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• Took a little tour of the new Cowboy stadium yesterday for work. If you haven’t seen it in person, you really have no idea how huge this thing is.  Info on volunteer opps for the Superbowl coming in Jan 09.
• I really enjoyed the Obama speech last night. I am looking forward to the debates. Now if I can just get my mom to quit listening to Sean Hannity.
• Good job to whoever produced the the Obama video bio BTW. Very nice.
• I am getting a new office at work and I am psyched about it.  Funny story. My new boss put a request in to IT to move all my computer stuff.  IT came backand said that since I was the one that set up my computer in my old cubicle, I could move myself. This is the 2nd time in two jobs that I have been told to move myself. That’s what I get for being computer “savvy.”
• My 3 year old laptop has a crack on the top of it and it still works. Sometimes.  The screen is starting to flicker but I am not too upset. This thing is a workhorse. One time, my ex  let it slip out of her briefcase from about 4 feet off the ground and it skidded across the parking lot.  Still worked.
• The thought of going to Central Market to buy steaks for this weekend makes me happy.
• I am planning on a low key holiday but I guarantee that my neighbors will be having an ALL NIGHT lawn party.  I am going to sit on my rocking chair on the front porch and yell at kids to get off my lawn!
• I should be on Fox 4 again next month. Maybe.
• I know it’s killing Chip to not be in the chopper. Maybe they could let him do traffic and sports in the morning.
• Speaking of Fox, I had three people recognize me yesterday. And then one of them apologized for bothering me. Apologize? Please… you made my day.  Hell, you made my week.  I promised myself two years ago (after a particularly selfish stupid incident) that I would be as nice and outgoing as possible to anyone who recognizes me. So if you see me and you want to say hi, go for it!
• I am going to lose 10 lbs next month.  In fact, I have a number of fitness related goals that I am going to write down and monitor and hopefully accomplish. I figure if I stare at them, I might do them.
• I rented the TV show Wonderfalls on DVD.  From the same guy who produced Firefly. I have high expectations.
• A few milestones for this website coming up next week.  I will keep you posted.
  

  Um, yeah.

• This week’s random link is: Passive-Aggressive Notes. This little site posts pictures of notes that people have left for random strangers, friends, enemies, etc.  And these notes are usually “passive-agreessive” in nature, i.e., “the classic description of the behavior captures a stubborn malcontent, someone who passively resists fulfilling routine tasks, complains of being misunderstood and underappreciated, unreasonably scorns authority and voices exaggerated complaints of personal misfortune.”  It can be pretty funny, so if you could check out the site, um, that would be great.

Despite his limited mobility, the evil Artist Mannequin surprises Spiderman 2099 with the most cruel of kicking attacks.

What? I don’t know why they are fighting. I didn’t pose them! Like I have time at work to stage incredibly detailed fake battles with my action figures? Actually, this is just a test of the awesome Canon video camera that I have at work which can also take really nice still images. I did do a little bit of manipulation in Photoshop to make the scene a bit more dramatic. Looks like Spiderman2099 is about to get his butt kicked.

I thinking of trying to do a stop motion film with these guys. I’ll post it here if that ever happens. Hey have a great hump day!

The boys went back to school yesterday. First day of high school. Holy crap.  I can hardly believe it. Did I mention I had them when I was 12?   Well, in honor of going back to school here is this week’s quote.

“There are obviously two educations. One should teach us how to make a living and the other how to live.”

James Truslow Adams

Wow, I really like that one. Book smart and street smart. It can be tough to find people who have plenty of both.

And just for fun:

Diane: Actually, I’d like to join you, but I have class tonight.
Thornton Melon: Oh. How ’bout tomorrow night?
Diane: I have class then, too.
Thornton Melon: I’ll tell you what, then. Why don’t you call me some time when you have no class?
Diane: [laughs] Alright. Maybe I will.

So this weekend in my Netflix rotation came up the movie “The Last King of Scotland.” No, there’s no Billy Connolly or Mike Myers (”Head, Pants, Now!) but there are a few kilts. It’s actually about Idi Amin who considers himself an honorary Scotsman when he meets a young doctor played by James McAvoy, who I keep getting confused with Jim Sturgess.  Oh well. When I saw the trailer for this movie I wanted to check it out just because of the greatness that is Forest Whittaker.  His performance did not disappoint.

SHORT PLOT SYNOPSIS:The movie is fictional story of Dr. Nicholas Garrigan (James McAvoy), a young Scottish doctor who travels to Uganda and becomes the personal physician to the dictator Idi Amin (Forest Whitaker). The movie is based on factual events of Amin’s rule.

OVERALL: Okay, I have to be honest. I got a little bored with this movie and zipped through a few parts here and there however, it was interesting to the see the rise of this dictator and how quickly everything got out of hand and the atrocities that occurred.   As I mentioned earlier, the story is fiction but it’s loosely based on English-born Bob Astles.

RENT IT? Yes because of Forest Whittaker’s Academy Award winning performance and to get a perspective of what happened in Uganda.

UPDATE: From 1977 to 1979, Amin titled himself as His Excellency, President for Life, Field Marsha Al Hadji Doctor Idia Amin Dada, VC, DSO, MC, Lord of All the Beast of the Earth and Fishes of the Seas and Conqueror of the British Empire in Africa and Uganda in Particular. I think this guy was quite impressed with himself. He died in Saudi Arabia on August 16, 2003.

