Published writer, compulsive reader, Old School Whovian, Match Game enthusiast, NKOTB fan, data hoarder, and - surprisingly, given that list - married with four kids. Welcome to my take on life, fatherhood, entertainment, and whatever strikes my fancy. Enjoy!
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Earthquake and Tsunami
I have nothing but praise for the Japanese and their character during this tragedy. Compare their attitude & actions w/ those of our our own people in NOLA - the devastation and loss of life/property is so much worse in Japan and yet there are no reports of looting, of mass rape, or of violence. They deserve the help and respect of the world.
Monday, March 14, 2011
A Small Bathroom Remodel
10 o'clock at night and we've decided to begin our (minor) bathroom remodel. I've disconnected the pipes and removed the old sink, and Lisa just undid the antique medicine cabinet. Stamped on the back of the mirror and hidden for decades: "[illegible] Glass Co., November 18, 1938, Cincinnati Ohio."
FB thru Jan 22nd
Jan 16th
I'd give you my opinion of 'The A-Team', but I fear it was the vodka that made the flick even remotely watchable last night. Anyhow, Happy Birthday to Chris and Jaspare, and many more to them both.
Wow, what a coup for law enforcement {smirk}, bragging about finding a fugitive after thirty years. In 1980 Jackson McDonald escaped from custody on a weed smuggling charge, then lived a law-abiding life for 30 years. He even owned his own appliance store. But now justice is served, by golly, and the 72 yr old will be trotted out to justify the latest budget proposal from the Marshals office.
Jan 17th
Begin to be now what you will be hereafter - William James
200 cows mysteriously died in Portage County (Wisconsin).
Researchers claim they'll create living mammoths within five years.
Made an ass of myself this AM. On the flipside, when snow delayed me on the way to wrk I got the chance to listen to MLK's 'I have a dream' speech on the radio in its entirety. As powerful as its reputation, even 48 yrs on.
Jan 18th
RIP Sargent Shriver, age 95
Regis Philbin has announced his retirement. So long Reg. I've enjoyed your run.
Prince Fielder just signed for 15.5 million dollars.
Convey Calm
This should, if I did it right, link to my first paid writing gig - a $5 blurb in Boys Life 23 yrs ago.
We just finished 'Devil', a movie created (but not directed) by M. Night Shamalan. It's about 5 strangers stuck in an elevator. Sadly for 4 of the passengers, the 5th is the Devil. I expected cheese and instead found a suspenseful, entertaining horror film that was a teensy-bit short on the actual horror. {applause}
Just finished "Buried" w/ Ryan Reynolds, a film about a civilian contractor kidnapped & buried alive in Iraq. I think it would have made a suspenseful novel, but as a movie . . . well, to quote Lisa "it's about a guy in a box talking on the phone for two hours". I like how they tried to present a Leftist view of the war and the Iraqi 'insurrgents', then have the Iraqi's not only bury the guy but ask him to mutilate himself on camera for their enjoyment. i think the latter is the more accurate view.
YaYa's Junior trip went on a field trip to Petco, where they got to handle many of the animals in the store.
Jan 19th
Study finds oldest known domesticated dog in Americas (10,000 yrs) - and it was apparently tasty, too
Jan 20th
30 years ago today Sr Pat, my kindergarten teacher, took our class to the music room across the hall to watch Reagan's inauguration. At some point during the broadcast it was announced that the Iran hostages were free, and I've never forgotten the look of relief on her face. "Thank God!" she said. I think she spoke for a lot of Americans that day.
It's also the 50th anniversary of JFK's inauguration, and his 'Ask Not' speech.
Wind chills of -20 to -30 degrees F are expected tonight
*Unofficial* news today that I will be asked to stay on for a third year as a community columnist for the Journal-Sentinel. (There's a new editor in charge of the opinion page, so it may still be ixnayed.)
Here's two pics of our cat Angelcakes, and an old shot of Lauren that I adore. She's seated next to our friend Chris.
Jan 21st
Bundled Ginger up to brave the negative wind chill today and took her to school - only to realize MPS has a scheduled day off today. D'oh!
