Yes, other news is happening in the world besides people just being totally stoked for Obama.  And as an aside, how high are the expectations for this guy?  Can he possibly live up to this insanely high level of hype?  And will SNL, The Daily Show, et al be able to skewer a President who is so beloved and adored?

But back to the topic at hand: Michael Crichton died yesterday.  The news made me think back on his novels, and how much I enjoyed them when I read them, even if it was a decade and a half ago.  I’m not much of a reader, but I really loved the Jurassic Park and Sphere books.  And not to sound like “that guy,” but the movies were vastly inferior to the books, which had far more science, drama, and depth to them.  Now that I think about it, I actually never saw the Jurassic Park movie sequels, but I did like the book of The Lost World.  The idea of genetically engineering dinosaurs back into existence seemed plausible, and the whole concept was brilliant, even if it did sort of rip-off my whole “Billy and the Clonosaurus” idea.

And of course, the Jurassic Park ride at Universal Studios is pretty kick-ass.