I recently went and saw U2 3D at the Natural History Museum IMAX Theater. I wasn't going to mention it because they weren't going to run it more than another week, but I guess it's sustained popularity and showings have been extended at least to the first week in May. Therefore, I can recommend that you go. I've been twice, once this past weekend, and once the weekend before that. It was worth seeing twice.

So, it's a U2 concert on an IMAX screen, and it's in 3D. Now, going to a theater to see a U2 concert isn't something I'd normally do. I'm not the biggest U2 fan, honestly. Sure, I like their music. I have some of their albums. But they're not in my top 10. However, seeing it on an IMAX screen, that's got some appeal, just because it's so big. Then, it's in 3D? Oh, I have to see it. Now, if it was a band like Death Cab For Cutie or Linkin Park, the 3D and IMAX combination just wouldn't be enough to get me to the theater, but U2 is pretty good band, and they do know how to put on a good show.

One thing I must say about U2 is that they're better live than in the studio, especially when they've got a kick-ass South American audience. South American audiences are probably the best audiences in the world, because they're so excited and energetic, and they do stuff like sing along to instrumentals en masse. This kind of thing gets the band all excited, so, these guys who already do a good job live, do an even better job because of their audience. Then I get to reap the rewards in a theater where I can just sit there in a semi-comfortable chair and relax. That's a pretty good deal to me.

Even if you're not much of a U2 fan, it's still worth going to see. They didn't make excessive use of the 3D, but I consider that to be a good thing. I think it would have detracted from the experience. Still, there are some shots where you really feel the 3D effect, especially the shots overlooking the audience. Also, there's extra stuff during the end credits, so make sure to stick around when those start rolling. The first show I went to, nobody even got up out of their chairs when the credits started rolling.

There's a theater locator on their site (linked above), so you can find the one closest to you. If you can, make sure it's an IMAX theater, because the experience would be dulled in any other kind of theater. I saw Beowulf 3D in a regular theater, and the screen cut-off really detracted from the 3D effect. I don't think U2 3D would be as bad, but it's still good to see it in IMAX theater.

I have recently taken up GTO: The Early Years. There's some other name for it, but it's harder to remember. It's not an actual prequel to GTO, but rather GTO is the sequel, and Early Years never made it to TV. So, Early Years came out back in 1991 (and it wasn't called "GTO" or "Early Years"), then GTO came out in 1997. Early Years follows the high-school lives of Onizuka and Ryuji as they try to leave their gang lives behind and finally get laid. Neither venture goes very well for them. If you liked GTO, Early Years is worth picking up.

There's a character in the manga named Abe who gets women like crazy. Onizuka and Ryuji convince Abe to teach them how to get women. He breaks it down into three simple parts for them.

1. Appearance - Well, this makes sense. He's not talking about having a pretty face. It's all about how you do your hair, shave your face, and what clothes and accessories you are wearing (emphasis on that last one). That makes sense. If you just throw on whatever and have messy hair, women are going to think you're a slob and you don't care. They don't want that. You take care of your appearance and it gives women the impression that you'll take care of them. The first impression you make on a person is usually with your appearance (outside the Internet). So I think, alright, I can do that.

2. Confidence - Women want a man who's confident. They want someone who will take charge and get things done, and exuding confidence gives them the impression that you're that sort of man. Also, I think women just get off an confidence. It's important not to confuse confidence with arrogance. Also, women don't dig braggarts. Confidence is more the air about you, the way you speak, walk, or stand. I figured that with the other two, confidence would come naturally, so I didn't worry about it. I'll just learn what the third thing is and I'll be fine. Or, so I thought...

In the comic, Abe never actually tells them what the third thing is. It was kinda frustrating him not telling them about it, both for them and for me (the other guy who wants to know). So, after doing some stuff for him, he decides he needs to show them. It's like the matrix; you can't be told what it is, you need to see it for yourself. So, instead of telling them what it is, he displays it for them. My reaction to discovering what the third thing was was very similar to that of Onizuka and Ryuji, and that was depression and damn-near surrender. I think Onizuka said "There's no way I can do it."

3. Tolerance - There's many things I've never been, and tolerant is one of them. Upon realizing this was the third thing, I reflected on my life, and how I've always reacted to everything. I don't know what the antonym for tolerance is, but I would use it to describe myself in both of my last two relationships. I would probably use it for all of my relationships, but I don't remember the rest of them too well. Just my general dealings with people, I'm barely tolerant if at all. So, here I was expecting something I could just do and I'd get women, and instead I got advice that was basically "Be the opposite of yourself". I work tech support for a living, and on an almost daily basis I fail at being tolerant. Just today I had to apologize to someone for criticizing them for not following directions. That's actually what prompted this post. I was kinda depressed at the time, but now, realizing that, like Onizuka, it's not something I can do, I'm even more depressed. Maybe after I get my congestion problem fixed and can sleep better at night, I'll be more tolerant. I hear sleep deprivation makes people cranky, and I haven't a good night's sleep for as long as I can remember.

But, yes, Tolerance. Women want a guy who will protect them, not attack them, either physically or verbally. That makes sense. I'm so fucked. What a bitch of a thing to learn from a comic book. That's depressing, too.