I greatly admire Rod Serling.
"Nothing shows more thoughtlessness than the idiocy that it makes no difference what you believe; it all depends on the way you live. On the contrary, we act on our beliefs; our ideas are motorsprings in action; if our thinking is bad our actions will be bad." Archbishop Fulton Sheen
Some pics of Ginger:
I'd give you my opinion of 'The A-Team', but I fear it was the vodka that made the flick even remotely watchable last night. Anyhow, Happy Birthday to Chris and Jaspare, and many more to them both.
Wow, what a coup for law enforcement {smirk}, bragging about finding a fugitive after thirty years. In 1980 Jackson McDonald escaped from custody on a weed smuggling charge, then lived a law-abiding life for 30 years. He even owned his own appliance store. But now justice is served, by golly, and the 72 yr old will be trotted out to justify the latest budget proposal from the Marshals office.
Jan 17th
Begin to be now what you will be hereafter - William James
200 cows mysteriously died in Portage County (Wisconsin).
Researchers claim they'll create living mammoths within five years.
Made an ass of myself this AM. On the flipside, when snow delayed me on the way to wrk I got the chance to listen to MLK's 'I have a dream' speech on the radio in its entirety. As powerful as its reputation, even 48 yrs on.
Jan 18th
RIP Sargent Shriver, age 95
Regis Philbin has announced his retirement. So long Reg. I've enjoyed your run.
Prince Fielder just signed for 15.5 million dollars.
Convey Calm
This should, if I did it right, link to my first paid writing gig - a $5 blurb in Boys Life 23 yrs ago.
We just finished 'Devil', a movie created (but not directed) by M. Night Shamalan. It's about 5 strangers stuck in an elevator. Sadly for 4 of the passengers, the 5th is the Devil. I expected cheese and instead found a suspenseful, entertaining horror film that was a teensy-bit short on the actual horror. {applause}
Just finished "Buried" w/ Ryan Reynolds, a film about a civilian contractor kidnapped & buried alive in Iraq. I think it would have made a suspenseful novel, but as a movie . . . well, to quote Lisa "it's about a guy in a box talking on the phone for two hours". I like how they tried to present a Leftist view of the war and the Iraqi 'insurrgents', then have the Iraqi's not only bury the guy but ask him to mutilate himself on camera for their enjoyment. i think the latter is the more accurate view.
YaYa's Junior trip went on a field trip to Petco, where they got to handle many of the animals in the store.
Jan 19th
Study finds oldest known domesticated dog in Americas (10,000 yrs) - and it was apparently tasty, too
Jan 20th
30 years ago today Sr Pat, my kindergarten teacher, took our class to the music room across the hall to watch Reagan's inauguration. At some point during the broadcast it was announced that the Iran hostages were free, and I've never forgotten the look of relief on her face. "Thank God!" she said. I think she spoke for a lot of Americans that day.
It's also the 50th anniversary of JFK's inauguration, and his 'Ask Not' speech.
Wind chills of -20 to -30 degrees F are expected tonight
*Unofficial* news today that I will be asked to stay on for a third year as a community columnist for the Journal-Sentinel. (There's a new editor in charge of the opinion page, so it may still be ixnayed.)
Here's two pics of our cat Angelcakes, and an old shot of Lauren that I adore. She's seated next to our friend Chris.
Jan 21st
Bundled Ginger up to brave the negative wind chill today and took her to school - only to realize MPS has a scheduled day off today. D'oh!
I greatly admire Rod Serling.
"Nothing shows more thoughtlessness than the idiocy that it makes no difference what you believe; it all depends on the way you live. On the contrary, we act on our beliefs; our ideas are motorsprings in action; if our thinking is bad our actions will be bad." Archbishop Fulton Sheen
Some pics of Ginger:
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Truthers
@ wrk I had to deal with a Truther & his loudly stated beliefs - see T-shirt reading "Investigate 9/11!". Like all Americans he is entitled to his opinion, based on the absurdly tiny amount of information he bothered to learn before he formed it. But I did enjoy the fact that someone so obsessed w/ conspiracy was apparently 'taken' - a Visa gift card he accepted as pay was empty.
