen. Cruz’s report highlights the six cases that the Supreme Court has unanimously rejected since January 2012. Had President Obama’s Department of Justice been successful in its cases, the federal government would have the power to:

1. Attach GPSs to a citizen’s vehicle to monitor his movements, without having any cause to believe that a person has committed a crime (United States v. Jones);

2. Deprive landowners of the right to challenge potential government fines as high as $75,000 per day and take away their ability have a hearing to challenge those fines (Sackett v. EPA);

3. Interfere with a church’s selection of its own ministers. (Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church & School v. EEOC);

4. Override state law whenever the President desires. (Arizona v. United States);

5. Dramatically extend statutes of limitations to impose penalties for acts committed decades ago. (Gabelli v. SEC); 

and

6. Destroy private property without paying just compensation. (Arkansas Fish & Game Commission v. United States).

Cruz says the arguments advanced in these cases demonstrated "an astonishing view of federal power on behalf of the Obama Administration that is worthy of further examination."

The full report can be viewed here.

The nationwide discussion revolving around violent video games and what's to be done with them continues without any signs of abating. The usual handwringers (both professional and amateur) continue to express their dismay that games with guns and shooters are being sold to the youth of America, leading us into a future of non-stop mass shootings and Grand Theft Auto-inspired bursts of nihilistic violence.

The concerned cries of "won't someone think of the children" will likely never subside, at least not as long as video games are perceived to be kid-only distractions. (Note to Nintendo: you're really not helping out with this misconception.) The moral panicists paint a bleak picture in which hypothetical 10-year-olds are walking out of Wal-Mart with newly purchased copies of Murder Simulator 5000 and disappearing into their darkened bedrooms, only to emerge moments later armed to the teeth and greatly overestimating their hit points.

It's a terrible future, and one we should all be prepared for. If only it were true.

You see, the proverbial 10-year-old rolling out of a retail outlet with an M-rated game would now be 23 and perfectly capable of purchasing his or her own M-rated games. Every year, the FTC audits retailers and movie theaters with an army of underaged secret shoppers. And every year, these numbers improve.

Only 13 percent of underage shoppers were able to purchase M-rated video games, while a historic low of 24 percent were able to purchase tickets to R-rated movies. In addition, for the first time since the FTC began its mystery shop program in 2000, music CD retailers turned away more than half of the undercover shoppers. Movie DVD retailers also demonstrated steady improvement, permitting less than one-third of child shoppers to purchase R-rated DVDs and unrated DVDs of movies that had been rated R for theaters.

You'll have the option of choosing from several of our completely unwarranted ripoffs, including internet speeds almost 200 times slower than Korea... at twice the price. TV packages with over 500 channels, 90% of which you can't view and we guarantee a plethora of hidden fees. Then our barely trained technicians will come to install your service somewhere between the hours 8am and 10 pm, knock once while you're in the shower, and promptly leave.... Why you ask? We're part of what is called an "oligopoly." It's like a monopoly... only legal!

Federalism.

…None other than the legislative haunt of Gov. Andrew “confiscation could be an option” Cuomo and loathsome nanny-state Mayor Bloomberg, of course. George Mason University’s Mercatus Center just released the third edition of their comprehensive “Freedom in the Fifty States” study, ranking “the American states based on how their policies promote freedom in the fiscal, [...]

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After the initial success of the Kickstarter campaign for a movie based on the TV show Veronica Mars (with a goal of $2 million, it has currently raised $3.9 million, and there are still 17 days to go), I had a chance to interview the show’s creator Rob Thomas and his agent Julien Thuan about what’s next for the movie, as well as what the campaign’s success means for other TV shows and films.

There’s been some speculation about whether this could change the funding model in Hollywood. Thomas said the campaign should make things easier for people who want to do something similar, but they’re “guinea pigs” for just “a specialized subset of projects” — namely, cult TV shows with a fan base that wants to bring them back.

“Is Veronica Mars destroying the Hollywood business model?” Thomas said. “I don’t think so.”