Here we go…

• Finally felt a bit like fall this week. I really enjoyed going outside and not being instantly covered by sweat.
• You may remember that I had a $399 electric bill last month. I checked my electric bills of yore and lo and behold, I had a $389 whopper during the same time period! (July-August) I guess It’s just one of those things. I should probably look into rounding out my bill over the year. They still do that don’t they?
• High school football season starts soon. First scrimmage is tonight.  Here’s to my son staying healthy all season.
• I ran track and field in high school. Specifically, high jump and long jump. I should have done pole vault because I had decent upper body strength.  Still love watching it on TV during the Olympics.  I could watch Yelena Isinbayeva all day. And I am not saying that because she’s easy on the eyes.  Even her competitors and coaches have said she has almost perfect form, better than most men when clearing the bar. Amazing.
  
• Finishing up The Watchmen comic. It’s pretty good and makes me more excited about the movie. (which is now apparently delayed because of a legal fight about who owns the rights.WTG Suits!)
• My grass is green. Thank you rain.
  
• Got some good feedback on my job, yesterday. Feedback is good. Todd need feedback. Codemonkey like fritos.
  
• I really want to see Tropic Thunder this weekend. And get a massage. Wait a minute! I just had a brilliant idea. A massage parlor/movie theater! You could put a screen on the bottom of the floor so when you are getting a massage you can look through that little hole and watch a movie! Awesome. Note to self: Call Cinemark and Lulu’s Massage Hut.
  

Holy smoke.  This is Kevin Farley. Yes, he is the late great Chris Farley’s brother.  Now I knew that he had been doing some comedy and there’s even a national TV commercial running for Hertz where you can see and hear the resemblance. Well, while trolling the intertubes last night looking for a video to post today, I stumbled across this trailer for a movie called  An American Carol. UPDATE: FIXED LINK

He looks and sounds exactly like his brother! It’s like they cloned Chris Farley. Or did some weird CG. Now the movie looks dreadful and I predict box office failure but it feels so weird watching this thing.  Anybody else feel that way? (Fat guy in little coat….)

This scenic summer shot contains a bonus half of my left foot and the “adults only” pool at the Wynne Resort in Las Vegas courtesy of my camera phone.( I’m kind of impressed at how nice the picture turned out since I haven’t had much luck getting really clear shots with my phone.)

Ahh Vegas, how I love you, sometimes. You see, I get bored after about 3 days. Vegas is made for weekends.  You stay at a nice place, eat at a nice restaurant and you gamble until you lose your shirt or they stop serving you drinks.  This picture is from last summer and I remember it being very warm and I got quite the sunburn from this particular afternoon.

I probably should have worn some shorts.

Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather.

~John Ruskin

That kind of sums up my feeling about weather although I hate being cold. Specifically, up in the stands watching a football game clad only in a t-shirt because it was 65 earlier but now it’s 50 and and with the windchill, it feels like 40 and your kid is on the sidelines.  Now if I’ve got a blanket and a hot coffee and the score is tied and my team is driving down the field and there’s only 1 minute left then that’s awesome.

NOTICE: new poll on the right side about your ideal temperature.

So this weekend, I rented Southland Tales solely on the basis that it was directed by the same guy-Richard Kelly- that directed Donnie Darko which I thoroughly enjoyed and still kind of freaks me out. I even remember the website kind of freaking me out a little bit. (holy crap, it still does!) Anyway, Southland Tales stars The Rock, excuse me, Dwayne Johnson, Stifler, I mean Sean William Scott, and Buffy, dang it, I mean Sarah Michelle Gellar who looks fantastic in this movie.  Actually, the entire movie “looks” great in terms of the lighting and cinematography. Now that I am THE media guy at my office, I have really started to notice camera angles and lighting and color design, blah blah blah.  There is quite a large ensemble cast of recognizable people from John Larroqette to Nora Dunn, even Jon Lovitz, oh and this guy:

Bring it on down to Omletville! Hey, this scene with the blonde girls dancing was absolutely hypnotic as Justin lip syncs to “All These Things I’ve Done” by the Killers. (I’ve got soul but I’m not a soldier) Here’s a youtube clip of the scene.

SHORT PLOT SYNOPSIS: Ummm, okay. It’s set in the near future (kind of weird because the movie was made in 2006 and so it’s set in 2008) and El Paso and Abilene have been nuked which causes WWIII and there’s this whole US I-Dent internet Big Brother thing which monitors everybody and there’s a revolution and a space time rift and it’s really really weird and kind of hard to follow.

OVERALL: Here is a comment that someone made from that youtube clip…

“The movie had good visuals and good actors/actresses in it, but the storyline….what the???? I had no idea what was going on…Justin Timberlake quoting the bible and narrating the movie….didn’t make any sense to me.”

It’s visually very interesting but the whole time I am watching this I’m thinking, “Wow, that really cost a lot of money to make that and the producers are probably upset that this thing didn’t make any money…

Southland Tales grossed USD $275,380 in limited release at the North American box office, and $81,028 elsewhere, making a worldwide total of $356,408,^[27] falling far short of the film’s $15-17 million budget.

Yeah, I’d say they were upset.  That doesn’t even include marketing costs… Ouch.

RENT IT? Nope. Unless you are a huge huge fan of Donny Darko or like to be confused by pretty colors.  Sorry, I can’t recommend it.

UPDATE:: Turns out there’s a whole backstory in graphic novel form that was created to lead up to the movie. That would probably help with understanding the story line. Richard Kelly’s next movie is a horror film called the Box starrying Cameron Diaz. I shall refrain from making the obvious dirty joke.