A Day at the Symphony
Girl Scout symphony outing. - Lisa
While I was at work Lisa took the girls on a Scout trip to the Symphony, where LuLu won a copy of Lemony Snicket's "The Composer is Dead".
YaYa said she enjoyed the music, while Lulu said it was boring (but she was tired when I asked her). Then, a miserable night of subpar Sun TV, w/ no movie on hand. It was down to The Nanny (good) & '3 Ninjas' (suicide inducing).
@ wrk I had to deal with a Truther & his loudly stated beliefs - see T-shirt reading "Investigate 9/11!". Like all Americans he is entitled to his opinion, based on the absurdly tiny amount of information he bothered to learn before he formed it. But I did enjoy the fact that someone so obsessed w/ conspiracy was apparently 'taken' - a Visa gift card he accepted as pay was empty.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Moseing (is that the right spelling?) up to the middle of January
Jan 5th
'Dinner for Schmucks' was hit and miss, w/ a few laughs and not a whole lot more to offer. PBS's contemporary 'Sherlock' is grand and a credit to the character. And there's no loser on "The Amazing Race" as even the eliminated teams experience sights and experiences I can only dream about.
I have friends on FB who strongly believe otherwise, but I feel that the anti-vaccine movement is a serious threat to public health. To find that one of the cornerstones of that movement is not only a discredited study, but a deliberately fraudulent one, cements that notion. Sadly, as per a CNN.com article "[believers are] not going to let the facts dissuade their beliefs that MMR causes autism"
Jan 6th
I rented 'The Last Exorcism' expecting a lousy film. I'm happy to say I was wrong. A disillusioned preacher asks a documentary crew to film him during an exorcism, so that he can reveal his profession to be a scam. Obviously it doesn't go as planned,but throughout you're never sure if the girl is possessed, mentally ill, crying out for help, a victim or a con herself. Very scary at times and solid throughout. Bravo.
Tomorrow, the two oldest start selling girl scout cookies, so let us know starting tomorrow how many cases you'd like, LOL. $3.75 a box this year, & worth every penny for the opportunities they allow girls locally and globally! Did you know that Thin Mints are 2nd only to OREOS in nationwide sales?!! Now imagine if Girl Scouts sold their thin mints more then just one month out of the year! Thin Mint domination!!
Jan 8th
U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords has died after being shot during a mass shooting in a store in Tucson, Arizona, law enforcement source tells CNN. NOTE: the report was wrong. She survived. Many others did not, including the 9 yr old granddaughter of former MLB manager Dallas Green.
We watched SALT last night, and I liked it a lot. It was a fun and decently intelligent thriller. Angelina Jolie, while a blonde and therefore not as hot as usual, was great as a suspected Russian sleeper agent. She's earned the crown of best ever female action hero . . . although, come to think of it, I can't think of another candidate.
Jan 9th
No time to say this yesterday, as I worked 'til 10, but congrats to the Seahawks, my 2nd favorite NFC team. It was a pain to follow the game at work, gleaming bits of info from customers, but I can't argue with the result
Jan 10th
'Leaves of Grass' was a bore, a truly pretentious turd of a film. There was the woman who answered questions by reciting verses of poetry, the discources on philosophy, needless gore & 'Parent Trap' FX. That enough for ya? OTOH, "The Invention of Lying" was pleasant enough, it's atheist plot notwithstanding. How a man can work alongside Jennifer Garner & not believe there's a Creator at work is beyond me.
I learned that I shouldn't get high to come up with ideas. I should come up with ideas and then get high to reward myself. - South Park "A Million Little Fibers"
RIP Dick Winters, the WWII officer featured in the series Band of Brothers
Jan 11th
We couldn't find a babysitter (6 months today!) so we took Ginger w/ us to lunch at Olive Garden. Subpar service but good food, and Ginger was an angel. She's gone from Thug to darling over the last few wks, and right now she's the apple of my eye. BTW, thanks Pam & Tre for the OG GC.