I’m a fan of Thomas’ work, particularly Veronica Mars and Party Down, both of which were prematurely canceled. When I asked whether Thomas could see himself running a similar campaign for a Party Down movie, he replied that he’s still pursuing a “traditional path” on that front.

“I will say this about the path that we took [on Veronica Mars] – it is labor intensive,” he said. “It took me a year and a half to get to this point. … To pitch a movie to a studio that buys it is clearly the simpler way.”

Thuan told a similar story, saying that Thomas called him up a 18 months ago, reported that he’d heard about crowdfunding, and asked, “Do you think that’s crazy?” Thuan didn’t think it was crazy, and in fact he said the United Talent Agency (where he’s a partner) had been looking for ways to experiment with marrying crowdfunding and “a branded, preexisting property.”

Of course, once they actually decided to put pursue the campaign, they had to put a plan together, get people on-board, figure out the prizes and how to fulfill them, and get approvals from the various departments in Warner Bros. (which owns Veronica Mars).

As for whether Thomas was nervous about the campaign’s success, he said he was “ridiculously confident” until the night before it launched, when he and star Kristen Bell tweeted at each other with hints about their plans. That didn’t seem to start much discussion, prompting Thomas to wonder, “What if it has just been the same 20 fans talking about it all these years, and I’ve allowed them to talk me into this?” (Thuan compared the experience to taking a “a trust fall” into the arms of the show’s fans.)

Naturally, Thomas is relieved that the movie campaign didn’t just reach its goal, but is already exceeding it by a healthy margin. Apparently he outlined the script based on a budget in the $3 to $5 million range, so if he had only raised $2 million, he would have had to cut back.

And yes, there’s been some criticism of the campaign, much of it boiling down to the fact that fans are being asked to bankroll a studio movie – the Kickstarter funding is supposed to cover the production budget, while Warner Bros. handles the marketing and distribution. For example, Alyssa Rosenberg at ThinkProgress wrote that she would have been more excited if Thomas was was looking for funding to buy the Veronica Mars rights from Warner Bros.

“It’s not on the table,” Thomas said when I asked if he’d considered that. However, he said that before he reached the current deal, he had initially proposed a more independent production, where the studio would grant him a one-picture license to make the movie on his own. He also noted that without the Kickstarter campaign, the film would not happen, because Warner Bros. doesn’t normally make movies for this small a budget. (My two cents: A certain amount of skepticism is healthy when it comes to the movie studios, but I’m also part of fan communities that have been asking for years to get opportunities like this to support work that they care about, so it’s hard for me not to get excited. And yes, I did back the campaign.)

Finally, I asked Thomas if the movie could lead to sequels. He said he’s trying to have it both ways, writing the script so that it’s a satisfying conclusion to the story, but also leaving the door open for more movies or another TV show: “Spoiler alert: Veronica survives the movie.”

Jim Carrey wouldn't be able to disseminate his Cold Dead Hand song, a tune mocking the late Charlton Heston and Second Amendment supporters, without the power of New Media.

The very same New Media allows Greg Gutfeld to fire back at Carrey, a verbal trouncing the comic wouldn't receive in a prior, less connected age.

Carrey's song, published at the reliably humorless Funny or Die web site, takes aim at Heston's pro-gun stance as well as anyone who clings to the right to bear arms.

Heston isn't around to answer Carrey's insulting attack, but Gutfeld wasn't afraid to respond. His retort, first heard on Fox News' The Five, mocked both Carrey's politically correct targets as well as the comedian's past fear-mongering over vaccine use.

What did jackass Jim Carrey do? He was behind that anti-vaccine panic. There's 160,000 people that died from measles last year, according to World Health Organization. Jim Carrey has killed more people than the rifles combined. He's a dirty, stinking coward. He's a moral coward. He did a video attacking rural America. You wouldn't do video about gangs which kills more people with handguns. He wouldn't do that because he is too worried about his career. He's such a pathetic, sad, little freak. He is a gibbering mess.