A man who fears suffering is already suffering from what he fears. - Michel de Montaigne
MySpace has cut its staff in half
A 6,000 year old wine press has been found in Armenia
Jan 12th
Aww man. RIP David Nelson of Ozzie and Harriet
Jan 13th
I love Jimmy Stewart's office in the movie 'Bell, Book and Candle'
"I felt awestruck, affirmed in my belief that there were no bounds to ingenuity when it met the curve of need." - Keith Hollihan, 'The Four Stages of Cruelty'
Jan 15th
A friend just asked to borrow $ from me to get a tatoo on her foot. Correct me if I'm wrong, but we *have* met before right? Asking Dan Slap- to pay for a woman's foot to be marred is like asking the Pope to wizz on the Bible.
The tat in it's final location. Work by Zoe's Vicious Circle on Howard Ave.
I finished Keith Hollihan's 'The Four Stages of Cruelty', a novel about the CO's & inmates of a max security prison. It's a good story, & Hollihan is a talented stylist. IMO the bks biggest handicap is its cover, styled to look like the panels of a comic bk. It gives a completely wrong impression of the contents & I'm sure many people have walked on by it w/out a second thought.
"Bad temper is an indication of a man's character; every man can be judged by the things which make him mad." Archbishop Fulton Sheen
One Brett Favre stat no one ever talks about: in his career Farve has put his hands under another man's ass over 20,000 times. (h/t Mick Lexington)
For dinner I made a huge pot of Zuppa Toscana from a Olive Garden knock-off recipie I found online. I tweaked it by adding chopped fennel and using half and half in place of 2/3rds of the required heavy cream. Quite deeelish. Now Lis and the newly tattooed Chris are out celebrating the latter's bday w/ a mutual friend, & I'm sitting down for the Packers playoff game vs Atlanta.
Tramon Williams' is gonna have to change his name to Sherman, 'cuz he done burned Atlanta!
[The Pack won and advanced]
'Dinner for Schmucks' was hit and miss, w/ a few laughs and not a whole lot more to offer. PBS's contemporary 'Sherlock' is grand and a credit to the character. And there's no loser on "The Amazing Race" as even the eliminated teams experience sights and experiences I can only dream about.
I have friends on FB who strongly believe otherwise, but I feel that the anti-vaccine movement is a serious threat to public health. To find that one of the cornerstones of that movement is not only a discredited study, but a deliberately fraudulent one, cements that notion. Sadly, as per a CNN.com article "[believers are] not going to let the facts dissuade their beliefs that MMR causes autism"
Jan 6th
I rented 'The Last Exorcism' expecting a lousy film. I'm happy to say I was wrong. A disillusioned preacher asks a documentary crew to film him during an exorcism, so that he can reveal his profession to be a scam. Obviously it doesn't go as planned,but throughout you're never sure if the girl is possessed, mentally ill, crying out for help, a victim or a con herself. Very scary at times and solid throughout. Bravo.
Tomorrow, the two oldest start selling girl scout cookies, so let us know starting tomorrow how many cases you'd like, LOL. $3.75 a box this year, & worth every penny for the opportunities they allow girls locally and globally! Did you know that Thin Mints are 2nd only to OREOS in nationwide sales?!! Now imagine if Girl Scouts sold their thin mints more then just one month out of the year! Thin Mint domination!!
Jan 8th
U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords has died after being shot during a mass shooting in a store in Tucson, Arizona, law enforcement source tells CNN. NOTE: the report was wrong. She survived. Many others did not, including the 9 yr old granddaughter of former MLB manager Dallas Green.
We watched SALT last night, and I liked it a lot. It was a fun and decently intelligent thriller. Angelina Jolie, while a blonde and therefore not as hot as usual, was great as a suspected Russian sleeper agent. She's earned the crown of best ever female action hero . . . although, come to think of it, I can't think of another candidate.
Jan 9th
No time to say this yesterday, as I worked 'til 10, but congrats to the Seahawks, my 2nd favorite NFC team. It was a pain to follow the game at work, gleaming bits of info from customers, but I can't argue with the result
Jan 10th
'Leaves of Grass' was a bore, a truly pretentious turd of a film. There was the woman who answered questions by reciting verses of poetry, the discources on philosophy, needless gore & 'Parent Trap' FX. That enough for ya? OTOH, "The Invention of Lying" was pleasant enough, it's atheist plot notwithstanding. How a man can work alongside Jennifer Garner & not believe there's a Creator at work is beyond me.