Not so much fun picking on someone who can fight back, is it Ace Ventura?

Buy Dove products, get $20 off Dead Space 3, SimCity, or Most Wanted originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 25 Mar 2013 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

With BioShock Infinite, developer Irrational Games has the daunting task of creating an experience that is as engaging as its genre-defining predecessor, BioShock. Through its fleshed-out characters, believable performances, and thought-provoking themes, Ken Levine and company have created an emotional roller coaster ride that's not unlike grabbing onto a Skyline.

As I wandered through this alternate-history 1912, I was immediately inundated with the breathtaking awe of the city. As Booker DeWitt enters Columbia for the first time, I easily shared in his audible gasp as he floats down to begin his journey. The architecture and innovative nature of life in this vision could have easily come from a fantastic Jules Verne dream. It's easy to get caught up in exploring the shops, listening to some of the old ragtime music, or eavesdropping on conversations--the latter which reveals the sinister intolerance that hides beneath Columbia's idyllic setting.

The game's social and religious themes are overt. However, whether you agree with Vox Populi leader Daisy Fitzroy, or the purist views of prophet Zachary Hale Comstock, both are ultimately obstacles to finding the object of your visit: Elizabeth, perhaps the strongest and most impressive triumph of the game.

Elizabeth is a compelling character that gives you reason to care about her plight. Although she may not be playable, BioShock Infinite isn't an elongated escort quest; Elizabeth is an integral and necessary part of your adventure. Sure, she will help find ammo and money, and she'll patiently wait as I plundered every desk and barrel I could find. But the game proves she is not a mere sidekick, as she reveals her frailties and inner strength throughout our journey.

She'll also serve as a guide during combat, shouting when new enemies may enter the fray. She can also use her ability to open tears into alternate worlds to change the battle: forming a wall for cover, spawning additional weapons and medkits, or even creating new places to latch your Skyhook to get above and around enemies. Flying through the Skyline will also let you knock unsuspecting guards off an edge, or bury the Skyhook in a skull for a rather gruesome end.

Like previous BioShock games, you can also use magic (called vigors this time, instead of plasmids). While the usual fire and lightning throwing from previous BioShocks were there, BioShock Infinite adds some new ones. One of my favorites was the Bucking Bronco, which could throw multiple enemies into the air, allowing me to kill them as they flailed helplessly. Another that I used quite often was Charge, which catapulted me forward to inflict massive melee damage with the Skyhook.

However, I found I could make it through huge segments of the game without swapping powers, and only occasionally changing weapons. Ultimately, taking cover whilst constantly moving proved the most effective strategy.

But all the good will that BioShock Infinite builds up in the first three-quarters of the game gradually starts to deteriorate as the story nears its climax. A twist at the end was to be expected, and when it happened, I found myself with even more questions. Although a few loose ends are tied up, the ending ultimately seems a bit too contrived, and is a radical departure from the endings of the previous BioShocks. But, as a friend told me, the journey is more important than the destination. And this journey was an incredibly gorgeous ride with a partner that was as interesting as she was complex. Irrational's ambitious take on a new dystopian society does its predecessors proud, with Comstock and Fitzroy worthy of sharing their place of enmity with the likes of Andrew Ryan, Frank Fontaine and Sofia Lamb.

This BioShock Infinite review was based on a pre-release PC version of the game on Steam provided by the publisher. The game was tested on a system featuring an Intel i7 2600 3.4 GHz quad core CPU, 64-bit Windows 7 OS, 16 GB RAM, and an nVidia GeForce GTX 660. All graphics options were set to "ultra." The game will also be available on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

We have our first look at gameplay for the upcoming Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag and it is what you would expect from an AssCreed game:

Between exploring exotic temples, multi-weapon fighting and punching sharks in the face, it seems like the latest entry in this series has it all. Personally I’m most interested in the locations shown, as my least loved feature of Assassin’s Creed III was the overly generic look of both New York and Boston.

Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag releases on October 29^th, 2013.

Synopsis: Left for dead on a sun-scorched planet, Riddick finds himself up against an alien race of predators. Activating an emergency beacon alerts two ships: one carrying a new breed of mercenary, the other captained by a man from Riddick’s past.

Production Co: Universal Pictures, One Race Productions, Radar Pictures

Directed by: David Twohy

Written by: David Twohy, Ken Wheat, Jim Wheat

Starring: Vin Diesel, Karl Urban, Katee Sackhoff, Dave Bautista

Release date: September 6th, 2013

Rated: R

This first real look at Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag in motion is, at times, breathtaking. To some extent, that's to be expected given the setting, but wow -- this looks like a world I want to explore.

Although the Assassin's Creed series isn't exactly my cup of tea, sailing ships and swimming in the Caribbean sounds like one heck of a good time. I have to wonder how much Ubisoft will cater to the new audience that is merely in it for the pirate theme. I can't be the only one here.

HBO Go is pretty sweet if you’re already an HBO subscriber. The streaming service gives users access to HBO’s entire catalog of films and TV shows — everything from Girls to The Sopranos — from any computer, iPad, iPhone, or Android phone. Earlier this year, the company further sweetened the deal by enabling AirPlay, allowing customers to play video on their Apple TVs. But all that convenience comes with a hefty price tag: a basic cable package to begin with, plus an HBO subscription on top of that. It’s not uncommon for customers to shell out upwards of $100 per month in total.

From the service’s launch, would-be customers have been begging HBO for a standalone HBO Go option to serve those who just want the streaming but don’t want to pay for cable. So far, the premium cable giant has steadfastly insisted that the economics “are not particularly compelling.” But times are changing, and as of yesterday the company is singing a slightly different tune. In a recent interview, HBO CEO Richard Plepler acknowledged that HBO Go could team with broadband providers in the future. Hit the jump to read more.

Reuters caught up with Pepler at the Season 3 premiere of Game of Thrones. While he says HBO has “the right model” right now, he acknowledges that “maybe HBO Go, with our broadband partners, could evolve.” Pepler explained that HBO Go could be packaged with monthly broadband service, in the same way that it’s currently bundled with cable subscriptions. The costs, in his rough estimation, could come out to about $60 or $65 per month for customers — around $50 for broadband, plus another $10-$15 for HBO Go. “We would have to make the math work,” he said.

Pepler’s comments aren’t a guarantee that the HBO Go model will switch over anytime soon. The company still has to work out arrangements with their current partners. The fact that many cable TV providers, including Comcast, Time Warner, and Verizon, also offer broadband service would likely be a big help, but nothing’s confirmed at this point. Still, the fact that HBO is talking about the possibility publicly reveals that they’re giving the matter some serious thought. Combine that with the recent launch of HBO Nordic, and it’s looking increasingly likely that we’ll get a streaming-only HBO option sooner or later.

• Streaming Bits: HBO Go Enables AirPlay, ‘Arrested Development’ Could Hit iTunes After Netflix Debut
• Streaming Bits: Time Warner CEO Calls Cord-Cutting a Myth, Amazon Instant Video Comes to iPad, Apple TV Launches Hulu Plus App
• Streaming Bits: Hulu’s Player Grows 55%, Cablevision Launches HBO Go, Amazon Signs Discovery Deal, iTunes 1080p Almost as Good as Blu-ray
• HBO Go and Max Go Finally Available for Time Warner Cable Subscribers
• HBO is Considering a ‘Game of Thrones’ Prequel Series, Says George R.R. Martin
• TV Bits: ‘The Office’ (U.S.), ‘The Office’ (U.K.), ‘Enlightened’, ‘American Horror Story’, ‘Game of Thrones’, ‘Hannibal’, O.J. Simpson, Eli Roth, Sam Raimi, and More

Producer Michael Bay and director Jonathan Liebesman have cast the first member the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Alan Ritchson, who plays Gloss in the upcoming The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and starred in the show Blue Mountain State, will portray the red-masked Raphael. The film isn’t going to put actors in suits like the original movies, however. This time they’ll be motion captured and realized as CGI in real environments.