I learned that I shouldn't get high to come up with ideas. I should come up with ideas and then get high to reward myself. - South Park "A Million Little Fibers"
RIP Dick Winters, the WWII officer featured in the series Band of Brothers
Jan 11th
We couldn't find a babysitter (6 months today!) so we took Ginger w/ us to lunch at Olive Garden. Subpar service but good food, and Ginger was an angel. She's gone from Thug to darling over the last few wks, and right now she's the apple of my eye. BTW, thanks Pam & Tre for the OG GC.
A man who fears suffering is already suffering from what he fears. - Michel de Montaigne
MySpace has cut its staff in half
A 6,000 year old wine press has been found in Armenia
Jan 12th
Aww man. RIP David Nelson of Ozzie and Harriet
Jan 13th
I love Jimmy Stewart's office in the movie 'Bell, Book and Candle'
"I felt awestruck, affirmed in my belief that there were no bounds to ingenuity when it met the curve of need." - Keith Hollihan, 'The Four Stages of Cruelty'
Jan 15th
A friend just asked to borrow $ from me to get a tatoo on her foot. Correct me if I'm wrong, but we *have* met before right? Asking Dan Slap- to pay for a woman's foot to be marred is like asking the Pope to wizz on the Bible.
The tat in it's final location. Work by Zoe's Vicious Circle on Howard Ave.
I finished Keith Hollihan's 'The Four Stages of Cruelty', a novel about the CO's & inmates of a max security prison. It's a good story, & Hollihan is a talented stylist. IMO the bks biggest handicap is its cover, styled to look like the panels of a comic bk. It gives a completely wrong impression of the contents & I'm sure many people have walked on by it w/out a second thought.
"Bad temper is an indication of a man's character; every man can be judged by the things which make him mad." Archbishop Fulton Sheen
One Brett Favre stat no one ever talks about: in his career Farve has put his hands under another man's ass over 20,000 times. (h/t Mick Lexington)
For dinner I made a huge pot of Zuppa Toscana from a Olive Garden knock-off recipie I found online. I tweaked it by adding chopped fennel and using half and half in place of 2/3rds of the required heavy cream. Quite deeelish. Now Lis and the newly tattooed Chris are out celebrating the latter's bday w/ a mutual friend, & I'm sitting down for the Packers playoff game vs Atlanta.
Tramon Williams' is gonna have to change his name to Sherman, 'cuz he done burned Atlanta!
[The Pack won and advanced]
Friday, March 11, 2011
Japanese Tsunami
I took the family out for a fish fry to celebrate the 1st Friday of Lent. The kids were good - good enough to get a compliment from an elderly couple nearby. Now Lis and I are about to sit down and watch 20/20's report on the horrific earthquake in Japan . .
Jefferson Quote
"DO NOT bite at the bait of pleasure, till you know there is no hook beneath it."
--Thomas Jefferson
On Online Ads on News Sites
I have no problem with having to watch commericals on a news site. I just think the site should be more conscious of the context in which they're placed. I'm sure Company X doesn't want their happy-happy jingle to be followed by a story of abuse and torture, as was just the case on CNN.com. It's poor taste, and the fault is CNN's, not the advertiser.
My Thoughts - Online Ads
I have no problem with having to watch commercials on a news site. I just think the site should be more conscious of the context in which they're placed. I'm sure Company X doesn't want their happy-happy jingle to be followed by a story of abuse and torture, as was just the case on CNN.com. It's poor taste, and the fault is CNN's, not the advertiser.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
New Years Day thru January 4th
Jan 1st 2011
May I just say - The Big Bang Theory is one heck of a funny, well done show.
In the news: The Pope rallies Christians to not despair in light of recent attacks, and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson declines to posthumously pardon Billy the Kid.
We're 10 days shy of going 6 months w/out a single day w/out kids - or for that matter, so much as 4 hrs (!). Haven't seen a movie in close to a yr, haven't gone out to dinner alone (w/out a curfew) for months. Typical for some families I guess, but Lisa & I enjoy our time together more than most. I think some parents keep their kids on their t*t so they won't notice how little they like their spouse.
Jan 2nd
Hot damn, the Packers win and advance to the playoffs! Who-hoo! Two other reasons to be happy for the win: a) it came at the expense of the FIB Bears and b) it eliminated Tampa Bay, thereby making Carlos' life just a little less grand. Triple-win for Dan-Dan!
Jan 3rd
An incident at Mayfair Mall, allegedly planned via social networking sites, had the mall on lockdown. According to a witness (and who knows how reliable they are), the incident was not 'isolated' as claimed, and involved as many as 100 youth.
They knocked over merchandise, screamed and yelled, and there were reports of shots fired in the parking lot.
Aside from complaining about the babysitter situation, it was a pretty good New Years wknd. Alcohol helped, of course, but for the most part it was a relaxing wkend full of excessive amts of TV & homemade pizza. Sunday was a little more productive. I watched 9 hrs of football, helped Lis carpet the back stairs, hung a closet rod for Smiley & tracked down a new phone on Craigslist for our friend Chris.
Zsa Zsa Gabor will have a leg amputated
Jan 4th
'Knight and Day' was a fun but forgettable spy flick, at least worth a rental from Redbox. What made it rise above its tired plot? A) Tom Cruise's character was genuinely LOL as he prattled on, oblivious to the situations around him and B) Cameron Diaz has gorgeous feet. That alone would sell the movie for me.
Facing multiple lawsuits over sexual abuse, the Archdiocese of Milwaukee is filing bankruptcy. This is a shame, and IMO, a victory for the devil. Literally. My own opinion aside, Archbishop Listeki's statement is very well done, admitting the wrongs of the past and laying blame on those responsible (priests). Either he's a gifted writer or his copywriter deserves a raise.
'Jaws', the novel by Peter Benchley, was largely a waste of my time. Speilberg was right - in the book you wind up rooting for the shark because all the humans are a*holes. There's not much to say about his style either. The film is infinitely superior, although I will say that the opening sequence of the book is both well written and suspenseful.
The son of the former Shah of Iran has committed suicide. RIP.
I have a column in tomorrow's (Wed) Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Kindly pick up a copy if you can.
The words 'injun' and 'ni---er' will be purged from a new edition of Twain's classic Huckleberry Finn. This is, w/out question, censorship and political correctness masked as an attempt to 'widen the reading audience' of the book. "Think of the children!" Yeah, think of them listing to the N word in every other rap. An acquaintance of ours nicknamed his son 'chigga' from a song that rhymes it with the n-word. And Twain is what we worry about?
My cousin Mindy stopped by w/ her son Isiah:
Obama's staff is rumoured to be due for a few roster changes. This is typical at the midpoint of a President's first term. However, when a President is *perceived* to be struggling it is often misinterpreted as a sign of panic and lack of faith - note Carter's disastrous cabinet shakeup in the wake of his 'malaise' speech.
Ouch! I just burned my stomach taking cookies out of the oven. Yeah, I shouldn't be baking sans shirt, but I can usually count on my thick manly belly hair to protect me. Oh well. At least the inevitable scar will blend in with the stretch marks.
Remember, I'm in the paper today. As of now, there are 11 comments about it on the JSOnline site, 2 of them full of angry liberal CAPS and !!!!!! marks. Which is odd, since it has nothing to do w/ politics, left or right. Thank heavens JS didn't have comment capability when they published the gay marriage/concealed carry/Catholic Church columns. I had anonymous hate mail sent to my father's house after one of those.
May I just say - The Big Bang Theory is one heck of a funny, well done show.
In the news: The Pope rallies Christians to not despair in light of recent attacks, and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson declines to posthumously pardon Billy the Kid.
We're 10 days shy of going 6 months w/out a single day w/out kids - or for that matter, so much as 4 hrs (!). Haven't seen a movie in close to a yr, haven't gone out to dinner alone (w/out a curfew) for months. Typical for some families I guess, but Lisa & I enjoy our time together more than most. I think some parents keep their kids on their t*t so they won't notice how little they like their spouse.