Ritchson is the first of four lead roles cast to go along with Megan Fox as TV reporter/Turtle friend April O’Neil.

Deadline broke the news of the casting on the film, which is scheduled for release in June 2014.

On the TV show and movies, Raphael was often the main character among the four turtles. His weapon of choice was the sai, and his aggressive, selfish nature generally got him (and therefore the group) into trouble.

So many rumors have circled around this film from its earliest rumblings, and so many rewrites and delays have happened in the meantime, it’s almost impossible get a grasp on what it’ll be. Coming from Bay and Liebesman, it’ll almost certainly be darker and more action-oriented than previous Turtle films. Whether or not it’ll center on their origins or draw on what have become canonized versions of the characters, though, is still very much up for debate. The inclusion of April O’Neil does give fans a glimmer of hope that this new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will be a movie they can get behind.

As for Ritchson, he looks like your usual jock-type guy and having not seen Catching Fire yet, it’s hard to really say much about him. It is encouraging they seem to be casting athletic actors for these physical roles. Fox included.

Who do you think will be next?

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles opens June 6, 2014.

• Michael Bay’s ‘Ninja Turtles’ Pushed Back to June 2014
• Michael Bay Bringing Megan Fox Back Into the Fold for ‘Ninja Turtles’
• Krang, Bebop, and Rocksteady to be Featured in ‘Ninja Turtles’?
• ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ Co-Creator Peter Laird Comments on Megan Fox’s Casting
• Now Kevin Eastman is Comparing Michael Bay’s ‘Ninja Turtles’ to ‘The Avengers’
• Script Issues Delay Michael Bay-Produced ‘Ninja Turtles’ Until 2014, At Least

A game of exceptional quality is exceptionally rare, rarer than generous review scores and excited praise in the high profile videogame market may indicate. There are games of unquestionable caliber that, while few in number, become games that define a generation. BioShock was one such game. 

That descent into the undersea city of Rapture, that first encounter with objectivist messiah Andrew Ryan, that initial encounter with the Big Daddy. BioShock was an unforgettable experience of iconic visuals, scenes, and characters. A perfect storm of creativity that will seal its place as one of the seventh generation's leading opuses. There is a price to pay for such an achievement, however -- the price of increasing failure to make lightning strike twice, to put the genie back in the bottle and release it a second time. 

BioShock 2 tried. It tried its level best, but while 2K Marin's gameplay refinements were appreciated, its narrative irrelevance and the diminished returns of a second Rapture outing ensured it would never live up to the series' high standards. It falls instead to Irrational Games (known as 2K Boston in 2007), creators of the original BioShock, to try and topple what came before. We go not below the ocean, but to the skies of Columbia, to seek magic once again. 

One has to wonder what the price will be for this success.

Always the eyes watching you and the voice enveloping you. Asleep or awake, working or eating, indoors or out of doors, in the bath or in bed -- no escape. Nothing was your own except the few cubic centimeters inside your skull. -- George Orwell, 1984

Ever since George Orwell published his dystopian masterpiece in 1949, people have compared it to the current state of national or international affairs. But in the always-connected, always-public world of 2013, perhaps the novel's themes hit closer to home than ever. We're living in a time of fierce debate over privacy concerns, an era where government and law enforcement argue for the right to GPS-track citizens without their knowledge. And like any form of art, video games are influenced by life.

During the PlayStation 4 event, Ubisoft and Sucker Punch gave the world a glimpse of their upcoming titles. And while there are clear differences between Watch Dogs and inFamous: Second Son, it's hard to ignore the overriding sense of paranoia and fear over a totalitarian state. Superheroes don't always wear a cape, and in the case of Aiden Pearce and Delsin Rowe, the rise of the anti-hero is a consequence of an oppressive regime.