Jan 2nd
Hot damn, the Packers win and advance to the playoffs! Who-hoo! Two other reasons to be happy for the win: a) it came at the expense of the FIB Bears and b) it eliminated Tampa Bay, thereby making Carlos' life just a little less grand. Triple-win for Dan-Dan!
Jan 3rd
An incident at Mayfair Mall, allegedly planned via social networking sites, had the mall on lockdown. According to a witness (and who knows how reliable they are), the incident was not 'isolated' as claimed, and involved as many as 100 youth.
They knocked over merchandise, screamed and yelled, and there were reports of shots fired in the parking lot.
Aside from complaining about the babysitter situation, it was a pretty good New Years wknd. Alcohol helped, of course, but for the most part it was a relaxing wkend full of excessive amts of TV & homemade pizza. Sunday was a little more productive. I watched 9 hrs of football, helped Lis carpet the back stairs, hung a closet rod for Smiley & tracked down a new phone on Craigslist for our friend Chris.
Zsa Zsa Gabor will have a leg amputated
Jan 4th
'Knight and Day' was a fun but forgettable spy flick, at least worth a rental from Redbox. What made it rise above its tired plot? A) Tom Cruise's character was genuinely LOL as he prattled on, oblivious to the situations around him and B) Cameron Diaz has gorgeous feet. That alone would sell the movie for me.
Facing multiple lawsuits over sexual abuse, the Archdiocese of Milwaukee is filing bankruptcy. This is a shame, and IMO, a victory for the devil. Literally. My own opinion aside, Archbishop Listeki's statement is very well done, admitting the wrongs of the past and laying blame on those responsible (priests). Either he's a gifted writer or his copywriter deserves a raise.
'Jaws', the novel by Peter Benchley, was largely a waste of my time. Speilberg was right - in the book you wind up rooting for the shark because all the humans are a*holes. There's not much to say about his style either. The film is infinitely superior, although I will say that the opening sequence of the book is both well written and suspenseful.
The son of the former Shah of Iran has committed suicide. RIP.
I have a column in tomorrow's (Wed) Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Kindly pick up a copy if you can.
The words 'injun' and 'ni---er' will be purged from a new edition of Twain's classic Huckleberry Finn. This is, w/out question, censorship and political correctness masked as an attempt to 'widen the reading audience' of the book. "Think of the children!" Yeah, think of them listing to the N word in every other rap. An acquaintance of ours nicknamed his son 'chigga' from a song that rhymes it with the n-word. And Twain is what we worry about?
My cousin Mindy stopped by w/ her son Isiah:
Obama's staff is rumoured to be due for a few roster changes. This is typical at the midpoint of a President's first term. However, when a President is *perceived* to be struggling it is often misinterpreted as a sign of panic and lack of faith - note Carter's disastrous cabinet shakeup in the wake of his 'malaise' speech.
Ouch! I just burned my stomach taking cookies out of the oven. Yeah, I shouldn't be baking sans shirt, but I can usually count on my thick manly belly hair to protect me. Oh well. At least the inevitable scar will blend in with the stretch marks.
Remember, I'm in the paper today. As of now, there are 11 comments about it on the JSOnline site, 2 of them full of angry liberal CAPS and !!!!!! marks. Which is odd, since it has nothing to do w/ politics, left or right. Thank heavens JS didn't have comment capability when they published the gay marriage/concealed carry/Catholic Church columns. I had anonymous hate mail sent to my father's house after one of those.
Morning Glory
I've got this all backasswards - the busier I am in the day, the more I post. Instead of stopping for a cigarette break, I spend a few minutes clogging up your news feed. Yay for you. Just finished Morning Glory, and was shocked it was so good. I LOL'd 11 times - I counted - and Harrison Ford was superbly funny as the crochety old anchor. Loved it.
Grrrrr
Now this Madison mess has interrupted The Wendy Williams Show. Have they no decency?
Walker just finished his press conference. He was well spoken, calm, reliant on acts not emotion, and I'm pretty confident he has balls the size of watermelons. A striking contrast (no pun intended) to the cliche ridden tantrums outside the Capitol.
Instant Replay by Jerry Kramer
Last night I finished "Instant Replay", Jerry Kramer's classic diary of the 1967 NFL season. It's a fun read, with a clear and intelligent voice. (not to spoil the ending, but the Packers win the SuperBowl)
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Some short (and I mean short) reviews of TV & Movies
We recently watched the movie "Never Let Me Go", a movie based on the novel by Kazuo Ishiguro. Although the plot is nominally sci-fi, it is so understated as to nearly escape the attention of the viewer. It is moving, beautifully acted, and heart wrenching. SPOILER: I do wonder if the Donors were indeed 'souless' in the sense it as used in the film, as the 'beautiful' art Tommy creates looks like infantile scribbles to me. Was that the intention of the scene?
After a long day at work Lis & I watched "I Knew it Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale" (aka Fredo from The Godfather). It was an entertaining tribute to him as an actor, but little else. As to Cazale as a person, we learned he was born in 1935, smoked a lot, died young . . . and that's it. The filmaker could have done a lot more with the material.
We also finished "The Ghostwriter". It would be a dang good movie if the plot made any sense. A former PM of Great Britain demonized and branded a war criminal for having 4 known terrrorists kidnapped & waterboarded? The UK allowing a PM to be brought up on charges by the (ridiculous) internation court? A consistent anti-American plot thread (literally)? Meh. Bleeding heart politics masquerading as art.
On the opposite end of the entertainment spectrum, we finished watching Survior: Pearl Islands. While we wanted Rupert to win it all, we were pleased that his pal Sandra took home the million dollar prize.
We also watched The Bachelor, Season One. Odd how the 'rose ceremony' had yet to earn its moniker (it was called 'invitation night' instead). Even more noticeable compared to this season (which we also watch): the average physical appearance of both the bachelor and the women has soared over the years. The 'winning' woman was yummy, but the majority . . . yikes.
Our love of The Amazing Race continues, although we've now run out of DVD's. To compensate we started Season One of The Mole. It's a great concept but executed a little sloppily. I hope in later seasons they've learned from their errors.
I've started watching The Streets of San Fransisco and have come away quite impressed. Ditto for the few episodes of The Phil Silvers Show (aka Sgt. Bilko) I've watched. Unlike many older sitcoms it seems well written and the humor is still fresh.
That's it for now. Tune in next time folks.
After a long day at work Lis & I watched "I Knew it Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale" (aka Fredo from The Godfather). It was an entertaining tribute to him as an actor, but little else. As to Cazale as a person, we learned he was born in 1935, smoked a lot, died young . . . and that's it. The filmaker could have done a lot more with the material.
We also finished "The Ghostwriter". It would be a dang good movie if the plot made any sense. A former PM of Great Britain demonized and branded a war criminal for having 4 known terrrorists kidnapped & waterboarded? The UK allowing a PM to be brought up on charges by the (ridiculous) internation court? A consistent anti-American plot thread (literally)? Meh. Bleeding heart politics masquerading as art.
On the opposite end of the entertainment spectrum, we finished watching Survior: Pearl Islands. While we wanted Rupert to win it all, we were pleased that his pal Sandra took home the million dollar prize.
We also watched The Bachelor, Season One. Odd how the 'rose ceremony' had yet to earn its moniker (it was called 'invitation night' instead). Even more noticeable compared to this season (which we also watch): the average physical appearance of both the bachelor and the women has soared over the years. The 'winning' woman was yummy, but the majority . . . yikes.
Our love of The Amazing Race continues, although we've now run out of DVD's. To compensate we started Season One of The Mole. It's a great concept but executed a little sloppily. I hope in later seasons they've learned from their errors.
I've started watching The Streets of San Fransisco and have come away quite impressed. Ditto for the few episodes of The Phil Silvers Show (aka Sgt. Bilko) I've watched. Unlike many older sitcoms it seems well written and the humor is still fresh.
That's it for now. Tune in next time folks.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
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